CHAP. III. anointed; thou woundedst the head out of the house of the b wicked, by discovering the foundation unto the neck. Selah. 14 Thou didst strike through with his staves the head of his villages: they came out as a whirlwind to scatter me: their rejoicing was as to devour the poor secretly. с 16 When I heard, my belly trembled; my lips quivered at the voice; rottenness entered into my bones, and I trembled in myself, that I might rest in the day of trouble: when he cometh up unto the people, he will Josh. x. 24. xi. 8, 12. Ps. lxviii. 21.- b Heb. making naked.- -c Heb. were tempestuous.d Ver. 8. Ps. lxxvii. e Or, mud. f Ps. cxix. 120. Jer. xxiii. 9. -5 Or, h Heb. lie.- - Job xiii, 15. 19. cut them in pieces. k Isai. the Egyptians. A. M. cir. 3404. invade them with his troops. 17 Although the fig-tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: 18 Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation. 19 The LORD God is my strength, and he will make my feet like "hinds' feet, and he will make me to "walk upon mine high places. To the chief singer on my stringed instruments. xli. 16. Ixi. 10. Ps. xxvii. 1.——m 2 Sam. xxii. 34. Ps. xviii, 33.- -n Deut. xxxii. 13. xxxiii, 29.- • Heb. neginoth. Ps. iv. title. and leading them on from conquest to conquest-house of the wicked, by laying bare the foundation." which was the fact. Thou didst thresh the heathen in anger.] Thou didst tread them down, as the oxen do the sheaves on the threshing-floor. Verse 13. Thou wentest forth for the salvation of thy people] Their deliverance would not have been effected but through thy interference. For salvation with thine anointed] That is, with Joshua, whom God had anointed, or solemnly appointed to fill the place of Moses, and lead the people into the promised land. If we read, with the common text, meshichecha, “thy anointed," the singular number, Joshua is undoubtedly meant, who was God's instrument to put the people in possession of Canaan: but if, with several MSS. and some copies of the Septuagint, we read Town mesḥicheycha, "thy anointed ones," the Israelites must be intended. They are frequently called God's anointed, or God's saints. The sense is very far-fetched, when applied to Jesus Christ. Thou woundedst the head out of the house of the wicked] This alludes to the slaying the first-born through all the land of Egypt. These were the heads of the houses or families. By discovering the foundation unto the neck.] The general meaning of this clause is sufficiently plain: the government of these lands should be utterly subverted; the very foundations of it should be razed. But what means unto the neck, ad tsavvar? Several critics read my ad tsur, "Unto the ROCK,' that on which the house is founded: and this very intelligible reading is obtained by the omission of a single letter, aleph, from the word. This conjecture has been adopted by Newcome, though unsupported either by MS. or Version. But is the conjecture necessary? I think not; read the verse as it ought to be read, and all will be plain. "Thou hast wounded the head even unto the neck, in the The whole head, neck, and all are cut off. There was no hope left to the Egyptians, because the firstborn of every family was cut off, so that the very foundation was laid bare, no first-born being left to continue the heirship of families. Verse 14. Thou didst strike through] The Hebrew will bear this sense: "Thou hast pierced amidst their tribes the head of their troops," referring to Pharaoh and his generals, who came like a whirlwind to fall upon the poor Israelites, when they appeared to be hemmed in by sea, and no place for their escape. If we follow the common reading, it seems to intimate that the troops of Pharaoh, in their confusion (for God shone out upon them from the cloud) fell foul of each other; and with their staves, or weapons, slew one another: but the head of the villages or towns, i. e., Pharaoh, was drowned with his army in the Red Sea. Verse 15. Thou didst walk through the sea] There was no occasion to hurry across; all was safe, for God had divided the waters: and his terrible cloud had removed from before, and stood behind them, so that it was between them and the Egyptians. See Exod. xiv. 19, 20. Verse 16. When I heard, my belly trembled] The prophet, having finished his account of the wonders done by Jehovah, in bringing their fathers from Egypt into the promised land, now returns to the desolate state of his countrymen, who are shortly to be led into captivity, and suffer the most grievous afflictions; and although he had a sure word of prophecy that they should be ultimately delivered, yet the thoughts of the evils they must previously endure filled his soul with terror and dismay; so that he wishes to be removed from earth before this tribulation should come, that his eyes might not behold the desolations of