"_A.M. 3279. B.C. 725._ One principal “subject of this and the four following Chapter s is the invasion of the Assyrians, and the great distress of the Jews while it continued; their sudden and unexpected deliverance by God's immediate interposition in their favour; the subsequent prosperous state... [ Continue Reading ]
_Wo to Ariel_ This word signifies _a strong lion_, or _the lion of God_, and is used concerning lion-like men, as it is rendered 1 Chronicles 11:22; and of God's altar, as it is translated Ezekiel 43:15; which seems to be thus called, because it devoured and consumed the sacrifices put upon it, as g... [ Continue Reading ]
_Yet will I distress Ariel_ Notwithstanding all your sacrifices, by bringing and strengthening her enemies against her. _And there shall be heaviness and sorrow_ Instead of your present joy and festivity. _And it shall be to me as Ariel_ That is, either, 1st, I will treat her like a strong and fierc... [ Continue Reading ]
_And I will camp against thee_, &c. That is, by those enemies whom I will assist and enable to take and destroy thee. The prophet may here refer to different sieges of Jerusalem, that of Sennacherib, that of the Chaldeans, or even to that of the Romans. _Thou shalt be brought down thy speech shall b... [ Continue Reading ]
_Moreover_ Or, rather, _But, the multitude of thy strangers_ Of the strangers that encamp and fight against thee; _shall be like small dust_ Dispersed by the least breath of air; _and the multitude of the terrible ones_ Of the Assyrian army, terrible for courage and ferocity; _shall be as_ the _chaf... [ Continue Reading ]
“As when a hungry man dreameth; and, lo! he seemeth to eat; but he awaketh, and his appetite is still unsatisfied: and as a thirsty man, &c. So shall it be with the multitude of all the nations, which have set themselves in array against mount Zion.” Thus Bishop Lowth. The Assyrians had swallowed up... [ Continue Reading ]
_Stay yourselves and wonder_ The prophet, having described the temporal judgment coming on the Jews, (see the contents of the chapter,) proceeds now to predict the spiritual one, the first gradation of which is contained in these and the two following verses, which both describe the judgment and the... [ Continue Reading ]
_And the vision of all_ Of all your prophets, or every vision; _is unto you as the words of a book that is sealed_ Which no man can read while it is sealed up, as books then sometimes were, being in the form of rolls. _Which men deliver to one that is learned_ That understands the language in which... [ Continue Reading ]
_Forasmuch as this people draw near_ to _me_ Namely, in acts of worship; _with their mouth_ Speaking to me in prayer and praise, and promising and professing to serve me; _and with their lips do honour me_ With mere outward devotion and bodily worship; _but have removed their heart far from me_ Do n... [ Continue Reading ]
_Wo unto them that seek deep_ Hebrew, המעמיקים, _that make_, or _dig deep;_ a metaphor from persons digging deep into the earth, that they may hide what they wish to keep safe and unknown. _To hide their counsel from the Lord_ Who vainly imagine that they can conceal their hypocrisy and secret wicke... [ Continue Reading ]
_Is it not a very little while_, &c. The following paragraph, to the end of the chapter, relates to the times of the gospel; the prophet foretelling therein, in figurative language, the rejection of the Jews and the calling of the Gentiles. Lebanon, a barren mountain, a desolate wilderness, here sta... [ Continue Reading ]
_In that day_, &c. In these two verses we have the first happy consequence of Lebanon's becoming a fruitful field, “the spiritual blessings of light and understanding in divine things, and of joy and consolation to be diffused among the Gentiles, formerly _deaf_ and _blind.” The deaf hear the words... [ Continue Reading ]
_For_, &c. Here we have the second event connected with the calling of the Gentiles, the punishment of the enemies of God and his truth. _For the terrible one is brought to naught_ The proud and potent enemies of those meek and poor believers, mentioned in the last verse, such as the unbelieving Jew... [ Continue Reading ]
_Therefore thus saith the Lord_ These verses contain the third consequence of turning Lebanon into a fruitful field; “a wonderful increase of the true seed of Abraham and Jacob disseminated through the whole world, in whom those patriarchs, according to the promises given them by God, might be able... [ Continue Reading ]