]37

born.  Hear  the  word  of  the  Lord,  O  ye
nations !  and  declare  it  in  the  isles  afar  off,
and  say,  he  that  scattered  Israel  will  gather
him,  and  keep  him  as  a  shepherd  does  his
flock."  (Jer.  xxxi.  8.)

The  holy  prophet  here  lifts  up  his  voice  to
the  people  yet  unborn*  and  to  the  nations  far
remote  from  Judea,  that  they  should  attend  to
the  will  of  God  respecting  his  elect,  and  do
their  endeavour  to  promote  the  accomplish-
ment of  it,  in  its  season.  The  remainder  of
this  chapter  is  to  the  same  effect.  Verse  1 8,
the  prophet  shews  the  becoming  sense  of  E-
phraim  for  his  early  infidelities,  and  his  deep
contrition  for  the  sin  of  his  unbelief  in  the
last  times.  His  confession  of  the  justice  of
God  in  his  punishment, — and  his  humble
supplication  to  Christ  for  grace  and  power  to
turn  to  him,  whom  he  now  acknowledges
for  the  Lord  his  God. — Verse  20,  21,  shews
God's  relenting  remembrance  of  his  former
favor  to  Israel,  and  the  returning  of  his  com-

%  Psalm  Ixxviii.  6«
T


138

passion  upon  his  repentance : — his  call  to  his
dispersed  people,  to  return  to  their  former
cities,  adding  at  the  same  time  a  deserved  re-
proach to  them,  for  their  inattention  to  the
clear  prophecies  of  their  Messiah ;  and  parti-
cularly that  most  remarkable  one,  of  his  mi-
raculous conception  and  birth  of  a  virgin
mother-*  which  instead  of  being  a  strong
evidence  for  Christianity,  has  been  to  the
jews  a  stumbling  block  additional  to  the  offence
cf  the  cross.
