mh_parser/vol_split/24 - Jeremiah/Chapter 33.xml

<div2 id="Jer.xxxiv" n="xxxiv" next="Jer.xxxv" prev="Jer.xxxiii" progress="41.36%" title="Chapter XXXIII">
<h2 id="Jer.xxxiv-p0.1">J E R E M I A H.</h2>
<h3 id="Jer.xxxiv-p0.2">CHAP. XXXIII.</h3>
<p class="intro" id="Jer.xxxiv-p1" shownumber="no">The scope of this chapter is much the same with
that of the foregoing chapter—to confirm the promise of the
restoration of the Jews, notwithstanding the present desolations of
their country and dispersions of their people. And these promises
have, both in type and tendency, a reference as far forward as to
the gospel church, to which this second edition of the Jewish
church was at length to resign its dignities and privileges. It is
here promised, I. That the city shall be rebuilt and re-established
"in statu quo—in its former state," <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p1.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.1-Jer.33.6" parsed="|Jer|33|1|33|6" passage="Jer 33:1-6">ver. 1-6</scripRef>. II. That the captives, having
their sins pardoned, shall be restored, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p1.2" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.7-Jer.33.8" parsed="|Jer|33|7|33|8" passage="Jer 33:7,8">ver. 7, 8</scripRef>. III. That this shall redound
very much to the glory of God, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p1.3" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.9" parsed="|Jer|33|9|0|0" passage="Jer 33:9">ver.
9</scripRef>. IV. That the country shall have both joy and plenty,
<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p1.4" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.10-Jer.33.14" parsed="|Jer|33|10|33|14" passage="Jer 33:10-14">ver. 10-14</scripRef>. V. That way
shall be made for the coming of the Messiah, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p1.5" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.15-Jer.33.16" parsed="|Jer|33|15|33|16" passage="Jer 33:15,16">ver. 15, 16</scripRef>. VI. That the house of David,
the house of Levi, and the house of Israel, shall flourish again,
and be established, and all three in the kingdom of Christ; a
gospel ministry and the gospel church shall continue while the
world stands, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p1.6" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.17-Jer.33.26" parsed="|Jer|33|17|33|26" passage="Jer 33:17-26">ver.
17-26</scripRef>.</p>
<scripCom id="Jer.xxxiv-p1.7" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33" parsed="|Jer|33|0|0|0" passage="Jer 33" type="Commentary"/>
<scripCom id="Jer.xxxiv-p1.8" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.1-Jer.33.9" parsed="|Jer|33|1|33|9" passage="Jer 33:1-9" type="Commentary"/><div class="Commentary" id="Jer.xxxiv-p1.9">
<h4 id="Jer.xxxiv-p1.10">Encouraging Prospects. (<span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p1.11">b. c.</span> 589.)</h4>
<p class="passage" id="Jer.xxxiv-p2" shownumber="no">1 Moreover the word of the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p2.1">Lord</span> came unto Jeremiah the second time, while
he was yet shut up in the court of the prison, saying,   2
Thus saith the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p2.2">Lord</span> the maker
thereof, the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p2.3">Lord</span> that formed it, to
establish it; the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p2.4">Lord</span> <i>is</i> his
name;   3 Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee
great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.   4 For thus
saith the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p2.5">Lord</span>, the God of Israel,
concerning the houses of this city, and concerning the houses of
the kings of Judah, which are thrown down by the mounts, and by the
sword;   5 They come to fight with the Chaldeans, but <i>it
is</i> to fill them with the dead bodies of men, whom I have slain
in mine anger and in my fury, and for all whose wickedness I have
hid my face from this city.   6 Behold, I will bring it health
and cure, and I will cure them, and will reveal unto them the
abundance of peace and truth.   7 And I will cause the
captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will
build them, as at the first.   8 And I will cleanse them from
all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against me; and I will
pardon all their iniquities, whereby they have sinned, and whereby
they have transgressed against me.   9 And it shall be to me a
name of joy, a praise and a honour before all the nations of the
earth, which shall hear all the good that I do unto them: and they
shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and for all the
prosperity that I procure unto it.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p3" shownumber="no">Observe here, I. The date of this
comfortable prophecy which God entrusted Jeremiah with. It is not
exact in the time, only that it was after that in the foregoing
chapter, when things were still growing worse and worse; it was
<i>the second time. God speaketh once, yea, twice,</i> for the
encouragement of his people. We are not only so disobedient that we
have need of <i>precept upon precept</i> to bring us to our duty,
but so distrustful that we have need of promise upon promise to
bring us to our comfort. This word, as the former, <i>came to
Jeremiah</i> when <i>he was in prison.</i> Note, No confinement can
deprive God's people of his presence; no locks nor bars can shut
out his gracious visits; nay, oftentimes <i>as their afflictions
abound their consolations much more abound,</i> and they have the
most reviving communications of his favour when the world frowns
upon them. Paul's sweetest epistles were those that bore date out
of a prison.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p4" shownumber="no">II. The prophecy itself. A great deal of
comfort is wrapped up in it for the relief of the captives, to keep
them from sinking into despair. Observe,</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p5" shownumber="no">1. Who it is that secures this comfort to
them (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p5.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.2" parsed="|Jer|33|2|0|0" passage="Jer 33:2"><i>v.</i> 2</scripRef>): It is
<i>the Lord, the maker thereof, the Lord that framed it,</i> He is
