The ARGUMENT of Chapter LX,

The only Difficulty in this Chapter is, whether the Prophet is to be understood of the Church of Christ, as St. Jerom and his Followers will have it, or whether the Words will not bear that Senfe which is put upon them by thofe few, who think the Prophet foretels the happy State of the Jews, when return'd from their Chains in Chaldea, to a peaceful Poffeffion of their own Hugo, Land, what is contain'd in this whole Chapter wonderfully Thomas, agrees of

Paffages which, without a great deal and that there are fome Grotius.

wresting, cannot be apply'd to the Church, is the ingenuous Confeffion of one who is as willing as any Body to find the Church in the Prophetic Writings; but that it cannot in the literal Senfe of the Words be at all apply'd to the Church I maintain for thefe following Reafons. First, because no Reason can be affign'd why the Church hould be afraid at the Profpect of Multitudes flowing into her, v.5. Secondly, because the Rams of Nebaioth never came up with Acceptance on her Altar, v. 7. Thirdly, because there was no occafion for the Ships of Tharfhifh to bring the Sons of the Church to her, fince the Church was never confin'd to one place, and all who had a mind to it might be admitted into the Church of Chrift, without leaving their Country or taking a Voyage. Fourthly, because there never yet was a Time wherein the Church was fo forsaken and hated, that no Man went thro' her, v. 15. fhe fuffer'd Perfecutions indeed, but in all those fiery Trials God was far from being angry with her, and never had lefs Reafon to be fo. And lastly, because the Church of Chrift cannot with any Propriety of Speech be call'd the City of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Ifrael, nor thofe which belong to her be faid to inherit the Land, which must refer to fome particular Place, even Judea, of whofe Captive Inhabitants and their Reftoration the Prophet certainly Speaks.

Sanctius.

Chapter
LX.

Gataker.

Verse 1.

A

CHAP. LX.

Rife, fhine, for thy light is come, and the glo ry of the Lord is rifen upon thee.] He fpeaks to Jerufalem in Captivity, as if the lay proftrate on the Ground in fome dark melancholy Corner, bids her lift up her Eyes and behold the joyful Profpect of approachinga •Redemption; fhine, fays the Prophet, Ori, be enlighten'd, look up and fee the cheerful Light break forth, for thy Light is come, thy Night of Affliction is over, and the Day of Profperity begins to dawn; and the Glory of the Lord is rifen upon thee, that is, God is beginning to make himfelf glorious in thy Deliverance and Restoration.

Ver. 2. For behold, the darkness fhrall cover the earth, and grofs darkness the people but the Lord fhall rise upon thee, and his glory fhall be feen upon thee.] There fhall be a wonderful Alteration in the Kingdoms of the Earth, thofe which enjoy'd Peace and Profperity while the People of God were in Captivity, fhall be involv'd in great Calamities, while they enjoy Peace and Plenty; fo that by the Earth and the People must be understood the Babylonian Empire, and the Subjects thereof:

Ver. 3. And the Gentiles fhall come to thy light, and Kings to the brightness of thy rifing. That is, fo happy fhall thy Condition be, that the Heathen shall be ambitious of cultivating a good Correfpondence with thee, and Kings of the neighbouring Nations come to congratulate thy good Fortune.

Ver. 4. Lift up thine eyes round about, and fee; all they gather themselves together, they come to thee, thy fons shall come from far, and thy daughters fhall be nurfed at thy fide.] All thofe which thou beholdest gathering themfelves together in all the Parts of the Earth are thy Off-fpring, and are preparing to return to their native Country; he speaks to Jerufalem as if he were afcended into fome lofty WatchTower, and thence had a View of all the fcatter'd Captives collecting together in Troops.

Ver. 5. Then thou shalt fee and flow together, and thine heart fhall fear, and be enlarged, because the abundance of the fea fhall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles fhall come

unto

LX.

unto thee,] The View of fo many Thoufands approaching Chapter thee fhall raife in thy Breaft alternate Fear and Joy, as when Men behold a great Company coming up to them, at firft their Hearts mifgive them, and they are afraid left they should prove to be Enemies, but when they discover them to be Friends the Heart immediately enlarges it felf, and fpreads a pleafing Warmth in every Part: because the abundance of the Sea fhall be converted unto thee, which I think is very well render'd in the Port-Royal Tranflation, Lorfque vous ferez comblée de richeffes de la mer & que tout cela qu' il ya de grand dans les nations viendra fe donner a vous. Sanctius thinks it fhould be referr'd to the Numbers of returning Exiles, which fhould return in fo great Troops to Jerufalem, ut videatur totum mare ad te e fuis finibus relicto alveo confluere. Grotius understands it of the Tyrians, and other Maritim People, who, upon the Restoration of the Jews, should flock to them in fuch Numbers, as might make them fufpect they had other Designs befides Traffic in their Heads.

