beleeving and fearing the report or prophecy of a deluge laught them to scorne and in derision doubtlesse ask't them what voyage they intended and whether they meant to sayle their Ship over the dry Land as for them they never dreamt of a Sea hanging in the clouds and ready to drop downe upon their heads Now as the ungodly world derided Noah and his Sons for their credulity before the flood came so 't is probable enough that when the flood came upon that world of the ungodly Noah and his Sons laught at and derided their incredulity They who laugh at divine threatnings deserve to be laughed at under divine sufferings Others apply this particularly to the Tragedy of Pharaoh and his Egyptians overwhelmed and drowned in the red sea of which it is said Exod. 14.30 31. Thus the Lord saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the shoare and Israel saw that Great worke which the Lord did upon the Egyptians The effect of this sight is two wayes described in that holy Historie First by the acting of feare and faith And the people feared the Lord and beleeved the Lord and his servant Moses Secondly by the acting of their joy in the Lord and their holy insultation over the drowned Egyptians Chap. 15. v. 1. Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord and spake saying I will sing unto the Lord for he hath triumphed gloriously the horse his rider hath he throwne into the Sea Thus also that innocent people saw the ruine of their wicked enemies and laughed them to scorne Yet I conceive Eliphaz speaking here rather upon a generally experienced and positive truth then strictly and particularly ayming at those ancient Examples The innocent that is any innocent person whether innocent in reference to the doing of evill or having escaped the sufferance of evill laugh them to scorne Before he sayd the righteous see it and are glad now he sayth the innocent laugh them to scorne it is one thing for a man to be glad in himselfe and another thing to laugh other men to scorne for though to be innocent carries in it somewhat lesse or at the most but so much as to be righteous yet to laugh the unrighteous and wicked to scorne when they fall carries in it much more then to be glad when they fall 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 denotat gestum qui fit ore labijs ficta balbutie five quod balbutientes irrideri soleaÌ„t sive quod irrisores balbutiant per contemptum et malignam imitationem And besides the word in the Hebrew signifies the most scornefull laughter such a laughter as is expressed by a distortion of the mouth and lips or by a kinde of fained lisping with the tongue and artificiall faultring in speech For as they that lispe and faulter in speech are usually derided and laught at so they that deride and laugh at others will purposely lispe or faulter in speech Stammerers are contemptible and many stammer at others in contempt This imitation of a defect in nature shewes the excesse of malice Such is the force of this expression The innocent laugh them to scorne Here it may be questioned how a good man an innocent person can doe such a thing can he thus laugh the wicked to scorne it is difficult enough to salve it as consistent with Grace for a righteous man to rejoyce at the fall of the wicked but it is farre more difficult to salve it how a righteous man may laugh them to scorne scorning and deriding are the practices of lewd persons of sons of Beliall such indeed are usually scorners and jeerers The enemies of Jesus Christ are so described Psal 22.7 All they that see me that is all the wicked that see me for many Disciples saw Christ in his sufferings and did not onely pity him but honour and beleeve on him but saith he all they who are mine enemies that see me laugh me to scorne they shoot out the lip and shake the head And David tells us Psal 1.1 that to fit in the seate of the scornefull is the conclusion of those who have first walked in the way of the ungodly and secondly stood in the way of sinners The common Latine translater renders that in the Psalme not the seate of scorners but the seate of the pestilence And indeed they have spirituall plague-spots upon them and the surest tokens of eternall death who are given up to be scorners Therefore question it againe how are the Innocent scorners I answer That as when humane affections which are below the divine nature are attributed to God such are to repent to be grieved at the wickednes and to laugh at the calamity of the wicked we say these note onely an effect upon the creature not a change of affection in God for in him there is no variablenes nor shadow of change so when those actions Irrisio 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 similia quae affectum humanum significant uti a deo longe absunt ita quae mali moris sunt ab ecclesia Coc Vt haec de deé 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 iâ—a de sanctis 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sunt intell genda which are below or unsuteable to a renewed regenerate nature in man are attributed to the Saints such as these to wash their feete in the bloud of the ungodly to laugh them to scorne in their saddest miseries we must say that these note rather what the wicked deserve then what the godly doe The godly are no scorners but there is that in wicked men which is worthy to be laughed to scorne or wicked men doe that for which they deserve to be laughed at whatsoever is evill in such like actions is farre from the heart and spirit of the godly And therefore as Scriptures of such a tenour are to be interpreted and understood in such a manner as becomes and is consistent with the holines of God so also in their proportion to the holines of the Saints The laughter of the Saints in these dispensations is serious and their scorning the acting of their graces not of their corruptions And thus it is said of God himselfe Psal 2.4 He that sitteth in heaven shall laugh the Lord shall have them in derision And Prov. 1.26 I will mocke at your calamity and laugh when your feare commeth when your feare commeth as desolation and your destruction commeth as a whirlewind c. that is I will carry my selfe so towards you I will pity you who have been scorners of my word and have set at nought my counsel no more then men pity those whom they laugh to scorne such is the laughter of the Saints at the calamity of the wicked And thus Eliah derided Baals Priests while they wearied themselves in their foolish superstition 1 Kings 18.27 And it came to passe at noone that Eliah mockt them and said cry aloud for
object cannot be immoderate but in temperals they quickly may and therefore as to them our moderation should be known to all men Yet if God give in abundance of temporals in the lawfull exercise of our callings we may warraÌ„tably enjoy it as a blessing from him The providence of God doth often bound us to a little and we ought to be contented with the least portion of outward things with bare food rayment but the word of God doth not bound us to a little nor doth it say it is unlawfull to have much And as it is not unlawfull to have much of the world so it is a great exercise and tryall of our Graces to have much As there are some Graces of a Christian which come not to tryall till we are in want so there are other Graces which come not to tryall unlesse we have aboundance Want tryeth our patience and our dependance upon God for a supply of what we have not and aboundance tryeth our temperance our humility our liberality yea and our dependance upon and faith in God for the sanctifying blessing and making of that comfortable to us which we have When a rich man seeth an emptines in his aboundance without the enjoyments of God in it he exerciseth as high a grace and sheweth as heavenly a frame of mind as that poore man doth who seeth and enjoyeth a fullnes in God in the midst of all his emptines And therefore Paul puts both these alike upon a divine teaching Phil. 4.12 In all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry both to abound and to suffer need And had it been unlawfull to enjoy plenty Eliphaz had never pressed Job to repentance by this motive The Almighty shall be thy defence and thou shalt have plenty of silver JOB CHAP. 22. Vers 26 27. For then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty and shalt lift up thy face unto God Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him and â—e shall heare thee and thou shall pay thy Vowes IT hath been shewed from the former context how Eliphaz encouraged yea provoked Job to repentance and returning to God by the proposall of many promises by promises of outward and temporall mercies gold silver and protection He might have what he pleased of God for the comforts of this life if his life were once pleasing unto God In this latter part of the Chapter he riseth higher and proposeth spirituall promises And he begins with the best of spirituall promises the free injoyment of God himselfe Vers 26. For then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty c. As if Eliphas had said If thou dost indeed repent and turne from sin thy conscience which now troubles yea torments thee shall have sweete peace in God and thou who now grovellest with thy eyes downe to the ground by reason of thy pressing guilt and misery shalt then with confidence lift up thy face unto God in prayer and thou shalt finde God so ready at hand with an answer that thou shalt see cause chearefully to performe thy Vowes which thou madest to him in the day of trouble That 's the generall scope of this latter part of the Chapter I shall now proceed to explicate the particulars For then shalt thou have thy delight in the Allmighty The first word implyeth a reason of what he had said before Having spoken of temporall promises he confirmes his interest in them by assuring him of spirituall for then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty As if he had said God will not deny thee outward comforts in the creature seing he intends to give thee the highest comforts even delight in himselfe 'T is an argument like that of the Apostle Rom. 8.32 He that spared not his owne Sonne but delivered him up for us all how shall he not with him freely give us all things Thus Eliphaz seemes to argue seeing God will give thee himselfe to rejoyce in or to rejoyce in himselfe how can he deny thee gold and silver with those other conveniencies which concerne this life these being indeed as nothing in comparison of himselfe Then shalt thou delight c. Then that is when thou returnest to God and not till then then thou mayest expect to receive much sweetnesse from him such sweetnesse as thy soule never tasted or experienced to this day Then shalt thou have thy delight The word signifies to delight or take contentment 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 delectatus fuit coâ—pore vel animo Sonai etiam aliquâ—d delicatum â—oâ—â—e whether it be outward contentment or inward contentment the delight of the body or the delight of the minde And so an universall delight thy whole delight shall be in the Lord. Moses Deut. 28.56 describes those women by this word who were made up of delight Thy tender and delicate woman that is such as are so delicate that they are the delight of all who behold them or who are themselves altogether devoted to their delights who as the Apostle Paul speaks of the wanton widdow 1 Tim. 5. live in pleasure These are threatned with such calamities as should render their very lives a paine to them The word is used againe Isa 58.13 14. where the Prophet speaks of keeping the Sabboth If thou turne away thy foote from the Sabbath from doing thy pleasure on my holy day and call the Sabbath a delight what then then shalt thou delight thy selfe in the Lord thou shalt have curious delight all manner of delight in the Lord if thou call the Sabbath a delight the holy of the Lord honourable and shalt honour him if thou hast a delight in duty thou shalt have the delight of reward Thus Eliphaz then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty And 't is considerable that he doth not say thou shalt have thy delight in the mercifull or gracious God but in the Allmighty in him thou shalt have thy delight whose power is over all and who is able to doe whatsoever pleaseth him Even the power and allmightinesse of the Lord shall be as pleasant to thee as his mercy and loving kindnesse Further delight in the generall nature of it consists in these two things First In the suitablenesse and conveniency of the object and the faculty whether sensitive or intellective Secondly It consists in the reflection and application of the faculty upon the object So that to delight our selves in the Allmighty hath these two things in it First A suitablenesse in our soules to the Lord. Secondly The soules reflecting upon the Lord as good and gratious unto us This reflect act breeds and brings in delight and works the heart to an unspeakeable joy in God By this last and highest act of faith we take in the sweetnesse of the Almighty and delight our selves in him mightily This faith doth not onely suck the promises wherein the love of God is evidenced to us but is it selfe an evidence of the love of God to
owne hearts may vow more care and diligence in and about all these things And thus wee are to understand that of Jacob Gen. 28.21 vowing that the Lord should be his God as also that of David Psal 119.106 I have sworne and will performe it that I will keepe thy righteous judgements David kept them before but now he would be more strict then before in keeping them So then when we vow things already commanded or forbidden we must pitch and place our vow not upon the matter of the commandement but upon the manner and intensenes of our spirits in keeping it Fourthly Let not vowes about indifferent things be perpetuall All vowes about things expressed in the Law of God must be perpetuall because the things themselves are allwayes a duty For the affirmative precepts of the Law are at all times binding and the negative binde at all times But as for things which are not precisely under a Law As for example in the affirmative to pray so many times in a day to reade so many Chapters of the holy Scriptures in a day to heare so many Sermons in a weeke and in the negative not to drinke any wine or strong drinke not to weare silke or lace for or upon our Apparrel not to take such or such a recreation in it selfe lawfull I say in these cases let not vowes be perpetuall but limited to a season lest thereby wee entangle our owne soules and cast our selves into temptation while through a zeale not according to knowledge we use such meanes to avoyd it Make no vowes to binde your selves at all times in things which are not necessary at all times eyther to be done or not to be done From the whole verse Observe That the answer of prayer received from the Lord doth call us to pay and performe all the duties that we have promised or vowed to the Lord in prayer Though we doe not alwayes make strict and formal vowes when we pray yet every prayer hath somewhat of a vow in it so that having prayed at any time we may say The vowes of God are upon us for when we pray we promise and then especially we doe so when we pray under any pressure of trouble or when we have any extraordinary request to make then I say we engage our selves in a more solemne manner to serve and walke with God And so the returne or answer of such prayers ingageth us more strongly to duty For wheresoever the Lord soweth there he lookes to reape and where he hath sowed much he looks to reape much but then and there chiefly when we promise him fruits of duty for our receipts of favour and mercy Did we take notice of this we should not be found as we are so much in arreare to the Lord eyther for our private or publique mercies What promises have we made in the day of our distresse that we would be holy that we would strive against and mortifie our sinnes or the deeds of the body through the Spirit power of our Lord Jesus Christ Now let conscience speake have wee performed our promises have we paid our vowes we can hardly say that we have put up a prayer which hath not had an answer by blessings and successes God hath been to us a prayer-hearing God have we been to him a vow-paying people Who amongst us is now more active for God or more carefull to please him then before Who amongst us is more watchfull over his heart or more circumspect in his walkings then he was before Who is more carefull over his family that it may be holy or more zealous for the publicke that it may be reformed then he was before What manner of men should we be in all holy conversation and Godlines did we but pay those vowes and make good those engagements which have gone out of our lips and we have layd upon our selves before the Lord in the day of our trouble how just how pure how righteous a Nation should we be were we what we promised our utmost endeavours to be the Lord hath done much for us let us up and be doing for him let us make good what we have spoken to the Lord in vowing and promising seing the Lord hath performed what we have spoken to him in praying and calling upon his name God hath answered us at the first call yea sometimes before we called let us not put God to call a second and a third time much lesse often and often for the payment of our vowes For though the Lord in patience waite many dayes for the payment of vowes yet according to righteousnes we should not let him waite one day for it All these spirituall debt-bills are payable at sight or upon demand God shewes us our owne bills and bonds wherein we stand engaged to his Majesty every day and every day by some or other of his Atturneyes that is by some meanes or other he makes his demand therefore pay to day pay every day for we can never come wholy out of these debts to God or say we owe him nothing how much soever we have payd him And know that if when God hath heard us we be sloathfull in paying our vowes eyther God will heare us no more or wee shall heare of him and that as we say with both eares till he make our eares tingle and our hearts ake for not paying them Swift Judgements have often followed these slow payments And though they have not been swift in comming presently upon the neglect yet when they have come they have come swiftly upon the neglecters And as wee may alwayes say of the evills and Judgements which come upon any of the people of God as the Prophet in a like case doth to the people of Israel Jer. 4.18 Thy way and thy doinâ—s have procured these things unto thee this is thy wickednes So in most cases when evills and judgements fall upon and afflict the people of God we may say Your not doing what you have promised hath procured these things unto you This is your vow-breaking or your neglect of paying your vowes And how just is it that their troubles should not onely be renewed but even doubled and trebled yea seventimes more encreased upon them who slight and throw off those very duties which they tooke upon them in the day of their trouble in expectation to have their troubles removed Every mans mouth will be stopt when he suffers for not doing that good which the mouth of the Lord hath spoken how much more will his mouth be stopt and he have nothing to say for himselfe who suffers for not doing that good or for not forbearing that evill which his owne mouth hath spoken and solemnly charged upon himselfe as a duty in the presence of the Lord. They will have least to say for themselves who goe against or come not up to what themselves have sayd Then pay your vowes JOB CHAP. 22. Vers 28 29 30. Thou shalt also decree
dread God as a Judge and revenger This feare is the issue of the Covenant of workes and the beginning of sorrow Thirdly There is a mixt feare not a pure filial nor a pure slavish feare but with a mixture or ingrediency of both Such I conceive the feare of Job was his was a mixt feare it had some tang of slavery in it and it had some touch of Son-ship in it there was much of the spirit of Bondage in it and something of the Spirit of Adoption in it With the former feare many good men have been much exercised in all ages especially before Christ came in the flesh and the clearer breaking and beaming out of Gospel light Rom. 8.15 Yee have not received the spirit of bondage to feare againe And Job 14.27 Let not your hearts be troubled nor be yee afraid that is be not burdened and opprest with that servile and slavish feare which you are subject to Christ spake it to his owne Disciples for even at that time deep impressions of that feare were upon them doubting much what would become of them when he should of which he had told them leave the world and be gone from them And besides that speciall reason which the Disciples then had to feare at that time This feare usually ariseth from two reasons in others at all times First From the Consideration of their owne weaknesse and faylings Secondly From the Consideration of the Majesty and greatnes of God when they Consider these things they are afraid And though Beleevers are freed from the praedominancy of slavish feare and are endued with infusions of true filial feare yet they are often taken with this mixt feare as in reference to their owne weaknes so respecting the Majesty of God with whom they have to doe When I Consider I am afraid of him Observe That the Majesty and power of God duely Considered are terrible even to his owne people Many men have slight thoughts of the great God they tremble not they feare not what 's the reason they Consider not they are careles and therefore they are fearelesse they are ignorant and therefore they are confident There are none so bold as they who are thus blind Who is the Lord sayd Hard-hearted Pharaoh that I should obey his voyce to let Israel goe I know not the Lord neyther will I let Israel goe That 's a sad Confidence that proceeds from ignorance and a sad fearelesnes that hath no ground but carelesnesse I remember what the answer was of a very Godly man upon his death-bed who having much trembling upon his spirit at the apprehension of the greatnes Majesty and glory of God it was said to him by a Godly friend that came to visit him Sir you have knowne God and been long acquainted with him why are you thus full of feare and trembling O saith he if I knew God more I should tremble more If we were but more acquainted with and did more Consider of the Infinite greatnes of God and of our owne distance from him as creatures much more as sinners how should we be swallowed up with divine amazements so that we must charge it upon the want of Consideration that so many have such undue and unbecoming thoughts of God as also that their thoughts fall so much below both their duty and their sins if wee did but Consider how sinfull we are and how holy God is we should alwayes serve him with feare and rejoyce with trembling When I consider I am afraid of him Job was afraid of him when he considered him and so was Asaph Psal 77.3 In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord my sore ran in the night and ceased not my soule refused to be comforted I remembred God and was troubled I complained and my spirit was overwhelmed Such a remembering of God is not a bare act of the minde in opposition to forgetfulnes as if Asaph had sayd I remembered God that is I did not forget him but I remembered God that is I fixed my heart upon him I minded him fully or set him fully before my minde though the rememberance of God is the spring of Comfort to us and that many wayes yet an Asaph a holy man The holyest among many men may be troubled when he remembers God when he Considers his glory greatnes power and Majesty and himselfe a poore worme When the holy Prophet Isaiah saw the Lord in vision sitting upon a throne high and lifted up and saw the Seraphims covering their faces and their feete and heard them crying one unto another and saying Holy holy holy is the Lord of hosts the whole earth is full of his glory Then he sayd Woe is mee for I am undone because I am a man of uncleane lips c. What a concussion was there upon his spirit upon the meeting of these two visions first that of the holines of God secondly that of his own uncleanenes Isa 6.1 2 3 4 5. Moses who had such intimacy with and accesse unto God is yet described trembling at his giving the Law Heb. 12.21 And so terrible was the sight that Moses said I am exceedingly afraid and tremble Moses knew that God was his friend a God in Covenant with him yet Moses said I exceedingly feare and quake the sight and voyce oâ— God is our Blessednes yet there may be a troublesome and a terrible both sight and voyce of God even Moses was afraid and so was Habakkuk Chap. 3.16 When I heard that is thy speech v. 2. my belly trembled my lips quivered at the voyce rottennes entred into my bones and I trembled in my selfe c. And at last wicked men though now so unconsidering who God is shall have such Considerations of him as shall for ever drowne and swallow them up in a deluge of feare the thoughts of the presence of God will be Eternall terror to them who now are unmoved with the thoughts of his presence or who have not God in all their thoughts There is a presence of God which shall be death to them who have not lived in a due and awfull consideration of his presence Thus the Apostle describes the punishment of wicked men 2 Thes 1.9 They shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord. Wee may understand it two wayes First They shall be punished by being put from the presence of the Lord That 's the punishment of losse they shall be for ever excluded and banished from his presence That which was their desire here shall be their misery hereafter They who care not for the presence of God in this world shall be everlastingly cursed with the want of it in the world which is to come Secondly I rather conceive the meaning of that Text to be this there shall be a manifestation of the wrathfull presence of God to them and that shall be their punishment the presence of the Lord is everlasting life and light and joy to his owne people but
knew him as a favourite that is trusted with secrets So David speakes Psal 25.14 The secret of the Lord is with them that feare him There is a secret in the plainest truths and doctrines of Godlines both in Law and Gospel and many know the doctrine who know not the secret any common professor may know the doctrine but the sincere onely know the secret that is the power and efficacy the sweetnes of comfort of the doctrine There is also a secret of God with his in blessing and prospering them in the world of which Job speakes Chap. 29.4 as there is also a secret and imperceptible curse which the Prophet calls the Lords blowing upon what men have in their possession or for their use Hag. 1.9 But besides these there is a secret of favour which is the sealing of the Spirit the gift of the hidden Manna and of the white stone with a new name in it which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it Rev. 2.17 This secret of the Lord is with them that feare him and there is yet another secret of his with them even the secret of his purpose and intendment concerning his owne providentiall workings Which while many or all see yet they know not the meaning of them I meane it not onely of the wicked and carnall but even of many who are holy and spirituall in the maine The secrets of providence are knowne onely to some choyce ones to some of an excellent Spirit and high attainements to some Abrahams c. intimate friends who are to God as his owne soule There is a secret of the Lord which is with all them that feare him yet some of his secrets are not with many of them who feare him What Job spake in the 12th Chapter of this Booke ver 2. reproving the pride of his friends Yee are the men and wisdome shall dye with you you I trow have ingrossed all wisdome and others must borrow of you The same we may speake soberly and approvingly of some humble Godly men they have the knowledge of God and it is but little that others have though they have a saving knowledge Some conceive the Prophet upbraiding the Jewes Isa 58.2 As if they affected to be looked upon not onely as such as know God but as such as know him intimately and were his bosome friends They seeke me dayly and delight to know my wayes as a nation that did righteousnesse and forsooke not the ordinance of their God they aske of me the Ordinances of Justice they take delight in approaching unto God They who doe indeed as these Jewes seemed to doe may be numbred among those of the highest forme that know God Why doe they that know him not see his dayes Here Job hath found out somewhat knowable which they who know God doe not alwayes know and that is as hath been shewed the season of his judgements Hence Note First The judgements of God are often eyther deferred carried so closely and secretly that the wisest and holyest men cannot alwayes discerne or see them The judgements of God are often deferred in this life and they are very often concealed though presently executed That is not alwayes true which Eliphaz asserted Chap. 22.19 The righteous see it and are glad the innocent laugh them to scorne The righteous sometimes see the judgements of God upon wicked men his care watching over themselves but they do not alwayes see eyther for as a wicked man may doe evill a hundred times that is very often and goe unpunished as is intimated Eccl. 8.12 So a wicked man may be punished a hundred times and yet not one of his punishments seene Some judgements of God are great and sore which yet fall not under the observation of the best of the wisest of the holiest in the world They that know him doe not see his dayes God for terror and warning to others doth judgement upon some openly Deut. 7.9 10. Know therefore the Lord thy God he is God the faithfull God who keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keepe his commandements to a thousand generations and repayeth them that hate him to their face to destroy them He will not be slacke to him that hateth him he will repay him to his face Here are two things in this Text concerning the judgements of God That they shall come first suddenly secondly openly they shall come suddenly God will not be slack they shall come openly God will repay them to their face as they sinned openly so they shall be punished openly Thus God repayd the Sodomites he payd them to their face so he repayd Pharaoh and so the rebelling Jewes and he was not slack for as the Psalmist saith while the meate was in their mouth the wrath of God fell upon them Thus 't is sometimes yet judgements are often deferred and hidden What the Apostle speakes Rom. 9.22 is applicable here God willing to shew his wrath and make his power knowne indured with much long suffering the vessells of wrath fitted for destruction there are vessells of wrath fitted for destruction throwne to hell not onely to a temporall but to an eternall destruction yet God did indure them with much long suffering that is he did not presently powre out wrath upon them he was so farre from casting them presently to hell that he did not afflict them with any trouble in this life but indured them with much long suffering and patience David was much astonished with this consideration Psal 36.6 Thy righteousnesse is like the great mountaines thy judgements are a great deepe Take both together Thy righteousnesse is like the great mountaines the mountaines of God that is thy righteousnesse indures and remaines inviolable But though it be so yet the execution and actings of thy righteousnesse are not alwayes decerneable for thy judgements are a great deepe that is when God doth execute and put forth his righteousnesse few see it his judgements are a great deepe many deepes who can goe to the depth of them how unsearchable are thy judgements saith the Apostle Rom. 11.33 they are such and so deepe that none can reach the bottome of them and therefore no wonder if they are sometimes hidden from those that know God Secondly Whereas Job sayth Why seing times are not hidden from the Almighty doe they that know him not see his dayes We may Note That if any thing which God doth in this world be seene by any Godly men are in the Greatest likely-hood to see it And that upon a twofold ground first because they have the best eyes and sences most exercised to discerne what God is doing And as this is because they have the best internal light and purest principles to make this discovery with So in the second â—lace because they stand fayrest in the eye of God to have his providences manifested and expounded to them For as God by the Spirit expounds his word so his workes to his choycest servants
Kings of the earth and the great men and the rich men and the chiefe Captaines and the mighty men and every bondman and every free man shall hide themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountaines and say to the rocks and to the mountaines fall on us and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the Throne and from the wrath of the Lambe They who having been threatned with the wrath of God were no more afrayd then the rocks shall for feare wooe the rocks to hide them from the wrath of God Though Adam had not the feare of God to keepe him from sinne yet the feare of God fell upon him as soone as he had sinned Gen. 3.10 I heard thy voice in the garden and I was affraid because I was naked and I hid my selfe Hence Observe First God is in himselfe very dreadfull hee is to be feared God is so much to be feared that not onely feare is with him but hee is feare As because God is so full of love therefore the Scripture predicates love directly of God God is love 1 Joh. 4.8 so because God is greatly to be feared therefore he is called feare Gen. 31.42.53 Except the God of my father the God of Abraham and the feare of Isaac that is the God whom my father Isaac feared had been with me surely thou hadst sent me away empty sayd Jacob in his contest with Laban And at the 53d verse of the same Chapter he sayth againe to Laban the God of Abraham and the Gâ—d of Nahor the God of their father judge betwixt us and Jacob â—ware by the feare of his father Isaac that is hee sware by God for by him onely can we sweare in a holy manner An oath being a part or an act of divine worship The dominion and feare of God are put together Mal. 1.14 I am a great King there is dominion and my name is dreadfull among the Heathen there is feare Even Heathens who know God oâ—ely by the ligâ—t of Nature which is so imperfect a way of knowing God that the Heathen are sayd not to know him Jer. 10.25 yet I say the Heathen who know God onely thus doe feare him they feare him in proportion to or according to the way of their knowledge of him How much more then is the Lord to be feared and how dreadfull is be to and among his owâ—e people who know him savingly who know him by Gospel light God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the Saints and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him Psal 89.7 Hee is terribly dreadfull amongst the Heathen hee is awfully or reverentially dreadfull among the Saints Feare is with him First In reference to the greatnesse of his power consider what God can doe and that renders him dreadfull Wee feare those that can doe great things those especially that can doe great things against us For this reason Christ exhorts his Disciples to feare God when hee saw them in danger of a surprisal by the feare of what men could doe against them Luk. 12.4 5. I say unto you my friends be not afraid of them that kill the body and after that have no more that they can doe But I will forewarne you whom yee shall feare feare him which after hee hath killed hath power to cast into hell yea I say unto you feare him How is he to be feared who at one stroake can peirce body and soule quite through and throw both into hell The Lord is to be feared upon the consideration of the ordinary providentiall puttings forth of his power how much more when he puts forth his power extraordinarily and Judicially Jer 5.22 Feare ye not me sayth the Lord will yee not tremble at my presence which have placed the sand for the bound of the Sea by a perpetuall decree that it cannot passe it and though the waves thereof tosse themselves yet can they not prevaile though they roare yet can they not passe over it I have done this thing put a stop to the Sea I have put a bridle into the mouth of the Sea I can check the waves when they roare and tosse and will ye not feare me Secondly God is to be feared for his goodnesse as we read at the 24th verse of the same Chapter where the Lord upbraides their want of feare while they remembred his most ordinary good providences at land Neither say they in their heart let us now feare the Lord our God that giveth raine both the former and the latter in his season hee reserveth unto us the appointed weekes of the harvest If God be to be feared for that witnes of his goodnesse which is held out by raine and fruitfull seasons or by filling the hearts of men in common with food and gladnes then how much more is God to be feared for the distinguishing acts of his goodnes and mercy the pardon of sin and the giving out of his Spirit There is forgivenes with thee that thou mayest be feared sayd the Psalmist 130.4 and Hos 3.5 They shall feare the Lord and his goodnesse in the latter dayes that is they shall feare the Lord because of his goodnes his speciall goodnes to his Church and people in advancing them to all their spirituall liberties priviledges in the latter dayes And thus the Lord is sayd to be not onely glorious in holinesse but fearefull in praises because we should feare him when wee are praising him both because hee hath wrought so much goodnes and mercy for those who are unworthy as also lest while we receave so much from the hand of his goodnes and mercy we should walke unworthyly Secondly When the text sayth Feare is with him wee learne That God can strike man with feare when he pleaseth Power is with him and he can put forth his power if God send out his power it goeth and prevaileth So feare is with him and hee can send out his feare to strike whom he will with feare when and as oft as hee will The Scriprure sheweth the Lord sending forth his feare at pleasure and attaching the strongest and hardyest of the children of men It is sayd Gen. 35.5 And they journeyed that is Jacob and his small company and the terrour of God was upon the Cities that were round about them and they did not pursue after the sons of Jacob. The terrour of God was sent out to keepe them in so that none of them stirred Else no doubt but all the Cities would have pursued them because of that high provocation which the sons of Jacob had given them by the late slaughter of the Sichemites When God promised to send Hornets before the people of Israel to drive out the uncircumcised Nations this feare was the Hornet Exod. 23.28 God stung their hearts with feare or as it were by Hornets buzz'd a feare into their eares as he did into the eares of the Syrians who encamped before Samaria 2
