Vers. 8. Thus saith the Lord, As the wine is found in the cluster, and one saith, Destroy it not, for a blessing is in it, so will I doe for my seruants sakes, that I may not destroy them whole.
* 1.1THe Prophet here moderates his former sentence. For otherwise it had been a thing too seuere yt the iniquities of ye fathers should thus be called to mind, to the end the Lord might destroy their children with them. Yea, this might so haue affrighted the faith∣full, that it had been enough to haue driuen them from all hope of saluation. We ought then you see, to stand carefullie vpon our watch, and to consider for what cause the Lord is displeased with vs. For his meaning is so to astonish vs, as that therewithall hee would draw vs to himselfe: and not thereby to throw vs headlong into despaire. Hee leaues some hope for the faithfull here then, lest they should waxe fainthearted: and in proffering them refreshing, hee allures them to repentance, of which he reaped neither pleasure nor profit.
He confirmes this by a similitude.* 1.2 As if a man minding to plucke vp a vine, yet finding some fruitfull branch thereon, he spares, and reserues it: euen so will the Lord take heed how he pulles vp those, in whom he finds any sap or vigor. In the fifth Chapter he com∣plained, that the people was vnprofitable: yea, worse than that; for they brought forth sower fruits. Jsaiah retaines the same simili∣tude: but he applies it otherwise. For how∣soeuer the people were like vnto a bastard and barren vine; yet there remained some fruitfull branches, which the Lord would not suffer to perish.
But this may be taken two waies: either [ 1] that the Lord will preserue his people for the [ 2] elects sake: or, that hauing rooted out the re∣probates, he will saue the faithfull. There is great difference betweene these two inter∣pretations. As touching the first, wee know that the wicked are sometimes spared for the godlies sake,* 1.3 whom the Lord will neither de∣stroy nor wrappe vp in one common calami∣tie with them. And this is manifest enough by diuers examples in the holy Scriptures. The Lord would haue spared Sodom and Go∣morah, had there been found but ten righ∣teous persons there: Gen. 18.32. All those which were in the ship with S. Paul, to the number of 276. persons, were giuen him of God, and saued from shipwracke; that so the power which he shewed in his seruant, might be the more euident: Act. 27.32. The Lord blessed the house of Potiphar, and made him to prosper in all things for Josephs sake, who dwelt in his familie: Gen. 39.5. Many like examples there be which euery one may col∣lect by himselfe. But I rather approue of the other exposition; namely, that the Lord so punisheth the sinnes of his people, that yet notwithstanding he hath respect to his belo∣ued ones; and wrappes them not vp all in one and the same ruine. Neither is it his meaning onlie that the faithfull shall bee sa∣ued, but that there shall be a remnant left, in the middest of whom God will haue his name called vpon. And this is worth the noting. For he shewes that the remnant shall be very small, in comparison of that great multitude which was then in the land: as wee haue seene in Chap. 1.9.
Now whereas the faithfull are often pu∣nished with the wicked, let vs not thinke God doth them any wrong: For the Lord will ea∣silie find faults sufficient in euery one of vs to afflict and punish vs. Besides, his meaning is to instruct and awaken vs by his rods: for be∣ing