Vers. 1. And in that day shall seuen women take hold of one man, saying, Wee will eate our owne bread, and we will weare our owne garments: onely let vs be called by thy name, and take away our reproch.
HEE still followes the same matter; and no doubt but this Ser∣mon was made toge∣ther with the former. And therfore we must not separate this verse in any wise from it. By this circumstance hee more fully expresseth what that ruine and destruction which he had before threatned against the Iewes, should bee. For vnlesse threatnings be redoubled against hypocrits, either they will play the deafe men, or else they will extenuate them in such sort, as the seueritie of God shall not touch them to the quicke. He here shewes then by the effect what horror of imminent destruction shall come vpon them, to the ende they should not promise an escaping from it at their plea∣sure: as if he should say, Thinke not that a little skirmish shall lessen your number in some part: but it is rather an extreame ruine which threatens you; so as there shall scarse∣ly one husband bee found for seuen women. And hereunto appertaines the word, shall take. It is a thing contrarie to the modestie of a woman, to goe and offer her selfe of her owne accord to a man. Now the Prophet saith, that they shall not onely doe so: but that there shall be seuen women, which shall lay hands vpon a man to take hold of him; so small shall the number of men be.
That which immediatly followes doth yet amplifie this extreame wast; when they say, We will eate our owne bread, &c. For seeing it is the proper office of the husband to pro∣uide for his wife and familie, the women doe seeke husbands with vnequall and base con∣ditions, when they discharge them of all care of getting their maintenance. There must needs bee a very small number of men left then, when many women hauing cast off all shamefastnes are not onely constrained to content themselues with one husband, but doe also agree to get their owne liuing, and desire no more but that the husband will keepe the faith of mariage with them.
Let thy name be called vpon vs.] We may ren∣der it in another sense, Let vs beare thy name. For when the woman comes into the family of the husband, shee takes his name, and loseth her own:* 1.1 in as much as ye husband is her head: and therefore her vaile is a signe of her subiection. As Abimelech said to Sara, Abraham thy husband shall be the couering of thine head: Genes. 20.16. But if the woman marrie not, she remaineth couered vnder the name of her family. Now it sufficiently ap∣peares by the 48. chapter of Genesis, that this is the true sense of this manner of speech: where Iacob blessing his nephewes, saith, Let my name, and the name of my fathers, Abra∣ham and Isaac, bee called vpon them: that is to say, Let them be of our stocke, & partakers of the couenant, & neuer shut out thereof, as it came to passe in Esau and Ismael.* 1.2 The pro∣phane authors also speake after this man∣ner: Martia desiring to returne againe to Cato, (as it is in the second booke of Lucanus) saith, Giue me only the bare title of mariage: let it bee lawfull to write vpon my Tombe; Martia wife of Cato.
Now they say, Take away our reproch: be∣cause it seemes that they beare some reproch, when they find no husbands: not onely in that it seemeth they are despised as vnwor∣thy, but because it was a singular blessing of God among the ancient people to haue po∣steritie: and therefore the Prophet saith, they shall not onely haue neede with care to bethinke them how to auoid this reproch; but shall vse all possible perswasions to at∣taine thereunto. Lastly, he signifies that the destruction shall bee such, that almost all husbands shall die.