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Messiah; though the remainder of this book describes the consequences of his coming, in the calling of the Gentiles, the rejection of the Jews, and the final establishment of the church of Christ. In order to prevent confusion, the whole of this book, like those of the other prophets, has been explained together; though, as has been observed before, Micah certainly, and perhaps Jonah and Amos, were cotemporary with him during his long mission. But to ascertain the exact dates of the several prophecies, and to shew to what parts of the writings of the cotemporary prophets they should be referred, would now be impossible, and, even if possible, useless. That some of these prophets lived at the same time, in different parts of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, and foretold the same great event in various modes of expression, was certainly a means of spreading the prediction more diffusively; and is so far from weakening the argument, that it rather adds strength to it.

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CHAPTER IX.

The Prophecies of Jeremiah.

NEXT to these cotemporary prophets, and the last who wrote before the Babylonian captivity, Jeremiah flourished. He began to prophecy about seventy years after the death of Isaiah, and his mission continued above forty years.

The general subject of his writings has but little reference to the christian dispensation, and principally relates to the great event of the Babylonian captivity then near at hand. But in the midst of his threatenings, there are some passages which offer comfort to the people, by renewing the gracious promise of a Redeemer to come. The first of these is in the 5th verse of the xxiiid chapter. After having, in the beginning of this chapter, accused the wicked pastors of the house of Israel

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Israel of having scattered their flocks, the prophet assures the people that they shall be brought again to their folds; and then by a very natural transition, proceeds to foretel the coming of Christ the true Pastor*. Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, The Lord our righteousness. These two verses are appointed to be read, in our church service, for the Epistle, on the Sunday next before Advent; and are therefore obviously meant to be applied to that particular season of the coming of Christ. Now the term branch is used, in several other passages of scripture in describing our Saviour; as in Isaiah iv. 2, where it has already been explained. This branch was to be raised unto David,

* I am the good shepherd. John x. 14. A common metaphor among the Heathen as well as in Scripture, for a good King; suny λawv-Homer.

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that is, to be descended from him; he was to be a King, to execute judgment, and to bring salvation to Israel and Judah; all which attributes sufficiently point out him who was born King of the Jews, the Holy One and the Just, the Saviour of the world, the Lord our Righteousness.

But though the application of these words to Christ be so obvious, yet Grotius and others refer them to him in a secondary sense only; and contend that they were completed in their primary sense by Zerubbabel, who conducted the Jews in their restoration from their captivity in Babylon. Now it must be allowed that the verses immediately preceding these, as well as those which follow, have no immediate reference to Christ, but relate either to the return of the Jews from Babylon, or to the final restoration of both branches of the house of Israel to their own land *; or indeed possibly to them both.

*This is one of the strongest passages to prove the temporal restoration of the children of Israel to the Holy Land. The Author had some doubts upon this curious and interesting

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both. However these sudden transitions from one subject to another, are very frequent in the prophetic writings. Jeremiah having foretold the blessings, consequent on the return of the people to their own dwellings, his thoughts were naturally led to a much greater salvation, and turned from temporal to spiritual deliverance; and he suddenly leaves the subject of their restoration, to assure them that the days are also coming, when Messiah their great Redeemer shall arise. He then reverts to that, which may at first sight seem to be his original subject, of their return from Babylon; but which probably foretels a much greater and more general restoration of the whole nation to the land of Palestine, and which they are to consider as a

esting subject, which have been removed by Mr. Faber's copious and learned dissertation, upon the fulfillment of those prophecies. The first eight verses of this chapter seem to foretel three events, in an exact chronological arrangement. The first four verses the return from Babylon; the fifth and sixth, the coming of Christ; the seventh and eighth, the general return of the whole seed of the house of Israel from all countries to dwell in their own land; which last event is still to come.

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