Commentary on the Pentateuch, Commentary 2 · Chapter 8
CHAP. VIII. Ver. 1. That they may ſerv mee]
EVentus plagarum eſt alius per accidens, Alſted.ut Simulata emendatio Pharaonis; alius per ſe, ut Dimiſſio populi.
Ver. 8. Behold I will ſmite] God uſually (not alwaies) warn's before hee wound's, ideó que minatur, ut non puniat, and therefore threateneth that hee may not puniſh his creature.
Ver. 3. And the river ſhall bring forth frogs] In ſtead of fiſhes. Thus the firſt and this ſecond plague are about the water, the third and fourth about the earth, the five next about the air, and the laſt about man.
Ver. 4. And the frogs ſhall com up] Neither wals nor weapons could keep of the frogs from Pharaoh and his people. A muribus in Rheno confectus peri…t. Anno. 923.As neither could Hatto Arch-Biſhop of Ments bee poſſibly rid of that armie of mice, that God ſent out againſt him for his crueltie to ſom of his poor ſubjects, till they had devoured him.Ariſtoph. in Ranis.
Ver. 6. And the frogs came up] with their hateful hearing of Breker, & ex coax, coax.
Ver. 7. And the Magicians did ſo] See the note on chap. 11.22.
Ver. 8. Intreat the Lord] In extremitie an hypocrite will crie for help, as a pig under the knife, as a priſoner at the bar, as a drowning man will catch at that twig, which erſt ſtanding on the bank hee deſpiſed; Joab in diſtreſs run's to the horns of the altar; Lord, in trouble have they viſited thee, they powred forth a charm when thy chastening was upon them, ſaith the Prophet of thoſe hypocrits, that yet brought forth no better then winde. Iſai. 26.16, 18. But will the hypocrite praie alwaies as &c? Job. 27.10. Did they at all faſt unto mee, even to mee? Zech. 7.5. I will let the people] For the preſent it may be, he purpoſed ſo to do. Good thoughts make but a thorough-fare of carnal hearts: they cannot ſettle there. Thy goodneſs is as the morning dew &c.
Ver. 9. Glorie over mee] Or jear mee, Hoſ. 6.4.and reject mee, as thou haſt don heretofore: but when thou haſt ſo don, thou muſt bee beholden to mee for my praiers, or thou art like to lie under the plague, for ought that thy wiſards can do to reliev and releaſ thee. In the river onelyonly] For a Memento; Horat.that thou flinch not, nor forget thy promiſe. Quo teneam vultus &c.
Ver. 10. To morrow] Cras vox corvina. To daie if yee will hear his voice. Now is the daie of grace, &c. procraſtination is perilous. Annibal when hee could have taken Rome, would not: when hee would, could not: Plutarch.So foreign ſaid that fool. Let ſerious matters alone till to morrow: but hee was ſlain that night.
Nemo tam divos habuit faventes,
Craſtinum ut poſſit ſibi polliceri.
Ver. 12. And Moſes cried unto the Lord] Not for Pharaoh's converſion; for hee knew hee was paſt cure) but for his d… liverance from the preſent plague, that the power of God might bee the more manifeſted, and the tyrants conſcience the more convinced.
Ver. 13. According to the word] Iſte vir potuit apud Deum quod voluit. Moſes might do what hee would with God, as One ſaid of Luther.
Ver. 14. And the land ſtank] As once this land alſo did by thoſe unclean frogs that came out of the Pope's mouth. Revel. 16.13. But England is now no more a babe (ſaid K. Henrie 8th. Act and Mon. fol. 990.in his proteſtation againſt the Pope:) there is no man here but now hee know's that they do fooliſhly that give gold for lead, &c. Surely except God take awaie our right wits, not onelyonly the Pope's autoritie ſhall bee driven out for ever, but his name alſo ſhall ſhortly bee forgotten in England, &c. Thus hee, and much more to like purpoſe. God hath promiſed to take awaie the unclean ſpirit out of the land. Zach. 13.2. Fiat, Fiat. Surely the ſocietie of ungodly men (whether Papiſts or Atheiſts) is unſavourie and tedious, like the ſlime and filth that is congealed, when frogs and toads and other vermine join together.
Ver. 15. But when Pharaoh ſaw, &c.] Heb: A breathing or reſpiration: ſo fulfilling that of the Prophet Eſai. 26 10. In like ſort William Rufus, beeing dangerouſly ſick at Gloceſter in the 6th year of his raign, vowed upon his recoverie, to ſee all vacancies in the Church furniſhed: which hee did, Daniel's hiſt. fol. 58. Sciaputo il Morbo f…audato … Sa…o.but with ſo great a do, as ſhewed that having eſcaped the danger h…e would gladly have deceived the Saint; like the man in Eraſmus his Naufragium, who in a ſtorm promiſed the Virgin a picture of wax as big as S• Christopher: but when hee came to ſhore would not give a tallow candle. Thus in the ſweating-ſickneſs miniſters were ſent for and large promiſes made of amendment: but no ſooner were they recovered, but they returned to their old courſes, as Mr. Bradford complaineth: Whence Plinie (in one of his Epiſtles to one, who deſired rules from him how to order his life aright) I will ſaith hee, give you one rule, that ſhall bee in ſtead of a thouſand, ut tales eſſe perſeveremus ſani, quales nos futuros eſſe profitemur infirmi. That wee go on to bee ſuch when well, as wee promiſed to bee when ſick. Men roar when upon the rack: but once got off, they think they may do as they liſt.
Verſ. 16. Stretch out thy rod] Here's no warning given, which ſhew's great wrath. Impenitencie make's God wearie of repenting. Jer. 15.6. Abſolute in his threatnings (if anie) reſolute in his executions as. Deut. 29 19.20.
