1009. Inward beauty most desirable 1010 Beginning taken two ways 623 Behemoth described six wayes 606 607. Behemoth may signifie all the beasts of the field 609. Why though a word of the plural number applicable to one 609. Behemoth how the chief of the wayes of God 624 Beholding of things or persons twofold 577 Believers why called the first fruits of Gods creatures 221. A believer mounts high like the Eagle especially in two things 478. Believers do not only mount high but abide on high 480 Belief that which is much desired in some cases is hardly believed 454. Why the same word signifieth to stand fast or steddy and to believe 456. Birth new birth three things in it 322 Blessing two wayes of blessing one 977. The blessing of God effectual for the good of man 978. Seven characters of those whom the Lord will bless 979 980. They who are blessed are also loved of God 981. Three things whence it is that many mind not a blessing from God 982. All successes are not from the blessing of God 984. Temporal things are blessings but spiritual things are the best blessings 989. How we may know when temporal things are a blessing and come to us in love 990 Bochartus his opinion that Behemoth is not the Elephant but Hippopotame 611 612. Borrowing fear not to lose what God borrows of us 951 Brethren and sisters two wayes taken Scripture 956 Building two things most considerable in it both eminent in Gods building the World 59 C Canutus his answer to his flattering Courtiers 110 Captivity how taken in Scripture 931 Any affliction is a kind of captivity 932 Care to be cast upon God 177. Care of God over the beasts of the earth and fowls of the air should convince man that God will take care of him 279 288. Care of God to provide for the vilest creatures 296. Care of God for his p ople seen in two things 643 Carefulness what to be avoided 746 Carnal men judge of God by themselves 834 Causes natural causes produce natural effects and so do spiritual causes spiritual effects 214 Charity a great trial of it 880 Children not to charge their parents when able to help themselves 324. They who excel in any thing are elegantly called the children of it 781 Children a great blessing 993. Parents duty in naming them See names how it is a blessing to have many children 1023. Good children a great joy 1024 Christ his eternity 45. He is the corner-stone 69 70. Christ a light for two great ends 122. Christ compared to a Lion in four respects 283. Christ resembled by the Hind in three things 312. Why Christ is called a horn of salvation 381. Christ like the Eagle shewed in seven things 489 490. Christ a relief against all evil 648. Christ the best friend 958 Church a vain thing to oppose it 685 Church set out by Christ in her spiritual excellencies 721. God terrible in the Church 729 Cloathed to be cloathed with any thing what it imports 428 429 Cloud how a garment to the sea 101. Clouds called the Arcenal of heaven why 192. The wisest men can neither tell how many the clouds are nor fully what they are 272 Cock why crows at Mid-night 254. He is a natural clock 270 Cold whether natural or spiritual is a great binder 243 Comforting the sorrowful a great duty 967 Six cases which call us to comfort others together with so many ways of ministering comfort to them 968. Four considerations moving to this duty 969 Command of God creating 114 115 Comeliness it consisteth in three things 717 Company no company pleaseth but such as is sutable 340 Compulsion grievous to beasts much more to men 341 Condemnation of self what good 545 Confession of sin when right 525 Contending of two sorts 497. How man contendeth with the word how with the works of God 497 498. There is a spirit in weak man ready to contend with the strong God 499. In two cases we are apt to contend with God about his works 501. Four considerations moving us to beware of all contendings with God 502 503. In what way we may contend with God 503 504. They who contend with God would seem wiser than he 505 Conversion why so difficult a work 360 Covenant Hebrew word notes two things and why 670 Counsel what it is 25. The word counsel put absolutely or alone notes Gods counsel 25 Counsel of God may soon be darkned by us 30. Some do it intentionally the greatness of their sin 30 31 Courage where God gives courage man cannot make afraid 438. True courage fears not present danger 449 Craft Some creatures full of it 292. What some cannot do by strength they do by craft 292 293 Creation that work calls us to praise God 89. Four things in creation move us to praise God 90 Creatures God can make any of them hurtful to us 188. Two things shew the power of God in the creature 189. Several degrees of excellency in the creatures 625. An inference from it 626. God can easily subdue the strongest creatures 638. Two inferences from it 638 639. God to be magnified in the qualities and quantity or bigness of his creatures 663. All creatures made serviceable to man 672. Some creatures terrible to man 690. An inference from it 690. God pleased in setting forth the natural excellencies of his creatures 718. The excellencies of the creature shew the excellency of God 722. God would have man know the excellencies of the creature 723 Crocodile not tongueless 662 D Danger to leave any thing in danger and not provide against it is great folly 402. Dangers put all creatures to their utmost shifts 419. They who think themselves out of danger despise danger 420. Danger is the Element of courage 446. It is best not to do or quickly give over doing that which is dangerous 680. They are cruel to themselves who run upon danger unadvisedly 692. Great dangers may make the stoutest afraid 753. Great dangers put bad men upon repentance 758 Darkness what 166 Day of Judgment like to be a terrible day 18. It will be a discovering day 125. Days when and whose days may be said to be full 1029 1031. Day-light never riseth two days together exactly in the same place 126 Death the Gates of it what 151 152 154. No man knoweth how or in what manner he shall dye 155. Death takes all and that upon a two-fold ground 1025. Four cautions from it 1025. A good man willing to dye 1031 Deering his discourse upon his death-bed 168 Deliverance out of trouble is Gods work 933. He can soon work it 934 Demanding of two sorts 818 Desire what we most desire we would fain be at 441 444 457 Devil in bonds always 111. Devil like the Hawk 473. With what weapons we may prevail against him 766 Dew how caused 222. Two things considerable in the falling of the dew 222. God the Father of it 223. The great benefit of
for Job may strengthen our faith in believing that he will and lengthen out our patience in waiting till he doth make both these desirable ends for all those who like Job have lay'n long under the pressing burdens of hard afflictions and harsh constructions Now that the Lord would finish this work of mercy and cut it short in righteousness wiping tears from off all faces and taking away the rebuke of his people from off the earth by a timely restitution of them to their lost enjoyments and blasted credits which yet will not be fully done until the times of the restitution of all things which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy Prophets since the world began that the Lord I say would finish this work should be our uncessant cry to God in prayer for all his sorrowing Jobs even for all those who are any where companions in tribulation and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ To his blessing and the effectual working of his holy Spirit I commend you in the perusal of this ensuing commentary that reading ye may understand believe and profit to sanctification consolation and salvation according to the will of God and the hearts desire of May 10th 1666. Your affectionate friend and servant JOSEPH CARYL Reader BY reason of the Authors absence while the greatest Part of the Book was doing the following faults have past which thou art desired to correct Errata Page Line Error Correction 3 23 each to to each 259 22 those these 267 22 Lightning Hightning 289 13 he blot it out 350 3 Indea Judea 351 35 Bengata Bengala 352 12 2d 22d 354 10 have hath 354 13 not so so not 369 14 15 As was shewed before blot it out 394 26 448 38 she he 455 9 our their 468 1 forbids forbad 477 12 not blot it out 615 14 probably probable 620 14 his horns blot out his 620 15 his claws blot out his 645 2 they blot it out 650 20 understand understood 659 26 and to be blot it out 696 7 a no 714 32 have hath 728 20 with blot it out 746 12 them him 746 17 with any ay with 750 4 refuge refuse 770 34 Observation Information 797 13 will willed 806 36 fervency blot it out 822 27 taken taking 831 36 followeth followed 842 37 this the 843 23 means meant 846 4 extraordinary extraordinarily 846 33 repenteth repented 876 13 sheweth shewed 876 13 directeth directed 880 16 his blot it out 881 1 as was 932 24 and so 942 10 take one instance for all blot it out 944 13 are is 944 25 he hath they have 969 19 or and 980 4 do doth 1009 26 first blot it out Omissions Page Line  202 28 after water adde First of the waters in the clouds from those upon the earth Secondly of those upon the earth into the several parts of it 455 24 after come adde she had not been reproved 714 7 after to adde do 769 16 after exercise adde us 777 13 after fear adde not 786 6 after omnipotency adde I know 809 19 after hence adde some 817 8 after ear adde hath often 372 9 after him adde when he asked him whether he would do it 876 1 after it adde even Heathenish 885 6 after and adde as 923 20 after accepted adde them 939 20 after and adde that I. 964 9 after ye adde then 972 14 after is adde said 997 10 after sex adde yet AN EXPOSITION WITH Practical Observations UPON The Thirty-eighth Thirty-ninth Fortyeth Forty-first and Forty-second being the Last Chapters of the Book of JOB JOB Chap. 38. Vers 1 2 3. 1. Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said 2. Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge 3. Gird up now thy loines like a man for I will demand of thee and answer thou me THis Chapter begins the last Act or Conclusion of that great Disputation between Job and his three Friends held forth in this Book We have heard Jobs three Friends strongly charging him We have heard Job stiffely defending himself We have heard Elihu though moderating the matter between them yet sharply reproving him Elihu was indeed a quick but a necessary reprover provided and sent by God First To calm and coole Jobs spirit diâ—quieted by enduring sharp afflictions from the hand of God and heated by heaâ—ing those sharper accusations from the tongues of men Secondly To reclaim him from those over-eager defences of his own integrity and likewise from those over-passionate complaints abâ—ut the dealings of God to a better and more submissive temper of spirit towards him as also to lower thoughts of himself Elihu fell upon the usefull point and hit as I may say the Nail on the head he struck the right Vein and met with the peccant Humour yet being young and wanting gravity to set all home and make it work or to make the impression deep enough upon Job it was but need that God himself should second him and he did it to purpose or with full effect pressing the same Arguments for the main which Elihu had begun yet so that we may manifestly discern a wide difference whether we respect words or things matter or manner between men how much soever assisted by the spirit of God and God himself in speaking Here the Eternal God Jehovah having seen his faithful servant and stout Champion Job contending and wrastling long with Satan his professed enemy and with his harsh and censorious though both professed and real Friends foreseeing also that if Job and his Friends who had also been provoked by Elihu should have proceeded to answer him a new broil must needs begin God I say who never fails nor forsakes his in their extreamity or in time of their greatest need seeing and fore-seeing all this stept in most seasonably and most graciously to undertake the decision of this great Controversie between Job and his Friends in person raising a stormy Wind as a witness of his mighty presence or to testifie who was there as also though with a Fatherly love and affection yet impartially and plainly to convince Job of his errour shewing him wherein he had offended and bringing him at last upon his knees in a self-abhorrence and repentance in dust and ashes Thus God the chief Judge the great Arbitrator and Determiner of all doubts and questions and of all matters and things the great God I say declared himself to whom Job had made so many appeals whom he so earnestly desired to take further and fuller cognisance of his Cause He even He comes forth as a just and righteous Judge and lets him and his Friends know his mind and judgement in the case So then The Question ventilated in this Book is not stated according to the judgement of a man who is subject to errour but according to the infinite wisdom and understanding of the great God who searcheth the heart and knoweth all secrets who is light and in whom
of him will honour him with what they have even with their substance and with the first fruits of all their increase Prov. 3.9 Thirdly We may infer Seing God founded the earth He is also the Ruler of it And that the Lord rules the earth is a mercy to all men on the earth The Lord reigns let the earth rejoyce Psal 97.1 That is men of the earth have cause to rejoyce because they have God who is infinitely both wise and good to rule them The Lord is King over all the earth sing ye praises with understanding Psal 47.7 And surely they who understand what a King he is will praise him Fourthly We may be encouraged to go unto God or apply our selves to God about all things here on earth seeing â—e hath laid the fouâ—dations of the earth The Lord having invited his people to ask him things to come concerning his sons and concerning the work of his hands to command him Isa 45.11 adds this in the next words as an encouragement to do so I have made the earth and created man upon it As if he had said Ask of me whatever you would have me do or would have done on earth for I am he that created the earth It may help our faith much when as David expresseth it Psal 11.3 the very foundations of earthly things are destroyed to consider that God laid the foundations of the earth In such a case it may be said as it followeth there in the Psalme What can the righteous do but may it not be said even in that hard case when foundations are destroyed What cannot the Lord do who laid the foundations of the earth This argument the Psalmist also useth Psal 124.8 Our help stands in the Name of the Lord who made heaven and earth Though earth and heaven shake and seem to be confounded or mingled together yet he who made heaven and earth without help can give us help or be our helper If our help stood in the best of men made of earth they might fail us but while our help stands in him that made the earth he will never fail us for he hath said he will not Heb. 13.5 and their experience who have trusted the Lord hath said it too Psal 9.10 This is the great priviledge of all that believe they may address to God by Christ for any thing in this earth because he is the Maker of it and having made it by a word speaking what cannot he do for them if he speak the word Fifthly Let us be much in praising the Lord for his wisdom power and greatness all which gloriously appear and shine forth in his laying the foundations of the earth David makes this a special part of Divine praise Psal 136.6 VVe should not onely praise the Lord for the great things he hath done on the earth but for this that he hath made the earth The work of God in laying the foundations of the earth calls as loudly for our praise as any thing except our redemption from the earth Rev. 5.9 chap. 14.3 which ever God wrought upon the face of the earth The making of the earth calls us to praise the Lord First Because he hath made so vast a body as this earth is or because he hath made such a large house for us Secondly Because he hath founded it so miraculosly hanging upon nothing that appears but in the ayre yet standing more firmly than any house built upon a rock Thirdly VVe should praise the wisdom of God that hath formed it so exactly and adorned it so richly It 's not a house huddled and clapt up together without skill or art though it was made word a word speaking in six days yet it was made with infinite wisdom as is more particularly held out v. 5. where the Lord speaks of laying the measures thereof and stretching the line upon it as also of fastning the foundations and laying the câ—rner-stone thereof all which â—â—ew it is not a house clapt up in haste but made with admirable exactness so that as 't is usual when great houses are built there were great acclamations made at the building of it as we have it the seventh verse of this Chapter then the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy to see such a magnificent pile reared up Lastly Take this inference If the visible world be such a building what is the invisible world the City having foundations which God hath prepared for those that love him Thus much of the first part of Jobs Conviction he had nothing to do in laying the foundations of the earth and he had as little in setting up and finishing that goodly structure as will appear in that which followeth Yet before the Lord proceeded any further to question Job about this great work of Creation he requires or calls for his answer in the close of this fourth verse to the question propounded in the former part of it Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the Earth Declare if thou hast understanding God challengeth Job to answer The Hebrew is If thou knowest understanding And so the word is used Isa 29.24 where we render They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding or as the Margin hath it shall know understanding Again Huram said 2 Chron. 2.12 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel that made heaven and earth who hath given to David the King a wise son endued with prudence and understanding The Original is thus strictly read Knowing prudence and understanding Daniel spake in the same forme chap. 2.21 He giveth wisdom to the wise and knowledge to them that know understanding To know is a work of the understanding No man knoweth any thing but by the help of his understanding The understanding is the first or Master-wheel in that noble engine the soul of man and when rightly informed and inlightned all the other wheels or faculties of the soul move aright unless over-poized by passions and self-ends Every rational creature hath an understanding yet every rational creature doth not know understanding that is doth not is not able to speak knowingly or to use and act his understanding knowingly about every matter The Lord supposeth Job might be defective here and therefore bespeaks him thus Declare if thou hast understanding or knowest understanding As if he had said The things which I question thee about may possibly be too high or too big for thy understanding Si perituâ— sis tantarum rerum Vatab. such as possibly thou canst not reach And hence some render or rather paraphrase the Text thus Declare if thou art skilful in such great things as I now speak of If thou art so wise as thou seemest to be by thy former contesting with my provideâ—ces declare thy wisdom in this point wherein I know thou wilt but declare thy ignorance thy infancy or inability to speak as one speaks Thou wilt shew thy self but a child while thou
Lord reduced it to a certain place Secondly To that restraint which God laid upon it after this reducement that it should no more return to overflow the Earth Both these restraints or laws put upon the Sea are contained in this Context the former of them in the eighth and ninth verses As soon as the Sea issued out of the Earth God set up its doors and made it bands The latter of these the giving of a special Law that when it was shut in it should no more break forth but according to his appointment we have in the tenth and eleventh verses where it is said I brake up for it my decreed place and set bars and doors and said hitherto shalt thou come and no further and here shall thy proud waves be stayed So then here we have First Bounds and limits assigned by God to that vast and unruly Element the Water that the Earth might be habitable and useful both for man and beast And Secondly We have the Lord restraining all power or liberty which naturally it would have had and taken to violate or break those bounds For had not God given the Waters of the Sea such a special command though bounds had been assigned them they would quickly have broken their bounds These two orders of God differ much though not in the time when they were given out yet in the nature of the thing and both suppose the Sea in being when these orders were given out For when it is said vers 8. It brake forth as if it issued out of the womb this implieth its birth and nativity and when God saith He shut it up with doors this supposeth that it not onely had a being but that it was violent and furious and would have over-flowed all and regained as large a Territory as it possessed at first when it issued out of the womb of the Earth even the face of the whole Earth if the Lord had not bridled and restrained it Yet further and more distinctly to open the words in their Order Quis Haec vox recte 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 repetitur â—x versu 5. 6. Drus Vers 8. Or Who shut up the Sea with doers The disjunctive particle Or succeeds those disjunctives ver 5 6. Who did this Or Who did that Or Who a third thing concerning the Earths formation Here again Or Who shut up the Sea with doors The Hebrew is onely Shut up the Sea with doors the word who is repeated out of the fifth and sixth verses The Lord by this query or question put to Job would then have him and now us know that it was himself alone that did it It was the Lord who bridled the Sea and shut it up with doors As if he said Where wast thou O Job when I did this great thing as thou gavest no assistance towards the laying of the foundations of Earth and the fastening of the corner-stone thereof so tell me what assistance didst thou give me in bringing forth and setling the vast Sea Or at least if thou canst give me an account hâ—w these things were done and how they continue as they were done by an everlasting decree who hath shut up the Sea with doors was it I or thou or any other Creature Thus the Lord still brings Job upon his knees by humbling questions knowing that he was not able to take any of that honour to himself He poor man had no more to do in this great work than he had in the former and therefore he ought to submit to the works of God in providence whatsoever he was pleased to do seeing all the works of Creation were done by God alone without his counsel or assistance Who hath 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Saepe est protegere aliqui legunt â—bsâ—psu vel circumsepsit ac si esset a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sopio cum siâ— a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 tego obiego operio 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 autem per samech significat ungere Drus Shut up the Sea with doors There is a two-fold rendring of that word translated Shut up We take it from a root which signifies to hedge in or compass about as also to protect because those things which are compassed about with strong hedges are under protection and safe from danger Water being a fluid body spreads it self over all the water cannot contain it self in itâ— own bounds fluids cannot but it must be bound it must be shut in or shut up The Lord shut up the Sea as the waters of a great River are shut up by flood-gates or as the waters upon which a Mill is built some carry the allusion to that are pent for the service of it and are caused by art to run gradually or by inches as the Master of that useful engine gives direction Thus the Lord shut up the Sea The Sea is a great Convention or Assembly of Waters as Moses spake Gen. 1.10 The gathering together of waters the Lord called Sea The Sea is a confluence or meeting of waters There may be a great water yet that not the Sea the confluence of all or many waters together that is Sea The waters being thus gathered or assembled by the Lords Summons or Command he hedged them in or shut them up Secondly Others render Who anointed the doors of the Sea Quis valvat maris inunxit Codur when it brake forth as if it had issued out of the womb They who give this Translation derive the word from a root which signifies to anâ—int Some Interpreters insist much upon this sense of the word and I find one who asserts it as the onely sense of it in this place Who anointed the doors of the Sea that is the passages by which the Sea issued forth And saith he the reason why other learned Interpreters pitch upon that Translation of shutting up the Sea with doors is because they knew not what to make of anointing the doors of the Sea nor to what practice such an expression should allude that the doors of the Sea were anointed whereas indeed that notion of the Word beaâ—s the fairest allusion and proportion to the Metaphor of Child-bearing begun in this and carried on as it were professedly in the next verse under which the Spirit of God is pleased to express the coming forth and original of the Sea Now saith my Author Quaerit dominus a Jobo quae lucina praesuerit parentis naturae puerperlo quan do est enixa mare Id. it is a thing commonly known both to Physitians and Mid-wives that those parts of the body by which the Infant comes into the world uâ—e to be anointed for its more easie passage Thus saith God to Job Didst thou anoint the doers of the Sea when it brake forth as if it had issued out of the womb It was my Mid-wisery my wisdom and skill not thine that brought the Sea into the World and gave it an easie birth or delivered the Earth of it without
