Notes on the Old and New Testaments

IV. He expresses his earnest desire to transfer his cause to the tribunal of the Almighty. This he wishes because ho believes that God would he just, and because his friends were manifestly so severe in their judgments, ch. xiii. 3-13. In the course of this part of tho argument, ho accuses them of injustice and unkindness, and concludes it by desiring that they woald hold their peace. Their arguments, he said, were such as to dishonor God, and to expose tliom to the divine displeasure, and ho counsels fliem if they would l)e wise to be sile it.

V. In ch. xiii. 14-28, he makes lils appeal, in the most solemn manner, to God. He urges the most earnest protestations of his innocence, and affirms that ii is his intention to trust in God, tlio'i^'h he should slay him; but in connexion with this, he remonstrates in the most pathetic manner witli God for afflicting him as he was doing.

VI. The argument of Job is closed in chapter xiv. by a description of the shortness of human Ii e, of exquisite beauty. This is a part of his address to God, and is the expression of the deep feelings of his soul. It is full of mingled emotions of fear, and hope, and despondency, exhibiting doubts respecting the future state, with occasionally a slight hope of it, until his mind sinks into utter despondency, and he wishes that he were in the giave. This beautiful chapter contains the following parts, viz.: —

(t?.) Since such must be the lot of man. Job asks why God should afflict him? Why not suffer him to enjoy his few days here in peace, and let him pass through his brief existence without annoyance.' vs. 3-6.

(3.) He then adverts with the deepest feeling to the fact that a man when he is dead will not bo suffered to live again on the earth, vs. 7-12. A tree when it is cut down will spring up again, and if it were so with man, he might well bear to be afflicted. But he was cut down, and never again while the heavens endured would he be allowed to revisit the earth.

(4.) He then expresses the earnest wish that God would hide him in the grave, until his wrath should be overpast; and that then if He would call him forth, he would answer him, and would vindicate himself. Now, while thus suffering under the expressions of the divine displeasure, he was unequal to it. God watched him, and as waters wash away stones, and even the mountain is wasted away, so man?)iust waste away under long-continued trials. With this language of mingled complaint, remonstrance, despondency, and doubt, Job closes the first series of the controversy. He is evidently in deep perplexity. He knows not what to do, or what to think; but on the whole his language is that of one who felt that God and man were alike against him, and that he had no comforter.

A ND Job answered and said, "^ 2 No doubt but ye are the people, and wisdom shall die with you.

2. JVo doubt but ye are the people. That is, tile only wise people. You liave engrossed all the wisdom of the world, and all else are to be regarded as fools. This is evidently the language of Severe sarcasm; and it sliows a spirit fretted and chafed by their reproaches. Job felt contempt for their reasoning, and meant to intimate that their maxims, on which they placed so much reliance, were common-piace, and such as every one was familiar with. H.6/nrf icisdom shall die with you. This is ironical, but it is language such as is common perhaps every where. " The people of the East," says Roberts, "take great pleasure in irony, and some of their satirical sayings arc very cutting. When a sage intimates that ho has superior wisdom, or when he is disposed to rally another for his meagre attainments, he says, ' Yes, yes, you are the man!' ' Your wisdom is like the sea.' ' When you die, whither will wisdom go.^'" In a serious

8 But I have ^ understanding as well as you; I ^ am not inferior to you: yea, ^ who knoweth not such things as these 1

sense, language like this is used by the classic writers to describe the death of eminently great or good men. They speak of wisdom, bravery, piety, or music, as dying with them, thus IVIoschus, Idyll, iii. 12:

"Otti (3i(x)v riOvriKev b PcoKoXog, 'im avv avrio Kai Td niXos TsQpaicCy kuI oj\ero Acjpls dotSos.

" Bion the swain is dead, and with him song has died, and the Doric muse has perished."

3. But I have understanding as well as you. Marg. as in the Heb. an heart. The word heart in the Scriptures is ofien used to denote the understanding or mind. It seems to have been regarded as the source of that which was called life or soul. Indeed, 1 do not recollect a single instance in the Scriptures in which the word ' head ' is used, as with us, as

4 I am as one mocked of his

tlie seat of the intellect, or where the distinction is adverted to that is so common with us, between the head and the heart. With us, the heart is the seat of the affections and emotions; with the HebreAvs, it was tlie seat)f understanding, and the oTtldy- •/va — the viscera, the bowels, were the seat of the emotions. See Notes on Isa xvi 11. A more correct physiology has taught us that the brain is the urgan of the intellect, and we now speak of the heart as the seat of the affections. The Romans regarded the breast as the seat of the soul. Thus Virgil, speaking of the death of Lucagus by the hand of ^neas, says: Turn latcbras anima; pectus mucrone recludit.

Mti. X. 601. IT / am not inferior to you. Marg. fall not loicer than. This is the literal translation: ' I do not fall beneath you.' Job claims to be equal to them in the power of quoting the sayings of the ancients; and in order to show this, he proceeds to adduce a number of proverbial sayings, occupying the remainder of this chapter, to show that he was familiar with that mode of reasoning, and that in this respect he was fully their equal. This may be regarded as a trial of skill, and was quite common in the East. Wisdom consisted in storing up a large amount of proverbs and maxims, and in applying them readily and pertinently on all public occasions; and in this controversy. Job was by no means disposed to yield to them. II Yea, who knoweth not such things as these? Marg. With lohom are not such as these? The meaning is, that instead of being original, the sentiments which they advanced were the most common-place imaginable. Job not only said that he knew them, but that it would be strange if every body did not know them.

4. 7 am as one mocked of his neighbor. There has been considerable variety in the interpretation of this verse. The general sense is, that

Job felt himself to be a mere laughing-stock for his neighbors. They treated him as if he were not worth regarding. They had no sympathy for him in his sorrows, and they showed no respect for his opinions. Dr. Good understands this and the following verses as a part of the controversy in which Job proposes to show his skill in debate, and to adduce proverbs after the manner of his friends. But it is more probably an allusion to himself, and is designed to state that he felt that he was not treated with the respect which was due to him. Much difficulty has been felt in understanding the connection. Reiske contends that ver. 2 has no connection with ver. 3, and that vs. 11, 12, should be interposed between them. The connection seems to me to be this: Job complains that he was not treated with due deference They had showed no respect for his understanding and rank. They had urged the most common-place topics; advanced stale and trite apothegms, as if he had never heard them; dwelt on maxims familiar even to the meanest persons; and had treated him in this manner as if he were a mere child in knowledge. Thus to be approached with vague common-places, and with remarks such as would be used in addressing children, he regarded as insult and mockery. II Who calleth u]ion God, and he avsicereth him. This phrase has given occasion to great variety in the interpretation. Umbreit renders it, " I, who once called upon God, and he answered me;" that is, I, who once was a happy man, and blessed of God. Schultens renders it, " I, who call upon God," i. e. for trial, "and am ready to answer him." RosenmQller supposes that Job has reference to the assurances of his friends, that if he would call upon God, he would answer him, and that in view of that suggestion he exclaims, " Shall a man who is a laughing-stock to his neigh

God, and he answereth him: the just upright man is laughed to scorn.

5 He that is ready to slip with his feet is as a lamp de-

bor call upon God, and will he answer him!' The probable meaning is, that he had been a man who had jiad constant communion with God. He Iiad been a favorite of the Almighty, for he had lent a listening ear tohis supplications. It was now a thing of which he might reasonably complain, that a man who had enjoyed such manifest tokens of the divine favor, was treated with reproach and scorn.

5. He that is ready to slip icith his feet. The man whose feet waver or totter; that is, the man in adversity. See Prov. xxv. 19. A man in prosperity is represented as standing firm; one in adversity as wavering, or falling. See Ps. Ixxiii. 2.

There is much difficulty in this passage, and it has by no means been removed by the labor of critics. The reader may consult RosenmUller, (j'ood, and Schultens, on the ve.se, for a more full attempt to illustrate its meaning. Dr. Good, after Reiske and Park hurst, has offered an explanation by rendering the whole passago thus:

It does not appear to me, however, that tliis translation can be fairly edui^ed from the Hebrew text, and I am disposed to acquiesce in the more common and obvious interpretation. According to that, the idea is, that a man in adversity, when falling from a liigli condition of honor, is regarded as an almost extinguished lamp, that is now held in contempt, and is cast

spised in the thought of him that is at ease.

6 The tabernacles of robbers " prosper, and they that provoke God are secure; into whose hand God bringeth abundantly.

away. When the torch was blazing, it was regarded as of value; when nearly extinguished, it would be regarded as worthless, and would be cast away. So when a man was in prosperity, he would be looked up to as a guide and example. In adversity, his counsels would be rejected, and he would be looked upon with contempt. Nothing can be more certain or more common than the fact here adverted to. The rich and the great are looked up to with respect and veneration. Their words and actions have an influence which those of no other men have. When they begin to fiill, others are willing to hasten their fall. Long cherished but secret envy begins to show itself; those who wish to rise rejoice in their ruin, and they are looked upon with contempt in proportion to their former honor, rank, and power. They are regarded as an extinguished torch — of no value, and are cast away. IT In the thought. In the mind, or the view. IT Of him that is at ease. In a state of comfort and prosperity. He finds no sympathy from them. Job doubtless meant to apply this to his friends. They were then at ease, and were prosperous. Not suffering pain, and not overwhelmed with poverty, they now looked with the utmost composure on him — as they would on a torch which was burnt out, and which there would be no hope of rekindling.

