Paraphrase of the Hard Texts of Scripture, Scripture 20

Paraphrase of the Hard Texts of Scripture · Scripture 20

p. 371IEREMIAH.

CAP. I.

THe words of Jeremiah the sonne of Hilkiah,1 The words of Ieremiah the sonne of Hilkiah, of the Priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. that famous high-priest, who found the originall booke of the Law; which Jeremy was one of the Priests that dwelt in Anathoth, a towne, within three miles of Jerusalem, which in the tribe of Benjamin was allotted peculiarly to the Priests.

To whom the word of the Lord came,2 To whom the word of the Lord came in the dayes of Iosiah, &c. in the thirteenth yeare of his raigne. 3 It came also in the dayes of Iehojakin, &c. unto the end of the eleventh yeare of Zedekiah, &c. unto the carrying away of Ierusalem captive, &c. in the thirteenth yeare of King Josiah, and continued long with him, in so much as he prophesied one and forty yeares, under the raignes of Iosiah, Jehojakin, and Zedekiah, besides those yeares, which he lived after the captivity.

Before ever thou wert conceived in the womb of thy mother,5 Before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the wombe, I sanctified thee, and ordained thee a Prophet unto the nations. I fore-ordained thee in mine eternall counsell, to be a worthy instrument of my glory; and before thou wert borne into the world, I set thee apart to this great service; and pre-determined thee, to be a Prophet to the nations.

Then said I, Alas, O Lord God, behold, I am unfit,6 Then said I, Ah, Lord God, behold, I cannot speake, for I am a child. and unable, and unworthy to carry thy great messages to the Kings, and Princes of this world; I am a very child, both in yeares, and abilities.

And the Lord said unto me; Never plead thine age,7 But the Lord said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt goe to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee, thou shalt speake. or disabilitie; for I will give thee a mouth, and wisedome, I will send thee forth on my errand, and furnish thee sufficiently for the service thou goest about; goe therefore to all that I send thee, and speake all that I command thee.

See, I have this day made thee a Prophet,10 See, I have this day set thee over the nations, and over the kingdomes, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw downe, to build, and to plant. not to the Jewes onelyonly, but to the nations round about also; to severall p. 372countries, and kingdomes, with commission to deliver my messages, concerning the destroying, and rooting out, the planting and establishing of their dominions, and soverainties.

12 Then said the Lord unto me, Thou hast well seen, for I will hasten my word to performe it.It is true; thou seest indeed an almond tree, in a figure and representation of that haste, which I will make in the performance of my judgements; for as that is the first tree which puts forth, so it well betokens the speed of my executions.

13 And the face thereof was towards the north.And the fore-part thereof to the fire-ward, was, by the situation of it, towards the North.

14 Then the Lord said unto me; out of the North, an evill shall breake forth upon all the inhabitants of the land.Then the Lord said, This caldron or boiling pot is Judea, this fire is the affliction, and vastation which it shall undergoe, and from out of the North, (even from the Babylonians) shall this desolation come upon all the inhabitants of the land.

15 For loe, I will call all the families of the kingdomes of the North, saith the Lord.For lo, I will call the neighbouring kingdomes of the north, in assistance to the Babylonians, and they shall come, &c.

Therefore, stirre up thy courage, and rouze up thy spirits.17 Therefore gird up thy loines.

18 For behold, I have made thee, this day, a defenced city, & an yron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land.For behold, I doe this day confirme thee against all the opposition, which shall be made unto thee; thou shalt be more surely defenced from henceforth, then a strongly walled city, more firme then a pillar of yron, or walls of brasse, &c.

CAP. II.

2 Thus saith the Lord; I remember thee, the kindnes of thy youth, the love of thine espousalls, when thou wentest after mee in the wildernesse, in a land that was not sowen.I Remember well how graciously I dealt with thee of old, and how well thou wert affected to me in my first choice of thee for my people, and how we were mutually ingaged to each other, by covenants, and professions of love, when I led thee in the wildernesse, and carried thee, (with miraculous sustenance, and preservation) through an uncultured desert.

3 Israel was holines unto the Lord, and the first fruits of his increase; all that devoure him, shall offend, evill shall come upon them, saith the Lord.Israel was then consecrated to the Lord, and set apart for his service, as the first fruits are wont to be sequestred and devoted to God; so as all that devoure them, bring evill upon themselves.

The very priests which should be the leaders of my people,8 The Priests said not, where is the Lord, & they that handle the law, knew me not, the Pastors also transgressed against me, & the Prophets prophecied by Baal. doe not inquire after the Lord, but after their owne profits, and occasions, and they that handle the law, doe not acknowledge me, and give mee that observance, which they ought, &c. and the prophets turne from God to Baal, and prophesie in his name, &c.

p. 373Look about, where ye please,10 For passe over the isles of Chittim, and see, & send unto Kedar, and consider diligently, and see if there be any such thing. take view of any whatsoever forrain nation, Grecians, Arabians, or whom else soever, and see if you finde the like inconstancie, and impiety amongst them.

Is there any one of them that hath beene induced to change those deities,11 Hath a nation changed their gods, which are yet no gods? which they have professed to adore and yet they are no gods at all, &c?

What dost thou make of thy selfe, O Israel?14 Is Israel a servant, is he a homeborn slave? why is he spoiled? Doest thou goe for a sonne, or for a slave rather, that thou art thus spoiled?

Thy enemies have comne fiercely upon thee,15 The yong lions roared upon him and yelled, & they made his lād wast. and have roared, and ramped upon thee, like Lions, &c.

Yea,16 Also the children of Noph, and Tahapanes have broken the crowne of thy head. not only those Lion-like Assyrians have comne upon thee, but the weake effeminate Aegyptians have risen up, and prevailed against thee.

And now, what hast thou to doe with ambassages to Aegypt; what vaine confidence is this,18 And now what hast thou to doe in the way of Aegypt to drinke the waters of Sihor? Or wh…t hast thou to doe in the way of Assyria to drinke the waters of the river? that thou puttest in treaties of aide with them? Or, wherefore doest thou send other ambassadors to Assyria, and cravest their friendship, and succour, as if the waters of Jordan were not for thee, but thou must drinke of Nilus and Euphrates?

I bestowed much care and cost upon thee,21 Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed. in my first choice of thee; then thou wert a peculiar and holy people unto me, &c.

And now, O Israel, thou art so foule,22 For though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much sope, yet thine iniquity is marked before me, saith the Lord. that by no humane meanes whatsoever, which thou canst reach unto, it is possible for thee to cleanse and wash off the filthy spots of thine iniquities before me.

See what thou hast done in the valley of Benhinnon,23 See thy way in the valley, know what thou hast done, thou art a swift dromedarie traversing her waies. and in those other dales, where thou hast sacrificed by the brookes; thou hast beene eagerly set upon thine Idolatries, and hast run to them with no lesse haste and speed, then the dromedary is wont to rid the way.

Yea, thou hast beene utterly unreclaimable,24 A wilde asse used to the wildernesse, that snuffeth up the winde at her pleasure, in her occasion who can turne her away, al they that seek her, will not wearie themselves, in her monethmonth they shall finde her. like to a wilde asse in the wildernesse, which runs wilde and loose snuffing up the winde; scorning to be either bridled, or turned in her course; all they that pursue after her, doe but weary themselves in vaine; untill the time come that upon her impregnation, the burden of her wombe shall force her to rest.

Refraine thy selfe, at last, from thine abhominable prostitutions,25 Withhold thy foot from being unshod, & thy throat from thrist: but thou saidst, there is no hope no, for I have loved strangers, and after them will I goe. wherein thou hast laid thy selfe naked to the fornications of thine idolatry; and quench this wicked thirst of thy sinfull lusts; but thou continuest obstinate, and saiest secretly; There is no hope of my reclaiming; No, I have taken a deepe affection to the strange p. 374gods of the Gentiles, and I will goe after them.

30 In vaine have I smitten your children, they received no correction, your owne sword hath devoured your Prophets, like a destroying Lyon.In vaine have I bestowed my chastisements upon you, for ye have not made any good use of my corrections; you have beene the murtherers of Gods prophets amongst you; even as a fierce Lyon have yee devoured them.

31 O generation, see ye the word of the Lord, have I beene a wildernesse unto Israel, a land of darknesse? wherefore say my people, We are lords, wee will come no more unto thee?O ye unthankfull generation; attend to this word of the Lord; have I been barren of my favours to you, have I yielded you no variety of comfortable fruits? have I not inlightned you with the knowledge of my name, & my lawes? and now, when I have brought thee into thy promised land, and setled thee there, thou art ready to say, in thy presumption; We are Lords, and have gotten to our selves these dominions, wee will regard thee no more.

33 Why trimmest thou thy way to seek love? therfore hast thou also taught the wicked ones thy waies.What profit canst thou expect by seeking the friendship, and aide of the Aegyptians? and trimming up thy selfe for their acceptation? thou art both infected by their wickednesse, and hast corrupted others by the wickednesse wherewith thou art infected.

34 Also in thy skirts is found the blood of the soules of the poore innocents, I have not found it by secret search, but upon all these.Thou art plainly found guilty of the blood of my prophets, which thou hast cruelly shed; there needs no secret search for the finding out of this murther of thine, it is open, and apparent to the eyes of the world.

Why goest thou about to alter thy dependance? and in stead of Babylon,36 Why gaddest thou about so much to change thy way? thou also shalt be ashamed of Aegypt, as thou wast ashamed of Assyria. to relie upon Aegypt? that trust shall faile thee; thou shalt be ashamed of this vaine confidence of thine, as Ahaz was of his trust in the Assyrian.

37 Yea thou shalt goe forth from him, and thine hands upon thy head.Thou shalt goe forth from him with extreame mourning and lamentation, &c.

CAP. III.

1 They say, if a man put away his wife, and she goe from him, and become another mans, shall hee returne unto her againe? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast plaid the harlot with many lovers; yet returne againe to me, saith the LordO My people, thy wickednesses are many, & great, and yet (such is my mercy) I could be content, upon thy repentance, to pardon them. Thou art my wife, and hast committed whoredome; thou hast betaken thy selfe to another husband, and therefore hast made thy selfe uncapable of my reacceptance, by the law; Yet returne againe to mee; and I am ready to receive thee, saith the Lord.

Thou hast frequently committed spirituall fornication in thine high places;2 Lift up thine eyes unto the high places, and see where thou hast not beene lien with; in the waies hast thou sate for them, as the Arabian in the wildernesse yea thou hast tempted others to these Idolatrous practises; and hast been ready to solicit, and draw on this sin with them, waiting for these oportunities p. 375of thine Idolatries, as the Arabian waits for a pray in the wildernesse, &c.

Thou art growne impudent and shamelesse in thy ….3 Thou hast an whores forehead, &c.

Yet wilt thou not, after so many and grievous afflictions, begin to recollect thy self, and to acknowledge me,4 Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me. &c.

Israel and Judah are both shamefully wicked, and yet,11 And the Lord said unto me, the backsliding Israel hath justified her selfe more then treacherous Iudah. of the two, Judah is worse then Israel; her trechery is so much more, as shee had more favours from me.

Goe, and proclaime these words, even to those Israelites, which are now captived amongst the Medians in the North; and since Judah will not heare, say to them, Returne thou backsliding Israel,12 Goe and proclaime these words toward the north, and say, Return thou backsliding Israel. &c.

For I had made an holy covenant with you; and will,14 For I am married unto you; and I will take you, one of a city, and two of a familie, and I will bring you to Zion. upon your repentance, call some of you backe againe to your land, and to my Temple.

They shall no more trust to the outward formalities of Gods worship,16 They shall say no more; the ark of the covenant of the Lord, neither shall it come to minde, neither shall they remember it, neither shall they visit it, neither shall that bee done any more. and to the fashionable profession of religion, as if the very name, and presence of the Ark were enough to save them, neither shall their thoughts be upon these outward helps, as all-sufficient and acceptable, &c.

At that day they shall acknowledge the true Church of God, as holy;17 At that time they shall call Ierusalem the throne of the Lord, and all the nations shall be gathered unto it. and as the seat of Gods spiritual government; and the Gentiles shall together with them flocke unto it, &c.

They shall both come together out of their spirituall captivity, into the bosome of my Evangelicall Church,18 And they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers. &c.

But I said, How shall it come about that thou which deservedst not the name of a servant,19 But I said, How shall I put thee among the children, and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of nations? and I said, Thou shalt call mee, my father, and shalt not turne away from me. shalt become a dear sonne unto me, and shalt have a pleasant and happy inheritance bequeathed unto thee; even a blessed roome in my Church? and I answered my selfe againe; It is by the meanes of thy faithfull invocation of me; and of thy true repentance, and holy obedience, that this shall bee effected.

Even in those high places,21 A voice was heard upon the high places, weeping and supplications of the children of Israel; for they have perverted their way, and they have forgotten the Lord their God. where the offence was committed, a voice was heard of weeping and supplication of the children of Israel, lamenting their former wickednesse; and calling for mercy, to that God whom they had forgotten.

p. 37623 Truly in vaine is salvation hoped for from the hils, and from the multitude of mountaines.In vaine is deliverance and salvation hoped for from those Idols, which we have worshipped on the hils, and h…gh places, &c.

24 For shame hath devoured the labour of our fathers from our youth.This shamefull Idolatry is that which hath undone both our late forefathers, and us, &c.

CAP. IIII.

3 Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thornes.HItherto, O my people, your hearts have been like to a rough, thornie, uncultured ground; but now, break up this fallow ground of yours, by an unfained repentance, and root up these thornes of your corruptions.

4 Circumcise your selves to the Lord, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Iudah?As ye are outwardly circumcised, so also doe yee cut off the fore-skin of those inward corruptions, which your heart is defiled with, &c.

5 Declare yee in Iudah and publish in Ierusalem, & say, Blowe ye the trumpet in the land, cry, gather together, and say, assemble your selves, and let us goe into the defenced cities.Make proclamation in Judah, and Jerusalem; and muster your forces together; assemble your selves, and (for feare and expectation of the enemie) agree to goe up into the defenced cities.

6 Set up the standards towards Zion, retire, stay not, for I will bring evill from the North.Draw your troupes towards Jerusalem, and make hast, for I will bring evill upon you from the Babylonians, &c.

The Chaldean is comne forth, like a fierce Lion out of his thicket, or den, even Nebuchadnezar, the great conquerour of the Gentiles, is upon his way,7 The lion is come up from his thicket, and the destroyer of the Gentiles is on his way. &c.

10 Then said I, Ah Lord God, surely thou hast gretly deceived this people, & Ierusalem, saying, Yee shall have peace, whereas the sword reacheth unto the soule.Then said I, Ah Lord God, surely this people and Jerusalem, will be ready to cast upon thee the imputation of deceiving them; in that those, which have pretended to prophesie in thy name, have said, ye shall have peace, whereas there is nothing but slaughter, and vastation.

Nebuchadnezar came (like a boistrous winde upon the bleake hils,11 A dry winde of the high places in the wildernesse toward the daughter of my people, not to fanne nor to cleanse.) up against Jerusalem; not to fan or winnow my people, but to blow them quite away.

Behold, he shall come up, as some blacke cloud that threatens a tempest;13 Behold, hee shall come up as clouds, and his Chariots shall bee as a whirlewinde. and his chariots shall come ratling swiftly as a whirlewinde, &c.

15 For a voice declareth from Dan, and publisheth affliction from mount Ephraim.I doe already heare a voice from the remotest parts of the land which runs along towards Jerusalem, proclaiming with much horror and astonishment, the comming in of the enemie.

p. 377Yea, the very nations round about,16 Make yee mention to the nations, Behold, publish against Ierusalem, that watchers come from a far country, and give out their voice against the cities of Iudah. take notice of that miserable desolation, which is comming upō. Jerusalem, and give intelligence to each other, of the fearefull mischiefe, which is now towards them.

The besiegers of Jerusalem shall keep so strict a watch over the city, as the keepers of the field are wont to doe of those cattle which are committed to their charge,17 As keepers of a field are they against her round about, because she hath beene rebellious against me, saith the Lord. so as not one man shall be allowed to stir out of the walls; and all this, because of their rebellions.

O the unspeakable sorrow and affliction, that I feele for the misery of my people; my bowels yearne, and my heartakes within me,19 My bowels, my bowels, I am pained at my very heart, my heart maketh a noise in me, I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard (O my soule,) the sound of the trumpet, the alarme of war to thinke of this wofull destruction which is approaching to Jerusalem; I cannot containe my selfe, but I must breake forth into lamentation; because I do, as it were, heare before hand, the sound of the Trumpet of Nebuchadnezar, and his alarme to this miserable warre.

So also verse 20.21.

Alas,23 I beheld the earth, and loe it was without forme and voide; and the heavens, and they had no light. what a fearefull confusion doe I foresee every where; the earth shall be so laid waste, as if it had never had any forme; the face of heaven shall yield no light of comfort to the earth.

So verse 24.

I lookt, and saw all turned to a wofull solitude;25 I beheld, and loe, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled. there was not so much as one man to bee seene in a countrey; nay, the very birds of the aire had forsaken this desolate place, as not yielding them any meanes of repast.

