Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	woman_n	work_n	work_v	43	3	5.9771	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A35537	An exposition with practical observations continued upon the thirty-fifth, thirty-sixth, and thirty-seventh chapters of the book of Job being the substance of thirty-five lectures / by Joseph Caryl ...	Caryl, Joseph, 1602-1673.	1664 (1664)	Wing C776; ESTC R15201	593,041	687

book at the second verse as the servant earnestly desireth the shadow c. When a labourer is hot and sweltered almost as we say at his work in the Sun how earnestly doth he desire the shadow We say in the Margine of that place he gapeth after the shadow A man when he is hot gapes to suck in fresh air Such an intendment and force there is in this word desire not long not for gape not after the night The night seems not to be a thing or a season so desireable that we should gape for it or long after it Solomon saith Eccl. 11.7 Surely light is pleasant and it is a comfortable thing for the eyes to behold the Sun but who hath a desire after the night what is the beauty or comeliness of the night that any should so much desire it why then doth Elihu here forbid Job as supposing he did to desire it desire not the night I answer the night may be taken two wayes or under a twofold notion First properly as that which casteth a vail or mantle of darkness over both persons and things and covers them from our sight in allusion to which the sense is this Do not hope to hide or conceal thy self from the eye or knowledge of God As thou canst not be ransomed as thou canst not be rescued from his power which was shewed before so desire not the night for thou canst not be obscured from his knowledge under the covert of it there is no hiding from God Though I judge that interpretation too gross which supposeth Elihu counselling Job not to desire the night as robbers and adultere●s to cover him while doing wickedly yet possibly he might think Job was not so free to confess the evils which he had done and therefore rather desired the concealment of them Secondly the night in Scripture as also in humane Authors is put improperly for death All the dead are wrapt up in a night of darkness Hence that counsel John 9.4 Work while you have the day the night cometh when no man can work We may work yea much work is done in the natural night It is said of the vertuous woman Prov. 31.18 Her candle goes not out by night she and her maids are at work in the night therefore it cannot be strictly meant that no man can work in the night The night there is the night of death Ne aspires ad illam noctem sc mortis qua abeunt populi ad locum suum Jun. Qua e medio tolluntur populi in lo●o ipsorum Pisc or of an extream troublous life in these nights especially in the former no man can work for there is no wisdom nor device nor labour in the grave whether we are going Eccl. 9.10 According to this Scripture interpretation desire not the night is desire not death Job had put forth such desires more than once Chap. 7.15 My soul chooseth strangling and death rather than life Mr. Broughton translates Breath not unto that night for peoples passage to their place That is saith he desire not death the common passage of all men as thou hast done Therefore Elihu seems here to call Job off from those desires do not thou peevi●hly or impatiently because of the trouble of thy life call for death lest it come too soon and it do by thee as it hath done by many others whom it hath cut off in judgment So it followes here Desire not the night When people are cut off in their place Death is a cutting off As many die in the night so when-ever any die they are cut off from this world and all the imployments of it they are cut off from their dearest friends and relations Death cuts off the thread of life and us from the comforts of this life The Hebrew is when people ascend The Original Scripture expresseth dying by ascending though the death of the wicked is rather a descending Verbum 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ascendere pro excidi tolli ●umitur It is said by a late Writer concerning the heathen profane and wicked Emperors of Rome Such a one descended that is died in such a year of his abomination Now though the wicked descend when they die yet there is a sence also wherein all men may be said to ascend when they die and there is no doubt but the godly as to their more noble part ascend to God when they die Thus the word is used in the fifth Chapter of this Book at the 16th verse where Eliphaz speaking of the death of a godly man saith to Job Thou shalt come to thy grave in a full age like as a shock of corn cometh or ascendeth in his season David deprecated an immature death under this Metaphor Psal 102.14 Take me not away in the midst of mine age The word is let me not ascend in the midst of mine age that is before I have measured the usual course of life Translatio a condelis quarum lumen ascendit atque ita paulatim consumuntur ipsa Thus to ascend is the same with to be cut off death cuts off the best from this world and then they ascend to a better This sense of the words suits well with the latter exposition of the night as taken for the night of death The word ascend is conceived to have in it a double allusion first to corn which is taken up by the hand of the reaper and then laid down on the stubble Secondly unto the light of a candle which as the candle spends or as that which is the food of the fire is spending ascends and at last goes out and vanisheth There is yet a further sense of the whole verse thus Desire not the night c. That is do not curiously enquire the cause of that divine judgement by which God sometimes sweeps away whole nations good and bad together in the night or suddenly Or thus disquiet not thy mind in the night but rather rest in the will of God when thou seest or hearest of those great destructions which come upon persons or nations 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Sub subter saepe significat in loco Desire not the night when people are cut off in their place that is when they die in or are removed from the place where they formerly lived and had their abode in which sense it is said of the dead their place shall know them no more Psal 103.16 How well soever any are setled death cuts them off in their place First Forasmuch as Elihu speaking to Job in this distressed estate wishes him not to desire the night Observe In times of distress and trouble we are apt to make many strange wishes or to express uncouth requests and desires The Prophet Jeremiah quits himself from this in one point chap. 17.16 I have not desired the woful day Lord thou knowest He was so far from desiring it that he prayed for the peace and prosperity of that people but though