Lord sends his rain upon the wilderness he hath done so and he hath promised to do so still that is he hath sent and will send the rain of the Gospel upon the Heathen Some Nations are a wilderness as they live in a wilderness so they are themselves a wilderness a desert and we have a promise that the Lord will cause the rain spiritual rain to fall upon this wilderness Isa 35.1 2. The wilderness and the solitary places shall be glad for them for whom for the Church and for the sending forth of the Gospel by them and the desert shall rejoyce and blossom as the rose it shall blossom abundantly and rejoyce even with joy and singing the glory of Lebanon shall be given to it the excellency of Carmel and of Sharon That is it shall be fertile and fruitful in spirituals as those places Lebanon Câ—rmel and Sharon which was the glory and excellency of them were in temporals But how should the wilderness and solitary places attain this glory That 's shewed at the sixth and seventh verses for in the wilderness shall waters break out and streams in the desert and the parched ground shall become a pool and the thirsty land springs of water This Prophesie contains a promise of sending the Gospel and with that the Holy Spirit who is often compared in Scripture to water to those who were or are in their soul-state as a dry heath or as a barren wilderness This prophet doth not only hold out a like promise in the same Metaphors but explains it thus Isa 44.3 4 5. I will pour water upon him that is thirsty and floods upon the dry ground what is meant by water and floods we may learn from the next words I will pour my spirit upon thy seed and my blessing upon thine off-spring and they shall spring up as among the grasse as willows by the water-courses that is they shall grow and flourish internally in grace and knowledge and not onely so but they shall openly professe it and avouch it as it followeth in the fifth verse One shall say I am the Lords and another shall call himself by the Name of Jacob c. That is they shall give up their Names to be enrolled and registred as our Annotators express it in Gods Church-book or among his faithful servants In deserto pluere est verbum dei gentilitatè praedicare Greg. l. 29. Moral c. 16. It was the saying of one of the Ancients with respect to this Allegory To send rain upon the desert is to preach the word of God unto the heathens And the Lord magnifies himself in the dispensation of this spiritual rain when as he sends it upon his Garden the Church so also upon the wilderness the Heathen that the wilderness may become a garden and the desert a paradise that they knowing the Lord and believing on him may be joyned to the Church Thus also the Lord divides a water-course to cause it to rain on the earth where no believing man is on the wilderness where there is no good man The reason of his so doing is given expresly in the next words Vers 27. To satisfie the desolate and waste ground and to cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth Here is the reason of sending rain upon the wilderness it is to satisfie the desolate and wast ground Mr. Broughton renders The wast and vast ground The Vulgar Latine renders Inviam desolatam Vulg. The unpassable ground or at least that which none passes and so being disused lies wast and desolate But in what sense soever 't is desolate or by what means soever it became desolate the Lord sends rain to satisfie it that is to water it abundantly Vt riget ad satietatem usque satisfaction is to have our fill The very wast ground shall have enough enough to allay the heat and drought of it enough to make it fruitful and enough to fructifie the trees and plants that grow there and so to feed and fatten the beasts thâ—t live there The Vulgar Latine renders Vt impleret c. Vulg. Satur dierum plenus dierum synonyma sunt Drus That he may fill the desolate and wast ground that which is filled is or should be satisfied To be full of dayes in Scripture is to be satisfied with living A man may have lived many dayes yet not be full of dayes but he who is full of dayes as 't is said of some of the Patriarchs is not hungry after more time or dayes in this world therefore to be filled and satisfied import the same thing And to be sure they who are not satisfied when they are full will not be satisfied when they are empty But however it is with man we know the earth spoken of in the Text is fully satisfied it gapes for no more when 't is filled with rain And this the Lord will send To satisfie the desolate and wast ground But why is the Lord so careful to satisfie the desolate and wast ground The ground is a senselesse thing that feels not the want of rain I answer The Lord doth not satisfie the ground for the grounds sake but for their sake who live upon and are maintained by the ground Fruit-bearing trees and grass are maintained by the moisture and fatnesse of the ground beasts are maintained by those fruits and grasse therefore the Lord satisfies the ground with rain that it may satisfie the trees and grasse and they the beasts that live upon it So then the Lord satisfieth the ground that it may satisfie all sorts of vegetables growing out of the ground and that they may satisfie all kinds of animals living upon the ground Such a gradation we find Hos 2.21 22. I will hear saith the Lord I will hear the heavens and they shall hear the earth and the earth shall hear the corn and the wine and the oil and they shall hear Jezrael that is my people We may run up the meaning of this promise backwards thus When my people whom I now call Jezrael in a way of promise as in a way of threatning chap. 1.4 being pressed with hunger and famine cry to the corn and the wine and the oil for food they shall hear them and when the corn and wine call to the earth for moisture to feed them that shall hear and when the earth calls to the heavens for rain they shall hear and when the heavens call to God for orders to carry rain he will hear them It is for mans use that God makes the earth fruitful and where there are no men 't is for the beasts sake that he satisfieth the desolate and wast ground Hence Note First God is not wanting to any of his creatures according to their state He will not let the senseless ground suffer hunger and thirst overlong that shall have food after its kind or proper for it Secondly Note Even the Earth knows when it hath enough It is
goodness who hath ordained both those causes and their products or effects for the benefit and comfort yea for the contentment and delight of man What is man that God should be thus mindful of him that for his sake and use or for the sweetning of his passage through the Wilderness of this troublesome world he should impregnate the earth by the sweet influences of heaven It hath been said Let him look to the Stars of heaven who denies the God of heaven and doubtless he will not only not deny but not so much as doubt that there is a God in heaven who duely considers the pure nature and the irresistible operations of the Stars of heaven Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades Or loose the bands of Oâ—ion We can neither bind what God lets loose Tune coeli naturae ordinem immutabis ut quod Astrum Pleiadum sol vit constringas aut quod Orion constringit solvas Merc. nor loosen what God binds What Christ affirmed of himself in regard of spirituals Rev. 3.7 These things saith he that hath the key of David that openeth and no man shutteth that shutteth and no man openeth the same is true also in regard of naturals and therefore the Lord had no sooner said to Job Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades but he adds or loose the bands of Orion There are several opinions concerning these two Constellations of heaven yet all agree in this that one of them is a benigne Constellation and very comfortable to the fruits of the earth and that the other is as sharp and churlish that the one is very friendly and favourable to all living creatures but that the other is a bitter and as it were a killing Constellation and therefore the Lord saith Canst thou loose the bands of Oâ—ion When once Orion hath and holds the earth as it were in bands and chains when Orion hath got the earth in his clutches and huggs it in appearance to death in his cold armes who can rescue it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 quod est inconstantem varium esse quasi signum quod inconstantiam perturbationem aeris efficiat 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Aut attrahentia Orionis aperies Drus Aut Lora Orionis dissolves Jun. Vox Hebraea 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a verbo 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 traxit Funes ejus sunt operationes quibus tempestates velut furibus attrabit frigore constringit terram Scult Sidus hoc oritur in principio hiemis terram tanquam loris constringit Pisc Nimbosus Orion Virg. The Pleiades open the earth and set all free they call up the quickening moisture and draw out the verdure of every growing thing But Orion holds all in bands Orion is a hard natured Constellation the Oâ—iginal word signifies to be unconstant vexatious and unquiet because under the Dominion of this Star the aire is usually troublesome and unquiet Canst thou loose c. The word imports opening what is fast shut or loosing what is fast bound When a man is in bands we say loose him from his bands Now saith the Lord Canst thou loose the bands of Orion that is canst free the aire from those colds and frosts which bind the body of the earth and all things growing out of the earth in winter season The word rendred bands comes from a root that signifies to draw hence some translate The Traces of Orion Traces are those bands by which Horses being fastned to Carts or Wagons draw them after them Which expression alludes to that natural power planted in this Star by which according to Gods appointment it draws rain storms and cold freezing winds after it and so binds up the pores of the earth Now saith the Lord to Job canst thou with all thy skill aâ—d strength loose those bands and set the earth at liberty Thou canst not Oâ— this Orion see more at the 9th Chapter ver 9. I shall only say thus much further here That these words stand in direct opposition to the former shewing that as Job could not stop those Benigne Stars the Pleiades from giving forth their vertues to the earth so he could not loose the bands of that severe and harsh Star nor divert the effects which it brings upon the earth Canst thou loose the bands of Orion Hence learn first in general Cold is a binder a great and mighty binder Winter binds the earth from bearing and it binds the hands of men from working when a man is extream cold he can make little use of his hands And as Natural so Spiritual cold is a great binder A cold heart is a bound heart When the heart hath in it no heat of love to God or hath not been heated with a sence of the love of God when the heart hath in it no heat of zeal for the glory of God nor for the good of men when these sad colds are upon the heart 't is bound indeed He that hath this cold upon him can say but little to God and will say and do less for God He is bound not only hand and foot but tongue also Take heed of cold upon your hearts it will hinder you from holy activity bind you up from duty both towards God and man He that is only luke-warm will do God little service can do none that is pleasing and acceptable unto God but he that is key-cold as we say neither will nor can do any thing at all that may be called Service The Apostle Paul Acts 20.22 was bound in the Spirit to go to Jerusalem which was a great service for Christ that is The heat of true affection which the instinct of the holy Spirit caused in him engaged him beyond all power of revocation to undertake that hazardous journey But when any are bound in spirit by the coldness of their affections to Christ they always prove hand-bound and foot-bound I may say without affectation according to the use of that word in our language hide-bound also as to any thing that is good especially if it be as it was in the Apostles case now mentioned either dangerous or costly And when a soul is in those bands of the Mystical Orion the evil spirit surely none but God can loose them seeing none but he can loose these in the Text. Canst thou loose the bands of Orion the Winter-bands Hence note Secondly It is not in the power of man to loose what God binds The Lord put the question to Job about his works that he might see his own weakness and utter inability to undo his providential workings When God had Job in bonds it was not in his power to loose his bonds by his strength and striving The providences of God were to him as Orion to the earth cold and sharp causing the frost of adversity to bind him so strongly that he could by no means loose himself Christ saith to his Disciples about Church-censures rightly laid and Church-approbation
with them to send lightning hast thou the command of thunder and lightning will the lightnings come forth at thy bidding The words may have a double allusion 1. To the General of an Army commanding his Souldiers and they going at his word 2. To the Master of a Family who gives orders to his Se vants and they go at his word Canst thou send lightnings that they may go And say unto thee here we are or as the Hebrew is Behold us That manner of speech here we are or behold us is a description of the most ready obedience either of Souldiers to their General or of Servants to their Master Will the lightnings obey thee thus and say here we are Some expound these words as supposed to be spoken by the lightnings upon their return from some former service given them in charge by God as having dispatcht what they were sent for and were ready to go again Hence the Latine translator gives it thus Vt reverentia tibi dicent adsumus Vulg. That they being returned or after their return should say unto thee with reverence here we are 1. Ready to go whithersoever thou wilt send us 2. Ready to do whatsoever thou wilt enjoyn us As if the Lord had said Canst thou send forth the lightnings and will they return to thee and say we have done thy commands and here we are again to receive fresh commands or new orders from thee Surely as the rain will not thus obey thee so neither will the lightnings neither the one nor the other will be thy servants to go of thy errand or execute thy will The same note which I gave before concerning the rain might be taken up here again concerning the lightnings They are not under the command of man c. Secondly for as much as the Lord here denies this priviledge both respecting the rain and lightning unto man he would have us understand and know that both are in himself though you cannot yet I can command them both are under my dominion While the Lord shews Job his impotency to command these meteors he asserts his own omnipotency as he hath made them so he can rule them Hence observe All treatures even those which seem to be most out of command are fully under the command of God What to appearance is more out of command than the lightning that quick that piercing that fierce and fiery creature yet that stirs no more than a stone till the Lord commands and at his command it stirs and is gone in a moment The Lord God hath spoken saith the Prophet Amos 3.8 who can but prophesie And as a faithful Prophet cannot but prophecy so the not only faithless but senseless creatures cannot but do what God hath spoken That of the Psalmist Psal 104.4 which we read who maketh his Angels spirits his Ministers a flaming fire some render thus who maketh the winds his messengers and the flames of fire his ministers That is he useth tempestuous winds and flames of fire as his messengers and ministers The same Hebrew word that signifieth an Angel signifieth a Messenger at large and the same word that signifieth a Spirit signifieth also the Wind. And as the words so the truth will bear both translations or constructions for as those higher or highest of rational creatures the Angels so those high inanimate creatures the winds and lightnings which may properly be called flames of fire are the Ministers and messengers of God that is they go forth and Minister according to his Word they say Here we are The Lord by a call or word speaking can have whom and what he will to serve his purpose and fulfil his decrees It is said 2 King 8.1 as also Psal 105.16 The Lord called for a famine a famine of bread and he no sooner called but the famine came and said Here am I the famine presently brake the staff of bread and did eat up all the good of the Land The Prophet Haggai Chap. 1.11 represents the Lord saying I called for a drought which is the usual fore-runner of famine and the drought said Here am I it came presently as soon as the Lord commanded On the other hand when the Lord made many promises under the new Covenant among other things he said I will call for plenty Ezek. 36.29 I will call for the corn and will increase it and lay no famine upon you As in those other places he called for famine and drought so here he saith I will call for plenty and it shall say Here am I abundance of corn and grass and fruits of the earth came at that call Lamenting Jeremiah speaking of the woful captivity of the people of Israel saith Lam. 1.15 The Lord called an assembly against me that is I conceive an assembly of the Assyrians and Babylonians an assembly of men an army of men he caused them to assemble and come together he did but call and they said Here we are and we will go vex Judah and Jerusalem Thus if the Lord call for famine and drought if he call for an assembly of men for men assembled with the sword of war in their hand to punish and chastise any people for their sin they will surely come and do his pleasure whatever the Lord calls for cannot but come Take this inference from it If the Lord have such a command upon all creatures even the inanimate creatures if the lightnings answer him when he calls Here we are Then how readily should men the best of visible creatures answer his call and say Here we are When the Lord said to Abraham Gen. 12.1 Get thee out of thy Country and from thy Kindred and from thy Fathers house unto a Land that I shall shew thee he never disputed the case but saith the Apostle Heb. 11.8 Obeyed and went out not knowing whither he went He never enquired what the place was to which he was to go nor what accommodations he should find when he came thither Abraham knew he was to go whither God called him to go though whither he was to go he knew not And when long after this the Lord called to Abraham Gen. 22.1 he said Behold here I am or Behold me as if he had said Lord I am here ready to obey thy command to go of thy errand to carry whatever message thou shalt put into my mouth to do whatever work thou shalt put into my hand and that Abraham did not complement with God it appears in the same Chapter for though when God commanded him to offer up his Son his only Son Isaac whom he loved every word was enough to wound his heart the last deepest to part with a Son is hard with an only Son harder with a son dearly beloved is hardest of all especially when he must be not only passive but active in this loss his own hand must give the parting blow yet Abraham being called to this hard and hot service said Here am I and readily
great men Jer. 5.5 said These have altogether broken the yoak and burst the bonds that is the yoak of duty which God hath laid upon them They have no cause of boasting that are free from the bonds of service but they who cast off the bonds of duty have great cause to be ashamed Thus the Prophet reproves that people as one man Hos 8.9 They are gone up to Assy iâ— a wilde Ass alone by himself As if the Prophet had said Thâ—y loâ—k not up to the high God for help but to Assyria the high God was not so high in their eyes as Assyria doing thus they weâ—e like a wilde Ass saith the Prophet and so they were in two things First They weâ—e extream stubborn resolved to have their will and satisfie their lusts Ephâ—aim was as violent in his way as a wilde Ass Secondly â—hey were like a wilde Ass they would be alone A wilde Ass alone by himself that is they would be at liberty free from all command to do what they list they had rather be in a barren wilderness where none could controul them than in good pastures under any thing that looked like a restraint or a rule This is a very unworthy spirit this is liberty in a way of licenciousness this liberty is libertinism They who submit to no rule but that of their unruly head-strong passions and affections nor will be reclaimed nor tamed by any whether fair or foul means these in Scripture are compared to the wilde Ass for their folly and vanity Zâ—phar offered this rebuke to Job in the 11th Chapter of this book vers 12. and possibly he could not altogether free himself from it Vain man would be wise though he be born like a wilde Asses colt that is though this be all his wisdom to be free from that subjection which he oweth to God and man The Prophet Jer. 2.24 compares the whole people of Israel when they cast off the service of God to a wilde Ass which Scripture was toucht at the second verse upon another occasion that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure in her occasion who can turn her away all they that seek her will not weary themselves in her month they shall find her There is no bringing such into compass till they are compassed with pains We may call all such nominal Israelites real Ishmaelites it being said of Ishmael Gen. 16.12 that he was pere Adam a wilde man having more of the wilde Ass than of the man in them Thus it is with vain and unbridled spirits they cannot bear the yoak of service and therefore remember though this be spoken of as a priviledge yet it is a low priviledge to be free from any honest service and to be be free from all service is worse than the worst of outward servitudes 'T is a mercy to be free from slavery to man but to be free from service to man is to be unmanly every man should be a servant in one kind or another and therefore the Law saith To call a man a servant distinguisheth no man seeing every man is supposed in the way of his life a servant The Apostle speaking to those whose very calling is to serve and are therefore in strict sense called servants 1 Cor. 7.21 22. saith Art thou called being a servant care not for it that is be not troubled that thou art a servant service to man is not inconsistent with the service of God but if thou maist be made free use it rather for he that is called in the Lord being a servant is the Lords free man Let every man v. 24. wherein he is called therein abide with God that is let him continue to serve man in all things according to the will of God To be wholly free from the service of man is no better than the freedom of the worser sort of beasts the wilde Ass Christ Mat. 11.29 30. calls his to the yoak and Christs yoak implyeth all manner of dutiful service even service to man as well as to God Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest take my yoak upon you and learn of me c. for my yoak is easie and my burden is light If we refuse Christs easie yoak we may quickly get a heavy one yea an iron one as the Prophet told him who broke the wooden one Jer. 28.13 There are some yoaks which to bear is our honour 't is surely so to bear the yoak of Christ to be under Christs bonds is a favour woe to those that seek to be loosed from them The Prophet Jeremiah tells us Lam. 3.37 It is good for a man to bear the yoak in his youth There is a threefold bond or yoak from which it is a favour to be wholly freed and that freedom we should seek after but neither of the three is a freedom from duty and service or from due service First To be free from the yoak of sin and to have the bonds of our iniquities loosed that is a blessed priviledge John 8.36 If the Son make you free you shall be free indeed The chief part of a Sons freedom which we have by Christ the Son is freedom from sin Freedom from the condemning power of sin and freedom from the ruling power of sin is our spiritual or Gospel freedom Peter said to Simon Magus Acts 8.23 I perceive thou art in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity thou art still a prisoner a slave to sin the guilt of sin holds thee fast nor art thou delivered from the filth of it To have our sin-bonds loosed is to be free like Saints to loose our selves from duty-bonds whether to God or man is to be free like wilde Asses Secondly There is a great mercy in being loosed and made free from the curse of the Law Thus also the Son makes us free Gal. 3.13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the Law being made a curse for us that is enduring the curse for us or dying acursed death for us that we might have and for ever enjoy a blessed life This is a glorious liberty Thirdly To be freed from the old legal ceremonies is the priviledge of all believers under the Gospel and 't is such a priviledge as the Apostle exhorted the Galatians and us with them to maintain with all our might Gal. 5.1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free and be not intangled again with the yoak of bondage that is with the bondage of the ceremonial Law from which Christ hath made us free Gal. 4.26 Jerusalem which is above is free which is the mother of us all free First from the slavery of sin free Secondly from the curse of the Law free Thirdly from the yoak of legal ceremonies All believers are made thus free by Christ but Christ hath not made so much as one believer free from service Christ makes us free to serve not free
