Job 3:9

_LET THE STARS OF THE TWILIGHT THEREOF BE DARK; LET IT LOOK FOR LIGHT, BUT HAVE NONE; NEITHER LET IT SEE THE DAWNING OF THE DAY:_ Dawning of the day - literally, eyelashes of morning; х_ Bª`AP`APEEY_ (H6079)] eyelashes, х_ SHAACHAR_ (H7837)] morning. The Arab poets call the sun the eye of day. His early rays, therefore, breaking forth through the ruddy sky before sunrise, are the opening eyelids or eyelashes of morning....

1-10 For seven days Job's friends sat by him in silence, without offering consolidation: at the same time Satan assaulted his mind to shake his confidence, and to fill him with hard thoughts of God. The permission seems to have extended to this, as well as to torturing the body. Job was an especial type of Christ, whose inward sufferings, both in the garden and on the cross, were the most dreadful; and arose in a great degree from the assaults of Satan in that hour of darkness. These inward trials show the reason of the change that took place in Job's conduct, from entire submission to the will of God, to the impatience which appears here, and in other parts of the book. The believer, who knows that a few drops of this bitter cup are more dreadful than the sharpest outward afflictions, while he is favoured with a sweet sense of the love and presence of God, will not be surprised to find...

Verse Job 3:9. _LET THE STARS OF THE TWILIGHT THEREOF_] The stars of the twilight may here refer to the planets _Venus, Jupiter, Mars_, and _Mercury_, as well as to the brighter fixed stars. _LET IT LOOK FOR LIGHT_] Here the prosopopoeia or personification is still carried on. The _darkness_ is represented as _waiting_ for the lustre of the _evening star_, but is disappointed; and these for the _aurora_ or _dawn_, but equally in vain. He had prayed that its _light_, the _sun_, should not shine upon it, Job 3:4; and here he prays that its _evening star_ may be totally obscured, and that it might never see the _dawning of the day_. Thus his execration comprehends every thing that might _irradiate_ or _enliven_ it....

LET THE STARS OF THE TWILIGHT THEREOF BE DARK - That is, be extinguished, so that it shall be total darkness - darkness not even relieved by a single star. The word here rendered “twilight” נשׁף _nesheph_ means properly a breathing; and hence, the evening, when cooling breezes “blow,” or gently breathe. It is used however, to denote both the morning and the evening twilight, though here probably it means the latter. He wishes that the evening of that night, instead of being in any way illuminated, should “set in” with total darkness and continue so. The Septuagint renders it, “night. LET IT LOOK FOR LIGHT, BUT HAVE NONE - Personifying the night, and representing it as looking out anxiously for some ray of light. This is a beautiful poetic image - the image of “Night,” dark and gloomy and sad, anxiously looking out for a single beam or a star to break in upon its darknes

EXPOSITION The "Historical Introduction" ended, we come upon a long colloquy, in which the several _dramatis personae_ speak for themselves, the writer, or compiler, only prefacing each speech with a very few necessary words. The speeches are, one and all of them, metrical; and are well represented in the Revised Version. The first colloquy extends from Job 3:1 to Job 14:22. JOB 3:1 AFTER THIS OPENED JOB HIS MOUTH. The first to take the word is Job, as, indeed, etiquette made necessary, when the visit paid was one of condolence. It can only be conjectured what the feelings were which had kept him silent so long. We may, perhaps, suggest that in the countenances and manner of his fr

LET THE STARS OF THE TWILIGHT THEREOF BE DARK,.... Either of the morning or evening twilight; both may be meant, rather the latter, because of the following clause; the sense is, let not these appear to adorn the heavens, and to relieve the darkness of the night, and make it more pleasant and delightful, as well as to be useful to travellers and sailors: LET IT LOOK FOR LIGHT, BUT [HAVE] NONE; that is, either for the light of the moon and stars, to shine in the night till daybreak, or for the light of the sun at the time when it arises; but let it have neither; let the whole time, from sun setting to sunrising, from one twilight to another, be one continued gross and horrible darkness; here, by a strong and beautiful figure, looking is ascribed to the night: NEITHER LET IT SEE THE DAWNING OF THE DAY; or, "let it not see the eyelids of the morning" l, or what we call "peep of day"; here...

DAWNING Hebrew, "the eyelids of the morning." (Job 41:18)....

CHAPTER 3 JOB'S LAMENT _ 1. Job curses the day of his birth (Job 3:1)_ 2. He longs for death (Job 3:10) 3. The reason why (Job 3:24) Job 3:1. The silence is broken by Job. Alas! his lips do not utter praises now, but he cursed the day of his birth. It was a sore trial for Job to look into the faces of these pious friends, in perfect health and strength, and he, even more pious than they, stricken and smitten of God. It was an aggravation of Job's grief and sorrow. But let us notice though Job gives way to his feelings in this passionate outburst, he did not renounce God, nor is there a word of rebellion against Him. All through his a

JOB'S LAMENTATION. Here the later poem begins, and at once we pass into another world. The patient Job of the Volksbuch is gone, and we have instead one who complains bitterly that ever he was born. This cry of misery is thrice repeated, ever in deepening pathos (Job 3:1; Job 3:11; Job 3:20). JOB 3:1. The first cry of misery Would to God I had never been born. This is the idea when Job curses his day, and wishes it blotted out of existence. First he curses the day of his birth and the night of his conception together (Job 3:3) and then each separately, the day in two verses and th

DARK. Hebrew. _hashak._ See Job 3:4. LET IT LOOK. Figure of speech _Prosopopoeia._ App-6....