Commentary on Prov Ecc SoS Isa Jer Lam Eze Dan, Lamentations – Ezekiel

Commentary on Prov Ecc SoS Isa Jer Lam Eze Dan · Lamentations – Ezekiel

p. 367A COMMENTARY OR EXPOSITION ON THE Lamentations of IEREMY.

CHAP. I.

Ver. 1. HOw doth the City ſit ſolitary] Some tell us of Jeremyes cave, near to Acheldama, Adriehom. ex Niceph.where he ſat in ſight of the City now deſtroyed, and made her this Epitaph: not altogether unlike that which David once made for his dear Jonathan, 2 Sam. 1.17. There he hath his Ecah admirantis & commiſerantis, his wondring and condoling How once and again, and a third time, ver. 19 25, 27. And our Prophet hath the ſelf-ſame (in ſenſe at leaſt) three ſeveral times in this one verſe: whence the Hebrews call the whole book by the name of Echa (How) which is the firſt word in it: and beginneth with the firſt letter of the Hebrew Alphabet. For it muſt be obſerved here that (for memory ſake eſpecially) this piece of holy writ is, moſt of it made up in order of Alphabet, viz. the four firſt chapters; and all of it with ſingular artifice in a poetical ſtraine: take that one paſſage for a taſte, chap. 5.16. Oi na lanu, chi chattaxu (which runneth rhythmically) i. e. wo to us that we have ſinned. And whereas other Poetry is the luxury of ſuch learning as is in words reſtrained, in matter (uſually) looſe; here it is altogether otherwiſe. For the Prophet or Poet whether, id ſibi negoti credidit ſolum dari, maketh it his whole buſineſſe, to ſet forth his peoples miſery in the cauſe thereof, their ſins and exceſſes: preſſing therefore to patience, to repentance, to earneſt prayer, and to a confident expectation of a gracious iſſue, together with a ſanctified uſe of all their ſufferings: he had himſelf been a man of many ſorrows all along: and now had his ſhare as deep as any in the common calamity. Beſides which he could truely ſay with Cyprian, Cum ſingulis pectus meum copulo, maeroris & funeris pondera luctuoſa participo: cum plangentibus plango, cum deſtentibus defleo, i. e. in St. Pauls words, Who is weak, and I am not weak? grieved and I grieve not? offended, and I burn not? 2 Cor. 11.29. And this he expreſſeth in a ſtately ſtile and figurative terms, full of Paſſion and compaſſion; as, to ſhew his love to his Country, ſo to work upon his hard-hearted Country-men, and to excite them to repentance and better obedience.

How doth the City] Lately a City, yea the City, the moſt famous of all the Cities of the Eaſt, ſaith Pliny; but now, alaſſe, of a City become an heape: ſo true is p. 368that of Seneca ſpeaking of a great City burnt to aſhes, Ʋna dies intereſt inter magnam civitatem & nullam, there was but one day betwixt a City and no City.

Sit ſolitary] Sit on the ground in a mourning poſture, as Job did among the aſhes; and as Veſpaſian, after the laſt deſtruction of Jeruſalem by his ſon Titus, cauſed money to be coyned, whereon was ſtamped the picture of Judaea in form of a captive woman, ſitting ſorrowfully under a Palm-tree.

How ſits this City late moſt populous,

Thus ſolitary? like a widow thus?

Empreſſe of Nations, Queen of Provinces

She was, that now thus tributary is.

That was full of people] Full indeed at the three ſolemn anniverſary feaſts eſpecially.Auſtin ſaith there were 3000000 preſent at that Paſſeover, whereof 1100000 periſhed by the ſword and famine, 100000 were led to Rome in triumph. Serm. 204. de Tempore. Joſephus teſtifieth that at the laſt deſtruction of this City by the Romans there were more then eleven hundred thouſand people got into it. And although Judaea was not above two hundred miles long and fifty miles broad; nothing near ſo big as England, yet what huge armies brought they into the field in the dayes of David, Aſa, Jehoſaphat, &c?

How is ſhe become as a widow] Having loſt her King, if not her God: happy, if in this laſt reſpect, ſhe be but quaſi vidua, as a widow only and no more (ſee 2 Cor. 6.8. with the Note) if God at any time ſhould ſay unto her, as Zach. 10.6. She ſhall be as if I had not cast her off, and I will hear her: or if ſhe could ſay of her ſelf as that good widow in ſtory did, Sola relicta ſolum Deum ſequor, Being left alone, I will follow after God alone.

She that was great among the Nations] So was Athens once the glory of Greece, for both Arts and Armes; now a dog-hole in compariſon. Sparta alſo, that other eye of Greece, is now a ſmall Burrough called Miſithra, having nothing to boaſt of but the fame and thoughts of its former greatneſſe.

And Princeſſe among the Provinces] In Davids and Solomons dayes eſpecially, when that ſtate was in the flouriſh; i. e. the praiſe of the whole earth, and terrour to all Nations.

How is ſhe become tributary?] And by that means melted and exhauſted, as the Hebrew word importeth. So was England once, when the Popes Aſſe: Oh the huge ſums that he ſuckt hence, to the waſting and impoveriſhing of the land! Of one of his Agents here it is recorded, that at his departure he left not ſo much money in the whole Kingdom, as he either carried with him, or ſent to Rome before him. Some of them derive their Maſſe from the Hebrew word Mas in the text, ſignifying tribute; and in ſome reſpects well they may: per …am ſcilicet pietas omnis liquefacta eſt & diſſoluta, ſaith Rivet; for it is the bane of mens ſouls, and a purge to their purſes.

Ver. 2. She weepeth ſore] Heb. weeping ſhe weepeth, i. e. Sadly and ſoakingly, or as we ſay, ſavourly: ſeeking that way to eaſe her ſorrow, which is ſo deep and downright.

She weeps when ſhe ſhould ſleep.Expletur lachrymis, egeriturque dolor.

In the night] When grief may have its full forth: and when widows are moſt ſenſible of their ſolitary and forlorn condition.

Jam jacet in viduo ſquallida facta toro.

And her teares are on her cheeks] Haerent & perennant, ſeldom or never are they off. As hinds by calving, ſo ſhe by weeping caſt out her ſorrows, Job 39.3.

Among all her lovers ſhe hath none to comfort her] Optimum ſolatium ſodalitium, ſaith one: And, Affert ſolatium lugentibus ſuſpiriorum ſocietas, ſaith another Father. It was no ſmall aggravation of Jeruſalems miſery, that her confederates proved miſerable comforters, and her allyes kept aloof off, ſo that ſhe had none to compaſſionate her. This is alſo none of the ſmalleſt torments of the damned Ghoſts, that they are unpittied of their beſt friends and neareſt relations.

p. 369All her friends have dealt treacherouſly with her] The Edomites and Moabites. Iſhmael the ſon of Nethaniah, and Johanan the ſon of Kareah, &c. Every ſinner ſhall one day take up this Lamentation: And why? they have forſaken the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out broken ciſterns that can hold no water, Jer. 2.13.

Ver. 3. Judah is gone into captivity] But with no good will: God hath driven them out, for their cruel oppreſſions and hard uſage of their poor brethren that ſerved them. Thus the Chaldee Paraphraſt, and not amiſſe. Others thus; Judah, i. e. the inhabitants of the Kingdom, goeth away, i. e. willingly leave their country, goods, and dwelling, ſc. before the deſolation of Jeruſalem, becauſe of affliction, Jun. Udal.i. e. extremity of trouble, and great ſlavery, &c.

She dwelleth among the heathen] Where ſhe can get nothing better then guilt or grief.

She findeth no reſt] No more then did the dove in the deluge, Gen. 8.9.

All her perſecutors, took her in the straits] i. e. At the moſt advantage to miſchief her: a term taken from hunters or high-way-men. The Chaldees took the City, when it had been firſt diſtreſſed with famine: and then the Jews that went down to Egypt for ſuccour and ſhelter after Gedaliahs death, they caught there, as mice in a trap, as this Prophet had foretold them, chap. 42.43. and 46. but they would not be warned. M…tſraim proved to be their Me…ſarim, i. e. Egypt their pound, or priſon.

Ver. 4. The wayes of Zion do mourn] So they ſeem to do becauſe unfrequented, overgrown with graſſe, and out of their kindly order.

Her Prieſts ſigh] For want of employment.

The virgins were afflicted] Or diſcomfited: thoſe that are uſually ſet upon the merry pin, and were wont to make mirth at thoſe feſtivities.

And ſhe is in bitterneſſe] Zion is: but for nothing ſo much,Cultus Dei deſertus eſt, & omnia luctifica. Jun. as for the decay of religion, and the loſſe of holy exerciſes: when this befalleth, all things elſe are mere Ichabods to good people. See Zeph. 3.18.

Ver. 5. Her adverſaries are the chief] Heb. are for the head. This was threatned, Deut. 28.13, 14, 43, 44 This, when it falleth out, is a great grief to the godly. Therefore the Prophet Nahum, for the comfort of Gods Iſrael is wholly in ſetting forth the deſtruction of their enemies, the Aſſyrians.

Her enemyes prosper] See Jer. 12.1. they prevaile and do what they liſt; ſo that there ſeemeth to be neither hope of better, nor place of worſe.

For the Lord hath afflicted her] Not ſo much her adverſaries and enemies,Cavet ſcriptura ne haec poteſtas detur adverſariis. Oecolamp. or her oppreſſours and haters (as the words properly ſignifie) that is, thoſe that oppreſſe them in action, and hate them in affection.

Her children are gone into captivity] Thoſe that were able to go: for the reſt were ſlain, chap. 4.

Before the enemy] Driven before them, as cattle.

Ver. 6. And from the daughter of Zion all her beauty is departed] Her glory, as Eſa. 5.14. that is chiefly the Temple, and the ſervice of God in it: It is now Ichabod with her. The beauty and bulwark of a Nation are Gods holy ordinances.

Her Princes are become like harts] i. e. Heartleſſe, bereft of courage; they dare not make head againſt an enemy.

Before the purſuer] R. Solomon here obſerveth, that the Hebrew word foreign is written at full, ſo as it is ſcarce anywhere elſe, to note the fulneſſe of the perſecution.

Ver. 7. Jeruſalem remembred in the dayes of her affl…ction] Miſery is the beſt art of Memory. Then thoſe priviledges we prized not in proſperity, we recount with regret: Bona à tergo formoſiſſima: Magis carendo quam fruendo.the worth of good things is beſt known by the want of them: and as we ſee things beſt at a diſtance, ſo here. Afflictions are pillulae lucis, that do notably clear the eye-ſight.

The adverſaries ſaw her] ſc. With a ſpiteful and ſcornful eye.

And did mock at her Sabbaths] Calling the Jews in contempt Sabbatarians: and jearing them as thoſe that loſt more then a ſeventh part of their time that way; and p. 370telling them in ſcorn, that now they might well awhile to keep a long Sabbath, as having little elſe to doe. Juvenal thus deſcribeth a Jew,

— cui ſeptima quaeque fuit lux

Satyr. 5.Ignava, & partem vitae non attigit ullam.

Paulus Phagius telleth likewiſe of a black-mouthed Egyptian, who ſaid that Chriſtians were a colluvies of moſt loathſom lecherous people, that had a foul diſeaſe upon them, and were therefore fain to reſt every ſeventh day.

Perpetuo, aſſidue, & graviter peccavit.Ver. 8. Jeruſalem hath grievouſly ſinned] Heb. hath ſinned ſin, hath ſinned ſinningly, doing wickedly as ſhe could, Jer. 3.4. and having many tranſgreſſions wrapped up in her ſins and their circumſtances, Levit. 16.21. And this is here acknowledged as the true cauſe of her calamity. Prophane perſons lay all the blame in this caſe upon God: as He in the Poet,

O patria, O divûm domus Ilium, & inclyta bello

Maenia Dardanidum: ferus omnia Jupiter Argos

Virg. Aeneid. 2.Tranſtulit. —

Poſtquam res Aſiae Priamique evertere gentem

Immeritam viſum ſuperis, &c.