6. The tabernacles of robbers prosper. The tents or dwellings of robbers are safe and secure. This is Job's original proposition, to which he all along adheres. It is,^hat God does not deal with men in this life according to their character; and in support of this he now appeals to the fact that the tents or dwellings of

7 But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the

robbers are safe. Arabia would furnish many illustrations of this, which could not be unknown to the friends of Job. The Arabs dwelt in tents, and they were then, as now, wandering, predatory tribes. They lived, to a great extent, by plunder, and doubtless Job could appeal to the observation of his friends for the proof of this. He affirms tiiat so far from dealing with men according to their character, God often seemed to protect the public robber, and the blasphemer of bis name. 11 Prosper. They are secure, tranquil, at rest — for so the Hebrew word means. They are not disturbed and broken in upon.!I And they that provoke God. Or rather, 'the tents are secure to those who provoke God.' Dr. Good renders it, " and are fortresses to those who provoke God;" but the true idea is, that the tents of those who provoke God by their conduct are safe. God does not seem to notice them, or to come out in judgment against them. TI Into tchose hand God hringeth abundantly. Dr. Noyes renders this, " who carry their God in their. hand;" but with much less accuracy, as it seems to me, than commonly characterizes his version. Eichhorn renders it in a sense somewhat similar: Die ihre Faust fiir ihre Gotthcit achten—

' and to whom the fist avails for their God;' that is, says he. Job means that this is the course of the world. Dr. Good renders it, " of him who hath created all those things with his hand" — still less accurately. In order to this, he is obliged to suppose an error in the text, but without the slightest authority. Jerome renders it as in our version. The LXX, " who provoke the Lord as if there vould bo no trial to them — l^raatq,

fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee;

avroJt' — hereafter;" which certainly makes sense, but it was never obtained from the Hebrew. RosenmQller renders it, " who have their own hand, i. e. potccr^ for God;" a description, says lie, of a wicked and violent man who thinks it right for him to do as he pleases. It seems to mc, however, that the common interpretation, which is the most simple, is most in accordance with the Hebrew, and with the drift of the passage. According to this it means, that there is security to the man who lives to provoke that God who is constantly bringing to him in abundance the tokens of kindness. This is the fact on which Job is insisting — that God does not treat men in this world according to their real character, but that the wicked are prospered and the righteous are afflicted.

7. But ask now the beasts. RosenmUller supposes that this appeal to the inferior creation should be regarded as connected with ver. 3, and that the intermediate verses are parenthetic. Zophar had spoken with considerable parade of the wisdom of God. He had said (ch. xi. 7, seq.) that the knowledge of God was higher than the heavens, and had professed (ver. 6) to have himself exalted views of the Most High. In reply to this, Job says that the views which Zophar had expressed, were the most conmaon-place imaginable. He need not pretend to be acquainted with the more exalted works of God, or appeal to them as if his knowledge corresponded with them. Even the lower creation— the brutes— the earth— the fishes— could teach him knowledge which he had not now. Even from their nature, properties, and modes of life, higher views might he obtained than Zophar had. Others suppose, that the meaning is, that in the distribution of happiness, God is so far from observing moral relations, that even among the lower animals, the rapacious and the violent

8 Or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee; and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee.

arc prospered, and the gentle and the innocent are the victims. Lions, wolves, and panthers are prospered — the lamb, the kid, the gazelle, are the victims. Either of these views may suit the connection, though the latter seems to me to be the more probable interpretation. The object of Job is to show that rewards and punishments are not distributed according to character. This was so plain in his view as scarcely to admit of argument. It was seen all over the world, not only among men, but even in the brute creation. Everywhere the strong prey upon the weak; the fierce upon the tame; the violent upon the timid. Yet God does not come forth to destroy the lion and the liytEua, or to deliver the lamb and the gazelle from their grasp. Like robbers (ver. 6), — lions, panthers, and wolves prowl upon the earth; and the eagle and the vulture from the air pounce upon tlie defenceless, and the great robbers of the deep prey upon the feeble, and still are prospered. What a striking illustration of the course of events among men, and of the relative condition of the righteous and the wicked! Nothing could be more pertinent to the design of Job than this appeal, and nothing was more in accordance with the whole structure of the argument in the poem, where wisdom is seen mainly to consist in the result of careful observation. II Jind they shall teach thcc. Shall teach thee that God does not treat all according to their character. lie does not give security to tlie gentle, the tame, and the innocei.t, and jjunish the ferocious, the blood-thirsty, and the cruel. IT ^nd the folds. They shall give thee information of the point under discussion. Those that prey upon others — as the eagle and the vulture — are not exposed at once to the divine displeasure, and the tender and harm-

9 Who knoweth not in all these, that the hand of the Lord hath wroucrht this 1

less are not protected. The general principle is illustrated in them, that the dealings of God arc not always in exact accordance with character.

8. Or speak to the earth., and it shall teach thee. Perhaps this appeal to the earth may mean, as Stuhlman supposes, that the same thing is shown in the productions of the earth, as in the case of fierce animals. Noxious weeds and useless plants are more thrifty than the plants which are useful, and the growth of poisonous or annoying things on the earth illustrates the same thing as the dealings of God with men — that his dealings are not in accordance with the real nature of objects. IT Jlud the fishes of the sea. The same thing is manifested in the sea, where the mighty prey upon the feeble, and the fierce and the ferocious overcome the defenceless. The sentiment is, that it is a great principle which pervades all things, that the ferocious, the strong, the wicked, are often prospered, while the weak, the defenceless, the innocent, the pious, are subject to calamities, and that God does not apportion his dealings to the exact character of his creatures. Undoubtedly Job was right in this, and this general principle might be seen then, as now, to pervade the world.

9. Who knoweth not in all these. Who cannot see in all these the proofs of the same divine and sovereign agency.' Who cannot see the hand of the same God, and the same great principles of administration 1 The meaning of Job is, that the position which lie defends is so plain, that it may be learned from the very earth and the lowest orders of animals which God has made. H That the hand of the Lord hath icrovght this. In this place the original word is "^^iT^ — Jehovah. On the mean ing of the word see Notes on IsQiali,

10 In whose hand is the ' soul of every living thing, and the breath of all '"' mankind.

ch. i. 2. The Chaldee also renders it hero "^1 — Jah. It is remarkable that tills is the only place where the name Jehovah occurs in poetical parts of the book of Job, in the printed editions. In ch. xxviii 28, Jehovah is found in some manuscripts, though the word Adonai is in the printed copies. Eichhorn, Einleit. § 644, JVote. In ch. xii. 9, the word Jehovah, though found in the printed editions, is wanting in nine ancient manuscripts. Dr. J. P. Wilson, on the " Hope of Immortality," p. 57. Tlie word Jehovah constantly occurs in the historical parts of the book. On the argument derived from this, in regard to the antiquity of tlie book of Job, see the Introduction, § 4 iii. 3!

10. Ill whose hiind is the soul of everij living tiling. Marg. Life. The margin is the more correct rendering. The idea is, that all are under the control of God. He gives life, and health, and happiness when he pleases, and when he chooses he takes them away. His sovereignty is manifested, says Job, in the inferior creation, or among the beasts of the field, the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of heaven. IT And the breath of all mankind. Marg. Flesh of man. The margin is in accordance with the Hebrew. The meaning is, that man is subjected to the same laws as the rest of the creation. God is a sovereign, and the same great principles of administration may be seen in all his works.

11. Dotli not the ear try words? Tl e literal meaning of this, which is evidently a proverbial expression, is plain; but about its bearing here there is more difficulty. The literal sense is, that it is the office of the ear to mark the distinction of sounds, and j to convey the sense to the soul. But I in regard to the exact bearing of this (iroverb on the case in hand, com- I

11 Doth not the ear try words? and the ' mouth taste his meat?

mentators have not been agreed. Probably the sense is, that there ought to be a diligent attention to the signification of words, and to the meaning of a speaker, as one carefully tastes his food; and Job, perhaps, may be disposed to complain that his friends had not given that attention which they ought to have done to the true design and signification of his remarks. Or it may mean that man is endowed with the faculty of attending to the nature and qualities of objects, and that he ought to exercise that ficulty in judging of the lessons which are taugiit respecting God or his works. H And the mouth. Marg. as in the Heb. T|n — palate. The word means not merely the palate, but the lower part of the mouth {Gesenius), and is especially used to designate the organ or the seat of taste. Ps. cxix. 103, Job vi. 30. II His meat. Its food— the word meat being used in old English to denote all kinds of food. The sense is, man is endowed with the faculty of distinguishing what is wholesome from what is unwholesome, and he should, in like manner, exercise the faculty which God has given him of distinguishing the true from the false on moral subjects. He should not suppose that all that had been said, or that could be said, must necessarily be true. He should not suppose that merely to string together proverbs, and to utter common-place suggestions, was a mark of true wisdom. He should separate the valuable from the worthless, the true from the false, and the wholesome from tiie injurious. Job complains that his friends Jiad not done this. They had shown no power of discrimination or selection. They had uttered common-place apothegms, and they gathered adiiges of former times, without any discrimination, and had iirsjed them in their arguments against

12 With the ancient " is wisdom; and in length of days understanding.

13 With ' him is wisdom and strength, he hath counsel ' and understanding.

him, whether pertinent or not. It was by tliis kind of irrelevant and miirellanoous remark that he feh that he had been mocked by his friends, ver. 4.

12. Jl'ith the ancient is loisdovi. Witli the aged. The word t^t;^^ here used, means an old man, one gray-headed. It is used chiefly in poetry, and is commonly en)ployed in the sense of one wjjo is decrepit by age. It is rendered very aged in Job XV. 10; " him that stooped for fl^c,"' 2Chron. xxxvi. 17; " very old," Job xxxii. 6; and the aged, Job xxix. 8. The LXX render it, ' Ev ttoIXw /ooj'w, in much time. The sense is, that wisdom might be expected to be found with the man who had had a long opportunity to observe the course of events; who had conversed with a formor generation, and who had had time for personal reflection. This was in accordance with the ancient Oriental views, where knowledge was imparted mainly by tradition, and where wisdom depended much on the opportunity of personal observation. Comp. ch. xxxii. 7.

13. U^ith him is wisdom,. Marg. correctly, " God." However much wisdom there may seem to be with aged men, yet the true wisdom— that which was supreme and worthy of the name— was to be found in God alone. The object of Job was to lead the thoughts up to God, and to bring his friends to a contemplation of the wisdom which he manifests in his works. Accordingly Jie goes on in the remainder of this chapter to state boiik; of the illustrations of uisdt)m and power which God had exhibited, and particularly to show that he was a sovereign, and did his pleasure

14 Behold, he breaketh down, and it cannot be built again; he shutteth ''up a man, and there can be no opening.

15 Behold, he withholdeth the waters, and they dry up; also he

every where. He made all things; he sustains all things; he reverses the condition of men at his pleasure; he sets up whom he pleases, and when he chooses lie casts them down. His works are contrary in many respects to what we should anticipate; and the sense of all is, that God was a holy and a righteous sovereign, and that such were the reverses under his administration that we could not argue that he treated all according to their character on earth.

