When Ephraim returned terribly, he was exalted in Israel; then they sinned through Baal, and were slain for it. But now they make much more of their sins, and of their silver such images as they can devise, even idols, which are the vanity of wrought iron. Nor do they preach of the same: He that will kiss the calves, let him sacrifice men.
This is also a sermon directed against the sin of idolatry, but the prophet goes a little further in this passage to show that after God's righteous judgment the people who sin so persistently will be cast out among the Gentiles without mercy, for the prophet sees a twofold trouble.
One is that God delays the deserved punishments for such a long time. Although the Lord does this in order to give sinners time to repent, the world abuses this patience and long-suffering of God for unrestrained sinning.
The other annoyance is that when there is no longer any hope of improvement, God will again inflict the slowness of the punishment with all the greater severity. For here, again, reason is offended and angry, for it considers that God lets His wrath shoot its reins to the point of cruelty. To cut off this annoyance, the prophet mentions, from the beginning of the kingdom of Israel, the beginnings and the progress of idolatry and godlessness, in that the prophets opposed it in vain and called the stubborn people back to the right way.
But this sermon will be very easy for the reader, if he has the history of the kingdom of Israel before his eyes and knows it. For since the punishment of idolatry, which Solomon had inflicted on his wives as the first in this nation, passed not only to his son Rehoboam, but also to the whole nation, and the ten tribes had united themselves by separation with the king Jeroboam, but only the tribe of Judah with the rest of the children of Benjamin acknowledged the grandson of David as their king, it is right that the kingdom of Israel should be called the kingdom of Israel.
Jeroboam accepted the calf service in Dan and Bethel. He hoped that this would make it easier for him to keep the kingdom.
These beginnings of idolatry are what the prophet means when he says that Ephraim spoke or taught terribly. For though some understand this of worldly things (politice), and refer it to the seditious speeches of the ten tribes, yet it seems to me more correct to refer it to the ungodly doctrines which are in truth, as the prophet calls it, or a terror to godly hearts. For they see that when ungodly teachings are spread, at the same time the seed of immense misfortune is scattered, in which the idolaters must at last inevitably become involved. Therefore, when the godly see that this will certainly happen, they are moved in their hearts, and they are sorry that in such grave sin and with such certain punishments men are so secure.
According to this, the word XXX can also be correctly applied to the fact that idolatry and ungodly teachings are always connected with cruelty; as today this is an obvious rage of our adversaries that they do not even want their idolatry to be punished with the word, and therefore rage cruelly against the church of God.
There is a familiar figure of speech in the word, for it means to lift up the head, to rise up. The beginning of idolatry, therefore, was when the calf service was instituted in Israel by Jeroboam, which Jeroboam had brought into the kingdom of Israel from Egypt, where he had lived in exile for a time.
This calf service was followed by another evil, namely the service of the Sidonian idol Baal, which Jezebel, Ahab's wife, introduced, as history 1 Kings 16:31 shows. But what misfortune followed this idolatry is indicated by the prophet in one word, but by history in many words. For it was not only because of this sin that the whole family of Ahab was cut off, but also because of this sin that the whole family of Ahab was cut off.
The whole country was struck with a terrible famine, because neither dew nor rain came from heaven for more than three years. But the constant companion of the famine is pestilence, and in addition there was danger from external enemies.
But even in this way the people were not restored. For since through Jehu both the service of the idol Baal and the entire offspring of the king were destroyed, an even more unfortunate time followed. For just as in former times the royal family had arranged a special worship, so later each individual formed his own special god, just as with us after the godless worship of the mass manifold idolatry followed. For almost everyone called on his special saint and worshipped him, as the countless number of godless images is a sign. Those who keep them in the churches today, in such a bright light of the Word, are certainly not aware of how easy it is to relapse into superstitious worship when there is such a great occasion for aggravation.
But the prophet uses an extraordinary diminution, because he calls the idols XXXXX XXXX, the work of the smiths or craftsmen. For if it were not for the hand of the craftsman, what else would the foolish idolaters worship, what else would they call upon but wood, stone and silver, which men use quite properly for other things, but cannot use properly for worship, since this is due to God alone, who has no equal except the Word or the Son of God, who alone wants to be worshipped in spirit.
Now who should not be surprised that this has happened in the people of God against the constant admonitions and punishments of the prophets?
