Jerome

(Verse 11.) Therefore, you will plant a faithful plantation and sow a foreign seed. On the day of your planting, your grapevine will be in bloom, and in the morning your seed will sprout; the harvest has been taken away on the day of inheritance, and there will be great sorrow. LXX: Therefore, you will plant an unfaithful plantation and unfaithful seed, and on the day you plant, you will wander. But if you sow in the morning, it will bloom for the harvest on the day of inheritance, when a father gives inheritance to his sons. For that reason, because we have interpreted it according to Aquila and Symmachus and the LXX, on the day of inheritance, which in Hebrew is called Biom Nehela (), it can be read in Hebrew, on a very bad day. And for that reason, because it has been interpreted by Aquila and Theodotion, and the man will grieve: we learned from the Hebrews, for the man who is called Enos in their language, we have interpreted as Anus (), that is, heavily: concerning the ambiguity of this word, if there is time in this life, we will discuss it more fully in Jeremiah, where according to the LXX it says: And there is a man, and who will know him? Therefore I say what I proposed: Because you have forgotten, O land of Judah, your Savior God, and the one who always provided strength for you, you have not remembered; therefore you will indeed plant a faithful plantation, as the interpretations of Aquila and Theodotion say, beautiful; or as Symmachus says, good, preaching one God: but you will sow a foreign seed, not receiving the Father, because you do not receive the Son. For whoever believes in the Father, also believes in the Son. And because you have sown the seed of blasphemy against Jesus in the synagogues of Satan, therefore you shall not gather grapes, but wild grapes. And when it appears that your seed is flourishing and you have some shade of piety, while you withdraw people from idols: yet when you will grieve deeply in the day of harvest to gather the fruits, seeing that the people of the Gentiles are preferred to you. Hence the Apostle says: I have great sorrow and unceasing pain in my heart. For I myself wished to be anathema from Christ for the sake of my brethren, who are my kinsmen according to the flesh, who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption of sons, and the glory, and the testament, and the giving of the law, and the promises: whose are the fathers, and of whom is Christ, according to the flesh, who is over all things, God blessed forever. Amen (Romans 9:3-5). And not only Paul, but also every saint speaks this, wishing to save even the root with the branches of the olive tree. But that inheritance is what we obtain from the Lord, about which the Apostle says: There are divisions of grace, but the same Spirit; and there are divisions of ministries, but the same Lord; and there are divisions of operations, but the same God, who works all things in all. Let someone wonder why we have called our faithful congregation a faithful plantation, considering the beautiful and good translations made by Aquila, Theodotio, and Symmachus. The Hebrew word Neemanim, if spelled with the letter Aleph, means faithful; but if spelled with Ain, and pronounced as Neamenim, it means beautiful. Thus, Noemi, which is spelled with this letter, speaks in Ruth (Chapter I, 20): 'Do not call me Noemi, that is, beautiful, but call me bitter.'

Those who believe that the captivity of Damascus discussed above was inflicted by the Romans also refer what is written here to the time of Christ and the apostles: “People will bow to their Creator, and their eyes will look to the holy one of Israel.” They further think that what follows, namely, “You will plant faithful plants, and you will sow strange seeds; in the day of your planting, the wild grape” applies to the infidelity of the Jews. And this little passage that we just set forth they interpret as concerning the peoples who persecute the church. The next line, “he will rebuke him, and he will flee far away,” they receive as concerning the devil, demonstrating the destruction of persecutors and demons through a tropological interpretation. We, however, follow the original order and complete the historical foundation with a historical culmination. Woe, it says, to all the nations who wage war against my people, whose attack was strong enough to be compared to the waves of the sea. But when raging warriors come and inundate my land, then their prince Sennacherib will flee from them, rebuked, and they will be scattered like dust in a plundering storm. As the top of a whirl-wind revolves, so will he be struck by an angel when he approaches Jerusalem to besiege her. He will come in the morning and witness his powerful army destroyed. And “this is the portion of those who despoil us.” This prophet speaks either in the person of the people or as though uniting himself to his nation.

