Isaiah 28

WO to the Crown of Pride That proud and insolent Kingdom; for the Crown is oft put for the Kingdom, as Ier. 13. 18. &c., to the Drunkards Either 1. Metaphorically, drunk with proud self-confidence, and security, & prosperity: Or rather 2. Properly, by comparing this with v. 7. & Hos. 7. 5. Amos 6. 6. where the Israelites are taxed with this sin. For having many and excellent Vines among them, they were exposed to this Sin, and frequently overcome by it. of Ephraim Of the Kingdom of the Ten Tribes, which is commonly called by the name of Ephraim, as has been oft noted before., whose glorious Beauty is a fading Flower Whose Glory and Greatness shall suddenly wither and perish., which are Which proud and drunken Israelites have their common and chief abode. Or, which is, i. e. which flower is; or which beauty or glory is. on the head of the fat Valleys Either 1. in Samaria, which might well be called the Head, as being seated upon a Mountain, and the Head of the Kingdom, and The head of the fat Valleys, because it was encompassed with many fat and rich Valleys. Or. 2. Upon the chief or choicest (as this word signifies, Exod. 30. 23. C... nt. 4. 14. Isa. 9. 14, 15. and elsewhere) of the fat or rich Valleys: which they made occasions and instruments of Luxury, of them that are overcome Heb. That are smitten, or broken, or overthrown, or knocked down; all which significations of this word fitly agree to Drunkards. with Wine.

Behold, the Lord has To wit, at His command, prepared and ready to execute His Judgments. a mighty and strong One The King of Assyria., which as a Tempest of Hail, and a destroying Storm, as a floud of mighty Waters overflowing, shall cast down Understand it, the crown of pride, or them, the drunkards of Ephraim. to the Earth with the hand Or, by his hand, either by that Kings force or strong hand; or by the hand of God, which shall strengthen, and succeed him in this work..

The Crown of Pride, the Drunkards of Ephraim, shall be troden under Feet The Expression is emphatical; the Crown which was upon their own heads, shall be trodden under the feet of others; and they, whose Drunkenness made them stagger, and fall to the ground, shall be trodden down there..

And the glorious Beauty which is on the head of the fat Valley, shall be a fading Flower, and as the hasty Fruit Which coming before the Season, and before other Fruits, is most acceptable. before the Summer: which when he that looketh upon it, seeth it, while it is yet in his hand, he eateth it up Which, as soon as a Man sees he covets it, and plucks it off, yet does not long enjoy it, but through greediness devours it, almost as soon as he can get it into his hand. And so shall it be with Ephraims glory which his Enemies, as soon as they observe, shall covet and spoil, and devour it greedily, and with delight..

In that day When the Kingdom of Israel shall be utterly destroyed. shall the Lord of Hosts be for a Crown of Glory, and for a Diadem of Beauty God shall give them eminent Glory and Beauty. unto the residue of his People Unto the Kingdom of Iudah, who shall continue in their own Country when Israel is carried into Captivity.:

And for a spirit of judgment to him that sitteth in judgment, and for strengh He explains how, or wherein God would glorify and beautify them, even by giving wisdom to their Rulers, and courage to their Souldiers; which two things contribute much to the strength and safety, and glory of a Nation. to them that turn the battel to the gate To their Warriors; whom he describeth by this Phrase to intimate, That their Valour should be crowned with Success, and that they should not only drive their Enemies from their own Gates and Land, but should pursue them into their own Lands, and besiege them in their own Cities, which Hezekiah did, 2 Kings 18. 8..

But they also But alas! Iudah is guilty of the same sins with Israel, and therefore they also must expect the same Calamities of which he speaks afterward. have erred through wine, and through strong drink are out of the way They run into the same excess of Wine and strong Drink, whereby they be... ot themselves, and fall into many errors and miscarriages both in sacred and civil Things. The many emphatical Phrases and Repetitions of the same thing in other words, in this verse seem to evince, That he here speaks of Drunkenness, properly so called, although he afterward chargeth them with Ignorance, and Error, and Stupidity; which also were the Companions, and in part, the Effects of that S....: the priest To whom strong Drink was expresly forbidden, in the time of their sacred Ministrations, lest they should thereby be led into errors in their work, Levit. 10. 9, 10. and the prophet The Teachers, who should have been patterns of Sobriety to the people, and to whom Sobriety was absolutely necessary for the right discharge of their Office. have erred In their conversation, and in their holy Administrations. through strong drink, they are swallowed up They are, as we say, drowned in it; their Senses and Reason are swallowed up, and lost in it. They design only to swallow it, but indeed are swallowed up by it. of wine: they are out of the way through strong drink, they err in vision The Prophets miscarry in their sacred Employment of Prophecying or Teaching, which is called Vision, Prov. 29. 18. and elsewhere., they stumble in judgment The Priests mistake in pronouncing the Sentence of the Law, which was their duty, Deut. 17. 9, 10, 11..