is self-sufficient needs not to receive any addition from another is an argument of imperfection And seing God neither receives nor can receive any thing from another he must needs be perfect in himself David Psal 16.2 speaking of himselfe as the type of Christ saith O my soule thou hast said unto the Lord thou art my Lord that is thou art my Portion and my All but my goodnesse extendeth not to thee I am not able to doe any good which reacheth to thy benefit or encreaseth thy happiness for thou art mine In the 50th Psalm the Lord asserts this his own independency If I were hungry I would not tel thee for the world is mine the fulnesse thereof If I had any hunger that is any defect upon me I need not go to the creature to aske a supply I could supply my selfe if there were any need but there 's none The Lord is infinitely above all hunger above all wants and defects whatsoever He indeed threatens Idolaters that he will famish all their gods Zeph. 2.11 Idols shall be hungry they shal be famisht and have none to administer any thing to them This the Lord doth when hee with-draws their respect and worship that name and reputation which once they had in the world from them worship is the food of Idols that keeps livelesse Idols as it were alive and therefore fals gods are famished when their false worship is cast downe but who can famish the Lord If I were hungry c. I would not tell you Can man be profitable unto God But it may be objected Cannot a man be profitable to God is man no advantage no help to him why then Judg. 5.23 Sings Deborah Curse ye Meroz said the Angel of the Lord curse yee bitterly the inhabitants thereof because they came not to the help of the Lord to the help of the Lord against the mighty It should seem then that the Lord had need of the help of these inhabitants of Meroz and if they had come forth it had been an advantage to him why else were they cursed for not coming forth to the help of the Lord I answer man is said to help the Lord when he helps in the Lords cause Personally the Lord needeth not my helpe but the Lord may be helped relatively in his Cause and in his people Thus we help the Lord when we help man when we help the Church and people of God It is our honour as well as our duty to help his People and give assistance in his Cause This the Lord takes so well at our hands that he reckons it as help given to himself Againe if wee consider the help as given to the Lords people we are not to conceive that the Lord needed the helpe of these men of Meroz as if hee could not helpe them himselfe without the assistance or ayd of man For when he seeth that there is no man then his owne arme brings salvation Isa 59.16 'T is the duty of man to come forth and draw his sword in the Lords quarrell against the mighty but the Lord needeth not the sword of man to subdue the mightiest Secondly It may be objected Cannot man be profitable unto God he speaks of the Church of the Jewes in such language as implies them a profit to him Exod. 19.5 Now if yee will obey my voyce indeed and keep my Covenant then shall ye be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people And is there no profit in a treasure Again Deut. 32.9 The Lords portion is his people Jacob is the lot of his inheritance Hath a man no profit by his portion no advantage by his Inheritance Now if the Lords People be his Portion his Inheritance his Treasure his peculiar special treasure how then can it be said they are no profit no advantage to him I answer the Lords people are his treasure not because they enrich him but because he hath a high esteem of them The Lords People are his treasure not because they profit him but because he protects them If I say to a man you shal be a treasure to me I may do it not because I expect any profit from him but because I have a high esteem of him and resolve to protect and defend him as I do my own portion and treasure In this sense doth the Lord say of his People Yee are my treasure We esteem treasure and treasures are under protection lest any take them from us Thus the Lord speaks of his People not that he hath any profit or gaine by them as men who ordinarily have Portions and Inheritances in Fields or Houses which are their stock and livelihood Indeed there is a Revenue which the Lord hath by his People as they are his portion that is a Revenue of glory and honour not a revenue of profit But if you say glory and honour is profit and an advantage to man is it not then an advantage to God to be glorified by man I answer It is no advantage to God when he is glorified by man Our glorifying of God doth not add any glory to him that he had not but it is only the setting forth of that glory which he had there is no encrease of his fullnesse by all the honour and glory that the creature gives him We are commanded to glorifie God Matth. 5.16 Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorifie your Father which is in heaven But God doth not receive any additionall glory by us how much or how clearly soever our light shineth before men A candle adds more light to the Sun then all the creatures in the world can adde to the glory of God when they have studied his glory and laboured to glorifie him to the utmost all their dayes Thirdly that of David may be yet objected Psal 4.3 The Lord hath set apart for himselfe the man that is godly And is so then it seems he intends to make some profit of him it is an allusion unto those that vend wares A Merchant looks upon this and that commodity and then saith this is for my turn this I like set it apart for me Seeing then the Loâ—d sets the godly apart for himselfe it sounds as if he meant to make some gaine or advantage by him I answer the meaning of that Scripture is not that God sets a godly man apart as one that he gets profit by but as one that he intends to bestow mercy upon or he sets him apart for service not for gaine The Lord serves his own ends by the service of man every day and sets apart the godly man for his speciall service Yet a little further I shall demonstrate that a man cannot be profitable to God First God had all perfection before man was therefore man cannot profit God Psal 90.2 From everlasting and to everlasting thou art God shat is thou art infinite in glory and excellency from everlasting God was God as much before
wise may he profitable to himself The Lord hath designed all our wisdom and obedience to our own benefit So Moses spake to the people of Israel Deu. 6.24 The Lord commanded us to doe all these statutes to feare the Lord our God for our good alwayes that he might preserve us alive as it is at this day It is not for the Lords good but it is for our good that he commands and we obey And as the Lord commanded all things in the Law for our good not for his own so he commands us to believe the Gospel not for his good but for our own he is not to be saved by it it is we that are to be saved by it He doth not call us to work as men do their servants that he might play the good husband and get some profit by keeping us hard at labour Indeed the Lord keepeth his servants hard at labour night and day they must be continually upon duty But he doth it not as I may say to play the good husband to encrease his stock by it but it is for our profit That which Christ speaks Mar. 2.27 about the Sabboth is true of all other the commands of God we are apt to think that God requires a seaventh day because it is for his profit and advantage no saith Christ the Lord hath not an eye to himselfe but to man The Sabboth was made for man that is for mans advantage that he might look heaven ward that he might worke in the things which concern his owne blessednesse therefore hath the Lord appointed him a resting day The Sabboth was made for man and not man for the Sabboth Sixtly Then our disobedience cannot hurt God our sinnâ— cannot disadvantage him impaire his blessednesse oâ— diminish his glory As mans obedience is no profit so his disobedience is no disprofit to God Sinners shall be punished as they who have wronged and dishonoured God they shall be dealt with as such But really all the sinnes of the world doe not bring any damage or disadvantage to God Elihu is expresse to this point in the 35. Chap. of this Book vers 6 7. If thou sinnest what dost thou against him Every sin is against the mind of God but no sinn is against the happinesse of God or if thy transgressions be multiplyed what dost thou unto him is God impair'd by it Surely no God doth not loose a pinn from his sleeve as I may say by all the sinnes committed in the world He hath no dependance at all upon our obedience for his blessedness our sins cannot hurt him as our obedience cannot help him which Elihu shews in the next verse If thou be righteous what givest thou him or what receiveth he of thine hand Seventhly hence see the honour of God that hath made so many creatures and man especially of whom himselfe hath no need that hath so many to serve him and yet needs none of their services Give God this glory Wee think those men are very glorious and honouurable who have but as much of the creature as will serve thier turn all creatures are the Lords yet he is not necessitated to serve his turn by any of them Eightly then see what an obligation lyeth upon us continually to blesse God to be thankfull to him to walk humbly with him who gives us so many profits when as we doe not profit him at all God prizeth that highly by which himself hath no benefit hee prizes the actings of faith and holinesse highly but he hath no advantage by them God gives us profit by these though himselfe be not profited though he is not the better by any thing we do yet we are the better The Lord binds himself by promise that the least good we do in sincerity shall have a good reward He that gives but a cup of cold water to a Disciple in the name of a Disciple shall not lose his reward But if we give thousands of Gold and Silver to poore Disciples what profit hath God by it And yet though none of the profit comes to his hand yet he reckons it as if all were put into his hand All the charity and compassion shewed to his people Christ taketh to himself Matth. 25. In that yee have done it unto these ye have done it unto me Christ had no need of alms of visiting or cloathing yet he counts it as done to himselfe when we do it to any of his Can a man be profitable to God as he that is wise may be profitable to himselfe Some give the meaning of the words thus Doth it follow that a man can be profitable unto God because a wise man may be profitable to himselfe our reading reaches the same sense Can a man be profitable unto God as he that is wise may be profitable to himself It doth not follow because A man may profit another man or profit himselfe that therefore he may profit God That 's the summe of the argument 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Intellexit prudens fuit per Metonymiam faelix prosper fuit quod prudentibus omnia feliciter cedant prudentiam faelicitas fere sequitur As he that is wiâ—e The word in the root of it signifies to Understand to be Prudent and by a Metonymie to be happy or to prosper because usually affaires succeed well and prosper in the hands of wise men and happinesse usually followes wisedome therefore to be wise and to be profitable are signified by one and the same word in the Hebrew So in this Text He that is wise is profitable to himselfe that is his affaires shall prosper We finde this Title prefixt to divers Psalms Maschil Maschil intelligens prudens carmen erudiens ode didascalica In titulis Psalmorum ter decies legitur which is as much as A teaching Psalme a Psalm making wise a Psalm for Instruction This Title is given those Psalms which as they have some extraordinary matter so usually they are Psalmes of complaint under affliction and the reason of that is because there is much instruction in correction much light of holy knowledge is to be had in the School of the Crosse therefore usually those Psalms that describe the afflictions of the Church are called Maschil Psalms of Instruction Schola crucis Schola lucis Luth. He that is wise and instructs or he that is wise as having received instruction may be profitable to himselfe All wisedome is not profitable to man for there is a wisedome of which the Scripture saith that God will destroy it a man cannot profit himselfe by that and there is a wisedome which is earthly sensuall and devillish Jam. 3.15 A man be he never so wise according to this wisedome shall not profit himselfe by it There are a sort of wise men whom the Lord will take in their craftinesse 1 Cor. 3.19 and how can such profit themselves by their wisedome There are wise men whose thoughts the Lord knoweth to be but vaine that
fulfilled or done on earth as it is in Heaven Thus we see the second Propnsition cleared for the understanding of these words That as the Lord takes pleasure in those who are righteous by the imputed righteousnesse of his Son so even in those also who are reghteous by the Implanted righteousnesse or holinesse of his spirit Thirdly God takes pleasure to see a sincere and upright person justifie himselfe or plead his owne justice against all the false accusations and suspitions of men The Lord likes it well to hear a man who is falsly accused to stand up and maintaine his own innocency yea it is our duty and we are bound in conscience to maintain our own innocency So David in the seventh Psalm and in the eighteenth Psalm justified himselfe against Saul And thus Job all along in this Book justified himselfe against the opinion of his friends in this sense God takes pleasure when we are so righteous in all our dealings and perfect in all our wayes that we dare encounter whosoever speaks the contrary and can wash off all the aspersions which either misguided and mistaken friends or professed Enemies cast upon us You have now had those three affirmative Propositions for the understanding of the Text. Take three more in the Negative First God hath no pleasure to see us justifie our selves before him or to plead our own righteousnesse with him yea he is extreamly displeased at it This some conceive the chief thing which Eliphaz aimed at Is it any pleasure to the Almighty that thou doest justifie thy selfe No thou dost highly provoke him in doing so to plead with or to justifie our selves before God that we are righteous is worse then all our unrighteousnesse for this overthrowes the whole design of the Gospel which is 1 Cor. 1.29 That no flesh should glory in his presence but be that glorieth let him glory in the Lord. And Rom. 3.19 20. The Law convinceth all That all the world may become guilty before God therefore by the deeds of the Law there shall be no flesh justified in his sight God will have every mouth stopped or cry guilty and therefore for any one to open his mouth and justifie himselfe before God is to overthrow the Gospel They are ignorant of the righteousnesse of God who goe about to establish their own righteousnesse Rom. 10.3 And as God hath no pleasure in them who boast of their righteousnesse to justifie themselves before him so Secondly God hath no pleasure in them who boast of their owne righteousnesse and contemne others Though a man may assert the righteousnesse of his Conversation against all them who question it yet God resents it highly when any proclaim their own righteousnesse to the despising of others Christ speaks a Parable against those in the 18th of Luke v. 9 10 11. who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others Two men went up into the Temple to pray the one a Pharisee the other a Publican The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himselfe God I thank thee that I am not as other men are extortioners adulterers unjust or even as this Publican Here was one that advanced his owne active righteousnesse and he did it with the contempt of another I am not as this Publican The Lord takes no pleasure in this yea the Lord is highly displeased with this And Isa 65.5 the Prophet represents the Lords indignation against this pharisaicall spirit in dreadful eloquence Stand by thy selfe come not near to me for I am holier then thou Thus they pleaded their righteousnes in contempt of others These saith the Lord are a smoak in my nose that is greevous and displeasing a fire that burneth all the day Thirdly God hath no pleasure at all in any of our righteousnesse either in the righteousnesse of our Justification or the righteousnesse of our Sanctification as the least addition to his owne happiness The reason of it is because as was shewed from the former Verse God is self-sufficient and hath no dependance at all upon the Creature So that what pleasure soever the Lord hath in the righteousnesse of our Justification or of our Sanctification we cannot put it to this account that we add any thing to his happines All the pleasure which God taketh is in himselfe or in the fulfilling of his owne good pleasure in Christ And therefore the work which Jesus was to doe on Earth is called the pleasure of God Isa 53.10 Deus nullis rebus quae extra ipsum sunt tangitur aut mutatur It pleased the Lord to bruise him he hath put him to grief when thou shalt make his soule an offering for sin he shall see his seed he shall prolong his dayes and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand That pleasure of the Lord was the work which the Lord put into his hand or which he gave him to doe even the bringing about his eternal purpose for the recovery of lost man that 's a work in which the Lord takes pleasure so much pleasure that the Prophet calleth it His pleasure And thus the Apostle speaks Eph. 1.5 6. Having predestinated us to the adoption of Children by Jesus Christ according to the good pleasure of his owne will c. The good pleasure of God is onely in his owne will that 's his pleasure The Lord delights to see his will accomplisht in the saving of sinners as well as in the obedience of Saints that 's a part of the good will of God why doth he take pleasure in the obedience of Saints even because his own will is done It 's not any thing in us that doth it So when he saves us the pleasure which he takes is in the fulfilling of his owne will rather then in our salvation Is it any pleasure to the Almighty that thou art righteous Vers 4. Will he reprove thee for fear of thee Or will he enter with thee into judgement The Question is to be resolved into this negative He will not reprove thee for fear of thee c. Will he reprove thee 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 arguit redarguit corripuit judicavit The word signifies first to argue or dispute and so to convince by the authority of reason Secondly to plead so to convince by evidence of the Law and fact Mich. 6.2 Hear yee O Mountaines the Lords Controversie and ye strong foundations of the Earth for the Lord hath a controversie with his people and he will plead with Israel The Mountaines and the strong foundations of the earth are the great men of the earth or Magistratical powers with these the Lord threatens a Controversie and that he will plead or argue his cause with them Thirdly it signifies to argue or plead not with words onely but with blowes to reprove with correction Job 5.17 Happy is the man whom thou correctest The word which here we render reprove is there rendred to correct which is reproving by blowes Fourthly
and as a hater of wickednesse He reproves man because he hath sinned against him not because he is afraid of him as Eliphaz shews in the words which follow JOB CHAP. 22. 5 6 7 8 9. Is not thy wickednesse great and thine iniquity infinite For thou hast taken a pledge of thy Brother for nought and stripped the naked of their clothing Thou hast not given water to the weary to drinke and thou hast with holden bread from the hungry But as for the mighty man he had the earth and the honourable man dwelt in it Thou hast sent widdows away empty and the arms of the fatherlesse have been broken IN this Context Eliphaz intends to shew the true reason why God reproved Job and entred into judgment with him it was not as was sayd at the 4th Verse either because God was afraid of him or because he feared God but it was for his wickednesse as Eliphaz though mistaken concluded against him as if he had said God doth not punish thee because he is afraid of thee but because he loveth justice and hateth iniquity Is not thy wickednesse great and thine iniquity infinite That 's the scope of these words which we may fitly call Job's Indictment and this Indictment is laid down first in general words vers 5. Is not thy wickednesse great and thine iniquity infinite And here Job is not charged with wickednesse and iniquity barely but under a two-fold aggravation 1. Great 2. Infinite Secondly We have his Indictment drawn on t into particular Charges or a spefication of some notorious sins given against him in the Verses following This particular Charge consists of two heads First Sinnes against man Secondly Sinnes against God His supposed sinnes against man contained in the words now read are of two sorts First Sinnes of commission or of the evill which he had done Secondly Sinnes of omission or of the good that he had not done The evill which he chargeth him to have done is twofold first an act of injustice taking a pledge in the sixt verse secondly an act of uncharitablenesse stripping the naked in the same verse Both which evills or miscarriages towards the honest poore are aggravated ver 8th by his undue connivence at the wicked rich as he was too severe against the poore so he was over-favourable towards the great and mighty But as for the mighty man he had the earth and the honourable man be dwelt in it as if he had said Thou didst never set thy selfe to doe justice upon the great ones be they and doe they what they will they have the earth thou didst never put forth or exercise thy power to suppresse and oppose their insolencies thy edge was turned only against inferior ones Thou tookest a pledge from the poore and hast stripped the naked of their cloathing His sinnes of omission are expressed in the 7th verse Thou hast not given water to the weary thou hast withholden bread from the hungry and in the 9th verse Thou hast sent widdows away empty and the armes of the fatherlesse have been broken Which may be either taken thus Thou hast broken their armes or thou hast not given thy helpe and assistance to restore and releive them when broken Thus we have a light into the meaning of these five verses as they are a charge of sinne upon Job Vers 5. Is not thy wickednesse great The question may be taken two wayes either conjecturally and doubtingly or assertively and affirmingly Usually in Scripture such questions are resolved into assertions and so divers Interpreters resolve this here Is not thy wickednesse great That is I conclude against thee that thy wickednesse is great and that thy iniquities are infinite so Mr Broughton renders Doubtlesse thy evill is great Others conceive it more cleare to the minde of the Text that this question should be interpreted conjecturally Non tam haec ei ex professo obijcit quam cogitandum ei relinquit num haec fecerit Merc. Is not thy wickednesse great That is may we not suppose that thy wickednesse is great may we not from at least probable grounds thinke thus of thee And that First from the generall state of man by nature mans heart being sinfull he may sinne and sinne as it were without bounds greatly There is no man sayth Solomon 1 Kings 8. 46. that liveth and sinneth not Solomon puts it as a parenthesis in his prayer but it is such a parenthesis as hoocks in all man kinde it takes all in Who is there that sinneth not so Pro. 20.9 Who can say I am cleane from my sinne Now upon this generall ground Eliphaz might suppose Is not thy wickednesse great All men have this in their nature and hast not thou made improvement of it in thy life All men being sinfull by nature art not thou extreamely sinfull in practise Againe He might make the supposition upon this ground his present condition or his affliction thou art greatly afflicted thy afflictions are not of an ordinary sise or measure therefore is not thy wickednesse great and thine iniquity beyond the ordinary measure Upon this common rule he might suppose his sin very great for usually God doth proportion and measure out punishments by our sinnes Thy sufferings are very great therefore are not thy sinnes great too Thus he might speake conjecturally upon both these considerations And yet if we consider how positively he speaks of particulars at the 6th and 7th verses c Thou hast taken a pledge of thy brother for nought and stripped the naked of their cloathing c. He gives us but too much ground to thinke that he did more then barely conjecture while he sayd Is not thy wickednesse great The word which we render wickednesse 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 malum tuū vox Hebraea pertinet ad improbitatē quandam impudentiam contra jus aequum omnia conculcantem is by some specially expounded of that wickednesse which hath a kinde of impudence in it and which doth not onely breake transgresse or step over the Law but spurns against it every man that sinneth steppeth over the Law over the line but there are some that kicke at it some who trample upon it yea they would destroy it so some highten the emphasis of the word Againe the word is rendred by others as signifying the evill of punishment in this part of the verse and not the evill of sinne Is not thy affliction great therefore thy iniquity is infinite Malitia in sacris interdū est afflictio aerumna vexatio pro malo paenae non culpae accipit Rab Lev The Greeke word Matth. 6.34 answers this Sufficient to the day is the evill thereof that is the trouble and the sorrow of it Amos 3.6 Is there any evill in the Citie which the Lord hath not done So here Is not thy evill great thy evill of punishment therefore thy iniquity is infinite But I rather fix it upon the former though the word sometimes
people Stupidus esplanè nisi tua scelera harum tuarum calamitatū aquae more inundantium obruentium causam esse vides Merc heare ye indeed but understand not and see ye indeed but perceive not Make the heart of this people fat and make their eares heavy and shut their eyes What were these eyes and eares that were to be made heavy and shut Surely they are to be understood not of Organicall but of intellectuall eares and eyes But who was to shut these eyes A holy Prophet And how was hee to shut them By prophecying or speaking to them in the Name of the Lord. The proper worke of the Word is to open the eyes and enlighten the minde But when a people have long shut their owne eyes against or onely dallyed with that transcendent mercy the light then God which is the severest judgement shuts their eyes and darkens them with light Of this Judiciary darkness some interpre◠the present Text as if Eliphaz had sayd there is a worse plague upon thee then all those spoken of even blindness and confusion of minde so that thou canst neyther see what brought thee into them nor how to finde thy way out but art as a man under water or in the darke amuzed in these thy afflictions not knowing what to doe or which way to turne thy selfe Secondly Darkness taken improperly is Externall so a state of sorrow and affliction is a state of darkness As before snares so here darkness notes any troublesome condition or the trouble of any mans condition And when to darkness this is added Darkness that thou canst not see it may import the greatest degree of darkness even darkness in perfection or as the Scripture speaks thick darkness yea outer darkness There is a darknes in which wee may see a darknes which hath some kinde of light in it but when darknes is so thicke that we cannot see that is that we cannot see any thing in it as we commonly say of extreame darkness 't is so darke that a man cannot see his hand then 't is perfect darkness Light is not properly seene but 't is the medium or meanes by which wee see much lesse is darknes seene it being properly that which intercepts and hinders sight yet 't is rare to meete with darknes which hath not some mixture or tinctures of light or with such darknes as in which nothing at all can be seene yet such was this metaphoricall darknes with which he supposed Job was muffled up I have more then once in other passages of this Booke met with and explained this terme shewing how and why afflictions and troubles are expressed by it and therefore I shall not now stay upon it Onely here take notice Gentiles idem sentire gustiebant dum non eosdem in prosperis quos in adversis adibant deos In prosperis quidem solē Jovem opulentū Minervam Mercurium Apollinem hos omnes quasi lucis secundarum rerum largitores at in adversis tellurem Neptunum alios malorum depulsores nocte multum potentes quasi tenebrarum ipsi domini essent Bold That the old Heathens had such conceptions of darkness And therefore being in a prosperous state they had recourse to the Sunne to Jupiter Minerva Mercury their Idol-Deities as the dispensers of light and comfort but being under sufferings and sorrows they made their applications to the Earth to Neptune and others whom they vainely beleeved were Rulers of the Night and Lords of darkness as if these could command and chase away all evills from them Scripture Language is full of such Descriptions about men in sorrow Darkness that thou canst not see And abundance of waters cover thee * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 quamvis multitudinē aut inundationē significat cum celeretate quadam strepitu The word rendred abundance signifies a company or troope of waters which meete and march together even as horses prepared for battell and ready to give the charge So the word is translated 2 Kings 9.17 A Watchman from the Tower sayd I see a company And that was Jehu with his troopes who came marching furiously with the revenge of God in his hand upon the house of Ahab And so Ezek. 26.10 By reason of the abundance of their horses their dust shall cover thee thy walls shall shake at the noyse of the Horsemen and of the Wheeles and of the Chariots Reade the same use of the word Isa 60.6 The multitude some read the inundation of Camels shall cover thee They shall come in such abundance that they shall come like a floud and shall be as the gathering of many waters Troopes of Horses and Camels rush together as many waters And waters rush and throng together even as many horses Thus here abundance or an Army of waters come in upon thee and cover thee Waters in Scripture frequently signifie afflictions Isa 43.2 When thou passest thorow the waters that is thorow great afflictions I will be with thee Psal 18.16 Hee drew me out of many waters That is out of many afflictions Psal 66.12 Wee went through fire and water but thou broughtest us forth into a wealthy place Fire and water note all sorts of afflictions hot and cold moyst and dry And some conceive that water in a metaphoricall sence is so often used in Scripture to signifie affliction because water in a proper sence did once afflict the whole world As the generall Judgement upon the world at the last day shall be by fire so the first generall Judgement upon the world was by water it was a floud of waters by which the Lord destroyed the old world Likewise Pharaoh and his Host of Aegyptians which was the second most Eminent Judgement that ever was in the world were overwhelmed by the waters of the red Sea Thus Moses sang Exo. 15.4 5. Pharaohs Chariot his host hath he cast into the Sea his chosen Captaines also are drowned in the red Sea The depths have covered them they sanke into the bottome as a stone And againe v. 10. The Sea covered them they sanke as Lead in the mighty waters Water being the Element and the Instrument which God hath so often used in his angry dispensations towards sinfull men it may emphatically expresse any dispensation of his anger Yet if we consider the very nature of the thing it selfe it carrieth significancy enough to be the Embleme of saddest and soarest affliction First There is in water a swallowing power as water is easily swallowed so it swallowes all up Man cannot subsist in it when it is most peaceable and he can hardly escape out of it when 't is enraged Sorrow and affliction are swallowers also unlesse mercy appeare and moderate them they drowne and overthrow all The Apostle useth that expression when he adviseth the Corinthians 2 Ep 2.7 To forgive and comfort the incestuous person whom according to his advice they had formerly Excommunicated or cast out from fellowship in the
