This chapter is a prophecy concerning the desolations of the land of Israel, and the causes of them; of the return of the people to it, and the fruitfulness of it; and of spiritual blessings bestowed upon them in the latter day.

Also, thou son of man, prophesy unto the mountains of Israel, &c.] The land of Judah, which was very mountainous, at least one part of it, called the hill country, (Luke 1:39, Luke 1:65) and now the country being cleared of men through the captivity, and other desolating judgments, there were none…

Thus saith the Lord God By the mouth of the prophet, who was bid to prophesy: because the enemy had said against you, aha: rejoicing at the calamity of God’s people, particularly the Edomites or Idumeans, as in the preceding chapter; and who are chiefly meant; and also the Ammonites and Tyrians, :…

Therefore prophesy and say, thus saith the Lord God Who heard all the enemy said, and knew all their designs and purposes, their schemes and devices: because they have made you desolate; ravaged their country, destroyed their cities, burnt their temple, and carried them captive, and left the land…

Therefore, ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord, &c.] As in , here repeated to raise and quicken their attention to what was about to be said to them: thus saith the Lord God to the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys, to the desolate wastes, and to the…

Therefore thus saith the Lord God Because these Heathens have acted such an unkind and cruel part to Israel: surely in the fire of my jealousy have I spoken; in his fierce wrath and hot displeasure, resenting the ill usage of his people; hot with indignation against their enemies, having a fervent…

Prophesy therefore concerning the land of Israel And the inhabitants of it, for their comfort, in this their time of distress: and say unto the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys, thus saith the Lord God, I have spoken in my jealousy and in my fury; with great zeal for…

Therefore thus saith the Lord God This being the case, the people of God being in distress, and under shame and disgrace, and the enemy insulting them, and triumphing over them: I have lifted up mine hand; solemnly swore; lifting up of the hand being a rite used by men when they swore, : surely the…

But ye, O mountains of Israel Literally understood, as appears by what follows; for though they could not hear what was said, the proprietors of them could, now in captivity; and the efficacy of the word should be seen on them, producing the following effects: ye shall shoot forth your branches;…

For, behold, I am for you For the mountains, that they might be cultivated and become fruitful, and be of advantage to their proprietors, and appear beautiful and lovely to behold, as well as to be useful: and I will turn unto you; the Lord had turned from them, and left them a prey to the enemy,…

And I will multiply men upon you Who should inhabit the cities on the mountains, and increase very much: all the house of Israel, even all of it: not the Heathens should be multiplied on them, but the Israelites, all of them, and them only; all the tribes of Israel, the ten tribes as well as the…

And I will multiply upon you man and beast Not only men, but beasts also, of which the mountains had been deprived, being killed by the enemy for present use, or drove off for future subsistence; but now there should be an increase of them, which should feed upon the herbage of the mountains, and…

Yea, I will cause men to walk upon you And not beasts, as during the captivity; and that without fear of wild beasts, or any enemy; and not as travellers upon them, but as inhabitants of them; who shall walk to and fro upon them, as the owners of them, and doing their proper business there: even my…

Thus saith the Lord God, because they say unto you The Heathens that dwelt round about the land of Judea said to the mountains, or to the whole land, thou land devourest up men; eats up the inhabitants of it; which is part of the ill report the spies, in the times of Moses, brought on it, , to…

Therefore thou shalt devour men no more Or they shall be no more destroyed in thee by pestilence, famine, sword, or other means: neither bereave that nations any more, saith the Lord; or, “thou shalt not cause them to fall any more” [[9]], for so it is written, as in , though the marginal reading…

Neither will I cause men to hear in thee the shame of the Heathen any more Their calumnies and revilings, their scoffs and jeers: neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the people any more; or be any more a taunt and a curse, a proverb and a byword of the people; or be their laughing stock, and…

Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me Here begins another prophecy, which was delivered about the same time with the former: saying; as follows:

Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, &c.] The land of Canaan, which the Lord their God gave unto them; a land abounding with all good things, where they dwelt in great ease, plenty, and prosperity; and which also was a holy land, peculiarly chosen of God for his worship and…

Wherefore I poured my fury on them Like a mighty flood that carries all before it, in just retaliation for the blood they had shed upon the land; the innocent blood, as the Targum; the blood of righteous men, that opposed and reproved them for their sinful ways; the blood of the prophets, that were…

And I scattered them among the Heathen First by the Chaldeans, in the various provinces of Babylon; and next by the Romans, in the various parts of the world; and in this condition they now are: and they were dispersed through the countries; or blown about as chaff, stubble, or any such like thing,…

