Online Bible 1995 March/ROM-1025.iso/olb/gill/6_700.lzh/6_706.TXT

Text File | 1994-11-26 | 7KB | 129 lines

goernment, and emperors of different dispositions to
the Jews; and particularly as two colours are assigned
to these, it may respect the division of their kingdom
into Pagan and Papal, as is predicted in Dan. ii. 41, 42.
Kimchi thinks the bay horses design the kingdom of
the Ishmaelites, or Turks, .a strong and powerful peo-
ple; as some think the word used signifies {x}; rather
the Goths and Vandals; see vet. 7. The word for
grisled is by the Targum rendered spotted or speckled;
and comes from one which signifies hail; and so de-
notes such coloured horses as are spotted with white
spots, like hailstones r, upon another colour, as black
or red; and is by the Septuagint, and others, rendered
various {z}, of divers colours: and the other word for
bay is rendered by them starling-coloured; the colour
of the starling, which is a black bird, with white spots;
and so were a fit emblem of the Goths, Hunns, 4'c.
who were of various nations, and had various laws,
customs, and usages; though some think by these two
are meant the successors of Alexander, the Lagidae
and the Seleucidse, put together, because of their inter-
marriages with one another, as well as succeeding
Alexander: the tbrmer by the grisled, who went and
tettled in the south country in Egypt, ver. 6. whose
first king was Ptolemy Lagus, from whence is the
name, and who is the king of the south in Dan. xi. 5.
and the latter by the bay or ash-coloured, as the Tar-
gum; the kings of Syria hiding deep their counsels, as
under ashes, particularly Antiochus, as Grotius ob-
serves; and sometimes making war on one nation, and
sometimes on another; and both of them in their
turns falling upon the Jews suddenly, and with great
Violence, like hailstones, and making sad devasta-
tions among titera, reducing them to ashes; but
then this sense shuts out the Romans, the fourth
monarchy, from having any place in this vision,
which cannot be admitted; since these four cha-
tlots answer to the four sorts of metal in Nebuchad-
nezzar's image, and to the four beasts in Daniel's vision.
So the Jewish writers {} say, the red horses are the king-
dom of Babylon, which shed much blood in Israel;
this is the head of gold: the black horses, the kingdom
of the Persians and Medes, like to a bear, who made
black the faces of Israel, by the decrees of Human: the
white horses, the kingdom of Grecia, who made white
the faces of Israel by reproaches: the horses grisled
and bay the fourth kingdom, which decreed various
decrees, different from one another: and these four
chariots went out from between two mountains, from
between the kingdoms of Judah and Israel, which
dwell between two cormtries, that beyond Jordan, and
the land of Israel; and they went out between them,
and carried them captive; and these kingdoms are
called mountains of brass, because strong as brass, and
hearkened not to the words of the prophets.
Ver. 4. Then I answered and said unto the angel
that talked with me, &c.] After he had seen the cha-
riots come out, and had observed the different colours
of the horses in them: what are these, my lord? that is,
whatdo they signify ? what is the meaning ofthisvision ?
Ver. 5. And the angel answered and said unto me,
&c.] In order to grant him his request, and explain
the vision of the chariots: these are the four spirits of
the heavens; or, the four winds of the heavens; the
apostles and ministers of the Gospel may be dora pared
to the winds, because their ministry is the ministration
of the spirit, which is like wind that blows invisibly,
powerfully, and where it listeth; and because in and
by it the spirit breathes life and comfort into the souls
of men; and because of the powerful efficacy and pe-
netrating nature of the word preached by them, and
their swiftness and readiness to do the will of God :. an-
gels are called spirits or winds, Psal. civ. 8, 4. they are
created spirits, and so differ from God; are incor-
poreal ones, and so differ from men; and are -im-
material and immortal, and so die not: they are spiri-
tual subsistences, and spirits of the-heavens, or heavenly
spirits; heaven being the place of their abode an&
residence; and they may be compared to winds, for
their invisibility, wonderful penetration into places and
things, their very great swiftness, and prodigious
power and strength. The Targum paraphrases the
words thus, "these are the four kingdoms, which are
"as the winds of heaven ;" and so the same are sig-
nified by the four winds in Dan. vii. 2. to which they
may be compared for their swift and forcible carry-
ing all before them, and for their ficklehess and
changeablehess; and to which, the several parts of the
world, into which they went, agree: which go forth,
from standing before the Lord of all the earth: so the.
apostles of Christ, and ministers of the Gospel, stood
before him in his eternal purposes and decrees from,
everlasting; and went forth, having their commission
from him in time; and were sent by him into the se--
veral parts of the world he is the Lord of; and by
whom they were filled with gifts, grace, and courage,
fitting them for their work. Angels also stand before
hint, ministerlug unto him; always behold him; are
in his presence, and enjoy his thvour; and go forth,.
from him, being sent tbrth by him on various ac-
counts into all the parts of the world; which Jehovah.
is the Creator, Uphoider, and Governor of: moreover,
this is applicable to the four monarchies; these stood
before the Lord in his vast and infinite mind ;. in the.
secret decrees of it. before the world was;. and the
sending and going forth of them from him shew that
they were powers ordained of God, who has the go-
vernment of the whole world in his hands.
Ver. 6. The black horses which are therein, &c.]
Which were in the second chariot: no further men-
tion is made of the red horses in the first chariot,
because the kingdom of the Chaldeans was now extinct:
these design the Medes and Persians: go forth into the
north .country: into the country of Babylon or Chal-
den, which lay north of Judea; see Jet. i. 13, 14, 15.
and iii. 12. and vi. 22. and other places; these went to
Babylon, took that, and seized on the empire, and de-
livered the Jews, who were captives there: and the
white go .forth after them; the Grecians under Alex-
ander, who went after the Medes and Persians into the

{x} \^Myuwma\^ fortes, Vulg. Lat. Pagninus, Montanus, Drusius; robusti,
Piscator, Tarnovius, Gussetius, Stockius, p. 74; validi, Burkius; so
Kimchi; and the Jews in Pesikta apud Yalkut in loc.
{y} \^Myddb\^ grandinate, Montanus, Cocceius, Burkius; grandiue gut-
tati, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Tarnovius, De Dieu, Pembellus
{z} \~poikiloi\~, Sept.; varii, Pagninus.
{a} In Pesikta Rabbati apud Yalkut in loc.