Sayfadaki görseller
PDF
ePub

livered; being the only perfect character that ever appeared in a human form, and the only legiflator who fet the firft example to all his laws. Having made fome obfervations on the evident relation this prophecy bears to Jefus, by comparing eyents with the prediction, and how inexplicable it muft have been before the completion of it in him, he properly remarks,that the captious ought to fufpend their cenfures of fome dark paffages in the Prophets at prefent, fince one of the most obfcure and perplexed is by the events, in the due difpenfation of Providence, made fo clear and intelligible, that he that runs may read and understand it.From hence he takes occafion to recommend to their fecond thoughts this very evidence, once fo perplexed and obfcure, now fo manifeft; which on the one hand has not been weakened by all that the Jews have been able to bring against it, and hath been powerful enough, on the other, to make fome extraordinary converts.

Who, indeed, can read this oracle, and not allow Ifaiah to have been, what he is fometimes called, the evangelical Prophet? For the prophecy in every part is as applicable to Jefus, as the account given of him by the holy Evangelifts. It is undeniable that this prediction was extant in our Saviour's time, because he refers exprefsly to it, as foretelling what was to happen to him; and it was impoffible for him or his difciples, by any contrivance whatever, to have made his birth and life, his character and office, his death and burial, and the glorious confequences of his fufferings and death, fo exactly to correfpond with the oracle delivered by Ifaiah.That he fhould be numbered with the tranfgreffors; and, though perfectly innocent, die as a criminal on the fpot where the most wicked offenders fuffered; that he fhould be laid in the monument or fepulchre of a certain rich man, were circumftances that could not be forefeen by any not endued with the fpirit of prophecy ;-but his fubfequent refurre&tion and exalted dominion, are circumftances fo peculiar to Jefus the Chrift, that they cannot be applied to any other being.And this Writer's critical obfervations and reafonings upon the whole feries of predicted incidents, and its exact correspondence to the facts recorded in the Gospel Hiftory, are so pertinent and judicious, that we chufe rather to refer our Readers to a careful examination of what he hath offered at large in this Chapter, than detain his attention here with any defective reprefentation.

The

The Doctor having obferved, that as much stress ought to be laid on fuch prophetical parts of the Old Scriptures, as have a manifeft relation to the Meffiah, very juftly adds, that much care fhould be taken not to injure the cause of truth, by improper and fallacious applications.

That the CXth Pfalm is applicable to none but him, is generally allowed; and the evidence of fuch an afcription is attempted upon fuch principles, as a literal verfion and genuine unperverted criticiim will fully fupport. Father Houbigant, he obferves, hath taken very cenfurable liberties with the text, in order to adapt fuch a conftruction of it as is moft favourable to an arbitrary and precarious hypothefis. But Dr. Sharpe freely difclaims and explodes every alteration of the original text in thofe oracles, which are produced by way of evidence. The Author of Nizzachon, or Victory, the Jewish Champion, applies this Pfalm to Abraham; but Aben Ezra truly remarks, that it could never be faid of him, that GOD fhall fend the fceptre of thy ftrength out of Sion. The Chaldee Paraphrafe, and Aben Ezra indeed apply it to David, but with great impropriety; for David cannot properly be called COHEN, or Prieft, much lefs an ETERNAL Pricft: Nor could David fay of himself, The Lord faid unto my Lord, fit thou on my right hand. If we compare the declarations of this Pfalm with Ifaiah lii. iii. it will appear that the fame perfon is referred to, and that Jefus is the Meffiah. In both he is defcribed as one extolled, and exalted, and very high, is faid to have kings and nations againit him, whom he is to fubdue and convert; they are to become filent through astonishment, and fhut their mouths before him.He is to rule in the midst of his enemies; he fhall judge among the Heathen; he fhall fhake and convert the heads over many countries. His feed is to increafe; his people to exceed the drops of the dew of the morning: yet it pleased the Lord to bruife him. He is to drink of troubled waters; and therefore, because he hath poured out his foul unto death, fhall he be exalted or lift up the head. That we may obtain the full meaning of the expreffions ufed in this Pfalm. our Author thinks it neceflary that it should be con pared with the Criental dialects, particularly the Arabic-because the grammar of the Hebrew dialect was certainly taken from the Arabians, and the book of Job was written in old Arabic; and they who are fkilled in that copious language, will allow, that without a competent knowlege of it, many paffages in the Hebrew Scriptures will remain inexplicable..