Thou which now art richly clad in crimson,30 And whē thou art spoiled what wilt thou doe? though thou clothest thy selfe with crimson, though thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold, though thou rentest thy face with painting, in vain shalt thou make thy selfe faire, thy lovers will despise thee, they will seek thy life. and scarlet, and decked with precious ornaments of gold, and which stainest thy skin with artificiall paintings, and all this to procure and draw on thy wanton lovers, what wilt thou doe? for those Aegyptians whom thou wouldst allure, will despise thee, and seek thy ruine.

For I have heard a shrieking, and lamentation in Jerusalem, as the outcries of a woman in the very pangs of her travaile,31 For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travell. &c,

CAP. V.

ANd though they make an outward and fashionable profession of the name of the Lord,2 And though they say, the Lord liveth, surely they sweare falsesly. in worshipping p. 378him, in swearing by him, yet it is but in falsehood, and hypocrisie.

4 Therefore I said, Surely, these are poore, they are foolish: for they know not the way of the Lord, nor the judgement of their God.Therefore I said, by way of excuse, Alas these are poore and silly men, ignorant of their duties, taken up wholly with servile trades; and have neither meanes nor leasure to know the waies of the Lord, and the laws, and statutes of their God.

5 I will get me unto the great men, and will speake unto them, for they have knowen the way of the Lord, and the judgement of their God: but these have altogether broken the yoke, and burst the bonds.I will get me to the nobler, and learneder sort, their Princes, and Priests, &c. and behold, I found these worse then the other; they have rebelliously broken the yoke of their obedience, and cast away the cords of Gods Law.

6 Wherefore a Lyon out of the forrest shall slay them, and a wolfe of the evening shall spoile them.Wherefore, I will give them into the hands of their cruell enemies, the Babylonians, which like ravenous beasts shall fall upon them and devoure them, &c.

7 How shall I pardon thee for this? thy children have forsaken me, and sworne by them that are no gods: when I had fed them to the full, they then committed adultery, and assembled themselves by troupes in the harlots houses.How canst thou expect pardon, and favour at my hands, O Jerusalem? thy children have forsaken me, and betaken themselves to the worship of false Gods; and when I pampered them with my blessings, they made an ill use of my mercies, and riotously ranne forth into both bodily, and spirituall adultery; and impudently trouped together to worke filthinesse.

10 Goe ye up upon her walles, and destroy, but make not a full end: take away her battlements, for they are not the Lords.Goe ye Babylonians, goe upon the walls of Jerusalem, and destroy them; but yet make not an utter waste, and perfect havocke of that sinfull citie; demolish the battlements, and turrets thereof, for now I the Lord doe not challenge an interest in them.

14 Because yee speake this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.Because they have disparaged my word in the mouths of my Prophets, and have said, it is but winde, they shall finde it otherwise; Behold, I will make thy word to bee as fire, and this people as wood; so as this thy despised word shall be to the utter destruction of this nation.

15 Loe, I will bring a nation upon you from far, O house of Israel.Behold, I will bring a nation upon you from out of Chaldea, &c.

16 Their quiver is an open sepulchre, they are all mighty men.Their quiver shall be full of deadly arrowes, that shall send many to their graves, &c.

24 That giveth raine, both the former and the latter in his season: hee reserveth unto us the appointed weekes of the harvest.That giveth seasonable raine in the autumne, and spring; and reserveth a drie season for the gathering in of the harvest.

If ye have beene abridged of these comfortable and meet seasons,25 Your iniquities have turned away these things. ye may thanke your iniquities, which have justly procured it, &c.

p. 379CAP. VI.

O Yee children of Benjamin,1 O ye children of Benjamin, gather your selves to flee out of the midst of Ierusalem, and blow the trumpets in Tekoa, and set up a signe of fire in Beth-haccerem, for evill appeareth out of the North, and great destruction. the inhabitants of Ierusalem, gather you together, and agree to flee out of that your citie; and give warning to Tekoa, to doe the like; & set your Beacons on fire in Beth-haccerem; that all may understand that the enemie is comming downe against you, out of Chaldea, with great fury, and violence.

The great leaders of those Northren people with their troupes, shall come before Ierusalem, &c.3 The shepheards with their flockes shall come unto her.

Then shall the eager and furious commanders say,4 Prepare yee warre against her, arise and let us goe up at noone: woe unto us, for the day goeth away, for the shadowes of the evening are stretched out. hasten your preparations against her; arise, let us take the day before us; the time flees away, the evening hastens on, let no minutes be lost for our assault.

At last yet, be thou warned, O Ierusalem, lest,8 Bee thou instructed, O Ierusalem, lest my soule depart from thee. (if thou continuest obstinately) I doe utterly cast thee off, and abhorre thee, &c.

They shall make an exquisite dispatch of the inhabitants; as the vine-gatherer,9 Thus saith the Lord of hosts, they shal throughly gleane the remnāt of Israel as a vine: turne backe thine hand as a grape gatherer into the baskets. when he hath pulled off the most remarkable clusters, goes over the tree again, and gleanes those bunches that remained; so shall the Chaldean enemies, search for the remainders of the Iewes, escaped in the …irst destruction.

Therefore, I neither may,11 Therefore I am full of the fury of the Lord: I am weary with holding in: I will powre it out upon the children abroad. nor can containe my selfe from breaking forth into the expressions, of the fury of the Lord, I am weary with holding it in; I will freely declare, and denounce it amongst you, &c.

In stead of seasonable, and conscionable reproofes,14 They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying peace, peace, when there is no peace. they have gone about to salve up the spirituall sores of my people with flattering, and plausible words; saying, peace, peace, all shall be well; when there is nothing but feare, and danger.

At least, if ye will not heare my Prophets, yet harken to the sound of the Trumpet, which tells you of the approch of the enemie; but they wilfully said, wee will not harken.17 Also I set watchmen over you, saying, Hearken unto the sound of the trumpet: but they said, We will not hearken.

To what purpose doe yee thinke to please me with sweet incense,20 To what purpose commeth there to me incense from Sheba? and perfumes comming afarre off from Sheba, offered on my altars? &c.

Therefore thus saith the Lord; Behold, I will prepare,21 Therefore thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will lay stumbling blockes before this people, and the fathers and the sonnes together shall fall upon them, &c. and lay before this people meanes of ruine and subversion, p. 380by which, both the fathers and children shall perish together.

22 Behold a people commeth from the North, &c.See Chapter 1. verse 14. and Chapter 2. verse 15. and Chaper 4. verse 7.

27 I have set thee for a tower and a fortresse among my people, that thou maiest know and try their way.As for thee, O my Prophet, I have set thee as in a watch-tower, to discry the wayes of my people; yea, I have made thee as a strong tower, and fortresse against all the rage of them: So that thou maist fearelesly discover, and repove them.

28 They are brasse, and yron, they are all corrupters.Whereas they pretend to be of the best metall, gold, or silver; they are indeed no better then brasse and yron, they are all but falsifiers, and corrupters.

29 The bellowes are burnt, the lead is cōsumed of the fire, the founder melteth in vaine: for the wicked are not plucked away.Whereas we went about to melt them, under that pretence of pure silver, the labour is lost, the bellowes are burnt, that lead (which is mixed to make it runne) is consumed of the fire; the founder tryeth to melt it in vaine, for that wickednesse which is in them, is tough, and unremoveable.

30 Reprobate silver shall men call them, because the Lord hath rejected them.If they will needs therefore goe for silver, let them doe so, but they shall then goe for such silver, as they are, reprobate and drossie; for how ever they are reputed amongst men, God hath rejected them.

CAP. VII.

11 Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of Robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seene it, saith the Lord.YE thinke all is well, if yee present your selves into my Temple; though you bring with you the guilt of manifold sinnes; ye come hither full of theft, of oppression, of injustice; Is my temple, thinke ye, for such clients? Is this house, which is called by my name, fit to be a den of theeves and robbers? Behold, I have well seene, and noted with how wicked dispositions, and hollow hearts ye come hither, saith the Lord.

12 But goe ye now unto my place which was in Shiloh, where I set my name at the first, and see what I did to it, for the wickednesse of my people Israel.Looke backe now unto my place, which was in Shiloh, where my Arke was, for some time, kept; It is the holinesse of my Arke that makes my Temple holy, and behold, that Arke of mine was before in Shiloh: But did the presence of my Arke there shelter that place from sorrow and desolation, &c.

18 The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire; and the women knead their dough to make cakes to the Queene of heaven, and to powre out drink offerings unto other gods.All the sort of them, of all ages, and both sexes, conspire together in their Idolatry, childrē, fathers, women, put their hands to the worke, and all agree to offer cakes, in way of sacrifice, to the Sunne or Moone, &c.

p. 381Thus saith the Lord God of Israel,21 Thus saith the Lord of hosts the God of Israel, Put your burnt offerings unto your sacrifices, and eate flesh. yee brag much of your costly sacrifices, that ye offer unto me; Goe, take your bullocks, and sheep, and make your selves good cheare with them.

Mourne thou solemnly, O Ierusalem,29 Cut off thine haire, O Ierusalem, and cast it away; and take up a lamentation on high places. and expresse thy sorrow, by publike acts of humiliation, that the world may take knowledge of it, &c.

They have set up altars to their idols,30 They have set their abominations in the house which is called by my name, to pollute it. in my very Temple, to pollute it, &c. As 2 Kings 21.4.

They have built altars to Moloch, in the high places of Tophet,31 And they have built the high places of Tophet. &c.

So great a slaughter shall bee therefore in Jerusalem, that there shall not be roome enough in the vally of Tophet, for the buriall of the slaine; and thereupon,32 Therefore behold, the dayes come, saith the Lord, that it shall no more be called Tophet, nor the valley of the sonne of Hinnom, but the valley of slaughter. that vally shall change the name, and bee called the valley of slaughter.

CAP. VIII.

THe calamity that I will bring upon the Iewes,1 At that time saith the Lord, they shall bring out the bones of the Kings of Iudah, and the bones of his Princes, and the bones of the Priests, and the bones of the Prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Ierusalem out of their graves. and Ierusalem, shall not rest in the living, but shall reach to the very dead; for the very bones of their Kings, and Princes, and Priests and Prophets, shall be torne up out of their graves.

Thus saith the Lord; The fall of Ierusalem is great, and fearefull; but yet, if they had grace to repent,4 Thus saith the Lord: Shall they fall, and not arise? shall he turne away, and not returne? not desperate; If they would returne to me, should not I turne in mercy unto them?

How doe ye Priests and Scribes say;8 How doe ye say, We are wise, and the Law of the Lord is with us? Loe, certainely in vaine made hee it, the penne of the scribes is in vaine. We are wise and learned; and the Law of the Lord is with us; when in the meane time ye live contrary to it? Certainely, if this be to know & make a right use of the law, the law should seem to be to small purpose either in the making, or writing of it.

Those that have made this profession of wisedome,9 The wise men are ashamed, they are dismaied and taken, loe, they have reje…ted the word of the Lord, and what wisedome is in them? have shamed themselves by their unanswerable practice; loe, they have cast off all care of doing that, which the word of God injoynes them, and how then can they challenge any true wisedome to themselves?

See chap. 6. verse 14.11 For they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people, slightly, &c.

p. 38214 Why doe we sit still? assemble your selves, and let us enter into the defenced cities, and let us be silent there, for the Lord our God hath put us to silence: and given us waters of gall to drinke.Why doe we sit still (ye say) while the enemie shall come and cut our throats? let us enter into our strong cities and stand upon our defence; and rest there till these Babylonians be departed: Alas, yee shall rest there indeed, but for ever; for the Lord our God hath there intended to give us up to the slaughter; he hath there appointed us that bitter potion which we must drinke up, &c.

16 The snorting of his horses were heard from Dan, &c.See Chap. 4. verse 15:

17 For behold, I will send Serpents, Cockatrices among you, which wil not be charmed, and they shall bite you, saith the Lord.Behold, I will send the Chaldees among you, cruell and implacable enemies, which will by no meanes bee wonne to relent, but shall oppresse you, even unto death.

Faine would I put off this deepe sorrow, that I have conceived, for the imminent destruction of my countrymen,18 When I would comfort my selfe against sorrow, my heart is faint in mee. and cheare up my heart with some kinde of comfort; but I cannot.

For behold, me thinks I heare already, the shrieks, and cryes of the Jewes,19 Behold, the voice of the crie of the daughter of my people, because of them that dwell in a far countrey: is not the Lord in Zion, is not her King in her? Why have they provoked me to anger, with their graven images, and with strange vanities? because of the Babylonians, that are comne in, upon them, from Chaldea; and yet they are still ready to presume upon their title, and interest in God; and say, Is not the Lord worshipped by us, in Zion; Doe not we professe him? doth not hee professe himselfe the King and God of Jerusalem? Alas; to what purpose is this idle formalitie? they professe me indeed (saith God) but they provoke me, the whiles, to anger, with their idolatries.

The harvest is past, and the summer is ended;20 The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved. which might have given us hopes and oportunities of succours, yet we heare of none from Egypt, or any other our associates; so as we are now out of all hopes of deliverance.

21 For the hurt of the daughter of my people, am I hurt, I am blacke: astonishment hath taken hold on me.Alas, how am I afflicted with this miserable condition of my people? How do I mourne for them; how am I astonished to thinke of the mischiefe that is towards them?

Oh that there were any possible meanes of redresse of this calamity!22 Is there no balme in Gilead? is there no Physitian there? Why then is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered? Oh that there were any medicine for this sore, or any Physitian to apply it, for cure! But alas, it will not, it cannot be, there is no remedy to be hoped for (so as this people are affected,) there is no way but destruction.

CAP. IX.

1 Oh that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountaine of teares, that I might weepe day and night for the slaine of the daughter of my people.OH that I could sufficiently bewaile (since I cannot redresse) this wofull desolation of Jerusalem, and my p. 383people; Oh that I were all dissolved into teares for this lamentable slaughter which is coming upon them.

They bend their tongue for lies,3 And they bend their tongue like their bow for lies: but they are not valiant for the truth upō the earth. and slacken it for the truth; having no courage to defend it, and too much to oppose it, &c.

They pretend to be pure metall; behold,7 Behold, I will melt them, and trie them, for how shall I doe for the daughter of my people? I will melt them, saith the Lord, and try them in the fire of affliction; for how can I doe otherwise with them, since they are utterly unreformable?

And if in the subversion of Ierusalem my people shall hope to finde succour in the mountaines,10 For the Mountaines will I take up a weeping and wailing, and for the habitations of the wildernesse a lamentation, because they are burnt up, so that none can passe through thē, neither can men heare the voice of the cattle, &c. and waste deserts, I cannot but weepe, and waile, to thinke how they will be miserably disappointed there; for the rage of the enemie shall reach so farre, as to burne up, and destroy their most retired places; and to make them unfit for the use either of man, or beast.

A place of horror and desolation.11 A den of dragons, &c.

How lamentable it is that amongst all this people there should be so few (if any at all) that understands,12 Who is the wise man that may understand this, and who is hee to whom the mouth of the Lord, hath spoken that he may declare it? and will faithfully declare what it is that brings this destruction upon the Land, &c.

Behold,15 Behold, I will feed thē, even this people with wormwood, & give them water of gall to drinke. in stead of comfort I will give this people the bitterest anguish & sorrow, and wil bring upon them the most grievous calamity that can be conceived.

Call for those mourning women,17 Call for the mourning women, that they may come, and send for cunning womē, that they may come that are wont to be hired for the publike lamentations at funeralls, and let them be set on worke to practice the saddest expressions of their waylings and sorrow.

For the Chaldeans have scaled our walls,21 For death is come up into our windowes, and is entred into our palaces, to cut off the children from without, & the young men frō the streets. and entred into our cities, and are now breaking upon us, in our houses, to inflict a sudden, and cruell death upon us, wherein they will spare no age, or sexe; but put all mercilesly to the sword.

Behold, the day is comne, saith the Lord,25 Behold, the dayes come, saith the Lord, that I will punish all them which are circumcised with the uncircumcised. wherein I will punish all together, both Iewes which are circumcised, and their uncircumcised abettors; no difference shall be made in this slaughter.

Yea, I will punish the circumcised,26 Aegypt, and Iudah, and Edom, and the children of Ammon, & Moab, and all that are in the utmost corners, that dwell in the wildernesse: for all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in the heart. in their inward and spirituall uncircumcision; The Gentiles that are in the remote corners of the world are indeed outwardly uncircumcised; but my people the Iewes are uncircumcised in their harts; & this uncircumcision is so much more odious then the other, by how much the filthinesse of the soule is worse then that of the body.

p. 384CAP. X.

2 And bee not dismaid at the signes of heaven, for the heathen are dismaid at them.BEE not foolishly superstitious in observing those good or ill daies, and fortunes, (as they are called) which the vaine heathen think to be notified in the stars, the signes of heaven; it is for those pagans to be dismaied with the predictions of those dismall events.

3 For the customes of the people are vaine.For, howsoever those nations, the Chaldees, and Aegyptians carry a reputation of wisedome; yet sure their practices shew them to be vaine and sottish, &c.