not be brought to hand he will neither bear the yoak nor wear the bridle nor endure to be harnessed like the Ox and Horse let man do what he will what he can with him he will neither go to Plow nor Cart not he Hence note First Service should be done with willingness or with the will It is the commendation of a servant when he doth his Masters work with his will more than with his hand Man should be as willing to serve as he is to be served as willing to obey as to rule nor doth any man know truly how to command but he that knows how to obey and when called is willing to obey in the service of God nothing is done to him unless it be done with the will and therefore the full effect of the work of the grace of God upon the heart of man is comprehended in this one word Psal 110.3 Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power They were once like the Unicorn in the Text that will not serve but in the day of thy power when the word comes upon them in the power of the Spirit they shall serve with all manner of dutiful readiness and willingness Some men are not at all wrought to the service of God others serve him but are not willing to serve they do it by constraint not willingly for base fear of loss or for baser hope of filthy lucre not of a ready mind upon which carnal terms the Apostle Peter warns the Ministers of the Gospel to take heed they feed not the flock of God 1 Epist 5.2 Nothing but a day of power conquering the will renders us willing to serve Christ willing to submit to the yoak of Christ to be bound in his furrow and to harrow the valleys after him that is to do any work that he calls us to Service should be with the will and 't is so by grace That 's the first thing which the nature of the Unicorn is against as to the service of man he hath no will to it Secondly Note Some beasts have a kind of willingness to serve man That some beasts have such a willingness is more than implyed while 't is said that some have not As the wild Ass before was spoken of in opposition to the tame so here the Unicorn is spoken of in opposition to the Ox or Horse who though they are not properly willing to serve yet they will not alwayes refuse service but freely at last or after a while take the yoak and receive the bridle The Apostle saith Rom. 8.20 The creature is made subject to vanity not willingly The creatures are not willing to serve the lusts of men yet many of them are willing to serve the occasions and necessities of men 'T is through the sin of man that the creature is made subject to vanity but it is through the appointment of God that the creature is made subject to duty and that with a kind of willingness Thirdly 'T is said here of the Unicorn as of the wild Ass before Canst thou make him willing when thou hast used fair means foul means one way or other will he serve thee he will not Hence note It is hard to change nature Naturam ex pelias furca licet usque recurret Laâ—pus pilum non antevum mutâ—t Beasts hold fast their natural qualities The Horse the Bullock who are tame by nature will come to hand but the wild Ass and the Unicorn whose nature is quite opposite to service will never be broken nor brought to it Thrust out nature with a fork it will return again Till nature is quite altered and changed acts will not change 'T is thus with man considered in nature who as he is compared to a wild Asses Colt Chap. 11.12 so he may be compared to an Unicorn Will man be willing to serve God no not by any moral perswasions no nor heartily he may hypocritically by any outward benefits nor by any hard usages Though as Solomon saith Prov. 27.22 thou shouldst bray a fool in a morter among wheat with a pestle yet will not his foolishness depart from him A carnal man will never submit quietly to duty till God hath changed his nature and made him a new man or till his mind is renewed after the image of God Conversion is first a change of our nature and then of our way This makes conversion so difficult a work Good education and humane instructions may change a mans way but nothing less than the power of God can change his nature Man is naturally as unwilling to serve God as the wild beasts are to serve man He is as stout and as stiff as the Unicorn as cruel and fierce as the Lion as crafty as a Fox as crooked and cross as any creature unless his heart be changed he will never to purpose change his course Man cannot change the course of the Unicorn because he cannot change his nature and could not God change mans nature he could never really change his course Fourthly Observe That any of the creatures especially strong ones are brought to hand or to the service of man must be ascribed to the power and goodness of God The Horse would no more serve man than the Unicorn nor would the Ox serve man more than the wild Ass unless the Lord had put another spirit or disposition into them than he hath done into the Unicorn Fifthly Observe That any of the creatures are unserviceable to man is to be ascribed to the sin of man At first all creatures were subject to man not only the Horse and the Ox and all the now tame creatures but the fiercest Lions Tygers Bears Unicorns were all in subjection to man according to that soveraign power given man by God in the day that God made him Gen. 1.27 28. So God created man in his own image in the image of God created he him male and female created he them And God blessed them and said to them be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fishes of the sea and over the fowls of the air and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth The original grand Charter of mans Soveraignty was extended over the Unicorn and the Lion c. And therefore when creatures are not willing to serve man especially when they rise up against man let man remember his sin in not obeying the Soveraign command of God Had not man been unwilling to submit to and serve God Quòd non omnia animalia homini serviunt signum est poâ—na peccati no creature had been unwilling to serve man We may see our own neglect or refusal to serve God in the refusal of any creature to serve us we may see our own rebellion against God by the rebellion of the creatures against us Unless man had departed from God by sin none of the creatures had departed from their subjection to
Gen. 3.17 18 19. Cursed is the ground for thy sake in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread till thou return unto the ground Our ordinary bread is not easily come by remember the Husband-mans labour Hence the Apostle when he would shew what pains God taketh either immediately by the work of his Spirit or mediately by the labour of his Ministers to convert and build up souls in the faith he tells us 1 Cor. 3.9 That we are Gods husbandry and Gods building As if he had said great pains hath been or must be bestowed upon you that your souls may be saved and that ye may bring forth fruits of righteousness unto eternal life The Lord hath his spiritual Plow-men his Labourers his Oxen by these the faithful and industrious Ministers of the Gospel are emblem'd and set forth in the holy Scriptures 1 Cor. 9.10 Rev. 4.7 Note Secondly There is no Sowing without Plowing You must stir up and break the ground before you cast the seed into it 't is not else fit to receive the seed and improve it for a harvest The Scripture speaks first of Plowing then of Sowing Isa 28.24 c. The Plow-man opens the earth and breaks the clods before he casts in his seed the cumin the fitches and the principal wheat He doth not Plow for Plowing sake but for Sowing and when he hath Plowed he leaveth not his work till he hath Sowed what he Plowed This method doth the Lord use in his spiritual husbandry the Plow of repentance must break up the Fallow ground of the heart and the Harrow must smooth the face of the soul before it be fit to bring forth The Spirit makes frequent use of these Metaphors Jer. 4.6 Plow up the Fallow ground of your hearts read also Hosea 10.12 Further Harrowing comes after Plowing and either before or immediatly after sowing there is some variety as to husbandry in this point that the seed sown may be preserved from being devoured by the Fowls of the air it must unless sowed under Furrows be Harrowed Harrowing helps the seed to spring more freely and grow more thrivingly And thus it is also in spiritual husbandry When the seed of the Word is Sown the heart must be Harrowed else the Seed will miscarry In that Parable of the Sower Mat. 13. some seed fell upon the high-way which was neither Plowed nor Harrowed This High-way ground signifieth those careless hearers who receive the Word in a formality only the Fowls of the air evil spirits quickly picked up that because it was not covered by Harrowing Now there are two Harrows by which the Seed of the Word cast into the Vallies and Furrows of our Hearts is covered and secured that it may bring forth fruit to perfection these are meditation and prayer By meditation we hide the word in our hearts and by prayer we obtain a blessing upon it from God both for the securing of it and our fruit-bearing according to it There are two resemblances in Scripture setting forth the use of meditation and prayer about the word received The one is chewing of the cud the other is Harrowing Clean beasts under the Law chewed the cud and wise men both under Law and Gospel Harrow their land a godly man doth both in a spiritual way while he meditates in the Word and prays for a blessing upon it Thus husbandry for our daily bread teacheth us what course the Lord expects we should take for our souls that we may bring forth fruit and answer the end of receiving his Word The Unicorn will not be brought to either of these parts of the Husband-mans labour and his refusal is aggravated in the next Verse by the ability which he hath for both Vers 11. Wilt thou trust in him because his strength is great or wilt thou leave thy labour unto him The Vnicorn hath strength sufficient he is a beast stronger say Naturalists than either the Ox or the Horse but Wilt thou trust him because his strength is great The word notes trusting with much confidence and rest of the mind as 't is said Isa 12.2 I will trust and not be afraid Confidence upon a good ground leads us into a full as well as a good security I will trust and not be afraid for the Lord Jehovah is my strength saith the believing soul in that place But saith the Lord here to Job Wilt thou trust this strong beast without fear or jealousie Wilt thou trust him Because his strength is great The strength or force of his body is great very great but the force or stubbornness of his will that is his wilfulness is far greater 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Propriè significat vigorem illum corporis animalis qui consisit in humido radicali even so great that it will not suffer him to lay out the strength of his body for the service of man We find strength often attributed to the Unicorn in Scripture Numb 23.22 He that is God or Israel through the presence of God with him as was shewed before hath as it were the strength of an Vnicorn 'T is not said he hath as it were the strength of an Horse or of an Ox which are very strong creatures but of an Vnicorn thereby implying that the Unicorn is a creature of such great strength that he knew not where to find a stronger The Unicorn hath strength enough for his work but he hath no mind to his work and therefore wilt thou trust him because his strength is great Hence note First Great strength is required for great work There are some works that are done not so much by strength as by art or as it were by slight of hand such a work a feeble weak man may do but there are other works which require great strength all the wit and skill and learning cunning of men cannot do them unless they have a sutable that is a great portion of strength for the doing of them David Psal 144.14 describing the temporal felicity of his people makes this request for them That our Oxen be strong to labour The labour of the Ox is great and therefore he needs great strength to do his work and go through with his labour Note Secondly They who have great strength may do great works Great strength is a great advantage for service If the Unicorn would imploy and put out his strength he might do much Strength of body is a talent much may be done by that strength of mind is an excellent talent much more very much more may be done by that But when a man hath much strength of body and mind together what may not he do Let those who have much strength consider how they use it For a man to have the strength of an Unicorn much bodily strength and make no use of it is to become more beastly than the Unicorn A strong man rejoyceth to run
meet the armed men he doth not stand to receive a charge but he seeks it What any have a great mind to that they are very forward in you need not press a volunteer nor spur a free a valiant horse on to the battel you can hardly hold him in with bit bridle 'T is so in any service where there is a heart set to it with a love to it O how do we go forth to it we need not to be haled nor driven to it So in spirituals a heart of that temper answers every call Psal 27.8 When thou saidst seek my face my heart said unto thee thy face Lord will I seek He presently answers the Lords call to any duty who hath a heart for it What zeal what freedom what forwardness have we to that we have a will and a mind to An up-hill way is all down-hill to a willing mind JOB Chap. 39. Vers 22 23 24 25. 22. He mocketh at fear and is not afraid neither turneth he back from the sword 23. The quiver ratleth against him the glittering spear and the shield 24. He swalloweth the ground with fierceness and rage neither believeth he that it is the sound of the trumpet 25. He cries among the trumpets Ha ha and he smelleth the battel afar off the thunder of the Captains and the shoutings THese four verses continue and compleat the description oâ— the goodly valiant War-horse in his second qualification of boldness and courage of which this Text gives as many proofs as can be imagined or expected Vers 22. He mocketh at fear And what greater argument of valour than that Fear 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Spâ—rnit quod plenum est timoris Vataâ—l Contemnit omnia metuenda Elegans prosopopeia est qua tribuitur experti rationis animali quod hominis proprium est sc ridere arma the abstract is here put for the concrete he laughs at fear that is at those things which are most to be feared or which carry the greatest command of fear in them It is usual in Scripture to express things greatly to be feared by fear As things greatly ly hoped for are called our hope and things rejoyced in greatly are called our joy so things greatly to be feared are called our fear and in that sence above all God is called the fear of his people he is so much the object of fear that the Scripture calls him fear Jacob in his treating and contract with his Uncle Laban Gen. 31.53 Sware by the fear of his father Isaac that is he sware by God who alone hath this high honour to be sworn by in a sacred way To swear is a great part of divine worship and is sometime put for the whole of worship Jacob sware by the fear of Isaac that is by God who his father Isaac feared and in whose fear he walked all his dayes Thus spake the Prophet Isa 8.12 13. Sanctifie the Lord of Hosts in your hearts and let him be your fear which is quoted by the Apostle 1 Pet. 3.15 Now as God himself is called fear because he is so exceedingly to be feared so those things which carry in them much fear or which are much fâ—ared in Scripture sense and eloquence are called fear He scorneth or mocketh at fear Those things which make others tremble he as it were makes a sport at and plays with them So the words are an exposition of what was spoken at the close of the 21th ver He goeth on to meet the armies or the armed men who are much to be feared and dreaded In general whatsoever is or may be matter of fear that the horse mocks or laughs at that is he counts no more of it than we do of those things we laugh at Quae non curant hominis rident What men regard not care not for that they laugh at mock at We say of a valiant stout-hearted man he knows not what fear means When once a Noble person in great danger was admonished not to be afraid he laid his hand upon his breast and said Fear was never here yet and I hope shall never enter Thus the Horse is here represented as one into whose heaâ—t fear never entred he mocketh at fear And as it followeth is not affrighted 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 dejectus abjectus stratus metaphocè consternatus fuit mente jacuit The word which we render affrighted imports the greatest consternation of mind when the mind lyes as it were prostrate under utter dispondency breakings of spirit and discouragements Deut. 1.21 Neither any dreadful noise nor terrible sight neither the appearance nor the reallity of danger abate the spirit or prowess of the Horse He is not affrighted Hence Note Danger is the element of courage We see it in the Horse and it is much more seen in couragious men You can no more cast down true courage by representing dangers than you can drown a fish by casting it into the water it is in its element It was the speech of that great Alexander being in a most hazardous undertaking Now I see a danger sutable to my mind Jam video animo meo par periculum a match for my courage The Horse mocketh at fear Note Secondly That which is not feared is usually derided It is so with beasts and it is so with men and what more usual with some men than to mock most at those things which they should be most afraid of As there is a nobleness of courage in some men which makes a mock of fear so besides that there is a baseness of spirit a stupidness in other men that make a mock at fear Such was the spirit of Lots Sons-in-law Gen. 19.14 who when Lot reported to them the most dreadful thing that ever was in the world a shower of fire and brimstone ready to fall down from heaven upon the whole City to consume it He was to them as one that mocked the meaning is his Sons-in-law mocked at what he reported they laugh'd at his admonition Such a kind of mocking at fear we read in those hardned and debauched spirits among the ten Tribes when that good King sent and admonished them to return to the true worship of God and laid before them those dreadful judgments that would surely overtake them if they did not 2 Chron. 30.10 They laughed to scorn the messengers and mockt them As if they had said What do you tell us of the wrath of God and of his judgments if we persist in our way and course we scorn your admonition we regard not your threatnings The character given of that people 2 Chron. 36.16 when wrath was breaking out upon them without remedy was this They mockt the messengers of God and despised his words To such mockers at fear I might take occasion to say as the Prophet in a like case Isa 28.22 Be ye not mockers least your bands be made strong There are some fears that it is our honour to mock
Neque consistit firmus cum sonus tubae editur Jun. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 So Mr. Broughton renders expresly Neither stands he still when the sound of the trumpet is heard This interpretation suits best with the scope of the place nor doth the force of the Hebrew Verb oppose it for the Adjective which comes from the Participle of it is often used to signifie firm stable sure durable yea and the Verb it self is often taken in that sense Psal 78.37 They were not stedfast or stood not fast in his covenant So Deut. 28.59 the Lord threatned Plagues of long continuance that is standing Plagues or such as should hold long and not stir from the place Thus also it is said Exod. 17.12 The hands of Moses were steady until the going down of the Sun The same word doth elegantly signifie both to believe and to be steady or stand fast seeing it is faith or believing in God which alone makes us steady or stand fast in all occasions or temptations to the contrary and therefore in this place we may most conveniently render He standeth not firm he stands not still or keeps not his place at the sound of the trumpet but is unquiet and in motion as having an ardent desire to be in the battel as soon as ever he hears the trumpet sound Stare loco nescit Virg. One of the ancient Poets expresseth this quality of a valiant horse almost in the same words and altogether to the same sense He knows not how to keep his place or he cannot as we say for his heart stand still So that as the eagerness of the horse for the battel even before the signal given is set forth in those words vers 21. He paweth in the valley and in the former part of this verse where 't is said He swalloweth the ground with fierceness and rage so the same height of spirit after the signal given is further expressed in these words thus translated He standeth not still no ground will hold him he will be gone if he can get head when once he hears the sound of the trumpet Hence note What we have much mind to do we are glad of an opportunity to do it and readily embrace it The Apostle saith of the old Patriarks Heb. 11.15 Truly if they had been mindful of that is if they had had a mind to that Country from whence they came out they might have had opportunity to have returned Now as a man will not do that for which he hath an opportunity when he hath no mind to it so if a man hath a mind to do any thing how soon doth he make use of the very first opportunity to do it And doubtless it was a great trouble to the Philippians who had a true desire to shew their care of and love to the Apostle Paul that they lacked opportunity to shew it and give a real proof of it Phil. 4.10 As opportunity is a gale to carry us on to action so a willing mind is a gale to carry us to the improvement of any offered opportunity for action Let us do good saith the Apostle Gal. 6.10 as we have opportunity He that is slack to do good when he hath a fair gale of opportunity to it declares plainly that his mind is becalmed and that he hath not the least breath or gale of willingness in his mind to do good It is our duty not only to accept an opportunity to do good when it falls tight in our way but even to step out of our way so it be in a good way to seek it Davids enemies sought occasion and so did Daniels Chap. 6. to do him a mischief and shall not we seek occasions to shew mercy c. Let us like the horse in the Text no sooner hear the sound of the Trumpet a lawful call to any duty for which we have also an open door but as he rejoyce in it stand still no longer with a dull shall we shall we in our mouths but be gone up and be doing Vers 25. He saith among the trumpets ha ha and he smelleth the battel afar off the thunder of the Captains and the shouting This verse seems to give a reason of what was last said in the former especially according to the latter Translation of it As if it had been said Therefore the generous horse cannot stand still but is impatient of every moments delay when he hears the trumpet sound because he is not only not astonished at it but rejoyceth wishing for nothing more than the battel of which he knows the sounding of the trumpet to be a signal He saith among the trumpets Ha ha Some render these words not barely as we among the trumpets 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. e. Quando tubarum clangor validus intenditur vox 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 constat praepositione Beth particula 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 quae non est tantum adjectitia Euphonica sed copiam etiam significat Codurc but thus At the full sound of the trumpet or When the trumpet hath sounded long and sufficiently then he saith Ha ha Reading the words thus we may connect them with the latter part of the former verse Neither believeth he that it is the sound of the trumpet that is when the trumpet begins to sound he doubts whether it be to the battel or no but when the trumpet sounds long when the sufficiency of the trumpet sounds or when it sounds sufficiently so that it manifestly appears the battel is nigh or at hand then he saith Ha ha That the word de in Bede is significative and imports sufficiency is the opinion of many interpreters and that it is of the same sense in this Text as in that Isa 40.16 Lebanon is not sufficient to burn nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt-offering Thus here at the sufficiency of the trumpet that is when the trumpet sounds sufficiently abundantly or clearly or as our old English translation hath it when the trumpets make most noise he saith ha ha There are others of note who judge that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 de is only a syllabical addition of no signification or adding nothing to the Preposition ב Be Ad tubae soninitum Trem. Inter buccinas Pag. and so render the words only thus At the sound of the trumpet or as we Among the trumpets he saith ha ha And that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 De is only expletive not significative and so that word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Bede is no more than the Preposition ב Be put alone some would confirm by other Texts of Scripture where it is conceived to be so used Hab. 2.13 Behold is it not of the Lord that the people shall labour 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the fire and the people shall weary themselves 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for vanity Arnold Boot Animad Sac. l. 3. c. 11. These words are sound also Jer. 51.58 in both which saith
