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<center><h1>Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary
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on the Whole Bible</h1>
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[<A HREF="MHC00000.HTM">Table of Contents</A>]<BR>
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Matthew Henry<BR><I>Commentary on the Whole Bible</I> (1712)
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<!-- (Begin Body) -->
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<CENTER>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+3><B>I S A I A H.</B></FONT>
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<BR>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+2>CHAP. XXXII.</FONT>
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<HR SIZE=1 WIDTH=50>
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</CENTER>
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<FONT SIZE=-1>
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<P>
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This chapter seems to be such a prophecy of the reign of Hezekiah as
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amounts to an abridgment of the history of it, and this with an eye to
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the kingdom of the Messiah, whose government was typified by the
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thrones of the house of David, for which reason he is so often called
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"the Son of David." Here is,
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I. A prophecy of that good work of reformation with which he should
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begin his reign, and the happy influence it should have upon the
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people, who had been wretchedly corrupted and debauched in the reign of
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his predecessor,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:1-8">ver. 1-8</A>.
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II. A prophecy of the great disturbance that would be given to the
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kingdom in the middle of his reign by the Assyrian invasion,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:9-14">ver. 9-14</A>.
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III. A promise of better times afterwards, towards the latter end of
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his reign, in respect both of piety and peace
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:15-20">ver. 15-20</A>),
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which promise may be supposed to look as far forward as the days of the
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Messiah.</P>
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</FONT>
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<A NAME="Isa32_1"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa32_2"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa32_3"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa32_4"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa32_5"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa32_6"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa32_7"> </A>
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<A NAME="Isa32_8"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec1"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>The Reign of Justice.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 726.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>1 Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes
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shall rule in judgment.
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2 And a man shall be as a hiding place from the wind, and a
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covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as
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the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.
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3 And the eyes of them that see shall not be dim, and the ears
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of them that hear shall hearken.
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4 The heart also of the rash shall understand knowledge, and
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the tongue of the stammerers shall be ready to speak plainly.
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5 The vile person shall be no more called liberal, nor the
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churl said <I>to be</I> bountiful.
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6 For the vile person will speak villany, and his heart will
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work iniquity, to practise hypocrisy, and to utter error against
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the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>, to make empty the soul of the hungry, and he will cause
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the drink of the thirsty to fail.
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7 The instruments also of the churl <I>are</I> evil: he deviseth
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wicked devices to destroy the poor with lying words, even when
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the needy speaketh right.
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8 But the liberal deviseth liberal things; and by liberal
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things shall he stand.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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We have here the description of a flourishing kingdom. "<I>Blessed art
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thou, O land!</I> when it is thus with thee, when kings, princes, and
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people, are in their places such as they should be." It may be taken as
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a directory both to magistrates and subjects, what both ought to do, or
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as a panegyric to Hezekiah, who ruled well and saw something of the
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happy effects of his good government, and it was designed to make the
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people sensible how happy they were under his administration and how
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careful they should be to improve the advantages of it, and withal to
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direct them to look for the kingdom of Christ, and the times of
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reformation which that kingdom should introduce. It is here promised
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and prescribed, for the comfort of the church,</P>
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<P>
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I. That magistrates should do their duty in their places, and the
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powers answer the great ends for which they were ordained of God,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:1,2"><I>v.</I> 1, 2</A>.
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1. There shall be a king and princes that shall reign and rule; for it
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cannot go well when there is no king in Israel. The princes must have a
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king, a monarch over them as supreme, in whom they may unite; and the
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king must have princes under him as officers, by whom he may act,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Pe+2:13,14">1 Pet. ii. 13, 14</A>.
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They both shall know their place and fill it up. The king shall reign,
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and yet, without any diminution to his just prerogative, the princes
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shall rule in a lower sphere, and all for the public good.
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2. They shall use their power according to law, and not against it.
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They shall reign in righteousness and in judgment, with wisdom and
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equity, protecting the good and punishing the bad; and those kings and
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princes Christ owns as reigning by him who decree justice,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Pr+8:15">Prov. viii. 15</A>.