5 They are upright as the palme tree, but speake not.They must be (such as they are carved) upright, as the palme tree, for they cannot bow themselves to alter their posture, &c,

14 Every man is brutish in his knowledge, every founder is confounded by the graven Image: for his molten Image is falsehood, and there is no breath in them.Every workeman is brutish, whiles he so imploies his skill, as to make a god to himselfe, by his owne art; every founder, if he had but reason to consider it, must needs be confounded in himselfe at the sight of his owne folly, in making that image which he will adore: wherin (mean while) there is nothing but falsehood, and deceit; for, though it counterfait a kind of life, yet there is no breath in it.

16 The portion of Iacob is not like them, for hee is the former of all things.But the true God, who is the portion and happy inheritance of Jacob, is not like to these dunghill deities; he is the maker of all things, &c.

Trusse, and packe up all thy precious commodities, O thou that inhabitest not the villages only,17 Gather up thy wares out of the land, O inhabitant of the fortresse. but the strongest fortresses; and addresse thy self for thy flight, or captivity.

18 Behold, I will sling out the inhabitants of the land at this once.Behold, I will suddenly and violently cast out the inhabitants of the land, as a stone out of a sling, &c.

Wo is me, for that grievous case, wherein I am, my affliction is exceeding sore,19 Woe is mee for my hurt, my wound is grievous but I said, Truly this is a griefe, and I must beare it. and unspeakable; but, recollecting my selfe, at last, I resolved, surely, this is the mischiefe that I have brought upon my selfe, & which is justly allotted unto me; I will therefore beare it, as I may, since I cannot avoide the undergoing of it.

20 My tabernacle is spoiled, and all my cords are broken; my children are gone forth of me, and they are not, there is none to stretch forth my tent any more, and to set up my curtaines.My tent is spoiled, & those cords wherewith it should be stretched forth, are broken in peeces, so as mine habitation is wasted; and my children which should aide me, are carried away into captivitie; and there is none that may afford me any help to the setling of me againe.

The spirituall leaders of my people are become brutish, being indeed, the chiefe cause of this great desolation; and have not sought the Lord,21 For the Pastors are become brutish, and have not sought the Lord. &c.

p. 385See chap. 1.15. and 5. verse 15.22 Behold the noise, &c.

See Prov. 16.1. and 20.24.23 O Lord I know, &c.

O Lord, correct me, but in a gracious moderation,24 O Lord, correct me, but with Iudgement, not in thine anger, lest thou bring me to nothing. not in the extreme rigour of thy justice, not (as we have deserved) in thy wrath, and displeasure.

CAP. XI.

ANd the Lord said unto me,9 And the Lord said unto me, A conspiracie is found among the men of Iudah, and among the inhabitants of Ierusalem. The men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem have banded together, and conspired wilfully in evil; and have resolved to hearten each other in wickednesse; yea, they have made an agreement with Idolatrous Israel, that they will goe on in their provocations of me.

Every of thy cities, O Iudah, have had a severall god,13 For according to the number of thy cities were thy gods, O Iudah, and according to the number of the streets of Ierusalem, have ye set up altars to that shamefull thing, even altars to burne incense unto Baal. and every of thy streets, O Ierusalem, hath a severall altar consecrated to a shamefull, and abhominable Idoll; even altars to burne incense unto Baal.

What have the Iewes (once my beloved people) to doe in mine house (saith God) seeing they have committed spirituall fornication with many Idols,15 What hath my beloved to do in mine house, seeing shee hath wrought lewdnes with many, and the holy flesh is passed from thee? when thou dost evill then thou rejoycest. and those sacrifices, which now they pretend to offer, are not holy oblations, but prophane and common flesh; yea, O my people, thou art comne to that height of impiety, as that thou rejoycest in evill.

Thou seemedst, and accordingly hadst the name of a faire greene olive tree; and mad'st shew of goodly fruit; but when thou turnedst wilde, God hath set fire on thy boughes, and hath broken downe thy branches.16 The Lord called thy name, a greene Olive tree, faire and of goodly fruit: with the noise of a great tumult he hath kindled fire upon it, and the branches of it are broken.

Let us not only burne his prophesies, but kill the man;19 Let us destroy the tree with the fruit therof, and let us cut him off from the land of the living. let us dispatch him from off the earth, &c,

O God, I do not desire it in any malice to thē, or thirst of revenge; but in an holy zeale of thy glory, being by thee so directed, I committing my cause to thee,20 Let me see thy vengeance on them, for unto thee have I revealed my cause. pray for a sight of thy just retribution to them.

CAP. XII.

IF striving with thine owne townes-men at Anathoth thou hast not prevailed,5 If thou hast run with the footmen, and they have wearied thee, then how canst thou contend with horses? and if in the land of peace, wherein thou trustedst, they wearied thee, then how wilt thou doe in the swelling of Iordan? how shouldst thou thinke to doe good upon them of Jerusalem; since there is no lesse difference betwixt them in the headdy course of their p. 386sins; then betwixt foot and horse; And if in thine owne quiet countrey they have wearied thee, how much more must thou expect this successe from the proud inhabitants of Ierusalem?

I the Lord, therefore, have for these wickednesses forsaken my Temple, I have left that which was my professed heritage; and that people, which was the dearly beloved of my soule (being now degenerated) I have given up into the hands of the enemie.7 I have forsaken mine house, I have left mine heritage, I have given the dearely beloved of my soule into the hand of her enemies.

That which was my deare people doth now rebell against me, and roare out against me and my prophets, like a lyon in the forrest,8 Mine heritage is unto me as a lion in the forrest. &c.

9 Mine heritage is unto me as a speckled bird, the birds round about are against her: come ye, assemble al the beasts of the field come to devoure.Hereupon, the enemies of my people come up against them, by my just instigation; and all nations come up round about, as birds are wont to come wondring about some strange fowle; and invite each other to the spoile.

See chap. 6. verse 3.

I was once your pastor saith God; but, since ye would not be guided by me, now yee shall have store of other manner of pastors; that shall lead you in your kinde; that shall destroy my vineyard,10 Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard. &c.

16 And it shall come to passe, if they will diligently learne the waies of my people to sweare by my name (the Lord liveth, as they taught my people to sweare by Baal,) then shal they be built in the middest of my people.I will make one Church of Iewes, and Gentiles; and if those nations shall frame themselves to the true worship of my name, and to the profession of the religion of my people, then will I establish them in my Church, as true and lively members thereof.

CAP. XIII.

1 Thus saith the Lord unto me, Go get thee a linnen girdle, and put it upon thy loines, and put it not in water.GEt thee a girdle (the embleme of thy people, whom I have heretofore kept close unto me) and put it upon thy loines, in figure of what I have done for the Iews, and put it not in water, to shew how carefully I have kept the people hitherto from all adversity.

See verse 11.

4 Take the girdle that thou hast got which is upon thy loines, and arise, goe to Euphrates.Then the Lord charged me, by way of vision; Arise, goe to Euphrates, &c.

And behold, the girdle was marred, in figure that the Iewes should lie rotting,7 And behold, the girdle was marred, it was profitable for nothing. and forlorne in the dungeons and caves of Chaldaea, and Assyria.

12 Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Every bottle shall bee filled with wine, and they shal say unto thee; Doe wee not certainely know, that every bottle shall be filled with wine?Thus saith the Lord God of Israel; My people is like to an earthen bottle; and every bottle shall be filled up to p. 387the brim with wine; Then shall the hearers take this prophesie in great scorne; and say, what wonders are these thou tellest us; as if we knew not that the use of bottles is to be filled with wine; tell these things to children that understand nothing.

Then shalt thou say unto them;13 Then shalt thou say unto them, Thus saith the Lord; Behold I will fill all the inhabitants of this land, even the Kings that sit upon Davids throne, & the priests, and the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Ierusalem with drunkennesse. even thus every inhabitant of this land, even, the Kings, Priests, Prophets, and all the inhabitants shall bee filled up with the wine of Gods wrath; and shall be (as it were) drunken therewith so as he shall no more know what to doe, or which way to turne him, then a drunken man.

And those earthen pots of yours shall be dashed one against another,14 And I will dash thē one against another. &c.

Before your feet (whiles ye are driving into captivity) stumble in your dark,16 Before your feet stumble upon the darke mountaines. & nightly passages over the mountaines, &c.

Those cities of Aegypt, which ye trusted to, for a refuge unto you, in your extremity, shall be shut up against you, for feare of the Chaldees; and none dare open them to receive you, there will be no remedy, Iudah must bee carried away captive.19 The cities of the South shall be shut up, and none shall open them, Iudah shall be carried away captive.

Lift up your eyes,20 Lift up your eyes, & behold them that come from the North, where is the flock that was given thee, thy beautifull flocke? and behold the troupes of the Babylonians, that come up against you? Alas, what shall now become of that people which hath had thee all this while in possession, O miserable Iudaea?

Thou that now cavillest, and despisest my word;21 What wilt thou say when he shal punish thee? for thou hast taught them to be Captaines & as chief over thee; shall not sorrows take thee as a woman in travaile? what wilt thou then say, when these cruel Chaldees shal come upon thee; (thou hast already inured them to be captains over thee, & hast acquainted them with thy government, and given them advantages, by calling them formerly to thine aide) shalt thou not then bee overwhelmed with sorrow and distresse?

And if in thy secret murmur thou shalt expostulate,22 And if thou say in thine heart, Wherefore come these things upon me? for the greatnesse of thine iniquitie are thy skirts discovered, and thy heels made bare. and say; wherefore is all this mischiefe comne upon me? the answere is ready, and easie; for the greatnesse of thy unreformable wickednesse, art thou thus exposed to the shame, and ignominie of the world.

Alas, ye are so habituated in evill,23 Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the Leopard his spots? then may ye also doe good, that are accustomed to doe evill. that there is no hope at all of your reclaiming; as soone may the Blackmore turne white, or the Leopard spotlesse, as yee may turne good, after so long & obstinate persistance in your wickednesse.

I will put thee to the greatest shame and confusion that can be conceived;26 Therefore will I discover thy skirts upon thy face, that thy shame may appeare. that thou maist appeare odious to the eyes of all beholders.

p. 388CAP. XIIII.

2 Iudah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish, they are blacke unto the ground.IUdah mourneth, all the inhabitants that goe through the gates of their cities, languish, they are discoloured with their famine, and are in the depth of their sorrow cast upon the ground, &c.

3 And their nobles have sent their little ones to the waters, they came to the pits, and found no water.Their Princes, and Nobles sent the meaner people to bring them water in that extremity of drought, but none was to be had, &c.

6 And the wilde asses did stand in the high places, they snuffed up the winde like dragons, their eyes did faile because there was no grasse.Not men only, but the very beasts also shall feele the misery of this famine and drought; in so much as the wilde asses shall stand upon the rocks, and pant, and gape for the aire, and draw in the coole winde, to refresh their hotte, and thirstie throates, as dragons are wont to doe, in the sandy and scorching wildernesses; and their sight shall faile them for want of repast.

8 Why shouldst thou be as a stranger in the land, and as a way-faring man, that turneth aside to tarry for a night.Thou that wert wont to dwell, and continue amongst thy people, why shouldst thou be now, as a stranger, that passes through the land, and lodges there a night, and away.

10 They have not refrained their feet.They have not abstained from any evill way.

21 Doe not disgrace the throne of thy glory.Doe not utterly disgrace and cast off that Kingdome, wherein thou hast hitherto ruled, and raigned; and wherein thou hast so manifested the glory of thy power.

22 Are there any among the vanities of the Gentiles that can cause raine, or can the heavens give showers?And now, O ye fond Iewes, are there any of those vaine Idols of the Gentiles, which ye have worshipped, that can cause the rain to descend upon this your droughty earth? &c.

CAP. XV.

1 Then said the Lord unto me, Though Moses & Samuel stood before mee, yet my mind could not be toward this people; cast them out of my sight, and let them goe forth.THe time was, when Moses and Samuel, in their severall seasons, interceded with me, for the ancestors of this people, and prevailed, but now, if they were both together upon earth, and should sue to me for this their posterity, they could not prevaile with me, to draw my affections to them, or to divert my judgements from them.

4 Because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah King of Iudah, for that which he did in Ierusalem.Because of that horrible Idolatry, and wickednes that was committed in Jerusalem, under the raigne of Manasseh, whose impiety is so much more aggravated, in that he was the sonne of good Ezekiah.

6 I am wearie with repenting.I have so oft suspended those judgements, which I threatned against thee, and so long forborne thee, as that now I can indure thee no longer,

p. 389I will tosse,7 And I will fan them with a fan in the gates of the land. and scatter them in all the defenced cities of the land; as corne is shaken, and dispersed in the winnowing, &c.

I have brought up against the mother city Jerusalem,8 I have brought upon them against the mother of the yong men, a spoiler at noone day; I have caused him to fall upon it suddenly, & terrors upon the citie. a young and courageous victor, which shall spoile it, even the Chaldean, who shall make open havock of it, I have set him upon it in my justice, and have brought these terrors and desolations upon it.

Even the strong and vigorous woman,9 She that hath borne seven, languisheth, she hath given up the ghost; her sun is gone downe while it was yet day. that hath been the mother of many children, now languisheth, and gives up the ghost; her life is untimely ended, &c.

Wo is me, that ever my mother bare mee to bee thus vexed with the contention, and opposition of all men;10 Woe is me, my mother, that thou hast borne me a man of strife, and a man of contention to the whole earth, I have neither lent on usury, nor men have lent to mee on usury, yet every one of them doth curse me. Yet, I have done, I have deserved nothing, that might procure me this heart-burning, & spight amongst them; I only followed my calling, close, and intermedled not with the affaires of the world; I have neither given, nor taken use, and yet every one is ready to revile me.

If thy strength, O Judaea, be as yron, canst thou think thine yron so strong,12 Shall yron break the Northern yron, & the steel. as that it can breake the yron and steele of the Chaldeans.

Least whiles thy long suffering,15 Take me not away in thy long suffering. and patience beares with them, I, in the meane time, be murthered by them.

So soone as thy words were delivered to me,16 Thy words were foūd and I did eate them, & thy word was unto me the joy & rejoycing of mine heart, for I am called by thy name O Lord God of Hosts. I did receive them with a ready, and willing heart; yea thy word was my greatest joy, and honor; for I am called by thy name, O Lord; euen the prophet of the Lord of hosts.

I sate mourning, and solitary, in sad and thoughtfull dumps, because of the sins of thy people,17 I sate not in the assembly of the mockers, nor rejoyced, I sate alone because of thy hand, for thou hast filled me with indignation. and because of thy judgements; for, upon both these, my heart was full of sorrow; And that sorrow was increased by the envie and indignation, which this prophesie (committed unto me) hath brought upon me.

O Lord, thou hast promised to deliver, and free me;18 Wilt thou be altogether unto me as a liar, & as waters that faile. and wilt thou be as one that breakes his word; and as some land-waters, that make a great shew, after a showr, but sinke away, and disappoint the passenger.

If thou bethink thy selfe of this thine impatience,19 Therefore thus saith the Lord, If thou returne, then will I bring thee againe, and thou shalt stand before me: and if thou take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt be as my mouth: let them return unto thee, but returne not thou unto them. and of thy too much regard to this murmuring, and disobedient people, I will so confirme thee, that they shall bee forced to acknowledge thee my faithfull servant; And if thou doe wisely make difference betwixt erroneous doctrine, and the truth, and betwixt the godly and prophane persons, then will I admit thee to bee my mouth unto my people; doe not thou yield way unto them in their leud courses, but let them (if it may be) come in to thee.

p. 39020 And I will make thee unto this people, a fenced brazen wall, &c.See Chap. 1. verse 18.

CAP. XVI.

6 Neither shall men lament for them, nor cut themselves, nor make thēselves bald for them.THere shall be no body left in the land to make any passionate expressions of their mourning for them being dead; so as to cut their flesh, or to shave their haire: either to wound, or deforme themselves for their sakes.

7 Neither shall any (as in the margin) breake bread for them in mourning to comfort them for the dead; neither shal men give thē the cup of consolation to drinke for their father.Neither shall there be any left to make funerall feasts for them, to comfort them in their mournings for the dead; neither shall they (as the manner is in those feasts) give them the cup of consolation to drinke downe their sorrow for the deceased, &c.

14 Therefore behold, the dayes come, saith the Lord, that it shall no more be said: The Lord liveth that brought up the Children of Israel out of the land of Aegypt;The dayes come, wherein God shall not so much be celebrated by the memory of his deliverance of his people out of Aegypt, which was long since done,

15 But the Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the North, & from all the lands, whither hee had driven them.As by the fresh remēbrance of the great mercy that he hath wrought for his people the Jewes, in bringing them backe from their captivitie in Babylon, and all those lands, whither they were driven, &c.

16 Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the Lord, and they shall fish them, and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountaine and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rockes.But, in the meane time, their desolation shall be grievous, and universall; I will call for the Chaldeans, which shall be as so many fishers, to drag them out of their good land; and as so many hunters to chase them from their homes, and to drive them from all their refuges.

18 Because they have filled mine inheritance with the carkases of their detestable and abominable things.They have pestered, and defiled this land, which I chose for my inheritance, with the carcasses of their abhominable sacrifices, which they have made to their Idols, and with those very shamefull idolds to which they have sacrificed.