his country. When he (Nebuchadnezzar) cometh up unto the Conclusion of HABAKKUK. this prophecy. people (the Jews), he will invade them (overpower appearances were against its fulfilment; for he knew and carry them away captive) with his troops. that the word of Jehovah could not fail, and thereVerse 17. Although the fig-tree shall not blossom] fore his confidence is unshaken. tiphrach, "shall not flourish," shall not put forth its young figs, for the fig-tree does not blossom. The young figs appear as soon as the old ones are ripe, as I have often had occasion to observe. This verse most nervously paints the desolate state of the land of Judea during the captivity. In its hemistich form, it may be translated thus: For the fig-tree shall not flourish, And there shall be no fruit on the vines; I will joy in the God of my salvation. Yet I in the Lord will rejoice, And will exult in Jesus my God. The Targum countenances this version: VIAN *7 NTO'DA NI×) veana bemeimra dayai abua, “But in the WORD of the Lord will I rejoice," i. e., the personal, substantial Word of Jehovah. These two verses give the finest display of resignation and confidence that I have ever met with. He saw that evil was at hand, and unavoidable; he submitted to the dispensation of God, whose Spirit enabled him to paint it in all its calamitous circumstances. He knew that God was merciful and gracious. He trusted to his promise, though all No paraphrase can add any thing to this hymn, which is full of inexpressible dignity and elegance, leaving even its unparalleled piety out of the question. Verse 19. The Lord God is my strength] This is an imitation, if not a quotation, from Ps. xviii. 32, 33, where see the notes. Will make me to walk upon mine high places] This last verse is spoken in the person of the people, who seem to anticipate their restoration; and that they shall once more rejoice in the hills and mountains of Judea. To the chief singer on my stringed instruments.] or, "chief musician :" to be sung, according to their THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET ZEPHANIAH. Chronological Notes relative to this book, upon the supposition that it was written in the twelfth year of the reign of Josiah, king of Judah. Year from the Creation, according to Archbishop Usher, 3374.-Year of the Julian Period, 4084.-Year since the Flood, 1718.-Year from the vocation of Abram, 1291.-Year from the foundation of Solomon's temple, 382.-Year since the division of Solomon's monarchy into the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, 346.-Year since the conquest of Corcbus at Olympia, usually called the first Olympiad, 147.—Third year of the thirty-seventh Olympiad.-Year from the building of Rome, according to the Varronian computation, 124.-Year of the era of Nabonassar, 118.-Year since the destruction of the kingdom of Israel by Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, 92.-Year before the birth of Christ, 626.-Year before the vulgar era of Christ's nativity, 630.-Cycle of the Sun, 24.-Cycle of the Moon, 18.-Eighteenth year of Phraortes, king of Media. This monarch is supposed by some to have been the same with the Arphaxad of the Apocrypha.-Eleventh year of Philip I., king of Macedon.-Twenty-second year of Archidamus, king of Lacedæmon, of the family of the Proclidæ.-Fifteenth year of Eurycrates II., king of Lacedæmon, of the family of the Eurysthenida.-Twenty-ninth year of Cypselus, who had siezed upon the government of Corinth.-Forty-second year of Psammitichus, king of Egypt, according to Helvicus.-Tenth year of Kiniladachus, king of Babylon, according to the same chronologer. This monarch was the immediate predecessor of Nabopolassar, the father of Nebuchadnezzar.-Second year of Sadyattes, king of Lydia.-Eleventh year of Ancus Martius, the fifth king of the Romans.—Twelfth year of Josiah, king of Judah. CHAPTER I. This chapter begins with denouncing God's judgments against Judah and Jerusalem, 1-3. Idolaters, and sinners of several other denominations, are then particularly threatened; and their approaching visitation enlarged on, by the enumeration of several circumstances which tend greatly to heighten its terrors, 4-18. THE word of the LORD which son of Hizkiah, in the days of A. M. cir. 3374. son of Cushi, the son of Geda- of Judah. a Heb. By taking away NOTES ON CHAP. I. Verse 1. The word of the Lord which came unto Zephaniah] Though this prophet has given us so large a list of his ancestors, yet little concerning him is known, because we know nothing certain relative to the persons of the family whose names are here introduced. We have one chronological note which is of more value for the correct understanding of his prophecy than the other could have been, how circumstantially soever it had been delivered; viz. that he prophesied in the days of Josiah, son of Amon, king of Judah; and