their own way, every one for his gain, from his quarter. and we will fill ourselves with strong drink; and to morrow shall be as this day, and much more abundant. 12 Come ye, say they, I will fetch wine, Verse 10. His watchmen ... are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark."-From this, as well as from ch. lxii. 6, it was customary for the Hebrew watchmen to utter cries from time to time, so that silence in a watchman is described as a disqualification and reproach. It is still customary in the Levant for the watchmen in the towns frequently to utter loud cries to make their presence known, and to manifest their vigilance. Their exclamations, like nearly all others used by the Moslems, are of a religious character. Mr. Lane says, "The cry of the nightly watchman in the quarter in which I lived in Cairo, during my first visit, struck me as remarkable for its sublimity-I proclaim the absolute glory of the living king, who sleepeth not nor dieth.' The present watchman, in the same quarter, exclaims, O Lord! Ŏ Everlasting!" It is known that there are some species of dogs which cannot bark, and some such the prophet probably had in view in this comparison. In the Levant we have seen one species—a short unsightly dog, with something of the lurcher or terrier in him-which never does bark. CHAPTER LVII. 1 The blessed death of the righteous. 3 God reproveth the Jews for their whorish idolatry. 13 He giveth evangelical promises to the penitent. THE righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come. 2 He shall enter into peace: they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness. S¶ But draw near hither, ye sons of the sorceress, the seed of the adulterer and the whore. 4 Against whom do ye sport yourselves? against whom make ye a wide mouth, and draw out the tongue? are ye not children of transgression, a seed of falsehood, 5 Enflaming yourselves with idols 'under every green tree, slaying the children in the valleys under the clifts of the rocks? 6 Among the smooth stones of the stream is thy portion; they, they are thy lot: even to them hast thou poured a drink offering, thou hast offered a meat offering. Should I receive comfort in these? 7 Upon a lofty and high mountain hast thou set thy bed: even thither wentest thou up to offer sacrifice. 8 Behind the doors also and the posts hast thou set up thy remembrance: for thou hast discovered thyself to another than me, and art gone up; thou hast enlarged thy bed, and made thee a covenant with them; thou lovedst their bed 'where thou sawest it. 9 And thou wentest to the king with ointment, and didst increase thy perfumes, and didst send thy messengers far off, and didst debase thyself even unto hell. 10 Thou art wearied in the greatness of thy way; yet saidst thou not, There is no hope thou hast found the "life of thine hand; therefore thou wast not grieved. Mic. 7. 2. 11 And of whom hast thou been afraid or feared, that thou hast lied, and hast not remembered me, nor laid it to thy heart? have not I held my peace even of old, and thou fearest me not? 12 I will declare thy righteousness, and thy works; for they shall not profit thee. 13 When thou criest, let thy companies deliver thee; but the wind shall carry them all away; vanity shall take them: but he that putteth his trust in me shall possess the land, and shall inherit my holy mountain; 14 And shall say, "Cast ye up, cast ye up, prepare the way, take up the stumblingblock out of the way of my people. 15 For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. 16 For I will not contend for ever, neither will I be always wroth for the spirit should fail before me, and the souls which I have made. 17 For the iniquity of his covetousness was I wroth, and smote him: I hid me, and was wroth, and he went on frowardly in the way of his heart. 18 I have seen his ways, and will heal him: I will lead him also, and restore comforts unto him and to his mourners. 19 I create the fruit of the lips; Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him tha is near, saith the LORD; and I will heal him. 20 But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. 14 21 There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked. 3 Or, from that which is evil. 8 Or, hewed it for thyself larger than theirs. 11 Or, living. 12 Chap. 40. 3, and 62. 10. 13 Heb. Heb. men of kindness, or godliness. Psal. 12. 1. Or, among the oaks. 7 2 Kings 16. 4. 10 Or, thou respectedst the king. 5 M 2 • Or, go in peace. "Or, before him. 9 Or, thou providest room, turning away. 14 Chap. 48. 22. 819 Verse 6. "Among the smooth stones of the streams is thy portion."-The text is generally supposed to refer to those unworked stones, which were set up, anointed and worshipped. Such stones were preferably taken from torrents, on account of their being worn smooth by the action of the stream upon their surface. Of this worship there are many testimonies in ancient writers. "They were," says Lowth, "called Barruko and Beiruλia; probably from the stone which Jacob erected at Bethel, pouring oil upon the top of it. The practice was very common in different ages and places.... Clemens Alex. Strom. Lib. vii. speaks of a worshipper of every smooth stone in a proverbial way, to denote one given up to superstition. And accordingly Theophrastus has marked this as one strong feature in the character of the superstitious man. Passing by the anointed stones in the streets, he takes out his phial of oil, and pours it on them; and, having fallen on his knees, and made his adorations, he departs !'" 8. "Behind the doors also and the posts," &c.