the Connexion, or rather intirely laying it afide, interpreting one Verfe of the Jews, and the next of the Chriftians, making the Prophet fpeak here of his own times, and there of an imaginary Period at the end of the World; leaping from Subject to Subject, a Typo ad Antitypum; as if the Verfes were independent one of another, like the Fables of Efop, and the Prophet only glanc'd in a few Words at fome future Event, and then was by the Spirit, as it were, hurry'd away to another Subject. Whereas I never yet read any Author more careful in connecting the feveral Parts of his Difcourfes together; and his Tranfitions from one Subject to another are fo very obvious, that a Man muft wink very hard to overlook them. I fhall give one Inftance of this Neglect of the Connexion, and which fhall be from thefe Words of the Prophet, Nevertheless the dim. c. 9. 1. nefs fball not be fuch as was in her vexation, when at the firft he lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun, and the land of Nephthali, and afterward did more grievously afflict her by the way of the Sea, beyond Fordan, in Galilee of the Nations, the People that walk'd in darkness have feen a great light; they that dwell in the land of the shar dow of death, upon them hath the light fbin'd. In the foregoing Chapter the Prophet has been foretelling that the Jews fhould be driven from their Habitations, be forc'd to fly from place to place half ftarv'd with Hunger, in the height of their Mifery, curfing both God and their King, who could not protect them from their Enemy, looking to Heaven for Comfort, but behold darkness; not one glimpse of Confolation thence; and to the Earth, and behold trouble and darkness, and dimness of anguish; Menuf Tzuka, fuch darknefs as ufes to be in places of clofe Confinement, in Prifons and Dungeons. Now every one who has any knowledge of the Hebrew Language c. 36. 1. A Lapide. guage knows, that by Darkness and Dimness is to be understood Mifery, Affliction and Trouble; and fuch the Inhabitants of Judea had enough of, when Sennacherib came against them with an Army of two hundred thousand Men, and took most of the Cities and plunder'd the open Towns. Nevertheless (fays the Prophet) the dimness, that is, the Afflition of the Jews upon this Invafion fhall not be fo great as the Affliction of the Kingdom of the Ten Tribes, when Tiglath Pilezer first lightly afflicted the Land of Nephthali and Zabulon; and Salmanafar afterward more grievously afflicted her, carrying all her Inhabitants into Captivity: For the People that walk'd in Darkness, that is, the afflicted Jews shall fee a great light, that is, be delivered out of the hands of the Affyrian, and not be carry'd into Captivity, like their Brethren of the Ten Tribes. This is the plain Meaning of the Prophet, and now let us fee what turn they give the Words,who take no notice of the Connexion. Chrift fhall at first lightly spoil or make a Prey, and fnatch out of the Jaws of Satan, Idolatry and Hell, the Land of Zabulon and Nephthali; for there Christ firft preach'd, and thence he gather'd most of his Apoftles. And afterwards he made a greater Prey of them, especially in Galilee of the Gentiles daily preaching there, and doing a great many Miracles, and gaining a great many Profelytes. But what is become of Ki lo munaph, which connects this with the former Verfe: This is decently dropp'd by the Vulgat, or rather wrongly tranflated and joyn'd to the laft Verfe; and the Commentators, as if there were no fuch Words in the Original, begin this Chapter, At first he lightly. Forerius, confcious that as the Words now ftand, they cannot be thus interpreted without manifeft violence, accufes the Jews Jews of corrupting the Hebrew Text, changing Beneth in Tempore into Caneth; and infifts upon the Authority of the Vulgat. The LXX will give us no light here, and one would think by their Verfion of this place au wie, velociter bibe, either that they had not the fame Copy before them, or that we have not their Tranflation. The Chaldee Paraphraft feems to have read it fomething differently from our prefent Copies; but plainly gives it for the Senfe I have put on the Words, that he speaks of the first and fecond Captivity of the Ifraelites: but let us fee the Interpretation of Forerius. At first, that is, formerly the Inhabitants of Zabulon and Nephthali were vile, of no reputation; but in after-ages they fhall be honour'd with the Prefence and Miracles of our Saviour, especially, The Way which leads to the Sea of Galilee, call'd by the Vulgar, the Country beyond Jordan, or Galilee of the Gentiles. But why this ftraining of the Text? What can juftify this putting the Words of Scripture to the rack, and making them fpeak what they mean not? Why must fome Words be intirely omitted, and others wrongly tranflated, and no regard had to the Sacred Text? For this reafon, because upon our Saviour's leaving Nazareth, a Town in the higher Galilee in the Tribe of Zabulon, and going to Capernaum in lower Galilee in the Tribe of Nephthali, which was call'd Galilee of the Gentiles, as being partly inhabited by Egyptians, Arabians and Phe- Strabo, 1. 16. nicians, the Evangelift has this Expreffion, That it Mat. 4 14. might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Prophet Ifaias, The land of Zabulon and the land of Nephthali, the people that fat in darkness have feen a great light. Now if any one will give himfelf the trouble to read the Place referred to in Ifaiah, I think at firft View he will find that by Light in the Prophet, and Light in the P. 523. ; the Evangelift, two different things must be underftood, in one Profperity, in the other Illumination both which, according to the Idiom of the Hebrew Language, the Word Or will bear; and fo by the People fitting in darkness in Isaiah, must be understood People in Calamity; in St. Matthew, living in Ignorance of the Truth. Nothing I think can be plainer than that the Words of St. Matthew are to be underflood otherwife than in the Prophet from whom they are quoted, becaufe the principal Words which determin'd the Senfe of the Prophet, are left out by the Evangelift, Hekal and Hickbith, as well as the former part of the Verfe intirely, which being nothing at all to the purpose in hand he paffes by, and only quotes thofe Words which were applicable to the prefent occafion: For what Reason can be alledged why the Evangelift does not quote the whole Verfe? but this, that the Words as they stand in the Prophet were not proper on the Occafion, and therefore he pick'd out only thofe, which confidered by themselves, would fairly admit fuch a Senfe as was; and I can fee no reason why this Senfe may not be allow'd to be defign'd by the Holy Ghoft, tho' as they ftand in the Context they will admit another. Our Saviour, fays the Evangelift, came to refide at Capernaum, and preach the glad Tidings of Salvation among the ignorant Inhabitants of the lower Galilee; and then were fulfill'd thofe Words of the Prophet Ifaiah, ufed by him on another occafion, The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, which lies by the way of the Sea beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles. The People which fat in darkness faw a great light and to them which fat in the region and Jhadow of death, light is Sprung up. Then, I fay, thefe Words were fulfill'd; for tho' they admit another Sense suitable to the defign of the Prophet in that place, place, yet they were never fully accomplish'd in the 23. Thus what the Prophet fays about the fame Invafion by Sennacherib, For tho thy people Ifrael be as c. 10. 21, 22, the fand of the fea, yet a remnant of them shall return: the confumption decreed ball overflow with righteousness. For the Lord God of Hofts will make a confumption, even determined in the midst of all the land. Thefe Words, I fay, as they stand in the Context of Ifaiah, are to be understood of the Deftruction of a great many Jews by the Arms of the Affyrian, and the Deliverance of the reft; and yet we find them apply'd by St. Paul in a different Senfe, to fhew, that Rom. 9. 27. tho' the Nation of the Jews were very numerous, b yet |