am II. king of Israel; so that he must have continued to be a prophet at least seventy years. In the book called Hosea, which contains the writings of that prophet, he begins with giving an exact description, and severe prophetical reproof, of the wicked and corrupt state of the whole kingdom of Israel, and particularly of the infamous idolatry which was in vogue among them, in worshipping the golden calves, which, in the reign of Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, were set up at Dan and Bethel by Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, their first king, under whom they separated themselves from Judah, and the pure worship of God. He then very pathetically exhorts them to a serious and early repentance, but finding them still to continue in their impieties, from the kings and princes, even to the least and meanest of the people, he at length denounces to them the total destruction and overthrow of their state and kingdom; that they should be transported out of their own country, and carried captives into Assyria, where they should continue under a long and deplorable dispersion among strange and idolatrous nations. He likewise foretels, that the kingdom of Judah should, for some time, subsist after that of Israel, but that, at length, they likewise should be carried away captive beyond the Euphrates. Through the whole he lays open the sins, and declares the judgments of God against a people hardened and irreclaimable; but concludes with some consolation to the faithful and penitent, promising them comfort and support through the favor and grace of God in their heavenly king the Messiah that was to come, to whom, in due time, all the elect should be converted and gathered, in order to be eternally blessed in and through him.

The next prophet is Joel, the son of Pethuel. He mentions the same judgment that Amos does; and, under the similitude of an enemy's army, represents those prodigious swarms of locusts, which, in his time, fell upon Judea, and occasioned great desolation. He calls and invites the people to repentance, and promises mercy and forgiveness to those who will listen to the call. He likewise gives a full and exact prophecy, of the blessed and flourishing state the church should enjoy under the Messiah, whom he calls the Teacher of Righteousness; of the sending of the abundant and liberal commmunication of the Holy Ghost

to the elect and believers; of the preservation and protection of the church in the last sad and calamitous times; of her continuance and condition here upon earth; of the just and severe judgments of God against all her enemies; and, last of all, of her eternal glorification and felicity in heaven. The prophet Amos, who is the next in turn, lived in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah, and of Jeroboam II. king of Israel. He was a shepherd of Tekoah in the land of Judah, and after being called to the prophetic office, was particularly sent to the ten tribes, or kingdom of Israel, where, by the command of God, he, jointly with Hosea, discharged the function of a prophet. After having denounced to all the nations bordering upon Palestine the just judgments of God on account of their enmity and animosity against his people, he next proceeds to those of Judah, and after again to the ten tribes of Israel. To these in particular he foretels and denounces heavy judg ments of God, and in very express terms declares to them the entire subversion of their state and kingdom by their enemies' forces; their captivity and dispersion among strange and far distant nations, on account of the multiplicity and enormity of their sins, and their obstinacy against all the reproofs and censures of God, together with the many warnings and exhortations the other prophets gave them, in the name of God, to turn and repent. All which prophecies are backed and confirmed by several visions, and many descriptions of the power and majesty of God. But among all these threats and denunciations, he promiseth that the penitent and faithful shall be saved, and that the kingdom of the Messiah shall be established for the good and eternal salvation of all his elect, whether Jews or Gentiles.

The next prophet is Obadiah, who was cotemporary with Hosea, Joel and Amos. He denounces God's judg ments against the Edomites for the mischiefs they had done to Judah and Jerusalem, whom he promises that they should be victorious over these Edomites, and others their enemies; and, last of all, foretels their reformation and restoration, and that the kingdom of the Messiah should be set up by the bringing in of a great salvation.

The last prophet we have to mention who distinguished himself during this period, was Isaiah, the son of Amos.