Therefore ſhe is removed] Heb. therefore is ſhe unto removing or wandering, as Cain was,Ad modum Cain fraetricidae. Figuier. when he went to live in the land of Nod: or as a menſtruous woman is ſeparated from the ſociety of others. Nidah for Niddah.

All that honoured her] When her wayes pleaſed the Lord.

Becauſe they have ſeen her nakedneſſe] Her infamous wickedneſſes, for which ſhe hath done pennance, as it were, and is therefore deſpiſed. Or elſe it is a term taken from a naked captive woman.

Yea ſhe ſigheth and turneth backward] ſc. To hide her nakedneſſe from publick view. Or, going into captivity ſhe looked her laſt look toward her dear country, and fetcht a ſigh.

Ver. 9. Her filthineſſe is in her skirts] Taxat impudextiam inſignem. She rather glorieth in her wickedneſſe,Paſchaſius. then is any whit abaſhed of it: a Metaphor from a menſtrous woman that is immodeſt. Oh quam vulgare hoc hodiè malum! See Iſa. 3.9. But whence this graceleſneſſe?

She remembreth not her laſt end] i. e. What a black tail of plagues ſin draweth after it,Plura de extremis loqui pars ignaviae eſt. Tacit. lib. 2. Hiſt. and that for all theſe things ſhe muſt come to Judgment. Memorare noviſſima is a good preſervative from ſin: but moſt men are of Otho the Emperours mind who thought it a piece of daſtardy to ſpeak or think much of death: whereas Moſes aſſureth us, that by keeping out the thoughts of death, we keep our ſpirits void of true magnanimity: and that one of thoſe that will conſider their latter end would chaſe a thouſand, Deut 32.30.

Therefore ſhe came down wonderfully] Heb. with wonderment…: Her incogitancy and inconſideratneſſe, together with the licentious wickedneſſe following thereupon (being more heavy then a talent of lead, Zach. 5.7.) brought her down with a powder, as we ſay, ita ut ad miraculum corruerit.

O Lord, behold mine affliction] If not me (as utterly unworthy) yet mine affliction, as thou once didſt Hagar's, Gen. 16.13. and if I may obtain no favour, yet why ſhould the enemy inſult to thy diſhonour? Deut. 32.27. Pſal. 35.26. & 38.16. Jer. 48.26, 42. Zeph. 2.20.

Ver. 10. The adverſary] The common enemy both of God and us, out of hatred of the truth and the profeſſors thereof.

Hath ſpread out his hand] His plundring and ſacrilegious hand.

Ʋpon her pleaſant things] But eſpecially thoſe that were conſecrated to the ſervice of God in the Temple. The Rabbines here by pleaſant or deſirable things, underſtand principally the book of the Law, which ſay they, the Moabites and the Ammonites ſought for in the Temple, that they might burn it, becauſe therein was forbidden their admiſſion into the Church for ever.

p. 371Ver. 11. All her people ſigh] And ſo think to eaſe their grief.

They ſhall ſeek bread] The ſtaff of life, which, without repaire by nutrition, would be ſoon extinct; ſo in the ſpiritual life; which made Job prefer the word before his neceſſary food. There is a famine of the Word, which is much worſe, Amos 8. Iſa. 5. Pray againſt it, and prevent it.

They have given their pleaſant things for meat] Which muſt be had at any rate: much more muſt the food of the ſoul.Act. & Mon. 750. Keckerm. praefat. Geograph. Our forefathers gave five Markes or more for a good book: a load of hay for a few Chapters of St. James or of St. Paul in Engliſh, ſaith Mr. Fox. The Queen of Caſtile ſold her jewels to furniſh Columbus, for his diſcovering voyage to the Weſt Indies, when he had ſhewed his Maps (though our Henry the ſeventh loth to part with mony, ſl…ghted his proffers) and thereby the golden mines were found, and gained to the Spaniſh Crown. Let no man think much to part with his pleaſant things for his precious ſoul: or to ſacrifice all that he hath to the ſervice of his life; which next to his ſoul ſhould be moſt dear unto him. Our anceſtours in Queen Maries dayes were glad to eat the bread of their ſouls in peril of their lives.

To relieve the ſoul] Heb. to make the ſoul come again. For Animantis cujuſque vita in fuga eſt: Life muſt be fetcht again by food, when it is fainting away.

See O Lord and conſider] Quam delicata epulatrix facta ſim, to what hard meat I am held, to how ſtrait an allowance: See it, and be ſenſible of my priſoners pittance, and how I have made many a meals meat upon the promiſes, when I have wanted bread, as that good woman once ſaid.

Ver. 12. Is it nothing to you all ye that paſſe by the way] Siſte viator, Stay paſſenger, haſt not a tear to ſhed? &c. Sanchez thinks that this is Jeruſalem's Epitaph made by her ſelf, as to be engraven on her tomb to move compaſſion. The Septuagint have foreign; Hei, ad vos, ſubaudi clamo: Woe and Alaſſe, cry I to you. Make ye nothing of my miſery? I wiſh the like may never befal you: Ne ſit ſuper vos; for ſo ſome render the words.

Behold and ſee if there be any ſorrow like unto my ſorrow] What we ſee in the water, ſeemeth greater then it is: ſo in the waters of Marah: See chap. 3.1. Tis ſure, that no temptation taketh us, but what is humane, or common to man, 1 Cor. 10.13. But what did the man Chriſt Jeſus ſuffer? All our ſufferings are but chips of his croſs, ſaith Luther, not worthy to be named in the ſame day, &c.

Wherein the Lord hath afflicted me] This was yet no ſmal allay to her grief, that God had done it. The Stoicks, who held that all came by deſtiny, were noted for their patience, or rather tolerance, and aequanimity in all conditions.

Ver. 13. Form above hath he ſent fire into my bones] Like as when the marrow and natural moiſture is dryed up by a violent fever: or rather, as when the ſolid parts of bodies below are lightening-ſtruk from above, and ſcorcht by theſe ſulphureous flames that pierce unto them.

And it prevailed againſt them] Or. And he ruled it, viz. the fire: i. e. he directed and diſpoſed it.

He hath ſpred a net for my feet] And ſo hamperd me an unruly creature, ut conſtricta fuerim in ruinam, that there is no eſcaping from him: yea the more I ſtrive to get out, the faſter I ſtick.

He hath turned me back] Laid me on my back.

He hath made me deſolate and faint] My calamities come thick, one in the neck of another; words are too weak to utter them: and yet here is very great copy and variety of words: ſo that Paſchaſius ſaith this book may well be called the Lamentations of Lamentations: like as Solomon's Song is called for its excellenty The Song of Songs.

Ver. 14. The yoke of my tranſgreſſions is bound by his hand] Compactum eſt. Or, is bound upon his hand: that is, the Lord carrieth them in his continual remembrance.

They are wreathed] Wrapped and wreathed together as a ſtrong cord. My ſins are twiſted together, ſaith One, and ſadly accented: ſo are the puniſhments of my ſins, ſaith the Church here, neither can I get free: but as the heifer, by wriggling againſt the yoke, galleth her neck, ſo do I.

And come up upon my neck] Praeclarum ſcilicet monile, & torques, mearum virtutum index, & inſigne.

p. 372He hath made my ſtrength to fall] Heb. he hath cauſed my power to ſtumble, i. e. ſo to ſtumble, as to fall: for he who ſtumbleth and yet falleth not, getteth ground.

From whom I am not able to ariſe] Only God can raiſe me: and it is a work worthy of God, who Dejicit ut relevet: premit ut ſolatia praeſtet.

Ver. 15. The Lord hath trodden under foot] As unſavory ſalt; that is, he hath covered with the greateſt contempt.

All my mighty men] Vulg. My Magnifico's or Gallants; in whom I too much truſted.

In the midſt of me] In the very boſom of their mother; as Caracalla killed his brother Geta, conſecrating the ſword wherewith he ſo killed him.

He hath called an aſſembly againſt me] Vocant adverſum me tempus, ſo the Vulgar verſion hath it; (and Calvin to the ſame purpoſe) He hath called the time againſt me: i. e. a ſet time wherein to deſtroy my ſtrong ones. Howbeit One maketh this inference from the words,D. Playfer. For the very time which we have contemned, we ſhall be condemned: and for every day which we have ſpent idlely, we ſhall be ſhent ſeverely. This is true, but little to the preſent purpoſe: like as Huſhai ſaid, Ahitophel's counſel was good, but not now.

The Lord hath trodden her as in a wine-preſſe] By another like Metaphor, God is ſaid to have threſhed Babylon as a threſhing-flore, Jer. 51.33.

Ver. 16. For theſe things I weep] I Jeruſalem, as ver. 2. Or, I Jeremy: Ovid.Nam faciles motus mens generoſa capit.

Mine eye, mine eye runneth down with water] Continuitatem ſignificat: imo emphaſin dicit; Niobe-like I weep exceſſively, and without intermiſſion. God would not have the wounds of a godly ſorrow to be ever ſo healed up, but that they may bleed afreſh again upon all good occaſion. As for worldly ſorrow, there muſt be a ſtop put to it, left what we have over-wept, we be forced to unweep again.

Becauſe the comforter that ſhould relieve my ſoul is far from me] This was very ſad, and made both eyes run down with water. God ſtood aloof off, men were ſlack to ſhore up a poor ſinking ſoul. This was a condition and complaint not unlike that of Saul, 1 Sam. 28.15. I am ſore diſtreſſed: for the Philiſtines are upon me, and God is departed from me, &c.

Ver. 17. Zion ſpreadeth forth her hands] But to whom? To God? She ſhould have done it ſooner; namely whilſt he ſtretched out his hands to her all the day long. To the Babylonian? at barbarus nil niſi iras ſpirat, but his tender mercyes are mere cruelties. God will not take the wicked by the hand, ſaith Bildad, Job 8.20. Men may not, when as God will not. No better courſe can be taken in this caſe then that preſcribed, Lam. 3.40, 41. then God will repent, and men ſhall relent toward a diſtreſſed creature.

And there is none to comfort her] See ver. 16. This is oft complained of as a moſt heavy affliction.

The Lord hath commanded] What marvel then that their hearts were ſo ſet off from him, who had been ſo careleſſe of keeping Gods Commands?

Jeruſalem is as a menſtruous woman amongſt them] Or, as an abomination, tanquam quiſquiliae, vel tanquam foetidae aliquae ſordes. Gods people are more ſhamefully ſlighted and reproached in the world, then any elſe; and the godlieſt, moſt of all.

Ver. 18. The Lord is righteous] Whatever I ſuffer, or ſay haply in my paſſion, that may ſeem to ſound to the contrary. Righteous art thou O Lord, and juſt are thy judgements, ſaid David, Pſal. 119.137. and after him Mauricius the Emperour (when depoſed by the traitor Phocas) and the noble Du-pleſſis when he heard of the death of his only ſon, ſlain in the Low-Countries.

For I have rebelled againſt his Commandements] Heb. againſt his mouth; and have therefore deſerved thus to feel the weight of his hand; to hear the rod and who hath p. 373appointed it: becauſe I would not hear the word and who preached it. I have imbitered his mouth, as ſome render the Hebrew text, and therefore am worthily imbittered by him.

Hear I pray you, all people] See ver. 12. But how agreeth this with that of David, 2 Sam. 1.20. Tell it not in Gath? It is anſwered that David there would not have that ſlaughter in Gilboah to be reported as the hand of the Philiſtines, but of God.