the maker and former of heaven and earth, and therefore has all
power in his hands; so it refers to Jeremiah's prayer, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p5.2" osisRef="Bible:Jer.32.17" parsed="|Jer|32|17|0|0" passage="Jer 32:17"><i>ch.</i> xxxii. 17</scripRef>. He is the
maker and former of Jerusalem, of Zion, built them at first, and
therefore can rebuild them—built them for his own praise, and
therefore <i>will.</i> He <i>formed it, to establish it,</i> and
therefore it shall be established till those things be introduced
which cannot be shaken, but shall remain for ever. He is the maker
and former of this promise; he has laid the scheme for Jerusalem's
restoration, and he that has formed it will establish it, he that
has made the promise will make it good; for Jehovah <i>is his
name,</i> a God giving being to his promises by the performance of
them, and when he does this he is known by that name (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p5.3" osisRef="Bible:Exod.6.3" parsed="|Exod|6|3|0|0" passage="Ex 6:3">Exod. vi. 3</scripRef>), a perfecting God. When
the heavens and the earth were finished, then, and not till then,
the creator is called <i>Jehovah,</i> <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p5.4" osisRef="Bible:Gen.2.4" parsed="|Gen|2|4|0|0" passage="Ge 2:4">Gen. ii. 4</scripRef>.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p6" shownumber="no">2. How this comfort must be obtained and
fetched in—by prayer (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p6.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.3" parsed="|Jer|33|3|0|0" passage="Jer 33:3"><i>v.</i>
3</scripRef>): <i>Call upon me, and I will answer them.</i> The
prophet, having received some intimations of this kind, must be
humbly earnest with God for further discoveries of his kind
intentions. He had prayed (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p6.2" osisRef="Bible:Jer.32.16" parsed="|Jer|32|16|0|0" passage="Jer 32:16"><i>ch.</i>
xxxii. 16</scripRef>), but he must pray again. Note, Those that
expect to receive comforts from God must continue instant in
prayer. We must call upon him, and then he will answer us. Christ
himself must <i>ask, and it shall be given him,</i> <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p6.3" osisRef="Bible:Ps.2.8" parsed="|Ps|2|8|0|0" passage="Ps 2:8">Ps. ii. 8</scripRef>. <i>I will show thee great
and mighty things</i> (give thee a clear and full prospect of
them), <i>hidden things, which,</i> though in part discovered
already, yet <i>thou knowest not,</i> thou canst not understand or
give credit to. Or this may refer not only to the prediction of
these things which Jeremiah, if he desire it, shall be favoured
with, but to the performance of the things themselves which the
people of God, encouraged by this prediction, must pray for. Note,
Promises are given, not to supersede, but to quicken and encourage
prayer. See <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p6.4" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.36.37" parsed="|Ezek|36|37|0|0" passage="Eze 36:37">Ezek. xxxvi.
37</scripRef>.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p7" shownumber="no">3. How deplorable the condition of
Jerusalem was which made it necessary that such comforts as these
should be provided for it, and notwithstanding which its
restoration should be brought about in due time (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p7.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.4-Jer.33.5" parsed="|Jer|33|4|33|5" passage="Jer 33:4,5"><i>v.</i> 4, 5</scripRef>): <i>The houses of this
city,</i> not excepting those <i>of the kings of Judah, are thrown
down by the mounts,</i> or engines of battery, <i>and by the
sword,</i> or axes, or hammers. It is the same word that is used
<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p7.2" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.26.9" parsed="|Ezek|26|9|0|0" passage="Eze 26:9">Ezek. xxvi. 9</scripRef>, <i>With his
axes he shall break down thy towers.</i> The strongest stateliest
houses, and those that were best furnished, were levelled with the
ground. The <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p7.3" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.5" parsed="|Jer|33|5|0|0" passage="Jer 33:5">fifth verse</scripRef>
comes in in a parenthesis, giving a further instance of the present
calamitous state of Jerusalem. Those that <i>came to fight with the
Chaldeans,</i> to beat them off from the siege, did more hurt than
good, provoked the enemy to be more fierce and furious in their
assaults, so that the houses in Jerusalem were filled <i>with the
dead bodies of men,</i> who died of the wounds they received in
sallying out upon the besiegers. God says that they were such as he
had <i>slain in his anger,</i> for the enemies' sword was his sword
and their anger his anger. But, it seems, the men that were slain
were generally such as had distinguished themselves by their
wickedness, for they were the very men <i>for whose wickedness</i>
God did now <i>hide himself from this city,</i> so that he was just
in all he brought upon them.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p8" shownumber="no">4. What the blessings are which God has in
store for Judah and Jerusalem, such as will redress all their
grievances.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p9" shownumber="no">(1.) Is their state diseased? Is it
wounded? God will provide effectually for the healing of it, though
the disease was thought mortal and incurable, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p9.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.7.22" parsed="|Jer|7|22|0|0" passage="Jer 7:22"><i>ch.</i> vii. 22</scripRef>. "<i>The whole head is
sick, and the whole heart faint</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p9.2" osisRef="Bible:Isa.1.5" parsed="|Isa|1|5|0|0" passage="Isa 1:5">Isa. i. 5</scripRef>); but (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p9.3" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.6" parsed="|Jer|33|6|0|0" passage="Jer 33:6"><i>v.</i> 6</scripRef>) <i>I will bring it health and
cure;</i> I will prevent the death, remove the sickness, and set
all to rights again," <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p9.4" osisRef="Bible:Jer.30.17" parsed="|Jer|30|17|0|0" passage="Jer 30:17"><i>ch.</i> xxx.
