An exposition continued upon the sixt, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth chapters of the prophet Ezekiel, with useful observations thereupon. Delivered in severall lectures in London, By William Greenhill.

CHAP. VII.

23. Make a chaine, for the Land is full of bloody crimes, and the City is full of violence.

IN this Verse is another calamity, and the cause of it laid downe. The calamity is a chaine, the cause blood, violence.

Make a Chaine.

Trouble, saith the Sept. a Conclusion, the vulgar, the Hebrew is, a Chaine, and so it's rendered in 1 Kings 6.21. Chaines, and so the Rabbies take it here; we may extend it to a roap, a wyth, a chaine, any thing that a man may be bound with

A chain is an embleme of bondage, Nabum 3.10. Her great ones shall be bound in chains, Psalm 107.10. Acts 12.6. & Jerem. 28.13, 14. The yoke of Iron that the Prophet was to make no∣ted the imbondaging of the Nations unto Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylon.

Whether by the Chaine be prefigured the siege of Jerusa∣lem as some interpret it, or leading into captivity as others will have it: Bondage is included in both: Some thinke the Lord here alludes to Malefactors, that in chaines answered at the Bar of Justice as Paul did, Acts 26.29. They had freely and fully runne out in vitious courses, but now they were to answer it to God who was set in judgement, and sentencing them to suffer heavy things: This also notes bondage, which is the sense of the Prophet.

In a Chain 4 things are considerable.

First, It's burthensome, heavy, 1 Kings 12.10. Thy father

made our yoake heavy. And yokes, chaines, fetters about neckes, armes, legges, are grievous; when Peter was bound with two chaines, Acts 12.6. it was troublesome unto him, and so was the condition of these Jewes, the siege, their captivity was very burthensome; therefore Lam. 3.7. the Church saith, hee hath made my chaine heavy. Shee cals her bondage a chaine, and a heavy one.

2. It's restrictive, a mans liberty of going and doing is taken away by a chaine, Acts 21.23. When Paul was bound with chaines, whither could he goe, what could he doe, and bon∣dage by a siege, captivity, Imprisonment, sicknesse, or otherwise, is a restraint of a man, which are threatned here: Jehoahaz was put in bands at Riblath, that hee might not reigne in Jerusalem, 2 Kings 23.33.

3. Reproachfull, 2 Tim. 1.16. Onesiphorus was not asha∣med of my chaine. There is shame and reproach attending chain••, and therefore Paul at the Bar, when he wished Agrippa and o∣thers were such as he was, excepted his bonds as reproachfull things, Acts 26.29. This is threatned here, and was made good, Jerem. 39.7. Zedekiah had his eyes put out, and was bound with two brazen chaines, and so the thing he feared came upon him, mocking and reproach, Jer. 38.19. And not only he, but all of them should be for a curse, an astonishment, an hissing, and a reproach among all Nations, Jer. 29.18.

4. Tendency to further punishment: Paul was bound, Acts 21.33. with two chains. And Acts 24.27. two yeares hee lay in bonds, and to what end, that he might come to judgement, and have further punishment, and he was to that purpose brought be∣fore Agrippa and Festus, Acts 26.29. and that in bonds, they tend to other and sorer judgements: Hence the Devils are said to be in chaines of darknesse reserved unto judgement, 2 Pet. 2.4. Jude 6. They have not their full damnation, they are semi-dam∣nati, halfe condemn'd, and kept in chaines for the rest, and here God would chain up these Jewe with bondage, and rese ve them in bondage to further pun••••hment, even eternall destruction, Job 21.30. The wicked are reserved to the day of d••struction, they shall be brought forth to the day of wrath.

The Land is full of bloody crimes.

The Hebrew is, the judgement of bloods, they gave out unjust sentences that had power, and condemn'd the innocent; guilty men were spared, and the good suffered, 2 King. 21.16. Ma∣nasses filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, Athaliah slew all the Royal seed, 2 Kings 11.1. Naboth is falsly condemn'd & ston'd to death, 1 King. 21.13. Zechariah is slain by an unjust sentence, 2 Chron. 24.21. Joash the King was slain by his servants, vers. 25. Hence its said, Isa. 59.3. That their hands were defiled with blood, that they were full of blood, Isa. 1.15. And here, that the land is full of bloody crimes, Ezek. 22.6. Every Prince in Israel to his power did shed blood.

