Commentary on Prov Ecc SoS Isa Jer Lam Eze Dan, Ezekiel · Chapter 3
CHAP. III.
Ver. 1. SOn of man, eat that thou findeſt] Eat this roul or volume, without tergiverſation, or ſo much as ſciſcitation: yeild ſimple obedience to the heavenly viſion: It was in viſion doubtleſſe, that the Prophet did eat the roul,Act. & Mon. and not in very deed; as the fooliſh Patient did the Phyſicians Recipe, or as Mr. Lewis of Mancheſter made the Biſhops Summoner eat the citation which he brough for his wife (a Martyr in Queen Maries dayes) by ſetting a dagger to his heart, and to drink to it, when he had done. It was non reipſa, ſed ſpiritu, ſaith an Interpreter: See ver. 10.
Eat this roul, and go ſpeak unto the houſe of Iſrael] Firſt learn, and then teach others; that thou maiſt utter my mind readily, dexterouſly, and affectionately; ſpeaking à corde ad cor, and digging thy diſcourſes out of thine own boſom, as it is ſaid of Origen, and after him of Petrus Comeſtor, who merited that title,Ex intimo cordis affectu. becauſe by his often allegations of the holy Scripture, he ſeemed to have eaten it up and diſgeſted it.
Ver. 2. So I opened my mouth] Without delayes or conſults,Alſted. Chronol. 347. I obeyed Chriſt's command, & hauſi quodammodo donum prophetiae, and yielded to become a Prophet. This was well; but not long after, Ezekiel, through infirmity of the fleſh, would have declined the office, and therefore ſought to lurk among his countrymen-at Thelabib, ver. 15. till Chriſt called him out again and new-employed him. v. 16.
And he cauſed me to eat that roul] See on ver. 1.
Ver. 3. Cauſe thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels] i. e. Deeply and duely ponder and practiſe thoſe holy truths thou haſt to preſſe upon others: preach thine own experiences, &c. See 1 Tim. 4.15.
And it was in my mouth as hony for ſweetneſſe] So was Gods Law to good David, Pſal. 119.29.103. to Auſtin, Scripturae tuae ſunt deliciae meae, ſaith he, Thy Scriptures are my delight: to Alphonſus, King of Arragon, who profeſſed he had rather loſe his Kingdoms, then be without the knowledge of Gods bleſſed book, which he had read over above a dozen times, together with ſuch Commentaries thereupon as thoſe times afforded. See Rev. 10.10.
Ver. 4. Go get thee unto the houſe of Iſrael] This was a hard task,Ʋbi mel ibi fel. all things conſidered: but hard or not hard, there was a neceſſity of going on Gods errand. Neceſſe eſt ut eat, non ut vivat, as he once ſaid.
And ſpeak with my words unto them] But ſee they be mine, and then I'l bear thee out: then alſo they will the ſooner take impreſſion. Speak as the Oracles of God, 1 Pet. 4.11.
Ver. 5. For thou art not ſent to a people of a ſtrange ſpeech and of an hard language] Heb. deep of lip, and heavy of tongue: as Jonas was ſo ſent,Qui ſtrident ſermone, & quaſt è profundo gutture barbarum loquuntur. and thoſe that now preach to the Natives in New-England in their own language, not without ſome good ſucceſſe.
But to the houſe of Iſrael] Amongſt whom thou muſt uſe vulgari & vernaculo ſermone, who alſo are well ſeen in the Scriptures; they are indeed Gods Library-keepers, which is no ſmall priviledge, Rom. 3.2. and therefore the better to be dealt with.
Ver. 6. Surely had I ſent unto them, they would have hearkened] Or, If I had ſent thee to them, would they not have hearkened unto thee? It may ſeem by the Ninivites, that they would, for they repented at the preaching of Jonas, Matth. 12.41. at one ſingle Sermon made by a meer ſtranger, who ſang ſo doleful a ditty to them, that their City ſhould be ſhortly deſtroyed, &c. Vatabus rendreth this text Diſpeream niſi te audiſſent, ſi ad eos te miſiſſem. And couldeſt thou but skill of forraign languages, thou couldeſt not eaſily be without Diſciples. The puniſhment of ſtrange language,Mr. Whatel. Prototyp. ſaith a grave Divine, was an heavy puniſhment; next to our caſting out of Paradiſe, and the Flood.