My virgins and my young men are gone into captivity] Are carried out of this land, the ſigne of Gods favour, and of heaven it ſelf: And here lay the pinch of their grief. Let yong ones and maids (quibus hoaie fraena laxari ſolent) obey God, unleſſe they had rather periſh.

Ver. 19. I called for my lovers, but they deceived me] My confederates, idols, and other ſweet-hearts, never yet true to any that truſted them. See Jer. 22.20. & 30.14.

My Prieſts and mine Elders, &c.] What then became of poor folk? and how gracious was God to Jeremy in the proviſion made for him by the King, who yet loved him not?

Ver. 20. Behold O Lord, for I am in diſtreſſe▪ Thus ever and anon ſhe is lifting up her ſoul to God by an holy Apoſtrophe in ſome ſhort yet pithy expreſſions. And ſurely if a long look toward God ſpeedeth, Pſal. 34.4, 5. Jon. 2.4, 7. how much more an hearty Ejaculation, as here?

My bowels are troubled] Lutulant, bulliunt, vel intumeſcunt: non ſolum fluctuant, aut ſtrepunt, ut alibi. My bowels boyle and buble, or are thick and muddy, as waters are after and in a tempeſt: or it is a Metaphor from mortar made by mingling water with lime and ſand. She was in a great perturbation: and ſought eaſe by ſubmitting to Gods Juſtice, and imploring his mercy.

Mine heart is turned within me] Or, turneth it ſelf upſide down. See Hoſ. 11.8.

For I have grievouſly rebelled] This was the right way to get eaſe and ſettle all within, viz. to confeſſe ſin with aggravation, putting in weight, laying on load.

Abroad the ſword bereaveth, at home there is as death] Famine eſpecially (which is worſe then the ſword, chap. 4.9.)

— & plurima mortis imago.

R. Solomon interpreteth it of evil Angels.

Ver. 21. They have heard that I ſigh] My friends have; and yet they pitty me not: this was a great vexation, and is much complained of. See ver. 2, 16, 17, 19.

All mine enemies have heard of my trouble: they are glad] This foreign is the devils diſeaſe: the wicked compoſe Comedies out of the Saints Tragedies, and revel in their ruines. But God people, in this caſe, have a double comfort. 1. That God hath done it (and not the enemy) that he hath a holy hand in all the troubles that befal them. 2. That their enemies ſhall not ſcape ſcotfree, but be ſoundly puniſhed.

That thou haſt done it] Or, but thou haſt done it: and ſure we are, thou wilt not overdo.

Thou wilt bring the day that thou haſt called] The diſmal day of vengeance, that thou haſt threatened Babylon with, eſpecially by Iſay and Jeremy.

And they ſhall be like unto me] Their future deſolation is my preſent conſolation.

Ver. 22. Let their wickedneſſe come before thee] God had pronounced Babylons deſtruction, and therefore the Church might ſafely pray it: Think the like of ſpiritual Babylon. God ſeemeth to forget the inſolencies of his enemies, and deliverance of his people: we muſt minde him, and then it will be done. Only let us ſee to it, that our fire of zeal for Gods glory burn clear, without the ſmoke of ſelf-ends, and of private revenge.

As thou haſt done unto me for my tranſgreſſions] This was it that put a ſting into all her ſufferings: but then ſhe had this to ſupport her, that her ſighes for her ſins were many, and that her heart was faint or heavy through fear of wrath; yet not p. 374without hope of mercy, which made her thus to repaire unto him by Prayer. Qui nihil sperat, nihil orat.

CHAP. II.

Ver. 1. HOw hath the Lord covered the daughter of Zion with a cloud?] Heb. with a thick cloud: nothing like that bright cloud wherein he appeared to his people, as a token of his grace, at the dedication of the Temple, 1 Kings 8.10. How comes it about, and what may be the reaſon of it? Oh in what a wonderful manner and by what ſtrange means hath the Lord now clouded and covered his people (whom he had eſtabliſhed as Mount Zion) with blackeſt calamities and confuſion…s, taking all the luſtre of happineſſe and of hope from her, and that in his anger, and again in the day of his anger?

— tantaene animis coeleſtibus irae?

And caſt down from heaven to the earth] i. e. From the higheſt pitch of felicity, to the loweſt plight of miſery. This was afterwards indeed Capernaums caſe: but when Micah the Moraſhite prophecied,Mic. 3.12. Jer. 26.18.Mic 3:12Jer 26:18 that Zion ſhould be plowed as a field and Jeruſalem laid on heaps, it ſeemed a Paradox, and very few believed him. Chriſt's diſciples alſo had a conceit that the Temple and the world muſt needs have one and the ſame period: which occaſioned that mixt diſcourſe made by our Saviour, Mat. 24. But Gods gracious preſence is not tyed to a place: The Ark, Gods foot-ſtool (as here it is called) was tranſportative till ſetled in Sion: ſo is the Church militant in continual motion, till it come to triumph in heaven: and thoſe that with Capernaum are lifted up to heaven in the abundance of means, may be brought down to hell, for an inſtance of divine vengeance.

And remembred not his foot-ſtool] The Temple and therein the Ark: to teach them, that he was not wholly there included; nieither ought now to be ſought and worſhipped anywhere but above. Surſum corda.

Sept.Ver. 2. The Lord hath ſwallowed up all the habitations of Judah] foreign, as the ſea ſwalloweth up a ſhip; as an earthquake ſwalloweth up whole town-ſhips: as fire ſwalloweth up fuel, or as Moſes his ſerpent ſwallowed up the Sorcerers ſerpents.

And hath not pitied] This was worſe then all the reſt. Iſa. 47.6.

He hath thrown down] Not ſhaken them only and ſo left them ſtanding; but utterly ſubverted them, and that in great diſpleaſure, Deo irritato, & irato, God ſet on the Chaldees, and was the Author, not of their evil will, but of their work.

He hath brought them down to the ground] Though for their height they ſeemed to threaten heaven.

He hath polluted the Kingdom and the Prieſts] Which were held holy and inviolable: Profanavit regnum coeli, ſay ſome Rabbines here, He hath profaned the Kingdom of heaven: for ſo they accounted the Commonwealth of Iſrael; which Joſephus calleth foreign a God-government. But now God had diſpriviledged them, and caſt them off as a thing of naught.

Ver. 3. He hath cut off in his anger all the horn of Iſrael] i. e. All the ſtrength and beauty: the royal majeſty eſpecially, Pſal. 89.24. & 132.17.

He hath drawn back his right-hand] Wherewith he was wont to ſhelter them, and to fight for them: Or, Iſraels right-hand, ſc. by diſabling them: for it is God that ſtrengtheneth and weakeneth the arm of either party, Ezek. 30.24.

And he burned againſt Jacob] Or, in Jacob: i. e. He declareth his diſpleaſure among his people as clearly as a flame of fire that is eaſily diſcernd.

Ver. 4. He hath bent his bow like an enemy] He doth not only help the enemies, but himſelf fighteth againſt us with his own bare hand. He hath bent his bow, id eſt, vim ſuam ultricem, ſaith Origen, that is, his avenging force: So the Poet faineth that Apollo ſhot his deadly ſhafts into the camp of the Grecians.

He ſtood with his right-hand] Heb. He was ſet: Vulg. Firmavit dextram p. 375ſuam, he held his right hand ſteddily, that he might hit what he ſhot at.

In the tabernacle of the daughter of Zion] In Jeruſalem that was ſweetly ſituated, as a tabernacle pitcht in a pleaſant plain; but now a field of blood.

He hath poured out his wrath like fire] i. e. Abundantly and moſt vehemently, perinde ac Aetna, Hecla, &c.

Ver. 5. The Lord was an enemy] This, the ſecure and fooliſh people would not be drawn to beleeve, till now they felt it: therefore it is ſo reiterated.

He hath ſwallowed up Iſrael, he hath deſtroyed, &c.] This he had ſaid before,Redundanti copia exponit quae autea dixcrat. ver. 2. but in caſes of this kind people love to ſay the ſame things over and over.

And hath increaſed—mourning and lamentation] Heb. lamentation and lamentation, q. d. this is all he hath left us. And this ſhe ſpeaketh mourning, but not murmuring: non litem intendit Deo, ſed confeſſionem edit.

Ver. 6. And he hath violently taken away his tabernacle] Redit ad deplorandam religionem: nothing grieves a good ſoul ſo much as the loſſe of religious opportunities. Old Eli's heart was broke before his neck, at the news of the Ark taken.

As if it were of a garden] As if it were ſome cottage or hovel ſet up for a ſhort time in a garden, for the repoſe of the gardiner, Eſ. 1.8.

He hath deſtroyed his places of the aſſembly] Whence we were wont to hope for help, in anſwer to our prayers. There it was that he formerly brake the arrows of the bow, the ſheild, and the ſword, and the battle, Pſal. 76.3. See the Note there. Hence 2 Chron. 4.9. the great Court of the Temple, where the people uſed to pray, is called Gnazarah, that is help and defence.

The King and the Priest] Zedekiah, and Serajah; and with them, the Kingdom and the Prieſthood, Haec jam pro vili, ſub pedibuſque jacent.

Ver. 7. The Lord hath caſt off his Altar] She goeth over it again, as the main matter of her grief, that ſhe was bereft of the outward exerciſes of religion.Longe fecit, procul removit à ſe quaſi remed oſam, ſibi ingratam & moleſtam. His altar God had caſt into a corner, as that which was an eye-ſore to him: — his Sanctuary he abhorred or diſſolved, &c.

They have made a noiſe in the houſe of the Lord] Where God was wont to be praiſed with heart and voyce, now the enemies reboate and roar out Jo triumphe, Jo Paean, Victoria, all's our own.

Ver. 8. The Lord hath purpoſed to deſtroy] Non caſu, non ſubito, non temere, ſed maturo & deſtinato decreto. Gods Providence (which is nothing elſe but the carrying on of his decree) extendeth to ſmalleſt matters; much more to the ſubverſion of States and Cities.

He that ſtretcht out a line] ſc. Of deſtruction, or a levelling line: See 2 King. 21.13. Eſa. 34.11. Jeruſalem was built by line; and ſo it was deſtroyed by him who doeth all things in number, weight and meaſure.

Ver. 9. Her gates are ſunk into the ground] So they ſeem to be, becauſe laid on the ground, and covered with rubbiſh. The Rabbines fable, that the gates ſank indeed into the ground, that they might not come into the enemyes power, becauſe the Ark had once paſſed thorough them; and when the Prieſts that carried it ſang, Lift up your heads O ye gates, &c. they opened of their own accord.

The Law is no more] ſc. Read, or regarded. Inter arma ſilent leges: the noiſe of wars drowneth the voice of Laws.

Her Prophets alſo find no viſion from the Lord] See Pſal. 74.9. with the Note. Jeremy was alone, and haply thought when he ſaw all ruined, that he ſhould propheſie no more. Ezekiel and Daniel were far remote. This was no ſmall affliction that is here complained of. How woe-begone was ſinful Saul, when in his diſtreſſe he could have no anſwer from God, either by Ʋrim, or Viſion, &c. but had the devil to preach his funeral?

Ver. 10. The elders of the daughters of Zion] Who ſat once aloft paſſing ſentence; and held themſelves, haply, too high to be told their duties by a poor Prophet.

Sit upon the ground] After the manner of mourners.

p. 376And keep ſilence] Who were wont to be the oracles of the Countrey.

They have caſt duſt upon their heads] Thoſe white heads of theirs, which they had ſtained with foul practiſes.

They have girded themſelves with ſackcloth] Heb. ſacks, inſtead of ſilkes.

The virgins of Jeruſalem] Who were wont to walk haughtily, and with ſtretchtout necks, Iſa. 3.16.

