Annotations upon the remaining historicall part of the Old Testament. The second part. to wit, the books of Joshua, Judges, the two books of Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles, and the books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther : wherein first, all such passages in the text are explained as were thought likely to be questioned by any reader of ordinary capacity : secondly, in many clauses those things are discovered which are needfull and usefull to be known ... and thirdly, many places that might at first seem to contradict one another are reconciled ... / by Arthur Jackson.

CHAP. I.

THen Moab rebelled against Israel, after the death of Ahab.] By David the Moabites were subdued, and made tributaries to the Israelites, 2. Sam. 8.2. but when that great breach was made in the kingdome of Israel, ten of the tribes revol∣ting from the house of David, and making Jeroboam king, the Moabites it seems revolted also from the house of David, and rather chose to give themselves for vassalls to the kings of Israel, upon whose kingdome their land bordered, and so they continued unto the dayes of Ahab; and now upon some advantage espied, to wit, the late overthrow of the Israelites by the Syrians, and the death of Ahab; or per∣haps the feeble spirit and weak condition of Ahaziah, because of his fall, Mesha the present king of Moab rebelled, and refused any longer to pay the tributes of an hun∣dred thousand lambes, and an hundred thousand rammes with their wool which hi∣therto he had paid yearely to the kings of Israel, chap. 3.4, 5.

Vers. 2. And Ahaziah fell down through a lattesse in his upper chamber, &c.] Walking in his palace of Samaria, some grate in the floor of his chamber (whereby perhaps light was conveyed to the lower room) did suddenly break, and so he fell through, and was mortally bruised with the fall: and thus God began already to cut off the accursed posterity of wicked Ahab. Indeed it may well seem somewhat im∣probable, that there should be lattesses in the upper chambers of a kings palace to let in light to the chambers beneath them; and therefore some understand by the word here translated the upper chamber, the flat roof of his house, and by the lattesse the battlements that used to be about the roofs of their houses, Deut. 22.8. and indeed for the reason before alledged, I make little question but that it was either the battle∣ments on the house top, or some rails with lattesses, or crosse barres, in some gallery adjoyning to his upper chamber (not unlike to our belconies) whereon the king leaning they brake, and so he fell through, and was mortally bruised.

And he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, enquire of Baal-zebub, &c.] That is, the God of flies: why he was so called it is uncertain, whether because it was said, that this God appeared to his priests in the likenesse of a flie, and so buzzed his oracles into their eares, or because of the swarms of flies that were continually in his Temple, by reason of the multitude of sacrifices that were there daily slain; or rather, because they supposed this their idol-god, called here the god of Ekron, had power over the flies, wherewith in those hot countreys they were much annoyed, especially in Ekron, which stood in a moist wet countrey near the sea; or perhaps, in remembrance of some grievous judgement of flies, from which they conceited this their God had delivered them; but howsoever, certain it is, that this idol in time

grew very famous, and thence the Jewes afterwards used to call the prince of Devils Beelzebub, Matth. 12.24.

Vers. 5. And when the messengers turned back, &c.] Some Expositours con∣ceive, that so soon as Elijah had delivered that message, which God had given him in charge, to Ahaziahs messengers, on a suddain he was taken away out of their sight, (for so they understand the last words of the foregoing verse, and Elijah departed; that is, he immediately vanished away) and that this it was that so affrighted the messengers, that they durst not go on in their journey: but I rather think with o∣thers, that Elijahs telling them the secret message which they were sent about, and his foretelling the kings death, made them encline to think he was a prophet, and there∣upon to return presently to the king that sent them.

Vers. 8. And they answered him, He was an hairy man, &c.] This may be meant either that Elijah had much haire on his head or face; or else, that he had a hai∣ry mantle about him: and such indeed it seems was the usuall habit of the prophets in these times, suitable to the chief subject of their preaching, to wit, repentance: Zachary 13.4. Neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive: and there∣fore it was that the Baptist (that he might be known to be a prophet, and that second Elijah, that was foretold should be sent amongst them, Mal. 4.5.) was clad after the same manner as Elijah was, Matth. 3.4. And the same John had his rai∣ment of Camels haire, and a leathern girdle about his loyns, and his meat was lo∣custs and wild honey.

