here attain to this eternall blisse in the life that is to come which is indeed that happinesse that can only fully satisfie mens immortal souls and perfectly free them from the feare of death and all other miseries they are liable to that is by fearing God and keeping his commandments and to the end they may be very serious herein by thinking often of death and judgement This is that I say to which Solomon in the next place passeth And accordingly first to make way thereto in this verse he premiseth that it is indeed a very comfortable and delightful thing to enjoy the benefits of this present life especially when men have learnt to free themselves from the vanities here below according to the directions formerly given And then in the next he proceeds to shew that though life be thus sweet yet they must remember that this life will have an end and death and judgement will follow and that therefore they cannot be compleatly happy unlesse by the due consideration of this they provide to secure unto themselves that happinesse which is to follow after this life is ended Vers 8. But if a man live many yeares and rejoyce in them all c. As if he should have said Suppose this should be so which is indeed very unlikely yet let him remember the dayes of darkness that is of death and the grave for it is opposed to the light and the beholding of the Sun mentioned in the foregoing verse for they shall be many that is truly many indeed many more then the dayes of the man that liveth longest can be because in the grave the house of darknesse the dead must continue till the day of the generall resurrection and if men dye in their sinnes they must continue in outer darknesse unto all eternity All that cometh is vanity that is This sheweth that all men that come into the world and all that befalls men here in this world is no better then meer vanity because they must all passe away man must dye and no man knoweth how little a while his life and prosperity shall continue So that the drift of the whole verse is to shew that though men live never so long and in never so great prosperity yet it is meer folly over much to delight herein because these things will not last alwayes the dayes of darknesse will come and when they come then it will be seen how vaine and transitory this life and the pleasures thereof were yea if men would seriously think of those dayes comparing them with the short time of mans abode here they must needs yield that this life and the delights thereof are meer vanity and even as nothing Vers 9. Rejoyce O young man in thy youth and let thy heart cheare thee in the dayes of thy youth c. Because young men are most apt only to mind the pleasures of this present life and to put off the thoughts of death unto old age therefore Solomon gives this warning particularly to them Some conceive that this is spoken by way of serious advice Rejoyce O young man c. As if he had said I would not restraine thee from the lawfull delights and comforts of thy youth Be joyfull and live chearfully so thou doest it with moderation and sobriety as still remembring thy latter end and the judgement that will follow But rather this is spoken ironically by way of scorne and derision as indeed many expressions of that kind we find elswhere in the Scripture as 1 Kings 18.27 22.15 Matth. 26.45 As if he had said Thou hast heard that the dayes of mans living here are nothing in comparison of the dayes of darknesse that will follow Now if thou wilt not be admonished hereby but hereupon resolvest that because thou must dye therefore thou wilt take thy fill of pleasure whilst thou livest Doe so take thy course live as young men use to doe in all jollity and pleasure and walk in the wayes of thy heart and in the sight of thine eyes that is Doe what ever thou hast a mind and desire to doe follow after every thing thou seest and is pleasing in thine eyes deny not thy selfe any thing which thine heart can desire or thine eyes look after see the Note Chap. 2.10 but know thou that is be thou unquestionably assured of this that for all these things that is for thy mis-spent youth and all those vaine and sinfull courses wherein now thou takest such content and delight God will bring thee into judgement that is Dye thou must thou knowest not how soon and after death God will bring thee whether thou wilt or no to stand before his tribunall at the last great day of judgement there to answer for all that thou hast done and to receive the just reward of all thine evill wayes and there will be no avoyding it Vers 10. Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart c. Or as it is in the margin of our Bibles remove anger from thy heart and then the warning is that young men should beware of rash and unadvised anger because young men are naturally thorough heate of blood prone to be furious herein and violent upon revenge and especially of being enraged against those that reprove them and would take them off from their sinfull pleasures yea and under this all other sinfull passions and perturbations of mind may be comprehended But if we reade it as it is in our Translation Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart then the advice is that young men should avoyd all sinnes and sinfull pleasures which though they may be pleasing for a time yet they will stirre up Gods indignation against them and so will at last overwhelm their hearts with sorrow And put away evill from thy flesh that is abandon all fleshly lusts and pleasures let not the members of thy body be imployed as weapons of unrighteousnesse in the service of sin And so as in the former clause the inward distempers of the heart so here likewise the sinnes of the outward man are forbidden Or avoyd those sinfull pleasures which will at last wast thy strength and ruine thy body or bring the wrath of God upon thee For childhood and youth are vanity that is foolish violently carried after pleasures that end in destruction and subject to many corruptions and besides that age doth soone vanish and passe away CHAP. XII Vers 1. REmember now thy Creator in the dayes of thy youth c. Having in the latter end of the foregoing Chapter diswaded young men from youthful lusts here he exhorts them to a constant fixing of their minds upon God as a powerful means not onely to restrain them from evil but also to quicken them in the doing of that which God requires of them and the argument that he useth to presse them hereto is covertly couched in those words thy Creator for 1. Because God made us and we received our being from him and so are
their young years And indeed some Expositours conceive that this last is solely intended in these words and so they conceive that the same thing that is affirmed in the first clause they die in youth is repeated again in other tearms in the second clause and their life is among the unclean that is they are cut off amongst such as themselves wanton youngsters that live in all kind of uncleannesse And some think also that Elihu hath reference in these words to the destruction of Sodome Vers 17. But thou hast fulfilled the judgement of the wicked c. That is thou hast carried thy self as wicked men use to doe thy course hath been just like theirs or thou hast judged as wicked men use to doe in censuring the waies of Gods Providence towards thee It seems to be the same in effect with that which he had said before chap. 34.8 that Job went in company with the workers of iniquity whereupon he adds judgement and justice take hold on thee as if he should have said you see what you get by speaking so desperately of God the just indignation of God hath already seized upon thee Vers 18. Because there is wrath beware lest he take thee away with his stroke That is Because thou hast shown such wrath and indignation against God or rather Because though God be very long-suffering and patient yet there is wrath with God as well as mercy and patience or because Gods wrath is already broken forth upon thee take heed that thou dost not provoke him farther even to the cutting of thee off Vers 19. Will he esteem thy riches no not gold nor all the forces of strength That is As thou canst not by thy wealth so neither by any force or strength be delivered when once thou art cut off or when once God hath determined to cut thee off Vers 20. Desire not the night when people are cut off in their place There are severall Expositions given of these words which being considered apart by themselves the words would well enough bear as first that Elihu counsels Iob that he should not desire the night as thieves and robbers do that he might doe mischief therein when poor men are usually cut off in their places by those that unexpectedly break in upon them secondly that he adviseth him not to desire the night of other mens afflictions and tribulations that taking advantage thereof he should cut them off in the places where they live thirdly that he calls upon him not to desire the night as thinking to find thereby some ease in his miseries since there is no looking for ease as long as God is angry with him and God even in a night doth often cut off whole nations at least many people together and therefore may easily cut off him and fourthly that he wills him not to desire the night that is not to desire to know the night when people are cut off in their place not curiously to enquire into the cause of that judgement of God when in a night sometimes whole nations or multitudes of people are cut off in their place they need not be driven forth or scattered abroad into strange countries they melt away in their own place and hereby he would intimate that Job should not make so strange of it nor be so eager to know why he being a good man should be so sorely afflicted But because in the foregoing verses Elihu had warned Iob to take heed that he did not provoke God utterly to cut him off therefore I rather think this to be the meaning of the words Desire not the night when people are cut off in their place that is Desire not death which is the common passage of all men and by the stroke whereof men are utterly cut off and so if they be not in the better condition do perish eternally as if he had said so farre you are from fearing Gods cutting you off that you desire it but take heed of this c. Vers 21. Take heed regard not iniquity c. That is affect not this murmuring against God and desiring death and quarrelling against his proceedings for this hast thou chosen rather