Job 9

them — shaketh the earth out of her place.] This is evidently a description of an earthquake. During the terrible earthquake at Jamaica, 1692, the mountains were

split, they opened, they closed again, they leaped, they fell in heaps. The same prodigious motions attended the earthquakes during an eruption of Vesuvius. Scott, Script. illust. Expos. Ind. 7. Which commandeth the sun, and it riseth not; and sealeth up the stars.] Or forbiddeth them to appear.

Bp. Hall. This may refer to that thickness of the atmosphere, which occasionally precedes or accompanies

an earthquake. Of this we have many instances. Scott, Script. illust. Expos. Ind.

— [treadeth upon the waves] In the original, as the margin notices, “the high places,” or “heights.” Our translators render it “high places” of the earth, Deut. xxxii. 13; that is, the mountains. “The high places,” or “heights,” of the sea, must therefore mean its billows, rising to a vast height in a storm. The prodigious swell, agitation, and tumult, of the sea during an earthquake may be referred to here. Scott.

Ver. 1. — I will leave my complaint upon myself;] I will leave my complaint unrestrained, I will give free scope to it. Rosenmüller.

Job 9:2

2. — one of a thousand.] It would be better expressed thus, “once in a thousand times.” Dr. Durell. “How should man be just with God?” How should he justify himself before God? No, not in one thing of cannot answer him one of a thousand.

3. — Do not condemn me; &c.] Do not deal with me as a wicked wretch, and such as my friends take me to be; but acquit me from this censure by withdrawing thy hand, or shewing me for what great sin it is that I should be more heavily afflicted than others. Clark.

4. — shine upon the counsel of the wicked? Countenance the reasons and designs of evil men. Bp. Patrick.

Job 9:4

4. — 7. Hast thou eyes of flesh? &c.] Job proceeds upon the same argument, and as he acquits the Lord of injustice or unrighteous dealing with him, so he appeals to the Lord, (who was able, he knew, to do it upon certain knowledge,) to acquit him of all the unjust charges with which his friends had burdened him: It is not with Thee, O Lord, as with mortal judges, who, having “eyes of flesh,” can see no farther than the outside of things, and know no more than is told them. “Thy days are not as the days of man.” Why then dost Thou deal thus severely with me? as if Thou wert afraid that Thou shouldest overslip Thy day, or want a season for dealing with me? Thou knowest that I am not wicked; there is some other cause for my sufferings: shew me wherefore Thou contended with me. We may hence observe, that God knows the state of every man and every thing exactly; and that it is a matter of highest consolation to good men to remember that God knows them. Caryl.

Job 9:7

7. Thou knowest that I am not wicked; &c.] That is, fagitious. Houbigant. It would be injurious to the character of Job, should we interpret in a severe and rigorous sense, as it is certain his friends too often did, his frequent protestations of his innocence, and his bold appeals to the supreme Judge to prove and try him; for where he is thus strenuous in asserting his integrity,

Job 9:8

8. Which alone spreadeth out the heavens, &c.] “Who boweth the heavens;” so Psalm xviii. 9, where, as Scott remarks, is a description at large of the scene, which is here drawn in miniature. Bp. Stock. By “bowing the heavens,” the Hebrew poets express the descent of those black heavy clouds, charged with thunder, lightning, rain, and wind, that are the prelude of a storm at sea. The storm itself, and the power of the Deity in conducting it, are represented in the next member of the period. Scott. — alone] This word is not superfluous: it asserts the unity of God, in opposition to polytheism. Scott.

Job 9:9

9. Which maketh &c.] Shepherds seem to have been the first astronomers. The pastoral life of the Arabs led them very early to observe the rising and setting of the stars, in relation to the changes of weather that ensued. The heat of their climate obliged them to feed their flocks by night; and the clearness and beauty of their nocturnal sky drew their attention and admiration. Scott.

When he saith, “Which maketh Arcturus, &c.” Job means, which makes them appear, or do their office: for the discourse is not about Creation, but about Providence: so that the meaning is only this, God orders the times of their rising and setting, to distinguish the seasons of the year, and to produce their several effects in every season. Caryl. He ordereth and disposeth them, as the word “maketh” is sometimes used in Scripture. Poole.

No doubt but the names Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, are of late invention in comparison with the Hebrew, Ash, Cecil, and Cimah. It must be a fruitless attempt for any one to ascertain the exact meaning of the Hebrew; it can at the best be only conjecture. After all the ingenious, studied thoughts of commentators, no more perhaps is intended by Arcturus, Orion, &c. than to point out to us, as Bishop Patrick writes, that all the constellations of heaven obey God in their several seasons; both those which we see, and those in the other hemisphere. To the same purpose is that which St. Jerome, or rather Venerable Bede, delivers in his comment on this text: “By these constellations, which are more celebrated than almost all the stars in the firmament of heaven, it is signified, that the whole system of the heavenly bodies is under the governance of God.” Chappelow.