17</scripRef>. Note, Be the case ever so desperate, if God
undertake the cure, he will effect it. The sin of Jerusalem was the
sickness of it (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p9.5" osisRef="Bible:Isa.1.6" parsed="|Isa|1|6|0|0" passage="Isa 1:6">Isa. i. 6</scripRef>);
its reformation therefore will be its recovery. And the following
words tell us how that is wrought: "<i>I will reveal unto them the
abundance of peace and truth;</i> I will give it to them in due
time, and give them an encouraging prospect of it in the mean
time." <i>Peace</i> stands here for all good; <i>peace and
truth</i> are peace according to the promise and in pursuance of
that: or <i>peace and truth</i> are peace and the true religion,
peace and the true worship of God, in opposition to the many
falsehoods and deceits by which they had been led away from God. We
may apply it more generally, and observe, [1.] That peace and truth
are the great subject-matter of divine revelation. These promises
here lead us to the gospel of Christ, and in that God has revealed
to us <i>peace and truth,</i> the method of true peace—truth to
direct us, peace to make us easy. <i>Grace and truth,</i> and
abundance of both, <i>come by Jesus Christ.</i> Peace and truth are
the life of the soul, and Christ <i>came that we might have</i>
that <i>life, and might have it more abundantly.</i> Christ rules
by the power of truth (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p9.6" osisRef="Bible:John.18.37" parsed="|John|18|37|0|0" passage="Joh 18:37">John xviii.
37</scripRef>) and by it he gives <i>abundance of peace,</i>
<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p9.7" osisRef="Bible:Ps.72.7 Bible:Ps.85.10" parsed="|Ps|72|7|0|0;|Ps|85|10|0|0" passage="Ps 72:7,85:10">Ps. lxxii. 7; lxxxv.
10</scripRef>. [2.] That the divine revelation of peace and truth
brings health and cure to all those that by faith receive it: it
heals the soul of the diseases it has contracted, as it is a means
of sanctification, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p9.8" osisRef="Bible:John.17.17" parsed="|John|17|17|0|0" passage="Joh 17:17">John xvii.
17</scripRef>. <i>He sent his word and healed them,</i> <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p9.9" osisRef="Bible:Ps.107.20" parsed="|Ps|107|20|0|0" passage="Ps 107:20">Ps. cvii. 20</scripRef>. And it puts the soul
into good order, and keeps it in a good frame and fit for the
employments and enjoyments of the spiritual and divine life.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p10" shownumber="no">(2.) Are they scattered and enslaved, and
is their nation laid in ruins? "<i>I will cause their captivity to
return</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p10.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.7" parsed="|Jer|33|7|0|0" passage="Jer 33:7"><i>v.</i> 7</scripRef>),
both that of Israel and that of Judah" (for though those who
returned under Zerubbabel were chiefly of Judah, and Benjamin, and
Levi, yet afterwards many of all the other tribes returned),
"<i>and I will rebuild them, as</i> I built them <i>at first.</i>"
When they by repentance do their first works God will by their
restoration do his first works.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p11" shownumber="no">(3.) Is sin the procuring cause of all
their troubles? That shall be pardoned and subdued, and so the root
of the judgments shall be killed, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p11.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.8" parsed="|Jer|33|8|0|0" passage="Jer 33:8"><i>v.</i> 8</scripRef>. [1.] By sin they have become
filthy, and odious to God's holiness, but God will cleanse them,
and purify <i>them from their iniquity.</i> As those that were
ceremonially unclean, and were therefore shut out from the
tabernacle, when they were sprinkled with the <i>water of
purification</i> had liberty of access to it again, so had they to
their own land, and the privileges of it, when God had <i>cleansed
them from their iniquities.</i> In allusion to that sprinkling,
David prays, <i>Purge me with hyssop.</i> [2.] By sin they have
become guilty, and obnoxious to his justice; but he will <i>pardon
all their iniquities,</i> will remove the punishment to which for
sin they were bound over. All who by sanctifying grace are cleansed
from the filth of sin, by pardoning mercy are freed from the guilt
of it.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p12" shownumber="no">(4.) Have both their sins and their
sufferings turned to the dishonour of God? Their reformation and
restoration shall redound as much to his praise, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p12.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.9" parsed="|Jer|33|9|0|0" passage="Jer 33:9"><i>v.</i> 9</scripRef>. Jerusalem thus rebuilt, Judah
thus repeopled, <i>shall be to me a name of joy,</i> as pleasing to
God as ever they have been provoking, <i>and a praise and an honour
before all the nations.</i> They, being thus restored, shall
glorify God by their obedience to him, and he shall glorify himself
by his favours to them. This renewed nation shall be as much a
reputation to religion as formerly it has been a reproach to it.
