" Chapter LVI. The ARGUMENT of Chapter LVI. Having, in the foregoing Chapter, given them pofitive Affurance that they should be delivered out of Captivity: The Prophet in this lets them know what Qualifications wou'd be requifite to. make them partake of this Deliverance. The Captives were either Native Jews, or Alien Profelytes. The first be tells to make themselves worthy of this Bleffing, were to be careful to obferve the Laws which God had given them: And the others needed not to be afraid of being excluded, upon the account of their Parentage, or thofe legal Incapacities they might be under, provided they kept the fame Laws with fincerity, fince God defign'd to make no diftinction, but redeem all, Strangers as well as Ifraelites, and have regard to nothing but Piety and Vertue, and a fincere endeavour to pleafe him, by a strict obfervance of his Laws; which should fet thofe of the Seed of Abraham, and those of other Nations on the level in his Affections. At the 9th Verfe, he either begins a new Prophecy, or else steps back, as it were, and acquaints them, that before these things were to come to pass, their Enemies, whom he compares to Wild Beafts, were to fall upon them and Worry them; and then inveighs against the Sins of their Rulers and Prophets, whofe business it was to put them in mind of their Duty, and fet them good Examples, inftead of which, they were blind and ignorant of their own Duty, or if they knew the great Charge intrufted in their Hands, they had not Courage enough to discharge it faithfully; they had narrow Souls and Selfish Principles, minded nothing but their own private Intereft, and were debauch'd into the Bargain. T CHAP. LVI. Verfe 1.Hus faith the Lord, keep ye judgment, and do nefs LVI. nefs to be reveal'd; that is, the time is coming wherein 1 Chapter will fave you and deliver you out of the Hands of the Chaldeans, and then my Righteoufnefs will be reveal'd, ye C will fee fo convincing a Proof of my Faithfulness that ye will be fully fatisfy'd, whatever I promise I never fail to perform. Ver. 2. Bleffed is the man that doth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the fabbath from polLuting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil] Happy fhall he be, who, during the time of his Affliction, has held faft his Integrity, has kept clofe to the Laws of God, has not polluted the Sabbath; which we muft understand of a careful Obfervation of all the Pofitive Injunctions of Mofes, as far as it was poffible in their circumftances, and not of that particular one of refting on the Seventh Day, because it is very unlikely their Babylonian Mafters would fuffer them to be idle a be idle a whole Day every Week, but keep them to conftant Drudgery. And then by keeping their hands from doing any evil, may be understood a fincere Obedience to the moral Laws. Ver. 3. Neither let the fon of the stranger, that hath joyned himself to the Lord, fpeak, faying, the Lord bath utterly Separated me from his people: neither let the eunuch fay, ben hold I am a dry tree. There were two forts of Strangers among the Jews,thofe who oblig'd themselves to the obfervation of the feven Precepts of Noah,and others who were under the fame obligations as the Jews themselves, of obferving the whole Syftem of Mofaical Laws: Of the laft, probably, the Prophet here fpeaks, fome of whom might be apt thus to argue with themselves, We are Foreigners, and have therefore no reafon to think God will deliver us as well as his own People; but the Prophet tells them it shall be otherwife,let not the fon of the ftranger who has join'd him felf to the Lord, by obliging himself to an obfervation of his Laws, fay, within himself, defpairing, The Lord will utterly feparate me from his people, and leave me behind in Captivity. Neither let the Eunuch fay, behold I am a dry Tree, that can contribute nothing toward the re-peopling of the Land of Judah, nor be admitted to worship God in Delft. 23. 1, the Temple, to what purpose therefore, fhould God redeem fo infignificant a Creature? And have I not reafon to be Eee 2 afraid Chapter afraid I alfo fhall be left behind? To which the Prophet anfwers No, in the following Verfes. IWI. Ver. 4 For thus faith the Lord unto the eunuchs that keep my fabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant] The Metaphor is taken from Men, who hold faft what they value, leaft it should be fnatch'd out of their Hand; and fets forth an Earnest defire of keeping God's Commandments.. Ver. 5. Even unto them will I give in mine houfe, and within my walls, a place and a name better than of fons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off] Tho' by the Law of Mofes, I have exprefly, forbid fuch caftrated Perfons fo much as to enter into my Temple yet if they keep my Sabbaths, and do the things that please me, and religionfly perform their part of the Covenant, into which they are enter'd with me, I will make no manner of diftinction between them and my own People, but they fhall return to Jerufalem, and be admitted into my Temple as freely as the Jews: And tho' they cannot have their Names continu'd in their Pofterity; yet I will give them a Name much better than of Sons, and of Daughters, and bestow upon them more lasting Honour, even fuch as fhall continue from Age to Age, plainly alluding to a Cuftom among the Jews, who re corded the Names of those who were Eminent for VerEcclefiafticu, tue, or any worthy Action of public Advantage to their Country, and read them publicly in the Congregation. There is nothing Parents more glory in than in the number of their Children, by which the little fpan of Life is as it were lengthen'd, and which gives them the pleafing profpect of having their Name and Family continu'd many Ages after they are dead and gone: This advantage they could not injoy, which God, tells them he will make up another way to them, make their Reputation more durable than the Name of a Family, continu'd in the Perfons of their Pofterity, and caufe Ages to come to remember them with Honour. 