An exposition by way of supplement, on the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth chapters of the prophecy of Amos where you have the text fully explained ... : together with a confutation of Dr. Holmes, and Sir Henry Vane, in the end of the commentary / by Tho. Hall ...

VERSE 11.

Forasmuch therefore as your treading is upon the poor, and yee take from him burdens of wheat, yee have built bouses of hewn stone, but yee shall not dwell in them, yee have planted pleasant Vineyards, but yee shall not drink of them.

WEe are now come to a third sin, for which the Prophet reproves this people, and that is for Oppressing the poor, and this was more peculiarly the sin of their Rulers and Grandees. They that should have been the keepers of the Law, they were the greatest breakers of it; they that should have been the Vindicators, they were the Violators of it. The Prophet therefore strikes not at the foot, viz. the common-people; but he strikes at the head, from whence all disorders descended unto the body.

In this Verse we have

• 1 Their Sin,
• 2 Their Punishment.

1 Their sin was Oppression, which appeared by two cruel acts

• 1 They trod upon the poor,
• 2 They took away his corn.

2 In the Punishment we have,

• 1 Their Projects,
• 2 The frustration of those Projects.

Their Projects were

• 1 Building of fine houses,
• 2 Planting of Vineyards.

Their frustra∣tion follows,

• 1 They shall not dwell in the one,
• 2 They shall not drink of the other.

Your treading is upon the poor; that is, upon the afflicted, and godly poor especially, Amos 2.7, 8. where the hedge is lowest, there these beasts get over, Amos 4.1. These they tread upon in a most contemptible manner, as the dirt and mire in the streets; grinding them with cruel impositions, and oppressing them with grievous vexations, keeping them under in extream slavery, and laying them as low as the dust; now to lye in the dust implies a very low, base, and despicable condition, 1 King. 16.2. Iob 16.15.

The word in the Original signifies properly to despise or trample under feet by way of contempt, Isa. 14.25. and 18.2. and 63.18. But Metaphorically it signifies to oppress and vilifie.

Yee take from him burdens of Wheat: that is (say some) you extort such great bribes, and lay such great burdens on them, that they are forced to sell their necessary food to feed you with money.

Others refer it to the great men, who lent the poor money till their harvest came in, and then were so rigid and severe in exacting their debts, that they made them bring their very corn which should support their Families for payment.

Others refer it to the cruel Usurers, who were not content with money for their money, but they must have corn too, which after they sold at dear rates to the poor, Amos 8.4, 5.

But what ever Oppression it was specifically, yet in gene∣ral the Prophet reproves it as a crying sin, that they dealt so harshly and cruelly with the poor, as first to rob them of their mony, and then by force or fraud to make them bring and bear upon their own shoulders that little which they had left to sustain themselves, and their families. To take away mens goods and cattel is sad, but to take away their corn, which is

the staffe and stay of their houshold, and to make them carry it themselves, and become their own executioners, in carrying away the livelihood of their Families, is such a crying sin, that the Lord swears that hee will bear no longer with such Can∣nibals that devour the poor alive, Amos 4.1, 2.

Wee have seen their Sin, now follows the Punishment, They shall build houses of hewn stone, but shall not dwell in them. Or∣dinary houses will not content these Earth-worms, they must have curious Palaces built with hewn, squared, polished stones, that they might bee beautiful, firm and durable.

This was their project, by rape and rapine, by bribery and extortion, they built fine houses, But they shall not dwell in them. This But spoyls all, either they shall go into Captivity, or be cut off by untimely death, as the rich fool, Luke 12.20. or their houses shall be burnt, or else their enemies shall pos∣sess them, according to that threatning, Deut. 28.30,39. Thou shalt build a house and not dwell in it, thou shalt plant a Vineyard and not eat the grapes thereof. But who then shall enjoy them? why thine enemy. As thou shalt betroth a wife, and thine enemy shall lye with her, so the like misery shall attend thee in thy building and planting. It is misery enough to have these things taken away by enemies, but it is a great aggra∣vation of this misery, when after we have taken much pains to get them, and have set our hearts upon them, and are fil∣led with hopes and expectations of enjoying the fruit of our labours, then on a sudden to have them all snatched from us, and so our hopes to be frustrated, and others to enjoy our la∣bours, this is bitter.

