The Pulpit Commentary — Isaiah — Volume 2 — Section 112

striking fignre of this text, 2 Cor. x. 4, 5, "The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; casting down ima2:in~- tions, and every high thin" that exalteth itself a"ainst the knowledae of God." While there may be designed pr~phetical allusion to the mastery of Babylonian evils, t0 the triumphs of the Maccabean era, and to the spiritual victories of Messiah, the general meaning of the figure is that Israel, in the strength of Jehovah, shall overcome all the obstacles to the fulfilment of his destiny. Porter describes the "threshing-instruments" as" flat, heavy, wooden slabs, some five feet long by three wide, slightly turned up in front. The under surface is thickly studded with nobs of hard stone or iron. A massive prison door, with its rows of projecting nail-heads, will give the best idea of a. mowrej, as the instrument is now called. Each is drawn by a 'yoke of oxen.' The driver stands on the mowrej, urging the oxen on with his formidable ox-goad. The oxen advance in front, 'treading out the grain,' and the mowrej follows, crushing and cutting the straw with its 'teeth,' till it is reduced almost to dust." With this instru- ment the Roman tribulum, from which we get our suggestive word" tribulation," should be compared. There is a marked poetical exaggeration in the association of a threshing- instrument with hills and mountains, designed to impress on us that "nothing is too bard for the Lord," or for his people when they are strengthened by him. Making application of the text to our own circumstances, we note- I. LIFE AB A WHOLE OFTEN SEEMS BEYOND us; out of our control; we fear to enter on it-we feel we cannot make the best of it. It is so with only such expectations a.q we can form, on the basis of what is known of other men's lives. It would indeed be so, if God were to show us beforehand the scenes through which we were to be led. Yet let us but lay hold of the strength of God, and our whole life shal.l be a mountain which we shall thresh e.nd beat small. It shall not master us; we will master it, and make it yield its best. II. THE SPECIAL DEMANDS OF LIFE OFTEN BEEM BEYOND us. Face to face with duty, we anxiously say, "Who is sufficient for these things?" For us to undertake these duties seems ns absurd aa for a mowrej to think of threshing a mountain. And yet experience a.bundantly confirms the fact that, when a man i:.; called of God to do any- thing, ·God surely gives him strength for the doing. What is "impossible with men is possible with God," and with all those whom God aids. For things tha.t are right there is no such word as "impossible" in a Christian's vocabulary. Compare Jonathan defeating the Philistines, David overcoming Goliath, and the Apostle Paul saying," I can do all things through Christ that strengtheneth me." We have often seen the marvel of God's overcomings when the pressure of circumstances was extreme, and the thwarting of enemies painful. "Who art thou, 0 great mountain? Before Zerubbabel [the God-helped man] thou shalt become a plain."-R. T. Ver. 23.-'171e helplessness of idols. Before God can hopefully intervene on behalf of man, man must have become thoroughly convinced of his own helples.sness, and of the insufficiency of all on whom he is disposed to rely. In the time of the Bab_ylonish captivity, many, surrounded da.y by day with idolatrous sentiments and associations, would incline to reliance on these idols, and to seeking help and deliverance from them. Therefore the prophet, by solemn warnings, by satire and taunt, strives to break God's people away from all such vain confidences. We have some idea of the boastings of the Assyrians in the power of their idol-go,ls given in the Habshakeh's messages to Hezekiah. He glories in the superiority of the Assyrian gods over all the gods of the conquered nations; and the discouraged exiles might be tempted to say, "Even our God, Jehovah, could not stand against theso Assyrian gods; then let us seek to them for help and deliverance.'' And if such formnl idolatrie11 belong to the past, answering spiritual idolatries belong to the present; and we also are ready enough to tum away from God, when he does not let things be "according to our mind," e.n<l we easily take up with idol-devices of our own hearts. So Israel and wo may profitably be reminded that all self-made idols are vanity, and must utterly fail all who put their trust in them when the testing-day comes. In our text the idol-claimants are put to a test. Let them do something. Helpless things! A great dee.I is dcmefor them; now Jct things be turned about, and let them do something. We need not be over-particular. If it is incon- venient for them to do something good, let them do something evil--only let it be  116 TIIE DOL)K OF THE PROPHET ISALA.Il. [cu. nu. 1-25.