m Either in how ſad a Condition you are, what Circumſtances yeu are un'ler ; or iather, betl11k your felves wha: Courſe to take ; and theretore he puts them upon mourning and bewalling their Condi-ion, intimated by the following Expreſſions. n A ſort of Perſons, and p1 incipally Women, as more apt tor Paſſions in this kind, which they bad among them, 2 Chroy. 35. 25. whole Work it was eit) cr to compoſe Fu::eral Elegies, or Panegyvricks in praiſe of the Dead, and to act them 1n ſome mourntul manger, 5 tearing their Hair, and beating their Brea'?s, with other mourn- ire poſtures, or to ſing chem io fome doletul Tone, thereby ar- tihc/a ly to provoke and excite both Paſſons and Expreſſions of Griet in the Friends of the Deceaſed. rather wringing our Tears than ſh=diing them, 1:1 which probably they made greater ſeem- ins Lawenration, thar choſe thar did really mourn, as being moſt cence: ned. Not that God calls upon them to do this as approving the Formality. ( though this fooliſh Cuſtom had obtained in moſt Ages and Countries) any more, than other Cuſtoms that were made uſe of by way 0: Illuſtration ; as the Olympick Games, and poſſibly thac PraQtice mentioned, 1 Cor. 15. 29. but makes uſe of it, as being cuſtomary, either to excite them to, and put them upon true Repentance, or to convince them hereby, that they were not able themſelves ſufficiently to bewail fo great Calamities as werecoming upon them, intimating hereby, that he would give them occaſion for the moſt unfeigned Weeping and Lamentation. Such as are moſt skilful in it. Anivs 5. 16. Wiſdom being, taken tor Skill in any Arts, as Exod.
31. 3- ande}ſewhere.
18 Andlct them make p haſt, and take a wailing, 7 for us, that our eyes run down with tears, and, our eye-hds guſh out with 7 walers.
þ As by the calling tor their Artificial Mourners, he did inti- mate th. grearnets t the Miſery that was coming upon them, that wich ..| their Art they could not ſufficiently bewail it ; ſo here. by mikirg hafte, heintimates c2e near Approach of it, thar 1c wascven a' the doors, 9g Pitch upon ſome form of Mourning that way be ſuitable to our Condition. r This and the former areeach of them a:: Hyferbolical Exprefion, and yet are too little to bewa!! the great! els of the Ju./amenc, which ſaics with the Prophet's Lamentation, Per. 1. The Prophet would herein inti- mate, that they that were ſo ſtupid as to hear the Prophets de- nouncing their Judgments with dry eyes, tho' he with'd them to have been Fountains of Tears, ſhall now ſuddenly feel, thar they ſhall have caule enough to fend for all the Helps, not only real but artificial, to {tir up their Mournings.
19 Fora voice of wailing is heard ont of : Zion, How are we x ſpoiled ? We are greatly x confound- ed, becauſe we have forſaken the land, becauſe our
dwellings have caſt zs out.
t i.e. Feruſalem ; ſpoken in the Preſent Tenſe, after the Pro- pherica] Stile, being a frequent way of the Propher's expreſling the Certainty of a thing. « How great 1sour Miſery ? or how come we. to be in ſuch a deſolate Condition ? poſſibly Expreflions of the Artfſial Mourners, or rather their real Sence of it, now it 1s all too Jate. x Whether thi: be the Complaint of ch? Country people forced to fly from their Habication to Feruſalem tor ſhelter, or of Feruſalem it ſelf, that could expeR no leſs, it filled them with great Conſternation, that they who thought their Houles ſhould have continued here for ever, becauie of God's Promiſe. Pal. 132. 16, ©. muſt now forlake them, Lev. 18. 25. Either their Perſons carried out into Captivity, or have them utter iy demoliſhed by the Enemy.
1
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20 y Yet hear the word of the z LORD, Oye a wemen, and let your ear refeive the werd of his mouth, ard teach your daughters wailing, ard every one her b neighbEour lamentation.
y Or, therefcre, i. e. 3 Do not thirk I ſpeak words cut of my own Mind or Fancy, but vi hat I ſpeak is frcm the Lord. a Either thoſe kired Women rrentioned before, or ratker the Werren cf the Land, for Gcd would have it cot a ttercenary, but a Fea] Mcurn- ing ; and he mertioneth Ween, 1. To upbraid the Men with their Stupidity ; 2. As beirg m.cre apt to grieve, thereby to ex- preſs the Readineſs that he weu!d bave the Land to be in for Mourning ; 3. Beczuſe of the Cecay ard want there would be of Men, as is expreſſed in the rext Verſe, by reaſon partly of the Slarghter, and partly of tEe Captivity ; therefore here is mention of Women with reference to Children in the rext Verſe, after whom their Bewels would yearn, and Daughters, either the Scholars of the Mourning Worren, or rather, with reference to Tcang-meny unto whem they might be given in Marriage 3 4. Becauſe the Female Sex is leaft able to he]p themſelves in a Cem:men Caja- mity ; Or, 5. Becauſe they wou!d be leſs ſolicitous, but wou1d 1n- dulge their Delicacies, Pride, Sloth,and Wantonneſs, 1/4.32.9,11. b Heb. 4 Woman her Friend, ramely, that the Grief might ipread the farther, and become deeper ; for AffeRtions 8nd Paſſions
_ of what kind ſoever, are aupmented by Company : It notes how
large and univerſal the Movrning ſhould be, Amos 5. 16.
21 For death is come up c into our windows, and is entred Into our palaces, to cut offthe children trom without 4, arc the young-men from the ſtreets. ;
c The unavoidabl. nels ot the Ruin is expreſſed metaphorically, Ezek. 21. 14. Chap. 6.5. moſt likely alluding to the violent and univerſal ſtorming of a City, Chap. 5.10. wherein there 1s noTe= ſpect had to Sex, Youth or Ape. Several other Alluſions, See Engl. Anror. The Chaldears are here underſtcod by death, as brirging Death where-ever they come ; a Metorymy of the Effe@. 4 No ſafety within or without ; the Eremy ſhall cut «all. not only thoſe at home, but even.thole that are converſing or play- ing in the S:reets, which moſt commonly Toung-men and Chil- dren are, wuhap.6.11.
22 «Speak, thus ſaith the LORD ; even the b ca-- caſes of men ſhall fall as dung upon the open c held, and as the handful after the d harveſt-man, and none ſhall gather e chem.