Zechariah 11:2

Howl, fir-tree— O fir-tree; because the cedar is fallen, because, &c. Howl, O ye oaks of Bashan, because the defenced forest is overthrown. Houbigant. When any apologue or fable became celebrated for the art and beauty of its composition, or for some extraordinary efficacy in its application, it was soon converted and worn into a proverb. We have a fine instance of this in the message of Jehovah to Amaziah, Exodus 14:9 where we see plainly that Jotham's satiric apologue of the thistle and cedar was then become a proverb. Of the like kind is this of the prophet, Howl, O fir-tree, &c. to denote the danger of the lower people, when their superiors cannot withstand the tempest. See Div. Leg. b. 4: sect. 4.