a The Pr. phet now Jenounceth Judgment againft Oppreſſors in pat ticular, of which {rt of Men J:{45 had too many, and Jjrac! had Many more at thic Day. 6 Cent:ie and frame Milchiets to others tow they may be ruined, as appears ver. 2. and all the gain can be made of their fall may be-brought into the Hand of the Contrivers, which was the Sin of the great Ones in Jſ7ae!, who, for near torty Years together were plotting to undo one another, © Here is a Diflo- cation of the Words, ynlef the Prophet would intimate to us, that in God's Account reſolving to d& Evil is doing it, 4 When they ſhoutd reit from making trouble to others, as well az they reft from their Labour and Troubles of the Day z when they ſhould praiſe God for their own Eaſe, Safery and Reft then their Inkumanity and Cruelty 1s tv: ecaſting how to grieve, vex and fxallow up others. e So ſoon as they riſe, and that is early, when ſuch Prattices are in deſign, thele cannot flcep till they make them fall on whom they fix their Delign>. # Finiſh or execute their milchieveus Purpoſes. g And care not Wwhe- therthere be either Juitice or Reaſon for what they do; it they have Power enough to do, they will take confidence to do it, and never vlu'h, Ws 2 And they þ * covet fields 7, and take them by vio- 2 lence &; and houſes 1, and take them away m - fo they hes , de- | oppreſs a may and his houie 7, even a man and his heri-
* - Tagao. |
þ Who deviſed Miſchief, ver. t, 7 Eirſt ſet their Minds upon their meaner Neighbours Eſtate, think how convenient It lieth to theirs, as Ahab thought Naborh's did for him. FE By Power wreſt the Eltates out of their Hands at their own rate ; or if they will not ſo part with them, thele miſchievous Oppreſtfors will act a Fezavel's vart with Na- both, which was no hard matter to do in Iſrael, Quring the times that ran parallel with Forkan, haz and Hegzekiah's times, 1 In which their poorer and innocenter Neighbours dwelt, but p-rhaps theſe Houſes ſpoil'd a iroſpett, or ftraitned the great one, who right or wrong will have them, that. they may enlarge their own Houſes, Orchards or Gardens. m They tear, devour and ſwaliow up the poor Han, # His Family which by this means 1s lezt to Poverty and Beggary., 0 This explains the former, and addeth ſomewhat to the greatnels of their Sin, that this > done againſt antient Right and Poſſeſhon which the oppretied plead, nay, in a Caſe where God hath forbidden them to (e1] their Heritage, Lev. 25. 23. Numb, 36. 7. and 1 A7lig. 21s 3»
3 Therefore þ thus ſaith the LORD, Behold 9, againſt this family do 1 deviſe an evil y, from which ye ſhail not remove your necks 5, neither ſhall ye go haughtily : : for
this time 75 evil 4. | p For this great, inhumane, cruel Oppreſſion. q The Lord by his Prophet declareth what he will do, and adviſeth them to- conſider it, for *tis a moſt manifek Retaliation or piniſhing the Offenders,.ſo that every one may ſee God deals with them as they dealt with their oppreſſed Neighbours. r They deviſed , now God will deviſe;
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theirs was Evil againſt others, God will deviſe Evil againſt them $4
theirs was Evil of Sin, God's is an Evil of juit Puniſhment againſt their Family ; as they deviſed Evil againſt the Family of their poor Neigh- hours, God will bring the Aſſyrian Power upon them. s They laid Snares where open Force would not 1 utfce, ſo that the Poor could not get Out of their Hands, but were empoveri{h'd and enſlaved ; ſo-God will deal with them by the -{[yr7a7, trom whoſe Power they {hall not eſcape. t You have made others hang the Head, ſo ſhall you now. u You great ones have made it an evil time, Evil for Sin agaialt me and the Innocent, and for Cries and Griefs to the Poor ; I will make it an evil time, full of penal « alamiries and Muſeries on the whole Fa- mily or Polterity of Facov.
4 @ [In that Gay * ſhall one take up y a parable z a- + Heb. 7 gainſt you, and Jament with a | doleful lamentation a, 1:19 and ſay, We be viterty ſpoiledb: * hec hath changed 7 . *% the portion d of my e people : thow hath he removed * Ch. 1.16. it from mef ? || turning away g be hath divided our {{ Or. zz;- helds. | : + When God ſhall retaliate, as ver.3. when he ſhall by the Aſſyr7- an Captivity fulfil what here 1s threatncd by the Prophet. » There ſhall be taken up, or b- in cemmon ordinary Uſe among thoſe that know what is befalien vou. + Or taunting ſ{corning Proverb, this tells them how their ſrt. Conquerors ſhould reflett Reproach and Shame upon Captive Jſ72!, much like that Pjal. 137+ 3s which the Babylonians uſed toward Captive Judith, a Your Friends ror you, and you for your ſelves, ſhall mourn moſt bjtterly,as the import of the Hebraiſm is, Lament with a Lamentation of Lamentations. S0 though all are not alike afte&ed, yet every one thall carry it towards milera- ble J/r2c1, according as they are affected, condoling their ſad State, or inſulting over them. 6 This is the ſum of their mournful Lamenta- tion over their own "tate, our Land waſted, vur Friends ſlain, our Cities taken, piunder's «nd {ackd, our Houſe: and Gouds either taken away from us, or burnt, and our Perions 10 more our own, but Cap- tives under the Tower and Will of our Enemy ; thus ſpoiled, nothing is any longer ours. c The Aſſyrian ſay ſome, God ſay others z indeed God did it by the Ajjjrians. d The Eſtate, \Wealth, Plenty, Freedom, Safety, Joy and Honour, into Poverty, Famine, Servitude, Danger, Grief and Diſhonour. The Land of Cazaun was the Inheritance, and !l the Conveniences it afforded were part of the Portion of Jjraet: but doleful Ehange ! thele all taken away from // ael, and given to others. e It is either ghe Prophet who calls them his People, or rather every one of jj7ael that uleth this Lamentation, who ſaith my Te:plr, f How dreadfuliy hath .God dealt, with rae} ? removing their Perſons into Captivity , and transferring their Right and Pofſefion to Enemies. . £ Eirher thus, ring away from us in Dil- pleature, God hath divided cur Fields among others, given them to the Enemy, air he hath divided them to whom he plealeth, to his own People and Souldicrs: Or clic this Word turning away, may be rendred retinnirg, and be ſpoken Ot the Enemy, when he returned he did divide our Fields or, as the Margin of our Bible, inſtead of reſtor- ing our Fields, which we hoped, and our miſtaken Leaders promiſed, God hath given the Enemy Succels and Power to divide our ÞF.elds,