then affliction to wit in that he chose to contend with God rather then patiently to bear his afflictions Vers 22. Behold God exalteth by his power c. This may be understood two severall waies to wit either that God exalteth and magnifyeth himself or his works by his power that is that by the manifestation of his almighty power God sheweth himself to be a great God and his works appear exceeding glorious and then the drift of this clause is to put Job in mind that therefore there is no reasoning nor contending with him or else rather that God doth often by his great power exalt those that are afflicted and cast down and then the drift of the words is to intimate to Job that God was able to exalt him and that if ever he were raised again from his low condition it was God that must doe it in regard whereof it was fitter that he should humble himself before God and seek his favour rather then quarrell against him for that which he had done to him And then in the next clause it is said who teacheth like him either because God being omniscient and knowing all things of himself must needs teach better then man that knoweth but in part and as he receives from others or because God enlightneth the mind and effectually teacheth the heart which no man can doe or because God teacheth men by the afflictions he layes upon them and then the drift of this last clause is to imply that as God is great in power so he is of incomprehensible wisedome and that men should content themselves with that which God teacheth and not search into those things which are above their reach and especially that it was a mere folly to murmure against any of Gods proceedings as if man could teach God how to govern the world and that Iob might learn much by the afflicting hand of God if the fault were not in himself yea that particular lesson that none could raise him but God was clearly taught him in that all the while he was so impatient he was still kept in such a helplesse condition Vers 23. Who hath enjoyned him his way This is alledged to prove that therefore none can controll or condemn what he doth concerning which see the Note chap. 34.13 Vers 24. Remember that thou magnifie his work which men behold That is Instead therefore of searching into Gods secrets busie thy self rather in magnifying those works which lye open to every mans view and this may be meant of the works of God in generall or of the heaven in particular the meteors rain and thunder and lightning whereof he speaks in the following verses Vers 25. Every man may see it man may behold it afarre off That is the heaven or it may be better understood of
nothing but disappointment and vexation of spirit here he undertakes to prescribe remedies against these vanities Though in the foregoing discourse he had here and there inserted some generall remedies as for men to feare God and comfortably to enjoy that portion of these outward things which God hath been pleased to bestow upon them yet here now he prescribes more particularly severall meanes for the healing at least for the allaying of the vanities and miseries whereto man is subject and for the procuring of the happinesse of a peaceable and contented mind so farre as it is attainable in this life And it is not improbable that from that which he had said in the end of the foregoing chapter he takes occasion here to insert these Rules of direction for having said there that no man knoweth what is good for him here thereupon he undertakes to teach men what is good for them and by what meanes they may come to live with as much content and comfort as in this world can reasonably be expected And the two first Directions he gives is concerning mens care for the procuring and preserving of a good name and for learning not to feare death which is the common end of all mankind A good name is better then precious ointment that is then the choicest of all riches and outward delights See the Notes Pro. 15.30 22.1 for because precious aromatical ointments were very highly esteemed amongst the Israelites and thence it is that they are reckoned amongst Hezekiahs treasures 2 King 20.13 therefore a precious ointment may be figuratively put here for all kind of riches and bodily delights But yet they may be preferred before a precious ointment particularly with respect to the qualities of such precious oyntments as 1. Because whereas sweet oyntments are very delightful and do exceedingly chear and refresh the spirits of men so the fragancy of a good name doth much revive and comfort the heart of those that are highly extolled for their goodnesse and piety and of those that hear the good report that is given of them yea the sweet savour of a mans good name will spread farther and continue longer then the smell of the best ointment can do this may fill the house as it is said of the ointment wherewith Mary anointed the feet of Christ Joh. 12.3 but the other may fill both town and countrey Rom. 1.8 Your faith is spoken of thorowout the world this may leave a sweet sent behind it for some few hours but the other will continue fresh many years yea even after the party himself is deceased so that as oyntments by embalming do help to preserve for a time the dead bodies of men