Online Bible 1995 March/ROM-1025.iso/olb/gill/4_000_t.lzh/4_050.TXT

Text File | 1994-09-06 | 6KB | 117 lines

"with the best bread of wheat ;" with the best of
wheat, and the best bread that can be made of it: Aben
Ezra interprets it of the manna, which was better than
the fat, or finest, of the wheat, being the corn of
heaven, and angels' food, Psai. lxxviii. 24, 25. but it. ra-
ther respects what the Israelites would have been con-
tinued to be fed with in the land of Canaan, which was a
land of wheat, Dent. viii. 8. and such who hearken to
the Lord, and walk in his ways, are fed by him with. the
Gospel, which is comparable to wheat, and the finest of
.it, for its choiceness and excellency, for its solidity and
substantiality, for its purity and cleanness, and tbr its
being of a nourishing and strengthening nature, see Jer.
xxxviii. 28. andespecially Christ, the sum and substafice
of the Gospel, may be figuratively meant, with whom
the .saints. are fed, and who is compared to a corn of
wheat, John xii. 94. for his preciousHess and excellency,
for his purity and fruitfulness, and for being the food of
his people, the bread of life, for which he was prepared
by his sufferings and death; which may be filly ex-
pressed by the threshing, winnowing, and grinding of
wheat, and then of kneading the flour, and baking the

bread: and with honey out of the rock would I have satis-
fied thee; the land of Canaan abounded with hills and
rocks, in which bees had their hives, and from whence
honey dropped to lower places; and hence the land is
said to flow with milk and honey, Exod. iii. 8. Dent.
xxxii.13. 1 Sam. xiv. 25, 26. nor is it unusual in other
places to find honey in rocks; at Guadaloupe, in the
West Indies, we are told {z}, honey was found in trees
and caves of rocks. Aben Ezra interprets this of the
water which flowed out of the rock at Itoreb, which
was sweeter than honey; but the former sense is best:
the rock spiritually and mystically designs Christ, the
Rock of salvation, 1 Cor. x. 4. the honey out of the rock,
the fuluess of grace in him, and the blessings of it, the.
sure mercies of David, and the precious promises of the
everlasting covenant; and the Gospel, which is sweeter
than the honey or the honeycomb; and with these
such are filled and satisfied, who hearken to Christ,
and walk in his ways; for, as .the whole of what is
here said shews what Israel lost by disobedience, it
clearly suggests what such enjoy who hear and obey.

A Psalm of Asaph.

THIS psalm was written for the use of persons in
power, for the instruction of kings and princes, judges
and civil magistrates; according to Kimchi, it was
written about the times of Jehoshaphat, who appointed
new judges throughout the land; those that were be-
fore having been very corrupt, to whom he gave a
charge agreeably to the purport of this psalm, 2 Chron.
xix. 5, 6, 7. but it seems rather to be written by Asaph,
in the times of David, under a spirit of prophecy, and
has respect to the times of Christ, when there was a
great corruption among the.judges and rulers of the
Jews, both civil and ecclesiastic. The Syriac version
calls it, a reproof oJ' the ungodly Jews; our Lord cites
a passage out of it in vindication of himself flora their
charge of blasphemy, John x. 34, 35, 36.
Vet. 1. God standeth in the congregation of the mighty,
&c.] The Syriac version renders it, in the congregation
of angels; they are mighty, and excel in strength, and
there is a large company of them, even an innumerable
one, and who surround the throne of the Majesty on
high. Christ, who is God over all, was among those
on Mount Sinai, and when he ascended to heaven; and
with these he'll descend when he comes a second time,
Psai. lxviii. 17, 18. 2 Thess. i. 7, 8. The Targum in-
terprets it of the righteous thus," God, whose majesty
*' {orShechinah)dwells in the congregation of the righte-
"ous that are strong in the law." It may be better un-
derstood of such as are strong in the Lord, in the grace
that is in Christ, and in the exercise of grace upon
him; who are gathered out of the world unto him,
and unto distinct societies and congregations; in the
midst of which God is, where he grants his presence,
bestows the blessings of his grace, and affords his divine
aid and protection; and where Christ the Son of God
is, and will be to the end of the world. The words
may be rendered, God standeth in the congregation of
God {a}: that is, in his own congregation, his church and
people; but it seems best of all to understand the
words of rulers and civil magistrates, of the cabinet
councils of princes, of benches of judges, and courts
of judicature; in all which God is present, and ob-
serves what is said and done; perhaps reference may
be had to the Jewish sanhedrim, the chief court of
judicature with the Jews, consisting of seventy-one
persons; in the midst of which Clarist, God manifest
in the flesh, God in our nature, stood, and was ill used,
and most unjustly judged by them, of whose unjust
judgment complaint is made in the next verse: he
judgeth among the gods: which the Syriac version ren-.
ders angels again; and so Abeu Ezra interprets it of
them, who are so called, Psal. viii. 5. and xcvii. 7. but
rather civil magistrates are meant, the rulers and
judges of the people, who go by this name of elohim,
orgods, in Exod. xxi. 6. and xxii. 18. and are socalled
because they are the powers ordained of God, are re-
presentatives of him, are his vicegerents and deputies
under him; should act in his name, according to his
law, and tbr his glory, and are clothed with great
power and authority from and under him; and there-
fore are before styled the mighty. Amopg these Christ,
the son of God, judges, to whom all.judgment is com-
mitted; he qualifies these for the discharge of their
office, he directs them how to judge, and all the right
judgment they make and do is from him, by whom kings


{z} P. Martyr. Decad. 3. lib. 9.
{a} \^la tdeb\^ in congregatione Dei, Pagninus, Cocceius, Gejerus,
Michaelis; so Vatablus, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Ainsworth.