The nations <i>shall hear of all the good that</i> God has wrought
in them by his grace and <i>of all the good</i> he has wrought for
them by his providence. The wonders of their return out of Babylon
shall make as great a noise in the world as ever the wonders of
their deliverance out of Egypt did. And <i>they shall fear and
tremble for all this goodness.</i> [1.] The people of God
themselves shall fear and tremble; they shall be much surprised at
it, shall be afraid of offending so good a God and of forfeiting
his favour. <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p12.2" osisRef="Bible:Hos.3.5" parsed="|Hos|3|5|0|0" passage="Ho 3:5">Hos. iii. 5</scripRef>,
<i>They shall fear the Lord and his goodness.</i> [2.] The
neighbouring nations shall fear because of the prosperity of
Jerusalem, shall look upon the growing greatness of the Jewish
nation as really formidable, and shall be afraid of making them
their enemies. When the church is <i>fair as the moon,</i> and
<i>clear as the sun,</i> she is <i>terrible as an army with
banners.</i></p>
</div><scripCom id="Jer.xxxiv-p12.3" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.10-Jer.33.16" parsed="|Jer|33|10|33|16" passage="Jer 33:10-16" type="Commentary"/><div class="Commentary" id="Jer.xxxiv-p12.4">
<h4 id="Jer.xxxiv-p12.5">Encouraging Prospects. (<span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p12.6">b. c.</span> 589.)</h4>
<p class="passage" id="Jer.xxxiv-p13" shownumber="no">10 Thus saith the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p13.1">Lord</span>; Again there shall be heard in this place,
which ye say <i>shall be</i> desolate without man and without
beast, <i>even</i> in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of
Jerusalem, that are desolate, without man, and without inhabitant,
and without beast,   11 The voice of joy, and the voice of
gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride,
the voice of them that shall say, Praise the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p13.2">Lord</span> of hosts: for the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p13.3">Lord</span> <i>is</i> good; for his mercy
<i>endureth</i> for ever: <i>and</i> of them that shall bring the
sacrifice of praise into the house of the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p13.4">Lord</span>. For I will cause to return the captivity
of the land, as at the first, saith the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p13.5">Lord</span>.   12 Thus saith the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p13.6">Lord</span> of hosts; Again in this place, which is
desolate without man and without beast, and in all the cities
thereof, shall be a habitation of shepherds causing <i>their</i>
flocks to lie down.   13 In the cities of the mountains, in
the cities of the vale, and in the cities of the south, and in the
land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the
cities of Judah, shall the flocks pass again under the hands of him
that telleth <i>them,</i> saith the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p13.7">Lord</span>.   14 Behold, the days come, saith the
<span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p13.8">Lord</span>, that I will perform that good
thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the
house of Judah.   15 In those days, and at that time, will I
cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he
shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land.   16 In
those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely:
and this <i>is the name</i> wherewith she shall be called, The
<span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p13.9">Lord</span> our righteousness.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p14" shownumber="no">Here is a further prediction of the happy
state of Judah and Jerusalem after their glorious return out of
captivity, issuing gloriously at length in the kingdom of the
Messiah.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p15" shownumber="no">I. It is promised that the people who were
long in sorrow shall again be filled with joy. Every one concluded
now that the country would lie for ever desolate, that <i>no
beasts</i> would be found in the land of Judah, no inhabitant <i>in
the streets of Jerusalem,</i> and consequently there would be
nothing but universal and perpetual melancholy (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p15.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.10" parsed="|Jer|33|10|0|0" passage="Jer 33:10"><i>v.</i> 10</scripRef>); but, though weeping may
endure for a time, joy will return. It was threatened (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p15.2" osisRef="Bible:Jer.7.34 Bible:Jer.16.9" parsed="|Jer|7|34|0|0;|Jer|16|9|0|0" passage="Jer 7:34,16:9"><i>ch.</i> vii. 34 and xvi. 9</scripRef>)
that <i>the voice of joy and gladness should cease</i> there; but
here it is promised that they shall revive again, that <i>the voice
of joy and gladness shall be heard</i> there, because <i>the
captivity shall be returned;</i> for then was <i>their mouth filled
with laughter,</i> <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p15.3" osisRef="Bible:Ps.126.1-Ps.126.2" parsed="|Ps|126|1|126|2" passage="Ps 126:1,2">Ps. cxxvi. 1,
2</scripRef>. 1. There shall be common joy there, <i>the voice of
the bridegroom and the voice of the bride;</i> marriages shall
again be celebrated, as formerly, with songs, which in Babylon they
had laid aside, for their harps were hung on the willow-trees. 2.
There shall be religious joy there; temple-songs shall be revived,
<i>the Lord's songs,</i> which they could not <i>sing in a strange
land.</i> There shall be heard in their private houses, and in the
cities of Judah, as well as in the temple, <i>the voice of those
that shall say, Praise the Lord of hosts.</i> Note, Nothing is more
the praise and honour of a people than to have God the glory of it,
the glory both of the power and of the goodness by which it is
effected; they shall praise him both as <i>the Lord of hosts</i>
and as the God who <i>is good</i> and whose <i>mercy endures for
ever.</i> This, though a song of old, yet, being sung upon this
fresh occasion, will be a new song. We find this literally
fulfilled at their return out of Babylon, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p15.4" osisRef="Bible:Ezra.3.11" parsed="|Ezra|3|11|0|0" passage="Ezr 3:11">Ezra iii. 11</scripRef>. They sang together in praising
the Lord, <i>because he is good, for his mercy endures for
ever.</i> The public worship of God shall be diligently and
constantly attended upon: <i>They shall bring the sacrifice of
praise to the house of the Lord.</i> All the sacrifices were
intended for the praise of God, but this seems to be meant of the
spiritual sacrifices of humble adorations and joyful thanksgivings,
<i>the calves of our lips</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p15.5" osisRef="Bible:Hos.14.2" parsed="|Hos|14|2|0|0" passage="Ho 14:2">Hos.
xiv. 2</scripRef>), which <i>shall please the Lord better than an
ox of bullock.</i> The Jews say that in the days of the Messiah all
sacrifices shall cease but <i>the sacrifice of praise,</i> and to
those days this promise has a further reference.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p16" shownumber="no">II. It is promised that the country, which
had lain long depopulated, shall be replenished and stocked again.
It was now desolate, <i>without man and without beast;</i> but,
after their return, the pastures shall again be <i>clothed with
flocks,</i> <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p16.1" osisRef="Bible:Ps.65.13" parsed="|Ps|65|13|0|0" passage="Ps 65:13">Ps. lxv. 13</scripRef>.
