47 Yet will I bring again the captivity of Moab in the latter days, saith the LORD. Thus far is the judgment of Moab. (E)

CHAP. XLIX. CONCERNING the Ammonites, thus saith the LORD; Hath Israel no sons? hath he no heir? why then doth their king inherit Gad, and his people dwell in his cities.

2 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will cause an alarm of war to be heard in Rabbah of the Ammonites; and it shall be a desolate heap, and her daughters shall be burned with fire: then shall Israel be heir unto them that were his heirs, saith the LORD.

3 Howl, O Heshbon, for Ai is spoiled: cry, ye daughters of Rabbah, gird you with sackcloth; lament, and run to and fro by the hedges; for their king shall go into captivity, and his priests and his princes together.

4 Wherefore gloriest thou in the valleys, thy flowing valley, O backsliding daughter? that trusted in her treasures, saying, Who shall come unto me?

5 Behold, I will bring a fear upon

[the Ammonites.

thee, saith the Lord GoD of hosts, from all those that be about thee: and ye shall be driven out every man right forth; and none shall gather up him that wandereth.

6 And afterward I will bring again the captivity of the children of Ammon, saith the LORD.

7 Concerning Edom, thus saith the LORD of hosts; Is wisdom no more in Teman; is counsel perished from the prudent? Is their wisdom vanished?

8 Flee ye, turn back, dwell deep, O inhabitants of Dedan; for I will bring the calamity of Esau upon him, the time that I will visit him.

9 If grape-gatherers come to thee, would they not leave some gleaning grapes? If thieves by night, they will destroy till they have enough.

T

10 But I have made Esau bare, î have uncovered his secret places, and he shall not be able to hide himself: his seed is spoiled, and his brethren, and his neighbours, and he is not.

11 Leave thy fatherless children, I will preserve them alive; and let thy widows trust in me.

12 For thus saith the LORD; Behold, they whose judgment was not to drink of the cup have assuredly drunk

(E) Ver. 26-47. Farther denunciations against Moab.—God himself is here intro duced, as ordering for Moab the cup of awful and intoxicating judgments which was ordained for her. Among other crimes Moab is reproached with rejoicing in the calamities of Judah, and leaping for joy at her destruction: and therefore shall joy and gladness be withdrawn, and mourning and lamentation cover all the country. The destruction of Moab, however, shall not be final. "Yet will I bring again the captivity of Moab in the latter days, saith the Lord." When Israel is restored, then

also shall "the fulness of the Gentiles" be brought in, and the whole earth be covered with the knowledge and the glory of the Lord.

This prophecy concerning Moab, as respects much of the imagery, may be compared with the 15th and 16th chapters of Isaiah: only it should be remarked that Isaiah is understood to refer to the misfortunes of that country from Shalmanezer, Jeremiah to its subsequent conquest by Nebuchadnezzar. There were 130 years or more between the two events.

CHAP. XLIX. Ver. 1. Concerning Marg. or, "against."Why doth their king-Marg. "Melcom," or Milcom, the chief idol of the Ammonites, I Kings xi. 5. It is supposed that when the Assyrians carried away captive the Gadites, who dwelt beyond Jordan, the Ammonites seized upon their territory. See Amos i. 13.

Ver. 2. Rabbah....and her daughters-that is, the lesser towns dependent on the metropolis.--Shall Israel be heir.-Comp. Zeph. ii. 9. This was fulfilled when Judas Maccabeus defeated the Ammonites, 1 Macc. v. 6, 7. "He passed over to the children

Prophecies]

en; and art thou he that shall altogether go unpunished? Thou shalt not go unpunished; but thou shalt surely drink of it.

13 For I have sworn by myself, saith the LORD, that Bozrah shall become a desolation, a reproach, a waste, and a curse; and all the cities thereof shall be perpetual wastes.

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.

15 For lo, I will make thee small among the heathen, and despised

among men.

16 Thy terribleness hath deceived thee, and the pride of thine heart, O thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, that holdest the height of the hill: though thou shouldest make thy nest as high as the eagle, I will bring thee down from thence, saith the LORD.

