And behold joy and gladness
As if it was a time of rejoicing, rather than of weeping and
mourning; and as if they were at a festival, and in the greatest
prosperity and liberty, and not besieged by a powerful army:
slaying oxen, and killing sheep:
not for sacrifice, to make atonement for sin, as typical of the
great sacrifice; but to eat, and that not as at ordinary meals,
or merely for the support of life, but as at feasts, where, as
there was great plenty, so luxury and intemperance were indulged;
just as Belshazzar did, at the same time that Babylon was beset
by the army of the Medes and Persians, ( Daniel 5:1 Daniel 5:30 ) so the
Jews here, having taken the armour out of the treasury, and
furnished the soldiers with them, and took care of provisions of
bread and water, and having repaired and fortified the walls of
the city, thought themselves secure, and gave up themselves to
feasting, mirth, and pleasure: saying, let us eat and
drink, for tomorrow we shall die;
which they said, not as believing their case to be desperate;
that the next day, or in a few days, their city would be taken by
the Assyrians, and they should be put to the sword, and
therefore, since they had but a short life to live, they would
live a merry one; but rather as not believing it, but scoffing at
the prophet, and at the word of the Lord by him; as if they
should say, the prophet says we shall die tomorrow, or we are in
great danger of being suddenly destroyed; but let us not be
dismayed at such words, and to show that we do not believe them,
or if this is our case, let us take our fill of pleasure, while
we may have it. This is the language of epicures, and of such
that disbelieve the resurrection of the dead, and a future state,
to whom the apostle applies the words in ( 1
Corinthians 15:32 ) .