14. Behold, he breaketh down. None can repair what he pulls down. Cities and towns he can devote to ruin by fire, or earthquake, or the pestilence, and so completely destroy them that they can never be rebuilt. JVe may now refer to such illustrations as Sodom, Babylon, Petra, Tyre, Herculaneum, and Pompeii, as full proof of what is here affirmed. M He shutteth zip a man. He can shut up a man in such difficulties and strait < that he cannot extricate himself. See ch. xi. 10. The Chaldee renders this, " he shuts up a man in the grave (^^Pl'l^lSj^Si) and it cannot be opened." But the more correct idea is, that God has complete control over a man, and that he can so hedge up his way that he cannot help himself.

1.5. He withholdeth the icaters. From the clouds and springs. He has control over the rains and the fountains; and when these are withheld, rivers and lakes become dry.

The Syriac renders this, J^.^ - 1 — if he rebuke the icaters, supposing that there might perhaps be an allusion to the drying up of the Red

sendeth them out, and they overturn the earth.

16 With him is strength and wisdom: the deceived " and the deceiver are his.

17 He leadeth counsellors a-

Sea, or tlie formation of a passage for llie Israelites. But it is remarkable that in the argument here there is no allusion to any historical fact, not to the flood, or to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, or to the passage through the Red Sea, though these occurrences would have furnished so appropriate illustrations of the points under discussion. Is it to be inferred that Job had never heard of any of those events.'' Or may it have been that the lessons which they were adapted to t(!ach had been actually embodied in the proverbs which he was using, and furnished well known illustrations or the basis of such apothegms.'' IT He sendeth them out, and they overturn the earth. Such inundations may have occurred in the swollen torrents of Arabia, and indeed are so common every where as to furnish a striking illustration of the power and sovereign agency of God..

16. The deceived and the deceiver are liis. This is designed to teach that all classes of men are under his control. All are dependent on him, and all are subject to him. He has power to keep them, and he can destroy them when he pleases. Dr. Good suj)poses that Job refers hereto nimself and his friends who had beguiled him into expressions of impatience and complaint. But it is more probably a general declaration that all classes of men were under the control of God.

17. He leadeth counsellors away spoiled. Plundered or captive. That is, the counsels of wise and great men do not avail against God. Statesmen who promised themselves victory as the result of their plans he disappoints, and leads away into cap-

18 He looseth the bond of kings, and girdeth their loins with a girdle.

19 He ' leadeth princes away

tivity. The object of this is to show that God is superior over all, and also that men are not dealt with in exact accordance with their character and rank. God is a sovereign, and he shows his sovereignty when defeating the counsels and purposes of the wisest of men, and overturning the plans of the mighty. IT And ynaketh the judges fools. He leaves them to distracted and foolish plans. He leaves them to the adoption of measures which result in their own ruin. He is a sovereign, having control over the minds of the great, and power to defeat all their counsels, and to render them infatuated. Nothing can be clearer than this. Nothing has been more frequently illustrated in the history of nations. In accordance with this belief is the wellknown expression:

18. He looseth the bend of kings The bond of kings ('^^^'2) here means that by which they bind others. Tlieir power over others ho loosens or takes away. ^ And girdeth their loins tcith a girdle. That is, he girds them with a rope or cord, and leads them away as prisoners. The whole series of remarks here refers to the reverses and changes in the conditions of life. The meaning here is, that the bonds of authority which they imposed on others are unbound, and that their own loins are bound with a girdle, not a girdle of royal dignity and ornament, but such a one as they are bound yvith who are servants, or who travel. Pict. Bib.

'20 He removeth " away the 1 speech of the trusty, and taketh

That is, plundered. The word here rendered "princes" (Q'^?'!i3) means properly priests, and it is usually so rendered in the Scriptures. The ancient Hebrew interpreters suppose that the word sometimes also means prince. The Chaldee Paraphrast has not unfrequently so rendered it, using the word ^*^'!! to express it. Gen. xli. 4.5. Ps. ex. 4. In this place, the Vulgate renders it, sacerdotes; and the LXX, If o fig, priests. So Luther renders it, Priestcr. So Castellio. It can be applied to princes or statesmen only because priests were frequently engaged in performing the functions of civil officers, and were in fact to a certain extent officers of the government. But it seems to me that it is to be taken in its usual signification, and that it means that even the ministers of religion were at the control of God, and were subject to the same reverses as other men of distinction and power. IT And overthroweth. Tlie word here used (^^^) has the notion of slipping, or gliding. So in Arabic, the word k»ft-Lw means to slip by, and to besmear. See Prov. xiii. 6: " Wickedness overthroweth (^i^Ori, causes to slip) the sinner." Comp.' Prov. xxi. 12, xxii. 12. Here it means to overthrow, to prostrate. The most mighty chieftains cannot stand firm before him, but they glide away and fall.

20. He removeth away the speech of the trusty. Marg. lip of the faithful. "He takes away the lip," i.e. he takes away the -power of giving safe counsel or good advice. The "trusty " or " faithful " here refer to those of ago and experience, and on whose counsel men are accustomed to rely. The meaning here is, that their most

21 He * poureth contempt upon princes, and ^weakeneth the strength of the mighty.

sagacious anticipations are disappointed, their wisest schemes arc foiled. They fail in their calculations of the course of events, and the arrangements of Providence are such that they could not anticipate what was to occur H The understanding of the aged. To whom the young were accustomed to look up with deference and respect. The meaning here is, that they who were accustomed to give wise and sound advice, if left by God, give vain and foolish counsels.

21. He poureth contempt upon princes. He has power to hurl them from their tlirones, and to overwhelm them with disgrace. H And iceakeneth the strength of the mighty. Marg. as in Heb. looseih the girdle of the strong. The Orientals wore loose flowing robes, whi(;h were secured by a girdle around the loins. When they labored, ran, or travelled, their robes were girded up. But this is common every where. Wrestlers, leapers, and runners, put a girdle around them, and are able thus to accomplish much more than they otherwise could. To loosen that, is to weaken them. So Job says that God had power to loosen the strength of the mighty. He here seems to labor for expressions, and varies the form of the image in every way to show the absolute control which God has over men, and the fact that his power is seen in the reverses of mankind. Lucretius has a passage strongly resembling this in the general sentiment:

Usque adeo res Immanas, vis abdita queedam Obteiit; et pulcliros fasces, savasque secures, Proculcare, atque ludibrio sibi habere, videtur. Lib. V, 1232.

So from his awful shades, some Power unseen O'eithrows all human gieatness! Treads to dust

22 He discovereth " deep things out of darkness, and bringeth out to light the shadow ^ of death.

23 He increaseth " the nations, and destroyeth them; he enlargeth the nations, and ' straiteneth them again,

22. He discovereth deejJ things out of darkness. That is, God discloses truths which are wholly beyond the power of man to discover — truths that seem to be hidden in profound night. This may refer either to the revelation which God was believed to have furnished, or to his power of bringing out the most secret thoughts and purposes, or to his power of predicting future events by bringing them out of darkness to the clear light of day, or to his power of detecting plots, intrigues, and conspiracies. U J3nd bringeth out to light the shadoio of death. On the meaning of the word rendered " shado,w of death," see Notes on ch. iii. 5. It here denotes whatever is dark or obscure. It is rather a favorite expression with the author of this poem (see ch. x. 22, xvi. 16, xxiv. 17, xxxiv. 22, xxxviii. 17), though it occurs elsewhere in the Scriptures. The deepest darkness, the obscurest night, are represented by it; and the idea is, that even from the most dark and impenetrable regions God could bring out light and truth. All is naked and open to the mind of God.

23. He increaseth the nations^ and destroyeth them. He has entire control over them. The sources of prosj)er;ty are in his hand, and at his pleasure he can visit them with famine, pestilence, or war, and diminish their numbers and arrest their prosperity. Dr. Good renders this very improperly, " He Ictteth the nations

24 He taketh way the heart '^ of the chief of the people ot the earth, and causeth them to wander in a wilderness where there is no way.

25 They grope * in the dark without light, and he maketh them to ^ stagger like a drunken man.

grow licentious;" but the word 'i^'Xi^ never has this sense. It means, to make great; to multiply; to increase. ir And straiteneth them again. Marg. leadeth in. So the word <^n3 means. The idea is, that he increases a nation so that it spreads abroad beyond its usual limits, and then at his pleasure leads them back again, or confines them within the limits whence they had emigrated.

24. He taketh aivay the heart. The word heart here evidentlj means mind, intelligence, wisdom. See Notes on ver. 3. IT Of the chief of the people. Heb. ' Hc^tZ^ of the people;' that is, of the rulers of the earth. The meaning is, that he leaves them to infatuated and distracted counsels. By withdrawing from them, he has power to frustrate their plans, and to leave them to an entire want of wisdom. See Notes on ver. 17. U And causeth them to tvander in a wilderness. They are like persons in a vast waste of pathless sands without a waymark, a guide, or a path. The perplexity and confusion of the great ones of the earth could not be more strikingly represented than by the condition of such a lost traveller.

25. They grope in the dark. They are like persons who attempt to feel their way along in the dark. Comp. Notes on Isa. lix. 10. IT And he maketh them to stagger like a drunken man. Marg. wander. Tiieir unstable and perplexed counsels are like the reelings of a drunken man. See Notes on Isa. xix. 14, xxiv. 20. This closes the chapter, and with it the controversy in regard to the ability to adduce pertinent and striking proverbial expressions. See Notes on vcr. 3. Job had showed them that he was as flimiliar with proverbs respecting God as they were, and that he entertained as exalted ideas of the control and government of the Most High as they did. It may be added, that these (ire sublime and beautiful expressions respecting God. They surpass all that can be found in the writings of the heathen) and they show that somehow in the earliest ages there prevailed views of God which the human mind for ages afterwards, and in the most favorable circumstances, was not capable of originating. These proverbial sayings were doubtless fragments of revealed truth, which had come down by tradition, and which were thus embodied in a form convenient to be transmitted from age to age.

T O. mine eye hath seen all -*-^ this, mine ear hath heard and understood it.

2 What ye know, the same do I know also; I am not inferior unto you.

1. Lo, mine eye hath seen all this. I have seen illustrations of all that I have said, or that you have said about the methods of divine providence.