when the weather is cold and offensive to them in the place where they are and when the heat returns to the coasts from whence they came thither they return again They know the time of their coming they know when 't is good for them to be in one Country and when in another And is not this a rebuke as the Prophet there applieth it unto a man who many times knows not what 's good for himself knows not the judgement of the Lord that is what God would have him do or what course to take in such a time and season or under such a dispensation of providence knows not as I may say Winter and Summer heat and cold and so is not so wise as the fowls of the air generally are or as the Hawk in particular is here said to be Who stretcheth her wings to the South All the children of men have and the children of God know they have a South to stretch their wings unto that is the goodness and power of God as the Psalmist spake Vnder the shadow of thy wings shall be my refuge till these calamities be overpast I will stretch my self to the South to the love and favour of God 't is best for all men to stretch their wings toward those wings of God in an evil day All should do as the Lord gives the invitation Isa 26.20 Come my people enter thou into thy chambers and shut the doors about thee hide thy self as it were for a little moment until the indignation be over-past Thus the Lord directs his people to stretch themselves to the South when 't is cold and hard weather abroad in the world and the creatures spoken of by the Prophet as well as the Hawk in the Text will rise up in judgement against us if we stretch not our wings to the South when we feel the Northern cold and Winter frost taking hold of us I shall pass from this part of the verse concerning the Hawk when I have only minded the Reader that some have found a twofold resemblance in the Hawk First They resemble the Devil and evil spirits to the Hawk because of their devouring nature The old Poet said Odimus accipitrem quia semper vivit in armis Ovid. We hate the Hawk because she is alwayes in arms And so is the Devil he is always in arms and at war with the Church of God and with the souls of men and we ought alwayes to be in arms against the Devil yea to take to our selves the whole armour of God spoken of Eph. 6. to resist him and defend our selves Secondly The Hawk is like wicked men especially in three things First For their ravenous nature they love to destroy and live upon the spoyl of others Isa 33.1 Secondly They are like the Hawk preying mostly upon those that are most innocent The Psalmist saith The wicked devours the man that is more righteous than he The Hawk pursues the Dove and poor Partridge harmless creatures Thirdly The Hawk is high-priz'd when alive but when dead cast out upon the dunghil no man regarding her He that took great delight in his Hawk while alive will not call for it to his Table when dead Thus wicked men may be in great esteem while they live but when once dead they are as thrown upon the dunghil their memorial rots and is unsavoury So much for the 26th verse wherein the Spirit of God calls Job to consider the nature of the Hawk at any time flying and sometimes turning her flight to the South And now the question passeth from the Prince of birds to the Queen of birds Vers 27. Doth the Eagle mount up at thy command and make her nest on high The Eagle is a King or Queen chief among the fowls of the air 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Cum sex punctis aquila sic dicta vel quod recto obtutu solem aspiciat tunc congruentiam habat cum verbo 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vel quod volatum recta in praedam dirigat tunc communicat cum verbo 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Plin. l. 10. c. 3. l. 35. c. 6. as the Lion is among the beasts of the earth and therefore the great King of Babylon is shadowed by a great Eagle with great wings Ezek. 17.3 And the Romans who Lorded it long over the world bare the Eagle in their Ensign The Hebrew word rendred Eagle hath a double derivation According to the first it signifies to Behold The Eagle is so expâ—est because she hath as the Historian describes her not only a quick and clear but a strong sight able to look full upon the Sun shining in its strength as if the name of the Eagle in Engglish were a Looker the Eagle can look the Sun in the face But according to a second derivation given by Grammatians it signifies strait or right forth And the Eagle is so called because she makes a direct course as it were by a strait line in pursuit of her prey Doth the Eagle Mount up The word in the Hebrew signifies to get high very high 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Sublimis elatus fuit eminuit per metaphoram superbivit extream high and is therefore used in the Noune to set forth the highness of God Job 11.8 Psal 113.6 Isa 5.16 Isa 52.13 It notes also the highness of heaven Isa 55.9 Psal 103.11 which is called the Throne of God and the habitation of his Holiness and of his Glory 'T is used also to denote the height of a proud mans spirit which would fain rise up to the high of heaven and be like to the most High yea higher than the most High 1 Sam. 2.3 Psal 131.1 Isa 2.11 Ezek. 16.15 In all these places and many more the word is applied to the highness of a proud mans spirit which though it be indeed the lowest and basest thing in the world yet it puts man upon high thoughts of himself and upon high designs for himself he would be mounting like the Eagle Doth the Eagle Mount up The Eagles flight or mount exceeds the Hawks or any other of the winged train in three things First In the swiftness of it The Eagle hath great and long wings Ezek. 17.3 and she can make great hast with them therefore Solomon calling upon us not to set our eyes upon riches gives the reason of his counsel Prov. 23.5 For riches certainly make themselves wings they flie away as an Eagle towards heaven that is they are suddenly gone and will not return at thy call The Eagle will not come to the Lure like the Hawk To flie away as an Eagle notes two things concerning riches First That they will flie away swiftly speedily they are soon gone such is the Eagles flight Secondly That they often flie away irrecoverably there 's no recalling them The Scripture often expresseth the more than ordinary swiftness of men by the swiftness of the Eagle David lamenting the death of Saul and Jonathan
we may conceive the Lord at once speaking to and severely reprehending Job in the words which follow Verse 2. Shall he that contendeth with the Almighty instruct him Shall he or can he surely he shall not surely he cannot There are several readings of this former part of the verse I shall only name four and then come to the explication of the words as they lie in our Translation Raâ—bi David First The words are rendered thus Is it wisdom or learning to contend with the Almighty This reading puts the latter words first Is it wisdom or instruction or is that man well instructed or well in his wits who contends with the Almighty The sense of that reading is plain and the improvement of it might be very useful for indeed these two are utterly repugnant and contrariant Non est ille eruditus neque bene obsequens divinae disciplinae qui deo castiganti obstreâ—it litem intendit Vatabl. To contend with God and to be wise to contend with God and to shew our selves well taught That man hath not received instruction either by or about divine correction who mutters or quarrels at God correcting him For how wise soever he is in his own eyes he shews himself a very fool at least as to that point or attempt very foolish So then 't is a great truth which this reading holds forth Is it wisdom is it learning to contend with the Almighty Whosoever doth so erres in doing so and will at last both see and feel his errour by sad experiences Secondly thus Should he be instructed who contends with the Almighty This Translation may have a double interpretation First Surely that man deserves not to be instructed but corrected who contends with the Almighty he deserves not to be taught but to be punished Should he be taught that contends with the Almighty Doubtless onely as Gideon taught the men of Succoth Judg. 8.16 with briars and thorns of the wilderness that is with severest chastisements Secondly Should he be instructed that contends with the Almighty That is is a learner a competent match for God is one that needs instruction and teaching fit to take up the bucklers and enter the field of dispute with God He had need to be a Master not a Scholar a Teacher not a Learner that undertakes to deal wiâ—h God That man had need be skilled and well furnished he had nâ—ed be as â—e speak his Crafts-master and all little enough yea all too little who contends with the Almighty Thirdly The word which we render to instruct Numquid contendet cum omnipotente quem ille castigat Lavat signifies also to correct taking it so the Text is thus rendred Shall he contend with the Almighty whom he corrects or Shall a man corrected by or under the correcting hand of the Almighty contend with him Shall any give God words for his blows or expostulate the matter with him No man may with such a spirit say unto God What dost thou whatsoever he suffers nor may any man be displeased with what God doth whatsoever he is pleased to do either with himself or others Lastly which was hinted in the second Doth not contending with the Almighty deserve chastening Certainly it doth or Is not chastening due to contending that is to contenders with God Nonne contentioni cum deo castigatio upple debetur Doubtless it is He that will contend with God though but in words is worthy of no answer nor satisfaction but in blows Every one of these Translations hath a fairness in it as also with the Hebrew Text but I shall insist upon our own reading only and give you some few notes from that Shall he that contendeth with the Almighty instruct him There is a twofold contending First By force and strength of arm or strength of arms We cannot suppose the Lord speaking here of such a Contention There were a sort of robustious men Giants of old 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 called fighters with God and many profane Atheists have blasphemously set themselves against heaven as if they would pull God from his Throne Such as these are not the Contenders with God here intended Job was far from being a man of that spirit Secondly Qui offert se disputaturum cum eo Aqu. There is a contending with God by force of Argument or by reasonings This I conceive is here meant Job was often found in these contendings with God But shall any think to logick it with God to enter a dispute with God to argue with or reply upon him as the Apostle speaks Rom. 9.20 O man who art thou that repliest against God Arguing and replying are a kind of contending and this is of two sorts First With the Word of God declaring what God would have us do or what God would have us believe Thus many contend with God even as many as submit not to his Word This is a common quarrel whether the Word of God or mans will shall stand whether the Law of God or the lusts of men shall carry it and bear the sway The Apostle is express in it Rom. 8.7 8. The carnal mind is enmity against God and if so then it contendeth with God for enmity will be contending and what kind of contending is there meant appears in the next words it is not subject to the law of God neither indeed can be Every natural man till subdued and conquered by grace is contending with the Word of God he submits not to what God would have him do nor to what God would have him believe he will not form either his faith or his life as God would have him Infinite are the Contentions of man with God in this notion but neither is this the contending here aimed at and I would speak to no more than is directly to the scope of the Text. Therefore Secondly There is a contending with the works of God or with what God himself hath done or is doing Thus also there are many Contenders with God in the world and this is the Contention here spoken of a Contention about the works of God what God either hath done or is doing All the debate which Job had with God was about his dealings with him God had laid him low and stript him naked God had broken his estate and filled his body full of sores and pains God had wounded his spirit and filled his soul with gall and wormwood God had with-drawn hiimself or his comforts from him and his friends were against him or at best but miserable comforters were they all Now though he was a patient man yet under these pressures he often broke out into impatient speeches Thus Job contended with the Almighty Moreover the Lord answered Job and said shall he that contendeth with the Almighty about what he is doing Instruct him Shall he have the better of him and be able to teach him or put him in a better way than he is in Shall he
and wicked men then saith the Lord ver 14. I will confess unto thee that thine own right hand can save thee that is I will yield thee the cause I will acknowledge that thou who canst thus bring down the pride of men in the height of their iniquity art also able to help thy self out of all thy misery yea that thou art able to contend with me who often have done and still can do these great things with ease with the turning of my hand with a word of my mouth yea then I will confess that thou art as I am that thou art God as I am But alas poor worm thou canst do none of these things therefore humble thy self and be quiet under mine afflicting hand This seems to be the general scope of the holy Ghost in these five verses even yet further to convince Job that he had not an arm like God nor could thunder with a voice like him forasmuch as he could not put forth such acts nor shew such effects of power as God both had and could put forth and shew in the face of all the world Vers 10. Deck thy self now with majesty c. Deck or adorn thy self the word signifieth to adorn to put on ornaments make as fair a shew of thy self as thou canst The Apostle Gal. 6.12 speaks of some who desired to make a fair shew in the flesh The Lord bids Job make as fair a shew of himself as he could in flesh Deck Thy self Let thy majesty proceed from thy self Thus it is with God he needs no hand to adorn and deck him to apparel him or put on his robes as the Kings and Princes of the earth need others deck them others adorn them and put on their robes but the Lord decks himself Now saith the Lord to Job Deck thy self as I do With majesty and excellency Kings and Princes are decked with majesty and excellency at all times a majestick excellency is inherent in their estate and when they shew themselves in state or shew their state they put on their Crowns and Robes Thus saith the Lord to Job Put on majesty and excellency Both words signifie highness exaltation and are often used to signifie pride because they that are high and exalted are usually proud and are alwayes under a temptation to be proud of their highness and greatness And these words which here in the abstract we translate majesty and excellency are rendred in the concrete proud vers 11 12. Behold every one that is proud vers 11. Look upon every one that is proud vers 12. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Majesty is proper to Kings and therefore we speak to them in that language Your Majesty Excellency belongs to persons of great dignity we say to Princes and great Commanders Your Excellency because they excel and exceed others in honour and power Moses spake so of God Exod. 15.7 In the greatness of thy Excellency thou hast overthrown them that rose up against thee In the greatness of thy Excellency or in the greatness of thy lifting up and exaltation the word notes both Gods high magnificence Psal 68.35 and mans pride or haughtiness Psal 10.2 The wicked in his pride or haughtiness of spirit persecutes the poor Deck thy self with Majesty as a King and with Excellency as a Prince put on thy Emperial robes and thy Princely garments Yea further Array thy self with glory and beauty Dicimus etiam nidui dedecore vel ignominia nam quare ornamur vel dedecoramur ea elegantèr niduâ— dicimur Diuâ— Here are two other ornamental expressions Glory and Beauty Glory is man in his best array or mans best array yea Glory is God in his best array or Gods best array The perfect happiness of man in heaven is called glory mans best suit is his suit of glory Grace Gloria est clara cum laude notitia Ambros 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Notat spendorem claritatem quae efficere potest assensum confessionem apud spectatores ad gloriam ipsius quòd omnia â—gat 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Deus non habet circundatum decorem quasi superadditum ejus essentiae Sed ipsa essentia ejus decor est Aquin. which is our best suit on earth is sometimes called glory 2 Cor. 3.18 We are changed from glory to glory as by the Spirit of the Lord that is fâ—om grace to grace Mans first change is from sin to grace his second is from grace to grace or from one degree of grace to another Grace is glory begun and glory is grace perfected Now as glory is mans best suit so glory is as I may say Gods best suit He is as the God of all grace 1 Pet. 5.10 so the God of all glory for all glory is to be given unto him and his glory will he not give to any other The glory of God is twofold First Essential and internal for ever unchangeably abiding in himself indeed the very Essence of God is glory Of this we read Exod. 33.18 I will make all my goodness pass before thee I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious and will shew mercy to whom I will shew mercy this kind of glory I will shew thee but thou canst not see my face and live that is my essential glory Secondly There is a providential or external glory of God the manifestations of God in his greatness goodness and power are his glory Thus 't is said at the dedication of Solomons Temple 1 King 8.11 The glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord that is there was a glorious and wonderful manifestation of the presence of the Lord in his house Whatever God manifests of himself whether his power or his goodness or his mercy or his grace or his patience or his justice is his glory The Lord often arrayeth himself with these glories that is he declares both by his word and by his works that he is powerful good merciful gracious patient and just towards the children of men The Scripture calleth God the glory of his people Psal 106.20 that is it is the glory of any people or that which they should glory in that God is known to them or that they are owned by God But the idolatrizing Jews changed their glory into the similitude of an Ox that eateth grass that is they changed God who was their glory and in whom they should have gloried into the form of an in-glorious beast while they either worshipped the image of a beast or their God in that image And it is considerable that the Apostle Rom. 1.23 at least alluding to as the reference in our Bible intimates if not quoting that place last mentioned in the Psalm whilst he speaks of the idolatrous Gentiles doth not say as there They changed their glory c. for the true God was not the glory of the Gentiles in those dayes they owned him not as their only
Secondly Consider the wicked proud man as one whom God treadeth down Then Observe God punisheth sinners with that which is most crosse to their lusts What more crosse to a high-spirited man than to be brought low and who can be brought lower than he that is trodden down As God sometimes punisheth Drunkards with thirst and Gluttons with hunger and covetous persons with poverty There is one saith Solomon Prov. 11.29 that with-holdeth more than is meet he doubtless is a covetous man that doth so it tendeth to poverty So God punisheth proud ones by that which is most contrary to their nature he abaseth and layeth them low The Prophet tells us Isa 3.16 17. how the Lord would punish wanton women who were proud either of their natural beauty or artificial dresses and ornaments The daughters of Zion saith he are haughty and walk with stretched forth necks and wanton eyes walking and mincing as they go and making a tinckling with their feet there 's their pride but what was their punishment the next words resolve us Therefore the Lord will smite with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion and the Lord will discover their secret parts they were proud of that which covered their skin and therefore the Lord punisht them with scabs or covered their skin with scurfe and scabs and as there the Lord shews what he would bring upon so what he would take from them Vers 18. In that day the Lord will take away the bravery of their tinckling ornaments about their feet and their Caules and their round tyres like the Moon And Vers 24. it shall come to pass that instead of sweet smell there shall be stink and instead of a girdle a rent and instead of well set hair baldness and instead of a stomacher a girding of sackcloth and burning instead of beauty What could be more contrary to the pride of these women than that which the Lord brought upon them or punished them with What do proud women more desire than beauty and bravery And what do proud men look after but to be respected honoured and to have every one point the finger at them or bow the knee to them Now when the Lord blasts proud women in their beauty and bravery when he blasts proud men in their honour and estimation when he thus abaseth and treads them down he toucheth them in that which the spirit of pride prizeth most and with greatest regret parteth from Pride is a base height of spirit therefore the Lord abaseth the proud There are five words in the Text all tending directly to crosse the spirit of a proud man First He shall be abased Secondly He shall be brought low A proud man would fain be high he would sit at the upper end of the Table yea he would sit at the upper end of the World too but saith the Lord he shall be brought low Thirdly What would a proud man do He would tread upon the necks of all others but he shall be trodden under foot Fourthly Where would the proud man be He would be conspicuous in high places but he shall be hid in the dust Fifthly He would be lookt at by all men with admiration but saith God his face shall be bound in secret he loves to appear and make a fair shew in the flesh but he shall not appear at all .. Proud ones cannot get so high but God in his Justice will get above them and strip them of that wherein they have chiefly prided themselves Read Isa 14.11 12 13 14 24 25. and Isa 23.9 Those Scriptures tell us how the Lord deals with proud men according to their pride or rather contrary to their pride he gives them that which they most disgust and takes that from them which they most passionately desire Secondly Take wicked men in the common notion for those that do evil at the highest rate that draw iniquity with cords of vanity and sin as it were with cart-ropes Then Observe First Wicked men that is impenitent sinners high-handed sinners are in a very sad condition and shall come to a sad conclusion The Lord will tread them down Psal 9.16 17. The wicked is snared in the work of his own hands yea the wicked shall be turned into hell That is the utmost of sorrow and suffering shall be their portion Isa 3.11 Wo to the wicked for the reward of their doings shall be given them Isa 57.21 There is no peace saith my God to the wicked As the tumultuousness of their own spirits will not let them be at peace so neither will the righteousnesse of God Secondly From those expressions Tread down the wicked in their place hide them in the dust together bind their faces in secret Observe God will at last purge and rid the world of wicked men As wicked men would fain purge and rid the world of godly men they would destroy all the seed of the righteous so certainly God will destroy the wicked of the world and rid the world of them though not at once of every wicked man yet in their times and seasons that they shall not do the mischief which their hearts are full of The last of the Prophets speaks as much of the Lords vengeance upon all the wicked Mal. 4.1 The day of the Lord. speaking of some great day of the Lords appearance shall burn as an oven and all the proud yea and all that do wickedly shall be stubble and the day that cometh shall burn them up saith the Lord of Hosts that it shall leave them neither root nor branch 'T is utter ruin to be destroyed root and branch such shall the ruin of the wicked be Thus also the Prophet Isaiah comforts the Church Chap. 52.1 Awake awake put on thy strength O Zion put on thy beautiful garments O Jerusalem the holy City for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean The wicked of the world are the uncircumcised they have not the spiritual circumcision the circumcision of the heart these shall no more trouble Jerusalem nor tread in Zions Courts Nahum 1.15 Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings that publisheth peace O Judah keep thy solemn feasts perform thy Vows for the wicked shall no more passe through thee he is utterly cut off The Hebrew is Belial shall no more passe through thee That is such as cast off the yoke of Jesus Christ shall no more bring Judah under their yoke This is also witnessed by another holy Prophet Zech. 14.21 In that day there shall be no more the Cananite in the house of the Lord of hosts they shall no more mingle themselves with the faithful servants of God much less rule over them Canaanites have often been in the house of the Lord but the Canaanite shall not always be there God will sweep them out of his house Answerable to these prophesies speaks the last prophesie Rev. 21.27 Chap. 22.15 which
