4  In the extremity of evils, Christ's glorious kingdom should appear to those who are left alive, Isa 4:1-2.
They shall be holy, Isa 4:3.
Purged, Isa 4:4.
A glory and a defence upon them, Isa 4:5.
A sanctuary from evils, Isa 4:6.

4:2 In that day - About that time: when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of Zion, by those dreadful judgments now described.The branch - The Messiah. The earth - The land which for the sins of the people was made barren, upon their return to Christ shall recover its fertility. Under this one mercy he includes all temporal blessings, together with spiritual and eternal. For them - That shall survive all the forementioned calamities.

4:3 Holy - Shall be really holy. Jerusalem - Of the people living in or belonging to Jerusalem.

4:4 When - This shall be accomplished when God hath throughly cleansed the Jewish nation from their sins. The blood - The blood - guiltiness, and especially that of killing the Lord of life. Burning - This is opposed to the former legal way of purification, which was by water.The Holy Spirit of old accompanied the preaching of the gospel, and did this work in part, and will do it fully. This spirit may well be called a spirit of judgment, because it executes judgment in the church, and in the consciences of men, separating the precious from the vile, convincing men of sin, and righteousness, and judgment. And the same spirit may be fitly called the spirit of burning, because he doth burn up and consume the dross which is in the church, and in the hearts of men, and inflames the souls of believers with love to God, and zeal for his glory.

4:5 Create - Will in a marvellous manner produce, as it were by a new creation. A cloud - A pillar of cloud and fire, like that wherewith he directed the Israelites, when they came out of Egypt: whereby he implies, that God would be their protector, and their glory.The glory - Upon all that church and people, which God will make so glorious; upon all holy assemblies of sincere Christians.

4:6 And there - Or, he, the Lord, shall be a tabernacle, to defend them from the heat of the sun, and other injuries of the weather.

5  Israel, God's vineyard, his mercies, and their faithfulness, should be laid waste, Isa 5:1-7.
Judgments upon covetousness, Isa 5:8-10.
Upon drunkards, and the lascivious, Isa 5:11-12.
The great misery of the Jews, Isa 5:13-17.
Judgments on impiety, scoffers at God's threatnings, those who corrupt the notions of good and ill, strong - drinkers, and unjust judges, Isa 5:18-23.
God's anger, and the Chaldeans army against them, Isa 5:24-30.

5:1 Now - I will record it to he a witness for God, and against you, as Moses did his song, Deu 31:19 Isa 5, Deu 32:1, .To - To the Lord of the vineyard. Of my beloved - Not devised by me, but inspired by God. Vineyard - His church. Hill - Hills being places most commodious for vines.

5:2 He gathered - He removed all hindrances, and gave them all the means of fruitfulness. A tower - For the residence of the keepers.

5:6 Nor digged - Vine - dressers use to dig up and open the earth about the roots of the vines. The meaning is, I will remove my ministers, who used great care and diligence to make you fruitful. Thorns - I will give you up to your own lusts. No rain - I will deprive you of all my blessings.

5:7 Pleasant - In whom God formerly delighted. A cry - From the oppressed, crying to men for help, and to God for vengeance.

3 The general contents of this chapter we have Rom 5:12.
By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.More particularly, we have here,

1. The innocent tempted, Gen 3:1-5.
   
2. The tempted transgressing, Gen 3:6-8.
   
3. The transgressors arraigned, Gen 3:9-10.
   
4. Upon their arraignment convicted, Gen 3:11-13.
   
5. Upon their conviction sentenced, Gen 3:14-19.
   
6. After sentence, reprieved, Gen 3:20-21.
   
7. Notwithstanding their reprieve, execution in part done, Gen 3:22-24,
   and were it not for the gracious intimations of redemption, they and all their race had been left to despair.