3. Surely I would speak to the Minighty. I would desire to carry my cause directly up to God, and spread out my reasons before him. This Job often professed to desire. See ch. ix. 34, 35. He felt that God would appreciate the arguments which he would urge, and would do justice to them. His friends he felt were censorious and severe. They neither did justice to his feelings, nor to his motives. They perverted his words and arguments; and instead of consoling him, they only aggravated his trials, and caused him to sink into deeper sorrows. But he felt if he could carry his cause to God, he would do ample justice to him and

3 Surely I would speak to the Almighty, " and I desire to reason * with God.

4 But ye are forgers of lies, ye are all physicians of no " value.

his cause. The views which he entertained of his friends he proceeds to state at considerable length, and without much reserve, in the follow ing verses.

4. But ye dixe forgers of lies. The word lies here seems to be used in a large sense, to denote sophisms, false accusations, errors. They maintained false positions; they did not see the exact truth in respect to the divine dealings, and to the character of Job. They maintained strenuously that Job was a hypocrite, and that God was punishing him for his sins. Tliey maintained that God deals with men in exact accordance with their character in this world, all of which Job regarded as false doctrine, and asserted that they defended it with sophis tical arguments invented for the purpose, and thus they could be spoken of as ' forgers of lies.' H Physicians of no zalue. Tlie meaning is, that

5 Oh that ye would altogether hold your peace! and " it should be your wisdom.

6 Hear now my reasoning, and hearken to the pleadings of my lips.

they had come to give him consolation, but nothing that they had said had imparted comfort. They were hke physicians sent for to visit the sick, w^ho could do nothing when they came. Comp. ch. xvi. 2.

5. Oh that ye would altogether hold your peace. You would show your wisdom by silence. Since you can say nothing that is adapted to give comfort, or to explain tiie trde state of the case, it would be wise to say nothing. Comp. Prov. xvii. 28: " Even a fool when he holdeth his peace is counted wise."

7. WilL ye sjyeak wickedly for God? Tliat is, will you maintain unjust principles with a view to honor or to vindicate God? Job refers doubtless to the positions which they had defended in regard to the divine administration— principles which he regarded as unjust, though they had employed them professedly in vindicating God. The sense is, that unjust principles ought not to be advanced to vindicate God. The great cause of truth and justice should always be maintained, and even in attempting lo vindicate the divine administration, we ought to make use of no arguments which are not based on that which is right and true. Job means to reproach his friends with having, in their professed vindication of God, advanced sentiments which were at war with truth and justice, and which were full of fallacy and sophistry. And is tliis' never done now.? Are sophistical arguments never employed in attempting to vindicate the divine government.'' Do we never state principles in regard to him v/hich we should esteem to be unjust and dishonorable if applied to man.'' Do not good -nen sometimes feel that that govern-

7 Will ye speak wickedly * for God? and talk deceitfully " for him 1

ment must be defended at all events; and when they can see no reason for the divine dealings, do they not make attempts at vindicating them, which are merely designed to throw dust in the eyes of an opponent, and which are known to be sophistical in their nature? It is wrong to employ a sophistical argument on any subject; and in reasoning on the divine character and dealings, when we come, as we often do, to points which we cannot understand, it is best to confess it. God asks no weak or sophistical argument in his defence; still less can he be pleased with an argument, though in defence of his government, which is based on unjust principles. ^ ^nd talk deceitfully for him. Use fallacies and sophisms in attempting to vindicate him. Every thing in speaking of God, should be true, pure, and sound. Every argument should be free from any appearance of sophism, and should be such as will bear the test of the most thorough examination. No honor is done to God by sophistical arguments, nor can he be pleased when such arguments are employed even to vindicate and honor his character.

8. JVill ye accept his person? That is, will you be, partial to him? The language is such as is used in relation to courts of justice, where a judge shows favor to one of the parties on account of birth, rank, wealth, or personal friendship. The idea here is, 'will you, from partiality to God, maintain unjust principles, and defend positions which are really untenable.'' There was a controversy between Job and God. Job maintained that he was punished too severely; that the divine dealings were unequal and disproportioned to his offences

His friends, he alleges, have not done justice to the arguments which he had urged, but had taken sides with God against him, no matter wlial he urged or what he said. So little disposed were they to do justice to him and to listen to' his vindication, that no matter \Ahat he said, they set it all down to impatience, rebellion, andinsubmission. They assumed that iie was wrong, and that God was wholly right in all things. Of this position that God was right, no one could reasonably complain, and in his sober reflections Job himself would not be disposed to object to it; but his complaint is, that though the considerations which he urged were of the greatest weight, they would not allow their force, simply because they were dctcrmmcd to vindicate God. Their position was, that God dealt with men strictly according to their character; and that no matter what they suffered, their sufferings were the exact measure of their ill desert. Against this position, they would hear nothing that Job could say; and they maintained it by every kind of argument which was at their command — whether sound or unsound, sophistical or solid. Job says that this was showing partiality for God, and he felt that he had a right to complain. We need never show ' partiality' even for God. He can be vindicated by just and equal arguments; and we need never injure others while we vindicate him. Our arguments for him should indeed be reverent, and we should desire to vindicate his character and government; but the considerations which we urge need not be those of mere partiality and favor. IT Will ye contend for God? I^anguage taken from a court of justice, and referring to an argument in favor of a party or cause. Job asks whether they would undertake to maintain the cause of God, and he may mean to intimate that they were wholly disqualified for such an undertaking. He not only reproves them for a want of candor and impartiality, as in the previous e.xpressions, but he means to say that they were unfitted in all respects to be the advocates of God. They did not understand the principles of his administration. Their views were narrow, their information limited, and their arguments eithe'- common-place or unsound. According to this interpretation, the emphc'sis will be on the word ' ye' — " will YE contend for God.'" The whole verse may mean, ' God is not to be defended by mere partiality, oi favor. Solid arguments only should be employed in his cause. Such vou have not used, and you have shown yourselves to be entirely unfitted for this great argument.' The practical inference which ice should draw from this is, that our arguments in defence of the divine administration, should be solid and sound. They should not be mere declamation, or mere assertion. They should be such as will become the great theme, and such as will stand the test of any proper trial that can be applied to reasoning. There are arguments which will ' vindicate all God's ways to men;' and to search them out should be one of the great employments of our lives. If ministers of the gospel would always abide by these principles, they would often do much more than they do now to commend religion to the sober views of mankind. No men are under greater temptations to use weak or unsound arguments than they are. They feel it to be their duty' at all hazards to defend the divine administration. They are in circumstances where their arguments will not be subjected to the searching process which an argument at the bar will be, where a keen and interested opponent is on the alert, and will certainly sift every argument which is urged. Either by inability to explain the difficulties of the divine government, or by indolence in searching out arguments, or by presuming on the ignorance and dulness of their hearers, or by a pride which will not allow them to confess their ignorance on any subject, they are in danger of

9 Is it good that he should search you out? or as one man mocketh another, do ye so mock " him?

10 He will surely reprove you,

attempting to hide a difficulty which they cannot explain, or of using arguments and resorting to reasoning, which would be regarded as unsound or worthless any where else. A minister should always remember that sound reasoning is as necessary in religion as in other things, and that there are always some men who can detect a fallacy or see through sophistry. With what diligent study then should the ministers of the gospel prepare for their work! How careful should they be, as the advocates of God and his cause in a world opposed to him, to find out solid arguments, to meet with candor every objection, and to convince men by sound reasoning, that God is right! Their work is to convince, not to denounce; and if there is any office of unspeakable responsibility on earth, it is that of undertaking to be the advocates of God.

9. Is it good that he should search you out? Would it be well for you if he should go into an investigation of your character, and of the arguments which you adduce.'' The idea is, that if God should make such an investigation, the result would be highly unfavorable to them. Perhaps Job means to intimate that, if they were subjected to the kind of trial that he had been, it would be seen that they could not bear it. T[ Or as one man mocketh another. The idea here is, 'it is possible to delude or deceive man, but God cannot be deceived. You may conceal your thoughts and motives from man, but you cannot from God. You may use arguments that may impose upon man — you may employ fallacies and sophisms which he cannot detect, but every such effort is vain with God.' Comp. Gal. vi. 7.

II Shall not his excellency make you afraid? " and his dread fall upon you?

10. He xcill surely reprove you, ify^ do secretly accept persons. If you show partiality, you vv'ill incur his disapprobation. This seems to have much of a proverbial cast, and to m.ean that under no possible circumstances was it right to show partiality. No matter for whom it may be done, it will be displeasing to God. Even if it be in favor of the righteous, the widow, the fatherless, or of himself, if there is not a disposition to judge according to truth and evidence, God will frown upon you. No matter who the parties might be; no matter what their rank; no matter what friendship there might be for one or the other of them, it was never to be assumed that one was right and the other wrong without evidence. The exact truth was to be sought after, and the judgment made up accordingly. Even when God was one of the parties, the same course was to be pursued. His character was capable of being successfully vindicated, and he would not be pleased to have his cause defended or decided by partiality, or by mere favor. Hence he encourages men to bring forth their strong reasons, and to adduce all that can be said against his government and laws. See Notes on Isa. xli. 1-21.

11. Shall not his excellency. His exaltation (nxii: from i<^3 to exalt, to lift up), or his majesty. Gen. xlix. 3. IT Make you afraid. Fill you with awe and reverence. Shall it not restrain you from fallacy, from sophisms, and from all presumptuous and unfounded reasoning. The sense here is, that a sense of the greatness and majesty of God should fill the mind with solemriity and reverence, and make us serious and sincere; should repress all declamation and

12 Your remembrances are like unto ashes, your bodies to

tliey regarded as so profound and wortliy of attention, but which Job was disposed to regard as most cominon-place, and to treat with contempt. U Are like unto ashes. That is, they are valueless. See Notes on Isa. xiiv. 20. Their maxims had abo'Jt the same relation to true wisdom which ashes have to substantial and nutritious food. The Hebrew here C^ES^- '^^^^) is rather, " are parables of ashes;" — the word ''^j^ meaning similitude, parable, proverb. This interpretation gives more force and beauty to the passage. IT Your bodies — 'S^.'^r'^. Vulg. cervices. Sept. TO df oo)/(a TtT^ltror — but the body is clay. The Hebrew word 25, gabh^ means something gibbous (whence the word gibbotis is derived), convex, arched; hence the back of animals or men, Ezek. x. 12; the boss of a shield or buckler — the gibbous, or exterior convex part — Job xv. 26; and then, according to Gesenius, an entrenchment, a fortress, a stronghold. According to this interpretation, the passage here means, that the arguments behind which they entrenched themselves were like clay. They could not resist an attack made upon them, but would be easily thrown down, like mud walls, Grotius renders it, "Your towers [of defence] are tumuli of clay." Rosenmuller remarks on the verse, that the ancients were accustomed to inscribe sentences of valuable historical facts on pillars. If these were engraved on stone, they would be permanent; if on pillars covered with clay, they would soon be obliterated. On a pillar or column at Alexandria, the architect cut his own name at the base deep in the stone. On the plaster or stucco with which the column was covered, he inscribed the name of the person to whose honor it was reared. The consequence was, that that name became soon obliterated; his own then appeared, and was per- mere assertion, and should lead us to adduce only those considerations which will bear the test of the final trial. The general proposition, however, is not less clear, that a sense of the majesty and glory of God should at all times fill the n)ind with solemn awe, and produce the deepest veneration. See Jer. v. 22, x. 7-10. Gen. xxviii. 17. 11 ^^nd his dread. The fear of him. You should so stand in awe of him as not to advance any sentiments which he will not approve, or which will not bear the test of examination. RosenmOller, however, and after him Noyes, supposes that this is not so much a declaration of what ought to be, implying that the fear of God ought to produce veneration, as a declaration of what actually occurred — implying that they were actually influenced by this slavish fear in W'hat they said. According to this it means that they were actuated only by a dread of what God would do to them that led them to condemn Job without proof, and not by a regard to truth. But the common interpretation seems to me most in accordance with the meaning of the passage.

