ments, and their lies caused them to err, after the which their fathers have walked:

5 But I will send a fire upon Judah, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem. 6¶Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they sold the righteous for silver, and the poor for a pair of shoes;

7 That pant after the dust of the earth on the head of the poor, and turn aside the way of the meek: and a man and his father will go in unto the same 'maid, to profane my holy name:

8 And they lay themselves down upon clothes laid to pledge by every altar, and they drink the wine of the condemned in the house of their god.

9¶Yet destroyed I the 'Amorite before them, whose height was like the height of the cedars, and he was strong as the oaks; yet I destroyed his fruit from above, and his roots from beneath.

10 Also 'I brought you up from the land

Chap. 8. 6.
• Exod. 12. 51.

3 Or. young woman.

of Egypt, and led you forty years through the wilderness, to possess the land of the Amorite.

11 And I raised up of your sons for prophets, and of your young men for Nazarites. Is it not even thus, O ye children of Israel? saith the LORD.

12 But ye gave the Nazarites wine to drink; and commanded the prophets, 'saying, Prophesy not.

13 Behold, I am pressed under you, as a cart is pressed that is full of sheaves.

14 Therefore the flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mighty deliver 'himself:

15 Neither shall he stand that handleth the bow; and he that is swift of foot shall not deliver himself: neither shall he that rideth the horse deliver himself.

16 And he that is courageous among the mighty shall flee away naked in that day, saith the LORD.

Or, such as have fined, or mulcted.

5 Num. 21. 24. Deut. 2. 31. Josh. 24, 8. 9 Heb. his soul, or life.

7 Chap. 7. 12, 13. 8 Or, I will press your place, as a cart full of sheaves presseth.
10 Heb. strong of his heart.

Verse 1. "He burned the bones of the king of Edom into lime."-This does not perhaps mean any more than that the body of the king of Edom was treated with much indignity--burned till the bones became like lime. That the burnt bones were actually made into lime, and used by the king of Moab to plaster his palace, is, however, the interpretation suggested by the Targum and some of the Rabbins. This interpretation seems to be derived from the fact, that the original word (TV sid), rendered lime, equally means plaster. Bones, when reduced to ashes, contain eighty parts, out of one hundred, of phosphate of lime; and if the Rabbinical explanation be correct, it might suggest one of the uses to which bones were in those times employed. If bones were used to make plaster, those of animals were doubtless employed for the purpose; and the barbarous act of the king of Moab would, under this view, seem to be that he insulted the remains of the king of Edom, by burning down his bones for plaster with those of brute animals.

6. For a pair of shoes,” or “sandals;' which appears to have been a proverbial expression, as it still is in the East, to denote anything of trifling and inadequate value. The passage refers to the conduct of corrupt judges in accepting bribes from parties interested in the cause before them, and deciding unjustly in favour of the wealthier suitor. Such practices are still most notoriously common in the East.

CHAPTER III.

1 The necessity of God's judgment against Israel. 9 The publication of it, with the causes thereof. HEAR this word that the LORD hath spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying,

2 You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will 'punish you for all your iniquities.

3 Can two walk together, except they be agreed?

4 Will a lion roar in the forest, when he hath no prey? will a young lion cry out of his den, if he have taken nothing?

5 Can a bird fall in a snare upon the

earth, where no gin is for him? shall one take up a snare from the earth, and have taken nothing at all?

6 Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people 'not be afraid? shall there be evil in a city, and the LORD hath not done it?

7 Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.

8 The lion hath roared, who will not fear? the Lord GOD hath spoken, who can but prophesy?

9¶ Publish in the palaces at Ashdod, and in the palaces in the land of Egypt, and say, Assemble yourselves upon the mountains of Samaria, and behold the great tu

1 Heb. 1 1 7o8. Heb. give forth his voice. 3 Or, not run together.

Or, and shall not the LORD do somewhat?,

mults in the midst thereof, and the op- | Samaria in the corner of a bed, and 'in Dapressed in the midst thereof. mascus in a couch.

10 For they know not to do right, saith the LORD, who store up violence and robbery in their palaces.

Il Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; An adversary there shall be even round about the land; and he shall bring down thy strength from thee, and thy palaces shall be spoiled.

