_Oh, that I were as in months past._ THE FLUCTUATIONS OF A RELIGIOUS LIFE I. Their prevalence. Ebbs and tides of feeling are common to all life, good or bad. Religious moods are as frequent, as uncertain, and as unmanageable as any other moods, and under given conditions are absolutely beyond our... [ Continue Reading ]
_Because I delivered the poor that cried._ THE USE AND APPLICATION OF WEALTH AND AUTHORITY These words naturally lead us to reflect on the noble use and improvement this venerable person made of his former prosperity; to consider our own duty as represented to us in his example; and the proper obj... [ Continue Reading ]
_The blessing of him that was ready to perish._ THE BLESSEDNESS OF DOING GOOD I. Job had the blessing of those ready to perish. 1. A man may be ready to perish through adverse circumstances. 2. Or by some imminent danger and peril to which he is exposed. 3. In such cases men of pure benevolence... [ Continue Reading ]
_I put on righteousness._ AD MAGISTRATUM When others do us open wrong, it is not vanity, but charity, to do ourselves open right. And whatsoever appearance of folly or vain boasting there is in so doing, they are chargeable with all that compel us thereunto, and not we. It was neither pride nor pas... [ Continue Reading ]
_I was eyes to the blind._ SELF-MULTIPLICATION Are not my eyes my own? No, nothing is your own; and until you get that truth driven into your very soul you cannot be a Christian. May not a man do what he will with his own? Yes, when he gets it. Your hand is not your own, so what about the little th... [ Continue Reading ]
_I was a father to the poor._ A FATHER TO THE POOR The text is part of Job’s noble vindication of himself from a charge of hypocrisy and impiety. So far was Job from considering the poor as made for him, so far from neglecting and oppressing them, that his wealth and its attendant influence prompt... [ Continue Reading ]
_Then I said, I shall die in my nest._ THE DISAPPOINTMENTS OF LIFE If we examine the world, we shall everywhere discover variety, changeableness, and succession. Our bodies, our relations, our conditions and circumstances are perpetually changing. But this diversity constitutes the beauty and the... [ Continue Reading ]
_My glory was fresh in me, and my bow was renewed in my hand._ FRESHNESS The text tells us of the renown of Job, and of the way in which the providence of God continued to maintain the glory of his estate, his bodily health, and his prosperity, His glory was fresh in him. He did not achieve a hasty... [ Continue Reading ]