12. Your remembrances are like unto ashes. There has been a considerable variety in the interpretation of this verse. The meaning in our common version is certainly not very clear. The Vulgate renders it, Memoria vestra comparabitur cineri. The LXX, '^TTo^rjaeTut. df { /noiy to yavnfaiKx 7aa anodo) — your boasting shall pass aicay like ashes. Dr. Good renders it, " Dust are your stored-up sayings." Noyes, " Your maxims are words of dust." The word rendered remembrances CJl^ST) means properly remembrauce., memory., Josh, iv. 7. Ex. xii. 14; then a memento., or record; then a memorable saying, a maxim. This is probably the meaning here; and (he reference is to the apothegms or proverbs which they had so profusely uttered, and which

13 ^ Hold your peace, let me alone, that I may speak, and let come on me what will.

manent. But the meaning here is rather, that the apothegms and maxmis behind which they entrenched themselves were like mud walls, and could not withstand an attack.

13. Hold your peace. Marg. Be silent frovi me. See ver. 5. It is possible that Job may have perceived in them some disposition to interrupt him in a rude manner in reply to the severe remarks which ho had made, and he asked the privilege, therefore, of being permitted to go on, and to say what he intended, let come what would. IT.^nd let come on me rckat will. Any thing, whether reproaches from you, or additional sufferings from the hand of God. Allow me to express my sentiments, whatever may be the consequences to myself. One cannot but be forcibly reminded by this vcrstt of the remark of Themistocles, ''Strike, but hear me."

14. Wherefore do I take my flesh in my teeth. The meaning of the proverbial expressions in this verse is not very clear. Tiiey indicate a state of great danger; but the exact sense of the proverbs it has been difficult to ascertain. Some have supposed that the phrase ' to take the flesh in the teeth,' is significant of a state of famine, where a man dying from this cause would seize upon his own flesh and devour it ] others, that it refers to the contentions of voracious animals, struggling for a piece of flesh; others that it refers to the fact that what is borne in the teeth is liable to be dropped, and t!iat Job regarded his life as in such a perilous condition. Schultens regards it as denoting that bold courage in which a man exposes his life to imminent peril. He supposes that it is to be taken in connection with the previous verse, as intimating that he would go forward and speak at any rate, what-

14 Wherefore do I take my flesh in my teeth, and put my life in my hand?

ever might be the result. He translates it, ' Whatever may be the event, I will take my flesh in my teeth, and my life in my hand.' In this interpretation Rosenmiiller concurs. Noyes renders it, "I will count it nothing to bear my flesh in my teeth." Good, "Let what may — I will carry my flesh in my teeth;" and supposes that the phrase is equivalent to saying, that he would incur any risk or danger. The proverb he supposes is taken from the contest which so frequently takes place between dogs and other carnivorous quadrupeds, when one of them is carrying a bone or piece of flesh in his mouth, which becomes a source of dispute and a prize to be fought for. The Vulgate renders it, Qiiare laccro carnes meas dentibtis meis. The LXX, ' Taking my flesh in my teeth, I will put my life in my hand.' It seems to me, that the language is to be taken in connection with the previous verse, and is not to be regarded as an interrogatory, but as a declaration. ' Let come upon me any thing — whatever it may be — J^^ — (ver. 13) on account of that, or in reference to that — >S) na" — (ver. 14), I will take my life in my hand, braving any and every danger.' It is a firm and determined purpose that he would express his sentiments, no matter what might occur — even if it involved the peril of his life. The word ^ flesh ' I take to be synonymous with life, or with his best interests; and the figure is probably taken from the fact that animals thus carry their prey or spoil in their teeth. Of course, this would be a poor protection. It would be liable to be seized by others. It might even tempt and provoke others to seize it; and would lead to conflict and perils. So Job felt that the course he was pursuing would lead

15 Though " he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will

him into danger, but he was determined to pursue it, let come what might. IT Jlnd put my life in mine hand. This is a proverbial expression, meaning the same as, I will expose myself to danger. Any thing of value taken in the hand is liable to be rudely snatched away. It is like taking a casket of jewels, or a purse of gold, in the hand, which may at any moment be seized by robbers. The phrase is not uncommon in the Scriptures to denote exposure to great peril. Comp. Ps. cxix. 109, "My soul is continually in my hand." 1 Sam. xix. 5, "For he did put his life in his hand, and slew the Philistine." Judges xii. 3, "I put my life in my hands, and passed over against the children of Amnion " A similar expression occurs in the Greek classics, denoting exj)osure to imminent danger — iv rfj /ftol ri]v xpv/rjv I'/fi — he has his life in his hand. See Rosenmuller on Ps. cxix. 109. The Arabs have a somewhat similar proverb, as quoted by Schultens, "His flesh is upon a butcher's block."

15. Though he slay me. ' God may so multiply my sorrows and pains that I cannot survive them. 1 see that I may be exposed to increased calamities, yet I am willing to meet them. If in maintaining my own cause, and showing that I am not a hypocrite (ver. ]8), it should so happen that my sufterings should be so increased that I should die, yet I will do it.' The word slay., or kill., here refers to temporal death. It has no reference to punishment in the future world, or to the death of the soul. It rneuns merely that Job was determined to maintain iiis cause and defend his character, though his sufferings should be so increased that life would be the forfeit. Such was the extent of liis sufferings, that he had reason to suppose that they would terminate in death; and yet notwith-

Standing this, it was his fixed purpose to confide in God. Comp. Notes on ch. xix. 25-27. This was spoken in Job's better moments, and was his deliberate and prevailing intention. This deliberate purpose expresses what was really the character of the man, though occasionally, when hebecame impatient, he gave utterance to different sentiments and feelings. We are to look to the prevailing and habitual tenor of a man's feelings and declared principles, in order to determine what his character is, and not to expressions made under the influence of temptation, or under the severity of pain. On the sentiment here expressed, comp. Ps. xxiii. 4. Prov. xiv. 32. IF Yet will I trust in him. The word here used (^'[}'^t) means properly to wait, stay, delay; and it usually conveys the idea of tcaiting on one with an expectation of aid or help. Hence it means to hope. The sense here is, that his expectation or hope was in God; and if the sense expressed in our common version be correct, it implies that even in death, or after death, he would confide in God. He would adhere to him, and would still feci that beyond death he would bless him. IT In him. In God. But there is here an in)portant variation in the reading. The present Hebrew is 5<? — not. The kcri., or marginal reading, is 15 — in him. Jerome renders it as if it were 1'' — in ipso, that is, in him. The LXX followed some reading which does not now appear in any copies of the Hebrew text, or which was the result of mere imagination: 'Though the Almighty, as he hath begun, may subdue me — •/finojfffTai — yet will I speak, and maintain my cause before him.' The Chaldee renders it, "|^5< i^TS'i;^,—/ will pray before him; evidently read-

16 He also shall he my salvation; "■ for an hypocrite '' shall

mg it as if it were \^ — in him. So the Syriac, ov-ik — in him. I have no doubt, therefore, that this was the ancient reading, and tliat the true sense is retained in our common version; thougli Rosen miiller, Good, Noyes, and others, have adopted tiie other reading, and suppose that it is to be taken as a negative. Noyes renders it, ' Lo! he slayeth me, and 1 iiave no hope!' Good, much worse, ' Should he even shiy me, I vvouhi not delay.' It may be added, that there are frequent instances where X^ and i' arc interchanged, and where the copyist seems to have been determined by the sound rather than by a careful inspection of the letters. According to the Masorites, there are fifteen places where 5<', not, is written for 1'', to him. Ex. xxi. 8. Lev. xi. 21, XXV. 30. 1 Sam. ii. 3. 2 Sam. xvi. 18. Ps. c. 3, cxxxix. 16. Job xiii. 15, xli. 4. Ezra iv. 2. Prov. xix. 7, xxvi.2. Isa. ix. 2, Ixiii. 9. On the other hand, "i' is put for!^' in 1 Sam. ii. 16, XX. 2. Job vi. 21. A mistake of this kind may have easily occurred here.. The sentiment here expressed is one of the noblest that could fill from the lips of man. It indicates unwavering confidence in God, even in death. It is the determination of a mind to adhere to him, though he should strip away comfort after comfort, and though there should be no respite to his sorrows until he should sink down in death. This is the highest expression of piety, and tliis it is the privilege of the friends of God to experience. When professed earthly friends become cold towards us, our love for them also is chilled. Should the}^ leave and forsake us in the midst of suff'ering and want, and especially should they leave us on a bed of death, we should cease to confide in them. But not so in respect to God. Such is the nature of our confidence in him, that though he takes away comfort after comfort, though our health is destroyed and our friends are removed, and though we are led down into the valley and the shadow of death, yet still we never lose our confidence in him. We feel that all will yet be well. We look forward to another state, and anticipate the blessedness of another and a better world. Reader, can rjou'xn sincerity lift the eye toward God, and say to him, ' Though Thou dost slay me, though comfort after comfort is taken away, though the waves of trouble roll over me, and though I go down into the valley of the shadow of death, yet I will TRUST IN Thke; — Thine I will be even then, and when all is dark I will believe that God is right, and just, and true, and good, and will never doubt tiiat he is worthy of my eternal aftection and praise.'' Such is religion. Where else is it found but in the views of God and of his government which the Bible reveals.'' The infidel may iiave apathy in his sufi'erings, the blasphemer may be stupid, the moralist or the formalist may be unconcerned; but that is not to have confidence in God. That results from religion alone. U But I wili maintain mine oion ways before him. Marg. prove, or argue. The sense is, I will vindicate my ways, or myself That is, I will maintain that I am his friend, and that I am not a hypocrite. His friends charged him with insincerity They were not able. Job supposed, to appreciate his arguments and to do justice to him. He had, therefore, expressed the wish to carry his cause directly before God (ver. 3): and he was assured that He would do justice to his arguments. Even should he slay him, he would still stand up as his friend, and would still maintain that his calamities had not come upon him, as his friends supposed, because he was a hypocrite and a secret enemy of his Maker.

