and the fire still devours them; and ye shall know that I am Jehovah, when I set my face against them. And I make the land a desolation, because they have acted most treacherously saith the Lord."

The parable indicates, in a very striking manner, the strictly moral nature of the ends for which God chooses a people out of the world, and teaches them to expect, in immediate connection with these, all their security, and power, and glory. It is the same truth, only applied to other times and altered circumstances, which is brought out by John the Baptist, when he says, in regard to the approaching work and kingdom of Messiah, "And now the axe is laid to the root of the trees; therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit, is hewn down and cast into the fire." The same also which our Lord himself taught in the parables of the wicked husbandmen, and of the fruitless fig-tree in the vineyard (Matt. xxi. 33-41; Luke xiii. 6-9), and which he still further embodied in the parabolical action of the cursing of the fruitless fig-tree by the wayside (Mark xi. 12–14). The truth, therefore, is for all times and stages of the church's history. It matters not that her members are now intermingled with the world, and not, as of old, placed in a state of visible separation and distance from it. They still are a chosen seed, distinguished with the highest privileges, and most elevating hopes, but all for the single end of withdrawing them from the pollutions of the world, and rendering them to God a peculiar people, zealous of good works. If they only pursue after this high end with undeviating purpose and steady aim, they shall be found full of the favour, and strong in the might of God; they shall successfully contend with principalities and powers, and will prove themselves the appointed channels of conveying life and blessing to a perishing world. But if they are themselves drawing back to the ways of corruption; if they begin to breathe the spirit of the world, and do its works, as they must be of all men the most guilty, so are they also the most sure to inherit the woes of condemnation. They oppose and frustrate the very end for which they have been called to the enjoyment of such distinguished privileges, and so belong to the unhappy class of whom our Lord has said, that it shall "be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for them."

Having prepared the way, by the parabolical delineation of

the fifteenth chapter, the prophet proceeds, in the long historical detail of the next chapter, to make application of its principles to Israel. In this ideal narrative the covenant-people are personified as a single individual, the daughter Jerusalem, under the image of whose life the most vivid picture is presented of the history of God's connection with them, and their behaviour toward him.

CHAPTER XVI.

THE STORY OF ISRAEL'S GUILT AND PUNISHMENT.

Ver. 1. And the word of the Lord came to me, saying: 2. Son of man, make Jerusalem know her abominations. 3. And say, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah to Jerusalem: Thy origin and thy birth were of the land of the Canaanite; thy father was the Amorite, and thy mother the Hittite. 4. And for thy birth, in the day that thou wast born, thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed with water for cleansing; thou wast not salted at all, nor wast thou wrapt in swaddling-bands. 5. No eye pitied thee, to do

1 Hävernick would render here: the place of thy production and the place of thy birth. But no instance can be produced in which the terms are used distinctly to express the locality in which the action or event took place. And if it had been the locality that was here pointed to, what follows would have been, not of, but in, the land of Canaan. The words are literally, thy diggings, or originatings, and thy bringings forth, to which substantially correspond, thy origin and thy birth.

2 Not simply an Amorite and a Hittite, but these two tribes themselves personified; as if all the peculiarities respectively belonging to them united in the parentage of the Israelitish people.

3 The use of water is here said to be-which occurs only here, and has been very commonly rendered "for suppling," as from to stroke or smear. Gesenius gives cleansing as the meaning, which, with most recent authorities, we adopt. The latter is certainly the more natural sense. In the Septuagint the word is altogether omitted. The application of salt to new-born infants in ancient times is known to have been a common practice, supposed to have been used medicinally, for the purpose of hardening the skin; but probably, also, not without reference to the symbolical import of salt, as an emblem of purity and incorruption. Jerome says on the passage, "The tender bodies of infants, while they still retain the heat of the womb, and by their cries give evidence of the first commencement of this toilsome life, are wont to be sprinkled with salt by the nurses, to make them more dry and firm." Galen speaks of it, De Sanit. i. 7.

