Commentary on the Holy Bible

Verse 34. How, then comfort ye me in vtMt] Mr. *. Good translates: " How vainly then would ye.inakiB me retract!''.See the note on ver. 2. I cannot retrae^ any thing I have said, as I have proved by fact aadl testimony that your positions are false an^ unfounded. Your pretensions. to comfort me are as hollow as the arguments yotf bring in support of your exceptionable doctrines.

This chapter may be called Job's triumph over the insinuated calumnies, and specious but -fidse doctrinjBOy of his oj^ponents^ The irritability of his temper no loager appean: from tide time lie got that glorious dtseoTesy of hi* Redeembrj and the joyous hope of an eiemal inkeriUtrufe^ chap. xii. 25, ^c, we find no nose mritnmrings, no^ ansaoctified complainings. He is now full master of himself; ^d r^a^os conclnstreljy because he rea^ns cqolly. Impassioned transports BO longer carry junK away: his mind is serene; his hearty fixed; his hope, steady; and his faith, strong. Zaphar the Naamathite is now, in his pfesence^,as an iafiint in tiie gripe of a mighty giant. Another of these pieteoded ftieadM baft nal enemies comes- forwatd to mew the attack with rimlent, inyective, maleTblent iaainaatiob, and nnsoyporied assertion. Him ^oh meets, and-Tanqniahcs' 1^ pious resignation and ferrent ftayer. Though, at. different times after this, Job had his bttfifetiiigs from his grrand ad? ersary,'and some seii^ SODS of comparatire darkness, yet his faith is unshaken; aad he. stands as k beaten anvil to the strqke. He elfeetoallj excolpates hitaiself, and Tindicates the dispensatidns of his Maker.

Theve appears to be something in the 39th verse which requires to be farther examined: Hiwe ye not siked tkhm that go by the-wdy f And dp ye not know their tokens f It is probable that this. Terse may allnde Co the esstom of burying the dead by the ttay-Met ^^ Tusing op specious and descriptive monuments oyer them. Job argues that the lot of outwatd prosperity Tell alike to the just and to the unjust, and that the sepsichral monuments by -the way-side were proofs 'of his assertion; for his. friends, as well ad himself and others, had noted' them, and asked the history of such and such persons, from the nearest inhabitants of ihe place; and the answers, in a great variety of cases, had been: '' That monument points out the place where a wicked man lies, who was all his lifetime in pospehty and affluence, yet oppressed the poor, and shut up the bowels of his conipassion against the dev- ^titute; and this belongs to a map who lived only to serve his God, and to do ^ood to inan according to his power, yet had not a day of health, nof an hour of prosperity; God having ^iven lo the former his portion in this /(jfe, and reserved the redompense of the latter to 9k future state,"".

The Septuagint render the verse thus;;— Ep^irvaar^ irapairop^/uvovc 66gv, kcu ra oi^eia ovtuv ovf oiroA- Xorpu^oare^ '* tnqnure of those* w|io pass by the Way; aiid their signs (roonniiMnts] ye will not alienate.*^ That is, When ye hear the history of these persons, ye will iio( (hen assert that the man who lived in prosr perity was a genuine worshipper of the.tru9 Qo^, and therefore was blessed with temporal ^gqod; and that he who lived in adversity was tm enemjF to God, and was consequently cursed with the-want of secular blessings. Of the former ye will hear a different account IVom tho0ie who dare now speak the truth, because the prosperous oppressor is no more^ and of the latter ye shall Iparn that, though afflicted, destitute,' and dis*- tre^sed, he was one of those who acknowledged God in all* his ways,- and never performed an act of reli- ^ous serviee to him in hope pC. secular gain j'notight his approbation only, and met deaih-cheerfully, in the hope of being eternally with the Lord.

Neither good ntor evil can be known by Che occurrences of this life. Every thfng argues *the certainty of aifuture stale, and the necessity of aday of judgment. They who are 'in the habit of marking jcasualtie.<T, especially If those whom they love not are the subjects of them, as tokens of Divine displeasm, only* show aii ignorance of God's dispensations, "and a malevolence of taind that would fain arm itself with the celestial thunders, in order to- transfix those whom they deem their enemies.

EUphaz reproves Job for his attempts to clear his character and establish his innocence^ 1-4. Charges hm with inmtmeraSle transgressions; mth oppressions towards his.brethren, cruelty to the poor, hard-hearted' ness to the needy, and uncharitableness towards the widow and, the orphan; arid says it is on these accounts that snares and desolations are come upon him, 5-11. Speaks of the majesty arid justice of God: haw he cut off the antediluvians, the inhabitaiUs of Sodom and the cities of the plain, 12-^0.' Exhorts hkn to repent and acknoicledge his sins, and ptomises him great richer and prosperity, 21-30.

3 Is it. any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? or is it gain to him,

NOTES ON CHAP. JCXII. Verac 2. Can a man be profitable unto God'\ God does not afllict thee because thou hast deprived him of any excellency. A man may lie profitable to a man, but no man can profit his Maker.* He has no interest in thy conduct; he does upi punish thee bec-

4 Will he reprove thee for fear Anto tJ. c* ph. of thee? will he enter with thee ^^-

5 Is not thy wickedness great? and thina iniquities infinite?

cause thou hast offended and deprived him of some good. Thy iniquities are against justice, and justice requires thy punishment.

Verse 3. Is it any pleasure to the Almighty] In^ finite in his perfections, he can neither gain nor lose by the Wiokedness or righteousness of men.

Ante I. oiymp. pledge from thy brother for lafmV, C.'cir. naught, and ^ stripped the naked ' ^^'.of ibeir clothing.

7 Thou haet jnbt given water to the weary to drink, and tliou • hast withholden breadiirom the hungry.

8 But as for 'the mighty man, he had the earth; and the ^ honourable man dwelt in it.

9 Thou hast sent tvidows away empty, and, the arms of ^ the fatherless have been broken

Verstf 4. For fiar of thee T\, Is ft because he is afraid that thou wHt do him some injury, that he has stripped thee of thy power and wealth V. Verse 5t Is not thy wickedness great I] Thy sins fure not only many^ but they are great; apd of thy continuance in them therg is no end, yp yvTein kets.

Verse 6. Thou hast taken a pledge] Thon hast been vexatious in all thy doings, and hast exacted ^here pothing.was due, so that through thee the poor have been unable. to< procure'their- necessary clothing.

Verse i. Thqu hast not given water] It was esteemed a great virtue in the East'to»fumish thirsty travellers with watw; especially in the deserts, where scarcely a stream was to' be found, and where wells were very rare. Some of th^ Indian devotees aie accustomed to stand with a. girbah or skin full of water, on' the' public roads, to give drink to weary travil!- lers who are parched with thirst.

Verse 8. BtU as for the mighty man, he had the earth] jmi B^'^ ish zeroa, the man of arm. Finger, hand, and arm, are all emblems of strength and power. The man of arm is ^ot only the strong mqri, but the man of power, and influence, the man of rapine and plunder.

The honourable man] Literally, the man whose face is.accepted, the respectable' man, the man of wealth. Thou wert. aq enemy to the poor and needy, but thou didst favjoiir and flatter the rich and great.

Verse 9. The arms of the fatherless\ Whatever strength or power or property tJjey had, of thit thou liast deprived them. Thou Jiast been hard-hearted and crufel, and hast enrjched thyself with the spoils of the poor and the defenceless.

Verse 10. Therefore snares] As thOu'hast dealt with others, so has God, v\ his retributive providence, dealt with thee. As thou hast spoiled, so art thou spoiled.* Thou art taken in a net from which thou canst not escape. There is an allusion here to the. hunting of the elephant: he is driven into an inclosure in the woods, passing from stmit to strain till brought into a narrow point, from which he cannot escape; and then his consternation is great, and his 'roaring terrible. God hath hqhted thee down, as men hunt down those wild and dangerous beasts. See on chap, xviii.

not see; and abundance of ^ waters cover thee. '

12 Is not God in the height of heaven? *and behold ^ the height of the stars, how high tliff/ are! •. ' -' ' ••

1 3 And thou sayeat, " How >* doth God know?. can he judge through' the dark* cloud.?

The sense of this passage, in the connection thst.i particle or^gives it with the preceding Terse; is not easy to be ascertained. To me it* seems reify probable that a letter has been lost from the first woM; ■ and that 1M 0,' which we translate or. Was originaI]y-^M «fv- UOHT. The copy used by the ^e/i/tar^^^ had certainly - this reading-; and therefore they translate the verto thus: To ^ aoi eif okotoc anefifj *. Thy LicMT if, changed info darkness;. that is. Thy prosperity ia. turned into adversity,

■Houhigant corrects the text thus: instea4 ot m hxin N*7 "JBTI o chosech lo tireh, or darkness 'thorn canst not see, he read^ nfi<*>n niK tfh ^wn chosech h or tireh, darkness, not light, shfllt thou behold; that is. Thou shalt dwell in thick datkness. Mr. X^^oaet translates: " Or darkness which ihou canst not penetrate, and a flood of waters shall cover thee." Thoo shah eidier be enveloped in deep darkness, or overwhelmed With a flood.

The versions all translate difier^tly; and neithegpril' they Bor the MSS. give any light, exdept what in^ afforded \ff the Septuagint. Coverdale is singular: Atultiest tl)Ott t^en BttCtt tiartftnesse 7 dlmDie nst. t^e toater flouHe mnne olier tlie / Perhaps the meaning is: *'Thou larf so encompassed with darkness, that thou canst not see th^ way; and therefore fallest into, the snares and traps that are laid for thee.**

Verse 19. Is not God in {he height of heaven t] It appears, Yrom this and ^ the following verses, that £11- phaz was attributing infidel and blasphemous speeches or sentiments to Job. As if ho had said: *' Thou •!• lowest that there' is a God, but thou sayest that he is infinitely exalted above the heavens and the stars, and that ^ere is so much dense. ether and thick cloud between his throuQ and the earth, that he can neith^ see it nor its inhabitants." These were sentiments which Job never held, and never uttered; but if a man be dressed in. a bear's skm, he may" be hunted and worried by his own dogs. Job's friends attribute falsities to him, and then dilato upon them, and draw inferences from them^ injurious to his character. Po>-. lemic writers, both in theohgy and politics, often act in this Way- - ^

Verse 14. *H0walketh in the circuit of heaven.] He confines himself to those infinitely exalted regions^ and. cares nothing for the inhabitants of the earth.

iMe I. oijtep. in the cirouitof heaven. ABtTu. c. oir. 15 HfLst thou marked the old ^^' way: which wicked men have

16 Which"* were cutdownputcrf time, 1 whose fimdation was overflown with a floods * *

17 ^ Which said mito 6od> Depart from us: and ' whsLt cai) Urn Ahnlghty do ^ for them?

