27 the locusts have no king, yet they go forth all of them by bands;
For, if thou refuse to let my people go, behold, I will to-morrow bring locusts into thy borders; and they shall cover the face of the land, so that ye will not be able to see the land; and they shall eat the residue of that which is escaped, which ye have remaining from the hail, and shall eat every tree which ye have growing in the field; and they shall fill thy houses, and the houses of all thy bondmen, and the houses of all the Egyptians; which neither thy fathers nor thy fathers' fathers have seen, since the day that they were upon the earth unto this day. And he turned and went out from Pharaoh.
He spoke, and the locust came, and the cankerworm, even without number;
For a nation is come up upon my land, strong and without number: his teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a lioness. He hath made my vine a desolation, and barked my fig-tree; he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away: its branches are made white.
And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmer-worm, my great army which I sent among you.
And Moses stretched out his staff over the land of Egypt, and Jehovah brought an east wind on the land all that day and all that night. When it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts. And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the borders of Egypt, very grievous; before them there were no such locusts as they, neither after them will be such. And they covered the face of the whole land, so that the land was darkened; and they ate every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left; and there remained not any green thing on the trees, and in the herbs of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.
They run like mighty men; they climb the wall like men of war; and they march every one on his ways, and break not their ranks. Neither doth one press upon another; they march every one in his path; and fall amid weapons, but are not wounded. They spread themselves over the city; they run upon the wall; they climb up into the houses; they enter in by the windows like a thief. The earth quaketh before them; the heavens tremble; the sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining. And Jehovah uttereth his voice before his army; for his camp is very great; for strong is he that executeth his word: for the day of Jehovah is great and very terrible; and who can bear it?
And out of the smoke came forth locusts on the earth, and power was given to them as the scorpions of the earth have power; and it was said to them, that they should not injure the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but the men who have not the seal of God on their foreheads: and it was given to them that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months; and their torment [was] as [the] torment of a scorpion when it strikes a man. And in those days shall men seek death, and shall in no way find it; and shall desire to die, and death flees from them. And the likenesses of the locusts [were] like to horses prepared for war; and upon their heads as crowns like gold, and their faces as faces of men; and they had hair as women's hair, and their teeth were as of lions, and they had breastplates as breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings [was] as the sound of chariots of many horses running to war; and they have tails like scorpions, and stings; and their power [was] in their tails to hurt men five months. They have a king over them, the angel of the abyss: his name in Hebrew, Abaddon, and in Greek he has [for] name Apollyon.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Proverbs 30
Commentary on Proverbs 30 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 30
Pr 30:1-33.
1. This is the title of this chapter (see Introduction).
the prophecy—literally, "the burden" (compare Isa 13:1; Zec 9:1), used for any divine instruction; not necessarily a prediction, which was only a kind of prophecy (1Ch 15:27, "a song"). Prophets were inspired men, who spoke for God to man, or for man to God (Ge 20:7; Ex 7:14, 15, 16). Such, also, were the New Testament prophets. In a general sense, Gad, Nathan, and others were such, who were divine teachers, though we do not learn that they ever predicted.
the man spake—literally, "the saying of the man"; an expression used to denote any solemn and important announcement (compare 2Sa 23:1; Ps 36:1; 110:1; Isa 1:24, &c.). Ithiel and Ucal were perhaps pupils.
2-4. brutish—stupid, a strong term to denote his lowly self-estimation; or he may speak of such as his natural condition, as contrasted with God's all-seeing comprehensive knowledge and almighty power. The questions of this clause emphatically deny the attributes mentioned to be those of any creature, thus impressively strengthening the implied reference of the former to God (compare De 30:12-14; Isa 40:12; Eph 4:8).
5. (Compare Ps 12:6; 119:140).
6. Add … words—implying that his sole reliance was on God's all-sufficient teaching.
reprove thee—or, "convict thee"—and so the falsehood will appear.
7-9. A prayer for exemption from wickedness, and the extremes of poverty and riches, the two things mentioned. Contentment is implied as desired.
8. vanity—all sorts of sinful acts (Job 11:11; Isa 5:18).
9. be full … deny—that is, puffed up by the pride of prosperity.
take the name … vain—This is not (Hebrew) the form (compare Ex 20:7), but "take" rather denotes laying violent hold on any thing; that is, lest I assail God's name or attributes, as justice, mercy, &c., which the poor are tempted to do.
10. Accuse not—Slander not (Ps 10:7).
curse … guilty—lest, however lowly, he be exasperated to turn on thee, and your guilt be made to appear.
11-14. Four kinds of hateful persons—(1) graceless children, (2) hypocrites, (3) the proud, (4) cruel oppressors (compare on Pr 30:14; Ps 14:4; 52:2)—are now illustrated; (1) Pr 30:15, 16, the insatiability of prodigal children and their fate; (2) Pr 30:17, hypocrisy, or the concealment of real character; (3 and 4) Pr 30:18-20, various examples of pride and oppression.
15, 16. horse leech—supposed by some to be the vampire (a fabulous creature), as being literally insatiable; but the other subjects mentioned must be taken as this, comparatively insatiable. The use of a fabulous creature agreeably to popular notions is not inconsistent with inspiration.
There are three … yea, four—(Compare Pr 6:16).
17. The eye—for the person, with reference to the use of the organ to express mockery and contempt, and also as that by which punishment is received.
the ravens … eagles … eat—either as dying unnaturally, or being left unburied, or both.
18-20. Hypocrisy is illustrated by four examples of the concealment of all methods or traces of action, and a pertinent example of double dealing in actual vice is added, that is, the adulterous woman.
20. she eateth … mouth—that is, she hides the evidences of her shame and professes innocence.
21-23. Pride and cruelty, the undue exaltation of those unfit to hold power, produce those vices which disquiet society (compare Pr 19:10; 28:3).
23. heir … mistress—that is, takes her place as a wife (Ge 16:4).
24-31. These verses provide two classes of apt illustrations of various aspects of the moral world, which the reader is left to apply. By the first (Pr 30:25-28), diligence and providence are commended; the success of these insignificant animals being due to their instinctive sagacity and activity, rather than strength. The other class (Pr 30:30, 31) provides similes for whatever is majestic or comely, uniting efficiency with gracefulness.
26. conies—mountain mice, or rabbits.
28. spider—tolerated, even in palaces, to destroy flies.
taketh … hands—or, uses with activity the limbs provided for taking prey.
32. As none can hope, successfully, to resist such a king, suppress even the thought of an attempt.
lay … hand upon thy mouth—"lay" is well supplied (Jud 18:19; Job 29:9; 40:4).
33. That is, strife—or other ills, as surely arise from devising evil as natural effects from natural causes.