The Resurrection Revealed, Book 3 · Chapter 2 · Section 15
SECT. XV.
THe fifth place in Iſaiah is Chapter 24. verſe 23. Then the Moon ſhall be confounded, and the Sun aſhamed, when the Lord of Hoſts ſhall reigne in Mount Zion, and in Jeruſalem, and before his Ancients gloriouſly.*R. Kimchi upon this Chapter hath theſe words, foreign, that is, foreign This paraſha, or Section is to be (fulfilled) hereafter, foreign. In the deſtruction of Edom foreign Afterward he ſhall remember the ſalvation of ISRAEL. To underſtand what he means by Edome, he bids us (upon v. 16.) Look foreign upon the deſtruction of ROME mentioned in the who le book of God.
To theſe few words, I ſhall need to ſpeak but few. THEN, relating to that afore in verſe 22, 23. fetcheth its ſenſe from thence. In that day, ſay the 22, and 23. verſes, It ſhall come to paſſe, that the Lord ſhall puniſh the hoſt of the High ones that are on high, and the Kings of the earth upon the earth (meaning plainly, as the laſt clauſe evidenceth, the Gentile-Potentates and powers) And they (thoſe Gentiles) ſhall be gathered together as priſoners are gathered in the pit, and ſhall be ſhut up in the priſon. And after many dayes THEY (the Jews ſaith Calvin, giving a ſtrong reaſon*Quum igitur haec ad ſuſtinendos FIDELES pertinerent, non dubium quin IUDAEIS dicerentur, apud quos potiſsimum fides crat, aut potius nuſquam apud alios apparebat.) ſhall be viſited. To which ſenſe touching the Iews the ſubſequent words alſo in the next verſe (the Text wee are now upon) do mightily concur. The Moon ſhall be confounded, &c. when the Lord ſhall reigne before his Ancients. The originall and riſe of which then, you now ſee; That upon the great deſtruction of the impenitent Gentile-Potentates and Powers, the Iewes (and if you will include the penitent Gentiles, it ſhall not grieve us) ſhall be viſited in mercy; And the Moon ſhall be confounded, &c. that is, the glory of the Church ſhall be ſuch, as the light of the Moon, and brightneſſe of the Sunne ſhall be nothing to it. At which time, as it follows the Lord of Hoſts (in Chriſt Ieſus, ſaith Diodat) ſhall reign on Mount Zion, and in Ieruſalem (types of the univerſall Church) and that in great glory before his Ancientours, who were the Church of the Jews, by blood, as well as by Profeſsion; Chriſt being conſidered as man, as the local circumſtance of Zion and Ieruſalem, cals for that notion.
§. 3 Calvin again cleerly intimateth in many circumlocutions, that his ſenſe of this Text is, that Chriſt (ſpeaking in the future of time after Calvins time) ſhall eſtabliſh his Church on earth in a moſt glorious eſtate. Ego non dubito quin perſequatur Propheta, &c. That is, I doubt not, but that the Prophet proſecutes the conſolation which he had touched in the former verſe to this ſenſe or effect; when the Lord ſhall viſite his people, and ſhall purge his Church from their filthineſſes, he ſhall ſettle his Kingdome, and that ſo illuſtrious, that it ſhall obſcure the Sunne and Stars with its ſplendor; which kinde of ſpeech is uſuall with the Prophets, as we have already ſeen. But here Iſaiah ſpeaks of the BODY of the Church, and not onelyonly of the HEAD: Seeing therefore the Lord will ESTABLISH HIS KINGDOME upon MOUNT ZION, ſo great ſhall be the Magnificence thereof in the INSTAURATION of the People, as that the things that otherwiſe ſhone in the ſight of men, ſhall now be as darkneſſe. Which that he might expreſſe to the life, be names theſe things that above all are moſt ſplendent. The word RULING is improperly drawn (to ſignifie) Gods vengeance. For although God be ſaid to reigne, when he acts the office of a Judge, yet this ſpeech ſo comprehending within it, concerning THE KINGDOME of God in MOUNT ZION, it alwayes hath the notation of mercy