Exposition of the Whole Bible

expreffion, fo as to deny the being of God, and to him; as alfo on account of the grace of election, © and their likenefs to God in holinefs, knowledge, —

Micaiah faw them in vifion, 1 Kings xxii, 1g. fo they may be faid to go forth from ftanding before the Lord of all the earth into the feveral parts of all the world, to do the will and work of God affigned them, Zech. vi. 5—8. and then having done their work, return again, and prefent themfelves before the Lord, to give an account of what they have done, and to- receive frefli orders from him, being ready to do his pleafure in every thing he fhall command them, which is what is here fuppofed; though fome think thefe were only the company or band of angels which were fet as a guard about od; his perfon, family, and fubftance, who now appeared before the Lord, to give an account of him, his affairs, and circumftances, as required of them: and Satan came alfo among them; which word fignifies an adverfary, as in 1 Kings xi. 14. but does not defign here a man-adverfary as there, or one that envied Yod’s profperity, as Saadiab Gaon thinks, but an evil fpirit, the old ferpent, the devil, as in Rev. xii. 9. who is an implacable and bitter enemy to men, efpecially to Chrift and his people; and fo has this name from his hatred of them, and oppofition to them: Origen * obferves, that this word, tranflated into the Greek language, is avtinerwevor, an adverfary; but R. Levi ' derives it from Mow, to decline or turn afide,; and fo Suidas fays", Satan, in the Hebrew language, is an apoftate; and Theodoret * mentions both, that it fignifies either an adverfary or an apoftate; the firft derivation is beft: knowing the end of the above meeting, that it was with refpect to Fob, and therefore he came with an intent to contradict what they fhould fay of him, and to accufe him before God; he came among them as one of them, tranfforming himfelf into an angel of light, as he fometimes does; or he came, being fent for, and obliged to come, to give an account of himfelf, and of what -he had been doing in the world, in order to be reproved and punifhed: but though the ftream of interpreters run this way, I cannot fay 1 am fatisfied with it; for fetting afide the paffages in this book in queftion, angels are no where called the fons of God; for befides, this being denied of them in the fenfe that Chrift is, they are reprefented as fervants, yea, as fervants to the fons of God, miniftring fpirits to the heirs of falvation; they call themfelves the fellow-fervants of the faints, and of their brethren, but do not fay that they are fons of the fame family, or fellow-heirs, or their brethren, Hed. i. 5.14. Rev. xix. 10. and xxii. 9: moreover, they always ftand in the prefence of God; and behold his face, be they where they will, Mate. vill. 10. Lukei. 19. nor is there any particular day affigned them for the fervice of God; for tho’ they are under the moral law, fo far as it is fuitable to their nature, yet not under the ceremonial law, to which the obfervance of days belonged; and befides, they have no reft night nor day, but continually ferve God, and glorify him, faying, Holy, holy, hely, Lord God Almighty: and if this prefentation of themfelves to God is fuppofed to be in heaven, as where elfe fhould it be? it is not poffible that Satan could come among them; he is fallen from heaven, being caft down from thence, nor can he, nor ever will he be able to find a place any more there, fee Luke x. 18. 2 Pet. lie 4. Kev. xii. 8. 9. it feems better therefore to underftand this of the people of God, of profeffors of religion, who, earlier than the times of Fob, were diftinguifhed from the men of the world by this chatadter, the fons of God, Geit. vic 2. fuch that were truly godly being fo by adopting grace, and which was made manife(t by their regeneration by the Spirit of God, and by their faith in Chritt, and all were fo by profeffio: now thefé aflembled themfelves together, to prefent themfelves, their bodies and fouls before the Lord, which was bur their reafonable fervice; as to pray unto him, and praife him, to offer facrifice, and perform. every religious exetcife enjoined in thof times 3 the apoftle ufes the like phrafe of the faints focial worthip, Rom. xii. 1. now for this there was a day; tho’ I very much queftion whether any fabbath, or much lefs a feventh-day-fabbath, was as yet inftituted; but inafmuch as men agreed together to call on the name of the Lord, or to worlhip him in a fos cial way, Gen. iv. 26. as it was neceflary that a place fhould be appointed to meet at, fo a time fixed by confent and agreement; even as now, the {eventh-day-fabbath being abrogated, Chriftians agree to meet on the firft day of the week, called the Lord’s day, in imitation of the apottles. of Chrift; and on one of thefe days thus fixed and agreed on was the above meeting, at which Satan came among them, as he frequently does in the affembly of the faints, to do what mifchief he can; by fnatching away the word. from inattentive hearers, and by directing the eye to fuch objects, and putting fuch things into the mind, as divert from the fervice of God; or by luggefting to the faints themfelves, that what is attended to does not belong to them, with many other things of the like kind: the Targum interprets this day of the day of judgment, at the beginning of the year, and the fons of God of angels, as do other Fews/h writers,

¥.7. And the Lord faid unto Satan, Whence comeft thou? &c.} This quettion is put, net as ignorant of the place from whence he came; for the omnifcient God knows all perfons. and things, men and angels, and’ thefe good and bad, where they are, from whence they come; and what they do, fee Gen. iii. 9. and iv. g. butit is put either as being angry with him, and refenting his coming among the fons of God, and chiding him for it, as having no proper bufinefs there, like the quettion in Matt. xxii. 12. or rather in order to lead on to another, and to bring out from him what he intended to have exprefféd by him, of what he had feen and taken notice of in the place from whence he came, and particularly concerning ¥0b: how God and {pirits converfe together we are not able to fay; but no doubt there is a way in which God talks with fpirits, even with evil ones,as well as goodones, and in which they fpeak to him; and fo this does not at all affect the reality of this narrative: then Satan an-~ Swered the Lord and faid, From going to and froin the earth, and from walking up and down in its this he faid as fwaggering and boafting, as if he was indeed the God of the whole world, the prince and king of it, and had and exercifed a fovereign dominion over it, and as fuch had been making a tour thro’ it, and taking a furvey of it, fee Mate, iv. 8. and as if he was at full liberty to go where he pleafed, and was under no controul, when he was in chains of darknefs, and could go no where, nor do any thing without divine permiffion; could not touch od, nor his fubftance, nor, as in the days of Chrift, fo much as enter into a herd of fwine without leave: likewife this may denote the difquietude and reftlefsnefs of this evil {pirit, who could not abide long in a place, but moving 4 anc

‘and fro, feeking “43. as alfo his pir and the times of Mo/esrand though there many. godly perfons ther diving, -whouw him.in quality, being partakers of theifatr

;|nawure,, haying the fame image of God upér and the fame graces.in. them, and!/afim rience. of.divine- things; yet not upon an with him;' he exceeded them all in’ linefs 5. and particularly;\none came*up tp hi not to heaven, and to the faints there, outof which he is caft, and can never re-enter, but to the earth I: one only, and men onit; and here no»place is free his from him; he and his angels are roving about every “where, city and country;

fens own’ houfes, or the houfe of God, are not exempt from them; and therefore all here need to watch and pray, left they enter into temptation, Matt. xxvi. 41. Schultens interprets the,word. of Satan going through the earth with great force and violence, whipping and fcourging.miferable patience in fuffering saffliction, | th often tried; as Mofes excelled others inn publick and private places, and. Solomon in wildom 3). 70d was an eminent’ fain and fervant of the Lord, a father in this family pillar in jhis houfe,. like Sex/camo} the pec taller in grace and theexercile of icy an 1 this is 2 reafon why he could pot but be taken otice of by Satan, who has his eye niore ef] ially/on the molt eminent faints, and envies them, and -ftrikes ‘at mortals.;. {them; and fo the words are by*fometendere

¥. 8. And the Lord faid unto Satan, Haft thon confidered my fervant Fob, &c.] Or, Haft shou put thine heart on my fervant®; not in a way of love and affe@tion to him, to do him any good or fervice, there being an original and implacable enmity for there is none like bim*; onrather, th rendered, but there is) none like bim sand oppofed to the accufations and: charges’ Satan was come with againft him: @ perfeth and an upri az, one that feareib God, and e/chewetb ex in this old ferpent to the feed of the woman; but che note on y. 1. here the character there “given is rather, his heart wag fet upon him in a way of de- confirmed by the Lord in the exprefs’ is” ¥. 9. Then Satan anfweredthe wand faid,

‘fire to have him in his hands, todo himall the mifchief he could, as the defire of his heart was to- Doth Feb fear God for nought?] ‘Saran do jeny any part of 7od’s character, nondire yim with any one fin; which: fhewsowha ward Peter, Luke xxii. 31, but the fenfe of the ‘queftion is, fince thou fayeft thou haft been walk-, ly ing up and down in the earth, haft thou not taken notice of od, and caft an eye upon him, andJ-ion, wifhed in thine heart to have him in thine hands to do him hurt? I know that thou haft; haft thou not contrived in thine heart how to attack him, tempt him, and draw him from my fervice, and into fins and fnares, in Order to reproach and accufe him? thou haft, but allin vain; and foitis a farcafm upon Satan, as well as an expreffion of indignation at him for fuch an attempt upon him, and as anticipating his accufation of od; for it is as if he fhould farther fay, I know he is in eye, and upon thine heart, now thou art come with atull intent to accufe and charge him; fo ¥arcbi, jman Feb was, how exact in his life and converfathat the devil could not alledge any one'thing:gainft him; nor does he deny that he feared'the ~ ord; nay, he owns it, only fuggefts\therewasa >rivate reafon for it; and this he dares'not affirm, nly puts it by way of quettion, givingvan tinnu-:ndo, which is a wretched way of flander many of his children have learned from +himy: heinfiiuates that 7ed’s fear of God, and iferving him, ¥as not for nought, or freely*, itewas noroutor ove to him, or with any regardyo‘his will, "or his thine Jaonour and glory, but from delfifi principles, _- vith mercenary views, and for worldly ends »and urpoles: indeed no man fears and ferves the Lord

‘or nought and. in vain, he is wellypaid!for ir$ ‘and xodlinefs has a great gain along with it, the Lo

<< Jet thou fet thine heart, &c. fo as to have a good o will to accufe him;” he had, but the Lord pre vents him, by giving a high character of him in thefe and the following words: here he calls him my servant; not a fervant of men, living according to the lufts and will of men, and their cuftoms and Oeftoweth every thing, both in a temporal and qj ritual way, on them that fear hiny; fo that éven- ‘ually, and in the iffue, they are great” crainer: by. it; and they may lawfully look to thele things, Gn forms of worfhip, fuperftition, and idolatry; nor a fervant of fin and the lufts of the flefh; nor of Satan, who boafted of the whole earth being his; but the Lord’s fervant, not only by creation, but ‘by fpecial choice, by redemption, by efficacious grace, and the voluntary furrender of -himfelf to the Lord under the influence of it; and by his chearful and conftant obedience, he anfwered this character; and the Lord here claims his property in him, acknowledges him as his fervant, ycalls him by name,°and gives an high and honourable given fuch an honourable charaé order to encourage thenvin the iervice and worfhip of God, even asMo/es had refpect tosther ‘conipence of reward; when they dont make thef@) Buty che will and glory of God,»the foleandschieficaufe and end thereof; but. the. intimationvefi Satan as,. chat Yob’s fear was, merely ourward-and/hy cal, not cordial, hearty,.and difint re fei

