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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>E Z E K I E L.</B></FONT>
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<BR>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+2>CHAP. XXXIV.</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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The iniquities and calamities of God's Israel had been largely and
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pathetically lamented before, in this book. Now in this chapter the
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shepherds of Israel, their rulers both in church and state, are called
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to an account, as having been very much accessory to the sin and ruin
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of Israel, by their neglecting to do the duty of their place. Here is,
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I. A high charge exhibited against them for their negligence, their
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unskillfulness, and unfaithfulness in the management of public affairs,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:1-6,8">ver. 1-6 and ver. 8</A>.
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II. Their discharge from their trust, for their insufficiency and
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treachery,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:7-10">ver. 7-10</A>.
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III. A gracious promise that God would take care of his flock, though
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they did not, and that it should not always suffer as it had done by
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their mal-administrations,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:11-16">ver. 11-16</A>.
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IV. Another charge exhibited against those of the flock that were fat
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and strong, for the injuries they did to those that were weak and
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feeble,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:17-22">ver. 17-22</A>.
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V. Another promise that God would in the fulness of time send the
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Messiah, to be the great and good Shepherd of the sheep, who should
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redress all grievances and set every thing to rights with the flock,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:23-31">ver. 23-31</A>.</P>
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</FONT>
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<A NAME="Eze34_1"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_2"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_3"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_4"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_5"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_6"> </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 Shepherds Reproved.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 587.</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 And the word of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> came unto me, saying,
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2 Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel,
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prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord G<FONT SIZE=-1><B>OD</B></FONT> unto the
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shepherds; Woe <I>be</I> to the shepherds of Israel that do feed
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themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks?
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3 Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them
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that are fed: <I>but</I> ye feed not the flock.
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4 The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed
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that which was sick, neither have ye bound up <I>that which was</I>
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broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away,
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neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and
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with cruelty have ye ruled them.
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5 And they were scattered, because <I>there is</I> no shepherd: and
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they became meat to all the beasts of the field, when they were
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scattered.
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6 My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every
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high hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the
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earth, and none did search or seek <I>after them.</I>
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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The prophecy of this chapter is not dated, nor any of those that follow
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it, till
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+40:1-49"><I>ch.</I> xl.</A>
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It is most probable that it was delivered after the completing of
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Jerusalem's destruction, when it would be very seasonable to enquire
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into the causes of it.</P>
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<P>
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I. The prophet is ordered to <I>prophesy against the shepherds of
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Israel</I>--the princes and magistrates, the priests and Levites, the
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great Sanhedrim or council of state, or whoever they were that had the
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direction of public affairs in a higher or lower sphere, the kings
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especially, for there were two of them now captives in Babylon, who, as
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well as the people, must have their transgressions shown them, that
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they might repent, as Manasseh in his captivity. God has something to
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<I>say to the shepherds,</I> for they are but under-shepherds,
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accountable to him who is the great <I>Shepherd of Israel,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+80:1">Ps. lxxx. 1</A>.
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And that which he says is, <I>Woe to the shepherds of Israel!</I>
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Though they are shepherds, and shepherds of Israel, yet he must not
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spare them, must not flatter them. Note, If men's dignity and power do
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not, as they ought, keep them from sin, they will not serve to exempt
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them from reproof, to excuse their repentance, or to secure them from
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the judgments of God if they do not repent. We had a <I>woe to the
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pastors,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+23:1">Jer. xxiii. 1</A>.
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God will in a particular manner reckon with them if they be false to
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their trust.</P>
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<P>
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II. He is here directed what to charge the shepherds with, in God's
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name, as the ground of God's controversy with them; for it is not a
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causeless quarrel. Two things they are charged with:--
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1. That all their care was to advance and enrich themselves and to make
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themselves great. Their business was to take care of those that were
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committed to their charge: <I>Should not the shepherds feed the
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flocks?</I> No doubt they should; they betray their trust if they do
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not. Not that they are to put the meat into their mouths, but to
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provide it for them and bring them to it. But <I>these</I> shepherds
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made this the least of their care; they <I>fed themselves,</I>
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contrived every thing to gratify and indulge their own appetite, and to
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make themselves rich and great, fat and easy. They made sure of the
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profits of their places; they did <I>eat the fat,</I> the <I>cream</I>
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(so some), for he <I>that feeds a flock eats of the milk of it</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Co+9:7">1 Cor. ix. 7</A>),
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and they made sure of the best of the milk. They made sure of the
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fleece, and <I>clothed themselves with the wool,</I> getting into their
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hands as much as they could of the estates of their subjects, yea, and
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<I>killed those that were</I> well <I>fed,</I> that what they had might
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be fed upon, as Naboth was put to death for his vineyard. Note, There
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is a woe to those who are in public trusts, but consult only their own
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private interest, and are more inquisitive about the benefice than
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about the office, what money is to be got than what good to be done. It
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is an old complaint, <I>All seek their own,</I> and too many <I>more
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than their own.</I>
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2. That they took no care for the benefit and welfare of those that
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were committed to their charge: <I>You feed not the flock.</I> They
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neither knew how to do it, so ignorant were they, nor would they take
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any pains to do it, so lazy and slothful were they; nay, they never
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desired nor designed it, so treacherous and unfaithful were they.