and ſalvation. For hee ſpeaketh of the RESTITUTION of the Church. Whence it follows that this is not fulfilled but in Chriſt. He making a preciſe mention of Elders or Ancients, uſeth a Synecdoche, which is exceeding uſuall in Scripture. For he taketh a ſpeciall part of the Church for the whole body of the Church, yet not without a conſult purpoſe. He calls by the name of Ancients, as well the PRIESTS, as other RULERS, who were chiefe over Diſcipline and Manners, by whoſe moderation, and prudence, the reſt are to be governed. Under their names he comprehends all the people, not onelyonly becauſe they repreſent the whole body, as under their ſhadow the people was covered, but alſo that believers might conceive hope of a future ORDER. For otherwiſe it would little, or nothing profit, that the multitude ſhould be left diſsipated in manner of a diſ-membred body, or confuſed Maſſe. Neither is it impertinently added, BEFORE the ANCIENTS, that the Jewes might know that the power of God ſhould be MANIFEST and ILLUSTRIOUS, &c. For SO HE REIGNES, that wee may PERCEIVE HIM PRESENT WITH US. For if it ſhould be beyond our COMPREHENSION, no COMFORT would redound to us thereby. For GLORY, others read GLORIOUSLY, others GLORIOUS. I had rather take it in the ſubſtantive (GLORY) although it makes no difference in the ſenſe. For it teacheth how great ſhall be the magnificence and glory of God by ERECTING THE KINGDOME OF CHRIST, in that all ſplendor is obſcured, and ONLY the glory of Chriſt muſt be eminent and CONSPICUOUS. Whence it follows, that THEN at length, God ſhall injoy HIS OWN RIGHT AMONG US, and have his due honour, WHEN ALL HIS CREATURES BEING GATHERED INTO ORDER, he alone is RESPLENDENT IN OUR EYES. Thus Calvin, whoſe words and phraſes here, can bear no leſſe then a ſenſe favouring a viſible glorious Kingdome of Chriſt on earth, though ſomething of it (as he ſaith) muſt be comprehended by faith above ſenſe. To which viſibility of Chriſts Kingdome on earth, the correlative in 22, and 23. verſes anſwering to our relative THEN in our Text, of puniſhing the Kings of the earth upon the earth, &c. doth ſtrongly bear witneſſe.
§. 4 Now lay altogether, and then judge, when was this Text ever fulfilled? Surely in a litterall ſenſe, as to corporall Tranſactions, not at their returne from Babylon. For then the Babylonians were not puniſhed, nor put in priſon. Nor were the Iews in an outward glorious condition, but as in ſubjection ſtill to Babylon, and made a ſcorn by Sanballat, Tobiah, &c. with the multitude of their adherents, hindring their building, diſcouraging their work, raiſing lyes, laying plots to indanger them. So that they were as long, neer upon, in repairing the Temple and City of Ieruſalem, and ſetling the ſtate thereof from the firſt that they began it, as they had been in Captivity.*See the book of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Haggi. Nor was this Text of Iſa. litterally, and corporally fulfilled to them, at Chriſts being on earth, being then alſo under captivity and reproach by the Romans; †See the ſtory of the Evangeliſts, and Acts.and to this day in the ſame condition under them, and all Nations in the world. Nor hath this been yet fulfilled in a ſpiritual ſenſe from that time to this day, in that, not one of ten thouſand of the Gentiles, admired their Levitical glory. And their Ancients, the Scribes, Phariſees, Elders, and Rulers of the Synogogues, and People generally oppoſed and perſecuted Evanagelical glory. And though for a ſpurt ſome few favoured the Goſpel, Act. 1. Act. 2. yet by and by they univerſally (Act. 13.) fell off from this Glory, and ſo continued untill theſe our times.
§. 5 Nor can theſe be fulfilled … …ltimate judgement. For then Chriſt RULES not, 1 Cor. 15. v. 24. v. 28.