Hang down their heads to the ground] As if they were aſhamed of themſelves, and had ſmall joy of their beauty, and former bravery.

Ver. 11. Mine eyes do fail with teares] Thoſe fountaines (as the Hebrew word ſignifieth) are even drawn dry. I have wept till I can weep no more, as David did; or I have wept my ſelf blind, as Fauſtus the ſon of Vortiger (once King of England) is ſaid to have done.

My bowels are troubled] Heb. bemudded. See chap. 1.20.

My liver is poured upon the earth] I have well-nigh vomited up my gall, as Job 16.13.

For the deſtruction] Heb. the breach even to ſhivers: as young trees or ſhips are broken by tempeſts.

Becauſe the children and ſucklings ſwoon in the ſtreets] Miſerabile etiam hoſtibus ſpectaculum, a rueful ſight.

Ver. 12. They ſay to their mothers] Lege & luge.

Tu quibus iſta leges incertum eſt, Lector, ocellis:

Ipſe quidem ſiccis ſcribere vix potui.

As oft as I read the Lamentations of Jeremy (ſaith Gregory Nazianzen) my voice faileth me,Orat. 1. pacificat. and I am overwhelmed with teares: the miſery of that poor people cometh under my view as it were; and my heart is therewith very much affected, and afflicted.

Where is corn and wine] Frumentum dicunt non panem: Corn they would have been glad of, though unground ſaith one: Wine they ask for and not water, which noteth an ill cuſtome in their mothers to drink wine, and to give it their little ones: but by corn and wine here may be meant neceſſary food, to keep them alive.

When their ſoul was poured out into the mothers boſom] As it were giving them their lives again, ſeeing they yeelded them no food to preſerve them alive.

Ver. 13. What thing ſhall I take to witneſſe for thee?] q. d. Thou art ſuch a mirrour of Gods heavy judgements, that I know not whence to borrow arguments, nor where to find examples for thy comfort, ſo matchleſſe is thy miſery. It exceedeth that of the Egyptians under Moſes, of the Canaanites under Joſhua, of the Philiſtines under David, of the Hebrews under Eli, &c. It is even imparallel, and inexpreſſible: I have but one Simile to ſet it forth by: and it is this,

Thy breach is great, like the ſea] As far as the ſea exceedeth the rivers, ſo doth thy calamity exceed that of other nations.

Who can heal thee?] None but an Almighty Phyſician: ſurely in mans judgement, thy bruiſe is incureable, and thy wound is grievous, Jer. 30.12.

Ver. 14. Thy Prophets] Thine and not mine; for thou art miſerable by thine own election, acceſſary to thine own ruine.

Have ſeen vain and fooliſh things for thee] Viſions of vanity, ſapleſſe and ſavourleſſe ſtuffe: the fruit or rather froth of their own fancies, Jer. 23.9, 10, &c.

And they have not diſcovered thine iniquity] Conviction maketh way for converſion, and ſo preventeth utter ſubverſion.

But have ſeen for thee falſe burdens] viz. Againſt Babylon: in confidence whereof thou haſt been hardened and heartened in thy ſinful practices, to thine utter undoing.

And cauſes of baniſhment] ſc. Eventually, and as it hath proved.

Ver. 15. All that paſſe by thee clap] See chap. 1.18.

Is this the City] Gods palace upon earth, the porch of Paradiſe, &c. as they ſaid of Jezabel when ſhe lay torn with dogs, Is this that Jezabel?

O quantum haec Niobe Niobe mutatur ab illa?

p. 377Ver. 16. All thine enemies opened their mouths againſt thee] They ſpeak largely and freely to thy diſhonour, the very banks of blaſphemy being broken down, as it were.

We have ſwallowed her up] But ſhall find her to be hard meat, ſuch as they ſhall digeſt in hell. See ver. 2, 5.

Certainly this is the day that we look for] Pray we, that the Papiſts may never ſee here their long looked for day, as they have long called it.

Ver. 17. The Lord hath done that which he had deviſed] Or, performed what he purpoſed. See ver. 8.

He hath fulfilled his Word that he had commanded] That is, his threats annexed to his commands, and of as great authority as they.

In the dayes of old] And not two or three dayes only ſince Gods menaces are ancient, and infallible: not uttered in terrorem only: neither it his forbearance any acquittance.

And he hath cauſed thine enemy to rejoyce over thee] Still the Prophet calleth off this diſtreſſed people from the jeares and inſolencies of their enemies whom they too much looked upon, to the juſt judgement of God who turned thoſe dogs looſe upon them, to bark at them, and to bait them, in manner aforeſaid.

Ver. 18. Their heard cryed unto the Lord] i. e. They cryed ſeriouſly at leaſt, if not ſincerely. Some think it was not a cry of the Spirit for grace; but only of the Fleſh, for eaſe and freedom from affliction: wherefore the Prophet in the next words turneth to the walls of Jeruſalem which were now broken down, bidding them weep, ſith the people would not. And ſurely the ſtony walls of mens houſes, ſtanding with bells of water on their faces before foul weather, ſhall witneſſe againſt ſuch hard hearts as relent not, and ſo prevent not the terrible tempeſt of Gods wrath for their iniquities. There are that render and ſenſe the text thus, Their heart cryeth againſt the Lord, i. e. the adverſaries ſet their whole power to deviſe blaſphemy againſt God: let the Church therefore pray in hope to be heard and to ſpeed the better for the others inſolencies. Theſe by wall underſtand the people within the wall; Others O Mure, qui nunc es merae ruinae, O poor ſhattered wall; or O City which art now nothing but bare walls, without houſing and inhabitants.

Ver. 19. Ariſe, cry in the night] A fit time for meditation and prayer, as we read of David, Pſal. 119. and of the ſon of David, Luk. 21.

In the beginning of the watches] When others are in their firſt (which is their deepeſt and ſweeteſt) ſleep, break thy ſelf of thy reſt, that thou mayſt give God no reſt. Eſa. 62.6, 7. Omnibus ſignis et modis miſeriam tuam expone Domino, beſtir thee every way: al…'s but little enough.

Pour out thine heart like water] That is, ſaith Sanchez, weep till thou haſt wept thy very heart out, if it were poſſible. Or as others, poure out thine heart to God in humble and ingenuous confeſſion and ſupplication: but then pour it forth as water, (whereof every drop will come out) and not as oyle, whereof ſome will ſtill ſtick to the ſides of the veſſel. Tundens pectus & non effundens vitia, ea conſol…d…t, ſaith Auſtin. He who pretendeth to repent, and yet parteth not with his ſins, doth but increaſe them.

Lift up thine hands toward him] But withal thy heart, chap. 3.41.

For the life of thy young children] See on ver. 11, 12.

Ver. 20. Behold, O Lord, and conſider to whom thou haſt done this] Even to thine own inheritances, who ſuffer harder and heavier things commonly then any others: And why? Ingentia beneficia, ingentia flagitia, ingentia ſupplicia, their offences are increaſed, their puniſhments are aggravated by their obligations.

Shall the women eat their fruit, children of a ſpan-long? 2 King. 6. Joſeph. de bel. l. 7. cap. 8.2 Kgs 6] That they did ſo in the ſiege of Jeruſalem by the Chaldees, it appeareth by this queſtion. In the famine of Samaria under Joram they did likewiſe: as alſo at the laſt deſtruction of Jeruſalem by the Romans: and at the ſiege of Sancerra in France, Anno 1572. See the ſad effects of ſin, and ſhun it, if but for the ill conſequents of it.

Shall the Prieſt and the Prophet be ſlain in the Sanctuary of the Lord?] It ſeems they were ſo, (but who they were we read not) although God had cautioned, Touch not mine annointed and do my Prophets no harm. Prieſts were ſlaughtered, where they p. 378uſed to ſlaughter beaſts for ſacrifices: but it may be they were nothing better then Thomas Becket the devils Martyr here,Act. & Mon. and Adam Beton that butcherly Archbiſhop in Scotland, who when himſelf was butchered, cryed out Kill me not, for I am a Prieſt.

Ver. 21. The young and the old lye on the ground in the streets] Oh the woe of war! oh the bloody work that the ſword maketh whereſoever it is in commiſſion! Well may it be called an evil, an only evil by an Antonomaſie, Eſa. 45.7.

Ver. 22. Thou haſt called as in a ſolemn day my terrours] i. e. My terrible enemies the Chaldees, being called in by thee their Generaliſſimo, came on as chearfully as if they had come to a ſolemn feaſt or ſome merry-meeting; and not to a ſiege, and to a bloody war; which they cannot but know to be utrinque triſte, ſuch as both ſides uſually ſuffer by.

Thoſe that I have ſwadled and brought up] Singula haec verba ponderanda ſunt: ſingula enim ingens habent pathos. Here every word is very ponderous, and pathetical: Indeed this whole book is ſo: which is the reaſon that there is no great cohaerence in ſome places thereof to be diſcovered. For as he that is under ſome grievous affliction, without obſerving of order, now cryes, now prayes, now laments, now complains, &c. ſo doth the Prophet here, in the name of the Church, pour forth himſelf tumultuarily in a flood ſuch words as his grief miniſtred unto him: and grief is no methodical ſpeaker.

CHAP. III.

Ver. 1. I Am the man] Here Jeremiah in the name and place of all the Jewiſh people, ſetteth forth his ſufferings very paſſionately, and elegantly: foreign, ſaith Syneſius, for nothing is more Rhetorical then a man in miſery: See on chap. 1.12.

Oecol.By the rod of his wrath] i. e. Of Gods wrath, whom yet he nameth not prae magnitudine affectus, but referreth to him all his ſufferings, and alludeth here, ſay ſome, to that rod, Jer. 1.11.

Ver. 2. He hath led me and brought me into darkneſſe] Perſtat ſemper in Metaphora paſtoriti…, ſay ſome, who by rod in the foregoing verſe underſtand Gods ſhepherds wand, wherewith, when he is diſpleaſed, he driveth his unruly ſheep into dark and dangerous places: See Pſal. 23.3.4. Mic. 7.9.

Hinc inde continenter verberat. Jun.Ver. 3. Surely againſt me is he turned] Metaphora a colaphizantibus, a Metaphor from buffetters who double their blows; beating their adverſaries on both ſides, as the ſmith doth his red-hot iron upon the anvil, till he hath ſhaped it.

Ver. 4. My fleſh and my skin hath he made old] Withered it and wanzed it, ſo that I am not like my ſelf: facta videbor anus, as ſhe ſaid: See Pſal. 32.3.

He hath broken my bones] Decayed and impaired, and that with greateſt torment, as befalleth when bones are broken.

Ver. 5. He hath builded againſt me] Bulwarkes and batteries.

And compaſſed me with gall and travel] Or, with venom and vexation: See Jer. 8.14. In theſe and the like hyperbolical expreſſions we muſt note, that words are too weak to utter the greatneſs of the Saints grief, when they lye under the ſenſe of Gods wrath, and heavy diſpleaſure.

Ver. 6. He hath ſet me in dark places] Dungeons haply which are a kind of graves, and where poor priſoners lye as forgotten. The Perſians called their priſons foreign oblivions: And Ezekiel ſaith that Babylon was to the Jews as a grave, where they lay for dead, till thoſe dead bones lived again, chap. 37.

As they that be dead of old] Free among the dead, and forgotten. It may be ſaid of a Saint in ſome caſes, that Vivit, & eſt vitae neſcius ipſe ſua.

Ver. 7. He hath hedgd me about] Surrounded me with troubles, brought me into ſtraits inextricable, and importable.

p. 379Ver. 8. Alſo when I cry and ſhout] As poor Priſoners uſe to do, for relief and releaſe.

