Online Bible 1995 March/ROM-1025.iso/olb/gill/5_500_p.lzh/5_586.TXT

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plain case that he had withdrawn his protection fi'om
it,. and that the city was indefensible; and that,
humanly speaking, it was impossible it should hold
out long, for the reasons following: because of the
sword, and of the .famine, and of the pestilence: the
sword of the Chaldeans, without, destroyed those that
sallied out upon thetn, or endeavoured to make their
escape; and the famine and pestilence, within, made
such ravages, and so much weakened them, that they
would never be able to stand it out against the enemy
long, but must surrrender: and what thou hast spolcen
is come to pass; what was foretold by the prophets,
and by himself, was now fulfilling: and, behold, thou
seest it; and therefore !,e had no need to observe it to
him, or dwell any longer on this subject; only he
hints what follows, as having some difficulty in it on
his own account.
Ver. e& And thou hast said to me, 0 Lord God, &c.3
Or, O Lord God, yet thou hast said to me{b}; notwith-
standing this is the case, the country all around is in
the hand of the enemy, and the city is as good as de-
livered up to them, yet thou hast given me such orders,
as follows: buy thee a field for money, and take witnesses;
for though these words were not expressly said to him
by the Lord; yet inasmuch as he told him that his
uncle's son would come to him, and propose the selling
of his field to him; and accordingly did come, agreeably
to the word of the Lord; Jeremiah understood it as the
will of the Lord, that he should buy it before witnesses;
which he did, as before related: for the city is given
into the hand of the Chaldeans ; or rather, though the
city is givene, &c.; yet thou hast said so: now by this
the prophet suggests, that though he had obeyed the
divine order, as he ought to have done, yet there was
some difficulty upon his mind; or there were some
objections Started, by the Jews that were with him,
how these things could be reconciled; that he should
be ordered to buy a field at such a time as this, and
thereby signify that fields and vineyards should be
bought and possessed in the land, and yet the city just
going to be surrendered into the hands of the Chaldeans.
Ver..o6. Then came the word of the Lord unto 3ere-
miah, &c.] This is an answer to the prophet's prayer,
and particularly to the latter part of it; shewing the
consistency of the destruction of the city with his pur-
chase of a field, and with God's promise of fields and
vineyards being purchased and possessed again; and
how each of these would be brought about: saying;
as follows:
Ver. 27- Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all
_.flesh, &e.3 Jehovah, the self-existent Being, that gives
being to all creatures; and is particularly the God of
all men, the Maker and Preserver of them, and that
provides for them; who are called flesh, to denote
their weakness and corruption, how unworthy of the
divine fayour, and how unable to resist his will, or
hinder the execution of his purposes: and which is in-
troduced with a behold, to excite attention, to take
. notice of what was said; to encourage faith, and re-
move doubts and difficulties; for if God is Jehovah,
the Being of beings; if he is the God and Governor of
the world, and all men in it, what is it he can't do? as
follows: is there any thing too hard for me ? suggesting,
that though the city of Jerusalem should be destroyed,
and the inhabitants carried captive, yet he could return
them again to their own laud; where they should pur-
chase fields and vineyards, and possess them as hereto-
fore: or, is there any thing hidden from me{d} ? so the
Targum and Syriac version; can any thing unforeseen
arise to hinder the fu!filment of promises and pro-
phecies? nothing can; since all things are in one view
before the Lord continually; or, is there any thing too
wonderful for me{*}? that which is too wonderful for
men, beyond their comprehension, and so their ihith;
yet it is not so with God.
Vet. c28. Therefore thus saith the Lord, behold, I .will
give this city into the hand of the Chaldeans, &c.] As
he had foretold by the prophet, and was just now
going to be fuitilled. Here the Lord repeats and con-
firms the first of the two things which seemed contra-
dictory; tim destruction of the city by the Chaldeans,
who were now besieging it, and into whose hands it
would certainly come: and into the hand of Nebuchad-
rezzar Icing of Babylon; who was now before it with
his army: and he shall take it; and become master of
it: or, I will give it to him, that he may take it {f}; which
he could not do, notwithstanding his powerful army,
had not the Lord delivered it into his hands.
Ver. 29. And the Chaldeans, that fight against this
city, shall come, &c.] Or rather shall enter, as Aquila
renders it; for they were come to it already, and were
fighting against it, battering the walls, and throwing in
their arrows, and putting to the sword such as came
out, or were within their reach: and set fire on this
city; as they did, ch. xxxix. 8: and burn it, with the
houses, upon whose roofs they have offered incense unto
Baal; or especially the houses{g}, or even the houses;
the houses particularly mentioned in the history of the
destruction as burnt; and which, very probably, are
here intended; besides the Lord's house, and a!{ the
houses in Jerusalem, were the king's house, and the
houses of the great men or princes; and which, Kimchi
thinks, were higher than others; on which therefore they
burnt incense to Baal; wherefore it was a just retalia-
tion ,upon them that they should be burnt with fire:
and poured out drink-offerings unto other gods, to provoice
me to anger; to other gods besides the true God; to
strange gods, and to other gods besides Baal; which
was done as if they really designed to provoke the
Lord; as if they bad it in view to affront him; and, if
they had, they could not have taken a more effectual
method; though this is to be understood, not inten-
tionally, but eventually; not what was their design,
though it looked like it, but what was the effectof
their idolatry.
Vet. 80. For the children of Israel and the children

{b} \^trma htaw\^ tu vero nihilominus dicis mihi, Piscator; tu tamen
dixisti ad me, Domime Jehovah, Schmidt.
{c} \^hntn ryehw\^ cum tamen urbs tradenda sit, Schmidt; quum ta-
men futurum sit, Piscator; quum civitas ipsa traditur, Junius & Tre-
mellius; cum tamen urbs tradita sit, Cocceius.
{d} \^rbd lk alpy ynmmh\^ celabitur, vel occultabitur, Vatablus; an
mihi occultari possit ultra, res, Junius & Tremellius.
{e} Num prae me mirabile erit ullum verbum, Schmidt; nunquid a me
mirificabitur omne verbum, Montanus.
{f} \^hdklw\^ ut capiat eum, Junius & Tremellius, Schmidt.
{g} \^Mytbh taw\^ imprimis domos, Schmidt; nempe domos, Piscator.