field it will not fit a sheep nor a bullock What is said of Behemoth exceeds the proportion and constitution of all such and many other beasts Fourthly Behemoth is said to feed where all the beasts of the field do play ver 20. and therefore we cannot understand all the beasts of the field by him no nor which some of the Jewish writers insist much upon all the greater beasts of the field And therefore we may conclude that this word Behemoth though in it self a plural word is here intended of a singular beast and because there is no greater beast upon the earth than the Elephant therefore most interpreters both ancient and modern determine it upon the Elephant to whom among all the beasts of the earth those six particulars mentioned in the following description of Behemoth are supposed most fitly to agree Behemoth forma plurali nuncupatur Elephantus more Hebraeorum qui pluralibus nonnunquam pro superlativis uti solent Latini quoque historici saepe cum de Elephanto loquuntur Belluam absolutè nominant Drus And whereas 't is objected the word Behemoth is of the plural number that is easily answered and wiped off for nothing is more usual in the Hebrew language than to express great things by a plural word and so the Elephant may be called the beasts Either First with respect to the vastness of his body as if he did comprize or were a comprehension of all other beasts Or Secondly with respect to some extraordinary qualification or eminency found in him in which respect it is said at the 19th verse He is the chief of the ways of God As the Hebrew sets out excellent things by words of the superlative degree so likewise by words of the plural number or it useth the plural number to signifie the superlative degree The Elephant is the Beast the Beast of Beasts a beast above all beasts Thus Prov. 1.20 Christ is called in the plural number wisdoms because of the excellency of his wisdom Again Prov. 9.1 Wisdom so we translate but the word is wisdoms hath built her house that is Jesus Christ hath And he is exprest by a plural word to note that all sorts and degrees of wisdom meet in him according to that of the Apostle Col. 2.3 In him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledg As David when he would shew how very foolish and beastly he had been in mis-judging the dispensations of God First in afflicting the godly Secondly in prospering evil men When I say he considered how foolishly he had done in envying at or in being troubled about their prosperity he concludes ver 22. So foolish was I and ignorant even as a beast before thee The Hebrew useth the word in the Text Behemoth even as beasts before thee As if he had said the beastliness of all beasts centred in me and all their ignorance while my spirit was so troubled in this matter concerning the providences of God towards my self who serve him and those who serve him not Thus David that he might fully acknowledg how very a beast he was in so speaking and so thinking calls himself Behemoth Beasts This may suffice to satisfie the Reader why we expound the Text of a particular beast and why most pitch it upon the Elephant among all beasts in special though the word be of the plural number There being no proper or peculiar name in Scripture for the Elephant it is most probable that he is here named by this Appellative word plural Yet before I step further into that large description which the Lord gives of Behemoth I cannot forbear to take notice that the same industrious and learned Author Bochartus parte poster lib. 5 c. 15. who varyeth in opinion as was there shewed about the Reem by us rendred the Vnicorn varyeth here as much in his Opinion about Behemoth intimated by our translators in the Margin and affirmed as himself confesseth by the most general voice of modern interpreters to be the Elephant I suppose it will not be unacceptable to the Reader if I here offer a brief account of those reasons which prevailed with him to turn off from the common opinion concerning this Animal which he gives as followeth In the fortieth and forty-first Chapters of the book of Job saith he Behemoth and Leviathan are so described â—hat 't is apparent they are beasts of a huge bulk Whence it comes to pass that most of the later Writers have thought Behemoth to be the Elephant and Leviathan the Whale this being without controversie the greatest Animal that lives in the waters and that the greatest that lives upon the Land To whose Judgement I should have willingly assented but that considering the matter more narrowly I saw many things spoken of them even in approved versions which no way agree with the nature of the Elephant and the Whale I shall not say that Interpreters prepossessed with this opinion have wrested some things another way which if they were rightly unfolded according to the Hebrew it would appear as clear as the light that under these names Behemoth and Leviathan two animals are characteriz'd extreamly different from the Elephant and the Whale but which they are is not easie to determine Yet it doth not a little please me that Beza and Diodate men of a most clear judgement and of no ordinary learning do conclude Leviathan to be the Crocodile of Nilus Whence I have a strong conjecture that Behemoth is an animal of the same neighbourhood even an Inhabitant of Nilus called Hippopotamus or the River-horse I would have none troubled with the newness of this opinion but first weigh my reasons whereof let this be the first That as upon the former stage in the close of the 38th and throughout the 39th Chapter only terrestrial animals were presented so it seems most congruous that upon this only aquatical or water-animals should be presented lest the course of proceeding should be disordered So that Leviathan as all agree being a creature that lives in the water 't is probable Behemoth doth so too both being described in the same series of discourse That the ancient Jews were of this opinion may be collected out of the second Book of Esdras Chap. 6. vers 47 48 49. where Behemoth is placed among the aquatical Animals created the fifth day Further the Hippopotame and the Crocodile are fitly joyned together because there is a great likeness of nature between these two for both are very big and fierce and amphibious and four-footed and both have one common habitation the River Nilus which Pliny also takes notice of lib. 28. cap. 8. and therefore most Writers handle them together Nor doth the name Behemoth unfit the Hippopotame seeing the Hebrew word Behema is appliable to all four-footed beasts to those especially which are of greater bulk as is the Hippopotame of which the Ancients speak variously because the stature of beasts of the same kind is also various None
things their being in the beginning hath hitherto preserved their being and will to the end And not only so but Thirdly all things are his in possession the Lord hath all in his hand In whose hand soever the things of the world are they are all in the Lords hand As Abraham said in his Treaty with the King of Sodom Gen. 14.22 I have lift up my hands to the most high God the possessor of heaven and of earth Psal 24.1 The earth is the Lords and the fulness thereof the world and they that dwell therein that is they are all at his dispose And again The world is mine and the fulness thereof saith the Lord himself Psal 50.12 and therefore if I were hungry that is if I needed any thing I would not tell thee that is complain to thee or go a begging to thee who art but a beggar I can help my self and take what and where I will There is a fourth title by which all things under heaven are the Lords even by Redemption The Lord hath restored the whole world to a kind of new life by the death of his Son Jesus Christ is the Saviour of all men especially of them which believe 1 Tim. 4.10 All have some benefit by redemption and so whatsoever is under the whole heaven the whole Systome of heaven and earth is the Lords by redemption though the specialty of redemption be theirs only and intended to them only who believe who as they have a peculiar portion a Benjamins Mess in the grace of redemption so the Lord calleth them his peculiars Exod. 19.5 Ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people for all the earth is mine And they are called the Lords portion Deut. 32.9 The Lords portion is his people Jacob is the lot of his inheritance Thus as all under the whole heaven is the Lords so all is his by a fourfold title by the titles of creation and sustentation and possession and redemption All things visible and invisible have been created are sustained and possessed by him as their great Lord and all things visible have been redeemed by him from present perishing and a world of them in this world that they should never perish but have everlasting life John 3.16 From this general Assertion That whatsoever is under the whole heaven is the Lords take these following Inferences First Then the Devil is a lyar a great lyar for Mat. 4. in his last assault against Christ he boasted that he would give him all the Kingdoms of the earth and the glory of them whereas the truth is he hath not a shoe latchet at his dispose While the Devil saith all is mine the truth is nothing is his but a lye of that he is the father As he hath not given a being to the least worm so he cannot dispose of the least worm he is not worth a straw for all is the Lords Secondly Hence we learn That there is a lying spirit in most of the children of men even in all them who look upon any thing they have as their own There is a sense in which we have a right to and a propriety in what we have and may call it ours but that spirit which moves in most of the children of men is a lying spirit when they say this and that is their own David Psal 12.4 brings in the wicked saying With our tongue will we prevail our lips are our own who is Lord over us What have not we who have so many Lordships the Lordship of our selves the Lordship of that little piece of our selves our lips But were not their lips their own not in the sense they spake it as if they were accountable to none for them for their next word was Who is Lord over us Thus most do they look upon their lips and all the members of their body as their own but what saith the Apostle 1 Cor. 6.20 Glorifie God in your body and in your spirit which are Gods And vers 19. Ye are not your own Your body is not your own but it is the Lords then much less are the things that you have your own your Land is not your own nor your cattel your own the beasts of the earth are not your own nor the fishes of the Sea your own nor is a hair of your head your own nor a pin upon your sleeve they are all the Lords Is it not then a lying spirit which possesseth very many among the children of men who look upon themselves and what they have as their own Their houses and lands are their own their gold and silver are their own who is Lord over them or theirs O let such remember that themselves their houses and lands their gold and silver are the Lords and that the Lord saith expressly The silver is mine and the gold is mine Hag. 2.8 Thirdly If all be the Lords then the Lord is able to supply the wants of all who wait upon him and to supply them plentifully The Lord supplieth the wants of all creatures The Lord keepeth a great house he feedeth all that he hath made he provideth food for Leviathan he satisfieth every living thing Psal 145 16. and Psal 115.16 The heaven even the heavens are the Lords but the earth hath he given to the children of men that is whatsoever of the earth the children of men that is men in common or mankind have the Lord hath given it to them and seing his own children have need of it surely he will not deny it them The Lord I say hath given the earth to the children of men and if the Lord hath bestowed the earth on men as men then much more hath he the earth to bestow upon his own children Christ in his Sermon upon the mount Mat. 6.32 assureth them of it Your heavenly father knoweth that ye have need of these things Food and cloathing is in your fathers hand your father is rich he is rich indeed and therefore he can supply your wants If children do but remember that their father hath such and such lands and houses they think they shall be well provided for how much more may a godly man say my father hath a great deal of land the whole earth is his and therefore I shall be provided for The Apostle improves this position twice 1 Cor. 10. First to makâ— use of our liberty in eating whatsoever is fold in the shambles asking no question for conscience sake for saith he the earth is the Lords and the fullness thereof vers 26. He makes use of it Secondly to perswade us not to abuse our liberty ver 28. But if any man say unto you this is offered in sacrifice unto idols eat not for his sake that shewed it do not offend him and for conscience sake do not offend thy self The earth is the Lords and the fullness thereof As if he had said why shouldst thou trouble thy self or others by eating such meat seing there is enough
he comes upon them as a Lion or as a Bear Lament 3.10 He was unto me as a Bear lying in wait and as a Lion in secret places The Lion and Bear often lye close and in secret places to wait for their prey but they no sooner get them within their reach or danger but they rise up and devour them openly Again if we are afraid to meddle with terrible things how should we fear to meddle with sin Sin hath terrible teeth it will bite like a Serpent Prov. 23.32 and tear like a Lion 'T is sin that maketh all things terrible to us God himself is not terrible but as we are sinners sin hath made all things terrible and troublesome to us that are so The teeth of Leviathan had not been terrible to man if man had not sinned against God His teeth are terrible round about Beza seems to object from this part of the description of Leviathan that the Whale cannot be meant by Leviathan because the Whale hath no teeth I answer First Though Whales catcht by our Sea-men have no teeth properly taken yet they have somewhat which is Analogical to teeth they have that in their mouths which is as terrible as teeth Physeterem Oream praecipuè dentatos dicunt And secondly Naturalists tell us and Beza himself confesseth that there are many fishes of the Whaley kind which have very terrible teeth And though Bochartus insisteth much upon the teeth of the Crocodile which for number are threescore and for their nature terrible enough yet he doth not at all improve this part of Leviathans description against the Whale which I suppose he would have done had he found it unapplicable to the Whale Now as Leviathan is armed with teeth as offensive weapons to hurt others and to be a terrour to them so with desensive armes to secure himself from hurt as it followeth Vers 15 16 17. His scales are his pride shut up together as with a close seal One is so near to another that no air can come between them They are joyned one to another they stick together that they cannot be sundred In these three verses Leviathan is described First By the confidence which he hath in his scales they are his pride being like bucklers of brass Secondly By the natural closeness of his scales so close they are as if sealed that no air can come between them Thirdly By the indissolubleness of his scales they are joyned so fast one to another that they cannot be sundred His scales are his pride The strong sheilds have pride saith Master Broughton that is his scales which are as so many sheilds for his defence are his pride The word is not elsewhere rendred scales but strong pieces Chap. 40.18 and here it may be rendred strong pieces of sheilds scales resembling shields both in their fashion and use His scales are his pride that is he is proud of his scales Whatsoever any man is proud of may be called his pride If a man be proud of his riches then his riches are his pride if of his parts then his parts are his pride if of his strength and beauty then strength and beauty are his pride Leviathan's scales are his pride that is he is proud of his scales Here again it is objected as before about teeth The Whale hath no scales therefore Leviathan cannot be the Whale The learned Bochartus insists much upon this argument against the Whale proving also by many authorities which is clear to sight in those carkasses of Crocodiles which are among us that the Crocodile hath great and strong scales and those very closely laid or joyned together The objection hath much weight in it Balenarum Elephantorum cutes summè durae sunt propomodum insensibiles Galenus l. 3. do usu partium yet these two answers are given to it First Though Whales taken in these parts of the world have no scales properly so called yet they have a very thick and hard skin resembling scales The skin of the Elephant and of the Whale is extream hard and almost insensible said the Oracle among Physitians Quot ei squamae tot clypei quibus adversus omnem vim togitur Arianus memorat ex Nearcho visum cetum in littus ejectum cubitorum quinquaginta corio squamoso tam crasso ut cubitum aquaret Secondly It is reported that some Whales or Whales in some parts of the world have huge scales There was seen cast up upon the sea-shore saith one a monstrous fish of fifty cubits long which had scales all over of a cubit thick These were strong scales indeed and though we have not known or heard of any such in these parts of the world yet who can say knowingly there are none such in any part of the world as literally answer the description of Leviathans scales I grant that the three exceptions which Bochartus takes against the testimony of Nearchus are very considerable First That he stands alone and is but a single witness Secondly That he doth not say he saw such a whale but only heard it of certain Mariners who said they saw such a one which sort of men are not always to be credited And he adds Thirdly That though Nearchus should have said that himself had seen such a Whale yet little credit were to be given him he being an Author of no good credit These considerations I confess may somewhat weaken the testimony of Nearchus yet I see no reason why they should utterly infringe and disable it For first one man may speak truth in it self as well as two or three though the testimony of one be not so authentick to others as the testimony of two or three Secondly â—hough some Mariners over-reach in their repoâ—ts yet it doth not follow that they did so from whom that report came And Thirdly Though Nearchus be justly charged with failing and falseness in some things yet none can say his whole book is nothing else but a bundle of lies And if there be any truths in his writings as I suppose no man will deny but there are many then why this report of a Whale or mighty fish of that kind with great scales may not be reckoned among the truths contained in his writings rather than among the lies let the Reader judge Now though it be questioned what animal this Leviathan is yet 't is out of question that he hath scales upon him or that which amounts to scales For saith the Lord His scales are his pride Geneva Translation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 superbia magnificentia verbum medium Some render the words thus The majesty of his scales is like strong shields He is like a Curassier or an Horse-man armed Cap-a-Pe or all over But I shall abide in our own reading His scales are his pride or his hight his spirit is heightned by them Hence note First There is a kind of pride in brutes and irrational creatures Pride strictly taken is proper to man yet