true God now I say if they who do but set up a new worship for the true God make a strange God what then doe they who in their hearts set up a new God that is who frame Conceptions of God which himselfe never gave ground for in his word Such was the Conceit which Eliphaz had of Job when he presumes him saying How doth God know Can he judge through the dark cloud Secondly From the particular misapprehension of God imposed by Eliphaz upon Job And thou sayest How doth God know c. Observe Sinfull men fancie to themselves that God eyther doth not or cannot take notice of them in their sinfull wayes Thus they reason Can he see thorow the dark Cloud and conclude Thick Clouds are a Covering to him that he seeth not and he walketh in the Circuit of heaven What Eliphaz layes to Jobes charge falsely is often charged by the Holy Ghost upon wicked men truely Psal 10.11 Hee hath said in his heart God hath forgotten he hides his face he will never see it Who this He is whose heart speakes this language appeares clearely in the former part of the Psalme where he is more then once called The wicked ver 2 3. and where more then one of his wickednesses are described ver 7 8 9 10. His mouth is full of cursing and deceit and fraud under his tongue is mischiefe and vanity he sitteth in the lurking places of the villages in the secret places doth he murder the innocent c. After all this he sayth in his heart God hath forgotten that is he hath forgotten the poore whom I have under my power therefore I may safely oppresse them He hideth his face he will never see it that is God will never take any knowledge either of my doings or of their sufferings We have a sample of the same impiety Psal 73.11 And they say how doth God know and is there knowledge in the most high behold these are the ungodly in the world c. And againe Psal 94.6 ver They slay the widdow and stranger and murther the fatherlesse here are their workes of darknesse yet they say the Lord shall not see neither shall the God of Jacob regard Not onely did they presume that the Lord did not see but that he should not The Lord shall not see As if they could stop or blinde the eyes of God as easily as they had blinded their owne Consciences Take one Instance further Ezek. 8.12 Then said he unto mee Sonne of man Seest thou what they doe hast thou seene what the Ancients of the house of Israell doe in the darke Every man in the Chambers of his Imagery for they say the Lord seeth us not he hath forsaken the Earth Much like the language here He walketh in the Circuit of heaven hee hath other busines to doe then to minde us As God is sometimes sayd to forsake the Earth in wrath to punish the sin of Man so wicked men say he alwayes forsakes the Earth in neglect both of their sin and punishment And as Idolaters who have a minde to other gods are willing to beleeve that God hath forsaken the earth as to the protection of them Wee say they are in danger God takes no care of us therefore blame us not if we betake our selves to other Gods for protection If he had not forsaken us we had not forsaken him So all sorts of resolved transgressors who have a minde to any sinfull way are willing to beleeve that God hath forsaken the earth as to any observation of them Wee may doe what we list for God doth not minde or regard what we are doing If we thought he did indeed see us we durst not thus sinne against him But seeing he doth not trouble himselfe with any care about us why should we trouble our selves with any feare about him Now this Presumption that God doth not see us in what we are doing opens a doore to the doing of all Evill Security from danger is the great encouragement unto sin Though wicked men would not be lesse sinfull yet they would not sin so much or be so full of sin did they not vainely flatter themselves out of the sight of God Every Man would faine beleeve that God doth not see him when he is doing that which he would not have seene or be seene in doing it And how do men please themselves in this false hope that God doth not see them when they doe that which is displeasing unto God! From the Intendment of Eliphaz to Convince Job that the Clouds are no Covering to God and that the Circuit of heaven doth not Confine him Observe Thirdly God is omniscient hee knowes all things Thou sayest thus How doth God know I tell thee God doth know And thou hast an argument upon thy backe if thou hast none in thy heart to prove it thy sence or feeling may teach thee if thy reason or understanding doe not and by thy suffering thou mayest see that God seeth what thou hast been doing This great truth That God is omniscient or knowes all may easily be knowne and ought to be beleeved by all When the Lord had made the world in six dayes Gen. 1.31 He saw all that he had made All was in view at once hee had a Prospect of the whole Creation in his eye And as all his own Creatures so all our Creatures are seene by God hee seeth all that himselfe hath made and hee seeth all that wee have made or are making day by day Gen. 6.5 God saw that the wickednes of man was great in the earth and that every thought of the Imagination of the thoughts of his heart was onely evill Continually or every day The Lord saw that is the Lord knew fully infinitely more fully then we know those things which wee see every Imagination or figment of the thoughts of mans heart The figment of our thoughts is what the minde fashioneth or maketh up within it selfe by thinking corrupt nature keepes a constant mint of evill imaginations in the head as it hath a sinke of filthy affections in the heart The minde of man hath a formative faculty in it And the same word which the Holy Ghost useth to signifie the worke of God in making man Gen. 2.7 The Lord God formed man out of the dust of the earth or dust out of the earth the same word I say is used in the Noune Gen. 6.5 to signifie the imagination of man because that is alwayes shaping moulding or forming one sort of thoughts or other naturally none but ugly evill thoughts These are the creatures which man as fallen is the maker of and he maketh as I may say infinite creatures he is forming them continually in his imagination that 's the shop wherein there 's a dayly Creation such as it is of monstrous wickednesses till God by his new Creation changeth the frame and nature of it Now I say as God seeth his owne creatures so he seeth
them downe without time or before their time we may observe Wicked men are often ripe for Judgement before they are ripe in yeares It is said in the 15th of Genesis Cum potuissent diutive persistere Tygur Capti sunt immaturi Sep. The Iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full their sin is not come to a full stature for as there is a fullnes of stature in holynes unto which Saints at last arrive in Christ so there is a fullnes of stature in wickednes to which the Lord suffers sinners to arrive and as when Saints have attained their full stature in holynes they are received into glory so when wicked men have attained a full stature in wickednes they are cut off and turned downe to destruction Though the Lord suffer long yet he will not alwayes suffer And as some are but young men yet old Saints and have had much Experience of God and of the wayes of grace though but little of the world that distinction which the Apostle gives of Saints into little children young men and fathers 1 Joh. 2.13 14. is not to be understood in reference to naturall yeares but to standing in grace or to a growth and progress in holynes so some wicked men are but of few yeares or but young in reference to their naturall age who yet are old in sinne aged in wickednes they are fathers in abomination while but children in time and so are cut downe before time Wicked men are never cut downe till they are ripe in sinne but they are often cut downe before they are ripe in nature Thirdly Which were cut downe out of time namely in little time or without delay Hence Note That God can quickly make an End of wicked men Hee needs not take any long time to doe it hee tooke but very little time to make the world it was made in six dayes which in reference to the greatness of the worke is no time when a great thing is done in a little time wee may say it was done without any time at all Now if the Lord could frame a world without time surely he can cut downe the world or the inhabitants of it in a little time Ruining worke is easier then building worke He that built in this sence without time can pull downe without time wee need not trouble our selves with such thoughts as these when wee see wicked men Enemies of God and his people in their height and strength O what a length of time will it require O how many yeares must be spent in cutting downe these strong Oakes those tall Cedars the Lord can cut them downe in a moment Our late experinces have shewed us wicked men cut downe without time before they thought they could be shaken yea toucht they have beâ—n cut downe when they concluded they could not be reached they have been ruined The Jesuites and other Matchavillian politicians have a received Maxime of State among them Take time and you may doe any thing If you are disappointed in a project this yeare waite a few yeares longer say they and you shall eyther finde or make a way to accomplish it But the Lord can doe any thing he hath a minde to at any time or without taking time The Apostle prophecying of the Antichrist saith 2 Thes 2.6 7. Now ye know what withholdeth that he may he revealed in his time for the mystery of iniquity doth already worke onely he who now letteth will let till he be taken out of the way The power and splendour of the Romane Empire stood in Antichrists way and he could not cut it downe without time He was hacking and hewing heaving and thrusting many yeares yea some ages before he could remove that blocke out of his way and so make way for his owne Greatnes The wisest of men must have time to bring about their ends Onely God the onely wise God can cut downe and remove whatsoever stands in his way though it stand like a great mountaine without time or without taking time if once his time be come in which he would have it removed The wicked of those elder times were cut downe suddenly without time Eliphaz confirmes it further in the next words Whose foundation was overflowne with a flood In this latter clause Eliphaz seemes more clearly to hint at some particular wicked men or to shew who those wicked men were that hee Intends as the object of his observation namely those whose foundation was overflowne with a flood It is usuall in Scripture by some one word to alude to great actions and changes past Take two or three Instances for Illustration of this Psal 55.15 David Imprecates vengeance upon his enemies in this Language Let them goe downe quick into hell Which expression carrieth a plaine allusion unto that dreadfull judgement Numb 16.31 32. It came to passe as hee that is Moses had made an End of speaking all these words the ground clave asunder that was under them and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed them up and their houses and all the men which appertained unto Corah and all their goods They and all that appertained to them went downe alive into the pit c. This historicall Narration the Psalmist hints at in his imprecation as is plaine by that word quick or alive Let them goe downe quick or alive into hell that is let such wrath seaze upon them as seazed upon Corah Dathan and Abiram on whom the earth closed and they perished from among the Congregation Againe when the Apostle makes promise to Saints in the behalfe of Christ what assistance they might expect from him in time of temptation and what issue from it he thus assures them The God of peace shall tread Satan under your feete shortly Rom. 16.20 Which plainly beares upon that first grand Promise that Christ the seede of the Woman should breake the Serpents head Gen. 3.15 for it is by vertue of that act of Jesus Christ bruising the head of Satan that Satan is troden under our feet As Christ bruised him under his owne feete so hee will bruise or tread him under out feete the seede of the woman in person as well as in their representative shall breake the Serpents head Lastly those words Rom. 9.16 hold a cleare correspondence with that Story Gen. 27. concerning Jacob and Esau So then it is not of him that willeth nor of him that runneth but of God that sheweth mercy Hee had sayd before that God loved Jacob and hated Esau and concludes upon it So then it is not of him that willeth c. Wee may take notice in that famous peice of the divine History that much meanes was used that Jacob might obtaine the Blessing Rebecca her heart was set upon it shee did what shee could to procure the Blessing for her younger Sonne her will was wholy in it and Jacob hee run for it too for as soone as Ever his mother had given him counsell he ran presently to the
flock and brought in a Kid to make the savoury meat for Isaac Now the Apostle Paul to advance the freenes of grace doth not only instance in those two persons but useth a phrase of speech which savours so much of that passage that though he had not named the men yet every man who knew the Scriptures must needs understand both of whom and of what he meant it It is not of him that willeth c. that is it was neyther Rebeckaes will to have it so nor Jacobs hast which appeared in his running to the flock to have it so that gave him the Blessing but it was of God that shewed mercy And as it was then so it is now though a man be as willing as Rebeckah or though he make as much speed as Jacob for his blessing yet all comes freely by the grace of God Thus the frequent usage of Scripture shewes us how much the Spirit of God delights to lead our thoughts by the light of some one word a great way back into the consideration of what hath been done and written of old for our instruction The words of the text now under discussion Whose foundation was overflowne with a flood are surely an allusion to some particular persons or action in the dayes of old and they may be applyed three wayes First To the drowning of the whole world in the time of Noah by a flood when the Lord opened the windowes of heaven and overwhelmed both man and beast in those mighty waters which universal judgement is by way of eminence called The Deluge or The Flood unto this very day Secondly They may have respect to the overthrow of Sodome and Gomorrah which Cities though they were destroyed by fire yet it was with a flood of fire The Text saith expresly Gen. 19.24 Then the Lord rayned upon Sodome and upon Gemorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven and he overthrew the Cities all the plaine c. They were overflowne with a flood of fire Thirdly Hunc locum a v. 15. ad v 20. omnino respicere ad dimersionem Pharaones Egyptiorum non levibus suadeor conjecturis Pined The allusion may be carried to the destruction of Pharaoh and the Egyptians in the red Sea They also were overflowne with a flood The waters of the red Sea which stood up as a wall for Israell to passe thorow at the Command of God returning upon the Egyptians swallowed them up them and their Chariots and their horses The enemy sayd thus Moses describes that fatal overthrow Exod. 15.9 10. I will pursue I will overtake I will divide the spoyle my lust shall be satisfied upon them I will draw my sword my hand shall destroy them Thus the enemy raged foamed with revenge like a tempestuous Sea and had opened all the sluces of his will to overflow them And when the enemy had thus breathed out his wrath in a foure times repeated I will Then the Lord did blow with his wind the Sea covered them They sanke as lead in the mighty waters So then the words may relate to any of those three signall Judgements to the drowning of the old world with a flood of water to the destruction of Sodome and Gomorrah with a flood of fire or to the overthrow of Pharaoh and his Egyptian host in the red Sea But more particularly for the explication of these words whose foundation was overflowne with a flood Whose foundation This word foundation taken in a proper sence referres to a materiall building And the foundation of any building is the stability and strength of it by foundation in a metaphorical sence Ea omnia quae illis velur fundamenti loco erant in quibus spem praesidium ponebant c. Merc wee are to understand all those things by which the state of persons or things is upheld and here whatsoever wicked men support beare up themselves by as a building is borne up by the foundation is to be understood as their foundation So their power their riches their councell their wisdome their friends and confederates whatsoever I say is the support of their worldly State that 's their foundation And thus it is here said their foundation was overflowne With a flood In two of the former Instances to which the allusion was made their foundation was overflowne by a flood properly taken If wee take it more generally for all wicked men who at any time have been overthrowne wee may say that they have all been overflowne by a flood metaphorically For so First The displeasure of God by what meanes or instrument soever put forth is called a flood whether is be by sword or by famine or by pestilence it is a flood Esa 8.7 Wee read warre Compared to a flood Now therefore behold the Lord bringeth up upon them the waters of the river strong and many what were these waters Even the King of Assyria and all his glory the King of Assyria with his Armyes in which he gloried or which he counted his glory were the waters of the river strong and many and hee shall come up over all his channells and goe over all his hands that is the former Limits of his Dominion And he shall passe thorow Judah hee shall overflow and goe over There The Sword is Compared to a flood or to a mighty river which beares downe all before it The same Prophet speakes againe in the same Language Esa 59.19 When the enemy shall come in like a flood the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a Standard against him as if it had been said The enemy shall come rushing in like a mighty torrent but the Spirit of God like a more mighty winde shall blow and rush upon him causing him to recoile and give back or as our Margent hath it put him to flight Againe Ezek. 13. The Prophet foreshewes the approaching calamity upon those who had seduced the Jewes into a vaine security which is there called the building of a wall with untempered morter A wall he calls that prophecy because it promised safety and defence but he calls it also a wall built with untempered morter because that false prophecy was a weake prophecy and should shortly fall The manner how he gives us in the notion of the Text vers 13. Wherefore thus saith the Lord God I will even rent it with a stormy winde in my fury and there shall be as an overflowing shower in mine anger c. that is wrath shall be upon it the Babylonian Army was the special judgement in which that wrath was expressed and that shall be as an overflowing shower Great and continuall showers will try the strongest buildings and quickly overthrow the weake A wall of untempered morter is no match for a storme As our Saviour also assures us in the close of his Sermon on the Mount Matth. 7.27 where all those evills troubles afflictions sorrowes and persecutions whether sent upon such as are really
by the Holy Ghost was minded to put her away secretly and would not make her a publique example He was unwilling to bring her to justice or that others should see eyther her supposed sin or punishment But as God doth worke many glorious salvations for his people that the wicked may see it and be ashamed so he brings many visible destructions upon the wicked not onely that the righteous may see it and rejoyce or be glad which act follows next to be opened but that the wicked may see it and tremble to doe wickedly Hence observe First That the Lord sets up wicked men many times as examples of his wrathfull justice Not onely doe they feele wrath upon themselves but others see it The Lord sometimes chastens his owne people in the view of the world and sets them up as examples of his fatherly displeasure Thus Nathan speakes in the name of the Lord to David 2 Sam 12.12 Thou didst it secretly but I will doe this thing what thing I will afflict and chasten thee for this great offence before all Israel and before the Sâ—nne that is in plaine and cleare light Though thou hast done this evill in the darknes ot many close contrivances yet I will draw the curtaine and make the poenall effects of thy sinne as conspicuous as the actings of thy sin have been close and covert Againe Numb 25.4 when the people began to commit whoredome with the daughters of Moab and Israel had joynâ—d himselfe unto Baal peor so that the Anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel Then the Lord said to Moses take all the heads of the people that is the capital offenders or chiefe rulers who gave way or at best gave no stop to such wickednes and hang them up before the Lord against the Sunne that the feirce anger of the Lord may be turned away from Israel To hang them up before the Sunne is a phrase of speech importing the publicknes of their punishment as it is sayd of the seven Sons of Saul that they were hanged on the hill before the Lord 2 Sam. 21.9 for caution unto all whatsoever is done in the fight of all or so that all may see is sayd in the Language of the Jewes to be done before the Sunne To which sence also we may interpret that vision of the Prophet Zechariah Chap. 5 6. 9 10 11. at the 6th verse we reade of an Ephah and this lift up ver 9th between earth and heaven the Ephah was a measure of dry things among the Jewes and in that vision it signified that the sinne and punishment of the Jewes were measured and proportioned This Ephah being lifted up and carried I sayth the Prophet said whether doe these beare the Ephah ver 10. And he said unto me to build it an house in the land of Shinar and it shall be established and set there upon her owne base The building it a house in the land of Shinar that is in Babylon signified the lastingnes or continuance of their sinne in the sad consequents of it their punishment and banishment in strange lands not for the space of seventy yeares onely as by the Babylonians but as some of the Learned expound the vision for many seventyes by the Romanes and as this Ephah had a house built for it noting the setlednes and durâ—tion of the Judgement which should come upon them for their sinne so also it was set upon its own base to signifie the notoriousnes or conspicuousnes of the Judgement it being as a house set upon pillars for all to behold and take notice of as we see fullfilled to this day since the first overthrow of their estate by Titus Vespatianus and their final dispersion by Aelius Adrianus There are I grant other conceptions about that vision but as this suits wel with the poynt in hand so with the calamitous state of that people to this day And thus the Lord threatned the King of Tyrus Ezek. 28.17 Whose heart was lifted up because of his beauty and who had corrupted his wisdome by reason of his brightnesse Now what will the Lord doe what course will he take with him The next words enforme us I will cast thee to the ground and I will lay thee before Kings that they may behold thee He doth not say I will cast thee into the ground but to the ground and lay thee before Kings that is thou shalt he a spectacle for all the Kings of the Earth that they may behold as what thy pride and selfe-confidence have brought thee to so what their owne if they tread thy path eyther will or justly may bring them unto Thus also in the 7th verse of Jude Epistle the Apostle sayth that Sodome and Gomorrha and the Cities about them in like manner giving themselves over to fornication and going after strange flesh are set forth for an example suffering the vengeance of Eternal fire The Judgements of God are not onely punishments to them who went before but premonotions to them who come after The righteous see it and are glad Here is the effect which that sight wrought upon the righteous The eye affects the heart and the heart is affected sutably to the object eyther with joy or with sorrow The destruction of men is a sorrowfull object and therefore we might rather expect that the righteous beholding it should be affected with sorrow but the Text affirmes a direct contrary effect of this fight The righteous see it and are glad Hence observe The judgements of God upon the wicked are matter of joy to the righteous It is the duty of the Saints to mourne with them that mourne and to rejoyce with them that rejoyce Rom. 12.15 But then we must understand these mourners and rejoycers to be such as themselves are Saints must mourne with mourning Saints and rejoyce with rejoycing Saint The godly are not bound eyther to joy the joyes or sorrow the sorrowes of the wicked The judgements of God upon the wicked have a twofold effect eminently noted in Scripture First they cause feare and secondly they cause joy When exemplary justice was to be done according to the law of Moses upon presumptuous transgressours it is sayd Deut. 13.11 All Israel shall heare and feare and shall doe no more any such wickednes David Psal 64. having complained to God in prayer of the cruelty of his enemies and begged protection from their malicious practises growes up to much assurance that downe they must v. 7 8. But God shall shoot at them with an arrow suddenly shall they be wounded and then ver 9. All men shall feare and shall declare the worke of God for they shall wisely consider of his doings Thus feare is the issue of divine judgement And yet joy is the issue of them at the 10th verse of the same Psalme The righteous shall be glad in the Lord and trust in him and all the upright in heart shall glory Feare is a common effect All men shall
when the ungodly fall and not fall into sin themselves I answer First The righteous rejoyce at the fall of the wicked as blessing God who hath kept their feete from those wayes in which the wicked have fallen As 't is a great mercy to be kept out of those ill wayes to be kept from fiding with those corrupt interests in the pursuit of which we see many broken so 't is a duty to rejoyce that we have not walked in their way whose end we see to be nothing els but destruction Secondly The righteous have cause to rejoyce blesse God when they see the wicked fall because themselves are saved keepe their standing because themselves have escaped the danger and the Lord hath been a banner of protection over them in the day when the wicked fell Moses after the destruction of Amaleck built an Altar and called the name of it Jehova-Nissi Exod. 17.15 that is to say The Lord is my banner And in like cases the joy of the Saints is not properly in the destruction of the wicked but in their owne deliverance through the mighty power good hand of God with them It is the presence of God with them the appearance of God for them which is the gladnes of their hearts Thirdly The righteous then rejoyce because the Church and people of God are in a fayre way to peace when the Lyons are destroyed the sheepe are in safety when the Wolves and the Beares are cut off the flock rests quietly so in this case when men of devouring cruell spirits wicked and ungodly ones are removed the flocke of God the sheepe of his pasture feed quietly none making them afrayd The fall of the enemies of Sion is the establishment of Sion yea in a great measure of mankinde As the Prophet most elegantly sets it forth Isa 14.6 7 8. He who smote the people in wrath with a continuall stroke he that ruled the Nations in anger is persecuted and none hindereth The whole earth is at rest and is quiet they breake forth into singing yea the firre-trees rejoyce at thee and the Cedars of Lebanon saying since thou art layd downe no feller is come up against us How often have wicked men in power felled not onely the Firre-trees and Cedars of the world but the goodly trees of righteousnesse in the Lords plantations have they not therefore reason to sing when such fall seing the Fellers themselves are then felled and fallen Fourthly Joy ariseth to the righteous because God is honoured in the fall of wicked men And that 's their chiefest joy That God is honoured is more joy to the righteous then that themselves are saved how much more then then that the wicked are destroyed There is a threefold honour arising to God when the wicked fall First God is honoured in his justice such a day is the day of the declaration of the righteous judgement of God as the Apostle speakes of the great day of Judgement Rom. 2.5 Thou after thy hardnesse and impenitent heart treasurest up to thy selfe wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgement of God Some doe even question the justice of God when wicked men prosper but he is vindicated in his justice when wicked men fall It cannot but please righteous men to see the righteous God exalted or God exalted in his righteousnesse They know and beleeve that God is righteous when the wicked prosper Jer. 12.1 But when the wicked are punished they proclaime his righteousnes Then they sing the song of Moses the servant of God and the song of the Lambe saying Great and marvailous are thy workes Lord God Almighty just and true are thy wayes thou King of Saints Who shall not feare thee O Lord and glorifie thy Name c. for thy Judgements are made manifest Rev. 15.3 4. The Lord is alwayes alike Just but it doth not alwayes alike appeare how just he it And as that God is just is the faith and stay of the Saints so the appearances of his justice are their joy and triumph Secondly God is honoured much in the attribute of his truth in the truth of his word in the truth of his threatenings when the wicked are punished God hath spoken bloudy words concerning wicked men not onely in reference to their future estate in the next life but to their present estate in this Say to the wicked it shall be ill with him the reward of his hands shall be given him But what is this reward There are two sorts of rewards First rewards of love and favour according to the good which we have done Secondly rewards of wrath and anger poenal rewards according to the evill which we have done Now when the Lord puts these poenal rewards into the hands of the wicked or powres them upon their heads he is honoured in his truth as well as his justice for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it As the promises are yea and Amen 2 Cor. 1.20 so also are the threatnings unto the glory of God by us But as when David saw his life in danger every day he began to question the truth of God in the promise that he should live to reigne and fit upon the throne of Israel for saith he Psal 116.11 when things went thus with him I said in my hast all men are lyars even Samuel among the rest who assured me of the Kingdome by expresse message from God but surely he also is deceived and hath fed me with vaine hopes Now as these words of David according to our translation of them and the truth of the thing in frequent experiences shew that Godly men are apt to question the truth of the promise when themselves are by seemingly contradicting providences much afflicted so they are apt to question the truth of the threatnings when they see outward providences prospering the wicked Therefore when the threatnings have their actuall yea and Amen that is when they are executed upon the ungodly this also is to the glory of God by us that is God is glorified by all his people who heare of it in the truth of what he hath spoken Againe as God is magnified in the truth of his threatnings when any particular wicked man is punished so when common calamities come upon the wicked the truth of God or God in his truth is magnified two wayes First As such calamities are a fullfilling of many Prophecies secondly As they are the answer or returne of many prayers The vengeance which falls upon the Enemies of the Church of God is drawne out by prayer Luke 18.7 8. And there is nothing wherein God is more honoured then when prayer is answered For as therein he fullfills our wants so his owne word Who hath not said to the seed of Jacob seeke ye mee in vaine Thirdly When the wicked fall the Lord is honoured in the attribute of his power How great is his power who puls downe great power It argues the Almightines
Cum nondum abscinditur substantia nostra residuum illorum absumit ignis assuesce quaeso cum illo Jun But here he is supposed entring upon a very serious exhortation to repentance after this manner or to this effect O Job now while our substance is not quite out downe and the fire consumeth the residue or the remnant of the wicked acquaint thy selfe with God or apply thy selfe to God as if he should say before thou art cleane cut downe before thou art utterly ruined as many wicked men have been heretofore and now are humble thy selfe and seeke to God that thy sin may be forgiven and thy wound healed Some paralel this in sense with that of the Preacher Eccle. 12.1 Remember now thy Creator in the dayes of thy youth while the evill dayes come not nor the yeares draw nigh wherein thou shalt say I have no pleasure in them Thus Eliphaz is conceived exhorting Job While our substance is not cut downe while we are not totally undone Quum subsisteÌ„tia nostra non sit excisa reliquias autem istorum ignis assumpserit Tygur Ita bene ut nihil melius Bold 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 extantâ—a vel potius 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 quo subsistimus duramus vel subsistantia nostra i. e. vita qua subsistimus nam stare valet interdum superstitem esse Drus while the fire of Gods wrath is consuming the remainder of wicked men doe thou acquaint thy selfe with God and repent And though our translation makes not this connection yet it joynes fully in the sense of the Originall Whereas our substance is not cut downe So this verse is an elegant conclusion of the whole matter hitherto insisted upon by Eliphaz and he shuts it up in two parts first shewing the state of the innocent who are brought in speaking thus Our substance is not cut downe strictly That by which we stand or subsist our substance or subsistence which some expound not by goods but by life we may take it both wayes our life and that by which our life is maintained or by which we and our families subsist is not cut downe There is yet a difficulty in regard of the grammaticall sense of these words For Eliphaz having spoken before in the third person plural The righteous are glad and the innocent laugh them to scorne should as it may be thought rather have continued his speech in the same forme and have sayd Whereas Their substance is not downe but he puts it in the first person plural Whereas our substance is not cut downe c. We may answer two wayes First that it is usuall in Scripture to vary the number while the same person or persons is or are spoken of take onely one Instance Hos 12.4 He that is the Angel of the Covenant found him in Bethel that is Jacob. And there he spake with us It should according to Grammar be read thus And there he spake with him Having found Jacob in Bethel he spake with him in Bethel But we see both the person and number are varied the former words running in the third person singular being meant particularly of Jacob the latter in the first person plural There he spake with us The Spirit of God thereby signifying that what God spake at that time to Jacob personally he spake to all the spirituall seed of Jacob whether of the Circumcision or Uncircumcision virtually He so spake to Jacob as that the substance and effect of his speech reacheth downe to and hath an influence upon us beleevers who are his posterity according to the Spirit Besides this other Scriptures hold out the like variation of the number as in the Text which is the first answer Secondly Eliphaz might purposely vary the number that himselfe might put in for a share and be numbred among those who had obtained that sparing mercy not to be cut downe while others were consumed And so this reason of the change is purely spirituall much like that last opened out of Hosea Whence note That the righteous are often preserved in common calamities Psal 20.8 They are brought downe and are fallen but we are risen and stand upright our substance is not cut downe God takes speciall care of his owne people they are under a promise there can be no greater safety no better security then to be under a promise the promise is the best shelter in a storme and the best shield against the dart The Apostle Peter gives us two famous examples of this 2 Pet. 2.5 6. God spared not the old world but saved Noah c. bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly And having turned the Cities of Sodome and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow c. and delivered just Lot c. From both which examples he concludeth v. 9. The Lord knoweth how to deliver the Godly out of temptation and to reserve the unjust unto the day of Judgement to be punished When judgement begins at the house of God what shall the end of them be that obey not the Gospel of God as the same Apostle speaks 1 Pet. 4.17 It is a sure argument to the wicked that they shall be judged when they see God bringing judgements upon his owne house and people but the wicked are many times judged while the house and people of God are preserved and untoucht and when both good and bad both the innocent and the wicked are wrapt up in the same calamity when they are as it were thrust together into the same furnace the Lord makes a difference they are not cut downe as the wicked are cut downe nor consumed as they are consumed When the righteous are cast into the fire they are purged but not consumed but as it follows in the second part of this conclusion shewing the state of the wicked The remnant of them the fire consumeth Fire in this place is not taken strictly as opposed to water God indeed hath often made fire in kinde his scourge And the Apostle Jude saith of Sodome That it suffered the vengeance of eternall fire But all the judgements of God are in Scripture compared to fire Mala. 4.1 Behold the day cometh that shall burne like an Oven and all the proud yea all that doe wickedly shall be stubble and the day that cometh shall burne them up saith the Lord of hosts that it shall leave them neither fruit nor branch There is a burning and not by fire There is so great a judgement and terror in fire let loose and breaking its bounds that it may well signifie all judgements or any thing that is terrible Isa 52.4 As the fire devoureth the stubble and the flame consumeth the chaffe so their roote shall be rottennesse and their blossome shall goe up as dust Thus here the remnant of them the fire consumeth that is the wrath of God appearing in some visible judgement consumeth the remnant But what is this remnant which the fire consumeth I answer