For all tables At which the Priests and Prophets, and other Iews did eat and drink. They hardly made one sober Meal: Drunkenness was their daily practice. are full of vomit, and filthiness, so that there is no place No Table, or no part of the Table; no not so much as the holy Places, in which the Priests did frequently eat their Meals. clean.

Whom shall he To wit, the Teacher, which is easily understood, out of the following Verb, either God, or his Prophets, or Ministers. teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts Who is there among this People, that are capable and willing to be taught the good knowledge of God? A Minister may as soon teach a young Child, as these Men..

For precept must be upon precept They must be taught, like little Children, slowly, and by leasure, the same things being oft repeated, because of their great dulness., precept upon precept; line upon line One line of the book after another, as Children are taught to read., line upon line; here a little, and there a little.

For Or, therefore, as this Particle is oft used. For this seems to be the punishment of their dulness. with stammering lips Either 1. in way of condescention, as Mothers or Nurses teach Children, lisping and stammering with them. Or, 2. in way of judgment; which suits best with the next Clause., and another tongue By people of a strange Language, whom He shall bring among them, and into whose power He shall deliver them; which is a great aggravation of their Misery, see Deut. 28. 49. Ier. 5. 15. Ezek. 3. 5. will he speak to this people Seeing they will not hear Him speaking, by His Prophets and Ministers, in their own Language, they shall hear their Enemies speaking to them in a strange and rough Language..

To whom he said To which People the Lord, by his Ministers, said., This This Doctrine or Precept, as it is expressed, ver. 9, 10. or the word of the Lord, as it follows, ver. 13. is the rest The only way, in the observation of which you will find rest and satisfaction. wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest Heb. Cause the weary (understand either Soul or Country) to rest. As Rest is offered to you by the Prophets in God's name, do you embrace it; which is to be done by hearkening to God's Word, as appears by the following Clauses. So shall this People, which has been so oft, and so long wearied, and harassed by great and manifold Calamities, find Rest and Peace., and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear They are wilfully ignorant, and obstinately refused the very means of Instruction..

But the word of the LORD was unto them, precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little The sense of the words thus rendred, may be this, They spake of God's Word, with scorn and contempt, repeating the Prophets words in a scoffing manner, and with a stammering and ridiculous tone, saying, Precept upon precept, &c. as if they had said, It seems the Prophet takes us to be mere Children, that need to be taught our first Rudiments, and that but slowly. That these were scornful men and mockers, is affirmed, ver. 14, 22. and as scoffers frequently catch the words out of other mens Mouths, and use them in way of derision; so it may be thought they did with the Prophets words. But the words may be, and by divers learned Men, are rendred a little otherwise; And the word of the Lord shall be unto them, precept upon precept, &c. As this Method has been used with them, and was altogether necessary for them; so it still is, and for the future shall be. As they were Children in understanding, they shall still continue to be such; they shall be ever learning, and never come to the knowledge of the Truth; as they formerly would not, so now they shall not profit by the Word; and their sin shall be their punishment. And this seems to suit with the following Clause, which notes the dreadful design and effect of that judicial blindness, That they may, or might go and fall backward, &c.; that they might go and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken According to the former, which is our Translation, this Clause notes only the event, or consequent of their Sin: According to the Latter, it notes the just Judgment of God designed and inflicted for it; that God's Word being so horribly abused by them, might be an occasion at which they might stumble and fall, and that backward, which is the worst, and most dangerous way of falling; and so be broken to pieces, or by which they might be snared and taken..

Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men Which make a mock at sin, and at God's Words and Threatnings; and doubt not by your witty Devices, and by your wicked Practices, to escape God's Judgments, of which we read in the next Verse. that rule this people, which is in Ierusalem.

