that no obftacle may hinder his fervants from the enjoyment of promifed liberty. The fignal inftances of divine power and providence here alluded to, furnishes complete evidence of the all-fufficiency of the Lord God to preserve his faints in perfect fafety, and to extricate them from the perilous circumftances wherein they are involved. No evil, however tremendous it may appear, from which he is not able and willing to refcue them.-The Lord of hofts is his name. He is the Lord of all the celeftial hofts, who do him homage, and execute his pleasure; yea, all the creatures, from the greatest to the leaft, the luminaries of heaven, every thing in the earth, the fea, and the air, is obedient to his voice, and fulfils his commands He employs them as he fees proper to fulfil his purposes. This glorious character, claimed by Jehovah, is replete with confolation to his people, who are thereby reminded of their perfect fafety under his protection who hath all power in heaven and earth, who abases the proud, and delivers the needy from deceit and violence.

16. And I have put my words in thy mouth, and have covered thee in the fhadow of mine hand, that I may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and fay unto Zion, Thou art my people.

The Lord God gives folemn affurance to the Meffiah, and his myftical body, the Church, acting under his authority, that he would conftantly afford them his favour and protection, until the great work affigned them fhould be fully executed. The prediction is delivered in the manner frequently adopted by the prophets, who speak of future events as if they had actually taken place, to intimate the complete certainty of their accomplishment.-I have put my words in thy mouth. I have imparted to thee my truths, my commands, my promifes and threatenings,

that

that thou mayeft openly avow and confefs them before men; and I have given thee ability, liberty, and opportunity to communicate them to others, that my name may be glorified, and the knowledge of my falvation diffeminated throughout all the earth. And have covered thee in the fhadow of mine band. This expreffion, which I had occafion to explain when treating chapter xlix. 2. may here import, that Jefus Chrift, and his Church, were to enjoy perfect fecurity, by the power and providence of the Almighty, under whofe fhadow they were continually to abide, of whom they were to fay, He is our refuge, our fortrefs, our God, in him will we trust.

That I may plant the heavens, &c. Thefe words muft undoubtedly be understood in their figurative fense. The renovation of the Church, the establishment of a new and permanent economy of grace, by means of the miniftry of the gofpel, which is here intended, is expreffed by planting the heavens, and laying the foundations of the earth. Our prophet, who deduces the principal images and ornaments, which he employs to illuftrate and adorn his difcourse, from natural objects, in order to magnify and embellish the predicted event, refers to the planting of a garden with trees and fhrubs, and to the creation of the world. By thefe beautiful allufions he illuminates the future by the past, he delineates the elegance and grandeur of the new world, he rescues the prediction from obfcurity, and enables us, in fome measure, to form diftinct ideas of his meaning. -The heavens and the earth may denote the new œconomy of grace, the better difpenfation established by the Son of God, which was fubftituted in place of the former one, that had been corrupted and vitiated, and which introduced a new form, new inftitutions and privileges, into the fpiritual ftate of the world. In this new œconomy, the Lord God, according to this prophecy, placed in fuperior ftations all thofe illuftrious perfons, whofe benign influence produced the most falutary effects in the Church, and entirely

entirely changed the very face of the world, with refpect to religion. Jefus Chrift, the Sun of righteousness, arose with healing under his wings, celestial intelligences proclaimed peace on earth, apoftles, paftors and teachers, who are spoken of as ftars, with all those who hold eminent ftations in the kingdom of God, enlightened that highly-favoured community. The earth, which may fignify here the great mass of the common people, who occupy inferior ftations, and derive falutary influence from those who are invested with office and authority: them Jehovah declares he will establish, and build upon the Rock of ages, against which the gates of hell fhall never be able to prevail. The expreffions ufed in relation to the heaven and the earth, intimate that the great work here foretold was to be executed by the peculiar agency of the Lord God, that it was gradually to rife to maturity, and to remain in a permanent, flourishing condition.-In confèquence of this promife having been verified, the conduct of men, both Jews and Gentiles, was wholly altered towards God and one another. The Mofaic œconomy inftituted at Mount Sinai was abolished, and the pofterity of Ifrael were taught to confider the Moft High, and their brethren of other nations, in a different light from that in which they had been accuftomed to view them. The falfe deities worshipped for many ages by the Gentiles were deferted, and the homage that had been given them was withdrawn. The abettors of fuperftition and idolatry were deprived of the afcendency they had acquired over the minds of men, and vaft numbers of the inhabitants of the earth adored and ferved the living and true God, of whom they had hitherto remained ignorant. In few words, the fpiritual ftate of the world was changed, a new heavens and a new earth appeared, and multitudes of the human race feemed to be new creatures.

