A fruitfull commentarie vpon the twelue small prophets briefe, plaine, and easie, going ouer the same verse by verse, and shewing every where the method, points of doctrine, and figures of rhetoricke, to the no small profit of all godly and well disposed readers, with very necessarie fore-notes for the vnderstanding of both of these, and also all other the prophets. The text of these prophets together with that of the quotations omitted by the author, faithfully supplied by the translatour, and purged of faults in the Latine coppie almost innumerable, with a table of all the chiefe matters herein handled, and marginall notes very plentifull and profitable; so that it may in manner be counted a new booke in regard of these additions. VVritten in Latin by Lambertus Danæus, and newly turned into English by Iohn Stockwood minister and preacher at Tunbridge.

Vers. 11.

If a man walke in the spirit, and would lie falselie, saying: I will prophesie vnto thee of wine, and of strong drinke, hee shall e∣uen be the Prophet of this people.

* 1.1NNow at the last God sheweth into what contempt at the length, or despising of his Maiestie and true doctrine these fel∣lowes are fallen, namely, that now they would haue no true Pro∣phets: but would heare onely false and lying Prophets, and such as should feede men with winde, that is to say, mock them with vaine and feined promises. Of such speaketh Ieremie cap. 22. ver. 22. The winde shall feede all thy Pastors. And cap. 5. ver. 13. And the Prophets shall bee as winde and the worde is not in them: thus shall it come vnto them.* 1.2 And Hosea cap. 12. ver. 1. Ephraim is fed with the winde, and followeth after the East winde. So then there are two things to bee noted in this verse. The one, the phrase or kinde of speaking,* 1.3 the which describeth or setteth forth this disobedience of the Israelites. And it is a Mimesis, or imitating and following of the wordes of the false Prophets. For he expresseth the wordes of the false Prophets, that hee may the more easelie lay the whole matter before their eyes, and shew it to be true. The wordes were, I will preach (said these false Prophets) or Prophesie vnto thee for wine, and for Sicera, that is, for euery sweete drinke, and strong, such as will make drunke, the which shall be vnto thee and growe this yeare. For I thinke that in these wordes is not so much signified the price or reward (the which notwithstanding these Prophets required, as namely being in deede hirelings) as the thing it selfe to bee no∣ted, whose increase they promised vnto the Israelites as from the mouth of God, that they might turne them away from the threat∣nings of the true Prophets, and from the feare of the iudgements of God. Example 1. King. 22. ver. 12. in all the false Prophets which agree with Zidkiiah against Michaiah, and prophesie vnto the

King, saying: Goe vp to Ramoth Gilead, and prosper: for the Lorde shall deliuer it into the Kings hand. And ver. 24. When Zidkiiah smi∣teth Michaiah, and asketh him, when went the spirite of the Lorde (which he neuer had) from me to speake vnto thee? So Ierem 28. ver. 2. Hananiah the false Propher lyeth, and saith: Thus speaketh the Lord of hostes, the God of Israel, saying, I haue broken the yoke of the King of Babel. And therefore against such in the chapter following ver 8. Ieremie saith thus vnto the people: Thus saith the Lorde of hostes, the God of Israel, let not your Prophets and your south sayers that be among you, deceiue you, neither giue eare vnto your dreames, which you dreame. For they prophesie you a lye in my name: I haue not sent them, saith the Lord. And ver. 21. setting downe particular ex∣amples: Thus saith the Lord of hostes the God of Israel, of Ahab the sonne of Kolaiah, and of Zedekiah, the sonne of Maaseiah, which prophesie lyes vnto you in my name, Beholde, I will deliuer them into the hand of Nebuchad-nezzar King of Babel, and he shall slaie them before your eyes. Therefore concerning the Prophesies of such as these, it shall fall out as Paul writeth 1. Thess. 5. ver. 3. When they shall say peace and safetie, then shall come vpon them suddaine destruction, as the trauaile vpon a woman with childe, and they shall not escape. Wherefore the Prophet to shew this humor of the false prophets in preaching lyes for gaine vseth the letter Lamed, and not the worde (gnal) that as I said, he might signifie that these when afflictions or troubles were at hand, setting themselues against them promised that all should be well, but falsely notwithstanding.

* 1.4The second thing that is here to be noted, containeth a descrip∣tion or setting out of these false Prophets by their epithets or titles, the which are here twaine: for they are said To walke in the spirite or winde, that is to say, to seeke after and boast of vaine things. For the word spirit or winde in this place,* 1.5 and often else where doth signi∣fie emptie promises, smokie boastings, & vaine, as it doth Oseas 8. ver. 7. For they haue sowne the winde, and shall reape the whirlewinde. And Prouerb. 11. ver. 29. He that troubleth his own house, shall inhe∣rit the winde. So then these false Prophets are but things puffed vp with winde, cloudes without water, as Iude saith in his epistle ver. 12. speaking swelling vanitie, as Peter saith Epist. 2. cap. 2. ver. 18. In a word, great boasters, but vaine. Also they are said to lye falsely.* 1.6 For they are found to promise false things, that is to say, not igno∣rantly, as it often falleth out beyond our hope, but wittinglie and knowing of it, and therefore to lye, that is, of set purpose

to deceiue men, whereby their offence is shewed to bee the more shamefull, and the lesse excuseable. After the same manner, and with the same colours are false prophets painted out by Peter in his second epistle cap. 2. and by Iude in his epistle. And therefore they are most mad, and enemies vnto their owne saluation, which wish for such teachers, follow them, or preferre them before the true prophets of God. The which thing notwithstanding the spirit of God hath foretold shal fal out vnto vs vnder the gospel. 2. Tim. 3.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Vnto what contempt of God and his doctrine the Is∣raelites were come.
• * 1.2

  Two things to be noted in this verse.
• * 1.3

  1. The phrase. What the fi∣gure Mime∣sis is, see Oseas cap 4. ver. 18.
• * 1.4

  2. A description of the false prophets by two titles.
• * 1.5

  1. That they walke in the winde.
• * 1.6

  2. That they lye falsely.