on earth praying for those that live on earth Job was alive in the body and so were those three men to whom the Lord said My servant Job shall pray for you The Lord having assured Eliphaz and his two friends that Job would pray for them giveth them encouâ—agement to go and desiâ—e his prayers by a gracious promise For saith he him will I accept and threatneth them in case they should forbear in the next words Lest I deal with you according to your folly in that ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right like my servant Job First Of the gracious promise him will I accept The Hebrew saith his face will I lift up Acceptation with God is the lifting up of the face of man then man lifteth up his face with boldness when he is accepted with God When God refused to accept Cain and his offering his countenaâ—ce fell or was cast down Gen. 4.5 Unless the Lord lift up the light of his countenance upon us as David prayed Psal 4.6 we cannot with any comfort much less with true confidence lift up our face or countenance unto God That 's the significancy of the word Him will I accept God is no accepter of persons as the word is often used in Scripture Deut. 10.17 The Lord is a great God mighty and terrible which regardeth not persons It is the same phrase in the Hebrew with this in the Text he lifteth not up faces that is the Lord doth not accept persons upon any outward respect First The Lord doth not accept persons for their personableness as I may say the Lord doth not delight in any mans legs his delight is in them that fear him Psal 147.10 11. he doth not accept men for their goodly stature as he told Samuel when he would needs have poured the oile upon the first-born of the Sons of Jesse 1 Sam. 16.7 Look not on his countenance or on the height of his stature because I have refused him for the Lord seeth not as man seeth for man looketh on the outward appearance but the Lord looketh on the heart 'T is the beauty of holiness and integrity in the heart not the beauty of fairness upon the face with which God is taken 't is a lowly mind not a high stature which God accepts Secondly The Lord is no accepter of persons as to the nation or country where they were born or live Thus the Apostle Peter spake Acts 10.35 I perceive that God is no respecter of persons but in every Nation he that feareth him and worketh righteousness is accepted with him God doth not prefer Jews before Gentiles Barbarians or Scythians that a man had his birth in this or that Nation neither helps nor hinders acceptation with God Thirdly The Lord accepteth no mans person for his riches Prov. 11.4 Riches profit not in the day of wrath No mans person is acceptable to God for his purse or his penny no not at all Fouâ—thly The Lord â—ccepteth no mans person for his worldly greatness honour and dignity He poureth contempt upon Princes Psal 107.40 The day of the Lord is against the hills and mountains Isa 2.14 The great God regardeth not any man meerly for greatness the Lord accepts no mans person upon these or any such like accounts He only accepts the persons of those that fear him and do his will Suscipit faciem Deus quando precantem câ—audit The Lords acceptance of any person in the sense of this promise concerning Job is First To shew favour and manifest affection to him Secondly To honour aâ—d highly esteem him Thirdly Which is here specially intended to answer his prayers and grant his requests not only for himself but for others When a person is once accepted his prayers shall not be denied nor suffer a repulse The Lord accepteth persons as a King the persons of those loyal Subjects who come to intreat his favour and pardon for those that have offended him and rebelled against him he grants their suit and treats them fairly In this sense the Lord maketh promise to Eliphaz and his two friends that he will accept Job Hence Observe First It is a very high favour and priviledge to be accepted of God Him will I accept saith the Lord of Job This was a favour beyond all the favours that follow after in the close of the book about the doubling of his estate If Jacob Gen 32.20 was so taken with a hope of acceptance by his brother Esau Peradventure he will accept me If when he was accepted by Esau he said chap. 33.10 I have seen thy face as though I had seen the face of God and thou wast pleased with me Then how much more should we rejoyce in this assurance that God hath accepted of us and that he is pleased with us If the Apostle Rom. 15.3 prayed so earnestly and desired others to strive with him in prayer to God that his service which he had for Jerusalem might be accepted of the Saints then how much more should we pray that our services may be accepted of God and rejoyce when they are accepted The Apostle made it his chief work to get acceptation with God 2 Cor. 5.9 Wherefore we labour that whether present or absent that is whether living or dying we may be accepted with him we are ambitious of divine acceptation The word which we translate labour noteth a labouring after honour which ambitious men labour much after implying that to be accepted with the Lord is a very high honour indeed the highest honour There is a two-fold acceptation First Of our persons Secondly Of our services The former is the ground of the latter and Jesus Christ is the foundation of both Ephes 1.6 He through glorious grace hath made us accepted in the beloved Jesus Christ is so dearly beloved of the father that he is called The Beloved as if only beloved The acceptation of our services is often promised in Scripture as a high favouâ— Exod. 28.38 Ezek. 20.40 41. Isa 56.7 This Moses prayed for in the behalf of the Tribe of Levy which Tribe was appointed to offer sacrifice and to pray for the people Deut. 33.11 Bless Lord his substance and accept the work of his hands What was the work of Levies hands it was to offer sacrifice to which prayer and intercession was joyned That Levi who had the priest-hoâ—d fixed in the family of Aaron should be accepted in the work of his hands was a blessing not only to himself but to many more This David prayed earnestly for Psal 19.14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight O Lord my strength and my redeemer He put up a like prayer Psal 119.108 Accept I beseech thee the free-will-offerings of my mouth O Lord. This was the prayer of Araunah for David 2 Sam. 24.23 The Lord thy God accept thee So great a priviledge it is for our persons and services to be accepted with the Lord
ascend into the hill of the Lord c. and answered it vers 4 5. He that hath clean hands and a pure heart who hath not lift up his soul to vanity nor sworn deceitfully he shall receive the blessing from the Lord and righteousness that is a righteous reward or a reward according to righteousness from the God of his salvation Solomon asserts the present performance of what is only promised in this Psalm he saith not The just shall receive the blessing but they have actually received it Prov. 10.6 Blessings are upon the head of the just By the just man we may understand First him that is in a justified state or him that is just by faith Secondly him that walks in a just way or that do justly And they who are indeed justified are not only engaged by that high act of grace to do justly but are either constantly kept in doing so or are soon brought to see they have not done so and to repentance for it Just and upright men in these two notions are so much blessed that they are a blessing Prov. 11.11 By the blessing of the upright is the City exalted As an upright man wisheth and prayeth for a blessing upon the City where he liveth so he is a blessing to it and that no small one but to the greatning enriching and exaltation of it He that is good in his person becomes a common good to Cities yea to whole Nations such are a blessing because they receive so many blessings Pro. 28.20 A faithful man shall abound with blessings This faithful man is one that acts and doth all things faithfully as appears by his opposition in the same verse to him that maketh hast to be rich of whom the Text saith he shall not be innocent that is he must needs deal unfaithfully or unrighteously for in making such post-hast to riches he usually rides as we say over hedge and ditch and cannot keep the plain way of honesty Thirdly As they who are in a state of grace and they who act graciously in that state so they who worship holily or holy worshippers have a special promise of the blessing As Sion is the seat of holy worship so there the Lord commandeth the blessing upon holy worshippers Psal 133.3 And again Psal 115.12 13. He will bless the house of Israel he will bless the house of Aaron he will bless them that fear the Lord both small and great that is the generality of holy worshippers shall be blessed The fear of the Lord is often put in Scripture for the worship of the Lord and so they that fear him are the same with them that worship him Fourthly They are the blessed of the Lord who trust the Lord for all and so make him the all of their trust Psal 34.8 O tast and see that the Lord is gracious blessed is the man that trustith in him that is in him only or alone being convinced of the utter insufficiency of the creature That man is cursed who trusteth in man and maketh flesh his arm Jer. 17.5 therefore pure trust in God hath the blessing Fifthly They that are a blessing unto others shall have the blessing from the Lord. What it is to be a blessing to others read at large in the 29th Chapter of this Book vers 11. and in 31. Chapter vers 20. They that do good to others they especially who do good to the souls of others are a blessing to others Now they who do good they shall receive good themselves Prov. 11.25 The liberal shall be made fat and he that watereth shall be watered also himself He that watereth is a common good a blessing to the place where he lives a blessing to the rich a blessing to the poor a blessing to relations a blessing to strangers upon such the Scripture assures the blessing of the Lord. Sixthly They who promote the worship and service of God they that are friends to the Ark of God shall be blessed 2 Sam. 6.11 The Lord blessed the house of Obed-edom because he entertained the Ark shewed kindness to the Ark and was ready to do any service for the Ark of God he will be a friend to the true friends of his Church Seventhly They shall receive a blessing of God who strive in prayer for his blessing Jacob was blessed but he wâ—estled for it They that would have it must ask it with a gracious importunity they that seek it diligently shall find it These are the chief characters of the persons whom the Lord will bless And seeing his blessing is so effectual for the procurement of our good we should above all things labour to procure his blessing When Jacob wrestled with the Angel he asked nothing of him but a blessing Gen. 32.26 He did not say I will not let thee go except thou deliver me from my brother Esau he did not say I will not let thee go unless thou make me rich or great he only said I will not let thee go except thou bless me let me be blessed and let me be what thou wilt or I can be What should we desire in comparison of the blessing of God seeing his blessing strictly taken is the fruit of his fatherly love A man may be rich and great and honoured among men yet not beloved but he that is indeed blessed is certainly beloved of God Esau could not obtain the blessing Now what saith the Lord by the Prophet of him as the Apostle quotes the Prophet Rom. 9.13 Esau have I hated Esau got much riches but he could not get the blessing for he was hated of the Lord and therefore it is said Heb. 12.17 He found no place for repentance though he sought it carefully with tears that is he could not make Isaac repent of blessing Jacob though through a mistake yet according to Gods appointment he could not prevail with him no not by tears to take off the blessing from his brother Jacob and place it upon himself And the reason why the blessing remained with Jacob was because he was loved of God The blessing must go where the love goes The loved of the Lord are and shall be blessed and they who are blessed have all good with a blessing Read Gen. 24.35 Gen. 26.13 Gen. 28.3 2 Sam. 6.11 Psal 107.38 Yea as God giveth all good with a blessing so he giveth himself who is the chief good best of all and blessed for evermore to those whom he blesseth Then how should we desire the blessing of God or to be blessed by God It is wonderful how passionately and even impatiently the Votaries of Rome desire the Popes blessing they think themselves made men if they can but have his blessing I have read of a Cardinal who seeing the people so strangely desirous of his blessing Quando quidem populus hic vult decipi dicipiatur said Seeing this people will be deceived let them be deceived But we cannot be too desirous of a blessing from
there is no darkness at all And indeed in the latter part of this Book we may well conceive God himself speaking he speaks so like himself For here the understanding Reader may perceive a wonderful copiousness of speech and largness of discourse strengthened with the exactest and weightiest reasons set forth with such variety of matter with such gravity of expressions with such pressing queries and and interrogations that it very much excells all that had been spoken either by the Disputants or the Moderator And such was the condescention of God that he seems to take the words out of Elihu's mouth and urge over his Arguments anew before he would give the final sentence in this case from which as there could be no appeal so in which there could be no mistake All this the Lord contracts into two Orations or Speeches each to of which Job Answers and subscribes by an humble submission The first of these Speeches is contained in this thirty-eighth Chapter and to the end of the thirty-ninth To which God calls for an Answer in the two first Verses of the fortieth Chapter and Job gives his Answer in the third fourth and fifth verses of that Chapter The second Speech or Discourse of God with Job begins at the sixth verse of the fortieth Chapter and is continued to the end of the one and fortieth Chapter to which we have Jobs Answer at the beginning of the forty second Chapter to the end of the sixth verse and then the Chapter closeth with Gods special and irrefragable Judgement upon or determination of the Question between Job and his Friends as also with a description of Jobs blessed restauration after his fall to a higher condition of outward prosperity and tranquility than ever he enjoyed before Thus you have the summe of what 's behind of the whole Book This Chapter with the next hold out the Lords first Argumentation or di course with Job and in it we may consider three things First The Preface or Introduction in the first second and third Verses of this Chapter Secondly The Speech it self to the end of the thirty-ninth Chapter Thirdly Gods demand of an Answer or that Job should give him an account of himself or of what he had said at the beginning of the fortieth Chapter The words under present consideration are a Preface or Introduction leading to the whole business and in them we may consider three things First The Historians transition or an Historical transition vers 1. Then the Lord answered Job out of the Whirl-wind and said This the Historian or Pen-man of this Book inserts to connect the matter of this Chapter with that which went before he connects the discourse of Elihu which ended at the thirty-seventh Chapter with the discourse of God at the beginning of this Then the Lord answered Job out of the Whirle-wind and said Secondly We have here what the Lord said in form of Preface leading in the intended matter and that First By way of reprehension or by a chiding Question about what Job had said vers 2. Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge This is it which the Lord said when he began with Job Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge As if he had said let me see the man or who is the man that speaketh thus I know there is a Question and I shall speak somewhat to it afterwards Whether these words were directed to Job or Elihu yea some Question whether this whole Chapter be not intended to Elihu rather than to Job I shall answer that Question also afterwards but I give it now in the analysis of the context as I puâ—pose God willing to state it when I come to the Answer of that Question And therefore I say the reproof falls upon Job whom God thus bespake beginning with a chiding Who is this that darkneth counsel by words without knowledge Secondly by way of provocation to answer or we have here the Lords command given Job to prepare himself for an Answer as well as he could to what himself should say vers 3. Gird up now thy loynes like a man for I will demand of thee and answer thou me As the Lord reproved and chid him for what he had said so the Lord exhorted and encouraged him to set and fit himself the best he was able to answer what himself had to say unto him Thus we have the intendment of these three Verses and if you would have in one word a Prospect of the whole following Discourse of God with Job the Sum of it may be given and taken thus That as Elihu before so now the Lord would have Job know and confess that no man must presume to be so bold with him as to question his doings that 's the great mark at which God aimed in all he said to Job And the confirmation or proof of it is taken up from this unquestionable ground No man must Question any thing which God doth to him or with him for this very reason Because God doth it or because God often alone alwayes in chief hath done and doth all things God is the alone Creator of all things he hath given all things their Being he hath put all things into the Order in which they stand and he preserves them in their standing and if any evil befal man the hand of God hath done it much more than the hand of any man what then hath any man to do to question his doings Now that God alone hath created and doth order all things he himself proves by calling Job to shew where he was When the Foundation of the Earth was laid and Bounds were set to the Sea c. and so proceeds to assert and hold forth his sole Power in furnishing the Earth with Beasts the Air with Fowls and the Sea with Fish The Lord having thus given Job to understand that the whole World is his Work and that he gave Being to all the Creatures in the World for the help of man without the help of man would have him thereby also understand and be convinced that he and all men ought to adore and quietly submit to his providential workings or the products of his Providence all the world over That 's as was said the general Point carried through this whole Discourse of God with Job the particulars whereof yeeld much matter both of Meditation and Admiration I begin with the Preface Vers 1. Then the Lord answered Job out of the Whirlwind and said In this Verse we have three things First The Person answering Secondly The Person answered Thirdly The manner of his Answer The Person answering is the Lord the Person answered is Job the manner of the Answer is out of a Whirle-wind Then the Lord answered Job out of the Whirle-wind In the first word of the Text we have that which our Translation makes emphatical an intimation of the time or season of this Divine interposition then the Lord answered
of him will honour him with what they have even with their substance and with the first fruits of all their increase Prov. 3.9 Thirdly We may infer Seing God founded the earth He is also the Ruler of it And that the Lord rules the earth is a mercy to all men on the earth The Lord reigns let the earth rejoyce Psal 97.1 That is men of the earth have cause to rejoyce because they have God who is infinitely both wise and good to rule them The Lord is King over all the earth sing ye praises with understanding Psal 47.7 And surely they who understand what a King he is will praise him Fourthly We may be encouraged to go unto God or apply our selves to God about all things here on earth seeing â—e hath laid the fouâ—dations of the earth The Lord having invited his people to ask him things to come concerning his sons and concerning the work of his hands to command him Isa 45.11 adds this in the next words as an encouragement to do so I have made the earth and created man upon it As if he had said Ask of me whatever you would have me do or would have done on earth for I am he that created the earth It may help our faith much when as David expresseth it Psal 11.3 the very foundations of earthly things are destroyed to consider that God laid the foundations of the earth In such a case it may be said as it followeth there in the Psalme What can the righteous do but may it not be said even in that hard case when foundations are destroyed What cannot the Lord do who laid the foundations of the earth This argument the Psalmist also useth Psal 124.8 Our help stands in the Name of the Lord who made heaven and earth Though earth and heaven shake and seem to be confounded or mingled together yet he who made heaven and earth without help can give us help or be our helper If our help stood in the best of men made of earth they might fail us but while our help stands in him that made the earth he will never fail us for he hath said he will not Heb. 13.5 and their experience who have trusted the Lord hath said it too Psal 9.10 This is the great priviledge of all that believe they may address to God by Christ for any thing in this earth because he is the Maker of it and having made it by a word speaking what cannot he do for them if he speak the word Fifthly Let us be much in praising the Lord for his wisdom power and greatness all which gloriously appear and shine forth in his laying the foundations of the earth David makes this a special part of Divine praise Psal 136.6 VVe should not onely praise the Lord for the great things he hath done on the earth but for this that he hath made the earth The work of God in laying the foundations of the earth calls as loudly for our praise as any thing except our redemption from the earth Rev. 5.9 chap. 14.3 which ever God wrought upon the face of the earth The making of the earth calls us to praise the Lord First Because he hath made so vast a body as this earth is or because he hath made such a large house for us Secondly Because he hath founded it so miraculosly hanging upon nothing that appears but in the ayre yet standing more firmly than any house built upon a rock Thirdly VVe should praise the wisdom of God that hath formed it so exactly and adorned it so richly It 's not a house huddled and clapt up together without skill or art though it was made word a word speaking in six days yet it was made with infinite wisdom as is more particularly held out v. 5. where the Lord speaks of laying the measures thereof and stretching the line upon it as also of fastning the foundations and laying the câ—rner-stone thereof all which â—â—ew it is not a house clapt up in haste but made with admirable exactness so that as 't is usual when great houses are built there were great acclamations made at the building of it as we have it the seventh verse of this Chapter then the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy to see such a magnificent pile reared up Lastly Take this inference If the visible world be such a building what is the invisible world the City having foundations which God hath prepared for those that love him Thus much of the first part of Jobs Conviction he had nothing to do in laying the foundations of the earth and he had as little in setting up and finishing that goodly structure as will appear in that which followeth Yet before the Lord proceeded any further to question Job about this great work of Creation he requires or calls for his answer in the close of this fourth verse to the question propounded in the former part of it Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the Earth Declare if thou hast understanding God challengeth Job to answer The Hebrew is If thou knowest understanding And so the word is used Isa 29.24 where we render They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding or as the Margin hath it shall know understanding Again Huram said 2 Chron. 2.12 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel that made heaven and earth who hath given to David the King a wise son endued with prudence and understanding The Original is thus strictly read Knowing prudence and understanding Daniel spake in the same forme chap. 2.21 He giveth wisdom to the wise and knowledge to them that know understanding To know is a work of the understanding No man knoweth any thing but by the help of his understanding The understanding is the first or Master-wheel in that noble engine the soul of man and when rightly informed and inlightned all the other wheels or faculties of the soul move aright unless over-poized by passions and self-ends Every rational creature hath an understanding yet every rational creature doth not know understanding that is doth not is not able to speak knowingly or to use and act his understanding knowingly about every matter The Lord supposeth Job might be defective here and therefore bespeaks him thus Declare if thou hast understanding or knowest understanding As if he had said The things which I question thee about may possibly be too high or too big for thy understanding Si perituâ— sis tantarum rerum Vatab. such as possibly thou canst not reach And hence some render or rather paraphrase the Text thus Declare if thou art skilful in such great things as I now speak of If thou art so wise as thou seemest to be by thy former contesting with my provideâ—ces declare thy wisdom in this point wherein I know thou wilt but declare thy ignorance thy infancy or inability to speak as one speaks Thou wilt shew thy self but a child while thou