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(1.) They did not do their duty to those of the flock that were
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distempered, did not strengthen them, nor heal them, nor bind them up,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:4"><I>v.</I> 4</A>.
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When any of the flock were sick or hurt, worried or wounded, it was all
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one to them whether they lived or died; they never looked after them.
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The princes and judges took no care to right those that suffered wrong
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or to shelter injured innocency. They took no care of the poor to see
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them provided for; they might starve, for them. The priests took no
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care to instruct the ignorant, to rectify the mistakes of those that
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were in error, to warn the unruly, or to comfort the feeble-minded. The
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ministers of state took no care to check the growing distempers of the
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kingdom, which threatened the vitals of it. Things were amiss, and out
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of course, every where, and nothing was done to rectify them.
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(2.) They did not do their duty to those of the flock that were
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dispersed, that were driven away by the enemies that invaded the
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country, and were forced to seek for shelter where they could find a
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place, or that <I>wandered</I> of choice upon <I>the mountains and
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hills</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:6"><I>v.</I> 6</A>),
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where they were exposed to the beasts of prey and became <I>meat to
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them,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:5"><I>v.</I> 5</A>.
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Every one is ready to seize a waif and stray. Some went abroad and
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begged, some went abroad and traded, and thus the country became thin
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of inhabitants, and was weakened and impoverished, and wanted hands
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both in the fields of corn and in the fields of battle, both in harvest
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and in war: <I>My flock was scattered upon all the face of the
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earth,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:6"><I>v.</I> 6</A>.
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And they were never enquired after, were never encouraged to return to
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their own country: <I>None did search or seek after them.</I> Nay,
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<I>with force and cruelty they ruled them,</I> which drove more away,
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and discouraged those that were driven away from all thoughts of
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returning. <I>Their</I> case is bad who have reason to expect better
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treatment among strangers than in their own country. It may be meant of
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those of the flock that went astray from God and their duty; and the
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priests, that should have taught the good knowledge of the Lord, used
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no means to convince and reclaim them, so that they became an easy prey
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to seducers. Thus were <I>they scattered because there was no
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shepherd,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:5"><I>v.</I> 5</A>.
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There were those that called themselves shepherds, but really they were
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not. Note, Those that do not do the work of shepherds are unworthy of
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the name. And if those that undertake to be shepherds are <I>foolish
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shepherds</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Zec+11:15">Zech. xi. 15</A>),
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if they are proud and above their business, idle and do not love their
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business, or faithless and unconcerned about it, the case of the flock
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is as bad as if it were without a shepherd. Better no shepherd than
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such shepherds. Christ complains that his flock were <I>as sheep
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having no shepherd,</I> when yet the scribes and Pharisees <I>sat in
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Moses' seat,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Mt+9:36">Matt. ix. 36</A>.
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It is ill with the patient when his physician is his worst disease, ill
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with the flock when the shepherds drive them away and disperse them,
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<I>by ruling them with force.</I></P>
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<A NAME="Eze34_7"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_8"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_9"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_10"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_11"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_12"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_13"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_14"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_15"> </A>
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<A NAME="Eze34_16"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec2"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>The Shepherds Reproved.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 587.</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>7 Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>;
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8 <I>As</I> I live, saith the Lord G<FONT SIZE=-1><B>OD</B></FONT>, surely because my flock
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became a prey, and my flock became meat to every beast of the
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field, because <I>there was</I> no shepherd, neither did my shepherds
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search for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed
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not my flock;
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9 Therefore, O ye shepherds, hear the word of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>;
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10 Thus saith the Lord G<FONT SIZE=-1><B>OD</B></FONT>; Behold, I <I>am</I> against the
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shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause
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them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds
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feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their
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mouth, that they may not be meat for them.
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11 For thus saith the Lord G<FONT SIZE=-1><B>OD</B></FONT>; Behold, I, <I>even</I> I, will both
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search my sheep, and seek them out.
