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"Early dew." "What, is this prosperity? what, this pleasure? Ah! what are my riches, and what my glory? Alas! 'tis like the dew, which flies off at the sight of the morning sun." "My son, my son, be not too confident; for

life is like the dew."

9." Murder in the way by consent." The margin has, instead of "by consent," "with one shoulder." (Zeph. iii. 9. "To serve him with one consent.") Margin has instead of "consent," "shoulder."

The Hindoos for the SAME thing say, Thus, those people with "ONE HAND judge, i. e. with one consent.

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"with one HAND."

have gone to the "Those wretches with one

hand are doing evil.” "If the Coolies do their duty with one hand, the work will soon be finished." "Why have they not accomplished their object? because they did not go about it with one hand."

VIII. 8. "Israel is swallowed up: now shall they be

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among the Gentiles as a vessel wherein is no pleasure." (Jer. xlviii. 38. "I have broken Moab like a vessel wherein is no pleasure.")

I believe this refers to an EARTHEN vessel, and not to one made of skin. People often compare each other to an UPPUPANUM, i. e. literally a salt vessel; because after it has contained salt it is most fragile, the least thing will break it to pieces. "What are you, sir? an uppu-pānum,” a salt vessel. "Look at that poor salt vessel, if you touch him he will fall to pieces."

IX. 14.-"Give them a miscarrying womb and dry breasts."

When men curse females, or when the latter curse each other, they often invoke the gods thus to injure the objects of their anger.

X. 7.-"As for Samaria, her king is cut off as the

foam upon the water.".

"Those sons of fiends are now gone as the neer-molle," i. e. the bubble. "Alas! my race is cut off: it has disappeared like the bubble." "Yes, those people were only

bubbles; they have all gone."

8. -"The high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed: the thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars." (Gen. iii. 18.)

Has a man by fraud gained possession of another person's land, then the imprecation is uttered, "Thorns and thistles shall ever grow there!" "He get rice from his land! Never! he will have thorns and thistles." "Yes, yes, the rice shall be as thorns in his bowels."

10. "It is in my desire that I should chastise them; and the people shall be gathered against them, when they shall bind themselves in their two furrows." The margin has, instead of " they shall bind themselves in their two furrows," "I shall bind them for their two transgressions: OR in their two habitations." The figure of the above verse and those of the context are AGRICULTURAL. Does it not refer to Israel joining herself to the idolaters, as the oxen were joined together in the furrows? "TWO FURROWS." A furrow, according to the English idea, is a small trench made for the reception of the seed, going in a straight line from one side of the field to the other. But this is not a proper description of a furrow in the East, because the farmers of those parts plough in circles. Thus, the square

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represents the field: they therefore begin at the west, and plough in circles towards the east. The places 1. and 2. within the circles are called SALI. Now then for the appli

cation of the figure. When two inveterate enemies have become friends, the people say, " They are ploughing in two SALI," i. e. they are acting in perfect accordance, or they could not thus plough; for if one went one way and another took another direction, how could they agree? "True it is, true it is, Arrow-Muggam and Chinny Tamby are ploughing together in their two salis; whoever expected to see such foes act together?" Never, never again will those fellows plough together in their two furrows; they are sworn foes." Israel was bound together in the furrows with the idolaters of "Beth-aven," but "the thorn and the thistle" were to 66 come up on their altars," and she was exhorted "to seek the Lord."

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12.-" Rain righteousness among you."

"You talk to

It is said of a good king, "What a blessing he is to the land, he is always RAINING justice upon us." me about the MERIT of remaining with such a master: he is always RAINING blessings upon him." A son after the decease of his father asks, "Where is now the RAIN of love? alas! I am withered and dry." The figure is also used sarcastically, "Yes, indeed you are a very good friend, you are always RAINING favours upon me."

XI. 4.

"I drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love."

Here we have another figure to show the affection of Jehovah for backsliding Israel. An affectionate wife says of a good husband, "He has bound me with the cords of love." "Ah! woman, have you not drawn me with the cords of love?" "True, true, I was once drawn by the cords of

love, but they are now all broken."

XIV. 5.- "Cast forth his roots as Lebanon."

A priest or aged man in blessing a newly married couple often says, "Ah! may your roots shoot forth like the ARUGAPILLU" (Agrostis Linearis). This beautiful grass puts forth NUMEROUS roots, and is highly valued for the feeding of cattle.

CHAP. I. verse 7.

JOEL.

"Barked my fig tree."

The skin of a man is sometimes spoken of as the bark of a tree. Thus it is said of those who have been severely flogged, "Their backs are like the margossa tree stripped of its bark :" which alludes to the custom of taking off the bark o that tree for medicinal purposes.

II. 6." All faces shall gather blackness." The margin has, for "blackness," "pot."

The Tamul translation has, "All faces shall wither, or shrivel." Thus of a man in great poverty it is said, "His face is shrivelled." It is very provoking to tell a person his face is like the KARE-CHATTE, i. e. the earthen vessel in which the rice is boiled. The "pot" may allude to such an utensil, it being made black with the smoke.

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