Online Bible 1995 March/ROM-1025.iso/olb/gill/6_700.lzh/6_702.TXT

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and held above seven wine-gallons.' Thd Targum in-
,terprets this of such who dealt in false measures,
whoie sin is exposed,_and their punishment set forth;
but rather it designs the measure of iniquity filling up,
either in Judea, particularly 'in the times of Christ,
Matt. xxiii. 32. or in the whole world, and especially
in the antichristian states, Rev. xviii. 5, 6:-and he
said 'moreover, this is their resemblance in all the earth;
or this is their eye {z}; what they are looking at, and in-
tent upon, namely, this ephah; that is, to fill up the
measure of their iniquity: or, as Kimchi and Ben
Melech interpret it, this ephah, which thou seest,
shews that there is an eye upon them which sees their
· works; and this is the eye of the Lord, which sees and
· takes notice of all the evil actions of men, not as
approving them, but as observing them, and avenging
them. Cocceius, by the ephah, understands an abun-
dance of temporal good things bestowed upon the
Christian church in Constantine's time and following,
on which the eyes of carnal men were looking.
Vet. 7- And, behold, there was l!fted up a talent of lead.,
&c.] By the angel; since he is afterwards said to cast it
upon the mouth of the ephah. A clear, or talent of silver,
with the Jews, was equal to three thousand shekels, as
may be gathered from Exod. xxxviii. e4, 25, 0,6. and
weighed a hundred and twenty-five pounds {}; or, as
others, a hundred and twenty {b}, and, according to the
more exact account of Dr. Arbuthnot, a hundred and
thirteen poun{ts, ten ounces, one pennyweight, and 10 ***
grains of ourTroy weight. A Babylonish talent, accord-
ing to _/Elianus {}, weighed seventy-two Attic pounds;
and an Attic mina, or pound, weighed 'a hundred
drachms; so that it was of the weight of seven thousand
two hundred such drachms. An Alexandrian talent
was equal to twelve thousand Attic drachms; and these
the same with a hundred and twenty-five Roman
libras or pounds; which talent is supposed to be the
same with that of Moses. The Roman talent contained
seventy-two Italic minos, which were the same with
the Roman librasa. But since the Hebrew word cicar
signifies any thing plain, and what is extended like a
cake, as Arias Montanus observes {}, it may here intend
a plate of lead, which was laid over the mouth of the
ephah, as a lid unto it; though indeed it is afterwards
called \^trpwe Nba\^, a stone of lead, and so seems to de-
sign a weight. And this is a woman that sitteth in the
midst of the ephah; who, in ver. 8, is called wickedness;
and here represented by a woman, because, say some,
the woman was first in the transgression; or rather
· because sin is flattering and deceitful, and draws into
the commission of it, and so to ruin: and this woman,
wickedness, intends wicked men; all the wicked among
the Jews, and even all the wicked of the world; who
sit in the ephah, very active and busy in filling up the
measure of their sins, and where they sit with great plea-
sure and delight; very openly and visibly declare their
sin, as Sodore, and hide it not; in a very proud and
haughty manner, with great boldness and impudence,
and in great security, without any concern about a
future sta-te, promising themselves impunity here and
hereafter, This woman is a very lively emblem of the
whore of Rome, sitting as a queen upon many waters;
ruling over kings and princes; living deliciously, and
m great ease and pleasure filling up the measure of
her sins. Kimchi interprets this woman of the ten
tribes, who wickedly departed from God, and were as
one kingdom.
Ver. 8. And he said, this is wickedness, &c.] A
representation of wicked 'men, who are wickedness
itself, as their inward part is, Psal.-v. 9. and particu-
larly of the wicked one, the man of sin and son of
perdition, the' Roman antichrist and apocalyptic beast;
who, though he is called by this title, his Holiness,
his true and proper name is wickedness; \~o anomov\~, that
wicked lawless one, 2 Thess. if. 8. yea, wickedness
itself, being extremely wiced, a sink of sin and of all
abominations, Key. xvii. 5. and xviii. 2. And he cast
it int6 the midst of the ephah; that is, wickedness;
that it might be kept within bounds, and not exceed
its measure to be filled up: this seems to denote some
restraint on sinners, that they may'nt be able to go all
the lengths they would; and some rebuke upon them,
that they might not lift up their heads with impunity;
and some check upon them, and their furious rage
towards the people of God; and also the putting of
an utter end to sin and sinners, and particularly the
followers of antichrist; see Psal.;Civ. 35. And he cast
the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof; either upon
the mouth of the 'woman, or of the ephah; and, be it
which it will, it was done to keep the woman within
the ephab, and press her down there; and intends the
judgments of God upon sinners; and shews that there
is no escaping divine vengeance; that it fails heavy
where it lights, and sinks to the lowest hell; and |hat
it will continue, being laid on by the firm, unchangeable,
and irrevocable decree of God. Cocceius understands
this of the Saratens and Turks, and the barbarous na-
tions, being cast into the Roman empire, to restrain
the antichristian tyranny; but it seems better to apply
it to the utter destruction of antichrist, signified by a
millstone cast into the sea and sunk there, never to rise
more; see Rev. xvii. i. 2l. and with it compare Exod.
xv. 10.
Ver. 9. Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, &c.]
This is not a new ,ision, but a. continuation of the
former, as appears from the ephah seen in it: and,
behold, there came out two women; out of the same
place the ephah did. The Targum explains these two
women by two provinces; and Kimchi interprets them
of the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin, who had
been carried captive into Babylon; and others of the
two kings, Jehoiakim and Zedekiah, who were the
cause of the captivity; but Jarchi understands by them
the Babylonians and Chaldeans, two nations as one,
joined in Nebuchadnezzar's armies,which carried them
captive: others think the two reformers, Ezra and
Nehemiah, are meant, who were instruments of
purging the Jews, returned' from captivity, though but
weak ones, and therefore are compared to women; yet
what they did they did swiftly, and therefore are said

{z} \^Mnye taz\^ haec est oculus eorum, Pagninus, Montanus, Munster,
Vatablus, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Tarnovius, Cocceius.
{a} Epiphanius de Mensuris & Ponderibus.
{b} Hebraei apud Buxtorf. Lex. Heb. in rad. \^rkk\^.
{c} Var. Hist. l. 1. c. 22.
{d} See Prideaux's Preace to Connexion, &c. vol. 1. p. 18, 19, &c.
{e} Ephron, sive deo Siclo, prope finem.