(16) Deckedst thy high places with divers colours.--The use of colours, and especially of tapestry in colours, in the adornment of places of worship, was universal throughout the religions of antiquity. It formed a striking feature of the adornment of the Tabernacle, and what is censured here is the perversion of this, which should have been for the glory of God, to the honour of idols. Translate the last clause of the verse, as in apposition with what goes before, "Things which should not come, and that which should not take place."

The three following verses emphasise the apostacy of Israel by taking up various particulars of the symbolical good gifts which God had given her, and showing how she had perverted them to idolatry. It was a chief feature of the charge against her that these gifts were from God, and that she had given them to another--a charge which must for ever remain true of the perversion of the talents God has given to any other than His own service.

Verse 16. - (For high places, see note on Ezekiel 6:6.) The words imply that the shrines upon them were decked with hangings of many coloured tapestry, presenting an appearance like that of a Persian carpet, as in 2 Kings 23:7, of the image of the Asherah. Those hangings were, as in Proverbs 7:16, the ornaments of the adulterous bed. The "high places" are named first, as the earliest form of idolatry. The like things shall not come. The words are obscure, and the text probably corrupt. As they stand, they seem to say that the world would never again witness so shameful an apostasy. The Vulgate, Sicut non est factum neque futurum est; extends the comparison to the past. Possibly, though it is a strain upon the grammar, the words may be rendered, "such things should not come, should not be."

16:1-58 In this chapter God's dealings with the Jewish nation, and their conduct towards him, are described, and their punishment through the surrounding nations, even those they most trusted in. This is done under the parable of an exposed infant rescued from death, educated, espoused, and richly provided for, but afterwards guilty of the most abandoned conduct, and punished for it; yet at last received into favour, and ashamed of her base conduct. We are not to judge of these expressions by modern ideas, but by those of the times and places in which they were used, where many of them would not sound as they do to us. The design was to raise hatred to idolatry, and such a parable was well suited for that purpose.And of thy garments thou didst take,.... Which were made of fine linen, silk, and broidered work; which God had given them, and they were richly clad with:

and deckedst thy high places with divers colours; that is, with garments of divers colours; either they erected tents on their high places, made with these; or they covered their altars with them, which were on their high places for the ornament of them, as harlots deck their beds to allure their lovers; see Proverbs 7:16; or "thou hast made for thyself high places spotted" (d); so the word is rendered in Genesis 30:32; alluding to garments spotted with the flesh by adulterers. The Targum is, "thou hast made for thyself high places covered with idols": and so the Septuagint version renders it, "idols sewed together". The word, in the Talmudic language (e), has the signification of sewing. These idols were decked as children's babies are; and so the Syriac version, "thou hast made for thyself babies"; images like babies, richly dressed with their garments above described, such as the papists now have;

and playedst the harlot thereon; committed idolatry on the high places; or "with them" (f); that is, with the images and idols decked with their garments, which were set on those high places:

the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so; the like idolatries shall set be committed any more; and after the Babylonish captivity worshipping of idols was not practised by the Jews; nor is it to this day: or such "things have not come yet", and there "shall not be" the like (g); the sense is, there never were such idolatries committed by this people before; and there hover shall be, or will be, the like afterwards. Kimchi's note is,

"the high places shall not come as these; as if it was said these shall not be in futurity; and there shall not be a man or a people that shall make like these for multitudes;''

so Ben Melech; and "high places", does agree with "come". The Targum joins this with the preceding clause,

""and playedst the harlot" with them, as is not right and fit''

(d) "et fecisti tibi excelsa maculosa", Montanus; "excelsa conspera maculis", Calvin; "latis maculis interstincta", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Polanus. (e) T. Bab. Gittin. fol. 45. 2. Misn. Celim, c. 27. sect. 6. (f) "iisque", Ar. Interp. (g) "non eventurae sunt tales scortationes, nec erit qui sic scortetur", Piscator.