Job 9:11

11. Lo, he goeth by me, and I see him not.] A description of the inscrutable and often unobserved ways of Providence. Michaelis.

12. Behold, he taketh away, who can hinder him? Who shall say unto him, What doest thou? Whatso-

I would make supplication to my judge.

Job 9:13

13. • the proud helpers do stoop under him.] They who are so highly conceited of themselves, that they will undertake to defend him whom God intends to destroy, Isaiah xxx. 7. Clark.

Job 9:15

15. Whom, though I were righteous, &c.] Job here opposes this sentiment of his to the unjust charges of his friends, as if he was guilty of contumacy and perverseness against God. Schultens.

Job 9:16

16. If I had called, &c.] Rather, “But if I should call, that He might answer me, I could not easily believe that He would hear my voice: 17. Since He hath broken me with a tempest, and inflicted many wounds upon me without cause: 18. Nor hath given me space to take my breath, so hath He killed me with bitterness.” Hoobigant.

Job 9:17

17. • without cause.] Without any extraordinary guilt which should procure such punishment. Clark. “Without cause;” that is, a cause known to me. Bp. Wilson.

Job 9:19

19. • who shall set me a time to plead?] Who will, or can, appoint me a time? namely, for trial. Who can sit as judge between God and me? Parkhurst.

The meaning of the verse is, If I think to right myself by force, it is in vain; for He is infinitely stronger than I: if I choose to decide our dispute by law, who hath authority to call us before Him? Heath.

Job 9:20

20. If I justify myself, &c.] If I should justify myself there would be something in my very plea to condemn me: it will render my cause worse to pretend I am innocent. Bp. Patrick.

Job here teaches us, that men cannot be justified before God: that if the Lord should enter into judgment with him, he could not “answer him one of a thousand;” and that sinful men, however treated, have no right to complain; but must all be condemned in God’s presence, and implore His mercy. What Job here says, shews, that though he insisted he was not a wicked man, he did not pretend to be just before God. We ought all to entertain the same thoughts; continually and seriously to reflect upon these truths; and thereby animate ourselves to the fear of God, submitting to His will, and putting our trust in Him. Osterwald.

Job 9:21

21. Though I were perfect, &c.] Although I were not conscious of any transgression, still I would not judge myself, 1 Cor. iv. 3, 4. Grotius.

Before CHRIST about 1520. Man’s innocency is not to be condemned by afflictions. Before CHRIST about 1520. would I not know my soul: I would despise my life.

Job 9:22

22. This is one thing, &c.] All that I affirm is this, and I persist in the opinion, that He lets the innocent suffer sad things as well as the guilty. Bp. Patrick.

Thus in time of plague or famine all suffer. Bp. Wilson.

Job 9:23

23. If the scourge slay suddenly, he will laugh at the trial of the innocent.] Or, if will laugh: namely, the scourge. So Schultens. The figure is bold, but not too bold for poetry. Peters. By the scourge is meant publick calamities, war for instance, pestilence, &c. which involving all characters in one common destruction, are said, by a noble personifying figure, to “laugh” at the sufferings of the innocent. Scott.

Or the sense may be, When a plague comes, which kills in a moment, He, namely God, regards not though it fall upon the innocent. Bp. Patrick. If some common and deadly judgment falls upon a people, so as to destroy both good and bad; or if God inflicts some grievous and unexpected stroke upon an innocent person; His outward carriage is the same both to the good and to the wicked. He neglects the innocent, and seems not to answer their prayers, and suffers them to perish with others, as if He took pleasure in their ruin also. But at the same time Job intimates the cause of God’s complacency in the afflictions of the innocent, because to them they are but “trials” of their faith, and patience, and perseverance, tending to God’s honour, and their own eternal advantage. Poole.

Job 9:24

24. The earth is given into the hand of the wicked: &c.] Is not the government of the world given often into the hands of wicked men, who bribe and pervert justice, and thereby injure the innocent? Bp. Wilson.

Job pursues his argument. The truth of what I have said, that the good and bad suffer promiscuously, is evident from this, that “the earth is given into the hand of the wicked.” Rosenmüller.

And as He destroys the righteous, ver. 23, so He prospers the wicked. He blinds them that they cannot discern right from wrong. If it be not as I say, where is any one else that could do so? certainly none else could manage the affairs of the world after this manner but He. Clark.

— he covereth the faces of the judges thereof:] Not that God is any way instrumental in covering the faces of the judges; in making them pass a wrong and unjust sentence. “He covereth &c.” is the same thing in Scripture phrase, as, the faces of the judges are covered. Chappelow.

“The judges,” being in contrast here with the wicked, that is, a tyrannical ruler, must mean good governors, who administer justice impartially to all. Thus “a man” signifies one who has the virtues proper to the male sex, Eccles. vii. 28; see also Prov. xxviii. 12: “a woman,” one who is adorned with the qualities becoming the female sex, Prov. xxxi. 10: and “a king” is a king in-

deed, who acteth worthy of his royal dignity, Prov. xvi. 10. Of these good rulers he says, God “covereth their faces;” that is, God treats them as condemned male-factors, overwhelming them in calamities, disgrace, and ruin; Job himself being one example of this melancholy truth. See 2 Sam. xx. 30; Esth. vii. 8; Jer. xiv. 3; Isai. xxii. 17; Mic. iii. 7; Mark xiv. 65. Scott.