17 Also Edom shall be a desolation; every one that goeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss at all the plagues thereof.

18 As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbour cities thereof, saith the LORD, no man shall abide there, neither shall a son of man dwell in it.

CHAP. XLIX.

[against Edom and Syria.

19 Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the swelling of Jordan against the habitation of the strong: but I will suddenly make him run 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? and who is that shepherd that will stand before me?

20 Therefore hear the counsel of the LORD, that he hath taken against Edom; and his purposes, that he hath purposed against the inhabitants of Teman surely the least of the flock shall draw them out; surely he shall make their habitations desolate with them.

21 The earth is moved at the noise of their fall; at the cry, the noise thereof was heard in the Red sea.

22 Behold, he shall come up and fly as the eagle, and spread his wings over Bozrah: and at that day shall the heart of the mighty men of Edom be as the heart of a woman in her pangs. (F) .

23¶ Concerning Damascus, Hamath is confounded, and Arpad: for they have heard evil tidings: they are fainthearted; there is sorrow on the sea; it cannot be quiet.

24 Damascus is waxed feeble, and turneth herself to flee, and fear bath seized on her: anguish and sorrows

(F) Ver. 1-22. Predictions concerning the Ammonites and Edomites.-This chapter contains prophecies relating to several nations in the neighbourhood of Judea, and, like those preceding, are supposed to have been fulfilled by the ministry of Nebuchadnezzar, and the first part of the

chapter regards the Ammonites and Edomites. The downfal of the Ammonites is likewise predicted by Ezekiel, Amos, and Zephaniah. That of Edom by Ezekiel, Joel, Amos, and Obadiah. The same facts are referred to, and the images employed very similar, as will appear by consulting the References in our Notes.

Ver. 13. Bozrah-a capital city on the confines of Edom in Arabia. See Isa. Ixiii. 1.

Ver. 14. A rumour, &c.-Comp. Obad. ver. 1-5. Ver. 19. He shall come up—namely, Nebuchadnezzar; compare chap. iv. 7. As a lion.-See chap. xii. 5. "This and the following verse are very difficult, either to translate or to expound : Gataker, who gives a variety of interpretations, both from Jewish and Christian commentators, prefers the following: that Nebuchadnezzar, after over-running Edom, should as suddenly leave it, for that God holds an incontrollable sovereignty over the the inhabitants of the earth." (Dan. iv. 35.)

Ibid. Who is a chosen man, &c.—that is, whom soever I choose, &c.

Ver. 20. The least of the flock.-This is very ob scure. Blayney reads, "They shall be dragged away from the little ones of the flock," &c. but qu

Ver. 22. Like an eagle. The same Nebuchad nezzar who, in ver. 19, is called a lion.

Ver. 23. Damascus-Isaiah and Amos had foretold its captivity by Tiglath-pileser; but it had recovered, and was doomed to fresh calamities, from the king of Babylon, which are reckoned to have taken place about the time of the siege of Tyre, be fore mentioned. See 2 Kings xviii. 34.

Ibid. They are faint-hearted-Heb. "Melte

Also against Kedar]

have taken her, as a woman in travail. 25 How is the city of praise not left, the city of my joy?

26 Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets, and all the men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the LORD of hosts.

27 And I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus, and it shall consume the palaces of Ben-hadad.

28 Concerning Kedar, and concerning the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon shall amite, thus saith the LORD; Arise ye, go up to Kedar, and spoil the men of the east.

29 Their tents and their flocks shall they take away: they shall take to themselves their curtains, and all their vessels, and their camels; and they shall cry unto them, Fear is on every side.

30 Flee, get you far off, dwell deep, inhabitants of Hazor, saith the LORD; for Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath taken counsel against vou, and hath conceived a purpose against you.

31 Arise, get you up unto the wealthy nation, that dwelleth without care, saith the LORD, which have neither gates nor bars, which dwell alone. 32 And their camels shall be a booty, and the multitude of their cattle a spoil: and I will scatter into all

[and Elam. winds, them that are in the utmost corners; and I will bring their calamity from all sides thereof, saith the LORD.