<i>In all the cities of Judah and Benjamin there shall be a
habitation of shepherds,</i> <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p16.2" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.12-Jer.33.13" parsed="|Jer|33|12|33|13" passage="Jer 33:12,13"><i>v.</i> 12, 13</scripRef>. This intimates, 1. The
wealth of the country, after their return. It shall not be a
habitation of beggars, who have nothing, but of shepherds and
husbandmen, men of substance, with good stocks upon the ground they
have returned to. 2. The peace of the country. It shall not be a
habitation of soldiers, not shall there be tents and barracks set
up to lodge them, but there shall be shepherds; tents; for they
shall hear no more the alarms of war, nor shall there be any to
make even the shepherds afraid. See <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p16.3" osisRef="Bible:Ps.144.13-Ps.144.14" parsed="|Ps|144|13|144|14" passage="Ps 144:13,14">Ps. cxliv. 13, 14</scripRef>. 3. The industry of the
country, and their return to their original plainness and
simplicity, from which, in the corrupt ages, they had sadly
degenerated. The seed of Jacob, in their beginning, gloried in
this, that they were shepherds (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p16.4" osisRef="Bible:Gen.47.3" parsed="|Gen|47|3|0|0" passage="Ge 47:3">Gen.
xlvii. 3</scripRef>), and so they shall now be again, giving
themselves wholly to that innocent employment, <i>causing their
flocks to lie down</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p16.5" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.12" parsed="|Jer|33|12|0|0" passage="Jer 33:12"><i>v.</i>
12</scripRef>) and to <i>pass under the hands of him that telleth
them</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p16.6" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.13" parsed="|Jer|33|13|0|0" passage="Jer 33:13"><i>v.</i> 13</scripRef>);
for, though their flocks are numerous, they are not numberless, nor
shall they omit to number them, that they may know if any be
missing and may seek after it. Note, It is the prudence of those
who have ever so much of the world to keep an account of what they
have. Some think that they <i>pass under the hand of him that
telleth them</i> that they may be tithed, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p16.7" osisRef="Bible:Lev.27.32" parsed="|Lev|27|32|0|0" passage="Le 27:32">Lev. xxvii. 32</scripRef>. <i>Then</i> we may take the
comfort of what we have when God has had his dues out of it. Now
because it seemed incredible that a people, reduced as now they
were, should ever recover such a degree of peace and plenty as
this, here is subjoined a general ratification of these promises
(<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p16.8" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.14" parsed="|Jer|33|14|0|0" passage="Jer 33:14"><i>v.</i> 14</scripRef>): <i>I will
perform that good thing which I have promised.</i> Though the
promise may sometimes work slowly towards an accomplishment, it
works surely. <i>The days will come,</i> though they are long in
coming.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p17" shownumber="no">III. To crown all these blessings which God
has in store for them, here is a promise of the Messiah, and of
that everlasting righteousness which he should bring in (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p17.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.15-Jer.33.16" parsed="|Jer|33|15|33|16" passage="Jer 33:15,16"><i>v.</i> 15, 16</scripRef>), and probably
this is <i>that good thing,</i> that great good thing, which in the
latter days, days that were yet to come, God would perform, as he
had promised to Judah and Israel, and to which their return out of
captivity and their settlement again in their own land was
preparatory. <i>From the captivity to Christ</i> is one of the
famous periods, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p17.2" osisRef="Bible:Matt.1.17" parsed="|Matt|1|17|0|0" passage="Mt 1:17">Matt. i. 17</scripRef>.
This promise of the Messiah we had before (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p17.3" osisRef="Bible:Jer.23.5" parsed="|Jer|23|5|0|0" passage="Jer 23:5"><i>ch.</i> xxiii. 5, 6</scripRef>), and there it came in
as a confirmation of the promise of the shepherds whom God would
set over them, which would make one think that the promise here
concerning the shepherds and their flocks, which introduces it, is
to be understood figuratively. Christ is here prophesied of, 1. As
a rightful King. He is a <i>branch of righteousness,</i> not a
usurper, for he <i>grows up unto David,</i> descends from his
loins, with whom the covenant of royalty was made, and is that seed
with whom that covenant should be established, so that his title is
unexceptionable. 2. As a righteous king, righteous in enacting
laws, waging wars, and giving judgment, righteous in vindicating
those that suffer wrong and punishing those that do wrong: <i>He
shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land.</i> This may
point at Zerubbabel, in the type, who governed with equity, not as
Jehoiakim had done (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p17.4" osisRef="Bible:Jer.22.17" parsed="|Jer|22|17|0|0" passage="Jer 22:17"><i>ch.</i> xxii.
17</scripRef>); but it has a further reference to him to whom all
judgment is committed and who shall <i>judge the world in
righteousness.</i> 3. As a king that shall protect his subjects
from all injury. By him <i>Judah shall be saved</i> from wrath and
the curse, and, being so saved, <i>Jerusalem shall dwell
safely,</i> quiet from the fear of evil, and enjoying a holy
security and serenity of mind, in a dependence upon the conduct of
this prince of peace, this prince of their peace. 4. As a king that
shall be praised by his subjects: "<i>This is the name whereby they
shall call him</i>" (so the Chaldee reads it, the Syriac, and
vulgar Latin); "this name of his they shall celebrate and triumph
in, and by this name they shall call upon him." It may be read,
more agreeably to the original, <i>This is he who shall call her,
The Lord our righteousness.</i> As Moses's altar is called
<i>Jehovah-nissi</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p17.5" osisRef="Bible:Exod.17.15" parsed="|Exod|17|15|0|0" passage="Ex 17:15">Exod. xvii.