so a good name doth in this regard make men live as it were after they are dead Pro. 10.7 The memory of the just is blessed but the name of the wicked shall rot 2. Because as oyntment doth cause a mans face to shine and to appear the more beautiful in the eyes of others so when men are renowned for their wisdom and pietie and good works it makes their face to shine chap. 8.1 it causeth others highly to esteem and reverence and admire them 3. Because as such oyntments do supple the flesh and sinewes and make men nimble and fit for any exercise or service so a good name doth much quicken and enliven men and makes men active and vigorous both for all publick and private imployments and 4. Because as such oyntments are of a healing nature so a good name is very effectual to heal the venome of backbiting tongues and the heart of a man when it is broken and wounded with divers other sorrowes As for the following clause some joyn it with the former thus As a good name is better then precious ointment so the day of death is better then the day of ones birth And others also understand the second in a limited sense with respect unto the former to wit that the day of death is in this regard better then the day of ones birth because after death a good mans name doth especially flourish whilst they live their name may be overclouded with envy but when they die the general applause of those that survive them doth dispel those clouds and their name spreads abroad like the spices when they are broken or the sweet perfume of some precious oyntment But it is better to understand it more generally that the day of death is better then the day of ones birth because death freeth men from all the sinnes miseries and vexations of this life whereinto mens birth giveth them their first entrance men are born to trouble Job 5.7 but death puts an end to all the troubles of this life And so the drift of this clause may be either to discover the vanity of riches by shewing that the day whereon a man is taken from all his wealth is better then that day whereon he first enters upon the enjoying of these outward things or else to arm men against that great vanity of this life the fear of death by shewing that the day of death is to good men especially men of a good name that have an entrance thereby to eternal glory where all tears shall be wiped away from their eyes a far greater advantage then the day of their birth whereon there useth to be so much rejoycing Vers 2. It is better to go to the house of mourning then to go to the house of feasting c. That is to a house where there is mourning for some near relation that is there deceased as appears by the following words and so likewise by the house of feasting may be peculiarly meant the houses where there are birth-day feasts kept that so this clause may fully answer that in the close of the foregoing verse the day of death is better then the day of ones birth though I conceive it may well enough be extended to all houses of feasting whatsoever It is true indeed that at feasts many occasions may be taken for holy and good Meditations But yet because at feasts there are usually all sorts of vanity and provocations to vanity and when mens spirits are disposed to chearfulnesse they are then most exposed to lightnesse and sad objects make deeper impression upon our spirits and particularly because at feasts men are apt either to put farre away the evill-day as it is said of those prophane feasters Amos 6.3 to keep the thought of death out of their minds the meditation whereof is most usefull for men or else to slight it and make a jeast of it as those Isa 22.13 Let us eate and drink for to morrow we shall dye therefore it is better to goe to the house of mourning then to goe to the house of feasting And this is indeed the reason that is here given for that is the end of all men to wit death and the living will lay it to heart that is in all probability because the sight of
justifying of God and that because he had already spoken a long time together Vers 3. I will fetch my knowledge from afarre c. As if he should have said In declaring what I know concerning the Question in hand namely whether thou hast done well in charging God for dealing too severely with thee I will open the matter as it were from the very foundations But yet what he means by these words from afarre it is not easie to determine Some think that his meaning was that he would utter nothing but what by inspiration from God he knew to be so he would not speak what he in his reason might apprehend to be right but what he had by speciall enlightning from above and therefore was sure it was true And then again others understand it thus that he would fetch his proofs for the justifying of God from the eternall nature of God or from the works of creation as we see towards the end of this chapter he argues from those meteors of rain thunder and lightning c. and these things he calls knowledge from afarre either because the things he meant to speak of were of a high nature farre remote from us and not easily comprehended by humane reason or because they were such things as had been from the first creation yea as concerning the nature of God from all eternity or