Because ye have said In your hearts., We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement We are as safe from Death, and Hell, or the Grave, as if they had entred into Covenant with us, that they would not invade us. The word rendred Hell, most commonly signifies the Grave; which also seems most proper in this place, that so the same thing may be repeated in other words, as is most usual in Prophetical Writings.; when the overflowing scourge The judgment of God, which is called a Scourge, for its sharpness and severity, and overflowing for its universality; two differing Metaphors being joyned together which is not unusual, both in Scripture, and in other Authors. shall pass through To wit, the Land., it shall not come unto us; for we have made lies our refuge, and under falshood have we hid our selves We shall secure our selves by lying and dissimulation, by compliance with our Enemies, and with their Religion too if it be necessary, and many crafty devices. Or by lies and falshood, he means their Riches and Strength, to which they trusted, to which he giveth these Titles, not that they called or thought them such; but that he might signify what they really were, and would appear to be; see the Notes on Prov. 1. 11..

Therefore The Coherence is something obscure and difficult. It may be made either 1. thus, Therefore I will bring most terrible Judgments upon you; which are fully expressed, ver. 17. 18, 19, 20, 21. But before he comes to the Commination, to which, therefore, properly belongs, he first propoundeth a comfortable Promise concerning the sending of the Messiah, partly for the support of Believers, who are apt to tremble at God's Word, and might otherwise be apt to despond at the prediction of such dreadful Things: And partly to aggravate their Misery by comparing it with the safety and happiness, which the Godly, and Believing Iews, whom they despised and mocked, should find in Zion; and by signifying, that that blessed and sure Foundation laid in Zion, should yield them no support nor benefit, nor secure them from the Vengeance of God. Or 2. thus, Because your Refuges are so mean, and vain, and deceitful; therefore I will direct you to a better and surer Refuge, which will never fail those that trust to it, which God has made in Zi... But if you shall despise and reject that Refuge, which I now offer to you All, if you will Believe; then know, that I will lay judgment to the line, &c. as it follows, ver. 17. And this seems to me, to be the most natural and easy Connexion. thus says the Lord GOD Behold, I lay I have purposed and promised it, and will, in the fulness of time, actually perform it. in Zion In my Church, which is commonly called Zion; and in Ierusalem, where this Stone shall be first laid, which afterwards spread further, and filled the whole Earth, as it is said of it, Dan. 2. 35. for a foundation Upon which I will Build my Church, consisting both of Iews and Gentiles, the Foundation of all the hopes, and comfort, and happiness of my People; the Foundation of my Covenant made with my Church, and of all my Promises., a stone Not Hezekiah, but the Messiah, as appears: 1. From those Scriptures of the Old-Testament, in which Christ is called a Stone, as Psal. 118. 22. Isa. 8. 14. Dan. 2. 34, 35, 45. Zach. 3. 9. 2. From the New-Testament, where this Text is directly expounded of Christ, as Rom. 9. 32, 33. 1 Pet. 2. 4. 3. From the last Clause, wherein He requires Faith in this Stone, which is not to be given to any mere Man, Ier. 17. 5. and wherein He implies, That this Stone was not yet come, nor to come speedily into the World; whereas Hezekiah was King at the time of this Prophecy. 4. From the usual practice of the Prophets, and especially of this Prophet, which is, to comfort and fortify God's People, against the dread of approaching Calamities, by that great and fundamental Promise of the Messiah, in whom alone all other Promises are, Yea, and Amen; whereof we have seen some Instances already, and shall see more hereafter., a tried stone Which I have tried, and approved as every way sufficient to be a Corner-Stone, and a Foundation-Stone. Such Stones in Buildings use to be chosen with care, and to be thoroughly examined by the Builder., a precious Giving not only strength, but beauty, and glory to the Building, as Corner-Stones frequently do, Psal 144. 12. cornerstone Uniting the several parts of the Building together, making Ephraim and Iudah, now sadly divided, one stick, Ezek. 37. 19, 24. and Iews and Gentiles, now implacable Enemies, one Church and People, Eph. 2. 14. &c., a sure foundation Upon whom you may securely Rest; One who will not fail, nor deceive you, as your lying Refuges will.: he that believeth To wit, this Promise; or in this Stone, as it is explained, 1 Pet. 2. 6., shall not make hast Shall not make more hast than he ought, or, as we say, more hast than good speed; shall not hastily and greedily catch at any way of escaping his danger, whether it be right or wrong, but shall patiently wait upon God in His way, till He deliver him. Withal, here is a plain intimation, that the Mercy here promised was not to be given presently, but after some considerable time; and therefore, that they should quietly, and patiently submit to God's Will, under their present difficulties, and expect the accomplishment of it in God's due time; compare Hag. 2. 3. The Word here rendred, make hast, is by the Seventy Interpreters rendred, be confounded, whom the Apostles follow, Rom. 9. 33. and 1 Pet. 2. 6. either because they thought it most convenient, in a matter where the difference was not considerable, to follow that Translation which was most used, and best understood by the generality of Iewish and Gentile Christians; or because the same Word has both these significations in the Eastern Languages, as the most Learned, and Worthy Dr. Pocock has proved; or because the one follows upon the other; and precipitation or hast, commonly exposeth Men to shame and confusion; which also is implied in the following Verses, wherein the dreadful Judgments of God are denounced against those, who should not believe, and would make hast to prevent or remove their Dangers by any means whatsoever..

Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet I will Execute just Judgment, as it were by a Line and Plummet, annexed to it, i. e. with exactness and care. And this may be understood, either 1. That God would so order and settle things in His Church, that Justice and Judgment should prevail, and not Iniquity, as hitherto it had done: or rather 2. That as God would build up, and preserve all Believers upon that Foundation-Stone, so He would severely punish, and utterly destroy all those unbelieving Iews, who should reject that Stone. For the line and plu... met, or the plumb-line, was not only used in erecting Buildings, but also in pulling them down; those parts of the Building being thus marked out, which were to be demolished; and therefore is used in Scripture, to signify the Destruction of a Place or People, as is evident from 2 Kings 21. 13. Isa. 34. 11. Lame... t. 2. 8. Amos 7. 7, 8. And this sense agrees best with the following Clause and Verse., and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place My Judgments, which in Scripture are compared to a storm of Hail or Rain, shall discover the vanity of all your crafty and wicked Devices, and shall sweep you away with the Besom of Destruction, in spight of them..

And your covenant with death shall be disanulled Made void or of none effect: it shall stand you in no stead., and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be troden down by it Which you flattered your selves, that it should not come unto you, ver. 15..

From the time that it goeth forth, it shall take you As soon as this overflowing Scourge or Judgment shall go forth from me into the Land, it shall assuredly, and with the first, take or seize upon you scoffers, or carry you away, which agrees well, both with the Hebrew word, which is frequently taken in that Sense, and with the Metaphor of a Flood, which is here used.: for morning by morning it shall pass over It shall not only come to you, contrary to your presumption, ver. 15. but it shall abide upon you; and when it has passed over you, it shall return again to you, morning after morning; and shall follow you day and night, without giving you the least respite., by day and by night, and it shall be a vexation, only to understand the report So dreadful shall the Judgment be, that it shall strike you with great horror, when you only hear the rumor of its approach, or of the sad effects of it, upon other persons or parts of the Land..

For the bed is shorter, than that a man can stretch himself on it: and the covering narrower, than that he can wrap himself in it For those lying Refuges, to which you trust, will not be able to give you that Protection and Comfort, which you expect from them; no more than a man can stretch himself (as these luxurious Israelites used to do, Amos 6. 4.) upon a bed which is too narrow for him, or wrap and keep himself warm, with a covering or bed cloaths, which are not large enough for him..

For the LORD shall rise up To act and fight against you, as he is said to sit still, when he does forbear to act. as in mount Perazim Where he fought against the Philistines, 2 Sam. 5. 20., he shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon Where he fought against the Canaanites, Ios. 10. 10. &c. and afterwards against the Philistines, 1 Chron. 14. 16., that he may do his work, his strange work The execution of his Judgment against Israel, which he calleth his strange work, to intimate, either 1. That God would punish them not with ordinary punishments; but in a most dreadful and singular, and extraordinary manner; such a Judgment being called a marvellous work, Isa. 29, 14. although the Hebrew word there used, be not the same with this, but of a much differing signification: Or rather 2. That this work of bringing total and irrecoverable Destruction upon Israel, was contrary to the benignity of his own Nature, and to his usual way of dealing with his people, whom he used and delighted to protect, and spare, and bless; and whom, even when he is angry with them, and punisheth them, he handleth more gently, than he does other persons, in Judgment remembring Mercy to them, as was noted, Isa. 27. 7, 8. see also Chap. 26. 11.; and bring to pass his act, his strange act.