17 Hear diligently my speech, and my declaration with your ears.

18 Behold now, I have ordered my cause; I know that I shall be justified.

See Notes on Is. xii. 2. Literally, " He is unto me for salvation," that is, ' I put my trust in him, and he will save me. The opportunity of appearing before God, and of maintaining my cause in his presence, will result in my deliverance from the charges which are alleged against me. I shall be able there to show that I am not a hypocrite, and God will become my defender.' U For anhypocrite shall not come before hem. This seems to be a proverb, or a statement of a general and indisputable principle. Job admitted this to be true. Yet he expected to be able to vindicate himself before God, and this would prove that he was not an hypocrite— on the general principle that a man who was permitted to stand before God and to obtain his favor, could not be an unrighteous man. To God he looked with confidence; and God, he had no doubt, would be his defender. This fact would pxove that he could not be an hypocrite, as his friends iriaintained.

17. Hear diligentlij my speech. That which I have made; that is, the declaration which I have made of my innocence. He refers to his solemn declaration, (ver. 15, 16,) that he had unwavering confidence in God, and that even should God slay him he would put confidence in him. This solemn appeal he wished them to attend to as one of the utmost importance.

18. I have ordered my cause. liitelally, 'judgment.?'—'J2ttJ 73. The LXX render it, "I am' iiear {iyyvq fltii) to my judgment," or my trial. The meaning may be, that he had gone through the pleading, and had said wiiat he wished in self-vindication, and he was willing to leave the eabse with God, and did not doubt the

19 Who ' is he that will plead with me? for now, if I hold my tongue, I shall give up the ghost.

issue. Or more probably, I think, the word '^^?'!'^' should be taken, as the word "^^^"1^ is, in the present tense, meaning, 'I now set in order m^'^ cause; I enter on the pleading; I am confident that I shall so present it as to be declared righteous.' IT / knoio that I shall hejastificd. I have no doubt as to the issue. I shall be declared to be an holy man, and not a hypocrite. The word rendered 'I shall be justified' (p'HSX) is used here in the proper and literal sense of the word justify. It is a term of law; and means, ' I shall be declared to be righteous. I shall be shown not to be guilty in the form charged on me, and shall be acquitted or vindicated.' This sense is different from that which so often occurs in the Scriptures when applied to the doctrine of the justification of a sinner. Then it means, to treat one as if he were righteous., though he is personally guilty and undeserving.

19. Who is he that will ])lcad with me? That is, 'who is there now that will take up the cause, and entci into an argument against me? I have set my cause before God. I appeal now to all to take up the argument against me, and have no fear if they do as to the result. I am confident of a successful issue, and await calmly the divine adjudication.' TT For now), if 1 hold, viy tongue, I shall give up the ghost. This translation, in my view, by no means expresses the sense of the original, if indeed it is not exactly the reverse. According to this version, the meaning is, that if he did not go into a vindication ol himself he would die. The Hebrew, however, is, "for now I will be silent, and die." That is, ' I have maintained my cause, I will say no more.

20 Only do not two things unto me: then will I not hide myself from thee.

If there is any one who can successfully contend vvitli nie, and can prove tlial my course cannot be vindicated, then I Jiave no more to say. I will be silent, and die. I will submit to my fate witiiout furtlier argument, and without a murmur. I have said all that needs to be said, and nothing would remain but to submit and die.' 20. Onhj do not tico things unto vie. The two things which are specified in the following verse. Tliis is an address to God as Job argues his cause before him, and the request is, that he would remove every obstacle to his presenting his cause in the most favorable manner, and so that he may be on equal terms with him. See Notes ch. ix. o4, 35. He was ready to present his cause, and to plead before God, as (ver. 18) he had the utmost confidence that he would be able so to present it as to vindicate hinjself; and he asks of God that he would withdraw his hand for a time (ver. 21) and not terrify him (ver. 21), so that he could present his case with the full vigor of his mind and body, and so that he need not be overawed by the sense of the majesty and glory of the Most High. He wished to be free to present his cause without the impediments arising from a deeply distressing and painful malady. He wished to have his full intellectual and bodily vigor restored for a time to him, and then he was confident that he could successfully defend himself. He felt that he was now enfeebled by disease, and incapacitated from making the effort for self-vindication and for maintaining his cause, which he Avould have been enabled to make in his palmy days. \\ Then will I not hide myself from thee. From God. I will stand forth boldly and maintain ray cause. I will not attempt to

from me: and let not thy dread make me afraid.

22 Then call ' thou, and I will answer: or let me speak, and answer thou me.

conceal myself, or shun the trial and the argument. See. ch. ix. 34, 35.

21. Withdrcno thine Jiand fur from me. Notes ch. ix. 34. The hand of God here is used to denote the calamity or affliction which Job was suffering. The meaning is, ' Remove my affliction; restore me to health, and I will then enter on tlie argument in vindication of my cause. 1 am now oppressed, and broken down, and enfeebled by disease, and I cannot present it with the vigor which I might evince if I were in health.' IT JInd let not thy dread make me afraid. ' Do not so overpower mo by thy severe majesty, that I cannot present my cause in a calm and composed manner.' See Notes ch. ix. 34. Job felt that God had power to overawe him, and he asked, therefore, that he might have a calm and composed mind, and then he would be able to do ju.?tice to his own cause.

22. Then call thousand I will answer. Call me to trial; summon me to make my defence. This is language taken from courts of justice, and the idea is, that if God would remove his calamity, and not overawe him, and would then call on him to make a defence, he would be ready to respond to his call. The language means, ' be thou plaintiff in the case, and I will enter on my defence.' He speaks now to God not as to a judge but as a party, and is disposed to go to trial. See Notes on ch. ix. 33-35. IT Or let me speak, and a?iswer thou me. ' Let me be the plaintiff", and commence the cause. In any way, let the cause come to an issue. Let me open the cause, adduce my arguments, and defend my view of the subject; and then do thou respond.' The idea is, that Job desired a fair trial. He was willing that God should select his position, and should either

23 How many are mine ini- ] thy face, and boldest me foi quities and sins? make me to thine enemy? '

know " my transgression and my 25 WiJt thou break ^ a leal sin. driven to and fro? and wilt thou

24 Wherefore hidest ^ thou pursue the dry stubble?

open the cause, or respond to it when he had Jiimself opened it. To our view, there is something tJiat is quite irreverent in this language, and I know not that it can be entirely vindicated. But perhaps, when the idea of a trial was once suggested, all the rest may he regarded as the mere filling up^ or as language fitted to carry out that single idea, and to preserve the concinnity of the poem. Still, to address God in this manner is a wide license even for poetry. There is the language of complaint here; there is an evident feeling that God was not right; there is an undue reliance of Job on his own powers; there is a disposition to blame God which we can by no means approve, and which we are not required to approve. But let us not too harshly blame the patriarch. Let him who has suffered much and long, who feels that he is forsaken by God and by man, who has lost property and friends, and who is suffering under a painful bodily malady, if he has never had any of those feelings, cast the first stone. Let not those blame him who Jive in affluence and prosperity, and who have yet to endure the first severe trial of life. One of the objects, I suppose, of tliis poem is, to show Jnnnan nature as it is; to show how good men often feel under severe trial; and it would not be true to nature if the representation had been that Job was always calm, and that he never cherished an improper feeling or gave vent to an improper thought.

23. Ho70 many are mine iniquities and sins? Job takes the place of the plaintiff or accuser. He opens the c.uise. He appeals to God to state tiie catalogue of his crimes, or to bring forward his charges of guilt against him. The meaning, according to Schultens, is, "That catalogue ought to be great which has called down so many and so great calamities upon my head from heaven, when I am conscious to myself of being guilty of no oftence." God sorely afflicted him. Job appeals to him to show ichy it was done, and to make a statement of the number and the magnitude of his offences. H Make me to kno7c. I would know on what account and why I am thus held to be guilty, and why I am thus punished.

24. Wherefore hidest thou thy face. To hide the face, or to turn it away, is expressive of disapprobation. VVe turn away the face when we are offended with any o»e. See Notes on Isa. i. 15. 1i And holdest me for thine enemy. Regardest and treatest me as an enemy.

25. Wilt thou break a leaf driven to and fro? Job here means to say that the treatment of God in regard to him was like treading down a leaf that was driven about by the wind — an insignificant, unsettled, and worthless thing. ' Wouldst thou show thy power against such an object.'"' — The sense is, that it was not worthy of God thus to pursue one so unimportant, and so incapable of offering any resistance. IF And wilt thou pursue the dry stubble? Is it worthy of God thus to contend v^ith the driven straw and stubble of the field.? To such a leaf, and to such stubble, he compares himself; and he asks whether God could be employed in a work such as that would be, of pursuing such a flying leaf or driven stubble with a desire to overtake it, and wreak his vengeance on it.

26 For thou writest bitter thiiiors aaainst me, and makest

26. For thou icritcst hitter things acrainst vie Charges or accusations ot" severity. We use the word hitter now in a somewhat similar sense. We speak of bitter sorrow, bitter cold, &c. The language hero is all taken from courts of justice, and Job is carrying out the train of tliought on which he had entered in regard to a trial before God. ' lie says that the accusations which God had brought against him were of a bitter and severe character; charging him witJi aggravated otlenccs, and recalling the sins of his youlii, and holding him responsible for them, llosenmuller remarks that the word icritc here is a judicial term, referring to the custom of writing the sentence of a person condemned (as in Ps. cxlix. 9. Jer. xxii. 30); that is, decreeing the punishment. So the Greeks used the expression yqacp^nOai diy-tji'^ meaning to declare a judicial sentence.