(Verse 12 and following) Woe to the multitude of many peoples, like the roaring of the sea, and the tumult of the nations, they shall make a sound like the noise of many waters. The peoples shall sound like the noise of abundant waters: and he shall rebuke him, and he shall flee far off: and he shall be carried away as dust of the mountains before the wind, and as a whirlwind before a tempest. In the evening, and behold trouble: in the morning, and he shall not be. This is the portion of them that have wasted us, and the lot of them that spoiled us. Above, we read about the calling of the Gentiles and the rejection of the Jews, and also about the election of a few Jews among the Apostles. And since in comparison to the whole world and all the nations, only a small part of the people believed in Christ, as it was said above: 'And the remnant of Syria shall be as the glory of the children of Israel' (for 'many are called, but few are chosen' - Matthew 22:14) and 'not all have faith' (2 Thessalonians 3:2), now it follows that there is not mourning, but woe to those nations who refused to believe and persecuted the Christian people. And they are compared to the mass of waves and the roaring sea, and as much as is within them, they desire to overwhelm and occupy everything. For the people will sound forth in the spectacles of theatrical luxury, and in the cruelty of the amphitheater, and in the madness of the circus, just as the sound of overflowing waters, when with a united voice of impiety they blaspheme, and they say to the Christians, 'Throw them to the lions and beasts,' and other things of this kind. But to them, like raging seas, the Lord will rebuke the instigator of their sedition, and He will drive him away from His people. And as dust moved on the mountains, the higher it is, the stronger it is carried away; and as a whirlwind, which rises from the earth, is carried away into the sky by a sudden storm: so also he, being carried away, will be separated from the people of God and will flee, lest he be relegated to the abyss. And when the day of consummation comes, which is interpreted as evening, then there will be turmoil, acknowledging his sins. And in the morning, on the day of resurrection, it will not continue, as the LXX translated, it will not be. But if it will not be, what will those who give penance to the devil respond, and they promise as much as they can, an archangelic rank? This is the role of those who have devastated us, and the fate of those who will plunder us. This is either the speech of the Christian people or the prophet speaking from the perspective of the believing people, that the persecutors will have eternal destruction, who have oppressed the holy ones of God with exile, imprisonment, and the seizure of goods, and will possess eternal punishments.

(Verses 12-14.) Woe to the multitude of many peoples, as the sound of the roaring sea: and the tumult of nations, like the sound of many waters. The peoples will make noise, like the sound of overflowing waters: and they will rebuke him, and he will flee far away: and he will be carried away like the dust of mountains before the wind, and like a whirlwind before a storm. At evening time: and behold, there will be trouble in the morning, and it will not continue. This is their portion, who have plundered us, and their lot, who have taken us away. Those who consider the captivity of Damascus inflicted by the Romans, and this which is written: Man shall bow down to his Maker, and his eyes shall look to the Holy One of Israel, refer to the times of Christ and the Apostles. They also understand the following: You will plant a faithful plantation, and you will sow a foreign branch: on the day of your plantation the wild vine, etc., they perceive the unfaithfulness of the Jews. And this chapter that we have now presented is interpreted by the Gentiles who persecute the Church. Moreover, what follows is understood to be about the devil, with a tropological interpretation illustrating the devastation caused by persecutors and demons. But we follow the sequential order and protect the historical foundations with historical insight. Woe, he says, to all the nations that have fought against my people, whose force was so great that it could be compared to the waves of the sea. But when they come raging and flood my land, then their leader Sennacherib will flee, reproached by him, and be scattered like dust carried by the wind, and whirled up into the sky like a storm. Indeed, he will approach Jerusalem, besieging it, but he will be struck down by an angel; he will come in the morning, and he will see his army destroyed, the power of his might gone. And this will be the portion of those who devastated us. The Prophet speaks either on behalf of the people or joins himself to his own nation (IV Kings XIX, 35, 36). Afterwards we read: The Angel of the Lord went out and struck down in the camp of the Assyrians one hundred and eighty-five thousand; and they arose early in the morning, and behold, all the dead bodies. So Sennacherib king of the Assyrians departed and returned and lived in Nineveh.