-ntirely for his own fake, and for w!

ae a.. Chit. ¥iTO—12. | FeO”. phorno obferves;, ‘that he fuppofes that his fear not a fear of the greatnefs of God, a reverence of his divine Majefty, but a fear of punifhment; or| what we calla fervile fear, and-not a filial one. y¥. 10. Haft not thou made an ‘hedge about bim. &c.] A fence, a wall of protection all around him? he had; he encompaffed him about with his love as with a fhield, a hedge which could not be broken down by men or devils;

well; whatever he did, or was concerned in, profpered: and his Jubftance is increafed in the land; or broke out*; like a breach of waters; fee 2 Sam. v. 20; exéeeded all bounds; his riches broke forth on the right hand and on the left, and flowed in, fo that there were fcarce any limits to be fet to them; he abounded in them; his fheep brought forth rhoufands; his oxen, camels, and affes, ftood well, and were ftrong to labour; and his wealth - poured in upon him in great plenty; all which was an eye-fore to Satan, and therefore would inwas done to hit, being an objeét of his -great hatred andenmity: fome, inftead of new, render it, J pray bée", as being an intreaty of Satan, and an impor- [tunate one, and which he was tagerly defirous of obtaining; well-knowing,that no hurt could be done to od without leave fim God, or his doing ” it himfelf: the Vulgate Latin verfion is, put forth ‘hine band a little, as if its being exerted but a he furrounded him little, or a fmall touch of it, would be fufficient to difcover 70d’s hypocrify; but Satan doubrlefs knew 70 better than this fuggefts, and that fuch was his yea, he himfelffintegrity, that a fmall trial would not affect him 3 and befides, he immediately adds: aad touch all /bar be bath; which was not a flight touch, but an heavy one, reaching to all his family and fubftance, and to his perfon too, and the health of it at leaft; which)as appears by the provifo or faving claufe put in by the Lord afterwards, when he gave leave to {mite him: aud be will curfe thee to thy faces or, if be does not cur/e thee to thy face*; then let it be fo and fo with andjme, worfe than itnow is; let me have my full damdwelt;jnation; for the words are an imprecation of the devil, wifhing the wortft of evils to himfelf, if 70d, childrenjia {uch circumftances, did not curfe God to his by [face; that is not only openly and publickly, but citates, impudently; fignifying that he would fly im his face, like a man paffionate, furious, and enraged, atjand like thofe wicked perfons, hungry and hardly this!beftead, that would fret and curfe their king and Satanjtheir God, J/ viii..21. or, like thofe men who, under their pains and fores, blafphemed him that ofjhad power over them; Rev. xvi. 10. or like thofe carnal profeffors, whofe words were ftout againit afies; God, Mal. iii. 13. 19. in fuch like paffionate expreflions Satan infinuates od. would. break. out againft God, murmuring at and complaining of his providence, arraigning his wifdom, righteoufnefs, Satanjand holinefs, in his dealings with him: or, if be does not blefs thee to thy face’, as it may be rendered; that is, either he wii? bid thee farewell’, and apoltatize from thee, fee the note on y. 5..as fometimes nominal profeffors do, when affliction. and tribulation come upon them, they are offended, all fucceededjand drop their prefeffion, Matt. xiii. 21. or, as others, if he hath not blefjed thee to thy face;* then l\et it be thus with me, that is, it will be then a clear cafe, that fod in times paft had only bleffed God to his face, or outwardly; he had only honoured him with his lips, but his heart was far from him, and his fear towards him, taught by the precept of men, as is the character of hypocrites, J/. xxix. 13. this Satan wickedly infinuates; one of the Targums is, *‘ if he does not provoke thee to the face of thy Word;” Bex, Melech interprets }195 9y dy shy life, and takes-it to be the farm of with his almighty power, that none could hurt him; he guarded him by his Providence, he caufed his angels to encamp about him;

was a wall of fire around him; the Targum interprets ic the word of God: fo thick was the hedge, fo ftrong the fence, that Satan. could not find the Jeaft gap to get in at, t6 do him any injury to his body or mind, without the divine pérmiffion, he envied and was vexed at, and malicioufly fuggefts that this was the motive of Yod’s fear of the Lord; and indeed it was an obligation upon him to fear him, but not the fole caufe of it:. about bis boufe; not the houfe in which he though Satan could have gladly pulled down that about his ears, as well as that in which his were; but it defigns his fatnily, who were alfo Providence protected in their perfons and ahd preferved from the temptations of Satan, at Jeaft frony being overcome by them, and even the times of their feafting before mentioned; fence was about his fervants alfo, fo that could not corne at and hurt any one that. belonged to him, which was a great grief and vexation mind to him: and about all that be hath cn every fide; his fheep, his camels, his oxen, and his for otherwife thefe would not have efcaped the malice and-fury of this evil fpirit they afterwards felt; but as thefe were the gifts of the providence of God to Fob, they were guarded by his power, that could not hurt them without leave: thou haft bleffed the work of bis hands; not only what he himfelf perfonally wrought with his own hands, but was done by his fervants through his direction, and by his order; the culture of his fields, the feeding and keeping of his flocks and herds;

finuate that this was the fole fpring and fource ofjan oath. Job's religion, devotion, and obedience. ¥. 12.

y. 11. But put forth thine hand now, &c.]\that he Withdraw thine hand of providence, power, and jas protection, with which. thou haft covered and[any fereened him; and, inftead of that, fend" forth thine afflicting hand, not barely in a way of chaitifement and corretion, but in wrath and vengeance, confuming and deftroying all he had; this he defires might be done xow, immediately, without delay, whilft Job was in the midit of his profperity; for Satan was in hafte to have mifchief And the Lord faid unto Satan, bebold ali bath is in thy power, &c.| This he faid not angry and difpleafed with ‘fo, or as entertaining ill opinion of him through the fuggeftions of Satan, nor as gratifying that evil fpirit; but in order to convince and confound him, and to try the grace of %od, that he might fhine the brighter, andjand. it may be obferved,. that the Lord alone had the fovereign difpofe of all that od had, and that Satan could have no power over him or his, but what was given him: only upon bim/felf put not forth

_.valere te juffurus fit, Schultens. * Si non fuper facies tuas benedixerit tibi, Montanus.

9 | Q thine band, thus the Lord reftrained Satan, who could do nothing without his leave, and limits and dins, but by feveral of the antient Chriftian 1 ters, as Sanéfius on the place obferves 5 an bounds. the pice family and eftate; health of it for another temptation and trial: Satan went forth from the prefence of the Lord; the Targum adds, with power, authority, liberty of acting; not from his general prefence, which is every-where, from whence there isno going; from his gracious prefence, in which he had not been; and much lefs his glorious prefence in heaven, from whence he had been caft long ago; the place where the fons and people of God worfhipped, and where he granted his prefence them, and from converfing with God there: as foon as Satan had got leave, he at once went forth to execute what he had permiffion to ‘do, glad at heart he had fo far fucceeded; and eager upon doing all the mifchief he could toa man that was the butt of his malice, and the object of his envy and hatred; the fad effects and confequences of which o|%ob, who efcaped the calamity that came the reft of their fellow-fervants:

were plowing; the 500 yoke of een Jee Te ¥. 3. which were all out in the fields, and employed norjin plowing them; and to plow with fuch was ufual in thofe times and countries, as it now is in fome places; fee 1 Kings xix. 19. and the affes feedbut from jing befide them; befide the oxen, where they were plowing, in pafture-ground, adjoining to the arable tojland; and befide the fervants that were plowin with the oxen: at their hands*, as it may terally rendered, juft by them, under their eye and” care; or im their places‘; where they fhould be, and where they ufed to feed *; thefe were the s500 affes male and female reckoned among fob’s fubftance, ¥. 3. which were brought hither to feed, and fome for the fervants to ride on; this plowed land being at fome diftance from Fod’s y¥. 13. And there was a day, &c.| Whichachoufe; and others to carry the feed that was to be cording to the Targum was the firft day of the week, but this is not certain, nor material; nor can it be faid whether it was the day following that, Satan had leave to do what he would with 00's fubftance, nor how long this was after that; for though Satan was no doubt eager upon it, and in hafte to do mifchief; yet befides its requiring fome time to get the Sabeans and Chaldeans to march out of their own country into 70d’s, fo he would contrive and fix upon the moft proper time to anfwer his ends and purpofes, which was when bis (Fob’s) fons and daughters were eating, and drinking wine in their eldeft brother's houfe, it fhould rather be rendered, in the houfe of their brother, the firft-bora; that is, ef Fob; for “353 relates not to brethren, but to parents, as Gufetius obferves*: this was either the beginning of a new turn, or rotation of their feafting with each other, which might begin with the elder brother; or this was his birthday; fee ¥. 4, 5. and this was the day Satan pitched upon to bring all the following calamities and diftrefles upon Zod; partly that they might fall with the greater weight upon him, and more fenfibly affect him, coming upon him whilft his family was feafting; and whilft he was pleafing himfelf with the thoughts of having brought up his children to men’s and women’s eftate, and of the affluent circumftances they were in; and of the fown here: now the fituation and employment of thefe creatures are particularly mentioned, to thew that they were in their proper places, and at their proper work; and that what befel them was not owing to the wantof care of them, or to the indolence and negligence of the fervants. /

¥. 15. And the Sabeans fell upon them, &c.] Or, Sheba fell*; thatis, as 4ben Ezra and Simeon Bar Tzemach fupply it, an hoft of the Sabeams, or a company of them; thefe were not the deicendants of that Sheba, that fprung from Ham, Gen. x. 7. nor of him that came from Shem, y. 28. but from Sheba, the fon of Fok/ban, a fon of Abrabam by Keturab, who with the reft of her fons were fent into the eaft-country, the country of Fob; and thefe Sabeans, who defcended from the fame,.were his near neighbours, Gen. xxv. 3, 6. they were the inhabitants of one of the radia’s, it is generally faid Arabia Felix; but that is not likely, fince it was a very plentiful country, the inhabitants of which had no need to rob and plunder others; and befides was at a great diftance from the place of

Fob’s habitation, and lay to the fouth, and not the..

eaft; though Strabo‘ indeed fays, that the Sabeans inhabited Arabia Felix, and made excurfions into Syria, which agrees with thefe Sabeans; but rather Arabia Deferta, as Spanheim*has abundantly proved, a barren place; hence we read of Sabeans unity, harmony, and love that fubfifted amongft them, of which their prefent feafting together was a proof; and partly that thefe afflictions might the more look like the judgments of God upon him, juft-as the men of the old world were eating drinking when the flood came and deftroyed them all, Luke xvii. 27. and for the fame reafons thefe were all brought upon him in one day, to crufhlon him the more; and that it might be thought the hand of God was in it, in a way of wrath and vengeance, and fo irritate him to curfe him to his face, which was what Satan aimed at; fee J/- xlvii. 8, 9. Rev. xviii. 7, 8.