33 And Hazor shall be a dwelling for dragons, and a desolation for ever: there shall no man abide there, nor any son of man dwell in it.

34 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet against Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying,

35 Thus saith the LORD of hosts: Behold, I will break the bow of Elam, the chief of their might.

36 And upon Elam will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven, and will scatter them toward all those winds; and there shall be no nation whither the outcasts of Elam shall not come.

37 For I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life: and I will bring evil upon them, even my fierce anger, saith the LORD; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them:

38 And I will set my throne in Elam, and will destroy from thence the king and the princes, saith the LORD.

39 But it shall come to pass in the latter days, that I will bring again the captivity of Elam, saith the LORD. (G)

(G) Ver. 23-39. Judgments pronounced against the Syrians, the Arabs, and the Elamites.-Damascus was the capital of Syria, and Amath and Arphad also principal cities, all of which are here represented as confounded and overwhelmed with the prospect of approaching troubles. Kedar and Hazor were ancient Arab tribes, the former descended from Ishmael; (Gen.

XXV.

13.) and the latter perhaps of still

higher origin, of the race of Joktan. (Gen. x. 26.) Elam often signifies Persia, but Dr. Blayney thinks it here means, not the empire but the province of Elam. (Dan. viii. 2.) called by Pliny, Elymais. Of this nation, however, as of Moab and Ammon, a return to prosperity is promised in the latter days--those happy days in which all nations are encouraged to look for blessings under the peaceful reign of the Messiah.

Blayney, "Melted into a sea of solicitude;" Boothrayd," Dissolved with fear as the sea, which cannot," &c.

Ver.25. The city of praise-i. e. the celebrated city. Ver. 28. Of the east-Blayney, "Of Kedar." Ver. 29. Their curtains-that is, tent curtains; they were Scenites, or wandering Arabs.

Ver. 31. The wealthy nation-Marg. " A nation at ease." So Blayney. Blayney," In

Ver. 32. In the utmost corners ➡➡

every quarter of the insolated coast:" i. e. the peninsula of Arabia. But our margin gives the Heb. thus: "Of those that cut off the corners of their hair. So Boothroyd. Compare chap. xi. 25, and Note; also xxv. 23.

Ver.35. The bow of Elam.-See Isa. xxii. 6. Ver. 36. The four winds-that is, enemies from all quarters. See above, ver. 32.

Ver. 38. Set my throne-that is, establish my su. premacy.

Prophecies]

CHAP. L.

THE word that the LORD spake a gainst Babylon, and against the land of the Chaldeans, by Jeremiah the prophet.

2 Declare ye among the nations, and publish, and set up a standard; publish, and conceal not: say, Babylon is taken, Bel is confounded, Mero dach is broken in pieces; her idols are confounded, her images are broken in pieces.

3 For out of the north there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast.

4 In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together, going and weeping: they shall go, and seek the LORD their God.

5 They shall ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward, saying, Come, and let us join ourselves to the LORD in a perpetual covenant, that shall not be forgotten.

6 My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten, their resting place.

7 All that found them have devour ed them: and their adversaries said, We offend not, because they have sinned against the LORD, the habitation of justice; even the LORD, the hope of their fathers.

8 Remove out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as the he-goats before the flocks.

9 For, lo, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country;

[against Babylon

and they shall set themselves in array against her: from thence she shall be taken their arrows shall be as of a

mighty expert man; none shall return in vain.

..10 And Chaldea shall be a spoil: all that spoil her shall be satisfied, saith the LORD.

11. Because ye were glad, because ye rejoiced, O yé destroyers of mine heritage; because ye are grown fat as the heifer at grass, and bellow as bulls:

12 Your mother shall be sore confounded; she that bare you shall be ashamed: behold, the hindermost of the nations shall be a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.

13 Because of the wrath of the LORD it shall not be inhabited, but it shall be wholly desolate: every one that goeth by Babylon shall be astonished, and hiss at all her plagues.