make our lives comfortable to us I answer Secondly This promise or promises of a like nature were fitted to the time wherein Elihu spake he spake of the times long before Christs appearing in the flesh when the Lord did as it were lead on his people very much by promises of temporal and outward prosperity of which the Scripture is more sparing in the new Testament where we are come to the fulness of Christ and the riches of the grace of God to us in him of which there is but li●tle comparatively spoken in the old Testament And therefore under that darker dispensation of spirituals the Lord saw it good to encourage that people to obedience by a multitude of very particular outward promises as we may read Deut. 28. He would bless their basket and their store the fruit of the field c. These promises were suted to the state of that under-age people who were led on and enticed by visible and sensible blessings as we do children with toyes and Gaudees and indeed all visible enjoyments are but such in comparison of spirituals Believers under the Gospel being come to a higher state to fuller attainments the promises made to them run not much in that channel yet it cannot be denied that the Gospel also holds out promises for temporals as well as the Law and this latter dispensation of the Covenant as well as the former hath provided sufficiently for our outward comforts Thirdly For answer let us consider the drift of the Spirit of God in this promise of pleasure Job had often complained of his own sorrowfull condition and concluded himself a man of sorrow for all the remainder of his dayes though his faith was strong for the resurrection of his body after death yet he had little if any faith at all that he should be raised out of that miserable estate wherein he was in this life He also had spoken somewhat rashly and amiss concerning the dealings of God with his servants in general as if nothing but trouble and sorrow did attend them and that the wicked went away with all the sweet and good of this world Now Elihu to take him off from these sad and almost despairing thought● as to the return of his own comforts and to rectifie his judgement in the general poynt as to the dealings of God with others he assureth Job that if righteous men being bound in fetters c. hear and obey God will break those bonds and cut the cords of their affliction and they shall spend the remainder of their dayes in prosperity and the rest of their years in pleasures So that Elihu in holding out this promise to Job would rather clear his judgement from an error concerning the lastingness or continuance of his pains and sorrows than heat his affections in the expectation of joyes and pleasures in this world Fourthly I answer Though the people of God have nor alwayes dayes of such outward prosperity nor years of such sensitive pleasures yet they have that which is better and if they have no pleasures they do not want them The Apostle could say Phil. 4.11 I have learned in what state scever I am therewith to be content What is pleasure if content be not We may have outward pleasures yet no content but he that hath content within cannot miss of pleasure A man may have riches but no contentment but he that hath contentment is very rich 1 Tim. 6.6 Godliness with contentment is great gaine and great gaine is prosperity this great gaine this heart-pleasure or soul-rest contentment is the assured portion of those who obey and serve the Lord what-ever their outward portion be in this world And he may be said to spend his dayes in good and his years in pleasure who hath these pure gaines of gracious contentment resting the soul in God in all conditions The life of man that is the comfort of his life doth not consist in the abundance of that which he possesseth Luke 12.15 or in sense-pleasures but in that sweet composure and sedateness of his soul resting by faith in the promises of God or rather in the God of the promises and so sucking sweetness from them Lastly As though a servant of God should be exercised with sorrows all the dayes of his life yet he cannot be said to spend his dayes in sorrow because he meets with many refreshing intervalls and shines of favour from the face of God in the midst of those clouds so he may be said to spend his dayes in pleasure because at least when his dayes here are spent he consummates his dayes which is one signification of the word by an entrance into everlasting pleasures So much for the answer of these questions concerning this promise They shall spend their dayes in prosperity and their years in pleasure From the promise it self Note Fi●st Obedience to God is profitable to man God hath no profit by our Obedience but we have God doth not call us to serve him in his work as we call servants to do our work to get his living by us or better himself no the Lord calls us to serve him and obey him for our own good They consult their own good best who do most good I may say these three things of those who do good and what is serving God but doing of good or what is doing good but serving God First they shall receive true good Secondly they shall for ever hold the best good the chief good they shall not only spend their dayes and years in good but when their dayes and years are spent they shall have good and a greater good than any they had in spending the dayes and years of this life they shall have good in death they shall come to a fuller enjoyment of God the chief Good when they have left and let fall the possession of all earthly goods Thirdly they that do good shall find all things working together for their good if they have a loss they shall receive good by it if they bear a Cross that shall bear good Outward troubles cannot disturb much less pollute our spiritual good for All things work together for good to them that love God who are the called according to his purpose Rom. 8.28 Surely then the service of God is a gainful service a profitable service though the work may be hard and the way painful yet the wages will be sweet and the end pleasant The contemplation of this put David upon putting that question Psal 34.12 13. What man is he that desireth life and loveth many dayes that he may see good that is that he may enjoy good keep thy tongue from evil and thy mouth that it speak no guile depart from evil and do good The Psalmist makes Proclamation What man is he that would have good let him do good let him obey and serve God and he shall have good Again Consider the Promise in relation to the Persons described vers 8 9 10. They