18 Yet he filled their houses with good thingi: but "^ the counsel of the.wicked is far from ine.

19 ^ The righteous see it, and are glad: and

15. Ha^ thou marked the old way] This ib to be another accasation; as if he had said, '^thoQ ibUowest the same way that the wicked of old bare walked in.'' - Here is an erideftat allusion to the nooD, as is particolarly noted in the next Terse.

V«nft 16. Whose •foundation was overflown with a flaoi\ Ths nnrighteoos in the days of Koah, who affpear to hare had ad abundance T>f all iemporal good, (ver. 18,) and who surpassed the deeds of all the ibxiner wicked, add nn effect to Qod, Bepart from us. And when Noah preached unto them the terrors of the Lord, aiid tlm noc— sity of repentance, they rejected hi& preaching with. What pan the Almighty dofor us f Let. him do his wofst; we care not for hmryer, 17.

For vjy lamoyto thkm, the Septuagint, Syriac,.vLnd JUfmhU hare evidently read n*? Itmu, to us. This jading quotes their own saying; the former reading ■urates it m the third person.. The meaning, how^ erer, is the wme.

Verse 18. But the counsel of the wicked is far from waeJ] Sarcaaiieally quoting Job'? words, chap. xxi. U, 16. Job, having in the preceding (hapter defcnbed the wicked, who said unto the Almighty, "Depart from us,'' &c., adds, But the counsel of the wicked is far from me, EUphaa here, having described the impious, among tthaok he evidently ranks Job, makes use of the same expression, as if he had said, ^ Thank God, I have no eoone^tion with- yoO nor your companions; nor is my mind contaminated by your creed."

Verse 19. The righteous see it, and are.glad] They see God*s judgments on the incorrigibly wicked, and know that the Judge of all the earth does right; hence tbey rejoice in all the dispensati6tvB of his pro- Tidence.

Verse 80. Whereas our substance is not cut down] We, who fear the Lord, still continue in health and peace; whereas they who have departed from hun are destroyed even to their very remnant.

Mr. Good thinks that UD'p kimanu, which we trans^ late our substance^ is the same. as the Arabic UUaS our people or tribe;.and hence he translates the clause thus: ^For oor tribe is not eot off*;- while even the

. 20 Whereas our ^ substance is Anvs'iLC.'ak. not cut^down, but * the remnast ^^: of thetHi the fire consumeth.

22 Receive, I pray th^e, the law* from his moatb^ and * lay up his words in thine heart

23 * If thou return to the Almighty,.thou shalt be buik up, thou shah put Jsiway iniquity far from thy tabernacles. *

renmant of these a confl^^gration consumed.'* The refeiince ji^re is supposed to be to the destruction of the men ai Sodom.and'Gomorrah. - A judgment by i floodtook off" the world ofthe ungodly in the days of iVoaA. Thei^ remnant, these who lived in the same nngodly way, were taken off by a judgment of fire, in the days of Lot. Eliphax introduces these two examples in order to terrify Job into a compliancewith: the exhortation which immediately follows.

Verse SI. Acquaint now thyself with him] Perhaps the verb pDH hasken should be translated, here, trea^ sure up, or Igy up. Lay up or <procure an interest now with him, and he at pgaee. Get the Divine favoux', and then thou wUt be at peace with'G6d, and have fatp|iiDeas in thy own soul.

Thereby good shall come unto thee.] 0713 hahemy *<in them,*' shall good come unto thee. That is, in getting an interest in the Divine /avour, and in having thy soul brought into a state of peace with him; thereby, in them, that is, these two things, good will;come unto thee. First, thou wilt have an interest in his favour, from which thou mayest expect all blessings; and, secondly, from his peace in thy conscience thod wilt feel unutterable happiness. ' Get thqse blessings now, for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth. Reader,. hast Mou these blessings?

Verse 22. ReceitCt I pray thee, the faw from his * mouth] Some, who wish to place Job before the law given by Moses, say that this m^ans the Noahic pre- ' cepts; others, that the law of nature n -intended! Stiiff and vanity! The allusion is plainly to the law given by God to the children of Israel, called here by way of emphasis, nilH torah, the law, which contained r*iDK amaraiv, his words, the words or sayings of God himself; -consequently, it is not the Noahic precepts, nor* the law of nUture, neither of which weie ever written or registered as the words of God's mouth.

Verse 23. Thou shall be built up] God will restore thee to thy wonted state of prosperity; and thou shalt again have a household, not only of servants, but of children also. So much may be implied in the words. Thou shalt be built up. See my sermon on ver. 31^23.

th^""^'^^- S4 Then ehalt thou May up Ajiic r. oiyiiip. gold ^ as dual, and the gold Aflie ir. c. cjr, of Ophir as tlie fit ones of the. '^^^ brooks. ^

25 Yea, tlic Almighty shall be thy ^"^ defence, and tliou shall have ^ plenty of silver*

2 6 For then shall thou liave thy ^ delight in the Aimiglity, and ** shall lift up thy face unto God*

27 ^ Thou shall maJte thy prayer unto him, and he shall hear thee, and thou sliall pay tby vow a.

28 Hioo shall also decree i^""'' ^ a thing, and it shall be esla- Ante L^oiymp. blished unto thee: and the iote u c/ cb. light shall shine apon thy ^^' ways.

29 When men arc cast down, then thou shalt a ay, Tliere is Ufting up; and^ he «ball save ^ the humble person.

30 ™ He shall deliver the island of the Ltinocent: and it is delivered by the pureness of thine handst

kiUh low eya.— — "Or, The innbcfnt shaii tiettvrr the iitttndt trfin. xdii. Wt dec.

The Vulgate is widely dilTcreiit: Dnhii pro itrra sdicentj c/ prd stlice iorrenles aureoi, ** He will give thee Ai at €oi earth: and torrents of gold fm flint i" which CalmH thua poraphrasea: ** Instead of brick Utou «kaH Uuild wiih soUtl stone;,and for dmam^ntSr msiea^d of stone aa fotiaertj, Lhoa shall have ma&aive gold!" ■ ^

All the Tersions are diffeictit. Mr* G^Qd translatcB: ^^ Then count thou treasure as dust: then shall he nxake fountains to gu&h fofth ami d si the rooks/^

Verae 25. Thau shalt htw'e pU n iy of sHver. ] H ere a^ain the rerBicinsi atnl critics vary. The, critics may disnp^ee; but the dyetrine of Eliphasfi is sufficiently l*lain: **To those whom God JoTsa best he gjires the most earthly good* The rich afcid the great are his high favourites: Uie pdor sjid the di^tre^sed he holds for his enemies**

In (he above Teraes there seema to be a reference to, the Tnode of obtaining the previous metals: L <^old in dust; 3. Gold in si reams from the lulls and mounlaina-; 3* Silver in m\nes; m9ir*1j"! ^OD keseph i^aphoiky " silver of giddiness;'^ of mines so deep as to tnttke (me giddy by looking into them. See Mr/ Good*

\^erwe 20. For Ik^n shalt ikoit hoi^t th%j dttight] Thou Bliall k no ^% from thy lempontl prosperity, that God fa TOUTS thee; and for his bounty thou shalt be grateful. How diiferent is tliis doctrine from tliat of Sl Paul and St. John \ '' %ing jastified Ijy faith, we have peace with God, through oitr L^*rd Jesus." ** Because ye are sons, God haih sent forth tbe Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father!" "^The Spirit hjmsclf bearelh witness with our spirits that W€ arc the children of God." *' We glory in tribuUtiioa abo, knowing that tribulation worketh patienee; and patience, exp«Tience; and eiperleace, hope: and hope maketb not ashamed^ because tha love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghostf whicli is given unto us/' " We love him because he first loved U3»" Tribidation itself was ofteti a mark of God's favour.

Verse 27* Tk&u shati maht tkij praytr unia him\ ^^T\^i\ tahr, thou shall open or unbosom thyself. And when the heart prays, God hears; and the peri^on, beilig- biessedi yows fidelity, prays on^ is supported, and enabled to pay brs tows;

Verse 28* Thou shalt also decree a ^hitig] W hutsoever thou piirposest in his stretigth, thou shall be enabled to accomplish.

Yarse 29. When men are east daten} There t» i great difiiculty in this verse; the sense, however, is tolerably evident, ami ibe following is nearly a ItteiaL version; When thtij shall humMe thtJfisehes, thou shali say J Be e^alledf or* there is e^iraltjiiitm: for the doichcast <f eye he will save* The same sentiment as that of our Lord, *^ He that exalteth himself shaU be abased; but he thai humbleUi himself sliaJl ba ejlaltcd,'^

probably thg Arable particle fff mhosoci^er^ whats&evert any, whosoever he may be^ as J-^j ^! oi rajult, tthaisoevet- man he may he. And it is most probable that both words ore Amhio, ^^ ^\ or UQ ^| any innoe^ntj chaste, par^y or holt/ person; for the word has the same meaning both ia Hebrew and Amhic. The text may therefore be timiislated, He shall deliver every innocent person / He^ the innocent person, shall be delii^ered by the purencss of thy hands; i. e*, as thou lorest jnstice^ so thou wilt do justice* Instead of Y^^ cappeycay thy hands ^ the Vulgate, Syriae^ and Arabic have read >'25 cappaw, his or their haiids. Mr* Good thinks that *K at signiGes hauset &s l^f and £{Ul ill Arabic aignify to reside ^ to have a hornet ^c,; ana thetefure translates ihd pa^^gis thus: **The houaQ 0f tiii^ bnocent shall *be delivered; and delivered by the purenesa of thy bands." The reader may adopt w^hich he pleases; hut the word island must he given up, a^ it cannot make any consistent sense*

Tbv9 ends Elijihaj. the Temsmiie, who began with of the bitterest charges, continued with the

UoQa tn repeutmice, and profniaes of sucui&i I'^wiings in consequence: a.nd from hia whole apeecb ' ' em one new or iniportant maxim be derived.