¥.14. And there came a meffenger unto Fob, &cc.] Not a meflenger of Satan, as Farchi, or one of his angels, or evil fpirits; though this is a fenfe which is embraced not only by fome Fewi/h Rabfrom the wilderne/s, Ezek. xxiii. 42. the inhabitants of which lived upon the plunder of others; and thefe being naturally given to fpoil ahd rapine, were fit perfons for Sataz to work upon, as he does andjin the children of difobedience; into whofe hearts he put it to make fuch a defcent on ad's fields, and carry off his cattle, as they did; they fell uphis oxen and affés at once and unawares, ina body, in an hoftile and furious manner: and took them away; as a booty; they did not kill them, but drove them off the ground, and led them into their own country for their ufe-and fervice: yea, they have flain the fervants with the edge of the fword; who were plowing with the oxen, and looking after the affés, and who might make an oppo-. fition though in vain; this was an addition to Fob’s affliction, that not only his castle were car- fi wri- ey affliction of his fervant to his|they fuppofe the other meffengers after Bee: mi referving his perfon and the|were; but both this and they. were ig es -d pon

“tied off, but his fervants weré flain, who were born. in his houfe, or bought with his money: end I anly am efcaped alone to tell thee; this fingle fervant was preferved, either by the fpecial providence of God, in kindnefs aa. that he might know of a certainty, and e him, and how it came to pafs, which men are naturally defirous of; or elfeas itis generally thought

_ through the malice and cunning of fatan, that the tidings might the fooner be brought to him, and more readily be believed by him, and ftrike him with the greater furprize, a fervant of his own running with it, whom he knew, and could believe; and he appearing with the utmoft concern of mind, and horror in his countenance, y.16. While he was yet fpeaking, there came alfo another, 8c.} Another meffenger, one of ¥ob’s fervants, from another part of his fields where his fheep were grazing, and was one of thofe that kept them; he came with another piece of bad news, even before the other had finifhed his whole account; and the fame is obferved of all the other meffengers that follow: fo Satan ordered it, that all Fob’s afflictions fhould come upon him at once and the news of them be brought him as thick and as faft as they could, to furprize him the more into fome rath expreffions againft God, that he might have no intermiflion, no breathing time; no time for prayer to God to fupport him under the affliction, and fanctify it unto him; no time for meditation upon, or recollection of paft experiences of divine goodnefs, or of promifes that might have been ufeful to him; but they came one upon the back of another, to hurry him into fome indecent carriageand behaviour towards God, being confidered by him as his judgments upon him: and faid, the fire of God 4s fallen from heaven, which the fervant thought, or fatan put it into his mind to fay, that it came immediately from God, like that which deftroyed Nadab and Abihu and the murmurers in the camp of Ifrael, Lev. x. 2. Numb. xi. 1. or as it is commonly thought, is fo called, becaufe a moft vehement one, as a vehement flame is called the the flame of the Lord, Cazt. viii. 6. this being fuch a fire as was never known, fince the fire that came down from heaven and deftroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities of the plain. Iam inclined to think it was a prodigious flafh or Aathes of lightening; for as thunder is the voice of God, fo lightening, which accompanies it, may be called the fire of God; and this agrees with the phrafeology of the paffage; it comes from heaven, or the air, and falls upon the earth, and ftrikes creatures and things in it; and which, as it is the effect of natural caufes, fatan might be permitted to join them together and effect it; and this was done, and the news of it expreffed in fuch language as to make ob believe, that God was againft him, and become his enemy, and that the artillery of heaven was imployed to his hurt, and to the ruin of his iubftance: and bath burnt up the fheep, and the Jervants, and confumed them as the fire or lightening which came down from heaven and confumed the captains, and their fifties, in Elijab’s time, 2 Kings i. 10, 12. and fuch like effects of Jightening are often to be obferved, both with refpect to men and cattle; thefe were the 7000 fheep fod was pofiefied of, ¥. 3. and which were all deftroyed at once, with the fervants that kept them, excepting one; creatures very increafing, and very ly, and what had befallen | & ufefal both fer food and cloathing, and alfo ufed for facrifice; and it is thought that’ /atan’s end in the deftructien of thefe was, that Fob might conclude from hence; that his facrifices were not ace ceptable.to God; and therefore it was in vain to erve him; which he hoped by this means to bring him to exprefs. in a paffionate manner to God. ana I only ami efcaped alone to tell thee, fee the note on ¥. 15.

v.17. While be was yet peaking; there came alfo another, &c.| Another meffenger from another part of ¥od’s poffeffions where his camels were; and this before the laft meffénger had told his ftory out: and faid, the Chaldeans made out three bands, and fell upon the camels, and have carried them away; thefe were the 3000 camels as in ¥. 3. and perhaps they were in three feparate companies and places, 1000 in each, and therefore the Chaldeans divided themfelves into three bands; or appointed three beads‘; as it may be rendered; there were three bodies of them under fo many leaders and commanders, and this was done, that they might the more eafily take them; and they diffufed or Ipread themfelves*, as the word fignifies, upon of about the camels; they furrounded them on all fides, or otherwife, thefe being fwift creatures, would have run away from them: thefe Cha/deans or Chafdim were the defcendants of Che/ed, a fon of Nakor, who was brother to Abraham, Gen: xxii. 20, 22. who fettled in the eaft-country; not far from Fob: and this agrees with the character that Xenophon * gives of the Chaldeans, at leatt of fome of them in after-times; that they lived upon robbing and plundering others, having no knowledge of agriculture, but got their bread by force of arms; and fuch as thefe Satan could eafily inftigate to come; and carry off ‘fob’s camels: yea, and flain the fervants with the edge of the fword, and 1 only am efcaped alone to tell thee, fee the note on ¥. 15,.

¥. 18. While be was yet fpeaking, there came an= other, &c.} A fervant of one of ‘Fod’s fons, who was in waiting at the feaft before mentioned, and here again repeated: and faid, thy fons and thy daughters were eating, and drinking wine in their eldeft brother's houfe, fee the note on ¥. 13.

‘¥. 19. Aad bebold, there came a great wind from the wildernefs, 8cc.| Mott probably from the wildernefs of Arabia, winds from fuch places being generally. very ftrong, Fer.iv. 11, 12. as this was, and is called a great one, a very {trong and blu- {tering one; and being fo, and becaufe of the effects of it, and being an uncommon and extraordinary one, as what follows fhows, a dehold, is prefixed to the account, exciting attention and wonder: and fmote the four torners of the boufe; which fhows it to be an unufual wind, it blowing from all parts and on all fides;, and was either a whirlwind, which whirled about this houfes; or fatan with his poffe of devils with him, took the advan= tage of the {weep of it, as it came by this houfe, and with all their force and ftrength, might and main, whirled it about it; otherwife fatan has no power to raife winds, and allay them at pleafure; God only creates them, holds them in his fifts, and brings them out of his treafures;.and this wind blowing from the defert, the devil and his angels took the opportunity, and with fuch violence whirled it about the houfe that it fell, as follows: and it fell upon the young men, and they are dead, not upon 700’s fons only, but upon his daughters alfo, the word ufed takes in both, and Mr. Broughton renders it, and it fell upon the young folk: this was the foreft affliction of all, and which fatan referved to the laft, that if the others did not fucceed to his with, this might; and a very trying, grievous one it was, to lofe all his children at once in fuch:

a manner, and at fuch a time; -his children, which were parts of himfelf, whom he had taken fo much care of in their education, who had been as oliveplants about his table, and now brought up to mens and womens eftates, comfortably fettled in the world, and living in great peace and harmony among themfelves, and not one of them left to comfort him under his other afflictions; and thefe taken away not by any diftemper of body, which ‘would have prepared him for the ftroke, but by a violent death; and which had the appearance of the hand and judgment, wrath and vengeance of God; and whilft they were feafting together in mirth and gaiety, however innocent, and not in a ferious frame of fpirit, or having any ferious turn upon their minds for death and eternity, of which they had no thought; had they been in the houfe of God attending religious worfhip, of though in their own houfes, yet either in their clofets praying, orelfe converfing about fpiritual things with one another, it would have greatly taken off of the affliction; but to be {natched into eternity at once, and in this manner, muft be cutting to Fob; though there is no reafon to think that this was for any fin of theirs, or through any difpleafure of God to them, but was permitted purely on od’s account, for the trial of his faith, patience, fincerity and integrity; and here, as in the former inftances, only one fervant was fpared to bring the fad tidings: and I only am efcaped alone to tell thee; fo that all the fervants in the houfe, excepting this, perifhed in the ruins of it, as well as fod’s fons and daughters, fee the note on ¥. 15. It is a notion of fome Fewi/h writers, as Simeon bar Txemach obferves, that thefe feveral meffengers as foon as they had delivered their meffage died, and fo all that od had was delivered into the hands of fatan, and nothing left; but this feems contrary to ch. xix. 16. It may be obferved that driffeas, an heathen writer, as quoted by Alexander Polybiftor™, another heathen writer, gives an account of thele feveral calamities of Fob, juft in the fame order in which they are here. It may be obferved from _ all this, that no chara¢ter ever fo great and high can fecure perfons from afflictions, even grievous ones; ¥ob had an high and honourable character given and confirmed by God himfelf, yet fo forely afflicted; and let men be Ps beloved of God, his chofen and precious, his eOvenant-people, the redeemed of the Lamb, righteous and godly perfons, the fons and heirs of God, yet neither, and all of thefe, exempt them from afflictions; and thofe that befal them are many, frequent and continued, and come from different quarters, from men good and bad, and from devils, and all by the permiffion and according to the will of God. And this fhews us the uncertainty of all outward enjoyments, gold, filver, cattle, houfes, lands, children, friends and relations, all perifhing, and fometimes fuddenly taken away: and it may be obferved among all Fob’s lofies, he did not lofe any thing of a {piritual nature, not one fpiritual bleffing; though he loft all his outward mercies, yet not the God of not bound by it, being not of the I/raelitifh n his mercies; not his covenant-intereft in him, nor oS. his fhare in his love, f¢ nd acceptanc % all ftill continued; he di lofe his re living redeemer 5 his: children were all d his redeemer lived, and he lofe the principle race i matter was {till with him;

to God, and defire after him, nor his patience and humility; nor his integrity,» faithfulnefs and honefty, which he retained and held fallgge es of his fpiritual riches which are durable; he had riches in heaven, where thieves cannot break through and fteal, a better and a more enduring fubftance there, an inheritance incorruptible, referved in e heavens: his conduct under all this follows. ~~

¥. 20. Then Fob arofe, &c.] Either from table, being at dinner, as fome think, in his own houfe; it beingsthe time that his children were feafting in their eldeft brother’s houfe;. or from the bufinefs in which he was employed, which he left off on hearing this news; or from his feat, or chair of ftate, in which he fat; or rather the ‘phrafe only fignifies, that he at once, with ftrength of body, and vigour of mind, which were not loft, as often they are in fuch cafes, went about the followis things with great compofure and fedatenefs. It is © indeed generally obferved, that there is an emphafis to be put on the word then, which may be as well rendered and, as if Fob fat and heard very fedately, without any perturbation of mind, the lofs of his fubftance; but when tidings were brought him of the death of his children, them he arofe as being greatly moved and diftrefled; but it fhould be obferved till now there was no ftop or intermiffion in the meffengers, but before one had done fpeaking, another came and began to tell his ftory, and fo there was no opportunity, as well as not the occafion, of arifing and doing what follows;.and which he did, not through the violence of his paffion, or excefs of grief, but as common and ordinary things, which were ufed to be done in that country for the lofs of relations, and in token of mourning for ther: and rent bis mantle; or cloak*, as Mr. Broughton; but whether this was an outward garment, as each of thefe feem to be, if the fame with ours, or an interior one, as fome think, it is not very miaterial to know; both were rent by Ezra upon a mournful occafion, Ezra ix.

