11 Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof?

12 And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves?

ing the interpunctuation, we might render the words "The eyes of YнVн are they, scouring the whole world" (for this constr. of the partic. see iii. 1), comp. LXX. ἑπτὰ οὗτοι ὀφθαλμοί εἰσιν κυρίου οἱ ἐπιβλέποντες. They ought, however, to have omitted the art. before the partic., comp. LXX. of vi. 1. In either case the last half of the verse is a farther description of "these seven." It need hardly be said that shibh'ahélleh 'ené YHVH cannot mean "these seven eyes of YнVн,” which

Day (comp. Dan. i. 17).

עיני י"י האלה or, שבעת (שבעה or) עיני י"י האלה would have been

.see ,מה שתי

see Excurs. IV.—The sing.

יזי

Words and

a stream (Ps. Ixix. 16), "ear of corn" (Job xxiv. 24), makes plur. Verse 12. (comp. i plur. ). The construct (which constructions. occurs here only) is pointed (not) by one of those irregularities of traditional pronunciation, for which no reason can be assigned. The word seems to mean here "pendent bunches of olives."-It is impossible (with C. H. H. Wright) to render the next clause "which by means of the two channels of gold are pouring forth, &c.," for in

T:

since the clause המריקים not מריקים that case we should have had

is introduced by x-nin is a an. Xeyó. meaning probably "spouts" (see Dictionaries); it is masc., as is shown by the numeral. This clause we render : "which are resting in the two golden spouts."

נָכוֹן

must mean "in the hand of," i.e. resting in; but see note on vii. 7. It can hardly mean "by the side of," for the figurative expression nigh at hand" (Job xv. 23) will not justify the rendering. To express this it would have been rather (ver. 14), 7 (1 Sam. xix. 3), (1 Sam. iv. 18), 7 ↳ (2 Sam. xiv. 30), ◄ by (Josh. xv. 46), (Judg. xi. 26).— is a åπ. λeyó. in the sense of “the gold[en oil]." The clause should be rendered "which pour the golden oil out from themselves," grammatically it refers to the spouts, not to the olive-clusters (which are fem.).

or

13 And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.

14 Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.

Βγάd, ἐν ταῖς χερσί. For the ἇπ. λεγό. Çantróth they give μυξωτήρων.

LXX.

they render Tow truxedorov kat המריקים מעליהם הזהב

ἀπαναγόντων τὰς ἐπαρυστρίδας τὰς χρυσᾶς· to them, as to us, hazzāhábh is a difficulty: we solve it by supposing "the gold” to mean "the golden oil"; they by understanding it as "golden pipes (or funnels)" (comp. ver. 2). κаì άavaуóvтwv evidently corresponds to

of ‘āláh “to go up."

which they seem to have read as ,מעליהם .the Hiph. Partic ומעלים

773 is a substantive of the same form as the proper name

Verse 14.

"Isaac." This word is nowhere else used of oil-for-anointWords. ing. It is used to denote oil as the juice of the olive, the produce of the ground, just as tīrósh is used of wine as the produce of the vine. But yáin is used of wine fermented for drinking, and or for anointing (1). On the metheg of ha'om'dím see Excurs. 11. A. 9.— by denotes "by," see on ver. 3.

,(שמן לַמָּאוֹר) shemen of oil prepared for burning

.(שמן

It can scarcely be doubted, that the prototype of this golden candlestick is the candlestick, which was placed in the holy place of the former Sanc

Remarks. tuaries "before the LORD, as an everlasting statute for their generations

on behalf of the children of Israel” (Ex. xxvii. 21). This Candlestick is not mentioned among the vessels of the Sanctuary brought back from the Captivity. It may be that it was the very lack of this important article of the Temple furniture, that impressed the form of it on the Prophet's mind. Be this as it may, the form of Candlestick of the Vision is evidently based on that of the Temple, and Tabernacle. But, at the same time, that of the Vision differs in several points from the other. In the Candlestick of old the lamps had need to be trimmed every evening, by the Priests, while in this the oil poured itself spontaneously from two olive-clusters, and was communicated to the lamps by such a number of pipes, as in an actual lamp would seem almost impossible. The angel-interpreter declares that the significance of the Vision is this: that all difficulties should subside before Zerubbabel, and that he should complete the building of the Temple, and bring forth the head-stone thereof with shouts of "Grace, grace to it!" But, this was to take place by no human power (such as was used for keeping the lamps of the Candlestick alight in former times), but by the Unction from the Holy One: "Not by might, or by power, but by my Spirit, saith the LORD of Hosts." "Do not then," says the direct revelation of the LORD, "despise the small beginnings of the work, and then the eyes of God's all-embracing Providence, which are specially directed on this

work of rebuilding (iii. 9), will yet view with benign satisfaction the completion of this material building by the hand of Zerubbabel." But, as though the LORD looked with pity on the weakness of human faith, and to explain the meaning of the two olive-clusters, He deigns to reveal to the Prophet the two human instruments by which this work was to be consummated, saying "These (the two olive-clusters) are the two anointed ones," i.e. Zerubbabel the Prince of the House of David, the civil head, and Joshua, the High-Priest, the religious head. Thus should this Building be completed. And, as the Candlestick of old had been a symbol of the diffusion of the light of Divine Truth by the Congregation of Israel, whose duty it was (and ever is) to be witnesses to the Truth of the Unity of God, so should this new Building become the centre, whence should go forth the Light to lighten the Gentiles, and to be the Glory of His People Israel. (Comp. the close connection in ch. iii. between the assurance of God's providential care of the work of building, and the promise of the mission of the Messiah.)

T

CHAPTER V.

