nation, who hath helped other kingdoms in times of diftrefs and danger, they fhall not be able to afford you the fupport you require; you and they fhall fail in accomplishing the end that you have in view. You may affociate yourselves together, but neither of you fhall efcape deferved calamities. Though hand join in hand, though kingdom be confederated with kingdom, the wicked fhall not be unpunifhed. ، Curied, faith Jehovah, ، be the man

,that trufteth in man, and maketh filefh his arm ؛

⚫ whose heart departeth from the Lord.'-Aware then of the extreme danger to which we shall inevitably expofe ourselves, by placing confidence in the creature; let us truft in the Lord Jehovah who made heaven and earth, and carefully abftain from this execrable practice, which terminates in difappointment, diftrefs, and forrow.

4 For thus hath the LORD fpoken unto me, Like as the lion and the young lion roaring on his prey, when a multitude of fhepherds is called forth against him, he will not be afraid of their voice, nor abafe himself for the noife of them: fo fhall the LORD of hofts come down to fight for mount Zion, and for the hill thereof.

Still farther to reprove the folly of the Ephraim. ites, another argument is fubjoined, derived from the protection which God was about to afford the inhabitants of Jerufalem, when affailed by the Affyrians. To excite reverence and attention to this fubject, Ifaiah declares, that the Most High had exprefsly communicated to him the following infor mation, in which the invincible power, and tender compaffion of Jehovah, difplayed toward his peculiar people, are beautifully represented by two fimilitudes; the one taken from an animal remarkable for its ftrength and heroic courage, the other from

birds, whofe vigilance and folicitude for the fafety of their young ones are well known-The former is borrowed from a lion, one of the ftrongeft and moft magnanimous beafts of the foreft, and a young lion in his full vigour, who remains undaunted in the poffeffion of his prey amid all the efforts employed to terrify him. By this figure is reprefented the conduct of the Almighty, who is not afraid of any, and who ought to be feared by all, when he appears executing awful vengeance upon his enemies.The prey on which the lion is faid to roar, in way of exultation, may denote the city Jerufalem, which of old was the feat of heathen fuperftition, from which it was forcibly taken, that it might be converted into the feat of true religion, and divine worfhip, under the immediate infpection and defence of Jehovah.-A multitude of Thepherds called forth against the lion, may fignify the numerous army affembled by the king of Affyria to befiege the metropolis of Judea, to fpoil its inhabitants, to diveft it of the guardian care of Jehovah, and to restore its ancient fuperftition and idolatry. At this eventful period, the Lord of hofts caufed his tremenduous voice to be heard, and gave intimation that he was determined to keep poffeffion of his chofen city, and to defend from their foes, the people he had appropriated to himself.-He will not be afraid of their voice, nor abafe, &c. Far from being in any meafure intimidated by the noife, and the approach of those who were called forth to injure the interefts of the objects of his favour, far from hafting away and leaving them defencelefs, the Lord that fitteth in heaven had them all in derifion. This interpretation, which is fupported by other pallages in the Prophets, where God in the execution of awful judgments is fpoken of under the fimilitude here ufed, does not require from me any formal vindication.

So fhall the Lord of hofts come down, &c. The preceding comparifon ferves to give fome idea of the wonderful interpofition of Jehovah in behalf of

his people, and of the remarkable proofs he was to give on the occafion above mentioned, of his power and prefence manifefted for the protection of Mount Zion, and the hill thereof, whereon ftood the palace and the city of David, with the magnificent temple dedicated to the worship of the living God. It likewife places, in a ftriking point of view, the fruitless attempts of the most formidable enemies of Jerufalem, whilft the Almighty continued to extend to that city his guardian care and defence. It teaches with what fovereign contempt the Most High over all the earth, treats the hoftile exertions of those who are inimical to the facred interefts of his church, and the perfect fafety which they fhall enjoy whom he compaffeth with favour as with a fhield.-How impregnable the defence which God forms around them that hope in his mercy! They that truft in the Lord fhall be as Mount Zion which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever. As the mountains are round about Jerufalem, fo the Lord is round about his people, from henceforth even for ever. The gracious protection afforded by the Lord to his ancient church, represented by the hills that encompaffed the holy city, and rendered it invincible, whilft the inhabitants repofed their confidence in the divine omnipotence, prefigured the ftill greater felicity of those under the New Teftament, whofe refuge and fortrefs is Jehovah. Such may adopt the triumphant language of the royal poet, The Lord liveth, and 'bleffed be my rock, and let the God of my falva• tion be exalted *.'