3. and it was-ufual to rend garments for deceafed relations, or when they were thought to be fo, fee Gen. xxxvii, 29, 34. though fome think that this was on the account of the blafphemous thoughts the devil now fuggefted into his mind, being folicitous to gain his point, and work upon him to curfe God; upon which he rent his garmeént to fhew his refentment and indignation at the thought of it, as the Yews ufed to rend their garments at hearing of blafphemy; but the firft fenfe is bett: and foaved bis beard, either he himlelf, or his fervant by his orders; and which was done among the eaftern nations as a fign of mourning,- fee If. xv. 2. Fer. xvi. 6. and xlviii. 37. at among the Greeks, as appears from Homer"; nor was this contrary to the Jaw in Deut. xiv. 1. where another baldnefs, not of the head, but between.

is forbidden for the dead; befides, this. that- law was in being, and had it been, fome, as farchi, Aben Ezra, and other Feu

Chay ters, interpret this of the hair of his head but: this neither agrees with the fenfe of the word here-ufed, which has the fignification of fh tearing or pl

, nor with the firmnefs and compoture of mind, who’ betrayed not any effeminacy or weakneis; and.though he fhewed a natural affection for the lofs of his fubftance, and children, as aman, and did not affect a ftoical apathy, and brutal infenfibility, yet did not give any extraordinary vent to his.paflion: he behaved both like a man, and a religious many he, mourned for his dead, but not to excefs; he forrowed not as thofe without hope, and ufed the common tokens of it, and rites attending it; which fhews that mourning for deceatfed relations, if done in moderation, is not unlawful, nor complying with the rites and cuftoms of a country, in {uch cates, provided they are mot finful in themfelves, nor contrary to. the revealed and declared will of God: and fell down upon the ground, in. veneration of God, ot his holinefs and juftice, and as fenfible of his awful hand upon him, and as being humbled under it, and patiently. fubmitting to it; he did not ftand up, and -curfe God to_ his face, as Satan faid he would, but fell upon his face to the ground; he did not curfe his king and his God, and look upwards, fee J/. viii. a1. but proftrated himfelf to the earth in. great humility before him; befides, this may be confifidered as a prayer-gefture, fince it follows: and sworfripped; that is, God, for who elfe fhould he worfhip? he worfhipped him internally in the exetcife of faith, hope, love, humility, patience, Sc, and he worfhipped him externally by praifing him, and praying to him, expreffing himfelf as in the next verfe: affliGtions,when fanctified, humble good men, caufe them to lie low in the duft, and bring them near to God, to the throne of his,grace, and inftead of arraigning his, providence, and finding fault with his dealings, they adore his majefty, and celebrate his perfections.

yx. 21. And faid, naked came I out of my mother’s womb, &c.] Either literally,,where he was conceived and lay, and from whence he came into the world, though he afterwards wifhes he never had,| or had died as foon as he did, ch, ili. 1o—12. and fo it is expreflive of his birth, and the circumftance of it; or figuratively, his mother-earth, from whence the firft man f{prang, and ‘fo all his pofterity with him, being as he of the earth, earthly, fee Eccl, xii. 7. which fenfe is mentioned by Farchi and Aben Ezra; but the firft fenfe feems beft: the nakednefs referred to is not of the mind or foul, being deftitute of righteoufnefs and holinefs, with which the following claufe will by no means agree, but nakednefs of body;.and therefore as foon as a child is born, one of the firft things done to it is to wrap it in cloaths provided for it, fee Ezek. xvi. 4. Luke ii. 7, and alfo a being without. the things of this life; the apoftle’s words are a proper comment on thefe, and explain them, and perhaps thefe are referred to by him, we brought nothing into this world, 1 Tim. vi. 7. this fhews the neceffity of the early care of providence over us, and what reafon we have to be thankful for unknown mercies at the time of birth, and in the ftate of infancy, P/: xxii. 9. and Ixxi. 6. and what obligations children lie under to parents, and what benefits they receive from them at their firft en-

_ trance into the world, and which they fhould_ re- ligioufly requite when thro’ old age they ftand in need of their affiftance, 1 Tim. v. 4. and this may Vou. TN". 6. a ae vhis “plucking, or tearing off ing or mowing, rather than of alfo ferve to abate the: pride of man, who will have no reafon to boaft of his riches, nor of his fine cloaths, when he confiders his original nakednels; and more efpecially the ufe of it.may be, and which feems to be the ufe ¥od,made of it, to make the mind eafy under the greateft loffes.. ob confidered he did not bring his fubftance, his feryants, and his children into the world with him; and now they were taken from him, he was but as he was when he came into the world, and not at all the worfe; he knew how to be abafed, and to abound, and in both was content: and naked fhall I return, thither; not into his mother’s wombiin a literal fenie, which, was impoffible, Fobn iii. 4. but to the earth, and to the duft of it, Gen. iii, 19. Eccl. xii. 7. pointing to it with his finger,-on which he now lay; meaning that he fhould go, to the place. appointed for him, the grave, the houfe of all living, ch. Xxx. 23. and fo the Targum here has it, ‘‘ to the houfe of the grave,’ where he fhould Jie unfeen, as in his mother’s womb, till the refurreétion-mora; which would be a kind of a regeneration of him, when he fhould be delivered up from thence, and enjoy a*ftate of happinefs and glory: he fhould deicend into the grave as naked as he was born, refpecting not fo much the nakednefs of his body, as being {tripped of all. worldly enjoyments,. fee Eccl. v.15. and he fays this in his, prefent view of things; he thought once he fhould have died in his neft, ch. xxix. 18. inthe midft of all his profperity, and left a large fubftance to his children; but now'all was taken away, and for the prefene had no hope or expectation of a reftoration, as.afterwards was; but whereas he was now naked and bare of all, he expeéted he fhould continue and die fo: or this is faid with refpect to the common cafe of men, who it is certain.cannot carry any thing out of the world with them, either riches or honour, but mutt leave all behind them, 1 Zim. vi. 7. Pf. xlix. 16, 17. which may ferve to loofen the minds of men from worldly things, not to fet their eyes and hearts upon them, nor to put their truit and confidence in them’; and good men may part,with them, efpecially at death, with pleafure, fince they will have no farther ufe of them, and will have a better, and a more enduring fubftance in their ftead: the Lord gave, and the-Lord hath taken away; all outward enjoyments, all the good things of this world are’the Lord’s, and at: his difpofe; the earth, and the fulnefs of it; kingdoms, nations, countries, houfes and lands; the beafts of the field, and cattle on a thoufand hills; the gold and filver, and all the riches of the earth: and thefe are the gifts of his providence to the fons of men; nor have they any thing but in a way of giving and receiving; and even what they en- Joy, thro’ diligence and induftry, is owing to the bleffing of Gods and who gives not in fuch fort as that he lofes his property in what is given; this he {till retains, thele are talents which he puts into the hands of men to ule for themfelves and others, and for which they are accountable to him; and they are but ftewards, with whom he will hereafter reckon, and therefore has a right to take away when he pleafes; and both 70d afcribes to God, not only the giving, but the taking away: he does not attribute his loffes to fecond caules, to the Sabeans and Chaldeans, to the fire from heaven, and the wind from the defert, but to,God, whote fovereign will and, over-ruling hand were in all; thefe were ‘but the inftruments of Satan, and he had no power but what was given from God; and therefore to the counfel of his will who fuffered it, Job refers it, and for that reafon fits down fatished and quiet. “This is all to be underftood of temporal things only; for of fpiritual things it cannot be faid, that God gives and takes away; fuch gifts are without repentance, and are irreverfible, Rom. xi, 29. the Targum is, “ the Word of the Lord hath given, and the Word of the Lord, and the houfe of his judgment hath taken away;” the Septuagint and Vulgate Latin verfions add, “ as it pleafed the Lord, fo it is done:” dleffed be the name of the Lord; for all his bleffings and mercies; for all the gifts of nature and providence that had been beftowed, which could not be claimed, and of which he knew himfelf unworthy; and for the continuance of them fo long’ with him; goodnefs and mercy had followed him all the days of his life hitherto, and ftill he had mercies to blefs God for; ‘his wife was ftill with him, he had fome fervants left, his own life was fpared; he continued as yet in health of body, and therefore could fing of mercy as well as judgment; nor is there any ftate on earth a man can be in, but there is fomething to blefs God for; wherefore the apoftle’s exhortation will always hold good, im every thing give thanks 1 Theff. v. 18. befides the name, the nature, the perfeétions of God are always the fame, and therefore always to be celebrated, and blefling, honour and glory are to be afcribed to him continually, in every ftate and condition of life; wherefore the 4radic verfion adds, from henceforth, and for ever,which agrees with P/. Ixxii. 19. and thus 70d, inftead of curfing God blefles him, and proves the devil to be a liar, as he was from the beginning; and fhews his fuperiority over him through the power of divine grace 3 this evil one could not touch him, he was overcome by him, and his defigns defeated.

