5s See the Note on the former Verſe, # It hath been ingeniouſly obſerved, that theſe two Words are not Hebrew, but C/alaee or Syriack Words, to point out the time when this was done, even when the Chaldeans brought in their Language together with their , Arms among the !ſraelites, P:KingS - *+ They have caſt fire into thy ſanctuary ; they Meh they have defiled by cating down the dwelling place of thy
bv ſerr name tothe ground «. thy San= « Firſt they polluted it, and then they burnt it, and broke it in fuary into pieces. :
the fire 8 They ſaid in their heart, Lerf vs deſtroy them to- tHeb. gether x ; they have burnt up all the ſynagogues of God
in the land y.
x Root and Branch, one as well as another, or all at once. So they deſired, and many of them intended, although afterwards, 1t ſeems, they changed their Counſel, and carried tome away Cap- tives, and left others to manage the Land. y 7. e. All the publick places wherein the Jews uſed to meet together to worſhip God, every Sabbath day, as is noted As 13. 27. and upon other occaſions: That the Jews had ſuch Synagogues,is manifeſt both from theſe and other places of Scripture; and from the reſtimony of the Hebrew Doors, and other Antient and Learned Writers, who affirm it,and particularly of Jeruſalem, in which they ſay there were avove tour hundred Synagogues ; and from the nature and necefliry of the thing : For ſeing it isundeniable that they did worſhip God pub- Iickly, in every Sabbath, and other holy times, even then when they neither did, nor could go up to Jeruſalem, both Conſcience and Prudence muſt needs dire& them to appoint convenient places for that purpoſe. : 31Sm. 9 We ſee not our ſigns 2; * there is no more any
Break,
4.1 prophet «, neither is there among us any that knoweth Amo» 8/ how long b.* = 7 : ty, z i. e. Thoſe Tokens of Gods gracious preſence, which we and
our Anceſtors formerly uſed to enjoy ; either,r. Miracles wrought for us. which are called Signs, Pſal. 78+ 43. and 135. 9. Or,2, The Ordinances of God, the Temple and Ark, and Sacrifices, and io- lemn Feaſts, all which were ſigns between God and his peop'e. s Either, 1. Any Teacher. We have few or no Teachers left to us. Or, 2. Any extraordinary Prophet, who can foret-1 things to come, as the next words explain it- Foras for Ezekiel and Jeremiah, . they might be dead when this Pſalm was Compoſed ; and Daniel was involved in Civil Afffairs, and did not teach the people as a Prophet, and the Propherical Spur, which ſometimes came upon him, and made thoſe great diſcoveriesto him, which we read in his Book, might poſſibly at this time ſuſpend his influences- Beſides it is not unuſual in Scripture, to fay that there is none of a ſort of perſons or things, when there is a very great ſcarcity of them. But others make this their great Argument, that this Pſalm ſpeaks of that Perſecution in the time of Antrochus, when indeed there was ne Prophet at all. + Either, r. How long their Captivity ſhould
continue : For though ſeventy years were determined, yet there |
might ariſe doubts among them, as there now are among us, whence
they were to be computed, which might make their end uncertain. | Or, 2+ How long they ſhould lye under reproach, as it follows v. 10. whichthey really did, and might foreſee that they ſhould, |
even after the expiration of their Captivity, Nehem. x. 3+ 10 O God, how long ſhall the adverſary reproach c? ſhall the enemy blaſpheme thy Name for ever ?
c Underſtand here thy Name, which is expreſſed in the next Clauſe of the Verſe, by ſaying that thou art either unkind to thy People, or unfaithful in thy Covenant, or unable to deliver thine out of their Miſeriess
ir Why withdraweft thou thy hand, even thy right hand d ? pluck zt out of thy boſom e.
d Why doft thou ſuſpend or forbear the exerciſe of that Power, which thou haſt ſo oft put forth on the behalf of thy people? « In which thou now ſeemeſt to hide it, as idle perſons uſe to do, Prov. 19. 4 and 26: 16, Beſtir thy ſelf on the behalf of thy people. |
"rin, I2 For *Godss my kingf of old, working ſalvation 4 in the midſt of che earth g. |
F In a ſingular manner : It belongs therefore to thine Office to prote& and ſave me g In the view of the World : So ſaving thy people, ſo eminently and gloriouſly, that all people round about them obſerved and admired it.
P Exod 13 * Thou didſt + divide the fea by thy ſtrength :
1421; thou brakeſtthe heads of the || dragons h in the waters z.
t Heb, h Or, the Crocodiles, He means Pharach and all his mighty Men,
Break, Who werelike theſe Beaſts in ſtrength and Cruelty. #5 To wit, of Or the Sea, where they were drowned.
Whaly, 14 Thiou brakeſt the heads & of leviathan / inpieces,
D Pos
Plal!. LAX
Bgaveſt him 7s be meat to the people inhabiting the witderneſs 2.
& i. e, The Head ; called Hear; partly for the greatneſs of this Beaſt, as that great Monſter is called Beaſts,Job 4o. 20. for the fame | reafon ; and partly for the ſeveral Heads or Princes, who were and «| ated undtt hisinfluence. 1 Pharaoh. m Heb. To the People in, or of ; the deſert ; either r. To the Iſraelites, then in the Wilderneſs, to whom the deſtru&ion of Pharaoh and his Hoſt, was Meat, i.e. mat- ter of great ſupport and refreſhment. Or 2: To thoſe ſavage peo- ple to whom they were Meat ; becauſe they lived upon Fiſhes, and might eat thoſe very Fiſhes which had devoured Phararbs Hoſt in the bottom of the Sea» . Or rather, 3. To thoſe ravenous Birds and Beaſts of the Deſert, which after rheir manner fed and feaſted them. ſelves upon the Carcailes of the Egyptians, who were caſt uvon tlic Sea-ſhore, Exod. 14. Jo. which were properly and immediatly Meat unto them. And when wordscan be taken properly, we ought ro preter that before the Meraphorical Senſe, as is agreed by Iorerpre- ters» And this was a very iuitable puniſhment for this proud and infolent people, that thy who were ſo haughry, that they would not own nor ſubmit to the Lord himſelf, Exod 5. 2. ſhould be de- voured by theſe contemptible Creatures,which wasa great reproach,