you, but thar will not ſo much trouble meas to conſider that you who are the Church and People of GOD ſhould be led into Captivity:
18 Say unto the king and to the queen, Humble your
[|Or, »w ſelves x, fit down ; for your || principalities ſhall come
head. tires. even the crown of your glory x. own bs Author of Holy Writ is diſcernible by this as by other things, that the Scripture equally ſpeaks to the greateſt Perions, as to Perſons of meaner rank. GOD here calls to the King of Judah, whether it was at this time Jehoiakim, or his Son Jehojakin, is uncer- ; tain. x By Principalities he means both their Digniry, and their Li- berty that which he often calierh the Crown of their Glory. Some expound it Head-tires, becauſe the word deriveth from a word which ionifics the Heads , 19 The cities of the ſouth ſhall be ſhut up,and none
ſhall open them y, Judah ſhall be carried away captive all
of it, ic ſhall be wholly carried away captive. 5 Either the Cities of Judah which lay Southward from Chaldea, . and therefore their Enemies in the next Verſe are {aid to come fiom the North, and this great evil is ſaid ro have come from the North ; - or { as ſome would have it) the Cities of Egyp:, which lay yer more Seuthward, ſo as the Egyptians ſhould neither come with tuth- cient force to raiſe the Siege, nor ſhould there be any Sanfuary or Refuge for them in Egypr, but they ſhould certainly be wholly car- ried into Captivity. _ 20 Lifc up your eyes, and behold them that come from the north = : where #s the flock that was given thee, thy beautiful flock « ? | | z He ſpeaks to them as if their Enemy was even then upon their March, that if they did but look they might ſee him coming. + The Prophet either ſpeaks ro the King, or to the Rulers, or chief of the Congregation © Judah, Prove 14. 28. In the mulitude of the People is the King's honour. So in the mulrirude of Subje&s or of Members, lies much ofthe honour of a Church or Stare.
21 What wilr thou ſay when he ſhall + puniſh thee ?
+ Heb. vi- thee. .* Chap. Ge 2 4+
*over thee ) ſhall nor * ſorrows take thee as a woman
I vail b ? That is.thou wilt have nothing to ſay, but be wholly confound-
d when God ſhal viſit chee with this fore judgement,
- EE aware: Army ſent by GOD, ſhal viſit thee; for
thou, either by thy Commerce and trading with them, or by thy ,
a In the Hebrew it is, Can the Cuſhite, &c. from whence it is well Faughts concluded, as learned Men judge, that the Erhicpians are of the Po- ſterity of C:ſh the Son of Cham, Brother to Miſraim, the Father of the Egypt. ans, Gen. 10. 6. For theſe were the only People of old not:d for their black colour in Scripture, as the Eth.opians are now. e God ſheweth thar the Jews by their continued cuſtomary ſinning had ſo inured themſelves to wicked prattices, that it was as much Jabour in vain to endeavourto reclaim them, as to go about to waſh a Blackamore, or to take-out the natural ſpors our of the Beaſts called Leopards.
24 Therefore will I ſcatter them as the ſtubble that
paſſeth away by che wind of the wilderneſs f. f The words cen:ote a great, and clear diſperſion, like that of the {ſcattering of Stubble by a fierce Wind.
+ And I ſhalalſo mourn for your Calamity when !
25 This z thy lot, che portion of thy meaſures from me, faith the LORD 3 becauſe chou haſt forgotten me, and truſted in falſhood g.
g Th's is what thou ſhalt have at the LORD'S Hand, the dif, pen. ſar.on which thou ſhalt meer with, and thu mayeſt thank thy ſe'f forir for hadſt t1ou remembred either my f-rmer kindneſs to thee, or th? Law that I gavetheey, this had not come unto thee, bur thou haſt forgotten me, and truſted in lyes, or in idle, vain and preſum= ptuous hopes, therefore I have given thee but a jult lot, and mea« tured to thee a juſt mcaſure. 26 Therefore * will I diſcover thy skirts upon thy +7, , «:
.T. ve
face that thy ſbame may appear h. | Exck. 16. h Therefore I wil expoſe thee to all manner of ſhame and con- 37.and 23, tempt, without any regaid to thy honour. Thoſe that honour God, 29. God will honour, bur thoſe that detpiſe and diſhonnour him, ſhal Hol. 2, 10. not be able ro maintain their own hocour.
27 1 have ſeen thy adulceries, and thy * neighings 3, + the lewdneſs of thy whoredom, and thine abominati- 5. 8. ons * on the hills, in the fields k,: woe unto thee, O- "Ila. 65. 7. Jerulatem, wile thou not be made clean? + when ſhall Chap.2.20. : Ezek. 6.13. it once be }?
3. af= # Sume think the Prophet here refleQs upon them for their Ccorpo- ha WY ral A.lulr-ries, and their madneſ* upon them, which he compareth ,,, » to the nezghings of Hories, bur thoſe Words on the Hills in the Frelds, in the next Ciauſe lecms to inform us. & That he mears hoe nly their 1dslatries which are in holy Writ often compared to Adulteries, which are the greateſt fins in their kind, the greareſt violations of the Marriage Covenant, and provocations of Perſons in conjugal Relari«n, and the only cauſe of lawful divorce. 1 He concludes with pathetical I'tterrogations, intiwating that yer there was hope if they would retorm ; and though giving over their cate almc as ; deſperat-, and not krowing what would not be, yet he leaves no | Means untriedy but asks them if it was nor yet time, or when tuch a thing might be hoped for at their hands ?
Chap.
( for thou haſt taught them 70 be caprains, and as chief
CHAP. XIy,
A grievous Famine propheſied # Its Miſeries, 1———6. The Prophet prays eth, but GOD * il not be entreated for them, 7 i2, Lying Proe phets no excuſe for them, 13 16. The Prophtt's Complaint, 17 —22,
w—_ word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah concerning the Þ dearth a.
a What Dearth we are nit told, nor when it h2 think that it was 1n the time of the Siege of Hirruſzlum ; others, that ,5, 1,arths it was 1n the beginning of the Reign of Zeackiah, but they judge or reſtraints, moſt probably, that think it was in the time of Fehoiakim, for we read Chap. 36. 9. of an extraordinary Faſt by him proclaimed,which | many judge was upon this occaſion: The H:b. Phraſe which is here
»
' uſed, {ignifying, The matter of the Reſtraints; gives Interpreters ſome
f H:b. ppened ; ſome ;j, 9-9 of |
: liberty ro abound in their ſenſes of this Text, but the following
' words make it evident, Yerſe 4, 5. that the Refiraints here mention- ed were GOD'S reſtraining of Water from them, ſo that the Dear: was occaſioned from a great Droughr, which is elegantly deſcribed