If thou returne to the Almighty thou shalt be built up thou shalt put away iniquity farre from thy Tabernacles Then shalt thou lay up gold as dust and the gold of Ophir as the stones of the brookes Yea the Allmighty shall be thy defence and thou shalt have plenty of silver ELiphaz having invited Job at the 21 verse to renew his acquaintance with God and now againe pressing him to returne to God he reckons up those advantages which might move and incourage him 〈◊〉 it he tells Job what will follow his returne to and acquaintance with God and these advantages are of two sorts First Temporall and outward secondly spirituall and inward the temporall good things which he assures him of in case he repent and turne to God are set downe first more generally in the 23 verse Thou shalt be built up secondly They are set downe particularly first He should then have riches gold and silver in the 24 â—h verse secondly protection The Allmighty shall be thy defence v. 25. as he will fill thy house so he will guard thy house and keepe all safe In the following parts of the Chapter Eliphaz assures him of eight blessings spirituall First Joy in God ver 26th Thou shalt have thy delight in the Allmighty Secondly Confidence or holy boldnesse before God Thou shalt lift up thy face unto God thou shalt not hide thy head and run into â—orners but lift up thy face Thirdly which is an effect or part of the former freedome in prayer Thou shalt make thy prayer to him v. 27th Fourthly He assures him of audience or of an answer to his prayer in the same verse He shall heare thee and thou shalt pay thy vowes that is thou in thy prayer having made vowes to God God shall heare thy prayer and so give thee occasion to pay thy vowes Fifthly He promiseth him not onely that his prayer shall be heard but that his very purposes and designes shall be fullfilled Thou shalt decree a thing and it shall be established to thee v. 28. When thou resolvest upon such a way or course in thy affaires thou shalt have this priviledge thy decree shall stand Sixthly He promiseth him direction and counsell what way he should take what course to run in the close of the same verse And the light shall shine upon thy wayes that is thou shalt see what to doe the Lord will give thee counsell Seaventhly He gives him hope of rising out of any trouble or that vvhen others are overtaken with calamities he should be preserved at the 29th verse When men are cast downe then thou shalt say there is a lifting up for God will save the humble person Eighthly He promiseth that he shall not onely have blessings personall and family blessings but he shall be a â—â—blique blessing v. 30. He shall deliver the Island of the innocent and it is delivered by the purenesse of thy hand Thus you have both the generall scope of this latter part of the Chapter which is to stirre up Job to returne to God and likewise the particular blessings and mercies which are held forth as arguments moving him to returne Vers 23. If thou returne unto the Allmighty To Returne is used frequently in Scripture in a metaphoricall sense and signifies as much as to repent sin is a going away from God great sinning is a going farre from God a going as it were into a farre Country such sinners would goe out of Gods sight and fall out of his memory Eliphas had charged Job deeply with such departures and now he speakes to him of returning And here wee may consider the condition or state of Job and the season in vvhich Eliphaz presseth him to this duty he was in an afflicted condition the hand of God was upon him Novv Eliphaz adviseth him to returne Intimating at least that the present dispensation of God towards him vvas a speciall opportunity for the duty he moved him unto Hence Note When God afflicts us when his hand is upon us he speaks to us repent or bespeaks our repentance How often in Scripture doth the Lord complaine as if he were vvholy frustrated of his designe vvhen either nations or persons being smitten by his judgements did not returne unto him or repented not Isa 9.13 They turne not to him that smiteth them that is they turne not to me the Lord I have smitten them and I alone can heale them yet they turne not to me as if the Lord had said I therefore smote them that they might bethinke themselves of returning but they turned not to me As they turned not at my vvord or to me speaking so they turned not at my sword or to me smiting I see they are not onely Sermon-proofe my Prophets spake to them in vaine but they are judgement-proofe also my hand is upon them in vaine they returne not And as it was then so at this day for may vve not observe some mouldering in their estates crushed in their hopes crossed in their children blotted and blasted in their credit weake and sicke in their bodies even tired and vvorne out under severall afflictions yet no thought of returning to the Lord or of making their vvay perfect before him So that the Lord may say to them as he once did to his ancient people the Jewes Isa 1.6 Why should ye be smitten any more ye will revolt more and more The returning of many is like that vvhich Solomon speaks of Pro. 26.11 As a dog returneth to his vomit so a foole returneth to his folly As Jesurun waxed fat and kicked so some vvill be kicking while they waxe leane Further Eliphaz doth not speake barely to Job of returning but he directs him to the object If thou returne To the Allmighty And that is expressed in some translations very emphatically 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 revertere usque ad dominum videtur idem esse cum 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Returne home to the Allmighty returne till thou comest to or reachest God be thou sure to repent home so the word is used Hos 14.2 Joel 2.12 Amos 4.6 returne home to God stay not short of him in your repentance that is repent fully seriously And the intendment of Eliphaz in speaking thus might be to reprove Job for his former by him supposed hypocrisie Si plane serio toto corde noÌ„ ut ante hypocrita fuisti c. Merc thou hast returned before but not to the Allmighty surely thou didst repent onely as an hypocrite in former times when thou madest the greatest shews of repentance Therefore now repent as a sincere convert Thy former repentunce was to thee a fruitlesse repentance and therefore doubtlesse but a fained and false repentance Thou couldst never after it recover out of thine afflicted thy ruinous condition and therefore surely thou didst never by it recover out of thy sinfull condition or from thy sins But now I promise thee if thou returne to the Allmighty thou shalt be built Hence
to God As David saith Psal 25.1 Vnto thee O Lord doe I lift up my soule Equiparantia sunâ— caput vel oculos vel faciem vel animam ad deum levare Bold Eliphaz meanes not the lifting up of a heart-lesse face or head such as the hypocrite or formalist lifts up to God in worship nor the lifting up of a meere living head or face such as all men lift up to God according to the forme or frame of their natural constitution Fiduciam habebis recurrendi ad deum Aquin. but the courage and confidence of the soule and that a holy courage and confidence is here intended And there are not many who can thus lift up their face to God as is promised here to Job by way of priviledge And shalt lift up thy face to God To lift up the face is taken under a twofold notion in Scripture first Faciei elevatio orantis habitus est Pinec as a gesture or bodily position in prayer He that prayeth doth usually lift up his face to God and so to lift up the face to God is to pray unto God A corporal posture being put often in Scripture to signifie a spirituall duty Thus some understand it here Thou shalt lift up thy face to God that is thou shalt pray secondly which further complyes with the duty of prayer To lift up the face Vultum attollit qui sibi bene conscius est animoque fidenti Drus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Sept. notes as was touched before confidence of spirit and boldnesse courage and assurance towards him before whom the face is lifted up whether God or man The Septuagint who rather paraphrase then translate this text give this sense fully Thou shalt be confident before the Lord or thou shalt act fiducially and boldly before him and behold heaven chearefully This lifting up the face is opposed to casting downe the face that is a phrase used in Scripture to signifie shame and fayling of spirit When courage is downe the countenance is down too as we say such a man hath a downe looke that is there is an appearance of guilt upon him The face is cast downe three wayes First by feare secondly by sorrow thirdly by shame Ezra 9.6 O my God I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face unto thee for our iniquities are increased over our heads So Luk. 18.13 the Publican durst not lift up his eyes to heaven and possibly there was a complication of all these three causes why he durst not feare sorrow shame he was so much terrified so much grieved so much ashamed of himselfe that he durst not lift up his eyes to heaven It was the speech of Abner to Asahel 2 Sam. 2.22 Turne thee aside from following me why should I smite thee to the ground how then should I hold up my face to Joab thy brother that is if I slay thee I shall be afraid to looke him in the face nor can I have any confidence of his favour and it is well conceived that he spake thus for it is indeed a very unusuall thing for the Generall of an Army in the very heate of warre to looke after the favour of the Generall of the opposite Army but I say 't is conceived he spake thus as being convinced that he had undertaken a bad cause in upholding the house of Saul against David and therefore had misgivings that he might shortly fall into the hands of Joab Davids Generall and was therefore unwilling to provoke him by killing his brother This made him say How shall I hold up my face to thy brother Joab As if he had sayd I shall obstruct the way of my owne reconciliation to thy brother in case The turne of things in this warre cast me into his hands by killing thee Againe we may looke backe to Gen. 4.5 where it is reported of Caine That he was wrath and his countenance fell anger and sorrow and shame falling at once upon him because the Lord had respect to Abel and his offering but had no respect to him or his caused his countenance to fall which phrase stands in direct opposition to lifting up the face in all the three occasions of it For it implyeth first feare which is opposed to boldnes secondly sorrow or anger which are opposed to content and joy thirdly shame which is opposed both to freedome of approach and liberty of speech We have an expression which paralels much with this in that Prophecy of Christ Psal 110.7 Qâ—od legitur Exod. â—4 8 egâ—essos filios Israel in manu excelsâ— Chaldaâ—â—è dicitur capite discooperto i. e. palam confidentèr sine metu He shall drinke of the brooke in the way therefore shall he lift up his head that is he shall rise and appeare like a mighty Conquerour with boldnesse honour and triumph So Christ himselfe prophecying of the troubles which shall be in the latter dayes comforts the surviving Saints in this language When these things begin to come to passe then looke up and lift up your heads that is then take heart and boldnesse for the day of your redemption draweth nigh Luke 21.28 that is the day is at hand wherein you shall be freed from all feares and sorrowes Hence observe Holinesse hath boldnesse and freedome of spirit with God Then shalt thou lift up thy face unto God As soone as Adam sinned he hid himselfe from the presence of the Lord amongst the trees of the Garden Gen. 3.8 He ran into the thickets for shelter he durst not appeare or shew his face But when once we are reconciled to God and sinne is taken off when we are freed from the bonds of guilt then we have boldnesse reconciliation is accompanied with the spirit of adoption whereby we cry abba father we can then speake to God as a childe to his father the childe dares lift up his face to his father and speakes freely to him Where the spirit of the Lord is there is liberty faith the Apostle 2 Cor. 3.17 and that a threefold liberty First a liberty from sinne secondly a liberty unto righteousnes or a freenes and readines of spirit to doe good thirdly where the spirit of the Lord is there is a liberty of speech or accesse with boldnesse in all our holy Addresses unto God As the Apostle clearely sheweth at the 12 â—h verse of the same Chapter Seing then that we have such hope we use great plainnesse or boldnesse of speech as wee put in the Margin of our Bibles to expresse the significancy of the Greeke word in the full compasse of it For as because we have such hope we ought to use great plainnesse of speech towards men in preaching and dispensing the Gospel to them so great boldnesse towards God in receiving the offers and promises of the Gospel for our selves Eliphaz having thus shewed what freedome Job truely repenting might have with God in prayer proceeds in the next verse to shew what successe with
God or what fruit he should have in prayer Verse 27. Thou shalt make thy prayer to him and he shall heare thee and thou shalt pay thy Vowes In these words we have a further promise leading to a further duty as beforâ— the duty of returning to the Almighty had a promise annexed to it of lifting up the face to God or boldnesse in prayer So now the promise of being heard in prayer is followed with a duty The payment of vowes Thou shalt make thy prayer to him c. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 multiplicavit propriè verba fortia fâ—dâ—t in Oratione The word notes the powring out of many prayers or of a multitude of words in prayer yet not of bare wâ—rds but of words cloathed with power strong prayers as well as many prayers For as the Gospel comes from God to us not in word onely but in power and in the holy Ghost and in much assurance 1 Thes 1.5 so prayer should goe from us to God not in word onely but in power and in the holy Ghost c. Thus saith Eliphaz Thou shalt make many and mighty prayers strong prayers prevailing conquering prayers so the word is used Gen. 25.21 Tâ—en Isack intreated the Lord for his wife because she was barren that is he made many prayers to God he made a businesse of praying that he might have a sonne though there was a sure promise made to Abraham that he should have a sonne and that in him and from him should come the promised seed yet Isack was long without a sonne and he leaves it not carelesly in the decree of God resolving Idly God hath said I shall have a sonne at least if not many sonnes why should I trouble my selfe in the thing No Isack had not so learned the minde of God he was better skill'd in Divinity then so to separate the meanes from the end or to conclude that wee need not pray for that which God hath purposed and promised He I say was better instructed then so and therefore though he doubtlesse did fully beleeve that God would fullfill the promise made to Abraham in giving him a sonne yet he entreated the Lord for his wife because she was barren and he intreated the Lord earnestly he made plenty abundance of prayers for it cannot be supposed but that he had prayed for that mercy long before for it was neere twenty yeares since his marriage to Rebeccah as appeares plainely by comparing the 20 verse of that Chapter with the 26 â—h the former telling us that he was forty yeares old when he marryed Rebeccah and the latter that he was threescore when Rebeccah bare Jacob and Esau So that I say we cannot suppose but so holy a man as Isack had been suing out the good of the promise before but when he perceived it sticking so long in the birth then his soule fell in travel about it then he was very fervent in prayer and would give the Lord no rest Then he entreated the Lord c. The same is sayd of Manoah Judges 13.8 Then Manoah intreated the Lord and said oh my Lord let the man of God which thou didst send come againe unto us and teach us what we should doe unto the childe that shall be borne he prayed then with much earnestnes or made prayers for direction in that thing The word is often used to signifie abundance Isa 35.2 It shall blossome abundantly Jere. 33.6 Behold I will bring in health and cure and I will cure them and will reveale unto them the abundance of peace and truth Not onely shall they have peace and truth but abundance of them So here thou shalt not onely pray but a spirit of prayer shall be powred out upon thee aboundantly Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him Hence note First Prayer is a dutie We owe prayer to God as his creatures or in regard of our naturall dependance upon him much more as new creatures or in regard of our spirituall dependance upon him Secondly Note It is our duty not onely to pray but to pray much or to pray with much fervency The emphasis of the Originall word here used leades us to this as well as many Scripture Authorities Cold asking invites a denyall 't is effectuall or working fervent prayer that prevailes much Jam. 5.16 Note thirdly Prayer is due onely to God Prayer is a part of holy worship and all such worship is proper to God alone Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him Saints and Angels worship God with us we must not worship eyther Saint or Angel with God no nor God by the helpe and mediation of Saints or Angels We know no mediator of intercession but he who is the mediator of redemption the Lord Jesur Christ Fourthly Taking in the consideration of the time as before in the former part Then shalt thou have thy delight in the Lord then shalt thou make thy prayer to him Observe That we are never in a fit frame for prayer till wee turne from every sin by repentance As the Lord will not heare us when we pray if we regard iniquity in our heart Psal 68.18 so neyther are we in a fitnes to speake to God in prayer if we regard any iniquity in our hearts Repenting and praying must be of the same length unlesse we repent continually we cannot pray continually because we sin continually The more holy we are the more free we are to pray Sinne clogs and checks the spirit in this great duty cast off that weight and then shalt thou make thy prayer to him And he shall heare thee To heare prayer is more then to take notice of the matter or words spoken to heare prayer is to grant what we pray for as our hearing the word of God is more then to take in the sound or sence of what is spoken it is to submit to and obey what is spoken Now as we heare no more of the word of God then we beleeve and practice so the Lord heareth no more of what we pray in a Scripture sence then what he granteth There are two expressions in Scripture which note this First To have regard to a person or to a prayer 1 Kings 8.28 29. when Solomon prayed at the dedication of the Temple the Lords hearing of prayer which he then beggd is thus described Have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant and to his supplication c. that thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day Respicere est audire So it is said of Abel Gen. 4.4 that the Lord had respect to his offering the Lord looked towards him and accepted of him to accept a prayer is to heare a prayer Secondly The hearing of prayer is described by the presence of God with those that pray Isa 58.9 Then shalt thou call and the Lord shall answer thou shalt cry and he shall say here I am This is a wonderfull condescension 't is even as when a Master calling to
whose substance is in them when they cast their leaves so the holy seed shall be the substance thereof Secondly In this we see the honour which God puts upon Godly men What can be greater then this to be really though perhaps farre from being accounted so the Deliverers and Saviours of their Country What an honour was it to Abraham when God told a King that he was beholding to Abraham for his life or that favour must be granted to him at the suite and as it were sent him by the hand of Abraham Gen. 20.7 Hee shall pray for thee and thou shalt live An honour much like this God put upon Job also at the latter end of this Booke Chap. 42.8 My servant Job shall pray for you for him will I accept lest I deale with you after your folly Such Honour in some degree have all the Saints Thirdly Let men honour those whom God honours thus and let the Princes and Powers of the world be glad when they heare that they have many such in their Dominions When such are subject to them as rule with God It is sayd of Zerxes the Greatest Monarch in the world in his time that when Themistocles came over to him who was a man eminent for wisdome and Eloquence that being over-joyed at such a treasure he cryed out in his sleepe I have got Themistocles the Athenian Spirituall wisdome renders men a Greater treasure to States then moral wisdome can Surely then they who are spiritually wise deserve to be rejoyced in I am sure it is not safe to let them be discouraged by whom our safety is established much lesse is it safe to let them fall by whom in their capacity kingdomes stand least of all is it safe to cast them downe who by the rule of divine politicks are State-upholders Therefore let me say this to all the powers of this world doe not destroy those who have the priviledge to be Saviours and deliverers Yea Take heed of deading and straitning their spirits in prayer for you above all take heed of turning their prayers against you Doe not provoke your owne Horsemen to fight against you and your owne Chariot-wheeles to run over you As these are the best friends to a Nation so the worst enemies Better have many outwardly opposing you then one upon just ground secretly praying or but complaining to God against you They who have no power at all in their hands no not so much as to helpe or save themselves may yet destroy many by the purenes of their hands that is they holding up pure hands in prayer may bring downe destruction upon many who are wicked and the adversaries of Christ because their adversaries But that which they mostly doe and that which they worst of all desire to doe is That Lands and Islands may be delivered by the purenes of their hands To shut up this poynt and Chapter we see that as the Saints are killed all the day long by the wicked world for the Lords sake Rom. 8.36 that is because they owne the Lord and his wayes so the wicked of the world are spared even all the day long or as often as they are spared by the Lord for the sake of the Saints that is because the Lord ownes and approves them and their wayes and doth therefore give peace to the world that so in their peace they also may have peace JOB CHAP. 23. Vers 1 2. Then Job answered and said Even to day is my complaint bitter my stroake is heavier then my groaning IN the former Chapter we had the third last charge of Eliphaz against Job in this and that which followeth Job makes his reply and defends himselfe against what Eliphaz had objected and charged upon him There are two opinions concerning the tendency of this reply First Some interpret it in favour of Job as if he onely summoned his friends to the tribunall of God being confident of a good issue there Secondly Others enterpret it as a presumptuous suggestion against God himselfe and the strictnesse of his proceedings with him which they endeavour to prove upon as they conceive these foure grounds of his complaint First Because he complained that his afflictions were beyond all his complaints and that what he had sayd was but little to what he felt or to the greatnesse of his sorrow ver 1 2. Eveâ—â—o day is my complaint bitter my stroake is heavier then my groaning These words are conceived to cary in them at least an intimation that Job thought himselfe too hardly dealt with or that there was no just cause why he should be prosecuted and proceeded against with so much severity by the continued and renewed stroakes of God upon him And indeed it cannot be denyed That he whosoever he is is justly judged as over-bold with God who judgeth any of the dealings of God with himselfe or with any other man over-severe But wee shall finde that though Job complained often that his sorrows as to him were exceeding great yet he never complained that as to God they were unjust Secondly Say they because he complained that he could not get admittance unto God nor audience with him which was a further aggravation of his sorrow This he prosecutes from the third verse to the end of the ninth O that I knew where I might finde him that I might come even to his seate I would order my cause before him and fill my mouth with arguments I would know the words which he would answer me c. As if according to the scope of this exposition he had sayd I have waited long under my pressures and burdens with my petition in my hand yea I have tendered up my petition but as yet I can get no answer Alas I am greatly afflicted yet so farre from being releeved That I cannot be heard I would therefore gett neare God to spread and order my cause before him To be heard and to be releeved are often in Scripture sence the same thing and alwayes not to be heard signifies as much as not to be releeved Till the Lord gives us his eare he never gives us his hand therefore Job must needs think himselfe farre from being helped while he thought that he was not heard Thirdly Because he complained that the Lord did thus afflict and try him when he already knew what he was and what he would be after his tryall by the sorest afflictions when he knew that he was innocent that he would continue hold out in his innocency to the end That he would not be weary of well-doing though under the worst of sufferings Ver. 10 11 12. He knoweth the way that I take c. As if he had sayd The Lords needs not doe this to try me for he knoweth well enough who I am and the way that I goe he knoweth both the frame of my heart and the course of my life he knoweth how it is with me now and that I shall be found such 〈◊〉 I
highest in grace are censured as acting and speaking below nature And as these whose graces are â—oving aloft are often suspected of madnesse So secondly they who lye below complaining under the pressures of nature by affliction are as often suspected of and charged with impatience A troubled spirit can hardly judge aright of it selfe and is seldome rightly judged by others I will end this poynt with two Cautions The first to all concerning those that are afflicted The second to all that are afflicted To the former I say judge charitably of those who complaine bitterly for as a man in a low condition knoweth not what himselfe would eyther be or doe were he advanced to the heights of honour and power so he that is at ease and wel knoweth not what himselfe would eyther be or doe were he in paine or overwhelmed with sorrows Extreames in any â—â—ate are rarely borne with a wel or duely tempered moderation Secondly To the latter I say let them expect to heare themselves hardly censured and learne to beare it let not such thinke strange of their sufferings eyther under the hand of God or by the tongues of men Great sufferers speake often unbecommingly and are as often so spoken of Thirdly Forasmuch as the matter of this suggestion against Job tumultuous and rebellious speeches at least speeches savouring strongly of rebellion are incident to any Godly man in Jobs condition Observe There may be rebellion against God in a good mans complainings under the afflicting hand of God An unquiet spirit is not onely a great burden to man but a dishonour to God Our dissatisfaction with the dealings of God carrieth in it at least an implicit accusation of him or that God hath not done well because it is ill to sence with us There is a rebellion against the rod as wel as against the word of God For as our strugling and striving with the word of God and the unquietnesse of our hearts under any truth when it takes hold of us is rebellion against God so to strive and struggle with the rod of God or with the crosse that he layes upon us is rebellion against him also God speakes to us by his rod as wel as by his word and we spurne at God in wrangling with his rod as wel as in wrangling with his word Yea to have hard thoughts of God as that he is severe and rigourous that he hath put off his bowells of compassion towards us and forgotten to be gratious such thoughts as these of God under affliction are rebellious thoughts And as there is a rebellion in the thoughts against God in case of affliction so also in the Tongue Thus to murmur is to rebell I doe not say that all complaining is rebelling but all murmuring is we may complaine and tell the Lord how sad it is with us how much our soules our bodies our estates our relations bleed and smart We may complaine and make great complaints without sin but the least murmuring is sinfull yea in the very nature of it so full of sin that it usually and deservedly passeth under the name of Rebellion The children of Israel were as often charged with rebellion as with murmuring And therefore when they murmured for want of Water Moses sayd unto them Heare now ye rebels must we fetch you water out of this Rocke Numb 20.10 And againe Moses chargeth this upon them with his last breath as it were Deut. 31.27 I know thy rebellion and thy stiffe necke behold while I am yet alive with you this day ye have been rebellious against the Lord and how much more after my death yea the Lord himselfe chargeth rebellion upon that unparalleld payre of Brethren Moses and Aaron themselves because they had not so fully as they ought at all times and in all things submitted unto his divine dispensations among that people Numb 24. The Lord spake to Moses saying Aaron shall be gathered unto his people for he shall not enter into the Land which I have given unto the children of Israel because yee the Lord puts them both together in the sin rebelled against my word at the waters of Meribah Fourthly whereas Job sayth Even to day my complaint is bitter Observe The Afflictions and sorrows of some eminently Godly sticke by them or continue long upon them It is with afflictions as with diseases there are some acute diseases sharpe and feirce for a while but they last not they are over in a few dayes for eyther the disease departs from the man or the man departs out of the world by the feircenes of his disease There are also Chronicall diseases lasting lingring diseases that hang about a man many dayes yea moneths and yeares and will not be gone while he lives but lye downe in the grave with him Such a difference we finde among thosâ— other afflictions and troubles which are not seated as diseases in the body but reach the whole estate of man Some are acute and sharpe like the fierce fitts of a feavor but they last not or like Summers sudden stormes which are soone followed with a succession of faire weather But there are also chronicall afflictions tuffe and unmoveable troubles which abide by us which dwell with us day after day yeare after yeare and never leave us while we live or till we leave the world Many a good man hath carryed his affliction with him to the grave If any shall object how then is that of David true Psal 30.5 Weeping may endure for a night â—â—t joy commeth in the morning I answer First That Scripture speakes of that which is often experienced but not alwayes secondly It is most true also that all our weeping is but for a night yea but for a Moment as the Apostle speakes 2 Cor. 4.17 compared with that morning of joy when the day of our blessed eternity shall begin Thirdly the Psalme hath this scope cheifely to shew that the troubles of the Saints are not everlasting not that they are never lasting or to shew that the night of weeping shall at last conclude in a morning of joy to the Godly not that their night of weeping shall presently conclude For as some have onely a Summers night or a short night of sorrow so others have a winters night or a long night of sorrow And this night of sorrow may be as long not onely as many natural dayes or as somes yeares but as long as all the naturall dayes and yeares of this present life The morning of joy is not to be understood of the next morrow after the sorrow began for how long soever our weeping continues it is night with us and whensoever joy comes though at midnight 't is morning with us For sure enough as those sonnes of pleasure are described Isa 56.12 promising themselves the continuance of their joyes To morrow shall be as this day and much more abundant therefore come fetch wine and let us drinke to day there will be wine enough
what he saith to mee and then reverently submit thereunto Further This forme of speaking I would know the words and I would understand c. seemeth to imply a vehement desire in Job to know the minde of God concerning him As a man that is accused longs to heare the minde of the Judge as for others 't is not much to him what they say for him or against him As Paul spake in a like case 1 Cor. 4.3 With me it is a very small thing to be judged of you or of mans judgement c. he that judgeth me is the Lord that is to his judgement I must stand He is above all Hence note First That a godly man is carefull to understand the answer and determinations of God concerning him I would know the words that he would answer mee and this not onely according to the supposition which Job makes here if God should speake to him personally or mouth to mouth but in what way soever God should speake to him It is the great care of a Godly man to know the word of God written and deliver'd over to us as the rule of our life and faith for indeed therein wee have our judgement and our answer as Christ saith the words that I speake they shall judge you at the last day that is by the word you shall be judged Likewise it is the care of a Godly man to understand what God speakes to him by his workes and providences by his rods and chastnings In these the Lord speakes to us and gives us answers They who are wise will study to know and understand them We may conceive that Job had respect to two things especially about which he desiered that he might understand the answer and words of God to him First That God would shew him the true Cause of his affliction for he did not take that to be the Cause which his friends had so often suggested and so disputed upon that Fallacy all along which Logicians call The putting of that for a Cause which is not the Cause Therefore Job hoped to know of God what he would say as to the reason why he did Contend with him Secondly What God would say to him by way of Direction and Councell by way of remedy and redress he was sollicitous to understand the minde of God and what God expected from him under this dispensation So that Jobs scope was not at all as Eliphaz suspected to plead his owne righteousnesse and holy walkings before God as if God had been beholding to him for them and so must needs grant him as having deserved it whatsoever he should aske But that he might be acquainted with the holy will and purpose of God concerning himselfe and to be instructed by him about the grounds and ends of his long and sharpe affliction that so he might beare it more chearefully and more fruitfully As also and that principally that he might heare from his Majesty which was the great poynt in controversie between him and his friends whether he did correct and chasten him as a son or punish and take vengeance on him as on a rebell and so set him among the examples of caution for sinners in time to come Secondly Note A Godly man rests in the Judgement of God Si me nisontem pronunciaret cum gaudio si sontem cum patientia sâ—sciperem sententiam ejus Scult Job would not rest in his friends judgement but in Gods judgement he would rest and enquire no further I saith he freely yeeld up my selfe to that if the Lord should pronounce mee Innocent I would rest in his sentence and be thankfull if the Lord should pronounce mee faulty yet I would rest in his sentence and be patient yea then I would aske mercy and begg his grace for the pardon of my faylings God is an Infallible Judge and therefore no man ought to question his determinations Indeed Every mouth shall be stopped and all the world become guilty before God Rom. 3.19 that is acknowledg theÌ„selves guilty before him when he judgeth And as there is no avoyding the judgement of God so a godly man desires to rejoyce in it Good is the word of the Lord sayd Hezekiah 2 King 20 19. When a very sore sentence was past against him and he sayd is it not Good if peace and truth be in my dayes By good in the former part of the verse he meanes just and equall as if he had sayd though this word be full of gall and wormewood yet it is no other then I and my people have deserved and drawne upon our selves By good in the latter part of the verse he meanes Gracious and mercifull as if he had sayd God in this sentence hath mixed the good of justice and equity with the good of graciousnes and mercy or in the midst of Judgement he hath remembred mercy Thus also when God gave sentence by fire against the two sons of Aaron Moses sayd to Aaron This is that the Lord spake saying I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me and before all the people I will be glorified Lev. 10.3 Now when Aaron heard this the text saith And Aaron held his peace He murmured not he contradicted not but rested patiently in the judgement of God And thus Job was resolved to give himselfe up to the judgement of God whatsoever it should be And we shall finde him in the next words hoping strongly to finde God very sweete and gratious to him could he but obtaine a hearing at his Judgement seate JOB CHAP. 23. Vers 6 7. Will he plead against me with his great power No but he would put strength in me There the righteous might dispute with him so should I be delivered for ever from my Judge JOb still prosecutes the proofe of his integrity from his willingnesse to appeare before God and plead his case at his throne and as in the two former verses he told us what he would doe upon supposition that he could finde God and have accesse unto him even that he would state his case and then fill his mouth with arguments he would also seriously attend and strive to understand the answer which God should give him So in these two verses he holds out what entertainment he assured himselfe of in this his addresse to God as also what confidence he had of a faire hearing and of a good issue As if he had said O Eliphaz you have often deterred and over-awed me with the Majesty of God as if he would certainly crush such a worme as I am and that I could not at at all stand or abide a tryall before him in Judgement Eliphaz hath spoken to that sense at the 4th verse of the former Chapter Will he reprove thee for feare of thee will he enter with thee into judgement dost thou thinke that God will condescend so farre as to treate with thee but know O Eliphaz that I am not afraid of the presence of God for