14 Put yourselves in array against Babylon round about: all ye that bend the bow shoot at her, spare no arrows: for she hath sinned against the LORD.

15 Shout against her round about: she hath given her hand; her foundations are fallen, her walls are thrown down: for it is the vengeance of the LORD: take vengeance upon her; as she hath done, do unto her.

16 Cut off the sower from Babylon, and him that handleth the sickle in the time of harvest: for fear of the oppressing sword they shall turn every one to his people, and they shall flee every one to his own land.

17 Israel is a scattered sheep; the lions liave driven him away: first the king of Assyria hath devoured him: and last this Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath broken his bones.

18 Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold. I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria.

CHAP. L. Ver. 2. Merodach-an idol, of which nothing certain is known. When an idol is frac tured, the deity is supposed to have abandoned it.Oriental Lit. No. 687.

ver. 6. Their resting place Heb. "Their place

19 And I will bring Israel again to his habitation; and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan, and his soul shall be satisfied upon mount Ephraim and Gilead.

20 In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve. (H)

21 ¶ Go up against the land of Merathaim, even against it, and against the inhabitants of Pekod: waste and utterly destroy after them, saith the LORD, and do according to all that I have commanded thee.

22 A sound of battle is in the land, and of great destruction.

23 How is the hammer of the whole earth cut asunder and broken! how is Babylon become a desolation among

the nations!

24 I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon, and thou wast not aware: thou art found and also caught, because thou hast striven against the LORD.

CHAP. L.

[against Babylon.

25 The LORD hath opened his armoury, and hath brought forth the weapons of his indignation: for this is the work of the Lord GoD of hosts in the land of the Chaldeans.

26 Come against her from the utmost border, open her store-houses t cast her up as heaps, and destroy her utterly: let nothing of her be left.

27 Slay all her bullocks; let them go down to the slaughter: woe unto / them! for their day is come, the time of their visitation.

28 The voice of them that flee and escape out of the land of Babylon, to declare in Zion the vengeance of the LORD our God, the vengeance of his temple.

29 Call together the archers against Babylon: all ye that bend the bow, camp against it round about; let noné thereof escape: recompense her according to her work; according to all that she hath done, do unto her: for she hath been proud against the LORD, against the Holy One of Israel.

30 Therefore shall her young men

(H) Ver. 1-20. The judgments on Babylon, and the redemption of Israel.-The judgments on Babylon had been largely predicted by Isaiah, (ch. xiii. xxi. xlvii.) and are referred to by other prophets. This empire and Egypt were indeed the chief enemies of Israel, and were also typical of the principal opposers of the Christian church, especially the former. Not only was the intermixture of promises with threatenings, in the prophetic writings, calculated to encourage captive Israel, but the threatenings themselves still more so, since the fall of their enemies was the signal of their deliverance. Thus is the Christian church called upon to rejoice in the fall of mystic Babylon-"for in her is found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth." Rev. xviii. 24.

There is a remarkable passage in ver 11, which, though it has been often applied to the children of Israel, evidently belongs to Edom, who, it should be remembered, was not of the accursed race of Canaan: "Leave thy fatherless children," &c. from which we infer two things, 1. That their children should all be orphans, and their women widows: 2. That however they might be involved in general calamities, there is encouragement for all the afflicted to put their trust in God. It is against "the proud in heart" only, that he declareth war. (ver. 16) the penitent and humble may always find a shelter in "the hollow of his hand." As to Israel and Judah, they are called upon to return to their city and their God. Their pardon is announced, and all their sins declared to be for ever cancelled.

Ver. 21. Of Merathaim-Marg. "Of the rebels;" Blayney, Of bitternesses," because she hath been the source of so much bitterness to Israel.-Inhabitants of Pekod - Boothroyd, "Punish (Heb. "visit") it, and its inhabitants, O sword." Ver.23. The hammer of the whole earth- that is,

Babylon, which destroyed all other nations, is herself destroyed. Ver. 26. From the utmost border — Heb. "From the end." Cast her up-Margin, "Tread," or trample her.