19 And shall say: Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanitie, and things wherein is no profit.The Gentiles shall come, and say; Surely our fore-fathers have beene miserably mis-led, and trained up in grosse Idolatrie, and false superstition; &c.

20 Shall a man make gods unto himselfe, and they are no gods?He that is man and not God, shall he be able to make gods? shall that power which is finite and weake, take upon him to make that which is infinite?

21 Therefore behold, I will this once cause them to know; I will cause them to know my hand and my might, &c.Therefore, I will with this one judgement convince them of my might, and omnipotence, and they shall know that there is no Lord, no God beside me.

p. 391CAP. XVII.

THe state of Judah is desperate;1 The sinne of Judah is written with a pen of Iron, and with a point of a diamond, it is graven upon the table of their heart, and upon the hornes of your altars. their sinne is not slightly sprinkled upon their skins, but is deeply ingraven in their hearts; even with a pen of yron, with a point of a diamond; so as it may not be denied, and cannot be amended; and if they would smother their secret inclinations, yet their Idolatries are publikly written, upon the hornes of their altars; that all the world may see them.

So as their children and posterity,2 Whilest their children remember their altars and their groves, by the greene trees upon the high hills. seeing these monuments of their altars and groves, cannot but call to minde (and into practice also) the superstitions of their forefathers.

O thou, my chosen and defenced mountaine, in which my people doe so vainly trust, thou shalt be as unable to gard them from the furie of the enemie, as if thou wert but a plaine field; all thy riches, and treasures shall be a spoile to the Chaldean; and thine high places wherein thou hast sinned, shall be wasted alike throughout all thy borders.3 O my mountaine, in the field I will give thy substance, and all thy treasures to the spoile, and the high places for sinne, throughout all thy borders.

And thou (O my people,4 And thou, even thy selfe shalt discontinue frō thine heritage that I gave thee, and I will cause thee to serve thine enemies in the land which thou knowest not: for ye have kindled a fire in mine anger, which shall burne for ever. the Jewes) shalt be taken away from this thy native land of inheritance, which I gave thee, &c. ye have stirred up such mine anger, and indignation against you, as will not be againe appeased for ever.

That man shall be like the heath in a dry wildernesse, that shall not partake of the sweet showers when they fall, &c.6 For he shall bee like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good commeth.

The wicked and deceitfull man shall be disappointed of his hopes of gaine; as the partridge sits on those egges,11 As the Partridge sitteth on eges, and hatcheth thē not: so he that getteth riches & not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his dayes, and at his end shall be a foole. which she never laid, and can never hatch, and bring forth to perfection; so he that fraudulently, and unjustly gathers wealth, shall not injoy it, but shall leave it, in the midst of his dayes, and in the end, shall finde that he hath beene a foole.

God hath highly honoured Judea above all the nations of the world, in that he hath erected in her,12 A glorious high throne from the beginning, is the place of our Sanctuary. the place of his Sanctuary; which is that high and glorious throne, wherein God from the beginning ordained, & decreed to seate himselfe.

They that take part against me,13 And they that depart from mee shall bee written in the earth. how ever they boast themselves to be the holy and noble ofspring of faithfull Abraham, and Gods peculiar people, yet their memory p. 392shall be either base, or forgotten; their names shall bee written in the dust of the earth, &c.

15 Behold, they say unto me, Where is the word of the Lord? let it come now.Behold, this obstinate, & incredulous people, is ready to say, Where is this word of the Lord, which we heare so much talke of? we have been told of grievous things; of plagues, and famines, and the sword; but where are they? Why doe they not come; as it is foretold us?

16 As for me, I have not hastened from being a pastour to follow thee, neither have I desired the wofull day, thou knowest: that which came out of my lips, was right before thee.As for me, O Lord, it is thou that hast called mee; and I have not dared to bee averse from following thee, in that charge, which thou hast laid upon me; neither have I beene ambitious, and desirous of this sad, and busie taske, as thou well knowest, and that which I have spoken, is thy true message and no other.

As yee Jewes have shamefully broken all my other commandements, so also this of my Sabbath; but now, recollect your selves; and reforme this abuse; see that you doe no servile worke on that day; Beare no burden on that day of the Lord, in, or out at the gates of Ierusalem.21 Thus saith the Lord, Take heed to your selves, & beare no burden on the Sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Ierusalem.

So verse 22.

23 But made their necke stiffe, &c.But wilfully hardned their hearts; and resolved to persist in their obstinacie, &c.

25 Then shall there enter into the gates of this citie Kings and Princes, sitting upon the throne of David.Then shall your Kings and Princes be established in this throne of David, and shall rule over you, and maintaine that royall magnificence, which is meet for them, amongst you, &c.

CAP. XVIII.

12 There is no hope, &c.See Chap. 2. verse 25.

13 Aske ye now among the heathen, &c.See Chap. 2. verse 10. & 11.

14 Will a man leave the snow of Lebanon which commeth from the rocke of the field? or shall the cold flowing waters, that come from another place, be forsaken?WIll any man be so foolish, as when he may make use of the pure snow of mount Lebanon, which he may take up from the cleane rocke of his owne field, to seeke afarre off for some dirty puddle? Or when hee may have the coole flowing waters from his owne christall Spring, to goe lade out of the muddy channell?

17 I will shew them the backe, and not the face in the day of their calamitie.I will not so much as looke at them, in their distresse, but turne my back upon them, as they have done upon mee.

18 Then said they, Come, and let us devise devices against Ieremiah: for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsell from the wise, nor the word from the Prophet.Let us lay a plot for Ieremiah; he is a false Prophet doubtlesse: for (whatsoever he saith) it cannot be, that God should utterly take his Law from the Priest; or his p. 393counsell from the wise, or his word from the Prophets; but so he hath done, so he shall doe, if this man may bee heard; come, let us raise slanders, and accusations against him, &c.

CAP. XIX.

HAve filled this valley with the blood of those children which they have offered unto Moloch.4 And have filled this place with the blood of innocents.

In this place,6 Therefore behold, the day is come, saith the Lord, that this place shall no more be called Tophet, nor the valley of the son of Hinnom, but the valley of slaughter. wherein you have pleased your Idols with innocent blood, shall your blood bee abundantly shed; so as, this valley shall change the name, and in stead of Tophet, be called a valley of slaughter.

I will utterly crosse the hopes, and conceits of Iudah, and Ierusalem, concerning this very place; for whereas they thought to have indeared themselves to mee the more, by so zealous oblations of their owne children,7 And I will make voide the counsell of Iudah and Ierusalem, in this place, and I will cause thē to fall by the sword before their enemies. they shall finde how much I hate this their cruell Idolatry, by that destruction, which I will bring upon them, by the sword of the enemie, &c.

I will make this whole city of Ierusalem,12 Thus will I doe unto this place, saith the Lord & to the inhabitants thereof, and even make their citie as Tophet. like unto Tophet, a place of slaughter, and buriall for the inhabitants.

CAP. XX.

NOw Pashur the sonne of Immer the Priest, who was next in place to the high Priest; (as being his vicar, or assistant in the government of the Temple) heard that Ieremiah, one of his owne order, prophesied these things.1 Now Pashur the son of Immer the priest, who was also chiefe governor in the house of the Lord, heard that Ieremiah prophecied these things.

The Lord hath not called thee Pashur which signifies an enlarging of thy rule; or diffusing of terror,3 The Lord hath not called thy name Pashur, but Magor-missabib. and palenesse unto others; but he hath now called thee, Magor-missabib; that is, Feare on every side; which shall hereafter possesse thee, and thine.

O Lord, this people are still crying out that I am deceived in this my prophesie; but, if I be deceived,7 O Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived, thou art stronger then I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me. O yee fond country-men, know that I am deceived by him that can neither deceive, nor be deceived; even by thee O Lord, the God of truth; It is thou that hast put me upon this taske, I could not, I durst not withdraw my obedience from thee; and now, I am, for doing my duty, made a scorne, and derision to the world.

For since I spake from thee, I am so rated, and reviled,8 For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoile, because the word of the Lord was made a reproach unto me, and a derision daily. p. 394and persecuted on all sides, that I cannot but complaine and cry out of their intolerable violences, and cruelties; for I doe daily suffer reproach, and scornfull insultations on all hands, for delivering thy message.

9 Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speake any more in his name, but his word was in mine heart, as a burning fire shut up in my bones.Then was I ready in my weaknesse, to give in, and to resolve not to speak any more these unpleasing things, in his name; But I had not the power to hold in that word which I had received, it was as a burning fire within my bosome, yea in my very bones, &c.

10 For I heard the defaming of many, feare on every side, report, say they, and we will report it, &c.For I heard the defaming of many, and especially of him whom I have justly named, Feare on every side: which said, raise scandalls and accusations against him, and we will second them, &c.

13 14 15 Sing unto the Lord, praise ye the Lord, for he hath delivered the soule of the poore frō the hands of the evil man. Cursed be the day, &c.I have cause to sing praises unto the Lord, who hath delivered me from the very mouth of the pit; out of that miserable condition, wherein I was overtaken with so weake, and sinfull an impatience, as to curse the day, wherein I was borne, &c.

CAP. XXI.

4 Behold I will turne backe the weapons of war that are in your hands, wherwith ye fight against the King of Babylon.I Will utterly disable all your forces, and your weapons that are in your hands, from hurting or opposing your enemies, or helping your selves, &c.

O thou King of Iudah, the heire of Davids throne; Do thou stir up thy selfe zealously and faithfully to doe justice in thy place;12 O house of David, thus saith the Lord, Execute judgement in the morning, and deliver him that is spoiled, out of the hand of the oppressor. deliver, and right the oppressed, &c.

Behold, I am against thee, O Ierusalem, who hast vainely trusted hitherto in thy strength, and situation; it is not that defenced valley,13 Behold, I am against thee, O inhabitant of the valley, & rock of the plain, saith the Lord, which say, who shall come downe against us, or who shall enter into our habitations? wherein a great part of thee (towards mount Libanus) is seated, nor the forts of thy plaine, that can keepe out my power, or the power of that enemy (the Chaldean) which I shall stirre up against thee.

I will kindle a fire in the forrest of Libanus, and by the goodly Cedars thereof will set Ierusalem on a flame,14 I will kindle a fire in the forrest thereof, and it shall devoure all things round about it. which shall devoure it to ashes.

CAP. XXII.

4 For if yee doe these things, then shall there enter in by the gates of this house Kings, &c.See chap. 17.25.

6 For thus saith the Lord unto the Kings house of Iudah, thou art Gilead unto me, and the head of Lebanon, yet surely I will make thee a wildernesse, & cities which are not inhabited.THus saith the Lord unto the Kings house, (which is his ancient court,) upon the hill of Sion; As mount p. 395Gilead is the prime hill of all those mountaines, which goe under the name of Lebanon; so art thou the most eminent, and remarkable place in all Iudea; yet surely thou shalt (through my just judgement) become a very wildernesse.

They shall cut downe those choice Cedar-beames wherewith thou art built; and cast them into the fire.7 And they shall cut downe thy choice Cedars, and cast them into the fire.

Never take up lamentations for them that are slaine in the siege, for they are past their paine;10 Weep ye not for the dead, neither bemone him, but weepe sore for him that goeth away; for hee shall returne no more, nor see his n…tive countrey. but weepe for those miserable men, that are led into captivity; for they shall indure a lingring death, and never returne backe to their home.

Woe be to thee, Iehoiakim,13 Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousnes, & his chambers by wrong, that useth his neighbours service without wages, and giveth him not for his worke. which buildest a goodly royall palace, out of the extreame oppressions of my people; putting them to servile workes for that purpose without all recompence of wages for their labour.

Which saist; I will not take up with the old and meane buildings of my Ancestors,14 That saith, I will build me a wide house, & large chambers. I will set up a sumptuous pile, fit for a King to dwell in, &c.

Dost thou thinke to raigne ever the more happily,15 Shalt thou raigne, because thou closest thy selfe in Cedar? did not thy father eate and drink and do judgement and justice, and then it was wel with him? and securely, for that thou hast closed up thy selfe in cedar? Thy father, good King Iosiah, lived in much content, and happinesse by doing justice, and right unto his subjects; and prospered in so doing.

They shall make no publique lamentation for him,18 They shall not lament for him, saying; Ah Lord, or Ah, his glory. at his funerall, as they are wont to doe for their former Princes.

But his carcasse shall be shamefully left unburied, exposed to the foules of the aire, or to ravenous beasts,19 He shall be buried with the buriall of an asse. even as the carcasse of an asse, which is left to rot in a ditch &c.

Goe up then (O miserable Iudah) goe up to the highest mountaines, that looke towards Assyria, or Aegypt,20 Goe up to Lebanon, and cry & lift up thy voice in Bashan, and cry from the passages; for all thy lovers are destroyed. and call for the aide of those thine associates, in whom thou hast trusted; thou shalt finde small comfort in them, they shall be destroyed together with thee.

All thy great friends, and Patrons shall vanish into winde; and thy confederates shall goe into captivity,22 The winde shall eat up all thy pastors, and thy lovers shall goe into captivity. &c.

O ye citizens of Ierusalem,23 O inhabitant of Lebanon, that makest thy rest in the Cedars, how gracious shalt thou bee when pangs come upon thee, the paine of a woman in travaile? which dwell in goodly houses made of the Cedars of Lebanon; in how wofull a plight shall ye be, when your calamity shall come upon you? where will then be your pride and delicacie; wherewith ye now please your selves?

p. 396As I live, saith the Lord, if Iechoniah the sonne of Iehoiakim King of Iudah, were as neare, and as precious to me, as the signet upon the right hand useth to bee to him that weares it, yet I would pluck him thence,24 As I live, saith the Lord, though Coniah the son of Iehoiakim King of Iudah, were the signet upon my right hād, yet would I plucke thee thence. and cast him away, into captivity.

28 Is this man Coniah a despised broken Idol? is he a vessell wherein is no pleasure? wherefore are they cast out? &c.Is this man (Jechoniah) then so vile, and base a thing, as thou makest him? is he a likely man to be cast out, together with his familie, and seed, into a forraine captivitie?

O ye inhabitants of the earth, take diligent heed to this which I shall now deliver unto you.29 O earth, earth, earth, heare the word of the Lord.

Take notice, that it is enacted in heaven, that this Jechoniah shall never have issue,30 Thus saith the Lord, Write yee this man childlesse, a man that shall not prosper in his daies, for no man of his seed shall prosper, &c. that shall sit upon the temporall throne of David; no man of his seed, in succeeding times shall so prosper, as to be King in Judah.

CAP. XXIII.

3 And I will gather the remnant of my flocke, out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them againe to their folds, & they shall be fruitfull and increase.IN that happy time of restauration, I will gather the remnant of mine elect people, out of all countries (both them of Judah, and of Israel) into the bosome of my Church; where they shall be fruitfull of all good works.

I will set over them, holy, conscionable, able pastors, which shall feede them with the food of life,4 And I will set shepheards over them which shall feed them. &c.

5 Behold the daies come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous branch, &c.See Isai. 4. verse 2.

6 In his daies Iudah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely, and this is his name whereby hee shall bee called, The Lord our righteousnesse.In his daies those that belong to his true Church, shall be saved; and delivered from their spirituall enemies; And he shall be indued with infinite wisedome, righteousnesse, and holinesse; in so much, as we shall be made the righteousnesse of God in him.

14 They shall no more say, the Lord liveth which brought the children of Israel out of the land of Aegypt, &c.See chapter 16. verse 14. and 15.

9 Mine heart within me is broken, because of the Prophets, all my bones shake, I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine hath overcome, because of the Lord, and because of the words of his holinesse.My heart within me is extreamely grieved and vexed, because of the false prophets, which mislead the people; I am in a great agonie, and distresse for them; I am not my selfe for extremity of passion, to thinke of those heavy judgements, which the Lord hath intended, and threatned (in his holy, and just vengeance) to bring upon this people.

p. 397The land groaneth,10 For because of swering the land mourneth, the pleasant places of the wildernesse are dried up, and their course is evill, and their force is not right. and mourneth under that fearfull and ordinary prophanation of the name of God, by false, and rash oathes; the pleasant pastures of those plaines where their flocks had wont to feed; are now dryed, and parched; because the men of Judah take wicked courses, and imploy their power to violence, and oppression.

They shall fall,12 Wherefore their way shall be unto them as slippery waies in the darknesse: they shall be driven on and fall therein, &c. and perish in the just punishment of their sins, as those that in the night time, walke in slippery places; so shall they be driven hastily forward, and fall, and mis-carry under the vengeance.

If we shall make comparison betwixt the late prophets of Israel, or the ten Tribes, with those of Judah, and Jerusalem; surely the Prophets of Israel, or Samaria, were foolish, and superstitious; they prophesied in the name of Baal, and caused my people to erre13 And I have seene folly in the Prophets of Samaria, they prophesied in Baal, and caused my people Israel to erre. through their false doctrine, and idolatrous practises.