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Such a King, such a Prince, Christ himself is; he reigns by rule, and
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<I>in righteousness will he judge the world,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+9:7,11:4"><I>ch.</I> ix. 7; xi. 4</A>.
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3. Thus they shall be great blessings to the people
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:2"><I>v.</I> 2</A>):
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<I>A man,</I> that man, that king that reigns in righteousness,
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<I>shall be as a hiding-place.</I> When princes are as they should be
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people are as they would be.
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(1.) They are sheltered and protected from many mischiefs. This good
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magistrate is a covert to the subject from the tempest of injury and
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violence; he <I>defends the poor and fatherless,</I> that they be not
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made a prey of by the mighty. Whither should oppressed innocency flee,
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when blasted by reproach or borne down by violence, but to the
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magistrate as its hiding-place? To him it appeals, and by him it is
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righted.
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(2.) They are refreshed and comforted with many blessings. This good
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magistrate gives such countenance to those that are poor and in
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distress, and such encouragement to every thing that is praiseworthy,
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that he is <I>as rivers of water in a dry place,</I> cooling and
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cherishing the earth and making it fruitful, and <I>as the shadow of a
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great rock,</I> under which a poor traveller may shelter himself from
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the scorching heat of the sun <I>in a weary land.</I> It is a great
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reviving to a good man, who makes conscience of doing his duty, in the
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midst of contempt and contradiction, at length to be backed, and
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favoured, and smiled upon in it by a good magistrate. All this, and
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much more, the man Christ Jesus is to all the willing faithful subjects
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of his kingdom. When the greatest evils befal us, not only the wind,
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but the tempest, when storms of guilt and wrath beset us and beat upon
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us, they drive us to Christ, and in him we are not only safe, but
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satisfied that we are so; in him we find rivers of water for those that
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hunger and thirst after righteousness, all the refreshment and comfort
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that a needy soul can desire, and the shadow, not of a tree, which sun
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or rain may beat through, but of a rock, of a great rock, which reaches
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a great way for the shelter of the traveller. Some observe here that as
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the covert, and the hiding-place, and the rock, do themselves receive
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the battering of the wind and storm, to save those from it that take
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shelter in them, so Christ bore the storm himself to keep it off from
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us.</P>
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<P>
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II. That subjects should do their duty in their places.</P>
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<P>
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1. They shall be willing to be taught, and to understand things aright.
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They shall lay aside their prejudices against their rulers and
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teachers, and submit to the light and power of truth,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:3"><I>v.</I> 3</A>.
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When this blessed work of reformation is set on foot, and men do their
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parts towards it, God will not be wanting to do his: Then <I>the eyes
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of those that see,</I> of the prophets, the seers, <I>shall not be
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dim;</I> but God will bless them with visions, to be by them
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communicated to the people; and those that read the word written shall
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no longer have a veil upon their hearts, but shall see things clearly.
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Then <I>the ears of those that hear</I> the word preached <I>shall
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hearken</I> diligently and readily receive what they hear, and not be
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so dull of hearing as they have been. This shall be done by the grace
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of God, especially gospel-grace; for <I>the hearing ear, and the seeing
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eyes, the Lord has made,</I> has new-made, even both of them.</P>
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<P>
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2. There shall be a wonderful change wrought in them by that which is
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taught them,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:4"><I>v.</I> 4</A>.
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(1.) They shall have a clear head, and be able to discern things that
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differ, and distinguish concerning them. <I>The heart of those that
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were</I> hasty and <I>rash,</I> and could not take time to digest and
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consider things, shall now be cured of their precipitation, and
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<I>shall understand knowledge;</I> for the Spirit of God will open
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their understanding. This blessed work Christ wrought in his disciples
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after his resurrection
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+24:45">Luke xxiv. 45</A>),
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as a specimen of what he would do for all his people, in giving them an
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understanding,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Jo+5:20">1 John v. 20</A>.
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The pious designs of good princes are likely to take effect when their
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subjects allow themselves liberty to consider, and to think, so freely
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as to take things right.
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(2.) They shall have a ready utterance: <I>The tongue of the
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stammerers,</I> that used to blunder whenever they spoke of the things
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of God, <I>shall</I> now <I>be ready to speak plainly,</I> as those
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that understand what they speak of, that believe, and therefore speak.