But there is still a far more abominable degree of idolatry left. Therefore the prophet puts it in the last place, namely that they sacrificed their sons and daughters to the calves in the opinion that they wanted to pay a very special service to God with it. For they judged thus: if God had so highly received the good will of Abraham, how much
more will the deed itself please him.' But the idolaters, deceived by Satan, did not see that Abraham was commanded by a special commandment to sacrifice his son, but that they were forbidden to kill by the general commandment. Thus we see that those who once deviate from the right path fall deeper and deeper into error until they perish.
Here, however, is to be noted the idiom which lies in the word, "kiss them. For it signifies the highest worship or reverence due to God, as is evident from the second Psalm, where he commands [v. 12] to kiss the Son. This highest worship, says the prophet, they thought, was when they sacrificed men to calves. O, these are truly Satan-blinded minds and hearts! We should be all the more grateful to our God, who by the light of his word has freed us from such manifold idolatry and shown us that he is only truly worshipped when we kiss and hear the Son, and hope that through his sacrifice God is reconciled with us, sins forgiven and eternal life given. Now he moves on to the punishments.
V. 3. These will have the morning wool and the dew that falls early. Yes, like the chaff woven from the threshing floor, and like the smoke from the wall of the fire.
Above in the sixth chapter [v. 4] he used the simile of the morning cloud and the dew, when he comforted the church with the promises of the kingdom of Christ, therefore in this place, if someone wants to keep the same opinion, the application is easy, namely that the preachers of ungodliness and idolatry promised that to those who held to the customary services everything would go out as desired.
But the prophet adds the opposite opinion: You will not be like the morning cloud, nor like the dew that falls early, rather you will be like the chaff on the threshing floor and the smoke from the fire man. For neither of them can stand, but will be driven out by force.
But it seems more appropriate to me, if also the simile of the dew and the cloud with
that of the chaff and the smoke is connected. For the prophet does not have in mind here, as above, the moistening that refreshes the thirsty earth, which is almost parched by the heat of the sun, but the sudden change. For although the cloud that rises early seems to want to occupy the whole sky, it is gradually and within a short period of time so consumed by the sun that no trace of it remains anywhere. We see the same thing with the dew. Although it covers the fields and farmlands far and wide, it is gradually taken away by the sun. Thus, he threatens, Israel will also suddenly go down, and indicates that this evil can be averted by no power or council.
The other parables have the same opinion. Not, as we do, in sheds and under the roof, but in the open field the Jews threshed the seeds, therefore the chaff was easily and quickly driven away. In the same way, he threatens, Israel will be driven away.
The smoke can also nowhere last less than in the wall of fire, because there it is driven away by the force of the wind, and it can in no way endure the onslaught of the wind. The same, he says, will happen to Israel when the Assyrian brings in his army.
In this way the parables puff very beautifully and paint aptly the magnitude of the calamity that would befall the idolatrous.
I am the Lord your God from the land of Egypt, and you should know no other God but Me, and no Savior but Me. I took care of you in the wilderness, in the dry land. But because they are fed, because they are satisfied, because they have enough, their heart is lifted up; therefore they forget me.
So far he has shown how idolatry gradually increased until it reached its highest point. To make this godlessness of the people great, he also speaks of what he has earned for them, and of his good deeds, that he revealed himself to this people by freeing them from the hard servitude of Egypt, that he himself had been in the wilderness for their
He had provided for them in many ways, raining manna from heaven and opening the rocks so that they gave abundant water; etc. He had finally led them to very rich pasture, that is, to the land of Canaan, where they took solid cities and splendidly built houses, sown fields and vineyards, after the Gentiles had been defeated.
For these great benefits, he says, I receive such thanks that they do not recognize me as their God and Savior, who alone saved them, but they ascribe this honor to the idols of the pagans, but they forget mine as if I had never done them any good. "Their hearts are lifted up because they have all things in abundance, that is, they have not heeded the word that I gave them through the prophets, and have sought other worship than that which I indicated in my word, and they forget mine, that is, they have not cared for my word at all, and have lived just as if I had never spoken to them through the prophets. For this is in dignity "forgetting God", whose name the idolaters always had in their mouths; but they did not pay attention to the word.
