Paraphrase of the Hard Texts of Scripture, Scripture 19 · Chapter 60 – Chapter 62
CAP. LX.
ARise out of the dust, and sorrow,1 Arise, shine, for the light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. O thou my afflicted Church; & be thou glorious; for the time is comne, wherein God is purposed to comfort, and to honor thee, before the eyes of the world.
For behold, the darknesse both of ignorance,2 For behold, the darknesse shall cover the earth, and grosse darknesse the people, but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall bee seene upon thee? and calamity, shall be upon the rest of the earth; but, as it was with thee in Goshen, so it shall be now againe, the Lord shall cause the light both of knowledge and comfort to arise upon thee.
Thou shalt assemble cheerfully together,5 Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall feare, and be enlarged, because the abundance of the Sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. and thine heart shall bee full of astonishment, and wonder, and thankfulnesse; because the store of those foraine nations, which by divers seas are severed from thee, shall be converted unto thee (my Evangelicall Church) all the forces; and excellent graces of the Gentiles shall be added unto thee.
The multitudes of severall nations shall come,6 The multitude of Camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Median and Ephah: all they from Sheba shall come, they shall bring gold and incense, and they shall shew forth the praises of the Lord. and send in, unto thee, according to their sundry commodities, and meanes of conveiance, all manner of rich and precious presents, whereby they shall testifie their homage, and joy in that God, which hath honoured them with the high calling of the children of his Church.
So chearefull and so frequent and universall shall bee the sacrifices, which shall bee offered unto God,7 All the flockes of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebajoth shall minister unto thee, they shall come up with acceptance on my altar, and I will glorifie the house of my glory? in joy and thanksgiving, as that all the Arabian flockes shall be gladly consecrated to this service; and shall ascend up in an holy smoke, to the God of heaven; and I will exceedingly glorifie my Church, wherein I am honoured.
Then shall my Church, wondring at so frequent a confluence, say, Who are these that come flying,8 Who are these that flie as a cloud, and as the doves to their windowes? as thick as clouds, and as swiftly as the doves to their windowes.
Surely the forraine nation, shall bee called into the Church, even from beyond the seas;9 Surely the Isles shall wait for me, & the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from farre, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the Lord. the ships shall bee imployed therefore, to bring in both their persons, and their treasures to be dedicated to the service of God, &c.
And in a type of the restauration of my Church, behold the sons of strangers shall help to reedifie the walls of Jerusalem; and their Kings shall give bountifull gifts towards the repairing of the edifices thereof,10 And the sonnes of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their Kings shall minister unto thee. &c.
The doores of the Church under the Gospell shall be alwaies open, they shall not be shut, either by night, or day,11 Therefore thy gates shall bee open continually, they shall not be shut day nor night, that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought upon any man; but shall be wide opened, to receive all commers; that the riches of the Gentiles, and their Kings and Governours, may have a cleare, and free ingresse thereinto.
As there neither is, nor can be any salvation out of Christ, or out of the Church; surely that person, or that nation,12 For the nation and Kingdome that will not serve thee, shall perish, yea those nations shall bee utterly wasted. and Kingdome that commeth not in, and submitteth not to the government of Christ, in his Church, cannot choose but perish.
All the tall Cedars of Lebanon, and all those other varieties of trees, both for building, and sculpture, shall gladly be imployed to the reedifying of the materiall temple;13 The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the firre tree, the pine tree and the box together, to beautifie the place of my sanctuarie, and I will make the place of my feete glorious. and all persons both honourable and mean, shall joyfully be imployed to be the pceces of my spirituall Church, and Sanctuary; so as the place, where I shall fix my foot, and dwell for ever, shall be beautifull, and glorious.
14 The sons also of them that afflicted thee, shall come bending unto thee.The posterity of those that persecuted thee (O my Church) shall come in, and with all reverence submit themselves unto thee, &c.