X. 22. In all this Fob finned not, 8c.) Not that he was without fin, he was confcious to himfelf of it, and owns it, ch. ix. 20, 30, 31. but in all the above things he did or faid, he' finned not; not in his rending his garments, in fhaving his head,

‘ing the character he bore vas ar not through excefs. of paffion; nor in any thing: that dropped from his lips, Wee oe ill becom- s man; and though he might be guilty of fome failings and imperfeions, as the beft of men are, even in dos — ing the beft of things, yet he finned not that fin the devil faid he would, that is, curfe God to his face; there was nothing of this, nor like it, but the reverfe of it in all he faid and did: norm charged Ged foolifbly; or gave not folly to him™; did not afcribe it to him, did not arraign his wifdom, nor charge him with folly; though there might be fome things he could not account for, or fee into the’ reafons of them, he knew the Lord could; he confidered that he was a God of knowledge, the only and all-wife God, and did all things after the counfel of his will, and to anfwer the beft ends and purpofes, and therefore he fubmitted all to his

'wifdom; nordid he himfelf {peak foolifhly of him, sarraigning his juflice and holinefs, as’ if he had done wrong to him; he knew there was no un= righteoufnefs in God, nor in any of his ways and works, and that he had a right to do what he would with his own, to give and take it away at his pleafure: he fpoke nothing that was an/avoury*, as the word fignifies; nothing contrary to right reafon and true religion; nothing unfuitable unto, or unbecoming him as a man; as a religious man, as in cynnection with God, a fervant of his, and one that feared him. The Arabic verfion is, nor blafphemed Gods and the Targum, ** neither he did not curfe God, as Satan faid he would, neither in heart and thought, nor in words; this is a teftimony of him given by the Lord himéfelf, the fearcher of hearts, and who onlycould give fuch a teftimony of him; and which, as Cocceids obmma is a proof of the divine authority of this

T HIS chapter gives an account of a fecond trial of ‘fod’s conftancy and integrity, the time and occafion of it, ¥. 1—3. the motion made for it by Satan, which being granted, he fmote him from head to foot with fore boils, which he endured -very patiently, ¥. 4—8. during which fad affiétion he is urged by his wife to give up his according to this, and other Fewi/h writers, there was a whole year between this and the former meeting, and fo between the firft and fecond trial of Fob; but this is not likely, fince Satan would never give him fo much breathing time; nor can it be did he fet in order words of blafphemy before God;””.

thought that 7od’s friends fhould ftay fo long be- - fore they paid him a vifit, which was_not till after integrity, which he bravely refifted, ¥.9, 10. and the chapter is concluded with an account of a vifit of three of Yod’s friends, and of their conduct and this day: and fatan came alfo among them to /ent bimfelf before the Lord sa phew aines to it upon a fummons to appear before God, and give an account of what he had been doing on the earth, and efpecially to Fob; or rather he came

¥. 1. Again, there was a day, when the fons of| God came to prefent themfelves before the Lord, 8c. When good men, profeffors of religion, met together by agreement to worfhip the Lord; the willingly, feeking an opportunity to ti | charge againtt Fob, a chen hala caches get his commiffion enlarged to do him more mifchief, which he could not do without a frefh

Targum calls them companies of angels, interpreting the words of them, and of their ftanding before the Lord, as moft interpreters do; how long thou? &c.] The fame queftion is put to him, and this time of their meeting was from the former, cannot be faid, probably but a few days, a week fee the notes there.

or fortnight at moft; the Targum fays, it was on the day of the great judgment, and which, as in chs i. 6. was at the beginning of the year; fo that Aim, &c.] The fame with this is alfo before ‘put m bon wis so} Koes Be edwxty aPzorvwny, the fame anfwer is returned by him as in ch. i. 7,

¥. 2. And the Lord faid unto Satan, whence cameft -

¥. 3. And the Lord faid unto fatan, bah ier a confidered my fervant Fob, that there is none like

Chit #. dei, Prose: - 191 unto fetan, and the fame character given of od, which: is here continwed and confirmed, with an addition to it; for Feb was no lofer, but a gainer in his character by his afflictions and trials: and he holdeth faft bis integrity. The firlt man Adam was made upright, but by finning he loft hisintegrity, and fince the fall there is none in man naturally 5 it is only to be found in regenerate and renewed perfons, who have right fpirits renewed in) them; by which principle of grace wrought in them, they become upright in heart, and walk uprightly. The word ufed fignifies perfection *, which Job had not in himfelf, but in Chrift,; though it may denote the truth and fincerity of his grace, and the uprightnefs of his walk, and the fimplicity of: his converfation, the biafs of his mind, and the cenour of his conduct and behaviour towards| God and men; this principle he retained, this frame and x eter of foul continued with him, and he acted up to it in-all things; he held faft his faith and confidence in the Lord his God, and he profefied his cordial love and fincere affection for God, and his filial fear and verence of him; and this he did ftill, notwithftanding ail the affaults and temptations of fatan, and all the fore afflictions and trials he met with; an initance this of perfevering grace, and of the truth of what ‘fob after expreffes, ch. xvii. g. and this he did, even fays the Lord to fatan, a/though thou movedft me againft him, to deftroy him without caufe; not that Satan could work upon God as he does upon men, both good and bad, efpecially the jatter; nor could he fo work upon him as to caufe him to change his mind and will, who is unchangeable in his nature and purpofes; but the fenfe is, he made a motion to him, he propofed it, requefted and intreated, and did not barely propofe it, but urged it with importunity, was very folicitous to have it done; and he prevailed and fucceeded according to God’s own determinate counfel and will, though only in part; for he moved him to defiroy him; himfelf, his body, if not his foul; for this roaring lion feeks to devour men, even the fheep and lambs of Chrift’s flock: or to fwallow him up”, as the word fignifies; that he might be delivered to him, who would make but one morfel of him, {wallow him up alive, as a lion, any creature, or any other beaft of prey. Mr. Broughton renders it, to undo him, and we fay of a man, when he has loft his fubftance, that he is undone; and in this fenfe fod was deftroyed or undone, for he had loft his all: and this motion was made without caufe, there was no juft reafon for it; what fatan fuggefted, and the calumny he caft upon 70d, was not fupported by him, he could give no proof nor evidence of it; and it was in the iffue and event in vain, as the word’ may be rendered; for he did not appear, notwithftanding all that was done.to him, to be the man Satan faid he was, nor to do ‘the things, or fay the words, fatan faid he would.

¥. 4 And fatan anfwered the Lord, and faid, &c.] Satan would not as yet own that Yod was the man the Lord had defcribed; but ftill would fuggeft, that he was a felfifh and mercenary man, and that what had been done to him was not a fufficient trial of his integrity; the thing had not been pufhed far and clofe enough to'difcover him; he had loft indeed his fubftance, and moft of his fervants, and all his children, but ftill he had not only his own life, but his health and eafe; and fo long as he enjoyed thele he would {erve God, tho’ only for the fake of them: and therefore, fays he, as til/\it is ufually and proverbially ‘faid, in for prin, yea, ail that a man.bath will be give for bis life; the Targum is, ** member for member;” which the Yews/e commentators, many of them, explain thus, that if a man’s head or his’ eyes are in danger, he will lift up his hand or his arm, and expofe that in order to fave the other; but the word is generally ufed of the fkin, and fo it may in this fenfe; and mean the fkin of his hand, ‘as a fhield for the fkin of his head or eye, as Guffe- ¢ius obferves": fome underitand it of the fkins of others for his own fkin, which he will part with, that he may keep that; nay he’ll give all that he is poffefled of for the prefervation of his life, fo dear is that unto him; meaning either the {kins of beafts, in whom the principal fubftance of men donfifted in thofe times and countries, and whole fkins flain for food, and in facrifice, might be of worth and value, and ufed in traffick; or, as re-jothers think, money cut out of leather made of fkins, is meant, which a man would part with, even all fuch money he had in the world, and even his /uppellex, or all the goods of his houfe, for to fave his life: or -the fenfe is, thar fod would not only give the fkin of his beats, even of all that he had, for his own fkin, bur the {kins of his fervants, nay, his of own children, provided he could but keep his own fkin; and hereby Satan fuggefts, that ‘fod did not regard the lofs of his cattle, nor of his fervants, nor even of his children, fo long as he had his own life and health; and thus reprefents him as a lover of himfelf, and as cruel and hard-hearted, and without natural affections to his children; the contrary to which is very manifeft from ch. i. 5. or rather this defiens his own fkin, and may be rendered, /Rin upon fein, or Rin even unto fRin, or Rin within fkin*; tor man has two fkins, an inward and an outward one, called the cutis and cuticula, derma and epidermis; the latter is ‘of a whitifh colour, and is properly the covering of the fkin, is very thin, and void of fenfation',; which may be raifed up by a blifter, and taken off without pain; but the other is reddifh, and very fenfible of pain, and cannot be taken off without putting a man to the moft exquifite mifery; and yet a man will part with both his fkins, and if he had ever fo many; or be willing to be put to the greateft torment, rather than part with his life: and to this one point all the above fenfes, and others given by interpreters, «tend, namely, to obferve how precious the life of man is to him; and if this was all that Satan meant, it is very true; but he feems to infinuate fomething more, and that is, that any man, and fo 0, tho’ reckoned a good man, would not only part with all the fkins he had, and all the fubftance he was poffeffed of, to fave his life, but he would part with his God, and his religion; and the profeffion of it, forthe fake of it, which is falfe,; for there is fomething more valuable than life to good men; they reckon the loving-kindnefs of God better than life, and would fooner lofe their lives than rifque the danger of lofing their intereft in it, and are willing to part with their lives for the fake of God, and true religion, for the fake of Chrift, and his gofpel, and for his caufe and intereft, as many have done. ~ yg. But put forth thine hand now, and touchino bis Lone and his flefh, &cc.] That is, his body, which confifted of flefh and bones; thefe are the conftituent parts of the body, and which diftinguifh it * from {pirit, Luke xxiv. 39. this is the motion made by Satan for a fecond trial of Job's integrity 5 moves that God would take off his hand of pro-| vidence over him, which fecured his health unto him, and ftretch his hand of power upon him, and fill his fleth with difeafes, and his bones with rottennefs; or break them, and touch him to the quick, to the marrow, which gives exquifite pain; or by his bone may be meant him -himfelf": and| he will curfe thee to thy face;

underftood; as if he was off of, and no more upon the heart of God; or as if he was out of hands of God, and out of-the hands of Chrift; as if he was become Satan’s property, and a child of his; for neither of thefe can be true of a good man: nothing can feparate him from the love of God; not Satan and all his principalities and nor can men or devils pluck them out of his nor out of the hands of his fon; nor can thofe who are the children of God be any more the fervants of fin, or the vaffals of Satan; or in other words, nor can any of them be a child of God one day, and child of the devil the next, which is the divinity of fome men: nor is the fenfe of this paffage, that Satan had leave to do with Job as he pleafed, for then he would have utterly deftroyed him; but the power granted him was a limited one, as follows: but fave his life; or foul’, which fome of his rational foul, that which remains after death, and which Maimonides* obferves, Satan has no power over; and according to fome, the meaning is, don’c difturb his mind to diftraction, fo as to deprive him of his fenfes, and of the exercife of his rational powers, which through the influence of Satan men have fometimes loft; fee Mark v. 4, 5. this is barred again{t in the permiffion granted; otherwife it would not have been a proper trial of ¥ob’s integrity; for, fhould he have been of his reafon, and uttered ever fuch bad things, it would have been no proof of his infincerity; as may be obferved in good men in a delirium, they will utter bad words, and do or attempt to do bad|withZ things, which is not to be afcribed to their want of ‘grace, but to their want of reafon: but rather Hife is meant; not Yod’s fpiritual life, for that was danger of being loft; all the devils in hell can’t deprive a truly good man of his fpiritual life; grace in him is a well of living water, fpringing up to eternal life; he can never die the fecond death; his life is hid with Chrift in God, and is bound up helin the bundle of life with the Lord his God, who e is out of the reach Of Satan; but corporal life, which the devil by permiffion may take away, and is faid to have the power of death, which by leave he exercifed over men, but here he is reftrained from it: 3ob’s life muft be fpared, that it might fully appear he got the victory over Satan, and tood in his integrity; and that he might ftill glohe will fly in thy rify God in a courfe of afflictions he was yet to endure, in the exercife of his faith, hope, love, patience, humility, fubmiffion, and refignation of his will to God; and befides, his appointed time was not come, he had many more days,» months, and years, the number of which were with God, to live in the world, as he accordingly did.

