two tails of these smoking fire-brands, for the fierce anger of Rezin with Syria, and of the fon of Remaliah.

In this and the following verfes, to the end of the chapter, the prophet records the comfortable meffage he received from God to carry to Ahaz; in narrating which, he blends fogether the orders that were given him, and his execution of them, to prevent repetitions. It begins with a neceffary caution, which you will do well to confider as addreffed to yourfelves: Take heed. The Hebrew word fignifies, to prevent or keep off any evil with which we are threatened. The direction ought to extend to all that we do; for not one duty can be rightly performed without diligent attention, and it is no lefs incumbent upon us than upon the king and people of Judah. It is a neceffary and useful caution, which ought to be reduced to practice at all times, especially in feafons of perplexity and diftrefs, fuch as that was wherein Ahaz and his fubjects received this admonition. Take heed to your hearts, and keep them with all diligence, for out of them are the iffues of life: attend to the secret operations of your minds, and the objects on which your affections terminate, that you may perceive whether or not they are properly moderated and directed. Take heed to your tongue, that you fin not with your mouth confider wifely what you fay, to whom you Ipeak, and to what purpofe, efpecially when your minds are fretted, and when you feel yourfelves under the influence of timidity and difappointment. Take heed to your fenfes, particularly to what you fee and hear; for these are the avenues by which fin and vanity, or wisdom and inftruction, enter into the heart. Take heed to your actions, what you do, and how you act, and for what purpose you are employed, that you may happily avoid the many fins and dangers to which you are expofed, and attain the great ends which you ought uniformly to purfue. And be 3 D

quiet.

quiet. The mind of Ahaz, and the minds of his people, were at this time greatly agitated, by the confideration of the perilous circumftances to which they found themselves reduced. They were all in commotion, like the trees of the wood when moved by the wind. This wicked prince who now filled the throne of Judah, must have been like the troubled fea, when it cannot reft, whofe waters caft up, mire and dirt. Such notorious finners as were now in Zion had many grounds of difquietude. In this ftate of perturbation and anxiety, they are directed to diveft themselves of those distracting thoughts which arose from the dreaded approach of their enemies, to lay afide their diftruftful folicitude, and not vex themselves in vain. They were also required to poffefs a calm, compofed, recollected ftate of mind; to truft in the Lord, and then they would be quiet from fear of evil.Some truft in chariots, and fome in horfes, in the numbers, the discipline, and valour of their armies: do you, my friends, remember the name of the Lord your God; then may you find, as in former times, that when they are brought down and fallen, you fhall rise and stand upright *.'

Fear not, neither be faint-hearted. Fear is a natural paffion, which arifes in the mind of man on the view of threatened, expected calamities, and is infeparable from human nature in its prefent ftate. Though people are naturally in fome measure afraid at the profpect of danger, and ought to use every lawful expedient to, efcape the evils that are dreaded, this paffion becomes finful and diftreffing, when it depreffes the fpirits, and leads to defpair of deliverance. To this finful extreme did the fear of the Ifraelites proceed, when they faw the Egyptians in their rear, and the Red sea in their front, as you read in the fourteenth chapter of Exodus. The king of Judah, and his fubjects, felt at this time the influence of

* Pfal. xx. 7, 8.

fuch

fuch exceffive distracting fear, from which God, by the
prophet, here diffuades them. He does not admonish
them to become secure and infenfible of danger, and '
to be wholly devoid of moderate fear on this alarming
occafion, which might render them cautious and cir
cumfpect, and attentive to the means of preservation
and fafety; much lefs to lay afide the fear of the
Lord, which is the trueft wifdom. The good effects
of a holy, well-regulated fear, are confpicuous in the
conduct of Noah, who, being thereby moved, prepar-
ed an ark, to the faving of his houfe; and in the
Ifraelites who feared the Lord, when, at the approach
of divine judgments, they made their fervants and
cattle flee into the houses. It was certainly the duty
of Ahaz, to take every proper precaution in order to
avoid the danger he fo much dreaded. The fear
against which the king and people of Judah are here
cautioned, is of that kind which is accompanied with
torment, which proceeds from infidelity, overwhelms
the mind with terror, and which fo difturbs and dif
tracts it as to difable from the right ufe of the
means of deliverance, and the faithful performance of
duty. This fear of man, this faint-heartedness, they
are required to lay afide, as it might prove exceeding.
ly hurtful to them in their prefent dangerous condi-
tion. This falutary advice I addrefs to you, my
brethren, Fear not, neither be faint-hearted, in the
profpect of the greatest dangers of which you may be
apprehenfive: your Redeemer is mighty; the Lord
of hofts is his name. The Lord preferveth the faith-
ful. Be of good courage, and he fhall ftrengthen
your heart, all ye that hope in the Lord.'

