the fibres under the bark of the plant from which flax is spun, and perhaps the threads made of those fibres. Taking this sense of the word p, for

and then the ,אורגים I would read וארגים

passage

may be thus rendered;

The manufacturers in flax shall be confounded,

They that weave the fibres into meshes.

Verse 10. "And they shall be broken," &c. Three words occur in this verse of difficult exposition, which produce a great obscurity of the whole;

,I take ,אגמי,The last אגמי and ,שכר שתתיה .viz

with Kimchi, to be equivalent to Day, in which sense it is used in the Chaldaic and Arabic dialects.

I take to be used for, and to signify either the dams made to confine the water in artificial pools, or wicker pottles made for catching some particular sorts of fish, which last is the sense that seems best connected with the context. Leaving then the word л as yet unexpounded, the verse will run thus;

All the makers of fish-pottles shall be sorrowful in soul. Now for the word : the root n seems to contain in its primary meaning the two ideas of stability and arrangement. It signifies to set firm,'

and 'in order.' Hence the nouns and nn by their etymology may signify any substantial works of the carpenter or mason, or any other firm orderly arrangements. In Psalm xi, 3, the plural minem signifies either the principal stones or the main timbers of a building. In the Chaldee dialect, the noun A signifies a square oblong beam, plank, or block. In Hebrew, the noun " signifies the warp of woven cloth, as distinguished from the woof. In Chaldee, is the piece woven. In Syriac, the verb

w is he wove;' the noun , the operation of

,משתיתא the weaver's beam ; and ,משתיונא ; weaving

either the operation of weaving, or the shuttle.

In the text under consideration, we have not only

to determine the sense of the plural noun but to expound the suffix . Now this feminine suffix, as Houbigant observes, hath no antecedent. Some get over this difficulty by expounding the pronoun of Egypt. But the last mention of Egypt is so far back as in the 3d verse, in a sentence which has no connection with this. It seems therefore a certain conclusion, that this feminine suffix singular, for which no antecedent can be found, must be a corruption; and this corruption might easily take place by removing the final ➡ in the masculine suf

fix plural from the end of this word to the begin

ning of the next. For therefore, I

שתתיה מדכאים

as the דכאים taking שתתיהם דכאים would read

participle Paoul in Kal, or Benoni in Pual. If this alteration, which in part is Houbigant's, be adopted, the person rehearsed by the masculine suffix plural can be no other than the manufacturers of flax, who weave the fibres into meshes,' mentioned in the last verse, and the noun л must denote something which belongs to them.

Hence we are led to

seek the sense of this noun among the materials, the implements, or the effects of the weaver's trade; and among these we must choose somewhat that may be a fit subject of the verb . We must therefore reject the materials and the effect, the warp and the finished web. For the verbs 17, 197, *7, express contusion, not tearing; and hard things only are the proper subjects of these verbs in their literal meaning. The implements therefore remain; the shuttles, or the beams or frames. I rather think the latter are intended in this place. Thus the true rendering of the whole verse will be to this effect:

And their frames shall be broken to pieces;

All the makers of dams (or of fish-pottles) shall be dispirited. Vitringa thinks that, under the image of fisher

men and their subordinate artificers, the priests of the idolatrous religions of Egypt and their inferior ministers are described.

Verse 14." and they have caused Egypt to err in every work thereof."

The suffix is masculine. But in the

clause immediately preceding, and in the latter clause of the preceding verse, Egypt is rehearsed by the feminine suffix. It is true, that in different parts of this chapter Egypt is rehearsed by the masculine and feminine suffix indifferently. But it is hardly to be supposed that the same word should be rehearsed by pronouns of different genders in the very same sentence. [This may easily be supposed in the prophetic style.] I am persuaded that the masculine pronoun suffixed to y rehearses Jehovah, and I render the whole passage thus ;

13

And the pillars of her tribes have caused Egypt to err.

14 Jehovah hath scattered in the midst of her a spirit of giddi

ness;

And they have caused Egypt to err with respect to all his works,

As a drunkard staggereth in his vomit.

The rulers of the Egyptians misled the people by

5

erroneous politics. Ignorant of the designs of Pro vidence, they formed false conjectures of the effect of their alliances, of the event of their wars and their treaties, and misinterpreted what Providence brought to pass at every step.

Verse 15. "Neither shall there be any work for Egypt," &c.; literally, "And the work which he shall do, shall not be unto Egypt head or tail, bending or boss." This is still a declaration of the dullness of the Egyptians to perceive the hand of God in their affairs, and foresee the impending judgment. In things brought about by God's providence, they will have no apprehension of any scheme or design, no discernment of the connection of one thing with another, and of consequence no forecast of calamity till it come upon them. All will seem to them chance and confusion.

I take to be a well כפה

shaped turn or joint in any piece of elegant workmanship; and a round knob or boss, or perhaps something like a vase, for ornament at the extremity. Hence are a proverbial expression for the whole and every part of a thing, (Is. ix, 14); and to have neither nor

is to be destitute of all regularity and אגמון nor כפה