19 Therefore thus saith the LORD, "If thou return, then will I bring thee again, and thou shalt stand before me: and if thou 'take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt be as my mouth: let them return unto thee; but return not thou unto them. Heb. be not sure. a See ch. i. 18, 19. b Job vi. 15, &c.d Zech. iii. 7. nomenon in the sandy desert, where, by a peculiar action of the air on the rising vapours, the resemblance of water is produced, so that the traveller, deceived, rejoices that he is come, in the sandy desert, to the verge of a beautiful lake; but the further he travels, it is still at the same distance, and at last vanishes; and he finds the whole was an illusion, for the waters have failed. Nothing can exceed the disappointment of the farmer whose subsistence absolutely depends on the periodical rains, when these fail, or fall short of their usual quantity. Sometimes the rice is sown and springs up in the most promising manner; but the latter rains fail, and whole fields of young rice wither and perish. Verse 19. If thou return] By repentance unto me,— Then will I bring thee again] Restore thee to thy own country. But some think the words are spoken to the prophet in reference to his ministry. He had greatly repined because of the persecutions which he is encouraged. A. M. cir. 3399. B. C. cir. 605. Ol. XLIII. 4. Tarquinii Prisci, R. Roman., cir, annum 12. 20 And I will make thee unto this people a fenced brasen wall and they shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee: for I am with thee to save thee and to deliver thee, saith the LORD. 21 And I will deliver thee out of the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem thee out of the hand of the terrible. e Ver. 1. Ezek. xxii. 26. xliv. 23. = Ch. i. 18. vi. endured. The Lord reprehends him, and is about to take from him the prophetic gift; but exhorts him first to take the precious from the vile-not to attend to the deceitful words of the people, but boldly declare the message he had given him; not to return unto the people, but let the people return unto him. And then he should be as God's mouth-his words should appear to be what they were, the genuine words of God; and the people should be obliged to acknowledge them as such. Verse 20. I will make thee-a fenced brasen wall] While thou art faithful to me, none of them shall be able to prevail against thee. Verse 21. I will deliver thee out of the hand of the wicked] From the power of this evil people. And I will redeem thee out of the hand of the terrible.] Out of the power of the Chaldean armies. Every thing took place as God had promised, for no word of his can ever fall to the ground. CHAPTER XVI. On account of the evils which threatened his country, the prophet is forbidden to encumber himself with a wife and family, or to bear any share in the little joys and sorrows of his neighbours, which were to be forgotten and absorbed in those public calamities, 1–9, which their sins should draw on them, 10-13. A future restoration however is intimated, 14, 15, after those calamities should be endured, 16-18; and the conversion of the Gentiles is foretold, 19-21. heaven, and for the beasts of the earth. 5 For thus saith the LORD, Enter not into the house of mourning, neither go to lament nor bemoan them: for I have taken away my peace from this people, saith the LORD, even loving-kindness and mercies. A. M. cir. 3400. B. C. cir. 604. Ol. XLIV. 1. Tarquinii Prisci, R. Roman., cir. annum 13. 11 Then shalt thou say unto them, ' Because your fathers have forsaken me, saith the LORD, and have walked after other gods, and have served them, and have worshipped them, and have forsaken me, and have not kept my law; 12 And ye have done worse than your fathers; for, behold, " ye walk every one after 6 Both the great and the small shall die in this land: they shall not be buried, neither shall men lament for them, nor cut them- the imagination of his evil heart, that they selves, nor make themselves bald for them: 7 Neither shall men g tear themselves for them in mourning, to comfort them for the dead; neither shall men give them the cup of consolation to drink for their father or for their mother. 8 Thou shalt not also go into the house of feasting, to sit with them to eat and to drink. 9 For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will cause to cease out of this place in your eyes, and in your days, the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride. 10 And it shall come to pass, when thou shalt shew this people all these words, and they shall say unto thee, Wherefore hath the LORD pronounced all this great evil k Ps. lxxix. 2. Ch. vii. 33. xxxiv. 20..———b Ezek. xxiv. 17, 2,2.- Or, mourning feast.- d Ch. xxii. 18. Lev. six. 28. Deut. xiv. 1. Ch. xli. 5. xlvii. 5.- - Isai. xxii. 12. Ch. vii. 29.- - Or break bread for them, as Ezek. III. 17. Hos. ix. 4. See Deut. xxvi. 14. Job xlii. 11. Prov. xxxi. 6, 7.