For the two tails of these finoking fire-brands, for the fierce anger of Rezin with Syria, and of the fon of Remaliah. To banish effectually from the minds of Ahaz and his people, thofe difmaying fears against which they were cautioned, the prophet fubjoins a moft con.

* Pfal. xxxi. 23, 24

temptible

a

temptible representation of the enemies whom they fo much dreaded. The confederate princes of Syria and Ifrael are compared to two fire-brands, or pieces of burning wood, which for a little make a great blaze, and are quickly extinguished, fo that both their heat and me are foon over. Though when beheld at a distance, by persons who are frighted, efpecially in a dark night, they appear at firft fight very formidable, yet in reality they have little hurtful or terrible in them. What! might the terrified prince fay, not fear, when fuch powerful enemies are coming to invade the kingdom: they will confume all before them, like the flame of devouring fire. No, faith Ifaiah: they refemble only the two tails of fmoking fire-brands, whofe flame foon dies, after which they fmoke for a fhort time, and then are at an end. In them you have a fignificant reprefentation of Rezin and Pekah. In the former year, their fierce anger had been kindled against Judah, and for fome time raged with wio lence; now it was nearly extinguifhed, and little more remained than fmoke. You may obferve, that these princes are compared not to burning fire-brands, but to the tails of thofe which are fmoking, and nearly confumed; which exhibits them in a very diminutive point of view, as incapable of doing much hurt, and therefore not the proper objects of terror. Their heat and ftrength were almoft fpent; their rage and fury were foon to abate; and therefore their hoftile defigns were not greatly to be dreaded.How infignificant and contemptible are the objects of which we are fometimes afraid, if properly confidered! they are no more to be feared than bits of burning wood, that are moftly confumed. To check this timidity, let us view things in the true light in which they are reprefented in fcripture; and exercise constant dependence upon the kind providence and faithful promifes of God, who difappoints the defigns of the crafty, and works glorious deliverance for thofe who put their trust in him. Let us

not

not be greatly dejected, nor defpair, in the most dan gerous circumftances, of his gracious interpofition, who hath delivered, and will deliver his people from all evil. :

5 Becaufe Syria, Ephraim, and, the fon of Remaliah have taken evil counsel against thee, faying,

6 Let us go up against Judah, and vex it, and let us make a breach therein for us, and fet a king in the midft of it, even the fon of Tabeal.

The prophet here informs the king of Judah, that he was perfectly acquainted with the caufelefs anger, the adverse counfels, and fecret machinations of the confederate princes, notwithstanding he cautioned hini against difmaying fears.He well knew, that the Syrians and Ephraimites (with the king, who in way of contempt feems to be called the Son of Remaliah) were undertaking an expedition against Judah, with the mifchievous defign of overturning that king, dom, of dethroning Ahaz, and in his room elevat ing to the government the fon of Tabeal. He had the best information, that the project which Rezin and Pekah had formed, to the execution of which they mutually encouraged each other, was, to march their forces, when united, into the land of Judah. Though they feem not to have had any juft caufe of quarrel with Ahaz, or any fufficient reafon for carrying war into his dominions, yet, confident of their power to conquer Judea, and not hesitating with refpect to their fuccefs, they refolved, to gratify their ambition and other turbulent paffions, to invade that country, and diftrefs its inhabitants. That they might the more fuccefsfully accomplish the hoftile defigns. they had in view, they determined, if poffible, to make a breach in the defence of the Jewish empire; or, as the original word may fignify, Let us make a divifion therein for us, or, in other words, Divide the

kingdom