He is the principal of those called the Greater Prophets, not only in respect to the excellent matter of which he treats, but also for the admirable sublimity and elegance of his style. In the twelve first chapters of the Book of his prophecies he treats of several heads which particularly concern the Jews, whom he boldly censures and reproves, teaches excellently, exhorts seriously, and comforts pathetically. From the 13th chapter to the 29th he mentions those prophecies which regard foreign nations and people, who were enemies to the Jewish nation, as also some others relating to the ten tribes, who had divided themselves from Judah and Benjamin, denouncing very severe and heavy judgments against them. But among these are mingled very comfortable promises of the grace and mercy of God to those who repent, who should be made partakers of an heavenly kingdom to be established by the Messiah who was to come. From the 29th chapter to the 36th he prophecies concerning the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians, and of the captivity, or transportation of the Jews out of their own country into BabyIon; all which are intermixed with several excellent and comfortable passages concerning the transactions that would take place during the time of the Messiah being on earth. From the 36th to the 40th chapter is recorded the History of king Hezekiah, taken from 2 Kings xviii. and 2 Chron. xxxii. From the 40th to the 49th chapter, the prophet foretels the coming of Christ, and the spiritual deliverance of his church, figured by the deliverance of the Jews from their Babylonish captivity by king Cyrus, as also their restoration and settlement in their own country. From the 49th chapter to the end of the Book are several very clear prophecies concerning the person and office of Christ and his kingdom, which should be extended throughout the world; of his passion, death and glorification; as also of the preaching of the Gospel, and the calling of the Gentiles, who were to be joined and incorporated with his people the Jews. All these things the prophet describes with so much clearness and undeniable evidence, that he seems rather to write an history of things past, than a prophecy of things to come. For this reason, some of the ancient fathers were of opinion, that Isaiah might, with equal propriety, be called an Evangelist as a

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prophet, because in many places he speaks as clearly concerning the person, office, and miracles of Christ many hundred years before his incarnation, as the Apostles and Doctors of the New Testament have done since.

It is generally supposed that Amos, the father of Isaiah, was brother to Uzziah king of Judah, so that this prophet, with respect to his descent, was an illustrious person, as being a prince of the blood; it having been the wisdom of Providence to call persons of all sorts of conditions to the prophetic office, as well those of the highest, as the lowest quality.

According to the first verse of the first chapter of the Book of Isaiah, it appears that the time he prophesied was in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. And if we compute the years of the reign of these four kings, we must conclude, that Isaiah prophesied at least forty-five or fifty years, beginning with the last year of Uzziah, and ending with the fourteenth of Hezekiah; so that he must have consequently lived to a very great age.

Soon after he was appointed to the prophetic office he had many singular visions, the most remarkable among which was the following: God appeared to him in his majesty, and (to use the words of St. John the Evangelist) he saw the glory of God, who sat upon a high throne surrounded by seraphims, who, in concert, repeated the following words: Holy! Holy! Holy! is the Lord of Hosts, the whole earth is full of his glory.

Isaiah, at this clear and full view of the Divine Majesty, abased himself with the deepest humility, acknowledging that he was a man of impure lips, and therefore unfit either to see himself, or to declare to others the great things God had vouchsafed to shew unto him. While he was thus complaining of his own unworthiness, one of the seraphims that was about the throne took a live coal from the altar, flew to Isaiah, and touched his lips therewith, assuring him, that his iniquity was taken away, and his sins were purged from him.

As soon as Isaiah had received this assurance from the Angel, he felt the effect of the divine fire, and found himself enabled to preach and declare to the people whatever it should please God to charge him with. He therefore

pointed out to all those designed for the sacerdotal order how great a purity they ought to be endued with, before they engage themselves in that sacred function, and how earnestly they ought to beseech of God, that he would be pleased to send down from heaven not only a live coal, as he did to him, but (as St. Bernard saith) a whole fire, to refine them, and make them as pure as they ought to be.

According to the tradition of the Jews, and the fathers of the church, Isaiah lived till he was near an hundred years of age, when, during the persecution raised by Manasseh, king of Judah, that prince ordered him to be sawn asunder with a wooden saw, that he might take away his life by the most violent pains that could be invented.

The Author of the Book of Ecclesiasticus speaks in commendation of this holy prophet in words to this effect: "Hezekiah did the things that pleased the Lord,`and "was strengthened in the ways of David as Isaiah had commanded him, who was a great prophet, and faithful "in his vision. In his days the sun went backward, and "he lengthened the king's life. He saw, (by an excellent "gift of the Spirit) what should come to pass at the last, "and he comforted those that mourned in Zion: he "shewed what should come to pass for ever, till the end "of time, and secret things before ever they happened."

But there is no need to add more testimonies in praise of this holy prophet. Those who read his prophecies as they ought will find the testimony of the Spirit of God proclaiming him a great and true prophet indeed, and confirming the truth of his prophecies by the most incontestable evidence and demonstration. In short, the whole Book is highly serviceable to the church of God, in all ages, for conviction of sin, direction in duty, and consolation in trouble; and its author may be justly accounted a great prophet, whether we consider the extent and variety of his predictions; the sublimity of the truths which he reveals; the majesty and elegance of his style; the loftiness of his metaphors, or the liveliness of his descriptions. But we shall have occasion to say more of this prophet in the succeeding part of our History.