Blessed be G|||Ar Moses atid tb^ propbcte l for JetnSi the ev^tfigelmtVi and tbci apostles! Tbelr trampet givea DO uncertain sounJ i but by that of Job^s fiieudd who can prepare hii]3S£lf for tha bftCtle T

&poio£^zejt for hts complaining; wishes to plead his cause in ihe presence of Aii Makerfjrem he Anott^s he gh&uld receift jtishce; bui regrets that he cannot find himtl—9. He, koweverf gives htmjiei/ nftd his cause up t& Gody with the tmwicthotk of hiS own innocence^ tind GodU justice and goodness^ 10—14, He iSi nevcriheicsst qfratd when he considers the majesty of hts Maker t 15—17,

2 Etc II to-<iay is my comu c. cir- plamt biucr: * my stroke is hca- _ ' ^ler than my groaning.

at I might come even to his seat f - r4 I would Older my cause before him, and BU my mouth with arguments,, 5 I would know tlie words which he would j^swer inet and undjB^tand what he Wonld l«ay unto me.

7 There the righteous might dispuic with him; so should I be delivered for ever from my judge,.

8;^ Beliold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him;

9 On the left hand, where he doth work, but

r lie has derive neither con v., nur cgiifrt>lution from [ike ibAcoutsea of bis fni'ii'l. He ^ants ibaC hts la bitte?; but states thai) loud as ivmay he, attictioD which he endures is bcavier ilian hia ' LeniDp^t^iints ar^ loud. • |

, Qmid tranatate^: "And Btill is my complaint " Do ye constme my lamentattoni^ over jTiflUr) •n^.-i'i.irt^ 83 TBhellion a^inst God T [Tbift, in f> "lie from the be^itoing: and

Verse 3. O thai I kneic whrrc / might fit^d him!\ [Tbia and the lolbwing vcrs^ may be read tbua: j '♦ Who win ffiTe me the knowleil^^e of God, that I may find him otit! I wouhi oome to his establishment - "(the pJ*ce Of way m which he bti^ pTomised to com- Ifmssic^te hitn^lf;) I would exhibit, in detail, my Qent (the caose 1 wish to be iri^) befora hia and my raouth would I fill with eonfincing: ot are arguments /* argumenta drawn from his cornmethod of aa^^ing sinners* whjch I should prove Ejed fully to my case. Hence the coufidene« with [ irCtich he sjieakst vor. 6,

Y«fBO 5, / would knmo the words wbich he wOtUd [ mmsmer me] He would speak nolhinj^ bui what w&B ^biie, decree ni^f^ii^i'T rhr^i was not rigbteousj nor utter riay thmg that i:>ji comprehend.

Veree B. IV u. - c f^. ad oeain^ft me J He would not I cxtubk h'lB msyesty tuid his sovereign aathority to; i^ke me dunn^' '— - nverawe me that I could not ' 9$mk in my ov irion.

contrary, he would treat me with tenderness » he would rectify my mistakest he would Bhow me what was in my -favour, and would temper the ni^^id demands of - justice by the mdd inlerpretatiooft of equity; attd where laii? could not clear me, r^ifr^^ would conduct all 10 the most favourable issue*

Verse 7, There the rt^teaus might dispute in(h Aim] n313 n&chachf mighC argue or plead. To dis^ pate with God sounds very harsh.

So shmdd / he delivered for ever] Mr. Good transtat es: ^* And triumphantly should I escape from my condemnation," The Hebrew word HJfiS lanttsach may as well be translated to victory ikS for ti^er: and in this seTi§e tbe^ Vulgate understood the words Proponat ieqiittatem cdrHta me; et p'^rveniat ad vtctoriam judicium meum.. *' He would set Up equity against me; and would lead on my cause to victory*** Coverdale renders tlma; — But Itl %vm iJfljr rur Ufec potner to go to labje, tbcji aui IE saxt fa h^unnr m? ntfitteT. NoUiing Agss than the fullest conviction of his own innocenee could have ted Job to express himself tliua to tlio Judge of quick and dead!

Verses, Behold^ i g& fffrward] These two verMS paint io vivid colours the distre^ and anxiety of a soul in search of ih& favour of God. No means are left unlncdjf no place une3:pioredi in order to find the object of his research. This is a true descriplion of the conduct of a i^enuine penitent.

Verse 9. On the left handf where he doth work] la thea& two veraea Job mentions the four cardinal points of the heavens: the East, hy the word Dip kedem^ Which signifies before; the West, by lin« tichoTj which signifies afters or the back part i^ the Noftt'ii, by hn^W semoli which signifies the lefti 3^*1 ^^ SotJTH

that I take: when ' he hath tried me, I shall come forth *as gold.

11^ My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined.

12 Neither have I gone back irom the coip-

by I^D^ ^ttmin, whieH signifies the right. Such Is the situsOioB of the world to a man who faces the east g «ee GeiL xiii. 9, 11, and xxviii. 14. And from, this it appears that thd Hebrews; Idumeans, and Arabs had the same ideas of these pointis of the heaven^. It n worthy of temark that Job says, He hideth kimself an the right hand, (the south,) that I canfiot see hifn: ' for in fact, the southern point of heaven is not yisible in Idumea, where Job was. Hence it comes that when he spake before, chap. ix. 0, of the conjsteDations of the antarctic pole, he, terms them the hidden chambers ^f ike south; i. e., those compartments of the.celestial eoncave that never appeared 4ibove the horizon in that place. — See.Cahnet.

Behold*! I go forward, and he is not there; And backward, but I cannot pereeive him. On the lefl hand I- feel for hira, but trace him not: He enshroudelh tlie tight hand, and I cannot see him.

Verse 10. But he humeth the way that i take] He approves of my conduct; my ways please him. He tries me:. but, like gold, I shall lose nothing in the tire'; I shall come forth more pure and luminous. If that which is reputed to he gold is exposed to the action of a strong fire. If it be genuine, it will lose nothing of iCs quality J nor of its weight, it it went into the fire gold, it will come out gold; the strqngest ^e \i'ill neither alter nor destroy it. So Job: he went into tl^s furnace of affliction &n innocent, righteous man; he came out the same. His character lost nothing of its valuei nothing of its lustre.

Ver&o 11. My foot hatk held his.steps, his way have' I kept] I have carefully mark)ed his providential dealings; and in his way — his pure- and undefiled re- Jlgion-^-have I walked. I have not only been generally but particularly religious: I have attended carefully to'the weightier matters of the law, and have not forgotten its slightest injunctions.

13 But he is in one mindy and ^^' *who can turn him?. and what '^ his soul dcsireth, even that he doethi

1 4 For he petfom^eth. the thing that is s. appointed for me: anif maliy such tiitfgi arc wiUi him,.... '

ontof (t The ff^tntxtU is A^^ay,.the caiiMifay,t or raised rt>ad; formed,* as they anciently were^bj stones in the manner of pavement. ^It haa itt-aeae firom the Latin strata, paved, via beings nndetotodSf via lapidibus strata, '* a way paved with, atones:^ hence street, a raised road or pavement eithear in towm or country. And hence the four grtand Rdmum tx British roads which intersected this kingdom:, vii, Watling street, Icknild or Ricknild sireeiy Ermin stfeet, and Fosse street. Some say thege sfneis Of roads were made by BellinuSf % 9ritiiib- kiag^i: '

Fosse street began Mn Cromwall, passed.tlnoiigh Devonshire, Somersetshire, and along by Titboiy npon Toteswould, beside Coventry, unto Leicester; and thence by the wide plains to Newark and to Lincoln, where it endsL •

'^ Verse 12. The commandment of his lips] The Written law that proceeded from his own mouth..

/ have esteemed the words of his mouth] Mr. Oood has given a better version of the original: In my bosom have, I stored up the words of his mouth. The Asiatics carry every thing 4>recious or valiiablci in their bosom, their handkerchiefs, jewels, purse, &e. Job, therefore, iiitimates that the words of God's month were to him a most precious treasure.

Verse 13. 3ut he is.tn one mind] The original is inK3 \K\rw vehu beechad, and is literally. But he is in one: properly rendered by the Vulgdte, Ipse enim solus est. But he is alone. And not badly rendered by Cov^dale.-.— 5t fs jjie ^fnuielf alont* He has no partner; his designs are his trm, ihtj are formed in his infinite witfdom, and none can In bis determimU tions aside. It is vain, tl^^^ytiff^ iut man to contend with his Maker: He desighs Hi^ ly^piness, and you cannot prevent its accomplishment*

■r (Kte «s lwfl«mrt wxu nurnf ot|er tj^rn0M mo ^t| K o If maj^t bir •to potorr.. 'pn. chukki may as vdl be trmoabte^ ^#o;7t bere to in the 13th T£ite; but pcobably it may meai^ a portion, lot, sufficiency: For ke kaik mpponUed me my loi; and Uke these there mo mndtitudos toith him. He diversifies human afhm: ae^iTcely any two men have |he same lot; nor kaa tbe same -person tHe.same portion at all times. He lias multitudes of resources, expedients, means, 4e.» which he employs in goTeriiinjg^ homan affairs.

Terse 15. Thertfore am I troubled] I do dot as yet see an end t5 my afflictions.: he has not exhausted^ his- means of trial; therefore, when I consider this,.! ■iis afraid of him.

Terse 16.- For Ood-maheth my heart softl Proshates my slrengthy, deprives me of courage, so that I fUk beneath my- burden, and I am th>ubled at the' thoagjht of the Almigh^,the selfi-sufficicnt and eternal Being.

Terse VJ:- Because I was not cut off] " Q, why can I not draw darkness over my ikce? Why may ■Oft thkk darkness co?er my face V — •'Mr. Good. This ▼erae should be read in connection with the preceding; and then we shall have tlie foUoHing sense. Yer. IC: ** Tbe Lord hath beaten down my strength, and my soul has been terrified by bis fear." Yer. 17: " For it is not this deep night in which I am enveloped, ndr the svils which I sufiel-, that have overwhelmed mc; I ■nk only through the fear wliicli the presence of his

17 Because I was not ciit off before the darkness^ neither hath he covered the darkness from my face.

Majesty inspires. This is my greatest affliction; suf* ferings, diseases, yea, death itself, are DofhiBg in comliaison of thd terror ^Jiicb my soul feels in the {Presence of his treDciendous holiness and justice."

NoTHniG. c^m -famnbie a pious mind so much as Scriptural apprehensions of th^ majesty of God. It is easy to cdntenr^late his goodness, loving -Jtindness^ and mercy i in all these we haye an interest, and from them we expect the greatest good: bst te consider his holiness and justice, tbe infinite, righteousness of his nature, under, the conviction that we have sinned^ and broken (he laws prescribed by his sovereign Mikjesty, and ^o feel ourselves brought as into tbe presence of his judgment^s^at,— =-who can bear tbe thought I If cherubim and seraphim veil their faces before his throne, and tlie holiest soul. exclaims, what must a sinner feel, whose conscience is not yet ■ purged from dead works, and who feels the ^Tatli of God abiding on. him? And hoW, witliout such a mediator and sacrifice as Jesus Christ is, can any human' spirit come into the presence i>f its Judge, 1 ^Tliose who can approach him wiihoui terror, know little of his justice, and nothing of their sin. When we approach him in prayer, or in any ordinance, should we not feel more reverence than we generallv do ^

Job asserts that there are various tfansgressof-s whose wickedness is not visited on them in this life; and particularizes the unjust and oppressive, 1-G; those who are Cruel to the poor, 7-1 3-; the murderer, 14; ike adulterer, 15; thieves and plunderers, 10, 17. Nevertheless they have an accursed portion,, and shall diet sad their memory perish, 18—20. He speaks of the abuse of power, and of the punishment of oppressdrs, 21-34; and asserts that whcd he has said on these subjects cannot be contradicted, 25.