But this is a tremendous and frightening wickedness of the human heart, that people bear evil more easily than good. Isaiah says [Cap. 28, 19.], "The temptation teaches to mark the word." For in evil days we learn to recognize our sins, mend our ways, call on God, take off our security, as the example of Manasseh and the parable of the prodigal son show. But when we have abundance, we almost always forget God. How holy and humble David behaved when he had to endure danger, first from Saul and then from his son Absalom, but since he was in good peace and abundance, he sinned exceedingly shamefully and grievously.
So also Hezekiah. Since the enemy was outside the walls and the utmost danger was already present, with how great fervor he prayed to God! How humbly he asked the prophet to add his prayer to it. Likewise, in his illness and certain danger to his life, he did the same. But since the enemy was thus eliminated by God's help.
that there was nothing more to fear from him, and his health was also restored, he fell into security and pernicious ambition, for which he had to suffer punishment afterwards.
Solomon therefore rightly prays [Prov. 30:7-9]: "Two things I ask of you, which you will not refuse me before I die: Let idolatry and lies be far from me (that is, guide me so that I do not fall into ungodly doctrines and idolatry), do not give me poverty and riches; but let me take my modest portion of food there. Otherwise, where I would become too full, I would deny and say: Who is the Lord? or where I would become too poor, I would steal and take the name of my God in vain. The holy man saw that nothing is more difficult than not to rise up in good days, not to be puffed up, not to throw away the fear of God. And also the pagans, instructed by experience, gave Nemesis or Adrastia as an undesirable companion to those who did not know how to keep a measure in well-being.
David therefore rightly praises this as a blessing, that God from time to time subdues the life and circumstances of His own with tribulations, and says [Ps. 119:71]: "It is dear to me, O Lord, that You have humbled me, that I may learn Your law." For by this remedy God subdues the exalting nature, and thereby restrains it, as with spurs and bridle an unruly horse, that it run not whither its evil lust drives it. But it is useful that this weakness of ours, or, to put it more correctly, our extremely depraved nature, be well known to us, so that we may be all the more diligent in prayer, so that we may not be led into temptation, and so that, fixing our eyes firmly on the Word, we may nowhere deviate from the fear of God.
We experience something similar in the household. For the servants are corrupted by indulgence, but kept in their duty by a right severity. Even the commonwealths, when they are in bloom, become unrestrained by good peace, which has always been a fertile mother of vices of every kind. Hence we see that dominions (imperia) overthrow and fall only when they are firmest. For what should God do otherwise, after
He says that the people have so shamefully abused his benefits that he cuts off their opportunity to do evil deeds and keeps the wicked in check through all kinds of misfortune:
I will be like a lion against them, and I will lie in wait for them like a lion on the road. I will meet them like a bear whose cubs are taken away, and I will tear their hardened heart, and there I will devour them like a lion; the wild beasts shall tear them.
These are terrible images with which he describes the greatness of the punishment that will follow. Known is the ferocity of the lion and its insurmountable strength. In the case of the Pardern, cunning is added to the ferocity, for, as the Histories teach, they sit on densely leafy trees to attack the wanderers who suspect nothing and fear nothing from another. The bear is also known for his zeal for his cubs and his love for them.
But why does he particularly mention the tearing of the heart? The prophet has in mind the stubborn contempt of the word. For when the prophets, at God's command, strove to bring the people back to the right path, the people did not give room to the godly exhortations. But now it will happen, he says, that your hearts, which were closed against the word until now, will be opened by hard misfortune, and that you will recognize that you suffer the deserved punishments for idolatry, and look around in vain for help, since you will become a prey to the Assyrian like a hungry lion.
V. 9. Israel, you bring disaster upon yourself, for your salvation is with me alone.
This is very well connected with the preceding. For since, as I also said above [v. 1], reason is angry and thinks that this people will be beaten more severely than it is compatible with the goodness of God, this is set as an excuse, as it were. For thus says the Lord, "Your salvation is with me alone." That is, I desire to protect you, to preserve you, to guide you, so that you will not suffer any adversity. For
that is, to be God in truth. But you hinder me, who earnestly strive to accomplish this, by your sins. For since you do not put an end to your ungodly worship and idolatry, what else can I do but let you perish? But this misfortune comes from you. This is the right understanding of this passage.