Now therefore be ye not mockers For your own sakes do not make a mock of God's Word and Threatnings, as you use to do., lest your bands be made strong Lest thereby you make the Judgments of God, which are oft compared to bands, as Psal. 66. 11. and 73. 4. and elsewhere, more sure and unavoidable, and more severe and terrible, as bands are, when they are tyed faster, and more strongly upon a prisoner.: for I have heard from the Lord GOD of hosts a consumption, even determined upon the whole earth God has assured me, That He will utterly root out, and destroy the people of Israel; as indeed he did in Hezekiah's reign..

Give ye ear, and hear my voice; hearken and hear my speech Observe what I say, and do you judge if it be not reasonable..

Does the plowman plow all day to sow The plowman does not spend all his time in plowing the Ground, in order to the sowing it, or, as it follows, in open... g it, and breaking its clods; but he has several times for several works, a time for plowing, and a time for sowing and harrowing, and a time for reaping, and a time for threshing or beating, and bruising his Corn for his own use. Which wisdom God has put into him. This is the Sum of the similitude propounded here, and in the following Verses. The design and meaning whereof seems to be this, to teach them, That God had his times and seasons for several Works, and that the methods of his providence were various at several times, and towards several persons or people; and therefore, that those scoffing Israelites were guilty of great Folly, in flattering themselves, and despising God's Threatnings, because of God's long Patience towards them, and because of their present impunity and prosperity; for God would certainly and speedily take a time to Thresh, and break them with his Judgments, as at present He Plowed and Harrowed them, and so prepared them for it by His threatnings.? does he open Understand, all day, or continually, out of the foregoing Clause, and break the clods of his ground Which they used to do with a kind of Harrow, or other proper Instrument. See Ier. 4. 3. Hos. 10. 11, 12.?

When he has made plain the face thereof By breaking the Clods, which made it ragged and uneven., does he not cast abroad the fitches, and scatter the cummin, and cast in the principal wheat Either 1. the Wheat, which is the principal or chief of all these Grains: Or, 2. The best Wheat, which He prudently chuseth for Seed., and the appointed barley That proportion of Barley which He appointed. Or, as others, the marked Barley; or, the choice Barley, which they laid aside in a sack for Seed; and therefore set it apart with a peculiar Mark upon it., and the rie in their place Heb. in his Border; each Seed in a several and proper place.?

For his God does instruct him to discretion, and does teach him The Sense of the Words thus rendred is this, All this he performeth by that discretion, which God has put into him: and therefore be assured, That God will order all His Affairs with Judgment, and will in due season execute the Punishments which now He threatens, and will perfect His own Works. But the Words by some, are rendred otherwis... And he beateth it out (as this Word may be rendred, 1 Kings 12. 11. Prov. 19. 18. and 29. 17.) in such sort, as his God does teach him, in a discreet manner, which being generally mentioned here, is particularly described in the following Verse..

For the fitches are not threshed with a threshing instrument Which then and there was made like a Sled shod with Iron, which was drawn by Men or Beasts, over the sheafs of Corn, to bruise them, and beat the Grain out of them., neither is a cart-wheel A lesser and lower Wheel than a Cart-wheel, but of the same form, upon which possibly the threshing Instrument was drawn. turned about upon the cummin: but the fitches are beaten out with a staff, & the cummin with a rod As being unable to bear harder usage..

Bread-corn is bruised With a threshing Instrument, by comparing this with the foregoing Verse, and the following Words.; because Or rather, but, or nevertheless, as this Word is frequently used. The Sense is, The Husbandman does indeed thresh the Bread-corn, but he does it with moderation, and only for a time, not for ever. he will not ever be threshing it, nor break it Understand, for ever, out of the foregoing Clause, as is usual in Scripture. with the wheel of his cart, nor bruise it with his horsemen Which governed the Horse or Horses, that drew the threshing Instrument. Or, with horses: For it is evident, and has been observed before, that this Hebrew word signifies Horses, as well as Horsemen. And this was another way of Threshing out the Corn, by driving Horses, or other Cattel, over the Sheaves to tread it out: of which, see Deut. 25. 4. Mich. 4. 13..

This also This part of the Husbandmans discretion expressed, ver. 27, 28. as well as that expressed, ver. 24, 25. cometh forth from the LORD of hosts, which is wonderful in counsel, and excellent in working These words contain the Application of the Similitude. The Husbandman manageth all his Affairs with common discretion; but God governs the World, and His Church, with wonderful Wisdom: He is great and marvellous, both in the design or contrivance of Things, and in the Execution of them..