canst thou guid them as a Father guids his Family his Wife Children and Servants canst thou direct them their course how or which way to go Some think he useth the word guid because this constellation represents the form of a Wain or Wagon and is by us commonly called Charles-wain or the greater Bear Canst thou guid Arcturus That 's another Constellation seated in the Northern Pole notably conspicuous to us in a clear night 'T is the Sea-mans mark or guid The Lord who guids that Star hath made it a guid to the Sea-man in the night by looking to that he knows how to make his course Canst thou guid Arcturus With his Sons Some read Arcturus and her Daughters Master Broughton and her Children We render in the Masculine Gender and his Sons There is one principal Star and several other Stars that stand as Children about their Father or Mother and therefore the Lord expresseth them by that familiar Allusion Arcturus and his Sons canst thou guid them Hence Note First The Stars have a Guid a Governour The Stars move as directed God himself is the guid of the Stars not Man As a Shepheard guids his flock in the fields so the Lord guids the Stars in that spacious field of the heavens yea he names and numbers them as a Shepheard doth his flock Psal 147. He telleth the number of the Stars and call's them all by their names The Prophet exhorting the people to lift up their eyes on high that is to the heavens presently adds and behold who hath created these things Isa 40.26 that is the heavens and the fuâ—niture of them he bringeth out their host by number that is the host of the Stars As an Army is enrolled and numbered how many thousands they are so doth the Lord bring forth that host by number and calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might for that he is strong in power not one faileth There 's not one of the host of heaven not one of the Stars that faileth but comes forth at Gods call and appears as it were in rank and file when and where the Lord gives command Thus the Prophet speaks of the Stars as Gods host and of the Lord as a Commander or General of an army knowing their number nature place and office mustering and marshalling them oâ—dering them out upon service as he pleaseth And whereas in the best disciplin'd armies of men many fail when drawn out to service some for fear others through unfaithfulness not a few through weakness and sickness here 's neither weak nor sick neither an unfaithful nor a fearful one in this host not one faileth Nor doâ—h the Lords memory fail for he calls them all by their names which shews the perfect remembrance and exact knowledge which the Lord hath of them all It is reported as a wonder Plin. lib. 7. c. 24. Valerius Maximus lib. 3. c. 7. of Cyrus King of Persia that he having a vast Army yet knew them by face and was able to call every man by his name What then shall we say of this wonder The Lord who guideth Arcturus and his Sons who leads out this innumerable Army of the Stars knows every one of them by name and sends them forth by name upon what enterprise or service he pleaseth The Lord having questioned Job about those four eminent and well known Constellations Pleiades in the Spring Orion in the Winter Mazzaroth in the Summer and Arcturus with his Sons in the Autumn to convince him that as he was not able nor any man else to alter the natural motions or courses of the Stars so that neither he nor any man else was able to alter the course of his providence The Lord I say having done questioning Job about these four notable Constellations of heaven in special proceeds to interrogate him more generally about the whole heavens in the next Verse Vers 33. Knowest thou the Ordinances of heaven canst thou set the Dominions thereof in the earth Surely as thou knowest not the special laws by which I govern the Pleiades Orion Mazzaroth and Arcturus so not the general laws by which the heavens are governed Knowest thou the Ordinances of heaven The word here rendred Ordinances is often rendred in the Psalms statutes laws decrees knowest thou the laws or statutes of heaven The word rendred heaven is of the dual number as Grammarians speake because in what part soever of the earth any man stands the heaven is cut in two parts as to him by the Horizon whereof one part is over him and the other under him As there is a heaven above us so a heaven below us though wheresoever any man is on earth heaven is above him Knowest thou The Ordinances of heaven Now the Ordinances of heaven may be of two sorts First Those which God hath given to the heavens The heavenly bodies move according to his constitutions who made heaven and earth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Secondly Those which the heavens give to the earth or to man on earth The heavens may be said to impose their laws upon the earth men being guided and directed by the changes and motions of the heavens how to order many of their motions and actions on the earth those especially which concern the earth The heavens give these common laws as I may say to men concerning the earth First When to Till the earth Secondly When to cast their Seed into the earth Thirdly When to reap and gather the fruit of the earth When to perform any part of Husbandry to the earth is known only by the heavens that is the heavens by their motions and vicissitudes shew men the seasons of doing these and these works on earth And if men obey not these laws of heaven nor observe their seasons they loose all their labour and cost bestowed on the earth Again when he saith knowest thou the Ordinances of heaven the meaning may be this Are the heavenly bodies disposed or impowered by thy wisdome hast thou given them vertue to work upon inferiour bodies I hast thou made the statutes by which they are governed or by which they govern That 's the Lords Prerogative Hence note First The heavens are under a law they have their statutes They are under a law in a three-fold Respect 1. In respect of their motion how and whither they shall move 2ly They are under a law as to their influences where and on whom they shall drop them down 3ly Which necessarily follows the former They are under a law as to their effects and operations upon the Creatures whether for good or for evil The heavens can neither hurt nor help us but according to higher order This threefold law may be understood in that one Scripture Jer. 31.35 Thus saith the Lord which giveth the Sun for a light by day and the ordinances of the Moon and of the Stars for a light by night Note Secondly What all the Laws and Ordinances of heaven
with them to send lightning hast thou the command of thunder and lightning will the lightnings come forth at thy bidding The words may have a double allusion 1. To the General of an Army commanding his Souldiers and they going at his word 2. To the Master of a Family who gives orders to his Se vants and they go at his word Canst thou send lightnings that they may go And say unto thee here we are or as the Hebrew is Behold us That manner of speech here we are or behold us is a description of the most ready obedience either of Souldiers to their General or of Servants to their Master Will the lightnings obey thee thus and say here we are Some expound these words as supposed to be spoken by the lightnings upon their return from some former service given them in charge by God as having dispatcht what they were sent for and were ready to go again Hence the Latine translator gives it thus Vt reverentia tibi dicent adsumus Vulg. That they being returned or after their return should say unto thee with reverence here we are 1. Ready to go whithersoever thou wilt send us 2. Ready to do whatsoever thou wilt enjoyn us As if the Lord had said Canst thou send forth the lightnings and will they return to thee and say we have done thy commands and here we are again to receive fresh commands or new orders from thee Surely as the rain will not thus obey thee so neither will the lightnings neither the one nor the other will be thy servants to go of thy errand or execute thy will The same note which I gave before concerning the rain might be taken up here again concerning the lightnings They are not under the command of man c. Secondly for as much as the Lord here denies this priviledge both respecting the rain and lightning unto man he would have us understand and know that both are in himself though you cannot yet I can command them both are under my dominion While the Lord shews Job his impotency to command these meteors he asserts his own omnipotency as he hath made them so he can rule them Hence observe All treatures even those which seem to be most out of command are fully under the command of God What to appearance is more out of command than the lightning that quick that piercing that fierce and fiery creature yet that stirs no more than a stone till the Lord commands and at his command it stirs and is gone in a moment The Lord God hath spoken saith the Prophet Amos 3.8 who can but prophesie And as a faithful Prophet cannot but prophecy so the not only faithless but senseless creatures cannot but do what God hath spoken That of the Psalmist Psal 104.4 which we read who maketh his Angels spirits his Ministers a flaming fire some render thus who maketh the winds his messengers and the flames of fire his ministers That is he useth tempestuous winds and flames of fire as his messengers and ministers The same Hebrew word that signifieth an Angel signifieth a Messenger at large and the same word that signifieth a Spirit signifieth also the Wind. And as the words so the truth will bear both translations or constructions for as those higher or highest of rational creatures the Angels so those high inanimate creatures the winds and lightnings which may properly be called flames of fire are the Ministers and messengers of God that is they go forth and Minister according to his Word they say Here we are The Lord by a call or word speaking can have whom and what he will to serve his purpose and fulfil his decrees It is said 2 King 8.1 as also Psal 105.16 The Lord called for a famine a famine of bread and he no sooner called but the famine came and said Here am I the famine presently brake the staff of bread and did eat up all the good of the Land The Prophet Haggai Chap. 1.11 represents the Lord saying I called for a drought which is the usual fore-runner of famine and the drought said Here am I it came presently as soon as the Lord commanded On the other hand when the Lord made many promises under the new Covenant among other things he said I will call for plenty Ezek. 36.29 I will call for the corn and will increase it and lay no famine upon you As in those other places he called for famine and drought so here he saith I will call for plenty and it shall say Here am I abundance of corn and grass and fruits of the earth came at that call Lamenting Jeremiah speaking of the woful captivity of the people of Israel saith Lam. 1.15 The Lord called an assembly against me that is I conceive an assembly of the Assyrians and Babylonians an assembly of men an army of men he caused them to assemble and come together he did but call and they said Here we are and we will go vex Judah and Jerusalem Thus if the Lord call for famine and drought if he call for an assembly of men for men assembled with the sword of war in their hand to punish and chastise any people for their sin they will surely come and do his pleasure whatever the Lord calls for cannot but come Take this inference from it If the Lord have such a command upon all creatures even the inanimate creatures if the lightnings answer him when he calls Here we are Then how readily should men the best of visible creatures answer his call and say Here we are When the Lord said to Abraham Gen. 12.1 Get thee out of thy Country and from thy Kindred and from thy Fathers house unto a Land that I shall shew thee he never disputed the case but saith the Apostle Heb. 11.8 Obeyed and went out not knowing whither he went He never enquired what the place was to which he was to go nor what accommodations he should find when he came thither Abraham knew he was to go whither God called him to go though whither he was to go he knew not And when long after this the Lord called to Abraham Gen. 22.1 he said Behold here I am or Behold me as if he had said Lord I am here ready to obey thy command to go of thy errand to carry whatever message thou shalt put into my mouth to do whatever work thou shalt put into my hand and that Abraham did not complement with God it appears in the same Chapter for though when God commanded him to offer up his Son his only Son Isaac whom he loved every word was enough to wound his heart the last deepest to part with a Son is hard with an only Son harder with a son dearly beloved is hardest of all especially when he must be not only passive but active in this loss his own hand must give the parting blow yet Abraham being called to this hard and hot service said Here am I and readily
he waits for the innocent he draws him into his net he first entangles him and then devours him David gives a like description of evil men in another place Psal 17.11 12. They have now compassed us in our steps they have set their eyes bowing down to the earth like as a Lion that is greedy of his prey and as it were a young Lion lurking in secret places These Scriptures plainly shew the natural subtlety of the Lion waiting in his covert that he may do mischief unawares and that in this piece of mischievous policy wicked men are not behind him they shew as plainly Thirdly Whereas in the former verse the Lion is said to hunt his prey in the field and this in to abide in his covert to lye in wait for it Observe What some cannot do by strength they do by craft We say of craft or power 't is hard to say which is most dangerous or undesirable in an enemy Where these two meet where craft power ability and subtilty are joyned what will they not do We may say of men in whom these are united as the Lord said concerning the men of the new world soon after the Flood who were united in heart and tongue the people are one and they have all one language nothing will be restrained from them which they have imagined to do Gen. 11.6 The devil is alwayes like a Lion both strong and subtle He is so strong that he sometimes hunts his prey as I may say in open field and overcomes by fine force He is so crafty that at other times he knows 't is best for him to abide in his covert and lie in wait to catch souls He goeth about like a roaring Lion saith the Apostle Peter 1 Epist 5.8 but he is craftier than to roar always like a Lion when he goeth about seeking whom he may devour he often fawns and flatters he useth his wits and puts tricks upon poor souls whom he would devour We saith the Apostle 2 Cor. 2. are not ignorant of his devices Christ adviseth all his Disciples to joyn the wisdom of the Serpent with the innocency of the Dove subtilty and honesty craft and innocency working together work well or make good work But where there is the strength and craft of a Lion without a dove-like integrity what sad work do men make Godly men or men truly fearing God sometimes have the wisdom of the serpent together with their dove-like innocency and when to both the former the Lions strength is joyned what good may they not do they may do as we say a world of good in an evil world Fourthly In that the Lion coucheth in his den and retireth sometimes to his covert we may take notice of the good providence of God towards man God hath ordered it that the Lion coucheth all day in his den and is quiet that men may go out quietly to their labour The Psalmist commends the providence of God in this Psal 104.20 21 22. Thou makest darkness and it is night wherein all the beasts of the Forrest do creep forth the young Lions roar after their prey and seek their meat from God Thus they are roaring and raging for their prey all night but how is it with them or what do they in the day The next words tell us The Sun riseth they gather themselves together and lay them down in their dens Then it follows Man goeth forth to his work and to his labour until the evening Such is the care of God that he clears fields and Countries of these ravenous beasts that man may go safely to his work and not be troubled When the Lion comes forth in the day 't is usually to execute some judgement of God witness that of the Prophet who going out of Gods way God told him by another Prophet a Lion shall meet thee and tear thee and so it came to pass a Lion met him and executed the judgement of God upon him because he went beyond the command he had received from God 1 King 13.24 We read also that God sent Lions to vex the people continually when they fell to idolatry and false worship 2 King 17.26 It was of the Lord that Lions which used to keep their covert in the day time were so bold as to come by day to their houses and destroy them And such is the mighty power of God that though hungry Lions are altogether for prey yet God can stop their mouths and check their appetite Dan. 6.8 When Daniel was cast into the Lions den amongst a company of hungry Lions yet not one touched him but were as meek to him as so many lambs whereas no sooner were his enemies and accusers let down into that den but they brake their bones before they came to the ground Thus much of the Lion a King among the beasts of the earth The Lords next question concerns the Raven none of the best if not one of the worst among the birds of the Air. Vers 41. Who provideth for the Raven his food When his young ones cry unto God they wander for lack of meat As the Lion is a devourer among beasts so is the Raven among birds The Lion as was said is so curious that he will not feed upon a carcase in the way but the Raven feeds upon any dead or corrupted body and that is the reason why in many great Cities there 's a Law or custom that Raven sneer them shall not be shot at nor terrified because they eat up the filth and carrion which might infect the air and breed pestilential diseases Now the Lord puts the question Who provideth for the Raven As if he had said I provide not only for the Kingly Lion but for the carrion-eating Raven The Lord made provision of food for Lions and Ravens for all sorts of beasts and birds and creeping things in the work of Creation and in his works of providence he makes all things ready and brings them to hand for their use and sustentation He as it were dresseth and disheth out meat for all his creatures and then sets it before them that they may eat and be satisfied Who provideth for the Raven The Hebrew word rendred provideth hath two significations Verbum 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 notat indulgentissimam creatoris providentiam non solum necessaria sed etiam usque ad delicias which wonderfully set forth the care of God towards this creature First the certainty of their provision for the word signifies to establish as if the Lord did give them a necessary settled or constant diet Secondly It notes the sutableness and pleasingness of their food to their nature and constitution yea to their gust and appetite as if the Lord fitted their food as we say to their tooth or palate and gave them not only meat but savoury meat to them like that which Isaac bespake of his son Esau such as they love for though the food of Ravens be unpleasant to us
yet it is pleasing and toothsom and savoury to them What the Lord pâ—ovides for Ravens is to them dainties and delicacies carrion is so to them because 't is sutable to their nature such as their stomack likes very well The sutableness of any food to our taste and palate makes it delightful to us What makes sin which is as odious as a carrion or corrupt thing to God and good men pleasant to carnal and wicked men but the sutableness of it to their nature they can feed upon sin as heartily and hungrily as a Raven doth upon a putrified carcase And what 's the reason that the ways of God are so pleasant to a godly man is it not because his heart is made through grace sutable to them To do the will of God is meat and drink to a godly man but his soul being in a right frame can no more delightfully do any thing that is sinfully evil than he can delight to feed bodily upon putrifaction or poyson Who provideth his food For the Raven The Hebrew word for a Raven signifies blâ—ckness darkness Corvus in Hebraeo 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 dictus à colore nigro Graecè 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 crocitare or the evening The Raven is the true Black-bird a dark-coloured creature black as a Raven is the Scripture language for perfect blackness The Greek word for a Raven intimates her hoarse harsh and unpleasant cry or croking As the coat of the Raven is eminent for a beautiful blackness so his note is well known by his unpleasant and jarring hoarsness The note of the Crow or Raven sounds like the Latine Cras cras in English To morrow to morrow or the day to come And hence men who when called to present repentance and forsaking of their sins desire time and say to morrow to morrow are said to resemble Crows and Ravens Zorom l. 4. whose only song is cras cras 'T is reported concerning Athanasius that walking in the streets of a Heathenish or Gentile City a Raven slew over his head and croked the Heathens that stood by laught and smil'd to see the Raven flie and croke so neer him and they asked What said the Raven to thee He answered The Raven cryed to morrow to morrow for to morrow the Emperor will send out such an Edict or Decree as will put a stop to your superstitious observation of Heathenish Feasts And though he knew nothing of the Emperors purpose at that time to put forth such a decree yet the next day there came a command from the Emperor that they should no more observe them And then the Heathens cryed out against Athanasius and said that he was a Witch Further The Raven is so called in our language from her ravening her name speaks her nature as Nabals did his 1 Sam. 25.25 yet even Ravens are under the Lords inspection Who provideth for the Raven his food Hence note The worst and vilest creatures are under the care of God The Lord doth not give Job an instance of his care in the people of Israel for whom he provided a long time in Egypt and whom he fed forty years in the wilderness nor in Elias fed by Ravens but in his feeding Ravens nor among fowls doth he instance in the Hawk or Falcon which are highly prized and fed by Princes nor in the sweet singing Nightingale or such like musical pretty birds which men keep choicely and much delight in but in that hateful and malicious bird the croking Raven whom no man values but as she eats up the carrion which might annoy him Behold then and wonder at the providence and kindness of God that he should provide food for the Raven a creature of so dismal a hue and of so untuneable a tone a creature that is so odious to most men Avis inauspicata and ominous to some There is a great providence of God seen in providing for the Ant or Pismire who gathers her meat in Summer Prov. 6.8 but a greater in the Raven who though he forgets or is careless to provide for himself yet God provides and layeth up for him One would think the Lord should say of Ravens let them shift for themselves or perish no the Lord God doth not despise any work of his hands the Raven hath his being from God and therefore the Raven shall be provided for by him not only the fair innocent Dove but the ugly Raven hath his meat from God As the Lord feeds not only Doves but Ravens in kind so he feeds not only Doves but Ravens in a figure that is he feeds not only dove-like or innocent men but raven-like or wicked men Mat. 5.45 He causeth his Sun to rise on the evil and on the good sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust Thus he feeds Ravens in the likeness of men Such men whose minds feed upon carrion the Lord feeds their bodies with excellent dainties they fare deliciously every day as the rich Glutton is said to do who was but a Raven The Lord I say doth not only provide for his better and more excellent ones but he provides for the bad for the evil for the wicked such an indulgent father and provider is God towards all his creatures We find this reported to the praise of God Psal 104.10 11. He sendeth the Springs into the valleys which run among the Hills they give drink to every beast of the field the wilde Asses quench their thirst And again Psal 145.15 16. The eyes of all wait upon or look unto thee and thou givest them their meat in due season thou openest thy hand and satisfiest the desire that is the hunger and thirst of every living thing He that gives life to all upholds the lives of all As it shews the great power of God that he hath made some living creatures the Angels and souls of men which need no mear so it is a very great glory that he provides meat for all that â—eed it God hath a great houshold and he keeps a plentiful house the meanest of his houshold have food convenient for them Now Doth the Lord provide a table for the Ravens Remember Christâ— Inference from it Then much more will he provide a Table for his children who fear him and trust upon him Behold saith Christ Mat. 6.26 the fowls of the air for they sow not neither do they reap nor gather into barns yet your heavenly father feedeth them Are ye not much better than they And that which Christ spake in general there concerning the fowls of the air he in the 12th of Luke ver 24. spake particularly of the Raven Coâ—sider the Ravens for they neither sow nor reap c. and God feedeth them how much more are ye better as if the Lord had said than the fowls Ye are much better than the best of fowls then how much better than the worst the Ravens and be ye assured that as much as ye are better than
and cause them to travel more than needs in pain every day Secondly The Lord instanceth here in the Hinds for hard travel and Naturalists observe the Hind hath the sorest travel in bringing forth of any creature woman excepted And that the Hinds have very sore travel in bringing forth beside what Naturalists speak may be collected from those expressions in the Text They bow themselves they bring forth their young ones they cast out their sorrows That Scripture also intimates as much Psal 29.9 when among other wonderful effects of thunder The breaking of Cedars c. This is added The voice of the Lord maketh the Hinds to calve as if it did require the special help of God to give the Hinds ease and deliverance in the time of their travel The voice of God doth it that is Tunc officis ut cervae quae alioquin aegerrimè essent pariturae commodius pareant dum ante partum purgantur herba quadam quae Seselis dicitur faciliore ita utentes utero Jun. Plin. l. 8. c. 32. Arist l. 9 de Histor animal c. 5. Cicero l. 2 de nat Deorum either the thunder or some extraordinary power sent out for that purpose doth it And here we may consider the goodness of God even to this wilde beast in ordering her natural helps to ease her the more speedily of her grievous pains in bringing forth her young ones The natural Historian tells us concerning the Hind that she by common instinct a litle before she calves feeling her pains coming upon her seeks out a certain herb called Seselis feeding upon which doth exceedingly facilitate her pains in bringing forth Women who have understanding and reason as also the assistance of friends about them have many means for their ease in that hour of extremity but the Lord hath made this poor creature both Physician and Midwife to her self Further 't is reported of them that when they have brought forth they use the same and other herb to help themselves against their after-pains Once more Naturalists observe A partu duas habent herbas quae Aros Seselis appellamur Plin. l. 8. c. 32. that they usually bring forth at that time of the year when there is much thunder according to that before mentioned Psal 29. The voice of the Lord or thunder maketh the Hinds to calve For the Hind being of a fearful nature that dreadful noise doth so astonish her that it either makes her put out all her strength to bring forth or makes her less sensible of her pains in bringing forth That 's the second thing here considerable in Hinds their painful bringing forth They bow themselves they bring forth their young ones they cast out their sorrows Hence take this inference with respect to women who come under the like pains This should be a staff of consolation to them in the time of their travel If the Lord directs these creatures to the best posture and most proper means for their help and ease in that condition how much more will he take care of them especially of them who call upon him and trust in him We may well make that interpretation of the Apostles words 1 Tim. 2.15 She shall be saved in child-bearing if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety This early care of God for mankind is described Psal 22.9 10. Thou art he that took me out of the womb I was cast upon thee from the womb thou art my God from my mothers belly And again Psal 71.6 By thee have I been holden up from the womb thou art he that took me out of my mothers bowels my praise shall be continually of thee St. Augustine applies this matter of the Hinds bringing forth to the spiritual birth First Because the time is unknown or known only to God when any soul comes to the new birth Secondly Because every soul which travelleth with this new birth boweth and humbleth himself greatly under the sense of sin before the Lord. Thirdly Because this new birth is usually accompanied with great and grievous pangs alwayes with the truth of godly sorrow The Lord having spoken thus of the Hindes bringing forth their young ones speaks next as I may say of the education and bringing up of their young ones Vers 4. Their young ones are in good liking they grow up with Corn they go forth and return not unto them This Verse holds out three things First The good plight of their young ones They are in good liking As if it had been said Though the Hinds have much pain in bringing them forth yet they are slick and fat as soon as or soon after they are brought forth The word which we render in good liking notes a growing into health and strength 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Significat aliquando valere incolumem esse Licet matres difficilem habent partum filii tamen salvi incolumes sunt beneque valent alii pinguescunt Drus Facti sumuâ— sicut consolati melius quam ab aliis somniantes c. Bold 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ager unde 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sera agrestis Sed hic est 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 quod in lingua Chaldaeorum extra denotat unde Barbarus geninalis syllabis Drus Mira est providentia Dei in subulonum himulorum nutricatione qui nullo custode nullo opilione reguntur sicut vituli haedi vel agni tamen pinguescum Codrec which we call recovering Isa 38.9 16. The writing of Hezekiah King of Judah when he had been sick and was recovered c. And 't is said of Naaman 2 Kings 5.14 his flesh came to him or he recovered his flesh as the flesh of a little Child The same word is used Psal 126.1 When the Lord turned the Captivity of Sion we were like to them that dream which others translate thus and conceive it nearer the Oâ—iginal Text When the Lord turned the Captivity of Sion then we were like them that are fed and grow fat at the dugg and so are chearely or in a comfortable condition Thus the Hinds young ones grow fat lusty and strong As the Lord takes care for their bringing forth so of their bringing up he that maketh the Hinds to calve makes their calves of good liking too as he makes the Babe thrive at the Mothers breast so the Calf at the Hinds dugg And when they have a while grown fat at the dam's dugg then Secondly They grow up with Corn. They come to harder meat they soon leave sucking and feed upon corn Some read they grow up in the fields or by the field that is by that which groweth in the field Thus it is with our Children they are fed first at the breast spoon afterwards with flesh or any wholesom food According to every degree of life God provides sutable food the Infant shall have milk and when a little grown stronger meat As it is in spirituals when we are new born babes