But we have used this saying to refute the advocates of free will, that the cause of our salvation is God alone, not our works, but that if we are without grace we can of ourselves do nothing but sin, and so we ourselves are the cause of our downfall. Although this view does not seem to agree entirely with the one we have given, it is not different in any other respect than that it is transferred from the individual (specie) to the general (genus). For just as Israel, through its sins, was for itself the cause of its ruin, but God, if it had ceased to sin and repented, would gladly have preserved and protected it, so all men, through sin, prepare for themselves certain ruin if they do not repent, and, if they do not have the Holy Spirit, they can neither resist sin nor ward off and heal the penalty of sin. For this rule is certain and true, that God is good by nature, therefore nothing else can proceed from God but what is good. Death, however, is evil, sin is also evil, as are the punishments that follow sin, whether they be physical or spiritual; therefore, these evils do not come from God.
Where do they come from? you will say. They come from sin, according to the saying [Gen. 2:17], "In the day that ye eat of this tree ye shall surely die." But if you ask further, what is the cause of sin, the holy Scriptures show that it comes from the devil, to whom our parents agreed against the word of God, and since they disobeyed God, they fell into terrible punishments. For through that sin, not only are our bodies so weakened that they are made of immortal
1) Erlanger: ut instead of: tu.
mortal, but also the soul is corrupt. For man has lost the right knowledge of God, and also the will is so corrupted that it can desire nothing but evil, that is, as Paul says [Rom. 8:7], that it hates the law of God and has a desire to sin. For here we are not dealing with natural desires, such as the desire to maintain oneself and one's own, in hunger the desire for food, in excessive fatigue the desire for rest etc. For God wanted this to happen also in the intact nature, although now, for the sake of sin, there is some infirmity involved, for these desires do not always keep themselves in their bounds, as we learn from experience.
This is therefore the true cause of evil or sin, that the will is corrupted by sin, and the soul lacks the knowledge of God and the spirit of God. For from this flow not only sins of all kinds as from a constant source, but also the other evils that we suffer in this miserable life, and the damned will suffer eternally. The devil, however, inflames the will against God, and like a horse, which by its nature is unruly, gives it the spurs. Those who defend free will do not see these so many and manifold evils from sin, which are caused by the devil.
For although reason can control itself so that it does not consent to all lusts as far as the outward work is concerned (for it often resists the evil inclinations, often moderates them; for if this were not to some extent in us, what use could the worldly laws, what use the discipline, which, as we see, is so much praised by God, have? And experience teaches that it is almost the only thing that works, so that we do not all fall equally into murder, adultery and other vices), yet it cannot be deduced from this that there is free will, that is, that man can govern himself, do right and make himself pleasing to God without the Holy Spirit, which is the main thing for which the defenders of free will fight. For covetousness is sin in itself, and it is not idle but sinful.
but constantly agitates the hearts against the law of God. In truth, therefore, there is nothing good in man unless the hearts are first cleansed by the Holy Spirit through faith, and the iniquity born with us is removed through the forgiveness of sins.
And this is our reason for saying that there is no free will, and for defending that there is nothing good in man, and nothing good can be done by a man unless the Holy Spirit restores him, as the church indeed sings quite gloriously in the spirit: Sine tuo nomine nihil est in homine, nihil est innoxium sohne your divine power is nothing in man, nothing is uncorrupted For although God demands and approves of the outward discipline that lies to some extent in the will of man, through it we are not freed from sins, not freed from death, not pleasing to God that he forgives our sins and gives us eternal life. This is obtained only through faith, through the merit of the Son of God, who was sufficient for our sins by his death, and who received the promise of the Spirit from the Father, by whom hearts are moved to believe the forgiveness of sins, and to resist sin and the harmful evil desire, which does not die completely until this flesh dies. Therefore, our people have not used this saying of the prophet inappropriately against the protectors of free will.
V. 10. 11. Where is your king gone, who shall help you in all your cities? and your judges, of whom you said: Give me kings and princes? Well, I gave thee a king in mine anger, and will take him away from thee in my wrath.
Authority is a very high gift of God, given to people for protection against the multiple wrongs of evil people. And God gives prosperity to the authorities who diligently strive to curb what the wicked desire. But listen to what the prophet, yes, the Lord himself, threatens here. Not only do sins turn the merciful God into an angry God, but they also take away the power and weapons of the authorities from the
Hand, that it cannot do what it is commanded to do by God. As if to say: I have given you a king, I have given you princes, who should protect you against all injustice, both from external enemies and from your fellow citizens, but as I cannot save you, because you bring about your deserved reward through your sins, so also your authorities cannot save you, but they will perish at the same time as you.
