Online Bible 1995 March/ROM-1025.iso/olb/gill/6_300.lzh/6_349.TXT

Text File | 1994-09-05 | 7KB | 129 lines

and \^lq\^, swift, as an arrow flies, and both make Hid-
dekel: now this river was near Shushan, where Daniel
resided; nay, Benjamin 'of Tudela {g} says, that the
river Hiddekel divides the city of Shushan, over which
is a bridge, on one side of which Jews dwelt ,at the
time he was there; unless he means that it cuts and
divides the province of Elam in Persia, he had before
been speaking of; and so Diodorus Siculus h says, that
both Euphrates and Tigris pass through Media into
Mesopotamia;wherefore it is no wonder to hear of
Daniel by the side of the river Hiddekel or Tigris:
here Daniel was, not in vision, but in person, having
others with him, as appears from a following verse;
by it he was walking, contemplating, praying, or
conversing.
Vet. 5. Then I lifted up mine eyes, and looked, &c.]
Being excited to it, by an object presented, of an un-
usual appearance, which engaged his attention, and
caused him to look wistly. at it: and, behold a certaihn
man clothed in linen; not Gabriel, but the Son of God,
the Messiah; who, though not as yet incarnate, yet
was so in the counsel and purpose of God; had agreed
in covenant to be man, was promised and prophesied
of as such; and new appeared in a human form, as he
frequently did before his incarnation, as a pledge of it,
and shewing his readiness to assume human nature:
he appears here clothed in linen, in the habit of a priest;
which office he sustains, and 'executes by the sacrifice
of himself, and by his prevalent intercession; and may
denote his purity and innocence, as well as direct us
to his spotless righteousness he is the author of, which
is like fine linen, clean and white, Re.v. xix. 8: whose
loins were girded with fine gold of Uphaz ; or of Fez,
which is the best gold. Some take it to be the
same with the gold of Ophit, often spoken of in
Scripture; so the Targum on Jer. x. 9, renders Uphaz
by Ophir. Ptolemy {} makes mention of a river called
Phasis in the island of Taprobane or Zeilan, where
Bochart {k} seems to think Ophir was, from whence
the gold of that name came; and the same geogra-
pher t takes notice of a city and river of the same name
in Colchin; perhaps the same with Pison, which en-
compassed Havilah, where was good gold, Gen. ii.
11, 12. and both Srabo rnand Pliny "say that much gold
was found in that country, and taken out of rivers
there; and was so plentiful, that even chambers were
made of gold, Some think that this was an island in
India called Paz or Topaz, and might with the Jews
go by all three names, Paz, Topaz, and Uphaz °;
however, it is certain, that very line gold, even the
finest gold, is here designed: and the loins of this illus-
trious Persop being girded with a girdle made of it, as
it may be expressive of his royal dignity, so likewise
of his readiness to do any service he was employed in,
as man and Mediator; and especially the great work of
man's redemption and salvation, for the sake of which
he would really become man, as he has, as well as
now he appeared as one; see Rev. i. 13. where Christ
is said to be girt with a golden girdle; and such an one
was this; and which is to be understood, not of his
girdle as a King, which is a girdle of faithfulness and
righteousness, Isa. xi. 5. all his administrations of
verntnent being just and true; though such a girdle
well suits him, and Iris character in the discharge of
every office, as well .as his kingly office; nor of his
girdle as a Prophet, which is the girdle of truth, which
all his faithful ministers are girt with, Ephes. vi. 14.
and he in a more eminent manner, who is full of
grace and truth, and by whom both came, and who is
truth itself; but of his girdle as a Priest; for as such
is he here habited, and such a girdle the priests used to
wear, even the girdle of the ephod, made of gold, blue,
purple, and fine twined linen, Exod. xxviii. 8. and
this is the girdle of love, which constrained Christ to
become the surety and substitute of his people; to take
upon him their nature, and their sins; to offer himself
a sacrifice for them, and to be their advocate with the
Father; and the form and matter of this girdle being
round abont hiln, and of gold, may denote the perfec-
tion, duration, and eternity of his love.
Ver. 6. His body also was li/ce the beryl, &c.] That
is, that part of it which was not covered with the linen
garment, and was seen, was like such a precious stone,
said to be of an azure and sky colour, signifying he
was the Lord from heaven; though, according to its
name, it should be of a sea-colour, greenish; and so,
according to some, the beryl is..Cocceius thinks the
nardonyx is meant, which is of a fiesh-colour, and so
tnore fit to express the cotneliuess of a human body;
the beryl, being of a different colour, seems not so apt
to set forth the agreeable colour of a man. Brau-
nius P is of opinion that the chrysolite is meant, a stone
of a golden colour; and takes the sense to be, that
such was the lustre of the golden girdle about his loins,
that the rest of the parts of the body about it appeared
as if all of gold: and- his face the appearance of light-
ning; exceeding bright, very dazzling to the eye, and
striking terror to the mind; expressive of something
very awful and majestic; and agrees well with Christ
the sun of righteousness, whose face or countenance at
his transfiguration on the mount, and when John saw
him in a visionary way, was as the sun shineth in his
strength, in the summer-soltice, or at noon-day, Matt.
xvii. 2. Rev. i. 16. from whom is all the light of know-
ledge and truth, of joy, peace, and comfort, of grace
and glory; and which darts as swiftly and as powerfully
from hhn as the rays of the sun, or as lightning from
one end of the heaven to the other; and irradiates and
illuminates as brightly and clearly: and his eyes as
lamps of,fire; denoting his omniscience of all persons
and things; and how piercing and penetrating his eyes
are into the affairs of men and states, by whom they
are clearly seen, and to whom they are exactly known;
and how fierce and terrible his wrath is towards his
enemies, and whose looks must inject dread and terror
into them; see Rev. xix. 12: and his arms and his feet
like in colour to polished brass; denoting his great
strength for action, his stability and firmness, and the

{g} Itinerarium, p. 86.
{h} Bibliothec. 1. 2. p. 99.
{i} Geograph. I. 7. c. 4.
{k} Phaleg. I. 2. c. 27. col. 141.
{l} Ptolem. Geograph. 1.5. c. 10.
{m} Geograph. I. 11. p. 343.
{n} Nat. Hist. I. 33. c. 3.
{o} Hiller. Onomastic. Sacr. c. 8. p. 141.
{p} De Vestitu Sacerdot. Hebr. 1. 2. c. 17. sect 10, 11, 12. p. 721, 722.