Ver. 7. But the houſe of Iſrael will not hearken unto thee] They will not: See the like, Joh. 5.40. and 8.44. A mans will is his hell, ſaith Bernard. And it is eaſier, ſaith another, to deal with twenty mens reaſons, then with one mans will. What hope is there of thoſe that will not hear; or if they do, yet have made their concluſion aforehand, and will ſtir no more then a ſtake in the midſt of a ſtream?
For they will not hearken unto me] Speaking unto them in the Scriptures. See Hoſ. 8.12. Mat. 10.24, 25. Joh. 15.18, &c. Let this ſpeech of God to the Prophet comfort faithful Miniſters contra cervicoſos & cerebroſos iſtes hypocritas that reject or reſiſt their preaching. What are we that we may not be ſlighted, when as Chriſt himſelf the Arch-Prophet is?
Curtius.Impudent] Heb. ſtiffe of forehead: This was a point next the worſt. Illum ego perjiſſe dico cui perjit pudor, ſaid that heathen: he is an undone man who is paſt ſhame.
Ver. 8. Behold I have made thy face ſtrong againſt their faces] I have ſteeled thy forehead, and ſtrengthned thine heart, that thou ſhalt budge for none of them: I have rendred thee inſuperable.
Ver. 9. As an adamant, harder then flint] Heb. ſtrong above a Rock: inſtar rupis quae in mari vadoſo horridi Jovis, Joh. Wower Polymath.& irati, ut ita dicam, Neptuni fer vidis aſſultibus undique verberata, non cedit, aut minuitur; ſed ob…ndit aſſuetum fluctibus latus, & firma duritie, Durus ut his animus ſolido ex adamante creatus. Heſiod.tumentis undae impetum ſuſtinet ac frangit. This invincible courage and conſtancy in Gods Miniſters, the mad world calleth and counteth pride and pertinacy: but theſe know not the power of the Spirit, nor the privy armour of proof that ſuch have about their hearts.
Fear them not, &c.] See chap. 2.6.
Ver. 10. Son of man, all my words receive in thine heart, &c.] This is to eat the roul, to turn it in ſuccum & ſanguinem, that it may ſurely nouriſh: See on ver. 1, 2, 3.
Go get thee to them of the captivity] The fruit whereof they have loſt in great part; becauſe ſo little amended thereby.
Ʋnto thy people] For I can ſcarce find in my heart to own them. So Exod. 32.7. God fathers that rebellious people upon Moſes.
Whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear] q. d. let them chuſe: and if they have a mind to it, be miſerable by their own election. See chap. 2.5.
Ver. 12. Then the ſpirit took me up, and I heard behind me, &c.] This was for the Prophets encouragement, and to put mettle into him, as it were, that he might the better bear up amidſt all, ſith he ſhould ſhortly bear a part in that Angelical conſort, whoſe foreign, as Theodoret hath it, their dayly ſervice is ſinging of Pſalmes.
Bleſſed be the glory of the Lord from his place] i. e. From heaven, where Saints and Angels glorifie his name without ceaſing or ſaciety. Monica after a diſcourſe with her ſon Auguſtine, about the happineſs of heaven, concluded thus, Quantum ad me astinet, fili, nulla re amplius delector in hac vita. Quid hîc facio? As for me, what make I here, ſith I take no more pleaſure in any thing that is here to be had? A picture of a globe of the whole earth, ſaith one, ſet out with all the brave things that ſea and land can afford with this ſentence encircling it round, To be with Chriſt is far better, is a Chriſtians Emblem, and ſhould be his ambition.
Ver. 13. I heard alſo the noiſe of the wings of the living creatures] In conſent with the former doxology.