The Gentiles, and their Kings, which heretofore have beene hostilely bent against thee,16 Thou shalt also suck the milke of the gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of Kings. shall now lay to nourish, and sustaine thee, even as the mother doth her child, with the milke of their breasts; and shall yield thee their best succour, and assistance, &c.
17 For brasse I will bring gold, and for yron I will bring silver, and for wood brasse, and for stones yron, I will also make thy officers peace, and thine exactors righteousnesse.I know you will much lament the ruines of the glorious Temple; but, be of good cheare, it shall be better built, then before; in stead of the former brasse, it shall now be enriched with gold; and in all the whole fabrick the change shall be to the better; and whereas you have served under an hard bondage of the Babylonians; now, in stead of those tyrannous officers, you shall have peace; and in stead of exactors, justice.
18 But thou shalt call thy walls salvation, & thy gates praise.The safegard of God shall be in stead of walls unto thee, and thy gates shall be full of the praise of thy God.
19 The Sun shall be no more thy light by day, neither for brightnesse shall the Moone give light unto thee, but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.There shall be a certaine stability, and fixednesse of the happy estate, wherein thou art; thou shalt not bee subject to any more interchanges of light, and darknesse, or depēd upon those outward meanes of comfort, which are wont to convay it to the world; But the Lord himselfe, who is ever one, and unchangeable, shall be thine everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.
So verse 20.
Those that are the true, and lively members of the Church, shall be all sincere, and upright, not wicked,21 Thy people also shal be all righteous, they shall inherite the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the worke of my hand, that I may be glorified. not hypocriticall; they shal be unremoveably fastned in their holy station; as being the branches of my owne planting, and the worke of my owne hands, which I have made for the glory of my mercy.
Though thou be now small in number,22 A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation; I the Lord will hasten it in his time. yet thou shalt become exceeding populous, and thou, which art now weake, shalt become a strong and mighty people; I the Lord will in due time (and that ere long) accomplish it.
CAP. LXI.
THe Spirit of the Lord is upon me, the Messiah,1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord hath annointed me, to preach good tidings unto the meek, he hath sent mee to binde up the broken hearted, to proclaime liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound. and Mediator; and hath indued me with power, and vertue from above, and authorized, and sent mee to preach the glad tidings of salvation to the humble, and contrite soule, to proclaime liberty to those which are now in miserable captivity under Satan; to release those which are bound with the chaines of their sins.
To proclaime the acceptable time of redemption,2 To proclaime the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all that mourne. now fully comne to the world; and of just vengeance of our God against the malicious enemies of his Church; to their confusion, and the comfort of those, whom they have unjustly afflicted.
To set a day of deliverance to them which mourne in Gods Church, whether for their sins,3 To appoint unto them that mourne in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oyle of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heavinesse, that they might be called trees of righteousnesse, in planting of the Lord, that he might bee glorified. or under their afflictions, to put off all the sack-cloth, and ashes, and sad ceremonies of their dejection; and in stead thereof, to give them chearefulnesse, and joy, and thankfull acknowledgements of mercy, that those, which before were as fruitlesse, and saplesse stocks, may now be called (and so approved) the fruitfull and flourishing trees of righteousnesse; such as God hath by his spirit plāted in his Church for the glory of his owne mercy.
In a just type of which restauratiō,4 And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations. my people the Jewes shall build againe those ruinous walls that had lyen seaventy yeares waste, &c.
And those which are strangers to you, both in nation,5 And strangers shall stand & feede your flocks, and the sons of the alient shall be your plowmen, and your vine dressers. and religion, shall be ready to be helpfull unto you upon all occasions, of your outward and secular imployments.
6 But yee shall bee named the priests of the Lord, men shal call you the ministers of our God, yee shall eate the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall you boast your selves.Whiles ye shall be a royal priesthood, consecrated unto the Lord, & to his holy service; participating of all those comforts, which God hath laid up in store for them which now are called Gentiles; whose future glory and happinesse shall be an accession unto yours.
