Woe is me! for I am as when they have gathered the summer fruits, as the grapegleanings of the vintage: [there is] no cluster to eat: my soul desired the firstripe fruit. Ver. 1. _Woe is me, for I am as when they have gathered the summer fruits_] _Allai li,_ Alas for me. This last sermon of his the... [ Continue Reading ]
The good [man] is perished out of the earth: and [there is] none upright among men: they all lie in wait for blood; they hunt every man his brother with a net. Ver. 2. _The good man is perished out of the earth_] Heb. The saint, or, gracious man, that out of mercy obtained from God, can extend merc... [ Continue Reading ]
That they may do evil with both hands earnestly, the prince asketh, and the judge [asketh] for a reward; and the great [man], he uttereth his mischievous desire: so they wrap it up. Ver. 3. _That they may do evil with both hands earnestly_] Heb. for good and all, or, for ado; that they may speak an... [ Continue Reading ]
The best of them [is] as a brier: the most upright [is sharper] than a thorn hedge: the day of thy watchmen [and] thy visitation cometh; now shall be their perplexity. Ver. 4. _The best of them is as a brier_] Which a man cannot handle without harm. See 2Sa 23:6 Psalms 55:21; Psa 58:10 Eze 2:6 Matt... [ Continue Reading ]
Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a guide: keep the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom. Ver. 5. _Trust ye not in a friend_] Friends (said Socrates), there is no friend: and a friend is a changeable creature, saith another (ζωον ευμεταβλητον); all in changeable colo... [ Continue Reading ]
For the son dishonoureth the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in law against her mother in law; a man's enemies [are] the men of his own house. Ver. 6. _For the son dishonoureth the father_] Or, revileth the father (Menabbel), be-Nabals him, beknaves him (of Nabal com... [ Continue Reading ]
_Therefore I will look unto the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me._ Ver. 7. _Therefore will I look unto the Lord_] "Therefore," inasmuch as there is no faith nor fair dealing among men, "I will look unto the Lord"; look wishly and intently, as a watchman in his watc... [ Continue Reading ]
Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD [shall be] a light unto me. Ver. 8. _Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy_] Here is the triumph of faith, in the fail of outward comforts, in the midst of the world's insultations and irrisions. _Ne l... [ Continue Reading ]
I will bear the indignation of the LORD, because I have sinned against him, until he plead my cause, and execute judgment for me: he will bring me forth to the light, [and] I shall behold his righteousness. Ver. 9. _I will bear the indignation of the Lord, because I have sinned against him_] The Ch... [ Continue Reading ]
_Then [she that is] mine enemy shall see [it], and shame shall cover her which said unto me, Where is the LORD thy God? mine eyes shall behold her: now shall she be trodden down as the mire of the streets._ Ver. 10. _Then she that is mine enemy shall see it, &c._] Not only shall I behold his righte... [ Continue Reading ]
Micah 7:11 [In] the day that thy walls are to be built, [in] that day shall the decree be far removed. Ver. 11. _In the day that thy walls are to be built_] In the type, by Nehemiah, Nehemiah 3:1,32, who did the work with all his might; and having a ready heart, made riddance and good dispatch of i... [ Continue Reading ]
Micah 7:12 [In] that day [also] he shall come even to thee from Assyria, and [from] the fortified cities, and from the fortress even to the river, and from sea to sea, and [from] mountain to mountain. Ver. 12. _In that day also he shall come even to thee from Assyria_] To thee, Jerusalem, in the ty... [ Continue Reading ]
Notwithstanding the land shall be desolate because of them that dwell therein, for the fruit of their doings. Ver. 13. _Notwithstanding the land shall be desolate_] Understand it, not of the land of Chaldea, as A Lapide doth; but of Judea, which must be desolated before the coming of Christ in the... [ Continue Reading ]
Feed thy people with thy rod, the flock of thine heritage, which dwell solitarily [in] the wood, in the midst of Carmel: let them feed [in] Bashan and Gilead, as in the days of old. Ver. 14. _Feed thy people with thy rod_] Rule them with thy sceptre, or feed them with thy _pedum pastorale,_ thy she... [ Continue Reading ]
According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt will I shew unto him marvellous [things]. Ver. 15. _According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt_] Here is a present and full answer to the Church's prayer; so ready is the Lord to fulfil the desires of the righteous. It i... [ Continue Reading ]
The nations shall see and be confounded at all their might: they shall lay [their] hand upon [their] mouth, their ears shall be deaf. Ver. 16. _The nations shall see and be confounded_] Considering how I have defeated and befooled them, how I have made all their might to melt and moulder, they shal... [ Continue Reading ]
They shall lick the dust like a serpent, they shall move out of their holes like worms of the earth: they shall be afraid of the LORD our God, and shall fear because of thee. Ver. 17. _They shall lick the dust like a serpent_] That is, be reduced not only to extreme hunger and penury, but to utmost... [ Continue Reading ]
Who [is] a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth [in] mercy. Ver. 18. _Who is a God like unto thee?_] No God surely (whether so reputed or deputed; whether heathen deit... [ Continue Reading ]
He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. Ver. 19. _He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us_] Here is the pith and power of faith, particularly applying promises to a man's self. Say... [ Continue Reading ]
Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, [and] the mercy to Abraham, which thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old. Ver. 20. _Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham_] Heb. Thou wilt give; for all is of free gift. His love moved God to promise, his truth binds him... [ Continue Reading ]