— Isai. xxiv. 7,8. Ch. vii. 34. xxv. 10. Verse 5. Enter not into the house of mourning] The public calamities are too great to permit individual losses to come into consideration. Verse 6. Nor cut themselves] A custom of the heathen forbidden to the Jews, Lev. xix. 28, Deut. tir. 1, and which appears now to have prevailed among them; because, having become idolaters, they conformed to all the customs of the heathen. They tore their hair, rent their garments, cut their hands, arms, and faces. These were not only signs of sorrow, but were even supposed to give ease to the dead, and appease the angry deities. The Hindoos, on the death of a relation, express their grief by loud lamentations, and not unfrequently bruise themselves in an agony of grief with whatever they can lay hold on. Verse 8. Thou shalt not also go into the house of feasting] Funeral banquets were made to commemorate the dead, and comfort the surviving relatives; and the cup of consolation, strong mingled wine, was given to those who were deepest in distress, to divert may not hearken unto me: r 14 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that it shall no more be said, The LORD liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; 15 But, The LORD liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had. driven them and I will bring them again. into their land that I gave unto their fathers. 16 Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the LORD, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and Ezek. xxvi. 13. Hos. ii. 11. Rev. xviii. 23.- k Deut. xxix. 24. Ch. v. 19. xiii. 22. xxii. 8.- 1 Deut. xxix. 25. Ch. xxii. 9. m Ch. vii. 26.- n Ch. xiii. 10. Or, stubborn-P Dent. iv. 26, 27, 28. xxviii. 36, 63, 64, 65.- -9 Ch. xv. 14. r Isai. xliii. 18. Ch. xxiii. 7, 8.- s Ch. xxiv. 6. xxx. 3. xxxii. 37. Amos iv. 2. Hab. i. 15. ness. their minds and to soothe their sorrows. These kinds of ceremonies were common among almost all the nations of the world on funeral occasions. The Canaanites, the Jews, the Persians, Arabians, New Zealanders, Huns, &c., &c. Verse 12. And ye have done worse than your fathers] The sins of the fathers would not have been visited on the children, had they not followed their example, and become even worse than they. Verse 13. Will I cast you out of this land] See chap. vii. 15, and ix. 15. Verse 14. The Lord liveth, that brought up] See Isai. xliii. 18. Verse 15. The land of the north] Chaldea: and their deliverance thence will be as remarkable as the deliverance of their fathers from the land of Egypt. Verse 16. I will send for many fishers--for many hunters] I shall raise up enemies against them some of whom shall destroy them by wiles, and others shall ruin them by violence. This seems to be the meaning of these symbolical fishers and hunters. Judah inclined A. M. cir. 3400. B. C. cir. 604. Ol. XLIV. 1. Tarquinii Prisci, R. Roman., cir. annum 13. JEREMIAH. and out of the holes of the to idolatry. A. M. cir. 3400. B. C. cir. 604. Ol. XLIV. 1. Tarquinii Prisci, R. Roman., cir. annum 13. they shall hunt them from every | and my refuge in the day of a 17 For mine eyes are upon all their ways: they are not hid from my face, neither is their iniquity hid from mine eyes. 18 And first I will recompense their iniquity b C g 20 Shall a man make gods unto himself, and they are no gods? 21 Therefore, behold, I will this once cause them to know, I will cause them to know mine and their sin double; because they have defiled my land, they have filled mine inheritance with the carcases of their detestable and abo-hand and my might; and they shall know minable things. Verse 18. The carcases of their detestable-things.] Either meaning the idols themselves, which were only carcases without life; or the sacrifices which were made to them. Verse 19. The Gentiles shall come] Even the days shall come when the Gentiles themselves, ashamed of their confidence, shall renounce their idols, and acknowledge that their fathers had believed lies, and worshipped vanities. This may be a prediction of the calling of the Gentiles by the gospel of Christ; if so, it is a light amidst much darkness. In such dismal accounts there is, need of some gracious promise relative to an amended state of the world. that my name is The LORD. Verse 20. Shall a man make gods unto himself?] Can any be so silly, and so preposterously absurd? Yes, fallen man is capable of any thing that is base, mean, vile, and wicked, till influenced and converted by the grace of Christ. Verse 21. Therefore, behold, I will this once] 1 will not now change my purpose. They shall be visited and carried into captivity; nothing shall prevent this: and they shall know that my name is JEHOVAH. Since they would not receive the abundance of my mercies, they shall know what the true God can do in the way of judgment. CHAPTER XVII. This chapter begins with setting forth the very strong bias which the people of Judah had to idolatry, with the fatal consequences, 1-4. The happiness of the man that trusteth in Jehovah is then beautifully contrasted with the opposite character, 5-8. God alone knows the deceitfulness and wretchedness of the heart of man, 9, 10. The comparison of a bird's hatching the eggs of another of a different species, which will soon forsake her, is highly expressive of the vanity of ill-acquired riches, which often disappoint the owner, The prophet continues the same subject in his own person, appeals to God for his sincerity, and prays that the evil intended him by his enemies may revert on their own heads, 12-18. The remaining part of the chapter is a distinct prophecy relating to the due observance of the Sabbath, enforced both by promises and threatenings, 19-27. 