Or if they should escape these miseries, yet the Lord can smite them with sickness, so that they shall not enjoy what they Idolized; or else they have a prodigal heir, or some other vexation befalls them; so that in the very fulness of their suf∣ficiency they shall bee in straits, Job 20.22. Jer. 17.11.

2 They should plant pleasant Vineyards, but not drink the wine of them. Great was their care and cost to build houses and plant Vineyards (under these two synecdochically are comprehended all other creature-delights) but they were de∣ceived in their hopes, for they should neither enjoy the one, nor the other; and we see by daily experience, how these transitory things are tossed like a foot-ball from one to ano∣ther;

now one man hath it on his Toe, and anon another, at last comes one and trips up his heels, and gets it from them both, and at last comes death and strips them of all.

Ordinary dwellings and plain Vineyards content not these men, they must have the choysest stone buildings, and the most exquisite and desirable Vineyards, so much the Origi∣nal imports, Vineyards of desire, i. e. most desirable and deli∣cate Vineyards. The Hebrews have no superlative degree, and therefore they use to express it by putting the Substantive in the Genitive Case; see Dan. 9.23. he is called Ish Che∣medoth, a man of desires, i. e. a most precious and desirable man. So a pleasant Land is called, a Land of desire, i. e. a most desirable Land, Ier. 3.19.

Yet their sin deprived them of all these temporal delights, the Lord did retaliate them in their owne kind, as they had spoyled the poor, and taken all from them, so now the Assy∣rian should come and cast them out of all.

OBSERVATIONS.

1 Oppression and trampling upon the poor is a crying sin.

It will not let the Lord rest till he bring Judgements upon the heads of the oppressors, Psal 109.16. Ezek. 16.49. Ioel 3.19. Amos 3.1.

2 Obs. Wordly men lavish all upon self.

These should have honoured the Lord with their riches, and spent them in works of Piety and pity to the poor; but they spent them in building sumptuous houses, and pleasant Vine∣yards; all of the best save the best religion; they Idolized the Creature, and loved it above the Creator, this ruined them. Like Swine they fed upon the mast, but forgot the donor.

3 Obs. Luxury breeds cruelty.

When ordinary building cannot content, nor necessaries, please, but they must have all of the finest; then follows trampling upon the poor, wracking of rents, and inventing all base means for money. Such great sins seldome go alone, but like great men they have many attendants, Amos 2.7, 8.

4 Sin and punishment are inseparable.

They are both yoked together in this verse. But of this oft before.

5 Sin blasts mens labours and expectations.

They must rise early, and sit up late, build houses, and plant Vineyards, but disobedience blasts all. Deut. 28.30. Micah 6.15. Zeph. 1.13. As piety brings plenty, Isa. 65.21. so sin robs us of all our pleasant things. But of this at large else∣where.

6 God oft retaliates men, and pays them in their own kind.

God will spoyl those that spoyl his people, Isa. 33.1. Hab. 2.8. Woe unto thee that spoylest, and wast not spoyled; and dea∣lest treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with thee; when thou shalt cease to spoyl, then shalt thou be spoyled. He speaks here of the cruel Assyrian, who spoyled Gods people causelesly, and unprovoked; and dealt treacherously with those that offered no such measure unto him. God will retaliate such in their owne kind, and when they have done spoyling others, God will raise up the Chaldeans who shall spoyl them. God usual∣ly raiseth up some to deal hardly with those that deal hardly with his people. These Rulers here trod upon the poor, and now the Lord raiseth up the Assyrian to trample on them. They built their houses upon the bones and ruines of the poor, and now they lose them. So true is that, Iob 20.22. The hand of the wicked shall be upon him, viz. to oppress and spoyl him who had spoyled others before. But of Retaliation see more on Amos 6. ult.

Notes

• Bosces, deduci∣tur vel à Rad. Bosc. i. e. pude∣facere, vel po∣tius à Bos, i. e. conculcare pe∣dibus: cui vici∣num est Baz, s••oliare, prae∣dari, diripere.
• Domos excisio∣nis, i. e. excisi & dolati lapidis, Mercer.
• Charme chemed, Vineas deside∣rii, i. e. desidera∣tissimas, Praestan∣tissimas, ele∣gantissimas.
• See more in my Com. on Hos. 13.15. p. 45.
• See more in my Com. on Hos. 13.16. p. 106.
• In my Com. on Hos. 13.15. Ob. 8. p. 58, 59.