1. beafts of the islands fhall cry in their defolate houses REFLECTION S, BSERVE and adore the power of God over all the hofts of the earth. What a fublime de-' fcription is here given of the univerfal agency of God! particularly of the use he makes of the contrivances and force of men. He, the Lord of hosts, muftereth the hofts of the battle; he gathers them together, reviews them, and arms them. Their weapons are the weapons of his indignation, and he gives them fuccefs. He can eafily take away the ftrength of their opponents to refift, and their courage to endure; he can make their hands faint, and their hearts melt. It is a delightful thought, that all the hosts of the world are under the fovereign command of the Lord of hofts. This fhows the propriety of acknowledging him, and imploring his favour in time of war. It should be our earnest defire, that our foldiers may be fanctified ones, in the best sense of the word; devoted to his fear and fervice; that they may rejoice in his highness, and go forth in his ftrength to the fervice for which they are called; and feek his glory in all they do. 2. The fall of Babylon, and its utter defolation, should be a warning to all nations. So providence undoubtedly intended them to be. When we confider it as the greatest and most powerful monarchy in the world; the extent, ftrength, wealth, and grandeur of its capital; what little probability there was that it fhould ever be taken; and especially that it was predicted, fo long before the event, that As the walls of Babylon were not entirely demolished, the Perfian king made it a park for wild beafts; but afterwards it was deferted; and many travellers tell us that no one went near the ruins, on account of the wild beats and ferpents that abounded there, and that there are fcarce any remains of it now to be feen. that it fhould be utterly deftroyed and left defolate; who would not adore that fpirit of prophecy which foretold it, and be afraid of the anger of the almighty power that executed the vengeance! What an awful defcription of that anger have we been now confidering! O may Britain hear and fear! fhe is, in the most important refpects, the glory of kingdoms, but is not fecure from fharing the fate of former kingdoms; justly therefore may we tremble for ourfelves and our country. Let us learn to fear the king of nations, who doeth according to his will in the armies of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth, and implore mercy for our land. And in order to obtain this, let us 3. Obferve the fources of Babylon's ruin, and learn righteoufnefs by it. The ruin of Babylon was occafioned by its iniquities, its idolatry, cruelty, luxury and love of pleasure, thefe fins abounded among them, but their arrogance, pride, and haughtinefs, are what the principal ftrefs is laid upon in this chapter, they were conceited of their own politicks, wealth, power, and ftrength, v. 11. Hence they thought themselves fecure, defpifed their enemies, and fet all danger, and even the judgments of God, at defiance. But there is no contending with the Almighty; and thofe that deal in pride he is able and he takes pleafure to abafe. Let us then be warned against confidence in our wifdom, ftrength, and military force, and fix our dependance on God. National humiliations and prayers are exceeding proper and ufeful, as they tend to abate our pride, and our trust in an arm of flesh, and to convince us that all our ftrength and fufficiency is of God. If we thus humble ourfelves under his mighty hand, we may cheerfully hope that in due time he will exalt us. But the nation or individual that exalts itself, fhall in God's time and way be abafed and brought low. The prophet here foretells the restoration of Ifrael, and their triumph over Babylon. I Fo OR the LORD will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Ifrael, return to them in mercy, and fet them in their own land: and the ftrangers fhall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob; many Chaldeans and captives with the jews in Babylon, fhall become profelytes and return with them to 2 their land. And the people fhall take them, and bring them to their place: and the house of Ifrael fhall poffefs them in the land of the LORD for fervants and handmaids and they fhall take them captives, whofe captives they were; and they shall rule over their oppreffors; they fhall use their affistance as they have occafion for it, and receive fervices from thofe to whom they had been 3 flaves. And it fhall come to pass in the day that the LORD fhall give thee reft from thy forrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard bondage wherein thou waft 4 made to ferve, That thou shalt take up this proverb, this acute and excellent faying, against the king of Babylon, and fay, in thefe fublime and lofty strains, How hath the oppreffor ceased! the golden city ceased! how was it poffible that fuch a thing should ever be brought about! 