Commentary on Prov Ecc SoS Isa Jer Lam Eze Dan, Isaiah · Chapter 49
CHAP. XLIX.
Ver. 1. LIſten O Iſles unto me] i. e. Ye forreiners; for wicked Iſrael will not, and therefore have no true peace, chap. 48.22. with Pſal. 119.165.
Ʋnto me] Underſtand it of Iſaiah. but eſpecially of Chriſt: for from hence to the end of this book (as the Jew-Doctours alſo acknowledge) are viſions and Sermons ſet down concerning Chriſts twofold Kingdome, viz. of Patience and of Power. See Act. 13.47. 2 Cor. 6.2. Rev. 7.10.
The Lord hath called me from the womb] Called me and qualified me, appointed and annointed me to the office of a Mediatour. This, thoſe that attend not, though never ſo remote, are deeply guilty before God, Deut. 18.18, 19. Act. 3.22, 23.
Ver. 2. And he hath made my mouth like a ſharp ſword] He hath added efficacy to my doctrine; and will protect my perſon till I have finiſhed the work that he gave me to do.
And made me a poliſhed ſhaft] That, being well pointed, will pierce at a diſtance, and either prick Converts at the heart, as Act. 2.37. or cut refractories to the heart, as Act. 7.54. Chriſt will purſue his enemies both with the terrours of his words, his mouth being made like a ſharp ſword; and with the plagues of his hands, being made like a poliſhed ſhaft.
Ver. 3. Thou art my ſervant O Iſrael] i. e. O Chriſt, who beſt deſerveſt to be called by that name, who art alſo the head of the Elect that Iſrael of God, Gal. 6.16.
Ver. 4. Then ſaid I, I have laboured in vaine] I have done little more than preached my hearers to hell. The Phariſees and the Lawyers rejected the counſel of God againſt themſelves, Luk. 7.30. they would not be forewarned to flee from the wrath to come, Mat. 3.7. to eſcape the damnation of hell, Mat. 23.33. Our Saviour loſt his ſweet words upon them: ſo did the Prophet Iſaiah upon his untoward Countrymen, who refuſed to be reformed, hated to be healed. Nothing was unconquerable to his pains, who had (as one ſaith of Jul. Scaliger) a golden wit in an iron body; but this matter was not malleable: hence he ſpake to them to as little purpoſe as Bede did when he preached to an heap of ſtones. Hence his complaint, chap. 53.1. Who hath beleeved our report? he might haply hope at firſt, as holy Melanchthon did, that it was impoſſible for his hearers to withſtand the evidence of the Goſpel: but after he had been a Preacher a while, 'tis ſaid be complained that old Adam was too hard for young Melanchthon. Reverend Mr. Greenham, beſides his publike paines in ſeaſon and out of ſeaſon, was wont to walk out into the fields, and to confer with his neighbours as they were at plough. But Dry-Draiton (the place where he was Miniſter many years) though ſo often watered with his teares, prayers and paines, was little the better for all:Mr. Fullers Church-hiſt. the generality of his pariſh remained ignorant and obſtinate, to their Paſtours great grief, and their own greater dammage and diſgrace. Hence the verſes,
Greenham had paſtures green,
But ſheep full lean, &c.
He might well cry out, as many alſo do at this day, Eheu, quam pingui macer eſt mihi taurus in arvo! Our people, alaſſe, are like Labans-lambs or Pharaohs kine: they are even Miniſtrorum opprobria. But if Miniſters toyle all night and take nothing, 'tis to be feared (ſaith one well) that Satan caught the fiſh ere they came at their net.
Yet ſurely my judgement is with the Lord] He will do me right and reward me howſoever: The Phyſician hath his praiſe and pay, though his Patient dyes. The Lawyer hath his ſee though his Clients cauſe miſcarry. Curam exigeris, non curationem, ſaith Bernard to a frienk of his,Jer. 20. it is the care not the cure of your charge that is charged upon you. Jeremy was impatient, and would preach no more, but that might not be. Mr. Greenham left Dry-Draiton, upon friends importunity, and removed to London, but he afterwards repented it. Latimer ſpeaking of a certain Miniſter, who gave this anſwer why he left off preaching, becauſe he ſaw he did no good: This, ſaith Latimer, is a naughty, a very naughty anſwer.
