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CHAP. V.
Verse 1. KEep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, then to give the Sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil.] As though he should have said, All our prayers and other services we do to God in his house, are but the Sacrifice of fools, till we have first (by hearing) been instructed how to do them according to Gods will.
It is as much as to say, Come not into Gods house illotis pedibus. Here is an al∣lusion in particular to the rite of discalceation used by the Jews and other Nations of the East at their coming into sacred places, as Exod. 3. 5. Josh. 5.
Keep thy foot.] That is, the whole man; A fool, a wicked man never considers God before whom he comes, and that he looks after inward purity.
The Sacrifice of fools.] A Sacrifice which proceeds from a judgement not rightly informed by rule.
Vers. 2. Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God.] q. d. You must not rush on publick duties without private prepa∣ration, because God is a holy God.
Vers. 3. For a dream cometh through the multitude of businesse.] How cometh this in? The wandrings of a mans spirit, and the incoherence of mans thoughts in duties are here resembled by the holy Ghost to dreams.
Vers. 4. For he hath no pleasure in fools.] He taketh no pleasure in the prayers or other services that fools and ignorant sots do offer to him.
Vers. 6. Neither say thou before the Angel.] That is, the Priest before whom the sinne of rash vows was to be confest, Levit. 4. 5. before Christ, the Angel of the Covenant who sees through divers and futile excuses, and punisheth them. Cartwright.
Vers. 8. For he that is higher than the highest regardeth, and there be higher than they.] Higher than the highest, that is, the Angels.
Higher than they.] viz. Of them that are upon the earth, Nebuchadnezzar and other high oppressours, and can break them.
Vers. 10. He that coveteth silver, shall not be satisfied with silver, nor that loveth abundance, with increase.] Cannot be satisfied with it, the more he hath, the more he desires.
This is also vanity.] Riches are vain, vers. 10. to the end.
2. Full of cares.
3. Unable to help us in distresse.
4. We must leave them.
5. They are full of vexation.
Vers. 17. All his dayes also he eateth in darknesse, and he had much sorrow and wrath with his sicknesse.] Darknesse, i. e. Sine laetitia & honore, by light in Scripture is meant joy and honour, the inheritance of the Saints in light.