from the description which he 2 I will utterly consume all I will make an end. B. C. cir. 630. gives of the disorders which prevailed in Judea in his time, it is evident that he must have prophesied before the reformation made by Josiah, which was in the eighteenth year of his reign. And as he predicts the destruction of Nineveh, chap. ii. 13, which, as Calmet remarks, could not have taken place before the sixteenth of Josiah, allowing with Berosus twentyone years for the reign of Nabopolassar over the Chaldeans; we must, therefore, place this prophecy about the beginning of the reign of Josiah, or from B. C. 640 to B. C. 609. But see the chronological notes. Destruction by the A. M. cir. 3374. B. C. cir. 630. cir. XXXVII. 3. a ZEPHANIAH. things from off the land, saith the LORD. b 3 I will consume man and beast, I will consume the fowls of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea, and the stumbling-blocks with the wicked; and I will cut off man from off the land, saith the LORD. 4 I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the name of the Chemarims with the priests; 5 And them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops: and them that worship and that swear by the LORD, and that swear by Malcham: Heb. the face of the land. Matt. xiii. 41. Isai. xlviii. 1. e Ful b Hos. iv. 3.- c Ezek. -62 21. 2 k Or Verse 2. I will utterly consume all things] All being now ripe for destruction, I will shortly bring a universal scourge upon the land. He speaks particularly of the idolaters. Verse 3. I will consume man and beast] By war, and by pestilence. Even the waters shall be infected, and the fish destroyed; the air become contaminated, and the fowls die. Verse 4. I will cut off the remnant of Baal] I think he refers here, partly at least, to the reformation which Josiah was to bring about. See the account, 2 Kings xxiii. 5. The Chemarims] The black-robed priests of different idols. See the note on 2 Kings xxiii. 5. These were put down by Josiah. Verse 5. The host of heaven] Sun, moon, planets, and stars. This worship was one of the most ancient and the most common of all species of idolatry; and it had a greater semblance of reason to recommend it. See 2 Kings xxiii. 5, 12; Jer. xix. 13, xxxii. 29. That swear by the Lord, and that swear by Malcham] Associating the name of an idol with that of the Most High. For Malcham, see on Hos. iv. 15, and Amos v. 26. Verse 6. Them that are turned back] Who have forsaken the true God, and become idolaters. Nor inquired for him] Have not desired to know his will. Verse 7. Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord God] on has, the same as hush, hist, among us. Remonstrances are now useless. You had time to acquaint yourselves with God; you would not: you cry now in vain; destruction is at the door. The Lord hath prepared a sacrifice] A slaughter of the people. m Babylonians threatened. 6 And them that are turned A. M. cir. 3374. back from the LORD; and those 7 Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord GoD: P for the day of the LORD is at hand: for the LORD hath prepared a sacrifice, he hath bid his guests. 8 And it shall come to pass in the day of the LORD's sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king's children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel. 9 In the same day also will I punish all those that leap on the threshold, which fill their masters' houses with violence and deceit. 10 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD, that there shall be the noise Josh. xxiii. 7. 1 Kings xi. 33. Isai. Hos. vii, 7.——0 Hab. ii. 20. Isai. xxxiv. 6. Jer. Ivi. 17.— Heb. sanctified, -t Jer. xxxix. 6. to the LORD. whom he has given a commission to destroy you. Verse 8. I will punish the princes, and the king'a children] After the death of Josiah the kingdom of Judah saw no prosperity, and every reign terminated miserably; until at last king Zedekiah and the king's children were cruelly massacred at Riblah, when Nebuchadnezzar had taken Jerusalem. Strange apparel.] I really think this refers more to their embracing idolatrous customs and heathen usages, than to their changing their dress. They acquired new habits, as we would say; customs, that they used as they did their clothing—at all times, and in every thing. Verse 9. That leap on the threshold] Or, that leap over the threshold. It is most probable that the Philistines are here meant. After the time that Dagon fell before the ark, and his hands were broken off on the threshold of his temple, his worshippers would no more set a foot upon the threshold, but stepped or leaped over it, when they entered into his temple. The Chaldee understands this of the Philistines, without giving this reason for it. Some understand it of haughtiness and pride: others think that leaping on the threshold refers to the customs of the Arabs, who used to ride into people's houses, and take away whatever they could carry; and that this is the reason why, in several parts of the East, they have their doors made very low, to prevent those depredators from entering. In this manner, we learn the Persians have frequently oppressed the poor Armenians, going on horseback into their houses, and taking whatever they thought proper. Mr. Harmer He hath bid his guests.] The Babylonians, to understands it in this way. of a cry from the fish gate, and a howling from the second, and the great crashing from the hills. 