Chapter The ARGUMENT of Chapter XIV. The Prophet goes on with the defcription of Babylon's Overthrow, by which must be underfood not only the taking of the Capital City, but the fubverfion of the Chaldæan Monarchy alfo, because the taking of the City only would not have been a means to fet the Captive at liberty, which was the end God propos'd to himself by this great Revolution, ver. I. At ver. 4. he derides the Power of the Babylonian Emperor, tells him all his ambitious Projects fhall come to nought, brings him down to the Grave, and reprefents the Dead infulting him, putting him in mind, that now he was ftripp'd of Royal Robes, and would have no other Covering but of noifome Worms. And to aggravate his Mifery, he not only foretels his death, but that he should not have the honour of a decent Burial; or if he had, fhould be cast out of his Grave, be expos'd to the Infults of the People, and then thrown in fome common Pit. And this was not all, for his Misfortunes fhould not be confin'd to his own Perfon, but extend to his Pofterity, which should be cut off, and not one of his Family be left to fit upon the Throne of his Ancestors: To this the Prophet annexes a fhort threatning against the Affyrians and Philistines. Verse 1. FOR CHAP. XIV. OR the Lord will have mercy on Facob, and will yet choose Ifrael, and fet them in their own Land: and the ftrangers fhall be joined with them, and they fhall cleave to the house of Jacob.] The Prophet gives the reafon why God had decreed the Destruction of Babylon, even because he would have Mercy on Jacob, that is, the Pofterity of Jacob, whom he defign'd to fuffer to be carry'd into Captivity by the Babylonians, and restore them again to their own Land: And not only fo, but many of those among whom they were Captives, feeing the decency of their Worship, and the remarkable Kindnefs of God toward them, fhould choose to accompany a People fo highly favour'd of Heaven, among whom they they could not but expect all imaginable Happiness. (a) Re- Chapter ligionem familia Jacob amplectentur Profelyti Chaldai. And XIV. this Particular of Strangers returning with them, the Prophet mentions almoft in every place where he speaks (4) Vatablus. of the Restoration of the Jews. Ver. 2. And the people fhall take them, and bring them to their place and the house of Ifrael fhall poffefs them in the land of the Lord, for fervants and handmaids: and they shall take them captives, whofe captives they were, and they shall rule over their oppreffors.] The Prophet defcribes the readinefs of the Gentiles to eafe them as much as was poffible in their Travels homeward, by carrying their neceffary Burthens, and bearing them on their backs over any difficult Paflages they might meet with on the Road, as Lekakum tollent eos feems to fignify. And they shall take Forerius. them Captives whofe Captives they were, Ceux qui les Bibl. de Portavoient pris feront leur Captifs; that is, Metaphorically, by Royal. making them Converts to the true Religion, which fhould, as it were, triumph over their Infidelity, and difpofe them to do all in their power for a Nation fo much in favour with the Almighty: Tho' others think the words may be understood in a strict literal fenfe of fuch Victories as God gave the Jews, in the time of the Maccabees, over fuch People as lorded it over them before. Ver. 3, 4. And it fhall come to pass in the day that the Lord fhall give thee reft from thy forrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard bondage wherein thou waft made to ferve; That thou shalt take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and fay, How hath the oppreffor ceafed? the golden city ceafed?] That is, thou fhalt fing this triumphant Song: Mafcal; elegans & eximium carmen, Canticum & Difterium, against the King of Babylon, whom the Prophet not mentioning by name, we may feem to be left at liberty to understand him of Sennacherib, with Grotius, for he was King of Babylon while it was under the Affyrian Monarchy, or of Nebuchodonozor the firft Monarch of the Chaldaan Empire, or of (b) Baltafar the laft, as the generality of Commentators agree. (b) Moller, Tirinus, A Lapide, Sanctius. Chapter Ver. 5. The Lord hath broken the staff of the wicked, and XIV. the Scepter of the rulers.] In the former Verfe the admiring Prophet feem'd puzzled at the fudden Overthrow of Babylon, as.if his Reafon could give him no fatisfaction, how or by what means it was brought about. How is the Oppreffor ceas'd? How is the rich City of Babylon quite deftroy'd? To which he answers in this, That God was the Author of it, 'twas the Lord Jehovah, whofe peculiar People they were, who broke in pieces the Staff of the Wicked, that is, the Power of the Idolatrous Chaldeans, and fet them free. Ver. 6. He who fmote the people in wrath with a continual ftroke, he that ruled the nations in anger, is perfecuted, and none hindreth.] Here we have a defcription of an Ambitious Tyrant, a Plague to the whole World, always harafing, plundering, or killing the Subjects of his weaker Neighbours, unable to make Head againft the exorbitant Power of an overgrown Empire. Ver. 7. The whole earth is at rest and is quiet, they break forth into finging.] He reprefents the whole World pleas'd at the Overthrow of the Babylonian Empire, injoying the Fruits of Peace, without Disturbance, which they never could do before. Ver. 8. Tea the fir-trees rejoyce at thee, and