—This is supposed to refer to the lares and penates, the tutelary or household gods, which the heathen placed in different parts of their houses, sometimes in private, and sometimes exposed, so that they might be publicly seen. Before their small images, lamps were usually kept burning, and at the times of eating, something that was first brought to table was burnt in their honour as firstfruits. (See more largely, Rosini, Antiquitates Romance, lib. ii. cap. 14.) It will be recollected that such idolatrous practices as this were in most marked opposition to that law by which the Hebrews were commanded to write the words of God upon their gates, and door-posts of their house. (Deut. vi. 9; xi. 20.) CHAPTER LVIII. 1 The prophet, being sent to reprove hypocrisy, 3 expresseth a counterfeit fast and a true. 8 He declareth what promises are due unto godliness, 13 and to the keeping of the sabbath. CRY 'aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins. 2 Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God. 3¶ Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your 2 labours. 4 Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: *ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high. 5 Is it 'such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the LORD ? 6 Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the 'oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? 7 Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that 11 thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? 8 Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the LORD shall be thy rereward. 9 Then shalt thou call, and the LORD shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke,. the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity; 10 And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noon day: 11 And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in "drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring o water, whose waters "fail not. 12 And they that shall be of thee "shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in. 13 If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: 14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: fothe mouth of the LORD hath spoken it. Heb. with the throat 2 Or, things wherewith ye grieve others. 3 Heb. griefs. Or, ye fast not as this day. 5 Zech. 75. Lev. 16. 29. 7 Or, to affect his soul for a day. Heb. the bundles of the yoke. 9 Heb. broken. to Ezek. 18. 7. 11 Or, aflicted. 12 Heb. shall gather thee up. 13 Heb. droughts. 14 lieb. lie, or deceive. 15 Chap. 61. 4. 16 Deut. 32. 13. CHAPTER LIX. he damnable nature of sin. 3 The sins of the us. 9 Calamity is for sin. 16 Salvation is ly of God. 20 The covenant of the Redeemer. HOLD, the LORD's hand is not 'shortened, it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated beyou and your God, and your sins e hid his face from you, that he will not en For your hands are defiled with blood, your fingers with iniquity; your lips › spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered erseness. None calleth for justice, nor any pleadfor truth they trust in vanity, and k lies they conceive mischief, and g forth iniquity. They hatch 'cockatrice' eggs, and weave spider's web he that eateth of their : dieth, and that which is crushed keth out into a viper. "Their webs shall not become garments, er shall they cover themselves with works their works are works of iniy, and the act of violence is in their is. "Their feet run to evil, and they make > to shed innocent blood: their thoughts houghts of iniquity; wasting and 'detion are in their paths. The way of peace they know not; and is no "judgment in their goings: they made them crooked paths: whosoever h therein shall not know peace. Therefore is judgment far from us, er doth justice overtake us: we wait ght, but behold obscurity; for brightbut we walk in darkness. We grope for the wall like the blind, we grope as if we had no eyes: we ble at noon day as in the night; we are esolate places as dead men. We roar all like bears, and mourn sore doves: we look for judgment, but there ne; for salvation, but it is far off from us. 12 For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us : for our transgressions are with us; and us for our iniquities, we know them; 13 In transgressing and lying against the LORD, and departing away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood. 14 And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter. 15 Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil "maketh himself a prey: and the LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment. 16¶ And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor : therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. 17 "For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke. 10 Or, right. 11 Or, is accounted mad. 1 Heb. it was evil in his eyes. 13 Chap. 63. 5. 15 Chap. 63.6. 16 Heb. recompenses. 17 Rev. 12. 15. 18 Or, put him to flight. Psal. 7. 14. 5 Or, adders. Rom. 3. 15. 9 Heb. breaking. Ephes. 6. 14, 17. 1 Thess. 5. 8. 19 Rom. 11. 26. 14 se 17. "He put on the garments of vengeance."—It is not impossible that this may allude to some such custom as which we find in Persia, where, in extraordinary cases, when the king himself purposes to condemn to death one re of the grandees who have been guilty of high crimes, or against whom his anger has been moved, he makes ppearance in a red dress. This is his garment of vengeance; and his entrance in it is a certain sign that some lord will receive his doom. Compare ch. lx. 2, &c. CHAPTER LX. 1 The glory of the church in the abundant access of the Gentiles, 15 and the great blessings after a short affliction. ARISE, 'shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thec. 2 For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. 3 And the 'Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. 4 Lift up thine eyes round about, and see all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. 5 Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the 'forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. 