He ſhutteth out my prayer] Or ſhutteth his eare to my prayer. This was very grievous to any good heart: more then it could be to Tully, a ſtranger to the true God, who yet bewaileth the matter to his brother in theſe words, I would pray to the gods for thoſe things; but that, alaſſe, they have given over to hear my prayers.

Ver. 9. He hath encloſed my wayes with hewn ſtone] i. e. Moſt ſtrongly and cloſely, ſo that none can come at me.

He hath made all my paths crooked] So that all things go croſs with me: and although they were never ſo well deviſed, yet ſtill they ſort out unto the worſt.

Ver. 10. He was unto me as a Bear lying in wait] So that if I do but offer to ſtir, or ſeek to make eſcape, I am in danger to be devoured.

And as a Lion in ſecret places] God hath many waies and means to bemeet with ſinners. He can ſtop them in their courſe, as he did Balaam, Jonas, others.

Ver. 11. He hath turned aſide my wayes] As ver. 9.

And pulled me in pieces] As a Bear or Lion doth the ſilly ſheep, that falleth into their paws. Carnali quadam intemperie haec effuſa ſunt. The Vulgar hath it,Confregit me. He hath broken me in pieces, ſc. Attempting to leap over his hedge, ver. 7. his ſtone-wall, ver. 9. In the year 1590 Nicolas Friſchlin that famous Poet, Oratour,Alſted. Chron. 480. and Philoſopher, attempting to eſcape out of priſon, was ſo broken, à capite ad talos, à cute ad oſſa.

Ver. 12. He hath bent his bow] Chap. 2.4.

And ſet me as a mark] Which he is ſure to hit. The Benjamites, Judg. 20. the Parthians, Alcon the Cretian, Domitian the Emperour were excellent archers: but Non ſemper feriet quodcunque minabitur arcus. Gods arrow never miſſeth the mark.

Ver. 13. He hath cauſed the arrows of his quiver to enter into my reines] Heb. the ſons of his quiver, by an Hebraiſm:Renes ſunt ſedes libidinis. So Horace hath — pharetram gravidam ſagittis.Lib. 2. od. 21.

Job hath many like complaints, chap. 7.20. & 8.4. & 16.12, 13. See there.

Ver. 14. I was a deriſion to all my people] Or, to all peoples. Our Saviour ſuffered all this, and much more, for us.

And their ſong all the day] Or their lute or k…t; whom they plaid on at pleaſure, and deſired no better ſport.

Ver. 15. He hath filled me with bitterneſſe] Heb. bitterneſſes: alluding as ſome think, to that jus ſeu embamma in quo intingebant agnum Paſchalem, ſawce of bitter herbs wherewith they did eat the Paſſeover (the juyce of them expreſſed:) to minde them of the bitter afflicions which they ſuffered in Egypt.

He hath made me drunk with wormwood] Or Henbane, or Wolfe-bane rather, ſucco cicutae.

Ver. 16. He hath alſo broken my teeth with gravel-ſtones] i e. With gritty bread:Comminuit ſcrupis dentes meos. See Prov. 20.17.

He hath covered me with aſhes] The Greek and Latin have it, He hath fed me with aſhes, which was worſe then that bread made moſt of ſaw-duſt, wherewith they fed the Martyrs in the Marian times.

Ver. 17. And thou haſt removed my ſoul far off from peace] Proſperity and I are twain; we are utterly unacquainted.

Ver. 18. And I ſaid] But not ſo wiſely. I was even almoſt tumbling into the pit of deſperation: I was ſtradling over it, as it were, but God preſerved me.

My ſtrength and my hope is periſhed] My ſtrength to bear theſe miſeries, and my hope to be ever freed of them.

Ver. 19. Remembering mine affliction and my miſery; the worm-wood and the gall] i. e. The bitterneſſe that was in it, but of mine own commingling. Impatiens quiſque bis affligitur, Impatience redoubleth an affliction.

p. 380Ver. 20. My ſoul hath them ſtill in remembrance] But it is not good to plod overmuch in this caſe. Such bitter pils ſhould be ſwallowed whole, and not chewed upon, unleſſe it be for our further humiliation.

Ver. 21. This I recall to my mind] This? what? Gods infinite mercies, that Cape of good hope: See ver. 22. So Pſal. 119.56. This I had; that is, this comfort, or this ability to keep thy precepts.

Ver. 22. It is of the Lords mercy that we are not conſumed] That we are yet on this ſide hell. This ſentence was much in the mouth of that famous Maria Aegyptiaca: and ſhould be much in all our minds and mouthes, for a lenitive!

Exareſcunt torrentes, metalla exhauriuntur, ſlumina deſiciunt, prataitem cum fructibus, &c.Becauſe his compaſſions fail not] Or are not ſpent, waſted: but, as the oile in the cruſe, as the ſpring ever runneth, the Sun ever ſhineth, &c. This ſhould ever ſhine in our hearts, as the Sun doth in the firmament.

Ver. 23. They are new every morning] Yea every moment. We have continual experiments.

Great is thy faithfulneſſe] Gods mercy moved him to promiſe: his Truth to perform. See 2 Sam. 7.18, 21. with the Notes.

Ver. 24. The Lord is my portion] And that's enough for me, ſhould I never have more. See Notes on Pſal. 16. That which giveth content in any portion, is, 1. The favour and preſence of God. 2. That it is from the hand of a Father. 3. That it comes to us in the Covenant of Grace. 4. That it is the purchaſe of Chriſt's blood. 5. That it is an anſwer of prayers, and a bleſſing from above on honeſt indeavours, &c. Vide autem, pie Lector, ſaith an Expoſitour, See here, good Reader, how this Prophetical Lamentation beginneth to be a guide to godlineſſe. For it doth not, after the manner of ſilly women, throw out empty words without wiſdom: but teacheth all along, either overtly or covertly, that all things here below,Pe…d F…gueir. how highly ſoever eſteemed, are vanity and ſoon loſt: but the grace of God is ſolid and ſtable. — Chriſtum tollere nemo poteſt. Chriſt is a portion unlooſable,Deicola Abbas. as One once anſwered to thoſe that asked him, why he was ſtill merry and chearful?

Emphatice loquitur.Said my Soul] Not my mouth only: but I ſpeak it from my very heart, which rejoyceth in God my portion more then the many do in the increaſe of their corn and wine, Pſal. 4.7.

Therfore will I hope in him] Expectabo ut teneam per ſpeciem, quem teneo per ſpem.

Ver. 25. The Lord is good unto them that wait for him] Which few can skil of, and I have ſomewhat to do to hit on,Et hoc apertam er… ditionem continet. Flgu. but would not now have miſſed of for all the world.

To the ſoul that ſeeketh him] Not giving over till he findeth him.

Ver. 26. It is good that a man ſhould both hope and quietly wait, Heb. be ſilent: not with a Pythargorical or monaſtical ſilence, ut non liceat lequi locis & horis certis, but with an humble ſubmiſſion to Gods holy will, a patient and peaceable behaviour under his hand; waiting for a good uſe thereof, and a gracious iſſue in the beſt time: To frame the heart whereunto, Aurea his ſubnectitur ſententia.

Ver. 27. It is good for a man that he bear the yoke from his youth] The yoke of Gods law,Quo ſemel iſte imbuta recens ſervabit odorem Teſta diu. Hor. and the diſcipline of afflictions: it is good to be betime in Gods nurturing-houſe, and remain a good while there, that he be trained up in the School of afflictions, that he be a well-beaten Souldier to the Croſſe. The deſcription of ſuch a one followeth.

Ver. 28. He ſitteth alone] Seſſio ſolitaria, as being much in meditation, according to that counſel of the Preacher. In the day of adverſity conſider.

And keepeth ſilence] When Gods hand is upon his back, his hand is upon his mouth: See on ver. 26.

Becauſe he hath born it upon him] Or, When he hath taken it upon him, taken up his croſſe, as being active in ſuffering.

Ver. 29. He putteth his mouth in the duſt] He lyeth low at Gods …eet: putting himſelf into the hands of Juſtice, yet in hope of mercy. See 1 Cor. 14 25.

If ſo be there may be …pe] Heb. Peradventure there is hope, q. d. doubtleſſe there is: however, I will try, ſith I have loſt many a worſe labour.

Ver. 30. He giveth his cheek to him that ſmiteth him] Humility (the product p. 381of affliction ſanctified) is ſtill at her leſſon, or rather practiſing what ſhe hath learned. David having ſuffered by Abſolom, can well enough bear with Shimei's tongue ſmitings: and the Apoſtles, after they had been in priſon, departed from the Council rejoycing that they were ſo far graced as to be diſgraced for the name of Jeſus, Acts 5.41.

He is filled full of reproach] He can bravely bear all contumelies and contempts for his conſcience, taking them as crowns and confirmations of his conformity to Chriſt.

Ver. 31. For the Lord will not caſt off for ever] No, nor at all: however he may ſeem to ſome ſo to do. Non deſerit etiamſi deſerat, ſaith a Father: He doth not put his poople far from him, as the word here ſignifieth.

Ver. 32. For though he cauſe grief] As ſometimes he doth in very faithfulneſſe, and that he may be true to his peoples ſouls.

Yet he will have compaſſion] He will repent and return and leave a bleſſing behind him: that's certain, Joel 2.14.

Ver. 33. For he doth not afflict willingly] Heb. From the heart; Non niſi coactus, Non eſt Deo volupe, proprium, aut per ſe intentum▪ Paenas dat dum paenas exigit, Sen. de Auguſto. Juſtu etiam ſupplietis illac…ymavit & inge…uit. De Veſpaſ. Sueton.as that Emperour ſaid, when he ſealed a writ for execution of a condemned perſon: I would not do it but upon neceſſity. It goeth as much againſt the heart with God, as it can do againſt the hair with us: Ille dolet quoties cogitur eſſe ferox.

Ver. 34. To cruſh under his feet all the priſoners of the earth] i. e. All thoſe that are in miſery, to lay more load upon them, and ſo to cruſh them to pieces, yea to grind them to powder. This he could as eaſily do as bid it be done: but he takes no ſuch delight in ſeverity and harſhneſſe.

Ver. 35. To turn aſide the right of a man] To wreſt his right by falſe witneſſe and corrupt means, as wicked men uſe to do before the face of the moſt High, or of a Superiour under colour of law: God liketh none of all this, though eftſoones for excellent ends he ſuffereth it ſo to be, and ordereth it when ſo it is.

Ver. 36. To ſubvert a man in his cauſe] By legerdemain to tilt the ballance of Juſtice on t'one ſide.

The Lord approveth not] Heb ſeeth not. Non videt, i. e. non ei viſum eſt, it ſeemeth not good unto him he liketh it not.

Ver. 37. Who is he] Tam imprudens & imperitus? Can any one be ſo ſimple as to think that the enemy could do ought againſt us, but by the divine permiſſion and appointment? God, as he made all by his power, ſo he manageth all by his Providence. This, the Egyptians hieroglyphically ſet forth by painting God, 1. As blowing an egge out of his mouth, that is, as making the round world by his Word. 2. As compaſſing about that Orb with a girdle, that is, keeping all together, and governing all by his Providence.

Ver. 38. Out of the mouth of the moſt High proceedeth not evil and good?] i. e. Proſperity and adverſity? q. d. Who doubteth of that? Amos 3.5. Iſa. 45.7. Talk not then of …ate and blind Fortune.

Ver. 39. Wherefore d…th a living m…n complain?] Mourn immoderately, or murmure cauſeleſly? If he mourn let him mourn for his ſin, as the cauſe of his ſuffering, let him revenge upon that. If he be tempted to murmure, let him remember that he is yet alive, and that's more then his part cometh to, ſith it is the Lords mercy that he is not conſumed, and ſent packing hence to hell. Life in any ſence is a ſweet mercy: even that which to the afflicted may ſeem a lifeleſſe life, as Prov. 15.15. Let this patient us, that we are yet alive.