NOTES ON CHAP. XXIV; Verse 1. Whjfi seemg times are not hidden from the Abnightyl Mr. Gfili#^ranslates: " Wherefore are not doomsday ha^ bylll' Almighty, so that his offSniden may eye Iheir periods t" Doomsdays are here used in the 8010 sense as term times; and the wish is, that Gbi woidd appfjtV such times that- the falsely accoaed nu«jht look ftnwrd to them with comto; e

2 Same remove the ^' landmarks; they violently take away flocks^ and ® feed thereof.

3 They drive away the ass of

knowing that, on their arrival, they should have a fair hearing, and their innocence- be publicly declared; and their detractors, and the nnjusl in general, meet with their deserts. But God reserves the knowledge of these things to himself. " The holy patriarch," says Mr. Good, " has uniformly admitted that in the aggregate scale of Providence the just are rewarded and the wicked punished fex their respeotive deeds, in some

4 They turn the needy out of the way: • the poor of the earth hide themselves togetHer..

6 Behold, cwwild asses in.the desert, go they forth to their work; rising betimes fgr a prey: the wilderness yieldeth food for them and for their children.

period or oth^r of their iires. Bat be l^as contended in various places, and especiafiy in chap.'xxi. 7^1 3j ^Int the exceptions to this general rule ard unmerons: io mimerous, as to be sufficient td render the whole scheme of providential interposition perfectly mystelious and incomprehensible^ chap. £KiiL 8-13; so. in the passage before us: if the retribution ye speak of be universal, and yMeh I am ready to admit to, a certain extent t5 bertru^ and un(|uestionable,J not only ask, Why do the 'just ever suffer in the midst of their rightMOSiiess 1 but,. Why do not the wicked see sucli retribation displayed before their eyes by stated judgments, 80 that they may at one and the same time know and tremble!" -'

Verse ^. Some remove t)ie landmarks] Stones.or posts were, priginally s^t np to ascerlain the bounds of particular e9tates: and this was necessary in open countries, 'before hefiges and fences were formed. Wicked and covetous mei^ often removed the landroarlis or termini, and set them in on their neighbours^ ground, that, by contracting the^ boundaries, they might enlarge theirK>wn. The law of Moses denounces curses on those who remdve their neighbours* land- •marks. See Beat.' xlz. 14,.xxvii. 17, and.the' note on the former.place, where the subject is considered at large. '

They violently takB away fiocks^ iinrf/ee<f thereof.] Mr. Good translates \j^y yrru, they destroy, deriving the word, not from r\^'> raah, to feed, but from);'^^ra, hordes often msike sudden irruptions, and carry off in the fiejd: and » they gather the Ante i: oiymp.' vintage of the wicked. ^ Ante u. c.'dr.

7 They ^ cause the naked to '^^' lodge, without clotlung, that they have no. coyering in the cold. * '•^

8 They are wet with the showers of the mountains, and ^ embrace the rock for Wimt of;a shelter.

voluntary forfeiture of ancient rights, are injarions ta sbcieiy at large, and they Who wink at' them leane.the AJDoYld worse than they found it. '

Verses! Rising betimes for 0 prey] The ^nezal sense here seems plain enough. There ^te some vrho live a l^wlete roaming life; make a predatory life their en^loyment^ for this purpose, frequent thd wjlderness,' where they seize on and appropriate whatsoever they find, and by this method they and their families are supported.

" Rising early for the pillage of the w'ikiemess; The bread of themselves and of their children."

. Others think that the words are spoken solely of the poor under the haild jnf oppression, who are driven away ironi their homes, and.obliged to seek 'such support as the wilderness can afford. Such was originalljr the state of the Bedouins, and of the wandering Airab hordes in general: the oppression of their tyrannous governors obliged them to seek refuge in the deserts, where they still live a roaming predatory life. %

Verse 6. They reap every one Am com in thefieldl This is perfectly characteristic. These wandering

The Septuagint haH read TXp^ roehy ^ shepherd; and tlicrefore - have translated iroifjLviov ovv iroAvi dprraoavtec, ^ violently carrying off both the floci and the shepherd." '. ' "

Verse 4. They turn the needy out of the way] They will not permit them'tb go by the accustomed, paths; they oblige them to take circuitous routes. When the Marq^iis of H. wai^ made ranger of Rich<- ipond Park, he thought it his duty to shut.up a pathway which had existed for a long time; and those ^^KO presumed, after thi6 shutting np, to break the fence, and take that path as formerly, were prosecuted. A cobbler near the place entered an action against the marquis: the cause was tried, the marquis. cast, and lim path ordered to be* opened, on the ground tha£ it had, time out of mind, been a public undisputed 'path. When one asked the cobbler, " How he could have the boldness tp go to law with ihe Marquis of H. V ho answered, " Because I did not like to leave the world worse than I foqpd it." All tolerated oppression and XIO the harvest of grain, olives, vines, &c., and plange-wtth it into tlie wilderness, where none can follow them. The Chaldee give^ the same tense: '* They reap in a field tha^ is not their own, and cut off the vineyard of the wicked."

Verse 7.- They cause the naked to lodge without Mothing] Or rather. They sptnd ihe night naked^ * without clothing; and witkemi^m covering ^rom the cold: another t^hazacteristio V tiM wandndQ^ Arab^. They are ill-fed, ill-clothed^ eaUttf^ TDimniAf off, even for tents. They can hait« Ktde household staff: as t]iey are plunderers, they ax# often obliged to fly for their lives, and ctmnot encumber themselves with what is not absolutely needful.

Verse 8. They are wet with the showers of the mountains] Mr. Good thinks thai torrents, not showers, is the proper translation of the original 0*3?.. zerem; but I think ^Aoioeri of the numntain- strictly proper. I have seen many of these in mountainous countries, where the tails of waterspouts have been intercepted and broken, and the outpouring of them

1 1 Which make oil within their walls, and tread their wine-presses, and suffer thirst.

groan from out ^:^:«J.^; of the city, and the soul of Ante i. oiymp. tlie wounded crielh out: yet Ant^^iLCcir. God layeth

13 They are of those that rebel against the light; they know not the wa^s thereof, nor abide in the paths thereof.

w«NiId be iocredible to thqse who have norer wit*- MMd similat phenomena. ' The rain fell in torrentsj uA piDdoced torrents on the laOsd, carrying away earth aad stooes and e?ery thing before them, scooping out' great gollies in the sides of ihe mornitains.* Mountam torrent^ are not produced but by such extraordi- ■ary outpourings qfram^ formed either by t0<i/er-j/7oo/«, or by Tast masses of cloudy inttreepted and broken to pieces by the mountain tops. - «

And embrace the rock for want of a shelter. 'I In ■eh eases as that related aboTe, the firm rock is the only shelter which can be found, or safely trusted.

Verse 9. They pluck the fatherless from the breast] They forcibly take young children iAorde^ that they may bring them up in a state of slavery. This verse is the commencement of a. new paragraph, and points out the arbitrary dealings of oppressors, under despotic gOTemors.

Take a pledge of the poor.^ Oppressive landlords who let out their grounds at an exorbitant rent, wiiich the poor labourers, though using the utmqst diligence, lie unable at all tiroes to pay; and then the unfeeling wretch sells them vp^ as the phrase here is, or takes their cow, their Horse, their cart, or their bed, iri pledge, that the money. shall be paid in such a time. This is one of the crying eins of some countries of jSorope.

Verse 10. They cause him to go naked] These d) hard*hearted oppressors seize the cloth made for ihe family wear, or the wool and ftar out of which nch clothes should be made.

And they take away the sheaf] Seize the grain as soon as it is reaped, that they may pay themselves the exorbitant- rent at which they have leased out tibeir land: and thus the sheaf-^^he ihraves- and ricks, hy which they should have been supported, are taken sway from the hungry.

Verse 1 1. Make oil within their (tails] Thus stripped of aft. that on wludl they depended for clothing 1 and foodf ihey are obUgiBd to become vassals to their lord, labour in the fisHt so scanty fare, or fread their wine-presses, from tte pfoduce of which they are not peimHted to quench thehr thirst.

Verse 13. Men groan from out of the city] This is a new paragraph. After having shown the oppres- ■ions carried on in the country, he takes a view of those carried on in the town. Here the miseries are too numerous to be detailed. The poor in such places are ofVen in the most wretched state; they are not only badly fed, and miserably ^clothed, but also most unwhUesomely lodged. I was once- appointed with a benevolent gentleman, J. S., Esq., to visit a district in St. Giles's London, to know the real state of' the poor. We took the dirtrict in House Row, and found each dwelling full of pasple, dirt, and wretchedness. Neither old nor young had the appearance of health: some were sick, and others lying dead, in' the. sauM place! Several beds^ if they might be called sncli, on the floor in the same apartment; ahd, in one single house, sixty souls! These ^ere groaning under various evils; and the soul of the wounded, wounded inr spirit, and afflicted m body, cried mat to God and man for help! It would haive required no subtle investigation to have traced all these miseries to the <foor«,the hands i the lips, and the hearts, di* ruthless landlords; or to oppressive systems of pubKc ' expenditure ni the support of ruinous wars, and the stagnation of trade and destruction of commerce occasioned by thein: to which must be itdded the enormous taxation to ■K^ei this expenditure.

Yet God layeth not folly to them. J He does not impute their calamities 4o their own folly. Or, according to the Vulgate, Et Dens inultum abire non patitur; "Arid God will not leavje (these disorders) unpunished.*' But the" Hebrew may be translated And God doth not attend to their prayers. Job's object was to show^ in opposition to the mistaken doctrine of his friends, that God did not hastily punish every evil work, nor reward every good one. That ^ice often went long unpunished, and virtue unrewarded; and that wo must not judge of a man's statfc either by his prosperity or adversity. Therefore, there might be cases in which the innocent oppressed poor were crying to Godfor a redress of their grievances, and were not immediately heard; and in which their oppressors were faring sumptuously every day, without any apparent mark of the Divine displeasure. These sentiments ocovr frequently.

