Chap. 38. 4nExpofitionupon the Bookof I 0 . Vetf.37. faith the Lord who can make the clouds ( dark of themfelves ) like a Saphir-/tone ? that is, ferene, pleasant, beautiful, and de- lightful to the eye. God canmake bright clouds (.tech. r 0. 1.) clouds wonderful fair and pleafant to behold, even as pleating to the eye as a precious Saphir. As this tranflation holds out a truth in it fell, fo "'cis very futable to that which followeth, Or who can flay the bottles of heaven ? Clouds darken the heavens, but when the Lord fiayeth the a rsnem I mrc clouds from rain, then the heavens are cl ar like aSaphir ; God flutare vtdetur can make the heavens cloudy or clear. antithefis puts Who can flay the bottles of heaven? that is, the clouds, who additur, & la. can flay them,or (as the Hebrew firi&ly) who can caufe them to genas ceeli a down ? Mailer Bran hton renders, who can de ill the barrels guts eolloeet, 1. f heaven ? The wordhere tiled fgnifies a bottle, or any veffel ñu7,',9Z num wherein liquor is preferved ; and it may be taken either for a at fudum,nuae bottle made of skin, a leathern bottle, or for a bottle made of verò nubalwn clay, an earthen bottle, a Potters bottle,as'ris called (Ifa. 3o. reddat,Yifc. i4. )The clouds are like a leathern or an earthern bottle, which as it holds the liquor, fo being unfiopped andheld up, the liquor runs out ; who can flay the bottles of heaven ? that is, if God once unfiop the clouds,they prefentlypour downrain;and who can flay them from raining ? no man can. That'sa plain fence ; as if the Lord had faid, wr,o can hinder the clouds from giving down rain,;f once opened ? who but I can resirain the rain ( which is heavy of it felf and tends naturally downwards ) from falling out of the clouds ? There is another reading of this part of the verîe, whocan concenrumcali flay the harmony of heaven ? The !Vulgar Latine renders, who 2cist,rmire can make the =trick of heaven fleep, thatis,ceafe,or be quiet. `j PeY The reafon of this tranflation is this , becaufe the fameword quinque punga which ligtiifieth a bottle, lignifies alto a mufacal inflrument,JignificatNob- fomewhat refembling the form of a bottle ( Pfol. 3 3. a.) Thus ttum, in jlru- fome take it here, as intending that mufical or melodious has- mentummufr -- r cum urrifimile, mony, which ancient Philofophers have affirmed is made by the babees motion of the heavenly fphears ; yet by this they do not mean chords, qua a proper mufical found or harmony, fuch as the Pythagoreans Pulfdntur. dreamed of, which fotne other learned men have faid is fo fweet and raviibing, that if we did but hear it, we could neither N n eat, 273
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