21. Then Isaiah sent unto Hezekiah] Syr. and LXX understand and render the verb passively, was sent. Ibid. —I have heard] 'nypu, this word, necessary to the sense, is lost in this place out of the Hebrew text. A MS. has it written above the line in a later hand. LXX and Syr. found it in their copies: and it is preserved in the other copy, 2 Kings xix. 20. 23. against the Holy One of Israel] For, the other copy has by, rather more properly. 24. By thy messengers-] The text has Ty, thy servants: but the true reading seems to be T, thy messengers, as in the other copy, 2 Kings xix. 23.; and as LXX. and Syr. found it in their copies in this place. Ibid. —his extreme retreats] The text has, the height; which seems to have been taken by mistake from the line but one above. A MS. has here, the lodge, or retreat; which is the word in the other copy, 2 Kings xix. 23. ; and I think is the true reading. 25. strange waters] The word ", strange, lost out of the Hebrew text in this place, is supplied from the other copy. A MS. supplies the word, many, instead of it. Ibid. —all the canals of fenced places] The principal cities of Egypt, the scene of his late exploits, were chiefly defended by deep moats, canals, or large lakes, made by labour and art, with which they were surrounded. See Harmer's Obs. ii. p. 304. Claudian introduces Alaric boasting of his conquests in the same extravagant manner: "Subsidere nostris Sub pedibus montes; arescere vidimus amnes.- De Bello Getic. 526. 26. —-warlike nations] . It is not easy to give a satisfactory account of these two words, which have greatly embarrassed all the interpreters, ancient and modern. For, I read, as the LXX do in this place, ε0vŋ. The word □), Vulg. renders in this place compugnantium; in the parallel place, 2 Kings xix. 25. pugnantium, and LXX paxiμwv, fighting, warlike. This rendering is as well authorised as any other that I know of, and, with the reading of LXX, perfectly clears up the construction. 27. —corn blasted] : it does not appear, that there is any good authority for this word. The true reading seems to be, as it is in four MSS. (two ancient), here, and in the other copy. 29. I will put my hook in thy nose] " Et frænum meum: Jonathan vocem interpretatus est DDI, i. e. annulum, sive uncum, eumque ferreum, quem infigunt naribus camelæ: eoque trahitur, quoniam illa feris motibus agitur: et hoc est, quod discimus in Talmude; et camela cum annulo narium: scilicet, egreditur die sabbathi." Jarchi in 2 Reg. xix. 28. "Ponam circulum in naribus tuis." Hieron. Just as at this day they put a ring into the nose of the bear, the buffalo, and other wild beasts, to lead them, and to govern them when they are unruly. 35. And the angel-] Before "the angel," the other copy, 2 Kings xix. 35. adds, “it came to pass the same night, that”— The prophet Hosea has given a plain prediction of this miraculous deliverance of the kingdom of Judah : "And to the house of Judah I will be tenderly merciful: And I will save them by JEHOVAH their God. And I will not save them by the bow; Nor by sword, nor by battle; By horses, nor by horsemen." CHAP. XXXVIII. Hosea i. 7. 2. Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall] The furniture of an eastern divan, or chamber either for the reception of company, or for private use, consists chiefly of carpets spread on the floor in the middle, and of sofas, or couches, ranged on one or more sides of the room, on a part raised somewhat above the floor. On these they repose themselves in the day, and sleep at night. It is to be observed, that the corner of the room is the place of honour. Dr. Pococke, when he was introduced to the Sheik of Furshout, found him sitting in the corner of his room. He describes another Arab Sheik "as sitting in a corner of a large green tent, pitched in the middle of an encampment of Arabs; and the Bey of Girge as placed on a sofa in a corner to the right as one entered the room. " Harmer's Obs, ii. p. 60. Lady Mary W. Montague, giving an account of a visit which she made to the Kahya's lady at Adrianople, says, "She ordered cushions to be given me, and took care to place me in the corner, which is the place of honour." Letter xxxiii. The reason of this seems to be, that the person, so placed, is distinguished, and in a manner separated from the rest of the company, and as it were guarded by the wall on each side. We are to suppose Hezekiah's couch placed in the same situation; in which, turning on either side he must turn his face to the wall; by which he would withdraw himself from those who were attending upon him in his apartment, in order to address his private prayer to God. 4, 5. The words in the translation included within crotches are supplied from the parallel place, 2 Kings xx. 4, 5. to make the narration more perfect. I have also taken the liberty, with Houbigant, of bringing forward the two last verses of this chapter, and inserting them in their proper places of the narration with the same mark. Kimchi's note on these two verses is as follows: "This and the following verse belong not to the writing of Hezekiah; and I see no reason why they are written here after the writing; for their right place is above, after And I will protect this city, ver. 6. And so they stand in the book of Kings." 