Job 5:19

He shall deliver thee in six troubles,.... Behaving as before directed; seeking unto God, committing his cause and case to him, and leaving it with him; and not despising the chastening of the Lord,

He shall deliver thee in six troubles: yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee. In six ... yea, in seven - (Proverbs 6:16; Amos 1:3).

He shall deliver thee, to wit, if thou seekest to him by prayer and repentance. Six, i.e. manifold or repeated; as six is used for many, . There shall no evil touch thee, to wit, so as to undo or destroy thee, as touching is used, . See also ,29 . Thou shalt have a good issue out of all thy troubles, though they are both great and many.

Job 5:19 He shall deliver thee in six troubles: yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee.Ver. 19. He shall deliver thee] Heb. Snatch thee away, or pull thee out, as a brand out of the fire, or as a prey out of the teeth of a wild beast. Thus God snatched Lot out of Sodom, David out of many waters, Paul out of the mouth of the lion, Jonah out of the belly of hell, &c. As birds flying, so will I defend Jerusalem, Isaiah 31:5. A metaphor from the eagle and other birds, which when they fly highest set a watchful eye upon the nest, to rescue their young ones in case of danger. In six troubles] Or straits, such as enemies or other evils put men to. Israel at the Red Sea, for instance, where they were sorely distressed, encircled with troubles, neither was there any way of escape, unless they could have gone up to heaven, which because they could not, heaven came down to them and delivered them. Yea, in seven] A certain number for an uncertain. Boundless deliverances will God grant to his people, even as oft as they shall need deliverance; enemies oft plough upon their backs, and God as often cuts their traces, Psalms 129:3-4. As Cato was two and thirty times accused, and two and thirty times cleared and absolved; so shall it be with the saints; and this not only at the end of the world, as Gregory and others interpret this text (as if by six and seven allusion were made to God’ s creating the world in six days, and resting on the seventh; and so must his servants labour here under afflictions, and rest in heaven), but in this life present, where many are the troubles of the righteous (millions, some render it), but the Lord delivereth them out of all, Psalms 34:19; yea, in them all, as this text hath it, by his supporting grace, and those divine comforts, which, as blown bladders, bear them aloft all waters. There shall no evil touch thee] sc. Tactu qualitativo, with a deadly touch. God chargeth afflictions as David did his captains concerning Absalom, Handle the young man gently for my sake. Touch not mine anointed, &c. Either touch them not at all, or not to hurt them. Troubles may touch the saints, but evils must not, 1 Corinthians 10:14.

(19) In six troubles.—The special form of speech here used is characteristic mainly of the Proverbs (see Job 6:16; Job 30:15; Job 30:18; Job 30:21). Since evil was emphatically touching Job, the actual irony of these words must have been bitter indeed.

Verse 19. He shall deliver thee in six troubles] The numbers six and seven are put here for many. Though a number of troubles should come upon thee all at once, and there should be no hope, humanly speaking, yet God would rid thee out of them all; for he saves as well from many as from few. We may also understand the words, He who hath been thy deliverer in past troubles, will not deny his help in those which are to come.

19. “Six” and “seven” are round numbers meaning “many” or “all,” like “three” and “four” and other numbers, elsewhere, cf. Proverbs 6:16; see Amos 1:3 seq., Micah 5:5. Eliphaz assumes that God’s afflictions will have their due effect on Job, he will turn unto the Lord, whose hands will “make him whole,” and the care and protection specified in this and the following verses shall mark his restored life.

He shall deliver thee in six troubles - Six is used here to denote an indefinite number, meaning that he would support in many troubles.

19. Six troubles — The speaker first incidentally suggests six, but as seven is the number expressive of completeness, he adds “in seven troubles;” that is, in all troubles, God will protect us against evil.