e What great things Baruch was ſeeking is not expreſſed, and impoſlible to be determined with any certainty ; "They could not be Honour, or Riches; The time of Fehoiakim's Reign was no time for any Pious Rational Man, to expe& any thing of that na- rure: He might expe& to have been a Propher, as Eljbs was, who firſt was but a Servant to Elijah. Or at leaſt he might expe reſt and proteQion, when ethers met with diſturbance, but it may be the meaning is no more than, Doeſt thou expe& what,none meet- eth with, or is like to mcet with who feareth God ? Never think ofit. f Iam bringing Calamities, and Miſery upon the whole Nation wherein thou liveſt- g I will preſerve thy Life, that 1s all thou art to expe&, and thou ſhalt live to ſee the time, that thou wilt judge that a great Booty, that thou ſhalt have lent thee, whi- therſoever the Wind of my Providence ſhall happen to drive thee. This Meſſage of God to Baruch teacheth us that God expeQs from his People a Spirit ſuited to his Diſpenſations, and that they ſhould keep their Spirits low in a time of publick Judgements, not making to themſelves any great promiſes of freedom from their ſhare in the publick Calamities of that Nation or Kingdom in which they are ; but contenting themſelves with ſuch allowances as God pro- Portioneth to them at ſuch a time without diſcontent or murmur» ing, and bleſſing God for any Marks of gracious Providence which he in ſuch times will pleaſe to ſet upon them; being thankful for them, and ſatisfied with them.
CHAP. XLVLI
The Overthrow of Pharaoh's Army, 1=——12. The Conqueſt of Egypt by Nebuchadnezzar, 13——26. Gos's People comforred,27, 28.
HE word of the LORD which came to Jeremiah the prophet againſt the Gentiles 4.
' & This Verſe contains the Title to all the enſuing Diſcourſes of - this Propher, for, though there be ſome particular Verſes in theſe Chapters that relate to the Jews, yet they are all concerning their Reſtauration. The Prophecies of Judgements from the beginning of this Chapter to the 524. Chapter are all againſt foreign Nations, which are called Gentiles, As to whom God revealed his Will for the puniſhment of them, for the relief and fatisfaQtion of his Peos | ple to whom the moſt of them had been bitter Enemies. The 5 24. Chapter is by moſt concluded not to have been wrote by Jeremiah, | who, it is not probable, wou'd have repeated what he had related before, Chap. 39. but it was wrote (as is ſuppoſed) by ſome of the Captives in Babylon, as a Preface to the Book of Lammentations. This particular Chapter containeth the Revelation of the Will of | God, concerning Egypt whither ſome of the Jews fled for refuge | after this time, and which had been a great occaſion of ſin to the Jews before, not only through the Jews too many Leagues with them, and confidence in them, but from their communicating in their Idolatry with them, Jer. 2. 16. The children of Noph and Tah- panhes, brake the crown of their head. :
2 Againſt Egypt, againft the army of Pharaoh Ne- cho king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemiſh, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Baby- lon ſmote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the ſon of
Joſiah king of Judah 5. : b Phargoh Necho was King of Egypt in Jefiah's time, it was by his Army cat Joſiah was killed at Megidao, 2 Kings 23. 29. it was he that made Jehoiakim King of Judah taking away Jehrahaz, verſe 34. but though he coveileg at that time, and that was one time when he came. out againſt Carehemiſh, 2 Chron. 35. 20. yet he was over- thrown by Nebuchadnezzar in a Battel with him afterwards as appears from 2 Kings 24. 7, and Jehoiakim was made Tributary to Nebuchad- nezzar, as we read 2 Kings 24, 1. and the King of Egypt was brought
* E REMHIAN
ſolow by thatVifory that he firred ns more out of Egypt,for the King of Babylon had'taken all from Nilus, the great River of Egypt ro Euphrates, and this, ſaith.this Verſe was the fourth Year of Jeheiakim. *' This Prophecy muſt be before that time. GCarchemifh appeareth from 1/#. 10.9. to have been a placein $Syris where the Eyptian Army had been in Joſiah's time, and then went away Conquerors, as appears from 2 Chron. 35 20, &Cc. : |
3 Order ye the buckler, and the ſhield, and draw
by
near to battel.
4 Harneſs the horſes, and get up ye horſemen, and ſtand forth with your helmets, furbiſh the ſpears, and put on the brigandines c. - =
c Art hath ſo much improved all things, in latter Ages, that it is very hard to determine of what form the ſeveral Weapons, and pieces of Armour, whether offenſive or defenſiue in uſe at this time
| werez the moſt here mentioned ſeem to have been defenſive, and | the
the whole Speech of the Prophet dire&ed to the Egyptians, ſeems to |
be Tronical, calling tothis Army of Parach Necho to get ready to de- | or they (flying) for haſt ſtumbling one upon another, ſo as both fend res, the hey es encounter with an Enemy would | thoſe that went before, and thoſe who followed after,
put them very hard to it, ſo as they had need to have their Helmers ' and Bucklers, and Shields, and Brigandines, all in a readineſs, and know the uſe of them well, the Horſes for War had need be Har- neſſed, the Spears furbiſhed, and the Riders gotup.
5 Wherefore have I ſeen them diſmayed, and turn- ed away back ? and their mighty ones F are beaten down, and are+ fled apace, and look not back for fear was round about, faith the LORD 4.
4 God had either in a Viſion ſhewed Jeremiah this Army of the |
Egyptians flying, or elſe had revealed to him that they ſhould be put
fall upon the Egyptians, ſo as when the King of Babylon came to joyn Battel with them, they were not able ar all to ſtand, bur turaed
| day of vengeance,that he may avenge him of his adverſa-
; try, by the river Euphrates ».
| already paſt, becauſe
—
their Backs, and their greateſt Commanders were either kill'd, or fled away as faſt as they could. ; 6 Let not the ſivift flee away, nor the mighty man