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17 For how great is his goodness, and the diviners have seen a lie, and

CHAP. IX.

EXPOSITION.

(1) The Lord promises to defend his hurch, and to send them the Messiah.1 the Introduction to this book, we sug ested a doubt which has arisen among the arned; not as to the divine authority of ese last six chapters (for that is unimachable), but whether they were not itten by Jeremiah, or, some of them, by still earlier prophet. Such a discussion uld be very unsuitable for family readg; but the Editor takes the liberty to ite, that after considering the arguents which have been advanced on botn es, he feels fully satisfied with the eviice produced by Mr. Hartwell Horne, 1 Mr. Prebend. Townsend, that they were itten by Zechariah, though probably at nuch later period than the rest, and r the close of his life. The original unds of the suspicion will be seen in Note on Matt. xxvii. 9. (Horne's Crit. od. N. Ed. vol. iv. p. 209. Townsend's Test. Arrang. vol. ii. p. 762-766.)

his chapter contains prophetic burdens tive to Syria, Phenicia, and Palestine, ch were conquered successively by Neaduezzar and by Alexander the Great. ositors differ as to which may be here nded, but perhaps both may be alluded The chief subject of this chapter is, ever, the peaceful kingdom of Messiah,

which being "not of this world," neither requires nor admits of military pomp, or secular force; but which is introduced by himself riding upon an humble ass, and thereby "pouring contempt on all earthly grandeur, and rejecting all human aid."

The address to Zion, or the daughter of Zion (ver. 11-13), may require elucidation. The prisoners out of the pit, must be the Jews returned from the captivity; this being effected by, or in accord with, the blood of their covenant, seems to imply that this deliverance from their second bondage was in consequence of their being God's covenanted people; and that they were thereby as much bound to gratitude and obedience as were their forefathers by their miraculous deliverance from Egypt and farther, that every victory they obtained over their enemies, called upon them for obedience to his laws, and for sacrifices upon his altar.

:

In the close of the chapter, the God of Israel speaks of them as his sheep and his jewels, and intimates, if we mistake not, that their example may be singularly useful and ornamental, like a splendid ensign which shows from afar, and animates and encourages those who are entering upon the good fight of faith: their young men should rejoice as with the joy of harvest (Isa. ix. 3.); and their maidens praise God with all the hilarity of the vintage.

NOTES.

15. Filled like bowls, and as the corners of tar.-Filled, namely with blood, which some in of the blood of their enemies slain, and of the blood of the victims shed as thanksofferings. (Assembly's Ann. in loc.) If we to the former, as most do, we must refer it to cient mode of fighting (still retained in some of the world), when armies attacked each with shouts and yells, and tore one another to like wild beasts. See Num. xxiii. 24. If we the marginal reading, "Shall fill both the and the corners," &c. we may refer it to the of the sacrifices, received into bowls, and ed over the corners of the altars, where the es were deposited.

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Ver. 16. The stones of a crown.-Some suppose this of "crowned trophies;" but the stones of a crown are jewels, and such does the Lord consider his faithful people (Mal. iii. 17): Nor is this inconsistent with the following metaphor, since ensigns were often highly embellished; and perhaps the lifting them as ensigns, may refer to the exhibition of their good example.

Ver. 17. Cheerful-Marg. "To grow, or speak ;" i. e. to praise the God of harvest.

CHAP. X. Ver.1. Bright clouds-Marg, “Lightnings,” which generally accompanied these heavy

rains.

Ver. 2. For the idols-Heb. “Teraphim," oracles.

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have told false dreams; they comfort in vain: therefore they went their way as a flock, they were troubled, because there was no shepherd.

3 Mine anger was kindled against the shepherds, and I punished the goats for the LORD of hosts hath visited his flock the house of Judah, and hath made them as his goodly horse in the battle.

4 Out of him came forth the corner, out of him the nail, out of him the battle-bow, out of him every oppressor together.

5 And they shall be as mighty men, which tread down their enemies in the mire of the streets in the battle: and they shall fight, because the LORD is with them, and the riders on horses shall be confounded.

6 And I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will bring them again to place them; for I have mercy upon them and they shall be as though I had not cast them off: for I am the LORD their God, and will hear them. 7 And they of Ephraim shall be

CHAP. X.

[restore Israel

like a mighty man, and their heart shall rejoice as through wine: yea, their children shall see it, and be glad; their heart shall rejoice in the LORD.

