VISIT. The Term, to visit, is taken either in a good or an evil Sense. God visited Sarah in his Mercy, and gave her a Son. He visited the Israelites in Egypt, and Exod. iii. 16.sent them Moses to deliver them. He visited Hannah the Mother of Samuel. Lastly, he visited and redeemed his People by the Coming of the Messiah.
Ezek. xxxiv. 11, 12. Exod. xx. 5. Exod. xxxii. 34. Levit. xviii. 25.He visits us also in his Wrath, and in his Vengeance. He visits the Iniquity of the Fathers upon the Children, to the third and fourth Generation. He threatens to visit the Iniquity of the Worshippers of the Golden Calf, in the Day of his Vengeance. He says, he will visit the Land of Canaan, whose Crimes are come up to the full Pitch. Lastly, nothing is more frequent in the Language of the Prophets, than the Verb to visit, taken in the Sense of punishing, chastising, and revenging.
To visit, is also used instead of taking a Review of; for example, of an Army, or of a Flock: Ego requiram oves meas, & visitabo eas, sicut visitat pastor gregem suum. And Zechariah; Mine anger was kindled Zech. x. 3.against the shepherds, and I punished the goats; for the Lord of Hosts hath visited Ecclus. xlix. 18.his flock, the house of Judah. The Author of Ecclesiasticus has made use of the Term to visit, in a very extraordinary Sense, when he said, that the Bones of the Patriarch Joseph have been visited, and have prophesied after his Death: Ossa ipsius visitata sunt, & post mortem prophetaverunt. But in the Greek we do not read Et post mortem prophetaverunt. Joseph had foretold Gen. l. 42.to his Brethren, that the Lord would visit them after his Death; and he conjured them, that they should not leave his Body behind them in Egypt, but carry it with them into the Land of Canaan. This was performed by Moses: His Bones were visited; they were taken out of his Tomb; and they may be said in some sense to have prophesied, by verifying the Prophecy of Joseph. Visitans speciem tuam non peccabis, says Job, v. 14. Some have understood this of the lawful use of Marriage: But the Hebrew imports, you shall visit, you shall take a Review of, you shall govern your Dwelling, and you shall not sin. Eliphaz speaks of the Conduct of a wise and prudent Man.
To visit is also taken for paying Visits of Civility, Friendship, or Duty; as when Jesse sent his Son David to visit his Brethren in the Army to know how they 1 Sam. xvii. 18. 2 Sam. xiii. 6. 2 Kings ix. 16.did. And when David went to visit his Son Ammon, who was sick; and when Abaziah, King of Judah, went to pay a Visit to Jehoram King of Israel. Or when St. Paul and Barnabas went to visit the Acts xv. 36.Churches they had planted.
A Visit, Visitatio, as well as the Verb to visit, is sometimes taken for a Visit of Mercy from God, but oftner for a Visit of Rigor and Vengeance: Dies visitationis, annus visitationis, tempus visitationis, or simply, visitatio, generally signifies, the Time of Affliction, and the Vengeance of God.