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There shall be a great increase of such clear, distinct, and methodical
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knowledge in the things of God, that those from whom one would not have
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expected it shall speak intelligently of these things, very much to the
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honour of God and the edification of others. Their hearts being full of
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this good matter, their tongues shall be <I>as the pen of a ready
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writer,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+45:1">Ps. xlv. 1</A>.</P>
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<P>
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3. The differences between good and evil, virtue and vice, shall be
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kept up, and no more confounded by those who put darkness for light and
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light for darkness
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:5"><I>v.</I> 5</A>):
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<I>The vile shall no more be called liberal.</I></P>
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<P>
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(1.) Bad men shall no more be preferred by the prince. When a king
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reigns in justice he will not put those in places of honour and power
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that are ill-natured, and of base and sordid spirits, and care not what
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injury or mischief they do so they may but compass their own ends. Such
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as <I>vile</I> persons (as Antiochus is called,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Da+11:21">Dan. xi. 21</A>);
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when they are advanced they are called <I>liberal</I> and
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<I>bountiful;</I> they are called <I>benefactors</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+22:25">Luke xxii. 25</A>):
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but it shall not always be thus; when the world grows wiser men shall
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be preferred according to their merit, and honour (which was never
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thought seemly for a fool,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Pr+26:1">Prov. xxvi. 1</A>)
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shall no longer be thrown away upon such.</P>
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<P>
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(2.) Bad men shall be no more had in reputation among the people, nor
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vice disguised with the colours of virtue. It shall no more be said to
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Nabal, <I>Thou art Nadib</I> (so the words are); such a covetous
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muck-worm as Nabal was, a fool but for his money, shall not be
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complimented with the title of a gentleman or a prince; nor shall they
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call a <I>churl,</I> that minds none but himself, does no good with
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what he has, but is an unprofitable burden of the earth, <I>My
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lord;</I> or, rather, they shall not say of him, <I>He is rich;</I> for
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so the word signifies. Those only are to be reckoned rich that are rich
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in good works; not those that have abundance, but those that use it
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well. In short, it is well with a people when men are generally valued
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by their virtue, and usefulness, and beneficence to mankind, and not by
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their wealth or titles of honour. Whether this was fulfilled in the
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reign of Hezekiah, and how far it refers to the kingdom of Christ (in
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which we are sure men are judged of by what they are, not by what they
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have, nor is any man's character mistaken), we will not say; but it
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prescribes an excellent rule both to prince and people, to respect men
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according to their personal merit. To enforce this rule, here is a
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description both of the vile person and of the liberal; and by it we
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shall see such a vast difference between them that we must quite forget
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ourselves if we pay that respect to the vile person and the churl which
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is due only to the liberal.</P>
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<P>
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[1.] A vile person and a churl will do mischief, and the more if he be
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preferred and have power in his hand; his honours will make him worse
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and not better,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:6,7"><I>v.</I> 6, 7</A>.
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See the character of these base ill-conditioned men. <I>First,</I> They
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are always plotting some unjust thing or other, designing ill either to
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particular persons or to the public, and contriving how to bring it
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about; and so many silly piques they have to gratify, and mean
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revenges, that there appears not in them the least spark of generosity.
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Their hearts will be still working some iniquity or other. Observe,
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There is the work of the heart, as well as the work of the hands. As
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thoughts are words to God, so designs are works in his account. See
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what pains sinners take in sin. They labour at it; their hearts are
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intent upon it, and with a great deal of art and application they
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<I>work iniquity.</I> They <I>devise wicked devices</I> with all the
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subtlety of the old serpent and a great deal of deliberation, which
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makes the sin exceedingly sinful; and the more there is of plot and
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management in a sin the more there is of Satan in it. <I>Secondly,</I>
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They carry on their plots by trick and dissimulation. When they are
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meditating iniquity, they <I>practise hypocrisy,</I> feign themselves
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just men,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+20:20">Luke xx. 20</A>.