2 Kings xx. 7, 8. The narration of this chapter seems to be in some parts an abridgment of that of 2 Kings xx. The abridger, having finished his extract here with the 11th verse, seems to have observed, that the 7th and 8th verses of 2 Kings xx. were wanted to complete the narration: he therefore added them at the end of the chapter, after he had inserted the song of Hezekiah, probably with marks for their insertion in their proper places; which marks were afterward neglected by transcribers. Or a transcriber might omit them by mistake, and add them at the end of the chapter with such marks. Many transpositions are, with great probability, to be accounted for in the same way. 6. 1 will protect this city-] The other copy, 2 Kings xx. 6. adds: "for mine own sake, and for the sake of David my servant:" and the sentence seems somewhat abrupt without it. 8. by which the sun is gone down-] For D, LXX, Syr. Chald. read . Houbigant. In the history of this miracle in the book of Kings, (2 Kings xx. 9-11.) there is no mention at all made of the sun, but only of the going backward of the shadow: which might be effected by a supernatural refraction. The first ò eos in this verse is omitted in LXX MS. Pachom. 2. The writing of Hezekiah.] Here the book of Kings deserts us, the song of Hezekiah not being inserted in it. Another copy of this very obscure passage (obscure not only from the concise poetical style, but because it is probably yery incorrect), would have been of great service. The MSS. and ancient versions, especially the latter, will help us to get through some of the many difficulties which we meet with in it. 11. JEHOVAH-] seems to be in MS. Bodl. and it was so at first written in another. So Syr. See Houbigant. 12. -a shepherd's tent-] is put for, say the Rabbins; Sal. b. Melec on the place: but much more probably is written imperfectly for D. See note on chap. v. 1. Ibid. My life is cut off-] 'p, this verb is rendered passively, and in the third person, by Syr. Chald. Vulg. 66 In" מיום עד לילה תשלימני ,The last line of the foregoing verse .13 the course of the day thou wilt finish my web," is not repeated at the end of this verse in the Syriac version; and a MS. omits it. It seems to have been inserted a secoud time in the Hebrew text by mistake. ,שאגתי he read :נהמית the Chaldee has שויתי Ibid. I roared-] For the proper term for the roaring of a lion; often applied to the deep groaning of men in sickness: see Psalm xxii. 2. xxxii. 3. xxxviii. 9. Job iii. 24. The Masoretes divide the sentence, as I have done; taking 8, like a lion, into the first member; and so likewise LXX. 14. Like the swallow] D'Dɔ, so read two MSS., Theodot. and Hieron. Ibid. —mine eyes fail-] For 1, the LXX read, editov. Compare Psal. Ixix. 4. cxix. 82. 123. Lam. ii. 11. iv. 17. in the Hebrew and in LXX. Ibid. —0 Lord—] For MM, thirty MSS. and eight editions read אדני Ibid. contend thou—] Mp¿y, with V, Jarchi: this sense of the word is established by Gen. xxvi. 20. " he called the name of the well pay. Esek, because they strove with him:" pwynn, equivalent to at the beginning of the verse. 15. will I reflect-] TIN, recogitabo, Vulg. reputabo, Hieron. in loc. 16. For this cause shall it be declared-] Περι αυτης γαρ ανηγγέλη του, kai tenyeipas pov τny πvonν, LXX. They read in their copies, by "; not very different from the present text, from which all the ancient versions vary. They entirely omit two words to which there is some variation in the MSS. A MS. has ; two בהם and ten MSS. have וכל others ; ולכל as Ibid. -hast prolonged my life.] A MS. and the Babylonish Talmud read; and so the ancient versions. It must necessarily be in the second person. 17. My anguish is changed into ease—], “mutata mihi est amaritudo." Paronomasia; a figure which the prophet frequenty admits: I do not always note it, because it cannot ever be preserved in the translation, and the sense seldom depends upon it. But bere it perfectly clears up the great obscurity of the passage. See Lowth on the place. Ibid. Thou hast rescued-], with instead of D; so LXX and Vulg. Houbigant. See Chappelow on Job xxxiii. 18. Ibid. —from perdition—] up, iva μŋ añoλŋrai, LXX ; ut non periret, Vulg. Perhaps inverting the order of the words. See Houbigant. 19. —thy truth] DN N. A MS. omits ; and instead of x, an ancient MS. and one edition read N. The same mistake as in Psal. ii. 7. 21. Let them take a lump of figs: and they bruised them—] God, in effecting this miraculous cure, was pleased to order the use of means not improper for that end. "Folia, et, quæ non maturuere, fici, strumis illinuntur, omnibusque quæ emollienda sunt discutiendave." Plin. Nat. Hist. xxiii. 