Ver^e 13. They — rebel against the light] Speaking of vtncked men. They rebel against the light of God in their consciences, and his light iii his word. They are tyrants in grain, and care neither for God nor the poor. They know not the mays thereof — ^they will not learn their duty to -God or man. Nor abide in the paths thereof — ^if brought at any time to a better mind|i they speedily relapse; and are steady only in cruelty and mischief. This is the character of the oppressors of suffering humanity^ and of sinners audacious and hardened.

They are indignant of the light; They respect not its progress; And will n6t return to its pstfas.

14 ^ Tlie murderer rising itvith the light killeUi the poor and ncedy^ and in tUe night is as a ^ thief.

15 "*The eye also of the adulterer waitelh for the twihghl, " saying, No eye^hall see me: and "* disgiiisetli his face.

16 In the dark they dig through houses, which lliey had marked for themselves in the daytime: they ^ know not the light.

17 For the morning is to them even as the

their portion is, cursed in the earth: he hoidelh not the way of the vineyards.

19 Drought and heat ^consume the snowwaters: so doth the grave those which have sinned*

20 The womb shall forget him; the wonn shall feed sweetly on him; * Re sliall l>e no

I They bale good; they regaril not its opdritlion; ihty go out of iKe way of right^oitsaess, and refuse to retura.

Verse 14. The murderer rising with the lighi\ Peihaps the words shouH be read as Mf. Good has doQo:-^ ^

With the daylight arise th ihe murderer; poor and riiSetly, tie ahcddeth l)lood.

Tltis deBorlption is au liable to a highw&^^fmn; one who robs in daylight, and who has beeii impelled by p(^Vf^ttf and distress to yae X}m moat unlawfui and perilous mod(5 to get bread; and for fear oT being discovered or laken, commila murder, and thus ad<U crime to ctime.

In the nighi u as a tktef.] Having been a highwayman in ^6 daytirrye^ tie turns footpad or housebreaker by ii%A^; and thus goes on ftfsm sin to sin«

Thors TiAve been sevend instances like the case above f where povertj and distress have induced a mun to go to the highway and rob| to repair the ruin or himscir and family. 1 shaU ^tfoduce an authentic story of tins kind, whieh the reader may find at the end of this chapter.

Yerae 15, The eye aho of the adulterer] This is an* other sin partiGularly of the city. The adulterer has made his ttasignati&n; he has marked the hmtse nf her

Ver. 15. For the dark too watchotii ihe ^ eye of the adulterer; Mxclaimingt Xo eye shall behold me. Then pulteih he the muffler on his face; Ver. 16, He wormeth into houses amids^ the darkness. In the dnytime they seal themselves tip, The J know not the light: Ver. 17. For^ the dawn they reckon to ihemselves aa the death-shade; The horrom of the death-shade as it retumeth*

Verse 18* He is swtft as the tcaiers] Literally, Light is he on the face of the waters: and eurtid shall he their pm^tion on the earthy which Mr, Go&d translates: —

He htholdeth not the teay of the PVl^rds.] Thesi? no longer flourish o^ bring forth fruit p The labour of the vintage faihi;

Verse 19. Drovght and heat consume the snor^* waters] The public cisterns or large tanks which had been HUed with water hy Ihe melting of iho snow on the mountains, and which water was stored for the irrigation of their lands, hod been entirely exhauBted into whose good graces he has tnsiauiUed hims'^lf by the intensity »f the heat, and the long continuance called digging through Ihe house; he waits imp:i< i? nlly for the dusk; and then goes forth, having mnjjfed <>r disguised his facct and spends a cripiinal night with ihe faithless wife nf another man. The morning -dawns: ^hnt it it to him as the shadow of deaths lest he should be detected before he can reach his own home. And tf one know him — if he happen to be recognised \n coming out of the forbidden house -^ the terrors of death seize upon binif being afraid that Ihe thing shall be brought to light, or that he shall be *ealled to account^ a sanguinary account, by the in* jo red husband.

This seems to be the genera! sense of the Tery natural picture which Job draws In the 15th, 16lh} 4rftiid 17th verses.

Terse 16. In the darh they dig ihrovgh houses] 'Djieves in Bengal very frequently dig through the)fmi wall and under the clmf^fioors of houses, andj entering un perceived, plunder them while the inhabitants are asleep*

Bo doth th^ grave those which hane sinned.'] For this whole paragrajih wc have only two words in Ui© original; viz^^ IMfifl SiKiff shed chataut ** the pit, they have sinned;" which Mr. Goad IransHitea:^** They fall to their lowest depth. ^*

1 beheve the meaning to be, — even the deepest tanks, which held most water, atid retained it IangesE» had become exhaosted; so that expectation and succour were cut off from this as well as from every Other quarter. '

I have elsewhere shown that SiKtS' sheol signifies, not only hell and the grcive^ but any deep pa; and, also, thai KDn ckttia signifies to miss the mark. Mr* Good, proj>erly aware of these aceeptations of the original Words, has translated as above i and it is the only ground on which any consistent meaning can be given to the original.

Verse 20. The womb shall forget Him] The mother that bare him shall have no aJSeetion for him, nor be

22 He draweth also the mighty with bis power: he riseth up, * and no man is sure oflife- I • 23 Though it 1>e gif ea him ia be in safety,

Verse 23* He draweik also the mighiy] Calmet £11 es the foHouin^ rersdon of the origmal: ** He diavs with hi his defence; be raises

: e¥0a of his ^lank h^ is afraid; and dares: oonlide])ci> ia any person. Thiv is an ad m Ira* idelineatiofi of the inqnietudea and terrors of a Ijrant, Verse 2:f. Thou^b U be g%ven him to be in safety] thm Vmigale gires this rerse a singular turn: Dedil ^ti Jhus X&cum pcEtutenitai el Hie abuiUur eo tn super- ^ God gave him space for repentanccj hul he it through pride. ^^ This is by no means able to the ori^nal. 1 think the words should Dilaied thus \ ^* He gi^es them (i. e.^ the guards) for aeeurity, and be leans upon them; yet his [ i^es &re upon ibeir ways/^ Though be have taken hlbe fitsrdSi mentioned i^ the preceding versei for bb 'jicTBonal defeicCf and for this purpo^ he uses them; yet he is full of diffiJenee, and' be b continually watching them l^at they should be plotting bis destmciton..The tme picture of an Eastern tymnt, Without are fifhtioga; toiihxR are fears. ^ Vol.. Itt ( 8)

24 They are exalted for a Ant«"t>.c/dr. lilllc while J but ^ are gone and ^^^* _ broujgbt low; tliey are "^ taken out of the way as all other^ and cut off as the tops of the ears of com. 25 And if it he not so now, who will make

Verse S4, They are exalted fir a lUlh while] Such tyrants arc exalted for $. time, for God putteth down 6ne and raiseth up another j but be turns his bo^od against them, and they are gone. They are removed hy his justice as all of the same character have been and shall be; lime and judgmeni sliall mow them dQ,wn as the gnmsp tnd crop them ojf as the ears of ripa corn* They may flourLsb for a time, and continue their oppressions; but they shall at lust come to an uu timely end^ Few tyrants ever visit the eternal world sicca morie^ but by a violent death. Alt Eftstem history is full of this great fact.

Verse 25v And ifix be not so now] Job has proved by examples that the righteous are often oppressed t that the wicked oE^eu triumph over the Just; that the impious are always wretched even in the midst of their greatest prosperity; and he defies his friends to show one flaw in his argnmcntj or an error in his illustration of it; and ih^i existing facts are farther proofs of what be has advanced*

Ik the preceding chapters we Hnd Job'a friends having continual recourse to this assertion, which it is the grand object nf all their dlseourses to prove, vii.. The righteous ar@ so distinguished in the approbation of God, that they live always in prosperity, and die ia peace.

On. the other hand, Job contends that the dispen^ aations of Providence are by no means tlius equal in this life; that eiperience shows that the righteous are often in adversity, and the wicked in power and proflpfirLty.

Job's friends had also endeavoured to prore thttt if 7t reported good man fell into adversity, it was a proof ilial liis cbaxacter had' been mistaksnt that be was an interaal sinner and hypocrite; and that God, by theso manifest proofs of his disapprtibationi unmasked him. Hence they charged Job with bypocrUy and secret sins, because he wsi now suSering adversity; and that his sins must he of the most heinous nature, because his afflictions were uncommonly great. This Job repels by appeals to numerous facta where there was nothing equivocal in the character; where the ^ had was demonEtrahly bad, and yet in prosperity; and # the good demonsUably good, and yet in adversity. Tt b strange that none of these could hit on a middle way: via.t The wicked may be in prosperity, hat be is ever raisetahlc in bis soul; the righteous may be in adversity, but he is ever happy in his God. Ill these respects, God's ways are always equal.

nate men who, falling into adversity, madly hare rex^ourse to plundor to restore their mined circumstances. The following aneciiote is told of the jiially celebrated Dr. Sharp, archbishop'of York, the grandfather of that highly benevolent, useful, learned, and eminent man, Oranville Sharp, Esq., with whom I had for several years the honour of a personal acquaintance.

« Never «va8.any man, as well by" the tenderness of his nature as by the impnlM of teligton, better disposed to succour the distressed, and relieve the necessities of the poor; to which merciful offices he had so strong an incUnation that no reasonable solicitatio,ns were ever in danger of meting with a repulse. Nay, he was more prone to seek out proper objects of his bounty, than to reject them When recommended; and so far was his charity from any suspicion of being (Extorted by importunity, that it appeared rather a delight than uneasiness to him to extend his liberality^ upon all proper occasions."

For the samp reason, a singular anecdote of the archbishop, related in the London Chronicle of Aug. 13, 1785, and always credited by his family, may be thought worth preserving.

" It was his lordship^s custom to have, a saddlehorse attend his carriage, that in case of fatigue from Sitting, he might take the refresl^mcnt of a ride. As he was thus going to his episcopal residence, and was got a mile or two before his carriage-, a decent, welllooking young^ man came up with him; and, with a trembling haiid and a faltering tongue presented a pistol to his lordship's breast, and demanded his money. The ^archbishop, with great composure, turhcd about; and, looking steadfastly at him, desired he would remove that dangerous weapon, and tell him fairly his epndition. * Shr! sir!' with great agitation, cried the youth; ' no words. His not a time; your hioney instantly.' * Hear me, young man,' said the archbishop; * you see I am an old m^m, and my life is of very little consequence: youi^ seems far otherwise. I am named Sharp, and am archbishop of York; my carriage and servants are behind. Tell me what money you want, tod who you are, atid t will not injure you, but prove a friend. Here, take thb; and now Ingenuously tell me how much yon'want to make you indiBpendent of so destructive a business as you are now engaged in.' * O Sir,' replied the man,/ 1 detest the business as much as you,' I am — but — but — at home there are creditors who will not stay — ^ftfty pounds, my lord, indeed woold do what no tongue besides my own can tell.' * Well, Sir, I take it oti your word; and, upon my honour, if you will, in a day or two, call on me at ■, what I h»ve now given you shall be made up that Bum.' The highwayinan looked at him, was siletit, and went off; and, ai the time appointed, actually waited on the archbishop, and assured his lordship his words had left impressions which nothing etmld erer destroy.