God alone is intimate And with these God is more intimate then man can be with that which is wholly outward And seing God knowes all the wayes which man takes let no man goe about to hide his wayes from God 'T is vaine to hide any thing from him who sees all that is hidden He that comes before a Judge that knowes what he hath done and is able to prove it why should he deny it The heart of a naturall man is not more busied about any thing then in making veiles for his sin the first thing that man did after he had sin'd was to make such a veile As all men have sinned after the similitude of Adams transgression so they cover their transgressions according to the similitude of his covering The Holy Ghost Psal 32.1 calleth them blessed whose sins are covered but it is with a covering of Gods provideing not of their owne woe to those whose sinnes are hid by a covering of their owne provideing God hath given us his Son our Lord Jesus Christ in his righteousnesse for our covering while our sins are so covered blessed are we but if we cover them with a covering of our owne God will lay them open for ever to our shame Wo to the rebellious children saith the Lord Isa 30.1 that take counsel but not of me and that cover with a covering but not of my Spirit that they may adde sin unto sin if we cover our sins with any thing but the righteousnes of Christ we cover them with a sin not onely because all our righteousnes which is the best thing of our owne that we have to cover them with is sinfull but because the very act of covering them so is a sin and therefore in so doing what doe we but adde sin unto sin And if to cover our sins with our owne righteousnesse be a sin how doe we heape sin upon sin while we cover it as many endeavour to doe with our denyalls dissemblings and excuses Secondly Consider with what Confidence Job speakes hee had discoursed of his fruitles labour and travell in the use of all meanes to finde God well saith he yet it is a Comfort that God knowes my wayes though I cannot finde out his Hence Note It is the Joy of the upright that God knowes them and their wayes yea the wayes that are in them Thus Jeremy Chap. 12.3 having complained of the prosperity of evill men before the Lord concludes But thou O Lord knowest mee thou hast seen mee and tryed my heart toward thee this was the Prophets joy and so it was the Apostles when he sayd But wee are made manifest unto God 2 Cor. 5.11 That 's the thing that pleaseth us David 1 Chron. 29.17 speakes in the same frame of spirituall contentment I know also ô my God that thou tryest my heart and hast pleasure in uprightnes This was a pleasure to David this was his Joy and crowne of Rejoycing that God knew him and a godly man hath much Cause of rejoycing in this that God knowes him perfectly considering how much he is mistaken and misunderstood by men When our wayes are mistaken by men 't is great content to remember that God knowes the way that we take without the least mistake For this assures a godly man of three things First That God will reckon his wayes such as they are and him such a one as he is He is much assured that God will never put a false glosse or an unjust construction which men are apt to doe upon the text of his life Secondly This assures him that his workes of righteousnesse shall not want a reward for God is not unrighteous to forget our worke and labour of love Heb. 6.10 that is he will not let us goe without a reward for such workes for as then we are said not to forget the word of God when we obey it so God is said not to forget our workes when he doth reward them Thirdly This assures him that God will give testimony to his integrity and beare his witnes when most seasonable to his righteous workes Though men will not give him Testimony yet God who knowes his wayes will God will not doe lesse for a good man then a good Conscience will For as an evill Conscience will accuse so a good Conscience will excuse Rom. 2.15 Their Consciences in the meane time accusing or excusing one another Conscience knowes our wayes and therefore Conscience gives Testimony against them that doe evill and Conscience will give Testimony with those that doe well let all the world clamour against them Conscience will not because Conscience knowes the way that a man takes Much more then will God Testifie for that man whose way is good and how sweet is this 'T is sweete and satisfying to a gracious soule to doe good but when God himselfe shall testifie for a gracious soule that he hath done good this is much more sweete and satisfying 1 Joh. 3.20 21. If our heart or Conscience condemne us he is greater then our heart or Conscience and knoweth all things Beloved if our heart condemne us not then have we confidence toward God even this confidence that God will not onely not condemne us but acquit us yea and testifie for us And as it is worse to be condemned by God then by Conscience so it is better and sweete◠to be acquitted by God then by our owne Conscience when once our Consciences are acquainted with his acquittall of us and testimony for us Yea there is this further Comfort in it that for as much as our wayes are knowne to God he will give testimony of them to others as well as to our owne Consciences The world shall know what our wayes are one time or other as well as God knowes them now they who are most prejudiced against them and draw the blackest lines over them shall one day be made to know that they did not know the beauty of them And this God will doe eyther First In this world by some extraordinary providence as David speakes Psal 37.6 Hee shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light and thy judgement as the noon day A mans righteousnesse may lye in obscurity or in the darke no man knowing it and most men judging him unrighteous and wicked but Providence some time or other will bring forth this mans righteousnes as the light and his just dealing as the noon day Or Secondly If a good mans wayes lye hid from the world all the dayes of his life in this world yet the Apostle assures him that in the great day God will proclaime them in the eares of all the world 1 Cor. 4.5 Judge nothing before the time till the Lord come who will both bring to light the hidden things of darknes and will make manifest the Councels of the heart So then a day is coming which will make thorough lights in the world and bring to light the most hidden things of the darkest darknes And by
right hand and on the left by honour and dishonour by evill report and good report We approve our selves and tryall is taken of us as well by things on the right hand as by those upon the left as well by honour as by dishonour The good report or praise which a man meets with in the world is as great a tryal as the ill report or dispraise which he meets with in the world 't is a great tryal to be dispraised to have dirt throwne in our faces and it is a great tryal to be prais'd to be commended and applauded to be lifted up in the thoughts upon the tongues of men Solomon hath an excellent passage Prov. 27.21 As the fineing pot for silver and the furnace for gold so is a man to his praise that is a man is tryed by his praise as the silver is tryed in the fineing pot and as the gold is tryed in the furnace Whenever you are praised you are tryed Then your humility and selfe-denyall are tryed Then you are tryed whether when you are praised by men you can give the whole glory to God Herods praise was the fineing pot and the furnace wherein he was tryed it made him appeare to be but drosse indeed His hearers Cryed the voyce of God and not of man When you cry up such a Preacher such a Magistrate such a Souldier such an Oratour you put him into the fineing pot he that is but drosse consumes The wormes eate up Herod because he gave not Glory to God Act. 12.23 As it was a most dreadfull so it was a most righteous judgement that he should be eaten up of wormes who forgot that he was one and forgot it so farre that he was pleased with their applauses who cryed him up for a God Worldly prosperity power and praise are the right hand way by which God tryeth the sonnes of men Secondly God doth usually try by affliction and that 's the left hand way James 1 12. Blessed is the man that endureth temptation meaning affliction for when he is tryed he shall receive the crowne of life c. That is when those temptations and afflictions have tryed him and he hath approved himselfe in the tryall then he shall receive the crowne of life c. 1 Pet. 1.6 Though now for a season if need be yee are in heavines through manifold temptations that the tryal of your faith being much more precious then of gold that perisheth Cos aurum probat rectam tentamina mentem Natura vexata pâ—edit seipsam though it be tryed with fire might be found to praise c. Affliction is the tryall of our faith in God and of our patience under the hand of God When nature is vext it shewes it selfe and so doth grace Affliction discovereth both what our vertues and what our corruptions are Thirdly God tryeth man by a kinde of examination David speakes of that Psal 17.3 Thou hast proved mine heart thou hast visited mee in the night thou hast tryed mee and shalt finde nothing In the night the soule is free from busines with the world and therefore freest for busines with God then did God prove and visit David that is examine and sift him by calling to his minde all his wayes and workes in former passages And the issue of this tryall was he found nothing not that his soule was empty of good things or that there was nothing evill in him but God upon examination found nothing of that evill in him which some men suspected him of Namely eyther any ill will or evill designe against Saul in reference to whom he called his cause a righteous cause or the right ver 1. Heare the right O Lord c. Thus God tryed David And thus earthly Judges try men They examine them and their case that 's cald a tryall in this third sence wee are chiefly to understand the meaning of Job in this place Job had long before undergone a tryall by prosperity and praise Job was at that time under tryall by affliction he had past the former and was under the latter yea he was deep in it Intelligitur de stricto dei examine in suo judicio ad quod Job provocaverat Merc but as yet hee had not come to this tryall of Examination or to a judiciary tryall which hee earnestly beggd of God All men shall come to such a tryall in the Great day Wee must all appeare before the Judgement seate of Christ that every one may receive the thingt done in his body accordeng to that he hath done whether it be good or bad 2 Cor. 5.10 Some expound Job appealing here to that Judgement But I conceive that the whole tendency of his discourse aymes at an earlyer Judgement or day of tryall then that And though possibly his expectation was not great if any at all that God would grant him a private Session as we may call it for his personall tryall yet to shew that he had not the least suspition of being acquitted in that day whensoever it should be he importunately professeth he could wish it might be the next day and that he would refuse no paines nor travell for the procuring of such a day were it to be obtained being fully satisfied from the light and dictates of his owne Conscience that when the Lord had so tryed him he as David spake in the place lately opened should finde nothing no such fault or guilt as was charged upon him Christ writing to the Angel of the Church of Ephesus gives him this among other commendations Rev. 2.2 Thou hast tryed them which say they are Apostles and are not and hast found them lyars Many appeare fayre in holines and boast highly of their priviledges even as high as an infallible Spirit and immediate mission who yet being tryed and throughly examined by the Church or by those who are spirituall and have sences exercised to discerne both good and evill will be found lyars counterfeit stuffe and lighter then vanitie But Job was perswaded that though God should try him not onely should nothing be found against him nor he found a lyar but that much would be found for him and himselfe be found in the truth as he plainely expresseth in the close of the verse when hee hath tryed mee whut then I shall come forth as gold Egrediar ex hoc igne probationis meae expurgatissimus Coruscabiâ—â— innocentia mea Pined Here 's the issue of the tryal There are seaven words used in the Original for gold That in the text notes the colour or yellownes of it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 generale vocabulum est a colore sulvo seu flavo transfertur ad aliarum rerum munditiem significandum sic ab aura aurora aurum derivat Isidor Plenus vino aureo i. e. splendido velut aurum and is applyed to signifie any thing that is bright or shineing pure and splendid as Gold is Zach. 4.12 wee read of
different elements qualities and humours which contending and fighting one with another necessitate his change Every day brings some though insensible changes upon us And in a few yeares our changes are very visible and sensible The Psalmist speaking of the heavens which of all visible creatures are in nature most unchangeable yet calls them changeable in comparison of God Psal 102.26 The heavens are the work of thy hands They shall perish but thou shalt endure yea all of them shall wax old like a garment as a vesture shalt thou change them and they shall be changed The heavens are the purest part of the creation and freest from elementary mixtures yet they shall wax old they shall be changed In opposition to which the Psalmist adds ver 27. But thou art the same and thy yeares shall have no end Nor are the yeares of God onely without end but himselfe is without change Indeed there is no change of time to God past present and to come are all the same to him and he is the same in all Thou art the same or more emphatically according to the strictnes of the Hebrew phrase Thou art thy selfe alwayes thy selfe As thou art thou wast and as thou art and wast thou wilt be for ever When Moses desiered to know the name of God Exod. 3.13 wee finde it at the 14th verse and God said unto Moses I am That I am And he said thus shalt thou say to the children of Israel I AM hath sent me unto you Secondly As God is unchangeable in his essence so in all his divine perfections and attributes all which are essentiall unto him God is as powerfull and strong as ever he was Isa 26.4 Isa 59.1 As high and soveraigne as ever he was Psal 92.8 as wise and omniscient as ever he was 1 Tim. 1.17 As gracious and mercifull as ever he was his mercy endureth for ever Psal 100.5 As faithfull and true as ever he was Rom. 3.3 4. And as just and righteous as ever he was he doth and will reward every man according to his workes Thirdly God is unchangeable in his purposes decrees and counsells The Medes and Persians boasted of their decrees that they alterd not Dan. 6.18 But the very unalterablenes of humane Decrees is alteration it selfe compared with the unalterablenes of divine decrees We have the Lord thus speaking in the Prophet Isai 46.16 I am God and there is none like me declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times the things that are not yet done saying my counsell shall stand and I will doe all my pleasure And as the Lord establisheth his owne counsel so he can unsetle the best layd counsels of the sons of men Psal 33.10 11. The Lord bringeth the counsel of the Heathen to nought he maketh the devices of the people of none effect The counsel of the Lord standeth for ever the thoughts of his heart to all generations And hence the Lord by his Prophet challengeth the deepest politicians the Oracles for counsel the Achitophels of this world 〈◊〉 straine their wits to the utmost for securing of their owne counsels from disappoyntment Isai 8.10 Gird your selves and ye shall be broken in pieces take counsel together and it shall come to nought speake the word and it shall not stand for God is with us he is with us as to protect us against your open opposition so to blast your most secret consultations against us And as the Lords counsels are immutable in themselves so he hath condescended to assure us of their immutabilitie Heb. 6.17 18. Wherein God willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel confirmed it by an oath that by two immutable things in which it was impossible for God to lie we might have strong consolation c. Oaths are sacred and the strongest confirmations between man and man and therefore though the counsel of God be immutable without an oath yet that we might have the greatest assurance that it is so God hath confirmed it by an oath That so the heyres of salvation having two immutable things to rest their soules and build their faith upon might not onely have consolation strong consolation such consolation as might master and overcome all the feare and unbeliefe of their owne hearts and the gainesayings of Satan Fourthly God is also unchangeable in his promises what ever he hath sayd he will doe for his people He is in one minde it shall be done A promise from God is the best securitie halfe a promise an it may be as he speakes to the meeke of the earth Zeph. 2.3 Seeke righteousnes seeke meeknes it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lords anger this halfe promise I say is better security then the hand or seal yea then the oath of the faithfullest man on earth 2 Cor. 1.20 All the promises of God in him that is in Christ are yea and in him amen That is they shall certainly be performed and accomplished God doth not give promises as many men doe to rayse and then disappoynt and abuse our Hopes He doth not make promises rather for snares to catch others then for bonds to tie himselfe as some men doe which is not only a great unworthines and disingenuitie in them but a great iniquity and sin the Lords promises are our richest inheritances and that not onely because he hath promised greater and better things then are in the compasse of any mans power to make good or in the compass of any mans understanding to make but because h◠will certainly be as good to us in performance as he hath been in promise For He is in one minde concerning all that he hath promised He will be mercifull as he hath promised and pardon sin as he hath promised He will deliver us from trouble as he hath promised and sanctifie all our troubles to us as he hath promised He will give us his Spirit as he hath promised and save us eternally as he hath promised Fifthly He is also in one minde concerning his threatnings He will be as good as his word in the evill which he hath spoken against sinners as well as in the good which he hath spoken concerning his servants Zech. 1.5 Your fathers where are they and the Prophets doe they live for ever But my words and my statutes which I commanded my servants the Prophets did they not take hold of your fathers And they returned and sayd like as the Lord of hoasts thought to doe unto us according to our wayes and according to our doings so hath he dealt with us That is his threatnings have arrested us as Sergeants doe a malefactor or a debtor and carryed us away their prisoners As if the Lord had sayd Your fathers are dead and my Prophets are dead also but the words which my Prophets spake to your fathers concerning the sword famine and captivitie which should shortly come upon them these dreadfull prophesies dyed not
yea these are not yet dead but alive and in force against you If we doe not take hold of the preceptive part of the Law by obedience the poenal part of the Law will take hold of us for our disobedience Thus the Lord professeth Mal. 3.5 And I will come neare to you to Judgement and I will be a swift witnes against the sorcerers and against the adulterers and against false swearers and against those that oppresse the hireling in his wages the widow and the fatherlesse and that turne aside the stranger from his right and feare not me saith the Lord of hosts for I am the Lord I change not I will certainly be not onely a Judge but a witnesse and that a swift one against such wicked ones There is no evading my Judgement seing I am both witnes and Judge as a witnes I know all that ye have done and as a Judge I have power not onely to condemne you but also to give you up into the hand of the executioner for I am the Lord of hosts I have all the Armyes of heaven and earth at my command and bidding Thus I will doe and be ye assured of it that I will doe so for I am the Lord I change not Sixthly God is unchangeable or of one minde in his gifts Rom. 11.29 The gifts and calling of God are without repentance That is The gifts of his effectuall calling shall never be repented of As they who receive them will have no cause to repent yea they will have cause to reioyce in them for ever so God who gives them will not repent He is in one minde he will not alter his gifts As Pilate when he was moved to alter his writing upon the Crosse of Christ answered What I have written I have written that is what I have written shall stand so what motion soever should be made to God to recall the gifts of effectuall calling he would surely answer What I have given I have given my gift shall stand There are gifts of a meere outward calling which God takes away againe His gifts doe not stand with such because they stand still with his gifts That was the doome of the idle servant who had one talent given him Take the talent from him and give it to him that hath ten Talents Math. 25.15.28 But the gifts of effectuall calling shall not be taken away Jam. 1.17 Every good gift and every perfect gift such is the gift of effectuall calling is from above and cometh downe from the father of lights with whom is no variablenes nor shadow of turning And as there is no variablenes in God as to the matter or generall nature of the gifts which he bestoweth they are all good and perfect gifts in their kinde though they are not all in the same degree of goodnes and perfection God doth not give his people sometimes bread and sometime a stone now an egge and anon a scorpon now I say as there is no variablenes in God as to the nature of the gifts which he bestoweth so there is no variablenes in him as to the act of giving or bestowing As the Lord giveth liberally and upbraydeth not Jam. 1.5 so he giveth liberally and repenteth not Thus we see he is not onely one but in one minde He is unchangeable And that not onely in his essence and glorious attributes or perfections but in his counsels and decrees in his promises and threatnings in his gifts and bounties to all his people He giveth and repenteth not Before I passe from this poynt it will be needfull to answer some Objections which are raised against it from those Scriptures which seeme to say that God is not of one minde or that his minde doth alter and change First That report which Moses makes of God seemes to say so Gen. 6.6 And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth and it grieved him at his heart What is repentance but the change of the mind therefore he that repents is not in one mind Seing then God repents how is he unchangeably in one minde A like appearance of contradiction we find 1 Sam. 15. not onely with this text in Job but between the 11th verse compared with the 29th of the same Chapter The 11 â—h verse speakes thus Then came the word of the Lord unto Samuel saying it repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be King c. ver 29. And also the strength of Israel will not lie nor repent for he is not a man that he should repent The strength or victory of Israel is God for it was by his strength that Israel had all his victories and of him Samuel saith He will not repent when as himselfe had sayd a little before It repenteth me c. To these Scriptures we may adde 2 Kings 20th which in words holds out a great change in the minde of God concerning Hezekiah if we compare the first and the fift verses of that Chapter together ver 1. In those dayes Hezekiah was sicke unto death and the Prophet Isaiah the son of Amos came to him and said unto him thus saith the Lord set thine house in order for thou shalt dye and not live Here is a strong affirmation that Hezekiah should dye And to the affirmative the negative is also added Thou shalt dye and not live 'T is the strongest manner of asserting any thing when the contrary is denyed As it is sayd of John the Baptist John 1.20 And he confessed and denied not but confessed I am not the Christ c. So here Thou shalt die and not live Yet we read vers 5. And it came to passe before Isaiah was gone out of the middle Court that the word of the Lord came to him saying Turne againe and tell Hezekiah the Captain of my people thus saith the Lord the God of David thy father I have heard thy prayers I have seene thy teares behold I will heale thee on the third day thou shalt goe up unto the house of the Lord and I will adde unto thy dayes fifeene yeares Doth not this import an evident change in the minde of God Having dispatcht the Prophet to tell Hezekiah that he shall die and not live He presently after even before he was got out of the Court sends the same Prophet backe to tell him that he shall live and not die We have the same difficulty in that knowne place in the Prophesie of Jonah Chap. 3.4 Jonah is sent to Nineveh with a direct message Yet fourtie dayes and Nineveh shall be overthrowne Notwithstanding as soone as the fast was proclaimed and kept and the Ninevites had repented and turned from their evil wayes The Lord also repented of the evil denounced against them ver 10. And God saw their workes that they turned from their evil way and God repented of the evil that he had said that he would doe unto them and he did it not Here God repented of his threatning He had said
protection is set up so the sword and all other instruments of destruction are sent out by appoyntment Jer. 15.3 I will appoynt over them foure kindes saith the Lord the sword to slay and the doggs to teare and the fowles of heaven and the Beasts of the Earth to devoure and destroy And as the destroying sword so the place whether the sword shall goe to destroy is under an appoyntment When the question is put Jer. 47.6 O thou sword of the Lord how long will it be ere thou be quiet put up thy selfe into thy scabbard rest and be still The answer is made ver 7. How can it be quiet seing the Lord hath given it a Charge against Askelon and against the Sea-shore there hee hath appoynted it He hath appoynted this place this ground this Country this Citie this shoare for the sword and the sword being under an appoyntment must doe as it is appoynted If wee look all the Scripture over wee shall finde all things under an appoyntment As first our children are appoynted when Adam had another Son his wife Eve sayd Gen. 4.25 God hath appoynted mee another seed in stead of Abel whom Cain slew Secondly our wives are appoynted When Abrahams servant was sent by him to Mesopotamia for a wife for Isaac he saith If the woman come whom thou hast appoynted to be wife to my Master Son c. That this woman rather then any other should be his Masters sons wife was he knew by the appoyntment of God Gen. 24.14.44 Thirdly All our Times are appoynted by God Exod. 9.5 My times are in thy hand saith David Psal 31.15 Fourthly not onely things that are or exist but things that as yet are not come under an appoyntment What shall be is as certaine to God as what already is Isa 44.7 And who as I shall call and shall declare it and set it in order for me since I appoynted the antient people And the things that are coming and shall come The antient who have been long and still are were appoynted by me and the things which are not but shall be in a continued succession like Linkes of a Chaine holding one in another are appoynted by me The things that are coming or that are neere the birth and shall come things afarre off all that is to be done as well as all that hath been done is under an appoyntment Fifthly as all the passages of our lives so death it selfe is under an appoyntment Heb. 13.27 It is appoynted for all men once to dye And as death is appoynted so the season or the when of it is appoynted Job 7.1 Is there not an appoynted time to man Againe Job 14.5 Thou hast appoynted his bounds that he cannot pass Sixthly as the dayes of man so The day of the Lord the day of Judgement is under an appoyntment Act. 17.31 Because he hath appoynted a day wherein he will Judge the world in righteousnesse by that man whom he hath ordained the time is fixt he hath appoynted a day a day of Judgement When the appoynted day shall be is a secret but that he hath appoynted a day is revealed and that he hath appoynted all the motions and changes that are coming upon the world till that day come So then First Wee are not governed by blinde fortune Nor Secondly By a Stoicall Fate Thirdly But by a divine appoyntment Further The appoyntment of God determineth first the end secondly the meanes leading to and promoting the attainement of the end Lastly as God appoynteth Great things so the least A sparrow falls not to the ground without him that is without his appoyntment or without an order from heaven yea the haires of our head are all numbred Math. 10.29 30. This truth well digested is enough not onely to supercede and stop all the undue feares but to establish the comforts of all the people of God What can be better for us then that all things are in so good a hand that they are appoynted and measured out by God that he cuts out our condition for us that he formes and frames our state for us It hath been said Every man is the fashioner of his owne Condition there is some truth in that mens conditions are much according to their actings but God is the supreame fashioner and orderer of every mans state and portion The portion of the wicked is set out by God Job 20.29 This is the heritage of the wicked and the portion appoynted to him of God Theirs is indeed a sad portion but it is a just and a deserved one He also fashions and cuts out a portion for his owne people And though theirs is often for the present a bitter one and so deserved by them yet he alwayes makes it a good one to them and hath prepared a better for them which they have not at all deserved Hee performeth the thing that is appoynted for me And many such things are with him Some expound this of the paralel dealings of God with other persons Hee performeth the thing that is appoynted for mee Haec multitudo refertur ad similia exempla hominum quos deus similiter exercet sive exeâ—cere possit si velit Non unicum inquit ego sum exemplum hujus liberae dei potestaâ—is and many such things are with him That is I am not the onely Instance or example of this God doth the like also to others my case is not singular I am not alone in the thing God hath not appoynted a portion for mee onely and performed it accordingly to mee no he doth many such like things yea whatsoever hee doth with or concerning any else it is by appoyntment and according to the determinate purpose of his owne will Many such things are with him But secondly I conceive that wee may rather expound these words many such things of such things as Job had already suffered As if he had sayd The Lord bath performed the thing that hee hath appoynted for mee hetherto I have had my portion of trouble and sorrow unto this day and I am like to have more Cum jam me quibus voluerit tormentis affligerit alia ad huc quanta voluerit mihi infligere poterit Hieron I doe not yet perceive that God hath done with mee for as our comforts and the provisions of this so our afflictions and the sorrows of this life are or may be renewed or returned upon us every day Our bread is called in that prayer which Christ taught his Disciples dayly bread that is the bread that is brought out to us every day And when we have received our bread for one day wee may say Mulia jam passuis sum taâ—en si aliud voluerit anima ejus fiet Phil Videtur se patientissimè comparaâ—e ad nova flagella many such things are with him that is hee hath bread enough for us for to morrow and for next day for this yeare and for the next for all the
dayes and yeares of our lives many such things are with him So when we have suffered and been troubled this day we may say hee hath other sufferings and troubles for us against next day when these are gone and blowne over this I suppose is the thing that Job aymes at so that he seemes to prepare himselfe for new rods and to say in the sweetest and humblest composure of a meek and quiet spirit It is the Lord let him doe with me what seemeth good in his owne eyes All that God hath performed to me-wards hee hath appoynted for mee yet I am not of opinion that God hath spent all his appoyntments upon mee surely hee hath not drawne his quiver dry hee hath yet more arrowes to shoot at my poore already wounded and bleeding breast My heart misgives or rather gives me that he hath not yet shewed me all the troubles which he hath appoynted for the tryall of my graces for the exercise of my patience and for the purging out of my corruptions For many such things are with him And this wee may take two wayes First In reference to the power of God hee can doe many such things as these he can doe what he hath done his arme is not shortned Secondly In reference to his owne deservings many sins are with me and therefore I have reason enough to suspect that many more sorrowes are appoynted for mee I may need more humbling and refining and therefore it is like I shall have it and that another furnace is heating for me In how holy a frame was the spirit of this good man He justifieth God in all that he had done and he was ready to submit though it made his flesh feare and tremble at the thought of it as he confesseth it did in the next verse yet I say he was ready to submit to whatsoever God would yet doe knowing that he could and being much perswaded that he would doe much and many things more then he had done yet For saith he Many such things are with him Hence note First God hath variety of wayes to exercise and chasten his in As hee hath more then one Blessing so he hath more then one Chastening as he hath many Comforts so he hath many sorrowes ready at his hand as hee is the God of all Consolation so hee is the God also of all tribulation and as hee can make all Consolation to abound so hee can make all tribulation to abound many such things are with him When you have suffered one affliction doe not thinke that you have suffered all there may be a second at hand They are usually twin-borne and sometimes we may say as Leah in another case Gen. 30.11 A troupe cometh Troubles come by Troupes We read the Lord threatning his antient people the Jewes after great sufferings and Judgements had been upon them with a succession of new Judgements The whole twenty eight Chapter of Deuteronomie is but a continued description of that variety both of blessings and curses which God hath at hand stored up in his Treasures Read how various his Judgements are 1 Kings 8.37 2 Chron. 6.28 I will punish you yet seaven times more for your sins Lev 26.18.24 And that seaven times more may be understood First in reference to the variety of their punishments you shall have seaven kindes of punishments more then you had secondly in reference to the degrees of their punishment I will make them seaven times greater then they were As Nebuchadnezar commanded the fiery furnace to be heated seaven times hotter so the Lord can command the furnace to be heated seaven times hotter And as the Lord can chasten and afflict his people seaven times more both in kinde and degree so they may need seaven sorts of afflictions more and a furnace heated seaven times more then formerly eyther for the purging out of their sins or for the exercise and proofe of their Graces For though the Lord hath a great variety of afflictions at his command yet he never layeth any one of them upon us but when there is need The Apostle Peter gives us assurance of this from God 1 Ep 1.6 For having said that Saints are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation wherein they greatly rejoyce he presently adds though now for a season if need be ye are in heavinesse through manifold temptations Wee see the temptations wherewith the Lord exerciseth the heires of heaven here on earth are many yet they never feele these but when need is And many have as much need of the rod for their spirituall estate as they have of bread for their naturall Many such things are with him Secondly Note Wee deserve more and sorer afflictions then God hath yet layed upon any of us They who sin least suffer lesse then their sin how much soever they suffer here Psal 103.10 Hee hath not dealt with us after our sins nor rewarded us according to our iniquities so great is his mercy to them that feare him The Text is to be understood of them that feare God Hee hath not dealt with us after our sins that is in proportion to our sins nor rewarded us according to our iniquities that is wee have not had that measure of trouble which answers the measure of our iniquities Ezra made humble confession of this in the name of the Jewish Church Ezra 9.13 And after all that is come upon us much is come upon us for our evill deeds Non sunt condignae passiones hujus vitae 1 ad praeteritam culpam quae remittiâ—ur 2 ad praesentem consolationis gratiam quae immittitur 3 ad futuram gloriam quae promittitur Punit deus intra condignum retribuit bona ultra condignum and for our great trespasse seing that thou our God hast punished us lesse then our sins deserve c. Their punishment was great yet lesse then their iniquities As all the afflictions and miseries of this life are lesse then the glory that is promised Rom. 8.18 I count that the sufferings of this present life are not worthy to be compared to the glory that shall be revealed So all the sufferings of this life are not to be compared with the deserts of the least sin committed by us nor with the least comfort of the Spirit which is given to us As the good things which God bestows upon us are above and beyond any worthines of ours so the evills with which he chastneth his children yea or punisheth the worst of wicked men in this life are below and on this side what they are worthy to receave Vers 15. Therefore am I troubled at his presence when I consider him I am afraid of him c. This and the next verse expresse the state of Jobs spirit upon the former discovery or how he was affected with this thing that many such things were with God I have often met with other passages in this booke which have a neernes of signification with