8 I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased.

9 And I will sow them among the people and they shall remember me in far countries; and they shall live with their children, and turn again.

10 I will bring them again also cut of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon ; and place shall not be found for them.

11 And he shall pass through the sea with affliction, and shall smite the waves in the sea, and all the deeps of the river shall dry up: and the pride of Assyria shall be brought down, and the sceptre of Egypt shall depart away.

12 And I will strengthen them in the LORD; and they shall walk up and down in his name, saith the LORD. (K)

EXPOSITION.

(K) Israel reproved for seeking to idols and false prophets, and directed to look to the true God only. The promise of prosperity and plenty in the close of the preceding chapter, leads the Prophet to suggest the means of obtaining them; supplication to Jehovah, and not to idols, whose worship had already proved a fertile source of calamities. The rest of the chapter (like the preceding one) promises to the Jews returning from captivity (for they came gradually and at different times) much increase and prosperity; and this in a manner so extraordinary, that it is described by allusions to the deliverance from Egypt. This may, however, as is generally thought, have a farther reference to their still future return from their dispersion, and final restoration.

In the promise of returning prosperity the nation, it is particularly predicted, that they should have no need to recur to foreign aid; but, under the divine providence, should be able to furnish from themselves every kind of ruler, from the corner stone and the nail (the chief magistrates), on whom the weight of gover ment rests (and which terms are applied to the Messiah himself, Ps. cxviii. 22; Isa xxii. 23.), to the military commander (the battle bow), and even the exactor, or taxgather, here called the oppressor-a word of extensive import, including those whose office was least respected or beloved-but speaking of whom it is promised to Jeresalem, I will make thine officers peace. and thine exactors (the word here used, righteousness (Isa. Ix. 17).

66

NOTES-Chap. X. Con. the day of battle.

-False dreams-Heb. " Dreams of falsehood.". Went their way as a flock-that is, followed one another in the same track. -They were troubledMarg "Answered that," &c. Perhaps the sense is, that they followed one another, under the excuse that there was no oracle at Jerusalem.

Ver.3. Punished the goats-Heb. "Visited (judgments) upon the he-goats," i. e. arbitrary and wicked rulers.--As his goodly horse - Literally, "His horse of glory," or gorgeous horse, richly caparisoned, as the horse of a commander-in-chief in

Ver. 4. Out of him (Judah) came forth the corner -Newcome, "From him (shall be) the corner-sten See Exposition.

Ver.3. The riders, &c. - Marz. "They shail make the riders on horses ashamed. See ch. x 10. Ver. 8. I will hiss for them-Compare Isa v. S Ver. 9. I will sow them so that they shall grey ---Skal imme increase, as in the verse preceding

with their children - Newcome, Shall preserve

their children."

Evil and good]

CHAP. XI.

CHAP. XI.

OPEN thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars. 2 Howl, fir tree; for the cedar is fallen; because the mighty is spoiled: howl, O ye oaks of Bashan; for the forest of the vintage is come down.

3 There is a voice of the howling of the shepherds; for their glory is spoiled a voice of the roaring of young lions; for the pride of Jordan is spoiled.

4 Thus saith the LORD my God; Feed the flock of the slaughter;

5 Whose possessors slay them, and hold themselves not guilty: and they that sell them say, Blessed be the LORD, for I am rich and their own shepherds pity them not.

6 For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, saith the LORD: but, lo, I will deliver the men every one into his neighbour's hand, and into the hand of his king: and they shall smite the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them.

7 And I will feed the flock of slaughter, even you, O poor of the flock. And I took unto me two staves; the one I called Beauty, and the other I called Bands; and I fed the flock.

8 Three shepherds also I cut off

[shepherds compared.

in one month; and my soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred me.

9 Then said I, I will not feed you: that that dieth, let it die; and that that is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let the rest eat every one the flesh of another.

10 And I took my staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the people.

11 And it was broken in that day: and so the poor of the flock that waited upon me knew that it was the word of the LORD.

12 And I said unto them, if ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver.

13 And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prized at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD.

14 Then I cut asunder mine other staff, even Bands, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.

15 And the LORD said unto me, Take unto thee yet the instruments of a foolish shepherd.

16 For, lo, I will raise up a shepherd

NOTES.

CHAP. XI. Ver. 1. Open thy doors, O Lebanon. Many apply this passage to the temple (as built with the wood of Lebanon, 1 Kings v. 18). Blayney is of opinion, that "These three first verses can relate only to the destruction of the city and temple by the Romans; and such (he adds) was the application made by Rabbi Johanan, when the doors of the temple opened of their own accord, before the temple was burnt; which circumstance is attested by Josephus."

