24 So the children went in and poſſeſſed the land, and thou ſubdued(t before them the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, and gaveſt them into their hand, with their kings, and the people of the land, that chey might do with them F as they would.
25 And they took ſtrong cities, and a fat land, and | poſſeſſed heuſes full of all goods, || wells digged, vine- —_— yards, andolive-yards, and # fruit-crees in abundance: ';.,, il, ſo they did eat, and were filled, and * became fat, and | or, -
delighted them in thy great goodnels e. Ferns.
e i.e. In all theſe comforts and bleſſings, which by thy great Heb.fre#
goodneſs they obrained and enjoyed. of food. : 26 Nevertheleſs, they were diſobedient, and rebelled *D<v*3"
againſt thee, and * caſt thy law behind their backs, 2 rings
and flew thy * Prophets, which teſtified againſt them, to x. 9. turn them to thee,and they wrought great provocations. * 1Kn9% f i. e, Negle&ed and deſpiſed thy Laws, would not regard nor 79: )” obſerve them; whereas they:ſhould have had them continually before theiceyes,to dirett and govern them. Compare Pjal 50.17.Ezek 23.35.
27 * There«
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Chap- * N BE HR "Tudg. 2. 14. .
the hand of their enemies.
' returned !
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deliver them, according to thy mercies,
m2, hardened their neck g, and would not hear. wt ATA
0:
m# 07 hou them into the hand of the people of the lands.
tOtMe
I7-13-
t Heb. 172 {7,9 ſo much as to hear them! (14S, 2 X
thou art a gracious and merciful God. Y 22 Now therefore our God, the great, * the migh- *3+-ty, and the terrible God, who keepeſt covenant and * cb, mercy 4, let not all the | trouble ſeem little before thee zrinſf. 92+ that hath come upon us, on our kings ON our prin- 1-49 ces, and on our prieſts, and on our prophets, and on 2 feord Cur fathers, and on all thy people ſince the time of the
kings of Afſyria », unto this day.
15. e. Covenanred Mercy, or thy Covenant of Mercy and Peace. Or,he adds mercy,becauſe the Covenant in it {e}f was nor a ſufficient ground of hope, becauſe they having 1o baſely broken it, God was diſcharged from keeping it, and thercfore they fly to God's free and rich Mercy for relief. m Do not thou account 1t ſmall and in- ſufficient for our puniſhment, and that it is fir to continue and en- creaſe it. n Stri&ly and properly 1o called ; for from them was the beginning of all the calamities, both of Judah and of Iſrael, as appears from 2 Kings 15. 19+ and 18. 13. Or, the Kings of Ba- bylon, ſo called, 2 Chron. 33- Il»
22 Howbeit, thou «rt juſt in all that is brought up- on us : for thou haſt done right, but we have done wic- kedlys Z
24 Neither have our kings, our princes, Our prieſts, nor our fathers kept chy law, nor hearkened unto thy commandments, and thy teftimonies, wherewith thou didſt teſtifie againſt them. |
25 For they have not ſerved thee in their kingdom, and in thy great goodneſs that thou gaveſt them, and in the large and fat land which thou gaveft before them o, neither turned they from their wicked works.
0 7. e. Which thou didſtlay open to their view and Poſſeſſion, removing their Enemies, and all impediments out of the way. _
26 beheld, we are ſervants this day, and for the land that thou gaveſt unto our fathers, to eatthe fruit there- of, and the good thereof, behold, we are ſervants in itp.
Þ In that Land wherein heretofore, under thee, and by thy fa- vour, We were rightful Lords and owners. ;
37 And it yieldeth much increaſe unto the kings whom thou haſt ſet over us q becauſe of our fins : allo they have dominion over our bodies, and over our Cat- tel 7 at their pleaſure, and we are in great diſtreſs.
7 We plow, and ſow, and labour, and thou giveſt thy bleſſing to our endcavours ; and yet in a great meaſure this is not for our ſelves, as formerly it was, but-for our Kings, tro whom we pay great and heavy tributes for theſe things; of which ſee Ezra 6. 8. and 7. 24, » Prefling or forcing both us and our beaſts to go and do whar they pleaſes :
{Hoa 38 And becauſe of all this s, we make aſure covenant the ſ2al. *, and Wrice it, and our Princes, Levites, and pricfts | "%,0r ſeal. ſeal unto its
s 5 Becauſe allthis miſery lies upon us for our fins,we do heartily
repent of them, and reſolve to torſake them. s Or, we faithfully promiſe and engage our ſelves to future obedience.
27 * Therefore thou deliveredſt them into the hand P15 of their enemies, whovexed them, and in the time of 5 © their trouble, when they cried unto thee, thou heardeſt them from heaven : and according to thy manifold mer- cies, thou gaveſt them favours, who ſaved them out of
,., _ 28 Bur after they had reſt, f they did evil again be- me, fore thee : therefore lefreſt thou them in the hand of | > their enemies, fo that they had the dominion over them : yet when they returned and cried unto thee, thou hear- deft :h4:m from Heaven, and many times didſt thou de-
29 Andceſtifiedſt againit them, that thou mighteſt bring them again into thy law : yet they dealt proudly, and hearkened not unto thy commandments, but ſinned againſt thy judgments ( which if a man do, he ſhall
Weh.che live in them f) and F withdrew the ſhoulder, and
”* 20 Yet many years didft thou} forbear them h, and < teltitiedſt * againſt them by thy ſpirit in thy prophets {Hebpre-2 ; Vet would they not give ear &: therefore gaveſt
6X f Of which ſce on Levit- 18. 5. Ezek, 20. 11. Rom, 10. 5. Gal. 3. *?RINBS, 12. & 7. e. Would not ſubmit to thy yoke, like ſtubborn Oxen. 3- h4i.e, Thou didit delay to bring upon them theſe Judgements which 2 Chr0: thou hadſt treatned, and they had deſerved, and didſt wait for 5f.15- their Repentance. #7 By thy proph.ts, who ſpake to them by the c. '” Inſpiration of thy Holy Spirit, whom therefore they ſhould have toy Hana o obeyed. k 7. e. Would not obey them, nor would they vouchſafe
2 Nevertheleſs tor thy great mercies ſake thou didft not utterly conſume them, nor forſake them, for
M 1 | 4 Bf.
prayeth with 7eſbua and Bani, &. before the feaſt of Tabernacles, ch: 8: v. 4, ©c. we haveno mention of him, c<. 9. but the whole work of that ſolemn Faſt-day was managed by them alone. without any mention of Ezra, whoſe name would not have been omitted, .if he had been then preſent. It is true, we meet with Ezrs after this,at the Dedication of the Wall of Jeruſalem, c<.i1. 36 and therefore he