same country, and fought Darius' the Persian, and
conquered him: and the grisled go forth toward the
south country; the Romans under Julius Caesar, Au-
gustus, and others before them, who went into Egypt,
which lay south of Judea, Dan. xi. 5. and conquered
that, and other nations, and set up the fourth kingdom
or monarchy.
Vet'. 7. And the bay went forth, and sought to go, &c.]
WithoUt leave: these design either the Romans; or,
since distinct from the grisled, the Hunns, Goths, and
Vandals; who sought to go out of their own places
into other countries: and were desirous that they.might
,walk to and fro through the earth: without control;
overrunning as they, did the Roman empire, and set
up ten kingdoms in it; unless this is to be understood
of the land of Judas only, through which the Romans
walked to and fro at pleasure, and subdued it :,and he
said; that is, the Lord of the whole earth, before
whom they stood: get ye hence, walk to and fro through
the earth; as being filled with indignation at them,
and yet suffered them to have their will; and so
Kimchi interprets the phrase, "he gave them power
" to go and subdue lands ;" and to the same purpose
Jarchi, "he gave them power to rule with great au-
"th0rity; and this is the kingdom of Edom or
" Rome:" so they walked to and fro through the earth;
either the land of Judea, as the Romans did, and made
it a Roman province; and these may represent Rome
Papal, set up and supported by the above people,
even the beast of game, which has reigned over the
kings of the earth, to whom the ten kings gave their
kingdom and power.
Ver. 8. Then cried he upon me, and spake unto me,
saying, &c.] That is, the Lord of the whole earth
spoke to the prophet with a loud voice, and uttered
the following words: behold, these that go toward the
north country; meaning the Medes and Persians, which
went .towards Babylon: have quieted my spirit in the
north country; by executing the judgments of God
Upon the Chaldeans, and by helping, fayouting, and
delivering the people of the Jews; which were very
agreeable to the will of God, and well-pleasing in his
sight, signified by the quieting or refreshing his spirit.
Ver. 9. And the word of the Lord came unto me,
saying.] Either the word o.f prophecy from the Lord,
as the Targum par. aphrases it; the visions being ended,
the propheticatpart of the book begins; and many ex-
cellent prophecies concerning the Messiah, and his
kingdom, are contained in this and the following
chapters: or an order from the Lord, which is ex-
pressed in the next verses.
Ver. 10. Take of them of the captivity, &c.] That is,
some of them that were returned from the captivity of
Babylon, and who a. re mentioned by name: even of
tIeldai, of Tobijah, and Jedaiah, which are come from
Babylon; either with Zerubbabel and Joshua, when
they came from thence; or who were now just come
from those that remained there: and come thou the same
day; this very day in which they were come from
thence: and go into the house of Josiah the son of
Zephaniah; where the above pc,sons were; or where
they were tO go along with him: this Josiah might be
either a goldsmith, and therefore the prophet is sent
to him to make the crowns aftermentioned; or else
he might beta treasurer belonging to the temple, who
had gold and silver in his hands, which had been put
there for the use of it.
Vet. 11. Then take silver and go!d, &c. Which the
Jewish writers suppose were brought by the above
men from their brethren in Babylon, as a free-will
offering towards the building of the temple: and make
crowns; two at least, one of silver, and another of gold;
the one to be put upon the-head of Joshua the high-
priest; the other upon the head of Zerubbabei, as
Kimchi conjectures; though, according to the text,
they seem to be both, or all of them, be they as many
as they will, to be put upon the head of Joshua; and
may signify the different states of the priesthood in the
present time, and when in its pristine glory; or that
both the crown of the priesthood and the crown of
the kingdom should meet in his antitype Christ, who
is said to have on his head many-crowns, Ray..
xix. 12. The 'Fargum renders it, thou shalt make a
great crown; as if only one crown was to be made of
gold and silver mixed together; and so the Arabic
version renders it; but more are certainly meant, for
it follows: and set them upon the head of Joshua the
son. of Josedech the high-priest; on whose head a fair
mitre was set; see ch. iii. 5. and with the mitre was
wore by the high-priest the holy crown, made of pure
gold; and which was no other than the plate or,flower
of gold, on which was engraved Holiness to the Lord,
Exod. xxviii. 36. and xxix. 6. and xxxix. 30. and this,
according to the, Jewish writers {}, was a plate of gold
two fingers broad, and reached from ear to ear; though
Josephus {} seems to give a different account of it; he
says, " the golden crown surrounds (either the mitre.
"or perhaps rathcr the forehead or temples); and on
"it were three rows of cups or flowers, like those of
"the herb we call saccharus; 'and the Grecian bo.-
"tanists hyosciamus;" or henbane; and after de-
scribing the herb, and the figure of the buds, cups, or
flowers of it, he adds, "like to these is made a crown
"reaching from the hinder part of the 'head unto both
"temples; for the flowers do not encompass the fore-
" head; but there is a golden plate, which has the
"name 'of God engraved in sacred letters ;" which
seems to disagree with the accounts Of other Jewish
writers; unless, as Braunius {} observes, they may be
thus reconciled, that the crown was nothing else but
the plate that was two fingers broad, and was in length
from ear to ear; so that about the temples it was. or-
namented with three rows of henbane-flowers on each
side: and these three rows may give occasion for the
use of the word in the plural number; and some have
called its triple crown {}; and Popish writers fail not
to improve it in fayour of the crown their pontiff wears;
and Lyra f speaks of little crowns or coronets, even in
the mitres of the common priests; which. (he says)
were'circles in the lower part of them so called;

{b} Maimon. Cele Hamikdash, c. 9. sect. 1. Jarchi in Exod. xxviii. 26.
{c} Antiqu. l. 3. c. 7. sect. 7.
{d} De Vestitu Sacerdot. Hebr. l. 2. c. 22. sect. 12. p. 807.
{e} Fortunatus Scacchus in Myrothec. l. 3. c. 40. p. 1000. Solerius
de Pileo, sect. 13. p. 266.
{f} In Exod. xxxix. 27.