Ver. 2. The forest of the vintage-Marg. "Fenced forest." Newcome remarks, "The original word is applied to cedars and vines." Ezek. xvii. 8, 23.

Ver. 3. The pride of Jordan:-The wood on its banks, the resort of lions. Jer. xlix. 19.

Ver. 4. The flock of the slaughter-or, of slaughter, as ver. 7; i. e. the Jewish church now devoted to destruction by the hand of the Chaldeans. See 2 Kings xxiv. 14-16, and sequel.

Ver. 7. Two staves—that is, shepherds' staves; Newcome," crooks."The one I called BEAUTY

to intimate how beautiful and pleasant the land would have been, if its inhabitants had kept their covenant with God."-The other I called BONDS

to signify the union which ought to have subsisted between Judah and Israel." Newcome.

Ver. 8. Three shepherds also I cut off in one month. It is, perhaps, best to confess we do not understand this. Neither Blayney, Newcome, nor Boothroyd, throw any light upon it, farther than the

general remark (often made) that the prophets are in Scripture said to do what they are commanded, only to predict. See Jer. i. 10.

Ver. 9. The flesh of another- Heb. "Of his neighbour," the most dreadful feature of a famine, See Deut. xxviii. 53-57.

Ver. 10. It was broken-that is, "His covenant of feeding the flock." Newcome.

Ver. 11. So the poor-" The common people, who observed this action of the prophet, understood it to be symbolical, and to represent God's conduct towards them." Boothroyd.

Ver. 12. Give me my price-"Rate my labours as a true shepherd. And they rated them contemptuously; thirty pieces of silver being the price of a slave." Newcome. See Exod. xxi. 32.

Ver. 13. I have been prized-“ Jehovah calls the price of the prophet his own price, and commauds that it should not be accepted." Newcome.-In the house of the Lord. It is natural to suppose that the prophet met, in some part of the temple, the potter who made the vessels for sacred use.

Ver. 14. That I might break the brotherhood.From this verse it has been inferred, that the chapter must have been written before the separation of the two kingdoms, or at least before the captivity of Israel. But this is not conclusive. These words might refer only to the disunion of the returned captives, and to the dissensions breaking out amongst them and so they are understood by Dr. Boothroyd.

Farther prophecies]

ZECHARIAH.

in the land, which shall not visit those that be cut off, neither shall seek the young one, nor heal that that is broken, nor feed that that standeth still: but he shall eat the flesh of the fat, and tear their claws in pieces.

17 Woe to the idol shepherd that leaveth the flock! the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened. (L)

CHAP. XII.

THE burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him.

CHAP. XI.

[respecting Israel,

2 Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem.

3 And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.

4 In that day, saith the LORD, I will smite every horse with astonishment, and his rider with madness: and I will open mine eyes upon the house of Judah, and will smite every horse of the people with blindness.

5 And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart, The inhabitants of

EXPOSITION.

(L) Farther prophecies with respect to Judea and Jerusalem. The three first verses of this chapter have been thought to refer to the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, either by Nebuchadnezzar, or by the Romans; but we confess we are not certain that it refers to either; it may predict the destruction of the forest itself, of whose mighty cedars scarcely any now remain. Or if it refers to Judea, in being blended with the destruction of the woods that grew on the banks of Jordan, it may metaphorically apply to laying waste the country at a future period, as we have seen it long since fulfilled. In the 14th verse, the disappointed Prophet, discouraged by the ill success of his labours, breaks the staves, or crooks, which must be considered as the badges of his pastoral office, to signify his resignation of it, and the disannulling of God's covenant with the nation; and he is ordered to take in their stead "the instruments of a foolish shepherd;" that is, weapons of violence and de

struction ; implying, that those who refused to submit to the divine government, should be subjugated to governments of a much severer character.

It is obvious, that the latter chapters of this book are highly symbolical. The Prophet himself appears as a type of the good Shepherd, the Messiah, and in the ungrateful treatment which himself received, strongly prefigures the treatment of his divine Master. On the resigning his prophetic office, he appeals to them for wages, as the means of ascertaining the estimation in which his services had been held; they then insult him by offering the the price of a slave, and which he rescats by casting it to the potter, as intimating that it was the price only of the lowest of labourers; those that tread the clay, or the morter (Nahum iii. 14). In this, however, he is chiefly to be considered as a type, the Evangelist Matthew comparing this with the far more criminal conduct of the Jews in the rejection of our Saviour. (See Matt. xxvii. 9, 10.)