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The most abominable mischiefs shall be disguised with the most
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plausible pretences of devotion to God, regard to man, and concern for
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some common good. Those are the vilest of men that intend the worst
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mischiefs when they speak fair. <I>Thirdly,</I> They <I>speak
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villainy.</I> When they are in a passion you will see what they are by
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the base ill language they give to those about them, which no way
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becomes men of rank and honour; or, in giving verdict or judgment, they
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villainously put false colours upon things, to pervert justice.
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<I>Fourthly,</I> They affront God, who is a righteous God and loves
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righteousness: They <I>utter error against the Lord,</I> and therein
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they practise profaneness; for so the word which we translate
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<I>hypocrisy</I> signifies. They give an unjust sentence, and then
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profanely make use of the name of God for the ratification of it; as
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if, because the <I>judgment is God's</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+1:17">Deut. i. 17</A>),
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therefore their false and unjust judgment was his. This is <I>uttering
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error against the Lord,</I> under pretence of uttering truth and
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justice for him; and nothing can be more impudently done against God
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than to use his name to patronise wickedness. <I>Fifthly,</I> They
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abuse mankind, those particularly whom they are bound to protect and
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relieve.
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1. Instead of supplying the wants of the poor, they impoverish them,
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they <I>make empty the souls of the hungry;</I> either taking away the
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food they have, or, which is almost equivalent, denying the supply
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which they want and which they have to give. And they <I>cause the
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drink of the thirsty to fail;</I> they cut off the relief they used to
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have, though they need it as much as ever. Those are vile persons
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indeed that rob the spital.
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2. Instead of righting the poor, when they appeal to their judgment,
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they contrive to destroy the poor, to ruin them in their courts of
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judicature with lying words in favour of the rich, to whom they are
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plainly partial; yea, though the needy speak right, though the evidence
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be ever so full for them to make out the equity of their cause, it is
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the bribe that governs them, not the right. <I>Sixthly,</I> These
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churls and vile persons have always had instruments about them, that
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are ready to serve their villainous purposes: <I>All their servants are
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wicked.</I> There is no design so palpably unjust but there may be
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found those that would be employed as tools to put it in execution.
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<I>The instruments of the churl are evil,</I> and one cannot expect
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otherwise; but this is our comfort, that they can do no more mischief
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than God permits them.</P>
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<P>
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[2.] One that is truly liberal, and deserves the honour of being called
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so, makes it his business to do good to every body according as his
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sphere is,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:8"><I>v.</I> 8</A>.
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Observe, <I>First,</I> The care he takes, and the contrivances he has,
|
|
to do good. He <I>devises liberal things.</I> As much as the churl or
|
|
niggard projects how to save and lay up what he has for himself only,
|
|
so much the good charitable man projects how to use and lay out what he
|
|
has in the best manner for the good of others. Charity must be
|
|
directed by wisdom, and liberal things done prudently and with device,
|
|
that the good intention of them may be answered, that it may not be
|
|
charity misplaced. The liberal man, when he has done all the liberal
|
|
things that are in his own power, devises liberal things for others to
|
|
do according to their power, and puts them upon doing them.
|
|
<I>Secondly,</I> the comfort he takes, and the advantage he has, in
|
|
doing good: <I>By liberal things he shall stand,</I> or be established.
|
|
The providence of God will reward him for his liberality with a settled
|
|
prosperity and an established reputation. The grace of God will give
|
|
him abundance of satisfaction and confirmed peace in his own bosom.
|
|
What disquiets others shall not disturb him; his heart is fixed. This
|
|
is the recompence of charity,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+112:5,6">Ps. cxii. 5, 6</A>.
|
|
|
|
Some read it, <I>The prince, or honourable man, will take honourable
|
|
courses; and by such honourable or ingenuous courses he shall stand or
|
|
be established.</I> It is well with a land when the honourable of it
|
|
are indeed men of honour and scorn to do a base thing, when its king is
|
|
thus the son of nobles.</P>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Isa32_9"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa32_10"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa32_11"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa32_12"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa32_13"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa32_14"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa32_15"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa32_16"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa32_17"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa32_18"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa32_19"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Isa32_20"> </A>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Sec2"> </A>
|
|
<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
|
|
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Joyful Prospects.</I></FONT></TD>
|
|
<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 726.</TD></TR>
|
|
<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
|
|
</TABLE>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
<FONT SIZE=+1>9 Rise up, ye women that are at ease; hear my voice, ye
|
|
careless daughters; give ear unto my speech.