Job 9:25

25. Now my days &c.] This and the following verse are a confirmation of Job’s former argument. As he had shewed in general that the wicked are exulted, and the innocent afflicted, so now he shews the latter branch from his own experience or example. “My days,” that is my prosperous days, are gone in a moment. Caryl.

— swifter than a post:] A messenger or regulated courier, appointed to carry with expedition despatches of princes, or letters of private persons. Calmet.

Those who carry despatches sometimes rode dromedaries, a sort of camel which is extremely swift. Lady Montague says, “that after the defeat at Peterwarddin, they far outran the swiftest horses, and brought the first news of the battle at Belgrade.” Agreeably to this, Dr. Shaw assures us, that the sheik who conducted him to mount Sinai, and rode on a camel of this kind, would depart from the caravan where he was, “reconnoitre another just in view, and return in less than a quarter of an hour.” With what energy then might Job say, “My days are swifter than a post!” Instead of passing away with a slowness of motion like that of a caravan, my days of prosperity have disappeared with the swiftness of a messenger carrying despatches, mounted on a dromedary. Harmer.

Job 9:26

26. — as the swift ships: &c.] There are but two places in the book of Job, that I remember, where there is any allusion to navigation. One is the present passage, where Job compares the course of human life, and the rapidity with which it passes, to “the swift ships;” (swiftest ships, most excellent for sailing. Houbigant.) Or, as in the margin, “ships of desire;” that is, such as are longed for, and long to be at their destined port, and crowd all the sail they can for that purpose. Peters. Or, “ships of Ebeh,” (see the margin,) that is, of the Egyptian papyrus, which seems here to be meant, the woody part of which was anciently used to build vessels with. Parkhurst.

Schultens very ingeniously suggests, that Job compares the days of his prosperity in three several degrees with what we esteem the swiftest in the three elements namely, with the quick despatches of the post by land; with the more expeditious motion of papyr-vessels by sea; and, which exceeds them both for swiftness, with the flight of the eagle in the air to his prey. Chappelow.

Job 9:27

27. If I say, I will forget my complaint, &c.] These words contain a proof of the latter part of Job’s assumption. He had affirmed, that an innocent and righteous person may quickly lose all his outward comforts; now he proves that he may be entangled with afflictions beyond hope of escape. This he does, ver. 27—29, which he amplifies, ver. 30 and 31. Caryl.

Job expostulateth with God. Before CHRIST, about 1520. Or, make me to be abhorred. Heb. one that should argue Or, umpire. Heb. but I am not so with myself.

Job 9:28

28. I am afraid of all my sorrows.] That is, I no sooner endeavour to comfort myself, but presently my sorrow’s throng about me; they charge and assault me afresh, when I am purposing to make an escape from them. Caryl. — I know that thou wilt not hold me innocent.] That Thou wilt not deliver me, as an innocent man, from these sufferings, but wilt afflict me, without measure, as a guilty person. Rosenmüller. 29. If I be wicked, why then labour I in vain? If I must be condemned as a wicked man, say what I can for myself, then it is in vain for me to endeavour to clear myself, and maintain my own innocence. Clark.

Job 9:30

30. — with snow water.] Which is thought to possess the property of cleansing in a greater degree than other water. Rosenmüller.

Job 9:31

31. Yet shalt thou plunge me in the ditch.] Thou wilt adjudge me sinful, notwithstanding all my purifying. Caryl. Though I may seem innocent to myself, and may defend my own cause, yet before God I shall appear most unclean and unrighteous, as if I were plunged into a miry ditch. External things are used figuratively for internal; impurity of body for impurity of soul. See Zech. iii. 3, 4; Rev. vii. 13. Poole.

Job 9:33

33. — daysman] Or umpire. In some of the northern parts of England, any arbitrator, umpire, or elected judge, is commonly termed a diesman or daysman. The word “day” in all idioms signifies judgment. Dr. Hammond. — that might lay his hand upon us both.] “The laying the hand, like a just umpire, on both parties,” implies a coercive power to enforce the execution of his decrees: this no one could have on the Almighty; it was therefore vain to contend with Him. Heath, Scott.

Job 9:34

34, 35. Let him take his rod &c.] I would open my case, if, while I am speaking, God would remove from me that dominion and authority, which He possesses over me, or that sore affliction which His sovereign power has laid upon me: but “it is not so with me;” I do not find that the Lord hath done any of these things for me. Caryl, Poole. Chap. X. Job having in the former chapter justified He complaineth of life, and creweth a little case before death. Before CHRIST about 1520. Or, out of while I live. MY soul is || weary of my life; I will leave my complaint upon myself; I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.