Commentary on Prov Ecc SoS Isa Jer Lam Eze Dan, Ezekiel · Chapter 13
CHAP. XIII.
Ver. 1. ANd the Word of the Lord] See on chap. 12.1.
Ver. 2. Propheſie againſt the Prophets] Illis enim omnia mala feru…tur accepta. See Jer. 29.32, 33, 38.
That propheſie out of their own hearts] Whoſe propheſies came by the will of man, 2 Pet. 1.21. and not cum privilegio.
Ver. 3. Wo unto the fooliſh Prophets] Wiſe enough they were in their generation (and ſo are the foxes, whereto they are compared, ver. 4.) but in the things of God, ſilly-ſimples, blinder then moles.
That follow their own spirit] And their own fancies; acted and abuſed by that great lying ſpirit.
And have ſeen nothing] Nothing from God, though they thought and pretended they had ſeen ſomething. All was but lyes, Jer. 27.10. dreams, Jer. 23.32. things of naught, Ezek. 22.28. As Antipheron Orietes in Ariſtotle thought that every where he ſaw his own ſhape and picture going before him: ſo here. Now a wo is denounced againſt theſe; Vae is a little word, but very comprehenſive, as there is oft much poiſon in little drops.
Ver. 4. O Iſrael, thy Prophets are like the foxes] Cowardly, crafty, cruel, greedy: venatores eludunt, & cum mortuae videntur, reviviſcunt. Heretikes are ſuch, and falſe Prophets; Arius for inſtance.
Ver. 5. Ye have not gone up into the gaps] Reclaimed the People from their impieties (thoſe inlets of plagues) nor interceded for them by your prayers to God to turn away wrath, but haſtened it. Ye have built indeed a wall, and dawbed it with morter, but ſuch as is untempered, ver. 10. arena ſine calce, like ill architects.
Neither made up the hedge] To keep foxes out of Gods vineyard: it is even opentide.
To ſtand in the battle] As Davids three Worthies did in the Barly-field and delivered it,Turk hiſt. 417. 1 Chron. 11.14. Or as Marulla the maid of Lemnos, who like a fierce Amazon, deſperately fought with the Turks in defence of her country Coccinum (a City in that Iſland) and kept them out, till more company came to her relief, moved with the alarm.
Ver. 6. They have ſeen vanity] This is ſoon ſeen, ver. 3.
Saying, the Lord ſaith] By a lying pretence, familiar with falſaries, to father their fancies upon God.
Ver. 7. Have ye not ſeen a vain viſion?] i. e. I appeal to your own conſciences, have ye not falſely fained all? Seducers are extreme impudent, of perverſe minds, cauterized conſciences.
Ver. 8. Behold I am againſt you] Heb. Behold I againſt you, by an angry Apoſiopeſis. The Chaldee hath it, I will ſend my wrath againſt you; and that's an evil meſſenger; for who knoweth the power of thy Wrath? ſaith Moſes, Pſal. 90.11.
Dicit eos ſore prorſus extraneos ch Eccleſia. Teſſeris Eccleſiae aſpectabilibus abalienati permanebunt. Jun.Ver. 9. And my hand ſhall be upon the Prophets] Gods hand is a mighty hand, 1 Pet. 5.6. the heaven is ſpanned by it, the earth held in the hollow of it.
They ſhall not be in the aſſembly of my people] Or, in the ſecret, or counſels: they ſhall have no communion with them. A heavy threat: for the communion of Saints, next unto communion with God, is the greateſt comfort here attainable.
Neither ſhall they be written] As members of that Commonwealth, (much leſſe of the Jeruſalem that is above, Eſa. 4.4.) but rooted out of the world, written in the earth, Jer. 17.13. See Pſal. 69.28.
Neither ſhall they enter] They ſhall never come back out of Babylon, nor enter into heaven.
Ver. 10. Becauſe, even becauſe] Heb. for that, and for that: an angry Epiziuxes: See ver. 8.
