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. 21.

Feare not, O land, but be glad, and reioyce: for the Lord will doe great things.

* 1.1A Confirmation of the former promises of God by the gladnesse, or signe of wonder, whereunto the Church repenting is exhor∣ted by God himselfe. And to the end that this helpe and comfort promised by God, may bee vnderstood to be most plentifull, both those, whom God at that time shall comfort, are rehearsed: & those things also are reckoned vp, the which God will giue for the com∣forting of his Church in such maner: and these are partly earthie,* 1.2 and partly spirituall. The earthie are first declared, and those espe∣cially,* 1.3 the which did asswage & ease the miserie at that time threat∣ned by the Prophet.

* 1.4But this verse hath two parts. The first containeth an exhorta∣tion vnto wonderfull great ioy. The second, the cause of the same exhortation. Now the land it selfe is exhorted to reioyce, vnder which word we doe first of all by the figure Metonymia vnderstand the dwellers in the land, and that all in generall, that is, the migh∣tie,

and the poore: the males, and the females: the masters and the seruants: these of riper yeares and bigger growth, and the little infants. For as before vers. 16. all were exhorted vnto sorowe and mourning: so likewise are all now stirred vp vnto ioy and gladnes. Secondly, by this selfe same word land, is signified the element of the earth it selfe. For the same it selfe shall then be made partaker of this blessing of God, as it is made now of the curse because of the sinnes of the people. So before cap. 1. ver. 10. the earth is sayd to mourne. And it is exhorted vnto all kind of gladnes, feare & dread being banished before, the which doubtles might be a let or hinde∣rance thereunto. So be the words of this verse: first, Feare not, then, be glad and reioyce. For here both inward and also outward ioy is described by the Prophet by the words of being glad, and reioy∣cing.

[unspec 2] Now the cause of this stirring vp and exhortation vnto ioy is the most assured promise of God concerning the deliuerance, helping and comforting of the earth, that is of the Church, the which was to insue: and the same not any common or small, but most excel∣lent, great, and indeed miraculous or wonderfull, vnlooked for, and extraordinarie ioy and gladnes. For God will studie withall his in∣deuour to doe it, that is, to lift it vp and aduance it, as the enemies, of whom mention was made before, with all their indeuour labou∣red to oppresse and destroy it. Wherefore here, and in the verse be∣fore there is a manifest Antithesis, or matching together of con∣traries, betweene the indeuour of God, and of the enemies of his Church: his in comforting: theirs in ouerthrowing of the Church.

Notes

• * 1.1

  A confirmatiō of the former promises of God.
• * 1.2

  Two parts of this verse.
• * 1.3

  1. An exhortatiō vnto ioy.
• * 1.4

  2. The cause of this exhortatiō. What the fi∣gure Metony∣mia is, see O∣seas cap. 4. ve. ••