And when they entered unto the Heathen, whither they went, &c.] When the Jews went into the Heathen countries, whither they were carried captive, either by the Chaldeans, or by the Romans: they profaned my holy name; by their irreligion and immorality; by their violation of both tables of the law;…

But I had pity for my holy name Had pity on the Jews for his name’s sake, and not theirs; or he had a tender concern for his own honour and glory: which the house of Israel had profaned among the Heathen, whither they went; and therefore was resolved to take a method for the glorifying of it, and…

Therefore say unto the house of Israel This is an order to the prophet, the son of man, : thus saith the Lord God, I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel; what he hereafter promises to do for them, both with respect to things temporal and spiritual; which he did, not on account of any…

And I will sanctify my great name The same with his holy name; for his greatness lies in his holiness; which name he sanctifies when he clears it from all charges and imputations; when he makes it appear to be holy and himself to be glorious in holiness; when he vindicates the honour of his name,…

For I will take you from among the Heathen The Chaldeans and other nations, among whom they were carried captive; and the Papists, among whom many of them now are, often called Heathens and Gentiles in Scripture: this will be fully completed at the time of the Jews’ conversion in the latter day:…

Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you Not baptismal water, as Jerom; an ordinance indeed of the Gospel, and to which the Jews will submit when converted; and which is performed by water, but not by sprinkling, nor does it cleanse from sin; and is administered by men, and is not an operation of…

A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you A “new heart” and a “new spirit” are one and the same; that is, a renewed one; renewed by the Spirit and grace of God; in which a new principle of life is put; new light is infused; a new will, filled with new purposes and…

And I will put my Spirit within you My Holy Spirit, as the Targum; the Spirit of holiness; the author of internal sanctification, of the new heart and spirit, and of the fleshy one before mentioned; and through whose grace and strength the saints do what is after said they shall do: and cause you…

And ye shall dwell in the land which I gave to your fathers, &c.] Not only shall be brought into it, but shall inhabit it, and continue there, and that in great safety and plenty; and which will be the more valued and esteemed, and reckoned a great blessing to enjoy; because this land is the gift…

And I will also save you from all your uncleannesses From all their filthy lusts of pride, envy, malice, covetousness, whoredom, blasphemy, and infidelity, to which the Jews are now addicted; but at this time shall be saved from the power and dominion of them by the sanctifying grace of the Spirit;…

And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field The fruit of trees that grow in gardens, and orchards, and vineyards, as pomegranates, apples, olives, grapes and the corn and grass of the field; so that there shall be great plenty of each of these, and no want of anything…

Then shall ye remember your own evil ways That were of their own choosing; in which they walked, and delighted to walk: and very evil ones they were; opposite to the ways of God; such as open violation of the law of God; neglect of his worship; idolatry, and many other sins, before the captivity;…

Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord Not for any worth or worthiness in them; for any merit or desert of theirs; for any goodness in them, or works of righteousness done by them; no, it purely flowed from his own unmerited grace and goodness; for his own sake, and for his own glory, will he…

Thus saith the Lord God, in the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities By the free and full pardon of them; by sprinkling clean water on them, the blood of Christ on their consciences; and by applying the righteousness of Christ to them for their justification; as well as by…

And the desolate land shall be tilled The land of Judea, which lay desolate during the captivity, and which now is under the dominion of the Turks, and in a ruinous state, shall be manured and cultivated, and become fruitful, as it formerly was: or the people of the Jews, who, in a spiritual sense,…

And they shall say Either the neighbouring nations that lived round about the land of Israel, , or rather the travellers, as before, who having as they passed by observed what it had been, and now see what it is; these shall say to one another: this land that was desolate is become like the garden…

Then the Heathen that are left round about you Not cut off by the judgments which came upon them, according to the prophecies in chapter twenty five and twenty six, the residue of the Ammonites, Moabites, Edomites, and Tyrians; and, in the mystical sense, this may design the residue of the…

Thus saith the Lord God, I will yet for this be inquired of by the house of Israel Besought and prayed unto for the accomplishment of the above promises, as well as what follows: for though God has promised and will perform, yet he expects that his people will apply to him for it; it is our duty to…

As the holy flock, as the flock of Jerusalem in her solemn feasts Like flocks of sheep, which were consecrated and set apart for holy uses, for sacrifices; even like the flocks of sheep, which were brought to Jerusalem to be offered in sacrifice at the three solemn festivals in the year; especially…