_A.M. 2484. B.C. 1520._ Sin occasions destruction, Job 5:1. Affliction is the common lot of mankind, Job 5:6; Job 5:7. In affliction we should fly to God, who is both able and willing to help, Job 5:8. He will deliver them that trust in him, Job 5:17.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Call now_, &c. Wouldst thou know the reason why I relate to thee this night vision? I do it with an intent that thou mayest apply it to thyself, and thy present circumstances. Thou hast heard how weak and imperfect the best of men must be in comparison with God, but if this does not satisfy thee, i... [ Continue Reading ]
_For wrath killeth the foolish man_, &c. That is, say some, a man's wrath and impatience prey upon his spirit, and so hasten his death. But the meaning seems rather to be, as Bishop Patrick observes, that “God in his anger and indignation destroys the wicked, and such as err from his precepts.” It i... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have seen the foolish taking root_ I have observed the wicked man, whom I term foolish, as being destitute of true, that is, of heavenly, wisdom, not only prosperous for the present, but, as it seemed, firm and secure for the future, being strongly fortified with power and riches, and children to... [ Continue Reading ]
_His children_ Whose greatness he designed in all his enterprises, supposing his family would be established for ever; _are far from safety_ Are exposed to dangers and calamities, and can neither preserve themselves, nor the inheritance which their fathers left them. There is no question but he glan... [ Continue Reading ]
_Whose harvest_ Which they confidently expected to reap after all their cost and labour; _The hungry eateth up_ The hungry Sabeans, or the poor, whose necessities make them greedy and ravenous to eat it all up; so that he can never recover it, or any thing in recompense of it. As if he had said, The... [ Continue Reading ]
_Although affliction cometh not forth_ out _of the dust_ The word און, _aven_, here rendered _affliction_, rather signifies _iniquity_, and the clause is literally, _Iniquity cometh not forth out of the dust; neither doth trouble spring out of the ground_ That is, says Dr. Dodd, “As the wickedness... [ Continue Reading ]
_Yet man is born to trouble_, &c. He is so commonly exposed to various troubles, as if he were born to no other end: affliction is become natural to man, and is transmitted from parents to children, as their constant inheritance; God having allotted this portion to mankind for their sins. And theref... [ Continue Reading ]
_I would seek unto God_, &c. If I were in thy condition, instead of accusing the dispensations of Divine Providence, and repining under them, I would apply to God, by a full and free confession of those sins which have drawn this sad calamity upon me, and by sincere repentance, humiliation, and subm... [ Continue Reading ]
_Which doth great things and unsearchable_ Here Eliphaz enters upon a discourse of the infinite perfection of God's nature and works; which he does as an argument to enforce the exhortation to _seek and commit his cause to God, Job 5:8_, because God was infinitely able either to punish him yet far w... [ Continue Reading ]
_Who giveth rain upon the earth_ He begins with this ordinary work of God, in which he implies that there is something wonderful, as indeed there is, in the rise of it from the earth, in the strange hanging of that heavy body in the air, and in the distribution of it as God sees fit; and how much mo... [ Continue Reading ]
_To set up on high those that be low_ The consequences which proceed from the fore-mentioned happy change, from God's sending a refreshing rain upon the earth, after a long drought are inexpressibly great and beneficial. Those who had been reduced to straits and difficulties, and, by the pressing ne... [ Continue Reading ]
_He disappointeth the devices of the crafty_ On the contrary, he defeats the craftiest designs of evil and subtle men to exalt themselves. They may place a great deal of confidence in their own abilities, and, without any regard to the overruling hand of Providence, may imagine that their good or ba... [ Continue Reading ]
_He taketh the wise in their own craftiness_ Men wise to do evil, or wise in the opinion of the world; he not only deceives their hopes and counsels, but turns those counsels against themselves. _And the counsel of the froward_ Hebrew, _Of the perverse_, or _wrestlers_, such as _wind_ and _turn_ eve... [ Continue Reading ]
_But he saveth the poor_, &c. According to the order in which the words stand in the Hebrew, the translation is, _But he saveth from the sword, from their mouth, and from the hand of the mighty, the poor._ Schultens thinks it should be interpreted, _from the sword which proceedeth out of their mouth... [ Continue Reading ]
_So the poor_, &c. Hebrews ותהי לדל, _vatehi ladal, even to the poor there is hope: Dal_ signifies one who is deprived of his strength or power, either by poverty or sickness: in Arabic, He who is submissive, and humbles himself in a low, abject manner. Here the interpretation seems to be, _Even the... [ Continue Reading ]
_Behold_ Consider, for what I am saying, though most true and important, will not be believed, without serious consideration. Eliphaz concludes his discourse with giving Job a comfortable hope of deliverance from his troubles, and of restoration to his former, or even a greater state of prosperity,... [ Continue Reading ]
_For he maketh sore_, &c. God's usual method is first to wound and then to heal, first to convince and then to comfort, first to humble and then to exalt. And he never makes a wound too great, too deep, for himself to cure. _He will deliver thee_ If thou seek to him by prayer and repentance; _in six... [ Continue Reading ]
_In famine he shall redeem thee from death_ From that terrible kind of death. Eliphaz might think that Job feared perishing by want, as being so poor, that he needed the contributions of his friends for his relief. _And in war from the sword_ These things he utters with more confidence, because the... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou shalt be hid_ Protected, as in some secret and safe place; _from the scourge of the tongue_ From false accusations, and virulent slanders and reproaches. _Neither shalt thou be afraid of destruction_ Thou shalt have no cause to fear it, because God will secure thee in it and from it: _when it... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou shalt be in league with the stones of the field_ Thou shalt be free from any annoyance thereby, as if they had made an inviolable league with thee. It is a bold metaphor, but such are frequent in the Scriptures, as also in other authors. _And the beasts of the field shall be at peace with thee... [ Continue Reading ]
_And thou shalt know_ By certain and constant experience; _that thy tabernacle shall be in peace_ That is, thy habitation, as it follows, including also the inhabitants, children or friends, and servants. They shall enjoy great safety from all their enemies, and concord among themselves, and prosper... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou shalt know_ By assurance from God's promises, the impressions of his Spirit, and by experience, in due time, _that thy seed shall be great_ Thy posterity, which God shall give thee, instead of those whom thou hast lost, shall be high, and honourable, and powerful: or, _shall be many_, as רב, _... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou shalt come to thy grave in a full age:_ &c. Heath translates it, _In old age shalt thou come to the sepulchre, as the corn is heaped upon the thrashing-floor in its season._ Thou shalt die in a mature and old, though vigorous age, as the word implies. It is a great blessing to live to a full a... [ Continue Reading ]
_Lo this, we have searched out_ It is not my single opinion, but my brethren concur with me, as thou wilt hear from their own mouths. And it is no rash or hasty conceit, but what we have learned by deep consideration, long experience, and diligent observation. _Know thou it for thy good_ Know it _fo... [ Continue Reading ]