What now follows: "I gave you a king in my wrath" is mostly interpreted of Saul, whom the Lord gave a king to the godless people, who wanted to have a king after the example of the Gentiles, while before not hereditary kings but judges ruled, whom the Lord chose according to his will sometimes from this, sometimes from that family.
But this does not seem to be inappropriately applied to Jeroboam. For this sermon does not address the whole nation to whom Saul was given as king, but the house of Israel. And Judah kept its kings until the Babylonian captivity. Jeroboam, therefore, is the king that God gave in His wrath. For by the division or rebellion the Lord punished the idolatry which Solomon had introduced among the people, as history shows. Therefore he threatens that, just as this division of the kingdom of Judah happened because of idolatry, so also the kingdom of Israel should be completely destroyed by the Assyrian because of idolatry, so that it would have no king from then on. Thus the beginning of this kingdom coincides with its end.
V. 12. 13. The iniquity of Ephraim is bound together, and their sin is kept. For it shall be woe unto them as unto a woman in childbirth: for they are careless children. The time will come that they will not stay from the wailing of the children.
It is not now that you have begun to sin, idolatry etc. began when you began to have the kingdom. But I did not punish you immediately, I gathered your sins into a bundle, as it were, and gave you room to repent, restraining my wrath as if your sins were hidden and I did not see them. But now they are to be visited on
The day will come, and the long-deserved punishments will come upon them. Then the pains of a woman in childbirth will seize you, that is, you will be sorely afflicted. "For they are careless children", that is, because you did not want to be satisfied with my word, which alone makes wise people, since it instills the fear of God in the hearts and takes away security. For this is the right wisdom.
Therefore, the time will come when you will be very severely distressed and will not be able to escape your pain in any way, like a woman in childbirth who, when the fruit is to come from her, will be most severely distressed and will not be able to escape the pain in any way, no matter how much work and effort she may put in. This is the right opinion.
The words in Hebrew are somewhat obscure. Because they read like this: XXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX,,
quoniam tempus, non stabit,1 ) in utero filii [for time will not stand still, the children are in birth]. The word means the mother or, to say it actually, the cervix. But it is derived full of the verbum which means to break and to shatter. For when the fruit comes to the cervix, the bones that are close to each other, which are called ossa sacra, come apart through this collision, 2) that I say, and it is a very strong pain, and if the woman in childbirth does not do it with all her strength, she is in danger along with the fruit. Therefore, this image indicates nothing other than the most imminent danger. Thus king Hezekiah says to Isaiah [Cap. 37, 3.]: "The children are come to all birth (ad Mischbar), and there is no strength to give birth." That is, I am in the utmost anguish, I am harassed and frightened on all sides, and there is no way of salvation open. Quite the same image, indeed the same words are used here by the prophet. Although we have used many words, we have not been able to express sufficiently what is briefly stated in the Hebrew speech.
1) This comma is placed by us. In Hebrew, the tiphcha is a tlistinetivus.
2) We followed the reading of the Jena: "ollisions instead of: oollusions in the Wittenberg and in the Erlangen.
V. 14. But I will deliver them from hell and save them from death. Death, I will be a poison to you; hell, I will be a pestilence to you.
After the prophet has threatened the idolaters with destruction, he now returns to comforting the godly, who should not only see the so terrible punishments, but also suffer them, as it is wont to happen. For when common punishments are meted out, the godly also receive their share of them.
But this is a wonderful comfort that he holds out to them. For he does not say that when the Assyrian ruler comes, the Lord will deliver them from his hand. He says: You too will be killed, or led away captive among the Gentiles, and your situation will be no better than that of the idolaters, for whose sake such great wrath and misfortune will be inflicted. This punishment you will bear with equanimity, and you will hope for a far better salvation than if you were now delivered from the hand of the enemies. For I will save you from the power of hell, that is, if you have already died and been buried, I will raise you to a better and eternal life. Thus will I recompense your sufferings and afflictions, which shall create an everlasting and exceeding glory etc. [2 Cor. 4:17.]
The word that is generally translated by hell means a grave or the place where the corpses of men are laid. Therefore the prophet wants to say: when your bodies will be buried in the earth and you will lie there without any feeling, only then the salvation will be given to you, which I ask you to hope for and which I promise you.
