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be in rest, and at ease, and none shall make him 28 afraid. Fear thou not, O Jacob my servant, faith the Lord, for I am with thee, for I will make a full end of all the nations whither I have driven thee, but I will not make a full end of thee, but correct thee in measure; yet will I not wholly leave thee unpunished.

These two last Prophecies are alone sufficient to confute the opinion of those who deny any future Restoration of Ifrael.

EZEKIEL prophefied in the land of the Chaldeans, about the year 595 before Chrift.

XXXVII.

EZEK. xvi. 53. When I shall bring again their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her daughters, and the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, then will I bring again the captivity of thy captives, in 54 the midst of them. So that thou mayeft bear thine own shame, and mayest be confounded in all that thou hast done, in that thou art a comfort unto

55 them. When thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters shall return to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall return to their former eftate, then thou and thy daughters shall return to your 59 former estate *. For thus faith the Lord God, I

* As for their captyvite, namely, the captyvite of Sodom and her daughters: the captyvite of Samaria and her daughters: I wyll brynge them again, so wyll I also brynge again thy captyvite amonge them.

TINDALE. will

will even deal with thee as thou hast done *, which haft despised the oath in breaking the covenant. 60 Nevertheless, I will remember my covenant with thee in the days of thy youth, and I will stablish 61 unto thee an everlasting covenant. Then thou shalt remember thy ways and be ashamed, when thou shalt receive thy fifters, thine elder and thine younger : and I will give them unto thee for daughters but 62 not by covenantt. And I will stablish my covenant with thee, and thou shalt know that I am the 63 Lord. That thou mayest remember, and be confounded, and never open thy mouth any more because of thy shame, when I am pacified toward thee for all that thou hast done, faith the Lord God.

Some may, perhaps, conclude, from ver. 55. that there shall be no return of Ifrael, because it is faid, they shall not return to their former eftate till Sodom and Samaria shall return; but from the following verses it plainly appears, that this is a wrong conclufion. For it is said, ver. 60 and 61, I will remember my covenant with thee, &c. and thou Shalt remember thy ways, &c. thou shalt receive thy Sisters, thine elder, and thy younger: and I will give them unto thee for daughters, &c. all which rather prove that Sodom and Samaria shall be restored, than that Judah shall not.

* I shoulde (by ryght) deale with thee as thou hast done, TINDALE. Which translation is much more agreeable to what follows in the next verse.

+ And that beside thy covenant.

TINDALE.

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XXXVIII. XXXVIII.

EZEK. XX. 39. As for you, O house of Ifrael, thus faith the Lord, Go yé, serve ye every man his idols, and hereafter also if ye will not hearken unto me: but pollute ye my holy name no more with 40 your gifts, and with your idols *. For in mine holy mountain, in the mountain of the height of Ifrael, faith the Lord God, there shall all the house of Ifrael, all of them in the land serve me; there will I accept them, and there will I require your offerings, and the first-fruits of your oblations, with all

41 your holy things. I will accept you with your sweet favour, when I bring you out from the people, and gather you out of the countries wherein ye have been scattered, and I will be sanctified in you be42 fore the heathen. And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall bring you into the land of Ifrael, into the country for the which I lifted up mine 43 hand to give it to your fathers. And there shall ye remember your ways and all your doings wherein ye have been defiled, and ye shall loath yourselves in your own fight, for all your evils that ye have com

44 mitted. And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have wrought with you for my name's fake, not according to your wicked ways, nor according to your corrupt doings, O ye house of Ifrael, faith the Lord God.

The gathering out of the countries wherein they were scattered, ver. 41. cannot be applied to

* Go now then (fayeth the Lorde God) ye house of Ifrael, cast awaye and destroye every man his idoles: then shall ye heare me, and no more blafpheme my holie name with your offerings and your idoles. TINDALE.

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the return from Babylon, because it is faid in the preceding verse, that ALL the house of Ifrael, ALL of them in the land shall serve the Lord, and be accepted of him in the holy mountain, whereas the two tribes only returned from that captivity. The two last verses also shew that this Prophecy does not relate to the Babylonish captivity: for fince the return from thence, Ifrael have not loathed themselves for all the evils that they have committed; neither has the Lord as yet wrought with them for his name's fake, and not according to their wicked ways, &c.

XXXIX.

EŻEK. xxviii. 25. Thus faith the Lord God, When I shall have gathered the house of Ifrael from the people among whom they are scattered, and shall be fanctified in them in the fight of the heathen, then shall they dwell in their land, that I have

26 given to my servant Jacob. And they shall dwell safely therein, and shall build houses, and plant vineyards: yea, they shall dwell with confidence, when I have executed judgments upon all those that despise them round about them, and they shall know that I am Jehovah their God.

XL.

Ezek. xxxiv. 25. And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and I will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safe26 ly in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. And I will make them, and the places round about my hill, a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come E 2 down down in his season; there shall be showers of blef27 fing. And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hands of those that

28 served themselves of them. And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beasts of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, 29 and none shall make them afraid. And I will raise, up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more confumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more.

The persons with whom the covenant of peace mentioned in ver. 25. is to be made, are they who are defcribed in the former part of the chapter, under the character of sheep; and these have been generally supposed to be the church, as it has hitherto subsisted. But the circumstances mentioned in this Prophecy, and in that before it, will by no means admit of such allegorical interpretation. The being scattered, the returning to their own land, the dwelling safely, &c. are circumstances not applicable to the Christian church, but very properly so to the dispersed Ifraelites. And that the Prophecy cannot be applied to the return from any former captivity, is plain, from ver. 29. They shall be no more consumed with hunger, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more: and also from the 28th verse, And they shall no more be a prey to the beathen.

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