For that shame, and griefe which ye have indured, you shall have an abundant recompence of joy and comfort; and in stead of your former confusion,7 For your shame you shall have double, and for confusion they shall rejoyce in their portion: therfore in their land they shall possesse the double, everlasting joy shall be unto them. yee shall now bee rewarded with contentment, and chearefulnesse, in the fruition of your manifold blessings; the happinesse of their returne to their owne land shall make double amends for their captivity: and they shall finde cause of everlasting joy.
I the Lord love sincerity, and true dealing in the carriages of men;8 For I the Lord love judgement, I hate robbery for burnt offering, and I will direct their worke in truth. I cannot abide that men should pretend a sacrifice to be offered unto me, when they mean nothing but fraud, and violence; that they should hope to please me with a stolne oblation; I will direct and inable them to serve me faithfully, &c.
9 And their seed shall be knowne among the Gentiles, & their off-spring among the people.Their seed, which shall be appointed to carry the word of God unto the Gentiles, shall be highly honoured of them, and their off-spring, among that people with whom they shall be united, &c.
CAP. LXII.
1 For Zions sake, will I not hold my peace, and for Ierusalems sake I will not rest, untill the righteousnesse thereof goe forth as brightnesse, and the salvation thereof as a lampe that burneth.FOr my Churches sake I will not cease, till I have accomplished the great worke of her redemption, and have fully finished, and openly manifested the glory, and salvation of mine elect.
And those that are now farre off, even the now-despised Gentiles, shall acknowledge thy righteousnesse (O my Church) and that not the meaner sort, but even Kings,2 And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousnes, and all Kings thy glory, & thou shalt be called by a new name which the mouth of the Lord shall name. and Princes, shall blesse and celebrate thee; and thou shalt be honoured, as with a new estate, so with a name also which the Lord shall put upon thee.
See verse 4.
3 Thou shalt also bee a crowne of glory in the hād of the Lord, and a royall diademe in the hand of thy God.God shall put exceeding glory upon thee; and shall cause to shine forth in thee, the praise of his wonderfull mercy; so as he shall unspeakably honour himselfe by honouring thee.
4 Thou shalt no more be termed forsaken, neither shall thy land any more be termed desolate, but thou shalt bee called Hephzi-bah, and thy land Beulah; for the Lord delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married.And that new name which he will call thee by, is this; now whereas thou art, both in name, and condition, forsaken, then thou shalt no more either be so, or be so called; but shalt both be, and be called my delightsome spouse, for as much, as, both thy person, and thine obedience shall be graciously respected of me.
The outward and bodily marriage is and shall be the image of this spiritual; behold as a young man espouseth a virgin,5 For as a yong man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee. so shall thy faithfull ministers espouse thee unto mee, &c.
Behold, I have set over thee, O my Church, faithfull pastors, and teachers;6 I have set watchmen upon thy walls (O Ierusalem) which shal never hold their peace, day nor night; ye that make mention of the Lord keep not silence. who shall in season and out of season be instant to deliver my messages unto thee, ye that speake from the Lord, and are his ambassadors to his Church, doe your duty conscionably, hide no part of Gods counsell from his people; and be earnest with God in the behalfe of his Church.
Oh, be ye ever importunate in your prayers;7 And give him no rest till he establish, and till he make Ierusalem a praise in the earth. not ceasing, till God have perfitted his great worke for his Church, which he hath determined and begun, investing his chosen ones with full glory.
The Lord hath ingaged himselfe by his oath;8 The Lord hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arme of his strength, Surely, I will no more give thy come to be meate for thine enemies. and hath sworne by his power and omnipotence, that he will no more give over his Church to the utter waste and spoile of their enemies, &c.
My Church shall be as a populous, and well traded city, which shall be full of infinite resort; go to then,10 Goe through, goe through the gates, prepare you the way of the people, Cast up, cast up the high way, gather out the stones, lift up a standard for the people. O my spirituall overseers, passe through the gates diligently, & frequently; and make way for that happy concourse, which shall be thither; remove those hinderances, and scandalls, which may lye in the way of my people; and call all mine, to an holy, and constant profession, and maintenance of my truth.