(Chapter 18—Verse 1 and following) Woe to the land of buzzing wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, that sends ambassadors by sea, in vessels of papyrus on the waters. Go, you swift messengers, to a nation tall and smooth-skinned, to a people feared near and far, a mighty nation and conquering, whose land the rivers divide. All you inhabitants of the world, you who dwell on the earth, when a signal is raised on the mountains, you will see it, and when a trumpet is blown, you will hear it. LXX: Woe to the land of winged ships beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, who send ambassadors by sea in papyrus vessels over the water. Go, swift messengers, to a tall and smooth-skinned nation, to a people feared far and wide, a powerful and oppressive nation whose land the rivers divide. All you people of the world, you who live on the earth, when a banner is raised on the mountains, you will see it, and when a trumpet sounds, you will hear it. I have placed both editions in the most obscure prophecy so that nothing may seem to be lacking to those who want to understand what is written. At the same time, I greatly admire those who think that our faith and Christian hope are satisfied with simplicity, because it is written: The commandment of God is a clear light, enlightening the eyes (Ps. XIX, 9): and that we should not seek more than what is commanded, but that what is commanded should be done: for this reason, both the whole Scripture and the Prophets are specifically involved in the mysteries of the future, so that they may provoke us to understanding and to what is said in the Gospel: Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened to you. Therefore, since I have explained the history and what is contained in Hebrew in the fifth book, now I will explain what seems to me according to the allegory. Perhaps a discerning reader may inquire what the Vision, or the Burden of Damascus, the sounding cymbal, and the other things that follow mean. After the calling of the Gentiles was mentioned, along with the objection of the Jews and their election, those who believed through the Apostles, and then the multitude of the Gentiles and the persecutors who were compared to the waves of the sea: it followed that the prophetic discourse would also announce the heresies that have troubled and continue to ravage the Church, which, while the master of the household slept, sowed weeds in the field of the Church (Matthew 13). And they are called cymbals, lacking the love of God, according to the saying of the Apostle: 'If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal' (1 Corinthians 13:1). And not only a cymbal with its harsh resounding sound, but because of the lightweight heretical discourse that flows in different directions, they are called cymbals of wings, or according to the Septuagint, wings of ships, who, promising great goods, sail in the waves of this world. But understand the wings of the ships, the sails by which they are suspended and drawn. And beautifully he called them the wings of the ships, for every heretic promises lofty things and boasts of having wings, yet he clings to the salty waves and does not depart far from land, and in the middle of his course he suddenly suffers shipwreck. Hence the Eagle, as a symbol of the ship, interpreted the shadow of the wings, for eagles do not have wings, but a resemblance to wings. And he brings forth the fact that which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, signifies that all heretics are conquered by their impiety. For example: Epicurus says that there is no providence, and that pleasure is the greatest good. By comparison, Marcion is even more wicked, and all heretics who tear apart the Old Testament. For when they reject providence, they accuse the Creator, and assert that He has erred in most of His works, and has not done them as He should have. For what benefit do serpents, scorpions, crocodiles, fleas, bugs, and mosquitoes bring to human beings? Therefore, these people across the rivers of Ethiopia are sending messengers into the sea of this world, that is, their disciples, who are said to carry their volumes, rightly called papyrus vessels, that is, papers carried on the water, which are quickly erased. For just as books are quickly obscured and destroyed by water and moisture, so too their message and teaching, once it appears to possess some strength in the beginning, passes away and slips away. Therefore, through irony, it is said to them: O Angels of heretics, go quickly. These false apostles, deceitful workers, who transform themselves into apostles of Christ, are referred to as such by the blessed apostle Paul (2 Cor. XI). And go to the nation torn and ravaged: torn from God and torn apart by the bites of heretics. To a horrible people; for there is nothing more horrible than blasphemy, which lifts up its own mouth in arrogance. After which there is no other people; for every sin when compared to blasphemy is lighter. A people waiting, waiting, and trampled upon. For all heretics promise themselves celestial things, and they promise great things, and yet they are trampled upon by demons. Whose land the rivers have plundered, which do not have waters from the sky, but from the earth. For what corner is there, what remote wilderness of the earth, to which the polluted speech of heretics does not reach? Therefore, all who dwell and live in the world, lift up their eyes to the sign of the heretics, which is raised as if on mountains, and they hear the sound of the trumpet, that is, their teaching. These things are according to Hebrew. Furthermore, according to the Seventy, the wings of the heretics lament, which fly like ships across the sea of this age, and they surpass the impiety of the Gentiles, whom Scripture now calls Ethiopians: and it is said about their teaching and their language: You who send books of this age into the sea, the hostages of your perversity, and letters to deceive those who will read them. The swift messengers go to the high and foreign people, and the most wicked. For no ecclesiastics have so much zeal for good as heretics have for evil, and they believe they will gain advantage by deceiving others and destroying those who are already doomed. But this people is called exalted because of their pride: and foreign and wicked because they are estranged from God. Truly a people without hope, and oppressed, whose rivers throughout the whole earth imitate the dwelling of the Church, so that they may find for themselves a home and a region, in which they may raise the sign of their teaching, in which they may sound the trumpet of the Scriptures.