Ver. 5. To bring Jacob again to him] To convert and reduce him to the fold: this is the proper work of the Archſhepherd, 1 Pet. 2.25. and 3.18. and 5.4. Men may ſpeak perſwaſively, but Chriſt alone can perſwade the heart. Meum eſt docere, ſaith Cyril, veſtrum auſcultare, Dei verò perficere.
Though Iſrael be not gathered] Viz. By Gods Word which is his Arme, chap. 53.1. or will not be gathered, as Mat. 23.37.
Yet I ſhall be glorious in the eyes of the Lord] Who will reward me foreign, according to my paines, and not according to my ſucceſſe: yea it is more than probable, that ſuch as patiently perſiſt in the work of the miniſtery,Secundum laborem, non ſecundum proventum. Bern. though few or none be converted thereby, ſhall have a greater meaſure of glory, than thoſe that ſee much fruit of their labours, and ſo have their honey-comb here to feed on.
Ver. 6. I will alſo give thee for a light to the Gentiles] De vocatione gentium illuſtre teſtimonium; and to this purpoſe it is cited by Paul and Barnabas, Act. 13.47. See Joh. 12.46. Luk. 1.78, 79.
That thou mayſt be my Salvation] Vide quam Deo cordi & curae ſit ſalus noſtra,A Lap, cum eam vocat ſuam. See how God mindeth and fancieth our ſalvation, when he calleth it here his ſalvation.
Ver. 7. To him whom man despiſeth] Chriſt was extreamly deſpiſed in the ſtate of his humiliation, Iſa. 53.2, 3. his Soul was filled with ſcorn and contempt, as Pſal. 123.3, 4. he was hartily hated.
To him whom the Nation abhorreth] Hierom ſaith that, to this day, that execrable nation curſeth Chriſt three times a day in their Synagogues: and profeſſeth that if their Meſſiah ſhould come, rather than the Gentiles ſhould ſhare with them in his benefits, they would crucifie him over and over.
To a ſervant of Rulers] Chriſt was baſely uſed by the Rulers of the Jews, who never left till they had nailed him to the Tree; which was a ſlaves death among the Romans.
Kings ſhall ſee and ariſe, Princes alſo ſhall worſhip] As did Conſtantine, Theodoſius, Valentinian, Charles the Great, &c. who called themſelves vaſallos Chriſti, the vaſals of Chriſt.
And he ſhall chooſe thee] i. e. He ſhall declare that he hath choſen thee to be the Saviour of his people.
Ver. 8. In an acceptable time] Heb. In a time of my good pleaſure, or goodwill, i. e. when of free grace I am pleaſed to ſend thee into the world, and to cauſe the Goſpel to be preached all abroad: thereby declaring my ſelf fully appeaſed which the men of my good will, as the Elect are called, Luk. 2.14. Confer 2 Cor. 6.2.
Have I heard thee] Or, will I hear thee, ſc. interceding, and will I help thee, ſc. conflicting.
And give thee for a Covenant] i. e. For a Mediatour of the New Covenant, which is ratified by thy blood: as was ſignified by the book ſprinkled with the blood of the ſlain ſacrifice.
To eſtabliſh the earth] Had not Chriſt undertook the ſhattered condition of the world to uphold it, it had faln about Adams cares.
To cauſe to inherit the deſolate heritages.] i. e. Heaven forfeited by us in our firſt Parents: or, as others, the Countries of the Nations now converted.
Ver. 9. That thou mayſt ſay to the priſoners] i. e. To ſuch as lie hampered and enthralled in the inviſible chaines of the Kingdom of darkneſs: To theſe Chriſt ſaith, be refreſhed with the light of ſaving knowledge, and with the liberty of the ſons of God.