5 As birds flying, fo will the LORD of hofts defend Jerufalem: defending alfo he will deliver it, and paffing over, he will preferve it.

The fubject now before us is illuftrated in this verfe by another pleafing fimilitude, which marks

Pfal. xviii. 46.

with peculiar beauty and energy, the tender affec tion and conftant folicitude, which God, in whom compaffions flow, never fails to discover for the fafety of his children, especially when they are in danger. There are two ways by which the feathered tribes show affection for their young ones, and their anxiety for defending them from injury. Some, alarmed at the approach of any creature, by whom they fufpect their brood may be hurt, fly hither and thither with great velocity through a certain space around their nefts, gaping, crying, and fluttering with their wings. Others, when terrified that their young ones are in danger, fly inftantly to their protection, stretch forth their wings for their defence, whilst they appear determined that they will rather indanger their own life, than permit their helplefs charge to be hurt. To birds of this laft defcription, I suppose that our Prophet chiefly refers, though he might also have refpect to thofe firft mentioned. The agreeable protection which Almighty God vouchsafes to convey to his beloved people, is frequently defcribed in fcripture, in allufion to this well known emblem. Shew me thy marvellous loving 'kindness,' (faid the royal poet) hide me under the fhadow of thy wings. And again, Because ⚫ thou Lord hast been my help, in the fhadow of ⚫thy wings will I rejoice t.' By this familiar image Jefus Chrift illuftrates his compaffion toward Jerufalem, How often would I have gathered thy chil'dren together as a hen gathereth her chickens un'der her wings .' In these moving words, the gracious Redeemer expreffes his divine benevolence and tender pity toward the ungrateful, obftinate inhabitants of that highly favoured city, and reminds them that with paternal fondnefs, he would readily have admitted them to share in his kind protection. The prediction before us then imports, that as the parent bird on the approach of danger, takes her young ones under her wings to fhield them from whatever might Matt. xxiii. 37

Pfal. xvii. 8. † Pfa!. lxiii. 7.

6

might hurt or annoy them, fo the Lord of hofts would guard his peculiar people from the hoftile attempts of their powerful enemies.-The fubject is farther explained in the next words.

Defending alfo he will deliver it, &c. Such is the extensive unremitting care which Jehovah exercises over the objects of his love, that in the most perilous fituation, they enjoy defirable fafety. The Lord is their rock, their fortress, and their deliverer; they dwell in the fecret place of the Moft High, and abide under the fhadow of the Almighty-Alfo he will deliver them. No weapon formed against them could profper; for God himself was to fave them from the intended deftruction; fo that according to the prophecy of Obadiah, Upon Mount Zion, there ⚫ fhall be deliverance.'-Paffing over he will preferve it. There feems here to be an obvious allufion to the memorable event that happened at the time wherein God brought forth the children of Ifrael out of the land of Egypt. The angel of the Lord went forth, and in one night flew all the first born in that kingdom, whilft he paffed over all the first born of the Ifraelites, whofe door pofts were fprinkled with the blood of the pafchal lamb. In like manner, the angel fent to flay the Affyrian army, which laid fiege to Jerufalem, was to pafs over the inhabitants of that city, who were to be preferved alive, whilst by the terrible vengeance of heaven, their enemies were to be totally routed. Í forbear at prefent to fay any thing of the hiftory which relates the exact accomplishment of what is here foretold, to which I have already had frequent occafion to refer.Who is a God like unto thee, who pardoneth iniquity, who paffeth by the transgreffion of the remnant of thy heritage, he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in . mercy. How astonishing the interpofitions of divine Providence for the preservation of the church, which indeed resembles the bush burning and not confumed. The gracious affurances which God hath