iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more, 35. Thus saith the Lord, which giveth the sun for a light by day, the appointed courses of the moon and the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; the Lord of hosts is his name. 36. If those appointed courses depart from before me, saith the Lord, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation, before me for ever. 37. Thus saith the Lord; If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the Lord. 38. Behold the days come,. saith the Lord, that the city shall be built to the Lord, from the tower of Hananeel unto the gate of the corner. 39. And the measuring line shall yet go forth overagainst it upon the hill Gareb, and shall compass about to Goath. 40. And the whole valley of the dead bodies, and of the ashes, and all the fields unto the brook of Kidron, unto the corner of the horsegate toward the east, shall be holy unto the Lord: it shall not be plucked up, nor thrown down any more for ever.

COMMENTARY.

Dr. Blayney makes the following judicious remarks on the prediction contained in these two chapters.

"There are many prophecies in various parts of "the Old Testament, which announce the future.

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"restoration of Israel to their own land, and the complete reestablishment of both their civil and religious constitution in the latter days. These "two chapters contain a prophecy of this kind, "which must necessarily be referred to those "times, because it points out circumstances, which

certainly were not fulfilled at the return of the "Jews from the Babylonish captivity, nor have "hitherto had their completion. For the people, "that returned from Babylon, were the people of "Judah, who had been carried away captive by "Nebuchadnezzar; but here it is foretold, that

not the captivity of Judah only should be "restored, but the captivity of Israel also, meaning "those ten tribes, that were carried away before

by Shalmaneser king of Assyria, and who still "remain in their several dispersions, having never "returned, in a national capacity at least, to their

own land, whatever some few individuals have "done. But the terms of the prophecy intitle us "to expect, not an obscure and partial, but a

complete and universal, restoration; when God "will manifest himself, as formerly, the God and patron of all the families of Israel, and not of a few only. Again, it is promised, that after this "restoration they should no more fall under the "dominion of foreigners, but be governed by

princes and magistrates of their own nation, independent of any but God and David. their king. But this was not the case with the Jews "that returned from Babylon. They then indeed

"had

"had a leader, Zerubbabel, one of their own nation, and also of the family of David. But "both their nation and the leader continued "still in a state of vassalage and the most servile dependence upon the Persian monarchy. And, "when the Grecian monarchy succeeded, they "changed their masters only, not their condition: "till at length, under the Asmonèan princes, they "had for a while an independent government of "their own, but without any title to the name of "David. At last they fell under the Roman yoke; "since which time their situation has been such,

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as not to afford the least ground to pretend, that "the promised restoration has yet taken place. "It remains therefore to be brought about in "future under the reign of the Messiah, empha"tically distinguished by the name of David; "when every particular circumstance, predicted concerning it, will, no doubt, be verified by a "distinct and unequivocal accomplishment."

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On these grounds, we may safely, I think, venture to pronounce, that the joint restoration of Judah and Israel in the last ages is again foretold in the present prediction of Jeremiah, as it already has been in the foregoing ones. The prophet begins with declaring, that, although they should certainly return into their own country, they should return, at least Judah should return in a day of unexampled trouble. Terrible however as that day will be, Jacob shall surely be saved out of it: the yoke

yoke of his oppressors shall be broken from off his neck his children shall no longer serve strangers in the land of their dispersion: but they shall serve the Lord their God, and the antitypical David their king the Messiah. Of the nations, among which they have been scattered, God will make å full end but of them he will not make a full end; for, although he will not leave them altogether unpunished, he will correct them only in exact measure. While they are chastised with a fatherly chastisement, the 'whirlwind of the Lord will gó forth with fury, and fall upon the head of the wicked, Antichrist and his rebellious associates. The prophet adds, that, at the end of days, or after the termination of the 1260 years, this prediction shall be fully understood: till then it shall not, for till then it will not be accomplished. As the time however of its completion approaches, we shall gradually obtain a clearer insight into it. Already have many begun to run to and fro; and knowledge is daily increasing, as the signs of the times multiply. In our own generation we have seen the rise of Antichrist. His ultimate fate is likewise predicted; and his destruction is declared to be contemporary with the restoration of the Jews at the close of the 1260 years. But over more minute circumstances the impenetrable veil of awful futurity still continues to spread itself. The anger of the Lord will not return, until he have performed all the purposes of his heart: when they are all performed,

performed, we shall then in the end of days fully understand both this and other similar prophecies.

In the remainder of the prediction, Jeremiah seems peculiarly to direct our attention to the restoration of the house of Israel, which will not take place till after the overthrow of Antichrist and the previous restoration of the house of Judah. Lost as the ten tribes at present are, though the figu rative Rachel has long bewailed her seattered chil dren, which in a remarkable manner are not, the virgin of Israel shall again go forth to the dance, the mountains of Samaria shall again be planted, and Ephraim shall not for ever be an alien from his God and Father. As the Lord hath hitherto watched over Judah and Israel only to destroy and afflict them; so will he then watch over them, to build and to plant. He will make a new and spiritual covenant with them. They shall no more be bound by laborious ceremonial observances. But they shall all know the Lord from the least to the greatest of them. Meanwhile Palestine shall exult in more than its ancient fertility; its population shall experience a wonderful increase; and every kind of useful animals shall be multiplied throughout its provinces. Thus will God bless the latter end of his chosen people, more than their beginning.

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