" Nothing more transpired for a year and a half or more; wheii one morning a person knocked at his grace's gate, and with pepuliar earnestness desiired to see him^ The archbishop ordered the stranger to be brought in. ^ He entered the room where his lordship was, but had scarce aihranced a few steps'before his countenance changed, his knees tottered, and he sank almost breathless on the floor. On recovering, he requested an audience in private. Tlie ai^v^menl ' being cleared, * My lord,' said he, ' you cannot hare > forgotten the circumstances- at such a time and place; gratitude will never suffer them to be obliterated from my mind. In me, my lord, you now behold that once most wretched of mankind; but now, by your inexjpressible humanity, rendered equal, perhaps sapenor, in happiness to millions. O, my lord!' tears for a while preventing Kis utterance, ' 'tis you, His yod that have saved me, body and soul; 'tis you that have saved a dear and much-loved wife, and a little brood of children, whom I tendered' dearer than my lif^. Here &re the flfly pounds; but never shall I find language to testify what I feel. Your God is your Witness; your deed itself is your glory; and may hea^«n and all its blessings be your present and everlasting reward! I was the younger son of a wealthy man; your lordship know;s him; his name was ■ My marriage alienated his affection; and n)y brotl^ withdre^' his love, and left me to sorrow and penury. A month since my brother died ti bachel^ and intestate. What was his^ is become mine; add by your astonishing goodness, I am now at once ikB most tpcnitcnt, the most grateful, and happiest of my speciest' ",

I have no doubt there hate heen. several cases of ft. similar kind, when the first step in delinquency waa urged by necessity; but few of such wretched adventurers have met with an Archbishop Sharp,. An earlM and pious education is the only means under Grod tr prevent such dangerous steps, which generally lead to the most fearful catastrophe. Teach a child, that whom God loveth he chasteneth. Teach him, that God suffers men to hunger, and be in want, that he may try them if they wiU be faithful, and do them good in their latter end. Teach him, that he who patiently and meekly bears providential afflictioM)^ shall be relieved and. exalted in due time. Teach bfan, that it is HO sin to die in the most abject poverty and' aflliction, brought on in the course of Divine -^ovidence; but that any attempts to alter his condition by robbery, knavery, cozening, and fraud, will be distmguished with heavy curses from the Almighty, and necessarily end in perdition and ruin. A child educated is not likely to abandon himself 'to 1 coursesi

BUdadt the Shuhiie^ in an irregular speech, shows that GoeTs dominion is supreme, his armies innnmerahU, and his providence extended overall, 1-S; Mo/ man cannot he justified before God; that even the heavenly bodies cannot be reputed pure in his sight i much less man, who is naturally weak and sinful, 4-6.,

R^'^iSi T^EN answerea Bildad the Aptc I. o^p. ^ Shuhite, and said, AoteU. Coir. 2 Domuiion and fear are with ^^' him, He ai^Leth peace in his high

3 Is there, any number of his armies? and upon whom doA not * his light arise?

4 ** How then cm man be justified with Go4?

5 Behold even to the moon, and it siiineth not; yea, the stars are nm.pure in his- sight.

6 How- much, less man, thai is worm? and the son' of man, which is worm?

NOTES ON CHAP. XXV. ' Vene 1. BUdad the SkuhiU] This is the last attask oo- Job; the others felt themselves foiled, though i3bej had not humility enough to acknowledge it, but vonld hot again return to the attack. Bildad has little to 9^j, and that little is -very little to the point. He makes a. few. assertions, particularly in reference to what Job had said in the eommencement of the precedidg chapter, of his desire to appear before Go^ tmi k0ve his case iri^d by Mm, as he had the, tUmoit em^ence ^uU his irmoeence should be fully proved. For this Bildad reprehends Job with arguments which had been brought. forth often in this controversy, and as repeatedly confuted, chap. It. 18, and xv. 14, 15, 16..

Verse 2. l)ominion and fear are ufithMm] God is an absolute sovereign", ^is fear is on all the. hosts of heaTeo; and.by his sovereignty he establishes a.nd preserves order in the heavens, and among all the inhabitants of the eternal, world: how canst thou', therefore, dare to appeal to h|m, or desire to appear. before him 1 '

Verse 3. Is there any number of his armies tyUe has /r(Mp5 innnmerable; he can serve himself of all his creatures; every thing may be a means of help or destruction^ according to his Divine will. When he pmposes to save, none can destroy; and when he is detenmned to destroy, none, can save. It is vain to tmst in his creatures against himself.

Upon whom doth not his light arise?] That is, his providence rules over all; he is universal Lord; he caases his sun to arise on the evil and the good, and sends his rain on the jui and unjust.

Verse 4. How then em man be justified ^ Or,nD1 pmoA, With what^ shaU m man be justified with God? Thoagh this is no eonclnmsfrom Bildad's premises, yet the ({uestion is of th«HEi%heat importance to man. Neither Bildad nor any of his fellows could answer.it; the doctrine of redemption through the blood of the cross was then known only through types and shadows. We, who live in the Gospel dispensation, ean readily answer the question. With what shall muerahU man (IsnJK enosh) be justified with God 1 — i Ans. By bringing forward, by faith, to 'the throne of the Divine justice, the sacrificial offering of the Lord Jesus Christ; and confiding absolutely in it, as being a full, sufficient, and complete atonement and eacxifice for his sins, and for. the salvation of. a- lost world.. '.

How, or with what XnO) umah) shall he be clean that is born of a woman 1 — Ans. By receiving that grace or heavenly influence communicated by the power

^d energy of the eternal Spirit applying to the heart the efficacy of that blood which' cleanses from all un-. righteousness. This* aid this only, is the wUy id which a sinner, when twly penitent, can be justified before God: and in whieh a (tf/teoer,^donvinced of in dwelling" sin, can be sanctified and cleaqsed from aU unrighteousness. Thi^ is- the only means of justification and satictificaiion, without which there can be no glorification- ^d these twe great works, which constitute the whole ^f salvation, have been procured fot a lost w6rld by the incarnation, passion, death, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, who was delivered for otir offences,, and rose again for our- justifh^ ctitioD; to whom be glory tuid dominion now and for evermore. Amen! *

- • Verse 5. Behold even ta the moon; and it shineth not] It is continually changing its appearance. It never appears twice in its whole revolntion.with the same face: it is ever waxing or waning; and its face is variegated with- opaque spots. Its chtogeableness can never be compared with.the unchangeable nature

Yeoi the stars are not pure, in his sights] Whatever their excellence may be as stars, it is nothing in com-^ parison wilh him from whom they have derived their being and splendour. See.the notes t)n chap. iv. 18, aiid XV. -14-19. The Targum reads: " Behold, the idoon is as yet spotted in her easterly part; the sun shines not; and the. stars are not pure in his sight.".

Some think that by stars are meant those angels who kept not their first estate: this jnay be so, but I cannot see it in the text. It may, however, mean the heavenly host, as it is supposed to do, chap, xxviii. 7; but I still must hesitate on the propriety of such applications.

It is probable this speech of Bildad was delivered in the night'Seas(M,vi\ien cloi^ds interrupted the bright shining. of the moon. The third verse seems to refer inmiediately to the stars, which to the naked eye are innumerable. The ^un is not mentioned, because of his absence.

This speech of Bildad is both confused and incoU'* elusive. His reasoning is absurd,. and he draws false conclusions from his piremises.. lb ihe third verse, he says, '' Is there any. number of his armies ^ a&d upon whom does not his light arise V But how absurd is ' the conclusion which he draws^from his questions! — " How \\^tn can a man be justified with God, or he be clean who is bom of a woman t"

This has. no relation to the premises; stUl to us the question is not difficult, an4 ha6 already been answered in ' the. notes: '<A «Htti can be justified with God," througli the Wood of Christ; and "he can be clean who is born of a woman," through the sanctification of the Spirit.

Verse Q. How much less man, that is a worm?] Or «B the' Targum;^ — ^* How much, more man, who in his hfe is a reptile; aqd the son of man, who in 'his death is a worm." ' Almost all the versions tei^, '' Tryly man is corruption, and the son of man a worm." The original is degradingly expressive:' "Even be^ causer (snJK enosh, miserable than, is HDI rtrnmah, a crawling worm; and the son of Adam, who is 7^^ ioleuh, a ioorm, 6r rather maggot,'fTom its eating into and dividing certain substances."— Par A&unf,

Thus endeth Pildad the Shuhite, who endeavoored to speak on a eubject which he did not understand; and, having got on bad ground, was soop r confounded in his own mind, spoke incoherently, argued in'C(U»- clusiyely, and caoie abruptly an4 suddenly to. an (fbd. Thus, his three friends beings confounded, Job*WM left to pursue his own way; they trouble him iio more; and he proceeds in triumph to the end of the thirtyo-first chapter.

Job, perceiving that His jViends cotdd no longer support their arguments on the ground they had tasumjed^ sharply reproves them for their ^waM both of wisdom and feeling, 1—4; shows that the power and wisdom of God are manifest in the. works of creation and providence; gives several proofs; 'and 'then adds-tkaf these are a smaU specimen tf his infinite sk^l and unlimited power, 6-14.

no wisdom? and how hast thou b* c^'^J^ pleniifully declared the thing as Ante I, oiymp.