|
|
10 Many days and years shall ye be troubled, ye careless women:
|
|
for the vintage shall fail, the gathering shall not come.
|
|
11 Tremble, ye women that are at ease; be troubled, ye careless
|
|
ones: strip you, and make you bare, and gird <I>sackcloth</I> upon
|
|
<I>your</I> loins.
|
|
12 They shall lament for the teats, for the pleasant fields,
|
|
for the fruitful vine.
|
|
13 Upon the land of my people shall come up thorns <I>and</I>
|
|
briers; yea, upon all the houses of joy <I>in</I> the joyous city:
|
|
14 Because the palaces shall be forsaken; the multitude of the
|
|
city shall be left; the forts and towers shall be for dens for
|
|
ever, a joy of wild asses, a pasture of flocks;
|
|
15 Until the spirit be poured upon us from on high, and the
|
|
wilderness be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted
|
|
for a forest.
|
|
16 Then judgment shall dwell in the wilderness, and
|
|
righteousness remain in the fruitful field.
|
|
17 And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect
|
|
of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever.
|
|
18 And my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in
|
|
sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places;
|
|
19 When it shall hail, coming down on the forest; and the city
|
|
shall be low in a low place.
|
|
20 Blessed <I>are</I> ye that sow beside all waters, that send forth
|
|
<I>thither</I> the feet of the ox and the ass.
|
|
</FONT></P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
In these verses we have God rising up to judgment against the vile
|
|
persons, to punish them for their villainy; but at length returning in
|
|
mercy to the liberal, to reward them for their liberality.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
I. When there was so great a corruption of manners, and so much
|
|
provocation given to the holy God, bad times might well be expected,
|
|
and here is a warning given of such times coming. The alarm is sounded
|
|
to the <I>women that were at ease</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:9"><I>v.</I> 9</A>)
|
|
|
|
and the <I>careless daughters,</I> to feed whose pride, vanity, and
|
|
luxury, their husbands and fathers were tempted to starve the poor. Let
|
|
them hear what the prophet has to say to them in God's name: "<I>Rise
|
|
up, and hear</I> with reverence and attention."</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
1. Let them know that God was about to bring wasting desolating
|
|
judgments upon the land in which they <I>lived in pleasure and were
|
|
wanton.</I> This seems to refer primarily to the desolations made by
|
|
Sennacherib's army when he seized all the fenced cities of Judah: but
|
|
then those words, <I>many days and years,</I> must be rendered (as the
|
|
margin reads them) <I>days above a year,</I> that is, something above a
|
|
year shall this havock be in the making: so long it was from the first
|
|
entrance of that army into the land of Judah to the overthrow of it.
|
|
But it is applicable to the wretched disappointment which those will
|
|
certainly meet with, first or last, that set their hearts upon the
|
|
world and place their happiness in it: <I>You shall be troubled, you
|
|
careless women.</I> It will not secure us from trouble to cast away
|
|
care when we are at ease; nay, to those who affect to live carelessly
|
|
even little troubles will be great vexations and press hard upon them.
|
|
They were careless and at ease because they had money enough and mirth
|
|
enough; but the prophet here tells them,
|
|
|
|
(1.) That the country whence they had their tents and dainties should
|
|
shortly be laid waste: "<I>The vintage shall fail;</I> and then what
|
|
will you do for wine to make merry with? <I>The gathering</I> of fruit
|
|
<I>shall not come,</I> for there shall be none to be gathered, and you
|
|
will find the want of them,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:10"><I>v.</I> 10</A>.
|
|
|
|
You will want <I>the teats,</I> the good milk from the cows, <I>the
|
|
pleasant fields</I> and their productions:" the useful fields that are
|
|
serviceable to human life are the pleasant ones. "You will want the
|
|
fruitful vine, and the grapes it used to yield you." The abuse of
|
|
plenty is justly punished with scarcity; and those deserve to be
|
|
deprived of the supports of life who make them the food and fuel of
|
|
lust and prepare them for Baal.