Verſ. 17. All the duſt of the land became lice] Or gnats. Quid ciniphe vilius (ſaith Philo?) what ſo baſe and vile a creature as a lowſ, a gnat? and yet by this poor vermin God ſo plagued all Egypt, that fainting under it, they were forced to crie out, This is the verie finger of God.
Verſ. 18. But they could not] Though they endevourd it, as did the Juggler of Antwerp, who beeing required by the Engliſh Merchants there to plaie his feats and ſhew his cunning; after much ſweating and toil, Acts & Mon. fol. 985.when hee ſaw that nothing could go forward, but that all his inchantments were void, hee was compelled openly to confeſs that there was ſom man there at ſupper which diſturbed and letted all his doings. This was Mr. Tindal the Martyr; who hearing of this juggler, had deſired certain of the Merchants that hee might bee preſent to ſee him plaie, &c.
Verſ. 19. This is the finger of God] An act of Omnipotencie, as Luke 11.20. Pſal. 8.3. The heavens are the work of God's fingers. Deus diſponit membra pulicis & culicis, ſaith Auguſtin. [And hee hearkened not to them] Neither to Moſes, nor to his own Magicians beeing a kin to the Catadupes that dwell at the fall of his river Nilus, and are deaf.
Ver. 20. Riſe up early in the morning] Sanctificat, ſanat, ditat quo que ſurgere mané. Early riſing is good for health, wealth and Godlineſs. David prevented the dawning of the morning, &c. Pſal. 119.147. Chriſt roſe up a great while before daie. Mark 1.35. See the note there.
Verſ. 21. Shall bee full of ſwarms of flies] Of all the ten plagues this was the moſt troubleſom: for that they never ſuffered men to reſt: ſo worldly cares; noc…e ac die non dabunt requiem, as thoſe Tyrants, Jer. 16.
Verſ. 22. And I will ſever] Heb Marvelouſly ſeparate, by ſetting upon them my ſignum ſalutare, Ezek. 9. ſo that the worſt that are ſhall return and diſcern betwixt the righteous and the wicked, Mal. 3.18. See Exod. 33.16. Docuit Ariſtoteles Providentiam Dei ad coe…um Lunae uſque protendi, non ultra.[In the midſt of the earth] Not in heaven onelyonly, whereunto Ariſtotle and other Atheiſts would confine his Providence. Lyſippus made Alexander's picture with this poſie; Iuppiter aſſerui terram mihi, tu aſſere coelum.
Verſ. 23. And I will put a diviſion] Heb. a redemption; ſo Luke 1.68. Ariſtotle reporteth, that when from the hill Aetna, there ran down a torrent of fire that conſumed all the houſes thereabouts; in the midſt of thoſe fearful flames, foreign, Ariſt. de Mundo cap. 6.the river of fire parted it ſelf, and made a kinde of lane for thoſe who ventured to reſcue their aged parents. This extorted from him an acknowledgment of God's good providence for the godlie here on earth.
Verſ. 24. A grievous ſwarm of flies] i.e. Numerous and pernicious; yet not ſo bad as thoſe manie noiſom thoughts that ſwarm daily in men's hearts. There is that Leviathan; there are alſo creeping things innumerable. And theſe manie times marr and flie-blow our praiers, ſo as that they ſtink in the noſtrils of God.
Verſ. 25. Sacrifice to your God in the land] Perſecutors, when they cannot conquer, would compound.
Verſ. 26. Will they not ſtone us?] Superſtition is cruel; witneſs the Popiſh Inquiſition to Lithgow, who in ten houres received 70. ſeveral torments: And the Maſſacre of Paris, wherein they poiſoned the Queen of Navarre; murdered the moſt part of the pearleſs Nobilitie in France, their wives and children, with a great ſort of the common people, an hundred thouſand in one year in divers parts of the Realm, ſom ſaie three hundred thouſand. So in Ireland, what havock have thoſe breathing-Divels made of the innocent Engliſh &c? And what threatnings and ſlaughter do our deſperate Malignants now breathe out againſt us.
Verſ. 27. As hee ſhall command us] Manner as well as matter, circumſtance as well as ſubſtance is to bee heeded in God's ſervice; elſ there may bee malum opus in bona materia, (as one ſaith) an evil work in a good matter.
Verſ. 28. OnelyOnly yee ſhall not go verie far] So loath was hee to looſ his hold; …uſeb.ſo is the Divel. The Pope made large offers to Queen Eliſabeth, as alſo to our King, when in Spain. [Intreat for mee] So Simon Magus in a fright begg's Peter's praiers; ſo Maximinus the perſecuting Emperor ſent to the Church for Praiers, when God had laid upon him a grievous diſeaſ. So Ezra 6.10. praie for the King's life, and for his Sons.
Verſ. 29. Deal deceitfully anie more] Som are ſo ſlipperie, there's no believing of them. Egeſippus ſaith of Pilate, that hee was vir nequam, & parvi faciens mendacium, a naughtie man, and one that made no conſcience of a lie. No more did Pharaoh.
Verſ. 30. Intreated the Lord] See the Note on Verſ. 12.
Verſ. 31. There remained not one] Praier make's clean work; it can do wonders in heaven and earth. Saie thou with David, Cleanſ thou mee from ſecret faults, Pſal. 19.12.thoſe that are of dailie and hourlie incurſion. Praier will ſcour the coaſt, clear the conſcience of dead works. Acts 8.22.
Verſ. 32. And Pharaoh hardened] All blows and preſſures were ſo far from mollifying him, that hee hardened and emmarbled more and more.