A man for the puniſhment of his ſine?] Heb. man for his ſin? for ſin doth as naturally draw and ſuck puniſhments to it, as the Laod-ſtone doth Iron, or Turpentine fire: wherefore alſo the ſame word in Hebrew ſignifieth both.

Ver. 40. Let us ſearch and try our wayes] i. e. Make accurate enquiry into them: ſo ſhall we ſoon find out ſelves to be a whole new-found world of wickedneſs. Search we therefore, and do it throughly: Many either ſearch not at all (…hey cannot endure theſe domeſtical Audits: its death to them to reflect and recognize what p. 382they have done) or as though they deſired not to find: they ſearch, as men do for their bad mony: they know they have it, but they would gladly have it paſſe for currant among the reſt. Heathens will riſe up in judgement againſt ſuch: for they preſcibed and practiſed ſelf-examination; Pythagoras once a day;

Non prius in dulcem declines lumina ſomnum,

Quam prius exactae reputaveris acta diei, &c.

Phocyllides thrice a day, if Stobaeus may be believed.

Serm.And turn again to the Lord] Let ſelf-examination end in reformation: elſe ſin will be thereby but imboldened and ſtrengthened, as idle vagrants and lawleſſe ſubjects are, if queſtioned only, and not puniſhed and reſtrained. Of turning again to the Lord. See the Notes on Zach. 1.2.

Ver. 41. Let us lift up our hearts with our hands] Holy hearts, pure hands. Inſtead of wrangling with God, as ver. 39. let us wraſtle with him in prayer: this is the only way to get off with comfort. Nazianzen ſaith, that the beſt work we can put our hands unto is, in coelos eas extendere, ad preceſque expandere, to lift them up to God in prayer. But then it muſt be with a true heart, Heb. 10.22. See Job 11, 13. with the Notes.

Ver. 42. We have tranſgreſſed and have rebelled] We have committed evil, and omited good, and failed in the manner, and are therefore juſtly puniſhed. Let God hear ſuch words fall from our mouths, ſet a work by our hearts, and then we may have any thing.

Ver. 43. Thou haſt covered with anger] Overwhelmed us with thy Judgements. None out of hell have ever ſuffered more then the Saints: they have felt the ſad effects of diſpleaſed Love.

Ver. 44. Thou haſt covered thy ſelf with a cloud] Hid thy face from us; and ſecreted thy ſelf as a Judge doth (when he hath paſſed ſentence upon a malefactour) that he may not be ſolicited to reverſe it.

That our prayers ſhould not paſſe through] The veil of the Temple was of no debarring matter but thin and pervious, that the incenſe might eaſily paſſe thorough it into the Holy of Holies: but now it was otherwiſe; God had ſet a barre betwixt him and his people.

Ver. 45. Thou haſt made us as the off-ſcouring] Eradicationem ſaith the Vulgar: raſuram potius, not the rooting out, but the ſcrapings off. As the Jews did rather extrinſecus radere peccata quam intrinſecus eradicare, Bern. Exverras, Scobes & ramenta. Excreamenta & excrementa.ſhave off their ſinnes outwardly then root them out from within: ſo God made them as deſpicable as the parings of a pavement, or of a leprous houſe.

And refuſe] See 1 Cor. 4.13. with the Notes.

Ver. 46. All our enemies have opened their mouths againſt us] i. e. Reviled and derided us: See chap. 2.16.

Ver. 47. Fear and a ſnare is come upon us] Heb. a pit: Great terrour, and no way to eſcape. See Iſa. 24.17, 18.

Ver. 48. Mine eye runneth down] Heb. mine eye deſcendeth, i. e. Falleth as it were wholly away. See chap. 1.16. & 2.18.

Ver. 49. Mine eye trickleth down and ceaſeth not] Put fire under the ſtill, and water droppeth from roſes. Fiery afflictions cauſe drops of repentance: and Repentance, like the Philoſophers ſtone, maketh golden afflictions, 1 Pet. 1.7.

Ver. 50. Till the Lord look down] Let God but ſee the Rainbow of ſound Repentance in our hearts, and he will ſoon ſhine forth, and cauſe it to clear up.

Ver. 51. Mine eye effecteth my heart] Iiſdem quibus videmus oculis flemus, we ſee and weep with the ſame eyes.Lib. 2. cap. 32. But Pliny wondereth where that humour is at other times, that floweth out of the eyes ſo readily and plentifully in caſe of grief.

Becauſe of all the daughters of my City] Or, more then all the daughters, &c. more then the moſt paſſionate women uſe to weep,Prae omnibus filiabus. when they are moſt grieved.

Ver. 52. Mine enemies chaſed me ſore] In moſt eager and extream manner, with utmoſt cruelty and craft.

As a Bird] Beaten from buſh to buſh.

p. 383Without cauſe] Jeremy and the godly party might ſay ſo: but not Zedekiah and other perfidious ones.

Ver. 53. They have cut off my life in the dungeon] Where I lead a lifeleſſe life, ſuch as did Roger Biſhop of Salisbury in King Stephens time, who ſuſtained ſuch miſeries in priſon, ut vivere noluerit, mori neſcierit, that live he would not, and yet dye he could not.

And caſt a ſtone upon me] As they did upon the mouths of dens, dungeons or ſepulchers, to make ſure work. The Chaldee hath it, they ſtoned me.

Ver. 54. Waters flowed over mine head] Many and great miſeries have overwhelmed and oppreſſed me, both in body and ſoul. Theſe are frequently compared to waters.

Then I ſaid, I am cut off] ſc. From the land of the living, but God was better to me then my hopes.

Ver. 55. I called upon thy name, O Lord, out of the low dungeon] See Pſal, 130.1. Jon. 2.1. with the Notes.

Ver. 56. Thou haſt heard my voyce] Seem a mans caſe never ſo deſperate, if he can but find a praying heart, God will find a pittying heart. Prayer is the beſt lever at a dead lift.

Hide not thine ear at my breathing] As breathing is a proof of animal life; ſo is prayer, though never ſo weak, of ſpiritual. If therefore you cannot ſpeak, weep (fletu ſaepe agitur non affatu, teares alſo have a voyce, Pſal. 39.12.) if you cannot weep, ſigh, (a ſtorm of ſighs may do as much as a ſhowe of teares) if you cannot ſigh, yet breath, as here: God feels breath; and happy is he that can ſay, In te ſpero & reſpiro, In thee I hope Lord: and after thee I breath or pant.

Ver. 57. Thou dreweſt near] This thou haſt done, and this I hope thou yet wilt do, Experience breedeth confidence.

Ver. 58. O Lord thou haſt pleaded the cauſes of my ſoul] whereof thoſe Babylonians were no juſt Judges.

Thou haſt redeemed my life] It is the life, nay the ſoul of the Saints, that the wicked hunt after, though they do not alwayes profeſſe ſo to do.

Ver. 59. O Lord, thou haſt ſeen my wrong] Thou haſt ſeen it and art ſenſible of it: that's my comfort; for foreign.

Judge thou my cauſe] As Pſal. 43.1. See there.

Ver. 60. Thou haſt ſeen all their vengeance] See on ver. 59. The Saints fare the better for their enemies ſpite and cruelty: and they may very well plead and preſent it to God in prayer.

Ver. 61. Thou haſt heard their reproach] Their ſpiteful ſpeeches, and taunting termes have come into thine eares.

And all their imaginations] Heb. Their contrivements. As the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his eares are open to their prayers, Pſal. 34.15. ſo he both ſeeth the ill carriage, and heareth the ill language of graceleſſe perſons againſt the godly.

Ver. 62. The lips of thoſe that roſe up] See on ver. 61.

Ver. 63. Behold, their ſitting down and their riſing up] Or, at their both ſitting down (to meat) and at their riſing up (from meat) I am their muſick-maker, their table talk, and the matter of their mirth: they make ſport with us, as the Philiſtines did with Sampſon. David complaineth of the like evil-dealing, Pſal. 35.15, 16, 17.

Ver. 64. Render unto them a recompenſe] Call them to an account: and requite them. Let their muſick be marred, and the meale once ended, ſend them in a reckoning.

Ver. 65. Give them ſorrow of heart] In place of their mad mirth and ſinful muſick: turn their Pſalm (as the vulgar rendreth the word Muſick in the foregoing verſe) into a black Sant…, as they call it, ferale carmen, a doleful ditty. Dabis eis ſcutum cordis, ſaith the Vulgar. And indeed the word rendred ſorrow ſignifieth a p. 384ſheild or cover. A lapide Mr. Burroughs Hoſ. Operculum cordis, vel apoſtema cordis.It noteth, ſaith one, the Gardiaca paſſio, whereby the heart is ſo oppreſt, and there is ſuch a ſtopping, that it is as it were covered ſicut ſcuto, as with a ſhield; there is a lid as it were, put over the heart, to keep off the moſt refreſhing cordials, and ſo the heart is ſuffocated with ſorrow. It is as if he ſhould ſay, put them into ſuch a condition, that no creature may yeild them the leaſt refreſhment. Spira was in this condition.

Thy curſe upon them] All the curſes written and unwritten in thy book. This is not more a prayer then a prophecy. How effectual Chriſts curſe is, may be ſeen in the withered fig-tree in the Goſpel, preſently dryed up by the roots.

Ver. 66. Perſecute and deſtroy them in anger] Sith they are thine and our implacable and irreformable enemies: be thou, Lord, implacably bent againſt them, to their utter deſtruction: and ſith they think us not worthy to breath in the common aire (whom thou haſt made heires of the world together with faithful Abraham our Progenitour) deſtroy them from under theſe heavens of thine, in the compaſs and cope whereof thou raigneſt and ruleſt all.

From under the heavens of the Lord] Do thou, O Chriſt (to whom the Father hath committed all judgment) root them out from under the heavens of thy heavenly Father. Thus ſome Paraphraſe the words: and obſerve therehence the myſtery of the Trinity: like as they do from Gen. 19.24.

CHAP. IV.

Pet. à Figueir.Ver. 1. HOw is the gold become dim?] How? by way of wonderment again, as chap. 1.2. q. d. Quo tanto ſcelere hominum, & qua tanta indignatione Dei? What have men done? and how hath God been provoked, that there are ſuch ſtrange alterations here all on the ſudden? By gold and fine gold here underſtand the Temple overlaid by Solomon with choice gold: or Gods people (his ſpiritual Temple) who had now loſt their luſtre, and dignity.

The ſtones of the Sanctuary are poured out] Come tumbling down, from the demoliſhed Temple.

Ver. 2. The precious ſons of Zion] Thoſe Porphyrogeniti, as the Greek Emperours children were called,Sept. foreign. becauſe born and bred up in a room made up of precious ſtones. Underſtand it of the Jews in general (Gods peculiar people, precious in his ſight and therefore honourable, Iſa. 43.4.) of Zedekiahs ſons in particular who (as did alſo the reſt of the Jewiſh Nobility, if Joſephus may be beleeved) poudered their hair with gold duſt,Antiq. l. 8. c. 7. to the end that they might gliſter and ſparkle againſt the beams of the Sun. The precious children of the Church are all glorious within, by means of the graces of the Spirit, that golden oyle, Zach. 4.12. and the bleſſings of God out of Zion, Pſal. 134.3.Ps 134:3which are far beyond all other the bleſſings of heaven and of earth.

As earthen pitchers] Weak and worthleſſe.

Ver. 3. Even the ſea-monſters] Heb. Whales or Seales: which, being Amphibii, have both a willingneſſe,Vulg. Lamiae. and a place convenient to ſuckle their whelps.