|
|
|
|
(2.) That the cities too, the cities of Judah, where they lived at
|
|
ease, spent their rents, and made themselves merry with their dainties,
|
|
should be laid waste
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:13,14"><I>v.</I> 13, 14</A>):
|
|
|
|
<I>Briers and thorns,</I> the fruits of sin and the curse, <I>shall
|
|
come up,</I> not only <I>upon the land of my people,</I> which shall
|
|
lie uncultivated, but upon <I>all the houses of joy</I>--the
|
|
play-houses, the gaming-houses, the taverns--<I>in the joyous
|
|
cities.</I> When a foreign army was ravaging the country the houses of
|
|
joy, no doubt, became houses of mourning; then the palaces, or
|
|
noblemen's houses, were forsaken by their owners, who perhaps fled to
|
|
Egypt for refuge; the multitude of the city were left by their leaders
|
|
to shift for themselves. Then the stately houses <I>shall be for dens
|
|
for ever,</I> which had been as forts and towers for strength and
|
|
magnificence. They shall be abandoned; the owners shall never return to
|
|
them; every body shall look upon them to be like Jericho, an anathema;
|
|
so that, even when peace returns, they shall not be rebuilt, but shall
|
|
be thrown to the waste: <I>A joy of wild asses and a pasture of
|
|
flocks.</I> Thus is many a house brought to ruin by sin. <I>Jam seges
|
|
est ubi Troja fuit--Corn grows on the site of Troy.</I></P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
2. In the foresight of this let them <I>tremble</I> and <I>be troubled,
|
|
strip themselves, and gird sackcloth upon their loins,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:11"><I>v.</I> 11</A>.
|
|
|
|
This intimates not only that when the calamity comes they shall thus be
|
|
made to tremble and be forced to strip themselves, that then God's
|
|
judgments would strip them and make them bare, but,
|
|
|
|
(1.) That the best prevention of the trouble would be to repent and
|
|
humble themselves for their sin, and lie in the dust before God in true
|
|
remorse and godly sorrow, which would be the lengthening out of their
|
|
tranquillity. This is meeting God in the way of his judgments, and
|
|
saving a correction by correcting our own mistakes. Those only shall
|
|
break that will not bend.
|
|
|
|
(2.) That the best preparation for the trouble would be to deny
|
|
themselves and live a life of mortification, and to sit loose to all
|
|
the delights of sense. Those that have already by a holy contempt of
|
|
this world stripped themselves can easily bear to be stripped when
|
|
trouble and death come.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
II. While there was still a remnant that kept their integrity they had
|
|
reason to hope for good times at length and such times the prophet here
|
|
gives them a pleasant prospect of. Such times they saw in the latter
|
|
end of the reign of Hezekiah; but the prophecy may well be supposed to
|
|
look further, to the days of the Messiah, who is <I>King of
|
|
righteousness</I> and <I>King of peace,</I> and to whom all the
|
|
prophets bear witness. Now observe,</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
1. How those blessed times shall be introduced-by the <I>pouring out of
|
|
the Spirit from on high</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:15"><I>v.</I> 15</A>),
|
|
|
|
which speaks not only of the good-will of God towards us, but the good
|
|
work of God in us; for then, and not till then, there will be good
|
|
times, when God by his grace gives men good hearts; and therefore God's
|
|
<I>giving his Holy Spirit to those that ask him</I> is in effect his
|
|
giving them all good things, as appears by comparing
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+11:13,Mt+7:11">Luke xi. 13 with Matt. vii. 11</A>.