So the Arabs use the word ^.-jLX^s icriting to denote a judicial sentence. II And makest vie to possess. Heb.

Causest me to inherit — '^V4?'^'l'^'^1. He was heir to them; or they were now his as a possession or an inheritance. The Vulgate renders it, consuv^ere vie vis, etc. " thou wishest to consume me with the sins of my youth." The LXX, "and ihou dost charge against me" — 7retjif>9)]y.a.;. M The inic/uif.ies of V17J youth. The offences which I committed when }oung. He complains now that God recalled all those offences; that he went into days that were past, and raked up what Job had forgotten; that, not satisfied with charging on him what he had done as a man, he went back and collected all that could be found in the days when he was under the influence of youthful passions, and when, like other young men, he might have gone astray. But why should he not do it.' What impropriety could there be in God in thus recalling the me-

me to possess the iniquities of my youth. "■

mory of long-forgotten sins, and causing the results to meet him now that he was a man.-' We may remark here, (1.) That tfus is often done. The sins and follies of youth seem often to be passed over or to be unnoticed by God. Long intervals of time or long tracts of land or ocean may intervene between the time when sin was committed in youth, and when it shall be punished in age. The man may himself have forgotten it, and after a youth of dissipation and folly he may perhaps have a life of prosperity for many years. But those sins are not forgotten by God. Far on in life the results of early dissipation, licentiousness, folly, will meet the offender, and overwhelm him in disgrace or calamity. (2.) God has power to recall all the offences of early life. He has access to the soul. He knows all its secret springs. With infinite ease he can reach the memory of a long-forgotten deed of guilt; and he can overwhelm the mind with the recollection of crimes that have not been thought of for years, fie can fix the attention with painful intensity on some slight deed of past criminality; or he can recall forgotten sins in groups; or he can make the remembrance of one sin suggest a host of others. No man who has passed a guilty youth can be certain that his mind will nr the overwhelmed with painful recollections, and however calm and secure he may now be, he may in a moment be harassed with the consciousness of deep criminality, and v/irh most gloomy apprehensions of the wrath to come. (3.) A young man should be pure. He has otherwise no security of respectability in future life, or of pleasant recollections of the past, sliould he reach old age. He who spends his early days in dissipation must expect to reap the fruits of it in future years. Those sins will meet him in his way, and most probably at an unexpected moment,

27 Thou puttest my feet also the stocks, " and ' lookest

and in an unexpected place. If he j ever becomes a good man, he will have many an hour of bitter and painful regret at the follies of his early life; if he does not, he will meet the accumulated results of his sin on the bed of death and in hell. Somevv-here, and somehow, every instance of folly is to be remembered hereafter, and will be remembered with sighs and tears. (4.) God rules among men. There is a moral government on the earth. Of this there is no more certain proof than in this fact. The power of summoning up past sins to the recollection; of recalling those that have been forgotten by the offender himself, and of placing them in black array before the guilty man; and of causing them to seize with a giant's grasp upon the soul, is a power such as God alone can wield, and shows at once that there is a God, and that he rules in the hearts of men. And (5.) If God holds this power now, he will hold it in the world to come. The forgotten sins of youth, and the sins of age, will be remembered then. The sinner walks over a volcano. It may be now calm and still. Its base may be crowned with verdure, its sides with orchards and vineyards; and far up its heights the tall tree may wave, and on its summit the snow may lie undisturbed. But at any moment that mountain may heave, and the burning torrent spread desolation every where. So with the sinner. He knows not liow Boon the day of vengeance may come; how soon he may be made to inherit the sitis of his youth.

27. Thou puhest my feet also in the stocks. The word rendered stocks (TO), denotes the wooden frame or block in which the feet of a person were confined for punishment. The whole passage here is designed to describe the feet as so confined in a clog or clogs, as to preclude the power of motion. Stocks

narrowly unto all my paths; thou settest a print upon the

or clogs were used often in ancient times as a mode of punishment. Prov. vii. 22. Jeremiah was punished by being confined in the stocks. Jer. XX. 2, xxix. 6. Paul and Silas were in like manner confinea in the prison in stocks. Acts xvi.24 Stocks appear to have been of two kinds. They were either cJogs attached to one foot or to both feet, so as to embarrass, but not entirely to prevent walking, or tliey were fixed frames to vvJiich the feet were attached so as entirely to preclude motion. The former were often used with runaway slaves to prevent their escaping again when taken, or were affixed to prisoners to prevent their escape. The fixed kinds — whicli are probably referred to here — were of different sorts. They consisted of a frame, with holes for the feet only; or for the feet and the hands; or for the feet, the hands, and the neck. At Pompeii, stocks have been found so contrived that ten prisoners might be chained by the leg, each leg separately, by the sliding of a bar. Pict. Bible. The form of this instrument, as seen in the East at this day, is given in the following cuts:

The upper half (a) being removed, each leg is placed, just above the ankle, in the groove of the lower half, and then the upper part is fastened down so as to confine them inextricably. The instrument for confining the hands is formed on the same principle, and is represented in thecut on the next page. The instrument is still used in India, and is such as to confine the limbs in a very distressing position, though the head is allowed to move freely. Tl Jlnd lookest nur-

consumeth, as a garment that is moth-eaten.

roicly unto all my paths. This idea occurs also irr ch. xxxiii. 11, though expressed somewhat diflerently, " He putteth my feet in the stocks, he marketh all my paths." Probably the allusion is to the paths by which he might escape. God v/atched, or observed every way — as a sentinel or ^uard would a prisoner who \vas iiampered or clogged, and who would make an attempt to escape. TT Thou settest a print upon the heels ofnujfeet. Mnrg. roots. Such also is the Hebrew— ■^b'l'l '^^'!1^. Vulg. vestigia. Sept. ' Upon the roots — fiq d? (Vta,- — of my feet thou comest." The word U;"l'd3 means properly root; then the bottom, or the lower ])art of a thing; and hence the soles of the feet. The word rendered ' settest a print,' from •^l^i^, means to cut in, to hevi^, to hack; then to engrave, carve, delineate, portray; then to dig. Various interpretations have been given of the passage here. Gesenius supposes it to mean, ' Around the roots of my feet thou hast digged,' that is, hast made a trench so that I can get no farther. But though this suits the connection, yet it is an improbable interpretation. It is not the way in which one would endeavor to secure a prisoner, to make a ditch over which he could not leap. Others render it, " Around the soles of my feet thou hast drawn lines," i. e. thou hast made marks how far I may go. Dr. Good supposes that the whole? description refers to some method of clogging a wild animal for the purpose of taming him, and that the expression here refers to a mark on the hoof of the animal by which the owner could designate him. Noyes accords with Gesenius. The editor of the Pictorial Bible supposes that it may refer to the manner in which the stocks were made, and that it means that a seal was affixed to the parts of the plank of which they were constructed, when they were joined together. He adds that the Chinese have a portable pillory of this kind, and that offenders are obliged to wear it around their necks for a given period, and that over the place where it is joined together a piece of paper is pasted, that it may not be opened without detection. RosenmUller supposes that it means, that Job was confined within certain prescribed limits, beyond which he was not allowed to go. This restraint he supposes was efl'ected by binding his feet by a cord to the stocks, so that he was not al lowed to go beyond a certain distance The general sense is clear, that Job was confined within certain limits, and was observed with very marked vigilance. But I doubt whether either of the explanations suggested is the true one. Probably some custom is alluded to of which w^e have no knowledge now — sosne mark that was affixed to the feet to prevent a prisoner from escaping without being detected. What that was, I think, we do not know. Perhaps Oriental researches will vet disclose some custom that will explain it.

28. And he., as a rotten things consumeth. Noyes renders this, "And I, like an abandoned thing, shall waste away." Dr. Good translates it, " Well may he dissolve as corruption." Rosenmiiller supposes that Job refers to himself by the word i<^n — he, and that having spoken of himself in the previous verses, he now changes the mode of speech, and speaks in the third person. In illustration of this, he refers to a passage in Euripides, Alcestcs, vs. GOO. The Vulgate renders it in the first person, Qui quasi putredo consumendus sum. The design seems to be, to represent himself as an object not worthy such constant surveillance on the part of God. God set his mark upon him; watched him with a close vigilance and a steady eye — and yet he was watching one who was turning fast to corruption, and who would soon be gone. He regarded it as unworthy of God to be so attentive in watching over so worthless an object. This is closely connected with the following chapter, and there should have been no interruption here. The allusion to himself as feeble and decaying, leads him into the beautiful description in the following chapter of tne state cf man in general. The connexion is some thing like this: — ' I am afflicted and tried in various ways. My feet are in the stocks; my way is hedged up. I am weak, frail, and dying. But so it is with man universally. My condition is like that of the man at large, for

*^ As a rotten thing ^i^*^^. The word 3|5'^ means rottenness, or caries ot bones. Prov. xii. 4. xiv. 30. Hos. v. 12. Here it means any thing that is going to decay, and the comparison is that of man to any thing that is thus constantly decaying, and that will soon be wholly gone. TI Consumeth. Or rather decays^ >^\'^'^,. The word "^^^ is applied to that which falls away or decays, which is worn out and waxes old — as a garment. Deut. viii. 4. Isa. 1. 9. li. 6. ^ As a garment that is moth-eaten. " As a garment the moth consumes it." Heb. On the word moth, and the sentiment here expressed, see Notes on eh. iv. 19.