(Chapter XVIII, Verse 1.) Woe to the land with the sound of wings beyond the rivers of Ethiopia. The Hebrew word Selsel (), which Symmachus interpreted as noise, Theodotion as birds, and we translate as cymbal. Aquila translated bis umbram. But it should be known that umbra Sel () is said, but here the syllable itself is doubled. From which we can understand the saying: Woe to the land that promises help in the shadow of its wings. And as the Scripture says: Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty (Psalm XC, 1), for which it is written in Hebrew, He will dwell in the shadow of the Omnipotent: boasting to have the likeness of God herself, and in danger promises to aid others. But it signifies either No, the city of Egypt, which is now called Alexandria, or Egypt itself, in which Jerusalem has always relied on like a bruised reed, which, when broken, pierces the hand of the one leaning on it. And here is the most beautiful order: just as in the previous Vision the prophetic word threatened Damascus, that the ten tribes would have help in it, begging for the mercy of God; so now also the desolation of Egypt is proclaimed, for which the invocation of God has been neglected. For it is the land itself that is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, that is, beyond the streams of the Nile river, which no one doubts flows from Ethiopia into Egypt. Egypt can be called the granary of the world because of the abundance of crops; indeed, the swift and rapid flight of birds produces the sound of a cymbal. Some interpret this as referring to the Roman Empire, which sends ambassadors to the sea and on papyrus vessels over the waters, and they relate all history to the times of Vespasian and Titus, during which Jerusalem was destroyed. But this does not befit our faith, that the Lord should threaten the Roman Kingdom, wherefore He has overthrown the impious nation, and again say that gifts are to be brought to Mount Zion, unless perhaps we understand these things spiritually in the Church.

(Verse 2.) He who sends envoys to the sea, and in papyrus vessels on the waters. Go, swift angels, to a nation torn and ravaged, to a fearsome people after whom there is no other, to a nation waiting and trampled, whose rivers they have plundered. Among the Hebrews and Egyptians and the Egyptians themselves and the Egyptians, they are called by one name, Mesraim. This saying is have, so that no one may get stuck on the word, when they find a masculine word for a feminine gender, that is, for land a man, because even now it is said: He who sends envoys to the sea, that is, Mesraim itself, the Egyptian himself, because from Alexandria, which was then, as I said, called No, envoys were sent to Jerusalem and in papyrus vessels, that is, in letters, or ships, promising their help to them, saying: Go swiftly to the torn people of the Jews, and torn by the assault of the Assyrians; to the people once fearsome, who wielded the command of God, to whose power no one else can be compared: to a nation that always awaited the help of God, and yet is trampled by men: whose land rivers, that is, different kings, have ravaged. Others, however, think that the apostrophe is directed to the Lord, and the meaning is: O God, who sends prophets into the sea of this world, and like sailors through letters, warns the people, commanding them with your messages: go quickly to my torn and convulsed people, to the strongest people, who once terrified all nations around, who always waited for God's help, and because of the greatness of their sins, which they hope for, they do not deserve to receive it: whose land was ravaged by the kings of various nations, and so on. Eusebius of Caesarea, promising a historical interpretation in the title, wanders off into various meanings, so that when I read his books, I found something entirely different from what the index promised. Wherever he runs out of history, he moves on to allegory, and in this way he combines things that are separate, so that I marvel at his skill in joining together new elements of language into one unity of stone and iron. I mention this briefly, so that no one thinks that we have borrowed what we say from his sources; for even in the present chapter, he says that prophecy is directed against the Jews and Jerusalem, because at the beginning of the Christian faith they sent letters to all the nations, urging them not to accept the passion of Christ; and they sent letters even to Ethiopia and the Western regions, and with the dissemination of this blasphemy they have filled the whole world.