3:21 These coats of skin had a significancy. The beasts whose skins they were, must be slain; slain before their eyes to shew them what death is. And probably 'tis supposed they were slain for sacrifice, to typify the great sacrifice which in the latter end of the world should be offered once for all. Thus the first thing that died was a sacrifice, or Christ in a figure.

3:22 Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil - See what he has got, what advantages, by eating forbidden fruit!This is said to humble them, and to bring them to a sense of their sin and folly, that seeing themselves thus wretchedly deceived by following the devil's counsel, they might henceforth pursue the happiness God offers, in the way he prescribes.

3:23  He sent him forth - Bid him go out, told him he should nolonger occupy and enjoy that garden; but he was not willing to part with it.

3:24  God drove him out - This signified the exclusion of him and hisguilty race from that communion with God which was the bliss and glory of paradise. But whether did he send him when he turned him out of Eden? He might justly have chased him out of the world, Job 18:18, but he only chased him out of the garden: he might justlyhave cast him down to hell, as the angels that sinned were, when they were shut out from the heavenly paradise, Pe2 2:4, but man was only sent to till the ground out of which he was taken. He was only sent to a place of toil, not to a place of torment. He was sent to the ground, not to the grave; to the work - house, not to the dungeon, not to the prison - house; to hold the plough, not to drag the chain: his tilling the ground would be recompensed by his eating its fruits; and his converse with the earth, whence he was taken, was improveable to good purposes, to keep him humble, and to mind him of his latter end.Observe then, That though our first parents were excluded from the privileges of their state of innocency, yet they were not abandoned to despair; God's thoughts of love designing them for a second state of probation upon new terms. And he placed at the east of the garden of Eden, a detachment of cherubim, armed with a dreadful and irresistible power, represented by flaming swords which turned every way, on that side the garden which lay next to the place whither Adam was sent, to keep the way that led to the tree of life.

4 In this chapter we have both the world and the church in Adam's family, and a specimen of the character and state of both in all ages.As all mankind were represented in Adam, so that great distinction of mankind into the children of God and the children of the wicked one, was here represented in Cain and Abel; and an early instance of the enmity between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent.We have here,

1. The birth, names, and callings of Cain and Abel, Gen 4:1-2.
   
2. Their religion, and different success in it, Gen 4:3-4,
   and part of Gen 4:5.
   
3. Cain's anger at God, and the reproof of him for that anger, Gen 4:5-7.
   
4. Cain's murder of his brother, and the process against him for that murder. The murder committed, Gen 4:8.
   The proceedings against him.
   1. His arraignment, Gen 4:9, former part.
      
   2. His plea, Gen 4:9. latter part.
      
   3. His conviction, Gen 4:10.
      
   4. The sentence passed upon him, Gen 4:11-12.
      
   5. His complaint against the sentence, Gen 4:13-14.
      
   6. The ratification of the sentence, Gen 4:15.
      
   7. The execution of the sentence, Gen 4:15-16.
      
5. The family and posterity of Cain, Gen 4:17-24.
   
6. The birth of another son and grandson of Adam, Gen 4:25-26.
   

4:1 Adam and Eve had many sons and daughters, Gen 5:4.But Cain and Abel seem to have been the two eldest. Cain signifies possession; for Eve when she bare him said with joy and thankfulness, and great expectation, I have gotten a man from the Lord.

4:2 Abel signifies vanity. The name given to this son is put upon the whole race, Psa 39:5.Every man is at his best estate vanity; Abel, vanity. He chose that employment which did most befriend contemplation and devotion, for that hath been looked upon as the advantage of a pastoral life. Moses and David kept sheep, and in their solitudes conversed with God.

4:3 In process of time - At the end of days, either at the end of the year when they kept their feast of in - gathering, or at the end of the days of the week, the seventh day; at some set time Cain and Abel brought to Adam, as the priest of the family, each of them an offering to the Lord; for which we have reason to think there was a divine appointment given to Adam, as a token of God's favour notwithstanding their apostacy.

