Ezek. xx. 37. I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant.
THE precise import of these words is not clear at first sight. If we take them in connexion with the preceding context, they must be considered as a continuation of the threatening denounced against the Jews for their abominable idolatries. Then their meaning will be, ' I will inflict upon you the judg- ments which your violations of my covenant de- mand :' or, as God had said by Moses, " I will bring a sword upon you, that shall avenge the quarrel of my covenant3." If, on the other hand, the words be taken in connexion with the following context, then they must be regarded as a promise, that, notwith- standing the judgments that should be inflicted on them, God had mercies in reserve for them, and would, at a future period, restore them to his favour. And this is the sense to which I rather incline. The obstinately rebellious amongst them, indeed, he would give up to their own lusts, and utterly destroy them b: but he would take out a chosen people from among them, and bring them to his holy mountain, and ac- cept all their offerings, and make himself known to them as their reconciled God and Father, and give them repentance to salvation, not to be repented of c. This exactly accords with what the prophet had spoken in a preceding chapter : " Thus saith the Lord God : I will even deal with thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the oath in breaking the covenant. Nevertheless, I will remember my cove- nant with thee in the days of thy youth ; and I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant d." In this view the words have a singular beauty ; and will lead us to some extremely profitable reflections.
It was customary with shepherds, as it is also at
a Lev. xxvi. 25. b ver. 38, 39.
c ver. 40—44. d Ezek. xvi. 59, 60.