(Vs. 4 and following) Because this is what the Lord says to me, I will rest and observe in my place: just as the bright midday light is, and like the clouds of dew in the day of harvest. Before the harvest, the whole field has blossomed, and the immature perfection will sprout, and its branches will be cut off by the sickle: and what has been left behind will be cut off, shaken off. And they will be left to the birds of the mountains, and to the animals of the earth, and in perpetual summer, birds will be above it, and all the animals of the earth will winter over it. In that time the gift of the Lord of hosts will be brought by the scattered and torn people, by the dreadful and desecrated people, by the waiting and trampled people, whose rivers they have plundered, to the place of the name of the Lord of hosts, Mount Zion. God rests and contemplates in His place, or near the Eagle, in the firmament, that is, in the Church, of which the Apostle Paul speaks: Pillar and foundation of truth (I Tim. III, 15). But the things that happen in the Church are contemplated; and just as the clear midday light illuminates everything, so it surveys the whole: according to what is said in the eighteenth Psalm in the mystical sense about the sun of justice: There is none that can hide himself from its heat. And just as the clouds of dew in the day of harvest, and in the scorching heat of summer are most welcome, so the Lord refreshes the inhabitants of His Church, in whose presence all things flourish. And before the time of consummation comes, because now we know in part and we prophesy in part, many perfect ones will be found, of whom the Apostle speaks: As many as are perfect, let us think this way (I Cor. XIII; Phil. III, 15). But the useless branches will be cut off by the sickles, as the Savior says in the Gospel: I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit, he will take it away; and every branch that bears fruit, he will prune it, that it may bear more fruit (John XV, 2). And those things which have been cut off will be left for the birds of the mountains and the beasts of the earth. For the birds, which are sown along the way, will be preyed upon, and for the beasts, to whom the soul is delivered, not confessing God, so that he who has been cut off and rejected by the Lord, and separated from his body, which is the Church, may find his dwelling among birds and beasts both in summer and winter, that is, in prosperity and adversity. And just as those who are useless and unfruitful in the Church are pruned and cast out, lest a little yeast corrupt the whole mass: so, on the contrary, it can happen that those who were deceived by heretical error, and torn away from the Lord and lacerated, and terrifying for their blasphemy, and waiting in vain for lies, and trampled by demons, and scattered in various parts by rivers, when they have remembered their God, and have abandoned their many teachers, offer a gift to the Lord of hosts, nowhere else but on Mount Zion, and in the watchtower, which is interpreted as the Church. We will be brief, because we have already discussed many things in the book of historical explanation.

(Verse 5, 6.) For before the harvest it had flowered entirely, and immature perfection had sprouted, and its small branches will be cut with sickles, and whatever has been left behind will be cut off and shaken off. And they will be left with the birds of the mountains and the animals of the earth, and they will have perpetual summer over them, and all the animals of the earth will winter upon it. Because he had said of the south wind, and had sent a cloud of dew before summer and harvest, and had taken produce from the field, he will preserve it in the remains, describing the pride of Egypt and the devastation of its people, and the corpses throughout the province, which will be devoured by the birds. For just as the crops that spring up before maturity quickly perish, and the sprouts that germinate are useless before the proper time of growth comes; so, he says, the Egyptian people are cut down like useless branches with the sickle, and all their offspring will be stripped bare. And lest you think that he is speaking of the vineyard and not of men, he turns the metaphor into historical truth: And they shall be abandoned together to the birds of the mountains and to the beasts of the earth. For birds and beasts do not eat the severed branches of trees, but rather devour corpses. Let us read more fully Ezekiel, where he prophesies against Pharaoh and against Egypt: and all these things we will find written very clearly (Ezek. XXIX). And he says: In perpetual summer, birds shall be above him, and all beasts shall winter upon him; either this signifies a multitude of those who will be slain, or by the same interpretation it shows that he will be laid waste by all nations.

(Verse 7) In that time the gift of the Lord of hosts will be brought by the scattered and torn people, by the terrifying people, after whom there was no other: by the waiting people, waiting and trampled, whose rivers they have plundered, to the place of the name of the Lord of hosts, the mountain of Zion. After the devastation of Egypt and the destruction of its empire, Israel will no longer trust in the vanity of its shadow, but will return to the Lord and bring its gifts to the mountain of Zion, that is, to His temple, and only pray to Him whose true and eternal protection it is. But this was done under Zerubbabel, and Joshua, and Ezra, and Nehemiah. LXX, because we have said: expecting, expecting, and in Hebrew it is written, hoping, hoping, on the contrary they are interpreted as ἀνέλπιστον, that is, not hoping. And for this reason Eusebius gave occasion for understanding this more about the Gentiles, who have neither hope, nor the Testament of God, nor the Prophets, than about the Jews: because gifts are to be sent afterwards by the Church itself, which is established on the watchtower, and spiritual offerings are to be made.