A 3

The

ven.

The Prophet David, in this Pfalm, proclaims the dignity of the Meffiah, as fitting at the right hand of JEHOVAH, with power to rule in the midst of his enemies. In the third verfe he defcribes his attendants and followers: Thy people fhall be egregious for worth and readinefs, eminently zealous in the day of thy army;--the clouds of witneffes, the apoftles and their difciples which conftitute thy army, fhall fhine forth with refplendent fanctity, or in beautiful array of holiness ;— they fhall exceed in multitude the drops of the dew from the womb of the morning: thefe are thy progeny, they who are born unto thee.- Ifaiah liii. Thy feed fhall increase, be numerous and fertile as are the early drops of dew from heaKimchi apprehends that the beauty of holinefs refers to the temple.Should this be admitted, it is evident that Jefus was found there, as himself fays, "I fat daily with you, teaching in the temple, Matth. xxvi. 55. If with others. we fuppofe an allufion made to the beautiful and holy city of Jerufalem, in this fenfe, the rod of his power came from thence; and the Gospel, which is the "POWER of God unto falvation," was first preached there, The word rendered thy progeny, is derived from a verb in the Oriental dialects, which expreffes this character and relation; and Aben Ezra refers to these words in the beginning of the verfe, by the perfonal pronoun, "Thou fhalt fee THEM, (illum, populum tuum) and THEY fhall come to thee like dew.' Concerning this metaphor of dew, the Chaldee Paraphrafe, in commenting upon this Pfalm, explains it by thefe words: They shall haften unto thee like defcending dew. Aben Ezra, whom Dr. Sharpe applauds as an excellent Grammarian, refers to Pfal. lxviii. 9. "Thy people fhall come unto thee like A PLENTIFUL RAIN." Dew is not only an image for fertility and multitude, but readincfs, as may be feen in Micah v. .7. "And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people, as a dew from the Lord, as the fhowers upon the grafs that tarricth not for man, nor waiteth for the fons of men."

Verfe 4. Jehovah hath fworn and will not repent, thou art a pricft for ever after the order of Melchizedeck; a name that imports a righteous King, the Prince of Salem, or of Peace. Jerom thinks that this alludes to the laft Supper of our Lord, becaufe Melchizedeck, King of Salem, brought forth bread and wine, and he was the Priest of the most high God. Gen. xiv. 18. Heb. v. 6, 10. vii. 1, 2, 3, &c. This Divine Being, both King and Pricft, was to be a Priest for

ever, and not of the Levitical order, which was confined to the fervice of the temple; and therefore to perifh with it.

