He died.] His spirit even died; he was of a stout spirit, but afterwards came to be of a low, base, and sordid 1spirit, and died. They were under the sentence of death, Jeroboam's house was cut off, and Ahab's house 2cut off, and the people died at last: They came to be vile and contemptible at last, so that every body could insult over them. When a Lyon is alive and roars, he is terrible to all the Beasts; but a Lyon that is dead, the most timorous thing that is will run over, or trample upon him; So Ephraim was terrible to all about him, but when he had sinned in Baal, his honour was taken from him, and every one would insult over him, and then he was fain to crouch to every one, and the wrath of God did pursue him till it never left him, nor his family, nor the people, but they died and came to nothing; Oh the poor spirit that there was in this Tribe afterwards, When they sinned in Baal! In 1 Kings, 20. you shall see what a low and mean spirit they had, whereas before when they spake, men trembled, none could ⟨p. 415⟩make them tremble, but they made others tremble, but now in 1 King. 20. it is said of Benhadad the King of Syria, That he gathered all his host together; and he sent messengers to Ahab King of Israel into the City, and said unto him, Thus saith Benhadad, Thy silver and thy gold is mine, thy Wives also and thy Children, even the goodliest are mine. And the King of Israel answered and said, My Lord, O King, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have. They had a low and a mean spirit yielding to any thing, and 3yet of a mighty surly spirit to be cruel over those that were under him; The Lord was departed from him, and so their spirits were gone, and they were as a dead carcass, and every one then could insult over them. Thus you have the meaning of this Scripture in general; yet we shall see more particularly when we examine it in reference to Jeroboam. But from what hath been said, these are these Observations.
He died.] His spirit even died; he was of a stout spirit, but afterwards came to be of a low, base, and sordid 1spirit, and died. They were under the sentence of death, Jeroboam's house was cut off, and Ahab's house 2cut off, and the people died at last: They came to be vile and contemptible at last, so that every body could insult over them. When a Lyon is alive and roars, he is terrible to all the Beasts; but a Lyon that is dead, the most timorous thing that is will run over, or trample upon him; So Ephraim was terrible to all about him, but when he had sinned in Baal, his honor was taken from him, and every one would insult over him, and then he was fain to crouch to every one, and the wrath of God did pursue him till it never left him, nor his family, nor the people, but they died and came to nothing; Oh the poor spirit that there was in this Tribe afterwards, When they sinned in Baal! In 1 Kings, 20. you shall see what a low and mean spirit they had, whereas before when they spake, men trembled, none could ⟨p. 415⟩make them tremble, but they made others tremble, but now in 1 King. 20. it is said of Benhadad the King of Syria, That he gathered all his host together; and he sent messengers to Ahab King of Israel into the City, and said unto him, Thus saith Benhadad, Thy silver and thy gold is mine, thy Wives also and thy Children, even the goodliest are mine. And the King of Israel answered and said, My Lord, O King, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have. They had a low and a mean spirit yeelding to any thing, and 3yet of a mighty surly spirit to be cruel over those that were under him; The Lord was departed from him, and so their spirits were gone, and they were as a dead carcass, and every one then could insult over them. Thus you have the meaning of this Scripture in general; yet we shall see more particularly when we examin it in reference to Jeroboam. But from what hath been said, these are these Observations.
- 1Expos. 1.
- 22.
- 3Base spirits most insolent.
