Imagini ale paginilor
PDF
ePub

IV. 3. He shall judge among the people, &c. and they shall beat their swords into plowshares. See Isaiah ii. 4.

IV. 5. For all people will walk every one in the name of his God, and we will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever.

While those, that are without the pale of the Church, walk after the false religion of their idol-Gods, we will walk in the profession of the holy truth of God for ever.

IV. 6, 7. In that day, saith the LORD, will I assemble her that halteth, and I will gather her that is driven out, and her that I have afflicted; And I will make her that halted a remnant, and her that was cast far off a strong nation, and the LORD shall reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth even for ever.

In those days of the Gospel, will I call home to my Church the synagogues of the Jews; even those despised people, which are justly driven out of their land, and deservedly afflicted by me: and I will reduce those rebellious and outcast people to the profession of my truth, and will make them true members of my Church; and the Lord Christ shall reign over that Evangelical Church of mine, consisting of Jews and Gentiles, in his heavenly Zion, from henceforth, even for ever.

IV. 8. And thou, O tower of the flock, the strong hold of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, even the first dominion; the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jeru

salem.

And to thee, O thou famous hill of earthly Zion, shall this blessing first come: there shall be the first beginning of this glorious and powerful Gospel and Kingdom of Christ, and from thee shall go forth to the whole Church of God.

IV. 9. Now why dost thou cry out aloud? is there no king in thee? is thy counseller perished? for pangs have taken thee as a woman in travail.

Now, therefore, why art thou dejected, as if thou wert utterly cast off; as if there were no king to uphold and defend thee, no counseller to take care for thee? Why art thou in these pangs of distress, as a woman in travail?

IV. 10. Be in pain, and labour to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in travail: for now shalt thou go forth out of the city, and thou shalt dwell in the field, and thou shalt go even to Babylon; there shalt thou be delivered; there the LORD shall redeem thee from the hand of thine enemies.

And indeed, O my Church of Judea, I give thee leave to be grieved and pained for a time; for thou shalt be driven forth of thy cities, and carried away into the captivity of Babylon, but thou shalt not long lie under this affliction: the Lord thy God shall fetch thee thence in his appointed time, and shall redeem thee from the hand of thine enemies; and all this shall

be, in a type of the state and deliverance of my Church, from the hands of their spiritual enemies.

IV. 11. Now also many nations are gathered against thee, that say, Let her be defiled, and let our eye look upon Zion.

Even at this time, many nations of the Assyrians and their assistants are conspiring together against thee; that say, Let us defile her streets with blood, and let our eye see Zion razed and ruined.

IV. 12. But they know not the thoughts of the LORD, neither understand they his counsel: for he shall gather them as the sheares into the floor.

But they little know, what the Lord hath designed to them: they know not his counsel and purpose; viz. that he intends their destruction, and will suddenly gather them into their graves, as the sheaves, in the time of harvest, into the barn.

IV. 13. Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion: for I will make thine horn iron, and I will make thy hoofs brass: and thou shalt beat in pieces many people: and I will consecrate their gain unto the LORD, and their substance unto the Lord of the whole earth.

Arise then, O Jerusalem, the type of my Evangelical Church, and be victorious over thine enemies: be not thou wanting to the exercise of that power, which I have given thee; for I have made thee able to subdue all that rise up against thee: in which successful victories, thou mayest not challenge ought unto thyself, but shalt ascribe the gain and praise thereof wholly unto the Lord of the whole earth.

V. 1. Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: he hath laid siege against us: they shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek.

Now, O ye troops of Assyrians and Babylonians, gather yourselves together, to lay your siege against Jerusalem: they shall offer scornful usages to Hezekiah, king of Judah.

V. 2. But thou Beth-lehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.

And thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, though thou be but one of the smallest cities, both for extent and for number of inhabitants, amongst all those of Judah; and therefore art easily taken and overrun by the great Assyrian invader; yet thou hast wherein thou mayest exceedingly comfort thyself, and rejoice above all other cities upon earth: for in thee shall the great Saviour of the World be born; even that glorious King of his Church, who, after his eternal generation of his Father, hath, from the first beginnings of the world, manifested and revealed himself to men.

V. 3. Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which travaileth hath brought forth: then the remnant of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel.

But, in the mean time, he shall suffer his Israel to be grievously afflicted: his Church shall be in travail of great sorrow, till she have received a deliverance thereof, by the birth of the Blessed Messiah, who shall be born into the world; and then, the elect amongst the Gentiles shall join themselves with the believing Israelites, and both shall make up the Church and Kingdom of Christ.

V. 4. And he shall stand and feed in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God; and they shall abide: for now shall he be great unto the ends of the earth.

And that great Redeemer of the World shall continue and grow mighty, in and through the strength of the Lord, and the majesty and power of the Lord his God, wherewith his human nature is inseparably united for ever; and shall be received and adored to the very ends of the earth.

V. 5. And this man shall be the peace, when the Assyrian shall come into our land: and when he shall tread in our palaces, then shall we raise against him seven shepherds, and eight principal men.