12 Thus saith the LORD; As the shepherd 'taketh out of the mouth of the lion two legs, or a piece of an ear; so shall the children of Israel be taken out that dwell in

13 Hear ye, and testify in the house of Jacob, saith the Lord God, the God of hosts,

14 That in the day that I shall 'visit the transgressions of Israel upon him I will also visit the altars of Beth-el: and the horns of the altar shall be cut off, and fall to the ground.

15 And I will smite the winter house with the summer house; and the houses of ivory shall perish, and the great houses shall have an end, saith the LORD.

8 Or, on the bed's feet. ? Or, punish Israel før.

5 Or, oppressions. Or, spoil. 7 Heb. delivereth. Verse 12. "As the shepherd taketh out of the mouth of the lion two legs, or a piece of an ear."-An explanation of this may be derived from a comparison of Gen. xxxi. 39, with Exod. xxii. 13; from which we learn that when a flock was entrusted to a shepherd or other person, he was expected to make good the loss of any sheep "torn of beasts." unless he produced the torn carcase, or part of it, in evidence of the circumstance; and hence, of course, when the flock was attacked by a wild beast, the shepherd was anxious to secure so much of the torn remains as might furnish sufficient proof to the owner that his property had not been improperly disposed of by the shepherd. There is something of a similar test required in Persia of those who have in their hands any of the king's horses. These animals are marked on the near thigh; and when one of them dies, the holder cuts out the piece of skin bearing the mark with a portion of the flesh adhering to it, and takes it to the proper officer, who then blots the horse from the royal register, after the person who had it has sworn that the animal died a natural death, and not from any want of care. He then stands exonerated, and another horse is given to him. It is said that the officers of the stables are able to discover, by steeping the piece in water for a few hours, whether the animal died from hunger, hard work, or violence. (Chardin, tome in. pp. 372-3. Langles's edition.)

"The corner of a bed."-The corner has already been noticed as the place of honour in the East. dered "bed," a divan or low sofa, on which the Őrientals usually sit, is probably to be understood. Deut. iii. 11., and 2 Sam. iv. 5.

By the word ren-
See the notes on

CHAPTER IV.

1 He reproveth Israel for oppression, 4 for idolatry, 6 and for their incorrigibleness.

HEAR this word, ye kine of Bashan, that are in the mountain of Samaria, which oppress the poor, which crush the needy, which say to their masters, Bring, and let us drink.

2 The Lord GOD hath sworn by his holiness, that, lo, the days shall come upon you, that he will take you away with hooks, and your posterity with fishhooks.

3 Ând ye shall go out at the breaches, every cow at that which is before her; and 'ye shall cast them into the palace, saith the LORD.

4 ¶ Come to Beth-el, and transgress; at Gilgal multiply transgression; and bring your sacrifices every morning, and your tithes after three years.

5 And offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving with leaven, and proclaim and publish the free offerings: for this liketh you, O ye children of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.

6 ¶ And I also have given you cleanness of teeth in all your cities, and want of bread

1 Or. ye shall cast away the things of the palace.

in all your places: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.

7 And also I have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: one piece was rained upon, and the piece whereupon it rained not withered.

8 So two or three cities wandered unto one city, to drink water; but they were not satisfied: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.

9 I have smitten you with blasting and mildew: when your gardens and your vineyards and your fig trees and your olive trees increased, the palmerworm devoured them: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.

10 I have sent among you the pestilence 'after the manner of Egypt: your young men have I slain with the sword, 'and have taken away your horses; and I have made the stink of your camps to come up unto your nostrils : yet have ус not returned unto me, saith the LORD.

11 I have overthrown some of you, as God

6 Or, in the way.

Heb, three years of days. 5 Or, the multitude of your gardens, &c. did the palmer-worm, &c.

3 Heb. offer by burning. Heb. so ye love. 7 Heb. with the captivity of your horses.

|

8 Gen. 19. 24, 25.

Verse 6. “Cleanness of teeth.”—A proverbial expression to express famine, derived from the general, rather than a particular observation, that things remain clean when unused. The famine, if any one in particular be alluded to, may be that mentioned in 2 Kings viii.

