Online Bible 1995 March/ROM-1025.iso/olb/gill/5_500_p.lzh/5_505.TXT

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a way of mercy and equity, are exetnplitied in the fol-
lowing cases.
Ver. 7- At what instant f shall spealc concerning a
nation, and concerning a kingdom, &c.] By way of
threatening: or, the moment I shall speak ', &c.; as soon
as ever I have declared concerning any people what-
ever, Jews or Gentiles; that if they go on in their sins,
and remain impenitent, and do not turn front them,
that they must expect I will quickly come out against
such a nation and kingdom in a providential way, as
threatened.: to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy
it; as the proprietor of a garden, when it don't turn to
his account, plucks up the plants, and pulls down the
lettees, and lets it go to ruin.
Ver. 8. If that nation against whom I have pronounced,
&c.] Such a sentence as this, should immediately,
upon the above declaration, do as Nineveh did: turn
from their evil; their evil of sin, their evil ways and
works, as an evidence of the truth of their repentance
for former sins: I will repent of the evil that 1 thought
to do unto them; as they change their course of life,
God will change the dispensations of his providence
towards them, and not bring upon them the evil of
punishment he threatened them with; in which sense
repentance can only be understood of God, he doing
that which is simihtr to what men do when they repent
of any thing; they stop their proceedings, and change
their outward conduct; so God proceeds not to do
what he threatened to do, and changes his outward
behaviour to men; he wills a change, and makes
one in his methods of acting, but never changes his
will.
Ver. 9. And at what instant I shall speak concerning
a nation, and concerning a kingdom, &c.] By way of
promise on the other hand: or, and the moment I shall
speak, &c. as in ver. 7- in favour to a people; signify-
ing, that if they do that which is right and good, and
continue therein, it may be expected that I will ap-
pear for and among such a nation and kingdom: to
build and to plant it; to build up its fences that have
been broken down, and to plant it with pleasant plants,
and make it prosperous and flourishing, and protect
and defend it, and keep it safe, and in a secure con-
dition; so that it shall be in very thriving circum-
stances, and be out of' the power of its enemies to
hurt it.
Ver. 10. U'it do evil in my sight, &c.] What is sinful,
contrary to the hw and will of God, openly and pub-
licly, in abold and daring manner: that it obey not my
voice: in my word, and by my prophets, but turn a
deaf ear to them, and slight and despise all instruc-
tions, admonitions, and reproofs: then I will repent
of the good wherewith I said I would benefit them; or,
do them goodt; that is, withhold it. from them, and not
bestow it on them; but, on the contrary, correct or
punish them according to their deserts. Thus, though
God is a sovereign God, yet, in the dispensations of his
providence towards kingdoms and nations, he deals
with them in such a merciful and equitable manner,
that there is no just reason to complain of him; and
yet he maintains and keeps up his power and authority,
such as the potter exercises over the clay.
Ver. 11. Now therefore go to, &c.] This is the ap-
plication of the above general rules of procedure to the
people of the Jews, and particularly that which relates
to the destruction of a nation or kingdom, and the de-
claration of it in order to reclaim them: speak to the
men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, say-
ing, thus saith the Lord; or, to the man of Judah {}; the
body of the Jewish nation, and especially the inhabit-
ants of the metropolis of it; which was the source of
sin to the whole kingdom, and on which the calamity
threatened would chiefly come, if not prevented by a
reformation: behold, I frame evil against you; as the
potter frames his clay upon the wheel, to which the
allusion is; which is to be understood of the evil of
punishment, but not of any secret purpose, and settled
detertmination, in the mind of God to bring it upon
them; for that is never disannulled by himself or
others, or ever changed; but some operation in Pro-
vidence, which began to work towards their destruc-
tion; some providential step which God had taken,
and which threatened their ruin: and devise a device
against you; the same as before; by which it looked
as if he had thought of the matter, and had contrived
a scheme, wltich"if he went on with, would issue in
the subversion of their whole state: return you every one
.from his evil way; that so the reformation may be as
general as the corruption was: it supposes a sense of
the evil of their fortnor conduct, and repentance for
their sins, of which their forsaking and abstaining
from them would be an evidence: and make your ways
and .your doings good; for it is not sufficient barely to
abstain from sin, which is only a negative holiness;.
but there must be a performance of good works, a
walking in them, a constant series and course of ohe-.
dienee to God, according to the rule of his word.
Ver. l2. And they said, there is no hope, &c.] Or, but
the?! said {w}; not that there was no hope of the grace
and mercy of God, upon their repentance and reforma-
tion, for that is before declared; but that they were so
hardened in their sins, so fixed in their wicked courses,
and so determined to go on in them, that there was no
room for the prophet to hope of ever reclaiming them;
signifying, that it was to little purpose to talk to them,
or exhort thent; his labour would be in vain; for they
were at a point, and resolved to continue in their evil
practices, let the consequences be..what they would.
Jarchi's note is, "but I know that they will say to
"thee concerning thy words, that we don't care for
"them ;" no, not a rush; you may as well hohl your
peace and say nothing; we are in no pain about future
judgments, these give us no uneasiness. The Targum
is," we are turned from thy worship ;" and we are
resolved to continue as we are, and not to return to
say what you will: but we will walk after our own de-
vices; God may take his way, and we will take ours;
he has devised evil against us, you say, and he may
bring it if he pleases; we have devised sin, and we'll
go on in it: and we will do every one the imagination of

{s} \^rbda egr\^ momento loquor, Schmidt; momento, eloquor, Junius
& Tremellius; momento ut loquutus fuero, Tigurine version.
{t} \^wtwa byjyhl\^ ad benefaciendum ei Montanus; ut benefacerem
ei, Valablus, Pagninus; benefacturum ei, Junius & Tremellius,
Piscator.
{u} \^hdwhy vya la\^ ad virum Jehudah, Montanus, Cocceius, Schmidt.
{w} \^wrmaw\ sed dixerunt, Schmidt; sed dicunt, Piscator.