15</scripRef>), and Jerusalem <i>Jehovah-shammah</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p17.6" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.48.35" parsed="|Ezek|48|35|0|0" passage="Eze 48:35">Ezek. xlviii. 35</scripRef>), intimating that
they glory in Jehovah as present with them and <i>their banner,</i>
so here the city is called <i>The Lord our righteousness,</i>
because they glory in Jehovah as their righteousness. That which
was before said to be the name of Christ (says Mr. Gataker) is here
made the name of Jerusalem, the city of the Messiah, the church of
Christ. He it is that imparts righteousness to her, for he is
<i>made of God to us righteousness,</i> and she, by bearing that
name, professes to have her whole righteousness, not from herself,
but from him. <i>In the Lord have I righteousness and strength,</i>
<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p17.7" osisRef="Bible:Isa.45.24" parsed="|Isa|45|24|0|0" passage="Isa 45:24">Isa. xlv. 24</scripRef>. And <i>we
are made the righteousness of God in him.</i> The inhabitants of
Jerusalem shall have this name of the Messiah so much in their
mouths that they shall themselves be called by it.</p>
</div><scripCom id="Jer.xxxiv-p17.8" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.17-Jer.33.26" parsed="|Jer|33|17|33|26" passage="Jer 33:17-26" type="Commentary"/><div class="Commentary" id="Jer.xxxiv-p17.9">
<h4 id="Jer.xxxiv-p17.10">Security of God's Covenants; The Covenant of
Priesthood. (<span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p17.11">b. c.</span> 589.)</h4>
<p class="passage" id="Jer.xxxiv-p18" shownumber="no">17 For thus saith the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p18.1">Lord</span>; David shall never want a man to sit upon
the throne of the house of Israel;   18 Neither shall the
priests the Levites want a man before me to offer burnt offerings,
and to kindle meat offerings, and to do sacrifice continually.
  19 And the word of the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p18.2">Lord</span>
came unto Jeremiah, saying,   20 Thus saith the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p18.3">Lord</span>; If ye can break my covenant of the day,
and my covenant of the night, and that there should not be day and
night in their season;   21 <i>Then</i> may also my covenant
be broken with David my servant, that he should not have a son to
reign upon his throne; and with the Levites the priests, my
ministers.   22 As the host of heaven cannot be numbered,
neither the sand of the sea measured: so will I multiply the seed
of David my servant, and the Levites that minister unto me.  
23 Moreover the word of the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p18.4">Lord</span>
came to Jeremiah, saying,   24 Considerest thou not what this
people have spoken, saying, The two families which the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p18.5">Lord</span> hath chosen, he hath even cast them off?
thus they have despised my people, that they should be no more a
nation before them.   25 Thus saith the <span class="smallcaps" id="Jer.xxxiv-p18.6">Lord</span>; If my covenant <i>be</i> not with day and
night, <i>and if</i> I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven
and earth;   26 Then will I cast away the seed of Jacob, and
David my servant, <i>so</i> that I will not take <i>any</i> of his
seed <i>to be</i> rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob: for I will cause their captivity to return, and have mercy
on them.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p19" shownumber="no">Three of God's covenants, that of royalty
with David and his seed, that of the priesthood with Aaron and his
seed, and that of Peculiarity with Abraham and his seed, seemed to
be all broken and lost while the captivity lasted; but it is here
promised that, notwithstanding that interruption and discontinuance
for a time, they shall all three take place again, and the true
intents and meaning of them all shall be abundantly answered in the
New Testament blessings, typified by those conferred on the Jews
after their return out of captivity.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p20" shownumber="no">I. The covenant of royalty shall be secured
and the promises of it shall have their full accomplishment in the
kingdom of Christ, the Son of David, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p20.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.17" parsed="|Jer|33|17|0|0" passage="Jer 33:17"><i>v.</i> 17</scripRef>. The throne of Israel was
overturned in the captivity; the crown had fallen from their head;
there was not <i>a man to sit on the throne of Israel;</i> Jeconiah
was written childless. After their return the house of David made a
figure again; but it in the Messiah that this promise is performed
that <i>David shall never want a man to sit on the throne of
Israel,</i> and that David shall have <i>always a son to reign upon
his throne.</i> For as long as the man Christ Jesus sits on the
right hand of the throne of God, rules the world, and rules it for
the good of the church, to which he is a quickening head, and
glorified head over all things, as long as he is <i>King upon the
holy hill of Zion,</i> David does not want a successor, nor is the
covenant with him broken. When the first-begotten was brought into
the world it was declared concerning him, <i>The Lord God shall
give him the throne of his father David and he shall reign over the
house of Jacob for ever,</i> <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p20.2" osisRef="Bible:Luke.1.32-Luke.1.33" parsed="|Luke|1|32|1|33" passage="Lu 1:32,33">Luke i.
32, 33</scripRef>. For the confirmation of this it is promised, 1.