They ſhall feed in the wayes] As cattle do, that are removed from place to place: they ſhall have a ſubſiſtence till they get home to their Fathers houſe, where is bread enough.
Ver. 10. They ſhall not hunger nor thirſt] A ſufficiency the Saints have, even of outward comfotts, if not a ſuperfluity: and for inward, ſunt nobis paſcua, pocula, & panis coeleſtis, they ſhall not want, Pſal. 23.1. yea they ſhall over-exceedingly abound, 2 Cor. 7.4. So little cauſe is there for the Jew to jear us as poor and forlorn; ſpiritual alimony we are ſure of: and bread and water with the Goſpel are good chear. See Rev. 7.16.
Neither ſhall the heat nor Sun ſmite them] As Pſal. 121.6. See the Note there.
For he that hath mercy on them] He ſaith not Paſtor but Miſerator, a ſweeter title.
Even by the ſprings] See Pſal. 23.3. with the Note.
Ver. 11. And I will make all my mountaines] I will remove all rubs, and lay all level: pacifica erunt omnin, foecunda & ſuavia: who would not then take up Chriſts ſo eaſie a yoke, &c?
Ver. 12. Behold, theſe ſhall come from far] The Jews from all parts, whither they have been diſperſed: the Elect from all quarters of the earth, Mat. 8.11. with the Notes.
And theſe from the land of Sini] Or, of the Sinites, that is of the Chinois (ſaith Junius and others) whom the Greek Geographers call Sinois, Arias Mont. Oſorim. A Lapide. Mr. Cotton.a very populous Nation. Botterus ſaith, that there are reckoned ſeventy millions of men, which are more than are to be found in all Europe: and who knows but many of thoſe of the ten tribes of Iſrael are there?
Enthuſiaſtico jubilo, &c. Oecolamp.Ver. 13. Sing O heaven] The Prophet having thus foretold the Saints happineſs in and by Chriſt, cannot hold but breaketh forth into Gods praiſes, calling into conſort all creatures, which ſince the Fall have lain bed-ridden, as it were looking with ſtretcht-out neck for their full deliverance, Rom. 8.23.
For the Lord hath comforted his people] This is juſt matter of general joy.
Ver. 14. But Zion ſaid] The Church hath her viciſſitudes of joy and ſorrow: mercies and croſſes are interwoven: God checkereth his Providences white and black; he ſpeckleth his work, as Zach. 1.8.
The Lord hath forſaken me] No, never: Non deſerit Deus, etiamſi deſerere videatur: Aug.non deſerit etiamſi deſerat: God may withdraw, but not utterly deſert his; he may change his dispenſation, not his diſpoſition toward them.
My Lord hath forgotten me] My Lord ſtill, though little enjoyed at preſent. So Pſal. 22.1. Plato could ſay that a man might beleeve, and yet not beleeve: I beleeve ſaith he in the Goſpel, help mine unbelief, that is, my weak and wavering faith.
Ver, 15. Can a woman forget her ſucking child] Twere a wonder ſhe ſhould grow out of kind, as to be ſo unkind. The mother faſteth, that her childe may eat; waketh that he may ſleep; is poor to make him rich; ſlighted to make him glorious. Occidar modo imperet, ſaid ſhe in ſtory. Gods love to his is more than maternal. All the mercies of all the mothers in the world being put together, would not make the tythe of his mercy: David ſaith much, Pſal. 103.13. As a Father pittieth his children, &c. great was Jacobs love to Benjamin, Davids to Abſolom, ſo that Job upbraideth him with it, 2 Sam. 19 6. But God here ſaith more, Can a woman forget, &c. The harlot could not yield to have her child divided. Arſinoe interpoſed her own body betwixt the ſword of the murtherer and her dear children.Chronic. l. 5. Melancthon telleth of a Counteſſe of Thuringia, who being compelled by her huſbands cruelty to go into baniſhment from her children, when ſhe took leave of her eldeſt ſon ſhe bit a piece of his cheek out, amoris notam cruento morſu imprimens, and ſo marked him for her own. This is ſomewhat: but what's all this to the infinite? Was there ever love like Gods love in ſending his ſon to dye for ſinners? Chriſt himſelf wondreth at it, Joh. 3.16. this was a ſic without a ſicut, there being nothing in nature wherewith to parallel it. See Rom. 8.32.