But I have noted the Prophets of Judah and Jerusalem to be extreamely vicious in life, and abhominably filthy;14 I have seene also in the Prophets of Ierusalem an horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also the hands of evill doers, that none doth returne from his wickednesse: they are all of them unto me as Sodome, and the inhabitants therof as Gomorrah. they doe not onelyonly commit shamefull adulteries, and make a trade of lies; but they hearten and incourage wicked men in their leudnesse; so as no man can be reclaimed in regard therefore both of their sinne, and punishment, they are in no better case to mee, then the inhabitants of Sodome and Gomorrah.

See chapter 9. verse 15.15 Behold I will feed thē with wormwood, &c.

Feare not the sad predictions of this man (say these false Prophets) for he speakes at randome;18 For who hath stood in the counsel of the Lord, and hath perceived and heard his word? who hath marked his word, and heard it? howsoever he pretends; who hath been of counsell with God? What man hath been so familiar with the Almighty, as to take messages from him?

Behold, God shall rush suddenly,19 Behold, a whirlewinde of the Lord is gone forth in fury, even a grievous whirlewinde, it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked. and violently upon these men; and shall carry them away, like some furious whirlewinde, which cannot be either avoided, or resisted.

At last, ye shall by wofull experience finde all this verified, and shall then be deeply affected with it.20 In the latter daies ye shall consider.

I gave no commission to these prophets, yet they run,21 I have not sent these prophets, yet they ranne. as of their owne heads, &c.

If they had received directions, and errands from me,22 But if they had stood in my counsell, and had caused my people to heare my words, thē they should have turned them from their evill way, &c. and had delivered them accordingly, to my people, they should have laboured to have turned them from their leud courses.

What doe ye make of me, saith the Lord?23 Am I a God at hand saith the Lord, and not a God afarre off?Amos 1 Doe yee p. 398thinke me a God that may be eluded, or fled from? Doe ye thinke that I take notice onelyonly of that, which is done neare hand? and not of that which is done afarre off?

They are their owne prophets, they are not mine; they have broched the deceivable imaginations of their owne hearts.26 Yea they are prophets of the deceit of their owne heart.

28 The prophet that hath a dreame, let him tell a dreame, and he that hath my word, let him speake my word faithfully, what is the chaffe to the wheat, saith the Lord?Away with all fraud in this holy service; That prophet which hath but dreamed, let him confesse it is but a dreame; and he that hath indeed a vision, and word from mee, let him deliver it as my message, faithfully; for what hath this chaffe of idle dreames, to doe with the pure graine of my visions, and revelations?

29 Is not my word like as a fire, saith the Lord, and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?Is not my word a powerfull word? is it not as a fire to burne up all the chaffe, and stubble? is it not as an iron hammer to breake the hardest, and most rocky hearts in peeces?

30 Therefore behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that steale my word every one from his neighbour.I am against those prophets, saith the Lord, that fraudulently, and cunningly keep back the word of the Lord from the people; and that take from each other (by compact and agreement) those prophesies, which themselves have falsely devised, and unjustly ascribed unto God.

31 Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that use their tōgues and say; He saith.I am against those prophets, which by their smooth tongues perswade the people, it is the word of the Lord, which they deliver; when it is nothing but their owne fancie.

33 And when this people, or the prophet, or a priest shall aske thee, saying; what is the burden of the Lord? thou shalt then say unto them, What burden? I will even forsake you, saith the Lord.When they shall aske thee in scorne; Now, prophet, what is the burden from the Lord? thou shalt answere them; What is the burden, doe ye aske? Loe this is the burden, I will utterly cast you off, saith the Lord.

34 And as for the prophet, and the priest, and the people that shall say, The burden of the Lord, I will even punish that man and his house.And that man, whether Priest, or Prophet, or whosoever, that shall scornfully aske thee this question, I will plague both him, and his house.

35 Thus shall yee say every one to his neighbor, and every one to his brother, What hath the Lord answered; and what hath the Lord spoken?Neither would I have, indeed, any mention amongst men, of any burden in my messages; as if there were nothing but heavie tidings sent by mee to my people; In stead thereof, lot them rather say, What hath the Lord spoken? &c.

36 For every mans word shall be his burden.Though there were no prophet to denounce judgement against men, yet every man would be a prophet to himselfe; his very conscience would sufficiently lay before him the just judgement of the Almighty.

p. 399CAP. XXIIII.

ANd now all these threatned judgements,1 The Lord shewed me & behold, two baskets of figgs were set before the temple of the Lord, after that Nebuchadrezzar King of Babylon had carried away captive Ieconiah the son of Iehoiakim King of Iudah, and the Princes of Iudah, with the carpenters and Smiths from Ierusalem, and had brought them to Babylon. being accordingly executed, upon Judah and Jerusalem, in so much as the King of Babylon had now carryed away Jechoniah King of Judah, and the Princes of Judah, and their artificers, unto Babylon; yet so as that some of the people remained still in the land, under Zedekiah King of Judah, who exalted himselfe against Nebuchadnezar the King of Babylon; God, willing to shew the estate of both those sorts of people, (those which yielded to goe into the captivity, and those that resolved to stand out and stay at home) shewed me two baskets of figs, as the embleme and figure of them both.

Thus saith the Lord;5 Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel; like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Iudah, whom I have sent out of this place, &c. That basket of good figgs represents those Iewes, which are carryed away into the captivity of Babylon; who as they are humbled, and bettered by their affliction, so shall be dealt with by me, accordingly.

For I will take speciall care of them,6 For I will let mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them againe to this land. both to preserve them there, and to bring them back againe, &c.

The other basket of ill figgs, which cannot be eaten, represents those Jewes that stay still stubbornly behinde,8 And as the evill figs which cannot be eaten, they are so evill: Surely thus saith the Lord, so will I give Zedekiah the King of Iudah, and his Princes, and the residue of Ierusalem, that remaine in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Aegypt. and will needs follow Zedekiah, to rebell against the King of Babylon, and those that seeke harbour in Aegypt; and these shall speed accordingly, for I will give them up into the hand of the Chaldees, &c.

CAP. XXV.

BEhold I will bring against thee the Chaldeans and those other their Northren associates,9 Behold I will send, and take all the families of the North; saith the Lord, and Nebuchadrezzar the King of Babylon my servant, &c. with Nebuchadnezar the King of Babylon whom I shall employ for my executioner in this service, &c.

I will take fro… you all mirth and gladnesse; yea, all commodities for the use, and convenience of living;10 And the voice of the bride, the sound of the milstones, and the light of the candle. so as your life shall be dolefull and miserable.

For those proud and imperious Chaldees, which held my people in servitude, for seventie yeares,14 For many nations & great Kings shall serve themselves of them also. will I give to be a prey to other great Kings and nations, and they shall share their dominions amongst them, &c.

p. 40015 Take the wine cup of this fury at my hand; and cause all the nations to whom I have sent thee, to drinke it.See Isa. 51.17.

And doe thou denounce all these judgements unto all those severall nations to which I send thee; and assure them that they shall all drinke of this bitter cup, in their due seasons.

16 And they shall drinke, and be moved, and be mad, because of the sword that I will send among them.They shall not be able to avoid those fearefull judgements which thou threatnest from me; but shall so undergoe them, as that they shall be astonished therewith, and grow madly impatient; because of the destruction that I will send amongst them.

Then I tooke the cup at the Lords hand, and gave it to be pledged of all those nations to whom the Lord had sent me.17 Then took I the cup at the Lords hand, and made all the nations to drinke; unto whō the Lord had sent me.

20 And all the mingled people, and all the Kings of the land of Vz.To all those mingled people of severall nations which are hereafter mentioned, &c.

And the Kings of those countries which are beyond the sea,22 And the Kings of the Isles which are beyond the sea. whether Isles, or continent.

Take ye deepe of this cup of fury and vengeance, doe not thinke that a tast,27 Drink yee and bee drunken, and spue, and fall, and rise no more, because of the sword which I will send among you. or small draught will serve the turne; No, an easie revenge will not content me, saith God; ye shall be so punished, and plagued by my just hand, as that ye shall not be your selves; but in an amazed distractednesse, ye shall fall, and perish.

28 Ye shall certainely drinke.See verse 16.

30 The Lord shall roar from on high, and utter his voice from his holy habitation, hee shall mightily roare upon his habitation, he shal give a shout, as they that tread the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth.The Lord shal declare from heaven his great fury, and indignation against the wicked, he shall roar like a fierce Lyon, and shout out aloud, and call up the Babylonians to their taske of slaughter, as they that tread the grapes, doe, by their loud cries, incourage each other to the worke.

As an earthen vessell that is curiously wrought, whiles it holds sound,34 And ye shall fall like a pleasant vessell. is well esteemed; but if it once fall, and breake, is worth nothing, and is only fit to bee cast upon the dunghill; so shall ye be unto me.

38 Hee hath forsaken his covert, as the lion: for their land is desolate.He hath forsaken his Temple, as a Lyon forsakes his den; whiles he abode in that Temple of his, hee was as a strong Lyon to defend his people; but now, hee hath given them up to desolation, and spoile, &c.

CAP. XXVI.

6 Then will I make this house like Shiloh.See chapter 7. verse 12.

ANd sate downe in that new gate of the Temple,10 And sate downe in the entry of the new gate of the Lords house. which King Iotham had built, to appease the tumult p. 401and to heare the cause of Ieremiah.

See Genes. 6.7.13 The Lord will repent him, &c.

But though there was vehement importunity used for the putting of Ieremiah to death,24 Neverthelesse, the hand of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, was with Ieremiah, that they should not give him into the hand of the people to put him to death. both by the priests and people, yet Ahikam the son of Shaphan wrought so for him, that he was delivered out of their hands.

CAP. XXVII.

IN the beginning of the raigne of Iehoiakim,1 In the beginning of the raigne of Iehoiakim the son of Iosiah King of Iudah, came this word unto Ieremiah from the Lord, saying, when all things were quiet, and successefull; this word of the Lord came to Ieremiah, to be executed afterwards in the raigne of Zedekiah.

The Kings of Edom, and of Moab,3 And send them to the King of Edom, and to the King of Moab, and to the King of the Ammonites, and to the King of Tirus, and to the King of Zidon, by the hand of the messengers which come to Ierusalem unto Zedekiah King of Iudah. and the King of the Ammonites, and of Tirus, and Zidon will send ambassadors to Zedekiah, to treat of a confederacie against the King of Babylon; doe thou therefore send unto them these fetters, and yoakes, to let them know, that they shal all come under the yoake & bondage of the King of Babylon.

See Chapter 25. verse 9.6 The King of Babylon my servant.

Vntill the time be expired, which God hath prefixed for the period of that monarchy; and then many nations,7 Vntill the very time of his land come, and then many nations and great Kings shall serve themselves of him. and great Kings shall come and divide it amongst them, as a common pray.

If ye submit your selves to the Babylonians, yee shall both be preserved, and, in due time, restored.12 Bring your neckes under the yoke of the King of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live.

And there they shall be, untill the time of their restauration, and restitution by Cyrus,22 And there shall they be untill the day that I visite them, saith the Lord, then will I bring them up, and restore them to this place. whom I will stir up to be gracious unto my people.

CAP. XXVIII.

I Will deliver, and free my people from the captivity,2 I have broken the yoke of the King of Babylon. and bondage of the King of Babylon;

Within the space of two full yeares,3 Within two ful yeares. &c.

Thou, O Hananiah, hast broken the yokes of wood;13 Goe, and tell Hananiah, saying, Thus saith the Lord, thou hast broken the yokes of wood, but thou shalt make for them yokes of yron. but I am commanded, from the Lord, to make them yokes of yron; to signifie that this bondage, which thou saidst should be within two yeares, utterly freed and discharged, shall be continued in a more grievous, and p. 402cruell manner, then before, and that without all possibility of escaping, or mitigation; untill the prefixed time of seventy yeares be expired.

CAP. XXIX.

11 For I know the thoughts that I thinke towards you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evill, to give you an expected end.I Know what I have decreed concerning you; even favour, and deliverance in my appointed time, and not extirpation, and destruction, so as ye shall, at the last, have that happy issue which ye desire, and expect.

17 And I will make thē like vile figs that cannot be eaten, &c.See Chapter 24. verse 8.

For every one that in a franticke humor, takes upon him to be a Prophet;26 For every man that is mad, and maketh himselfe a prophet, &c. and delivers his owne distracted fancies for visions from God, &c.

CAP. XXX.

3 For loe, the dayes come saith the Lord, that I will bring againe the captivitie of my people Israel and Iudah, saith the Lord, and I will cause thē to returne to the land, that I gave to their fathers.HOwsoever God will not so suddenly free his people from their captivity, as is falsely foretold by some flattering prophets, yet surely he hath set the time, wherein he will most certainly accomplish it, &c.

It is not for a man (we know) to travell with child; how then is it,6 Aske yee now and see whether a man doth travell with child: wherfore doe I see every man with his hands on his loynes, as a woman in travell, and all faces are turned into palenesse. that the men hold their hands on their loines, and move their bodies in a wofull complaint of paine, as if they were women in the very throwes of their delivery; and all faces by the palenesse thereof bewray feare and astonishment?

It is the time of the most grievous trouble, and calamity to the posterity of Jacob;7 It is even the time of Iacobs trouble, but he shall be saved out of it. but, at last it shall end well; and they shall be delivered from it.

9 But they shall serve the Lord their God, and David their King, whom I will raise up unto them.They shall serve the Lord their God, and Christ his Sonne, the successour of David, in his spirituall government, whom I will in due time send into the world.

12 For thus saith the Lord, thy bruis is incurable.Thine affliction (in regard of any humane help) is utterly remedilesse, &c.

13 There is none to plead thy cause, that thou maiest be bound up: thou hast no healing medicines.There is none so much, as to solicit for thy cure, and redresse; nor any meanes left, whereby it may be (in mans reason) effected.

14 All thy lovers have forgotten thee, they seeke thee not, for I have wounded thee with the wound of an enemie.All those confederate nations that professed friendship to thee, have quite forgotten thee; for I have deeply p. 403afflicted thee, by the cruell hand of the Chaldeans, &c.

Because they have insulted upon thy misery, and despised thee, as an out-cast and forlorne people, saying;17 Because they called thee an outcast, saying, this is Zion whom no man seeketh after This is that goodly hill of Zion; once the pride, now the scorne of the world.

CAP. XXXI.

THe people,2 Thus saith the Lord; the people which were left of the sword, found grace in the wildernesse, even Israel, when I went to cause him to rest. which were left of the sword in the siege and sacking of Jerusalem, found favour in the land of their captivitie; even the remainder of the Iewes, when I tooke order for their setling, for the time, in the land of Chaldea.

O Ierusalem, thou shalt be built againe;4 Againe I will build thee, and thou shalt be built, O Virgin of Israel, thou shalt againe bee adorned with thy Tabrets, and shalt goe forth, in the daunces of thē that make merry. and shalt have againe minstralsie, and mirth within thy walls: O my Church, thou shalt be happily restored, and filled with true spirituall joy.

Those fruitfull hills of Samaria, which have lien long waste, shall be stored with excellent vines;5 Thou shalt yet plant vines upon the mountaines of Samaria, the planters shall plant, and shall eate them as common things. and those that plant them, shall eate the grapes plentifully, and make no spare of them.

Yea, not only those of Iudah,6 For there shal be a day, that the watchmen upon the mount Ephraim shall cry, Arise yee, and let us goe up to Zion unto the Lord our God. but even those of the ten Tribes of Israel, which have beene long dispersed, and neglected, shall be gathered together to Ierusalem; and be incouraged by their spirituall watchmen, to joyne together in submission to the true Church.

Behold,8 Behold, I will bring them from the North Countrey, and gather them from the coasts of the earth, and with them the blinde, and the lame, the women with child, and her that travelleth with child together. I will bring them backe againe from Babylon and fetch them up from all coasts, and will make them a type of my Evangelicall Church; into which I will call all sorts of persons, even those that are most full, and most conscious of their owne infirmities, &c.

I will lead them aright by the guidance of my word, in the safe, and happy wayes of life, holily,9 I will cause them to walke by the rivers of waters, in a straight way wherein they shall not stumble: for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my first borne. and inoffensively; for I am a father to my faithfull ones.

Therefore they shall come, and sing in the great Congregation, and most eminent assemblies; and shall meet chearfully together, to injoy the holy things of God,12 Therefore shall they come & sing in the height of Zion, & shal flow together to the goodnesse of the Lord, for wheat and for wine, and for oyle, and for the young of the flocke, and of the heard: and their soule shal be as a watered gardē, & they shal not sorrow any mor eat all his word and Sacraments, and their soule shall be refreshed, p. 404as a new-watered garden in a drought; and they shall have no more cause of dejection, and hopelesse sorrow.

Methinkes I heare a voice in the high place, or mountaine, (whence it may sound furthest;) a voice of mourning and lamentation; Rachel the mother of Ioseph and Benjamin, seemes to mourne for her children (those of Ephraim and the other tribes) long since desolated;15 Thus saith the Lord, A voice was heard in Ramath, lamentation, and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children, refused to bee comforted for her children, because they were not. and will not admit of any comfort, because they are scattered, and vanished without all hope of restauration, or returne.