elegancy of the Hebrew So then these words shew the great strength of Leviathan A stiff or thick neck signifies both strength of body and stoutness of spirit Naturalists say Qui collum habent grossum fortes sunt imbecilles autem qui illud habent gracile Aristot in Physiognomicis those creatures are very strong that are thick neckt as Bulls c. and they are weak that have thin slender necks The Scripture intimates the stiffness and unyieldingness of mans will to the commands of God by the stiffness of his neck Psalm 75.5 Lift not up your horn on high speak not with a stiff neck that is with a neck that will not bow to the Lords yoak nor obey his commands Humble ones bow their heads to worship God and yield their necks to his will For though to bow down the head like a bull rush for a day be not the Fast which God hath chosen Isa 58.5 for that is but an out-side repentance and they who do so may still remain stiff-spirited and pertinacious in their sins yet the bowing of the head hath in it the appearance of a bowed or humbled heart and a stiff neck is the badge of a proud impenitent one To speak with a stiff neck is to speak arrogantly Hannah in her Song 1 Sam. 2.3 useth this language to the stiff ones of the world Talk no more so exceeding proudly let not arrogancy come out of your mouth we put in the margin let not hardness come out of your mouth that is let it not appear at your mouths that your hearts are hard that your spirits are high and stiff speak no more as if you were Leviathans as if you could not bow your necks 'T is good to have a neck strong to bear but there is nothing worse than a strong neck that will not bow yet the strength of Leviathans neck seems rather to imply his courage than his pertinacy as it followeth In his neck remaineth strength And sorrow is turned into joy before him There are three other readings of these words which I shall name and come to our own Ante cum exilit moeror Jun. i. e. moerore afficit omnes obvios ac si de illis triumphans exultaret moeror effectus ab ea humonitus dictum Jun. First Some thus In his neck remaineth strength and before him danceth fear Several of the learned insist much upon this translation and their meaning is this all that come near Leviathan or within sight of him are afraid all the fish in the sea and all the mariners upon the sea that see him dance or hast away for fear as if fear caused by him triumphing over them danced before them He makes such a combustion by stirring the waters and rolling in them that be frights every living thing he meets with none dare stand him Secondly Master Broughton renders it thus Before him danceth carefulness that is as himself glosseth he takes or hath no care meeting with any fish to feed upon that his taking thought is a gladness He is so strong that he knows he can master all the fish that comes near him and can have prey enough for the taking to satisfie his vast stomack and fill his belly therefore he takes no care for tomorrow before him danceth carefulness Christ saith to his disciples take no thought for the morrow It were well if such carefulness danced before us as Leviathans cares dance before him We say of some men they sing care away and all carking heart-cutting and dividing cares should even dance away before all men The Apostles counsel is 1 Cor. 7.32 I would have you without carefulness as much as to say let carefulness dance before you or put it from you use the means and be not solicitous about successes or issues The moâ—e we live by faith the less we live in care or the more our cares dye and they whose hearts are full of faith cannot but have their heads emptied of cares Some say we have a great family many bellies to fill and backs to cloth how can we be without carefulness Consider one Leviathan needs more food than many families yet he takes no care God provides for him though he know it not and will he not provide for those that know him therefore let carefulness dance before you That 's a good reading for our use and comfort Thirdly Others translate thus before him passeth pennury Faciem ejus praecedit egestas Vulg. The meaning of that reading is wheresoever Leviathan comes he leaves nothing but pennury behind him he devours all before him and all little enough scarce enough for him all the fish he meets with all in the sea he eats them up the sea hardly affords enough to fill his huge belly satisfie his hungry appetite As 't is said of Behemoth he thinks he can draw up Jordan that is all the waters of Jordan so Leviathan thinks he can draw up the sea that is all the fish in the sea so that how much soever he meets with he looks upon it as pennury at most as but enough for him So that this translation Before him passeth pennury may have or bear these two interpretations Either First That he makes all pennury where he comes as it s said of the Turkish wars where the Grand Signiors horse treads the grass will not grow he treads down and spoils all Or as 't is said in Scripture of those enemies The land was before them like the garden of Eden and behind them as a desolate wilderness Or Secondly That he thinks all to be but pennury and scarcity how plentiful soever it is that is before him That which may suffice many is scarce a morsel or a mouthful for him as if all the fish in the sea could not serve him for a break-fast As 't is said of Alexander the Great when he had conquered the known world he was as hungry and sharp-set as ever he looked upon all as pennury and wished there were another world for him to conquer Thus plenty is pennury to Leviathan he is an unsatiable gulf that 's a third reading our own saith Sorrow is turned into joy before him The meaning I conceive 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 exultavit Mont. vertetur in laetitiam Pagn Quicquid solicitudinem aliis parit excitat exhilerat ipsius animum Bez. is this Leviathan is so strong and powerful such strength remaineth in his neck that nothing can daunt him or bring down his spirit nothing can trouble him much less terrifie him he fears nothing he fears none and if any object of sorrow present it self to him 't is presently his joy That which hath greatest matter of sorrow in it is to him matter of sport or he makes a sport of it he even rejoyceth in the midst of those things that makes others sad he either makes nothing of them or no such thing of them as they appear to others Sorrow is turned into joy before
humiliation before the Lord and in that we may consider these two general parts First Jobs Testimony concerning God Secondly His Charge brought against himself His Testimony concerning God we have in the second verse that is twofold or he commends and exalts God in two of his most glorious attributes First About his Omnipotency That thou canst do every thing Secondly About his Omnisciency as most expound the words And that no thought can be with-holden from thee Jobs Charge or Accusation which he brought against himself hath these four things in it First The Confession of his own ignorance and rashness in the third verse Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge I have spoken saith he things which I understood not things too wonderful for me which I knew not Thus he chargeth himself with rashness and ignorance Secondly The Submission of himself to the better instruction and teaching of God or to what God should be pleased yet further to reveal unto him at the 4th verse Hear I beseech thee and I will speak I will demand of thee and declare thou unto me He begs yet a word more with God and he begs a word more from God or that God would speak a word more to him Thirdly A Thankful Acknowledgment that he had already received much more light from God than formerly he had attained to at the 5th verse I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear I had a knowledg of thee O God before but now saith he mine eye seeth thee now I have more knowledg and clearer light concerning thee than ever I had before Fourthly The Issue or Effect of all this and that is his repentance Wherefore I abhor my self and repent in dust and ashes Thus we have both the general parts of the whole Chapter and the more particular resolution of this first part which I call Jobs humiliation And in this manner he humbled himself before the Lord as followeth Vers 1. Then Job answered the Lord and said These are the words of the Divine Historian connecting this Chapter with the former And all that I shall say upon this first first verse shall be but to Answer this Question How came it to pass that Job answered the Lord again seing he had professed before chap. 40.5 that he would answer no more Once have I spoken but I will not answer yea twice but I will proceed no further There Job seemed to take up a resolution to answer no more how is it then that here this Chapter beginneth with Then Job answered the Lord and said I shall give a three-fold answer to this doubt First Thus we may conceive Job in the former promise that he would answer no more meant it of such a kind of answer as he had given the Lord and his friends before he would answer no more in that way or after that sort and so it was not an absolute resolve not to answer but not to answer as he had done As if he had said I will answer no more justifying my self no nor so much as excusing my self or taking off the weight of any charge the Lord hath brought against me There being such a change in his answer he may very well be said to answer no more for he answered no more as once he did The best and safest way of justifying and excusing our selves is to lay our selves at the foot of God A confession of or a charging our selves with our sins is the best way of acquitting our selves before God from our sins I mean 't is the best that we can do to justifie or acquit our selves Secondly we may answer thus 'T is true Job said he would answer no more but it is as true that the Lord commanded him to answer again chap. 40.1 For when Job had said there at the fifth verse Once have I spoken but I will not answer yea twice but I will proceed no further The Lord saith at the 7th verse Gird up thy loyns like a man I will demand of thee and declare thou unto me God called him forth and bad him speak I have somewhat to say to thee and do thou answer me so that the Lord took off Job or released him from that bond that he had put upon himself Thou hast said thou wilt answer no more but I will have thee answer yet more Now though we take up a resolve to do or not to do such a thing yet a word from God must over-rule us As a word from God must over-rule us not to do what we have resolved to do so a word from God must over-rule us to do that which we have resolved not to do Thirdly The Lord had not only given Job a command to answer but inclined and moved his heart to answer The reason why Job resolved not to answer was the lowness of his own spirit and the terror of the Lord that was upon him The majesty and dread of the Lord put him upon a resolve for silence but now some favour appearing and the Lord giving him hopes of a gracious acceptance he was encouraged to speak and had a freedom of speech restored to him and accordingly he answered the Lord. Thus we may salve Jobs credit from lightness much more from a lie though after he had said he would answer no more we find him answering again Then Job answered the Lord and said The Lord having set forth his own infinite power and wisdom in that long and accurate speech which he made out of the whirlwind concerning his works of creation and providence especially by his discourse about that unparallel'd pair Behemoth and Leviathan the greatest of living creatures upon the land and in the sea I say the Lord having by this discourse humbled Job he saw and was convinced there was no disputing with God nor enquiring into much less complaining of or murmuring at his secret counsels and judgments he now saw it was not for him to call God to an account about any of his dealings and proceedings as sometimes he had done but rather to adore them and therefore he submits and answers only with exalting God and abasing himself He begins with the exaltation of God Then Job answered the Lord and said Vers 2. I know that thou canst do every thing That 's his first word and it teacheth us That when we begin to have high and great thoughts of God we cannot but have low and mean thoughts of our selves Our own humiliation begins at the exaltation of God and our self-emptiness and weakness at the sight of his fulness and Almightiness Thus Job began his humiliation I know that thou canst do every thing This verse exalts God both in his omnipotency and in his omnisciency Non exigit à nobis Deus multa verba sed multam fidem 'T is a short yet a full confession of his faith in this matter and though it were short yet it pleased God much and fully because Job uttered it in
nothing but the Word we shall never profit by the Word It is the Spirit given with the Word and the Spirit given with the rod by which we profit under both or either Psal 94.12 Blessed is the man saith David whom thou chastenest and teachest out of thy Law Chastning and divine teaching must go together else there will be no profiting by chastning God was Jobs teacher as well as his chastner Job received many lessons from God he taught him quire through the 38th and 39th Chapters and he taught him quite through two Chapters more before he said I know that thou canst do every thing Thus far of Jobs knowledge Let us a little consider the first object of it here expressed the omnipotence of God I know That thou canst do every thing Hence observe First God is good at any work That is at any work that is good he can do every such thing nothing comes amiss to him Among men one man can do this thing and another can do that thing and a third can do more than either but where will you find a man that can do every thing One man is for counsel another for action one man can build a house and another can till the ground several men have their several arts and mysteries and it is well if one man can do any one thing well But God is for all We have a saying and 't is a great truth He that will be doing of every thing Aliquis in omnibus nullus in singulis is no great doer in any thing that is he never excels in any But as the Lord can do every thing so he is exact and perfect in every thing that he doth The best creature is only a particular good but God is an universal good there is every good in God all the good that is scattered in the creature is eminently in him Now as God is an universal good so he is an universal Agent he is in working as he is in Being He can do every thing for us as well as be every thing to us We need not fear if we bring this or that thing to God that he hath no skill in it as it is with men if you bring this thing to a man he is excellent at it but bring another thing and he knoweth not how to turn his hand to it but whatsoever we have to do if it be according to the will of God he hath power and wisdom enough to do it The Lord had power enough to give a being to all creatures and hath he not power enough to do all things in and about the creature cannot he preserve in all dangers and provide in all wants cannot he furnish with all gifts and give success cannot he overthrow the high and exalt the low cannot be restrain the wrathful and subdue the obstinate cannot he weaken the strong and strengthen the weak cannot he make fools wise and wise men foolish surely he can do all these things for he can do every thing Secondly from these words take that grand assertion God is omnipotent his power is infinite This is a principle one of the great principles of Religion an Article of Faith yet I shall not enlarge upon it having met with it in other places of this book Only consider here how Job infers this principle he infers it from the discourse which the Lord was pleased to have with him in the four former Chapters wherein the Lord told him of many things that he had done I have done this and that in the heavens above and in the earth below I have made Behemeth and Leviathan God had told him of his doings Ex mirabilibus recensites scivit Job atque collegit Deum omnia posse non quasi per inductionem sed per deductionem plurium ex uno principio Janson whence Job inferred I know thou canst do every thing He doth not make this conclusion by way of induction there is such a way of argumentation in Logick but by deduction God hath done this and that and the other therefore he can do all things if he can do this what cannot he do if he can make and subdue Behemoth what cannot he do and if he can make and master Leviathan what cannot he do Christ Luke 5.20 argueth his omnipotency or Godhead in the same manner for having healed a poor man and said unto him Man thy sins are forgiven thee the Pharisees were very much offended with that word saying Who is this that speaketh blasphemy who can forgive sins but God alone Christ knowing their thoughts said What reason ye in your hearts whether is it easier to say thy sins are forgiven thee or to say rise up and walk I have healed the man doth not that argue a divine power why may not I then say Thy sins are forgiven thee He that can by his own might do one mighty or miraculous thing can do all things Such is the power of God that as I said before he hath no limit to it but his own will And seeing the will of God is the limit of his power let us take heed of desiring him who can do every thing to do any thing for us which is not according to his will Let us bound our desires let us take heed of saying this is our desire and God can do every thing therefore this which we desire Consider is your desire according to the will of God We cannot urge God with his Omnipotency to do any thing that is our desire if we are not first clear in it that our desire is agreeable to his will Unless we have a rule for our desire or we desire by rule we can have no well-grounded confidence that God will do that for us which we desire God is almighty not to do what we will or forge in our brain but to do what himself willeth Papists say the bread is turned into the very body of Christ but say we we see and feel and tast but bread They presently fly to this God is able to do all things or he can do every thing this is to abuse the Omnipotency of God Hath the Scripture declared any such thing yea hath not the Scripture declared the quite contrary that Sacraments are but signs of things not the things themselves This is my body said Christ but he said not my body is this Christ willed that his body should be represented by bread he will not that bread should be changed into his body The power of God must not be urged beyond his will He have no revelation of the will of God that he will transubstantiate the bread at the holy supper into the body of Christ but he hath given it as a sacred symbole of Christs crucified and broken body upon which we are to feed by faith That God can do whatsoever he willeth hath a two-fold use First Of comfort to all true believers Nostrae difficultates Deo per faciles sunt
two-fold demanding First as a Disputant Secondly as a Supplicant Job would now demand as a Supplicant unto God M◠interrogantem doce benignè qui me tuae disciplinae planè submitto Merc. not as a Disputant with God We may be said to demand or enquire of God when we consult his word not humane reason It an innocent person as Job be afflicted where shall he enquire the reason of it if he only respect his affliction and compare that with his own innocency he will quickly murmure at and complain of the dealings of God with him But if he look to the Word of God which tells him that God is a Soveraign Lord and that God hath promised not only to be with his in trouble but that their troubles shall work their comforts he will not only be patient under but glory in his tribulations 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 interrogobo tc sc petendo orando pulsando Aquin. The Hebrew word which we translate demand may well be rendred petition or crave The common sense of the word demand seems too high for Jobs spirit and condition Master Broughton renders I will make petition unto thee or an humble suit unto thee as if he had said I will pray for and beg this favour of thee that thou wouldst teach and inform me better It is not an authoritative demand Qui regat nescit Interrogare sapientem dimidia sapientia est Apotheg Arab. which is a kind of command but a submissive demand this demanding is the asking of a question not the requiring of a right He that asks a question implyeth that he stands in need of information and that he is desirous to learn And to put questions to a wise man is half wisdom I will demand or put questions unto thee Declare thou unto me The Hebrew is make me to know make me a knowing man As if Job had said Lord if thou wilt teach me I shall soon get knowledg and understanding and therefore I resign my self wholly to thy teachings The true submission of mans will to Gods will is to hearken to the counsel or wisdom of God and not to sit down in our own But as it was questioned at the first verse how Job could answer seeing he had said I will answer no more so here it may be questioned why the Lord spake no more to Job seeing here he desired to receive further instruction from him I answer First Job made this suit to God upon this condition that God would please to enform him if he saw need or should think fit to do it Secondly Job spake this doctrinally to shew what he and others ought to desire submit to even the teachings of God Thirdly I answer that the Lord seeing his submission saw there was no need of speaking any further to him but broke up the whole disputation determining for Job and giving him the day against his three friends as will appear further in the sequel of the Chapter From this verse Observe First The sence of our wants puts us upon prayer When Job was sensible that he wanted understanding and knowledge he came to God for it Give me to understand cause me to know True and fervent prayer floweth from a sence of our wants If we see not our selves in need why should we pray And when really we shall have no need as in heaven there will be no need of prayer all will be praise and all shall be in everlasting praises Secondly The person to whom Job maketh his application for teaching being God himself Note We know nothing of God nor of our selves aright till God teacheth us till he declareth and maketh it known to us Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and cometh down from the father of lights c. Jam. 1.17 As no man can either make or redeem himself so no man can teach or instruct himself What we know of God we know from God 'T is in his light that we see light The light may shine round about us and we see it not unless God enlighten us as well as send us the light we are never the better As in conversion the Lord first opens the eyes and then turns from darkness to light Acts 26.18 So under every dispensation we are in the dark till God opens our eyes and give us by his own immediate or mediate teachings light about it Thirdly note If we desire God should teach us or if we would be taught of God we must ask it of him We find the godly often putting up this request to God David was much in this petition Psal 119.33 34. Teach me O Lord the way of thy statutes and I shall keep it unto the end Give me understanding and I shall keep thy law He did not only desire God that he would teach him but give him a faculty to receive his teachings vers 35. Make me to go in the path of thy commandement See how the Psalmist joyneth these petitions together First Teach me the way of thy statutes Secondly Give me understanding as if he had said else thy teachings will do no good Thirdly Make me to go in the path of thy commandement as if he had said though I understand thy statutes yet unless thou help me I shall not be able to walk in them no nor to take one right step in them therefore Make me to go in the path of thy commandement Again Psal 143.10 Teach me to do thy will for thou art my God thy spirit is good lead me into the land of uprightness As the Lord teacheth us our way and hath promised to teach us always in all things needful for us to know and do so he hath taught us by the written practise of many as well as by his written precept that we must pray for his teaching Fourthly Job was humbling himself and now he begs of God that he would teach him Hence note Humble souls desire and give up themselves wholly to be taught by God They hang upon his mouth for instruction and renounce their own wisdom Eliphaz gave Job that advice Chap. 22.22 Acquaint thy self now with him and be at peace and good shall come unto thee Receive I pray thee thee law from his mouth and lay up his words in thy heart Fifthly In that Job prays for teaching in this form according to the Hebrew make me to know Observe The teachings of God are effectual they make us know Men may teach others knowledge but they cannot make them know God can make a very dullard quick of understanding Men may instruct the understanding but they cannot give understanding God doth both The teachings of God are effectual to all purposes First to enlighten the ignorant Secondly to convince gain-sayers Thirdly to convert sinners Fourthly to comfort those that are sorrowful Fifthly to resolve such as are doubtful Sixthly to encourage the fearful And Seventhly to raise up and recover those that are fallen Thus Job is become a