Saying peace, peace] Making all fair weather before them, when as the ſtorm of Gods wrath (never to be blown over) was burſting out upon them.
And one built up a wall] Ipſe aedificabat parietem, one of the devils chief dirt dawbers: ſuch as was Shemajah, Hananiah, &c. Jer. 28.29. who, together with their ſhe upholſters, that ſewed pillows to allarwholes, ver. 17. made foul work, and did much miſchief among Gods people; like as do the Jeſuites and Jeſuitiſſes (into whom all the old ſeducers have fled and hid themſelves) at this day.
And lo others daubed it] By cunning colluſion, they plaiſtered and parjetted over the mud wall that was ſo ſet up. Ita extruunt illi vel potius deſtruunt Eccleſiam Dei, ſuch proper builders were theſe. Like unto whom are the Popiſh Prieſts,Ju…. who bring the poor people into a fools paradiſe: and ſuch idle Miniſters amongſt us, as ſhoot off at beſt, a few pot-guns againſt groſs ſins: or when they have done their worſt at it, lick them whole again with I hope better things of you, or I hope there are none ſuch here, &c. Many ſilly people alſo judge themſelves honeſt, becauſe the daubing Miniſter will give them the beggarly paſport, and ſo dye like lambes, being wofully cheated, and willing to be ſo, Jer. 5.31. Mat. 24.11.
With untempered morter] Which will make but a bulging wall; not like to ſtand long.
Ver. 11. Say unto them] Tell them ſo from me, and they may truſt to it: Dei dicere eſt facere.
That it ſhall fall] And the fall of it ſhall be great, as Mat. 7.27. where our Saviour ſeemeth to allude to this text.
There ſhall be an overflowing ſhower] The Chaldaean army, Iſa. 59.19. and 8.7, 8.
Great hailſtones] Sept. foreign, catapultes,Alloquitur grandinem velut imperator ſuos milites. Lavat. battering-rammes to make breaches in ſtone-walls. The Hebrew is Elgabiſh, i. e. grandis grandinis lapides, huge haileſtones of God own hurling.
Ver. 12. Lo… when the wall is fallen] As fall it will and with a force, becauſe made of ill morter: and they that ſtand under it for ſhelter ſhall periſh, as did ſometimes ſeven and twenty thouſand of Benhadads men in Aphek: Vocat autem eloquenciam ſaecularem & Rhetoricam inanem lutum ſine palea, &c. ſaith Oecolampadius here, i e. by untempered mortar is meant worldly eloquence and empty Rhetorike in Sermons; this is as ſand without lime, or as lime without litter, haire, chaffe or the like ſtuffe to hold it together.
Where is the daubing] What's your falſe doctrine come to? your work is loſt, if not your ſouls, 1 Cor. 3.15.
Ver. 13. I will even rent it with a ſtormy wind] Vento turbinum, with a whirlwind or Hurrican. See Eſ. 25.4. and 29.6. Jer. 23.19.
And great hailſto…es in my fury] Thrice in this one verſe is fury threatened: ſo hot is Gods diſpleaſure againſt Seducers.
Ver. 14. So that the foundation thereof ſhall be diſcovered] So that all men ſhall ſee your falſhoods. See 2 Tim. 3.9. Rev. 17.16. The old whore is firſt made naked and then deſolate.Act. & Mon. Mr. Philpot Martyr dealt plainly by the Popiſh Prelates in open-Convocation when he ſaid to them, Afore God ye are all bare-arſt: God hath detected you, &c.
And ye ſhall be conſumed] See on ver. 12.
Ver. 15. Thus will I accompliſh my wrath] Gods wrath is dreadful, when let out in little minnums only: but when to be accompliſhed, who can abide or avoid it?
Neither they that daubed it] It may very well be that ſome of theſe cementaries of Satan were ſlain by the people, when once they ſaw themſelves cheated by them into remedileſſe miſery.