11 Howl, ye inhabitants of Maktesh, for all the merchant people are cut down; all they that bear silver are cut off. с d 12 And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with candles, and punish the men that are settled on their lees: that say in their heart, The LORD will not do good, neither will he do evil. 13 Therefore their goods shall become a booty, and their houses a desolation: they shall also build houses, but not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, but not drink the wine thereof. 14 The great day of the LORD is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. e Heb. curded, e Ps. xciv. Mic. vi. 15. 15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, k 16 A day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers. 17 And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall I walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the LORD: and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh" as the dung. 18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD's wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land. Amos v. 18. Ver. 18.- k Jer. iv. 19.- Deut. xxviii. 29. Isai. lix. 10. m Ps. lxxix. 3.-" Ps. lxxxiii. 10. Jer. o Prov. xi. 4. Ezek. vii. 19.--P Ch. iii. 8. ix. 22. xvi, 4.Joel ii. 2, 11.9 Ver. 2, 3. *2 Chron. xxxiii. 14.-—b James v. 1. or thickened.- d Jer. xlviii. 11. Amos vi. 1. 7.- Deut. xxviii. 30, 39. Amos v. 11.h Joel ii. 1, 11.- Isai, xxii. 5. Jer. xxx. 7. Verse 10. A cry from the fish gate] This gate, which is mentioned Neh. iii. 3, was opposite to Joppa; and perhaps the way in which the news came of the irruption of the Chaldean army, the great crashing from the hills. The second] Or second city, may here mean a part of Jerusalem, mentioned 2 Kings xxii. 14, 2 Chron. xxxiv. 22. Verse 11. Maktesh] Calmet says this signifies a mortar, or a rock in form of a mortar, and was the name of a quarter of Jerusalem where they hulled rice, corn, &c., according to St. Jerome. Some think the city of Jerusalem is meant, where the inhabitants should be beat and pounded to death as grain is pounded in a mortar. Newcome translates it, the lower city, and considers it the valley in Jerusalem, which divided the upper from the lower city. They that bear silver] The merchants, moneychangers, usurers, rich men. Verse 12. I will search Jerusalem with candles] will make a universal and thorough search. That are settled on their lees] Those who are careless, satisfied with the goods of this life; who trust in their riches, and are completely irreligious; who, while they acknowledge that there is a God, think, like the Aristotelians, that he is so supremely happy in the contemplation of his own excellencies, that he feels it beneath his dignity to concern himself with the affairs of mortals. Verse 13. Their goods (in which they trust) shall become a booty] To the Chaldeans. They shall have no profit of all their labours. The houses they have built they shall not inhabit; of the wine of the vineyards they have planted, they shall not drink. See Amos v. 11, where we find the same evils threatened. Verse 14. The great day of the Lord is near] It commenced with the death of the good king Josiah, who was slain by Pharaoh-necho at Megiddo, and continued to the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. Verse 15. That day is a day of wrath] See the parallel passages in the margin, and the notes there. From the fourteenth to the sixteenth verse inclusive there is a most beautiful amplification of the disasters that were coming on Jerusalem; the invasion, incursion, attack, carnage, confusion, horrible din occasioned by the sound of the trumpet, the cries of the people, and the shrieks and groans of the dying, are pointed out with great force and mighty effect. Verse 17. They shall walk like blind men] Be in the most perplexing doubt and uncertainty; and while in this state, have their blood poured out by the sword of their enemies, and their flesh trodden under foot. Verse 18. Their silver nor their gold] In which they trusted, and from which they expected happiness; these shall not profit them in this awful day. And God will bring this about speedily; and a speedy riddance-a universal desolation, shall in a short time take place in every part of the land. |