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12 As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is
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among his sheep <I>that are</I> scattered; so will I seek out my
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sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have
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been scattered in the cloudy and dark day.
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13 And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them
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from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and
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feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all
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the inhabited places of the country.
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14 I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high
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mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie in
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a good fold, and <I>in</I> a fat pasture shall they feed upon the
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mountains of Israel.
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15 I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down,
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saith the Lord G<FONT SIZE=-1><B>OD</B></FONT>.
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16 I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which
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was driven away, and will bind up <I>that which was</I> broken, and
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will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat
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and the strong; I will feed them with judgment.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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Upon reading the foregoing articles of impeachment drawn up, in God's
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name, against the shepherds of Israel, we cannot but look upon the
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shepherds with a just indignation, and upon the flock with a tender
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compassion. God, by the prophet, here expresses both in a high degree;
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and the shepherds are called upon
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:7,9"><I>v.</I> 7, 9</A>)
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to <I>hear the word of the Lord,</I> to hear this word. Let them hear
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how little he regards them, who made much of themselves, and how much
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he regards the flock, which they made nothing of; both will be humbling
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to them. Those that will not <I>hear the word of the Lord</I> giving
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them their direction shall be made to hear the word of the Lord reading
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them their doom. Now see here,</P>
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<P>
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I. How much displeased God is at the shepherds. Their crimes are
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repeated,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:8"><I>v.</I> 8</A>.
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God's flock became a prey to the deceivers first that drew them to
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idolatry, and then to the destroyers that carried them into captivity;
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and these shepherds took no care to prevent either the one or the
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other, but were as if there had been <I>no shepherds;</I> and therefore
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God says
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:10"><I>v.</I> 10</A>),
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and confirms it with an oath
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:8"><I>v.</I> 8</A>),
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<I>I am against the shepherds.</I> They had a commission from God to
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feed the flock, and made use of this name in what they did, expecting
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he would stand by them. "No," says God, "so far from that, <I>I am
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against them.</I>" Note, It is not our having the name and authority of
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shepherds that will engage God for us, if we do not the work enjoined
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us, and be not faithful to the trust reposed in us. God is <I>against
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them,</I> and they shall know it; for,
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1. They shall be made to account for the manner in which they have
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discharged their trust: "<I>I will require my flock at their hands,</I>
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and charge it upon them that so many of them are missing." Note, Those
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|
will have a great deal to answer for in the judgment-day who take upon
|
|
them the care of souls and yet take no care of them. Ministers must
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<I>watch</I> and work as those that <I>must give account,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Heb+13:17">Heb. xiii. 17</A>.
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2. They shall be deprived <I>officio et beneficio--both of the work and
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|
of the wages. They shall cease from feeding the flock,</I> that is,
|
|
from pretending to feed it. Note, It is just with God to take out of
|
|
men's hands that power which they have abused and that trust which they
|
|
have betrayed. But, if this were all their punishment, they could bear
|
|
it well enough; therefore it is added, "<I>Neither shall the shepherds
|
|
feed themselves any more,</I> for <I>I will deliver my flock from their
|
|
mouth,</I> which, instead of protecting, they had made a prey of."
|
|
Note, Those that are enriching themselves with the spoils of the public
|
|
cannot expect that they shall always be suffered to do so. Nor will
|
|
God always permit his people to be trampled upon by those that should
|
|
support them, but will find a time to deliver them from the shepherds
|
|
their false friends, as well as from the lions their open enemies.</P>
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<P>
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|
II. How much concerned God is for the flock; he speaks as if he were
|
|
the more concerned for them because he saw them thus neglected, for
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|
<I>with him the fatherless finds mercy.</I> Precious promises are made
|
|
here upon the occasion, which were to have their accomplishment in the
|
|
return of the Jews out of their captivity and their re-establishment in
|
|
their own land. Let the shepherds <I>hear this word of the Lord,</I>
|
|
and know that they have no part nor lot in the matter. But let the poor
|
|
sheep hear it and take the comfort of it. Note, Though magistrates and
|
|
ministers fail in doing their part, for the good of the church, yet God
|
|
will not fail in doing his; he will take the flock into his own hand
|
|
rather than the church shall come short of any kindness he has designed
|
|
for it. The under-shepherds may prove careless, but the chief Shepherd
|
|
<I>neither slumbers nor sleeps.</I> They may be false, but God
|
|
<I>abides faithful.</I></P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
1. God will gather his sheep together that were scattered, and bring
|
|
those back to the fold that had wandered from it: "<I>I, even I,</I>
|
|
who alone can do it, will do it, and will have all the glory of it.