by many Scriptures that the Reem is an animal of the same kind with Bullocks forasmuch as the sense of the discourse of God about him is as if he had said Seeing among those beasts which are prepared by men to help them in their work and whose labour they ease in tilling and subduing the earth the Ox is chief as being mans most laborious helper in husbandry and which in most Countreys is more used in it than any other beast according to that Prov. 14.4 Much encrease is by the strength of the Ox. How comes it to pass that men do not make use of the Reem for those services seeing he is of the same kind with Oxen and so may seem to be made by nature for that purpose as much as other Oxen and is by so much the fitter for that service than any other Oxen or Bulls whatsoever by how much his strength is greater than theirs yet no man attempts to use him in it or if any did it were to no purpose forasmuch as I the Lord of nature have created this beast as also the wild Ass before spoken of altogether untameable This seems to be the meaning of God in his discourse about the Reem And hence also it appears that the Reem is not the Bisons seeing he as well as many other wild beasts being skilfully handled proves tame and gentle and may be formed to the use and obedience of man It remains therefore that this Reem is the beast called Vrus because this property of untameableness is ascribed to that beast Caesar in his 6th book of the Gallican war saith The Vri no not the young ones will not be tamed by men wherefore being caught in pits they are killed Pliny also saith as much of them Lib. 8. cap. 21. And as in this particular his untameable wildness there is a full agreement between the Vrus and Reem so those other things which the Scripture speaks of the Reem agree to him also as those forreign Authors witness who have written his History For Cesar writes that he is in bigness little less than an Elephant but of the kind colour and figure or shape of a Bull. And Pliny in two places lib. 8. cap. 15. lib. 28. cap. 10. names wild Oxen as the Genus with respect both to the Vri and Bisontes The learned Doctor adds many more proofs out of ancient Authors which the Reader may peruse if he please at his leisure And from all he concludeth It is not therefore to be doubted but that the Reems are the Vri and indeed so much the less because not only the Northern Regions in divers parts of which it is said by Writers that not only the Bisontes but Vri are found at this day are the proper soyl where these Animals are bred but the Eastern parts also bring them forth Pliny writes that the Indian woods are full of them and so doth Aristotle I collect also out of Diodorus lib. 3. that the Country of the Trogloditicks which is seated at the bosom of the Red-Sea opposite to Africa hath these Vri in it And though no Author doth affirm that Syria and Palestine yield these wild Oxen yet this doth not hinder but that in old times when the Israelites first inhabited those Countreys they were there since it is no new thing that the whole kind of some wild creatures should be utterly extinct in these Countreys where formerly they have abounded of which England gives us a plain testimony in Wolves Dion also reports the same of Lions which sometimes were bred in some parts of Europe but now for many ages have not appeared there And the same witnesseth Ammianus lib. 22. concerning the Hippopotami in Egypt of which none are to be found now in that Country Thus far the learned Doctor whose discourse may be of much advantage and profit to the Reader for the better understanding of this place But I find he hath a great Antagonist who though he agreeth with him in the negative part of his opinion and discourse Bochaâ—tus parte poster l. 3. c. 27. That the Reem here spoken of in Job is neither the Vnicorn nor the Rhinocerote nor the Bufalus nor the Bisons yet he doth not agree with him in the affirmative part of his opinion that the Reem is that savage beast or wild Ox called Vrus but first gives a large account why the Reem cannot be that beast called Vrus nor any of that kind and then concludes that it is a kind of Goat or of the Goatish kind by name the Oryx being an animal in colour pure white in stature tall in disposition fierce and untractable in his gate stately lifting up his head and horns on high That this beast is the Reem here spoken of he proves by various testimonies taken especially out of the ancient Arabian Chaldean and Hebrew Writers and endeavours to remove several objections arising from the seeming incompetency of any beast of the Goatish rank or kind to answer the description given of that noble animal called Reem both in the Text and in many other places of Scripture Thus the learned are much divided in opinion about this creature and upon which to determine is not easie Yet because the word Reem is every where in Scripture rendred by our Translators as also by many others of great authority Vnicorn I shall leave that matter of difference to the Readers judgement and do that reverence to our Translation as to open the Text distinctly in all that is here said by the Lord concerning the Reem under that name or title Vnicorn Will the Vnicorn be willing to serve thee In these words the Lord presents man as it were inviting wooing hiring the Unicorn to serve him But when he hath used all his skill and cunning when he hath done his best and worst too that is used all manner of means the Unicorn will not by any means be wrought upon to come under mans yoak or do his work Will the Vnicorn Be willing to serve thee To will is an act of reason and therefore to be willing is not proper to irrational Animals yet to will and to be willing may allusively be given to them They have a kind of will and an understanding befitting their kind 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 voluit propensa animo suit unde 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 pater à propensa voluntate erga liberos The Hebrew word signifies to will with much readiness and propensity of mind it signifies willingness with delight and thence comes the Hebrew word for a Father because a Father is willing and ready to take care of and provide for his children though it cost him much travel and pains But Num acquiescet aut consentiet ex suapte natura ut tibi subjiciatur Will the Vnicorn be willing to serve thee will he be a ready servant to thee he will not As if it had been said The Vnicorn is an indocible and an untractable animal he will
a race Psal 19.5 He that hath great strength may run a great race A race requireth great strength and he that hath strength or is a strong man should rejoyce to run it A strong man if he have an heart and a will to his work delighteth in his work more than in his reward Note Thirdly Some have strength enough to do much work to do great and good things yet are not at all to be trusted with the doing of any thing that is great or good Strength is not alwayes to be trusted There is a twofold trust in strength First There is a trust in strength as to confidence in it for success and thus we are not to trust any strength in the world neither our own nor others Cursed is the man that trusteth in man and maketh flesh his arm Jer. 17.5 The arm of flesh is too weak to be trusted in though never so strong though it have the strength of the Unicorn it must not be trusted no creatures strength is to be trusted in as to dependance upon it Secondly There is a trusting of strength as to the using and imploying of it thus strength may be trusted We may trust the strong that they will use their strength for us only we must not rest in their strength They who like the Unicorn in the Text have great strength and yet are not to be trusted that they will use it are in a much worse condition than they who have no strength to use or to make them any way useful There are three sorts of men to be considered in respect of strength First Some have a will to do more than they have strength to do they have a will to do more in ordinary work than they have strength to do and they have a will to do more in extraordinary work duty than they have strength and ability to do The Apostle speaking of the labour of love or charity in the ministration of the good things of this life to those that stand in need thus commendeth the Macedonians 2 Cor. 8.5 For to their power I bear them record and beyond their power they were willing c. He meaneth not the power of their bodies but of their purses and estates Some are willing beyond the power of their estates to relieve the necessities of others and some are willing beyond the power of their bodies to labour not only for the supply of their own necessities but in any publick service To have a will to labour according to our strength for labour sheweth an honest heart but to have a will to labour beyond our strength for labour sheweth an Heroick heart But Secondly Most have strength to do more than they have a will to do they are like the Unicorn and that upon a double ground First Some are so lazy and idle that they will not do what they have strength to do Thus Solomon describeth the sluggard Prov. 21.5 His hands refuse to labour He hath strength enough in his hand but for idleness he will do nothing Secondly Others are so proud that though they have strength enough to labour yet they will not they are so stout so stubborn so high-minded that they scoâ—n to work or do service they think themselves too good to take pains I shall say too little if I say these are in a very bad frame They are right Unicorns who are so stout that they will not serve nor be bound to attend any service There is a third sort who have strength to do service and they have also will to do it they have will and they have strength but they want an opportunity to do service This may be the case of a good man who is like the labouring Ox A good man hath alwayes a will to work and may have strength for his work too yet many times wants work As they in the Parable Mat. 20.6 7. answered when questioned Why stand ye all the day idle It was not so they excused themselves because they had no will to work or had no strength to work but say they No man hath hired us we have not been called to work we know not where to have a dayes work Such there are who have will and strength while they want a call Thus the Apostle spake concerning the Philippians Chap. 4.10 Ye were careful but ye lacked opportunity The dore was not open and so ye could not do what ye desired and had both a mind and an ability to do The point in hand leadeth us to the middle sort of persons truly shaddowed by the Unicorn who though they have much strength to do service yet they have no mind to serve but hide their Talent in a Napkin and put their Candle under a Bushel These are not to be trusted though they are well furnished I may say to any man concerning such men as the Lord to Job concerning the Unicorn Wilt thou trust them because their strength is great because their strength of mind their strength of body their strength of estate is great Can we trust all rich men that they will do works of charity because their estate is great Can we trust all healthy men who have sound and able limbes that they will take pains because their bodily strength is great Can we trust all knowing men who have quick parts and excellent gifts much knowledge that they will go through with their work because the strength of their minds is great We can hardly find any to trust what strength soever they have but those who have received strength of grace from God and so have strength of faith in God strength of love strength of affections to God strength of zeal for God And even they who have strength of grace may fail their trust very much Job 4.18 Behold he put no trust in his Servants and his Angels he charged with folly The Lord could not be confident of Angels who are mighty in strength If God should leave Angels to themselves they would soon fail it is because Angels are confirmed by grace Christ being the head of Angels that they stand fast to their work and abide by their duty else the Lord could not trust Angels with all their created strength much less then could the Lord trust the best of Saints with all the spiritual strength he hath planted in them did he not continually confirm them and quicken them to the work which he hath called them to by his holy Spirit No further than any man trusteth in Christ for strength or maketh Christ his strength as well as his righteousness is he to be trusted with the doing of any work any more than the Unicorn how much soever his strength is Many are set a work and do work because their strength is great but none in a due sense can be trusted but they who make Christ their strength and look daily to him for it Wilt thou trust him because his strength is great Or wilt thou leave
man and made him vile even viler than the dust out of which he was made Thirdly Man is vile with respâ—ct to all those evil consequences and effects of sin which have possessed or are ready to possess First our bodies such are weakness sickness pains and all manner of diseases Secondly our names such are reproach infamie and disgrace Thirdly our estates such are poverty and want Fourthly our persons imprisonment and restraint Fifthly our souls such are blindness and ignorance in our minds stubborness in our wills inordinacy in our affections These consequences of sin as well as sin it self especially those consequences of sin which are themselves sinful as those last mentioned are render us vile From this first Observation take these four inferences First If man be vile in that threefold respect before spoken of he is so in many more then let not any man prize himself much We do not prize vile things without us why then should we much prize our selves who are vile We are very apt to have thoughts of our selves beyond our selves or to think of our selves beyond what is meet Did we remember that we were vile high thoughts of self would soon down and we would cease from our selves as well as from other men saying Wherein are we men to be accounted of Isa 2.22 The best man of meer men hath but a little breath in his nostrils and he hath much sin in his soul wherein then or for what as a natural man is any man to be accounted of Did we know our selves more understandingly we should know our selves less valuingly In which sense Job said Chap. 9.21 Though I were perfect I would not know my soul It is our ignorance who and what we are which causeth us to have high thoughts of our selves as it is our ignorance who and what Christ is which causeth us to have such low thoughts of him and such slow or slight desires after him Joh. 3.10 Secondly As because we are vile we should take heed of prizing our selves much so we should more take heed of being proud of our selves at all Indeed where the former is where any person man or woman sets too high a price upon self it is very hard to abstain from pride in self for pride in self arises from over-prizing of self We first think too well of our selves and then are lifted up in our selves As it is through the power of faith that our hearts are lifted up to God and in God so whensoever our hearts are lifted up in our selves glorying in our own attainments or to our selves gaping after our own ends it proceeds from pride Thirdly See the exceeding goodness of God who hath put honour upon vile man We have made our selves vile and so we should reckon our selves yet the Lord is pleased to esteem his people highly and make them honourable Isa 43.4 Since thou wast precious in my sight thou hast been honourable Job was vile as he confessed in his own sight yet he was precious in Gods sight And thus the Lord estimates all that are godly all that are true believers â—hough vile and of no value in themselves nor in their own sight yet precious they are in his sight Since thou wast precious in my sight thou hast been honourable We are never truly honourable till precious in the sight of God There is a bubble which the world calls honour a wind of fame with which many are much affected and with which some are invested who are not at all precious in the sight of God The best the truest honour ariseth from preciousness in the sight of God they who are esteemed by God are indeed persons of estimation His grace shewed favourably and freely to us his grace working mightily and effectually in us puts a blessed worth upon us though we are vile in our selves and so accounted by the world Fourthly See the goodness of God in this also that though we are vile yet he is pleased to set his heart upon us and to mind us We little mind vile things light things trifles we lightly pass by We are but a light thing a vile thing in our selves yet God not only hath us in his heart but sets his heart upon us Thus spake Job in the lowest ebbe of his outward felicity and he spake it admiringly as well as truly Chap. 7.17 What is man that thou shouldst magnifie and that thou shouldst set thine heart upon him When he saith What is man it is as it he had said Man is but a vile thing yet the Lord is mindful of him yea magnifieth him And though the Lord forbids us to set our hearts or affections on earthly things Col. 3.2 on the best of earthly things all which are comprehended under that one word or title Riches Psal 62.10 And though the reason why he forbids us to set our hearts upon these things is because they aâ—e vile yet he is pleased O infinite goodnesse to set his heart upon us though we are vile and considered as sinful much more vile than they even than the vilest of them We have the like question put again Psal 144.3 Lord what is man that thou takest knowledge of him or the son of man that thou makest account of him What is man 'T is a diminishing question implying that man is a vile thing or a nothing Is it not then a wonderful thing is it not the fruit of rich and free grace that God should take an account or make such an account of man And if God sets his heart upon man who is so vile how should man set his heart upon God who is so infinitely excellent God may be said to descend surely he condescends exceedingly when he sets his heart upon vile man The Lord humbleth himself saith David Psal 113.6 to behold that is to take any notice of or to take into his consideration the things that are in heaven and in the earth how much more doth he descend condescend and humble himself when he sets his heart upon vile man Now doth God set his heart upon vile man which is an humbling to him and shall not vile man set his heart upon the great and glorious God which is not only his duty but his felicity his honour and exaltation Again Job saith I am vile What was Job a godly man sure a holy man by Gods own testimony yet even he speaks at this low rate of himself Behold I am vile Hence note Secondly The better we are the less we esteem our selves and still the better and better we grow the lower are our thoughts of our selves There is no greater argument of height in grace than low thoughts of self Next to faith in Christ self-denial or to deny our selves is the great duty of the Gospel Mat. 16.24 Now as to deny our selves is to be very low in our own eyes so it is one of the highest acts of grace in us and requires not only truth of of grace but
much strength of grace to act it And hence it comes to pass that the higher and stronger any are in grace they are still lower and lesser in their own sight bacause true height and strength of grace works the soul to more self-denial And therefore as a godly man is vile so he is made more sensible of his own vileness the more he encreaseth in godliness so that if any have low thoughts of him he hath lower of himself None can think him lower in truth than he thinks himself I am light saith he I am vile Though he well understands his state his priviledge and his interest in Christ through grace and understands it so well that he values it above all the world and would not part with it for the whole world yet he is still vile in his own eyes and low in his own rate-books Abraham the chief of believers said Gen. 18.27 Behold now I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord who am but dust and ashes So David 2 Sam. 7.18 What am I and what is my fathers house that thou hast brought me hitherto How sensible was he of his own vileness who spake thus who yet was a man after Gods own heart and the best of Kings Further Consider the time when Job was brought to this humble confession and acknowledgement of his own vileness he had not spoken thus before but was much in justifying himself especially as to the sincerity of his heart and wayes and he did it even to offence but the Lord having dealt roundly with him he cryes out I am vile Hence Observe The dealings of God with man aime mostly at this great mark to humble him and to make him see his own vileness We quickly see or are quick-sighted to see and take notice of any good in us or done by us to make us proud instead of thankful but we are dull of sight to see or take notice of that in us or done by us which may humble and lay us low And therefore we put God to it to shew us our vileness by severe and humbling dispensations There are two great things which God would bring man to First To make him know how vile he is Secondly To make him know how excellent how glorious himself is The Lord never left battering Job by afflictions and following him with questions till he brought him to both these points Behold I am vile saith he in this place I know thou canst do every thing and that no thought can be with holden from thee said he afterwards Chap. 42.2 in which words he highly exalted God in the glory both of his power and wisdom As one great purpose of the Gospel is to exalt man and lift him up unto a most glorious condition in and through Christ so another great purpose of the Gospel is to lay man low in himself or to take him quite off from his own bottome The Apostle often insists upon that as one grand design of the Gospel with respect to man 1 Cor. 1.26 Ye see your calling brethren that not many wise men after the flesh c. are called He tells us at the 29th verse why it is so Even that no flesh should glory in his presence But ver 31. that according as it is written he that glorieth let him glory in the Lord. All the dealings of God both in Law and Gospel both in his providences and in his ordinances tend to bring man off from and out of himself and till that be effected neither ordinances nor providences have their due effect upon him We must come to Jobs acknowledgment that we are vile that we are nothing and that God is all to us in Christ before we are Christians indeed Fourthly The former discourse sheweth that God was come very near to Job he spake to him out of the whirl wind his appearance was very dreadful And then Job cryed out Behold I am vile Hence Observe The more we have to do with God and the nearer God comes to us the more we see and the more we are made sensible of our own vileness Vnusquisque sibi dum tactu veri luminis illustratur ostenditur Greg. Man is clearly discovered and known to himself when he beholds God in the shinings of divine light and not till then Job was higher in his own thoughts than became him till God came thus near to him and when God came yet nearer to him and discovered himself as he afterwards did yet more fully to him then Job did not only say as here I am vile but I abhor my self and repent in dust and ashes This first approach of God in so eminent and illustrious a way or manner wrought much upon him but the second more The light of God shews us our darkness the power of God our weakness his wisdom our folly his purity our uncleanness his Majesty our vileness and his Allness or alsufficiency being seen gives us to see our utter deficiency and nothingness Still in proportion to the nearness of God to us or our nearer and clearer apprehensions of him by faith we are carried further out of and further off from our selves and thus 't is in our attendance upon God in the Ordinances of worship The reason why many come to ordinances with proud hearts and go away proud is because they have little or no communion with God in them by faith or God doth not manifest himself to them by his blessed Spirit They who have seen the power and glory of God in the Sanctuary as David professed he had sometimes done and longed to see it again Psal 63.1 2. they will say with the same David Psal 131.1 2. Lord our heart is not haughty nor our eyes lofty our soul is like a weaned child Lastly Job was waiting for the goodness of God to him or for deliverance out of his sad condition and doubtless he was convinced that the most probable way to it was to leave off contending with God and to be found humbling himself before him in this or a like confession Behold I am vile Hence note There is nothing that doth more sweeten and molifie God or I may say any ingenuous adversary towards us then an humble acknowledgement of our own vileness and unworthiness When our hearts are truly humbled mercy and deliverance are at hand Job was no sooner made deeply sensible of his vileness but mercy came in The only skill of this excellent wrestler as one calls him was to cast himself down at Gods foot There is no way to get within God and to prevail with him Sciebat Jobus contra spiritum humilem inermem esse Dei manum but by submitting to him The Lord layeth down his rod when we lay down our pride and casts his sword out of his hand when we cast our selves at his feet And in all our afflictions whether personal or national till we acknowledge not formally but in a deep sense of our own vileness