The daughter of my people is become cruel] She is ſo perforce, being deſtitute of milk for want of food, but much more by feeding upon them, ver. 10. and chap. 2.20. Oh what a mercy is it to have meat! and how inexcuſable are thoſe unnatural mothers that neglect to nurſe their children, not out of want but wantonneſſe! Surely as there is a bleſſing of the womb to bring forth, ſo of the breſts to give ſuck, Gen. 49.25. and the dry breaſts and barren womb have been taken for a curſe, Hoſ. 9.14. as ſome interpret that text.

Ver. 4. The tongue of the ſucking child cleaveth] For want of ſuck. That was a miracle which is recorded of the old woman of Bolton in Lancaſhire, who took up a poor child that lay crying at the breaſts of her dead mother (ſlain, among many others, by Prince Ruperts party) and laying it to her own dry breaſts that had not yeelded ſuck for above twenty years before, on purpoſe to ſtill it, had milk came to nouriſh it, to the admiration and aſtoniſhment of all beholders. This and another like example of Gods good providence for the releif of little ones whom their mothers p. 385could not relieve, may be read of in Mr. Clarks Mirror for Saints and Sinners, Edit. 3. fol. 495, 507.

And no man breaketh it unto them] The parents either not having it for them, or not having an heart to part with it to them.

Ver. 5. They that did feed delicately] Such uncertainty there is of outward affluence. Our Richad the ſecond was famiſhed to death.Speed. Lib. 3. c. 4. Henry Holland Duke of Exceſter, grand-child to John of Gaunt was ſeen to run on foot bare-legged after the Duke of Burgundy's train begging his bread for Gods ſake: This I ſaw, ſaith Philip de Comines. This Henry was brother in law to King Edward the fourth, from whom he fled.

They that were brought up in ſcarlet] Qui nutriebantur in croceis ſen cocceis, In fimetis victum quaeritant prae inopia. Jun.that were gorgeouſly arrayed, or, that rolling on their rich beds, wrapped themſelves in coſtly coverlets.

Embrace dunghils] There take up their lodgings, and there alſo are glad to find any thing to feed on, though never ſo courſe and homely, The Lapwing is made an Hieroglyphick of infelicity, becauſe he hath as a coronet upon the head, and yet feedeth upon the worſt of excrements. It is pitty that any child of God, waſht in Chriſt's blood, ſhould bedabble his ſcarlet robe in the ſtinking guzzle of the worlds dunghill: that any one who hath heretofore ſoared as an Eagle, ſhould now creep on the ground as a bettle, or wallow as a ſwine in the mire of ſenſuality.

Ver. 6. For the puniſhment of the iniquity of Zion is greater] For Sodom was deſtroyed by Angels, Zion by malicious men: The enemies were not enriched by Sodom, as they were by Zion. Sodom was deſtroyed in an inſtant; not ſo Zion, for ſhe had her puniſhment piecemeal; firſt a long ſeige, and then the loſs of all, after a world of miſeries ſuſtained in the ſeige. Julius Caeſar was wont to ſay, It is better once to fall then alwaies to hang in ſuſpence. Auguſtus wiſhed that he might dye ſuddenly: His life he called a Comedy, and ſaid that he thought he had acted his part therein pretty handſomly; Now if he might ſoon paſſe through death, he would hold it an happineſſe. Souldiers wiſh is thus ſet forth by the Poet;

—quid enim? concurritur, horae

Momento aut cita mors venit aut victoria laeta.

It is the ancient and manful faſhion of the Engliſh (who are naturally moſt impatient of lingering miſchiefs) to put their quarrels to the trial of the ſword,Speed. 963. as the Chronicler obſerveth.

Ver. 7. Her Nazarites] Who ſerved God in a ſingular way of abſtinence above other men. Theſe had their rules given them, Num. 6. which whiles they obſerved,

They were purer then ſnow, whiter then milk] Temperance is the mother of beauty, as luxury is of deformity. This is nothing to the Popiſh Votaryes thoſe Epicures and Abby-lubbers, Quorum luxuriae totus non ſufficit orbis. Some by Nazarites here underſtand their Nobles and ſuch as wore coronets on their heads: Nezar is a crown, 2 Sam. 1.10. 2 Kings 11.12. thus Joſeph was a Nazarite, Gen. 49.26. So Daniel and his three Aſſociates, in whom that was verified, Gratior eſt pulchro veniens in corpore virtus.

Ver. 8. Their viſage is blacker then a coal] Heb. their viſage is more darkned then blackneſſe. ſc. With famine, fear, grief, and car: thoſe vultures have ſo fed upon them, that all ſightlineſſe and lovelineſſe is loſt. Think the ſame of Apoſtates: God may complain of ſuch, as Mic. 2.8.

Ver. 9. They that be ſlain with the ſword are better] They ſuffer leſſe pain in p. 386dying, they are ſoon diſpatcht. See on ver. 6. But Famine is an hard weapon.

Triſte genus mortis miſeris mortalibus omne:

Eſt tamen imprimis triſte perire fame.

For theſe pine away] By a lingering death, as Druſus the Roman: to whom meat being denied,Speed. 766. he had eaten the ſtuffings of his bed, ſaith Suetonius: and our Richard the ſecond who was Tantalized and ſtarved to death at Pomfret Caſtle, where his diet being ſerved in and ſet before him in the wonted Princely manner, he was not ſuffered either to taſte, or touch thereof.

Jam. 5.Jas 5Stricken through for want of the fruits of the field] Thoſe precious fruits of the earth, as James the Apoſtle calleth them. Theſe as a ſword defend us from death: and the want of them, as a ſword, runneth us thorough. In the time of Otho the Emperour there was ſo great a ſcarcity of bread corn in Germany for three years together, that many thouſands dyed of hunger.Melancth. In remembrance of which great dearth, there is yearly baked at Erphord a little loaf, ſuch as was then ſold for much money.

Ver. 10. The hands of the pittiful women have ſodden] Sodden them rather then roaſted them, leſt they ſhould be diſcovered by the ſmell, and ſo in danger to be deſpoiled of them, as it ſell out at the laſt ſeige by the Romans. Lege & Luge.

They were their meat] In eadem viſcera, ex quibus exierant, retruſi ſunt: they returned into the ſame bowels, whence they came forth.

Ver. 11. The Lord hath accompliſhed his fury] Which he had long deferred; but now hath paid it home. Cave ne ira delata fiat duplicata.

He hath poured out his fierce anger] As it were by whole buckets, or paile-fulls. Gods anger may be ſet out in minums, as there may be much poiſon in little drops: But woe be thoſe on whom it is poured.

He hath kindled a fire in Zion] His wrath is like fire that furious Element, which at firſt burneth a little upon a few bords, but when it prevaileth, it burſteth forth into a terrible flame.

Ver. 12. The Kings of the earth, &c.] Theſe knowing how impregnable a piece Jeruſalem was: how the Jebuſites of old held out the Tower of Zion againſt David, how long it had kept out Nebuchadnezzar, viz. for two years ſpace almoſt; how it had been preſerved by God againſt Sennacherib, &c. looked upon it as in a ſort inſuperable, and could not but ſee a divine vengeance in the deſtruction of it.

Ver. 13. For the ſins of her Prophets] Theſe, theſe were the right cauſe of her ruine. Not that the People were not faulty (for they loved to have it ſo, Jer. 5. ult.) but thoſe were the ring-leaders in that general defection.

Ver. 14. They have wandred as blind men in the ſtreets] Well might a certain Expoſitour ſay, Hic verſus cum ſequentibus varie exponitur. The ſenſe in ſhort is this, ſaith One, that the Jewes miſled by their Prophets and Prieſts, were ſo blind in knowledge, that every example of ſin led to evil: which, for want of grace, they could not refrain from.

Ver. 15. They cryed unto them] The enemies in a mockery ſaid aloud unto the Jewes.

Depart ye, it is unclean, depart, depart] Mimeſis: q. d. You that are ſo pure, and (as people ſay profanely amongſt us) ſo Pope-holy, that none muſt come anear you, but get away as far and as faſt as they can, as if they were Lepers, &c.

They ſaid among the Heathen] The blind Ethnikes beholding the Jews wickedneſſe, have judged that it was impoſſible God ſhould ſuffer them any longer to live in his good land, ſith they would not live by his good Laws.

Ver. 16. The anger of the Lord hath divided them] Say the Heathen ſtill, concerning the wicked Jews: continuatur enim hic inſtituta Mimeſis.

He will no more regard them] Heb. look after them, ſc. facie blandâ ac benevolâ, in mercy;Sacerdotes apud omnes gentes ſunt venerabiles ob miniſterium. he hath utterly rejected them: For why?

They reſpected not the perſons of the Prieſts] But vilely intreated them: See Chron. 36.16.

Ver. 17. As for us, our eyes as yet failed] With long and vain looking: as p. 387Pſal. 119.82, 123. For, As for us, ſome render Cum adhuc eſſemus, while as yet we were, ſc. a Nation: for now we are none. Fuimus Troes.

In our watching we have watched for a Nation] ſc. for the Egyptians, Jer. 2.18, 36. & 37.7, 8.

Ver. 18. They hunt our ſteps] There is an elegancy in the Original, as if we ſhould ſay, They hunt our haunts.

That we cannot go in our ſtreets] Becauſe of their forts, from whence they ſhoot at us. Satan doth ſo much more:

— cui nomina mille,

Mille nocendi artes.—

Our end is come] We are an undone people.

Ver. 19. Our perſecutours are ſwifter then the Eagles] Thoſe ſwifteſt of al foul: whom Pindarus therefore calleth the Queen of Birds, as the Dolphin is of fiſhes for like ſwiftneſſe. The Egyptians, their pretended helpers, were ſlow as ſnailes; the Chaldees ſwifter then Eagles.

They purſued us] Or they chaſed us, or traced us, like blood-hounds.

They laid wait for us in the Wilderneſſe] They met us at every turn: and left us no means of eſcape.

Ver. 20. The breath of our noſtriles] King Zedekiah, in whoſe downfal we drew as it were our laſt breath. The Chaldee Paraphraſt underſtandeth it of Joſiah, with whom indeed dyed all the proſperity of the Jews, as with Epaminondas did that of the Thebans; and with Theodoſius, that of the Weſtern Empire.

The Annointed of the Lord] Who yet for his perfidy was vilely caſt away like Saul, as though he had not been annointed with oyle, 2 Sam. 1.21.

Was taken in their pits] A term taken from hunters, Ezek. 12.13. See ver. 20. Jer. 52.8.

Ʋnder his ſhadow] As the chickens do under the hens.

Ver. 21. Rejoyce and be glad] This is ſpoken to Edom by a certain Ironical and bitter conceſſion: q. d. Do ſo if thou haſt any mind to it: but thou ſhalt ſoon be made to change thy chear. Thy flearing at us ſhall be ſoon turned into fearing for thy ſelf: thy mirth into mourning.

That dwelleſt in the land of Ʋz] Job's country, called alſo Siria, ſaith R. Solomon, and haply from Seir. Evil is at next door by to thoſe who rejoyce at the evils of others.

The cup ſhall paſſe through unto thee] The quaſſing cup of Gods Wrath, Jer. 25.18, 29.

And ſhalt make thy ſelf naked] To the ſcorn of all:Ʋt ebria & omotae mentis. as drunkards who are void of ſhame and common honeſty, baring thoſe parts that nature would have covered, See Jer. 49.10.

Ver. 22. The puniſhment of thine iniquity is accompliſhed O daughter of Zion] A word of comfort in the cloſe of this doleful ditty. The Sun of Righteouſneſſe loveth not to ſet in a cloud. See Iſa. 40.1. Profane Elegies have no comfort in them, as this hath.