Thus saith the Lord to mourning Rachel, Refraine thy weeping, for those sonnes of thy wombe, the distressed Israelites;16 Thus saith the Lord, Refraine thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from teares, for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord, and they shall come againe from the land of the enemie. for that desolated region shall flourish againe; thou shalt receive comfort after thy sorrow; and those children, of thine, shall returne from the land of their captivity.

In that end, which God hath prefixed to thy sorrows and sufferings, there is hope, yea assurance, that thy children shall come againe to their native countrey.17 And there is hope in thine end, saith the Lord, that thy children shall come againe, &c.

I have heard those of the ten Tribes bemoaning themselves,18 I have surely heard, Ephraim bemoaning himselfe thus, Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised as a bullocke unaccustomed to the yoake, &c. after their captivitie, thus; Thou hast afflicted me, O Lord, & I am humbled; I was as a wild yong bullocke, unaccustomed to the yoke, but now, thou hast caused me to stoope unto it, &c.

Surely after that thou hadst wrought upon me, and shewd me my sinne, I repented,19 Surely after that I was turned, I repented. &c.

20 Is Ephraim my deare sonne? is he a pleasant childe? for since I spake against him, I doe earnestly remember him still: therefore my bowells are troubled for him: I will surely have mercy upon him, saith the Lord.Would any man thinke that Israel, thus afflicted, and (as it were) neglected, were my deare Sonne? that hee were a child wherein I take pleasure, and delight. Yet he is so, and howsoever I have dealt severely with him, both in my words and actions; yet I do in mercy still remember him; and the bowells of my compassion yearne towards him.

21 Set thee up way-markes; make thee high heapes: set thine heart toward the hie way, even the way which thou wentest: turne againe.Thou shalt returne to thine owne land, O my people, and therefore set thee up way-markes, as thou goest; heap up stones, for the direction of thy passage, through the wildernesse; and set thy thoughts to remember all the turnings of the way; and addresse thy selfe towards thy returne, &c.

22 How long wilt thou goe about, O thou backsliding daughter? for the Lord created a new thing in the earth: A woman shall compasse a man.How long wilt thou waver, and stagger in thy beliefe, O thou rebellious Israel? for the Lord, which hath undertaken p. 405this deliverance, shall doe a strange and marvelous thing in the earth; Though the strength of the enemie be great, and terrible, and the weaknesse of my people is noted, and despicable, so as they are but as women, in comparison of their manly adversaries; yet these weake effeminate Iewes shall prevaile against those stout, and manly Chaldeans.

When I shall have brought them backe from their captivitie;23 When I shall bring againe their captivitie, the Lord blesse thee, O habitation of justice, and mountaine of holinesse. and planted them againe in their land of Iudah; they shall with joyfull acclamations acknowledge the goodnesse of God, and pray for a continuance and increase of mercy, saying, the Lord goe on to blesse and prosper thee, O Jerusalem, which now from thy ruines, and edsolation, art raised up to bee an habitation of justice; and blesse thy Temple, wherein now holinesse shall re-inhabite.

Upon these sweet, and comfortable visions,26 VponUpon this, I a waked, and eheld, and my sleepe was sweet unto mee. wherein the Lord revealed to me his good pleasure concerning his Church, I awaked; and was exceedingly cheared up, and delighted with the remembrance thereof.

I will cause my Church (which now seemes to lie wast,27 Behold, the dayes come, saith the Lord, that I will sow the house of Israel, and the house of Iudah with the seed of man, and with the seed of beast. and barren) to yeeld so plentifull an increase of converts to me, as the rich ground doth of the seed which is sowne in the furrowes of it,; and will also multiply unto it all outward helps for the maintenance and strength thereof.

In those dayes, after I shall have humbled my people,29 In those dayes, they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sower grape, and the childrens teeth are set on edge. & restored, and comforted them againe, they shal give mee the praise of my justice and mercy, and shall not be ready to murmur against my proceedings as too severe, and unjust, so as they have beene apt to doe in saying; The fathers have offended, and the children are punished.

But shall willingly acknowledge that every man of them hath smarted for his owne iniquity;30 But every one shall die for his owne iniquitie, evrie man that eateth the sowre grape, his teeth shal be set on edge. and hath had sinnes enow of his owne, to warrant Gods proceedings against him.

Behold, the dayes of the Messiah are comming,31 Behold, the dayes come, saith the Lord, that I will make a a new Covenant with the house of Israel: wherin I will make a new covenant with my Church.

Not according to the forme of that Legall covenant, which I made with their fathers,32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers. &c.

But this shall be my covenant of grace, with them, under the Gospell (which shall bring with it the power of regeneration, and salvation by Christ;33 But this shall be the Covenant that I wil make with the house of Israel; After those dayes, saith the Lord, I will put my Law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts, and will be their God. In those daies of mine Evangelicall Church, I will worke mightily in the hearts of my people, and will bring them, by the inoperation p. 406of my spirit, to the obediēce of my law; which being formerly written in tables of stone, shall now bee ingraven so in the hearts of men, that they shall out of love, and willing obedience frame themselves thereunto, &c.

34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord.And there shall bee so cleare a light of my Gospell, shining forth unto men, as that they shall not so much need the helpe of others instruction, in the grounds and principles of religion; but shall be inlightned from God, with a competent measure of knowledge, even from the meanest and weakest novice in Christianity, unto the greatest proficient therein, &c.

Hath ordained a due, constant, and regular motion of the moone, and starres, for a light by night.35 And the ordinances of the Moone, and starres, for a light by night.

36 If those ordinances depart frō before me, saith the Lord, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever.If that course which I have set in nature, for the motions of the heavens, may be altered, then, may it be possible for my Church to faile upon earth.

37 If heaven, &c. then I will also cast off all the seed of Israel, for all that they have done, saith the Lord.There can bee nothing more impossible, then that I should utterly cast off my people (notwithstanding their ill deservings of me) so as that not a remnant of them should be preserved.

38, 39 Behold, the daies come, saith the Lord, that the citie shall be built to the Lord from the towre of Hananeel unto the gate of the corner.The dayes shall come saith the Lord, that this citie of Jerusalem (which yet stands in her full glory) shall after the rasing and destruction of it, be fully built up againe, in all the whole compasse of it, from the one end to the other;

And (which is thereby typified) my Evangelicall Church shall be built upon the ruines of the Jewish,40 And the whole valley of the dead bodies, and of the ashes, and all the fieldes unto the brooke of Kidron, unto the corner of the horse-gate towards the East, shall be holy unto the Lord. in a complete forme, and bee wholly consecrated to the Lord.

So also verse 40.

CAP. XXXII.

5 There shall he be untill I visit him, saith the Lord.THere shall he be, untill the time that I shall put an end to his captivity by death, &c.

8 Buy my field I pray thee, that is in Anathoth, which is in the countrey of Benjamin, for the right inheritance is thine, and the redemption is thine, buy it for thy selfe, then I knew that this was the word of the Lord.Buy my field, I pray thee, that is in Anathoth; It is true indeed, that the enemie is now in possession of it; so as no man may, or dare looke forth towards it; yet out of an assurance that it shall in due time be freed, and redelivered, doe thou give me mony for it, before hand; p. 407since thou art the next of kinne, and the purchace pertaines unto thee by the Law.

And accordingly I bought the field of Hanameel, my Cozen german, that was at Anathoth,9 And I bought the field of Hanameel my uncles sonne, that was in Anathoth, and weighed him the money, even seventeen Shekles of silver. and paid him the mony for it.

Lay up these evidences sure, in an earthen vessell, where they may bekt ep from rotting, for a long time;14 And this evidence which is open, and put them in an earthen vessell, that they may continue many dayes. as those whereof I shall have most certaine use hereafter; For this land shall be in due time repossessed, &c.

Thou punishest the sinnes of the fathers in those children, wherein they doe still live;18 And recompensest the iniquitie of the fathers into the bosome of their children after them. who being as it were parts of their parents, it cannot bee but their parents must justly (in temporall things) suffer in them.

Behold,24 Behold the mounts, they are come unto the citie to take it. those mounts which are cast up for the siege of Jerusalem, &c.

They have utterly neglected me, and wilfully refused to give eare,33 And they have turned unto me the backe, and not the face. and respect to that which I delivered unto them, &c.

They have set up their abhominable altars to their Idols, in the Temple which is consecrated to my name,24 But they set their abominations in the house which is called by my name, to defile it. to defile it.

I will unite them both in their judgements, and in their affections, and in their practices;39 I will give them one heart and one way, &c. so as they shall happily agree together, both to thinke and to doe the same things.

There shall be an ordinary course of bargaines,44 Men shall buy fields for money, and subscribe evidences, and seale them, and take witnesses in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Ierusalem. and purchases; and all those formes of legall transactions, which are wont to be in use upon these occasions, &c.

CAP. XXXIII.

IN those cities which are built upon the hills,13 In the cities of the mountaines, in the cities of the vale, and in the cities of the South, and in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Ierusalē, and in the cities of Iudah, shall the flockes passe againe under the hands of him that telleth them, saith the Lord. and those which are low built in the vallies; even in all the region of Judea, and Samaria, shall be a peaceable habitation of my people; so as the shepheard may there in their fields, & pastures, securely feed his flockes, and tell their number at his owne leasure.

Behold, the dayes draw on,14 Behold, the dayes come, saith the Lord, that I will performe that good thing which I have promised to the children of Israel, and to the house Iudah. wherein I will performe those gracious promises of mercy, and deliverance, which I have made to my people of Iudah, and Israel.

p. 40815 At that time will I cause the branch of righteousnes to grow up unto David, &c.See Isa. 4.2.

17 For thus saith the Lord, David shall never want a man to sit upon the thron of the house of IsraelHe that is the true Sonne of David, shall evermore sit in the throne, and rule and raigne over his Church, to the end of the world.

Neither shall there be any interruption of that perfect Priesthood,18 Neither shall the priests, the levites want a man before mee to offer burnt offerings, and to kindle meate offerings, and to doe sacrifice continually. which shall be performed, by that all-sufficient Mediator, who shall offer up a full sacrifice to his Father, and present our praiers & spirituall sacrifices unto God.

20 If you can break my covenant of day and night, &c.See Chap. 31. verse. 36.

CAP. XXXIIII.

5 But thou shalt die in peace, and with the burnings of thy fathers the former Kings which were before thee, so shall they burne odours for thee, &c.BVt thou shalt die of thy faire death; not violent, but naturall; and shalt be honourably buried, after a princely manner, with store of sweet odors burnt about thy coffin, and in the vault where thou shalt be laid.

After that King Zedekiah, being admonished of this point of the law,8 After that the King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people which were at Ierusalem to proclaime libertie unto them. had dealt with the people effectually, to dismisse those of their owne nation, out of their service, in the end of the seventh yeare, according to the prescript of the law, and proclamation was made hereof accordingly.

10 Then they obeyed and let them goe.They yielded for the time, and gave way for the performance of this edict; and gave freedome to their Jewish servants.

11 But afterwards they turned, and caused the servants, and the handmaids, whom they had let go free to returne, and brought them in subjection for servants and for handmaids.But afterwards they repented of their good act, and injuriously recalled their lately-dismissed servants, and handmaids, into their former servitude.

Behold, I doe give full liberty to the sword, and to the pestilence, and to the famine,17 Behold, I proclaime a libertie for you, saith the Lord, to the sword, to the pestilence, & to the famine. to seize upon you, &c.

Ye know, ye made a covenant with me, in that ancient solemne manner,18 And I will give the men that have transgressed my covenant, which have not performed the words of the covenant which they had made before me, when they cut the calfe in twain, and passed between the parts thereof. that was used by your father Abraham; wherein you, dividing the calfe into halves, passed betweene the two halves of it, wishing, by way of execration, to be so divided, if you did not observe this promise, and covenant of yours; and now, yee have palpably broken this part of your covenant with me; therefore I will give the transgressors hereof into the hand of their enemies.

Into the hand of the King of Babylons armie,21 Into the hand of the King of Babylons armie, which are gone up from you. which is now for the time departed from your siege, to goe up against p. 409Aegypt, but, however ye have vainely imagined, shall returne to your cost.

See chap. 27.5.

CAP. XXXV.

ANd I brought some of the house of Jonadab the son of Rechab, into the court of the Temple,4 And I brought them into the house of the Lord, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan the son of Igdaliah a man of God, which was by the chamber of the Princes. and ledde them into one of those chambers, which are appointed therein for the Priests, & Levites; even into the lodging of one of the holiest of the Priests, next to the chamber of the chiefe governour of the Temple, &c.

And in that holy place, I did set before those sons of Rechab, pots of wine, and cups, and, as of my owne motion, wished them to drinke wine.5 And I set before the sonnes of the house of the Rechabites pots full of wine, and cups, and I said unto them, Drink ye wine.

For Jonadab the son of Rechab, three hundred yeares agoe, charged all us that should come of his loines, Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your sons for ever.6 For Ionadab the son of Rechab our father, commanded us, saying, Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your sons for ever.

That ye may live long in the land where your forefathers, the Kenites were, and ye now are strangers.7 That ye may live many daies in the land where ye be strangers.

CAP. XXXVI.

I Must keepe close, upon the command of the Lord,5 I am shut up. See Chapter 27.4. and not stirre forth.

Now the King sate in the winter house; for it was in the monethmonth of November, when the season grew to bee somewhat cold, and there was a fire on the hearth burning before him.22 Now the King sate in the winter house, in the ninth monethmonth, & there was a fire on the hearth burning before him.

But the Lord raised up meanes of hiding,26 But the Lord hid him. and concealing him from the fury of King Jehojakim.

CAP. XXXVII.

IN stead of Jechoniah the sonne of Jehojakim,1 In stead of Coniah the son of Iehojakim. who took upon him to raigne, for three moneths, and then yielded to the King of Babylon.

Then Jeremiah the prophet,12 Then Ieremiah went forth out of Ierusalem to goe into the land of Benjamin, to separate himselfe thence in the mids of the people. taking the advantage of the removall of the Chaldean armie, from the siege of Ierusalem, went forth with the rest of his country-men, to goe into his native place, in the tribe of Benjamin, to live apart there, for a time.

Thou hast hitherto set out the power,13 Thou fallest away to the Chaldeans. and future successe p. 410of the Chaldees, and now thou art secretly slinking away to them.

21 Then Zedekiah the King commāded that they should commit Ieremiah into the court of the prison and that they should give him daily a piece of bread out of the bakers street, untill all the bread of the city were spent.Then Zedekiah the King being moved with some compassion towards Ieremiah, commanded him to a larger custodie, where he had some more liberty, and gave charge that he should have (notwithstanding the extreme scarcity of the time,) every day a peece of the ordinary and common bread of the city allowed unto him, &c.

CAP. XXXVIII.

4 Hee weakneth the hands of the men of warre that remain in this citie, & the hands of all the people in speaking such words unto them.HEE discourageth the souldiers within the city, and all the inhabitants of Ierusalem, that they have no heart to make resistance unto the King of Babylon, &c.

5 For the King is not he that can doe any thing against you.For my power, you see, is growne into disregard amongst you; you have the law in your owne hands.

7 The King then sitting in the gate of Benjamin,When the King was sitting in the publique place of judicature; Ebedmelech went purposely out of the Court unto him,8 Ebedmelech went forth of the Kings house, and spake to the King, saying, saying, &c.

And those women shal make excuses for thee, and say; Thy Princes and followers have set thee on, to doe that which thou wouldst otherwise never have attempted,22 And those women shall say, Thy friends have set thee on, and have prevailed against thee, thy feet are sunke in the mire, and they are turned away back namely, to revolt from the King of Babylon; their power and importunity hath thus swaied thee; and through their solicitation, thou art brought into this miserable inconvenience; and they have themselves also revolted.

CAP. XXXIX.

9 And those that fell away, that fell to him, with the rest of the people that remained.THose that stirred up Zedekiah to this defection, and joyned with him, in that revolt, together with the rest of the people, of any better fashion.

14 And committed him to Gedaliah, &c. that hee should carry him home, so he dwelt amōg the peopleHe commanded Gedaliah, to whom was committed the chiefe rule of all the affaires of Jerusalem, by Nebuchadnezar, that he should take Ieremiah home to his house; so Ieremiah lived at large, in free liberty, amongst the people.

17 Thou shalt not be given into the hand of the mē of whom thou art afraid.Thou shalt not be delivered into the hands of the courtiers of Zedekiah, whose envie thou hast drawne upon thee for my sake.

18 But thy life shall be for a prey unto thee, because thou hast put thy trust in me, saith the Lord.Thy life shall be reserved safe unto thee (whatever become of thy outward estate) and shall be given thee, as a p. 411reward of thy kindnesse to my prophets, and religious confidence in me, saith the Lord.

CAP. XL.

AFter this charge given,1 The word which came to Ieremiah from the Lord, after that Nebuzaradan the captain of the gard had let him goe from Ramah, when hee had taken him being bound in chains among all that were caried away captive of Ierusalem and Iudah, &c. concerning the custody of Ieremiah, yet hee was, amongst the other captives, (which were carrying away towards Babylon) driven forward in his chaines, as farre as Ramah; at which place, Nebuzaradan, the Captaine of the guard, took notice of him, and from thence gave him his liberty, and free option, either to returne, or to goe forward.4 Behold I loose thee this day frō the chains, &c.