That touched one another] Heb. kiſſed: noting the love and good agreement that is betwixt the holy Angels: no woman is ſo well affected to her ſiſter, as they are one to another, in ſerving God and his people.
And the noiſe of the wheeles] As the Angels, ſo all actions and motions do, as they can, ſing praiſe to God.
Ver. 14. So the ſpirit lifted me up] As it did afterwards alſo Philip, Act. 8.39, 40. not viſionally but really.
And took me away] To Tel-abib.
And I went in bitterneſſe, in the heat of my ſpirit] Heb. I went bitter in the hot anger of my spirit, q. d. I was in a great pet, as conſidering that Gods truths muſt be ſpoken, however they are taken:Hic ecce pilluld voluminis in ore dule…, in ventre diſſoluta, ventrem torquet & lancinat. Alapide. and full ill they would be taken from me by mine untoward Country-men. This made me, for the time, much out of temper: but I ſoon denyed my ſelf, and got the better of mine unruly paſſions. For
The hand of the Lord was ſtrong upon me] I was overpowered by the Spirit of God, who ſoon brought thoſe high thoughts of mine into captivity and conformity to Chriſt, 2 Cor. 10 5.
Ver. 15. Then I came to them of the captivity of Tel-abib] Which was the name of ſome chief place or plantation of the Jews in captivity, ſaith Diodat. It was in the middle part of Meſopotamia, ſaith Junius, between two rivers, Chebar and Saocorah.
I ſat where they ſat] Sculking, and lusking, or at leaſt not acting according to my propheticke function, and the gift beſtowed upon me, which I ought to have ſtirred up and exerciſed for the good of my fellow-captives. This he freely confeſſeth, as giving glory to God, and taking ſhame to himſelf.
Seven dayes] Which circumſtance of time increaſed his ſinnes, ſaith Polanus.
Ver. 16. And it came to paſſe at the end of ſeven dayes] Probably on the Sabbath-day, that day of grace, and opportunity of holineſs. God glorifieth his free-grace in coming to his offending Prophet, as the Phyſician doth to his ſick Patient; and by ſetting him a work again, ſealing up his love to him: like as he alſo did to the eleven Apoſtles, by ſending them abroad to preach the Goſpel, after that they had ſo baſely deſerted him at his apprehenſion, and death upon the Croſs.
Ver. 17. Son of man] So Chriſt conſtantly calleth this Prophet, to keep him humble. See chap. 2.1.
I have made thee a watch-man] I, who am the chief Biſhop and Shepherd of ſouls, 1 Pet. 2.25. have ſet thee in thy watchtower, with charge to look well to my flock with golden fleeces, precious ſouls, that none be loſt for want of warning. See therefore that thou be Epiſcopus, not Apoſcopus; an over-ſeer, not a by-ſeer; a Watcher, not a ſleeper: ſomnolentia Paſtorum eſt gaudium luporum. Ephrem. tract. de tim. Dei.Shall the Shepherds ſleep when as the wolves watch and worry the flock? Act. 20.29, 30. Herodotus telleth of one Euenius, a City-ſhepherd,Lib. 9. who for ſleeping and ſuffering the Wolf to enter the fold and kill ſixty ſheep, had his eyes pulled out. God threateneth the like puniſhment upon ſleepy watchmen, idol-ſhepherds, Zach. 11.17.
Therefore hear the Word at my mouth] Who am the Arch-Prophet, the only Doctour of my Church, Mat. 23.8. and 17.4. admoniſh them therefore in my words, foreſee and foretell them their danger in my name, and ſtead. See Habak. 2.1. 2 Cor. 5.20.
Ver. 18. When I ſay to the wicked, Thou ſhalt ſurely dye] When I bid thee tell the wicked from me it ſhall be ill with him; for the reward of his hands ſhall be given, Iſa. 3.11. even death the wages of ſin, Rom. 6.23. death of all ſorts, which is the juſt hire of the leaſt ſin: woe then to the wicked, ſay.
