Online Bible 1995 March/ROM-1025.iso/olb/gill/5_600_p.lzh/5_612.TXT

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Shelemiah, and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest,
&c.] That is, Zephaniab the priest, as the accents
shaw; though his father Manselab was doubtless a
priest too; according to the Syriac version, both Je-
hucal, called Jucal, ch. xxxviii. 1, and Zephaniah, were
priests; since it reads in the plural nuinber, priests:
these the king sent as messengers to the Prophet Jere-
miah, saying, pra!! .for us. This message was sent
either upon the rumour of the Chaldeans coming
against Jerusalem, as some think; or rattler when it
had departed froth the city, and was gone to meet the
army of the king or' Egypt; so that this petition to
the prophet was to pray that the king or' Egypt alight
get the victory over the Chaldeau army, and that that
might not return unto them. Thus wicked men will
desire the prayers of good men in times of distress,
when their words, their cautions, admonitions, ex-
hortations, and prayers too, are despised by them at
another time.
Ver. 4. Now Jeremiah came in and went out among
the people, &c.] Was at full liberty, and cotlid go out
of the city, and come in, when he ple ased; or go into
any part of it, and Converse with the people, and pro-
phesy to them; which he could not do in the latter
part of Jehoinkim's reign, whr sent persons after him
and Baruch to take them, and they were obliged to
hide themselves, yea, the Lord hid them, ch. xxxvi.
19, 26. but now he was under no restraint, as least as
yet: Jbr they had not put him into prison; not yet; they
afterwards did, vet. 15.
Vet. ,5. 7he,, Pharaoh's army was come forth out of
Egypt, &c.] At the time the above message was sent
to Jeremiah. Zedekiah, though he had took an oath
of homage to the king of Babylon, rebelled against
him, and entered intO a league with the king of Egypt,
to whom he sent for succours in his distress; and
who, according to agreement, sent his army out of
Egypt to break up the siege of Jerusalem; tbr though
the king of Egypt came no more in person out of his
land, after his del'eat at Carchemish by Nebuchadnez-
zar, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, ch. xlvi. 2. 2 Kings
xxiv. 7. yet he sent his army to the relief of Jerusalem:
and when the Chaldeans that besieged 3crusalem ; which
was in the ninth year of Zedekiah's reign that they first
besieged it, and is the time here referred to, ch. xxxix.
1: heard tidings of them; the Egyptian army, and of
its.coming out against them; the rumour of which
might be spread by the Jews themselves, to intimidate
them; or which might come to them by spies they
had in all parts to give them intelligence of what was
doing; and what they had was good and certain, and
on which they acted: they departed from Jerusalem :
not through fear, but to meet the Egyptian army, and
give them battle, before they could be joined by any
considerable forceof the Jews. It was at this time the
covenant was broken about the manumission of ser-
vants, ch. xxxiv. which conduct ill agrees with their
desire of the prophet's prayer.
Vet. 6. Then came the word of the Lord unto the Pro-
phet Jeremiah, &c.] At the time when the messengers
came to him from the king to pray for them; for the
two preceding verses are to be included in a paren-
thesis: saying; as follows: which is an answer to the
messengers.
Ver. 7. Titus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, &c.]
Which are the usual titles and characters the Lord
takes to himself, when he spake by the prophet; see
oh. xxxiv. 2,. 13: thus shall ye say to the king of Judah,
that sent you unto me, to inquire of me; in an oracular
way; for by this it seems that they were not only sent
to desire the prophet to pray for them, but to obtain
an oracle from the Lord, confirming it to them, that
the Chaldean army which was gone would not return
any more; this they were willing to believe, but
wanted to have a confirmation of it from the Lord;
and so the Targum," to seek an oracle from me ;"
or to ask instruction or doctrine from me: now these
messengers are bid to go back and tell the king, his
nobles, and all the people of the !and, what follows:
behold, Pharaoh' s army, which is come forth to help you,
shall return to Egypt, into their own land; being afraid
to face the Chaldean army; or being defeated and
driven back by it. Josephus{a} says there was a battle
fought between the Egyptians and Chaldeans, in which
the latter were conquerors, and put the former to flight,
and drove them out of all Syria. Jarchi relates a fa-
ble, how that the Egyptian army came by ships, and
that at sea they saw strange appearances, upon which
they said one to another, what means this? they re-
plied, these are our fathers, whom the fathers of those
we are going to help drowned in the sea; and imme-
diately returned to their own land.
Vet. 8. And the Chaldeans shall come again, &c.] To
Jerusalem, after they have defeated or drove back the
Egyptian army: and fi,ght against this city; with fresh
rigour and resolution; being exasperated by the me-
thods taken to oblige them to raise the siege: and take
it, and burn it with fire ; as they did, oh. xxxix. 8.
Ver. 9. Thus saith the Lord, deceive not yourselves,
&c.] Or, your souls; with a false opinion, a vain per-
suasion and belief of the departure of the Chaldeans
never to return; which they would have confirmed by
the Lord; or, lift not up !/oursouls{b}; with vain hopes
of the above things: self or soul-deception is a dread-,
ful thing; and sad is the disappointment when men
are elated with a false and vain hope: saying, the
Chaldeans shall surely depart from us; they had de-
parteel from Jerusalem; but they were persuaded they
would depart out of the land of Judea, and go into
their own !and, the land of Babylon, from whence they
came, and never return more: for they shall not de-
part; out of the land of Judea, into their own land;
at least not till they had done the work they were sent
about.
Ver. 10. For though ye had smitten the whole army
of the Chaldeans that fight against you, &c.]] Supposing
the whole army of the Chaldeans had been vanquished
and slain by the Egyptians, the confederates of the
Jews; or should they be slain by them in a second
siege of them, excepting a few next mentioned: and
there remained but wounded men among them; and sup-
posing that those of them that were left, that were not

{a} Aantqu. I. 10. c. 7. sect. 3.
{b} \^Mkytvpn wavt la\^ ne efferatis animas vestras, Tigurine ver-
sion, Calvin; ne tollatis (in spem) animas vestras, Schmidt.