Vers. 9. Then the king sent unto him a captain of fifty with his fifty, &c.] To wit, to apprehend him, as resolving doubtlesse to take away his life, to which it is probable, his mother Jezebel did vehemently provoke him: howsoever, herein was the madnesse of his rage notably discovered: had he not thought Elijah armed with a power above that of man, what needed he have sent a troop of souldiers to appre∣hend one poore unarmed man: and if he did think so, what a desperate folly was it to fight against the Almighty?

And he spake unto him, Thou man of God, the king hath said, Come down.] This he spake by was of derision and scorn; as if he should have said, you that boast your self to be a man of God, and under that pretence take liberty to send what bold messages you please to your king; know, that the king by me commands you to come down, and if you obey not his command, here I have those that will fetch you down.

Vers. 10. If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, &c.] If I be indeed a man of God, as you onely term me in scorn and derision, let it be manifest in the coming of that to passe, which I now foretell; even, that fire may come down from heaven and consume thee and thy fifty: this he denounced against them, out of a singular zeal for Gods glory, and by a speciall instinct of Gods spirit: and therefore when the disciples of Christ, out of a carnall desire of revenge, would have imitated this act of Elijah; they were reproved by our Saviour; the rather, because they, in regard of the Gospel, that were called to preach were more espe∣cially to shew all meeknesse and gentlenesse to men, and to desire rather to save then to destroy, Luke 9.54, 55. And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and

consume them even as Elias did: But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of, &c.

Vers. 11. O man of God, thus hath the king said, Come down quickly.] To expresse his bold resolution, and that he feared not to execute the kings command, because of that terrible end which befell the former captain and his fifty; he not onely injoyns the prophet to come down, but presseth him also to do it speedily, as implying that he would not be delayed, but would dragge him down by force, if he would not yield instantly.

Vers. 13. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah &c.] Though he had not so much faith, and courage, and goodnesse in him, as to disswade the king from sending again, or to refuse to obey his com∣mand, yet out of the feare of that vengeance that fell upon those that were sent before, he humbled himself before the prophet, and sued to him to spare their lives.

Vers. 16. Thou shalt not come down off that bed, on which thou art gone up, &c.] We reade not of any violence that the king offered to the prophet when he was come to him, though thus boldly he seconded by word of mouth that message which he had formerly sent him by his servants; so mightily did God over-aw him, that erewhile was so resolute to be revenged on the prophet; and happely, the unexpected confidence of the prophet, in delivering this message, made him feare that he came armed with power from God, to execute some judgement on him, and so that might over-aw him.

Vers. 17. And Jehoram reigned in his stead, in the second yeare of Jehoram the sonne of Jehoshaphat, &c.] Ahaziah dying without children, his brother Jeho∣ram a second sonne of Ahab, chap. 3.1. reigned in his stead. But may some say, Ahaziah his brother began to reign in the seventeenth yeare of Jehoshaphat, 1 Kings 22.51. Jehoram therefore (though we should assigne to Ahaziahs reigne two com∣plete yeares, as is there said) must needs succeed in the nineteenth yeare of Jehosha∣phat, who reigned in all twenty five yeares, 1 Kings 22.42. and how is it then said, that he began his reigne in the second yeare of Jehoram the sonne of Jehoshaphat: I answer, that Jehoshaphat in the seventeenth yeare of his reigne, when he went with Ahab to recover Ramoth Gilead from the Syrians, designed as king his sonne Jehoram, and though when he returned, he reassumed the government into his own hands; yet the eighteenth yeare of his reigne (wherein Jehoram the sonne of Ahab entred upon the crown of Israel, chap. 3.1.) is here called the second yeare of Jehoram his sonne, as counting from his first designement to the crown in the life of his father.