THEN I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a flying roll.

2 And he said unto me, What

seest thou? And I answered, I see a flying roll; the length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits.

SIXTH VISION..—a. THE FLYING SCROLL. B. THE WOMAN IN THE ЕРНАН. Y. THE TWO WOMEN WITH STORKS' WINGS.

Translate " and I lifted up mine eyes again," see note on iv. 10.— by (which we know to be a participle from its being accen

Verse 1.

tuated milra', see note on ver. 4, and on xiv. 18) may be taken as merely an epithet, "a flying scroll," or better, perhaps, as denoting the circumstance or state, “a scroll, flying” (comp. iii. 1, vi. 1, 5).

מגל sense of

LXX. for Megilláh have Spéπavov, understanding the word in the "a sickle." Aquila and Theodotion diplépa. Gr. Versions. Symm. κεφαλίς, var. lect. εἴλημα.

From the wording of this verse the reader will perceive the force of our note on the Q'rí and Cthíbh of iv. 2.—The expression

Verse 2.

"[measured] by the ammah" is common (comp. Ex. xxvi. 8, &c.). (masc. ) is fem. to agree with ammóth understood in the bà ammái.

Z.

3 Then said he unto me, This is the curse that goeth forth over the face of the whole earth: for every one that stealeth shall be cut off as on this side according to it; and

every one that sweareth shall be cut off as on that side according to it.

4 I will bring it forth, saith the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter

I would render thus: "For every one that stealeth, on the one hand, shall in accordance therewith be certainly destroyed: Translation and and every one that sweareth [falsely], on the other hand, shall in accordance therewith be certainly destroyed."

Verse 3.

Construction.

... can, surely, only be taken as contrasted one to the other. In Ex. xi. 1, where mizzéh...mizzéh occurs, the construction is so utterly different, that it affords no parallel. For the expression used in the sense of " on this side and on that" comp. Ex. xxxii. 15, Num. xxii. 24, Ezk. xlviii. 7. Arnswald says that mizzéh...mizzéh cannot mean on this and that side of the roll," because zéh is masc. while m'gilláh is

66

ועשה כרוב אחד מקצה מזה וכרוב אחד (19 .fem. But (Ex. xxv shows that this reason for rejecting that מקצה מזה מן הכפרת...

translation is invalid. We reject it on different grounds, viz. that the words do not express that meaning: to have done so they

...ככתוב עליה מזה נקה וכל...ככתוב עליה should have been כל...

p. The explanation of Koehler, &c., that mizzéh in both cases means "from hence," viz. from the land (comp. Gen. xxxvii. 17, Ex. xi. 1, Deut. xi. 12), is precluded by the evident contrast between mizzéh and mizzéh implied by the collocation.

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LXX. rightly for hà'āláh ¦ άpá.—Symm, oi opкol.—Aq. wσaúτws, reading, apparently, . The last half of the verse is Versions. rendered as follows by LXX.: διότι πᾶς ὁ κλέπτης ἐκ τούτου ἕως θανάτου ἐκδικηθήσεται, καὶ πᾶς ὁ ἐπίορκος ἐκ τούτου ἕως θανάτου ἐκδικηθήσεται (Cod. Vat. incorrectly omits ews Oavarov in the second case). They, no doubt, read as , as in Is. liii. 8 they read the of lámō as. They may have rendered as ews, comp. 1 Sam. xv. 7 (LXX. Bao. a'. 15. 7, Tisch. reads us), Ps. lx. 7 i (cod. Kenn. 15. 6 ''), LXX. 61. 7 ews nuépas. read as note on LXX. ch. x. 12).

T

Or they may have
With regard to

see) למות

it must be observed that

it is not elsewhere used (in the Niph.) of a person being destroyed,

into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by my name: and it shall remain in the midst of his house,

and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.

though it is found (Is. iii. 25, LXX. katuleipoñoŋ μóvn) of a city being laid waste. The Targ. gives p? (vapulans) "being judiciallysmitten," giving practically the right meaning, and preserving to a certain extent, if not the original word, at any rate the sound of it. as a Niph. partic.; or as an Imperf. (see

Fragment of T. B. Pesachim, pp. 1—8); or as equivalent top, cf.

LXX. נִכָּה

נקה They may have taken

.even in Bibl. Hebr נשכה and לשכה

There is no reason for sup

posing (with Gesen.) that they read the word as . The LXX. give

essentially the same rendering, either from the Targum or collateral tradition, or translating in accordance with the context. Symm. díκην δώσει.

.ובאה...וְלָנֶה

... These words are both accentuated milél (see note on

Verse 4.

page 16), consequently they are the 3rd pers. fem. Perfect, Words. not the Pres. Partic. (see note on xiv. 18).

stands for

, and this is the only instance of final ah becoming eh in the

Perfect; but, in the Imperf. we have

(1 Sam. xxviii. 15),

(Is. xxxix. 5). The

(Ps. viii. 7) is not parallel : for, in the first

NY we should have expected it to have been

צנֶה or צנָא

case of the substantive place, if this stood for accentuated on the first syllable (see note on láyʻlah i. 8); secondly, the form (Numb. xxxii. 24) points to a collateral form or Note that while in Arab. ḍā'in (NY) means “a single sheep,” and the plur. da'n ()' means "sheep," there is also a verb dana-a (NY), one meaning of which is (according to Freytag) "multa fuerunt (pecora)."Since Bayith "house" is masc., the suffix of Cilláttu (3rd fem. Perf. Piel of) is masc. to agree with it. The only instances of the

1 It is quite within the bounds of we call possibility that many Hebr. nouns which

"collectives" are in reality "broken plurals."