In the visions of God brought he me into the land of
Israel,
&c.] Or by the spirit of prophecy, as the Targum again; that
is, being under the impressions of the Spirit of God, it appeared
to him, in a visionary way, as if he was really brought out of
Chaldea, and set in the land of Israel; see ( Ezekiel 8:3 ) , as John
was carried away in the spirit to see the New Jerusalem, (
Revelation 21:10 ) :
and set me upon a very high mountain;
as John also was, that he might have a view of this large city
and temple, which were to fill the whole world: thus Christ was
taken up to an exceeding high mountain, to be shown the kingdoms
of the world, and the glory of them, ( Matthew 4:8 ) , it is
needless to inquire what this mountain was, whether Moriah, on
which the temple was formerly built, or any other mountain near
Jerusalem, since no material temple is exhibited to be built upon
it; nor would such a mountain, especially Zion or Moriah, have
been a proper place, if material temple at Jerusalem was here
designed, which must have stood upon it; but this is visionary,
as well as the city and temple; if it respects anything, it may
the strength, the visibility, and exalted state of the church of
Christ in the latter day; see ( Isaiah 2:2 ) : by,
which was as the flame of a city on the south:
the prophet in the vision, and as to his view of things coming
from Babylon, which lay north of Judea, has a prospect of the
south of the city and temple; and, first, there appeared to him,
to the south of the mountain on which he stood, the plan of a
city; or which was as one, for the city is not described till
last; the description is of the temple first; and which for its
wall, gates, courts, and towers, looked more like a city than a
temple; nothing is more common than for the church of Christ to
be compared to a city, especially as in the latter day; see (
Psalms 87:3 )
.