This remarkable alteration was to be accomplished, that Jehovah might fay to Zion, thou art my people.

At

At the period referred to, the Almighty was to afford convincing evidence of the intimate, endearing relation in which he ftands connected with his Church, whereby the world was to be constrained to acknowledge the luftre of his glory, manifest in them, and his difpenfations toward them. Though in times past the people of God had been reprefented as factious, feditious, and troublesome, men were to be obliged to own that their strength is in the Lord of hofts their God *, that they were his chosen inheritance, who fhewed forth his praises; his peculiar treasure, wherein he will be glorified.-Improve, Brethren, this intimation as a powerful argument to excite you to live and act fo that God may not be ashamed to be called your God. From this animating confideration derive comfort in all your diftreffes, and endeavour to fhew that you are his people, by cheerful obedience to his authority, by firm truft in his wisdom, power, and goodness, and by contentment with every circumstance in your lot.

17. Awake, awake, ftand up, O Jerufalem, which haft drunk at the hand of the Lord the cup of his fury; thou haft drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling, and wrung them out.

Our prophet with great earneftnefs addreffes the Church, afflicted by manifold calamities, whereby they had been reduced to a ftate resembling that of perfons intoxicated with ftrong drink. He directs his difcourfe particularly to the Church in Judea, or Jerufalem, the mother of all the other Chriftian churches, the centre from whence they all diverged, which, in the prophetical Scriptures, is often fpoken of by the name of Zion, or Jerufalem. He repeatedly calls upon them to arise and beftir themselves, confcious of their floth and unconcern as to their fpiritual state. The circumftances by which this felect fociety is defcribed require to be noticed. They were inebriated

Zech. xii. 5.

inebriated, not with wine, but by their having drunk of the cup of the Lord's fury which contains those terrible calamities that are the effects of his dread difpleasure. Of this cup they had not only tafted, but they had received a large draught, in confequence of which they were greatly diftreffed; they were deprived of tranquillity of mind, and reduced to a ftate of deplorable infenfibility. Of this cup of fury and trembling they had drunk the dregs, and wrung them out; they had shared largely of very fevere afflictive evils, which had brought upon them dread and trembling. From the intoxicating quality of wine, when drunk in too great quantities, is borrowed this tremendous image of the wrath and indignation of Almighty God, which is fometimes ufed by the writers both of the Old and new Teftament to represent the miferable condition of the objects of the divine displeasure. Remarkable inftances occur, Jer. xxv. 15. and Mat. xx. 22. and in the paffage under confideration. Calamity and forrow, fear and trembling, infatuation, anguish, and defpair, are the bitter ingredients that compose this cup of fury, the dregs whereof the Church had wrung out, the debilitating effects of which they had experienced. It is remarkable, and worthy of attention, that as literal Babylon was the inftrument God employed to inflict his judgments on many nations, whereby he caufed them to drink deep of the wine of his wrath, fo myftical Babylon is the golden cup from which many nations drink of the wine of her errors, fuperftitions, and idolatries. -Let us give glory to the Lord our God, who hath not put into our hands the cup of his indignation, and made us drink of it with all the wicked of the earth. With gratitude let us take the cup of falvation, and call upon the name of the Lord, and offer to him the facrifice of thanksgiving.

18. There is none to guide her among all the fons whom she hath brought forth: neither is there any that taketh her by the hand, of all the fons that the hath brought up.

VOL. IV.