4 To whom hast thou uttered ^^' words? and whose spirit came from thee?,

haw savest thou Uid arm that hath ^no strength? • 3 How hast thou counselled him that hath'

Verse 2. How hast thou, helped him] This. seems ft species of irony. How wonderfully hast thou counselled the unskilful and strengthened the weak! Alas for you! ye coul^. not give what ye did not possess! In this way the Chaldee understood tliese verses: "Why hast thouL pretended to give snccoujr, when th&u art without strength 1 And save, while thy arm is Mreak 1 Why hast thou given counsel, when thou art without understanding 1 And supposest that thou hast shown the vefy essence of wisdom V"

Verse 4. Who^e spirit came from thee?] Mr. Good renders the verse thus: From whom hast thou pillaged speeches 1 'And whose spirit hath issued forth from ihee t The retort is peculiarly severe; and refers immediately tp the proverbial sayings which in several of tlie preceding answers have been adduced againcit the irritated sufferet; for which see chap. viii. 11-19, XV. 20-'35, some of which he haiEr already complained of, as in chap. xii. 3, and following. J concot most fiiUy therefore with Dr. Stock in regarding the remainder of this chapter as ' a sample, iron- IcaHy exhibited by Job, of the harangues on the power and givatness of God which he supposes his friends -td liave tftken out of the months of other men, to deck their speeches with borrowed lustre'. Ohly, in descanting on the' same subject; he shows how much he himself dan go beyond them in eloquence and sublimity.

Job intimates that, whatever spirit they had, H was not the Spirit of God, because in their answers falsehood was found.

Verse 5. Dead things are formed from under the waters] This verse, as it stands 'in' our version, afeems to convey no meaning; and the Hebrew is obscor^; 0*8<i3'in harephaiM, ** the Rephaim," certaTnly nieans not dead things; nor can there be any propriety iQ saying that dead things, Or tilings without life, ore formed under the waters, for siich things are' fohn^ ev£r3r>\'hef e in the earth; and Under the earth, as weU as under the waters.

The Vulgate translates: Ecce gigantes gemunt svi aquis, tt qui habitant cum' e'is. '* Behold the gianti, and those who dweU with' them, groan from under fbe waters."

The Chaldee: |13X) p3n^ pT^^HDI KnaiT 'WrfiH. pnnniyoi ^'dS J^^SrS eposhar degibraiya demithmazm^- zin yithbareyan veimiun miltera lemaiya timashreiyatehqn, " Can the trembling giants be regenerated, when they and. their hosts are under the water V*

The Syriac and. Arabic: " Behold, the giants are slain, and are drawn out of the water." None of these appear to give any sense by which the true meaning can. be determined.

There is probably here an allusion to the destruction* df the earth by the general deluge. Moses, ^speaking concerning the state of the earth before the flood, says, Gen. vi. 4, ** There were giants D'^Ssj nephilim, in the earth in.those days." Now it is likely that Job tn^ans the same by D*K3") rephaim as Moses does by the nephilim; aiid that both refer to the ante(filuviansj who were aU, for their expeeding great iniquities, overwhelmed by the waters of Uie deluge. Can those

7 •Ha stretcheth out the north.over the empty plape, and haiigeth the eacth upon no<r thing. • ',

8 ^ He bindeth up the waters in his thick

mighty meo and their neighbours, all the sinners who have been gathered to them since, be rejected from vader the waters, bj which they were judicially oyervheli^ed % - -

Mr. Good thinks the shades of the heroes of former timesy the gigantic spectres, the mighty or enormous dead, are meant. ^

1 gready question whether sea-monsters be not inteadcd, sach as porpoises,' sharks, narwals, grampuses', and whales. We know, howeier, that an opinion aacieotlj prerailed, that the Titans, a race of men of eaonnoas slature, rebelled against the gods, and endeavouzed to scale heaven by placing one mountain on. the top of another; and that they and their structure were eaist down by the thunder of the deities, and buried under the. earth and sea; and that their struggles to arise produce the earthquakes which occur in certain countries. Now although' this opinipn is supported by the Dkost respectable antiquity among the hei^hens, it is not to be supposed that in the word of God there ean be any countenance given to an opinion at once as absurd as it is monstrous. (But still the poet may use the laaguage of the common people.) I must therefore "either refer the passage here to the antedi- Iwna^, or to the vast sea-monsters mentioned above.

Verse 6. Hell is naked before him] Sheolt the fiace of the deadi or of separate spirits, is always in his Tiew. And there is no covering to Abaddon — the place of the destroy er, where destruction leigns, and where those dwell, who are eternally separated from God. The ancients thought that hell or Tartarus was a rast space in the centre, or at the very bottom' of the caxth. So Viroil, JEn, hb. vi., ver. 577:—

■ Turn Tartarus ipse

Bis patet in praeceps tsintum, tenditqne sub umbras, Quantus ad sthereura coBli 8uspe<^tus OlymptUn. Hie genus antiquum terras, Titania pubes, Fuhnine dejecti, fundo volvuntur in im%), *• Full twice as deep the dungeon of the fiends, ^ 'The huge Tartarean gloomy gulf, descends Below these regions, as these regions lie From the bright realms of yon ethereal sky. Here roar the Tit€tn race, th' enormous birth; The ancient offspring of the teeming earth. Pierced by the burning bolts of old they fell. And still roll bellowing in the depths of hell." ' Pitt. •

And some have supposed that there is an allusion to this opinion in tfie above passage, as well as in several others m the Old Testament; but it is not likely that

9 He holdeth back the face of Ante^U. c.'cir, his throne, and spreadedi bis cloud ^^'

10 « He hath compassed the waters with bounds, ^ until the day and night come to. ail end: • ^

Qi^ sacred writers would coimtenance an opinion that certainly has nothing ia ftct or philosophy to -support it. Yet stHl a poet may ayail himself of popular opinions.

Verse 7,- He stretcheth out the north over the empty -place] inn- htp altohu, to the hollow waste. The same word as is used, Gen. i- 9, TAe earth was woithmu form^ inn tohu, ThQ north most here mean, ^e north pole^ or northern hemisphere; and perhaps what is here stated may refer to the opinion that the earth was a vast extended 4)lain, and the heavens poised upon, it, resting on this plain all round the horiaon. Of the south the inhabitants ofldumea knew nothfaig; nor ^ould they have any notion of inhabitants in that hemisphere.

Hangeth the earth upon nothing,] The Chaldee says: "He lays *the earth upon the waters, nothing sustaining it." '.

Verse 8. He bindeth up the waters] Drives the aqueous particles together, which.were raised by evaporation, so that, being condensed, they form clouds which float in the atmosphere, till, meeting- with strong currents of wind, or by the agency of the electric fluid, they are farther condensed; and then, becoming too heavy to be sustained in the air, fall down in the form of rain, when, in this poetic language, /Aip cloud is ren$ under them.

Verse 9. He holdeth back the face of his throne] Though all these are most elegant effects of an omni* scient and almighty power, yet the great Agent is not personally diseovcrable; he dwelleth in light unap^ proachable, and in mercy hides himself from the view of his creatures. The words, however, may refer to those obscurations of the face of heaven, and the hiding of the body of' the sun, when the atmosphere is laden with dense vapours, and the rain begins to be poured down on the earth.

Verse 10. If^ hath compassed the waters with bounds] Perhaps this refers merely tcr the circle of the horizon, the line that terminates light and commences darkness, called here ']iffn pjf 11K H'Sdh i;^ ad tachlith or im chosech, *♦ until the completion of li^ht with darkness." Or, if w* take n*Sph tachlith here to be the same with nSjn techeleth, Exod. xxv. 4, and elsewhere, which we translate blue, it may mean that sombre sky-blue appearance of. the horizon at the time of tviilight, i. e., between light and darkness; the line where the one is terminating and the other commencing. Or, He so circumscribes the waters, retaining them in their own place, that they shall not be able to overflow the earth until day and night, that is, time itself, come to an and.

14 Lo, these are parts ot^hii ^^* ways: but how little a portion is heard of him? but the liiunder of his power who can underist^d?

Verse 1 1. The pillars of heaven trerMe] This is probably a poetiqal description either of thander^ or of an earthqaaJce:— r

** He shakes creation with his nod; ^arth, sea, and heaven, confess him jGrod.,^'

Bat there may be an allusion to the high mountainSi which were ancitotly esteemed by the common people IIS the pillars on which the heavens rested; ^d when these. were shjaiken with earthquakes, it might be said the pillars of heaven tremble. Mount Atlas was supposed to be one of those pillsgrs, and this gavfe rise tt> the fable of Atlas being a man who bore the heavens on hi» shouldens. The Greek and Roman poets frequently use this image V Thtts Silius Italicws, lib: i., ver. 202:-^ '

Atlas subducto tracturus yertice- ccelum: Sidera nubiferom fulcit caput, sthereasque Erigit aetemum compages &rdua cenrix: Canet barba gelu, frontemque immanibus umbris Pinea silva premit; vastant cava tempora venli. Nimbosoque ruunt spumantia flumina rictu.

•* Atlas* broad shoulders prop tl|' incumbent skies: Around his cloud-girt head the stars arise. His towering neck supports th' ethereal way; And o'er his ^rotp- black woods their gloom display. Hoar is his heard ^ winds round his temples roar; And from his jaws the. rushing torrents pour.'*

Verse 12. He divideth the sea with his power] Here is a manifest allusion to the passage of the Red Sea by the Israelites, and the overthrow of Pharaoh and his host, according to the opinion of the most eminent critics.

He smiteth through the proud.] 3n*^ Rahah, (he very name by which Egypt, is called Isa. li. 9, and elsewhere. Calmet remarks: " This ajBpears to refer only to the passage of the Hed Sea, and the destruction of- Pharaoh. Were we not prepossessed with the opinion ^at Job died before Moses, ev^y. person at the first view of the subject must consider it in this light." I am not thus prepossessed. Let Job liv« when he might, I am satisfied the Book of Job was writte^i bng after the death of Moses, and not earlier than the days of Solomon, if not later. The farther I go in the work, the more this conviction is deepened; and the opposite sentiment appears to be perfeetly gratuitous.

Verse 14. Lo, these are parts of his ways] niyp ietsothf the ends or extremities^ the' outlines, an ihdistinet sketch, of his eternal power and Godhead.,118

How little a portion is heard] |*J3er shemetSj a mert whisper; admirably.opposed, as Mr. Good has w^ll observed, to Djn ractm; the thunder, mentioned in the ^ next clause. As the thunder is to s,' whisper, so are the tremendous and infinitely varied works of God to the faint outlines exhibited in the above diA^ourse. Every reader will relish the dignity, propriety, and sense of these expressions. They force themselres on the observation of even the most heedless.