8.

one of these things to thee, to have compassion upon thee; and thou wast thrown upon the open field with contempt of thy life,' in the day that thou wast born. 6. And I passed by thee, and saw thee ready to be trampled on in thy blood; and I said to thee in thy blood, live; yea, I said to thee in thy blood, live. 7. A myriad like the produce of the field I made thee; and thou didst increase and wax great, and became most beautiful;2 thy breasts formed, and thy hair grew, and thou wast naked and bare. And I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, and behold thy time was a time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness; and I sware unto thee, and entered into covenant with thee, saith the Lord Jehovah; and thou becamest mine. 9. And I washed thee with water, and rinsed thy blood from off thee, and anointed thee with oil. 10. And I clothed thee with broidered work, and gave thee shoes of tahash,

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1 "With contempt of thy life," seems to come nearer to the idea here expressed than the "loathing of thy person." For,, though often used for life, never precisely means person; and when the treatment is said to have been done with loathing of this, it is much the same as we would express by contempt, or disdainful indifference, to the life.

2 It is literally, "and didst come to ornament of ornaments." The word y has no other well ascertained meaning; and the attempts of Hävernick and Hitzig to change the sense are both quite unsuccessful. See Hengstenberg on Psalm xxxii. 9. It is there also used somewhat peculiarly-of the bit and bridle of a horse, "whose ornaments are bit and bridle," meaning that the nature of a horse is such as to require decorations of that sort.

3 The meaning of this last clause is much obscured in the authorised version, by giving the conjunction and the adversative force of whereas, thereby making the nakedness and bareness here mentioned point to a condition prior to that described in the preceding terms. But it is only the literal rendering that conveys the proper idea. The prophet means to say, that even when grown to womanhood and ripe for marriage, she was still naked and bare; beautiful, indeed, in person, but as to other things, in an unfurnished and poor condition.

* This expression, of "throwing the skirt over her," as appears also from what immediately follows, is synonymous with entering into the marriage relation. It is taken from Ruth iii. 9, "spread thy skirt over thine handmaid, for thou art a near kinsman." It gives a very feeble sense, when explained, as it often is, of taking under the wing of Divine protection and support. The passage in Ruth, and collateral passages in the law (Deut. xxii. 30, xxvii. 20), fully bear out the other and more specific meaning. Nor are similar expressions wanting in the Greek poets for indicating the marriage union; as in Sophocles Trachin, v. 536. See also Grotius here.

It is not ascertained with certainty, what was meant by tahash; it is always used in connection with skin, or articles made of skin; for example, the tabernacle was covered with tahash skins, Ex. xxv. 5. The ancient versions understood it to denote the colour of the skins, red or blue; but the Talmudists and Hebrew interpreters take it for the name of the animal from which the skins were obtained, probably the badger or seal; and this is now generally acquiesced in.

and girded thee with fine linen, and covered thee with silk. 11. And I decked thee with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain upon thy neck. 12. And I put a jewel in thy nose, and ear-rings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thy head. 13. And thou wast adorned with gold and silver, and thy clothing was of fine linen and silk and broidered work; fine flour, and honey, and oil didst thou eat; and thou wert exceedingly beautiful, and didst prosper into a kingdom. 14. And thy name went forth among the nations on account of thy beauty; for it was perfect by reason of my adornment, which I put upon thee, saith the Lord Jehovah. 15. But thou didst trust in thy beauty, and didst play the wanton upon thy name,1 and didst pour out thy fornications upon every one that passed by; it was his (viz., thy beauty). 16. And thou didst take of thy garments, and didst make to thyself high-places of divers colours, and didst play the wanton upon them (such as) had not come in, nor did exist. 17. And thou didst take thy beautiful articles, of my gold and my silver, which I put upon thee, and didst make for thyself statues of men, and didst commit fornication with them. 18. And thou tookest thy broidered garments, and didst cover them; and my oil and my incense thou didst set before them. 19. And my bread which I gave thee, fine flour and oil and honey, that I fed thee with, thou hast also set it before them for a sweet savour and it was so, saith the Lord Jehovah. 20. And thou didst take thy sons and thy daughters whom thou barest to me, and to them hast thou sacrificed them, to be devoured: 21. Were thy whoredoms too little, that thou shouldest have slain my children, and given them, by making them pass through the fire for them? 22. And with all thy abominations and thy whoredoms, didst not remember the days of thy youth, when thou wert naked and bare, wert ready to be trampled on in thy blood. 23. And it came to pass, after all thy wickedness (woe, woe to thee, saith the Lord Jehovah), 24. That thou didst build to thee a chamber," and didst make for thee a high place in every street. 25. At every corner of a way hast thou built thy high-place, and hast made thy beauty to be abhorred, and hast opened thy feet to every one that passed by, and hast multiplied thy whoredoms. 26. And thou hast played the wanton with the Egyptians, thy neighbours, great of flesh, and hast multiplied thy whoredoms, to provoke me to anger. 27. And behold I have stretched out my hand upon thee, and

'The most literal rendering here is to be preferred. Hävernick's "against thy name," with a reference to Judges xix. 2, is rather forced. She played the wanton upon her name, because her renown, with the riches and honour on which it was grounded, carried her away into sin.