He will no more carry thee away into Captivity] i. e. No more in haſte; after thy return from Babylon. Caried away they were again,Accommodant huc Iſa. 21.11. legentes prô Dumah Rom….Isa 21:11 many ages after by the Romans, whom to this day they therefore call Edomites, and the Popes hierarchy the wicked kingdom of Edom, which they ſay ſhall be certainly deſtroyed, as is here alſo foretold: and then ſhall they be brought back again to Jeruſalem, and there reſetled by their Meſſiah. See the Chaldee Paraphraſt upon this text.

He will diſcover thy ſins] i. e. Puniſh thee ſoundly for them, in the ſight of all men. See on Pſal. 32.1, 2. Job 20.17.

p. 388CHAP. V.

Ver. 1. REmember, O Lord, what is come upon us] This laſt Chapter is a brief Recapitulation of what had been ſaid in the four former,Propheta per foreign repetit omnia mala ſupra commemorata, & remedium petit à Domino. Figuelr. that they might be the better remembred and conſidered by the Reader. The ancient Greek and Latin Bibles ſtile it Jeremies prayer. Herein the Prophet, or rather the Church layeth open, as a Lazar, her ſores and ſufferings: and beggeth to be remembred and conſidered of God. Not that either forgetfulneſſe or inobſervancy can be found in him (for All things both paſt and future are preſent with him) but theſe are Metaphorical expreſſions, and He alloweth us to be his Remembrancers.

Conſider and behold] Heb. behold and ſee: Affectum cum effecta conjunctum ſignificat.

Our reproach] This is that which mans nature is moſt impatient of: to the Saints it is ſo much the more grievous, becauſe they do quarter Arms with Chriſt.

Ver. 2. Our inheritance is turned to ſtrangers] So the Jews called all other Nations, as the Greeks, Barbarians. From hence to ver. 19. there are ſo many verſes, ſo many ſeveral complaints. Whiles we are in this vale of miſery and vally of tears, we are ſure of many ailements, and ſtill to have ſomewhat to cry for.

Ver. 3. We are orphans and fatherleſſe] And ſo are become thy clients: juſt objects of thy pitty, Hoſ. 14.3.

Offic. 1.Ver. 4. We have drunk our water for money] Fire, water, and air, are common good, quae jure naturae ſunt omnium & ſingulorum, ſaith Cicero. Lyſimachus paid dear for a cup of water when he parted with his Kingdom for it. Dives would have done as much in hell for a drop, and could not have it.

Our wood is ſold to us] This was ſtrange to them (who had enough of their own growing, or might have it from the Commons for fetching) but juſt upon them for their abuſe of it to the ſervice of the Queen of heaven, Jer. 7.18.

Ver. 5. Our necks are under perſecution] For that we would not ſtoop to the ſweet yoke of thine obedience, but held it heavy, now we are under an intolerable yoke of extreme ſlavery.

We labour and have no reſt] Who once troubled Gods holy reſt by bearing burdens and working thereon, Jer. 17.21. In many places amongſt us, Gods Sabbath is made the voyder and dunghil for all refuſe buſineſſes. The Sabbath of the Lord the ſanctified day of his Reſt (ſaith a Reverend writer) is ſhameleſly troubled and diſquieted. B. K…ng on Jo…. Lec. 7.The Sabbath was never ſo profaned (ſaith ſuch another Reverend man yet living) with heart, hand, foot, tongue, pen and Preſſe, as of late. And is it not juſt with God that thoſe who would juſtle his religious Reſt out of its right,Mr. Ley his Faſt. Serm. before Parl. April 26. 1643. ſhould be reſtleſſe in their condition? as Lam. 5.5. Thus He. All wicked men acted and agitated by the devil day and night, may well cry out as here, We labour and have no reſt: but they are not ſenſible of this woful ſervitude.

Ver. 6. We have given the hand to the Egyptians and to the Aſſyrians] Enemies to the Chaldaeans, no leſſe then they were to us: but hard hunger (that driveth the wolf out of the wood) hath made us glad to be beholding to them for bread: ſo ill have the cruel Chaldees relieved and rewarded us for our work.

Nobis ſoret jucundius ſemel emori, quam vitam in vitam vivere.Ver. 7. Our fathers have ſinned and are not] They had their payment, but not comparable to ours: who have out-ſinned them, and do therefore juſtly bear the puniſhment of both their ſins and our own too.

Ver. 8. Servants have ruled over us] And they are uſually moſt inſolent; as was Tobiah the ſervant, Neh. 2.19. Cicero, after the defeat given to Pompey, complaineth in a certain Epiſtle, Lords we could not away with, and now we are forced to ſerve our fellow-ſervant. This was Canaans curſe to be a ſervant of ſervants, Gen. 9.25. See the Notes there.

Ver. 9. We gat our bread with the peril of our lives] So did our good Anceſtors the bread of life, whilſt their Preachers alſo were glad to do as Jotham did, Judg. 9.21. when they had delivered what they had to ſay, run away, and fly for their lives. See 2 Sam. 23.17.

Becauſe of the ſword of the wilderneſſe] Where rovers and robbers lay in p. 389wait for us: neither could we paſſe them without apparent peril.

Ver. 10. Our skin was black like an oven] Or, at a chimney, Iſa. 31.9. being ſtill beaten upon with the fire that is within it.

Becauſe of the terrible famine] Propter procellas famis, becauſe of the tempeſts of famine, which, like a violent ſtorm, beareth down all before it.

Ver. 11. They raviſhed the women in Zion] Heb. they humbled, i. e. they diſhoneſted: although Virgo invita vexari quidem poteſt, violari non poteſt. The Chaldee Paraphraſeth thus, The wives were raviſhed by the Romans, and the maides by the Chaldees: for the Jew-doctours do underſtand this book of the Lamentations concerning both the deſtructions of Jeruſalem.

Ver. 12. Princes are hanged up by the hand] Made to dye a dogs death,Calvin. and (as ſome will have it) by their own hands, foreign.

The faces of the Elders were not honoured]

Magna fuit quondam capitis reverentia cani:

Inque ſuo precio ruga ſenilis erat.Ovid.

But now it was otherwiſe with the Jewiſh Elders, who haply were not worthy of their years, as we ſay: like as the Princes had done wickedly with both hands earneſtly, and were therfore not undeſervedly hanged up by the hand: But if Quakers amongſt us might have their way, our families (ſaith One) would ſoon be like the cabbins of the Leſtringonians in Sicily, where every body was at liberty, and none regarded or reverenced their Seniours or Superiours.

Ver. 13. They took the young men to grind] i. e. To do any baſe and abject buſineſſe, Exod. 11.5. & 12.29. Fruſtra enim hic Hieronymus & alii Sodomiticum quid cogitant.

And the children fell under the wood] Being not able to ſtand under ſuch unreaſonable burthens as were laid upon their backs.

Ver. 14. The Elders have ceaſed from the gate] Where they were wont to ſit, Gen. 34.20. to judge between party and party.

The young men from their muſick] From their ordinary and honeſt recreations and diſports.

Ver. 15. The joy of our heart is ceaſed] Heb. keepeth Sabbath, i. e. is vaniſhed, and that becauſe we made not Gods Sabbath our delight, as Iſa. 58.13.

Ver. 16. The crown is fallen from our head] i. e. All our glory both of Church and State, becauſe we refuſed to ſerve God, which indeed is to reign in righteouſneſſe. Now neither is all this, nor any of this ſpoken to exaſperate or exulcerate peoples hearts to fret againſt God, or to faint under their preſſures, but to put them upon the practice of true humiliation that ſo they may not loſe the fruit of their Afflictions: whence the following paſſage,

Woe unto us that we have ſinned] Which as it runneth ſweetly and rythmically in the Original: ſo it pointeth us to that ſavory and ſoveraign practice of lamenting our ſins more then our miſeries; and humbling our ſelves to the utmoſt under the mighty hand of God, that he may lift up in due ſeaſon.

Ver. 17. For this, our heart is faine] Ponit ſymbolum vere contritionis, we are ſin-ſick even at heart: our ſins are as ſo many daggers at our hearts, or bearded arrows in our fleſh.

For theſe things our eyes are dim] we have well-nigh wept them out: whereby nevertheleſſe out minds have been illightened.Lachrymae ſunt ſuccus cordis contriti, ſeu liquores animae patientis.

Ver. 18. Becauſe of the mountain of Zion which is deſolate] q. d. Next unto our ſins (which are our greateſt ſorrow) nothing troubleth us more then this, that the publike exerciſes of Piety are put down: Sion, the ſeat of Gods Sanctuary is deſolate.

Ver. 19. Thou O Lord remaineſt for ever] Alioqui totus totus deſperaſſem, as that good man ſaid once in like caſe: Otherwiſe I ſhould have but ſmall joy of my life. But thou art everlaſting and invariable in eſſence, truth, will and promiſes: This is mine Anchor-hold.

Thy throne from generation to generation] i. e. Thy moſt equal and righteous ordering of all things, utut nobis quaedam confuſiuſculè currere videantur, though ſome p. 390things may ſeem to us to be ſomewhat confuſedly carried, and even to run on wheels, yet it ſhall one day appear that there was a wheel within a wheel, Ezek. 1. that is, an over ruling and all-diſpoſing Providence.

Ver. 20. Wherefore doſt thou forget us?] Sith thy Covenant runs otherwiſe? 2 Sam. 7.14. See on ver. 1.

And forſakeſt us ſo long time] Heb. to length of dayes, as Pſal. 23, 6. Not for Seventy years only, but to the end of the world: till wrath is come upon us to the utmoſt, as 2 Theſ. 2.

Ver. 21. Turn thou us unto thee] That thou maiſt turn thee to us, as Zach. 1.3. Let there be a through-reformation wrought in us: and then a gracious reſtauration wrought for us.

Eſt Apoſiopeſis ad pathos.Ver. 22. But thou haſt utterly rejected us] This is a ſad Cataſtrophe, or cloſe of this doleful ditty. Sometimes Gods ſuppliants are put hard to it in the courſe of their Prayers: the laſt grain of their faith and patience ſeemeth to be put into the ſcale. When the Son of man cometh with deliverance to his praying people, ſhall he find faith in the earth? Hard and ſcarce: And yet he comes oft when they have even done looking for him: he is ſeen in the Mount, he helpeth thoſe that are forſaken of their hopes: Hallelujah. Sure it is that God cannot utterly reject his people whom he hath choſen, Rom. 11. Tremellius rendreth it, and ſo the Margin of our Bibles hath it (and I think better) For wilt thou utterly reject us, or be extreamly wrath with us? ſc. ſupra modulum noſtrum, according to thine infinite power, and above all that we are able to bear? I cannot think it, neither doth it conſiſt with thy Covenant.

Here (as alſo at the end of Eccleſiaſtes, Iſaiah and Malachy) many of the Hebrew Bibles repeat the foregoing verſe, Turn thou us unto thee O Lord, &c. yet without pricks, left any thing ſhould ſeem added thereby to the holy Scriptures. The reaſon here of read in the end of the Prophecy of Iſa. This is alſo here obſerved by the moſt renowned Mr. Thomas Gataker, whom for honour ſake I name, and to whoſe moſt accurate and elaborate Annotations upon Iſaiah and Jeremy I have been not a little beholden, all along. Theſe he finiſhed not long before his death, to the great glory of God and good of his Church:Fretum Magellanicum. And of him, and this worthy Work of his I may fitly ſay as a learned man doth of Magellanus the Portingal (that great Navigator) that the Strait or Sea now called by his name, unâ navigatione ſimul & immortalem gloriam & mortem ei attulerit, Boxhorn. hiſtor. univerſal.was both his death, and his never-dying Monument.

1 Sam. 7.12.

Hitherto hath the Lord helped us.

p. 391A COMMENTARY OR EXPOSITION ON THE BOOK of the Prophet EZEKIEL.