11. “As a firebrand plucked out of the burning."―This is a proverbial expression several times repeated in Scripture, denoting a narrow escape from imminent danger. The same figure, in the same signification, was also employed by the heathen writers.

1 Chap. 4. 4. *Job 9. 9, and 38. 31. 3 Chap. 9. 6.
Heb. spoil. 5 Zeph. 1. 13. Heb. vineyards of desire.
8 Psal. 34, 14, and 97. 10. Rom. 12.9. Isa. 5. 19. Jer. 30. 7. Joel 2. 2. Zeph. 1. 15. 10 Isa. 1. 11.
11 Or, smell your holidays.

Verse 8. "The seven stars and Orion."-, Kemah and Kesil; concerning both of which see the notes on Job xxxviii.

16. "Call... such as are skilful of lamentation to wailing."-This doubtless alludes to the mourning women, of whom we have already spoken, particularly under Jer. ix. The pictorial illustration which we now introduce affords an interesting practical commentary on the custom. The scene is a Turkish cemetery. The women. at the grave of one lately interred, are professional mourners, as appears by their tambourines, which form the proper instruments and badges of their calling. They could not be introduced so characteristically as among the graves; and their presence there is explained by the fact, that although the more proper sphere of their vocation is to mourn over the uninterred corpse, and while following it to the tomb; yet they also often accompany the chief female mourner in the daily visits which she pays to the grave during the seven first days of mourning, and sometimes go alone to mourn over the grave, when she is absolutely unable to attend.

"Leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him."-The smaller serpents in the East delight to harbour in I walls of houses, and particularly of dark chambers, to which they obtain easy access, as the doors hang , and the windows are often mere wooden lattices without glass. In such situations they will remain and e, unless extirpated; and their extirpation from such places is the principal vocation of the serpent-charmer, 1 some respects answers to the rat-catcher of Europe. It is particularly common to find serpents, and orpions, in houses or rooms that have remained for any time unoccupied; and the new occupants are obliged careful. Under these circumstances such accidents as that to which the prophet refers are by no means

moil.

"Ye have borne the tabernacle of your Molocn and Chiun." &c.-This is a very difficult verse, the full investigation ch, or even a mere statement of the different views which have been taken of its contents, would take far more than we can afford, or should consider to be profitably occupied. A few observations, however, as to the nature of there condemned, and the time in which it was committed, may not be misapplied; and these happen to be ost important points, as well as the clearest, and those which involve the least discussion.

may be necessary, first, to premise that the clauses of this verse have, under different theories, been supposed all r to one and the same idol, Moloch; or to two, Moloch and Chiun; or to three, the two thus named, and another, ned, in "the star of your god," or, as some would prefer, "your star god." In connection with this, the folare the principal alternatives of translation. 1. As in our version; 2. "Ye bore the tabernacle of your Moloch, e star of your god Chiun" (Newcome, Boothroyd, &c.)-a version which supposes that confusion in the Hebrew as been produced by transposition, and attempts to restore the supposed correct reading; 3. "Ye bore the taberof your Moloch (or king), the car of your idols, the star of your god" (Calmet, Gesenius, &c.). The difference in produced chiefly by the understanding of Chiun (1) not as a proper name, but as denoting the carriage in the idol was borne; and certainly this explanation does make the clause agree best with the one which preand that which follows. If but one idol be understood, that one is of course Moloch; if more than one, the t to identify the others involves a most unprofitable discussion, which we shall avoid, although perhaps we may y advert to it under Acts vii., where the present text is cited by St. Stephen.

generally agreed that the act with which the prophet reproaches the Hebrews, consisted in carrying or drawing in solemn procession or during a march, the shrine, car, or portable temple, containing the image of the idol, e idolatrous symbol, or it might be the tent or tabernacle of the idol god, which was carried from place to and pitched for the idol's reception. The interpretation which rejects "Chiun" as a proper name, would t both a car for the march of the idol, and a tent for his reception. However, it is supposed that a car, or cle of some kind or other, is intended; and nothing can be more probable, as we know that in whatever nation 273

VOL. III.

2 N