11. A. M. cir. 3400. THE sin of Judah is written their heart, and upon the horns b with a pen of iron, and with the point of a diamond: it is graven upon the table of a Job xix. 24.- b Heb. nail. NOTES ON CHAP. XVII. Verse 1. The sin of Judah] Idolatry. Is written with a pen of iron] It is deeply and indelibly written in their heart, and shall be as indelibly written in their punishment. Writing with the point of a diamond must refer to glass, or some vitrified substance, as it is distinguished here from engraving with a steel burine, or graver. Their altars Cursed is he who trusts in man ; A. M. cir. 3400. *groves by the C green trees CHAP. XVII. upon 3 0 my mountain in the field, 'I will give thy substance and all thy treasures to the spoil, and thy high places for sin, throughout all thy borders. 4 And thou, even thyself, shalt discontinue from thine heritage that I gave thee; and I will cause thee to serve thine enemies in the land which thou knowest not: for ye have kindled a fire in mine anger, which shall burn for ever. 5 Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD. i blessed is he who trusts in God. desert, and shall not see when 1 A. M. cir. 3400. 7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. m 8 For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of "drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. 9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? 10 I the LORD search the heart, I try the 6 For he shall be like the heath in the reins, Peven to give every man according to Jadg. in. 7. 2 Chron. xxiv. 18. xxxiii. 3, 19. Isai. i. 29. xvii. 8. Ch. ii. 20. Ch. xv. 13.- Heb. in thyself. Ch. xvi. 13.- e Ch. xv. 14. -f Isai. xxx. 1, 2. xxxi. 1. See Isai. xxxi. 3. b Ch. xlviii. 6. - Job xx. 17. Deut. xxix. 23. - Ps. ii. 12. xxxiv. 8. cxxv. 1. cxlvi. 5. In several parts of India, and all through Ceylon, an iron or steel pen is used universally; with these the natives form the letters by incisions on the outer rind of the palm leaf. Books written in this way are very durable. This pen is broad at the top, has a very fine sharp point, and is sharp at one side as a knife, to shave and prepare the palm leaf. A pen of this description now lies before me. Verse 2. Whilst their children remember] Even the rising generation have their imagination stocked with idol images, and their memories with the frantic rites and ceremonies which they saw their parents observe in this abominable worship. Prov. xvi. 20. Isai. xxx. 18.- m Job viii, 16. Ps. i. 3. is sufficiently supplied with moisture, though the heat be intense, and there be no rain; for the roots being spread out by the river, they absorb from it all the moisture requisite for the flourishing vegetation of the tree. Shall not see when heat cometh] Shall not feel any damage by drought, for the reason already assigned. It shall be strong and vigorous, its leaf always green ; and shall produce plenty of fruit in its season. Verse 9. The heart is deceitful] apy akob halleb, "the heart is supplanting-tortuous-full of windings-insidious;" lying ever at the catch; striving to avail itself of every favourable circumstance to gratify its propensities to pride, ambition, evil desire, and corruption of all kinds. And desperately wicked] veanush hu, and ואנש הוא Verse 3. O my mountain in the field] The prophet here addresses the land of Judea, which was a mountainous country, Deut. iii. 25; but Jerusalem itself may be meant, which is partly built hills which, upon like itself, are elevated above the rest of the country. Verse 5. Cursed be the man that trusteth in man] This reprehends their vain confidence in trusting in Egypt, which was too feeble itself to help, and, had it been otherwise, too ill disposed towards them to help them heartily. An arm of flesh is put here for a weak and ineffectual support. And he who, in reference to the salvation of his soul, trusts in an arm of fesh—in himself or others, or in any thing he has done or suffered, will inherit a curse instead of a blessing. Verse 6. He shall be like the heath in the desert] ***ɔ kearar; or, like a blasted tree, without mois-in him till it boils over, and is often past remedy ture, parched and withered. it ? Who can know it?] It even hides itself from