politic, and into a church-state; see Dent. xxxii. 6, 7,
8. or rather the first man, and the first race of men that
inhabited the world before the flood, called the old
world; and so the sense is, who ever did the things
I have done, from the time I made man, and other
creatures, and placed them on the earth, or from the
creation of the. world ? so Aben Ezra, Jarchi, and Kim-
chi interpret it; though it is best of all to understand
this of the people of God, the church of the first-born,
whose names are written in heaven, in the Lamb's book
of life, from the foundation of the world; who are, as
the words may be rendered, the people of eternityr; and
may be so called, because they were in some sense a
people that were.from eternity, as the Targum para-
phrases it; not that they had an actual personal being
so early, for they are but creatures of time, raised up in
successive generations, and but 6fyesterday, and of a
short continuance; yet they had from all eternity a
representative being in Christ, as their federal head;
they were chosen in him before the foundation of the
world, and had grace given them in him before the
world began, Ephes. i. 3, 4. 2Tim. i. 9- they were
the people of God taken into covenant by him from
everlasting, for so early was the covenant of grace
made with Christ, and them in him; they stood so early
related to God as his children, and to Christ as his
spouse and bride; so early were they on the thoughts
of God, and on his heart, and in his affections, as they
were also upon Christ's, and in his hands, and their
names so early registered in his book of life; so that
they-may be said to be indeed an ancient people, or a
people of eternity; and they may' be called so, because
they will continue for ever, as the days of heaven, and
as the sun and moon, before the Lord, Psal. lxxxix. 29,
3(5. everlasting habitations are provided for them, and
they shall be for ever with the Lord; so the Syriac
version renders it, a people for eternity: now these are
appointed by the Lord to come into actual being at
the time, and in the place he has fixed; they are ap-
pointed to many things in life; not unto wrath, either
ere or hereafter, but to afflictions, and to death itself:
and they are appointed to many good things,-to be
called by grace, to be saved with an everlasting sal-
vation, and to reign with Christ in the New-Jerusalem
state; se ch. xxiv. 23. where they are called ancients,
as here; and to be glorified with Christ for ever; it
follows: and the things that are coming, and shall come ?
let them shew unto them: let the idols shew to their
worshippers if they can, the things that are coming; just
coming, that are near at hand, that will be tomorrow;
and that shall come, are at a greater distance, which
will be in ages to come; or wonderful things, and
things future, so Jarchi interprets it; a word {z} like the
first being used for signs and wonders. God foretels
wonderful things that shall come to pass, and which
accordingly do ; but the idols of the Gentiles can do
nothing of this kind.
Ver. 8. Fear ye not, neither be afraid, &c.] Of the
accomplishment of prophecies and promises, and of
professing the true God, and of adhering to Jesus
Christ, the only Redeemer and Saviour; or of the gods
of the Heathens, and of persecuting tyrants, and what
they can do against you, and in favour of their ido-
latrous religion :have not I told thee from that time, and
have declared it ? what should come to pass, before it
did, even every tiring that has since the appointment
of the ancient people; and particularly what troubles
and persecutions the apostles, ministers of the word,
the first Christians should meet with among the
Heathens, for professing and propagating the Gospel,
and what success they should meet with, which came
to pass accordingly: ye are even my witnesses; as
especially the apostles were, who had it from Christ's
own mouth, that they should be hated and persecuted
for the sake of the Gospel, and should be successful
wherever they came; as they also were his witnesses
in Jerusalem, and Judea, and Samaria, and unto the
uttermost parts of the earth, of his person, doctrine,
miracles, death, resurrection, and ascension to heaven,
Acts i. 8: is there a God besides me ? that is a true
God; for there were many fictitious and false deities,
but none omniscient and omnipotent, that could foretel
future events, and accomplish them as he did; there'st
no god but the one God, Father, Son, and Spirit;
for this an appeal is made to the. witnesses: yea,
there is no God, I know not any; or, there is no rock {a};
or, is there any ? a word used forGod, Deut. xxxii.
4, 1'8, 30, 31. there is no rock to build upon for salva-
tion, no rock for shelter and safety, but Christ the
rock of ages, on which the church is built, and the
gates of hell can't prevail against it, Matt. xvi. 18. and
if God, who is omniscient, knows none else, there can
be no other.
Ver. 9. They that make a graven image are all of
them vanity, &c.] They shew themselves to be vain
men, by making such vain things as graven images
are; both images, makers, and worshippets of them
are all vain, yea vanity itself: and their delectable
things shall not profit; their idols made of gold and
silver, or covered with them, and adorned with pre-
cious stones, and so delightful and desirable, are of no
manner of profit and advantage, unless the matter they
are made of, and the ornaments about them, were con-
verted to other uses; yet not as gods, and worshipped
as such, who can be of no service to their worshippets
to help them in distress, or save them from ruin: and
they are their own witnesses; they see not, nor know thai
they may be ashamed; they that made them must be
witnesses against themselves, and the idols they have
made; they must be convicted in their own con-
sciences that they can't be gods; they must be sensible
that they have no sight nor knowledge of persons and
things; that they can't see, nor know their worship-
pets. nor their wants, and cannot give. them relief;
and this they ought to acknowledge to their own shame
that made them, and that their worshippers of them
might be ashamed also.
Ver. 10. Who hath formed a god, &c.] Who ever
made one ? was such a thing ever known ? or can that
be a god which ismade or formed ? who so mad, foolish

{y} \^Mlwe Me\^ populum seculi, Munster, Pagninus, Montanus, Vata-
blus, Tigurine version, i.e. qui a seculo est, Targ. populum aeter-
nitatis, Gataker.
{z} \^twtwa\^ signa, with the Rabbins \^twytwa\^ as here.
{a} \^rwu Nya\^ nulls rupes, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator; non est
petra, Montanus, Cocceius; estne rupes? Vitringa.