The hills were covered with the shadow of it,.... Alluding to the land of Canaan, which was a mountainous and hilly country, at least some part of it; hence we read of the hill country of Judea, Lu 1:39 and to the nature of vines, which delight to grow on hills and mountains : in a figurative sense this may denote the subjection of kings and kingdoms, comparable to hills, to the Israelites in the times of David and Solomon, 2Sa 8:1 and the exaltation of the church of Christ, in the latter day, over the hills and mountains, Isa 2:2.
The Targum is,"the mountains of Jerusalem were covered with the shadow of the house of the sanctuary, and of the houses of the schools:''and the boughs thereof were like the goodly cedars; to these the righteous are compared, Ps 92:13, the Targum is,"the doctors, the mighty preachers, who are like to the strong cedars:''the words may be rendered, "the boughs thereof cover the goodly cedars", or "cedars of God" ; that is, overrun and overtop the goodly cedars; alluding to vines running and growing upon high and goodly trees; and so may denote, as before, the power of Israel over the princes and potentates of the earth, comparable to cedars, the most excellent; as things most excellent have often the name of God added to them; see Ps 104:16.
"Bacchus amat colles----" Virgil Georgic. l. 2. v. 113. la yzra hypne "rami ejus cedros Dei", Tigurine version; so Sept.