|
|
<I>I will both search my sheep and find them out</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:11"><I>v.</I> 11</A>)
|
|
|
|
as a <I>shepherd</I> does
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:12"><I>v.</I> 12</A>),
|
|
|
|
and bring them back as he does the stray-sheep, upon his shoulders,
|
|
<I>from all the places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and
|
|
dark day.</I>" There are cloudy and dark days, windy and stormy ones,
|
|
which scatter God's sheep, which send them hither and thither, to
|
|
divers and distant places, in quest of secresy and safety. But,
|
|
|
|
(1.) Wherever they are the eye of God will <I>find them out;</I> for
|
|
his eyes run to and fro through the earth, in favour of them. <I>I will
|
|
seek out my sheep;</I> and not one that belongs to the fold, though
|
|
driven ever so far off, shall be lost. <I>The Lord knows those that
|
|
are his;</I> he <I>knows their work</I> and <I>where they dwell</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+2:13">Rev. ii. 13</A>),
|
|
|
|
and where they are hidden.
|
|
|
|
(2.) When his time shall come his arms will <I>fetch them home</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:13"><I>v.</I> 13</A>):
|
|
|
|
<I>I will bring them out from the people.</I> God will both incline
|
|
their hearts to come by his grace and will by his providence open a
|
|
door for them and remove every difficulty that lies in the way. They
|
|
shall not return one by one, clandestinely stealing away, but they
|
|
shall return in a body: "<I>I will gather them from the countries</I>
|
|
into which they are dispersed, not only the most considerable families
|
|
of them, but every particular person. <I>I will seek that which was
|
|
lost and bring again that which was driven away,</I>"
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:16"><I>v.</I> 16</A>.
|
|
|
|
This was done when so many thousand Jews returned triumphantly out of
|
|
Babylon, under the conduct of Zerubbabel, Ezra, and others. When those
|
|
that have gone astray from God into the paths of sin are brought back
|
|
by repentance, when those that erred come to the acknowledgment of the
|
|
truth, when God's outcasts are gathered and restored, and religious
|
|
assemblies, that were dispersed, rally again, upon the ceasing of
|
|
persecution, and when the churches have rest and liberty, then this
|
|
promise has a further accomplishment.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
2. God will feed his people as the <I>sheep of his pasture,</I> that
|
|
had been famished. God will bring the returning captives safely to
|
|
their own land
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:13"><I>v.</I> 13</A>),
|
|
|
|
<I>will feed them upon the mountains of Israel,</I> and that is a
|
|
<I>good pasture,</I> and a <I>fat pasture</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:14"><I>v.</I> 14</A>);
|
|
|
|
there shall their <I>feeding</I> be, and there shall be <I>their
|
|
fold;</I> and it is a <I>good fold.</I> There God will not only <I>feed
|
|
them,</I> but <I>cause them to lie down</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:15"><I>v.</I> 15</A>),
|
|
|
|
which denotes a comfortable rest after they had tired themselves with
|
|
their wanderings, and a constant continuing residence; they shall not
|
|
be driven out again from these green pastures, as they have been, nor
|
|
shall they be disturbed, but shall lie down in a sweet repose and there
|
|
shall be <I>none to make them afraid.</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+23:2">Ps. xxiii. 2</A>,
|
|
|
|
<I>He makes me to lie down in green pastures.</I> Compare this with the
|
|
like promise
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+23:3,4">Jer. xxiii. 3, 4</A>),
|
|
|
|
when God restored them not only to the milk and honey of their own
|
|
land, to the enjoyment of its fruits, but to the privileges of his
|
|
sanctuary on Mount Zion, the chief of the mountains of Israel. When
|
|
they had an altar and a temple again, and the benefit of a settled
|
|
priesthood, then they were fed in a good pasture.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
3. He will succour those that are hurt, will <I>bind up that which was
|
|
broken and strengthen that which was sick,</I> will comfort those that
|
|
<I>mourn in Zion</I> and with Zion. If ministers, who should speak
|
|
peace to those who are of a sorrowful spirit, neglect their duty, yet
|
|
the Holy Ghost the Comforter will be faithful to his office. But, as it
|
|
follows, the <I>fat and the strong shall be destroyed.</I> He that has
|
|
rest for disquieted saints has terror to speak to presumptuous sinners.