face, arraign thy providence, and call in queftion thy wifdom, juftice, truth, and faithfulnefs: or he’ll d/e/s thee”, and take his farewel of thee *, and have nothing more to do with thee or religion; if he does not do this, for fomething is to be underftood, the words being an imprecation, let me be in a worfe condition than I am at prefent; let me not have the liberty of ranging about in the to do the mifchief I delight in;

¥. 7. So went Satan forth from the prefence of the earth, Lord, &c. | With leave and licence, with power let me be bound, and authority, as the Targum; having got his comor miffion enlarged on a frefh grant, to do more mif- - andjchief to ‘ob, he departed directly and immediately, being eager to put in execution what he had a per- ~ miffion to do; fee the note on ch. i. 12. and Jmote fob with fore boils, from the fole of bis foot unto bis ¢rown with hot.and burning ulcers, fuch as were inflicted on the Egyptians in the plague of the boils which yet muft not be fojand plains, called the botch of Egypt, fee Exod. ix: 10, 11. Deut. xxviii. 27. it is in the original text the with a bad boil, or the wor/t*; it was as it were but orjone boil; they ftood fo thick and clofe together, that they were as one, reaching from head to foot, and fpreading all over his body, fo that there was no part iree; he was full of fores as Lazarus, and powers; to him may be applied what is faid ina figurative hands, fenfe of the ews, J/ i. 6. and this boil or boils were of the worit fort, and moft hot and angry, and gave the moft exquifite pain, and what Jed was /mz/¢en with.at once; they did not rife up in pimples ajand puftules at the firft, and gradually gathered and came to an head, but he was at once covered with burning ulcers at their height, and with running fores; this was done by Satan, through divine permiffion; who, when-he has leave, can inflict difeafes — on the bodies of men, as he did in the:days of Chrift underftandjon earth, fee Matt. xvii. 15, 18. Luke xiii. 16. fome ‘Zewi/h writers, as R. Simeon, fay, that the devil heated the air, and thereby caufed an inflammation in od’s blood, which broke out in boils; but then this would have affected others befides him: many are the conjectures of learned men ° about this difeaie. of ‘70d’s, fome taking it to be the leprofy *, others the fcurvy, others an eri/ypelas, &c. Bolducius reckons forjup no lefs than fourteen difeafes that are attributed to him, collected from his own words, ch. vii. Sn deprivedjand xvi. 13, 15, 16. and xix, 20. and xxx, 16 }17, 18, 19. a late learned writer‘ thinks it was th fmall-pox. s and caft into the bottomlefs pit before my time, be thrown into the lake burning with fire brimftone, where I know I mutt be for ever.

y. 6. And the Lord [aid unto Satan, Bebold, be is in thine hand, &c.] Well may a bebold be prefixed to this, it being matter of wonder and aftonifhment that a faint and fervant of God fhould be permitted to be in the hand of Satan;

y. 8. dnd be took bim a pot/berd to ferape bimfelf, &c.] His mouth was fhut, his lips were filent, not one murmuring and repining word came from him, amidft all this anguifh and mifery he sstimath be in; much lefs any thing that looked like

| m3 curfing God and blafpheming him, as fome are,did faid to do, becaufe of their pains and their fores, Rev. xvi. 11. but Zed bore his with the utmoft patience.; he took a piece of a broken pot, which perhaps lay in the afhes among which he fat, icraped himfelf with it; either as fome think to allay the itching, or rather to remove the purulent matter that ran from his boils;

of Jinnen rags to wipe them with, having no Chithe fpeak as wondering that he fhould ftill retain ic amongft fo many fore temptations and afflictions; though indeed perfevering grace is a marvellous thing; but then he would_never have blamed ‘andjher for fuch an expreffion: nor faid fhe this as upbraiding and reproaching him for his-religion and continuance in it, and mocking at him, and dewhich he ufed inftead fpifing him on that account, as Michal did David; but as fuggefting to him there was nothing in reli- rurgeon to come near him, to mollify his ulcers with ointment, to fupplé them with oil, and lay healing plafters upon them; there were none to do any of thefe things for him; his maids and his fervants, and even his wife, ftood at fome diftance from him; the fmell of him might be fo naufeous, that it was intolerable, he was obliged to do what was done himfelf, which is here mentioned; though jt feems fomething ftrange and unnatural, confidering his cafe; Schmid thinks that this fcraping was done by him as a rite and ceremony ufed by mourners in thofe times and countries, and which Yod would not omit though his body was full of fores: and be fat down among the afoes; which was often done in cafes of mourning and humiliation, fee Jena iii. 6. Matt. xi. 21. and which 7od did to humble himfelf under the mighty hand of God upon him; whether thefe afhes were without or within doors is not certain; fome think they were without, and that he had no houfe to dwell in, nor bed to lie on, nor couch to fit upon, and therefore was obliged to do as he did; but the contrary is evident from ch. vii. 13. and xix. 15. others fay, that his difeafe being the leprofy, he was obliged to fit alone and without;

gion, and advifing him to throw up the profeffion of it; for he might eafily fee, by his own cafe and circumftances, that God had no more regard to good men than to bad men, and therefore it was in vain to ferve him; the temptation fhe laboured under was the fame with that good man’s, 4/ap/, Pf, Ixxiii 11—14. curfe God, and die; which is ufually interpreted, curfe God and then deftroy thyfelf; or utter fome fuch blafphemous words, as wilf either provoke him to deftroy thee, or will make thee liable to be taken notice of by the civil magiftrate and put to death for it; or do this in revenge for his hand upon thee, and then die; or, though thou dieft; but thefe are all too harfh and wicked to be faid by one that had been trained up in a religious manner, and had been fo many years the confort of fo holy and good a man: the words may be rendered, d/e/s God and die*; and may be underftood either farcaftically, go on bleffing God till thou dieft; if thou haft not had enough of it, take thy fill of it, and fee what will be the iffue of it; nothing but death; wilt thou ftill continue 4 -fing

God and dying? fo fome' render the words referring to what he’ had faid in ch. i. 21. or elfe really and but it is not certain that that was his difeafe; befides, the law concerning lepers did not as yet and) fincerely, as advifing him to humble himfelf before God, confefs his fins, and pray * unto him that he exift; and had it, it would not have been binding on Fob, who was not of the J/raeliti/h nation: the vulgar notion that Yd fat upon a dunghil without the city, has no other foundation than the Septuagint verfion of this paffage, which is a wrong one; for his fitting in afhes, there might be a reafon in nature, and it might be chofen on account of his dif-

~ eafe; for afhes are a drier, and an abfterfive of ulcers, and Galen‘ fays they are ufed in frefh wounds to ftop the courfe of the blood. yt. g. Then faid bis wife unto him, &c.) The Fews*, who affect to know every thing, fay, that Fob’s wife was Dinah, the daughter ot Facod, as the Targum, but this is not very likely; however, would take him out of this world, and free him from all his pains and forrow; or rather, the fenfe is, Plefs God, take thy farewell of him’; bid adieu to him and all religion, and fo die; for there is no good to be hoped for on the fcore of that, here or hereafter; or at leaft not in this life: and fo ic. amounts to much the fame as before; and this fenfe is confirmed by ¥o0d’s anfwer, which follows. y¥. 10. But he faid unto her, Thou fpeakeft as one of the foolifo women fpeaketh, &c.} The wicked and prophane women of that age; he does not fay fhe was one of them, but fpake like them; which intimates that fhe was a good woman, and had always been thought to be fo; but. now fpake not we may obferve that polygamy had not obtained in thefe early times; od had but one wife, like herfelf, and one of her profeffion, but like carandjnal perfons: Sanéius thinks od refers to the Jdu- very probably fhe is the fame that after all this bore him ten children more; fince we never read of her death, nor of his having any other wife, and might be a good woman for any thing that appears to the contrary; and ob himfelf feems to intimate the fame, though fhe was in the dark about this provi- mean women,. who, like other heathens, when their god, did not pleafe them, or they could not obtain of them what they defired, would reproach them, and caft them away from them, throw them into the fire, or into the water, as the Perfians are faid to do; and fo 7od’s wife, becaufe of the prefent af- dence, and under a fore temptation on that account; and therefore fays to her hufband, Dof thou fiill retain thine integrity? not as blaming him for infifting and leaning on his integrity, and juftifying, and not humbling himfelf before God, when ‘he fhould rather confefs his fins and prepare for ‘death; for this is contraty to the fenfe of the phrafe ufed, y. 3. where Jeb is applauded by the Lord ‘himfelf for holding faft his integrity; nor will Y0d’s anfwer comport with this fenfe of her words; flictive providence, was for’ cafting off God and all religion; in this fhe fpake and aéted like thofe wicked people after obferved, ch. xxi. 14, 15. and like thofe carnal profeffors among the ‘ews in later times, Mal. iii. 14. this was talking foolifhly, and ¥0b’s wife fpake after this» foolifh manner, which he refented: what? this he faid as being angry with her, and having indignation at what the faid; and therefore, in this quick, fhort, and abrupt nor'manner, reproves her for her folly: /bal/ we roe good at the band of God, and fall we not receive evil? as all good things temporal and fpiritual, the bleffings of providence; and all natural, though not moral evil things, even all afflitions which feem, orare thought to be evi!, come from the mouth of God,. and. are according to his purpofe, counfel, and will; fo they are all difpenfed by the hand of God, and fhould be kindly, chearfully, readily, and willingly received, the one as wellas the other; fee Lam. iii, 38. Fam. i.17. Amos, iii. 6. Fob fuggefts that he and his wife had received many good things from the Lord, many temporal good things, as appears from ch. i. 2, 3. they had their beings in him, and from him; they had been preferved them by him; they had had an habitation to dwell in, and ftill had; God had given them food and raiment, wherewith it became them to be content; they had had a comfortable family of children until this time, and much health of body, Yod now, and his wife ftill, for ought appears; former happy circumitances, fee ch. xxix. and befides thefe outward mercies, they had received God as their covenant-God, their portion, fhield, and exceeding great reward; they had received Chrift as their living redeemer; they had received the Spirit, and his the root of the matter was in them; they had received juttifying, pardoning, and adopting grace, and right unto, and meetnefs for eternal life, which good men receive of God; and therefore fuch muft expect to receive evil things, or to partake of affictions, fince God has appointed thefe for them, and has told them of them, that they fhall befall them; and befide they are for their profit and advantage; and the confideration of the good things that have been received, and are now enjoyed, as well as what they have reafon to believe they fhall enjoy in heaven to all eternity, fhould make them ready and willing to bear evil things quietly patiently; fee Hed. xi. 26. Luke xvi. 26. fo Achilles in Homer™ reprefents Fove as having two veffels of gifts, one of good things, the other of evil, city, town, or habitations where they lived; whether they walked or rodé is not faid, their frames. — are as follow: Elipbaz the T emanite, and Bildad the Subite, and Zophar the Naamathite; the firft of thefe, Eliphaz, was either from Teman, a city in £dom, on the borders of Arabia Deferta, as the Zargum; or a defcendant of Teman, a grandfon of Z/au; not Elipbaz the fon of E/au, Gen. xxxvi. 11. as the Targum on that place fays; for he was the father of Yeman, from whom this Eiphaz fprang: the fecond, Bi/dad, was a defcendant from ~ Sbuab, a fon of Abraham, by Keturah, Gen. xxv. 2. whofe pofterity with geographers are called Sauinjchites, Saucheans, Sacceans, and tettled in Arabia Deferta, from whence Bildad came: the third, Zo-, phar the Naamathite, who he was, and why fo. called, is not certain; there is nothing but conjectures concerning him; it is moft probable that he tilljlived in Arabia Deferta, or on the borders of it, of theirjnear to ‘fed’s country and that of his other two friends "; there was a Naamath in the land of Uz, which was Yod’s country according to Freéelius®: the Septuagint verfion calls Eliphaz the king of the Temanites, and Bildad the tyrannus, or governor of grace, the Saucheans, and Zophar king of the Mineans?: for they had made an appointment together;. upon alhearing of ‘/od’s trouble, they got together, and alljfixed upon a time and place to meet together and proceed on in their journey to 70d’s houfe: 40 come to mourn with him, and to comfort him; the firlt word fignifies to move to bim?, not as Sephorua explains it, to go with him from place to place, that he might not lay hands on himfelf; but rather, as the Latin interpreter of the Targum, to move. their heads at him as perfons to fhew their concern for, and fympathy with the afflicted, fhake their heads at them: the meaning is, that they came to andjcondole his misfortunes, and to {peak a word of comfort to him under them; and no doubt but fulljthey came witn a real and fincere intent to do this, though they proved miferable comforters of him;