in any new sufferings O saith he God hath made my heart soft that is I begin to faint I finde my selfe drooping I have not that strength of spirit and though I am not a coward yet I have not that courage that hardnes or hardines of spirit which I have had heretofore He queried indeed Ch. 6.12 Is my strength the strength of stones or is my flesh brass He had much strength but not the strength of stones nor was he hard as brass Now he saith plainly my heart is made soft it melteth like wax at the fire I am so litle like brass or stones in strength or hardnes that I am altogether like wax or water I am so far from having a minde to strive with or rise up against God that I know not how to stand before him if he which he seems to intend should still goe on to afflict me I am growne weake and unable to beare yet my burden remaines and will probably be made yet more heavie This interpretation carrieth a distinct sence in it and that which is most genuine to the scope of the place Mr Broughtons translation of the latter clause of the verse suites this exposition of the former with much clearenes For the Omnipotent hath softned my heart and the Almighty hath made me shrinke Whereas wee say the Almighty troubleth me he saith The Almighty hath made me shrinke For so a man commonly doth who eyther feares or feeles that which he is not well able to beare Hence Note The heart of a Godly man even of the most Godly may be so weakened under long continued sufferings that he may finde himselfe utterly unable to beare them any longer Wicked men labour to strengthen and harden themselves all they can to beare in opposition to God and Saints would strengthen and harden themselves all they can to beare in submission to God Pharaoh hardened his heart to oppose God striking him hee had stroake after stroake and Judgement after Judgement yet he would not yeeld but at last God made his heart soft in one sense though hee hardened it in another God appeared at last too hard for Pharaoh hee could hold out no longer And we finde the Lord speaking thus by Ezekiel to his people who it seemes by the language which God useth concerning them had as it were set themselves with unholy resolutions to stand or rather stout it out with God and beare the worst that hee could doe unto them But saith the Lord Ezek. 22.14 can thine heart endure or can thine hands be strong in the day that I shall deale with thee When I deale with thee in wayes of Judgement when I take thee in hand to punish and repay thee according to thy workes can thine heart endure no! it cannot endure it shall not be able to endure The Lord doth not meane it of an endureing with submission and patience So it is the honour of Saints to endure what ever God layes upon them but to endure with stoutnes and resistance art thou able to stand it out or can thine hand be strong no thy heart and hand will be soft and weake thou wilt not be able to beare it when I come to deale with thee It is sayd of Christ by David his type Psal 22.13 when hee was under those terrible sufferings for our sins that his heart was made soft and if it were so with the greene tree what must it be with the dry I am powred out like water and all my bones are out of joynt my heart is like wax it is melted in the midst of my bowells Thus the sufferings of Christ our head who was also the Captain of our salvation and the mighty God made his heart soft and melted him His heart was not melted with sorrow for his owne sin for he was without sin but the sorrow that was upon him for our sins melted his heart Whose heart will not melt grow soft that is unable to beare it when God layeth his hand heavy and long upon him Therefore we râ—ad in the Prophet how the Lord takes notice of this and condescends to the weaknes of man Isa 57.16 I will not contend for ever neither will I be alwayes wroth I will not goe onne to doe as I have done Why What 's the reason of it not but that God is able to continue his Contending and to carry on his warre whether with persons or with Nations for ever but he hath respect to the poore Creature for saith he I will not doe it lest the spirit should faile before mee and the soules which I have made How can soules faile the soule is an immortall substance and shall not faile for ever The soules of the damned shall be under everlasting Contendings and never faile they shall beare wrath for ever and not faile yea their bodyes shall not faile but through the power of God sustaining them under his Justice shall endure everlasting torments The meaning of that expression in the Prophet is the same with this in the Text Their heart will be made soft as yet they have strength faith and courage to beare these afflictions but if I continue them longer their spirit and strength their faith and patience will faile and be so worne out that they will not be able to abide it God would not Contend for ever lest as Job here complaines he should make their hearts soft And the Almighty troubleth mee That is his presence or his dispensations trouble me Deus in cujus potentia sufficientiaque divitiarum solatium meum esse debebat is me privavit omni solatio animam meam plane dejecit deserit me terret me Sanct wee see how much the spirit of Job was carryed out in the thing And he useth a word here that signifieth the power of God to comfort and refresh or God in his allsufficiency to comfort yet saith he this Almighty troubleth mee that is the thoughts or remembrance of him troubleth me He hath cast downe and grieved my soule already and I am much troubled with fearefull apprehensions of like severities from him againe These words the reader will easily perceive to be of the same minde and meaning with the 15th verse of this Chapter lately opened and therefore I shall not stay upon them but proceed to the last verse Vers 17. Because I was not cut off before the darknes neither hath he Covered the darknes from my face Here Job gives another reason of his being thus troubled at the presence of the Almighty It is saith he because I was not cut off before the darknes or because I dyed not by thick darknes so Mr Broughton we say because I was not cut off hee because I dyed not both meete in the same meaning For death is a cutting off and death will cut off or mow downe the strong yea the strongest as the sith doth eyther corne or grasse Thus spake Hezekiah in his sicknes Isa 38.10 I sayd in the
probable that they who know him should know times too for to whom should God communicate his secrets but to those who are neere to him to those that are his As if he had sayd Give me a reason if you can why God to whom all things and times are knowne from eternitie should not make knowne these times to those that know him And so the argument may be formed in this manner Such as know God should know his dayes if any know them But they that know God doe not know his dayes therefore God keepes his dayes close to himselfe so that whereas Eliphaz supposed Job as doubting the providence of God Chap. 22. ver 12 13 14. and asks the question ver 15th Hast thou marked the old way which wicked men have troden Job answers here I deny not the providence of God but I deny that all the wayes of Gods dealing with wicked men are obvious to the eye of Godly men and shew me reason if you can seing God knoweth all times why the way of his judgements are so little visible to them which know him But who are they that are described by this circumlocution They or the men that know God We may take them in a twofold notion First More Generally for all godly men for all who are truly such know God Secondly More specially for those Godly men who know God more then others there are some who have a peculiar knowledge of him and dayly intimacy with him who live as it were in his bosome and see what is in his breasts comparatively to others And further because words of knowledge comprehend the affections in Scripture by those that know him much we are to understand those that love him much that delight in him much that feare him much and obey him much Now though we may expound this text of truely Godly men at large yet the latter sort are chiefly meant why seeing times are not hidden from the almighty doe not they that know him godly men yea his favourites who know most of his minde who as they are after his heart so in his heart eminently why doe not they who know him thus See his dayes Diem domini appellamus cum judicium suum exercit in impios Whose dayes and what dayes doth Job here intend The former part of the verse answers the first question They are the dayes of God And to the second question I answer The dayes of God are those dayes wherein he worketh or brings forth some great worke whether it be a worke of Judgement or a worke of mercy For as Times in the former part of the verse so dayes here include the things done in those dayes and hence Mr Broughton renders wayes not dayes None sayth he that know him see his wayes Whensoever God doth somewhat among men which declares him in an eminent manner to be God that in Scripture is called the Day of God Thus the Prophet speakes Isa 2.12 The day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty and upon every one that is lifted up and he shall be brought low And upon all the Cedars of Lebanon that are high and lifted up c. Thus the day of the Lord is the day of his judgement among men I passe not for mans day or for the judgement of man sayth Paul 1 Cor. 4.3 And when he saith 1 Cor. 3.13 The day shall discover it He meanes a day of tryall will discover every mans worke whether it be silver gold hay wood or stubble The day of discovery will be a Glorious day of God The Civilians have an expression which reacheth this notion of a day They say of a man that hath had judgement in the highest Court from whence there is no appeale Summum obijsse diem dicunt Jurisconsulti vid Bold He hath passed his last day that is his highest and greatest triall because then there is no more medling with him or bringing the suite about againe Such are the dayes of God of which Job here speaketh Why seing times are not hidden from the Almighty doe they that know him not see his dayes From the former part of the verse Note First That times are knowne perfectly knowne to God Yea not onely are times perfectly knowne to God but firmely fixed and most wisely disposed of by him men may know that which they have no power to dispose of but the knowledg of God and his power run paralel through all times and things So that as when the text sayth Times are not hidden from the Almighty it notes that they are fully knowne to him so also that they are uncontrouleably disposed and ordered by him And as times are knowne to God so he makes them knowne when and to whom he pleaseth When Joseph had revealed to Pharaoh both the matter and the time concerned in his dreames then saith Moses Gen. 41.45 Pharaoh called Josephs name Zaphnath paaneah which say some signifies in the Egyptian language The Saviour of the world Which name say they Pharaoh might give him because by his advice in laying up stores of corne in the yeares of plenty such a world of men or so great a part of the world was saved from perishing by famine in the yeares of scarcity But say others deriving the word from an Hebrew roote it signifies a revealer of secrets Which title of honour Joseph well deserved and was most proper to him seing he had revealed that Great secret unto Pharaoh both that there should be a famine as also the time and season of it But where had Joseph this secret was it from any astrologicall skill of his owne He tells us plainely whence it was at the 15th and 16th verses of the same Chapter for when Pharaoh had sayd to Joseph I have heard say of thee that thou canst understand a dreame to interpret it He presently answers first Negatively It is not in me and then affirmatively God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace See the like in that most remarkeable passage Den. 2.17 18 19 20 21. From all which we learne that God knoweth times and changeth times that is makes great changes in times according to the counsell of his owne will First If we take time for the succession of dayes weeks months yeares and ages thus the Lord knoweth times The number of the dayes of man the precise number of the yeares and ages wherein any worldly state or power shall continue are not hidden from him Secondly Times are not hidden from God as times are taken for the seasons and opportunities of action The Lord knowes what time will be as a wheele or as a socket fitted for the carrying on or establishing of every worke We are often troubled at this and misse our season but God knoweth every season he knoweth the times and therefore can time every worke exactly And the Hebrew word here used 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 denotat congruum tempus properly signifies
they take the poore for a pledge Of which cruelty we read 2 Kings 4.1 where the poore widdow complained to the Prophet that her husband being dead the creditors were come and had taken her two sonnes to be bond men Thus here when they had gotten their cattle as was shewed before and their cloaths from their backs then they must have their bodyes too to be slaves and drudges Here first I might note That the sinne of oppression is aggravated in reference to the persons upon whom it is exercised But because it hath been observed from other passages both of this and former Chapters how sinfull it is to oppresse those whom we are bound to releive and to vexe those whom we ought to comfort I shall not insist upon it in this place But Observe Secondly That covetousnesse knows no bounds As it hath been said of envy so we may say of covetousnesse Covetousnesse whether wilt thou whether wilt thou lead or rather hurry and force worldly men covetousnesse carryes those who are under the power of it no man knowes whether who can tell where he shall stopp or stay when he is once under the power of the spirit of covetousnesse such will not spare eyther the fatherlesse or the widdow not the cloaths upon their backes no nor their backes nor bodyes If a covetous eye can but discerne any advantage to be made it will have body and all There is no sinne so hainous none so base and sordid but covetousnesse may be both the mother and nurse of it A covetous man will not forbeare eyther for the cruelty of the sinne or for the sordidnesse of it Covetousnesse is a sordid lust Covetousnesse is earthy and mudds our spirits in earthly things When the spirit of a man is once embased by covetousnes he is ready to doe any base thing There is nothing here below lower then that Spirit And hence the Apostle concludes 1 Tim. 6.10 That the love of money which is covetousnesse is the roote of all evill that is any evill of sinne may grow up from that roote and therefore the Apostle adds in the same place That while some have coveted it they have erred from the faith Covetousnesse is the roote of heresie which we may thinke farre removed from it But saith he such have erred from the faith which may be understood of erring from the faith both in regard of practice and of doctrine They have both acted and beleeved against the rule of faith for filthy lucre and so have peirced themselves through with many sorrowes Covetousnesse runneth us into all evill and provokes many to doe such things as peirce themselves through with many sorrowes as well as others Covetousnesse peirceth the poore and needy the widdow and the fatherlesse with many sorrowes nor doth it spare its own Master or slave rather but peirceth him likewise through with many more and much worse sorrowes Vers 10. They cause him to goe naked without cloathing The 7th verse spake the sence of this They cause the naked to lodge without cloathing and they have no covering in the cold Job toucheth upon their cruelty againe and againe They cause him to goe naked withoat cloathing They will not allow him so much as those things which are for necessity The word him is not expressely in the Hebrew which runs onely thus They cause to goe naked without cloathing as implying that they were ready to exercise this inhumanity upon any one that came next to hand or stood in their way Our Translation seemes to referre it to those poore taken for a pledge and so the difference between this 10th and the 7th verse is this in the 7th verse he spake generally of the poore whom they made to goe naked here at the 10th verse he speakes of those whom they had taken to be their slaves and servants they take the poore for a pledge and cause him to goe naked without cloathing they take his worke but they give him no cloathing they command his labour but deny him releife Which sense is carried further both in the next verse and in the next clause of this verse And take away the sheafe from the hungry Some render they take away the eares of corne that is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 non solum manipulum integrum sed pauculas spicas quae messoris manum effugere solent significat the gleaneings which the poore have pickt up and gathered together They take away the very gleaning from them that two wayes eyther First they will not suffer the poore to gleane after their reapers This is to take away the eares of corne from the hungry such is the cruelty of some that they will not suffer the poore to gleane in their fields or secondly when the hungry have gleaned a few eares of corne they take all away from them Against which cruelty to the poore the Law of Moses provided Deut. 24.19 20 21. When thou cuttest downe thine harvest in thy feild and hast forgot a sheafe in the feild thou shalt not goe againe to fetch it it shall be for the stranger for thr fatherlesse and the widdow that the Lord thy God may blesse thee in all the worke of thine hands Now if the forgotten sheafe must be left for the poore surely the scattered eares must not be raked up from them We have an eminent instance of the liberty of gleaning in the second Chapter of Ruth Againe By the sheafe which is taken away we may understand that little corne which the poore man hath of his owne growing in his owne feild And Job speakes in the singular number the sheafe implying that the poore man hath not many sheaves his corne makes but a sheafe as it were as the poore man in the parable 2 Sam. 11.11 had but one lambe he had not a flock so the poore man hath but a sheafe he hath not many sheaves and shocks of corn he hath not barnes full as the rich man is described Luk. 12. he hath but a sheafe yet they take that away Thirdly The word which we translate sheafe Est autem Gomer mensurae genus quod quotidianuÌ„ dimensum diurnuÌ„ victum hominis capeâ—e potest ergo necessarium victum abstulerunt famelicis quem forte spicis minutatim collectis sibi sumo labore collegerunt Pined signifies a measure which did conteine a convenient quantity for a dayes provifion This measure the Jewes call An Omer Exod. 16.16 This is the thing which the Lord hath commanded gather of it every man to his eating an Omer for every man according to the number of your persons take ye every man for them which are in his tents ye shall have an Omer for every man So that an Omer conteines a convenient quantity for one mans provision for a day and then the sense ariseth thus they take away the Omer from the hungry that is they take away meere necessary food or dayly bread from the hungry The poore
man hath but an Omer just enough for a day as our Saviour teacheth us to pray Give us this day our dayly bread or the bread of our necessity so much bread as will suffice us for a day our Omer how much soever we have we are to aske no more and usually poore men have no more The rich have food aforehand or food for many dayes or yeares as he said to his soule Luk. 12.19 soule thou hast goods laid up for many yeares he was before-hand with the world but the poore man hath only enough for a day if he hath that and that these oppressors tooke away They take away the sheafe or the Omer from the hungry The hungry is put for the poore and to aggravate the sinne 't is sayd they take away the sheafe from the hungry That is before the poore man hath eaten his belly full yea before he hath broken his fast they finde the poore man hungry and so they leave him for they leave him nothing to appease his hunger with They take away the sheafe the Omer from the hungry There is yet a fourth reading and those that carry their sheaves they make to goe away a hungry The meaning is Their labourers in harvest or their harvest-men have no provision made for them they worke all day and are sent home hungry at night Which sinne is more expresly noted in the next verse where Job taxeth the wickednesse of those Masters who are forward enough to imploy poore labourers but are backward to give them a reward or rather keepe backe their reward altogether Vers 11. Which make Oyle within their walls and tread their wine-presses and suffer thirst The last reading of the 10th verse joynes fitly with this verse Those that carry their sheaves they make to goe away hungry and those that make oyle within their walls and tread their wine-presses suffer thirst they are both hungry and thirsty who doe their worke Which make oyle within their walls The word which we translate to make oyle signifies light or noone day in the nowne Meridiati sunt inter acervos Vulg and in the verbe to be abroad in the light or Sun about noone-day And hence the words are thus translated by the vulgar latine They noone it among the heapes or they are abroad among the heapes at noone And there is a double exposition given of the words in this translation first they are expounded of the wicked themselves who oppresse the poore as if he had sayd They come forth to please themselves and take the aire or to Sun themselves among the heapes of those things which they have taken from others by oppression But I conceave this very unsutable to that which is joyned with it in this verse Their treading of their wine-presses and suffering thirst And therefore I lay it by Secondly The words in this translation are expounded of the poore They abide till noone day or till the heate of the day among the heapes that is among the sheaves or among the oile-fats or among the wine-presses poore men labour there unto the very heate of the day and then are turned home hungry and thirsty without meate or drinke or any thing to procure eyther We translate which make oile and the same word signifies 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 merediati sunt vel oleum fecerunt tam meridies quam oleum a splendore puritate dicitur Hebraice Est enim 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 splendere Vel quia oleum accensum lucem facit ut meridies Aben-Ezra noone-day light and oile because of the light and splendidnesse of oyle The eye enformes us that oyle is a cleare body which hath much light and purity in it and therefore the word is applicable unto eyther which make oile Within their walls There is a twofold exposition of these words within their walls that is say some within their owne walls the poore make oile within their walls and tread their owne wine-presses yet they suffer thirst that is the poore are so opprest by the rich that all the wine and oile they can make for themselves will not satisfie their ordinary thirst or necessity or when the poore have made wine and oyle within their owne walls they suffer thirst that is the rich come and take all from them Thus we may enterpret it of the poore making wine oile for themselves For in those Countries where Vines and Olive-trees abound the poore have their quantity and portion of wine and oyle as here they have of corne or any other commodity which is of the growth of this Country But I rather expound the whole verse of the poore making oile for and treading the wine-presses of the rich The poore labour for the rich making oile within their walls or within their rankes that is among their Olive trees they grow in rankes and tread their wine-presses yet they suffer thirst that is though they labour hard for them yet they have nothing for their labour they make oile but they have no oile to anoint themselves they make wine but they have no wine to quench their thirst those cruell men neyther gave them wine nor oyle in specie or in kinde but used them as Poets feine of Tantalus who was set in a river of water up to his chin but could not reach it so the rich Tantaliz'd the poore calling them to worke all day in their oyle fatts and wine presses and yet sent them home hungry and thirsty or they sent them home without that which is virtually or amounts to wine and oyle that is their wages or reward they gave them not that which their service deserved This is that speciall oppression which I conceive Job intended in this place both to discover and reprove the unconsiderablenes and cruelty of the rich towards the poore labouring man Hence observe That to deteine the wages of the labouring man is a provoking oppression When men carry sheaves and yet are hungry when they make oile and tread the wine-presse and yet suffer thirst this is a crying sinne The Lord forbad this expressely Deut. 24.14 15. Thou shalt not oppresse an hired servant that is poore and needy whether he be of thy brethren or of the strangers which are in thy land within thy gates at his day thou shalt give him his hire neither shall the Sunne goe downe upon it for he is poore and setteth his heart upon it lest he cry against thee to the Lord and it be sinne unto thee The Law also sayth Deut. 25.4 Thou shalt not muzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corne Which though the Apostle applyeth in two places 1 Cor. 9.9 1 Tim. 5.18 to shew the equity of it that they who labour in the word and doctrine or preach the Gospel which is spirituall food the food of soules should be comfortably supplyed with temporall food the food of their bodyes though I say the Apostle doth peculiarly apply it to this sort of
labourers yet it is extendible to all honest labourers in what kinde or way soever For if the mouth of the labouring oxe should not be muzled then much more the mouth of a labouring man should not be muzled that reaps the corne and treadeth the wine-presse that is such should not be sent away hungry and thirsty The Prophet Jer. 22.13 thunders out a threatning against those who deale thus with the labourer Woe to him that builds his house by unrighteousnesse and his chambers by wrong that useth his neighbours service without wages and giveth him not for his worke As some unrighteous men build chambers and houses with the gold and silver which they have wrongfully gotten from the rich so some build their houses by getting the labour and paines of the poore wrongfully from them that is by denying them the wages which is due for their worke Woe to such sayth the Lord. And againe James 5.4 the Apostle chargeth this upon the rich Behold saith he the hire of the labourers that have reaped downe your fields which is of you kept backe by fraud cryeth and the cryes of them which have reaped are entred into the eares of the Lord of Sabaoth or of the Lord of hosts As if he had sayd the Lord who hath all the Armies of heaven and earth in his power even he hath taken notice how ye wrong the labourer and he will put forth his power to avenge their quarrel The Lord of hosts is the poore labourers friend and he will be his Avenger It is a sin crying for vengeance that when a poore man hath sweat out his strength to doe service to the rich he should not have his wages given him to renew his strength and revive his spirits for further labour The Apostle 2 Thes 3. gives a charge that they that will not labour should not eate we heare saith he that there are some who walke among you disorderly working not at all now then they that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ that with quietnesse they worke and eate their owne bread and ver 10. If any will not worke neither should he eate But as they that will not worke have no right to eate what they eate they steale so they who worke should eate else they are deprived of their right Woe be to those who eate and worke not in some kinde or other and woe be to those who doe not give them to eate who worke who compel or but call the poore to treade their wine-presses and then let them suffer hunger and thirst This sin is committed not onely by the totall denying of reward and wages that 's the grossest way of it But First This sin is committed when the poore man receives not a reward proportionable to his labour when he hath not what answers his worke but his wages is so scanty and short that he is not able to make a living of it for the comfortable according to his degree maintaining of his charge many are apt in this case to oppresse the labourer while they pay him They will give him somewhat but it shall be so short and poore that he is not able to subsist upon it Hence that common speech among us that there is nothing cheape but poore mens labour men care not so their worke be done though the workman be undone They care not though the sweat of his brows will scarse as 't is usually phras'd finde him water to wash his hands Secondly This sin is committed when the labourer is defrauded of that which hath been agreed for when cavills are raised and so the hire detained This the Apostle James reproves Chap. 5.4 speaking of the labourers hire which saith he is of you kept backe by fraud they did not tell them plainely they should have no wages but they quarrelled with them about their worke ye have not done your worke well or not so soone as ye should and therefore they will not pay them or they pay them to halves Thus some by fraud and cavills detaine the labourers hire as others doe it by open violence or flat denyall Thirdly This sin is committed by delaying to pay the labourer We finde in Moses Law the equity whereof remaines to this day that not onely the denying or defrauding of the labourer concerning his hire is charged as sinfull but the very delaying of it Suppose you pay all at last yet if you cause the poore to waite long for what is their due this will be reckoned an oppression therefore sayth the Law Deut. 24.14 15. Thou shalt not oppresse an hired servant that is poore Minus solvit qui minus tempore solvit and needy at his day thou shalt give him his hire Thou shalt not oppresse him so much as by deferring it for a day neither shall the Sunne goe downe upon it Consider how strict the righteous Lord and our great Master is in this poynt That Masters should deale well with their servants and day-labourers The Sun must not goe downe upon it Why for he is poore and sets his heart upon it Which is not to be understood like that Psal 62.10 If riches increase set not thy heart upon them that is doe not fix your affections upon your riches thinke not your selves happy because ye are rich but when Moses sayth the poore labourer sets his heart upon it the meaning is this the poore labourer having wrought hard all day thinkes of his wife and family for whom he is to provide and then remembers that at the evening he shall have his wages I sayth he shall have somewhat at night though I worke hard all day therefore sayth the Lord give it him at his day let not the Sunne goe downe upon it he reckons to have it when he goeth home therefore disappoint him not It may be a dangerous thing to be a labourers purse-bearer for a night if he desire to have his hire and you able to pay it to deteine his wages upon those termes is sinfull for he hath set his heart upon it and fully expects it therefore disappoynt him not doe not make him ashamed of his hopes This is the sinne which Job describes here the wicked take yea exact worke of the poore and then take or deteine their wages also They must make oyle for them and tread their wine-presses and suffer thirst This sin cryeth and this oppression makes the poore groane as it follows in the next verse Vers 12. Men groane out of the Citie and the soule of the wounded cryeth out yet God layeth not folly to them This verse shewes two things first the sad effects of oppression it makes men groane and cry secondly the frequent and long impunity of oppressors yet God layeth not folly to them Men groane out of the Citie They vex not onely the Country but the City too for as before hee described Country-oppressors so now City-oppressors oppression is a sinne that filleth both City and Country