|
|
As <I>every valley</I> shall be <I>filled,</I> so <I>every mountain and
|
|
hill shall be brought low,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+3:5">Luke iii. 5</A>.</P>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_17"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_18"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_19"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_20"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_21"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_22"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_23"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_24"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_25"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_26"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_27"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_28"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_29"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_30"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Eze34_31"> </A>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Sec3"> </A>
|
|
<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
|
|
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>God's Care of His Flock; Prediction of Messiah's Kingdom.</I></FONT></TD>
|
|
<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 587.</TD></TR>
|
|
<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
|
|
</TABLE>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
<FONT SIZE=+1>17 And <I>as for</I> you, O my flock, thus saith the Lord G<FONT SIZE=-1><B>OD</B></FONT>;
|
|
Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, between the rams and
|
|
the he goats.
|
|
18 <I>Seemeth it</I> a small thing unto you to have eaten up the
|
|
good pasture, but ye must tread down with your feet the residue
|
|
of your pastures? and to have drunk of the deep waters, but ye
|
|
must foul the residue with your feet?
|
|
19 And <I>as for</I> my flock, they eat that which ye have trodden
|
|
with your feet; and they drink that which ye have fouled with
|
|
your feet.
|
|
20 Therefore thus saith the Lord G<FONT SIZE=-1><B>OD</B></FONT> unto them; Behold, I,
|
|
<I>even</I> I, will judge between the fat cattle and between the lean
|
|
cattle.
|
|
21 Because ye have thrust with side and with shoulder, and
|
|
pushed all the diseased with your horns, till ye have scattered
|
|
them abroad;
|
|
22 Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a
|
|
prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle.
|
|
23 And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed
|
|
them, <I>even</I> my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall
|
|
be their shepherd.
|
|
24 And I the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> will be their God, and my servant David a
|
|
prince among them; I the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> have spoken <I>it.</I>
|
|
25 And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will
|
|
cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall
|
|
dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods.
|
|
26 And I will make them and the places round about my hill a
|
|
blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season;
|
|
there shall be showers of blessing.
|
|
27 And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the
|
|
earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their
|
|
land, and shall know that I <I>am</I> the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>, when I have broken the
|
|
bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those
|
|
that served themselves of them.
|
|
28 And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither
|
|
shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell
|
|
safely, and none shall make <I>them</I> afraid.
|
|
29 And I will raise up for them a plant of renown, and they
|
|
shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear
|
|
the shame of the heathen any more.
|
|
30 Thus shall they know that I the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> their God <I>am</I> with
|
|
them, and <I>that</I> they, <I>even</I> the house of Israel, <I>are</I> my
|
|
people, saith the Lord G<FONT SIZE=-1><B>OD</B></FONT>.
|
|
31 And ye my flock, the flock of my pasture, <I>are</I> men, <I>and</I> I
|
|
<I>am</I> your God, saith the Lord G<FONT SIZE=-1><B>OD</B></FONT>.
|
|
</FONT></P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
The prophet has no more to say to the shepherds, but he has now a
|
|
message to deliver to the flock. God had ordered him to speak tenderly
|
|
to them, and to assure them of the mercy he had in store for them. But
|
|
here he is ordered to make a difference between some and others of
|
|
them, to separate between the precious and the vile and then to give
|
|
them a promise of the Messiah, by whom this distinction should be
|
|
effectually made, partly at his first coming (for <I>for judgment he
|
|
came into this world,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Joh+9:39">John ix. 39</A>,
|
|
|
|
to <I>fill the hungry with good things and to send the rich empty
|
|
away,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+1:53">Luke i. 53</A>),
|
|
|
|
but completely at his second coming, when he shall, as it is here said,
|
|
<I>judge between cattle and cattle, as a shepherd divides between the
|
|
sheep and the goats, and shall set the sheep on his right hand and the
|
|
goats on his left</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Mt+25:32,33">Matt. xxv. 32, 33</A>),
|
|
|
|
which seems to have reference to this. We have here,</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
I. Conviction spoken to those of the flock that were fat and strong,
|
|
the <I>rams and the he-goats</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:17"><I>v.</I> 17</A>),
|
|
|
|
those that, though they had not power, as shepherds and rulers, to
|
|
oppress with, yet, being rich and wealthy, made use of the opportunity
|
|
which this gave them to bear hard upon their poor neighbours. Those
|
|
that have much would have more, and, if they set to it, will have more,
|
|
so many ways have they of encroaching upon their poor neighbours, and
|
|
forcing from them the one ewe-lamb,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Sa+12:4">2 Sam. xii. 4</A>.
|
|
|
|
Do not the rich oppress the poor merely with the help of their riches,
|
|
and <I>draw them before the judgment-seats?</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jam+2:6">Jam. ii. 6</A>.