that we are vile in vain do we cry for deliverance or hope for mercy When we are lowest in our own eyes we are nearest to our exaltation when once we say in our hearts we are nothing we deserve nothing we have spoken lightly we have done lightly salvation will not tarry 1 Pet. 5.7 Humble your selves under the mighty hand of God and he will lift you up in due time If we would be lifted up out of any affliction we must be at this humbling work We shall never work as I may say upon the heart of God unless we are thus at work with our own hearts or till this work be done upon our hearts Our great work lies within especially in a day of tryal and tribulation such as Job was in Job was speedily reduced to his former honour and greatness when once through grace he had wrought his heart to this confession Behold I am vile What shall I answer thee As if Job had said truly I have nothing to answer thee Thou O Lord hast given such demonstrations of thy greatness of thy power of the excellency of thy wisdom of thy goodness that I have nothing to say but this that I can say nothing What shall I answer thee I know not what to answer or I have nothing to answer As in a great strait when we know not what to do we usually say What shall we do So here it sheweth that Job was no way able to answer when he said What shall I answer The Hebrew is What shall I return or turn back We may exemplifie this passionate interrogation by that of the Patriark Judah Gen. 44.16 when Joseph would have detained Benjamin having found the cup in his sacks mouth Judah said What shall we say unto my Lord what shall we speak or how shall we clear our selves Here are three questions to shew that he had nothing to answer First What shall we say to my Lord Secondly What shall we speak Thirdly How shall we clear our selves Truly we know not what to say nor speak nor how to clear our selves The plain truth is we have nothing at all to answer for our selves but to yield our selves to thy mercy Thus Job I am vile what shall I answer thee the great God the holy God the mighty God the wise God what shall I answer thee Hence note When God is opponent no man can be respondent God can put such questions and make such objections as no man is able to answer Thus spake Job at the 3d verse of the ninth Chapter If he that is God will contend with him that is with man he cannot answer him one of a thousand Which implyeth that not only not one among very many men but that not one among all men or that not any man is able to answer if God will contend The Apostle saith of all men in a state of sin Rom. 3.19 We know that what things soever the law saith it saith to them who are under the law that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may become guilty before God If the Lord should make objections against or charge sinners according to the strictness and severity of the law the best the holiest of men could not find an answer or no answer would be found in their mouths how much less could any answer him who not only were altogether born in sin as all are and as the proud Pharisees told the poor man in the Gospel he was Joh. 9.34 but abide and continue in sin How will the mouthes of all such be stopt with a sense of their self-guiltiness how mute how answerless will they stand before God or say as Job in the Text but in a ten thousand times sadder plight than he What shall we answer It is the happiness of humbled sinners that they have Christ to answer for them seeing in that case no sinner can answer for himself And such is the Majesty and glory of God when it breaks forth in any case to a poor creature that it leaves him quite answerless and takes away not only all matter of dispute but of speech and therefore Job resolves upon silence as appears by what he saith in the last clause of this verse I will lay my hand upon my mouth As if he had said That all may see I know not what to answer I will stop up the conveyance of answers What this Scripture phrase to lay the hand upon the mouth imports hath been opened Chap. 21.5 In brief Jobs meaning in resolving thus was as if he had said I will impose silence upon my self Or thus Lord thou shalt not need to silence me or to stop my mouth I will do it my self I know not what to answer thee but if I did if I could gather up something that might look like an answer yet I will not answer I will lay my hand upon my mouth Further when he saith I will lay my hand upon my mouth it may imply that he would fain have been answering though he could not tell what to answer The tongue if left at liberty if not checkt will be making answers Constituo linguae licentiam perâ—nitèr coercere when it cannot answer any thing to purpose and therefore as David said Psal 39.1 I will keep my mouth with a bridle while the wicked is before me So would Job here while the Holy one was before him fearing he might give further offence while he went about to take off offences The tongue of a good man needs a bridle and the better any man is the more he bridles his tongue Job had offended with his tongue though he had not spoken wickedly yet he had spoken rashly and inconsiderately and now he saith I will lay my hand upon my mouth Hence note We should be very watchful over that which hath been an instrument or an occasion of sin He that hath offended with his mouth should lay his hand upon his mouth and take order with his tongue It is better to be silent than to offend in speaking Socrates l. 4. hist Eccles cap. 18. Pambâ— as the Church Historian reports confessed that in forty nine years he had scarcely learned the meaning of or the duty contained in the first and â—econd verses of the thirty ninth Psalm concerning the due restraint and government of the tongue Secondly Note Hoc suppliâ—ii gonus linguarium appellant Sanct. It is necessary sometimes to abridge our selves in what we may do lest we should do what we may not This is a holy revenge and it is one of those seven effects of Godly sorrow which works repentance not to be repented of 2 Cor. 7.11 We should in some cases forbear to speak at all for fear we should speak amiss They who are truly wise are much asham'd to speak when once they see their error in speaking or how apt they are to erre in speaking and therefore lay that penalty upon their tongues either to spare speaking or
own personal afflictions and when under sad dispensations All this is as it were a speaking in the whirlwind And he speaks graciously winningly and comfortably or to the hearts of his people even when he leads them into the wilderness Hos 2.14 The Apostle saith Knowing the terror of the Lord we perswade men that is we perswade men by the terror of the Lord and so knowing the goodness and the mercy of the Lord we perswade men that is we perswade them by the goodness the mercy of the Lord. I saith the Apostle Rom 12.1 beseech you by the mercies of God present your bodies c. Of some we must have compassion making a difference others save with fear Jude vers 22.23 that is we must put them in fear that they may be saved or as I may say scare and fright them to heaven Secondly Consider who it is that the Lord spake to in a whirlwind he spake to Job and who was Job surely a very godly man a man that feared God a man that had a very noble testimony from God himself and yet here God spake to Job himself in a whirlwind Hence Note The best of men may sometimes need the terrible appearances of God to humble them and to bring them to a due confession of their sins Certainly God would not have spoken to Job in a whirlwind if there had not been cause for it he would not have spoken twice in a whirlwind if there had not been double cause for it The Apostle Peter saith 1 Eph. 1.6 Ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations that is afflictions and trials if need be We should never feel any affliction from the hand of God never be in heaviness if there were not need There is need that the holiest in this world should sometimes be made heavy or that heaviness should be upon them for a time We should always have calms and fair weather never any storms nor tempests nor whirlwinds from God did not our needs call for it As we every day need bread which is therefore called by Christ our daily bread so most days we need a rod either the rod of his mouth to reprove us or the rod of his hand to chasten us And we do so especially for these reasons First To bring us into a deep sence of our own vileness to humble us to lay us low Secondly To make greater impressions upon our hearts of the power and soveraignty of God of the holiness and righteousness of God It is that we might know our selves more and that we might know God more that God speaks to us in whirlwinds in terrible dispensations Further As this is a second whirlwind as it is a second speaking to Job a good man in a whirlwind Observe God will not give over terrible dispensations and appearances till he hath brought man to his purpose God hath an end a purpose in every work and every work of his goeth on till he hath attained his purpose As the word which goeth out of the Lords mouth shall not return unto him void but shall accomplish that which he pleaseth and prosper in the thing whereto he sends it Isa 55.11 So the work which God takes in hand shall not be in vain but shall prosper to the purpose for which he undertakes it Now if any ask what is the purpose of God in whirlwind dispensations that was shewed before even to make us more humble and to have higher thoughts of God in every respect But some may say Job had very low thoughts of himself before he had said I am vile doubtless Job spake this in great humility why then doth the Lord speak to Job in a whirlwind again seeing he was truly humbled at his first speaking I answer Though Job was humbled yet he was not humbled enough he was not yet laid low enough nor melted down enough and therefore God spake to him in a whirlwind again It would not serve his turn barely to say I am vile God must have more of him than that he must make a fuller confession of his fault than that God brought him at last to say I abhor my self and repent in dust and ashes which is a description of deepest humiliation Now because Job was not come to that but had only said I am vile though there was matter of great humiliation in that the Lord questions with him again in a whirlwind This should be of great consideration to us in any day of affliction For if God hath not his purpose in bringing the first affliction we shall be spoken to in a whirlwind a second time We are apt to wonder and think it strange that God should speak terribly to us so often that he should renew our afflictions and make us new crosses We think if we do but make a light confession of our sins and say we are vile presently the storm should cease and the affliction be removed Let us not deceive our selves Job had said he was vile yet God continued the storm because he was not yet low enough 'T is not enough for us that we are truly humbled As there must be truth in our humiliation so there must be depth in it for questionless when Job said before I am vile he did not dissemble with God he was hearty in it and spake his heart what he spake was from his very soul and in sincerity he did not complement with God he did not flatter God with his mouth nor lie unto him with his tongue as the Israelites did Psal 78.36 his heart was right with God as theirs was not ver 37. yet because his spirit was not come down as it should therefore he must be awakened and humbled more with another whirlwind he must be further school'd that he might give further glory to God in his own abasement And hence we may infer If the Lord spake thus to Job and may speak thus terribly to any good man once and again Then with what terror in how dreadful a whirlwind will God at last speak to all the wicked of the world If he spake out of a whirlwind to a Job a gracious godly man what will that whirlwind be out of which he will speak to a Pharoah to prophane and hard-hearted sinners As our Lord Jesus Christ said of himself in the Gospel If it be thus done to a green tree what shall be done to the dry If God hath whirlwinds for his Jobs for his own people who are as green flourishing trees in grace and holiness what will he do with the dry sticks of the world And I may argue it as the Apostle doth 1 Pet. 4.13 If judgment begin at the house of God what shall the end be of them that obey not the Gospel what shall their end be no man is able to say no nor to conceive how sad it will be Judgment begins at the house of God God will not spare his own house not his own houshold he will not
spare his Servants and Children when they sin he is no cockering Father he will correct his own Children he will not only sweep his house but he will shake his house and he shakes it because it is no better swept nor kept more cleanly And if for these and such like reasons we at any time see judgment beginning at the house of God we may say with astonishment What will the end of those be who obey not the Gospel What will become of the wicked and ungodly of those who openly prophane and blaspheme his Holy Name O what appearances shall they have of God and how shall they appear before God! We read in the 25th of Jeremy of a Bowl of blood given him to carry about to the Nations A terrible message he is sent about he carries a Cup of blood about and bids the Nations drink they must drink it and saith the Lord If they shall refuse to take the Cup at thy hand to drink then shalt thou say unto them thus saith the Lord of hosts ye shall certainly drink Why For lo I begin to bring evil upon the City which is called by My Name and shall ye be utterly unpunished As if the Lord had said I have brought evil upon Jerusalem upon my own people and they have drunk very deep of that bitter Cup and do you O ye uncircumcised nations think that you shall escape We may conclude the Lord hath a terrible storm to bring upon the wicked and ungodly of the world when we hear him speaking to his own people in whirlwinds Consider this ye that forget God as such are admonished Psal 50.22 lest he tear you in pieces and there be none to deliver For our God shall come and shall not keep silence a fire shall devour before him and it shall be very tempestuous round about him as 't is said at the 3d verse of that Psalme And Then as 't is threatned Psal 2 5. shall he speak to them in his wrath and vex them in his sore displeasure That speaking will indeed be speaking out of a whirlwind which shall hurry them away into everlasting darkness Thus far of the manner of Gods speaking to Job the second time It was still out of the whirlwind Now followeth the matter spoken or what he spake to him Vers 7. Gird up thy loins now like a man I will demand of thee and declare thou unto me I shall add but little about this verse because we have had it almost word for word Chap. 38.3 where the Lord thus bespake Job Gird up now thy loins like a man for I will demand of thee and answer thou me These words this second time spoken or repeated by God to Job fall under various apprehensions these four especially First Some look upon them meerly as a challenge sent of God Gird up now thy self like a man come stand to thy work or rather stand to thy word do thy best Secondly Others expound them as an irony or divine scorn put upon Job to humble him Come Gird up thy loinâ— like a man Don't flinch for it stand to it thou wilt surely make good the day with me Thirdly Many in a milder sense look upon these words meerly as Counsel given to Job as if the Lord had said I mean to deal further with thee Therefore come now prepare and address thy self to the business I give thee leave to make the best thou canst of thy cause Fourthly We may take these words Esto bono animo c. as spoken to Job for his Comfort and encouragement The Lord seeing him as it were sinking and refusing to speak saith to him be not troubled be of good chear man Gird up thy loins like a man As the words are taken for a challenge and under the notion of a scorn put upon Job I shall not stay upon them This phrase Gird up thy loins was opened at the 38th Chap. 't is a metaphor taken from Travellers or those that go about any business who wearing long garments used to gird them up that they might be more expeditious whether for labour or for travel Thus the words are matter of Counsel and encouragement given to Job and under that notion I shall Note two things from them First As they are words of counsel the Lord having further business with Job or more to do with him adviseth him to gird up his loins like a man Hence Observe When we have to do with God we should put out our selve to the uttermost To Gird up our loins like a man imports our best preparation and such preparation we need for every holy duty When we are to pray we had need gird up our loins like men for then we are to wrestle or strive with God we must work it out with God in the duty of prayer and if our garments hang loose that is our affections be upon the earth and our hearts in the corners of the world how can we prevail with God in prayer we must gird up our loins like men when we declare our desires and requests to God in prayer and expect that God should answer us The holy Prophet complained of the Jews failing in this Isa 64.7 There is none that calleth upon thy name that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee Doubtless many called upon God in those days but they did not stir up themselves to take hold of God by faith and so their prayers went for no prayers And when we go to hear the word wherein God deals with us we had need gird up the loins of our minds else we cannot mind the word while we hear it nor remember much less practice the word which we have heard The Scripture often calls us to preparation for every duty What can discomposed persons loose-spirited persons loose-loin'd persons do with God or for God When we have any thing to do with God any thing to do for God we should do our best and be at our best we should play the men Master Broughton expresseth it well though not clear to the words in the Original Let me see thy skill or how skilfully thou canst handle the matter with me The Lord would have us shew our skill when we have any thing to do with him or to do for him we should then play the men and not the children much less should we play the fools be sloathful sluggish and careless Especially we should do this with respect to the appearing of Jesus Christ in the great day of our account Christ himself gives the rule Stand with your loyns girt and your lamps burning as those servants that wait for their Lords coming When Christ our Lord comes all must come before him but none shall be able to stand before him but they who stand with loyns girt that is who are ready and in that readiness wait for his coming Secondly Taking these words as words of encouragement Gird up thy loyns like a man Poor heart do not
and wicked men then saith the Lord ver 14. I will confess unto thee that thine own right hand can save thee that is I will yield thee the cause I will acknowledge that thou who canst thus bring down the pride of men in the height of their iniquity art also able to help thy self out of all thy misery yea that thou art able to contend with me who often have done and still can do these great things with ease with the turning of my hand with a word of my mouth yea then I will confess that thou art as I am that thou art God as I am But alas poor worm thou canst do none of these things therefore humble thy self and be quiet under mine afflicting hand This seems to be the general scope of the holy Ghost in these five verses even yet further to convince Job that he had not an arm like God nor could thunder with a voice like him forasmuch as he could not put forth such acts nor shew such effects of power as God both had and could put forth and shew in the face of all the world Vers 10. Deck thy self now with majesty c. Deck or adorn thy self the word signifieth to adorn to put on ornaments make as fair a shew of thy self as thou canst The Apostle Gal. 6.12 speaks of some who desired to make a fair shew in the flesh The Lord bids Job make as fair a shew of himself as he could in flesh Deck Thy self Let thy majesty proceed from thy self Thus it is with God he needs no hand to adorn and deck him to apparel him or put on his robes as the Kings and Princes of the earth need others deck them others adorn them and put on their robes but the Lord decks himself Now saith the Lord to Job Deck thy self as I do With majesty and excellency Kings and Princes are decked with majesty and excellency at all times a majestick excellency is inherent in their estate and when they shew themselves in state or shew their state they put on their Crowns and Robes Thus saith the Lord to Job Put on majesty and excellency Both words signifie highness exaltation and are often used to signifie pride because they that are high and exalted are usually proud and are alwayes under a temptation to be proud of their highness and greatness And these words which here in the abstract we translate majesty and excellency are rendred in the concrete proud vers 11 12. Behold every one that is proud vers 11. Look upon every one that is proud vers 12. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Majesty is proper to Kings and therefore we speak to them in that language Your Majesty Excellency belongs to persons of great dignity we say to Princes and great Commanders Your Excellency because they excel and exceed others in honour and power Moses spake so of God Exod. 15.7 In the greatness of thy Excellency thou hast overthrown them that rose up against thee In the greatness of thy Excellency or in the greatness of thy lifting up and exaltation the word notes both Gods high magnificence Psal 68.35 and mans pride or haughtiness Psal 10.2 The wicked in his pride or haughtiness of spirit persecutes the poor Deck thy self with Majesty as a King and with Excellency as a Prince put on thy Emperial robes and thy Princely garments Yea further Array thy self with glory and beauty Dicimus etiam nidui dedecore vel ignominia nam quare ornamur vel dedecoramur ea elegantèr niduâ— dicimur Diuâ— Here are two other ornamental expressions Glory and Beauty Glory is man in his best array or mans best array yea Glory is God in his best array or Gods best array The perfect happiness of man in heaven is called glory mans best suit is his suit of glory Grace Gloria est clara cum laude notitia Ambros 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Notat spendorem claritatem quae efficere potest assensum confessionem apud spectatores ad gloriam ipsius quòd omnia â—gat 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Deus non habet circundatum decorem quasi superadditum ejus essentiae Sed ipsa essentia ejus decor est Aquin. which is our best suit on earth is sometimes called glory 2 Cor. 3.18 We are changed from glory to glory as by the Spirit of the Lord that is fâ—om grace to grace Mans first change is from sin to grace his second is from grace to grace or from one degree of grace to another Grace is glory begun and glory is grace perfected Now as glory is mans best suit so glory is as I may say Gods best suit He is as the God of all grace 1 Pet. 5.10 so the God of all glory for all glory is to be given unto him and his glory will he not give to any other The glory of God is twofold First Essential and internal for ever unchangeably abiding in himself indeed the very Essence of God is glory Of this we read Exod. 33.18 I will make all my goodness pass before thee I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious and will shew mercy to whom I will shew mercy this kind of glory I will shew thee but thou canst not see my face and live that is my essential glory Secondly There is a providential or external glory of God the manifestations of God in his greatness goodness and power are his glory Thus 't is said at the dedication of Solomons Temple 1 King 8.11 The glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord that is there was a glorious and wonderful manifestation of the presence of the Lord in his house Whatever God manifests of himself whether his power or his goodness or his mercy or his grace or his patience or his justice is his glory The Lord often arrayeth himself with these glories that is he declares both by his word and by his works that he is powerful good merciful gracious patient and just towards the children of men The Scripture calleth God the glory of his people Psal 106.20 that is it is the glory of any people or that which they should glory in that God is known to them or that they are owned by God But the idolatrizing Jews changed their glory into the similitude of an Ox that eateth grass that is they changed God who was their glory and in whom they should have gloried into the form of an in-glorious beast while they either worshipped the image of a beast or their God in that image And it is considerable that the Apostle Rom. 1.23 at least alluding to as the reference in our Bible intimates if not quoting that place last mentioned in the Psalm whilst he speaks of the idolatrous Gentiles doth not say as there They changed their glory c. for the true God was not the glory of the Gentiles in those dayes they owned him not as their only
God having many Idol gods nor did he own them as his people and therefore the Apostle did not nor could he in truth say of the Gentiles They changed their glory c. But thus he saith They changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man and to birds and four-footed beasts and creeping things The Gentiles did not change the incorruptible God their glory into an image but they changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image c. And in that respect the idolatry of the Jews a people knowing the true God yea and glorying in him was worse than the idolatry of the Gentiles who knew him not nor ever gloried in him nor accounted him their glory But to the point in hand As that is Gods glory which manifests his glory So in general any thing which maketh man shine forth commendably or honourably to others or gives him a preheminence above many others as neer relation to God specially doth may be called his glory Whatsoever is best in us or to us is our glory The soul of man is his glory because it is his best part The body is a poor thing to the soul the body is but a shell the soul is the kernel the body is but the sheath as the Chaldee calls it Deut. 7.15 the soul is the sword though usually we take more pains for the body than for the soul as if we prized it more When Jacob said Gen. 49.6 O my soul come thou not into their secret unto their assembly mine honour be not thou united he meant some say the same thing by his soul and by his honour or glory because the soul is the most glorious and honourable part in man and that which men should be most careful of Thus likewise the tongue of man is called his glory Psal 57.8 Awake my glory that is my tongue The tongue being that organ or instrument whereby the wisdom and prudence of man is held forth and he made glorious in the world 't is therefore called his glory The tongue of man is also called his glory because with that he giveth glory to God by praising him and confessing his name together with his truth unto salvation And as glory is the best of man so of any other creature 1 Cor. 15.61 There is one glory of the Sun and another of the Moon and another glory of the Stars for one Star differs from another Star in glory that is there is one excellency uâ—e or operation in this Star and another in that Or One Star differs from another Star in glory that is their light influences effects differ some being more others less operative upon sublunary bodies When the Lord said to Job Array thy self with glory his meaning is shew thy best and he means the same when he adds Array thy self with beauty 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Beauty is the natural ornament of the body of the face or countenance especially These two words glory and beauty are often joyned together in Scripture Psal 21.5 Psal 45.3 where we render them honour and majesty We may thus distinguish between them taking the one for that which appears outwardly in vestures and gestures in actions and works and the other as importing that revâ—â—ence veneration which is given to such Verba originalia fero sunt synonima as appear in that splendor and dignity or which their splendor and dignity stirs up in others But we need not stand to distinguish them the words being often used promiscuously And here the Lord is pleased to imploy many words to the same purpose to shew what great state he had need be in that contends with him As if he had said O Job although thou didst not sit upon a dunghil or wert not bound to thy bed by the cords of thy affliction but didst sit upon a Kingly throne shining in robes of royalty couldst thou in all those ornaments equal thy self to me in majesty and excellency in glory and beauty Deck thy self with majesty and excellency c. Hence note First God himself is full of Majesty of Excellency of Glory and of Beauty I put them all together in one Observation because the tendency of them all is one The Scripture often sets forth the Lord thus adorned thus decked Psal 93.1 The Lord reigneth he is cloathed with majesty he is cloathed with strength wherewith he hath girded himself Again Psal 69.6 Honour and majesty are before him strength beauty are in his sanctuary Psal 104.1 Bless the Lord O my soul O Lord my God thou art very great thou art cloathed with honour and majesty This cloathing this array which the Lord called Job to put on is properly his own and though God will not give his glory to another yet here he bids Job take his glory and shew himself in it to the utmost if he could Many have affected or invaded Gods glory but none could ever attain or reach it God calls man really to partake of glory with him but man cannot take his glory upon him and be man The humane nature of Christ could never have received nor born that glory but as united to and subsisting in the person of the Son of God according to that prayer of his John 17.5 More distinctly If God be thus cloathed Then First We should tremble before him Majesty is dreadful The majesty of Kings who in nature are but men is very dreadful how much more the majesty of God who is King of Kings the King immortal and reigns for ever We have this trembling three times repeated with respect to the majesty of God Isa 2.10 19 21. where the mightiest and greatest of the world called there high Mountains and strong Towers Oaks and Cedars are said to go into the holes of the rocks and into the caves of the earth for fear of the Lord and for the glory of his Majesty when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth And though the people of God have great cause to rejoyce at his majesty as 't is prophesied they shall Isa 24.14 They shall lift up their voices they shall sing for the majesty of the Lord nothing causeth the hearts of the righteous to rejoyce more than the majesty of God yet they ought to rejoyce and so they do with trembling Psal 2.11 or with a holy awe of God impressed upon their hearts for the majesty of God is a very dreadful tremendous awful majesty And the more we have truly tasted the goodness and mercy of God the more shall we tremble at his majesty yea the Lord will have his majesty not only taken notice of but trembled at and therefore he reproves those Isa 26.10 who would not behold his majesty The majesty of the Lord like himself cannot be seen or beheld in it self yet it sheweth it self many wayes though few behold it or tremble at it and the reason why they tremble not at it is because they do not