By bloody crimes some understand heinous sins, capitall offences, such as deserv'd death, and the shedding of mens blood as Idola∣try, Deut. 13.6.9. Blasphemy, Levit. 24.16. Witchery, sorcery, Lev. 20.27. Buggery, Levit. 20.15, 16. Sodomie, vers. 13. Adultery, vers. 10. Rapes, Deut. 22.25. False witnessing, to take away a mans life, Deut. 19.16.18, 19.21. Stealing, any man, woman, or child, Exod. 21.16. These, with murther and treason were bloody sinnes. So that the meaning may be, the Land was so full of these crimes, that it could not escape severe punishment, Hosea 4.25. By swearing, lying, killing, stealing, and commit∣ting Adultery, they breake out, and blood touches blood, therefore shall the Land mourn; &c.

The City is full of violence.

This holy City was now so corrupted, that whereas God and men expected Justice and Righteousnesse at Jerusalem a∣bove all places in the world, there was violence; yea, a fulnesse of violence.

By violence, understand what ever was contrary to Iustice and equity, as fraud in bargaining, Thefts, oppression, usury, with-holding of rights and wages from the owners thereof, pillaging men of their estates, &c. Ezek. 22.7. In thee, that is Jerusalem, have they set light by Father and Mother. oppressed

the Stranger, vexed the Fatherlesse and Widowes.

[Obser. 1] That blood and violence, the sparing of the guilty, and condemning of the innocent, doe bring Lands and Cities into bondage, such sinnes put them into chaines, which are burthen∣some, reproachfull, restrictive, and tending to further miseries, Ezek. 12.19. They shall eate their bread with carefulnesse, and drinke their water with astonishment, that her Land may be desolate from all that is therein, because of the violence of all them that dwell therein. It's spoken of Jerusalem, Ezek. 22.4. Thou art become guilty in thy blood that thou hast shedde, and hast defiled thy selfe in thine Idols which thou hast made, and thou hast caused thy dayes to draw neere, and art come even unto thy yeares: therefore have I made thee a reproach unto the Heathen, and a mocking to all Coun∣treyes.

Jerusalems sins brought reproaching chains upon her, which griev'd and much vext her, vers. 5. Zephaniah 3.3. Woe to her that is filthy & polluted, to the oppressing City. And why woe to her, which includes all miseries, all judgments, her Princes within her are roaring Lyons, her Judges are evening wolves, they sucke the blood, eat the flesh, and gnawed the bones of the people, and therefore woe to them, Jer. 6.6, 7, 8. Hew yee downe trees, cast a mount against Jerusalem, this is the City to be visited, she is wholly oppression in the midst of her. As a fountaine casteth out her waters, so she casteth out her wickednesse: violence and spoile is heard in her, before me continually is griefe and wounds. Be thou instructed O Jerusalem, lest my soule depart from thee, lest I make thee desolate, a Land not inhabited. She refused instruction, and was made de∣solate, let us be instructed now we look to have our chains bro∣ken, &c. Jer. 22.15, 16. when Josiah judged the cause of the poor and needy, then it was well with him and the Land. But when Je∣hoiakims eyes and heart were for covetousnesse, blood, oppressi∣on, violence, then God threatned that he should be cast out, and buried with the buriall of an Asse, vers. 17.19. Isa. 10.1. Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, and that write grievous∣nesse which they have prescribed; To turn aside the needy from judge∣ment, and to take away the right from the poor of my people, that wi∣dows may be their prey, and that they may robbe the fatherlesse, and what will ye doe in the day of visitation, to whom will ye flee for

help, and where will you have your glory. Let Magistrates, Judg∣es, men in place take heed what decrees they make, what sen∣tences they pronounce in judgement, they may make our chaine heavy, &c. Let people pray earnestly that God would assist them, guide them by his Spirit, that they may judge righteous judgement, execute justice upon Delinquents, and keep the Land from blood and violence. Of Edom it's said, for thy violence a∣gainst thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever, Obad. vers. 10.

Notes

• 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