_Call now, if there be any that will answer thee._ MORAL EVIL AS VIEWED BY AN ENLIGHTENED NATURAL RELIGIONIST How does Eliphaz appear to view sin? I. As excluding the sinner from the sympathy of the good. He may mean here, either, Who will sympathise with thy opinions as a sinner? or, Who will sy... [ Continue Reading ]
_And envy slayeth the silly one._ --Plutarch says of human passions that they are not evil in themselves, but good affections, which nature has furnished us withal, for great and noble uses. Right, reason, wisdom, and discretion ought to rule; but all our powers and passions have their proper place,... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have seen the foolish taking root._ 1. Wicked men may flourish in great outward prosperity. 2. Wicked men may not only flourish and grow, but they may flourish and grow a great while. I ground it upon this; the text saith that they take root: I have seen the foolish take root; and the word note... [ Continue Reading ]
_Affliction cometh not forth of the dust._ HUMAN SUFFERING “Affliction comet, h not forth of the dust, nor doth trouble spring out of the ground.” The liability of man to suffering is one of the most palpable truths addressed to our observation or experience, and at the same time one of the most a... [ Continue Reading ]
_I would seek unto God._ MARVELS AND PRAYER Nothing could be better than the counsel proffered in the text, nothing more certain than the grounds on which he rests his counsel. To seek unto God, and spread out one’s cause before Him, that must be the best thing to do in any emergency. Does not the... [ Continue Reading ]
_That those which mourn may be exalted to safety._ THE EXALTATION AND SAFETY OF THE PENITENT I. Of the character which God approves. That of the lowly and contrite. 1. He is not adverting to those who are low and depressed in outward circumstances. Divine lowliness is the effect of grace. 2. The... [ Continue Reading ]
_He disappointeth the devices of the crafty._ THE DISAPPOINTMENT OF THE CRAFTY The word “crafty” may mean “prudent,” but usually it denotes such as are wickedly “cunning.” The meaning of the text is, that with how much art and subtilty soever wicked men may lay their plots and ill designs, there i... [ Continue Reading ]
_He taketh the wise in their own craftiness._ 1. The wisdom of natural men is nothing but craft or wit to do wickedly. 2. Satan makes use of subtle, crafty men, and abuseth their parts for his own purposes. 3. The crafty are full of hopes that their devices will succeed; and full of trouble, beca... [ Continue Reading ]
_So the poor hath hope._ THE EXPEDIENCY OF PREVENTIVE WISDOM By God’s different treatment of men, according to their different characters, the afflicted receive comfort, and the unrighteous are silenced and restrained. “So the poor hath hope, and iniquity stoppeth her mouth.” The words recommend--... [ Continue Reading ]
_Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth._ HAPPINESS “Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth.” There are comparatively few happy ones on this world of ours. What is happiness? The word is derived from “hap.” It may signify a happening of any kind, good or bad. Luck and hap stand to each... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou shalt be hid from the scourge of the tongue._ THE SCOURGE OF THE TONGUE I. The scourge. “The scourge of the tongue.” 1. There is the lying tongue. It perverts facts. It turns the lame out of the way and misleads the blind. 2. There is the cursing tongue. 3. There is the obscene tongue. 4... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thy tabernacle shall be in peace._ RETURNING FROM A JOURNEY These words may be considered as a promise made to a good man, with regard to his absence from home. When he goes a journey at the call of providence, he may leave all his concerns with the Lord whom he serves, for He will guide his steps... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou shalt come to thy grave in a full age._ THE DEATH OF THE CHRISTIAN I. Death is inevitable. “Thou shalt come.” This remark is very trite, simple, and common. But while this is a truth so well known, there is none so much forgotten. II. Death to the christian is always acceptable. “Thou shalt... [ Continue Reading ]
_Lo this, we have searched it, so it is; hear It, and know thou it for thy good._ “SO IT IS” Thus closed a forcible speech by Eliphaz the Temanite; it may be called his “summing up.” He virtually says, “What I have testified in the name of my friends is no dream of theirs. Upon this matter we are... [ Continue Reading ]