him or have him to be but what he is he is of and from himself Thirdly Observe The majesty and glory of the greatest among men is the gift of God Deck thy self with majesty saith God to Job but Job could not deck himself he could not pâ—t a clothing of majesty and excellency of glory and beauty upon himself All that man hath is received from God and is but a ray from his unconceiveable light As all our spiritual aâ—ray deckings and ornaments are put on us by God Ezek. 16.10 11. I cloathed thee with broidered work I covered thee with silk I decked thee also with ornaments I put a jewel on thy forehead c. So all civil ornaments are put on man by God I girded thee said God of Cyrus Isa 45.5 though thou hast not known me that is I gave thee all thy power and greatness thy honour and dignity though thou tookest no notice of me in doing it nor that I did it Thus it is said of Solomon 1 Chron. 29.25 The Lord magnified Solomon exceedingly in the sight of all Israel and bestowed upon him such royal majesty as had not been on any king before him in Israel And thus spake Daniel to Belshazzar concerning his father Nebuchadnezar Dan. 5.19 And for the majesty that he that is God gave him all Nations People and Languages trembled and feared before him All the majesty and excellency all the glory and beauty of the greatest Monarchs is derived from God Fourthly Observe The majesty and excellency the glory and beauty of man is nothing to Gods Christ saith Mat. 6.29 Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these Solomon was a King in the greatest majesty and excellency glory and beauty of any that ever was in the world yet saith Christ he was not decked like one of these Lillies then how far short did his glory fall of the glory of God! how doth all the glory of the world vanish and disappear at the appearance of the glory of God even as the lustre of the moon stars doth at the rising of the thrice illustrious Sun And as mans glory is nothing to Gods while it lasts or endures so it is nothing to his in the lastingness and duration of it Dominion and majesty are Gods and shall be ascribed to God everlastingly It is said of Ahasuerus Esther 1.4 that he shewed the riches of his glorious kingdom and the honour of his excellent Majesty many days even a hundred and fourscore days but the Lord sheweth his excellent Majesty for ever and ever for it abides for ever and if so what is the majesty of man compared with the Lords Isa 40.6 All flesh is grass and the goodliness of it as the flower of the field The majesty and excellency the glory and beauty of man is but the goodliness of flesh or the best of a fleshly earthly state and what is that but the goodliness of a fading flower or of the grass that is cut down and withers yea which sometimes withers before it is cut down as David saith Psal 129.6 7. the grass doth upon the house tops which withereth afore it groweth up wherewith the mower filleth not his hand nor he that bindeth sheaves his bosome Fourthly note The way to lay the creature low is to consider the Majesty of God Why doth the Lord call Job to deck himself with humane majesty and excellency was it not to bring him to a due consideration of his own divine majesty and excellency Job must compare himself with God in his glory that he might fall down convinced that himself had no glory Thus the Lord shewed Job his own meanness and exility by bidding him imitate the divine Majesty and excellency Secondly The Lord calls him further to imitate him if he could in the mighty effects of his power or in his powerful works against proud and wicked men Vers 11. Cast abroad the rage of thy wrath As if he had said let me see now what a man thou art or rather what a God thou art when thou art enflamed with anger Cast abroad That is furiously disperse and scatter thy rage or rages The word signifies a scattering after breaking to pieces Psal 2.9 As a Potters vessel 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 notat confractionem cum dispersione 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 indignatio à transeundo vel quod citò transeat Ira furor brevis est when it is broken is scattered abroad so saith the Lord scatter abroad the rage of thy wrath the Hebrew word is The passing of thy wrath Rage makes a speedy passage it hath a swift motion and do thou cast it abroad while 't is stirring and in motion let it not cool cast it abroad hot The word notes a violent hurrying along Scatter abroad the rage Of thy wrath Or as the Hebrew hath it of thy nostrils Raging appears by breathing or in the quick stirring of the nostrils when we breath but why would the Lord have Job shew his rage The answers is do it to the destruction of the proud Behold every one that is proud and abase him Go look upon proud ones in thine anger deal with them as they deserve The word implies more than bare beholding There is a twofold beholding of things or persons First With favour delight and pleasure Psal 33.18 and 34.15 In both places the Lord is represented beholding or casting an eye upon his people with grace and favour for their good and comfort Secondly There is a beholding with anger and displeasure that is the meaning here behold every one that is proud behold them all not only to take notice of them who they are but behold them as I do in wrath and anger Behold Every one that is proud Be they few or many great or small shew thy self against every one that is proud and Abase him Every proud man is as a mountain Go shew thy self like me behold those that are as mountains among men and make them valleys abase them that 's the Lords work and the meaning of his word here as if he had said I have a power that though proud ones are as great mountains yet I can make them as valleys The Lord speaks this again at the beginning of the Vers 12. Look on every one that is proud and bring him low Here is an elegant repetition of the same thing almost in the same words meerly to inforce the matter look on every one that is proud bend thy brows look frowningly upon him as if thou wouldst look him thorough And bring him low The Septuagint say quench him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Superbum extingue Sept. The proud man is all in a flame now saith God behold this proud man and quench him extinguish him put him out Thus the Lord calls Job to express his displeasure in these effects against proud men that he might appear in wrath like him As if the Lord had said I behold the proud man and I abase
of all men James 4.6 God resisteth the proud The proud contend with God they as it were wage war with God and therefore God will wage war and contend with them he resisteth the proud Prov. 3.34 Surely he scorneth the scorner but he giveth grace to the lowly The Lord hath two great works to do in the world The first is to lift up and exalt the humble The second is to humble and pull down the proud These two are the daily products of divine providence And the Lord is so much an enemy to pride that if he see it in any of his own servants he will abase them and lay them low for it as we see in the case of that good King Hezekiah His heart being lifted up not in thankfulness nor in zeal for the ways and things of God as once it was but in pride there was wrath upon him and upon Judah and Jerusalem 2 Chron. 32.35 The Lord will not bear it when his own bear or behave themselves proudly Prov. 29.23 A mans pride any mans pride shall bring him low that is he shall be brought low for his pride or his pride will bring him into such extravagant wayes as will be a means to bring him low Thirdly Note God can easily abase and cast down proud ones If any ask how easily can he do it I answer He can do it with a look Look upon every one that is proud and bring him low saith God to Job shew thy self like me in this I can do it as easily as look upon him God by a cast of his eye can cast down all proud men as the Lord can help his people with a look David desired no more for his portion but that God would lift up the light of his countenance upon him Psal 4.6 that is that God would look upon him favourably And that prayer is made three times Psal 80 4 7 19. Cause thy face to shine upon us and we have enough we shall be saved we shall be delivered we shall be protected A good look from God is all good to man God with a good look can save us and if God withdraw his eye from any and will not look upon them if he turn his back upon them or hide his face from them his favour is withdrawn and they are helpless Now as God can save his people with a smiling look so he can destroy his enemies with a frowning one His look is as powerful and effectual to destroy as it is to save though to look savingly be much more the delight of God if I may so speak than to look destroyingly It is said God looked through the pillar of fire and the cloud upon the Hosts of Pharoah and troubled them and took off the chariot wheels Exod. 14.24 Surely God abaseth the proud men of the world easily when he doth it with a look He indeed as the holy Virgin spake in her song Luke 1.51 52. Sheweth strength with his arm or the strength of his arm when he scattereth the proud in the imaginations of their hearts and puts down the mighty from their seats and exalteth them of low degree yet all this the Lord can do with a look from heaven The habitation of his Holiness and of his Glory Now If the Lord deal thus with proud men take these inferences from it First Hath God such an evil eye upon proud men will he cast them down will he certainly do it and can he easily do it Then woe to proud men 't is the word of the Prophet Isa 28.1 Woe to the crown of pride to the drunkards of Ephraim that is to those who crown themselves with pride and make that their glory and their honour which will pâ—ove their shame and downfal and these the Prophet calls the drunkards of Ephraim I conceive he means not those that drink themselves drunk with wine but those that are drunk with their own presumptions with the pride of their spirits or as many also are with vain hopes and expectations We have vain confidents and expectants so expressed Nahum 1.10 While they are folded together as thorns and while they are drunken as drunkards they shall be devoured as stubble fully dry that is while they are drunken with pride and self-confidence to carry all before them while they are thus folded together like thorns in their plots and contrivements while they are drunken with false hopes they shall be devoured as stubble fully dry that is they shall be utterly consumed and devoured Secondly If there be such a woe to proud ones if the Lord hath such a bad eye upon them and is able to lay them low and will certainly do it and can easily do it we had need consider who are the proud ones Pride is an evil weed yet it groweth many times in the best soyl even in a good heart and it is no easie matter to find out who are the proud men intended in this Text and Point yet I answer In general First All they are proud who value themselves very highly yea they are proud who put any undue value upon themselves we can scarcely value our selves any thing at all but we shal over-value â—ur selves for we are worms and no men saith David He said also What is man O Lord that thou art mindful of him Man is so small a thing that the Psalmist could hardly tell what he is or what to make of him sure enough man is no such thing as most men make of themselves Doubtless if we have any high thoughts of our selves we over-think our selves and usually they that have least true worth have greatest thoughts of their own worthiness Man hath lost all is stript of all as he cometh into the world yet he is proud as if he had all As they that have much are proud or in great danger of pride so it is a truth that they who have nothing are often proud too The Apostle bids Timothy 1 Tim. 6.17 Charge them that be rich in this world that they be not high-minded And among rich men they who as I may say according to the phrase of the world have raised their own fortunes are most apt to be proud and there are two reasons of it First Because of the change of their state they were low and empty but now they are high and full This change of their condition changeth their disposition and as we say Their blood riseth with their good Secondly That which they have is say they of their own getting they think their skill and their diligence hath got it Hence Job protested If I rejoyced because my hand hath gotten much Nebuchadnezzar boasted of his great Palace because he had built it Is not this great Babel that I have built Now as they are apt to be proud who have much especially when it is of their own acquisition though indeed we have nothing meerly of our own acquisition so they who have little or nothing are not out of
pride of the Assyrian put him upon other sins upon oppression especially he could not keep at home nor be contented with his own Dominion thâ—ugh a very large and vast one he must go abroad and invade other mens Territories his pride sent him to do mischief and he enlarged his desire as hell Proud men must oppress and wrong others to bring in fewel for their own lusts Pride calls in aid from many sins to serve its turn Lastly If Pride provokes God if he looketh upon every one that is proud to abase him and bring him low then how should we labour to be humble ones that the Lord may look upon us with a favourable eye and so he doth upon all them that walk humbly with him As God resisteth the proud so he giveth grace to the humble that is favour The humble shall have his favour and the proud his frowns As to do justly and to love mercy is the sum of all duty to man so to walk humbly is the sum of all duty to God Mic. 6.8 They who walk humbly walk not onely holily but safely They who are low in their own eyes are under the special protection of the high God The Lord having called upon Job to shew the effect of his wrath against one sort of bad men the proud calleth upon him in the next words to shew the effects of his wrath upon all sorts of bad men comprehended under this general word The wicked And tread down the wicked in their place The Lord bids Job do this if he could indeed he could not that he might shew himself a competent match for God As if the Lord had said I tread down the wicked in their places do thou so too if thou canst God had said before Abase every one that is proud and bring him low now he saith Tread down the wicked Tread them down As mire in the street We tread upon vile and contemptible things To tread upon any tâ—ing a person especially notes utter contempt of him and abâ—olute conquest over him and therefore Josh 10.24 to shew the compleat victory which the Lords people had goâ— over the Kings of Canaan Joshua called for all the men of Israel and said unto the Captains of the men of war which went with him Come near put your feet upon the necks of these Kings and they came near and put their feet upon the necks of them And that 's it which the Apostle gives in way of promise as an assurance of our conquest over the evil spirit the devil Rom. 16.20 God shall bruise we put in the Margin tread the Greek word signiâ—ies to bruise by treading God shall tread Satan under your feet shortly that is God will give you a full and a final victory over the devil We have a like expression or promise Psal 91.13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet God will give his people power not onely over hurtful beasts but over men which are hurtful as those beasts and over Satan who is eminently shadowed by the Lion the Adder the young Lion and the Dragon in that evil spirit all these evil beasts are trodden under feet that is subdued and conquered When David would shew how he in case he were faulty was willing to be made a very slave to his enemies he phrases it thus Psal 7.5 Let the enemy persecute my soul and take it yea let him tread down my life upon the earth and lay mine honour in the dust that is let him have full power over me let me be at his mercy though he be mercilesse Once more saith the Church Psal 44.5 Through thee will we push down our enemies through thy name will we tread them down that rise up against us Thus the Lord bespake Job Come saith he Let me see you tread down the wicked get an absolute conquest over them that they may rise up no more in this world to do wickedly Tread down The wicked The word wicked is often taken largely so every man in a sinful state may be called a wicked man every person unconverted or unregenerate every person that hath not true grace is wicked There is no middle estate among men between good and bad converted and unconverted yet here the wicked are not to be taken onely in a large sense for sinners in common but strictly First For the proud before spoken of There the Lord said abase the proud here he saith Tread down the wicked that is the wicked who are proud To be wicked and to be proud are the same For as most wicked men are proud so all proud men are wicked for pride it self is a great wickednesse and it is pride that causeth most men to do wickedly even to rebel against God and his righteous laws to rise up against his wayes and truths When we have said of a man he is proud if we have not said all evil we have said one of the worst evils of him and that which layes him open as to suffer the worst penal evils so to do the worst sinful evils Secondly If we take the words distinctly as we may then by the wicked are meant grosse and flagitious sinners notorious sinners for though as I said before any one that hath not grace may be called wicked yet properly and in Scripture sense wicked ones are notorious presumptuous and flagitious sinners such as sin with a high hand and with a stiffe neck Thirdly By the wicked we may especially understand oppressors who are troublesome and vexatious to others As some are wicked in taking their own pleasure and in satisfying their vain desires so many are wicked in vexing afflicting and oppressing others The Hebrew word for a wicked man signifies such a one as is both unquiet himself and will not suffer others to be quiet In any of or in all these three notions we may expound the word wicked here the wicked are proud ones or notorious evil ones or oppressors of others Tread down the wicked In their place The Hebrew is Vnder them The word also signifieth as we render a proper place and that 's considerable Tread them down in their place The Lord doth not say in thy place but in their place which may note these two things First Wheresoever thou findest them tread them down Secondly In their place that is where they flourish most where they are best rooted or most strongly secured where they have the greatest advantages and strengths to save them harmlesse That is specially a mans place Non est difficile superbum hominem petentem in alieno loco superare quia in eo minus habet potentiae Sanct. where he seateth and hopes to settle himself Now saith God Tread them down in their place I do so I destroy the wicked when and where they think themselves safest where they think no hand can touch them nor arm reach them there my foot shall tread
some interpret of a glorious state of the Church here and 't is undoubtedly true as all agree of the Church in glory No unclean thing shall enter without shall be dogs Then indeed God will abase the proud and tread down the wicked In their place Hence note Thirdly No outward advantages and except those they have none shall stand the wicked in stead or keep them from falling God will tread them down in their place when they are where they would be upon their own ground they shall be worsted The Scripture speaks often of treading down the wicked notwithstanding their greatest advantages Union is a great advantage for preservation yet Isa 8.9 Associate your selves O ye people and ye shall be broken in pieces and give ear all ye far Countries gird your selves and you shall be broken in pieces take counsel together and it shall come to nought speak the word and it shall not stand As if the Lord had sad I will not take you at an advantage before you are gathered together before you are girded I will not surprize you unarmed and unprovided do your best to save and secure your selves from my vengeance associate your selves gird your selves take counsel together and then I will tread you down Neither strongest associations nor wisest consultations nor highest resolutions nor compleatest preparations for action though ye have spoken the word and are girt shall avail you in the day of my wrath Thus the Lord bespake Jehoiakim by his Prophet Jerem. 22.15 Shalt thou reign because thou closest thy self in Cedar As if he had said because thou dost make such provision for thy own safety dost thou think to be be safe or canst thou shelter thy self against me Again vers 23. O Inhabitant of Lebanon that makest thy nest in the Cedars Cedars are high trees and strong how gracious shalt thou be when pangs come upon thee the pain of a woman in travel The Lord puts a scorn upon them such a kind of scorn but not as hers without cause as Michal put upon David 2 Sam. 6.20 how glorious was the King of Israel to day Were not you very glorious when you danced uncovered before the ark Thus I say the Lord puts a holy scorn upon the wicked when they are in their Cedar-nests How gracious wilt thou be when pangs of sorrow come upon thee Take one Scripture more Jerem. 49.16 Thy terribleness 't is spoken of Edom hath deceived thee thou thoughtest thy self so terrible that none durst touch thee yet thy terribleness hath deceived thee and the pride of thy heart O thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock and holdest the height of the hill though thou shouldst make thy nest as high as the Eagles I will bring thee down from thence saith the Lord. Thou hast all the advantages thou hast a rock for strength and thou art upon a hill for height yea upon the height of the hill thou art above all but though thy nest were as the Eagles I will pluck thee thence Thus the Lord treads down the wicked in their place in there fortifications in their mounts and towers when they have secured themselves most by counsels and friends and strong-holds then and there he treads them down even in their place Fourthly Note God is known to be God or sheweth himself to be God by abaseing the proud and by treading down wicked men I ground it thus The Lord would have Job shew himself like God or act as God doth by treading down the wicked God made himself known to be God by the Plagues which he brought upon Pharaoh as well as by the deliverance and salvation which he wrought for Israel Exod. 8.22 Exod. 9.14 I will send all my plagues upon thy heart and upon thy servants and upon thy people that thou mayst know that there is none like me in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up for to shew in thee my power and that my name may be declared throghout all the earth Thus also said David Psal 9.16 The Lord is known by the judgment that he executeth that is by punishing the wicked he is known to be the Lord. God is known by his works as well as in his word power and greatness and wisdom and justice are visible in his judgments There was a third sort of wicked men named in opening the Text which I shall but touch in this observation Such they were described to be as are unquiet themselves nor will they suffer others to be quiet by their good wills they are troubled that any live peaceably by them The Lord will tread down these unquiet wicked ones also The Scripture is full of this truth Isa 33.1 Wo to thee that spoilest and thou wast not spoiled and dealest treacherously and they dealt not treacherously with thee when thou shalt cease to spoil thou shalt be spoiled and when thou shalt make an end to deal treacherously they shall deal treacherously with thee Now the Lord having put Job to all these trials of his strength thereby to shew himself able to contend with him tells him plainly if thou canst do these things Vexatio verba minus limata extorsit menpia casta permansit if thou canst abase the proud if thou canst tread them down hide them in the dust and bind their faces in secret Then Vers 14. Will I confess that thine own right hand can save thee Then will I confess That is when thou hast done all these things Confessio pro laude honorifico testimonio saepe ponitur in Scriptura Palmam tibi cedam c. Bez. I will give an honourable testimony of thee I will not hide thy power and then I will acknowledge thou hast some colour to contest with me and art able to uphold thy self These mighty acts are proper and peculiar to me yet thou seemest to say thou canst do all these else surely thou hadst never offered to contend with me That 's the scope of these words Then will I confess That thine own right hand can save thee Or that thou canst be a self-saviour Hoc solius Dei est qui quod est per se est à quo omnis potestas dignitas or that thou art self-sufficient as I am and hast no dependance upon any and then thou needest not complain that I do not help thee for thou canst help thy self Thine own right hand can save thee The hand is an instrument of help especially the right hand and then the right hand saves when it either keeps us from danger or delivers us out of it Quest But did Job ever say his own right hand could save him Answ Job never said it nor thought it his mind was pure from such blasphemy yet he sometimes spake as if he had been somewhat more than a man especially when he spake of debating his matters and arguing with God First In that the Lord saith in case Job could do all those things he
time of Behemoths making I made him the same day with thee for all the beasts of the earth were made upon the sixth day the same day in which man was made Fourthly Which I made with thee that is I made him to be with thee I did not make Behemoth as I made Leviathan to play in the Sea but I made him to be with thee on the Land that thou shouldst behold him and take notice of him or that he should be under thy hand yea not only so but contrary to the nature of wilde beasts to love thy company and to desire converse with thee to be guided by thee and in many things to act with a kind of reason and understanding like thee or as thy self and other men do Fifthly Which I made with thee that is for thee I made him for thy use I made him to serve thee Though he be thus great and vast yet he will be thy humble servant There will be occasion afterwards to shew further how serviceable and useful Elephants are to man Sixthly I made him with thee that is I made him as nigh to thee as any of the unreasonable creatures yea nigher to thee than any of the unreasonable creatures for I have made him excel them all as thou excellest him he is above other irrational creatures as thou art above all irrationals He next to Angels and men is the chief of my wayes The word made may import this also and so it is used 1 Sam. 12.6 The Lord advanced the Hebâ—ew is Made Moses and Aaron The Lord hath so made the Elephant that he hath also advanced him above all the beasts of the field I have set him as near the seat of reason as might be and not be rational In all these respects we may understand the Lord saying to Job concerning Behemoth I made him with thee He is thy fellow-creature and how great soever he is he is my creature I made him the same day that I made thee and I made him to abide in the same place with thee or where thy abode is I made him also for thy service and that he might be a meet servant for thee I have made him almost a partaker of reason with thee so far at least a partaker of reason that he will very obsequiously submit to and follow the conduct of thine and though he be the strongest beast on earth yet thou mayest find him acting more according to thy reason than his own force or strength There is yet another interpretation of these words given by Bochartus which favours his opinion that Behemoth is the Hippopotame or River Horse Whom I have made with thee Tecum vel potius juxta te or rather near thee or hard by thee that is in thy neighbour-hood in a Countrey which borders upon thine As if saith he God had said to Job I need not fetch arguments from far to prove how powerful I am seeing I have them at hand For among the beasts which I made in Nilus which is near thy Countrey Arabia how admirable is the Hippopotame And that the Hebrew word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies by or near as well as with he gives many examples Josh 7.2 Judg. 9.6 Judg. 18.3 Judg. 19.11 2 Sam. 6.7 2 Sam. 20.8 which the Reader may peruse and consider Thus the Elephant was made with man But how lives he how feeds he Not like man He eateth grasse as an Oxe From these words also the Authour last mentioned collects an argument for the strengthening of his interpretation The Oxe and Elephant saith he are alike labouring beasts and therefore no wonder if they feed alike or live upon the same kind of food but that the Hippopotame which is an aquatical Animal and abides for the most part in the bottom of Nilus should eat grasse like an Oxe this is strange and matter of wonderment Nor is it for nothing that he is compared to the Oxe whom he resembles not onely in his food but in the bignesse of his body and in the shape of his head and feet whence the Italians call him Bomarin that is the Sea-Oxe Yet these words may very well be applied to the Elephant It being not onely true that his food is grasse but a merciful wonder that it is so For â—â—d this vast creature live upon prey or the spoil of other beasts what havock yea devastation would he make to satisfie his hunger So that these words He eateth grasse as an Oxe may carry this sense As if the Lord had said Though I have made this beast so great and strong yet he is no dangerous no ravenous beast he doth not live by preying upon other beasts by tearing and worrying sheep and Lambs as Lions and Bears and Wolves do this great and mighty creature eats grasse lâ—ke an Oxe Thus God would have Job take notice what way he hath provided for the subsistence of the Elephant He eateth grasse as an Oxe yet not altogether as the Oxe His food is as the food of an Oxe for the matter both eat grasse but he doth not eat in the same manner as an Oxe Why how doth an Oxe eat by licking up the grasse with his tongue into his mouth as he is described Numb 22.4 but the Elephant gathers up the grasse with his trunk and then puts it into his mouth Naturalists give these two reasons why the Elephant cannot eat like the Oxe Ne ore pascatur adminuculo linguae ut boves impedit colli brevitas linguae quoque quae illi animali perexigua est interius posita ita ut eam vix videre possis Decerptam proboscideherbam dentibus quos utrinque quatuor habet commolit Arist l. 2. de Histâ—r Animal c. 5 6. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 à 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Pasco First Because of the shortnesse of his Neck Secondly The littlenesse of his Tongue which lies so far within his Mouth that it cannot easily be seen and therefore he crops the grasse with his trunk and putting it into his mouth grindes it with his teeth He eateth grasse like an Oxe He is like the Oxe as to what he feeds upon not as to the way of his feeding So then though the Elephant be so bulky and big-bodied yet by the Lords Ordinaâ—ion he is as harmlesse as a labouring Oxe he will not hurt any beast of the field This phrase Eating like an Oxe is used to set forth the peaceablenesse of his Nature Thus those blessed times are described when the power of the Gospel shall overcome the wrath and enmity which is in the Serpents seed against the seed of the Woman Isa 11.7 The Cow and the Bear shall feed their young ones and the Lion shall eat straw like the Oxe Lions will be quiet that is the spirits of those men who have been like Lions and Bears even they shall eat straw like the Oxe they shall not hurt the Lambs and Sheep of Christs flock and fold