4:4 And the Lord God had respect to Abel and to his offering, and shewed his acceptance of it, probably by fire from heaven but to Cain and to his offering he had not respect. We are sure there was a good reason for this difference: that Governor of the world, though an absolute sovereign, doth not act arbitrarily in dispensing his smiles and frowns.

1. There was a difference in the characters of the persons offering:Cain was a wicked man, but Abel was a righteous man, Mat 23:35.
2. There was a difference in the offerings they brought. Abel's was amore excellent sacrifice than Cain's; Cain's was only a sacrifice of acknowledgment offered to the Creator; the meat - offerings of the fruit of the ground were no more: but Abel brought a sacrifice of atonement, the blood whereof was shed in order to remission, thereby owning himself a sinner, deprecating God's wrath, and imploring his favour in a Mediator. But the great difference was, Abel offered in faith, and Cain did not. Abel offered with an eye to God's will as his rule, and in dependence upon the promise of a Redeemer. But Cain did not offer in faith, and so it turned into sin to him.

4:5 And Cain was wroth, and his countenance fell - Not so much out of grief as malice and rage. His sullen churlish countenance, and down - look, betrayed his passionate resentment.

4:7 If thou dost well, shalt thou not be accepted? - Either, 1. If thou hadst done well, as thy brother did, thou shouldest have been accepted as he was. God is no respecter of persons; so that if we come short of acceptance with him, the fault is wholly our own. This will justify God in the destruction of sinners, and will aggravate their ruin.There is not a damned sinner in hell, but if he had done well, as he might have done, had been a glorified saint in heaven. Every mouth will shortly be stopt with this. Or, 2. If now thou do well: if thou repent of thy sin, reform thy heart and life, and bring thy sacrifice in a better manner; thou shalt yet be accepted. See how early the gospel was preached, and the benefit of it here offered even to one of the chief of sinners.

He sets before him death and a curse; but, if not well - Seeing thoudidst not do well, not offer in faith, and in a right manner, sin lieth at the door - That is, sin only hinders thy acceptance. All this considered, Cain had no reason to he angry with his brother, but at himself only.Unto thee shall be his desire - He shall continue in respect to thee as an elder brother, and thou, as the first - born, shall rule over him as much as ever. God's acceptance of Abel's offering did not transfer the birth - right to him, (which Cain was jealous of) nor put upon him that dignity, and power, which is said to belong to it, Gen 49:3.

3  An exhortation to be steadily religious, Pro 3:1-4.
To trust God, Pro 3:5-6.
To fear him, Pro 3:7-8.
To honour him with our substance, Pro 3:9-10.
To bear affliction well, Pro 3:11-12.
The praise of wisdom, Pro 3:13-20.
The good effects of adhering to it, Pro 3:21-26.
Caution, against uncharitableness, strife, envy; if we would avoid a curse and inherit a blessing, Pro 3:27-35.

3:35 Shame - Instead of that glory which they seek.

4  An exhortation to the study of wisdom, is forced by various arguments, Pro 4:1-13.
A caution against bad company, Pro 4:14-19.
Directions for the attaining and keeping of wisdom, Pro 4:20-27.

4:1 A father - Of me, who have paternal authority over you and affection for you.

4:3 Tender - Young and tender in years, and tenderly educated.Only beloved - Beloved above all the rest.

4:4 Said - The following verses, at least as far as the tenth verse, are the words of David.

4:7 With all - Even with the price of all.

4:8 Exalt - Let her have thine highest esteem and affection.

4:9 Grace - A beautiful ornament, such as they used to put upon their heads.

4:16 For - They cannot sleep with quietness.

4:17 For - Wickedness is as pleasant to them as their bread.

4:18 But - Just men daily grow in knowledge, and grace, and consolation, 'till all be perfected and swallowed up in glory.

4:19 Darkness - Full of ignorance and error, of uncertainty and confusion, of danger and misery.