|
|
|
|
Poor servants and tenants are hardly used by their rich lords and
|
|
masters. The <I>rams</I> and the <I>he-goats</I> not only kept all the
|
|
good pasture to themselves, ate the fat and drank the sweet, but they
|
|
would not let the poor of the flock have any comfortable enjoyment of
|
|
the little that was left them; they <I>trod down the residue of the
|
|
pastures and fouled the residue of the waters,</I> so that the flock
|
|
was obliged to eat that which they had trodden into the dirt, and drink
|
|
that which they had muddied,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:18,19"><I>v.</I> 18, 19</A>.
|
|
|
|
This intimates that the great men not only by extortion and oppression
|
|
made and kept their neighbours poor, and scarcely left them enough to
|
|
subsist on, but were so vexatious to them that what little coarse fare
|
|
they had was embittered to them. And this <I>seemed a small thing</I>
|
|
to them; they thought there was no harm in it, as if it were the
|
|
privilege of their quality to be injurious to all their neighbours.
|
|
Note, Many that live in pomp and at ease themselves care not what
|
|
straits those about them are reduced to, so they may but have every
|
|
thing to their mind. Those that <I>are at ease,</I> and <I>the
|
|
proud,</I> grudge that any body should live by them with any comfort.
|
|
But this as not all; they not only robbed the poor, to make them
|
|
poorer, but were troublesome to the sick and weak of the flock
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:21"><I>v.</I> 21</A>):
|
|
|
|
They <I>thrust with side and shoulder</I> those that were feeble (for
|
|
the weakest goes to the wall) and <I>pushed the diseased with their
|
|
horns,</I> because they knew they could be too hard for them, when they
|
|
durst not meddle with their match. It has been observed concerning
|
|
sheep that if one of the flock be sick and faint the rest will secure
|
|
it as well as they can, and shelter it from the scorching heat of the
|
|
sun; but these, on the contrary, were most injurious to the diseased.
|
|
Those that they could not serve themselves of they did what they could
|
|
to rid the country of, and so <I>scattered them abroad,</I> as if the
|
|
poor, whom, Christ says, we must have always with us, were public
|
|
nuisances, not to be relieved, but sent far away from us. Note, It is a
|
|
barbarous thing to <I>add affliction to the afflicted.</I> Perhaps
|
|
these <I>rams</I> and <I>he-goats</I> are designed to represent the
|
|
scribes and Pharisees, for they are such troublers of the church as
|
|
Christ himself must come to deliver it from,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:23"><I>v.</I> 23</A>.
|
|
|
|
They devoured widows' houses, took away the key of knowledge, corrupted
|
|
the pure water of divine truths, and oppressed the consciences of men
|
|
with the traditions of the elders, besides that they were continually
|
|
vexatious and injurious to <I>the poor of the flock</I> that <I>waited
|
|
on the Lord,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Zec+11:11">Zech. xi. 11</A>.
|
|
|
|
Note, It is no new thing for the flock of God to receive a great deal
|
|
of damage and mischief from those that are themselves of the flock, and
|
|
in eminent stations in it,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ac+20:30">Acts xx. 30</A>.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
II. Comfort spoken to those of the flock that are poor and feeble, and
|
|
that wait for the consolation of Israel
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:22"><I>v.</I> 22</A>):
|
|
|
|
"<I>I will save my flock,</I> and they shall no more be spoiled as they
|
|
have been by the beasts of prey, by their own shepherds or by the rams
|
|
and he-goats among themselves." Upon this occasion, as is usual in the
|
|
prophets, comes in a prediction of the coming of the Messiah, and the
|
|
setting up of his kingdom, and the exceedingly great and precious
|
|
benefits which the church should enjoy under the protection and
|
|
influence of that kingdom. Observe what is here foretold,</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
1. Concerning the Messiah himself.
|
|
|
|
(1.) He shall have his commission from God himself: I will <I>set him
|
|
up</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:23"><I>v.</I> 23</A>);
|
|
|
|
<I>I will raise him up,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:29"><I>v.</I> 29</A>.
|
|
|
|
He sanctified and sealed him, appointed and anointed him.
|
|
|
|
(2.) He shall be the great <I>Shepherd</I> of the sheep, who shall do
|
|
that for his flock which no one else could do. He is the <I>one
|
|
Shepherd,</I> under whom Jews and Gentiles should be <I>one fold.</I>
|
|
|
|
(3.) He is <I>God's servant,</I> employed by him and for him, and doing
|
|
all in obedience to his will, with an eye to his glory--his servant, to
|
|
re-establish his kingdom among men and advance the interests of that
|
|
kingdom.
