A brief exposition on the XII. smal prophets: the first volume containing an exposition on the prophecies of Hosea, Joel, & Amos. By George Hutcheson, minister at Edenburgh.

Ver. 7. For they have sowen the winde, and they shall reape the whirlwind, it hath no stalke, the bud shall yeeld no meale: if so be it yeeld, the strangers shall swallow it up.

In the third place, the punishment for these sins, which was briefly spoken of before, is amplified and enlarged in a twofold sentence or threatning. The first is; that as their wayes were vain and naught, as if a man had sowen the winde, so their hopes thereby should not only be disappointed and their Labour vain, but it should prove hurtfull; their harvest should be a whirl∣winde

and tempest. This is again illustrate from a new simili∣tude of an harvest, which though it may be true literally, that their corne-harvest should prove so; yet it seemes here rather to be a Metaphor, shewing that it should be with them, as if the seed they sowed should either not grow to a stalk, or if it did, yet it should want a blessing and prove no food, or if there were any increase, yet it should be eaten up by enemies: So they should reap no benefit by their Idolatrous courses, or if they seemed to prosper, yet it should not be blessed, but the enemies should ruine all of it. Whence learn, 1. God is so jealous an avenger of I∣dolatry and corrupt worship in his Church, that he will undo a whole Nation, before he do not ruine these courses, which they will not reforme themselves; For, this sentence cometh in as a reason and confirmation of his sentence against the calves, ver. 6. the calfe of Samaria shall be broken in pieces, for they have sowen the winde, &c. that is, I will destroy the calfe, and for that end, I will destroy you, that it may come into the power of enemies, who shall break it in pieces. 2. However many men do under∣take courses with great hopes, (for men do sowe in hope) yet they do oft-times employ their pains to no purpose or profit; For, they have sowen the winde. All such as follow Idolatry, or any sinfull, unprofitable, or ambitious course, their very sowing and undertaking promiseth no good event, it being but like winde and empty. See Prov. 11.29, Eccl. 5.16. Hos. 12.1. 3. Not only may men expect to reap as they sowe; but sinfull and vain courses will bring further disadvantages, and raise a violent tem∣pest either in the undertakers conscience, or outward condition, or both; For, they have sowen the winde, and they shall reap the whirlwinde, which is a tempestuous winde, 4. Albeit the Lord do not alike soone discover the vanity of all sinfull courses, by his judgements; yet in due time he will do it, and make it the saddest judgement of all, that men seemed to reap profit for a while in their way, and then all is blasted; For, some get not so much as a stalk of their sowing; Some get that, and yet the bud shall yield no meal; and some whose successe is more promising, yet are met with and get it saddest of all, that af∣ter their hope and probable expectations, the strangers shall swallow it up.