NOTES-Chap. XI. Con.

Ver. 15. The instruments of a foolish shepherd. -What could these be? Certainly what were unsuitable and improper; intimating, that the idolatrous teachers and rulers took wrong means to fulfil their duties, for which they would be called upon hereafter to give account.

Ver. 16. I will raise up-that is, I will permit such an one to come forward, whose character and fate is here described.

Ver. 17. Wo to the idol shepherd.-This will apply equally to king or priest, who may be an idolater. Their claws-or "hoofs." See Ezek. xxxiv. 3, 4.

CHAP. XII. Ver. 1. The burden. - See Note on Isa. xvii. 1.

Ver. 2. A cup of trembling-"An inebriating and stnpifying potion .... Jerusalem shall strike the nations with dread and astonishment." Newcome.

Ver. 3. A burdensome stone-Heb. " A stone of burden." "Jerom has explained this, by informing us that it was an ancient custom, and then observed in the cities, towns, and villages, to have large round stones, which the young men took up, as an exercise of their strength; some raising them as high as the knee, some as high as the breast, and others above the head, with their arms." Dr. Boothroyd.

Ibid. All that burden themselves with it shall be cut-Newcome, "Wounded." Comp. Matt. xxi. 44 Ver. 4. Every horse with astonishment-orderror." We do not understand this prediction; and as it is generally reckoned among those yet accesplished, we shall not attempt to force a meaning on it Ver. 5. The inhabitants of Jerusalem, &Marg. "There is strength to me, and to the inhab tants," &c. So Newcome,

CHAP. XIII.

The fountain]
Jerusalem shall be my strength in the
LORD of hosts their God.

6 In that day will I make the governors of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left: and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, even in Jerusalem.

7 The LORD also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David, and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, do not magnify themselves against Judah.

8 In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them.

9 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. 10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon

CHAP. XII.

[of mercy opened.

me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son; and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

11 In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon.

12 And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart;

13 The family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart; the family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart;

14 All the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart. (M)

CHAP. XIII.

IN N that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness.

2 And it shall come to pass in that

EXPOSITION.

(M) A prophetic burden against Judah and Jerusalem.-If the siege referred to in ver. 2, be that of Jerusalem by the Romans, it had a remarkable fulfilment in the effects which the scene had on the invading General (Titus) and his army, who were shocked at the madness and obstinacy of the Jews in destroying themselves and one another, as we shall hereafter more particularly remark. (See on Matt. xxiv.) Many commentators, however, consider this prediction as referring to an event at a far greater distance (Rev. xx. 9.), when, indeed, it may be more signally accomplished.

The tenth verse is quoted by St. Matthew as referring to our Saviour, who was pierced upon the cross; and such a lamen

tation no doubt took place, when, after St. Peter had charged the Jews with killing "the Prince of Life," the Spirit of grace was poured out from on high, and many thousands were subsequently converted to Christianity. St. John however assures us, that another day is coming when 66 every eye shall see" the Saviour, they especially "who pierced him "-meaning the descendants of his murderers" and all the kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him." The text will then receive its complete accomplishment. (See Rev. i. 7.) When this mourning is said to be of every family apart, perhaps it must not be taken literally; but implies that it shall not be a general external mourning only; but private, distinct, and individual.

NOTES.

Ver. 6. Like an hearth of fire-this is supposed to refer to clearing the woods by fire; the common practice in some countries.

Ver. 8. He that is feeble-Heb. "Fallen." This may imply either weakness of body, or dejection in mind.As God, as the angel of the Lord.-Does not this imply, that the illustrious person usually styled" the Angel of the Lord," was also himself God? The language, however, as applied to Judah, is hyperbolical.

Ver. 10. They shall look upon MB. - Newcome says, 36 MSS and two Editions read (with John xix. 34), "Upon HIM;" the difference only half a letter. So Dr. Boothroyd.-Dr. Pye Smith, however, remarks, that the majority of MSS, and those of the highest antiquity, and all the ancient versions, consent in the common reading, "upon ME." Smith's Messiah, voi. i. p. 327, N.As the mourning of Hadadrimmon-- probably for king Josiah See 2 Chron. xxxv. 22-25.

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