7. “Ad discutienda ea, quæ in corporis parte aliqua coierunt, maxime possunt—ficus arida," &c. Celsus, v. 11. CHAP. XXXIX. HITHERTO the copy of this history in the second book of Kings has been much the most correct: in this chapter, that in Isaiah has the advantage. In the two first verses two mistakes in the other copy are to be corrected from this: for pin, Hezekiah, read pin, and was recovered; and for you", he heard, read, he rejoiced. 1. —and ambassadors.] The LXX add here Ka Tρeoßes; that is D'INDI, and ambassadors; which word seems necessary to the sense, though omitted in the Hebrew text both here and in the other copy. 2 Kings xx. 12. For the subsequent narration refers to them all along, "these men, whence came they?" &c. plainly supposing them to have been personally mentioned before. See Houbigant. 6. —to Babylon, so two MSS. (one ancient); rightly without doubt, as the other copy, 2 Kings xx. 17. has it. 8. And Hezekiah said—] The nature of Hezekiah's crime, and his humiliation on the message of God to him by the prophet, is more expressly declared by the author of the book of Chronicles: "But Hezekiah rendered not again, according to the benefit done unto him; for his heart was lifted up; therefore there was wrath upon him, and upon Judah and Jerusalem. Notwithstanding, Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart (both he and the inhabitauts of Jerusalem), so that the wrath of the Lord came not upon them in the days of Hezekiah.—And Hezekiah prospered in all his works. Howbeit, in the business of the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, who sent unto him to inquire of the wonder that was done in the land, God left him, to try him, that he might know all that was in his heart." 2 Chron. xxxii. 25, 26. 30, 31. CHAP. XL. THE Course of prophecies, which follow from hence to the end of the book, and which taken together constitute the most elegant part of the sacred writings of the Old Testament; interspersed also with many passages of the highest sublimity; was probably delivered in the latter part of the reign of Hezekiah. The prophet in the foregoing chapter had delivered a very explicit declaration of the impending dissolution of the kingdom, and of the captivity of the royal house of David, and of the people, under the kings of Babylon. As the subject of his subsequent prophecies was to be chiefly of the consolatory kind, he opens them with giving a promise of the restoration of the kingdom, and the return of the people from that captivity, by the merciful interposition of God in their favour. But the views of the prophet are not confined to this event: as the restoration of the royal family, and of the tribe of Judah, which would otherwise have soon become undistinguished, and have been irrecoverably lost, was necessary, in the design and order of providence, for the fulfilling of God's promises of establishing a more glorious and an everlasting kingdom, under the Messiah to be born of the tribe of Judah, and of the family of David; the prophet connects these two events together, and hardly ever treats of the former without throwing in some intimations of the latter; and sometimes is so fully possessed with the glories of the future more remote kingdom, that he seems to leave the more immediate subject of his commission almost out of the question. Indeed this evangelical sense of the prophecy is so apparent, and stands forth in so strong a light, that some interpreters cannot see that it has any other; and will not allow the prophecy to have any relation at all to the return from the captivity of Babylon. It may be useful therefore to examine more attentively the train of the prophet's ideas, and to consider carefully the images under which he displays his subject. He hears a crier giving orders, by solemn proclamation, to prepare the way of the Lord in the wilderness; to remove all obstructions before JEHOVAH marching through the desert; through the wild, uninhabited, unpassable country. The deliverance of God's people from the Babylonish captivity is considered by him as parallel to the former deliverance of them from the Egyptian bondage. God was then represented as their king leading them in person through the vast deserts, which lay in their way to the promised land of Canaan. It is not merely for JEHOVAH himself, that in both cases the way was to be prepared, and all obstructions to be removed; but for JEHOVAH marching in person at the head of his people. Let us first see, how this idea is pursued by the sacred poets who treat of the Exodus, which is a favourite subject with them, and affords great choice of examples : "When Israel came out of Egypt; The house of Jacob, from the barbarous people; Israel bis dominion." "JEHOVAH his God is with him ; And the shout of a king is among them: God brought them.out of Egypt" Psal. cxiv. 1, 2. Num. xxiii. 21, 22. |