|
|
|
|
(4.) He is David, one after God's own heart, set as his King upon the
|
|
holy hill of Zion, made the head of the corner, with whom the covenant
|
|
of royalty is made, and to whom God would <I>give the throne of his
|
|
father David.</I> He is both the <I>root and offspring of David.</I>
|
|
|
|
(5.) He is the <I>plant of renown,</I> because a <I>righteous
|
|
branch</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+23:5">Jer. xxiii. 5</A>),
|
|
|
|
a branch of the Lord, that is <I>beautiful</I> and <I>glorious,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+4:2">Isa. iv. 2</A>.
|
|
|
|
He has a name above every name, a throne above every throne, and may
|
|
therefore well be called a <I>branch of renown.</I> Some understand it
|
|
of the church, the <I>planting of the Lord,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+61:3">Isa. lxi. 3</A>.
|
|
|
|
<I>Its name shall be remembered</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+45:17">Ps. xlv. 17</A>)
|
|
|
|
and Christ's in it.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
2. Concerning the great charter by which the kingdom of the Messiah
|
|
should be incorporated, and upon which it should be founded
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:25"><I>v.</I> 25</A>):
|
|
|
|
<I>I will make with them a covenant of peace.</I> The covenant of grace
|
|
is a covenant of peace. In it God is at peace with us, speaks peace to
|
|
us, and assures us of peace, of all good, all the good we need to make
|
|
us happy. The tenour of this covenant is: "<I>I the Lord will be their
|
|
God,</I> a God all-sufficient to them
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:24"><I>v.</I> 24</A>),
|
|
|
|
will own them and will be owned by them; in order to this <I>my servant
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David shall be a prince among them,</I> to reduce them to their
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allegiance, to receive their homage, and to reign over them, in them,
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and for them." Note, Those, and those only, that have the Lord Jesus
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for <I>their prince</I> have the Lord Jehovah for <I>their God.</I> And
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then <I>they, even the house of Israel, shall be my people.</I> If we
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take God to be <I>our God,</I> he will take us to be <I>his people.</I>
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From this covenant between God and Israel there results communion:
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"<I>I the Lord their God am with them,</I> to converse with them; and
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<I>they shall know it,</I> and have the comfort of it."</P>
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<P>
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3. Concerning the privileges of those that are the faithful subjects of
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this kingdom of the Messiah and interested in the covenant of peace.
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These are here set forth figuratively, as the blessings of the flock.
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But we have a key to it,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:31"><I>v.</I> 31</A>.
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Those that belong to this flock, though they are spoken of as
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<I>sheep,</I> are really men, men that have <I>the Lord for their
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God,</I> and are in covenant with him. Now to them it is promised,</P>
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<P>
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(1.) That they shall enjoy a holy security under the divine protection.
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Christ, our good Shepherd, has <I>caused the evil beasts to cease out
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of the land</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:25"><I>v.</I> 25</A>),
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having vanquished all our spiritual enemies, broken their power, and
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triumphed over them; the roaring lion is not a roaring devouring lion
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to them; <I>they shall no more be a prey to the heathen</I> nor the
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heathen a terror to them, <I>neither shall the beasts of the land
|
|
devour them.</I> Sin and Satan, death and hell, are conquered. And then
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<I>they shall dwell safely,</I> not only in the folds, but in the
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fields, <I>in the wilderness, in the woods,</I> where the beasts of
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|
prey are; they shall not only dwell there, but they shall sleep there,
|
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which denotes not only that the beasts being <I>made to cease</I> there
|
|
shall be no danger, but, their consciences being purified and pacified,
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|
they shall be in no apprehension of danger; not only safe from evil,
|
|
but quiet from the fear of evil. Note, Those may lay down and sleep
|
|
securely, sleep at ease, that have Christ for their prince; for he will
|
|
be their protector, and make them to dwell in safety. None shall hurt
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|
them, nay, <I>none shall make them afraid.</I> If God be for us, who
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|
can be against us? <I>Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be
|
|
removed.</I> Through Christ, God delivers his people not only from the
|
|
things they have reason to fear, but from their fear even of death
|
|
itself, from all that fear that has torment. This safety from evil is
|
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promised
|
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:27"><I>v.</I> 27</A>):
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<I>They shall be safe in their land,</I> in no danger of being invaded
|
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and enslaved, though their great plenty be a temptation to their
|
|
neighbours to <I>desire their land;</I> and that which shall make them
|
|
think themselves safe is their confidence in the wisdom, power, and
|
|
goodness of God: <I>They shall know that I am the Lord.</I> All our
|
|
disquieting fears arise from our ignorance of God and mistakes
|
|
concerning him. Their experience of his particular care concerning them
|
|
encourages their confidence in him: "<I>I have broken the bands of
|
|
their yoke,</I> with which they have been brought and held down under
|
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oppression, and have <I>delivered them out of the hand of those that
|
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served themselves of them,</I> whence they shall argue, He that has
|
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delivered does and will, therefore will we dwell safely." This is
|
|
explained, and applied to our gospel-state,
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|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+1:74">Luke i. 74</A>.