5 The LORD hath broken the staff of the wicked, [and] the sceptre of the rulers; it is God's doing, and therefore 6 wonder not at it. He who fmote the people in wrath with a continual ftroke, he that ruled the nations in anger, who was a most barbarous and ungenerous conqueror, he is perfecuted, [and] none hindereth; neither 7 his own people nor his allies could help him. The whole earth is at reft, [and] is quiet, now its greatest oppreffor is ceafed, now Babylon is deftroyed: they break forth into 8 finging. Yea, the fir trees rejoice at thee, [and] the cedars of Lebanon, [saying,] Since thou art laid down, no feller is come up against us; the great and the common 9 people rejoice, over whom he had tyrannized. Hell from beneath is moved for thee to meet [thee] at thy coming it ftirreth up the dead for thee, [even] all the chief ones of the earth; it hath raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations; the invifible world is roused to make way for fo great a monarch; the kings that ufed to be afraid of thee, and were tributary to thee, rise up : by 10 by way of fcorn and infult. All they fhall speak and fay unto thee, Art thou alfo become weak as we? art thou 11 become like unto us? Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, [and] the noife of thy viols: the worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee, instead 12 of thy rich garments and fumptuous carpets. How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, fon of the morning; thou who excelledft other princes in glory, as much as the morning ftar does the other stars in luftre: [how] art thou cut down to the ground, which didft weaken the 13 nations! For thou haft faid in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the ftars, or angels, of God; an hyperbole, to exprefs his great pride, or that he really expected divine honours: I will fit alfo upon the mount of the congregation, in the fides of the north, I will place my royal throne upon mount Zion, and 14 in the temple at Jerufalem: yea I will afcend above the heights of the clouds: I will be like the moft High. 15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the fides of 16 the pit. They that fee thee fhall narrowly look upon thee, [and] confider thee, [faying, Is] this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did fhake king. doms; they fhall be aftonished at thy fall, and look attentively before they can believe it is thou that art fallen fo low; 17 [That] made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; [that] opened not the house of his prifoners? intimating both his power and cruelty, he grant18 ed them no release: All the kings of the nations, [even] all of them, lie in glory, every one in his own house, or fepulchre; they were buried with marks of honour and 19 diftinction: But thou art caft out of thy grave like an abominable branch, like fome noisome plant, that lies rotting above ground, [and as] the raiment of those that are flain, thrust through with a sword, the raiment of a malefactor befmeared with blood and dirt, that go down to the ftones of the pit; as a carcafe trodden under feet; like a putrifying carcafe, which is fuffered to lie a while unburied, and then is thrown into fome quarry or pit, which probably 20 was the cafe with Belshazzar's body. Thou fhalt not be joined with them in burial, that is, with thine ancestors in an honourable burial, because thou haft destroyed thy land, [and] flain thy people; deftroyed thy fubjects, and brought ruin upon thy land: the feed of evil doers fhall never, or not ever, be renowned. And because he has been 21 so notorious a tranfgreffor, therefore Prepare flaughter for his children for the iniquity of their fathers; who tread in the cruel fteps of their ancestors; that they do not rife, nor poffefs the land, nor fill the face of the world with cities; that they may not recover their former 22 flourishing condition." For I will rife up against them, faith the LORD of hosts, and cut off from Babylon the name, and remnant, and fon, and nephew, faith the LORD; all the pofterity and kindred of the king of 23 Babylon. I will alfo make it a poffeffion for the bittern, and pools of water:" and I will fweep it with the befom of destruction, faith the LORD of hosts. A noble, tho' beautiful image; intimating the vile nature of fin, the total extirpation of that wicked people, and the perfect case with which the righteous God would execute his intended vengeance. Then comes a prophecy of the speedy deftruction of the Affyrians in Hezekiah's time, which was defigned to confirm their faith in this prophecy of the fall of Babylon. 24 The LORD of hofts hath fworn, faying, Surely as I have thought, fo fhall it come to pafs; and as I have purpofed, [fo] fhall it ftand; and therefore let not my peo25 ple doubt of it, tho' it feem ever fo incredible: That I will break the Affyrian in my land, and upon my mountains tread him under foot; the army of Sennacherib, as a pledge of the full deftruction of Babylon: then fhall his yoke depart from off them, and his burden depart from 26 off their fhoulders. This [is] the purpose that is purpofed upon the whole earth: and this [is] the hand that is ftretched out upon all the nations that rise up 27 against Ifrael, For the LORD of hosts hath purposed, VOL. V. P and "Belshazzar's children and family were probably flain with him. This prophecy was exactly accomplished, for Cyrus took Babylon by turning the channel of the river Euphrates that ran thro' it, and by neglecting to repair the banks, the river overflowed the country about it, and it became, and now is, a filthy, noisome marfh. |