the cedars of Lebanon, faying, Since thou art laid down, no feller is come up against us.] Such havock as the Wood-man makes among the ftately Trees of a full grown Wood, fuch deftruction this Oppreffor of Mankind made in the Nations round about him; therefore the Prophet describes the Fir-trees and Cedars as affected with Joy on this occafion, as if they were fenfible they fhould for the future ftand out the Natural Period of their duration. Ver. 9. Hell from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming it firreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth: it hath raifed up from their thrones all the kings of the nations.] Nothing can be finer than this defcription of the Prophet, which gives a vaft Idea of the Cruelty of this Arbitrary Emperor, which was fo great, that the dead fhould rejoyce at his Downfal, as if they were fenfible of the inhumane Barbarities, which the living fuffer'd while he was among them. The Prophet compares compares Hell or the Grave rather (as Seol commonly Chapter fignifies) to a great City, whofe Inhabitants flock toge- XIV. ther in Crowds when a King makes his public Entry, or any other unufual Spectacle paffes by. The dead fhall rejoyce at his Downfal, and run eagerly in Throngs to meet him at his coming into thofe Regions of Darknefs, they fhall compliment him with the most honourable Place, and do every thing which may put him in mind of his former Grandeur, and prefent Vileness: They, fhall rife from their Thrones and let him fit down. in them, as the little Tributary Princes on Earth us'd to do when he did them the honour of a Vifit. Ver. 10. And they fhall Speak and fay unto thee, Art thou alfo become weak as we ? art thou become like unto us?] Here he reprefents the dead infulting him: Art thou also reduced to the fame Condition with Ourselves? Is it poffible that One fo great as thou waft shouldft ftand on the level with Us, who, when we liv'd on Earth, durft not appear in thy Prefence without proftrating Ourselves at thy feet? Ver. 11. Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, and the noife of thy viols: the worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee.] This could not fail of being a very mortifying Confideration, to think in what Splendor he had liv'd, and how merrily he had pafs'd his Time amidst the Charms of Mufick, and all other Blandishments of a Court; instead of which, nothing but Darkness now, and his Attendants, Worms that prey'd on him. Ver. 12. How art thou fallen from heaven, O. Lucifer, fon of the morning? how art thou cut down to the ground, which didft weaken the nations?] Here the Prophet takes a lofty Flight, comparing Baltafar to the Morning-Star, which toward the dawning of the Day, when other Stars begin to disappear, fhines with fuperiour Luftre above the reft. As if he had faid, How ftrangely different is thy Condition at prefent, from that which you once ap- (4) Cyril, pear'd in, when you fhin'd with greater Luftre than all Thomas, the Monarchs of the Earth, and every other King look'd Haymo, little in your Prefence: But now we are All equal with Pintus, E. Sa. thee. This is a plain (4) meaning of this Verfe, tho' (b) Leo Ca(6) fome understand it of Chrift, (c) others of Anti-Chrift, (c) Cyprian. P 2 and Atrius. Chapter and the Fathers of the Devil, without the least colour XIV. of Reason; and St. Jerom is no lefs fanciful, when he tells us of Lucifer's being created in the Firmament, from whence he was prompted by Ambition to climb up to the Empereal Heaven, for which he was thrust down into Hell. Moller. Ver. 13. For thou haft faid in thine heart, I will afcend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will fit alfo upon the mount of the congregation, in the fides of the north.] Thefe Expreffions are very Hyperbolical, and fhew the prefumptuous Hopes, the wild fantastic Dreams of an Ambitious Prince, warm'd with the fwelling Thoughts of his own Sufficiency. It is very probable, fays Sanctius, that he began to fancy himself a God, and defir'd to be like the God of Ifrael, of whom he had often heard furprising Accounts from fome of his Jewish Captives, that he had his Throne in Heaven, and a ftately Temple at Jerufalem; as if he had faid, I will be worship'd in Heaven, as the God of Ifrael is worship'd there, and on Earth, with the fame Reverence and Honour with which he was ador'd at Jerufalem. Ver. 14. I will afcend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the most high.] He had heard to be fure of the Captive Jews, that God manifested himself in the Clouds, therefore the Ambitious Monarch, fays he, will do fo too, and be in all refpects as high as the most Highest. Ver. 15. Tet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the fides of the pit.] Notwithstanding thefe high Thoughts, by which thou haft rais'd thy felf above Mortality, thou fhalt be brought down to the Grave, and lie as low as the poorest Wretch that ever breath'd: To the bottom of the Pit, fome think it fhould be render'd as one faid of Xerxes, that famous Warrior was doom'd to a poor Employment in the loweft Region of the Infernal Shades. Ver. 16, 17. They that fee thee, fhall narrowly look upon thee, and confider thee, faying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did fhake kingdoms? That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof, that opened not the house of his prifoners?] Such a change fhall be |