Ver. 6. The multitude of camels fhall cover thee; the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba fhall come: they fhall bring gold and incense: and they shall fhew forth the praifes of the Lord.] The Number of Camels, on which the foreign Merchants fhall bring their Goods,fhall be fo great that they fhall cover the Land; this is the common way of Carriage in the Eaftern Countries to this Day, for which thofe Animals are very fit, not only upon the Account of their Strength, but because they can go without Water three or four Days, which in thofe hot Countries they plin. f. 8 often want; Dromedaries were a leffer fort of Camels, with which Arabia abounded, denoted by Midian and Epha, the Son and Grandfon of Abraham, who fix'd in that Country: they fhall fhew forth the Praifes of the Lord; that is, the Sabeans, when they fhall hear thee tell the fad Story of thy Captivity, and behold thy prefent flourishing Condition, fhall fet forth the Praifes of God, and extol Lis Goodness.

Ver. 7. All the flocks of Kedar fall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth fhall minifter unto thee: they all come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorifie he house of my glory. Kedar and Nebaioth are Regions of Ara

c. 18.

Chapter bia, so call'd from the Sons of Ishmael of the fame Names, LX. who were feated there, call'd by the Antient Cedreans and Nabatheans: The Inhabitants of this Country, fays the Prophet, fhall bring their Flocks to be fold at Jerufalem; and their Sheep fhall be Sacrific'd on thy Altars: Which is a demonstration that the Words cannot be understood of the Church of Chrift.

Strabo, lib. 16.

Ver. 8. Who are thefe that flie as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?] Who are thefe which come flying to thee, as fast as Clouds, or as a flock of Pigeons to their Dove-houses? He knew them to be Jews returning homeward; but puts the Question to Sion, only to have the opportunity of affuring her, that they were her Children which the faw returning fo faft.

Ver. 9. Surely the ifles fhall wait for me, and the fhips of Tarshish first, to bring thy fons from far, their filver and their gold with them, unto the name of the Lord thy God: and to the holy one of Ifrael, because he hath glorified thee.] If it be an objection that fome of thy Sons are banish'd into diftant Ilands, from whence it seems next to impoffible that they fhould ever efcape; yet I affure you the Ships of the Merchants fhall be ready to bring them home yfirft, that is, before they undertake any Voyage for their own private advantage, Unto the Name of the Lord thy Deut. 12. 5. God, that is, unto Jerufalem, the place which he chose to place his Name there: This I take to be the meaning of Berifhonah, and think it makes better Sense than the wild Conjecture of fome, who fancy in this they difcover the calling of those who from Eternity have been predeftinated to Glory, or of Sanctims who understands it of the first ftage of our Saviours Life or his Infancy, when the wife Men from the Eaft came to Worship him.

Sasbout.

Ver. 10. And the fons of strangers fhall build up thy walls, and their Kings fall minifter unto thee: for in my wrath Ifmote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee.] If this be understood, fays Sanctim, of the rebuilding of Jerufalem, it will be very eafy to fhew how after the Restauration of the fews this was fulfill'd: Since we learn from Ezrah how much Cyrus contributed, to the rebuilding of the Era. chap. 1. Walls and the Temple, and how kindly his Royal Succeffors aflifted them in both: And I should be glad to fee

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a reason why this is not more applicable to the Perfian Chapter Monarchs than to Conftantine, and other Chriftian Ém- LX. perors, who built Churches indeed, but not while they were ftrangers to the Faith: Neither can the Perfecutions which the Primitive Church underwent, be afcrib'd to God's Anger, as Sanctius owns.

Ver. 11. Therefore thy gates fhall be open continually, they fhall not be shut day nor night, that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their Kings may be brought.] The Prophet gives the reafon why the Gates fhould be open continually, because Victories fhould flow in upon them fo faft, and Captives be brought in fo continually, that it would be too great a trouble, to open them as often as there fhould be occafion.

Ver. 12. For the nation and Kingdom that will not ferve thee, fhall perish; yea, thofe nations shall be utterly wafted.] Jofephus gives an account of the Victory of the Jews over the Tyrians, and those of Ptolemais, as also of the Victory they obtain'd over the Ammonites, and Gileadites, Lib. 12. Antiq. chap. 16. of the fubverfion of Pella, lib. 13. chap. 23. and in the Macchabees, we have a particular narration of their Succefs under Judas Macchabens, all which tend to the fulfilling of this Prophecy.

Ver. 13. The glory of Lebanon fhall come unto thee, the fir-tree, the pine-tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my fanctuary, and I will make the place of my feet glorious.] By the Glory of Lebanon is meant, the Cedar which is the tallest and ftatelieft of Trees, for which Lebanon was Famous; by this the Prophet intimates that the Syrians, which poffefs'd Mount Lebanon, fhould be fubdu'd by the Jews, or at least should fo far either stand in fear of them, or refpect them, that they should furnifh them readily with Materials towards the building of the Temple Which he calls the place of Gods Feet, becaufe God was fuppos'd to fit between the two Cheru-.bims over the Ark which stood in the Temple.

Ver. 14. The fons alfo of them that afflicted thee, fhall come bending unto thee; and all they that defpifed thee, shall bow themselves down at the foles of thy feet, and they shall call thee, The city of the Lord, the Zion of the holy One of Ifrael.] By the Sons of them which afflicted thee, may be

meant

Exod. 25. 17.