|
|
|
|
This is the great thing that God's people comfort themselves with the
|
|
hopes of, that <I>the Spirit shall be poured out upon them,</I> that
|
|
there shall be a more plentiful effusion of the Spirit of grace than
|
|
formerly, according as the necessity of the church, in its desolate
|
|
estate, calls for. This comes from on high, and therefore they look up
|
|
to their Father in heaven for it. When God designs favours for his
|
|
church he pours out his Spirit, both to prepare his people to receive
|
|
his favours and to qualify and give success to those whom he designs to
|
|
employ as instruments of his favour; for their endeavours to repair the
|
|
desolations of the church are all fruitless <I>until the Spirit be
|
|
poured out upon them</I> and then the work is done suddenly. The
|
|
kingdom of the Messiah was brought in, and set up, by the pouring out
|
|
of the Spirit
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ac+2:1-13">Acts ii.</A>),
|
|
|
|
and so it is still kept up, and will be to the end.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
2. What a wonderfully happy change shall then be made. That which was
|
|
<I>a wilderness,</I> dry and barren, <I>shall become a fruitful
|
|
field,</I> and that which we now reckon <I>a fruitful field,</I> in
|
|
comparison with what it shall be then, <I>shall be counted for a
|
|
forest. Then shall the earth yield her increase.</I> It is promised
|
|
that in the days of the Messiah the <I>fruit of the earth shall shake
|
|
like Lebanon,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+72:16">Ps. lxxii. 16</A>.
|
|
|
|
Some apply this to the admission of the Gentiles into the gospel church
|
|
(which made the wilderness a fruitful field), and the rejection and
|
|
exclusion of the Jews, which made that a forest which had been a
|
|
fruitful field. On the Gentiles was poured out a spirit of life, but on
|
|
the Jews a spirit of slumber. See what is the evidence and effect of
|
|
the pouring out of the Spirit upon any soul; it is thereby made
|
|
fruitful, and has its fruit unto holiness. Three things go to make
|
|
these times happy:--</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
(1.) Judgment and righteousness,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:16"><I>v.</I> 16</A>.
|
|
|
|
When the Spirit is poured out upon a land, <I>then judgment shall dwell
|
|
in the wilderness</I> and turn it into a fruitful field, and
|
|
<I>righteousness shall remain in the fruitful field</I> and make it yet
|
|
more fruitful. Ministers shall expound the law and magistrates execute
|
|
it, and both so judiciously and faithfully that by both the bad shall
|
|
be made good and the good made better. Among all sorts of people, the
|
|
poor and low and unlearned, that are neglected as the wilderness, and
|
|
the rich and great and learned, that are valued as the fruitful field,
|
|
there shall be right thoughts of things, good principles commanding,
|
|
and conscience made of good and evil, sin and duty. Or in all parts of
|
|
the land, both champaign and enclosed, country and city, the ruder
|
|
parts and those that are more cultivated and refined, justice shall be
|
|
duly administered. The law of Christ introduces a judgment or rule by
|
|
which we must be governed, and the gospel of Christ a righteousness by
|
|
which we must be saved; and, wherever the Spirit is poured out, both
|
|
these dwell and remain as an everlasting righteousness.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
(2.) Peace and quietness,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:17,18"><I>v.</I> 17, 18</A>.
|
|
|
|
The peace here promised is of two kinds:--</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
[1.] Inward peace,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:17"><I>v.</I> 17</A>.
|
|
|
|
This follows upon the indwelling of righteousness,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:16"><I>v.</I> 16</A>.
|
|
|
|
Those in whom that work is wrought shall experience this blessed
|
|
product of it. It is itself peace, and the effect of it is <I>quietness
|
|
and assurance for ever,</I> that is, a holy serenity and security of
|
|
mind, by which the soul enjoys itself and enjoys its God, and it is not
|
|
in the power of this world to disturb it in those enjoyments. Note,
|
|
Peace, and quietness, and everlasting assurance may be expected, and
|
|
shall be found, in the way and work of righteousness. True satisfaction
|
|
is to be had only in true religion, and there it is to be had without
|
|
fail. Those are the quiet and peaceable lives that are spent <I>in all
|
|
godliness and honesty,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Ti+2:2">1 Tim. ii. 2</A>.
|
|
|
|
<I>First,</I> Even <I>the work of righteousness shall be peace.</I> In
|
|
the doing of our duty we shall find abundance of true pleasure, a
|
|
present great reward of obedience in obedience. Though the work of
|
|
righteousness may be toilsome and costly, and expose us to contempt,
|
|
yet it is peace, such peace as is sufficient to bear our charges.