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<I>That we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies, might serve
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him without fear,</I> as those may do that serve him in faith.</P>
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<P>
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|
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(2.) That they shall enjoy a spiritual plenty of all good things, the
|
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best things, for their comfort and happiness: <I>They shall no more be
|
|
consumed with hunger in the land,</I>
|
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|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:29"><I>v.</I> 29</A>.
|
|
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Famine and scarcity, when Israel was punished with that judgment,
|
|
turned as much to their reproach among the heathen as any other,
|
|
because the fruitfulness of Canaan was so much talked of. But now
|
|
<I>they shall not bear that shame of the heathen any more</I> For the
|
|
<I>showers shall come down in their season,</I> even <I>showers of
|
|
blessing,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:26"><I>v.</I> 26</A>.
|
|
|
|
Christ is a Shepherd that will feed his people; and they shall <I>go in
|
|
and out, and find pasture.</I>
|
|
|
|
[1.] They shall not be consumed with hunger; for they shall not be put
|
|
off with the world for a portion, which is not bread, which satisfies
|
|
not, and which leaves those that are put off with it to be <I>consumed
|
|
with hunger.</I> The ordinances of the ceremonial law are called
|
|
<I>beggarly elements,</I> for there was little in them, compared with
|
|
the Christian institutes, <I>wherewith the mower fills his hand and he
|
|
that binds sheaves his bosom.</I> Those that <I>hunger and thirst after
|
|
righteousness</I> shall not be consumed with that hunger, for <I>they
|
|
shall be filled.</I> And he that drinks of the water that Christ gives
|
|
him, the still waters by which he leads his sheep, shall <I>never
|
|
thirst.</I>
|
|
|
|
[2.] <I>Showers of blessings</I> shall come upon them,
|
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|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+34:26,27"><I>v.</I> 26, 27</A>.
|
|
|
|
The heavens shall yield their dews; the <I>trees of the field</I> also
|
|
shall <I>yield their fruit.</I> The seat of this plenty is <I>God's
|
|
hill,</I> his holy hill of Zion, for on that mountain, in the gospel
|
|
church, it is, that God has <I>made to all nations a feast;</I> to that
|
|
those must join themselves who would partake of gospel benefits. The
|
|
cause of this plenty is the <I>showers that come down in their
|
|
season,</I> that descend upon the mountains of Zion, the graces of
|
|
Christ, his doctrine that drops as the dew, the graces of Christ, and
|
|
the fruits and comforts of his Spirit, by which we are made fruitful in
|
|
the fruits of righteousness. The instances of this plenty are the
|
|
blessings of heaven poured down upon us and the productions of grace
|
|
brought forth by us, our comfort in God's favour and God's glory in our
|
|
fruit-bearing. The extent of this plenty is very large, to all the
|
|
<I>places round about my hill;</I> for <I>out of Zion shall go forth
|
|
the law,</I> shall go forth light to a dark world, and the river that
|
|
shall water a dry and desert world; all that are in the neighbourhood
|
|
of Zion shall fare the better for it; and the nearer the church the
|
|
nearer its God. And, <I>lastly,</I> The <I>effect of this plenty</I>
|
|
is, <I>I will make them a blessing,</I> eminently and exemplarily
|
|
blessed, patterns of happiness,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+19:24">Isa. xix. 24</A>.
|
|
|
|
Or, They shall be blessings to all about them, diffusively useful.
|
|
Note, Those that are the <I>blessed of the Lord</I> must study to make
|
|
themselves blessings to the world. He that is good, let him do
|
|
<I>good;</I> he that has received the gift, the grace, let him minister
|
|
the same.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
Now this promise of the Messiah and his kingdom spoke much comfort to
|
|
those to whom it was then made, for they might be sure that God would
|
|
not utterly <I>destroy</I> their nation, how low soever it might be
|
|
brought, as long as that <I>blessing</I> was <I>in</I> the womb of
|
|
<I>it,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+65:8">Isa. lxv. 8</A>.
|
|
|
|
But it speaks much more comfort to us, to whom it is fulfilled, who are
|
|
the sheep of this good Shepherd, are fed in his pastures, and
|
|
<I>blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly things</I> by
|
|
him.</P>
|
|
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