2 It seems probable, that what is meant here by is such a chamber as the Latins denoted by fornix, here suitably rendered by the Septuagint oïnnua zogvizòv—a class of apartments too frequently associated with the impure religions of antiquity.

"This epithet, "great of flesh," applied to the Egyptians, seems to point to the gross and lustful character of their religion (Comp. ch. xxiii. 20). How much the Egyptian religion partook of such a character, has been abundantly established. See, for example, Hengstenberg on the Pentateuch, ii. p. 118, sq., also Herod. ii. 46. It may be doubted, however, whether committing adultery with the Egyptians means worshipping their idols. We would rather understand it, with Calvin, of their improper trust in the power of Egypt, which was itself an act of unfaithfulness toward God. So also may be understood what is said of the Assyrians.

have diminished thy allowance, and have given thee to the desire of them that hate thee, the daughters of the Philistines, that are ashamed of thy lewd way.1 28. Thou hast played the wanton also with the Assyrians, because thou wast not satisfied, and didst play the wanton, and still wast not satisfied. 29. And thou didst multiply thy whoredoms toward the land of Canaan, as far as Chaldea, and even still wast not satisfied with this. 30. How weak is thine heart, saith the Lord Jehovah! since thou doest all these things, the doing of an adulterous, imperious woman; 31. Since thou buildest thy chamber at the corner of every way, and makest thy high-place in every street; and hast not been as an harlot, to scorn the hire.3 32. The adulterous woman, who receives strangers while under her husband! 33. To all harlots they give gifts; but thou bestowest gifts on all thy lovers, and bribest them to come to thee on every side by thy whoredoms. 34. And there is in thee the contrary of women, in thy committing whoredoms, while it is not played the wanton after thee; and in thy giving of a reward, while a reward is not given to thee; so that thou art contrary.

35. Therefore, O harlot, hear the word of Jehovah: 36. Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Because thy filthiness has been poured out, and thou hast discovered thy nakedness by thy whoredoms, upon thy lovers, and upon all the idols of thy abominations, and by the blood of thy children whom thou didst give to them. 37. Behold, therefore, I will gather all thy lovers, with whom thou hast had pleasure, even all whom thou hast loved, with all that thou hatest; and I will gather them against thee round about, and discover thy nakedness to them, and they shall see all thy nakedness. 38. And I will judge thee according to the judgments of adulteresses and those who shed blood; and I will make thee blood of fury and jealousy. 39. And I will give

1 "The daughters of the Philistines," seem here to be taken generally as a name for heathen adversaries. They were not actually the parties to whom Israel was given up, when her allowance was diminished, or her inheritance curtailed; but those to whom they were given up, from their character and position, might be called daughters of the Philistines.

2 The meaning of this fresh charge, which we render quite literally, seems to be this, that the people multiplied still farther their backslidings and pollutions, such as belonged to the land of Canaan under its original inhabitants, and that by going even to Chaldea; bringing in Chaldea to aggravate the Canaanitish character of their evil ways. We greatly prefer this sense to taking Caanan as an appellative, and rendering, "the merchant-land to Chaldea.”

The practice of harlots is referred to, scoffing at or scorning the offered hire, in order to obtain more. Unlike such, worse even than those profligates, Israel seemed to be indifferent to the result of her procedure; she did not care whether she got much or little-heedlessly bent on the way of ruin. The rendering of this clause by the Vulgate is particularly happy: Nec facta es sicut meretrix fastidio augens pretium.

4 The common version misses the exact import of this verse, by rendering "taketh strangers instead of her husband." The sin charged is that of taking or receiving strangers while under the law of her husband. It refers to Numb. v. 19, 20, 29, where the rendering should be, “goeth aside under her husband," i. e., turns aside to another, while properly under him.