That the covenant with David shall be as firm as the ordinances of
heaven, to the stability of which that of God's promise is
compared, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p20.3" osisRef="Bible:Jer.31.35" parsed="|Jer|31|35|0|0" passage="Jer 31:35"><i>ch.</i> xxxi. 35,
36</scripRef>. There is a covenant of nature, by which the common
course of providence is settled and on which it is founded, here
called <i>a covenant of the day and the night</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p20.4" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.20 Bible:Jer.33.25" parsed="|Jer|33|20|0|0;|Jer|33|25|0|0" passage="Jer 33:20,25"><i>v.</i> 20, 25</scripRef>), because this
is one of the articles of it, That there shall be <i>day and night
in their season,</i> according to the distinction put between them
in the creation, when God divided between the light and the
darkness, and established their mutual succession, and a government
to each, that <i>the sun</i> should <i>rule by day</i> and <i>the
moon and stars by night</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p20.5" osisRef="Bible:Gen.1.4-Gen.1.5 Bible:Gen.1.16" parsed="|Gen|1|4|1|5;|Gen|1|16|0|0" passage="Ge 1:4,5,16">Gen.
i. 4, 5, 16</scripRef>), which establishment was renewed after the
flood (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p20.6" osisRef="Bible:Gen.8.22" parsed="|Gen|8|22|0|0" passage="Ge 8:22">Gen. viii. 22</scripRef>), and
has continued ever since, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p20.7" osisRef="Bible:Ps.19.2" parsed="|Ps|19|2|0|0" passage="Ps 19:2">Ps. xix.
2</scripRef>. The <i>morning and</i> the <i>evening</i> have both
of them their regular <i>outgoings</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p20.8" osisRef="Bible:Ps.65.8" parsed="|Ps|65|8|0|0" passage="Ps 65:8">Ps. lxv. 8</scripRef>); the <i>day-spring knows its
place, knows its time,</i> and keeps both, so do <i>the shadows of
the evening;</i> and, while the world stands, this course shall not
be altered, this covenant shall not be broken. <i>The ordinances of
heaven and earth</i> (of this communication between heaven and
earth, the dominion of these ordinances of heaven upon the earth),
<i>which</i> God has <i>appointed</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p20.9" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.25 Bible:Job.38.33" parsed="|Jer|33|25|0|0;|Job|38|33|0|0" passage="Jer 33:25,Job 38:33"><i>v.</i> 25; compare Job xxxviii.
33</scripRef>), shall never be disappointed. Thus firm shall the
covenant of redemption be with the Redeemer—God's servant, but
David our King, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p20.10" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.21" parsed="|Jer|33|21|0|0" passage="Jer 33:21"><i>v.</i>
21</scripRef>. This intimates that Christ shall have a church on
earth to the world's end; he shall see a seed in which he shall
prolong his days till time and day shall be no more. Christ's
<i>kingdom is an everlasting kingdom;</i> and when <i>the end
cometh,</i> and not till then, it <i>shall be delivered up to
God,</i> even <i>the Father.</i> But it intimates that the
condition of it in this world shall be intermixed and
counterchanged, prosperity and adversity succeeding each other, as
light and darkness, day and night. But this is plainly taught us,
that, as sure as we may be that, though the sun will set tonight,
it will rise again tomorrow morning, whether we live to see it or
no, so sure we may be that, though the kingdom of the Redeemer in
the world may for a time be clouded and eclipsed by corruptions and
persecutions, yet it will shine forth again, and recover its
lustre, in the time appointed. 2. That <i>the seed of David</i>
shall be as numerous <i>as the host of heaven,</i> that is, the
spiritual seed of the Messiah, that shall be born to him by the
efficacy of his gospel and his Spirit working with it. <i>From the
womb of the morning he shall have the dew of their youth,</i> to be
his <i>willing people,</i> <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p20.11" osisRef="Bible:Ps.110.3" parsed="|Ps|110|3|0|0" passage="Ps 110:3">Ps. cx.
3</scripRef>. Christ's seed are not, as David's were, his
successors, but his subjects; yet the day is coming when they also
shall reign with him (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p20.12" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.22" parsed="|Jer|33|22|0|0" passage="Jer 33:22"><i>v.</i>
22</scripRef>): <i>As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, so
will I multiply the seed of David,</i> so that there shall be no
danger of the kingdom's being extinct, or extirpated, for want of
heirs. The children are numerous; <i>and, if children, then
heirs.</i></p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p21" shownumber="no">II. The covenant of priesthood shall be
secured, and the promises of that also shall have their full
accomplishment. This seemed likewise to be forgotten during the
captivity, when there was no altar, no temple service, for the
priests to attend upon; but this also shall revive. It did so;
immediately upon their coming back to Jerusalem there were priests
and Levites ready <i>to offer burnt-offerings</i> and to <i>do
sacrifice continually</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p21.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezra.3.2-Ezra.3.3" parsed="|Ezra|3|2|3|3" passage="Ezr 3:2,3">Ezra iii.