and fometimes he takes and gives the one, andjch, xvi. 2.; fometimes the other: # all this did not Fob fin with bis lifs; notin what he faid to his wife, it was all right and good; nor under the whole of his affliction hitherto, he had not uttered one impatient, murmuring, and repining word at the hand of God; the tongue, though an unruly member, and under fuch providences apt to fpeak unadvifedly, was bridled and reftrained by 0d from uttering any thing indecent and unbecoming: the Targum, and many of the Yewi/h writers obferve, that he finned in his heart, but not with his lips; but this is not to be concluded from what is here faid; though it is poffible there might be fome rifings of corruptions in his heart, which, by the grace of God that prevailed in him, were kept under and re- {trained from breaking out.

yr. 12. And when they lift up their eyes afar off, 8&c.] Either when at fome diftance from 7ob’s }houfe, and he being without in the Open air, as fome think; or as they entered his houfe, he being at the farther part of the room, or in another far ther on, which they could fee into: and knew bim zot; at firft fight; until they came nearer to him, his garments being rent, and his head fhaved, and his body covered all over with boils; fo that he was fo deformed and disfigured that they could not know him at firft, and could fcarcely believe him to be /the fame perfon: they lifted up their voice and wept; they wept and cried aloud, being greatly affected with the fight of him, and their hearts fympathizing with him under his afflictions, being his cordial — " |friends, and of that difpofition, to weep with thofe that weep: and they rent every one bis mantle 5 Or cloak; in token of mourning, as 70d had done before, ch. i. 20. fee the note thereon: and fprinkled theldujt upon their beads, tawards heaven that is, they took up handfulls of duft from off the ground, and threw it up in the air over their heads, which fell upon them and covered them; which was ano= ther rite or ceremony ufed by mourners, as Farchi obferves, and fhewed the vehetnence of their affecal tions and paffions, and the confufion they were in they) at feeing their friend in fuch a miferable condition 5 from the country,! fee Fob. vii. 6. Exek. xxvii. 30. Lam. ii. 10.

¥. 11. Now when Fob’s three friends heard of all this evil that was come upon him, &c.| Of the lofs of his fubftance, fervants, and children, and of his own health; the news of which foon f{pread in adjacent countries, ‘fob being a perfon of great note, and his calamity fo very extraordinary and uncommon: who thefe three friends were is after obferved; they living at fome diftance from him, held a corref{pondence with him, and he with them, being good men; and now att the friendly part in paying him vifit under fuch circumftances: Prov. xvii. 17. came every one from bis own place;

¥. 13. So they fat down with im upon the ground feven days and feven nights, &c.] Which was the _ ufual time of mourning, Ges. 1. 10. 1 Sem. xxxi. 13. Ezek. iii. 15. not that they were in this pofture all this time, without fleeping, eatings or drinking, and other neceffariés. of life; but they came and fat with him, every day and night for feven days and nights running, and fat the far greater part of them with him, conférming felves to him, and fympathizing with him: none [pake a word unto him;.concerning his and the caufe of it, and what they thought it; partly through the lofs they were at concerning it, hefitating in their minds, and having fome fulpicion of evil in fod,, and partly through of their own hearts,; and the vehemence of cumftances Fob was in, as follows: for they faw that his grief was very great, and they knew not well what comfort to adminifter, and were fearful left they fhould add grief to grief; or they faw that his grief increafed exceedingly*; his boils, during theie feven days, grew forer and forer, and his pain became more intolerable, that there was no {peaking to him until he was a little at eafe, and more com« them-,pofed and capable of attending to what might be and faid; they waited a proper opportunity, and which affliction! they quickly had, by what ‘fod faid in the followaboutling chapter: this account is given of his three friends in this place, becaufe the greater part of the book that follows is taken up in giving an account the.erieflof a difpute which pafied between him and them, theirjoccafioned by what he delivered in the next chap- paffions,, but chiefly becaufe of the cafe and cir-! ter.

Co Ae “TT. N this chapter we have an account of 7ed’s cur- verfions add here, in which he was born and what fing the day of his birth, and the night of his.is meant by curfing it, may be learnt from his own conception; ¥. 1—3. firft the day, to which he, words in the following verfes, the fubftance of wifhes the moft extreme darknels, ¥. 4, 5. then which is, that he withed either it had never been, the night, to which he withes the fame,.and that it or he had nevet been born; but fince that was might be deftitute of all joy, and be curfed by impofiible, that it might be forgotten, and never others as well a3 by himfelf, ¥. 6—g. the reafons oblferved or had in efteem, but be buried in obli- ‘follow, becaufe it did not prevent his coming into vion and obfcurity, and be branded with a black. the world, and becaule he died not on it, y.10—12.)mark, as an unhappy day for ever: the word’ figniwhich would, as he judged, have been an happinefs fies, he made light of it, and fpoke flightly and to him; and this he illuftrates by the ftill and quiet contemptibly of it; he difefteemed it, yea detefted ftate of the dead, the company they are with, andjit, and could not bear to think of it, and defired their freedom from all trouble, oppreffion,, and that it might be difrefpected by God and men; fo bondage, ¥. 13-19. but however, fince it was,that there is no need of fuch queftions, whether it otherwife with him, he defires his life might not bejis in the power of man to curfe? and whether it is prolonged, and expoftulates about the continuance lawful to curfe the creature? and whether a day is of it, y. 20—23. and this by reafon of his prefent! capable of acurfe? the frame of mind in which troubles, which were many and great, and came)7od was when he uttered thefe words is differently upon him as he feared they would, and which hadjreprefented; fome of the Fewifh writers will have made him uneafy in his profperity, ¥. 24—26... |it, that he denied the providence of God, and |thought that all things depended upon the ftars or y.1. After this opened Fob his mouth, &c.] order to fpeak, and began to {peak of his and afflictions, and the fenfe he had of them; for though this phrafe may fometimes fignify to {peak aloud, clearly, and diftinétly, and with great freedom and boldnefs, yet here it feems to defign more than béginning to fpeak, or breaking filence after it had been long kept: he fpake after his firft trial and bleffed the name of the Lord, and upon, his fecond, and reproved his wife for her fpeaking; but upon the vifit of his three and during the fpace of feven days,.a profound filence was kept by him and them; and when he Injplanets which rule on the day a man is born, and troubles therefore curfed his ftars; whereas nothing is more evident than that 70d afcribes all that befel him to the purpofe and providence of God, ch. xxiii. 14. fome fay he was in the utmoft defpair, and had no nojhope of eternal life and falvation, but the contrary to this is clear from ch. xiii. 15, 16, 18. and xix. 25, 26, 27. and many think he had loft all patience, for which he was fo famous; bur if he had, he would foolifh' not have been fo highly fpoken of as he is in Fam.v. friends,’11. itis true indeed there may be a mixture of weak - -nefs with refpect to the exercife of that grace at this time, and which may appear in fome after expreffions perceived that they chofe not to fpeak to him,: and perhaps his diftemper alfo decreafed, and his pain fomewhat abated, he broke out into the following expreflions: aud curfed bis day; he did not curfe his God, as Satan faid he would, and his wife. advifed him to:,nor did he curfe his fellow-creatures, or his friends, as wicked men in paffion are apt to do, nor did he curfe himfelf, as prophane perfons often do, when any evil befals them; but he

.of his; yet were it not for thefe and the like, as we could not have fuch an idea of his forrows and afflictions, and of that quick fenfe and perception he had of them, fo neither of his exceeding great patience in enduring them as he did; and befides what impatience he was guilty of, was not only gracioufly torgiven, but he thro’ the grace of God was enabled to conquer; and patience had its perfect work in him, and he perfevered therein to the end; though after curfed his day; not the day on which his came upon him, for there were more than one, and they were {till continued, but the day of his birth, as appears from ¥. 3. and fo the Syriac and Arabic troublesjall he is not to be excufed of weaknefs and infirmity, fince he is blamed not only by Elibu, but by the Lord himfelf; yea Fob himfelf owned his fin and tolly, and repented of it, ch. xl. 4, 5. and xlii. 6.

* Opponitur verbum 52> verbo “J5; fignificat fe pronunciafle diem inglorium, Codureus.

