Commentary on Prov Ecc SoS Isa Jer Lam Eze Dan, Isaiah · Chapter 47
CHAP. XLVII.
Ver. 1. COme down] from thy lofty top, and towring ſtate, as the head.Sic tranſit gloria mundi. Cyrillus legit foreign City of the world.
Sit in the duſt] as a mourner, Job 2.8. & 42.6. So Judea being ſubdued by Veſpatian was pictured upon mony coined by him, as a hand-maid ſitting on the ground. Sic ruet alto à culmine Roma.
O Virgin daughter of Babylon] Thou that haſt never yet been ſubdued: So Venice hath for her Motto Intacta manto: So Cullen upon Rhine is called The Virgin-City.
Thou ſhalt no more be called tender and delicate] ſo as Queens uſe to be: Cleopatra for inſtance.
Ver. 2. Take the mil ſtone] As the moſt abject ſlaves uſed to do, qui in piſtrinum trudebantur. Neither is this an end of thy ſorrows: for out of the mil-houſe thou muſt be carried captive into a far Country, and therefore, in order thereunto,
Ʋncover thy locks] Caſt away thy diadem:
Make bare thy leg] Denuda turpituainem, the Vulgar rendereth it: that thou maiſt paſs through the waters naked, and ſquallid into captivity.
Ver. 3. The nakedneſſe ſhall be uncovered] Thou ſhalt be ſtript, and worſe dealt with: the ordinary lot of women-priſoners. At the ſack of Magdeburg by Monſieur Tilly, Ladies, Gentlewomen, and others, like beaſts and dogs, being naked and coupled together, were led into the woods, and there raviſhed. Such as reſiſted, the Souldiers ſtript naked, whipped them, cropt their ears, and ſo ſent them home again.
I will not meet the as a man] But as a Lion rather:Abſque omni humanitatis contemperatione. Scult. Tractabo te pro divina potentia mea. Piſcat. thou ſhalt have vengeance without mixture of mercy (See 2 Sam. 7.24.) Iſa. 13.6. & 27.7, 8, Hoſ. 5.14.) Men uſe ſometimes to deal favourably with women: but they ſhall not do ſo with thee.
Ver. 4. As for our Redeemer, &c.] This comes in by way of Parentheſis, for the comfort of Gods poor people.
Ver. 5. Sit thou ſilent] Here he threatneth Babylon with loſs of her former fame: ſhe ſhall be buried in obſcurity and oblivion, as out of ſight, and out of mind: no longer called the Lady of Kingdoms, but a wretched drudge, ut de Hecuba tradunt Tragici.
For thou ſhalt no more be called] Heb. thou ſhalt not add to be called. Ocolampadius ſenſeth it thus, Thou waſt wont to be called the Lady of Kingdoms; now they ſhall call thee, Non adjicies, as deſperate and irrecoverable. And why?
Ver. 6. I was wrath] See on Zach. 1. ver. 15.
I have polluted mine inheritance] God is his peoples inheritance, and they are his: but now, for their ſins, He had dealt with them as with a profane and unclean thing.
Thou dideſt ſhew them no mercy] Heb. thou didſt ſet them no bowels. Cruelty cries for vengeance. See Jer. 50.17. with 51.24.
Ʋpon the ancient] Who ſhould have been born with for their age and weakneſs.
Ver. 7. I ſhall be a Lady for ever] Preſumption precedeth deſtruction, Pſal. 10.6. Rev. 18.7.
So that thou didſt not lay theſe things to thy heart] The daughter of Pride is ſecurity, and pleaſure is her neece, ver. 8.
Nor didſt remember the latter end of it] Heb. her latter end. Memorare noviſſima tua, & in aeternum non peccabis: See Lam. 1.4.
Ver. 8. Thou that art given to pleaſure] Delicatula; It is not good to take pleaſure in pleaſure, no not to go as far here as we may: verecunda ſunt omnia initia peccati, ſin ſeemeth modeſtat firſt, &c.
Thou faiſt in thine heart, I am] ſc. the Lady of the world. Heathen Rome was called by the Heathens Terarum dea gentiumque. Rome Papal ſaith as much, Rev. 17.4.
And none elſe beſides me] i. e. None worth ſpeaking off. The Jeſuites brag in like ſort of their tranſcendent learning, and profeſſe skil beyond the periphery of poſſible knowledge.
I ſhall not ſit as a widdow] i. e. Be bereft of my Monarchy, which is as it were my husband.
Neither ſhall I know the loſſe of children] I ſhall not ceaſe to ſubdue Countries and Kingdoms, which are added unto me as ſo many children.
Ver. 9. But theſe two things ſhall come upon thee in a moment] Accidit in puncto, &c. Babylon was ſuddenly taken in one night, as the Prophet had foretold, chap. 21. and as the hiſtory teſtifieth, Dan. 5. Periit inter pocula.
For the multitude of thy ſorceries] Thy taking upon thee to divine of each mans life and fortune by the Stars and Horoſcope: for which profeſſion the Chaldeans were famous. But what a madneſs was it in Cardanus, who by the like skill went about to demonſtrate that it was fatal to our Saviour Chriſt,Alſted. Encycl. lib 30. cap. 10. to dye the death of the Croſs?
Ver. 10. Thou haſt truſted in thy wickedneſſe] God calleth that wickedneſſe which they counted wiſdom.
None ſeeth me] Ne Deus quidem novit rationes meas. Graceleſs men having hid God from themſelves, think alſo to hide themſelves from God.
Thy wiſdom and thy knowledge] Thy Magical arts and practices. Quantus artifex pereo? quadrabit in te peritum & periturum.
Ver. 11. Therefore ſhall evil come upon thee] An evil, an only evil, as Ezek. 7.5. both unexpected and inexpiable; ſuch as thou canſt neither avoid, nor abide.
Ver. 12. Stand now with thine enchantments] Try thine utmoſt skill, and let's ſee what thou canſt do forthy ſelf:Sen. H…nc divina…o…es per Anto… nomaſiam Ch…l…ae… appellati. this is ſpoken in way of deriſion.
Wherein thou haſt laboured from thy youth] But found them to be no better than toileſome toyes, quae nec ignoranti nocent, nec ſcientem juvant. Againſt judiciary Aſtrology, ſee Aug. de civ. Dei lib. 5. cap. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
Ver. 13. Thou art wearied in the multitude of thy counſels] As all ſuch are ſure to be (with a woe to boot) as take counſel but not of God; and that cover with a covering, but not by his ſpirit that they may add ſin to ſin, Iſa. 30.1. Thus do thoſe vain Aſtrologers, that pretend to read mens fates and fortunes in the Heavens, velut in Minervae peplo; and thence to foretell good and evil. But experience frequently confuteth them, as it did Abraham the Jew, who foretold by the ſtars the coming of their Meſſiah, Anno Domini 1464. And Albumazar a Mahometan Wizzard, who predicted an end of the Chriſtian Religion, Anno 1460. at utmoſt. A great flood was foretold by theſe Diviners to fall out in the year 1524. cum planetae comitis in piſcibus celebrarent. Hollinſh. in 1524.This cauſed the Prior of St. Bartholomews in London (wiſe-man-like) to go and build him an houſe at Harrow on the hill, for his better ſecurity.
Stand up and ſave thee] Save thee if they can; but Baltaſar found they could not, though he called for them all, Dan. 5.7, 8. and they likely had promiſed him an everlaſting Monarchy: (as ſome did the Romans imperium ſine fine) but falſly: for now the Roman Empire is at a very low ebbe, and who ſhall be Emperour,This was w…itten, Sept. 19. 1637. is much queſtioned.
Ver. 14. Behold they ſhall be as ſtubble] As dryed ſtubble, Nah. 1.10. See the Note there.
They ſhall not deliver themſelves] Much leſſe others.
There ſhall not be a coal to warm at] Like a fire of flax, which is ſoon extinct, and leaves no embers or cinders behind it. In a ſpiritual ſenſe, it may be ſaid of moſt of our hearts and houſes as here, There's not a coal to warm at: Deeſt ignis, as Father Latimer was wont to ſay, the fire of zeal is wanting; that flame of God, Cant. 8.6.
Ver. 15. Thus ſhall they be unto thee with whom thou haſt laboured] But all in vain, viz. with thy Wizzards and Diviners, thoſe deceivers of the people,Cic de divinat. lib. 2. concerning whom Cato once ſaid, Poteſt Augur Augurem videre & non ridere? Can thoſe fellows look one on another, and not laugh when they conſider how they cozen people, and cheat them of their moneys?Cic. orat. 4. in Ver. hence they are called merchants alſo in the next words, as ſome think, qui non tam coeli rationem quam coelati argenti ducunt. Such money-Merchants hath myſtical Babylon alſo not a few, Rev. 18.11. Non deſunt Antichriſto ſui Augures & malefici, ſaith Oecolampadius; Antichriſt hath thoſe abroad that trade with him, and for him: theſe ſhall be caſt alive with him into the burning lake, Rev. 19.20. and though they wander, yet not ſo wide as to miſſe of hell.