sayth when he is in a right frame in reference to the wayes of holynes Psal 108.1 O God my heart is prepared or fixed A godly man doth not good upon a sudden or by chance as we say but he sets himselfe to it his heart is fixed or prepared and his face is set heaven-ward or for heavenly duties So Daniel spake of himselfe Dan. 9.3 I set my face unto the Lord God to seeke by prayer and supplications and as a godly man is in the wayes of God so the wayes of God are in him Thus David describes him Psal 84.5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee in whose heart are the wayes of them that is the wayes which Godly men walke in and they are the wayes of God Now as this is the true state of godlinesse when the heart is in it and prepared for it so the true state of wickednesse is when a mans heart is in it and prepared for it This is the proper character of a wicked man The eye of the Adulterer waiteth for the twilight Every word hath weight in it the twilight is the Adulterers season It is not sayd he waites for the night or for the day but he waiteth for the twilight which is neither day nor night but between both We have such a description of time in reference to the mixt and uncertaine state of things Zach. 14.6 7. And it shall come to passe in that day that the light shall not be cleare nor darke But it shall be one day which shall be knowne to the Lord not day nor night Such a thing is Twilight it is neyther cleare nor darke neyther day nor night but between both There is a twofold twilight first the morning twilight and secondly Diluculum Crepusculū the evening twilight the morning twilight begins when the night ends the evening twilight begins when the day ends The Latines have two distinct words to expresse these distinct twilights by but our language is not so well stored and therefore we must distinguish them by the matter spoken of or the scope of the speaker Thus here when 't is sayd in the text he waiteth for the twilight we are to understand it of the evening twilight not for the morning twilight and the reason is because the morning twilight is not for the adulterers turne or purpose for then the light prevailes upon the darkness but it is the evening twilight for then darkness prevailes upon the light And that this is the Adulterers twilight is cleare Prov. 7. v. 6 7 8 9. Nox et tenebrae administrae sunt impijs suarum libidinum Ipsa nox alioquin caeca infandarum tamen libidinū oculatus testis est At the window of my house saith Solomon I looked through the casement and behold among the simple ones I discerned among the youths a man voyd of understanding passing by the way to her house and he went neere her corner in the twilight in the evening or in the evening of the day in the blacke and darke night And behold there met him a woman with the attire of a harlot c. His eye waited for the twilight and in the twilight he was taken Hence note The doing of evill hath its proper seasons as well as the doing of good Though sin be never in season yet it hath some times which are more seasonable for it to sin is never in season as to the lawfullnesse of committing it but sin hath its seasons as to the conveniency of committing it The Adulterer takes his season he waiteth for the twilight Whence note secondly Evill men are very carefull to hit their seasons for the doing of evill It were desireable that the godly were as carefull to hit their seasons and take their times as the ungodly are To every thing saith the Preacher Eccl 3.1 there is a season and a time for every purpose under the Sunne And because it is so saith the same Preacher Eccl 8.6 The misery of man is great upon him But why doth this make the misery of man great upon him I answer The reason of this misery upon man is not because there is a season but because eyther of his ignorance or negligence to find it There are a thousand wayes to misse a season and but one to hit it And were there as many wayes to hit as to misse it were a thousand to one but man would misse rather then hit and therefore the misery of man is great upon him Because if once he misse his season it cannot be recovered and then he must needs be miserable Good men are miserable as to some cases because they are often so carelesse to hit their season of doing good and doe so often misse it notwithstanding all their care Wicked men are for ever miserable because they are so carefull not to misse their season of doing evill and doe so often hit it The eye of the Adulterer waiteth for the twilight and he seldome as to his own end waites in vaine But why is he so greedy for the twilight The next words say why where he brought in Saying no eye shall see me Where sayth he this he sayth it in his heart this is his discourse in his owne breast and to whom sayth he this he sayth it to himselfe there is a dialogue between the Adulterer and his owne heart and thus he concludes I will waite for the twilight and then no eye shall see me And when he sayth no eye shall see me his meaning is There is not any eye that shall see me Thus he playes the foole at All 's hid Yet further this no eye may have a threefold reference First No eye of common men shall see me I will doe this in secret I will have such a cover of darknesse over me that my neighbours and friends shall not be able to take any notice of mee Secondly No eye may referre to men in chiefe that is Verba quae sequuntur exigunt ut ista de Magistratus justitiaeque ministris intelligantur Bold Quisquis aut officio aut quovis alio modo super alios inspicit actusque eorum observat vocatur oculus no eye of the Magistrate nor of any Minister of Justice shall see me Magistrates are the eyes of a Nation they should overlooke all places eyther by themselves or their Officers to observe what is done As the adulterers eye watcheth so there should be an eye of Justice watching to catch Adulterers Some interpret this Text especially of the adulterers hope or selfe-perswasion that he shall escape the eye or knowledge of the Magistrate who is appointed to oversee the manners of that people over whom he is placed and to be a terror yea a Minister of vengeance to them that doe evill for he beareth not the sword in vaine Rom. 13.3 4. Magistrates should so much marke and eye the state of a people that they are called eyes in Scripture Isa 29.10 For the Lord
hereafter what ever portion of worldly profit or pleasure they have had here hell shall consume them and they shall be consuming for ever The 20th verse may carry the sence of this interpretation but it complyeth more clearely with the former describing the calamitous condition of a wicked man at his departure out of this world Vers 20. The womb shall forget him the worme shall feed sweetly on him he shall be no more remembred and wickednesse shall be broken as a tree The number varyes here againe Job spake in the plural number immediately before yet here keeping to the same subject he speakes in the singular The womb shall forget him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a verbo quod intensissiâ—rè tenerrimè amare signisicat That is They who loved him most tenderly and dearely shall forget him The word which we render the womb is of a verbe which signifyes to love with greatest intensenesse and tendernes it is applyed to the love of man to God Psal 18.1 I love the Lord I love the Lord dearely with bowells of affection and it is often applyed to the love of God unto man Some translate it here by the Abstract Vim majorem haber per abstractum Obliviscetur ejus miseratio sive amor sive dilectio i. e. illi qui eum suaviter amabunt Bold Love mercie or pittie shall forget him Which may be taken two wayes First that those friends who before were pittifull to him should forget him his lovers and acquaintance who were deare to him even as his bowels they shall forget him or secondly mercy shall forget him that is the mercy of God or the God of mercy shall forget him God who is alltogether mercy shall forget him hell shall consume him and mercy or the mercifull God shall forget him for ever The vulgar reads it by way of imprecation let mercy forget him others as a direct denunciation mercy shall forget him But I rather apprehend that this phrase or manner of speaking The wombe shall forget him doth onely import thus much That when the wicked man dyeth he shall be as much forgotten among men as if such a man had never come out of his mothers wombe nor been born into the world But are not wicked men remembred to have been in the world when once they goe out of the world usually they doe such things in the world as cannot easily be forgotten And are not many wicked men who dyed some thousands of yeares agoe remembred unto this day as if they had dyed but yesterday I answer As to forget alwayes implyeth former knowledge and acquaintance so sometimes it implyeth onely present neglect When we passe by or slight a man then we are sayd to forget him though we not onely remember who he is but see him before our eyes Much more then may we be sayd to forget those men being dead whom we slighted while they lived and never speake of but with contempt and abhorrence both of their persons and actions since they dyed The wombe shall forget him Yet as the former verse is expounded by some as was there touched to shew how quiet and easie a passage wicked men usually have out of this world by death so this clause also of the verse in hand yea the whole verse is expounded to the same sence I will onely hint it and passe onne The wombe shall forget him That is his mother shall not be troubled or grieved at his death because he dyed without griefe or trouble The wormes shall feede sweetly on him That is The grave shall be no seveerer to him then to others Ita suavitèr obdormit ut in sepulchro ei vermis duscescere videatur Drus There the wormes feed upon all men and they shall feed sweetly on him or it shall be a kinde of sweetnes and pleasure to him to have the wormes feeding on him which is no more then what Job sayd upon the same argument Chap. 21.33 The clods of the valley shall be sweete to him He shall be no more remembred That is there shall no hard fate or evill accident befall him when he dyes to administer matter of discourse concerning him for when a man is cut off by some remarkeable stroake of Judgement eyther from the hand of God or man his death becomes the discourse and Table-talke of all sorts of men for that generation at least if not for many more What hath caused Korah Dathan and Abiram to be remembred to this day was it not the strangenes of their death Numb 14.29 30. And Moses sayd If these men dye the common death of all men or if they be visited after the visitation of all men then the Lord hath not sent me but if the Lord make a new thing and the earth open her mouth and swallow them up c. This dreadfull hand of God upon them in swallowing them up alive hath made them to be remembred more then many thousands of honest and good men in Israel who dyed in their beds Upon this account Ananias Saphira are remembred and so is That Herod Act. 12.23 Who was eaten of wormes gave up the Ghost because he gave not glory unto God But saith Job according to this exposition the wicked mans death is commonly so fayre and so much after the common death of all men that no man reremembers him any more And wickednesse shall be broken as a tree That is the wicked man shall dye like an old rotten tree he shall moulder away and decay by peice-meale or gradually as a tree doth which is never hewen downe but is suffered to wast and dye alone Thus the interpretation is carried through the whole verse as a proofe that bad men may in this kinde have a good death But though this be a truth and suites well with Jobs scope in some passages of this Chapter as also in other passages of this booke that wicked men dye as to outward appearance as fairely and sweetly as the godly so that as no man knoweth love or hatred by all that is before him but all things in this life come alike to all There is one event to the righteous and to the wicked Eccl 9.1 2. So all things come alike to all in death so farre as it meerely concernes the separation of soule and body yet I rather conceive that this verse declares wrath and judgement to wicked men dying or their misery and wretchednes in death And therefore first the wombe that is his neerest relations and friends even his mother and wife shall forget him They expected no good from him while he lived and so it was little sorrow to them when he dyed Some men live till their friends are weary of them Mater quia a vivo nihil expectabat solain neq pro mortuo amplius angitur every one thinks the world is well rid of them when they dye Secondly The worme shall feed sweetly on him that is as he fed sweetly
also the state of his inward man He resteth in it sheweth us in the last place and close of the verse what God is doing towards him while he is doing thus or notwithstanding he doth thus Yet his eyes are upon their wayes Some read though his eyes are upon their wayes and give the sence thus though God seeth all their wickednes yet hee lets them proceed and prosper That 's a truth God doth not let wicked men prosper because hee doth not know how wicked they are or what wickednesse they doe hee knowes well enough how ill they are and what evill they doe his eyes are upon their wayes while they abuse his mercyes and in stead of resting in him who gives them safety rest in the safety which he hath given them Secondly Others read thus and his eyes are upon their wayes as if the words were a further description of the wicked mans outward prosperity and a description of it to such a height Quasi intentis in ipsos dei ipsius oculis ut eis omnia ex ipsorū animi sententia succederent Bez Plus est quod probatur aspectu quam quod sermone laudatur Ambros as if the eyes of God were fixed or fastned upon his wayes to take care of him and to cause him to prosper in them as if the eyes of God did drop blessings upon him and guide him every day successefully in all his undertakings The eye of God upon a place or person implyeth in Scripture language his presence with them for good Deut. 11.12 The land whither thou goest in to possesse it is not like Aegypt c. but it is a land which the Lord thy God careth for the eyes of the Lord thy God are alwayes upon it from the beginning of the yeare even unto the end of the yeare as if he had sayd The Lord is uneessantly watchfull over it both to prevent evill and to bestow good upon it Read the same sence of the phrase Ezra 5.5 Psal 33.18 Psal 34.15 And usually in Scripture when the eye of God is sayd to be upon any it is not taken in an evill sence unlesse so exprest as Amos 9.4 Mine eyes shall be upon them for evill and not for good So that while Job sayth And his eyes are upon their wayes The words according to this reading continue if not highten the former sence shewing further the outward prosperity of evill men by the seeming favour of God to them But I rather close with our reading yet his Eyes are upon their wayes as if he had sayd Doe not thinke that God taketh no notice of their sinfull Courses because hee gives them to be in safety and in such safety that they rest and trust upon it for I tell you the eyes of God are upon their wayes Hence observe God alwayes seeth the wayes of wicked men or hee seeth wicked men in all their wayes It is no argument that God neglecteth the government of the world because wicked men are in safety Hee fully considereth their wayes who eyther through ignorance are wandring from or through wilfullnes turning out of his wayes And the eye of God is upon the wayes of such men not onely to see which way Hic opponitur conniventiae dissimulationi Coc or whither they are going Job 34.21 but to punish them for their going wrong God will not connive at nor dissemble what he seeth when he seeth what is unfit Hab. 3.6 Hee stood and measured the earth hee beheld and drove asunder the nations that is he divided and brake those nations in whom he beheld iniquity Zach. 9.8 And no oppressour shall passe through them any more for now I have seene with mine eyes that is I have exactly seene I have taken perfect notice of them and their oppressours I will in justice so oppresse their unjust oppressours that they shall be rid of them for ever No oppressour shall passe through them any more Wee may make a threefold difference about the Eye of God upon the persons or wayes of men First The Eye of God is upon the wayes of men to observe what they doe his eye distinguisheth between good and evill and discerneth as much as beholdeth what is done His seeing the wayes of men is a cleare understanding of them Secondly The Eye of God is upon the wayes of men to prosper and blesse them in what they doe well The eye of God upon the righteous implyeth yea and conveigheth mercy to the righteous Thirdly The Eye of God is upon the wayes of men to punish and chasten them for what they doe amisse God hath a vindictive or a revengeing eye as well as an intuitive or a beholding eye This eye of God is upon all the wayes of wicked men though for a time hee giveth them to be in safety wherein they rest And because God seeth the wayes both of the righteous and the wicked therefore God commandeth us to say to the righteous it shall be well with them for they shall eate the fruit of their doings Wo to the wicked it shall be ill with him for the reward of his hands shall be given him Every man shall receave from the hand of God according to what God hath seene with his eye Lastly Wee may take these words as an admiring Conclusion like that ver 12. Yet God layeth not folly to them They doe foolishly yet God doth not deale with them according to their folly so here they doe wickedly yet his eyes are upon their wayes As if he had sayd it is a wonderfull thing even matter of astonishment that God who so exactly seeth and knoweth the wayes of wicked men should suffer them to be an houre in safety Is it not a wonder that God should suffer them to live long and safely sinning who deserve to dye for every sin As all wicked men who dye impoenitently dye in their sins so God suffers many wicked men to sin till they dye he seeth their wayes and will not stop them till they have run their full course Here is the patience and long suffering of God Men sinne to a wonder when they goe onne in sin after many smitings as the Lord complains by his Prophet Amo 4. I smote them with the pestilence with the sword c. yet have they not returned unto mee saith the Lord. Now as it aggravates mans sin to sin under wrath and smitings so it hightens the goodnesse and patience of God to admiration that he doth not smite men in their sin seing he beholds them in their sin His Eyes are upon their wayes to behold every sin and every sin is not onely displeasing but burdensome and grievous to him What a miracle of patience doth this discover in God The Prophet Habackuk moves the Lord to revenge and wonders how hee could hold his hand from punishing while his eye beheld that done which was so displeasing Hab. 1.12 13. Art not thou from everlasting O Lord my God
in their fullnesse in their hight and glory When the wicked are not onely eares but heads of the eares of corne when they are at the highest they shall dye and this resemblance holds not onely because some eares are head-eares fuller and higher then others but because all corne is cut when once it comes to a head that is to a perfect fullnes Fourthly To be cut off as the tops of the eares of corne may also signifie that there is a speciall time or season when wicked men are to be cut off For as corne is not alwayes ripe for the sickle so wicked men though they alwayes deserve yet are not alwayes ripe for Judgement Corne is not cut downe when greene or when grown high but when it is ripe fit for the flaile it is cut in its season wicked men shall be cut off in their season And as there is a general season for the harvest of the whole world so for every man in particular Rev 14.15 Thrust in thy sickle and reape for the time is come for thee to reape for the harvest of the earth is ripe God will not command the Angel to put in his sickle till the world be ripe for Judgement as he spake also by the Prophet Joel Ch. 3.13 14. Put in thy sickle for the harvest is ripe come get you downe for the presse is full the fats overflow for their wickednes is great multitudes multitudes in the valley of decision for the day of the Lord is neere in the valley of decision that is in the valley of cutting downe or of cutting off or as we put in the Margin in the valley of concision or threshing When the wicked shall be cut off as the tops of the eares of corne by the sickle of divine wrath and be under dreadfull breakings and threshings for evermore Lastly This cutting off as the tops of the eares of corne shewes that God doth not cut off wicked men when he hath them at an advantage when they are weake when they are low but when they are as the tops of the eares of corne when they are at their best then he doth it the chiefe of the people are called the heads of the people Numb 25.4 hang up the heads of the people before me sayth God by Moses he cut them off who were as the heads of the eares of corne As some Tyrants for feare So God in Justice cuts off the heads of the people the chiefe of Familyes Princes and great men This was Elegantly though cruelly Summa papaverum capita decussit ut significaret principes civitatis paulatim esse â—ollendos Flor de Gest Rom cap. 7. expressed by Tarquin the proud the last King of the Romanes who when a Citie was taken or surrendred and application was made to him how he would have the Citizens dealt with he answered onely by a signe calling the Messengers into a garden and having a sticke in his hand he strucke off the heads of the poppyes intimating to them that now the Citizens were in their power they should cut off all the chiefe and leading men among them Thus the Lord cuts off the heads of the eares of corne the chiefe of men or men of greatest power in the greatnesse of their power he cuts them off in love to justice and righteousnesse as tyrants doe in feare and jealousie of their power and greatnesse They are cut off as the tops of the eares of corne Job having at large described the state of wicked men and exemplified many of their wickednesses concludes by way of challenge Vers 25. And if it be not so who will make me a liar and make my speech nothing worth In this verse we have Job triumphing and yet not so much Job triumphing as truth triumphing for how much soever we speake for and defend the truth Non timet veritas falsitatis insidias sed vel pressa tandem triumphat August Ser de Sanct it is not comely that our selves should triumph but the truth onely Job indeed shewes his confidence in the equity of his cause which he affirmes so just and so fully proved to be the minde of God that he dares venture upon the Judgement of any man alive If it be not so now who will make me a liar Brevissime in Hebraeo Etsi non Some make other men lyars by teaching them or encouraging them to tell lyes others make men lyars by proving that they have taught or told lyes This is Jobs meaning when he sayth Who will make me a lyar Wee may suppose Job at the close of his speech rising up and looking about him while he spake thus who will make me a liar Let me see the man stand forth that hath any thing to object against what I have sayd The words are elegant in the Original and if not that is if it be not so as I have asserted concerning the dealeings of God with wicked men that they many times flourish and continue flourishing a long time if it be not so let any man disprove me and make me a liar if he can let him convince me that I am in an errour if he can As if he had sayd I doe not impose my opinion upon you but submit it to the consideration and discussion of all men Hence note First We should freely offer our opinions and assertions to the tryall 'T is too much for a man to looke that what he hath sayd should be consented unto and beleeved because he hath sayd it Onely God himselfe is worthy and may demand to be thus beleeved by man That God saith this or that is enough to perswade yea to require our faith in it and obedience to it When God speakes he that hath eares to heare let him heare Math. 13.9 that is let him beleeve and obey at his perill be it He that is truth cannot but speake truth and therefore is to be beleeved in whatsoever he speaketh Man ought not to say any thing as questioning the verity of what God hath sayd But we ought to consider what men say and not to beleeve beyond what we have tryed And as no man ought to beleeve before he hath tryed so every man ought to present what he hath sayd to the tryall Man hath no dominion over the faith of another Paul professed he had not 2 Cor. 1. 24. and if Paul had not who hath dares any man pretend to a higher priviledge then Paul himselfe did Wee may not bind up the consciences of men to our dictates any further then what we say is grounded upon and answerable to the sayings of God To the Law and to the Testimony if we speake not according to this word ye have leave or may take leave to say as to that saying there is no light in us Is 8.20 We must not teach magisterially but ministerially we must not affect to be called Masters for one is our Master even Christ Mat. 23.10 The Beraeans receaved the
the punishment of that transgression which was death inflicted for eating thirdly the depravation of the whole masse of mans nature by which as Bildad speaks Every man borne of a woman is uncleane And these three fell upon the whole posterity of Adam or upon all that are borne of a woman in a threefold way First The very act of Adams sin becometh ours for wee did participate with him and had as it were a hand in it because wee all were seminally in him so that when he sinned wee all sinned being in his loynes long before we were borne as Levi paid tythes in Abraham before hee was borne Heb. 7.9.10 Thus wee all sinned in his sinning and had a share in that act of his because hee stood as the roote of mankinde and as having entred a covenant with God in that capacity For he sinned not onely as a single person but as hee was the representative of all mankinde and therefore what hee did we are reckoned as doing the same with him Secondly The guilt of that sin is ours by particular Imputation as the fact is ours by common participation for as if Adam had stood in a state of Innocency that had redounded to us for good so his fall or sin redoundeth to us for evill Thirdly There is the pravity or corruption of nature issuing from that first sin and that is chiefly aymed at in the present text And this is derived to us by propagation The defilement of nature descendeth and passeth from generation to generation therefore how can hee that is borne of a woman be clean and that defilement hath two things in it First The losse of original purity or the defaceing and blotting out of the image of God in which man was created Secondly A succession of horrible deformity and disorder which consisteth first in a pronenes to all evill secondly in an impotency and weakenes yea in an aversenes from and enmity against all that is good So then we have to doe with the very act of Adams sin by participation with the guilt of it by imputation and with the filth and deformity of it by propagation From all which it may wel be questioned How can hee be cleane that is borne of a woman and concluded Every man borne of a woman is uncleane Vers 5. Behold even to the Moone and it shineth not and the Starres are not pure in his sight In this verse Bildad proceedeth to argue downe the presumption as hee conceived of Job by calling him to consider those things which are farre below God and yet were farre above him as if he had said Wilt thou contend with God when thou canst not contend with the Moone and Starres they have a brightnes beyond any thing of thine why then doest thou insist so stiffely upon the shinings of thy conversation towards men and the brightnes of thine integrity towards God Behold even to the Moone and it shineth not There is a twofold understanding of these words first some expound them by descending as if Bildad had spoken thus Behold O Job and be both ashamed of and astonished at thy owne folly in venturing upon a tryal before God who is of such infinite purity that while he looketh upon all these heavenly lights that are above the Moone even to or as low as the Moone which as Astronomers teach is the lowest of all the planets it shineth not there is no brightnes no beauty in any of them They are all in comparison of God but clouds and darkenes but clods of earth and dirt And if they shine not in the eye of God surely much lesse doest thou who art a worme and but a clod of moving or breathing earth Secondly Others expound it by ascending As if Bildad had spoken thus Behold O Job and tremble at thy presumption in desiring that God should take so exact a scrutiny of thee of thy cause for look upon all the parts of the inferiour visible world look upon all their glories and excellencies and look not only upon those things that are creeping here upon the Earth but lift up thine eyes as high as the Moone it selfe Behold even to the Moone which is as it were the boundary between the upper and the lower world The Moone being the lowest of the upper world and the highest of the lower world now saith Bildad surveigh the world up to the Moone and it shineth not But doth not the Moone shine yes the Moone shineth the Moone is that lesser light which was made to rule the night Gen. 1.16 Why then doth hee say it shineth not the meaning is onely this that Moone-light and Sun-light that all creature-light is no light nor their shining to be called shining when we speake of the light and shinings of God himselfe The Moone shineth for the use and to the eye of man but the Moone shineth not for any use to or in the eye of God As because he is light he needeth no light so because there was no light till he created it the light of the creature is nothing unto him The Moone and Starres shine but when the Sunne is up they shine not that is not to our view the Starres shine as much in the day as in the night though wee cannot see them being over-powred by that greater light the light of the Sunne So when the glory of the Lord appeareth both Sunne and Moone disappeare and are no moore seene Ne luna quidem lucida est collata eum deo Vatabl. The light of the world is no light where God is named doe but speake of God and all the beauty and brightnesse of the creature fades and is extinct The Moone is a very beautifull creature considered by it selfe as Job speakes to shew how farre he was from idolizing it notwithstanding all that beauty wherein it appeared to him Chap. 31.26 If I beheld the Sunne when it shined or the Moone walking in brightnesse that is if I beheld eyther Sunne or Moone so as to adore and worship them if I reckoned any thing of Moone and Sunne in comparison of God if I did not judge the light of both as darknes and obscurity in reference to him if I did not behold them so as if I did not behold them not being taken up or dazzl'd at all with their shining brightnes scarse at all seeing not at all admiring any brightnes but the brightnes of God if it were not thus with me if I stood not at this distance and upon these termes with the best of the creatures then c. It argues that there is much natural beauty in the Moone when as Job to shew his spirituall chastity saith that the beauty of it did not at all withdraw or steale away his heart from God Indeed such is the beauty of the Moone that it is used to shadow out the Church in her spirituall beauty Cant. 6.10 Who is shee that looketh forth as the morning faire as the Moone The Moone is
vulgar and improper sence even those things that never had life may be called dead Mr Broughton renders strictly not dead things but things without life are formed under the waters The Hebrew word may come from a twofold roote and so hath a twofold signification First to heale and cure 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 dolorem mitigavit sanavit transferturper MetaphoraÌ„ a corpore ad animam ut sig remittere peccata and in Scripture it is transferred from the healing of the body to the healing of the soule in the remission of sins because as the wound of the body is healed by the salve so is the soules wound namely sinne healed by remission or forgivenesse The word is used in this sence Isa 6.10 Make the heart of this people fat and make their eares heavy and shut their eyes least they see with their eyes and heare with their eares and understand with their heart and convert and be healed that is pardoned Secondly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 debitis dissolutus laxus languidus it signifies to be dissolved or loosened to be weake and languishing wee translate it dead because things that are dead are weakened and dissolved and therefore death is called a dissolution As Paul sayd Phil. 1.23 I desire to depart or to be dissolved that is to dye and the same phrase is used for death 2 Cor 5.1 Wee know that when the earthly house of this Tabernacle shall be dissolved c. Againe by the figure Antiphrasis frequent in Scripture this word as it signifies dead and weake things so also strong and lively things yea those that are strongest or most lively and therefore Gyants who are the strongest of men are expressed by this word Deut. 2.11 The Enims dwelt therein in times past Ecce Gigantes gemunt sub aquis Vulg a people great and many and tall as the Anakims which also were accounted Giants c. And the vulgar translates so here Behold The Giants groane under the waters Giants are called Rephaim in the Hebrew which word in the roote signifies to weaken not from their nature but from their effects not because they are weake but because they weaken others Giants are so strong that the very sight of them makes others weake and faint or pulls downe men of strength and might It is sayd that Saul and the whole Army of Israel were dismayed when they saw Goliah and greatly afraid they were weake before the Giant There is much labouring to make out this sence of the word here some understand it of the Giants before the flood Behold the Giants groane from under the flood Those Giants were indeed overthrowne by the waters and so they conceave that Job alluded unto them but I shall not stay upon that interpretation Others expound the text of those Gyants whose proper element is water the mighty fishes of the Sea the Whale the Leviathan spoken of in this booke of Job Leviathan is a Sea-monster a Sea-gyant of huge dimensions Naturall Historians and travellers describe the vastnes of the Whale or Leviathan to wonder and amazement And 't is granted that in these Gods power is much seene But I shall lay by this exposition also because I conceive fishes are spoken of in the next words where they are called the inhabitants thereof that is of the Sea or waters Againe this word Rephaim is often put for the dead or those that are departed this life Psal 88.10 Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead shall the dead arise and praise thee There are two words used for the dead in that verse one is the ordinary word the other is that of the Text. Solomon Pro. 2.18 shewing how dangerous it is to have to doe with the adulteresse sayth Her house inclineth unto death and her paths unto the Rephaim or the dead The house of Adultery and uncleanenes is the Gatehouse to death it is not a house raysed up but bowed downe her house enclineth unto death and she who is the governesse of rather the miss-governeness of the house will by her ill life bring thee among the dead even among those who are twice dead corporally dead at present and spiritually dead for ever But that which I shall rather pitch upon according to our translation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is that by these dead things are meant such things as never had any life Mr Broughton expounds his translation Things without life of those precious things that are formed under the waters Amber and pearle and goodly stones These dead things are found under the waters and there they are formed Gods providence reacheth to the furthest places even to the bottome of the Sea and lowest earth which seeme to be as cast off So he glosseth and so doe other Interpreters Incipit dei providentiam poâ—entiam describere a rebus subterraneis initio sumpâ—o Merc concluding that Job is here setting forth the power of God in forming minerals and pretious stones under the waters or in the deepes and so riseth in his discourse by degrees to higher things As if he had sayd O Bildad what doest thou shewing me the power and providence of God in the high places where he maketh peace I can tell thee that the same power and providence of God are extended to those things which are wrought in the bowels of the earth and at the bottome of the Sea and so are furthest removed from our sight And whereas we say Dead things are formed there that word properly signifies to bring forth children or any living creature Job 39.1 2. Knowest thou the time when the wilde Goates of the rock bring forth or canst thou marke when the Hindes doe calve Canst thou number the moneths that they fulfill or knowest thou the time when they bring forth yea The Eternall Word and Wisdome of God speakes of himselfe in the language of this Word Pro. 8.25 Before the mountaines were setled before the hils was I brought forth It signifieth also to be in paine and groane for paine because child-bearing causeth much paine and groaning So the word is used in a metaphoricall sence Deut 2.25 This day will I begin saith the Lord to put the dread of thee and the feare of thee upon the Nations that are under the whole heaven who shall heare report of thee and shall tremble and be in anguish because of thee they shall be in anguish as a woman travelling with child and pained to bring forth Whence that translation takes its ground The Gyants groane under the waters And as it signifies to forme and fashion the child or any living thing in the womb and then to bring forth so it is applyed to the forming of things that have no life Ps 90. â—2 Before the mountaines were brought forth or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world even from everlasting to everlasting thou art God Dead things are formed But by whom here is no power exprest Job sayth onely they are formed