2, 3</scripRef>), as is here promised, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p21.2" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.18" parsed="|Jer|33|18|0|0" passage="Jer 33:18"><i>v.</i> 18</scripRef>. But that priesthood soon grew
corrupt; <i>the covenant of Levi</i> was <i>profaned</i> (as
appears <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p21.3" osisRef="Bible:Mal.2.8" parsed="|Mal|2|8|0|0" passage="Mal 2:8">Mal. ii. 8</scripRef>), and in
the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans it came to a final
period. We must therefore look elsewhere for the performance of
this word, that the covenant with the Levites, the priests, God's
ministers, shall be as firm, and last as long, as the covenant
<i>with the day and the night.</i> And we find it abundantly
performed, 1. In the priesthood of Christ, which supersedes that of
Aaron, and is the substance of that shadow. While that great
<i>high priest of our profession</i> is always appearing <i>in the
presence of God for us,</i> presenting the virtue of his blood by
which he made atonement in the incense of his intercession, it may
truly be said that <i>the Levites do not want a man before God to
offer continually,</i> <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p21.4" osisRef="Bible:Heb.7.3 Bible:Heb.7.17" parsed="|Heb|7|3|0|0;|Heb|7|17|0|0" passage="Heb 7:3,17">Heb. vii. 3,
17</scripRef>. He is a priest for ever. The covenant of the
priesthood is called <i>a covenant of peace</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p21.5" osisRef="Bible:Num.25.12" parsed="|Num|25|12|0|0" passage="Nu 25:12">Num. xxv. 12</scripRef>), of <i>life and peace,</i>
<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p21.6" osisRef="Bible:Mal.2.5" parsed="|Mal|2|5|0|0" passage="Mal 2:5">Mal. ii. 5</scripRef>. Now we are sure
that this covenant is not broken, nor in the least weakened, while
Jesus Christ is himself our life and our peace. This covenant of
priesthood is here again and again joined with that of royalty, for
Christ is a <i>priest upon his throne,</i> as Melchizedek. 2. In a
settled gospel ministry. While there are faithful ministers to
preside in religious assemblies, and to offer up the spiritual
sacrifices of prayer and praise, <i>the priests, the Levites,</i>
do not want successors, and such as <i>have obtained a more
excellent ministry.</i> The apostle makes those that preach the
gospel to come in the room of those that served at the altar,
<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p21.7" osisRef="Bible:1Cor.9.13-1Cor.9.14" parsed="|1Cor|9|13|9|14" passage="1Co 9:13,14">1 Cor. ix. 13, 14</scripRef>. 3. In
all true believers, who are <i>a holy priesthood, a royal
priesthood</i> (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p21.8" osisRef="Bible:1Pet.2.5 Bible:1Pet.2.9" parsed="|1Pet|2|5|0|0;|1Pet|2|9|0|0" passage="1Pe 2:5,9">1 Peter ii. 5,
9</scripRef>), who are <i>made to our God kings and priests</i>
(<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p21.9" osisRef="Bible:Rev.1.6" parsed="|Rev|1|6|0|0" passage="Re 1:6">Rev. i. 6</scripRef>); they <i>offer up
spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God,</i> and themselves, in the
first place, <i>living sacrifices.</i> Of these Levites this
promise must be understood (<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p21.10" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.22" parsed="|Jer|33|22|0|0" passage="Jer 33:22"><i>v.</i>
22</scripRef>), that they shall be as numerous <i>as the sand of
the sea,</i> the same that is promised concerning Israel in general
(<scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p21.11" osisRef="Bible:Gen.22.17" parsed="|Gen|22|17|0|0" passage="Ge 22:17">Gen. xxii. 17</scripRef>); for all
God's spiritual Israel are spiritual priests, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p21.12" osisRef="Bible:Rev.5.9-Rev.5.10 Bible:Rev.7.9 Bible:Rev.7.15" parsed="|Rev|5|9|5|10;|Rev|7|9|0|0;|Rev|7|15|0|0" passage="Re 5:9,10,7:9,15">Rev. v. 9, 10; vii. 9, 15</scripRef>.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Jer.xxxiv-p22" shownumber="no">III. The covenant of peculiarity likewise
shall be secured and the promises of that covenant shall have their
full accomplishment in the gospel Israel. Observe, 1. How this
covenant was looked upon as broken during the captivity, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p22.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.33.24" parsed="|Jer|33|24|0|0" passage="Jer 33:24"><i>v.</i> 24</scripRef>. God asks the prophet,
"Hast though not heard, and dost <i>thou not consider, what this
people have spoken?</i>" either the enemies of Israel, who
triumphed in the extirpation of a people that had made such a noise
in the world, or the unbelieving Israelites themselves, "<i>this
people</i> among whom thou dwellest;" they have broken covenant
with God, and then quarrel with him as if he had not dealt
faithfully with them. <i>The two families which the Lord hath
chosen,</i> Israel and Judah, whereas they were but one when he
chose them, <i>he hath even cast them off. "Thus have they despised
my people,</i> that is, despised the privilege of being my people
as if it were a privilege of no value at all." The neighbouring
nations despised them as now <i>no more a nation,</i> but the ruins
of a nation, and looked upon all their honour as laid in the dust;
but, 2. See how firm the covenant stands notwithstanding, as firm
as that with day and night; sooner will God suffer day and night to
cease then he will <i>cast away the seed of Jacob.</i> This cannot
refer to the seed of Jacob according to the flesh, for they are
cast away, but to the Christian church, in which all these promises
were to be lodged, as appears by the apostle's discourse, <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p22.2" osisRef="Bible:Rom.11.1" parsed="|Rom|11|1|0|0" passage="Ro 11:1">Rom. xi. 1</scripRef>, &amp;c. Christ is that
seed of David that is to be perpetual dictator to the seed of
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and, as this people shall never want
such a king, so this king shall never want such a people.
Christianity shall continue in the dominion of Christ, and the
subjection of Christians to him, till day and night come to an end.
And, as a pledge of this, that promise is again repeated, <i>I will
cause their captivity to return;</i> and, having brought them back,
<i>I will have mercy on them.</i> To whom this promise refers
appears <scripRef id="Jer.xxxiv-p22.3" osisRef="Bible:Gal.6.16" parsed="|Gal|6|16|0|0" passage="Ga 6:16">Gal. vi. 16</scripRef>, where
all that <i>walk according to the gospel rule</i> are made to be
the <i>Israel of God,</i> on whom <i>peace and mercy</i> shall
be.</p>
</div></div2>