therefore Job was specially to beware of this lest the Devil who desired to tempt him should prevail upon him by suggesting proud and high thoughts of himself and so make him a subject of his own kingdom for he is that mystical Leviathan who kings it to purpose over the children of pride As if the Lord had said to Job Lay down all thoughts and words which have any savour or tincture of pride Wilt thou be proud of this or that or any thing know that in his kind I have given more to Leviathan to be proud of than to thee And consider under whom thou art to reckon thy self if thou art lifted up in pride even under Leviathan for he is a King over all the children of pride And though Leviathan be exceeding proud and haughty yet I can quickly bring him down surely then I can bring thee down yet more than hitherto I have done Therefore O Job do not contend any more with me be not unquiet under my hand who am indeed thy King Lapsi videntur qui hoc de Leviathan vel etiam de Satana interpretati sunt Coc. Tenebras offudit interpretibus omissio relativi c. Coc. This leads me to another reading of the verse which makes the antecedent to he not Leviathan not the Devil but God himself He that beholdeth all high things is a King over all the children of pride That is God who beholdeth all high things and is higher than the highest Eccles 5.8 he is above the proudest men So then these words he beholdeth all high things having the Relative That supplyed are a circumlocution of God God indeed beholds all high things and high persons Let men be never so high God beholds them And as he beholdeth all things so he is higher than the highest things he is a King over all the children of pride who are the highest among men or high above all men in their own conceit The Lord as a King can rule and over-rule the proud he can bring down their high looks the Lord said to Job which may give some light to this interpretation when he would stir him up to consider himself what he was able to do and to do his best chap. 40.12 Look on every one that is proud and bring him low Canst thou do it canst thou look on every one that is proud and bring him low Thou canst not but I can God beholdeth all high things he hath them all before him and is a King over them he can make the proudest and stoutest and greatest that are in the world stoop to him That Great Monarch Nebuchadnezzar who lorded it over the greatest of the world in his days was at last brought to confess that the Lord was a King over all the children of pride Dan. 4.37 Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven all whose works are truth and his ways are judgment and those that walk in pride he is able to abase In this sence God is a King over all the children of pride Now though the words according to the sense given of this last reading may safely be applied to God yet as most among late Interpreters understand them literally of Leviathan so many of the antients who have written upon this Book turn this whole description of Leviathan into an Allegory of the Devil as was toucht before and to make it out they have run into many needless speculations But I conceive though it be true that many things spoken of Leviathan are applicable to the Devil as also to Tyrants to Antichrist and all wicked men and some who are very sparing in urging the Allegory yet grant we may when we read what is said of Leviathan reflect upon the Devil and consider what a mighty power he hath to do mischief if the goodness and power of God did not restrain him Yet 't is safest to keep to the plain sense and not to busie our selves much in transforming the holy Scriptures into Allegories in which some have been over-bold nor should any venture to draw Allegories but out of a natural meaning as the Apostle Paul did in the 4th Chapter of his Epistle to the Galathians I shall only adde that as from the nature of this Leviathan supposed to be the Whale we may receive many instructions so the Lord doth sometimes Preach or Prophesie to whole Nations by him that is he gives warning by him to Nations of some great things which shall come to pass among them 'T is the observation of an Interpreter upon this place God saith he prophesies to people and nations by the Whale or Leviathan Deus catos quasi poenitentiae precones facit dum insolitis locis apparentes bella alias clades nuncient ut homines poenitentiam agant Scult And as other places he was a Germane so we have had warnings by him for saith he in the year 1620 there was a Whale cast upon the shore of a great river far within the land twenty and five ells long and a half immediately before the great wars changes and troubles which befel Germany Hence he infers when these mighty fishes come into places which are out of their way and road or when God casts them upon unwonted shores it foreshews some unwonted thing or that God will bring guests among them that they never thought of Thus I have done with this long and large description which the Lord makes of Leviathan There remains only one chapter more which gives us the full effect and issue of all the dealings of God with Job and of his speakings to Job about Behemoth and Leviathan All was to humble him and we shall see him deeply humbled and eminently restored in the next chapter JOB Chap. 42. Vers 1 2 3 4 5 6. 1. Then Job answered the Lord and said 2. I know that thou canst do every thing and that no thought can be with-holden from thee 3. Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledg therefore have I uttered that I understood not things too wonderful for me which I knew not 4. Hear I beseech thee and I will speak I will demand of thee and declare thou unto me 5. I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear but now mine eye seeth thee 6. Wherefore I abhor my self and repent in dust and ashes THis Chapter is the conclusion of the whole History and Book of Job it consisteth of three general parts First Of Jobs deep and sincere humiliation before the Lord in these six verses Secondly Of the reconciliation of Jobs three friends to the Lord or of their attonement and peace made with the Lord vers 7 8 9. Thirdly Of Jobs restitution by the wonderful goodness and powerful hand of the Lord to as good yea to a better estate tahn he had before from the tenth verse inclusively to the end of the Chapter The words under hand contain the first part of the Chapter and I call them Jobs
humiliation before the Lord and in that we may consider these two general parts First Jobs Testimony concerning God Secondly His Charge brought against himself His Testimony concerning God we have in the second verse that is twofold or he commends and exalts God in two of his most glorious attributes First About his Omnipotency That thou canst do every thing Secondly About his Omnisciency as most expound the words And that no thought can be with-holden from thee Jobs Charge or Accusation which he brought against himself hath these four things in it First The Confession of his own ignorance and rashness in the third verse Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge I have spoken saith he things which I understood not things too wonderful for me which I knew not Thus he chargeth himself with rashness and ignorance Secondly The Submission of himself to the better instruction and teaching of God or to what God should be pleased yet further to reveal unto him at the 4th verse Hear I beseech thee and I will speak I will demand of thee and declare thou unto me He begs yet a word more with God and he begs a word more from God or that God would speak a word more to him Thirdly A Thankful Acknowledgment that he had already received much more light from God than formerly he had attained to at the 5th verse I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear I had a knowledg of thee O God before but now saith he mine eye seeth thee now I have more knowledg and clearer light concerning thee than ever I had before Fourthly The Issue or Effect of all this and that is his repentance Wherefore I abhor my self and repent in dust and ashes Thus we have both the general parts of the whole Chapter and the more particular resolution of this first part which I call Jobs humiliation And in this manner he humbled himself before the Lord as followeth Vers 1. Then Job answered the Lord and said These are the words of the Divine Historian connecting this Chapter with the former And all that I shall say upon this first first verse shall be but to Answer this Question How came it to pass that Job answered the Lord again seing he had professed before chap. 40.5 that he would answer no more Once have I spoken but I will not answer yea twice but I will proceed no further There Job seemed to take up a resolution to answer no more how is it then that here this Chapter beginneth with Then Job answered the Lord and said I shall give a three-fold answer to this doubt First Thus we may conceive Job in the former promise that he would answer no more meant it of such a kind of answer as he had given the Lord and his friends before he would answer no more in that way or after that sort and so it was not an absolute resolve not to answer but not to answer as he had done As if he had said I will answer no more justifying my self no nor so much as excusing my self or taking off the weight of any charge the Lord hath brought against me There being such a change in his answer he may very well be said to answer no more for he answered no more as once he did The best and safest way of justifying and excusing our selves is to lay our selves at the foot of God A confession of or a charging our selves with our sins is the best way of acquitting our selves before God from our sins I mean 't is the best that we can do to justifie or acquit our selves Secondly we may answer thus 'T is true Job said he would answer no more but it is as true that the Lord commanded him to answer again chap. 40.1 For when Job had said there at the fifth verse Once have I spoken but I will not answer yea twice but I will proceed no further The Lord saith at the 7th verse Gird up thy loyns like a man I will demand of thee and declare thou unto me God called him forth and bad him speak I have somewhat to say to thee and do thou answer me so that the Lord took off Job or released him from that bond that he had put upon himself Thou hast said thou wilt answer no more but I will have thee answer yet more Now though we take up a resolve to do or not to do such a thing yet a word from God must over-rule us As a word from God must over-rule us not to do what we have resolved to do so a word from God must over-rule us to do that which we have resolved not to do Thirdly The Lord had not only given Job a command to answer but inclined and moved his heart to answer The reason why Job resolved not to answer was the lowness of his own spirit and the terror of the Lord that was upon him The majesty and dread of the Lord put him upon a resolve for silence but now some favour appearing and the Lord giving him hopes of a gracious acceptance he was encouraged to speak and had a freedom of speech restored to him and accordingly he answered the Lord. Thus we may salve Jobs credit from lightness much more from a lie though after he had said he would answer no more we find him answering again Then Job answered the Lord and said The Lord having set forth his own infinite power and wisdom in that long and accurate speech which he made out of the whirlwind concerning his works of creation and providence especially by his discourse about that unparallel'd pair Behemoth and Leviathan the greatest of living creatures upon the land and in the sea I say the Lord having by this discourse humbled Job he saw and was convinced there was no disputing with God nor enquiring into much less complaining of or murmuring at his secret counsels and judgments he now saw it was not for him to call God to an account about any of his dealings and proceedings as sometimes he had done but rather to adore them and therefore he submits and answers only with exalting God and abasing himself He begins with the exaltation of God Then Job answered the Lord and said Vers 2. I know that thou canst do every thing That 's his first word and it teacheth us That when we begin to have high and great thoughts of God we cannot but have low and mean thoughts of our selves Our own humiliation begins at the exaltation of God and our self-emptiness and weakness at the sight of his fulness and Almightiness Thus Job began his humiliation I know that thou canst do every thing This verse exalts God both in his omnipotency and in his omnisciency Non exigit à nobis Deus multa verba sed multam fidem 'T is a short yet a full confession of his faith in this matter and though it were short yet it pleased God much and fully because Job uttered it in
nothing but the Word we shall never profit by the Word It is the Spirit given with the Word and the Spirit given with the rod by which we profit under both or either Psal 94.12 Blessed is the man saith David whom thou chastenest and teachest out of thy Law Chastning and divine teaching must go together else there will be no profiting by chastning God was Jobs teacher as well as his chastner Job received many lessons from God he taught him quire through the 38th and 39th Chapters and he taught him quite through two Chapters more before he said I know that thou canst do every thing Thus far of Jobs knowledge Let us a little consider the first object of it here expressed the omnipotence of God I know That thou canst do every thing Hence observe First God is good at any work That is at any work that is good he can do every such thing nothing comes amiss to him Among men one man can do this thing and another can do that thing and a third can do more than either but where will you find a man that can do every thing One man is for counsel another for action one man can build a house and another can till the ground several men have their several arts and mysteries and it is well if one man can do any one thing well But God is for all We have a saying and 't is a great truth He that will be doing of every thing Aliquis in omnibus nullus in singulis is no great doer in any thing that is he never excels in any But as the Lord can do every thing so he is exact and perfect in every thing that he doth The best creature is only a particular good but God is an universal good there is every good in God all the good that is scattered in the creature is eminently in him Now as God is an universal good so he is an universal Agent he is in working as he is in Being He can do every thing for us as well as be every thing to us We need not fear if we bring this or that thing to God that he hath no skill in it as it is with men if you bring this thing to a man he is excellent at it but bring another thing and he knoweth not how to turn his hand to it but whatsoever we have to do if it be according to the will of God he hath power and wisdom enough to do it The Lord had power enough to give a being to all creatures and hath he not power enough to do all things in and about the creature cannot he preserve in all dangers and provide in all wants cannot he furnish with all gifts and give success cannot he overthrow the high and exalt the low cannot be restrain the wrathful and subdue the obstinate cannot he weaken the strong and strengthen the weak cannot he make fools wise and wise men foolish surely he can do all these things for he can do every thing Secondly from these words take that grand assertion God is omnipotent his power is infinite This is a principle one of the great principles of Religion an Article of Faith yet I shall not enlarge upon it having met with it in other places of this book Only consider here how Job infers this principle he infers it from the discourse which the Lord was pleased to have with him in the four former Chapters wherein the Lord told him of many things that he had done I have done this and that in the heavens above and in the earth below I have made Behemeth and Leviathan God had told him of his doings Ex mirabilibus recensites scivit Job atque collegit Deum omnia posse non quasi per inductionem sed per deductionem plurium ex uno principio Janson whence Job inferred I know thou canst do every thing He doth not make this conclusion by way of induction there is such a way of argumentation in Logick but by deduction God hath done this and that and the other therefore he can do all things if he can do this what cannot he do if he can make and subdue Behemoth what cannot he do and if he can make and master Leviathan what cannot he do Christ Luke 5.20 argueth his omnipotency or Godhead in the same manner for having healed a poor man and said unto him Man thy sins are forgiven thee the Pharisees were very much offended with that word saying Who is this that speaketh blasphemy who can forgive sins but God alone Christ knowing their thoughts said What reason ye in your hearts whether is it easier to say thy sins are forgiven thee or to say rise up and walk I have healed the man doth not that argue a divine power why may not I then say Thy sins are forgiven thee He that can by his own might do one mighty or miraculous thing can do all things Such is the power of God that as I said before he hath no limit to it but his own will And seeing the will of God is the limit of his power let us take heed of desiring him who can do every thing to do any thing for us which is not according to his will Let us bound our desires let us take heed of saying this is our desire and God can do every thing therefore this which we desire Consider is your desire according to the will of God We cannot urge God with his Omnipotency to do any thing that is our desire if we are not first clear in it that our desire is agreeable to his will Unless we have a rule for our desire or we desire by rule we can have no well-grounded confidence that God will do that for us which we desire God is almighty not to do what we will or forge in our brain but to do what himself willeth Papists say the bread is turned into the very body of Christ but say we we see and feel and tast but bread They presently fly to this God is able to do all things or he can do every thing this is to abuse the Omnipotency of God Hath the Scripture declared any such thing yea hath not the Scripture declared the quite contrary that Sacraments are but signs of things not the things themselves This is my body said Christ but he said not my body is this Christ willed that his body should be represented by bread he will not that bread should be changed into his body The power of God must not be urged beyond his will He have no revelation of the will of God that he will transubstantiate the bread at the holy supper into the body of Christ but he hath given it as a sacred symbole of Christs crucified and broken body upon which we are to feed by faith That God can do whatsoever he willeth hath a two-fold use First Of comfort to all true believers Nostrae difficultates Deo per faciles sunt
Nathan the Prophet did to reprove King David but he told his friends at first word My wrath is kindled against you Though they were good men yet not so dear to God as Job and therefore he dealt in a more fatherly and favourable way with Job than with them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Exarsit incensus inflammatus est Inter septem voculas Hebraeorum quae iram significant haec omnium est gravissima Scult they had only hot words My wrath is kindled against you c. I am more than angry As the coals of spiritual love spoken of Cant. 8.6 so the coals of divine wrath are coals of fire which hath a most vehement flame There are seven words in the Hebrew language which signifie anger and this notes the most vehement of them all My wrath is kindled The Latine words Ira and Irasco seem to be derived from it The word is sometimes applied to grief there is a kind of fire in grief Thus 't is said 1 Sam. 15.11 It grieved Samuel and he cryed unto the Lord all night Samuel was vehemently grieved becauâ—e of the ill performance of Saul in his expedition against the Amalakites 'T is also translated to fret Psal 37.8 9. Fret not thy self in any wise to do evil fretting hath its burning My wrath saith the Lord is kindled There is a wrath of God which is not kindled as I may say it is not blown up 't is covered in the ashes of his patience and forbearance but here saith God My wrath is kindled This is spoken by God after the manner of men God feels no change by wrath or anger no impression is made on him by any passion Wrath in God notes only his change of dispensations towards man not any in himself When he acts like a man whose wrath is greatly kindled then 't is said his wrath is kindled as when he acteth like a man that sheweth much love it may be said his love is kindled Further when God saith My wrath is kindled it implieth there is some great provocation given him by man as in the present case Eliphaz and his two friends had done The Lord threatned a sinful Land with brimstone and salt and burning like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah and this being executed all Nations shall say wherefore hath the Lord done thus unto this Land what meaneth the heat of this great anger Then men shall say because they have forsaken the Covenant of the Lord God of their Fathers c. Deut. 29.23 24 25. The wrath of God is never kindled till blown and that which bloweth it up is mans sin nor doth the ordinary sins of man kindle the wrath of God for then it must be alwayes kindled even against the best of men Doubtless when the Lord said in the Text to Eliphaz My wrath is kindled against thee and thy two friends there was somewhat extraordinary in their sin which kindled it and therefore the Lord directed them an extraordinary way as to circumstances for the querching of it and the making of their peace But here it may be questioned why did the Lord say his wrath was kindled only against Eliphaz and his two friends had he nothing to say against Elihu he had spoken as harshly to Job as any of them yet Elihu was not at all reproved much less was the wrath of God kindled against him I answer 'T is true Elihu spake very hard words of Job yet we may say four things of Elihu which might exempt him from this blame which fell upon those three First He did not speak with nor discover a bitter spirit as they did Secondly Elihu objected not against Job his former life nor charged him as having done wickedly towards man or hypocritically towards God he only condemned him for present miscarriages under his trouble for impatience and unquietness of spirit under the cross Thirdly That which Elihu chiefly objected against Job was the justifying of himself rather than God as he speaks at the beginning of the 32d Chapter not the maintaining of his own innocency nor the justifying of himself before men Indeed Job failed while he insisted so much upon that point that he seemed more careful to clear himself than to justifie God Fourthly When Elihu spake hardly it was more out of a true zeal to defend the justice of God in afflicting him than to tax him with injustice Now because Elihu did not carry it with a bitter spirit and hit the mark much better than his friends though in some things he also shot wide and misunderstood Job therefore the blame fell only upon Jobs three friends and not upon Elihu The Lord said to Eliphaz my wrath is kindled against thee and against thy two friends but his wrath went no further Hence note First The Lord knows how to declare wrath as well as love displeasure as well as favour He hath a store of wrath as well as of love and that is kindled when he is highly displeased Secondly Note Sin causeth kindlings or discoveries of divine wrath Had it not been for sin the Lord had never declared any wrath in the world nothing had gone out from him but kindness and love favours and mercies Wrath is revealed from heaven against all unrighteousness and against unrighteousness only Rom. 1.18 Unrighteousness kindleth wrath sin is the kindle-coal When we see wrath or displeasure going out we may conclude sin is gone out Moses said to Aaron Numb 16.46 Take a Censer and put fire therein from off the altar and put on incense and go quickly unto the congregation and make an atonement for them for there is wrath gone out from the Lord the plague is begun Now as in this latter part of the chapter Moses shews that wrath was gone out against that people from the Lord so in the former part of it he shews that sin and that a great sin was gone out from that people against the Lord. Thirdly Note The Lord sometimes declareth wrath even against those whom he loveth Wrath may fall upon good men such were these friends of Job All the Elect whilest they remain unconverted or uncalled are called Children of wrath Ephes 2.3 Though they are in the everlasting love of God yet they are children of wrath as to their present condition whilst in a state of nature and unreconciled to God Now as the children of God are children of wrath before their conversion so when any great sin is committed after conversion they are in some sense under wrath and the Lord declareth wrath against them till the breach be healed and their peace sued out It is dangerous continuing for a moment in any sin unrepented of or we not going unto God by Jesus Christ for pardon When once the wrath of God is kindled how far it may burn who knoweth There is no safety under guilt Therefore kiss the son lest he be angry and ye perish from the way when his wrath is kindled but a little blessed
