vernment never was more guilty of a perversion of

judgment than in the case of our Lord.

Verse 23." companions of thieves."

"asso

ciated with thieves." Judas was a thief; with him

the princes of the Jews were associated.

Verse 24. "I will ease me of mine adversaries"

rather, ries."

"I will take satisfaction upon mine adversa

Verse 25. -" and purely purge away thy dross." For, Archbishop Secker, Dr Durell, and Bishop Lowth, agree to read ; " in the crucible;" but the alteration is by no means necessary. See Parkhurst,, IX.

Verse 29. "For they shall be ashamed of the oaks," &c. This may allude to the idolatry of the reign of Ahaz.

The whole of this chapter should be distributed into parts, between Jehovah and the Prophet, in this manner. After the exordium, "Hear, O heavens," &c. Jehovah speaks to the end of the 3d verse. In the six following verses, the Prophet, in terms of concern, astonishment, and horror, describes the degeneracy of the people, and their rejection. In the 10th verse he calls upon them again to hearken to Jehovah, who speaks in his own person to the end

of the 20th. In the 21st, the Prophet, still contemplating the scene, which lies before him, of the future degeneracy of his countrymen, renews his lamentation, which goes on to the end of the 23d. In the beginning of the 24th, Jehovah is introduced again, and speaks in his own person to the end of the chapter.

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CHAF. ii, 3. —“ many people"- rather, “ many peoples"

4." And he shall judge among the nations,

Rather,

And rebuke many people."

"And he shall govern* among the nations,
And work conviction in many peoples."

See Vitringa and Bishop Lowth.

ઃઃ

-" plough-shares”— rather, "coulters."

Verse 6. "Therefore thou hast," &c.

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Surely, [or verily] thou hast forsaken thy people! the house of Jacob !"

The 5th verse is an invitation, addressed by the peoples resorting to the place of God's worship, to the Jews to accompany them. To their amazement

*«Verbum judicandi Hebræis per synecdochen pro gubernare,' vel regere,' accipitur." Calvin. ad locum.

they find the Jews refuse to join in this worship, and are smarting under the heavy punishment of their apostacy, and in this first part of the 6th verse they express their astonishment. This circumstance, the devotion and acceptance of the peoples [the Gentiles], and the apostacy and rejection of the chosen people, the Jews, clearly proves the necessity of referring this prophecy to the times of Christianity, and confutes those commentators, who think to find its completion in the restoration of the temple after the Babylonish captivity.

Verse 6." house of Jacob, because they be replenished," &c. The sentence ends with the word Jacob. Thence the Prophet takes up the discourse, assigning the cause of that rejection, which struck the Gentile worshippers with so much astonishment. "Yes-they are replenished from the east." The Prophet's discourse is addressed to the Gentiles, being an answer to their expressions of surprise, to the end of the 9th verse.

-"replenished from the east ;” i. e. “ they are full of the eastern manners, as Queen Elizabeth's translators rendered it; full of the corruptions that reigned chiefly in the eastern parts. I see no abso

lute necessity for the alterations proposed by Houbi

gant and Bishop Lowth. If I were to make any al. teration of the text as it now stands, it should be, in conformity to the version of the LXX, to omit the prefixed to the word "y, and to prefix to PD."Yes they are filled, as of old, with astrologers, like the Philistims."

Vitringa endeavours to expound the passage as it stands by a particular sense which he invents for the word, but his exposition does not satisfy me.

Upon repeated consideration of this passage, I am persuaded it requires no emendation, nor any forced interpretation of any of the words. It describes a general taste among the Jews for the abominations of their heathen neighbours on all sides, east and west, and represents them as taking pride in the general prevalence of the manners of idolaters. For the children of strangers" are those who had revolted from their God, and forsaken his worship, to worship the idols of the heathen with heathen rites.

"They are filled from the cast! they are even astrologers, like the Philistim!

They take pride and glory in an alien brood."

-"take pride and glory" So I paraphrase the

literally signifies to smack the שפק ישפיקי Word

hands together,' in an ecstasy of joy and approba tion; and the literal rendering of this line would be, "And at children of aliens they clap their hands."

The Jews were much addicted to magic in the time of our Saviour.

Verse 8. " full of idols." Bishop Lowth (with Vitringa) imagines that "the idols here spoken of must be such as were designed for a private and secret use." For as this seems to have been one of the first of Isaiah's prophecies, it must have been delivered in the reign either of Uzziah or Jotham; and in their time the public exercise of idolatrous worship was not permitted. But the Prophet, in this passage, is describing that general corruption of the Jewish nation, which occasioned their final rejection, upon the publication of the gospel. And there is no reason to suppose, that the particulars of that description consist in crimes actually subsisting at the time when the prophecy is delivered. They might take their beginning in a much later period, and yet, having taken root among the people, might be among the causes of the final punishment of the nation.

The description of the guilt, which drew down the judgment, is made up chiefly of those crimes which directly express a neglect of God's commands and