Yet hast thou not walked after their ways,.... But in ways more evil; were not content to keep pace with them, and do as they did; but outwent them, outstripped them in wickedness:

nor done after their abominations; but committed greater abominations than they did; sins of a more heinous nature, and attended with more aggravated circumstances; having more power and wealth, more Wisdom and understanding; the means of grace, the word and ordinances of God:

but, as if that were a very little thing; to commit the sins that Samaria and Sodom did: or, "it was loathing to thee as a little thing" (a); they despised and loathed their sins as too mean and little, and not flagitious and enormous, or bold and daring enough to be committed; and looked upon them, with contempt, as sneaking sinners, that had no soul nor spirit in them, or taste for sinful pleasures, in comparison of them: or the sense is, it would have been a little thing, comparatively speaking, had they only walked after the ways and abominations of Samaria and Sodom, and stopped there; but they had greatly exceeded them; and so the Targum,

"if thou hadst walked in their ways, and done according to their abominations, thy sin had been small.''

Kimchi interprets it of a small time that the Jews continued in the ways and worship of God, after the captivity of the ten tribes, which were carried away in the sixth year of Hezekiah; so that there were but three and twenty years left of his reign, when his son Manasseh succeeded him, and was more wicked than all before him; and these three and twenty years are the little time here spoken of and within a very little time, and

thou wast corrupted more than they in all their ways; this explains what is meant by not walking after their ways and abominations; they were greater sinners than they; more corrupt in their principles and practices; more hardened in them, and more difficult to be reclaimed from them; see Matthew 11:23.

(a) "tanquam parvum, fastidio fuit hoc", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Polanus; "velut parum fastidi", Starckius.

Yet hast thou {a} not walked after their ways, nor done after their abominations: but, as if that were a very little thing, thou wast corrupted more than they in all thy ways.

(a) But done far worse.

16:47 Not walked after their ways - For they, all things considered, were less sinners than thou. Nor done - Their doings were abominable, but thine have been worse.

as if...: or, that was lothed as a small thing

47. their abominations-Milcom and Chemosh, the "abominations of Ammon and Moab" (1Ki 11:5, 7).

corrupted more than they-So it is expressly recorded of Manasseh (2Ki 21:9).

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.