Now when those captaines of the Iewes (which had before saved themselves, by flight,7 Now when all the captaines of the forces which were in the fields, even they, and their men heard that the King of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahiakam governor in the land. upon the first report of the approach of the Chaldean army, which were dispersed in the countrey) heard that the King of Babylon had made Gedaliah governour.

CAP. XLI.

FOurescore of those Iewes which remained still in the land of Iudea, came in a mournfull fashion,5 Even fourscore men, having their beards shaven and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves, with offerings and incense in their hand, to bring thē to the house of the Lord. to condole the late misery of their brethren, and their whole land; and brought with them oblation, and incense to offer unto the Lord in his Temple.

Counterfaiting a mutuall sorrow with them, and expressing it very passionately all the way.6 Weeping all along as he went.

CAP. XLII.

WHether it be pleasing to us, or,6 Whether it bee good, or whether it be evill. whether it be grievous, and displeasing, we wil be sure to do it, &c.

See Genesis 6.7.10 For I repent me of the evill that I have done unto you.

CAP. XLIII.

ANd amongst the rest, Iohanan tooke with him (by strong hand) Ieremiah the Prophet, and Baruch the sonne of Neriah,6 And Ieremiah the prophet, and Baruch the sonne of Neriah. downe into Aegypt.

Nebuchadnezar,10 I wil take Nebuchadnezar the King of Babylon my servant, and I will set his throne upon these stons that I have hid, & he shall spread his royall pavilion over them. whom I employ in the executions of my judgements upon divers nations; and I wil cause him to raign over this land of Aegypt; and to erect his throne in this court, and city of Tahpenes.

p. 41212 And hee shall aray himselfe with the land of Aegypt, as a shepheard putteth on his garment.And he shall goe forth, thence, richly laden and arayed with the wealthy spoiles of Aegypt; as a shepheard, in a bleake winde, wraps his cloake round about him, and so walketh compassed with that unweldy garment, &c.

13 He shall break also the images of Bethshemeth that is in the land of Aegypt.And he shall breake down all the images in the stately Temples of Heliopolis, which is the mother-city of that infamous superstition, &c.

CAP. XLIIII.

14 For none shall returne but such as shall escape.NOne shall returne into the land of Iudah, but such as shall speedily withdraw themselves out of Aegypt, & make an escape from this wicked Iohanan, who hath brought us hither.

17 To burne incense to the Queene of heaven, and to powre out drink-offerings, &c.To burne incense to the Sun, or Moone; and to offer sacrifices unto them, &c.

Did not our husbands both aide and animate us in those sacrifices which we thus offered?19 Did wee powre out these drinke-offerings to her, without our husbands?

I will not indure that so much as an outward profession shall be made of my name, and worship, by any man of Iudah, in the land of Aegypt.26 I have sworne by my great name, saith the Lord, that my name shall no more be named in the mouth of any man of Iudah, in all the lād of Aegypt

CAP. XLV.

3 Thou didst say, Wo is me now, for the Lord hath added grief to my sorrow.THou madest great moane for the extreme misery of thy people; and cryedst out, Woe is me for the grievous calamity that is comne upon us, &c.

4 Behold, that which I have built, will I breake downe, and that which I have planted, I will plucke up, even this whole land.I have determined to execute my decreed judgements against this whole land; it is not for thee to repine, or be too much moved at this just severity.

And is it time for thee now, in this extreme desolation,5 And seekest thou great things for thy selfe? seeke them not, for behold, I wil bring evill upon all flesh, saith the Lord, but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places whither thou goest. and danger of all things, to be casting for any great matters for thy selfe? For, behold, I will bring a common destruction upon this people round about; and thou maist thinke thy selfe well dealt with, if thou canst goe away with thy life; this is the best booty that thou canst hope for, which way soever thou goest.

CAP. XLVI.

6 Let not the swift flee away, nor the mightie man escape, they shall stumble and fall toward the North by the river Euphrates.SWiftnesse of foot shall not availe the nimble, neither shall strength availe the mighty man; they shall all be cut off; and fall by the hand of the Babylonians.

7 Who is this that commeth up as a flood, whose waters are moved as the rivers?What mighty monarch is this that commeth in like a p. 413swelling flood, and threats to sweep all before him like an impetuous torrent?

It is even the proud King of Aegypt,8 Aegypt raiseth up like a flood, and his waters are moved like the rivers, and he saith, I will goe up, and will cover the earth, I will destroy the citie, and the inhabitants thereof. that riseth up thus like a flood; and swelleth like a furious river; who is ready to say; I will goe up to Chaldea it selfe, and will (by my powerfull inundation) cover all the face of the earth, I will destroy Babylon, and kill the inhabitants of it.

Mount on your horses, O ye Aegyptians,9 Come up ye horses, & rage ye charets, and let the mightie men come forth, the Ethiopians and the Libyans that hādle the shield & the Lydians that handle and bend the bow. and drive your chariots, with a furious speed; let our mighty associates of Ethiopia, and Lydia, &c. come forth, and joyn their invincible forces with ours.

For this is the day wherein the Lord God of hosts hath a great slaughter to be made, and much effusion of mans blood, in the countrey of Chaldea,10 For this is the day of the Lord God of hosts, a day of vengeance, that he may avenge him of his adversaries, &c. by the river Euphrates.

Goe ye vaine Aegyptians, goe up to Gilead, and take thence good store of balm with you, to cure the wounds which ye shall receive of the Chaldees; and yet, these precious applications shall bee to no purpose,11 Goe up into Gilead, and take balme, O virgine, the daughter of Aegypt: in vaine shalt thou use many medicines, for thou shalt not be cured. for thou shalt be past all possibility of curing.

All the nations round about have taken notice of thy shamefull flight, and thine out-cries have filled the land; for in that numerous army of thine, when it was once disordered, and put to flight,12 The nations have heard of thy shame, and thy cry hath filled the land; for the mighty man hath stumbled against the mighty, and they are fallen both together. one of thy mighty men stumbled upon another, and hindered each other in their escape, so as they are fallen together, under the sword of the enemie.

Let it be openly declared, and published in all the coasts of Aegypt, in Migdol, Eastward; in Noph, to the South, and in Tahpanhes, to the North,14 Declare ye in Aegypt, and publish in Migdol, and publish in Noph, and in Tahpanhes; say yee, Stand fast, and prepare thee, for the sword shall devoure round about thee. that the Babylonian shall come in upon them; bid them looke to themselves, and stand upon their guard, for danger and destruction is neare unto them.

The foraine souldiers, which were drawne into this war, shall fall out one with another; and, whether in their mutinies, or in their flight,16 He made many to fal, yea one fell upon another, and they said, Arise, and let us goe againe to our owne people, and to the land of our nativitie, from the oppressing sword. shall be an occasion of one anothers slaughter; and when it is too late, shall say, let us away from hence, & return to our owne country, and get us out of the reach of this destroying sword of the Babylonians.

For as for this Pharaoh, the King of Aegypt, whom we came to aide in his warres; he is nothing but words;17 They did cry there, Pharaoh King of Aegypt is but a noise, he hath passed the time appointed. he talkes, and brags much; but he performes nothing; he undertakes, and disappoints, so as no trust is to be given to him.

18 Surely as Tabor is among the mountaines, and as Carmel by the sea, so shall he come.Mount Tabor is not more surely fixed among the rest p. 414of the mountaines, nor Carmel is more unremoveably seated upon the sea-coast, then this word of mine is firmly fixed in heaven, and shall undoubtedly bee performed: The King of Babylon shall come against Aegypt.

20 Aegypt is like a very faire heifer, but destruction commeth, it commeth out of the North.Aegypt is wild, and wanton with her wealth and pleasure, as some young faire heifer never used to the yoke; but destruction is now comming upon her from the Chaldees.

22 The voice thereof shall goe like a Serpent, for they shall march with an armie, and come against her with axes, as hewers of wood.They shall no more loudly bellow out, but shall bee glad, like a Serpent, to creepe into holes, and by their secret hissings, and silent complaints to expresse their sorrowes, for the Chaldean armie shall march against them, and shall utterly overthrow them.

23 They shall cut downe her forrest, saith the Lord; though it cannot be searched; because they are more then the grashoppers, and are innumerable.If Aegypt bee as a thicke well-growne forrest, they shall cut downe all the goodly trees therein; although they bee, indeed, so many, that they are past numbring.

Behold, I will punish that populous citie of Alexandria,25 Behold, I will punish the multitude of No, and Pharaoh. the rich staple of Aegypt; and Pharaoh, &c.

CAP. XLVII.

2 Behold, waters rise up out of the North, and shall be an overflowing flood:BEhold, the Chaldeans arise out of the North, like mighty waters, and with their swelling flood shall over-flow the land of the Philistims, &c.

3 At the noise of the stamping of the hoofes of his strong horses, at the rushing of his Charets, and at the rumbling of his wheeles, the fathers shall not looke backe to their children for feeblenesse of hands.Men shall be so amazed, and affrighted with the fearfull noise of his armie; the stamping of his horses, and ratling of his Chariots; that the fathers shall not so much as finde time to looke backe to their children, in the haste of their flight.

Extreme mourning is comne upon Gaza, and all those maritime parts of the countrey of the Philistimes;5 Baldnesse is come upon Gaza; Ashkelon is cut off with the remnant of their vally: how long wilt thou cut thy selfe? in so much as they teare their haire, and cut their flesh for sorrow.

CAP. XLVIII.

1 Against Moab, thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, woe unto Nebo, for it is spoiled: Kiriathaim is confounded and taken, Misgab is confounded and dismaied.HOwsoever Moab (an ancient enemie, though neare in blood to Israel) may prosper for a time, after that both Israel, and Judah are overthrowne, yet he shall not escape the severe hand of God; Woe therefore unto the chiefe cities of the Moabites; to Nebo, to Kiriathiearim, and to Misgab, for they all shall be destroyed.

p. 415The like ruine shall befall to the rest of their cities, to Heshbon, and to Madmena; the Chaldees have resolved, and threatned to cut off Moab from being a nation,2 There shall bee no more praise of Moab: in Heshbon they have devised evill against it: come and let us cut it off from being a nation. &c.

In the mountaines and vallies shall be nothing but howling and desolation;5 For in the going up of Luhith, continuall weeping shall goe up: for in the going down of Horonaim, the enemies have heard a cry of destruction. whiles the Moabites climbe up the hill to the high-seated citie of Luhith, and whiles they passe downe to the plaine of Horonaim; they shall not be able to containe themselves from lamentation; so as their very enemies shall heare their womanish, and fearefull ejulations.

Away, and flee, if yee may, O yee Moabites;6 Flee, save your lives, and bee like the heath in the wildernesse. save your lives by a speedy flight; and get you into the wildernesse, and live there, though ye be but like the shrubby heath, that hath a low and obscure being in the desert.

And Chemosh thy false God,7 And Chemosh shall goe forth into captivitie with his Priests, and his Princes together. unto whose aid thou hast trusted, shall goe into captivitie with thee; and his Priests, and those Idolatrous Princes that worship him; ye shall all goe together.

And now, O ye Chaldeans,10 Cursed bee he, that doth the worke of the Lord deceitfully, & cursed be he that keepeth backe his sword from blood. bestirre you in this slaughtei, lay about you, and spare none, it is Gods revenge which ye doe now execute; Cursed bee ye if ye slacken your hands, and keepe backe your sword from blood.

Whiles Israel was in continuall exercise,11 Moab hath beene at ease from his youth, and he hath setled on his lees, and hath not beene emptied from vessell to vessell, neither hath he gone into captivitie: therefore his tast remained in him, and his scent is not changed. and correction, Moab hath a long time taken his ease; and hath been as a vessell of strong wine, that hath beene long setled upon his lees; not at all racked, or drawne out into another vessell; so as hee hath his full vigor, and verdure of his long-continued pleasure and felicity still in him, without all diminution, or change.

I will therefore send enemies upon Moab,12 Therefore behold, the dayes come, saith the Lord, that I will send unto him wanderers that shall cause him to wander, and shall emptie his vessells, and breake their battells. which shall alter the case with him; which shall broach these their setled vessells, and draw them out into a grievous captivity; and breake their caske in peeces.

And Moab shall be ashamed of his god Chemosh,13 And Moab shall bee ashamed of Chemosh, as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel their confidence. as the house of Israel was ashamed of their calves in Dan, and Bethel, wherein they vainely trusted.

How is this strong and glorious nation,17 How is the strong staffe broken, and the beautifull rod. on whom we leaned, as the staffe of our confidence, broken in peeces, &c.

And thou, O Dibon, the faire city of Moab,18 Thou daughter that dost inhabit Dibon, come downe from thy glory, and sit in thirst: for the spoiler of Moab, shal come upon thee; and he shall destroy thy strong holds. come downe from thy glory, and take up with the lot of thy p. 416neighbours; thirst, distresse, destruction.

And yee inhabitants of Aroer, who durst not trust to your walls,19 O inhabitant of Aroer, stand by the way and espie, aske him that fleeth, and her that escapeth, & say, What is done? but are fled into the desert, runne to the way-side, and aske of the still-fleeing passengers, even of the women that have escaped; what the Chaldees have done to your forsaken walls and houses.

And judgement is comne upon all the parts of the land of Moab; both the mountainous tracts thereof, and the plaines; upon all the severall cities that appertaine thereunto, as upon Holon, Jahazah, Mephaath,21 And judgement is come upon the plaine countrey, upon Holon, and upon Iahazah, and upon Mephaath. &c.

So verse 22, 23, 24.

The pide of Moab is cut off, and the strength of it is broken, saith the Lord.25 The horne of Moab is cut off, and his arme is broken, saith the Lord.

Lay deep and grievous afflictions upon him, O yee Chaldees;26 Make ye him drunken: for hee magnified himselfe against the Lord, Moab also shall wallow in his vomit, and he also shall be in derision: let him drinke largely of your vengeance; for he lifted himselfe up against the Lord; Let him be overfilled with sorrow and anguish; and bee exposed to the scorne and derision of the world.

For was not Israel a scorne and derision unto thee? Yea was he not causelesly so?27 For was not Israel a derision unto thee? was he found among theeves? for since thou spakest of him, thou skippedst for joy. for what had he offended thee? however guilty he were in his cariage to mewards, Yet to thee he was inoffensive; not withstanding thou insultedst in his fall, and joyedst in this miscarriage.

O ye Moabites, runne from your cities, and defenced places,28 O yee that dwell in Moab, leave the cities and dwell in the rocke. and hide your selves in the holes of the rockes, &c.

I know his great stomack, and his proud bragges, but it shall not bee so with him,30 I know his wrath saith the Lord, but it shall not be so, his lyes shall not so effect it. as he imagineth, his great words, and presumptuous undertakings shall not carrie it.

32 O vine of Sibmah, I will weepe for thee, with the weeping of Iazer: thy plants are go…e over the Sea, they reach even to the Sea of Iazer.O thou citie and region of Sibmah, famous, for the excellency and fruitfulnesse of thy vines, I will weepe for thy destruction, as I wept before for the vastation of Jazer thy nighbour; thy citizens are transplanted, and caried over the sea, they are caried down to be shipped at the port of Jazer,34 From the cry of Heshbon even unto Elealeh. &.

See Esa. 15. verse 4. and 5. and verse 6.34 As an heifer of three yeares old, &c. waters of Nimrim shall be desolate.

37 For every head shall be bald, and every beard clipt: upon all the hands shall be cuttings, and upon the loines sackcloth.There shall be all the signes and effects of an extreme mourning, all over the coasts of Moab; every head shall be shaven, every beard clipt, every skinne slashed, and every of their loines covered with sackcloth.

p. 417See Esa. 15. verse 8.38 There shall bee lamentation generally upon all the house tops, &c.

The Chaldean shall come swiftly upon him, as an Eagle upon his prey, and shall spread his wings over Moab.40 For thus saith the Lord, Behold, he shall flie as an Eagle, & shall spread his wings over Moab.

See Esa. 24. verse 17.43 Feare and the pit and the snare shall be upon thee, &c.

They that fled,45 They that fled, stood under the shadow of Heshbon, because of the force: but a fire shall come forth out of Heshbon, and a flame from the midst of Sihon, and shall devoure the corner of Moab, and the crowne of the head of the tumultuous ones. thought they should finde good shelter in the strong forts of Heshbon; but they shall be deceived, for so farre shall Heshbon be from being able to defend it selfe, that the destruction which shall beginne there, shall reach unto all the utmost parts of the dominions of Moab, and shall light upon the head of those insolent undertakers, that were the cause of these warres, and tumults.

The people that worshipped their false god Chemosh, perisheth,46 The people of Chemosh perisheth. &c.

CAP. XLIX.

HAth Israel no posterity at all to inherit his lands?1 Hath Israel no sons? hath hee no heire? Why then doth their King inherite Gad, and his people dwell in his citie? How comes it then that the Ammonitish King takes upon him to inherit Gad, the possession of one of his tribes; and causeth his people to dwell in the cities of Israel?