1. Man that is born of a tcoman. See Notes on ch. xiii. 28. The object of Job in these verses, is to show the frailty and feebleness of man. He, therefore, dwells on many circumstances adapted to this, and this is one of the most stirring and beautiful. He alludes to the delicacy and feebleness of the female sex, and says that the offspring of one so frail must himself be frail; the child of one so feeble must himself be feeble. Pos-

is ^ of few days, and full " of trouble.

sibly also there may be an allusion here to the prevailing opinion in the Oriental world of the inferiority of the female sex. The following forcible lines by Lord Bacon, express a similar sentiment. The world's a bubble, and the life of man

With cares and fears. Who then to frail mortality shall trust, But limus the water, or but writes in dust

2 He ** Cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not.

11 Of few days. Heb. " Brief of days." Comp. Ps. xc. 10. Gen. xlvii.9. ^l Jnd full of trouble. Comp. Notes on cii. iii. 17. Who cannot bear witness to this? How expressive a description is it of life! And even too where lite seems most happy; where the sun of prosperity seems to shine on our way, and where blessings like drops of dew seero to descend on us, how true is it still that life is full of trouble, and that the way of man is a weary way! Despite all that he can do — all his care, and skill, and learning, and wealth, life is a weary pilgrimage, and is burdened with many woes. " Few and evil have the days of the years of my pilgrimage been," said the patriarch Jacob, and they who have advanced near the same number of years with him can utter with deep emotion the same beautiful language. Goethe, the celebrated German, said of himself in advanced age, "They have called me a child of fortune, nor have I any wish to complain of the course of my life. Yet it has been nothing but labor and sorrow, and I may truly say that in seventy-five years I have not had four weeks of true comfort. It was the constant rolling of a stone that was always to be lifted anew. When 1 look back upon my earlier and middle life, and consider how few are left of those that were young with me, I am reminded of a summer visit to a watering-place. On arriving one makes the acquaintance of those who have been already some time there, and leave the week following. This loss is painful. Now one becomes attached to the second generation, with which one lives for a time and becomes intimately connected. But this also passes away and leaves us solitary with the third, which arrives shortly before onr own depart-

3 And '' dost thou open thine eyes upon such an one, and bringest " me into judgment with thee?

ure, and with which we have no desire to have much intercourse." — Ranch's Psychology, p. 343.

2. He Cometh forth like a flower., and is cut dozen. Nothing can be mure obvious and more beautiful than this, and the image has been employed by writers in all ages, but nowhere with more beauty, or with more frequency than in the Bible. See Isa. xl. 6. Ps. xxxvii. 2. xc. 6. ciii. 15. Next to the Bible, it is probable thatShakspeare has employed the image with the most exquisite beauty of any poet. This is the state of man: to-day he puts forth The tender leaves of hope, to-morrow blossoms, And bears his blushing honors thick upon him; The third day comes a frost, a killing frost, And— when he thinks, good easy man, full surely His greatness is a ripening — nips his root, And then he falls. Henry viii. Act iii. Sc. 2. IT He fleeth also as a shadow. Another exquisite figure, and as true as it is beautiful. So the Psalmist,

My days are like a shadow that declineth.

Ps. cii. 11. Man is like to vanity;

His days are as a shadow that passeth away. Ps. cxliv. 4. The idea of Job is, that there is no substance, nothing that is permanent. A shadow moves on gently and silently, and is soon gone. It leaves j no trace of its being, and returns no I more. They who have watched the i beautiful shadow of a cloud on a land- ' scape, and have seen how rapidly it passes over meadows and fields of grain, and rolls up the mountain side and disappears, will have a vivid; conception of this figure. How gently, yet how rapidly it moves. How soon it is gone. How void of impression is its course. Who can track its way; who can leach it.'' So man moves on. Soon he is gone; he leaves no trace of his being, and j returns no more. ( 3. Jlnd dost thou open thine ayes

4 Who ^ can bring a clean " thing out of an unclean? Not one.

upon such an one? Is one so weak, so frail, so short-lived, worthy the constant vigilance of the infinite God? In Zech. xii. 4, the expression 'to open the eyes' upon one, means to look angrily upon him. Here it means, to observe or watch closely. IT Jlnd hringest me into judgment with thee. Is it equal or proper that one so frail and feeble should be called to a trial with one so mighty as the infinite God? Does God seek a trial with one so much his inferior, and so unable to stand before him.? This is language taken from courts of justice, and the meaning is, that the parties were wholly unequal, and that it was unworthy of God to maintain a controversy in this manner with feeble man. This is a favorite idea witli Job, that there was no equality between him and God, and that the whole controversy was, therefore, conducted on his part with great disadvantage. Comp. Notes ch. ix. 34, 35. 4. JVho can bring a clean thing otit of an unclean? This is evidently a proverb or an adage; but its connexion here is not ytry apparent. Probably, however, it is designed as a plea of mitigation for his conscious trailties and infirmities. He could not but admit that he had faults. But, he asks, how could it be expected to be otherwise."" He belonged to a race that was sinful and depraved. Connected with such a race, how could it be olliervvise than that he should be prone to evil.? Why then did God follow liim with so much severity, and hold him with a grasp so close and so unrelenting.' Why did he treat him as if he ought to be expected to be perfectly pure, or as if it were reasonable to suppose he would be otherwise than unholy.'' This passage is of great value as showing the early opinion of the world in regard to the native character of man. The sentiment was undoubtedly common— so common as to have passed into a proverb — that man was a sinner; and that it could not be expected that any one of the race shouJd be pure and holy. The sentiment is as true as it is obvious — like will beget like all over the world. The nature of the lion, the tiger, the hyaena, the serpent is propagated, and so the same thing is true of iiian. l! is a great law, that the offspring will resemble the parentage; and as the off'spring of the lion is not a lamb but a young lion; of a wolf is not a kid but a young wolf, so the offspring of man is not an angel, but is a man with the same nature, the same moral character, the same proneness to evil with the parent. The Chaldee ren ders this: " Who will give one pure from a man polluted in sin, except God, who is one, and who forgiveth him.'" But this is manifestly a departure from the sense of the passage. Jerome, however, has adopted nearly the same translation. As a historical record, this passage proves that the doctrine of original sin was early held in the world. Still it is true that the same great law prevails, that the offspring of woman is a sinner — no matter where he may be born, or in what circumstances he may be placed. No art, no philosophy, no system of religion can prevent the operation of this great law under which we live, and by which we die. Comp. Notes on Rom. V. 19.

5. Seeing his days are determined. Since man is so frail, and so shortlived, let him alone, that he may pass his little time with some degree of comfort and then die. See Notes on ch. vii. 19-21. The word determined here means fixed^ settled. God has fixed the number of liis days so that

6 Turn from him, that he may ^rest, till he shall accomplish, as an hireling, his day.

they cannot be exceeded. Conip. Notes on Isa. x. 22, and Ps. xc. 10. IT The number of his months are mith thee. Thou hast the ordering of them, or th§y are determined by thee. IT Thou hast appointed his botinds. Thou hast fixed a limit, or hast determined the time which lie is to live, and he cannot go beyond it. There is no elixir of life that can prolong our days beyond that period. Soon we shall come to that outer limit of life, and then we must die. When that is we know not, and it is not desirable to know. It is better that it should be concealed. If we knew that it was near, it would fill us with gloom, and deter us from the efforts and the plans of life altogether. If it were remote, we should be careless and secure, and should think there was time enough yet to prepare to die. As it is, we know that the period is not very far distant; we know not but that it may be very near at hand, and we would be always ready.

6. Turn from him — "^^STT. Look away from; or turn away the eyes. Isa. xxii. 4. Job had represented the Lord as looking intently upon him, and narrowly watching all his ways. He now asks him that he would look away and suffer him to be alone, and to spend the little time he had in comfort and peace. TT That he inay rest. ]Marg. Cease. "- Let him be ceased from" — ^^'^'?.l. The idea is not that of rest.^ but ic is that of having God cease to afflict him; or, in other words, leaving him to himself Job wished the hand of God to be withdrawn, and prayed that he might be left to himself. H Till he shall accomplish— nit'^'i"'!^, Sept. ivdoy.fiori xov ^Cov — ' and comfort his life,' or make his life pleasant. Jerome renders it, " until his desired day —

7 For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease.

optata dies — shall come like that of an hireling." Dr. Good, " that he may fill up his day." Noyes, " that he may enjoy his day." The word here used (i^^*^) means properly to delight in, to take pleasure in, to satisfy, to pay oft; and there can be no doubt that there was couched under the use of this word the notion o? enjoyment., or pleasure. Job wished to be spared, that he might have comfort yet in this world. The comparison of himself with a hirelings is not that he might have comfort lihe a hireling — for such an image would not be pertinent or appropriate — but that his life was like that of an hireling, and he wished to be let alone until the time was completed. On this sentiment, see Notes on ch. vii. 1. 7. For there is hope of a tree. This passage to ver. 12, is one of exquisite beauty. Its object is to state reascns why man should be permitted to enjoy this life. A tree, if cut down, might spring up again and flourish; but not man. He died to rise no more; he is cut down and lives not again. The passage is important as expressing the prevalent sentiment of the time in which Job lived about the future condition of man, and is one that deserves a close examination. The great question is, whether Job believed in the future state, or in the resurrection of the dead.? On this question one or two things are clear at the outset. (].) He did not believe that man would spring up from the grave in any sense similar to the mode in which the sprout or germ of a tree grows up when the tree is cut down. (2.) He did not believe in the doctrine of metempsychosis, or transmigration of souls; a doctrine that was so common among the ancients. In this respect the patriarchal religion stood aloof from the systems of heathenism, and there is not to be found, that I know of, any expression that would lead us to suppose that they had ever embraced it, or had even heard of it. The general sentiment here is, that if a tree is cut down, it may be expected to shoot up again, and another tree will be found in its place — as is the case with the chestnut, the willow, the oak. But Job says that there was nothing like this to happen to man. There was no root, no germ, no seminal principle from which he would be made to live again on the earth. He was to be finally cut off from all his pleasures and his friends here, and to go away to return no more. Still, that Job believed in his continued existence beyond the grave — his existence in the dark and gloomy world of shades, is apparent from the whole book, and indeed from the very passage before us. See ver. 13— comp. ch. x. 21, 22. The image here is one that is very beautiful, and one that is often employed by poets. Thus Moschus, in his third Idyl, as translated by Gisborne:

The meanest herb we trample in the field, Or in the garden nurture, when its leaf At winter's touch is blasted, and its place Forgotten, soon its vernal bud renews, And from short slumber wakes to life again. Man wakes no more! Man, valiant, glorious,

wise. When death once chills him, sinks in sleep

'Tis night, and the landscape is lovely no more;

I mourn, but ye woodlands, I mourn not for you;

For morn is approaching, your charms to restore.

Perfumed with fresh fragrance, and glittering ••vith dew.

Nor yet for the ravage of winter I mourn;

Kind nature the embryo blossom will save;

But when shall spring visit the mouldering urn.'

O when shall it dawn on the night of the grave.-'

The same image, also, has been beautifully employed by Dr. Dwight, though urged by him as an argument to prove the doctrine of the resurrection: