And he saw that rest [was] good, and the land that [it was] pleasant; and bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a servant unto tribute.
Ver. 15. And he saw that rest was good.] He submitted to any burdens and hard conditions for a quiet life. This was a low poor spirit; and his posterity were, for the general, very unworthy and vile. For Issachar's lot fell in Galilee. Joshua 19:18 , &c. Now, doth "any good come out of Galilee?" The best that we read of them was that they "had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do," 1Ch 12:32 and were therefore in great account with David. But for action, it seems they were heavy-spirited, dull-mettled men; much like those "potters," mentioned in 1 Chronicles 4:23, "that dwelt among plants and hedges"; the base brood of their degenerated forefathers in Babylon. "He, he, come forth, and flee from the land of the north," said the Lord unto them. Zec 2:6 Cyrus also had proclaimed liberty to all that would, to return to Jerusalem. But these dull drones, because they got a poor living by making pots for the king of Babylon, thought themselves well as they were, and chose rather to stay under the hedges of Babylon. These are res obsoletae, so Junius renders the text there; things worn out and forgotten; and indeed they deserve to be forgotten.