itself; so that its owner does not know it. A corrupt heart is the worst enemy the fallen creature can and abomination; and its owner knows not what is have; it is full of evil devices,-of deceit, of folly, before the evil is perceived. Therefore, trust not in man, whose purposes are continually changing, and who is actuated only by motives of self-interest. Verse 10. I the Lord search the heart] The Lord is called by his apostles, Acts i. 24, Kapdtoyvworns, the Knower of the heart. To him alone can this epithet be applied; and it is from him alone that we 9 A The prophet prays to God, A. M. cir. 3400. Ol. XLIV. 1. his ways, and according to the | I desired the woeful day; thou a 11 As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end shall be a fool. d e 13 O LORD, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be 'written in the earth, because they have forsaken the LORD, the * Fountain of living waters. A. M. cir. 3400. thou art my 18" Let them be confounded that persecute A. M. cir. 3393. 12 A glorious high throne from the begin- me, but let not me be confounded: let them ning is the place of our sanctuary. be dismayed, but let not me be dismayed: bring upon them the day of evil, and destroy1 them with double destruction. 19 Thus saith the LORD unto me; Go and stand in the gate of the children of the people, whereby the kings of Judah come in, and by the which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem; h 14 Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for thou art my praise. i 15 Behold, they say unto me, Where is the word of the LORD? let it come now. 16 As for me, I have not hastened from being a pastor 'to follow thee: neither have Or, gathereth young which she hath not brought forth. b Ps. lv. 23.- c Luke xii. 20.- d Ch. xiv. 8.- -e Ps. lxxiii. 27. Isai. i. 21. f See Luke x. 20. 8 Ch. ii, 13. h Deut. x. 28. Ps. cix. 1. cxlviii. 14.- Isai. v. 19. Ezek. B. C. cir. 611. R. Roman, cir. annum 6. 20 And say unto them, Hear ye the word of the LORD, ye kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, that enter in by these gates: xii. 22. Amos v. 18. 2 Pet. iii, 4.- Ps. xxv. 2. 9 Ch. xi. 20. n Heb. * Ch. i. 4, &c.Ps. xxxv. 4. xl. 14. lxx. 2. -P Heb. break them with a double breach. r Ch. xix. 3. xxii. 2. can derive that instruction by which we can in any come to true honour. Their names shall be written measure know ourselves. Verse 11. As the partridge] xp kore. It is very (As) the koré that hatcheth what it doth not lay, "The covetous man," says Dahler, "who heaps up riches by unjust ways, is compared to a bird which hatches the eggs of other fowls. And as the young, when hatched, and able at all to shift for themselves, abandon her who is not their mother, and leave her nothing to compensate her trouble, so the covetous man loses those unjustly-gotten treasures, and the fruit of his labour." And at his end shall be a fool.] Shall be reputed as such. He was a fool all the way through; he lost his soul to get wealth, and this wealth he never enjoyed. To him also are applicable those strong words of the poet : "O cursed lust of gold! when for thy sake BLAIR. Verse 12. A glorious high throne] As he is cursed who trusts in man, so he is blessed who trusts in GoD. He is here represented as on a throne in his temple; to him in the means of grace all should resort. He is the support, and a glorious support, of all them that trust in him. Verse 13. Written in the earth] They shall never in the dust; and the first wind that blows over it shall mar every letter, and render it illegible. Verse 14. Heal me—and I shall be healed] That is. I shall be thoroughly healed, and effectually saved, if thou undertake for me. Thou art my praise.] The whole glory of the work of salvation belongs to thee alone. Verse 15. Where is the word of the Lord?] Where is the accomplishment of his threatenings? · Thou hast said that the city and the temple should both be destroyed. No such events have yet taken place. But they did take place, and every tittle of the menace was strictly fulfilled. Verse 16. I have not hastened from being a pastor] Dr. Blayney translates thus: "But I have not been in haste to outrun thy guidance." I was obliged to utter thy prediction; but I have not hastened the evil day. For the credit of my prophecy I have not desired the calamity to come speedily; I have rather pleaded for respite. I have followed thy steps, and proclaimed thy truth. I did not desire to be a prophet; but thou hast commanded, and I obeyed. Verse 17. Be not a terror unto me] Do not command me to predict miseries, and abandon me to them and to my enemies. Verse 18. Let them be confounded] They shall be confounded. These words are to be understood as simple predictions, rather than prayers. Verse 19. The gate of the children of the people] I suppose the most public gate is meant; that through which there was the greatest thoroughfare. Verse 20. Ye kings of Judah, and all Judah] This |