And thou giveſt him not warning] Heb. non expolieris, Gr. non diſtinxeris, if thou do not diſtinctly and clearly warn him, ſeeking to rub off his ruſt, and to make his ſoul clear and circumſpect, as Pſal. 19.12. Eccleſ. 4.13.
To ſave his life] That iniquity may not be his ruine. Sin hales hell at the heeles of it.
But his blood will I require at thine hand] Theſe are fulmina, non verba, not words but thunderbolts, ſaith Eraſmus. This ſentence ſounding much in his eares made Auſtin conſtant and inſtant in preaching,Lib. 3. de verb dom. ſerm. 12. and premoniſhing the people of their danger. Bernard alſo, for the ſame reaſon, thus beſpeaketh his hearers: if I deal not freely and faithfully with you, it will be to your loſſe, and mine own danger. Timeo itaque damnum veſtrum: timeo damnationem meam, ſi tacuero.
Ver. 19. He ſhall dye in his iniquity] Becauſe now he falleth with open eyes.De Temp. 99. Many ſorrows ſhall be to ſuch wicked as will not be warned, Pſal. 32.9, 10.
But thou haſt delivered thy ſoul] ſc. From thine other-mens ſins, 1 Tim. 4.16.
Ver. 20. Again when a righteous man] So eſteemed by others, and haply alſo by himſelf; a ſelf-deceiver.
Doth turn from his righteouſneſſe] As he may ſoon do, where it is but a ſemblance. Falling ſtars were never but Meteors.
And commit iniquity] This a righteous man, rightly ſo called, doth not, Joh. 8.34. 1 Joh. 3.8. See the Note.
And I lay a ſtumbling-block before him] i. e. I cauſe him to proſper in his ſin, ſaith Vatabius, which is an heavy judgment. Fatted ware is but fitted for the ſhambles.
Becauſe thou haſt not given him warning] Haſt not uncaſed and unkennel'd the hypocrite, driving him out of his ſtarting-holes.
And his righteouſneſſe] His works that were materially good, but not formally and eventually. Bonum non fit niſi ex integra cauſa.
Sholl not be remembred] i. e. Reckoned to him: he ſhall not thereby ſet off with God, or make amends by his good deeds for his bad: nay, his diſſembled ſanctity ſhall paſſe for double iniquity, and he ſhall be held therefore the worſe, becauſe he pretended to be better.
Ver. 21. Nevertheleſſe if thou warn the righteous] As the beſt may need to be warned: and muſt take it for a mercy.
Acer & ad palmae per ſe curſurus honores,
Ovid.Si tamen horteris, fortius ibis equus.
Ver. 22. And the hand of the Lord] i. e. The Spirit of the Lord, whereby he led his Prophet into all truth and holineſſe.
Ariſe, go forth into the plain] Or valley, where thou mayſt be alone and at liberty, ſolitary and ſedate, that I may further converſe with thee.
Ver. 23. Then I aroſe and went forth] Such prompt and preſent obedience meeteth with mercyes unexpected.
As the glory which I ſaw] The ſame as before, for the Prophets further confirmation. So Act. 10.10. and ſo God ſealeth to us again and again in the Sacrament of the Supper; ſhewing us all his goodneſſe, as Exod. 33.19.
And I fell on my face] The nearer any one draweth to God, the more doth rottenneſs enter into his bones.
Ver. 24. Go ſhut thy ſelf within thine houſe] q. d. Thou haſt a mind, I perceive to do ſo: but tis not thy wiſeſt way to decline thine office, how hard ſoever it ſeemeth..
Ver. 25. Behold they ſhall put hands upon thee] Thy friends ſhall bind thee for a mad man: See Mar. 3.21. with the Note.
Ver. 26. And I will make thy tongue] A ſpiritual and a ſpecial judgement upon the people, thus to ſilence the Prophet. So he dealt by our Anceſtours, upon the ſetting up of Queen Mary.
Ver. 27. But when I ſpeak with thee] As ſpeak I will with thee again, by prophetike revelation, ere long be.
He that heareth, let him hear] See chap. 2.5. whether more or fewer hearken to thee, be not troubled: I ſhall have my purpoſe howſoever.