Yea they may forget] They may put off natural affection, as ſome did in times of Popiſh perſecution; Julius Palmers mother for inſtance. King Edward the Martyr was baſely murthered by his own Mother: Egelred ſucceeded him, and much mourned for his brother, (being but ten years old) which ſo enraged his mother, that taking wax-candles which were readieſt at hand, ſhe therewith ſcourged him ſo ſore, that he could never after endure wax candles to be burnt before him.
Ver. 16. Behold I have graven thee] So that as oft as I look upon mine own hands I cannot but think on thee:Non deſcripſit ſed ſculpſit & quidem in manibus, utraque ſcilicet. Sculter. We read of one who had written the whole hiſtory of Chriſts paſſion upon the nailes of his hands, in ſmall letters. The ſignet on his finger a man cannot lightly look beſide. See Cant. 8.6. Jer. 22.24. Some think here is alluded to that precept given by God, of binding the Commandements to their right hand, Deut. 6.
Thy walls are continually before me] The Lord doth ſo delight in his ſervants, that their walls are ever in his ſight, and he loveth to look upon the houſes where they dwell. See on Pſal. 87.6.
Ver. 17. Thy children ſhall make haſte] People ſhall come in a main to the Church. Neſcit tarda molimina Spiritus ſancti gratia. God can make a Nation to conceive and bring forth in a day, chap. 66.8. How quickly was the Goſpel divulged and darted all the world over, as the beams of the Sun? ſo in the late bleſſed Reformation begun by Luther.
And they that made thee waſte] Tyrants and hereticks ſhall be caſhiered, as Zach. 13.2. Fiat, Fiat.
Ver. 18. Lift up thine eyes round about and behold] As thoſe uſe to do, which look upon ought with wonder and delight.
Thou ſhalt ſurely cloath thee with them, as with an ornament] The good ſons of Zion are a great honour to their mother, as the two Scipio's were to Cornelia; and as that Elect Ladies children were to her, Joh. 2. A godly man is a gallant man: but the wicked are botches and blots to a Church.
Ver. 19. For thy waſte, and thy deſolate places] Heb. thy waſtneſſes and thy deſolations.] The true Church then may lye waſte and deſolate, and not be ſo gloriouſly viſible, as the Papiſts falſely ſay it alwaies is.
Shall even now be too narrow] A Metaphor from Cities, that being over-full, ſend out colonies into other Countries,
And they that ſwallowed thee up] See ver. 17.
Ver. 20. The children] Heb. the children of thine orbity: ſuch as are not yet received into the Church.
Give place to me that I may] People ſhall offer violence to heaven, and the violent ſtall take it by force: valde avide & quaſi ambitioſe acceſſuri ſunt. Ezekiel deſcribeth the Church of the New Teſtament to be very large and ſpacious: and yet ſhe ſhall be ſo crouded as is a bee-hive, out of the mouth whereof the bees oft hang on heaps, for want of room within.
Ver. 21. Then ſhalt thou ſay in thine heart] Eſt artificioſa fictio, & color rhetoricus.
A Captive and removing too and fro] The condition of Gods Church on earth to be afflicted and toſſed from poſt to pillar, having no ſettled aboad: as neither had the Ark, but was tranſportative, till ſettled at length in Solomons Temple.
Ver. 22. Behold I will lift up my hand, &c.] i. e. I will call them by the Goſpel, which is the power of God to ſalvation to all beleevers, Rom. 1.16.
And they ſhall bring thy ſons in their armes] ſc. when they bring them to be baptized. Reſpicit ad puerilem conditionem: yet ſome expound it Metaphorically, as Deut. 32.10. Hoſ. 11.3.