By his Spirit he hath garnished the heaveris. — Nameroa» are the opinions relative to the tme meam|ig of this verse. Some think it refers to the clearing of the sky afler a storm, such as appears to be described ver. 11,12; and suppose his Spirit means the trnV* which he directs to sweep and cleanse* the face of the sky, by which the splendour of the day or the lustre of the night is restored: and by the crooked, flying, or aerial serpent, is it is variously rendered, the eclipiic^ is supposed to be meant, as the sun^s apparent course in it appears to be serpentine, in his ^proadi \o and tecession from each of the tropics.- This tortuous line may be seen on any terrestrial globe. Many wiQ object to this nption as too refined fojr the time of Job; ■ but this I could easily admit, as astronomy had u very early existence am6ng i\\e Artdnqns, if not its origin.' But with me the chief objection ijes against the o^ • scurity of the allusion, if it be one *, for it nnist require no small ingenuity, and almost the sphfit of divination, to find ont the sun's oblique path in. the zodiac in the. words His hand Jiath formed the crooked serpent. Others have imagined that the allusion is to- the lig^ ning in that iigzag form which it assumes when dis^ charged from one cloud into another during a thunder storm. Thia is at once a natural and vefy iipparent sense. To conduct and manage the lightning is mosf certainly a work which requires the skill and omnipo^ tence of God, as much ^s garnishing the heaven^ by his Spirit, dividing the sea by his power, or caoaing the pidars of heaven to. tremble by his reproof. ' Others think that the act of the creation of the solar system is intended to be eitpressed, which is in several parts of the sacred waitings attributed to the Spirit of God; (Gen. i, 2; Psa^ xxxiii. 6;) and that the crooked serpent means either Satan, who deceived our first parents, or huge aquatic animals; for in> Isa. xxvii. 1, we find the leviathan and dragon of the sea called Wt^2 ni3 nachash bariach, the.very terms that are used by Job in this place: '* In that day the Lord with hiiisore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan,. the. piercing serpent, (ni3 BHIJ nachash bariach,) even * leviathan, that crooked serpent, (pnSpj; Itfjy^.nachaih akaUathon,) and he shall slay the dragon {yiX\T\ hattannin) that is in the sea." And we know that in Gen. i. 91. D'^lJTI.Dr^n hattanninim haggedolimt n^Mh we traDslate greei wkdleSi includes all MO-mdntimn or vast aquatic andnals, Calmei, vhb without. iMtation adopts this sentiment, says: ^ I see no necessity to haTo recouzsfe to allegory here. After haviRg OThihitftd the csfl^ta of the sovereign power of^God in tke ktatfens^ in thtf douds, in the, vast collection of waters in the seoj it was natnnd enough for Job to speak of the production o( fakssJ" T1i« infelligent Dr. Sherlock gives another interpretation. After Mroogly expressing his disapprobatiim of the opinion that Job should descend, after -speaking ^f the creation rf tie- heavens and their hosts - to the. formation of snakes and addprsy h« snpposes " that Job here intended to oppose that grand religious system of sabttism which prevailed in -his time, and to whieh, in other parts of this book, he alludes; a system which acknowledged two opposite independent principles by which the universe was goVemed, and paid Divine adoration to the celeaUal luminarieli. Suppose, th^refiure, Job to be acquainted with the fall of man, and the part a^ribed to the serpent of the introduction of evil, see how aptly the parts cohere. In opposition to the idolatrous practice of the time, he asserts God to be the maker of all the host of heaven: Byi his Spirit he garnished the heavens. In opposition to the £dK notion of two independent principles, he asserts God to be the maker of him who was ^he author of evfl; Ms hand hath formed the crooked serpent. You see hqw properly the garnishing of the heavens and ihe forming of the serpent aire joined together. That ^ is the ancient traditionary explication of this place, ve have undeniable, evidence from th^ translation of the Septuaginty who render the latter part of this vene, which relates to the serpent, in this manner: TLpoaraynari de edavaru^e dpoKovTo, anoararrfv^ By a decree he destroyed the apostate dragon. The Syriac and Arabic versions are to the same effect': And his hand slew the flying serpent,

" I'Kese translators apply tfie jdace to the pwusK^ ment inflicted on the serpent; and it comes to the same thing, for the punishing the serpent is as eleair an evidence -of God's power over the author of evil. an the creating him. We iieed not wonder 4o see so much concern* iu this book to maintain the supremacy of God^, and..to guard it against every false notion; for this was the.theme, the business orthe anther. ''-7*, Bp. Sherlock on Prophecy, Piss. ii. '

From the contradictory opinious on tlils passage, the reader will no doubt feel caution^ what.mode of interpretation he adopts, and the (ibsolute necessity of adr mitting no texts of doubtful interpretation as vouchers >for the essential doctrines, of Christianity. Neither metaphors, allegories, similes, nor figurative expressions of any kind, should ever be adduced or appeided to as proofs of.any article in the Christian faith. • Wp have reason to.' be thankful that this is at present the general opinion of the most rational divines of all sects and parties, and that the allegory aqd metaphor men are everywhere vanishing from the meridian and tinkr ing under the horizon of the Church. Scriptural Christianity is prevailing with a strong hand, and going forward with a firmnmd ^eady step.

M strongly asserts his innocence; determines to maintain it, and to avoid every evil way, 1^7. Shoufs his abhorrence of the hypocrite.by describing his infamous character, accumulated miseries, and wretched enrf, 8-23.

Verse 1. Continued his parable] After having deliTered the preceding discourse, Job appears to have paused to see if any of his friends chose to make any reply; but finding them all silent, he resumed his discourse, which is here called iStS^D- meshalo, his parable, his authoritative weighty discourse; from St90 mashed, to exercise rule, authority, dominion, or power. — Parkhirst. And it must be granted that in this speech he assumes great boldness, exhibits his own unsullied character, and treats his friends with little ceremony.

4 My lips shall not speak ^^' wickedness^ nor my tongue utter deceit.

judgment' of ftiy enemies t There appears to be a great want of reverence in these words of Job; he speaks with a degree of irritation, if not bitterness, which cannot be justified. No man should spea)( thus of his Maker.

Verse 3. All the while my breath is in me] As Job appears to allude to the creation of Adam, whom God made out of the dust of the earth, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life,'^ thai he became a living soul, the whole of Job^s assertion may be no more than a periphrasis for As long as I live and have ■my understanding. Indeed 'nOtt^J nishmathi inay be rendered my mind or understanding, and TWiH nil ruach Eloah, the breath of God, the principle of - animal life, the same that he breathed intQ A<la<ni U9

6 My righteousness ^ I hold fast, and will not let it go I s my heart shall not reproach me ^ so long as I live.

7 Let mine onenay be as the wicked, and he that riseth up againsi me as the untrehleous.

for it b lber€ Qaid} Gen, U. 7i H^ breathed litlo hia nostrilsT □"n D^W^nismtiih chm^im^ the hr€ulh of litres ^ or that principle from which anunal and spiritual life ptoeeeilsi- in consequence of which he became 3^1 n*n hntph^sk cMt/ahttin ttdelUgent or raiionui animai.

Verse 4* My Itps shall not speak wickedness] At I have hitherto li^d tn-^iU good conscience before God, Bd he knowethf ao witl I continue to liv^e.

Verse 5: God forbid] ^^ vh'Hn ehaiilah Hi, far he it from mtj that J should justify you — t|u*u I should iiovv^ by any kind of a<^knowledgmcnt of wickedness or hypw;r^y juatify your ha rah judgment. You itay that God afflicts me for my Crimea; 1 say, and God knot's it is truth T that T have not sinned, bo as to de^w down my finch judgment upon me. Yoar judgment, therefore, ia pronounced at your own risk.

Ver^ G, My righieousucss I hold fast] 1 aland firtnlj on this ground; I hare endeavoured lo live an Upright lifor and my aiHicUons are not the eonseqneoce of my tina.

My heart shall nol reproach mc] 1 shaH take care so to live that I shall have a conacienco void of o (fence before God and man. '* Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidonce toward God •C'' 1 John iii, 21. Thia seems to be JoVs meaning'.

Verse 7* Let mine enemy be as the micked] I/et my accuser be proved a lying and perjured man^ because he has laid to my charge things which he cannot prove^ and which are utterly false.

Verse 8. What is the hope of the hypocrite] The word f^Jn chaneph, which we translatep most improperlyt hypocrite, means a wic^-ed fdhwj ^defiled, polluted wretch f a rascal ^ a knave ^ % man who sticks at nothing in order to gain his ends. In thia versti it means a dishonest mafit a rogrtet who by overreaching, cheat ingi &c.^ has amassed a fortune.

When God taketh away his soul 7] Could he Have had any well-grounded hope of eternal blessedness when he was acquiring earthly property by guilt and deceit? And of what avail will this property be when his soul is summoned before the judgment-seat? A righteous man t/lelds up his i«ul la God; ihe wicked doea ttott beeauBe he is afraid of God, of death, and of eternity, God therefore take® the soul away — forces it out of the bocly. Mr* Blair gives us an affecting picture of the death of a wicked man. Though well known, T shall insert it z» a striking comment on this passage: — the hypocrite^ though he hath iiteLoi>ui(i gained, when God laketh away Ante d.'c/oir. his soul?. ^^

10 * Will he delight himseir in the Almighty? will he always call upon God?

1 1 I will teach you '"by tliehandofGod: that wlijcb is with the Almighty will I not conceal,

^^ How shocking mtiat thy summons lie, O death t To iihn that is at caae In his possessions; Who, CO an ting on long jemn of pluasures here; Is quite on furnished for that world to come! In that dread moment how the frantic soul Haves ronnd iKe walls of ber clay tenement; Runs to each avenue, and shrieks for help, fiut sUrieke in vain \ How wibh fully she looks On all she's leaving, now no longer iiers! A little longer J yet a UUh longer^ O, might she slay, ti> wash away bet, stains. And fit her for her passage! Mournful sight? Her very eyes Weep blood; and every groan She heaves is big with horror. But the foe. Like a stanch murderer, steady to his purpose. Pursues her close* through ©very lane of fife. Nor misses once the irackj hut pressefe qn; Till, forcqd at last to the iremendous vergei At once she sinks to ev^ acting ruin<"

The GraVe, The Chaldte has^ What can the detractor expect who has gathered together (^pSC^l [TDD mamon dishkar, the mmnmon of imnghteojistiess) when God plucks out his soul 7 The Septtmgint.* T<f yap eariv m cXiriiciTf/Jfi, in (TTtxti; Mv KtKonSfu^ tin Xvptov a apa audf^atTai; *^For ijohat is the hope of the ungodly that he should wait for f shall ke^ by hoping in the Lord, he therefore sared T* Mr, Good translates difierentiy from all the versions: —

" Yet what is the hope of the wicked that he should p.rosper. That God abould keep his soul in quiet!"

I believe bur versbti gives as true n sense as any; and tlie words appear to have been in ihe eye of our Lord, when he said, " For what is a man profiled if be sliail gain the whole worlds and lose his own soult or what shall a man give in exchange for hiji aoul?^' Matt. xvi. 20,