Verfes 5, 6, defcribe what shall be done by this Prince and Prieft, and Leader-forth of the army of the Saints: The Lord on thy right hand, O Jehovah, fhall shake, not without reforming, Kings in the day of his indignation; he fhall execute judgment in the nations, furrounded with his army; he fhall fhake, fo as alío to convert, the chief over, many countries, or much land. The greatest difficulty in the interpretation of this Film, the Doctor thinks, is to give the fenfe of the words; which, in our English Bible, are rendered, He fhall fill the places with dead bodies: and which he hath translated, as if, in the execution of his judgment, he was furrounded with his hoft or army. In the original no word is to be found for THE PLACES; it is fupplied by our Translators: and if by changing a letter, the word VALLEYS may be introduced by Houbigant, the dead bodies difappear indeed, and all fenfe with them. If we derive the word which is tranflated by "dead bodies," from a fimilar word in the Arabic, it may then fignify tents or armies; and our Author takes notice that Aben Ezra explains it by fabbaoth, or hofts. -His words are, "Being thou art a juft King, as we find it written, and David was doing judgment and juftice to all his people." The fenfe is, You fhall fight valiantly, for Jehovah will ftrengthen thy right hand, and bruife in the day of his wrath, Kings by thy hand. The word WHO is wanting, as we find, 2 Chron. xvi. 9. [WHOSE] heart is perfect." And fo it is here: "He will judge in the nations, he WHO is full of bodies; that is, To him is a GREAT ARMY; he will execute judgment in the nations upon much (or the great) land, Ifrael, and Media, and Perfia, or upon RABBAH (the fons of Ammon) of the Ammonites."-If this interpretation of the word BODIES, given by the most learned Grammarian of the Jews, be right, the Pfalm is more applicable to Jefus, as the Chrift or Meffiah, than in the fenfe given it by Mr. Green, whọ fpeaks of the Youth of thy army" and of filling the FIELD OF BATTLE with dead bodies."

[ocr errors]

The late Dr. Sykes, as our Author here obferves, was miftaken in his interpretation of this Pfalm, taking the dead bodies to have been thofe of the Saints and Martyrs; which conftruction feems forced, and does not fuit with the context, To fight with an army of dead bodies, is very strange language; and if to drink of the brook in the way is, as fome have interpreted

A 4

And

terpreted it, to drink of a torrent of blood*, it is a strange cup. "I do not deny (fays the Doctor) the propriety of this expreffion, an army of Martyrs, meaning the bleffed SPIRITS of those who laid down their lives for CHRIST; but the Hebrew word GUIOTH, is not fuppofed to fignify SPIRITS it fignifies here, we are told, DEAD BODIES. the authority of that great Rabbi, Aben Ezra, for the meaning of an Hebrew word, is not to be flighted; and he interprets FULL OF BODIES, by A GREAT ARMY. And we may afk, Where is the difference between MANY BODIES OF MEN, and an ARMY OF MEN? In Nehem. ix. 37. and Ezek. i. 11, 23. the word GU10TH fignifies BODIES, LIVING BODIES, not carcaffes. And from the Latin word CORPUS we have two words, the one CORPSE, fignifying a DEAD BODY; the other, CORPS, a BODY, or company or regiment of men. And GUIOTH not only fignifies BODIES, but the MIDDLE of things; which latter fignification may be frequently found in the Syriac.

The Pretorian Band among the Romans, like the Janizaries among the Turks, formed the centre or MIDDLE of the army, MEDIUM AGMEN. And if GUIOTH fignifies bodies and the middle, it might well be made ufe of to exprefs the hosts which furround the Lord. In the common Tranflation we are forced to fupply VALLEYS, OF PLACES, to make room for the carcaffes of the flain; whereas, in Jerem. xxxi. 40. a valley of dead bodies is expreffed in very different terms, as it alfo is in xxxiii. 5.

The laft verfe in the Pfalm, which in the English Tranflation is, He fhall drink of the BROOK in the way, fhould, agreeable to all the ancient verfions +, be rendered, "Of the TORRENT in the way fhall he drink,"-furely not of blood; for that cannot be faid of Jefus the Christ, neither can his way or life be compared with the calm ftate of him

Fundetur tantum fanguinis, ut etiam liceat victori bibere e torrente fanguinis cælorum, dum perfequetur hoftes.-Rob. Stephan. in Pfalmes Davidis.

Cruorem tantum occiforum, quafi torrentem, per vias emanaturum effe, ut de eo bibere Chriftus tranfeundo, et victoriam profequendo poffit.-Annotat, Brixiani.

+ I obferve they render, by a word that fignifies a TORRENT, Expov.-The Syriac word, Erpenius renders TORRENS, Troflius VALLIS. It may therefore fignify fuch floods as are formed in the valleys, by the rains that rush down the hills in winter; and will, conlequently, convey a ftrong image of diftrefs.

who

« ÖncekiDevam »