because they might seem to be farre from the matter in question though indeed they were principles and generall grounds from whence that truth which he was to maintain might be unquestionably concluded and proved As for the following clause and will ascribe righteousnesse to my maker in these words my maker Elihu implyes that in regard he had his being from God he was bound to plead his cause and withall he might intend thereby covertly to charge Job with being ungratefully injurious to his Creatour Vers 4. For truly my words shall not be false he that is perfect in knowledge is with thee This last clause many good Expositours understand of God and so hold that Elihu doth hereby put Job in mind either that he had to deal with God who was perfect in knowledge as being omniscient who could not therefore through any mistake deal unjustly with him or that God who was perfect in knowledge spake now to him by him that he would not speak any thing of his own head but what he received by inspiration from God in whose stead he now spake unto him But more generally it is held that Elihu doth modestly here speak of himself in the third person as the Apostle also doth 2 Cor. 12.2 3. He that is perfect in knowledge is with thee as if he should have said You have one to argue with you that is found in judgement and sincere in his intentions towards you one that understands the cause we have in hand throughly and that will in all things deal uprightly with you Vers 5. Behold God is mighty and despiseth not any he is mighty in strength and wisedome How Gods justice may be proved from his power and wisedome see in the Note chap. 9.4 Here these two are joyned together God is mighty and despiseth not any to shew that as he needs not fear those that are great so neither doth he despise either great or small because of his own supereminent greatnesse he makes not so light esteem of any as therefore to afflict them causelesly or not to care what injury he doth them And herein also it may well be that Elihu had respect to some speeches of Jobs wherein he might apprehend that Job had complained of God that he carried all by his absolute power and that by reason of the dread thereof he could not plead his cause before him as chap. 10.3 Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppresse that thou shouldest despise the work of thine hands and chap. 30.21 Thou art become cruell to me with thy strong hand thou opposest thy self against me and in divers other places Vers 6. He preserveth not the life of the wicked but giveth right to the poor That is He doth not safeguard them in favour as esteeming them precious in his sight though he may see cause to keep them alive for a time but he pleads the poors cause against them though a while he may let them be oppressed Vers 7. He withdraweth not his eyes from the righteous c. That is He never forgets nor forsakes them but with Kings are they on the throne yea he doth establish them for ever that is he continues them even unto death in those places of dignity whereto he hath advanced them and often too their children after them As for the last clause and they are exalted the meaning of that is either that thus they are exalted maugre all opposition that may be made against them or that being thus advanced they rise in power and glory still more and more Some understand it of their exaltation to heavenly glory after death and others of their being puffed up in their minds and spirits but the former Expositions are more probable Vers 8. And if they be bound in fetters c. That is If the righteous whether those that God had exalted or others come to be streightned with affliction It is probable that he alludes to that expression of Jobs Thou puttest my feet in the stocks chap. 13.27 Vers 12. But if they obey not they shall perish by the sword c. That is God shall slay them in his anger and they shall die without knowledge that is in their folly not knowing why Gods hand is upon them or for their folly because they would not learn by Gods corrections Yet most probably it is thought by some that Elihu still speaks here of the just mentioned before vers 7. who indeed may be cut off by death for their folly according to that of the Apostle 1 Cor. 11.30 31 32. for this cause many are weak and sickly among you and many sleep and that he speaks not of the wicked till the following verse Vers 13. But the hypocrites in heart heap up wrath c. That is say some Expositours they grow more and more enraged against God But rather the meaning is that they by their obstinacy and sinning more and more yea even in their afflictions do treasure up wrath to themselves against the day of wrath they cry not when he bindeth them that is they call not upon God when he afflicts them as not acknowledging that God doth punish them for their sins or being every way of irreligious and profane spirits Vers 14. They die in youth and their life is among the unclean Or among the Sodomites The meaning is that their life is cut off after the same manner as those are cut off that are most hatefull to God and man as being most abominably wicked namely that they are punished with as much severity and are cut off by some vile and shamefull death and that in