44. 1, 15. Ver. 6,7. Also the fons of the stranger, that joyn themfelves to the Lord, to ferve him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be his fervants, every one that keepeth the fabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant. Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them, joyful in my Chapter LVI. houfe of prayer their burnt-offerings and their facrifices fhall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine boufe fhall be called an houfe of prayer for all people. By this it is very plain that the Prophet is ftill on the Subject of the Babylonian Captivity; tho' A Lapide expound the holy Mountain by the Church. But what reafon can be given why Mount Sion on which the Temple was built, fhould fignify the Church of Chrift? as if the Gospel was first establish'd in Jerufalem, and immediately was in poffeffion of the Temple; and as if the Gentiles came there to hear it: The contrary of which we are affur'd of by the accounts of its Propagation. Befides, Sacrifices and Burnt-offerings are things the Church of Chrift is a stranger to; the plain meaning of the Prophet is this, I have formerly excluded Strangers Exod. 34. from my Congregation, but when I deliver you out of Levit. 20. Captivity, if there be any Strangers among you fincerely Religious, they alfo fhall be redeem'd and return with you to Jerufalem, they fhall be admitted into my Temple, and I will accept their Sacrifices as well as yours: For my Houfe fhall be call'd, that is, fhall be a Houfe of Prayer for All People, not for Jews only but for other Nations alfo, without exception or exclufion of any. Ver. 8. The Lord God, which gathereth the outcafts of Ifrael, faith, Yet will I gather others to him, befides thofe that are gathered unto him.] Our Tranflators have rightly added others which is not in the Hebrew, but must be fupply'd, it being the Prophets meaning that not only the Jews, who were caft out of the Land of Judea, fhould return to it again, but others alfo even all thofe who by this glorious Inftance of Omnipotency, fhall be brought off from Idolatry, and be defirous to Worship the true God: This I take to be the true, meaning of the Prophet, and thus Mr. Maitre de Saci has render'd. the Words, Je reunira encore a Ifraele cux qui viendront pour fe joindre a celui. Tho' Grotius thinks he is to be understood of the Second gathering of the Jews under ebemiah, after that Collection of them, which return'd to: Judea before, under the conduct of Ezrah. Ver. 9. All ye beasts of the field, come to devour, yea, all ye beafts in the foreft. This may be connected with the foregoing LVI. Chapter foregoing Verfe thus, The Lord will certainly, in his appointed time, bring home the Jewish outcasts: But Ifrael must first fuffer unheard of Cruelties. Their Enemies fhall fall upon them with the fame fierceness, that wild Beafts feize on their Prey: Which Misfortunes fhall fall upon them, for the wickedness of their Priefts and Governors; thus the Imperative Ethau ftands for the Future, which is not unufual. Ver. 16. His watchmen are blind: they are all ignorant, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; fleeping, lying down, "Loving to flumber.] The Watch-men of Ifrael are blind, thofe that ought to take care of the Peoples fafety, who fit at the Helm of Government, and fhould at a distance foresee impending Storms, and timely provide against them, are blind, have no forecast to fee what their Enemies defign against them: Whom he compares to timerous Curs, that lie filent in their Kennels, without courage to alarm the People, and make them prepare for their defence. Ver. 11. Tea they are greedy dogs which can never have enough, and they are fhepherds that cannot understand: they all look to their own way, every one for his gain from his quarter.] Tho' it be their Bufinefs to be mindful of the public Welfare intrusted in their Hands, every one is intent on his own private Intereft only, always fcraping and never fatisfy'd; they are Shepherds that know nothing of the Danger their Flocks are expos'd to, they do nothing but look to their own ways, every one for his gain; Mikkatzehu from one end of them to the other, that is, from the highest to the loweft; or from one end of the City to the other, no place was free from their ravenous Extortion; or as others render the Word, without end, their infatiable Avarice knows no bounds, there is no end of their Covetoufnefs and Oppreffion. Ver. 12. Come ye, fay they, I will fetch wine, and we will fill our felves with strong drink, and to morrow fhall be as this day, and much more abundant.] This, in all probability, thefe drunken Guardians of the People, faid in derifion of the Prophets, who were continually threatning them with Destruction: They tell us of imminent Danger and strange Calamities which hang over our Heads, but mind them not |