swallow up his Church and people The Church blesseth God for her deliverance from troubles under this Allegorie of Waters Psal 124.2 3 4 5. If it had not been the Lord who was on our side when men rose up against us they had swallowed us up quicke when their wrath was kindled against us then the waters had overwhelmed us the streame had gone over our soule then the proud waters had gone over our soule Waters streames proud waters are nothing else but the persecuting spirit and proceedings of ungodly enemyes And why did not these lay all wast God would not suffer them When the Serpent Rev 12.15 16. cast out of his mouth waters as a flood after the woman that is stirred up many troubles that he might cause her to be carryed away that is utterly ruin'd of the flood The earth helped the woman saith the text that is as is conceaved God made earthly men by the use of earthly meanes and for the attaining of earthly ends as a bound to stop those waters or as a gulfe to swallow up those waters which should have swallowed up the Church All these things doth he and we may be fully assured he can doe all these things and many more who hath compassed the waters with bounds yea we may be assured that he will continue to them because as he hath so he will compasse the waters with bounds Vntill the day and night come to an end or as our Marginal reading hath it untill the end of light with darkenes This last clause of the verse is a proverbiall speech signifying perpetuity or that such a thing eyther shall not be at all or shall be as long as the world lasteth But shall day and night light and darkenes end when the world or this frame or constitution of things endeth Will there not be day and light or an eternal day of light in the heavenly Glory is not that called An inheritance among the Saints in light Col. 1.12 And will there not be night and darkenes or an eternal night of darkenes in hellish misery is not that called outer darkenes How then is it sayd here that day and night shall come to an end I answer Though after the end of this world there shall be both day and night light and darkenes yet there shall be no vicissitude of day and night as there is in this present world and as 't is promised there shall be to the end of this world Gen 8.22 While the earth remaineth seed-time and harvest and cold and heate and summer and winter and day and night shall not cease These are called the Ordinances of the day and of the night and the stability of them is made the shadow of that stability of God to his gracious promise that the seed of Israel should not cease from being a nation before him for ever Jer. 31.35 36. In this world light and darkenes day and night are comming and going departing and returning continually And in this sence day and night shall come to an end at the worlds end Job speakes of day and night in course and succession not of day and night in being or constitution when he sayth he hath compassed the waters with bounds untill the day and night come to an end The Hebrew strictly translated makes this resolution of the doubt more cleare and doubtlesse for that doth not say absolutely that day and night light or darkenes shall come to an end but that there shall be an end of light with darkenes that is of the intercourse or change between day and night between light and darkenes Ad consummationeÌ„ lucis cum tenebris Jun or untill the consummation of light with darkenes that is untill light and darkenes have consummated or fulfilled their course one with another Hence observe First Beyond this world there are no changes of times or seasons In the world to come all is day and light to the Godly to those who dye in the Lord and all is night and darkenes to the wicked to those who dye out of the Lord. Heaven and hell a state of eternal Blessednes or wretchednes have no changes in them nor any thing that is Heterogeneall or of another kinde Heaven which hath light and joy in it hath no darkenes no sorrow at all in it Hell which hath darkenes and sorrow in it hath no light nor joy at all in it The mixtures and changes of light and darkenes of joy and sorrow of paine and pleasure are made here on earth The wine of the wrath of God and the wine of the love and consolations of God shall be powred out without any the least contrary tincture or mixture in the life which is to come Light with darkenes shall no more be heard of They who goe into light shall never see darkenes and they who goe into darkenes shall never see light Wee are now as Job speakes in the 14th Chapter of this Booke v. 14. Waiting all the dayes of our appoynted time untill our change come and when that change is once fully come we shall goe beyond all changes Day with night will then be at an end Secondly Observe What God doth he can alwayes doe As he hath hitherto compassed the waters with bounds so he can compasse them with bounds untill the day and night come to an end Men can doe that to day which they are so farre from being able to doe untill the end of dayes that possibly they cannot doe it the next day The hand of man is continually shortning in regard of naturall strength or activity and it seldome keepes long at the same length in regard of civil strength or Authority As there are many things which man cannot nor ever could doe so there are many things which once a man could doe but now he cannot He is changed or the times are changed eyther he hath not the same power in himselfe or the same powers are not continued unto him That man may be found shaking and trembling who a while before as it is sayd of the Assyrian Isa 14.16 made the earth to tremble and did shake kingdomes insomuch that all as 't is at the 10â—h verse of the same Chapter shall speake and say unto him Art thou also become weake as we art thou become like unto us Thus we see the mightiest men cannot doe what they have done they who have compassed the rage and fury of men with bounds can bound them no more bat they breake in upon them like a wide breaking in of the Sea and beare downe all before them But the power of God knowes no abatings nor his hand any shortnings as he hath bounded both the natural and mysticall waters so he can and will bound them and none shall hinder untill the day and night come to an end The Lord sayth David Psal 29.10 sitteth upon the flood yea the Lord sitteth king for ever As if he had sayd The Lord doth not onely sit upon that is
rule and governe the floods for a while but he ruleth and governeth them alwayes he sitteth upon them king for ever even untill day and night come to an end Thirdly note The waters shall never totally overflow the earth As God hath given them a bound so such a bound as shall keepe them in compasse for ever And as we have an assurance in the power of God that he can keepe or compasse the waters with bounds to the end of the world so also we have his promise and his faithfullnes engaged that he will maintaine those bankes and bounds and keepe them in such repayre that the waters shall never prevaile over them Gen. 9.8 9 10 11. And God spake unto Noah and to his sons with him saying and I behold I establish my Covenant with you and with your seed after you c. neyther shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood neyther shall there be any more a flood to destroy the earth And as mankinde is under this promise of freedome from an universal deluge so every godly man may rise up to this assurance that no waters of any sort can wet so much as the sole of his foote or the hemme of his garment but as they have leave and commission from him who hath compassed the waters with bonnds untill the day and night come to an end JOB CHAP. 26. Vers 11 12. The pillars of heaven tremble and are astonished at his reproofe He divideth the Sea by his power and by his understanding he smiteth through the proud JOB still proceedeth in the enumeration and illustration of the mighty works of God what he doth in the clouds and what in the heavens was shewed from the former context Here Job tells us what the Lord doth with the heavens He who made the heavens and stretched out the North over the empty place can make these heavens totter in their place and tremble when he pleaseth The pillars of heaven tremble and are astonished at his reproofe There are three things to be enquired into for the opening of this verse First What is meant by the pillars of heaven Secondly How the pillars of heaven may be said to tremble and be astonished Thirdly What we are to understand by the reproofe of God Columnae coeli i. e. Angeli contremiscunt Aquin Angelos vocat columnas coeli quia sâ—ilicet eorum officio admâ—nistratur motus coelorum Aquin when he sayth they are astonished at his reproofe The pillars of heaven tremble There are various opinions about these pillars first many of the Latins hold that these pillars of heaven are the Angells by whose assistance say some Philosophers the motions of the heavenly bodyes with their orbes or spheares are guided and maintained And doubtlesse as the Angels have great employments upon and about the earth so also in and about the heavens and therefore may not improperly be called the pillars of heaven in which sence also the Angels are called the powers of heaven as some interpret Math 24.29 where Christ prophesieth that immediatly after the tribulation of those dayes the Sunne shall be darkened and the Moone shall not give her light the starrs shall fall from heaven and the powers of heaven shall be shaken Many of the antients interpret those powers of heaven by the Angels as if the Lord would doe such things in that great day as should trouble and astonish not onely men on earth but the Angels in heaven who may be called the pillars of heaven as some eminent men for parts and power are called the pillars of the earth And wee may suppose them pillars of heaven not for the strength and sustainement of heaven Stabilitaâ—eÌ„ permanenteÌ„ in natura angelorum intelligamus nemine Columnarum Philip but for the beauty and ornament of it As we see many pillars in stately Pallaces which are not placed there to beare up the weight of those buildings but only to adorn beautifie them Or Angels may be called the pillars of heaven because of the firmenes and stability of their owne nature not as if they were any firmenes or establishment unto heaven Secondly By these pillars of heaven are conceaved to be meant the high mountaines of the earth which seeme to touch the heavens according to sence and so to sustaine and beare them up as pillars but this opinion not being grounded upon any truth in nature but onely upon a popular errour though it be a truth that even these supposed pillars of heaven tremble at the reproofes of God I shall not insist at all upon this interpretalion Thirdly These pillars of heaven say others are the ayre for as the lowest parts of the earth are called the foundations of the earth because the foundation of a building is layd lowest so the lower parts of heaven the ayre which is sometimes called heaven yea the firmament of heaven Gen. 1.20 may be called the pillar of heaven 'T is true also that the Lord maketh dreadfull combustions by stormes and tempests in the ayre insomuch that those pillars of heaven tremble and are astonished at his reproofe But I shall not give this neyther as Jobs meaning here Terra tota velut orbis totius fundamentum ac firmanentum Merc Fourthly By the pillars of heaven others understand not the ayre or the mountains but the whole body on globe of the earth Thus David speakes 2 Sam. 22.8 Then the earth shooke and trembled the foundations of heaven moved and shooke because he was wroth where the foundations of heaven in the latter part of the verse may be expounded by the earth in the former part of the verse For if we consider the whole fabricke of the world together then the earth seemes to be the foundation or pillar of heaven And frequent experiences in all ages especially in some parts of the world have felt and reported the trembling of the earth We commonly call it an Earth-quake and Philosophers teach us that the reason of it in nature is the strength of vapours included in and striving to make their way out of the bowels of the earth And as this trembling of the earth hath a reason in nature so it is often caused by speciall command from God as a reproofe of the sinfullnes of man or to awaken him from his sin yet Fifthly I rather conceive that this phrase The pillars of heaven is used onely in a generall sense and not particularly intended eyther of Angels or mountains of the ayre or of the earth but that the pillars of heaven are the strength of heaven the strength of a building consists in the pillars that beare it up take away the pillars and it falls downe as Sampson sayd to the lad that held him by the hand suffer me that I may feele the pillars whereupon the house standeth and when he had once moved them the house fell Judg. 16.26.30 so that when Job sayth the pillars of heaven tremble the
heaven proper and the pillars of heaven in a figure tremble at or are astonished at these loud reproofes Hence observe The greatest strength of the creature trembleth at the angry dispensations and appearances of God As the lifting up of the light of Gods countenance puts joy into the heart more then corn wine the best things of this world so the darkenes of Gods countenance puts more trouble and sorrow into our hearts then gall and wormewood the worst of the world can doe David describes at large in what a kinde of hudle and hurry the world was in such a day Psal 18.13 14 15. Then the earth shooke and trembled the foundations also of the hils moved and were shaken because he was wroth The Lord also thundered in the heavens and the highest gave his voyce hailestones and coales of fire he sent out his arrows and scattered them and he shot out lightnings and discomfited them then the channels of waters were seene and the foundations of the world were discovered at thy rebuke O Lord at the blast of the breath of thy nostrills What David there spake of thunder and lightning and hayle-stones hath been visibly effected for the destruction of the enemyes of the people of God and for the deliverance of his children The history of Joshuah gives us a famous instance at the 10th Chapter and though it be not recorded that David obtained victoryes by such immediate helpes from heaven yet it is not improbable considering the tenour of this Psalme that he did And we have a notable instance of a victory obtained by Thunder and lightning in the History of the Church whence that Christian Legion of Souldiers who had earnestly prayed that God would appeare for their help was called The Thundering Legion But whether we expound this context in the Psalme literally and strictly as expressing what God did for David in this kinde Or figuratively as expressing onely thus much that God did wonderfull things in one kinde or other in helping David against his enemyes or whether we understand it mystically of what God doth to and for the soules and spirituall estates of men yet it holds forth in all the utter inability of man to beare up when the Lord shewes himselfe in any terrible demonstrations of his presence Againe Psal 104.32 He looketh on the earth and it trembleth he toucheth the hills and they smoake There is a twofold looke of God First there is the looke of Gods favour and thus Saints often pray that God will looke downe from heaven upon them this looke is the releiving yea the reviving of the soule secondly there is a looke of displeasure an angry a frowning looke when clouds and stormes are seene in the brow Thus in the Psalme God is sayd to looke on the earth frowningly childingly and then it trembled he toucheth the hills and they smoak that is they are as all on-fire The natural hils smoake at Gods touch and so doe the metaphoricall hills when God toucheth the great men of the earth they smoake presently they fret and fume till they breake out into a flame of rage heating and vexing both themselves and all that are neere them Isa 50.2 Behold at my rebuke I dry up or I can dry up the Sea I am as able to doe it now with a word of my mouth as I once did it for the deliverance of your forefathers Exo 14.21.29 I make or I can make when I will with my rebuke the rivers a wildernesse that is as dry as a desert or wildernes useth to be their fish stinketh because there is no water and dyeth for thirst What strange worke doth the rebuke of God make By that he drieth the sea by that he maketh the river a wildernes and as he doth this by the power of his reproofes upon the sea and rivers natural so upon the sea and rivers mysticall He can dry up those worldly helpes which seeme as inexhaustible as the sea and as lasting and constant to us as a river which is fed with a continuall spring And when any power riseth up against us as deepe and dangerous as the sea as wel supplyed and seconded as a river yet we need not feare for God can presently dry it up and make us a passage over it or through it Yea they who are as well bottom'd and foundation'd as the earth shall quickly feele the effects of his power Psal 114.7 Tremble thou earth at the presence of the Lord at the presence of the God of Jacob. But some may say if the earth trembleth at the presence of God then the earth must alwayes tremble for God is alwayes present or what is the presence of God there spoken of I answer as there is a presence of God that maketh all those that enjoy it to sing for joy In thy presence is fullnesse of joy and at thy right hand are pleasures for evermore Psal 16.11 so there is a presence of God that is very terrible to the creature yea that presence of God which is comfortable to his people is terrible to his enemyes for when the Psalmist had sayd ver 2. Judah was his Sanctuary and Israel his dominion that is a people sanctifyed to him and governed and protected by him presently it followeth The sea saw it and fled Jordan was driven backe The mountaines skipped like rams and the litle hils like lambs The Psalmist perceaving all things in such a trembling fit and confusion seemes to wonder what the matter was and therefore puts the question What ayled thee O thou sea that thou fleddest yea mountaines that ye skipped c And presently maketh answer Tremble thou earth at the presence of the Lord As if he had sayd the cause of all this terrour and trouble among the creatures was nothing else but the presence of God And if the very sence-lesse creatures were sencible of his wrathfull presence how much more must man both be sencible of it and stoop unto it This the Lord insinuates by a cutting question Ezek. 22.14 Can thy heart indure or can thy hands be strong in the day that I shall deale with thee I the Lord have spoken it and will doe it The Lord by his Prophet speakes there to a people that had a double strength they were strong hearted and they were strong handed they had much force or outward power and they had much courage or inward power but neyther hand-strength nor heart-strength neyther force nor courage shall avayle you in that day saith the Lord that I shall deale with you after the dealings of an enemy in wrath and Judgement God strengthens the hands of his servants and encourageth their hearts to endure his severest dealings with them But when he commeth to deale severely with those who are rebellious and wicked their hearts who are stoutest among them shall not be able to endure nor can they strengthen their hands They who have strengthned their hearts and hands most to commit sin shall be
God made two great lights the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night he made the starres also and God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth God in Creation did with the light as he did with the waters which being made were divided the waters above the firmament were divided from the waters under the firmament and the waters under the heaven he gathered together into one place Gen. 1.9 God prepared a certaine great vessell into which the waters were called and gathered that they should not spread over the earth as they did at first which gathering together of the waters God called Seas Gen. 1.10 Thus the light which was spread and scattered through the ayre over all the earth God gathered into severall vessells Pulchritudo es ornamenta coeloruÌ„ stellae sunt sicut terrae animantia et plantae Sanct and the gathering together of light he called Sunne Moone Starrs which are as Job here calleth them the garnishing of the heavens Moses epitomiseth or briefly summs up his larger narrative of the Creation in these words Gen 2.1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished and all the host of them that is they were finished not onely as to their essentials but ornamentalls not only was the foundation layd the walls and pillars the beames and rafters of that goodly structure set up and perfected but all the furniture of it was brought in and the beautyes of it compleated Now as gemms minerals plants trees and all living creatures are the Garnishing of the Earth and the host of God there so the Sunne Moone and Starrs are the garnishing of heaven and the host of God there David speaketh of these distinctly Psal 33.6 By the word of the Lord were the heavens made and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth All creatures whether placed in heaven or earth are for their number their strength their order their readynes at a call or command the host of God Earthly Princes shew their power in their hosts and armyes of what power God is both his acts and his hosts aboundantly declare And as these creatures are the armyes or host of God in heaven and earth so they are the Adornings and Garnishings of heaven and earth Job in this place speaketh onely of the former By his Spirit he hath Garnished the Heavens Onely here take notice that some expound the word Spirit for the winde which bloweth in the ayre and so render the text thus By his winde hee garnisheth the heavens As if this were Jobs meaning that God sending forth the windes dispelleth and scattereth those clouds foggs and mists which often cover the face of the heavens and hinder our beholding their glory and garnishings According to this interpretation the garnishing of the heavens is nothing else but the removing of that which obscureth the Garnishing of them And it is true that when the heavens are maskt over with clouds and darknesse God by the winds cleareth the ayre and so reneweth the face of those heavenly bodyes But I passe by this and shall onely insist upon the former exposition of these words as being more sutable with Jobs scope and more expressive of the power and Glory of God in the great things which he hath wrought for us By his Spirit hee garnisheth the heavens Hence learne First We ought joyntly to acknowledge and give glory to the Father Son and Spirit in the worke of Creation Solomon in his advice to the young man sayth Eccl 12.1 Remember thy creators in the dayes of thy youth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 creatorum tuorum Mysterâ—um Sanctae Trinitatis Pisc Wee translate in the singular number creator but the Hebrew is plural Creators intimating the mystery of the Holy Trinity as Moses also is conceaved to doe in that plural expression Gen 1.26 And God sayd let us make man in our image after our likenes And though this be added in a way of Eminency when the particular creation of man is set downe yet we are to understand it so generally of the whole worke of Creation and as of the worke of Creation so of all other divine workes towards the creature Redemption is the worke of the Father and of the Spirit as wel as of the Son and sanctification is the worke of the Father and of the Son as wel as of the Spirit The three persons worke together onely they have a distinct manner of working according to which each worke is chiefely attributed to that person and so creation is specially appropriated to the Father Redemption to the Son and Sanctification to the Holy Ghost Seing then all Three worke together in all things towards us All three ought to be equally and eternally honoured worshipped loved and obeyed by us By his Spirit he hath garnished the Heavens Secondly Observe The heavens are full of beauty God hath not onely made them but adorn'd them What a rich and Royall Canopy hath God hung over the heads of poore wormes dust and ashes God did not thinke it enough to give us a house unlesse he gave us also a pleasant house he was not satisfied in setting up a large fabricke for us unlesse he also furnished and garnished it for us God hath made the world not onely usefull but contentfull to us he hath fitted it not onely for our necessity but delight The earth is beautifull but the heavens exceed in beauty The heavens are the Ceiling of our house and the Starres are like Golden studs and sparkling Diamonds in that Ceiling We may inferre three things from the Garnishing of these heavens First If the heavens which we see are so glorious what are the heavens which no eye hath seene If God hath thus discernably adorned the first and second heavens how unconceaveable are the ornaments of the third heavens If nature hath so much beauty in it how beâ—utifull a thing is Glory If God hath prepared such heavens as our eyes see for those who hate him then surely eye hath not seene eare hath not heard nor hath it entred into the heart of man to understand what those heavens are which God hath prepared for them and for them alone who love him The light of these visible heavens is but darkenes to that inheritance of the Saints in light The Moone-light if I may so speake of that state shall be better and more illustrious then the Sun-light of this and the light of the Sunne shall be sevenfold as the light of seven dayes in that Great day when the Lord shall perfectly bind up All the breaches of his people and heale the stroake of their wound God who by his Spirit hath garnished these heavens will be himselfe with his Son and Spirit the eternal Garnishing of those heavens Secondly Seing God hath been so bountifull and munificent as to Garnish the heavens for us even for us by his Spirit seing he hath provided such
if the meaning of these words His hand hath formed the crooked serpent Draco volans were this God hath wrought and formed by his power wisdome all those fiery meteors that are often seene as it were flying and shooting in the ayre to the wonder of many and the astonishment of not a few There are the treasures of the snow and of the hayle there God prepareth a way for the lightning of the thunder Job 38.22.25 Some learned interpreters insist much upon this Exposition placing the crooked serpent in the heavens eyther the upper or lower as hath been shewed under foure distinct titles nor can it be denyed but that the hand of God hath wrought all these things much lesse can it be denyed that the working of these things is a great argument and demonstration of the power and wisedome of God which is the purpose of Job in this place therefore I shall not totally lay it aside Neyther yet will I leave it with the reader as the speciall meaning of this place for this reason because I much doubt whether those poeticall phancyes in giving such fictitious names to the Starres of heaven as The Lion the Beare the Bull the Dragon the Serpent c. of which Philosophers and Astronomers have made use were at all borne or ever so much as heard of in those elder times in which and before which Job lived For though both in the 9th Chapter of this booke v. 9. as also in the 38th Chapter v. 21 22. many Names are given to the Starres which both the Greeke and Latine translaters and we following them in the English render by those poeticall names yet The Original Hebrew words beare no allusion at all to those phancyes As for instance The Hebrew word which we render Arcturus Chap 9.9 hath nothing at all in it signifying The Tayle of a Beare But here in this text the word properly signifyeth a crooked serpent and therefore to place it in the heavens as a Starre when as in the times when this was written there is so little if any probability at all that any such apprehensions were taken up by any or any such allusive names given to the Starres seemes to me somewhat improper There is another veine of interpretation carrying the sence of these words His hand hath formed the crooked serpent to quite another poynt for 't is conceaved by the Authors of this opinion that as Job gave instance before in the workes of God above his highest workes in nature the garnishing of the heavens so hee now giveth instance in his workes below or in his lowest workes This general interpretation is delivered two wayes distinctly First That as God hath garnished the heavens so he hath made and now governeth hel too His hand hath formed the crocked serpent that is the Devill That which favoureth this opinion and hath possibly cast the thoughts of many upon it is that in Scripture the devil is often called a serpent yea a crooked serpent and that he acted a serpent as his instrument in the first temptation Gen. 3.1 Now the serpent was more subtile then any of the beasts of the feild which the Lord God had made and he sayd unto the woman that is The Devill in or by the Serpent sayd unto her c. He hath wel deserved to be called a Serpent who acted his first malice against mankinde by the helpe of a Serpent And for his thus early making use of a Serpent he is called not only a serpent but that old Serpent Rev. 12.9 The great Dragon was cast out that old Serpent called the Devill and Satan which deceiveth the whole world he was cast out into the earth and his Angells were cast out with him The hand of God hath formed this crooked serpent To cleare which some interpret the former part of the verse in complyance with this sence for the good Angells thus By his Spirit he hath Garnished the heavens Spiritus ejus ornavit coelos Vulg i. e. coelestes spiritus ornamētis scilicet spiritualium denorum Aquin Et obstetricante manu ejus eductus est coleber tortuosus Vulg that is he hath bestowed excellent gifts upon the Angels who are the great ornament of heaven and may tropically be called heaven as men are called earth And as holy wise just and faithfull men are the ornaments and garnishings of the earth so the holy Angels are the garnishings of heaven they having such mighty power and excellent gifts Now saith this interpretation as God garnished the heavens with good Angels so he brought forth the crooked serpent the Devill by his working power Not as if they who stand up for this exposition did affirme that God did make the Devill by his immediate hand as he did the good Angels and the rest of the Creatures for when God saw every thing that he had made behold it was very good and therefore the crooked-serpent as taken under this Notion for the Devill who is the Evill one could not be of his making Therefore though the Devill according to his original or general nature as an Angel was formed of God yet the crookednes of his nature as wel as of his wayes which properly and formally denominate him a Devill was of himselfe he having turned away from God and defiled that state by the freedom of his own will in which he was created pure and had society with his fellow-Angels Eduxit deus diabolum è medio Angelorum Aquin till God for his sin did as it were pull him and his Adhaerents from the midst of them and as the Apostle Jude saith v. 6. Hath reserved them together in chaines of darknesse unto the judgement of the great day But I conceave that Job is not here speaking of an Allegoricall or Metaphoricall serpent such a one as the Devill is but of a reall and proper one And therefore I lay by this exposition as unsutable to the text in hand And conclude that Job having in the former part of the verse set forth the power and wisedome of God in garnishing the heavens his meditation descendeth in this latter part of it though not so low as hel yet as low as the waters especially the waters of the Sea and there sheweth us the hand of God at worke both in making and destroying in forming and wounding the crooked serpent For the Hebrew word which we render hath formed signifyes also to wound and so we translate it Isa 51.9 Awake awake O arme of the Lord c. art not thou it which hath cut Rahab and wounded the Dragon yea it is so translated by some in this text of Job His hand hath wounded the crooked serpent Which cometh neere that of the Prophet according to the bare literal reading Isa 27.1 In that day the Lord with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish Leviathan the peircing or as we put in the Margin the crossing like a bar serpent even Leviathan that crooked
and can wound Leviathan the crooked Serpent He can put a hooke in his nose and bore his jaw through with a thorne And thus God can doe also with those who are Leviathans and crooked Serpents in a figure The Devill and all cruel-minded men who doe his worke and cary on his designe against the people of God as is expressed in that lately alledged Scripture Isa 27.1 In that day the Lord with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish Leviathan the peircing Serpent that is those enemyes and persecuters of his people who seeme to be as strong and invincible as Leviathan and as subtle and dangerous as the most peircing stinging Serpent Thus the Lord assured his faithfull ones Isa 54.16 17. That no weapon formed against them should prosper for saith he I have created the Smith that bloweth the coales in the fire and that bringeth forth an Instrument for his worke and I have created the waster to destroy Therefore I can hinder the waster from destroying and make all his weapons edgelesse poyntlesse no more able to wound then a straw or a rush How soone can God blunt and abate the keenest spirits of men and weaken their strongest armes when he seeth they will but doe mischiefe with them He that causeth motion can stop it and he that giveth power can call it in or breake it where it is While God is on our side who made all we need not feare who are made against us Though they have teeth like Lyons and stings like Serpents we are safe The hand of God can kill and wound for His Hand hath formed the crooked Serpent Vers 14. Lo these are parts of his wayes but how little a portion is heard of him but the thunder of his power who can understand Thus Job concludes after he had given an enumeration or Induction of many particulars he doth as it were hold them forth in his hand to the view of all men Behold or lo these are parts of his wayes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 finem extremitatem denotat The word which we render parts signifyeth the end or extremity of a thing There is a twofold extremity first that which is utmost or furthest from us secondly that which is hithermost or neerest to us The word takes in both Ne me putetis omnia enarrasse vix enim extremam partem attigi Coc and is used for both in one text Psal 19.6 His going forth that is the going forth of the Sunne is from the end of the heaven and his circuit unto the ends of it As if he had sayd the Sunne compasseth the heaven round and visiteth both the hithermost and uttermost as to us extremityes of it In the present text of Job we are to understand it of the hithermost extremity or of that which is next us implying that there are many and much more glorious things to be spoken of God if we were able to comprehend them reach the uttermost end or extremity of them And that it is so to be understood here is plaine from the next words But how litle a portion is heard of him Ecce hae sunt orae viarum ejus Coc Licet quae dixi siensibus nostris et judicio maxima esse videantur et verè sint stupenda respectu tamen divinae potentiae non sunt nisi minutiae peripsemata minimaque particulae eorum quae fecit ac facere potest Bold Extrema viae erunt opera minora nostri captus Coc In complyance with which sence some render the text thus These are the edges or borders of his wayes as if Job had sayd I have shewed you onely the borders I have not led you into the heart of the Country or into the midst of the workes and wayes of God much lesse to the furthest extremity or outside of them I have indeed spoken of very great and wonderfull things yet all that I have sayd is but litle to what might be sayd or at least to what really is I have given you but as it were the parings and chipings of Gods workes I have not gone to the bottome nor reached the depth of them So that Job seemes to distinguish these effects and workes of God about which he had discoursed from some greater workes which he was not able to attaine unto nor make any discovery of There are not onely Celestiall but super-celestiall workes of God wee cannot well apprehend much lesse comprehend what he hath wrought under the heavens which are onely the outside of his workes much lesse those which are above the heavens For as none of the works of God appeare to us or have been found out by us in their fulnesse and utmost extent so God hath done some great works which doe not at all appeare to us And those things which appeare are but small parts or parcels in comparison of those which as yet doe not appeare to us Lo these are parts of his wayes The wayes of God are spoken of in Scripture under a twofold notion First As the wayes in which God would have us walke so the commandements and statutes of God are called the wayes of God Psal 119.33 Teach me O Lord the way of thy statutes and I shall keepe it unto the end Secondly The wayes of God are those wherein he comes and reveales himselfe to us Via dei illius opera sunt agendi rationes quibus ad nos ille venire dicitur quia in his prodit ad nos et progrediendo se magis magisque nostris sensibus accommodat Coc As that is a mans way wherein or whereby he is knowne so in whatsoever God manifesteth or maketh himselfe knowne to us that is the way of God Isa 55.8 My thoughts are not your thoughts neither are your wayes my wayes saith the Lord. That is my wayes of mercy are as farre above your wayes of mercy as your dutyes are below my wayes of holynes yea what are your wayes of sinfulnes in doing evill to my wayes of graciousnes in pardoning the evills which ye have done Man hath a vast and a large heart in sinning but the vastnes and largenes of mans heart in sinning is but scantnes and narrownes to the largenes and vastnes of Gods heart in pardoning We may understand the Lord speaking in eyther of or in both these sences My wayes are not as your wayes And in general the way of God is that wherein he acteth or revealeth himselfe towards us whether it be in mercy or in Judgement in love or terrour God hath some wayes which we may call foule and troublesome wayes such are his wayes of judgement he hath other wayes which we may call fayre and delightsome wayes such are all his wayes of mercy And as God comes to us continually in one or other of these wayes of providence so he came forth of old in the way of creation Prov 8.22 The Lord possessed mee in the beginning of his way