And this Saviour shall be our peace and deliverance from all our enemies; even from the Assyrians, when they shall invade our land: and when they and the Babylonians shall have taken our palaces and possessed them, then shall the power of Christ raise up unto us many gracious kings and princes of the Medes and Persians, which shall procure our restoration.

V. 6. And they shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in the entrances thereof.

And those Persian kings shall make waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Babylon in the entrances thereof.

V. 7. And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people as a dew from the LORD, as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of

men.

And those Jews, which shall be called into the Church, shall be dispersed amongst many people, for their conversion; even as the dew or showers, that God sends down upon earth to fruiten it, without the aid or labour of man: so shall they be a means from God, to diffuse the Gospel all over the world, to the great behoof and comfort of mankind.

V. 8. And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles in the midst of many people, as a lion among the beasts of the forest.

And those, that are converted to the Church, shall be so

strong and powerful amongst the Gentiles, in the greatest part of the world, as that they shall be able to prevail against their opposers, and shall be awful unto them, even as a lion amongst the beasts of the forest.

V. 9. Thine hand shall be lifted up upon thine adversaries. Thine hand, O my Church, shall prevail against thine ad

versaries.

V. 10, 11, 12. And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD, that I will cut off thy horses out of the midst of thee, and I will destroy thy chariots: And I will cut off the cities of thy land, and throw down all thy strong holds: And I will cut off witchcrafts out of thine hand; and thou shalt have no more soothsayers.

And in those days of the Gospel, I will give a happy peace unto thee, O my Church, so as thou shalt have no use of horses or chariots for thy defence: and I will take from thee all use of thy walled cities and strong holds; since my protection and thy peace shall be guard enough for thee: (or, I will take from thee all confidence in thy horses and chariots, and defenced cities; and thy trust shall be wholly set upon me :) as for those wicked practices of sorcerers and soothsayers, whereof thou hadst wont to make use in thy doubts and extremities, thou shalt have no more recourse unto them; but thou shalt consult with me in all occasions.

V. 14. So will I destroy thy cities.

When all this shall be performed on thy part, I will not be wanting unto thee; but will then destroy those cities of thine enemies, which shall rise up against thee.

VI. 1. Hear ye now what the LORD saith; Arise, contend thou before the mountains, and let the hills hear thy voice.

Arise, saith God to me, and call the very senseless earth, even the hills and mountains, to record, of what I have to say against my people.

VI. 2. Hear ye, O mountains, the LORD's controversy, and ye strong foundations of the earth: for the LORD hath a controversy with his people.

Now, therefore, O ye mountains of Israel and Judah, whose roots seem to reach down to the foundations of the earth, hear ye, since men will not hear: for the Lord hath a just quarrel against his people.

VI. 5. O my people, remember now what Balak king of Moab consulted, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him from Shittim unto Gilgal; that he may know the righteousness of the LORD.

Remember what answers I did put into the mouth of Balaam, the son of Beor; how I drew blessings, even from his mouth, upon you, instead of the curses, which Balak

VOL. IV.

F

would have hired him, to utter against you: remember all my gracious dealings with thee in all the passages of the wilderness, even from Shittim unto Gilgal, till the very entrance into the Land of Promise; that ye may acknowledge the righteous proceedings of the Lord with you.

VI. 6. Wherewith shall I come before the Lord &c.?

And that, in a true remorse of soul, ye may humble yourselves before him, and say within yourselves, wherewith shall I come before the Lord &c.?

VI. 8. He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good.

And if thou shalt once enter into these holy and penitent thoughts, O man, thou shalt not need to stay for a clear and full direction from him: lo, he hath already shewed thee what course to take; he hath taught thee what is good and acceptable to him.

VI. 9. The LORD's voice crieth unto the city, and the man of wisdom shall see thy name: hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it.

The voice of the Lord calleth, by me his prophet, to the city of Jerusalem; and those, that are wise-hearted, will have a due and awful respect to thy name, O Lord: hear, O Jerusalem, hear thou the sad news of that sharp rod of affliction, which is prepared for thee; and consider, who it is that hath appointed it, for thy correction.

VI. 10. Are there yet the treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and the scant measure that is abominable? Notwithstanding all the reproofs and menaces of my prophets are there not ill-gotten goods scraped together, and hoarded up in the houses of thy wicked inhabitants? Are there not false and scant measures, which are abominable?

VI. 13. Therefore also will I make thee sick in smiting thee.

I will make thee sick, even to death, with my sharp and wounding stripes of affliction.

VI. 14. And thy casting down shall be in the midst of thee; and thou shalt take hold, but shalt not deliver; and that which thou deliverest will I give up to the sword.

Thy casting down shall be in the midst of thine own streets: thou shalt fall, even within thine own walls; and thou shalt take hold on thy children, to deliver them from the enemy, but thou shalt not rescue them; and those, whom thou hast obtained to deliver from the present slaughter, will I soon after give up to the sword.

VI. 16. For the statutes of Omri are kept, and all the works of the house of Ahab, and ye walk in their counsels; that I should make thee a desolation, and the inhabitants thereof an hissing: therefore ye shall bear the reproach of my people.

For those impious statutes of Omri, the idolatrous king of

« ÎnapoiContinuă »