Then shall Israel come to take possession of the land of the Ammonites,2 Then shall Israel bee heire unto them that were his heires, saith the Lord. which had usurped the possessions of Israel.

Howle, O Heshbon,3 Howle, O Heshbon, for Ai is spoiled: cry yee daughters of Rabbah. the chiefe citie of the Gadites (usurped by Ammon) for Ai the neighbour citie is spoiled, and let Rabbah the great citie of the Ammonites mourne, &c.

Wherefore dost thou glory in thy rich and fruitfull vallies, O thou proud and rebellious issue of Ammon,4 Wherefore gloriest thou in the vallies, thy flowing valley, O backsliing daughter? &c?

Those of Teman in the land of Idumea had wont to be accounted wise men; What,7 Concerning Edom, thus saith the Lord of hosts, Is wisdome no more in Teman? Is counsell perished from the prudent? is their wisedome vanished? is there no wisedome now left amongst them? hath their wit utterly failed them, that they cast not how to bee freed from the danger of the Chaldeans?

Let the inhabitants of Dedan, a citie of Edom, flee;8 Flee ye, turne backe, dwell deepe, O inhabitants of Dedan, for I will bring the calamitie of Esau upon him. For I will bring upon them that calamitie which is justly p. 418owing to the Sonnes of Esau, whom I have rejected; &c.

10 I have uncovered his secret places, and hee shall not bee able to hide himselfe: his seed is spoiled.But I have wholly dispoiled Edom; and have left him no hiding place; I have stript him of all his forces; his seed is destroyed, &c.

If thou have any orphans, or any widowes left, I will take order for them,11 Leave thy fatherlesse children, I preserve them alive, and let thy widowes trust in me. saith the Lord; Yea, I will take order that thou shalt have none left alive.

12 For thus saith the Lord, Behold, they whose judgment was not to drinke of the cup, have assuredly drunken, and art thou he that shall altogether goe unpunished?For thus saith the Lord, Behold, even my people the Jewes, which in comparison of thee, had no reason to be put to these extremities of judgements, they have beene plagued severely, by my just hand, and shalt thou thinke to goe unpunished? &c.

13 For I have sworne by my selfe, saith the Lord, that Bozrah shall become a desolation, a reproach, a wast and a curse, and all the cities thereof shall be perpetuall wastes.I have firmly and irrevocably decreed, that thy prime citie, Bozrah, shall bee perpetually desolated, and the daughter-cities that appertaine to it, shall be laid waste for ever.

I have certaine and infallible revelation from the Lord;14 I have heard a rumour from the Lord, and an ambassador is sent unto the heathen, saying, Gather ye together, and come against her, and rise up to the battle. (and summons is gone out from him unto the Chaldeans, and Assyrians to that purpose) that God will send a powerfull and irresistible enemie against Edom; he calls together the dreadfull forces of these great Kings to set upon it.

16 O thou that dwellest in the clifts of the rocke, that holdest the height of the hill: though thou shouldest make thy nest as high as the Eagle, I will bring thee downe frō thence, saith the Lord.O thou, that hast wont to bragge of thy strong and impregnable forts, and Situation; that thy towres are high, and invincible; know, that if thou shouldest build as high, as the Eagle makes his nest, I will bring thee downe thence, saith the Lord.

19 Behold, he shal come up like a lyon from the swelling of Iordan, against the habitation of the strong: but I will suddenly make him runne away from her, and who is a chosen man that I may appoint over her? for who is like me? and who will appoint me the time? who is that shepheard that will stand before me?Behold, the proud Edomite comes up against the Chaldean, like some fierce Lyon that is driven by the swelling of the streames of Jordan to change his den, and to seeke his prey in the mountaines; but I will suddenly make him to runne away from that mighty enemie; And who is the man whom I shall chuse out to be the leader of this great designe? Even Nebuchadnezar the King of Babylon; I have thus decreed it; and, who shall alter my determinations? Who will take upon him either to direct, or to oppose me?

20 Surely the least of the flocke shall draw them out.Surely the very meanest and basest of the Chaldean p. 419armie shall discomfit, and overthrow the proud inhabitants of Teman, &c.

So great shall be the noise of the fall of those walls,21 The earth is moved at the noise of their fall: at the crie, the noise thereof was heard in the red Sea. and the shouts, and shrieks of the people; as that it shall be heard very farre off; even as far as the red Sea, which is very remote from it.

Concerning Damascus.23 Concerning Damascus, Hamath is confounded and Arpad, for they have heard evill tydings: they are faint hearted, there is sorrow on the Sea, it cannot be quiet. Antiochia and Arpad cities of Syria are dismaied, and confounded; for they have heard the fearefull rumours of the Chaldean preparation; and are faint-hearted; and the Isles that lie neare about are extremely affrighted.

How is it that so goodly and famous a citie as Damascus, so praised, so admired,25 How is the citie of praise not left, the citie of my joy? hath not the favour to bee spared from sacking and vastation?

I will cause a fire to bee kindled in the wall of Damascus, which shall consume the palace of Benhadad,27 And I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus, and it shall consume the palaces of Benhadad. that ancient and cruell enemie of Israel.

Arise, O yee Chaldeans,28 Arise ye, goe up to Kedar, and spoile the men of the East. goe up against those of Kedar, or Arabia; and spoile those that dwell towards the Easterne coast.

Arise, get ye up unto the wealthy nation of the Kedarēs,31 Arise, get you up into the wealthy nation that dwelleth without care, saith the Lord, which have neither gates nor barres, which dwell alone. that dwell without care in their tents; abounding with flocks and heards in the desert; where they dwell apart without cities, or townes.

I will overthrow the archers of the Parthians,35 I will breake the bowe of Elam, the chiefe of their might. and their confines, on the Sea coasts; and breake their bowes wherein their chiefe strength consisteth.

And I will bring upon them, enemies,36 And upon Elam will I bring the foure windes from the foure quarters of heaven, and will scatter them towards all those windes. from all the coasts of heaven, which shall prevaile against them, and scatter them to all the coasts of the world, &c.

And I will be knowne to triumph over those Parthians,37 For I will cause Elam to be dismaied, before their enemies, and before them that seeke their life: and I will bring evill upon them, even my fierce anger, saith the Lord, &c. and will erect amongst them a throne for that King whom I have designed to it; having utterly destroyed all their native Kings and Princes.

But at the last under the raigne of the Messiah will I call these Elamites into my Church, saith the Lord.39 But it shall come to passe in the latter dayes, that I will bring again the captivitie of Elam, saith the Lord.

See Act. 2.9.

p. 420CAP. L.

2 Say, Babylon is taken, Bel is confounded, Merodach is broken in peeces, her Idols are consumed, her images are broken in peeces.THat Babylon, which hath beene a scourge to my people, and to all the nations round about, is now taken it selfe, and seized upon in my wrath; Their great Idol Bel, in whom they trusted, is confounded, their great Monarch is overthrowne; and all their petty gods, and Images are broke in pieces.

For the mighty nation of the Medes and Persians shall come up against her,3 For out of the North there commeth up a nation against her. &c.

In those daies the children of Israel, and the children of Judah shall (through the favour of the Persian monarchs) goe up together,4 In those daies, and in that time, saith the Lord, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Iudah together, going & weeping; they shall goe and seeke the Lord. weeping for joy, to returne to their countrey, and to the place of Gods worship and service.

Their Kings, and Priests, and Prophets have mis-led them into abhominable Idolatries;6 My people hath been lost sheepe: their shepheards have caused them to goe astray, they have turned them away on the mountaines; they have gone from mountaine to hill, they have forgotten their resting place. they have seduced them to superstitious devotions, on their high places; perswading them to goe, one while to one Idoll, another while to another; till they had forgotten the Temple of God, to which God had appointed them to confine their service.

Get you gone, O ye Jewes, goe with joy and gladnes, out of Chaldea,8 Remove out of the midst of Babylon, and goe forth out of the land of the Caldeans, & be as the hee-goates before the flocks. the land of your captivity; and goe forth with courage and speed, as the hee-goates are wont to goe before the rest of the flock.

9 From the North countrey.See verse 3.

12 Your mother shall be sore confounded, shee that bare you shall be ashamed: Behold the hindermost of the nations shall be a wildernesse, a drie land and a desert.Your mother-city, Babylon, shall be sore confounded &c. and Chaldea, which was the queene of all nations, shall now be cast behinde all the rest, and become a very wildernesse, a barren desert.

16 Cut off the sower from Babylon, & him that handleth the sickle in the time of harvest: for feare of the oppressing sword, they shall turne every one to his people, and they shall flee every man to his owne land.Spare not so much as the husbandman that soweth the corne in the fields of Babylon, or the reaper thereof; let no man escape, though never so harmelesse, or never so usefull; as for the hired forces, they shall run away, every one to his owne home.

Israel is as a sheep scattered from the flock; those heathē Kings,17 Israel is a scattered sheep, the lions have driven him away: first the King of Assyria hath devoured him, and last this Nebuchadrezzar King of Babylon hath broken his bones. which were fierce as Lions, have driven them p. 421out of their countrey; first the Kings of Assyria made havocke of them; then, Nebuchadnezar the King of Babylon hath perfected their destruction.

I will bring Israel back from his captivity to his owne land,19 And I will bring Israel againe to his habitation, and hee shall feed on Carmel and Bashan. and he shall now be as a sheep grazing upon the fruitfull hils of Carmel, and Bashan, &c.

There shall not be found in Israel those sins,20 In those daies, and in that time, saith the Lord the iniquitie of Israel shall bee sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Iudah, and they shall not be found, for I will pardon them whom I reserve. and that heynous iniquity, which was the cause of their late captivity; and the sins of Judah shall be done away, through my grace, and mercy.

Goe up, Ye Medes and Persians, against the territories of Babylon, even against the land of these proud rebels, against the land of those who have visited my people with the sword, and mercilesse destruction, and doe yee utterly destroy them,21 Goe up against the land of Merathaim, even against it, and against the inhabitants of Pekod: waste and utterly destroy after them. &c.

How is it that Babylon, which was the hammer to beate all other nations in peeces,23 How is the hammer of the whole earth cut asunder and broken? is now broken in peeces? &c.

A sword shall be upon their lying Astrologers,36 A sword shall bee upon the lyers. and Diviners, unto whom they trusted.

So verse 3.41 Behold, a people shall come from the North, &c.

See Chapter 49.19. Behold the Babylonians shall come up, &c.44 Hee shall come up like a lyon from the swelling of Iordan, &c.

See chapter 49. verse 20.45 Surely the least of the flock shall draw them out.

CAP. LI.

A Furious adversary, which shall come in,1 A destroying winde. as a strong tempestuous winde.

I will send unto Babylon the Medes and Persians,2 And will send unto Babylon fanners, that shall fanne her, and shall empty her land. which shall put them to the fanne of tribulation, and dispersion, &c.

Suffer not, O yee Medes,3 Against him that bendeth let the archer bend his bow, and against him that lifteth himselfe up in his brigandine; and spare ye not her yong men the Babylonian archers so much as to bend their bowes, &c. But cut them off in the first offer of their assault; and make no spare of any of them, &c.

p. 4226 Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and deliver every man his soule, &c.See Chapter 50.8. Continue not in Babylon, whiles yee may be free; but depart away from the danger both of her sins, and judgement.

7 Babylon hath been a golden cup in the Lords hand, that made all the earth drunken, the nations have drunken of her wine, therefore the nations are mad.Babylon hath been hitherto as a golden cup, out of which God would have all the nations of the earth drink their bitter draught of his wrath, and indignation; they have drunke out thence, and have beene so grievously afflicted by her cruelty, that they have been ready to runne mad with griefe.

8 Babylon is suddenly fallen & destroyed; howle for her, take balme for her paine, if so bee she may be healed.Babylon is suddenly fallen, howle and mourne, O ye her associates, for the down-fall of so great a Monarchy; and, if it may be, use some helps for her recovery.

Alas, we have not slackened our indevours, (shall they say) to have succoured, and relieved her; but all in vaine; for her wound (which Gods wrath hath inflicted upon her) is utterly incurable;9 We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed: forsake her, and let us goe every one to his owne countrey, for her Iudgement reacheth unto heaven. Away therefore, let us shift for our selves; let us run every man to his owne country; and leave her to the revenge of the Almightie; which is indeed so great, as that it reacheth to the very heavens, &c.

10 The Lord hath brought forth our righteousnesse: come and let us declare in Zion the worke of the Lord our God.The Lord hath magnified his great mercy, and truth to us, in that he hath taken upon him the patronage, and protection of us his people; and hath beene thus openly revenged of our enemies: oh come therefore, and let us declare in his holy Temple, the great workes of our God.

11 Make bright the arrowes, gather the shields.Now therefore, Yee Medes, and Persians, addresse your selves to the fight; scoure up your armours, brighten your arrowes, &c.

13 O thou that dwellest upon many waters, abundant in treasures; thine end is come, and the measure of thy covetousnesse.O thou great and wealthy Babylon, that wert seated upon the famous river of Euphrates; which divided it selfe for thy commodity, and made many Islands for thy profit, and defence; thine end is now comne.

14 Surely I will fill thee with men, as with caterpillers, and they shal lift up a shout against thee.I will fill thee with enemies so thick, as if they were swarmes of caterpillers. See for the rest of the verse. chap. 25. verse 30.

17 Every man is brutish by his knowledge, &c.See Chap. 10. verse 14.

19 The portion of Iacob is not like them.See Chap. 10. verse 16.

20 Thou art my battle-axe and weapons of war, for with thee will I break in peeces the nations, and with thee will I destroy kingdomes.O Babylon, I have hitherto made use of thee, for the subduing of divers Kingdomes, and for breaking of many nations in pieces.

25 Behold, I am against thee, O destroying mountaine, saith the Lord, which destroyest all the earth, and I will stretch out mine hand upon thee, and roule thee downe from the rocks, and will make, &c.Behold, I am against thee now, O Babylon, thou huge pile of perdition; which hath hitherto crushed the whole p. 423earth with thy vastnesse, and power, &c. I will make thee like an hill of rubbish, an heape of burnt ruines.

Muster up together the Kingdomes of both Armenias, and of the lesser Asia;27 Call together against her the kingdomes of Ararat, Minni, & Ashchenaz: appoint a captaine against her; cause her horses to come up as the rough caterpillers. set generalls and captaines over the appointed bands, cause the troupes of horses to come in, as thicke as the swarmes of caterpillers; and all, to goe up against Babylon.

The citie of Babylon is like a threshing floore, the sheaves that are in her, must bee beaten,33 The daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floore, it is time to thresh her; yet a little while, and the time of her harvest shall come. and throughly troden out; her harvest is now neare at hand, wherein God wil lay upon her, with the flaile of his heavie judgements.

Nebuchadnezer the King of Babylon (shall Jerusalem say) hath devoured me, hee hath utterly destroyed mee,34 Nebuchadrezzar the King of Babylon hath devoured me, he hath crushed mee. &c.

And now, let God repay to Nebuchadnezar, and his Babylonians, the violence which they did to me,35 The violence done to me and to my flesh. and my people, &c.

They shal roare together in their paine, and horrour, like lyons,38 They shall roare together like lyons. that yell for hunger, &c.

When they are heated with wine in their feasts,39 In their heat I will make their feasts, and I wil make them drunken, that they may rejoyce, and sleep a perpetuall sleep, and not wake, saith the Lord. and drunken in their merry bankets, quaffing healthes and praising their gods in the bowles of my Temple, even then will I bring the sword of Cyrus upon them; and smite them that they shall sleepe their last.

See Daniel 5.

What an incredible thing is this?41 How is Sheshach taken? and how is the praise of the whole earth surprised? How can it be that Babylon, the great mistresse of the world should thus be spoiled, and defaced, &c?

The innumerable and mighty host of the Medes is, like a raging sea, broken in upon Babylon; &c.42 The Sea is come up upon Babylon.

I will breake in peeces, and put to shame the Idol Bel,44 And I will punish Bel in Babylon, and I will bring forth out of his mouth that which he hath swallowed up. that was worshipped of the Babylonians, and will fetch out of his mouth those many and rich offerings which were made to that dunghill deity, &c.

See verse 6.45 Goe yee out of the midst of her.

Cyrus against Belshazzar.46 Ruler against Ruler.

The heavens and the earth and all creatures shall rejoyce,48 Then the heaven and the earth, and all that is therein, shall sing for Babylon. and praise God for the just destruction that is brought upon Babylon.

As Babylon hath slaine my people of Israel,49 As Babylon hath caused the slaine of Israel to fall, so at Babylon shall fall the slaine of all the earth. so the Babylonians p. 424shall be slaine, all the earth over; and in Babylon, shal fal those of all the countries round about, which shall be there slaughtered.

51 For strangers are come into the Sanctuaries of the Lords house.Pagans have comne into the sanctuary of Gods Temple, and have defiled it, and razed it to the ground.

Through all her land, those that are not slaine right out,52 And through all her land the wounded shall groane. shall lie groaning, and roaring for the paine of their wounds.

57 I will make drunke her Princes, &c.See verse 39.

58 And the people shall labour in vaine, and the folke in the fire, and they shall be weary.In vaine shall the people labour to quench that fire which is kindled for the consuming of Babylon.