Ver. 16. To wit the Prophets of Iſrael] A name too good for them: but ſo they would needs be called. See Tit. 1.12. 2 Pet. 2.1.
Ver. 17. Likewiſe thou ſon of man] A Prophets work is never done: Agricolis redit labor actus in …rbem.
Set thy face againſt the daughtrs] The Prophet had rather have contended with men then women, and more honour it had been for him; but he muſt do as bidden. Mulieres genus fragile ſunt: yet the Prophet muſt ſet his face againſt them as ſtout agents for the devil,Mr. Weld Sectar of New-England. Matildis Comitiſſa vulgo dicta filia S. Petri. who hath ever made great uſe of them. Such were Noadiah, Neh. 6.1. that Apocalyptical Jezebel, Briget Matild, thoſe two Jezebels of New-England. Mrs. Hutchinſon, and Mrs. Dyer, our late moſt impudent Preachereſſes in London and elſewhere.
Ver. 18. That ſow pillows] In token of moſt certain and conſtant reſt and peace.
To make kercheifes] Vela vel pepla. The Roman Southſayers, caput velabant cum volebant exordiri ſuos exorciſmos, uſed the like ceremonies: ſo did thoſe that gave oracles at the den of Trophonius.
To hunt ſouls] And ſo to deſtroy them. See Prov. 6.26. Women are inſinuative creatures, eſpecially when they have a repute for holineſſe, and are eſteemed prophetical.
Will ye hunt the ſouls] O indignum facinus! Are precious ſouls no more ſet by?
Ʋpon the head of every ſtature] Fitting the humours of all ſorts and ſizes of people: by propheſying to the younger of pleaſure, and to the elder ſort of profit. David, by a like Art, tells old men of gold and ſilver, young men of honey and honeycomb to be found in Gods ſtatutes, Pſal. 19 10.
Will ye ſave the ſouls alive that come unto you?] q. d. I hardly think you will. Will ye not kill and eat, as the hunter doth his prey? or rather w…ll not the devil deal by you both, as the cock maſter doth by his fighting cocks, take pleaſure in their mutual killing one another, that he may make a ſupper of them both?
Ver. 19. For handfuls of barly and for peices] Like ſo many baſe Gypſies, or common beggars.A Gell. See Mic. 3.5. Cato upbraided M. Caelius (and worthily) that being a pleader, he would ſell either his tongue or ſilence for a morſel of bread. Theſe were low-prized propheteſſes.
To ſlay the ſouls] ſc. By denouncing death to them, or by ſtirring up the people to ſlay them as miſcreants.
That hear your lyes] Such as deceive expectation: for ſo the word here uſed, ſignifieth.
Ver. 20. Behold I am againſt your pillows] Gods hatred againſt ſin is ſuch, that he hateth any thing that is made uſe of about it. The ſerpent was curſed, becauſe he had been abuſed by the devil.
foreign.To make them fly] High-pitches; as our High attainers with their new truths, and ſtrange ſpeculations, do now pretend to do. Such were the Swenkfeldians, (Stinkfeldians Luther called them for their ill ſavour) Swenkfeldius himſelf bewitched many with thoſe lofty termes (which were much in his mouth) of Illumination, Scultet. Annal.Revelation, Deification, the Inward and ſpiritual man, &c.
Ver. 21. And they ſhall be no more in your hand] Gods own people may be, for a time, in the hand of Seducers, and taken in their nets, carried away by their falſe opinions: but God will at length deliver his people out of their hand.
Ver. 22. Becauſe with lyes ye have made the heart of my people ſad] Falſe doctrines and wicked practiſes grieve the hearts of the godly, and ſtrengthen the hands of the ungodly; as theſe unhappy times do abundantly evince. The times truely are good (and in many reſpects better then they have been) but the dayes are ev…l.
By promiſing him life] Though he walk in hell-wayes.
Ver. 23. Therefore ye ſhall ſee no more vanity] By rendring you not only contemptible, but ridiculous: Or, by ridding the world of ſuch peſtilent people.