Paraphrase of the Hard Texts of Scripture, Scripture 19 · Chapter 66
CAP. LXVI.
1 Thus saith the Lord, the heaven is my throne, and the earth is my foot-stoole, where is the house that ye build unto me, and where is the place of my rest?WHy do yee, vaine Jewes, thinke to merit me, and boast your selves of a Temple built to me? as if that were a sufficient couer for all your hypocrisie and mis-behaviour; No; yee know well enough I have no need of an house of your making; I have another manner of house of my owne, even the heaven of heavens is the roofe of it, and the earth is the floore of it; in that I can and do gloriously dwell, without any materiall fabricke of yours.
2 But to this man will I looke, even to him that is poore, and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.My love and respect is to that man that is of a true, broken, penitent, faithfull heart, he is a fit Temple for me to dwell in, &c.
Without this, all your legall complements of ceremonies are not onelyonly vaine,3 He that killeth an oxe, is as if he slew a man. but odious; he that killeth an oxe in a formall sacrifice to me, is as pleasing, as if hee had murthered a man, &c.
I will make choise of their owne delusions,4 I also will chuse their delusions, and will bring their feares upon them, &c. wherewith to punish them; they thought to deceive me with their hypocriticall devotions, and I will make their very hypocrisie, their confusion; and will bring upon them those judgements which they most of all feared, &c.
Those false brethren of yours that hated you for your piety and goodnesse, were ready to say,5 Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name sake, said, Let the Lord be glorified: but he shal appeare to your joy, and they shall be ashamed. we are more carefull to glorifie God, thē your selves; or let God glorifie himselfe by his judgements where they are deserved, but, they shall once finde it otherwise with them; for God shall appeare to your joy, and their confusion.
Behold, their judgement is not afarre off; harken;6 A voice of noise from the Citie, a voice from the Tēple: a voice of the Lord, that rendereth recompence unto his enemies. me thinkes I doe already heare a voyce of noise, and tumult from the citie of Jerusalem, and from the Temple, which shall be wasted; even a fearfull voice of that just God which rendreth vengeance to his enemies.
My Church under the Gospell shall be exceedingly fruitfull; she shall beare children unto her God,7 Before she travailed she brought forth: before her paine came, she was delivered of a man child. with great ease, and speed; yea, she shall beare a generous, and manly issue, before she findes the throwes of her travell.
So verse 8.
What marvell can there be of this easie, and speedy multiplication of the Church, when as the Lord himselfe hath undertaken the worke; Is there any thing impossible, or difficult to the Almighty? finite powers may faile; but shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth, saith the Lord,9 Shall I bring to the birth, & not cause to bring forth, saith the Lord? &c?
Behold, I will give an happy,12 For thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles, like a flowing streame, then shall yee sucke, yee shall be borne upon her sides, and bee dandled upon her knees. and glorious condition to my Church; her peace, and prosperity shall over-flow her, like a full river; and the glory, and excellency of the Gentiles shall come gushing in upon her, like a strong torrent. Then shall ye sonnes of the Church your mother, sucke the brests of her happy nourishment, and she, like an indulgent mother, shall beare you close to her, in her armes; and shall dandle you on her knees; and testifie her deare love and care of your tendance, and education.
Ye, which lay like drie bones scattered upon the earth,14 And your bones shall florish like an herbe. shall then live againe, and flourish, as an herbe of the field, &c.
For, behold, the Lord will come in a furious,15 For behold, the Lord will come with fire, and with his Charets like a whirlewinde, to render his anger with fury. and terrible manner, to take vengeance on his enemies; so as his adversaries shall bee confounded with the horror thereof, &c.
17 They that sanctifie themselves, and purifie themselves in the gardens, behind one tree in the midst, eating swines flesh, and the abominations, and the mouse, shall be consumed together, saith the Lord.They that give themselves to their idolatries in their private groves within their Orchards, with all fond ceremonies of superstition, making choice of some one tree above the rest, more peculiarly consecrated to their false God; & do wilfully transgresse the law of God, in eating those things which are forbidden, as abhominably uncleane; they shall be consumed together, both the superstitious, and the prophane, saith the Lord.
18 It shall come, that I will gather all nations and tongues, and they shall come and see my glory.The time shall come, when out of all nations and tongues I will gather mee out an holy Church to my selfe, and they shall be partakers of that grace, which hath hitherto beene appropriated to the Jewes, and as my truly adopted children, shall inherit my gory.
19 And I will set a signe among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal and Iavan, to the Iles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seene my glory, and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles.And, amidst the common judgement, I will set a marke upon them whom I will have reserved; and those that doe escape of them, I will send as my messengers to the nations round about, to convert them unto me; I will send them, both by sea and land, to all parts of the earth, as to Cilicia, to Africk, to the lesser Asia, to the Parthians, Grecians, Italians, and to the Isles afarre off, that have not formerly heard of my name, nor seene my glory; and they shall publish my Gospell amongst the Gentiles.
And they shall be a meanes to turne the hearts of the world,20 And they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the Lord, out of all nations, upon horses and charets, in litters, and upon mules, and upon swift beasts to my holy Mountaine Ierusalem, saith the Lord, as the children of Israel bring an offering in a cleane vessell, into the house of the Lord. unto God, and to winne men from their superstitions, and impieties, to the service of the true God; so as out of all nations, there shall bee some added to the Church, and shall hasten, by all the severall meanes of their conveiances, to joyne themselves to the assemblies of Gods people; with no lesse zeale, and purity, then now the children of Israel are wont to serve and worship God, in the house consecrated to his name.
And of these converted nations, will I take some to my immediate service,21 And I will also take of them for Priests, and for Levites, saith the Lord. to be peculiarly devoted to me, in the publike ministration of my Church, saith the Lord.
22 For as the new heavens, and the new earth which I will make, shall remaine before me.And this happy condition of my Church, shall be during, and permanent; so as there shall never want those, that shall professe my name upon earth, &c.
23 And it shall come to passe that from one new moone to another, & from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the Lord.Whereas, under the law, there were set, and fixed solemnities, in which God was publikely attended upon with sacrifices, and thankfull celebrations; now these festivities, and religious duties shall be perpetuall, and continue without all intermission; and all nations shall, at all times, come to worship before me, saith the Lord.
24 And they shall goe forth and looke upon the ca…kases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worme shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched, and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.And those that have sincerely professed me, shall bee made the witnesses of the heavy vengeance of God upon them that have wilfully rebelled against me; who shall be tormented with perpetuall anguish of conscience, and lie unrecoverably under the sense of the fearefull wrath of God; and bee a wofull and abhominable spectacle to Angells; and men.