But how will this happen? The Lord answers: "Death, I will be a poison to you; hell, I will be a pestilence to you. Here, first of all, consider the contrast. Death is to us a pestilence and a ruin. For who among men has ever escaped death? But now the Lord comforts us that it will happen that death, which is an incurable pestilence to all men, will also feel its pestilence and be destroyed, and promises that it will be a poison to death and a pestilence to hell.
Therefore it must first be noted that the Lord is speaking here, who just before [v. 4] said: "I am the Lord your God, and you should know no other God but Me, and no Savior but Me." For to overcome or to destroy death is not the power of man, but of God alone. But how God became a poison to death, the New Testament explains, that God's Son, born of the eternal Father, the Eternal and Almighty, conceived by the Holy Spirit in the body of the Virgin Mary, was born as a man into this world. After having taught men there about the good will of God and having proved Himself to be the Son of God with powerful signs and wonders, He finally became obedient to the Father until death, yes, death on the Cross, which He suffered to pay for our sins and to appease the wrath of God. And after he died on the cross, he was buried, but on the third day he rose again, for he who was life could not be kept from death and the grave.
Only then is fulfilled what the Lord promises in this passage. For death devoured Christ like other men, but in a wonderful way it happens: while death devours Christ, he is devoured; while he kills him, he is killed; while he overcomes, he is overcome. For he contends not merely with a man, but with the man who is the eternal Son of God and the Lord over all creatures. Therefore, it was finally revealed that he had the power to leave and take back his soul or life, and that he was not merely a man, although he truly took on human flesh, but also the immortal God. The church praises this miracle in a very beautiful hymn: Mors et vita duello conflixere mirando, dux vitae mortuus regnat vivus [death and life have fought with each other in a wonderful duel; the prince of life lives and reigns]. 1)
1) The old translation offers here this verse: Es war ein wunderlicher Krieg, Da Tod und Leben rungen.
The life that kept the victory, It swallowed up death. The Scripture has proclaimed that. How one death devoured another; A mockery of death has become.
As far as grammar is concerned, the reader should know that the same words are used here as in Ps. 91:5, 6: "Lest thou be afraid of the pestilence that creepeth in darkness, of the pestilence that wasteth at noonday." Both in that passage, as here, denote a pernicious evil or exceedingly harmful pestilence that infects and kills the body. The Latin translation has: Asperum verbum et daemonium meridianum, but, compared with this passage, it is easily understood. In Hebrew it says and
Although St. Paul changed the words in 1 Cor. 15, 55, he still expressed the meaning in the most beautiful way. He says, "Death is swallowed up in victory," that is, Christ has overcome death and wants us to enjoy this victory also, for since he assists us, we will not be overcome by death, but will overcome. Therefore he adds [v. 55.], "Death, where is thy sting? Hell, where is thy victory?" As if to say, "Both our enemies have ruled far and wide and oppressed all men, but after death is swallowed up or destroyed by Christ, he can no longer harm. For though he is our enemy, yet he is deprived, conquered, and stripped of all his weapons and power. Therefore, we who believe in Christ, the victor over death, fear him without cause.
And this is the right and useful use of this passage, that as often as we remember death, we fix our eyes on Christ, and look upon this his victory. For if you look at death as it is against us, you will rightly despair. For you will not find in yourself any strength with which you could withstand so powerful an enemy. He never fought with anyone whom he had not overcome, Christ alone excepted. Therefore, if you do not want to be overcome, unite yourself with Christ, that is, rely on his victory, hope that you will be preserved by him, and although death will kill the body, nevertheless hold fast to it and believe that Christ will restore you to a better and eternal life. For he is the Lord over death, he has conquered it, he has killed it, and, as the prophet says here
1354 L. XXIV, 471-473. interpretations on the prophets. W. VI.IS8I-IS83. 1355
your death has become a pestilence and poison, so that we who are under your death may live through it, as through it death had to die. But who is so senseless that he should be afraid of a dead enemy?
This comfort must be firmly kept in death and in all other dangers and difficulties of this life, then it will happen that we, supported by this rich hope, will not succumb.
The teachers of the pope show various protections against death, but not at all lasting ones. For not our works can save us from death, not the merits of others, not the intercessions of the saints. This is the only way in which we are preserved, that we firmly believe that Christ has overcome our death by his death and will raise us up to a better and eternal life.