6 The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the LORD. 7 All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory. 8 Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows? 9 Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, 'to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the LORD thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee. 10 And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee. 11 Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the 'forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought. 12 For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted. 13 The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious. 14 The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel 15 Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations. 16 Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob. 17 For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron: I will also make thy officers peace, and thine exactors righteous ness. 18 Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise. 19 "The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory, 20 Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the LORD shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. 21 Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified. 22 A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: I the LORD will hasten it in his time. 1 Or, be enlightened, for thy light cometh. 2 Rev. 21. 24. 3 Chap. 49. 18. Or, noise of the sea shall be turned toward thee. 5 Or, wealth. Chap. 61. 6. 7 Gal. 4. 26. 8 Rev. 21. 25. 9 Or, wealth. 10 Rev. 3. 9. 11 Rev. 21. 23, and 22. 5. Verse 4. "Thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side.”—The Septuagint and Chaldee, instead of "shall be nursed" (N), read "shall be carried" (MINWI): and this reading is adopted by Lowth and Boothroyd as more conformable to the customs of the East, where, as we had occasion to observe under ch. xlix. 22 a child is sometimes carried astride upon the hip, with the arm of the bearer around its body. It is, however, perhaps as well to understand the expression to be figurative, describing the condition of being brought up carefully at home under paternal inspection and influence-not wandering, not torn away, nor in any manner alienated from home nurture in truth and virtue. 6. "Ephah."-The people of Ephah probably formed a section of the Midianites; for Midian, Abraham's son by Keturah, had a son called Ephah. (Gen. xxv. 4.) 8. "As doves to their windows."-This text has been well illustrated by Morier in his 'Second Journey,' p. 140. "In the environs of the city (Ispahan), to the westward, near Zainderood, are many pigeon houses, erected at a distance from habitations, for the purpose of collecting pigeons' dung for manure. They are large, round towers, rather broader at the bottom than the top, and crowned by conical spiracles, through which the pigeons descend. Their interior resembles a honeycomb, pierced with a thousand holes, each of which forms a snug retreat for a nest. More care appears to have been bestowed upon their outside than upon that of the generality of dwelling houses, for they are painted and ornamented. The extraordinary flights of pigeons which I have seen upon one of these buildings afford perhaps a good illustration of the passage in Isaiah Ix. 8, Who are they that Ay as a cloud,' &c. Their great numbers, and the compactness of their mass, literally looked like a cloud at a distance, and obscured the sun in their passage." What gives an additional value to this illustration is the probability that similar dove-houses were in use among the Hebrews; for they certainly were so among their Egyptian neighbours, as we see by the ancient paintings and in the Mosaic pavement at Præneste, where the dove-cotes are such large round towers as Morier describes, decreasing in diameter upwards; but they are without the conical spiracles which we find in those of Persia. 13. "The glory of Lebanon:" that is, the cedar.-Most of our readers will recollect the beautiful verses in which Pope and Cowper have, respectively, paraphrased or imitated the glowing language and varied imagery in which the final glory of the church is foretold, in this chapter, by the prophet. CHAPTER LXI.' 1 The office of Christ. 4 The forwardness, 7 and blessings of the faithful. THE 'Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; 3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified. 4 ¶ And they shall 'build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations. 5 And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. 6 But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers 1 Luke 4. 18. 2 Chap. 58. 12. of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves. 7¶ For your shame ye shall have double; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them. 8 For I the LORD love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. 9 And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the LORD hath blessed. 10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom 'decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels. 11 For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations. Chap. 60. 6. 4 Heb. decketh as a priest. Verse 10. "As a bride adorneth herself with her jewels."- This is a custom universally observed; and it therefore needs no other illustration than may be derived from the fact that in many parts of the East it is considered so essential that the bride should be richly adorned with precious ornaments and jewels, that if she has none of her own, or not enough for the occasion, she borrows largely from her friends and neighbours till she is enabled to offer such an appearance of wealth and splendour as she never made before, and can never hope to make again. Jewels and other ornaments of price are in general readily lent on such occasions, and are always faithfully returned, |