neglects of good to his people to himself so the Lord taketh all that evil which any speak of his people to himself He saith God that speaketh amiss of mine speaketh amiss of me The Lord accounteth himself interested in all that good or evil which is done and spoken to his people and he is very angry when any thing is mis-spoken of or misapplied to them though with respect to himself or as a service unto himself Fifthly Consider Jobs friends spake many excellent truths yet saith the Lord ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right as my servant Job hath Hence note The Lord is greatly displeased when truth or that which is right in it self is wrong applied Jobs friends were mostly right in their Doctrine but often out in their Uses all their open assertions had some truth in them but so had not all their secret Inferences God will not bear it to have truths put to any ill use especially this to grieve and discourage any of his suffering servants To speak of the holiness justice and righteousness of God so as to terrifie an afflicted soul is to make a bad improvement of the best things 'T is a fly in the box of ointment Dead flies saith Solomon Eccles 10.1 cause the ointment of the Apothecary to send forth a stinking savour so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour Jobs friends were in reputation for wisdom and honour yet this little folly sent forth an ill savour in the Lords nostrils and caused him to say Ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right Sixthly Jobs friends certainly meant well and had a zeal for God yet God was angry and said they had not spoken right Hence note Our good intentions yea zeal for God will not bear us out when we do or speak amiss These men had a zeal for God else Job had not said as once he did Will ye lye for God Though they did not knowingly speak a lye yet a lye was in what they spake and therefore their speaking for God would not bear them out Seventhly The Lord said to Jobs friends Ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right as my servant Job hath Though Job spake some things amiss yet the Lord did not charge him with them as he did his friends Hence note The Lord over-looketh many failings and will not upbraid his servants with them Job had his failings but the Lord took no notice of them but made a determination in his case as if he had spoken right in all things The Lord will not flatter his servants when they fail yet he is very favourable to them even when they fail he told Job plainly enough that he had darkned counsel by words without knowledge while he asked him who did it Chap. 38.2 He intimated also that Job had contended with him and reproved him that he had consequentially attempted to disannul his Judgement and condemn him Chap. 40.2 8. yet here when the Lord came to make up the matter between Job and his friends he spake as if he had forgot both his own censures of him and the occasion of them Holy David acknowledged Psal 130.3 If thou Lord shouldst mark iniquities O Lord who shall stand The Lord doth not mark iniquity where he seeth much integrity the Lord doth not mark every arrow that flies beside the mark when he seeth the mark was honestly aimed at We say he may be a good Archer that doth not hit the white if he come but somewhat near it he indeed is a bungler that misseth the Butt Job aimed at and came neer the mark though he did not alwayes hit it The Lord will give a good testimony of us if we aim right at though we sometimes miss the mark It is said of Zachariah and Elizabeth Luke 1.6 They were both righteous There 's not a word spoken of their failings though doubtless they had their failings both as to the Ordinances and Commandements of God Eighthly The Lords wrath being kindled against Jobs friends we might expect he would thunder upon them yet he only saith Ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right Hence observe The Lord dealeth mildly with sinners He did not give wrathful words though his wrath was kindled he did not call Eliphaz and his friends Hereticks nor tell them they had belyed him and slandered his proceedings he did not aggravate their fault by grievous words he did not upbraid them particularly but without bitterness or hard reflections comprehended their all faults in one general soft word Ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right This should be our pattern in dealing with an offending brother whereas many if a brother do but differ from them a little if he do not say as they say and concur with them fully in opinion are ready to censure him hardly and give him reproachful language The Apostles rule is Gal. 6.1 Brethren if a man be overtaken in a fault ye that are spiritual restore such a one in the spirit of meekness considering thy self lest thou also be tempted God who is above all temptation meekly restored these faulty men yea though his wrath was kindled against them yet his speech was mild and cool only saying and what less could he say if he said any thing Ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right As my servant Job Why doth the Lord call Job his servant Surely at once to put an honour upon him and to comfort him Eliphaz and his two friends were Gods servants yet because of their miscarriage in that service God did not own them at that time as such God was wont to call David his servant at every turn yet when he had numbred the people Nathan was sent to him with a hard message and is bid Go and say unto David not my servant David 2 Sam. 24.12 Hence note Ninthly God honours man much by owning him as his servant To serve the Lord is as much our priviledge as our duty and when the Lord calleth us to his service he rather puts a favour up-us than a burden The Lord is the highest master and they are highly honoured who are his servants It is an honour to serve Kings and Princes what is it then to serve the King of Kings the Prince of the Kings of the earth as Jesus Christ is called Rev. 1.5 'T is also profitable as well as honourable to serve the Lord for he is the best master his work is the best woâ—k and his wages is the best wages And not only so but 't is easie to be the Lords servant for as he expects we should do his work so we may expect help and strength hearts and hands from him to do it If the Lord doth but own us for his servants we shall not faint at his work whether it be doing or suffering work God upheld his servant Job in and carryed him through all those
though they had judged him an hypocrite or an ungodly man Thus the Lord sent them to Job that they might eat their words and receive a full conviction of their error Thirdly God would have them go to his servant Job to make them sensible that the favour he intended them was very much for Jobs sake and that they must in part be beholding to Job for it Fourthly The Lord sent them to Job that he might give a high evidence of his grace especially of his charity in forgetting injuries and requiting good for evil His friends had reproached him ten times and grieved his spirit very much yet he must shew how ready he was to forgive them and pray that they might be forgiven Fifthly God would have them to go to Job that they might know that Job was reconciled to them as well as himself Sixthly God would have them go to Job that this might humble them or that they might shew their humility and submission It was a great piece of self-denial for them to go to Job after such a contest and entreat him to speak for them of whom they had spoken so hardly and with whom they had long contended so bitterly Thus the Lord tried both Job and them the Lord tried Jobs charity and their humility We are hardly brought to confess that we have wronged others or have been out and mistaken our selves 'T is no easie matter for a man to acknowledge himself overcome 't is extream hard to become a suppliant to one whom we lately despised and trampled upon All this is his hard meat and not easily digested yet Eliphaz and his two friends must digest all this before they could acceptably obey the Lords command in going to his servant Job Nor was it an easie matter for Job to forget so many affronts and unkindnesses as he had received from his friends ' T is hard for a man that hath been wronged and reproached yea condemned to pass air by and not only embrace his opposers and reproachers but pray and solicite for them Thus the Lord in sending them to Job took tryal both of Job and them The Lord commanding them to supplicate him whom they had offended and expecting that he should make suit and supplication for them who had offended him put both their graces to it and in a most sweet and gracious way at once healed the breach which had been between Job and them as also that between them and himself Who ever took up a difference more sweetly or reunited dissenting brethren thus wisely Go to my servant Job And offer up for your selves a burnt-offering That is those seven bullocks and seven rams Here as was said before was the facrifice but who was the Priest The text saith Offer up for your selves which may intimate that that as they were to offer a sacrifice for themselves so that they themselves offered it But as Interpreters generally so I conceive Job was the Priest who offered it in their behalf We read chap. 1.5 that Job offered sacrifices for his children and there it was shewed that he was the Priest Every sacrifice must be offered by a Priest the people brought the sacrifice unto him to offer for them No sacrifice is acceptable without a Priest Therefore Jesus Christ who was our sacrifice was a Priest also none could offer him but himself he was both sacrifice and Priest and Altar So then whereas the Text saith they were to offer a burnt-offering for themselves the meaning is they were to bring it unto Job and he to offer it for them The Priest offered and Israel offered that is Israel offered by the Priest they brought the matter of the sacrifice to the Priest and the Priest slew and presented the sacrifice to the Lord. It is one thing to offer another thing to slay the sacrifice They offered a sacrifice who brought it or at their cost caused it to be brought to the holy place and this any of the people might do They offer it upon the Altar to the Lord who were especially appointed thereunto These were the Priests only Before the Ceremonial law as given by God to Moses the Priest-hood lay in the eldest or father of the family upon which account Job was a Priest whereas afterwards the Priest-hood was settled in the family of Aaron and it was forbidden to any but one of hs line to offer sacrifice So that when the Lord said to Eliphaz and his two friends Go to my servant Job and offer up for your selves a burnt-offering he directed them to Job Non est hic curiousè captendo distinctio holocausti aboliis victimis cim haec ante legem contigovint Quasi latinè diceres-holocaustabitis holo caustum i.e. in solidum offeratis ut in auras totum abort officietis Merc. as having the honour of Priest-hood in him and so the power of doing it for them or in their behalf Offer up for your selves A burnt-offering That is a sacrifice wholly consumed by fire The Hebrew is very elegant make an ascentton to ascend The whole burnt-offering was the most perfect offering and therefore the Hebrews express it by a word that signifieth the perfect consumption of it in the fire and so the ascention of it to heaven in smoke and vapour as a sweet odour in the nostrils of the Lord as the Apostle speaks Ephes 5.1 and as David Psal 141.2 A part of many sacrifices was saved to feast upon afterwards as the harlot spake Prov. 7.14 I have peace-offerings with me this day have I payed my vows but the burnt-offering was wholly consumed and sent up unto the Lord. Go to my servant Job and offer up for your selves a burnt-offering Hence note First The Lord is very ready to forgive and to be at peace with those that have offended him Though the fire of his wrath be kindled as it is said in the former verse yet he is willing to have it quenched The Prophet Micah chap. 7.18 makes this report of God He retaineth not his anger for ever that is he retaineth it but a little while he is speedily pacified and forgives and sometimes as here he forgives without any higher signification of his anger than a bare rebuke The Lord did not lay the least mulâ—t the least chastning or affliction upon Eliphaz and his two friends though his wrath was kindled against them I grant it is not so always some smart sorely and pay dearly for their errors When the anger of the Lord was kindled against Aaron and Miriam Num. 12.9 for speaking against Moses as those three had against Job he was not then so easily pacified for first it is said in the close of the 9th verse he departed and ver 10. the cloud departed from off the tabernacle here was much displeasure yet not all for it followeth and behold Miriam became leprous white as snow In this case God was angry with two that had spoken against a servant of his and they felt
judgment and procedure with Job and therefore they must hear of it a second time or as we say at both ears Secondly The Lord telleth them again of it that he might fasten the sense of their sin more upon them We very hardly take the impression of our follies and failings we are ready to let the thoughts of them wear off and slip from us they abide not but glide away as water from a stone or from the swans-back unless fixed by renewed mindings and for this reason the Lord repeateth the mention of sin so often in the the ears of his people by the ministry of his word that the evil of it may more fully appear to them or that they may the more clearly see and the better know how bad how base how foolish a thing it is to sin against him Thirdly I conceive the Lord repeated these words to confirm the judgment which he had given before concerning them in those woâ—ds Ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right Quicquid in divino colloquiâ— reâ—etitur robustius confirmatur Greg. lib. 35. moral c. 8. As if the Lord had said that which I said before I say again I do not change my opinion either concerning you or my servant Job and therefore I say it once more the repâ—â—ting of a matter is for the confirmation of it as Joseph told Pharaoh about the doubling of his dream Ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right Like my servant Job These words also are a repetition yea a triplication and more than so this is the fourth time that the Lord hath called Job his servant in the compass of two verses three times in this 8th verse and once in the 7th But what should be the meaning of this why did the Lord call Job his servant so often even four times as it were in one breath I answer First It intimates that Job was the Lords steady servant that what he was at first he was then at last and what he had been long ago he was still Some have been called the servants of God who have given it over in the plain field but here the Lord calleth Job his servant over and over four times over as being his sure servant Secondly It was to shew that as Job retained the same duty and respect to the service of God so God retained the same opinion of Job and of his service then as at first Thirdly The Lord in repeating this relational title servant so often would assure us that he knew not how if I may speak so to speak more honourably of him The Lord gave no other title to Moses Num. 12.7 nor to Caleb Num. 14.24 nor to David 2 Sam. 7.5 8. The Lord did not speak this so often because he wanted other titles to give him or because he had not variety of phrases to express himself by but as if he knew not where to find a more honourable title I grant that title of relation Son is more noble and more endearing but that is not at all spoken of in the Old Testament nor is it given to any particular person in the New Believers as to their state are all the sons of God but no one believer is spoken either to or of under this title Son The Apostle Paul still called himself only a servant of God He that is the Lords servant is the best of free-men We have enough to glory in when we are his servants The History reports of the French King That the Ambassador of the King of Spain repeating many great titles of his Master the King of France commanded this only to be mentioned of him King of France King of France implying that this single title King of France was as honourable as that large roll of titles given the King of Spain Thus the Lord calleth Job his servant his servant his servant to shew that all honour is wrapt up in this word A servant of God Fourthly This repetition may signifie That Job had been a very great good and faithful servant to the Lord not only a servant but a laborious and profitable servant to the Lord so the Scripture calls those who are laborious in his service though at best as to the Lord we are unprofitable servants nor can any be profitable unto him Fifthly The Lord multiplieth this title upon him because whatsoever a godly man doth is service to the Lord. This word service is comprehensive of all duties to hear the Word is to serve the Lord to pray to fast to give almes is to serve the Lord all is service to the Lord. Job was every way a servant of the Lord. First As he was a Ruler To rule well in a family is to serve the Lord to rule Nations is to serve the Lord much more Job was a ruler and he ruled well in both capacities as was shewed in opening the 29th 30th and 31st chapters Secondly Job was a great servant of the Lord as he was a worshipper Thirdly Job was a great servant of the Lord as he was a sacrificer he had the honour of the priest-hood Fourthly Job was a great servant of the Lord as a teacher of the truth he had instructed many as Eliphaz acknowledged chap. 4.3 And as he was a great servant of the Lord in teaching the truth so in opposing error he stood firm to his own opinion the truth against the tenent of his friends Fifthly Job served the Lord as he was a sufferer To suffer is very great service especially as he did to suffer greatly We serve the Lord as much with his cross upon our backs as with his yoke upon our necks or his burden upon our shoulders Job was a great servant of the Lords as in holding forth the doctrine of the cross or maintaining that God afflicts his choicest servants so in bearing the cross himself Sixthly Job was a great servant of the Lord in praying for his friends and in being so willing to be reconciled to them and therefore the Lord having had so many services of him and so many ways repeateth my servant Job my servant Job as if he could not say this word often enough My servant Job Thus we have the Lords command or charge given to Eliphaz and his two friends what they must do for the quenching of that fire which was kindled in his breast against them for their folly in dealing with his se vant Job How they answered that command will appear in the next words Vers 9. So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did according as the Lord commanded them the Lord also accepted Job This verse holds out the obedience of Eliphaz and his two friends to the charge and command which the Lord gave them in the eighth verse where the Lord said to these three men Take to you seven bullocks and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer up for your selves a burnt offering
found matters mending with himself and the answers of prayer in the mercies of God coming tumbling in thick and three-fold His captivity fled far away when he had thus drawn near to God he had as a very full and satisfactory so a very speedy answer When he prayed Prayer is the making known our wants and desires to God It is a spiritual work not a meer bodily exercise it is the labour of the heart not lip-labour Jobs prayer was a fervent working or effectual prayer as the Apostle James speaks chap. 5.16 not a cold slothful sleepy prayer when he prayed he made work of prayer Many speak words of prayer that make no work of prayer nor are they at work in prayer Job prayed in the same sense that Saul afterwards Paul did Acts. 9.11 when the Lord Jesus bid Ananias go to him for Behold he prayeth implying that he was at it indeed He had been brought up after the strictest rule of the Pharisees who prayed much or made many prayers but he prayed to so little purpose before that we may well call that his first prayer and say he had never prayed before Job prayed for his friends as Paul for himself he was very earnest with God for them and prevailed Extraordinary cases call for extraordinary layings out in duty It was an extraordinary case When he prayed For his friends The Hebrew is When he prayed for his friend Singulare partitivum pro plurali Merc. It is usual in the Grammar of the holy Text to put the singular for the plural 'T is so here either First because he prayed for every one of them distinctly and by name or Secondly because he looked upon them all as one and bound them up in the same requests When he prayed For his friends They are called his friends to shew the esteem that he had of them notwithstanding all their unkindness and unfriendliness towards him He prayed for them in much love O raram singularem virtutem quae in paucissimis vel Christianis reperiatur Merc. though they had shewed little love to him and his heart was so much towards them that the Text speaks as if he had forgot himself or left himself at that time quite out of his prayers Doubtless Job prayed for himself but his great business at that time with God was for his friends Now in that Jobs prayer is said expresly to be for his friends not for himself though we cannot doubt but that he prayed and prayed much for himself Observe A godly man is free to pray for others as well as for himself and in some cases or at some times more for others than for himself He seldom drives this blessed trade with heaven for self only and he sometimes doth it upon the alone account of others 'T is a great piece of spiritualness to walk exactly and keep in with God to the utmost that so our own personal soul concerns may not take up our whole time in prayer but that we may have a freedom of spirit to inlarge for the benefit of others Many by their uneven walkings exceedingly hinder themselves in this duty of praying for friends and of praying for the whole Church Uneven walkings hinder that duty in a twofold respect First Because they indispose the heart to prayer in general which is one special reason why the Apostle Peter gives that counsel to Husband and Wife 1 Pet. 3.7 to walk according to knowledge and as being heirs together of the same grace of life that saith he your prayers be not hindred that is lest your hearts be indisposed to prayer Secondly Because uneven walkings will find us so much work for our selves in prayer that we shall scarce have time or leisure to intend or sue out the benefit of others in prayer He that watcheth over his own heart and wayes will be and do most in prayer for others And that First For the removing or preventing of the sorrows and sufferings of others Secondly For the removing of the sins of others yea though their sins have been against himself which was Jobs case He prayed for those who had dealt very hardly with him and sinned against God in doing so he prayed for the pardon of their sin God being very angry with them and having told them he would deal with them according to their folly unless they made Job their friend to him This was the occasion of Jobs travelling in prayer for his friends and in this he shewed a spirit becoming the Gospel though he lived not in the clear light of it And how uncomely is it that any should live less in the power of the Gospel while they live more in the light of it To pray much for others especially for those who have wronged and grieved us hath much of the power of the Gospel and of the Spirit of Christ in it For thus Jesus Christ while he was nailed to the Cross prayed for the pardon of their sins and out-rages who had crucified him Father forgive them for they know not what they do Luke 23.34 Even while his crucifiers were reviling him he was begging for them and beseeching his Father that he would shew them mercy who had shewed him no mercy no nor done him common justice And thus in his measure Jobs heart was carryed out in his prayer for his friends that those sins of theirs might be forgiven them by which they had much wronged him yea and derided him in a sort upon his Cross as the Jews did Christ upon his This also was the frame of Davids heart towards those that had injured him Psal 109.4 For my love they are my adversaries that 's an ill requital but how did he requite them we may take his own word for it he tells us how but I give my self unto prayer yea he seemed a man wholly given unto prayer The elegant conciseness of the Hebrew is But I prayer we supply it thus But I give my self unto prayer They are sinning against me requiting my love with hatred But I give my self unto prayer But for whom did he pray doubtless he prayed and prayed much for himself he prayed also for them We may understand those words I give my self unto prayer two wayes First I pray against their plots and evil dealings with me prayer was Davids best strength alwayes against his enemies yet that was not all But Secondly I give my self to prayer that the Lord would pardon their sin and turn their hearts when they are doing me mischief or though they have done me mischief I am wishing them the best good David in another place shewed what a spirit of charity he was cloathed with when no reproof could hinder him from praying for others in some good men reproofs stir up passion not prayer Psal 141.5 Let the righteous smite me it shall be a kindness smite me how with reproof so it followeth Let him reprove me it shall be an excellent oyl which shall not break my
me So the Lords servants have often had experience of his power and goodness in delivering them or as 't is here expressed concerning Job of turning their captivity take one instance for all Psal 34.4 6. I said David sought the Lord and he heard me and delivered me from all my fears This poor man cryed and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles The Lord who doth us good when we pray for others cannot but do it when we pray for our selves The Lord turned the captivity of Job when he prayed for his friends But some may ask will the Lord turn any mans captivity when he prayeth for his friends whose prayer and what prayer is it that obtains so high a favour I answer in general It is the prayer of a Job That is First The prayer of a faithful man or of one who is perfect and upright with God It is not the prayer of every man that prevails with God Jam. 5.16 The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man only availeth much Nor is it the prayer of a meer morally righteous man that availeth he must be an Evangelically righteous man that is a man estated by faith in the righteousness of Jesus Christ Secondly As 't is the prayer of the faithful so the prayer of faith as it is the prayer of one in a state of grace so of one acting his graces especially that grace of faith It is possible for a man that hath faith not to pray in faith and such a prayer obtaineth not Jam. 1.5 6 7. If any man saith that Apostle lack wisdom we may say whatsoever any man lacketh let him ask of God but let him ask in faith nothing wavering for let not that man the man that wavereth think that he shall receive any thing that is any good thing asked of the Lord. To ask without faith may bear the name but is not the thing called prayer and therefore such receive nothing when they ask Thirdly It is the prayer of a person repenting as well as believing Job was a penitent he repented in dust and ashes for the evil he had done before he obtained that good for his friends and for himself by prayer If my people saith the Lord 2 Chron. 7.14 Which are called by my name shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked wayes there 's compleat repentance then will I hear from heaven and forgive their sin and heal their Land there is compleat mercy Some pretend at least to be much in believing yet are little if at all in repenting and humbling themselves under the mighty hand of God How can their prayers prevail for the turning away of their captivity who turn not from iniquity If I said David Psal 66.18 regard iniquity in my heart his meaning is if I put it not both out of my heart and hand by sound repentance God will not hear me that is he will not regard much less favourably answer my prayer It is a piece of impudeâ—câ— I am sure such a piece of confidence as God will reject and wherein no man shall prosper to expect good from God by prayers while our evils are retained or abide in our bosoms unrepented of God hath joyned faith and repentance together woe to those who put them asunder They who either repent without believing or believe without repenting indeed do neither they neither repent nor believe nor can they obtain any thing of God by prayer But the prayer of a faithful man made in faith and mixed with sound repentance will make great turns such a one may turn the whole world about by the engine of prayer But what is there in such a prayer that should make such turns and move the Lord to change his dispensations or our conditions I answer First Such prayer is the Lords own Ordinance or appointment and he will answer that When we meet God in his own way he cannot refuse us he seals to his own institutions by gracious answers Secondly As prayer is the Ordinance of God so he hath made promise to hear and turn the captivity of those that pray as was shewed before Promises are engagements to performance God will not be behind hand with man as to any engagement For as he is powerful and can so he is faithful and will do whatever he hath engaged himself to do by promise A word from the God of heaven is enough to settle our souls upon for ever seeing his word is settled for ever in heaven Psal 119.89 Half a promise or an half promise an it may be Zeph. 2.3 from God is better security than an absolute promise than an it shall be yea than an oath from any of the sons of men Thirdly Prayer honours God Our seeking to him in our wants and weaknesses in our fears and dangers are an argument that we suppose him able to help us that all our ruines may be under his hand Such a seeking to God is the honouring of God and therefore God is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him and call upon him Our coming to God in all our wants shews that he is an inexhaustible fountain so thick a cloud thar we cannot weary him nor he spend all his waters how much soever he showers down or spends upon us He can distil mercies and drop down blessings everlastingly We often want vessels to receive but he never wants oyle to give It is the glory of Kings and Princes that so many come with petitions to them that they have many suiters at their gates may possibly burden them but undoubtedly it honours them doth it not signifie that he hath a purse to relieve their necessities or power to redress their wrongs and injuries O thou that hearest prayer is a title of honour given to God Psal 65.2 To thee shall all flesh come As God hath said Psal 50.15 they that call upon him shall glorified him for help received so they do glorifie him by calling upon him for help No marvel then if he turn a Jobs captivity when he prayeth Fourthly Prayer is the voice of the new creature The Lord loveth that voice 't is musick the best musick next to praise in his ear Let me hear thy voice Cant. 2.14 that is let me hear thee praying or thy prayer-voice let me see thy countenance for sweet is thy voice and thy countenance is comely The Lord delighteth in prayer therefore the Lord will turn the captivity of a Job when he prayeth Fifthly Prayer is not only the voice of the new creature but it is the voice of the Spirit with the new creature The Spirit himself maketh intercession for us Rom. 8.26 'T is the holy Spirits work to form requests in our hearts to God As the Spirit it self witnesseth with our spirits that we are the children of God Rom. 8.16 so he prayeth in the spirits of Gods children The prayer of a believer hath the power of the holy