Paul, according to his excellent insight, derives very beautiful and extremely comforting conclusions from this passage of the prophet. He says: "If death has lost its sting or its power, it follows that sin has also been atoned for through Christ, and we are freed from it. For where sin is, there must necessarily be death, just as where sin is not, there must be life and righteousness. But when sin is taken away through this victory, the power of sin, that is, the law, is also taken away at the same time, so that it cannot condemn or accuse us. This, he says, is the glorious victory we have through Christ, for which we rightly give thanks to our Lord, who gave it to us so that we might enjoy it.
V. 14. 15. But the consolation is hidden from my eyes. For it will bear fruit between brothers.
I understand this in the simplest way, that this comfort is not seen with the eyes, but accepted in faith. The eyes do not see it, but the ears hear it in the word, and the heart firmly believes by faith that what it hears is true, and in this way is satisfied with the word. But if someone prefers it
to the unbelieving synagogue, that they reject the gospel and will not believe, I will not argue with him.
What he adds about the brethren actually serves to depict the church. For those who believe in Christ, that is, those who hope for salvation from death and hell through Christ, are "children of God," John 1:12. Therefore they are called brothers, since they have the same Father through Christ. Among these brethren, he says, he will bring forth fruit, that is, through this consolation, which is hidden from sight, Christ will awaken the hearts so that they will await eternal life with the utmost certainty, and bear and endure with equanimity whatever hardships this present life may bring. But those who are not brothers, that is, who do not believe that they have become children of God through Christ, will remain in death and in hell, as there are the Jews, Turks, pagans, hypocrites, the false brothers, who do not acknowledge Christ as the Son of God and as the Savior of the world.
An east wind will come; the Lord will come out of the wilderness, and dry up its well, and dry up its fountain; and he will take away the treasure of all precious things.
This piece is also interpreted differently. Denu some refer it to the Assyrian, others to Nebucadnezzar, perhaps because here it is said about delicious equipment. Jerome invents, I do not know what kind of spiritual interpretation, because he interprets the treasure and the precious things of the holy fathers, who were delivered from hell by the resurrected Christ. Although this is not ungodly talk, it does not belong here at all. Therefore, one must pay attention to what is most appropriate in the explanation of the prophets.
First, therefore, the reader may note that the "east wind", which he calls XXX XXXX, is always taken in the evil sense. For as the west winds are fruitful, so the east winds harm the fields, because they are cold and dry. Furthermore, these are not words of grace, but of wrath: "He will dry up their well and dry up their spring" etc.
But this is much too harsh for us to refer to either the Assyrian or the Babylonian captivity, for these punishments did not dry up the spring or well. The people were indeed severely afflicted, but not completely destroyed, and even though the kingdom of Israel perished, the fountain remained, that is, the largest and best part of the people, from which Christ was finally born.
Therefore, this prophecy refers to the synagogue, which did not want to acknowledge Christ, the victor over death and hell, but rather crucified and killed him as a child of the devil. For as he said above that he would bring forth fruit between brothers, that is, preserve and save those who believe that they are in grace and children of God for his sake, so he says here of the unbelieving part that it will happen, because they do not want to accept this Savior, that they will completely perish and lose everything that they have had so far in the sight of all the peoples of the whole world.
Therefore, the treasure and the precious vessels are not silver or gold vessels, but the exalted name that they have been called the people of God, that to them alone the
trusted in what God had spoken, that they were born of the holy tribe of the fathers, that they had the church and the service instituted by God. They are deprived of these so great gifts in such a way that they go astray in the thickest darkness, and as the Psalm threatens [Ps. 69, 23.]: "Let their table," that is, the speeches of Moses and the prophets, which open the way to life and alone can comfort the afflicted hearts, "become a snare to them." For the godless Jews nourish their hatred against God, their blindness and their damnation when they read the holy Scriptures, and fall deeper and deeper into darkness. This is in truth drying up the well and drying up the spring.
And this is done by the Lord, who comes up out of the wilderness like a wind that destroys the joyful seeds. For this punishment began with the Romans, whom God had raised up, as Christ says Luc. 19:44: "But this shall come upon thee, because thou knewest not the time wherein thou wast visited." This is the right and proper opinion of this passage, and is most appropriately connected with the foregoing. Now follows another, new sermon, therefore we will begin a new chapter there.