respect First because 't is that which the wisdom of God the Father hath provided for us and Secondly which the worthiness of God the Son hath wrought out and procured for us Take two or three Inferences from the general Observation thus far prosecuted That true repentance is joyned with self abhorrence First Then self-admirers are no repenters They are at the furthest remove from abhorring themselves who admire themselves Secondly Self-justifiers are no true repenters Christ told the Pharisees Luke 16.15 Ye are they which justifie your selves They are far from abhorring themselves who justifie themselves such surely are highly pleased with themselves and have much confidence in themselves therefore very far from self-abhorrence Thirdly What shall I say of their repentance who instead of abhorring themselves abhor others Luke 18.9 Christ spake a Parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others and presently instanced in the Pharisee who despised the poor Publican and called him in contempt This Publican he would as we say hardly touch him with a pair of tongs They that despise others are usually if not alwayes much pleased with themselves Fourthly If these self-boasters and self-admirers c. are not repenters then do they repent who are so far from abhorring sinful self and righteous self that they take pleasure in sin and unrighteousness whether their own or others The Apostle speaks of such Rom. 1.32 Who knowing the judgement of God that they which commit such things are worthy of death not only do the same but have pleasure in them that do them That 's a dreadful word 2 Thes 2.12 That they all might be damned who believe not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness O how far are they from abhorring their own righteousness who take pleasure in unrighteousness How are they puffed up with that which hath but a shew of righteousness who please themselves with that which is really unrighteous Fifthly If true repentance be accompanied with self-abhorrence then do they repent who return to those sins which they say they have repented of do you think the dog loaths his vomit when you see him go back and lick it up again 2 Pet. 2.22 When once the Jews loathed or abhorred Manna they had no mind to eat of it though it was Angels food When Job loathed his life he said he would live no longer Chap. 7.16 I loath it I would not live alwayes that is not at all not an hour longer in this world He that is weary of his life thinks to live but a day or a little longer is to live alwayes or that his life will never end Thus if a man doth truly loath and abhor his sin he will not return to it again though it hath been as sweet to him as Manna yea as life it self I do not say that he who loaths and abhors his sin can never relapse into the same sin or be overtaken with it again but this I say he that truly repents never delights in sin again he never goeth back to it and licketh it up as a dog his vomit A good man may fall into the same sin but he never returneth to the same sin he may be overtaken with the same sin but he never taketh up the same sin again That 's the Apostles word Gal. 6.1 If any of you be overtaken with a fault c. A good man may be overtaken with the same fault but he never taketh up that fault nor runs a course in that sin again I shall only add these two words for the working of our souls to this self-abhorrence First The more we abhor our selves the more God delighteth in us the more we are displeased with our sins the more is he pleased with our persons the worse the viler we are in our own eyes the better we are and the more beautiful in the eye of God Secondly Unless we abhor our selves God will abhor us I may say unless we so repent as to abhor our selves God will abhor our very repentance There is no true repentance without some degree of self-abhorrence yea of self-condemnation Let us not take up this word repentance too easily that is when we know not what this word self-abhorrence meaneth We defile this holy this precious thing called repentance when our hearts are not fully taken off from that or thole sins of which we say we repent All such would have that go for repentance towards God which indeed is but a mocking of God and can never be joyned from which true repentance cannot be separated with faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ Acts 20.21 I abhor my self said Job And repent in dust and ashes I shall here give somewhat about the nature of repentance in general and then gather up those particular Observations which arise from these words about it Repentance is a grace of the Gospel wrought in the heart of a sinner by the Word and Spirit turning the whole man from all sin to God in the sincere and universal obedience of his holy will In this description of repentance we have four things considerable First The nature of it or what it is A grace of the Gospel Secondly The seat of it or where it is wrought The heart of a sinner Thirdly The means by which it is wrought and that twofold First Instrumental The Word Secondly Principal The Spirit Fourthly The issue or effect of it Conversion or turning wherein two things are to be taken notice of First the term from which the turn is made Sin and all sin Secondly the term to which the turn is made God thus explained In the sincere or universal obedience of his holy will or in the practice of every known duty First I say Repentance is a grace of the Gospel Some possibly may say Job was before the Gospel I answer no The Gospel was published long before Job was born even as soon as God promised the seed of the woman Christ Jesus should bruise the Serpents head Gen. 3.15 The whole body of Gospel duty moves upon these two feet Faith and Repentance Some have questioned which of these two graces hath the precedency or takes the first step in the motion of the soul heaven-ward All that I shall say in answer to it is First that where these two graces are mentioned together in Scripture usually repentance is named first because it appears first and is most visible to us in its actings yet Faith is to be understood first because without that no man can come to Christ as a true penitent for pardon of sin and reconciliation unto God Secondly in those Scriptures where true saving repentance is spoken of alone it supposeth faith also and where true saving faith only is spoken of it necessarily implyeth true repentance This repentance is so much a grace of the Gospel that the first Sermon that ever was preacht at the approach of Christ or at the opening of the Gospel in the new
Testament was Repent ye for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand Mat. 3.2 And the end or design of the first Sacrament or seal of the Gospel-covenant is expressed to be repentance Mat. 3.11 I baptize you with water unto repentance yea the first word of the first Sermon upon record which Christ himself preached in person was Repent Mat. 4.17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to say repent This also was the substance of the Apostles Sermons when first sent forth by Christ to preach the Gospel Mark 6.12 They went out and preached that men should repent The first word of counsel which the Apostle Peter gave to the Jews crying out men and brethren what shall we do was Repent Acts 2.38 And the Apostle Paul saith that the whole of his work in preaching the Gospel was his testifying both to Jews and Gentiles repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ Act. 20.21 'T is through the Gospel only that repentance is possible And this appears two wayes First Because we have not a liberty to repent or we are not admitted to repent but by the Gospel We find no place for repentance in the Law strictly taken or as opposed to the Gospel The Law speaks thus Gal. 3.10 Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things that are written in the book of the Law to do them Where we see First the Law requires personal obedience every one must do for himself Secondly The Law requires perpetual obedience every one that continueth not doing Thirdly The Law requires universal obedience every one that continueth not in all things If any one continue not at all times in all things saith the Law or if he fail but once in any one thing he is gone for ever he is cursed The Law doth not say if a man continue not to do all let him repent that admits no second thoughts but claps the curse presently upon the offender If Adam as soon as he had eaten of the forbidden tree had bewailed his sin and said I repent no favour could have been shewed him while under the Law Secondly Under the Law there is no ability given for repentance All the promises of a broken heart and of godly sorrow are appendants of the Gospel This spiritual curse which falls upon the soul sinning under the Law is impenitency for sin Death in sin is the punishment of sin and therefore when Adam had sinned he never gave the least intimation of nor shewed the least inclination to repentance all he did was to hide himself from God among the trees of the garden and to hide his sin from God as well as he could by vain excuses he had not a heart to mourn for his sin nor a tongue to confess it till the Promise came and the Gospel was published and then though his repentance be not mentioned yet doubtless he repented And hence the Apostle concludes Apostates from the profession which they once made of Christ under an utter impossibily of repentance Heb. 6.4 5 6. And the reason why the fallen Angels never repented was because they had no Mediator nor did Jesus Christ take their nature on him Heb. 2.16 Thus far of the first thing in the description of repentance the general nature of it 't is a grace of the Gospel Secondly Consider the seat or subject of it where 't is wrought the heart of a sinner Repentance is heart-work or it is a work upon the heart There repentance began in those converts Act. 2.37 whom the Apostle Peter advised to a thorough work of repentance vers 38. The promise of repentance runs in this tenour I will take away saith the Lord Ezek. 36.26 the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you an heart of flesh When David said Psal 51.17 A broken and contrite heart he means only a repenting heart O God thou wilt not despise As faith is wrought in the heart and with the heart man believeth Rom. 10.10 so repentance is wrought in the heart and with the heart man repenteth Neither a weeping eye nor a confessing tongue nor in case of wrong done to man a restoring hand will be taken for repentance without a broken heart Thirdly Consider the means by which saving repentance or repentance to salvation is wrought 1st the Word 2ly the Spirit The Word of God is the usual the ordinary instrument in the hand that is in the power of the Spirit of God working repentance in the heart of man The word of a Philosopher with all his reasonings the word of an Orator with all his flourishings cannot do it only the Word of God spoken in plainness and simplicity hath strength and efficacy to do it The Word is compared to a fire which melts the hardest heart 't is also in the same place Jer. 23.29 compared to a hammer which breaketh the rock in pieces The Word passing through the ear pierceth the heart Acts 2.27 Now when they heard this they were pricked in their heart And when even the devils Devotionists they that used curious arts burnt their books Acts 19.19 it is said vers 20. so mightily grew the Word of God and prevailed The word of God cloathed with the Spirit hath as to this matter a fourfold operation First to awaken a drowsie soul Eph. 5.14 Secondly to enlighten a dark soul Acts 26.18 Thirdly to convince a gain-saying soul Fourthly to convert a wandring soul Acts 26.18 1 Thes 1.9 Till the soul is awakened it cannot be enlightned till it is enlightned it cannot be convinced till it is convinced it cannot be converted and until it is all this it hath not truly repented For Fourthly as was said in the description first laid down the effect of true repentance is the turning of the whole man from all sin to God All the members of the body the hand the foot the eyes the ears the tongue are turned all the faculties of the soul the understanding will affections are turned from all sin First of what kind soever whether of omission or commission against God neighbour self Secondly of what degree soever little as well as great appearances of evil as well as apparent evils Further as in repentance there is a turning from sin so unto God in the sincere obedience of his whole will We read in Scripture First of Gods returning to us Secondly of our returning to God both are acts of repentance When God returns to us he repents of the evil of trouble brought or threatned to be brought upon us and when we return to God that 's a fruit of our repentance for the evil of sin committed against him Unless our repentance bring us neerer to God we as we say are never the neer for our repentance that is our repentance is not good nor shall we have any good by it The Prophet found Israels repentance defective in this Hos 7.16 They return but not to the most high Some in repenting return only to self
keep his sin upon him and continue in it notwithstanding our severest and discreetest rebukes yet he that rebukes a sinning brother doth not suffer sin upon him but hath done his duty and used the means appointed by God for the removing of it And as we should not let the Sun go down upon our wrath against other men nor give place to the devil in our selves Eph. 4.26.27 so we should not suffer the Sun to go down upon the sin of other men nor give place to the devil in them by our forbearance to rebuke them for their sin Thus the Lord dealt with Jobs three friends he speedily reproved them for their error in not speaking of him the thing that was right Further consider The Lord begins with Job and then proceeds to deal with his friends Job had the first reproof his friends the second Hence note The Lord reproves them first whom he respects most who are dearest to him We cannot shew our selves more friendly to any man than by an early reproof of his error or as the word is Lev. 19.17 by not suffering sin upon him 'T is a mercy when we reprove not our selves to meet with a reproof though late from others but to be soon reproved is much mercy Every good the sooner it comes to us the better it is To be helpt out of sin-evil is a great good and therefore when we are in a fault with others 't is a priviledge to be reproved before others and with all possible speed to be brought unto repentance The Apostle Peter saith 1 Pet. 4.17 Judgement begins at the house of God The Lord judgeth his own house before he judgeth the world and it is in mercy to his own house that he doth so for when God judgeth those of his house he chastneth them that they should not be condemned with the world 1 Cor. 10.32 And as God usually begins to judge his own house before he judgeth the world so the neerer and dearer any of his house are to him the sooner he begins with them as here Jobs three friends Eliphaz Bildad and Zophar were of Gods house but Job was more eminent than any of them and therefore God reproved him before he reproved them It was so that after the Lord had spoken these words unto Job The Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite my wrath is kindled against thee c. The Lord said These words contain the second thing to be considered in this verse to wit the manner of proceeding He said that is he openly declared it he did not whisper it in the ear of Eliphaz he did not speak it to him inwardly by his Spirit there are inward reproofs conscience-checks he did not speak to him in his sleep or in a dream that opinion of one upon this place that God reproved Eliphaz in a dream is but a dream but openly that all might hear and so the innocency of Job and the fault of his friends might be manifest to all Some are of opinion that the Lord said this to Eliphaz out of the whirlwind as he spake to Job And though I do not assert that yet it cannot be denied but that as such a manner of speaking did best suit the Majesty of God so the matter spoken which was a sore reproof in which the Lord manifested much displeasure The Lord said openly and and angerly To Eliphaz the Temanite He spake not to Bildad nor to Zophar but to Eliphaz the Temanite But why did the Lord direct his speech to him personally and by name while the business concerned them all I might answer as some do because what any one of them said to Job was as if said by them all And though their opinions differed yet their persons did not all three agreeing in this though upon several grounds to oppose Job And therefore the Lord in speaking to one spake to them all But I shall give three other Reasons for it and from each a Note First Eliphaz was the elder man the graver person as all agree and therefore God reproved him personally Note this from it The elder and greater any are the greater is their offence when they offend though others offend with them When many are in a fault the chiefs or heads of them are most faulty and deserve chiefly to hear of it When Israel had committed that great sin in Baal-peor Numb 25.4 The Lord said Hang up the heads of the people before me that is the chiefs of the people So in proportion when the Lord came to deal with these three he fell upon Eliphaz first as the more eminent or first of the three Secondly as Eliphaz was the elder or first of the three so he began first with Job he was not only the first and chief in person but he was the first and chief speaker Hence note They who are first in a fault shall be first in reproof It is dangerous to follow or be a second in a bad matter but more to begin and be leader Thirdly Eliphaz was more sharp with and violent against Job than the other two and therefore the Lord began with him Hence note The deeper any are in a fault of any kind and the more of the heart appeareth in it the worse it is the more blame-worthy are they and they shall be more blamed for it All the three friends of Job did much mistake him but the spirit of Eliphaz was hottest therefore the Lord culled him out first The Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite What said the Lord My wrath is kindled against thee and against thy two friends My wrath is kindled These words are used by Elihu Chap. 32.2 3. Then was kindled the wrath of Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite against Job was his wrath kindled and against his three friends was his wrath kindled Here the Lord taketh up the same words concerning Eliphaz My wrath is kindled against thee thy two friends Elihu's wrath was kindled not only against Jobs friends but against Job himself but the Lords wrath was kindled only against Jobs three friends not against Job He indeed displeased God and was sharply reproved by him but the wrath of God was not kindled against him 'T is useful to consider the difference between Gods judgement and mans both as to things and persons Elihu thought Job was faulty as his friends and therefore his wrath was kindled as against his three friends so against him too but the Lord thought otherwise and therefore said to Eliphaz My wrath is kindled against thee and thy two friends he said not so to Job Again consider the Lord spake much with Job but he spake little with his friends he did not vouchsafe them any long discourse and the words he spake to them were very hot words he in few words as angry men use to do told them their own Once more consider the difference of the Lords dealing with him and them The Lord fetcht a great compass to reprove Job as
Nathan the Prophet did to reprove King David but he told his friends at first word My wrath is kindled against you Though they were good men yet not so dear to God as Job and therefore he dealt in a more fatherly and favourable way with Job than with them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Exarsit incensus inflammatus est Inter septem voculas Hebraeorum quae iram significant haec omnium est gravissima Scult they had only hot words My wrath is kindled against you c. I am more than angry As the coals of spiritual love spoken of Cant. 8.6 so the coals of divine wrath are coals of fire which hath a most vehement flame There are seven words in the Hebrew language which signifie anger and this notes the most vehement of them all My wrath is kindled The Latine words Ira and Irasco seem to be derived from it The word is sometimes applied to grief there is a kind of fire in grief Thus 't is said 1 Sam. 15.11 It grieved Samuel and he cryed unto the Lord all night Samuel was vehemently grieved becauâ—e of the ill performance of Saul in his expedition against the Amalakites 'T is also translated to fret Psal 37.8 9. Fret not thy self in any wise to do evil fretting hath its burning My wrath saith the Lord is kindled There is a wrath of God which is not kindled as I may say it is not blown up 't is covered in the ashes of his patience and forbearance but here saith God My wrath is kindled This is spoken by God after the manner of men God feels no change by wrath or anger no impression is made on him by any passion Wrath in God notes only his change of dispensations towards man not any in himself When he acts like a man whose wrath is greatly kindled then 't is said his wrath is kindled as when he acteth like a man that sheweth much love it may be said his love is kindled Further when God saith My wrath is kindled it implieth there is some great provocation given him by man as in the present case Eliphaz and his two friends had done The Lord threatned a sinful Land with brimstone and salt and burning like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah and this being executed all Nations shall say wherefore hath the Lord done thus unto this Land what meaneth the heat of this great anger Then men shall say because they have forsaken the Covenant of the Lord God of their Fathers c. Deut. 29.23 24 25. The wrath of God is never kindled till blown and that which bloweth it up is mans sin nor doth the ordinary sins of man kindle the wrath of God for then it must be alwayes kindled even against the best of men Doubtless when the Lord said in the Text to Eliphaz My wrath is kindled against thee and thy two friends there was somewhat extraordinary in their sin which kindled it and therefore the Lord directed them an extraordinary way as to circumstances for the querching of it and the making of their peace But here it may be questioned why did the Lord say his wrath was kindled only against Eliphaz and his two friends had he nothing to say against Elihu he had spoken as harshly to Job as any of them yet Elihu was not at all reproved much less was the wrath of God kindled against him I answer 'T is true Elihu spake very hard words of Job yet we may say four things of Elihu which might exempt him from this blame which fell upon those three First He did not speak with nor discover a bitter spirit as they did Secondly Elihu objected not against Job his former life nor charged him as having done wickedly towards man or hypocritically towards God he only condemned him for present miscarriages under his trouble for impatience and unquietness of spirit under the cross Thirdly That which Elihu chiefly objected against Job was the justifying of himself rather than God as he speaks at the beginning of the 32d Chapter not the maintaining of his own innocency nor the justifying of himself before men Indeed Job failed while he insisted so much upon that point that he seemed more careful to clear himself than to justifie God Fourthly When Elihu spake hardly it was more out of a true zeal to defend the justice of God in afflicting him than to tax him with injustice Now because Elihu did not carry it with a bitter spirit and hit the mark much better than his friends though in some things he also shot wide and misunderstood Job therefore the blame fell only upon Jobs three friends and not upon Elihu The Lord said to Eliphaz my wrath is kindled against thee and against thy two friends but his wrath went no further Hence note First The Lord knows how to declare wrath as well as love displeasure as well as favour He hath a store of wrath as well as of love and that is kindled when he is highly displeased Secondly Note Sin causeth kindlings or discoveries of divine wrath Had it not been for sin the Lord had never declared any wrath in the world nothing had gone out from him but kindness and love favours and mercies Wrath is revealed from heaven against all unrighteousness and against unrighteousness only Rom. 1.18 Unrighteousness kindleth wrath sin is the kindle-coal When we see wrath or displeasure going out we may conclude sin is gone out Moses said to Aaron Numb 16.46 Take a Censer and put fire therein from off the altar and put on incense and go quickly unto the congregation and make an atonement for them for there is wrath gone out from the Lord the plague is begun Now as in this latter part of the chapter Moses shews that wrath was gone out against that people from the Lord so in the former part of it he shews that sin and that a great sin was gone out from that people against the Lord. Thirdly Note The Lord sometimes declareth wrath even against those whom he loveth Wrath may fall upon good men such were these friends of Job All the Elect whilest they remain unconverted or uncalled are called Children of wrath Ephes 2.3 Though they are in the everlasting love of God yet they are children of wrath as to their present condition whilst in a state of nature and unreconciled to God Now as the children of God are children of wrath before their conversion so when any great sin is committed after conversion they are in some sense under wrath and the Lord declareth wrath against them till the breach be healed and their peace sued out It is dangerous continuing for a moment in any sin unrepented of or we not going unto God by Jesus Christ for pardon When once the wrath of God is kindled how far it may burn who knoweth There is no safety under guilt Therefore kiss the son lest he be angry and ye perish from the way when his wrath is kindled but a little blessed