|
|
<I>Secondly, The effect of righteousness shall be quietness and
|
|
assurance,</I> not only to the end of time, of our time, and in the
|
|
end, but to the endless ages of eternity. Real holiness is real
|
|
happiness now and shall be perfect happiness, that is, perfect
|
|
holiness, for ever.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
[2.] Outward peace,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:18"><I>v.</I> 18</A>.
|
|
|
|
It is a great mercy when those who by the grace of God have quiet and
|
|
peaceable spirits are by the providence of God made to <I>dwell in
|
|
quiet and peaceable habitations,</I> not disturbed in their houses or
|
|
solemn assemblies. When the terror of Sennacherib's invasion was over,
|
|
the people, no doubt, were more sensible than ever of the mercy of a
|
|
quiet habitation, not disturbed with the alarms of war. Let every
|
|
family study to keep itself quiet from strifes and jars within, not two
|
|
against three and three against two in the house, and then put itself
|
|
under God's protection to dwell safely, and to be <I>quiet from the
|
|
fear of evil</I> without. Jerusalem shall be a peaceable habitation;
|
|
compare
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+33:20"><I>ch.</I> xxxiii. 20</A>.
|
|
|
|
Even <I>when it shall hail,</I> and there shall be a violent battering
|
|
storm <I>coming down on the forest</I> that lies bleak, then shall
|
|
Jerusalem be <I>a quiet resting-place, for the city shall be low in a
|
|
low place,</I> under the wind, not exposed (as those cities are that
|
|
stand high) to the fury of the storm, but sheltered by the <I>mountains
|
|
that are round about Jerusalem,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+125:2">Ps. cxxv. 2</A>.
|
|
|
|
The <I>high forts and towers are brought down</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:14"><I>v.</I> 14</A>),
|
|
|
|
but the city that lies low shall be a quiet resting-place. Those are
|
|
most safe, and may dwell most at ease, that are humble, and are willing
|
|
to dwell low,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:19"><I>v.</I> 19</A>.
|
|
|
|
Those that would dwell in a peaceable habitation must be willing to
|
|
dwell low, and in a low place. Some think here is an allusion to the
|
|
preservation of the land of Goshen from the plague of hail, which made
|
|
great destruction in the land of Egypt.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
(3.) Plenty and abundance. There shall be such good crops gathered in
|
|
every where, and every year, that the husbandmen shall be commended,
|
|
and though happy, who <I>sow beside all water</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+32:20"><I>v.</I> 20</A>),
|
|
|
|
who sow all the grounds that are fit for seedness, who <I>cast their
|
|
bread,</I> or bread-corn, <I>upon the water,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ec+11:1">Eccl. xi. 1</A>.
|
|
|
|
God will give the increase, but then the husbandman must be
|
|
industrious, and mind his business, and sow beside all waters; and, if
|
|
he do this, the corn shall come up so thick and rank that he shall turn
|
|
in his cattle, even the ox and the ass, to eat the tops of it and keep
|
|
it under. This is applicable,
|
|
|
|
[1.] To the preaching of the word. Some think it points at the ministry
|
|
of the apostles, who, as husbandmen, went forth to sow their seed
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Mt+13:3">Matt. xiii. 3</A>);
|
|
|
|
they sowed beside all waters; they preached the gospel wherever they
|
|
came. Waters signify people, and they preached to multitudes. Wherever
|
|
they found men's hearts softened, and moistened, and disposed to
|
|
receive the word, they cast in the good seed. And whereas, by the law
|
|
of Moses, the Jews were forbidden to <I>plough with an ox and an ass
|
|
together</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+22:10">Deut. xxii. 10</A>),
|
|
|
|
which intimated that Jews and Gentiles should not intermix, now that
|
|
distinction shall be taken away, and both the ox and the ass, both Jews
|
|
and Gentiles, shall be employed in, and enjoy the benefit of, the
|
|
gospel husbandry.
|
|
|
|
[2.] To works of charity. When God sends these happy times blessed are
|
|
those that improve them in doing good with what they have, that sow
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beside all waters, that embrace all opportunities of relieving the
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necessitous; for in due season they shall reap.</P>
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