(Verse 1 and following): Behold, the Lord will ascend upon a light cloud, and will enter Egypt, and the idols of Egypt will be moved from before him, and the heart of Egypt will waste away within it. And I will incite the Egyptians against the Egyptians, and they will fight, man against his brother, and man against his friend, city against city, kingdom against kingdom. And the spirit of Egypt will be broken within it, and I will frustrate their plans; and they will consult their idols and their diviners, and the Pythons and fortune-tellers. And I will deliver Egypt into the hands of cruel masters, and a strong king will rule over them, says the Lord God of hosts. I have diligently examined many of the prophecies of Egypt, which Isaiah raised up or saw, in a historical explanation. Therefore, now according to tropology, the most important things are to be taken. The Lord ascends upon a light cloud, the body of the holy Virgin Mary, which is not burdened by the weight of any human seed: or certainly His own body, which was conceived of the Holy Spirit. And he entered into Egypt of this world; and immediately all the Egyptian idols were moved, so that the divinations and all the fraud of idolatry, which possessed and deceived the whole world, felt that it had been broken: to such an extent that the wise men from the East, who were taught by demons, or according to the prophecy of Balaam (Num. XXIV), understanding that the Son of God had been born, who would destroy all the power of their art, came to Bethlehem and, with the star guiding them, adored the child (Matt. II). Then the heart of Egypt trembled, and the Egyptians rose up against the Egyptians, according to that which the Lord speaks in the Gospel: Think not that I am come to send peace upon earth: I came not to send peace, but the sword. For I am come to divide a man against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law (Matt. X, 34 seqq.). At that time also this was fulfilled: The enemies of a man are they of his own household (Micah VII, 6). And a man will fight against his brother, and a man against his friend. For they were separated in one house, two against three, and three against two, and the father was divided against the Son, and the son against the father, city against city, and kingdom against kingdom, those who did not believe against those who believed, or certainly those who believed, desiring to save their closest ones. And the spirit of Egypt was disrupted in their hearts, so that they would not feel equal; but separated by a spiritual sword against themselves, they would recognize that all their plans had been thrown away: and nevertheless, remaining in their previous error, those who had refused to accept the truth of faith would consult idols and their gods, and Pythonesses, and soothsayers. And when they did this, the Lord delivered them into the hands of cruel masters, according to the apostle's saying: Whom I have delivered to Satan, that they may learn not to blaspheme (1 Tim. 1:20); being oppressed by the harshest servitude, may they return to the most merciful Lord. And fittingly, he calls the cruel demons their masters, to whom nothing is more cruel. Also, the strong king, who is their Lord, clearly refers to the devil, whom the Lord also calls a fortune in the Gospel, by binding and oppressing whom, the vessels of his house are plundered.

(Chapter 19, Verse 1) The Burden of Egypt. Behold, the Lord will ascend upon a light cloud, and will enter into Egypt, and the idols of Egypt shall be moved at his presence, and the heart of Egypt shall melt in the midst thereof. It is the custom of the Scriptures to connect the clear with the obscure, and to openly declare with a clear voice what was previously expressed in enigmas. Therefore, in the present passage, because He had pronounced woes against Egypt before, saying, 'Woe to the land overshadowed with wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia,' and other things which the prophetic discourse has woven together, He now makes the understanding more clear, and threatening Egypt itself, He speaks, not that the Angels, but the Lord Himself, shall come upon a light cloud, that is, a swift one, and shall enter into Egypt, and make the idols of Egypt tremble, and cause the heart of the mighty to melt, and fulfill the prophecy of Ezekiel (or Jeremiah): 'I will destroy the idols, and I will cause the idols of Memphis to cease' (Ezekiel 30:13). Some refer this whole prophecy to the time of the Savior, when he entered upon a light cloud, that is, a human body, which he had assumed from the Virgin, not burdened with any mingling of human seed: or because he was carried on a light cloud, that is, a Virginal body, and at his entrance all the demons trembled, and then the first downfall of idols occurred, unable to bear the presence of the Lord.