the Lord if we have a blessing from him and he bless us we cannot be deceived we can never miss of comfort if he bless us But whence is it then that some look so much after creature-helps not minding the blessing of God Doubtless it slows or springs from one of these three bad fountains or bitter roots First From ignorance they know not what the blessing of God means for as Christ told the woman of Samaria Acts 4.10 If thou knewest the gift of God thou wouldst have asked c. So did they know what it is to be blessed of God they would ask it above all things It proceeds Secondly From a spirit of profaneness in many they despise God in their hearts and think it below them to call for his help or blessing Of such David speaks Psal 14.6 Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor because the Lord is his refuge or because 't is all one in effect he lives upon the blessing of God you are ashamed of this this is poor counsel think you as it is the counsel of the poor this trusting in God this making God our refuge this living upon the blessing of God is a pitiful life say you The wicked through the pride of his countenance will not seek after God God is not in all his thoughts or not at all in his thoughts to seek unto him and depend wholly upon him Psal 10.4 As Ezra was ashamed to require of the King a band of soldiers and horsemen to help them against the enemy in the way because he had spoken unto the King saying the hand of our God is upon all them for good that seek him c. Ezra 8.22 So prophane persons are ashamed to ask help of God and his blessing at any time but then especially when they have bands of soldiers and horsemen to help them as will appear further in the next thing For Thirdly This mindlessness and regardlessness of the blessing of God proceeds in some from confidence in an arm of flesh either their own or others The Prophet reproved the Jews for this in the day of their trouble Isa 22.8 9 10 11. And he that is God discovered the covering of Judah that is what Judah covered himself with or thought himself safely sheltered by from all danger what was that the next words tell us thou didst look in that day to the armour of the house of the Forrest ye have seen also the breaches of the City of David that they are many ye have fortified the wall c. but ye have not looked to the maker thereof neither had respect unto him that fashioned it long ago The meaning of all is this ye relyed upon and put confidence in your own strength but looked not after nor sought unto me for my blessing ye thought ye should do well enough if your magazines were well stored and your City well fortified and therefore neglected me The same Prophet Chap. 31.1 shews the same reason why they neglected God why they looked not to the holy One of Israel nor sought the Lord it was because they went down to Egypt for help and stayed on horses and trusted in charets because they were many and in horsemen because they were very strong We cannot trust in God and creatures too If God alone be not trusted to he is not at all trusted and they who put their trust in any creature withdraw it from God and make that creature their God They cannot so much as mind much less seek a blessing from the true God who chuse to themselves another God Again seeing the Lords blessing is effectual then whatever our successes and increases are let us ascribe all to his blessing Do not sacrifice to your own nets nor burn incense to your own drags but say this hath God wrought the blessing of the Lord hath brought it to pass As the Apostle spake about spirituals 1 Cor. 3.6 I have planted Apollo watered but God gave the increase so 't is in temporals all our encreasings are of God Therefore let us say with the Psalmist Not unto us O Lord not unto us but to thy Name be the praise Do not thank your wit for riches nor your industry for increase nor your strength for victory not any humane help for any of your attainments The race is not to the swift nor the battel to the strong neither yet bread to the wise nor yet riches to men of understanding c. Ecrl. 9.11 All is of God it is his blessing upon the means which makes the means successful But some may say are all men to ascribe all their successes and increases to the blessing of God I answer Negatively All encreases and outward successes are not to be ascribed unto nor fathered upon God A man may encrease in riches and double his estate as Jobs was yet not by the blessing of God Only that comes by a blessing from God which is got in Gods way or by good means according to the characters before hinted of the persons whom the Lord will bless for they who either make a profession of dishonesty or are dishonest in their profession let them take heed of pinning their successes upon God and of thanking him for them Many say in their hearts and some are not ashamed to say it with their mouths Honest dealers must die beggars They never came by riches in the way of a blessing who say honesty is the way to poverty much less they whose consciences know and tell them though others know it not and so cannot tell them that they have enriched themselves by the wrong or raised themselves by the ruin of others Job was enriched and raised high and the Text assures us what enriched him what raised him The Lord blessed The latter end of Job more than his beginning We have seen the Author of this blessing These words shew the subject of this blessing The latter end of Job 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Prae initio ejus or Job in his latter end together with the quantity and abundance of this blessing More than his beginning The Lord blessed The latter end of Job That is Job in the latter part of his life and he blessed it more than his beginning that is than the former part of his life God blessed and greatly blessed the former part of Jobs life for he was the greatest man of all men in the East but now Job shall be greater than Job he shall be greater than himself His affliction razed down his house and all he had to the very foundation but when God would hold the plummet in his hand and rebuild him to what an amazing height did his house arise The Lord blessed his latter end more than his beginning The words are plain and need no comment From them we may observe First The latter part of a good mans life is the best part of his life It is often so I do not say it is alwayes so in
outward things God deals not with all alike but it is often so God gives them their best at last even in the things of this life As the Governour of the Feast said to the Bridegroom John 2. Thou hast kept the best wine till now So the Lord often keeps the best wine of outward comforts to the very last of our lives Bildad put it only as a supposition to Job Chap. 8.7 If thou wert pure and upright surely then he would awake for thee and make the habitation of thy righteousness prosperous though thy beginning was small yet thy latter end should greatly increase But we may resolve it as a Position concerning Job surely he was pure and upright for God did awake for him and made the habitation of his righteousness prosperous his beginning was comparatively small but his latter end did greatly encrease or he had a great encrease at his latter end And though this be not alwayes true as to outward things that the Lord blesseth the latter end of a good man more than his beginning yet it is always true as to spiritual things it is always true as to the best things The Lord gives his people their best soul-blessings at last though they have great good before yet greater good or their good in a greater measure then he gives them more grace more of his Spirit more of his comforts and their latter end is most blessed as it is the beginning of endless blessedness Abraham said to the rich man in the Parable Son remember thou hast had thy good things and Lazarus evil things but now he is comforted and thou art tormented The Lord deals best with all his people at last one way or other to be sure all shall be well with them in the latter end Solomon saith Eccl. 7.8 Better is the end of a thing than the beginning And he said so not because all things end better than they begin but because when things or persons end well it is then surely well with them whatever their beginning was That is well which ends well Hence let us be minded not to judge the work of God before the latter end The works of God seem cross many times to his people but he will set all right and make them amends for all at the latter end The Apostle James calls us to consider Job's latter end Chap. 5.11 Ye have heard of the patience of Job that is you have heard of his sufferings in the flesh and of his suffering spirit and ye have seen the end of the Lord that is what end the Lord made for him Some give another interpretation of these latter words as was shewed formerly but this I conceive most clear to the context Ye have seen the end of the Lord that is what end the Lord made for Job Though the middle part of his life was very grievous yet God changed the Scene of things and his end was very glorious David Psal 37.37 would have the end of upright men marked and well considered Mark the perfect man and behold the upright the end of that man is peace Possibly he hath had a great deal of trouble in his way but his end is peace Let not us be offended at the crosses which we meet with in the course of our lives but look to the promised crown at the conclusion of our lives Let us not stay in the death of Christ nor in the grave of Christ but look to the resurrection and the ascension of Christ You may see those who are Christs on the Cross and in the Grave but mark and you shall see their resurrection and ascension The two witnesses are represented slain yet raised and then ascending up to heaven in a cloud their enemies beholding them Rev. 11.11 12. Despise not the day of small things Zech. 4.10 the latter end may have a great encrease despond not in the day of sorrowful things for the latter end may be full of joy There are three things which should much comfort us in our afflictions First That they cannot last alwayes they will have an end Secondly That while they last or before theyh ave an end they are medicinal and healthful they are for our good while they continue upon us or we in them Thirdly which we have in the Text we may expect that as they shall surely have an end so that they will end comfortably No chastning for the present saith the Apostle Heb. 12.11 seemeth joyous but grievous nevertheless afterwards it yieldeth the peaceable fruits of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby God will not only bring our troubles to an end but he will give us sweet fruit at the end of them as a recompence for all our troubles God will not only bring our sufferings to an end but to such an end as will make us gainers by them Those are even desirable and lovely losses which issue in such advantages Secondly In that the Lord gave Job so great an advance in worldly things Observe The Lord sometimes gives his people much more of this world than they desire or ever looked after Job was far from praying for such an encrease he never desired that his earthly substance should be doubled in his latter end Indeed we find him once wishing that it were with him as in his beginning but he wished not for more Chap. 29.2 O that it were with me as in the months past as in the day when the Lord preserved me when his candle shined upon my head and by his light I walked through darkness Job wished that he were in as good a condition as he once had but he never wished that all might be doubled or that his latter end should be more than his beginning yet the Lord gave him more gave him double to his beginning God exceeded his prayers and his wishes As the Lord is able to do exceeding abundantly for us above all that we ask or think Eph. 3.20 so he often doth and usually therefore moderates the desires and askings of his people as to the things of this world that he may out-give their askings and out-do their desires Thirdly The Lord made Job the greatest man in the East in his beginning but he blessed his latter end more than his beginning Hence note How much soever the Lord gives at one time he can give more at another God gave Job good measure before but now according to that expression Luke 6.38 he gave him good measure heaped up pressed down and running over Let us not say when God hath given us much or done much for us he can give or do no more for us he hath more in his treasure of temporal good things and he hath more in his treasure of spiritual good things than he hath yet given out to any he can give more faith how much faith soever he hath given he can give more patience how much patience soever he hath given and so of every grace and good thing The
1009. Inward beauty most desirable 1010 Beginning taken two ways 623 Behemoth described six wayes 606 607. Behemoth may signifie all the beasts of the field 609. Why though a word of the plural number applicable to one 609. Behemoth how the chief of the wayes of God 624 Beholding of things or persons twofold 577 Believers why called the first fruits of Gods creatures 221. A believer mounts high like the Eagle especially in two things 478. Believers do not only mount high but abide on high 480 Belief that which is much desired in some cases is hardly believed 454. Why the same word signifieth to stand fast or steddy and to believe 456. Birth new birth three things in it 322 Blessing two wayes of blessing one 977. The blessing of God effectual for the good of man 978. Seven characters of those whom the Lord will bless 979 980. They who are blessed are also loved of God 981. Three things whence it is that many mind not a blessing from God 982. All successes are not from the blessing of God 984. Temporal things are blessings but spiritual things are the best blessings 989. How we may know when temporal things are a blessing and come to us in love 990 Bochartus his opinion that Behemoth is not the Elephant but Hippopotame 611 612. Borrowing fear not to lose what God borrows of us 951 Brethren and sisters two wayes taken Scripture 956 Building two things most considerable in it both eminent in Gods building the World 59 C Canutus his answer to his flattering Courtiers 110 Captivity how taken in Scripture 931 Any affliction is a kind of captivity 932 Care to be cast upon God 177. Care of God over the beasts of the earth and fowls of the air should convince man that God will take care of him 279 288. Care of God to provide for the vilest creatures 296. Care of God for his p ople seen in two things 643 Carefulness what to be avoided 746 Carnal men judge of God by themselves 834 Causes natural causes produce natural effects and so do spiritual causes spiritual effects 214 Charity a great trial of it 880 Children not to charge their parents when able to help themselves 324. They who excel in any thing are elegantly called the children of it 781 Children a great blessing 993. Parents duty in naming them See names how it is a blessing to have many children 1023. Good children a great joy 1024 Christ his eternity 45. He is the corner-stone 69 70. Christ a light for two great ends 122. Christ compared to a Lion in four respects 283. Christ resembled by the Hind in three things 312. Why Christ is called a horn of salvation 381. Christ like the Eagle shewed in seven things 489 490. Christ a relief against all evil 648. Christ the best friend 958 Church a vain thing to oppose it 685 Church set out by Christ in her spiritual excellencies 721. God terrible in the Church 729 Cloathed to be cloathed with any thing what it imports 428 429 Cloud how a garment to the sea 101. Clouds called the Arcenal of heaven why 192. The wisest men can neither tell how many the clouds are nor fully what they are 272 Cock why crows at Mid-night 254. He is a natural clock 270 Cold whether natural or spiritual is a great binder 243 Comforting the sorrowful a great duty 967 Six cases which call us to comfort others together with so many ways of ministering comfort to them 968. Four considerations moving to this duty 969 Command of God creating 114 115 Comeliness it consisteth in three things 717 Company no company pleaseth but such as is sutable 340 Compulsion grievous to beasts much more to men 341 Condemnation of self what good 545 Confession of sin when right 525 Contending of two sorts 497. How man contendeth with the word how with the works of God 497 498. There is a spirit in weak man ready to contend with the strong God 499. In two cases we are apt to contend with God about his works 501. Four considerations moving us to beware of all contendings with God 502 503. In what way we may contend with God 503 504. They who contend with God would seem wiser than he 505 Conversion why so difficult a work 360 Covenant Hebrew word notes two things and why 670 Counsel what it is 25. The word counsel put absolutely or alone notes Gods counsel 25 Counsel of God may soon be darkned by us 30. Some do it intentionally the greatness of their sin 30 31 Courage where God gives courage man cannot make afraid 438. True courage fears not present danger 449 Craft Some creatures full of it 292. What some cannot do by strength they do by craft 292 293 Creation that work calls us to praise God 89. Four things in creation move us to praise God 90 Creatures God can make any of them hurtful to us 188. Two things shew the power of God in the creature 189. Several degrees of excellency in the creatures 625. An inference from it 626. God can easily subdue the strongest creatures 638. Two inferences from it 638 639. God to be magnified in the qualities and quantity or bigness of his creatures 663. All creatures made serviceable to man 672. Some creatures terrible to man 690. An inference from it 690. God pleased in setting forth the natural excellencies of his creatures 718. The excellencies of the creature shew the excellency of God 722. God would have man know the excellencies of the creature 723 Crocodile not tongueless 662 D Danger to leave any thing in danger and not provide against it is great folly 402. Dangers put all creatures to their utmost shifts 419. They who think themselves out of danger despise danger 420. Danger is the Element of courage 446. It is best not to do or quickly give over doing that which is dangerous 680. They are cruel to themselves who run upon danger unadvisedly 692. Great dangers may make the stoutest afraid 753. Great dangers put bad men upon repentance 758 Darkness what 166 Day of Judgment like to be a terrible day 18. It will be a discovering day 125. Days when and whose days may be said to be full 1029 1031. Day-light never riseth two days together exactly in the same place 126 Death the Gates of it what 151 152 154. No man knoweth how or in what manner he shall dye 155. Death takes all and that upon a two-fold ground 1025. Four cautions from it 1025. A good man willing to dye 1031 Deering his discourse upon his death-bed 168 Deliverance out of trouble is Gods work 933. He can soon work it 934 Demanding of two sorts 818 Desire what we most desire we would fain be at 441 444 457 Devil in bonds always 111. Devil like the Hawk 473. With what weapons we may prevail against him 766 Dew how caused 222. Two things considerable in the falling of the dew 222. God the Father of it 223. The great benefit of
dew 223 224. A three-fold allusion of the dew 226 Disdain or despising who most apt to do it 780 Disposition two-fold 717 Divisions among good men very bad 736 Don the Spanish word for a Lord whence derived 68 Double what it signifies in Scripture 948 Drinking much in bruits is from their constitution not from their lusts 653 Duty God would have us do our best in every duty 38. Two things needful to it 38. Better do duty late than not at all 961 Dwellings appointed by God to every creature sutable to his nature 334 E Eagle what the Hebrew word imports 474. Exceeds any Hawk in three things 475. Two reasons why the Eagle mounts so high 476. Fâ—ur reasons why she makes her nest on high 480. What food she most delights in 484. The quickness of the Eagles eye-sight 485. How she tryeth her young ones 486. Eagles presage or smell a battel long before 488. The similitude between the Eagle and Christ in seven particulars 489 490. The similitude between an Eagle and a true Christian â—pened in seven things 491. Two wings of a greet Eagle are said to be given the Church 493 Earth how immoveable 51 52. The earths foundations 47 52 God the maker of the earth five inferences from it 53 54. Three things in the making of the earth should stir us up to praise God 56 57. The form and firmness of the earth set forth four ways 59 60. Measures of the earth different opinions about it 61 62. Five things admirable in the frame of the earth 65. Inferences from it to thankfulness and an exact frame of life on this earth so exactly framed for us 66 67. What are the garments or clothing of the earth 137. Breadth of the earth 157 158. Two inferences from the greatness of the earth 158 Eastwind much under the dominion of the Sun 199 200 Egypt why not looking to heaven for rain 207 Election of free grace not of fore-seen works 702 Elements their natural order 98 Elephant the manner of his eating grass described 618. Twelve things for which the Elephant is eminent above other beasts 627 628. Four inferences from it 630 Encrease in the field five things needful to produce it 378 Enemy no wisdom in provoking one too strong for us 691 Enemies to be prayed for and how 941 Entreaty the strong will not use entreaties 669 Equinox when 127 Error wise and good men may erre 869 Eternity three sorts of beings 49. God only absolutely eternal 49. Eternity what 50 Exacters of two sorts 339 340 Examples of two sorts recorded in Scripture 1036 Experience experimental knowledge best 793 Eye hath a great force upon the heart in three things 688 689. The Eye called the light of the body in two respects 740 F Face binding of it in secret what 590 Failings God overlooks them in his upright servants 178 Faith the only way of understanding the worlds creation 51. Faith is the eye of the soul 689. Only faith keeps down the prevailings of fear 756. All must be done in a two-fold faith 918. Faith and repentance must go together 943 Fault God will not charge any man beyond his fault 33 Favourites God shews favour to all good men yet some only are his favourites 891 Fear of two sorts 411. A due fear puts us upon the use of means for the â—reservation of our selves and others 412. Fear put for the thing feared 445. That which is not feared is usually derided 447. Fear what it is 733. Fear disturbs reason 755 756. The less natural fear the more perfection 777 Feasting moderate lawful 963. Seven cautions about it 663 Feathers goodly feathers the gift of God to birds 387. Three inferences from it 388. All birds are not of a feather 389 Folly sin is folly shewed four ways 906 907 Food God gives food to all creatures convenient to their nature 342 641 642. Forgetfulness we may be said to forget that which we never had as well as that which once we had 413 Forgiveness God is ready to forgive 882. We should be ready to forgive one another 887 888 Foundation of a building four Attributes of it 46. What the foundations of the earth are 47. Why the earth is said to have foundations 47. What the foundations of the earth are shewed further 52. A different word in the Hebrew signifying a foundation 68. Acclamations used at the laying of the foundation of great buildings 74 Freedom some creatures are free from others bound to service by Gods appointment 328. Inference from it 328. To be free from labour and service is but a low priviledge 329. To desire freedom from duty and service is very sinful 330. A mercy to be free from three yoakes or bonds 331. To be free to serve is better than to be free from service 332. To be forced is grievous 341 Friends their loss a great loss 957. In times of afflâ—ction worldly friends will leave us and godly friends may prove unkind to us 957. Two inferences from it 958. Friends should be friendly 961 Frost and Ice from God 228. Frost compared to ashes in three respects 228. The force of frost 229 230. A two-fold resemblance of frost and ice 231 232 Fruitfulness how the Wilderness will witness against unfruitful professors 215. What spiritual good fruits are 215 216 Fullness of two sorts 1028 G Garment natural what 725. Every creature hath some kind of garment or other 726. Christ and his graces the best garment 726 Gates of death what vid. death Gifts or endowments God gives not all to any one creature and why 421 Gifts or presents a duty to send them in some cases 973. Six sorts of gifts lawful a seventh utterly unlawful 973 Glory that which any creature eâ—cels in is his glory 440 567 569. Glory of God twofold 568 Goates the signification of the word both in the Hebrew and Latine 307. Seven things wherein wild goates resemble a godly man 308 309 God is present with his in troblous dispensations 20. The outward appearances of God very terrible when he intends nothing but mercy 20 21. God is the first being 49. God an eternal being 49. God is the fountain of all being 50. None like God 54. God the proprietor and possessor of all things Inferences from it 55. All creatures are at the command of God 262. Contendings with God See contending God hath terrible ways of revealing himself 530. God hath a mighty power 547. A three-fold gradation in expressing it 547 548. God is full of majesty beauty and glory 570. Inferences from it 571. 573. God terrible to sinners 690. No standing before God four ways 694 695. God is in no mans debt 698. God self-sufficient 700. All things are his by a four-fold title 705. The excellencies of God must not be concealed 722. God terrible 728 729 God is good at any work that is good 795. God is omnipotent 796. God hath right to do whatsoever he doth 799. Not a thought of