¥. 2. And Job fpake, and faid, cc.) Or anfwered and faid‘, though not a word was fpoken reprefenting, by a profopopeeia, the night as a per= fon confcious of the conception, as an eyé:

to him by his friends; he anfwered to his own calamity, and to their filence, as Schmidt obferves 5 and this word is fometimes ufed when nothing goes before, to which the anfwer is, as many Fewifh writers obferve, as in Exod. xxxii. 27. Deut. Xxvi. 5. and xxvii. 14.° archi interprets. it, be cried, and fo fome others" render it: from henceforwards to ch. xlii. 6. this book is written’ in a poetical ftile, in Hebrew metre as is thought, which at prefent is pretty much unknown, even to the ” Fews themfelves; fome have been of opinion, ‘that the following difcourfes between 70d and his friends were not originally delivered in metre, but were put‘into this form by the penman, or writer of the book; but of this we Cannot be certain; in the Targum in the king of Spain’s bible it is, and fob fung and faid. ¥. 3. Let the day perifo wherein Iwas born, &c.] Here begins 70d’s form of curfing his day, and which explains what is meant by it; and it may be underftood either of the identical day of his birth, and then the fenfe is, that he wifhed that had never been, or in other words, that he had never been born; and though thefe were impoffible, and od knew it, and therefore fuch wifhes may feem to be in vain, yet Job hada defign herein, which was to fhew the greatnefs of his afflictions, and the fenfe he had of them: or elfe of his birth-day, as it returned year after year; and then his meaning is, let it not be kept and obferved with any folemnity, with feafting and other expreffions of joy, as the birth-days of great perfonages efpecially were, and his own very probably had been, fince his children’s were, ch.i..4. but now he defires it might not be fo for the future, but “be entirely difregarded; he would have it perith out of his own memory, and out of the memory of others, and even be {truck out of the calendar, and not be reckoned with the days of the month and year, ¥. 6. boti may be intended, both the very day on which he was born, and the’

yearly return of it: aud the night in which it was faid, There is a man-child conceived; that is, let that night perifh alfo; he wifhes it had not been, or he of it, and exulting at it, as Scbultens oblerves.

y¥. 4. Let that day be darknefi, 82¢.] bes 2 dark, but darknefs itlelf, extremely dark; and which is 'to be underftood not figuratively of the: darknefs of affliction and calamity; this Fod not with for, either for himfelf, who had enough’ of that, or fofothers; bur literally of grofs natural” darknefs, ‘that was horrible and dreadful, as fome” render it’: this was the reverfe of what God faid at the creation, Let there be light, and there was, and he called it day 5 but 7od withes his day might’be darknefs, as'the night; either that it had been always: dark, and’ never become day, or in its’ return” be’ remarkably dark and gloomy: /et not God regerd it from above, that is, either God who is: above, and on high, the High and Holy One, the Moft ¢ High God, and who is higher than the higheft, and fo this is a defcriptive character of him; or elfe this refpects the place where’he is, the higheft heaven, where is his throne, and from whence he looks and takes notice of the fons of men, and of all things done below: and this with muft be un- ~ derftood»confiftent with his omnifcience, who fees’ and knows all perfons and things, even what are. done in the dark, and in the darkeft days; for the darknefs and the light are aliketo him; and as confiftent with his providence, which is continually exercifed about perfons and things on earth without any intermiffion, even on every day in the year; and was it to ceafe one day, hour, or moment, all would be diffolved, and be thrown into'the utmoft confufion and diforder: but ob means the fmiles of his. providence, which he wifhes might be re- ~ {trained on this day; that he would not caufe his fun in the heavens to fhine out upon it, nor fend down gentle and refrefhing fhowers of rain on it; in which fenfe he is faid to care for and regard the land of Cazaan, Deut. xi. 11, 12. whete the fame word is ufed as here; or the fenfe is, let it be expunged from the days of the year, that when it is fought for, and if even it fhould be by God himfelf, let it not be found; or let him not eck® after jt, todo any good upon it: neither let the light had not been conceived, or for the future be never /hine upon it; the light of the fun, or the morning= mentioned; but eternally forgotten: ob goes back to his conception, as being the {pring of his forrows; for this he knew as well as David, that he was fhapen in iniquity, and conceived in fin, fee ch. xiv. 4. but rather, fince the particular night or time of conception is not ordinarily, eafily, and exactly known by women themfelves, and much lefs by men’; and more efpecia]ly it could not be ‘told what fex it was, whether male or female that was conceived, and the tidings of it could not be brought by any; it feems better with ben Ezra to render the word ", there is a man-child brought forth, which ufed to ‘be an occafion of joy, Fobn' xvi. 21. and fo the word is ufed to bear or bring

‘cording to him, it was a doubt whether Fob was Jf ix. 2. let there be nothing bue foul weather, light, as the Targum, much lefs the light at noonday; even:not the diurnal light, as Schmidt interprets it, in any part of the day: light is God’s creature, and very delightful and defireable; the © beft things, and the moit comfortable enjoyments, whether temporal, fpiritual, or eternal, are expref— fed by it; and on the other hand, a ftate of darknefs is the moft uncomfortable, and therefore the worft and moft difmal things and ftates are fignified by it. pn y. 5. Let darkne[s and the fhadow of death fain it, &c.] Let there be fuch darknefs on it as on perfons when dying, or in the ftate of the déad; hence the foreft afflictions, and the ftate of man in unregeneracy are compared unto it, Pf xxiii. 4.

born in the day or in the night 5 but be it which will, if he was born in the day, he defires it might perifh, and if in the night, he wifhes the fame to that; though the words may be rendered.in a beautiful and elegant manner nearer the original, and the night which faid, a man-child is conceived *; t ha et refpondit, Pacninus, Montanus, Schmidt, it ‘dirt, and darknefs in it, which may make it very uncomfortable and undefireable; fome render. the’ word, let darkne/s and the fhadow of death redeem i¢*, challenge and claim it as their own, and let light have no fhare or property in it: /et a cloud — dwell upon it; as on mount Sinai when the law was Schultens, Michaelis.

Targum; conceptus & natus eft vir, vel mas, Michaelis; fo Ben Melech.

cerus, Guffetius, Schultens.

“ 9377777 in lucem editus eft vir, Mercerus; ree progenitus, Dru

* VON TDD? & nox que dixit, Me es = WAT ON ne requirat, Montanus, &e.

~ but one cloud, which cover the whole heavens, given; athick dark cloud, even an affemblage of clouds, fo thick and clofe together, that they feem and obfcure tliem, and ‘hinder the light of the fun from fhining on the earth; and this is wifhed to abide not for an hour or two, but to continue all the day: let the blacknefs of the day terrify it, Jet it be frightful to itfelf; or rather, let the blacknefs be juch, or the darknefs of it fuch grofs darknefs, like that/as was felt by, the Egypézans; that the inhabitants of the earth: may be terrified with it, as Adofes ay? the //raelites were at mount Sinai, at the blacknefs, tempeft, thunders, and lightnings there feen and heard: as fome underftand this of black vapours exhaled by the fun, with which the heavens miglit be filled, fo others of fultry weather and fcorching heat, which is intolerable: others render the words, et them terrify it as ‘the bitterneffes of the day*; either with bitter curfings on it, or through bitter calamities in it; or, as thofe wlio have a ditter ° day, as in the margin of our bibles, and in others.

y. 6. As for that night, &c.] The night of conception; 7od.impfecated evils on the day he was born, now on the night he was conceived in, the returns of it: Jet darkne/s feize upon it; let it not only be deprived of the light of the moon and ftars, but let an eee darknefs feize upon it, that it may be afuncommon anda terrible one: let it not be joined unto the days of theyear; the folar year, and make one of them; or, Jet it not be one among ‘them “, let it come into no account, and when it is fought for, let ic not appear, but be found wanting; or let it not joy or rejoice among the days of the year *, as farchi, Aben Ezra, and others interpret it, or be a joyful one, or any thing joyful done or enjoyed im it: Jet it mot come into the number of the months; meaning not the intercalated months,.as Sepborno, nor the feafts of the new moon, as others; but let it not ferve to make up a month, which confifts of fo many days and nights, according to the courfe of the moon; the fenfe both of this and the former claufe is, let it be ftruck out of the calendar.

¥.7. Lo, let that night be folitary, &c.) Let there be no company for journeys, or doing any bufinefs; no meetings of friends, neighbours, or relations on it,.for refrefhment, pleafure, and. reereation, after the bufinefs of the day is over, as is frequently done; Jet there be no affociations of this kind; or any other: in the night it was ufual to have feafts on various accounts, and efpecially on account of marriage; but now let there be none, let there be as profound a filence as if all creatures, men and beafts, were dead, and removed from off the face of the earth, and nothing to be heard and féen on it: of, Jet it. be barren or defolate*, fo R. Simeon bar Tzemach interprets it, and, refers to J xlix, 21. that is, let no children be born in it, and

. fo no occafion for any joy on that account, as follows; let it be as barren as a flint *: Jet no joyful voice come therein; which fome even carry to the # nocturnal finging of faints in private or in public affemblies, and to the fongs of angels, thofe morning-ftars in heaven; but it feems rather. to defign natural or civil joy, or finging on civil accounts; as on account of marriage, and particularly on account of the birth of a child, and efpecially his own birth, and even any expreffions of joy on any account; and that there might not be fo much as the crowing of a cock heard, as the Targum has it.

¥. 8. Let them curfe it that curfe the day, &c.] Their own day, either their birth-day, or any day on which evil befals them; and now fuch as are ufed to this, 70d would have them, whilft they were curfing their own day, to throw fome curfes upon his; or that curfe the day-light in general, as adulterers and murderers, who are faid to’rebel againit the light, fee ch. xxiv. 13.17. and as fome Ethiopians, who lived near Arabia, and fo known to Fob, who fuppofed there was no God, and ufed to curfe the fun when it rofe and fet, as various writers relate *, called by others * Atlantes; or it may defign fuch perfons who were hired at funerals, to mourn for the dead, and who, in their doleful ditties and dirges, ufed to curfe the day on which the perfon was born whom they lamented; or it may be rather the day on which he died; hence it follows: who are ready to raife up their mourning; who were expert at the bufinefs, and who could raife up a howl, as the Jri// now do, or make.a lamentation for the dead when they pleafed; fuch were the mourning women in Yer. ix. 17, 18. and thofe that were fkilful of lamentation, Amos v. 16. fome render the words, who are ready to raife up Leviathan", and interpret it either of the whale, which, when raifed up by the fifhermen, they are in danger of their vefltls, being overfet, and their lives Jolt, and then they curfe the day that ever they entered into fuch-fervice, and expofed themfelves to fuch danger; or of fifh in general, and of fifhermen curfing and {wearing when they are unfuccefsful: fome underftand this of aftrologers, magicians, and inchanters, railing’ {pirits, and particularly the devil, who they think is meant by Leviathan; but it feems beft with a little alteration from Gufetius, and Schultens after him, to. render the words thus, “ Jet the curfers of the day fix a name upon it; let thofe that are ready ¢o any thing, call it, the raifer’

up of Leviathan; that is, let fuch who either of themfelves are ufed to curfe days, or are employed by others to do it, brand this night with fome mark of infamy; let them afcribe all dreadful calamities and difmal things unto it, as the fource and fpring. of them; which may be fignified by Leviathan, that being a creature moft formidable and terrible, of which an account is given in the latter part of this book; but many Hew writers ” render it mourning, as we.do. ¥. g. Let the fiars of the twilight thereof be dark, &c.| Either of the morning or eveningtwilight; both may be meant, rather the latter, becaufe of the following claufe; the fenfe is, let not thefe appear to adorn the heavens,, and to re- — lieve

“IY? P& non fit una inter dies, Pagninus; ne adu- li ve the darknefs of the night, and make it more pleafant and delightful, a3 well as to be ufeful to travellers a’ d failors.: let if léok for light, but have none; thatis, éithef for the light of the moon and —fiars, to fhine in the night till day-break, or for the light of the fun at the time when it arifes; but let it have neither; Jet the whole timé, from funfecting t6 fun-rifing, from one twilight to another, be one cofitinved grofs and horrible darknefs; here, by a fttong and beautiful figure, looking is afcribed tothe night: neither let it fee the dawning of the day; or, let it not fee the eye-lids of the morning’, or what we call peep of day; here, in very elegant language, the dawn of morning-light is expreffed, which is like the opening of an eye and its lids, quick and vibrating, when light is let in and perceived; or this may be interpreted of the fun, the eye of the morning and of light, and of its rays, which-when firft darted, are like the opening of the eye-lics.