Ver. 23. And Kings ſhall be thy nurſing-fathers] Such were David, Solomon, Hezekiah, Joſiah, Conſtantine, Theodoſius, Placilla, Queen Elizabeth, &c.
They ſhall bow down to thee] They ſhall give thee civil worſhip, and low obeyſance: and that for Chriſts ſake who is thine head and husband, and dwelleth in thee.
They ſhall bow down to thee, &c.] Such honour hath every Saint through Chriſt. The Popes Paraſites would hence ground his holding out his feet to be kiſſed; yea his treading upon Kings and Emperours. But Peter would none of this, Act. 10.25, 26. ſo little cauſe had that Pope once to cry out Et mihi & Petro. Interpreters do rightly note that in theſe and the like texts,Xenoph. lib. 8. Plutarch. in Alcib. the Prophet alludes to the manner of the Perſians, amongſt whom thoſe that would ſpeak unto the King, did firſt kiſſe the pavement that the King had trodden upon: Hence Martial, Pictorum ſola baſiare Regum.
The ancient Chriſtians alſo, to honour and hearten their Confeſſours, and ſuch as ſuffered impriſonment for the truths ſake, did uſe to kiſſe their hands, yea to caſt themſelves down at their feet. Tertullian writing to ſome of the Martyrs, ſaith, Non tantus ſum ut vos alloquar, I am not good enough to ſpeak unto you. He telleth alſo of ſome in his time that they did reptare ad vincula Martyrum, creep to the bands of the Martyrs in way of honour to them.
Ver. 24. Shall the prey be taken from the mighty] Not unleſſe he be overmatched and over-maſtered. The heathens were wont to ask, Who can wring a club out of Hercules his hand, or a light-bolt out of Joves? The Captive Jews here ſeem to ask, Who can deliver us from the Babylonians, who have both might and right for them? for we are their lawful Captives, and we ſee not how we can be ſet at liberty. Thus they thought at leaſt, if they ſpoke not as much; not looking at all to the power and faithfulneſs of God, ſed ad praeſentium rerum spectra, ac hoſtium potentiam. Thoſe that look downward on the ruſhing and roaring ſtreams of miſeries and troubles which run ſo ſwiftly under them, ſhall be ſure to be taken with a giddineſs, &c but ſuch as ſtedfaſtly faſten on the power and Promiſe of God all-ſufficient, ſhall be eſtabliſhed.
Ver. 25. But thus ſaith the Lord] Here's a full anſwer to the former objection, as God doth uſually in the Scripture frame anſwers to mens thoughts: the Law is ſpiritual and heart-reaching.
And I will contend with him that contendeth with thee] I will over power the devil, and thy moſt head-ſtrong luſts; bringing thee out of his ſlavery, ſo that thou ſhalt be able to do all things through Chriſt who ſtrengtheneth thee, Phil. 4. Thy temporal enemies alſo, thy perſecutors ſhall feel my power, as did Pharao, Nero, Diocletian, Julian, &c. See on Gen. 12.2.
Ver. 26. And I will feed them that oppreſſe thee with their own fleſh] Which yet no man ever hated, A…m ut …l…us macta…em ſ…g…e …mas.but nouriſheth and cheriſheth it, Eph. 5.29. But Zions enemies ſhould one deſtroy another, and be put to ſuch ſtraits, as the Jews were in the ſiege of their City by Titus, that they fed upon their own fleſh, and the fleſh of their children. So hard a thing it is to kick againſt the pricks: quae in coelum expuunt, in faciem ipſurum recidunt.
And they ſhall be drunk with their own blood] Yea drowned in it, as was Attilas King of Hunnes, Flac. …llyFelix Count of Wartenburg (a great Warriour and bloody perſecuter of the Lutherans) who was choaked in his own blood; and Charles the ninth of France, to whom a certain Poet thus rightly ſpeaketh,
Naribus, ore, oculis, atque auribus undique, & ano,
Et pene, erumpit qui tibi, Carle, cruor,
Non tuus iſte cruor, ſanctorum at caede cruorem,
Quem ferus hauſiſti, concoquere haud poteras.