her wing is but a Snail to the Sun yet God can forbid the Suns motion Job 9.7 He commandeth the Sun and it riseth not That is if he send forth a prohibition to the Sun it will not stir forwards one foot till he takes off his prohibition and bids it fulfill its wonted course as in Joshua's dayes Chap. 10.12 and at his command it will go backward as in the dayes of Hezekiah 2 Kings 20.11 Further The Lords voice disanuls and makes void the commands of any creature Lam. 3.32 Who is he that saith it and it cometh to pass if the Lord have not commanded it They reckon as we say without their host who hope to carry on any work without Gods concurrence for he can gâ—ve a negative to all our affirmatives and make all our wheels either stand still or go backward Fourthly There is a thunder in the teaching voice of God His teaching voice is a very still voice yet 't is a very strong voice the soul falls down at the sound of it 'T is promised Isa 54.13 that we shall be all taught of God that is effectually taught so taught as to â—eceive instruction The teaching voice of God makes the ignorant knowing and the foolish wise The Lord said the Prophet Isa 8.11 spake unto me with a strong hand and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people There had need be a strong hand in the voice of that instruction which keeps us out of the common walks of the world Yet there is such a power in the teaching voice of God that like a thunder-bolt it over-throweth and so pulls down all the strong-holds of sin casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalteth it self against the knowledge of God and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ 2 Cor. 10.4 5. Thus God thunders against sin and batters sinners which is infinitely harder to do than to battel and level the walls of a City to the ground with thundering Cannon The weapons of our warfare for the conquest of souls to Christ are all laid up in and fetcht out of the Arcenal of the holy Scriptures or Word of God and O what work have they made in the world How many have fallen by submitting to them to their own salvation and how many more have fallen by resisting them to their own everlasting desruction Fifthly There is a mighty power in the reproving voice of God When God deals verbal rebukes to sinners as well as verberal he often makes their beauty to consume away like a moth Psal 39.11 The Lord professeth to all hardned sinners whose consciences now give them no reproofs and who presume God will give them none neither that he hath thundering reproofs ready for them Psal 50.21 I will reprove thee and set them that is thy sins in order before thine eyes O consider this as 't is advised in the next verse of the same Psalm ye that forget God lest he tear you in pieces with the thunder of his reproof Sixthly There is also a mighty power in the comforting voice of God O what a vertue is there in those secret whispers wherein God speaketh peace to his people Hosea 2.14 I will allure her and bring her into the wilderness and speak comfortably unto her or to her heart A thunder as to power goeth with this voice of God This hath a power to settle a shaking or disconsolate soul and nothing but the power of Gods voice can do that When none can comfort the Lord can To comfort the conscience is said Luther as great a work as to make a world Seaventhly There is a mighty power as in the promising or comforting voice of God so also in his threatning voice The Lord thunders reproofs against those that have sinned and he thunders threatnings to keep all from sinning and how terrible that voice iâ— the Apostle knew who said Knowing the terrour of the Lord we perswade men 2 Cor. 5.11 And as the Apostle knew it by believing it so all final unbelievers shall know it by their sense and feeling of it Eighthly There is a thunder of power in the prophesying voice of God When the Lord fore-tells what shall come to pass who can withstand it We find those prophesies which hold forth the ruin of Christs enemies and of his Church shewred in with thunder Rev. 8.15 and Rev. 11.19 which did not only shew that those prophesies should be certainly and solemnly fulfilled in their season but that they should be terribly fulfilled or fullfilled with a terror like that of thunder All prophesies shall effectually come to pass and be fulfilled therefore power is in them Ninthly What a power is there in the swearing voice of God First God swears sometimes in his wrath he did so against that people of old I sware to them in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest And so powerful was that oath that not a man of them could come into Canaan their Carcasses fell in the wilderness And as when rhe Lord swears in wrath so Secondly When he swears in love and mercy there 's irresistible power in that also Thus God sware and made oath to Abraham Heb. 6.17 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 lye we might have strong consolation c. To David also God sware in love Psal 89.35 36. Once have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lye unto David His seed shall endure forever and his throne as the Sun before me c. The oath or swearing voice of God is so strong that we have reason enough both of strong fears when he sweareth in wrath as he did against the children of Israel and of strong consolation when he sweareth in love as he did to Abraham and to David And wo to those who believe not when God swears either in wrath or in love Tenthly There is a mighty power in the Judging voice of God When he shall speak from his throne in that great day what a thunder will there be in his voice When in that Judgment-day he shall acquit his elect that voice will have a ravishing power in it And when his condemning sentence shall be pronounced against the wicked that voice will have an astonishing power in it beyond that of thunder And it is to be considered that in many places of Scripture where the eminent judgments of God are mentioned his voice or thunder is mentioned as going before or accompanying those solemn and tremendous dispensations Psal 18.13 Psal 68.33 34 35. Isa 30.30 Jer. 25.30 Joel 4.16 To conclude this point seeing there is a power like that of thunder going forth with the voice of God in the effectual ministrations of his Word let us well consider whether God hath spoken to us effectually yea or no
have we known the thunder of his Spirit hath there come a mighty power upon us with the voice of his Word if the voice hath not reach't our hearts and reformed our lives we have not heard the thunder of Gods voice but only the voice of man or a sound in the air beating the outward ear Naturalists say from experience that by the power of thunder and lightning the sword is sometimes melted while the scabbard is unhurt And from experience they that are spiritual can also say that the thunder of Gods voice melteth the soul while it only toucheth the ear Therefore we have reason diligently to enquire what power hath come with the word spoken have we found the commanding the promising the threatning the instructing the comforting voices of God effectual upon our hearts Blessed are they who have been thus thunder-struck And all they who have been thus strucken out of themselves and into Christ may truly say what that people said flattering and blasphemously at the Oration of Herod Acts 12.22 It is the voice of God and not of man Though the sound of the words came in mans voice yet the power of them came in Gods voice for who can thunder with a voice like him or who indeed hath any thing like such thunder in his voice but he Further the Lords design being to humble Job in putting these questions Hast thou an arm like God or canst thou thunder with a voice like him Note Man is never convinced either of his own weakness and unworthiness till he is taught to consider the power greatness and mightiness of God Till God is great and high in our thoughts we are great and high in our own And when God is great in our eyes we are little in our own and so are all things else then our power is nothing to the power of God our holiness nothing to the holiness of God our wisdom nothing to the wisdom of God ' Tiâ— good thus to compare our selves with God that we may see and be convinced how infinitely below God we are in all that we have and are David said Psal 39.5 Mine age is as nothing before thee It is so in all other things our wisdom is nothing before God our holiness is nothing before God our strength is nothing before God As those searchers of Canaan said Numb 13.33 We saw the Giants there and we were as Grashoppers in their sight We thought our selves tall men before we saw those high-statur'd Giants but having seen them we were but Pigmies yet but as Grashoppers So we think we have a great deal of power and wisdom and holiness till we look upon God and then we are convinced of our own meanness and poverty The Apostle saith in highest truth and honesty as well as modesty 2 Cor. 10.12 We dare not make our selves of the number or compare our selves with some that commend themselves but they measuring themselves by themselves and comparing themselves amongst themselves are not wise And why not wise because they seem to be too wise or think themselves very wise We get some opinion of our own wisdom and holiness and goodness and righteousness comparing our selves with men like our selves but if we would compare our selves with God we should soon see what poor things we are What pitiful creatures do we appear when compared with our Creatour and we shall have profited well by this Scripture if we make this use of it and leave priding our selves as men by comparing our selves with men One man saith I am as good as that man and another saith I am as wise as that man and a third saith I am as holy as such a man O that we would but think what the goodness wisdom and holiness of God are such holy thoughts wrought upon the heart will free us from all high thoughts of our selves and then we shall look for our all in Jesus Christ then as the Prophet gives us the true form of Gospel-speaking Isa 45.24 Surely shall one say in the Lord I have righteousness and strength And so will every one say who seeth which is true of all men that his own strength is weakness and his righteousness a filthy rag compared with the strength and righteousness of God Our arm our voice our self-all or our all of self will vanish and disappear if once God appear to us in the glory of his arm and voice Hast thou an arm like God or canst thou thunder with a voice like him JOB Chap. 40. Vers 10 11 12 13 14. 10. Deck thy self now with majesty and excellency and array thy self with glory and beauty 11. Cast abroad the rage of thy wrath and behold every one that is proud and abase him 12. Look on every one that is proud and bring him low and tread down the wicked in their place 13. Hide them in the dust together and bind their faces in secret 14. Then will I also confess unto thee that thine own right hand can save thee IN the former verse the Lord having questioned Job concerning his power hast thou an arm like God canst thou thunder with a voice like him seems now to put him to the use of his power If thou hast such an arm as I and canst thunder with such a voice as I then come on Deck thy self with majesty and excellency c. As if he had thus spoken to Job I who have such an arm I who thunder with such a voice can quickly deâ—k my self with such majesty and excellency I can quickly cast abroad such rage and wrath as will abase and utterly break all the proud ones of the earth and destroy the wicked Job canst thou do this canst thou deck thy self with such majesty canst thou cast abroad such a rage of thy wrath as will abase and bring down the proud and destroy the wicked if thou canst do it let me see thee do it So then as in the former verse we had a comparison between Jobs power and the power of God by way of interrogation Hast thou an arm like God so here God doth the same thing with Job by an ironical injunction jussion or command Deck thy self with majesty let us see what a man thou art put thy self into thy fairest dress and most tremendous appearance There are two things in this context in which Job is called to shew himself like God if he could First In the majesty and excellency in the glory and beauty of his person ver 10. Deck thy self with majesty c. Secondly In the mighty effects of his anger and displeasure ver 11. Cast abroad the rage of thy wrath c. And this the Lord bids him do First More particularly In abasing the proud Secondly More generally In destroying all the wicked of the earth ver 12 13. Now in case Job could approve himself thus powerful and appear like God either in the majesty of his person or in the mightiness of his displeasure against proud
took impression upon my heart heretofore but I never had such an impression as in this tempest I never heard God speaking thus immediately to me nor did he ever give me any such visible demonstration of his presence as he hath vouchsafed me at this time speaking out of the whirlwind And from all we may conclude that as Job had a powerful illumination of the Spirit so an outward apparition of the Glory and Majesty of God or of Gods glorious Majesty to convince and humble him So that though Job had a saving knowledge of God formerly yet this discourse of God with him and discovery of God to him had made him a better Scholar than all his earthly teachers I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear But now mine eye seeth thee That is now I have as clear a sight or knowledge of thy mind and will of thy justice and goodness of thy power and soveraignty as if I had seen thee with mine eyes and had seen or looked into thy heart Or thus Not only hast thou graciously instructed me by speaking so much to me but thou hast manifested thy self present with me by an aspectable sign Mine eye hath seen thee that is thou hast given me to see that which assures me thou art neer unto me namely the Cloud out of which thou hast been pleased to speak and make known thy mind to me who am but dust and ashes The Lord may be seen these four wayes First In his Word Secondly In his works Thirdly In outward apparitions Fourthly And above all God is seen in his Son our Lord Jesus Christ whom the Apostle calls Heb. 1.3 The brightness of his glory and the express image of his person and in whose face the light of the knowledge of God shineth 2 Cor. 4.6 And hence Christ saith John 14.9 He that hath seen me hath seen the father The invisible father is seen in his Son who was made visible in our flesh John 1.18 Thus God may be seen But in his nature God is altogether invisible he cannot be seen Moses saw him that is invisible Heb. 11.27 that is he saw him by an eye of faith who is invisible to the eye of sense I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear but now mine eye seeth thee Hence note First It is a great mercy and much to be acknowledged that we have the word of God sounding in our ears Faith cometh by hearing Rom. 10.17 The Prophet saith Isa 55.3 Hear and your soul shall live Now if faith and life come by hearing to have the word of God sounding in our ears must needs be a great mercy Though to have the word only sounding in our ear will do no man good yet 't is good to hear that joyful sound Though that sad Prophesie mentioned by Christ Mat. 13.14 be fulfilled in many By hearing ye shall hear and shall not understand and seeing ye shall see and shall not perceive Yet he said to his faithful followers vers 16. Blessed are your eyes for they see and your ears for they hear They receive a blessing by hearing whose ears are blessed when they hear O how many souls are blessing God that ever they heard of himself and his Son our Lord Jesus Christ by the hearing of the ear To have an ear to hear is a common blessing but to have an hearing ear or to hear by the hearing of the ear is a special blessing Observe Secondly We should hear the Word very diligently That phrase I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear as the Hebrew Writers note signifieth a very attentive hearing Every hearing is not an hearing with the ear nor every seeing like that we intend when a man saith I saw it with my eyes One may see and not see hear and not hear The Word of God is to be heard with a hearing Such doublings in Scripture have a great emphasis in them As when the Lord saith They are cursed with a curse it notes a great and a certain curse is coming so to hear by the hearing of the ear implyeth fruitful hearing and a laying up of that in the mind which hath been heard Psal 44.1 We have heard with our ears O God our fathers have told us what work thou didst in their dayes in the times of old They who thus hear with their ears treasure up in their hearts and do with their hands what they have heard The Lord charged Ezekiel Chap. 44.5 Son of man mark well and behold with thine eyes and hear with thine ears all that I say unto thee that is mind diligently what I shew and say unto thee The Lord called for the exercise of both senses in attending to what he spake to the Prophet He did not only say Hear with thine ears but see with thine eyes that is hear as if thou didst even see that which thou hearest For though possibly the Lord presented somewhat to the eye of the Prophet as well as he spake to his ear yet the former notion may well be taken in yea and intended in that command Many hear as if they had no ears and see as if they had no eyes One of the Ancients taking notice of that saith Such kind of hearers are like Malchus in the Gospel who had his ear cut off From those words But now mine eye seeth thee taken distinctly Observe Thirdly God revealeth himself more clearly and fully at one time than at another Seeing is somewhat more than hearing though it be attentive hearing As the full and clear manifestation which we shall have of God in the next life is expressed by seeing and called vision so the fullest and clearest apprehension which we have of God and the things of God in this life is a degree of seeing both him and them 't is the sight of faith and may also be called vision A true and strong believer tasts and feels and sees the truths of the Gospel which he hath heard his faith which is the eye of his soul is the evidence of those things to him which are not seen nor can be seen by an eye of sense He by the help of the Holy Ghost looks stedfastly into heaven and with this eye seeth the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God in his measure as blessed Stephen did Acts 7.55 This sight of God and spirituals hath three things in it beyond that ordinary though real knowledge which comes in by the hearing of the ear First a surpassing clearness Secondly an undoubted certainty Thirdly a ravishing sweetness and the overflowings of consolation Fourthly Note According to the measure of Gods revealing himself to us such is the measure of our profiting in the knowledge of God The word is spoken to all in the publick Ministry of it it is scattered upon all but they only learn to know God themselves truly to whom God doth inwardly reveal it whose hearts he toucheth and openeth by
his Spirit Every man saith Christ John 6.45 That hath heard learned of the father cometh unto me that is All that are taught of God believe on me And the more any learn of the father the more they come to abide the more closely with the Son Job understood more of God and the mind of God more in all those questions he put to him concerning the heavens the earth the Sea concerning the beasts of the earth and the fowls of the Air concerning Behemoth and Leviathan than ever he did before The more immediate and extraordinary revelations of God are alwayes accompanied with notable effects And though few profit in knowledge according to the measure of the mediate and ordinary Revelation yet probably the more revelation we have of that kind the more we profit Fifthly Job had these great discoveries after God had kept him long in affliction Hence note God doth usually reveal himself most to his people after great sufferings Hence some are of opinion that in these words Job pointed at his two states First that of his prosperity then he heard of God only by the hearing of the ear Secondly Of his adversity then his eye saw him that is he greatly profited in the knowledge of him There are two things which God usually bestows upon his people in the day of or soon after their affliction First more cordials and consolations He gives that strong drink to those that are ready to perish that wine unto those that be of heavy hearts He bids them drink and forget their poverty and remember their misery no more as Solomons metaphors may well import Prov. 31.6 7. Secondly as the Lord gives more consolation in such a day so more illumination the head is bettered by it as well as the heart Many have got much inward light or knowledge both of God and of themselves of their mercies and of their duties by being or after they have been brought into much outward darkness Davids experience taught him this else he had never said Psal 119.71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted that I might learn thy statutes He had never learned either to know the Statutes of God better or to keep them better by his affliction if God had not been with him and revealed himself further to him in the day of his affliction Lastly Note When God manifests himself much to any man great impressions are left upon him As will appear further in opening the next verse Vers 6. Wherefore I abhor my self and repent in dust and ashes This verse concludes that part of the Chapter which I call Jobs humiliation He made confession before of his own ignorance uttering things that he understood not things too wonderful for him which he knew not he confessed also the great goodness of God to him in that he had both heard of him by the hearing of the ear and also that his eye had seen him from all which he inferr'd this resolve of deepest self-abasement before God Wherefore I abhor my self and repent in dust and ashes This word wherefore is diligently to be attended for 't is the hinge upon which the whole matter turneth This wherefore may have a double reference First To the sight which he had gained of his own folly weakness and vileness of which having made confession in the former words he adds wherefore that is for as much as I am thus convinced of mine own sinfulness I abhor my self and repent in dust and ashes Secondly This wherefore may have reference to those higher clearer and fuller manifestations of God to him He had heard of God by the hearing of the ear there was much in that but now his eye had seen him he had a light or a discovery of the excellency and Majesty of God as much surpassing and exceeding what formerly he had as eye-sight doth the hearing of the ear Wherefore the light being come thus fully in upon him concerning the glory soveraignty goodness faithfulness and all-sufficiency of God he cryeth out I abhorr my self c. The Hebrew word signifieth the greatest disgust against himself a kind of reprobating himself 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 significat nauseare vel reprobaro cum fastidio abjicere abominare or as we speak a turning of his stomack at the thought and remembrance of what he had said and was Some render wherefore I reprehend or reprove my self but to abhor our selves is more than to reprehend or reprove our selves Others I reject I despise I slight my self I turn away from my self All these renderings shew to how little or low an account Job was now come in his own sight Our reading I abhor takes in all the rest and more The Lord useth this word negatively concerning his people Levit. 26.11 I will set my tabernacle amongst you and my soul shall not abhor you the meaning is my soul shall greatly delight in you And at the 15th verse of the same chapter affirmatively of them If you shall despise my statutes or if your soul abhor my judgments then c. despising is less than abhorring To abhor the judgments of God is to cast them not only out of our affections but out of our judgment too and to judge them unworthy or unfit to be owned and obeyed Again at the 30th verse of same chapter I will destroy your high places and cut down your images and cast your carcasses upon the carcasses of your idols and my soul shall abhor you that is I will manifest the utmost and highest of my displeasure against you Once more in the same chapter When they be in the land of their enemies I will not cast them away neither will I abhor them To abhor is to cast away and to look upon a person or a people as cast-aways Read also Deut. 7.26 Deut. 23.7 Psal 5.6 Psal 129.163 Prov. 24.24 Jerem. 14.21 Amos 5.10 chap. 6.8 Zech. 11.8 from all which texts we may collect the weight and great significancy of this word To abhor things or persons imports the deepest displicency or dislike towards either I saith Job abhor My self The word my self is here supplyed by our translators The Hebrew is only this wherefore I abhor leaving us to suppose what he did abhor Our translators make the suppliment thus I abhor my self that is whatsoever may be called my self self-wisdom self-righteousness self-strength self-ends and I would see the end of sinful-self Another translation saith I abhor those former things Illa priora q. d. non tantum illa prius à me cogitata dictaretracto sed etiam detestor Bez. that is whatsoever I formerly thought or spake amiss I do not only dislike them I do not only retract and recant them but I abhor them And if you would know what those former things were which here he renounceth and abhorreth you may take it in these seven words First I abhor that ever I cursed the day of my birth Secondly I abhor that