Job 4
PATEliphaz, incensed at this complaint of Job, instead of condoling with him, and pitying the miseries which had put him into this agony, and applying fitting lenitives to his anguish, bluntly rebukes him for not following the good advice that he used to give to others in their adversity; and tells hiui he had reason to suspect his piety, because the innocent were not wont to suffer such things, but only wicked oppressors, whom, though never so mighty, God had always humbled. Witness the Horims, who dwelt in Seir, (Deut. ii. 12.) whom the ancestors of Eliphaz (Gen. xxxvi. 11.) had overcome,- though they were as fierce as lions. To those beasts of j prey, of all sorts, he compares the tyrants whom he speaks of in this chapter, ver. 10, 11. intending, it is likely, to remember him als ) of the destruction of the Emims by the children of Moab,(Deut.ii. 10, ll.)and of the Zamzummims, (ver. 20, 21.) who weTe rooted out by the children of Amnion, as the Horims by the children of Esau: from whose grandchild Eliphaz seems to have been descended, and called by the name of the eldest son of Esau. He tells Job also of a vision he had to confirm the same truth, that man’s wickedness is the cause of his destruction. judgments against them,.&$\hc phrase is translated, i. 16. (See the note there.) * THE BOOK OF TOBIT. an inlet to temptations and final ruin, exchanges the object of their wishes for a better, and, instead of granting what would prove matter of offence to them, bestows on them, in a manner wholly spiritual, what his wisdom sees best and most convenient for their everlasting interest." (In loc.) relief in tho clay of necessity. Seo also James ii. 13. where the apostle says, He shall have justice without mercy, who hath shewed no mercy. By an envious eye wo are to understand a niggardly and covetous one. (See Ecclus. xiv. 10. xxxv. 10, 11.) The Port-Iloyal comment restrains the charity here enjoined to men’s own proper goods, to that which truly and lawfully belongs to them; for alms founded upon spoil, and given from another’s substance, is not charity, but theft and robbery, and will be so far from procuring the favour of God or his blessing, that a sacrifice of goods unjustly gotten will rather provoke his resentment and call down his judgments. And, indeed, if we consider the context, and compare this with the two foregoing verses, this oxposition of the place will not appear forced or unnatural. * THE BOOK OF TOBIT. The Jews had not only banquets upon account, or in honour of, the dead, but even over their dead: so that we may distinguish their funeral entertainments into two sorts, domestic, or such as were kept in the house of the deceased, for the refreshment of the melancholy relations and friends there present, which were more or less public and expensive, according to the quality of the deceased; (see Joseph^ lib. xvii.Antiq. Jud.cap.8. and de Bell.Jud. cap.l. Jer. xvi.5. 7. in the LXX) and, secondly, sepulchral entertainments, or such as were carried to the very sepulchre of the deceased, and there either consumed or distributed and carried away by the poor. (Meursius de Funer. cap. 35.) The exhortation of Tobit here to his son to pour out his bread, lirl rbv ra^ov rwv Stfcaiwv, alludes to this latter custom (an ancient one among the heathens), and shews, that it was of some antiquity among the Jews. Villalpandus, referring to this passage, says, " Sat patet moris fuisse, utin ipsis sepulcris mortuorum epulae ponerentur," in Ezek. xxiv. 17. The words lirl rbv ra$ov imply something particular to be Aorxeupon the tomb itself, and not barely something to be expended at the burial of the just, as if the Ini- Ta<piog iariamg in general was only enjoined. We cannot have a more ample testimony of this custom, than what we meet with Ecclus. xxx. 18. Delicates poured out upon a mouth shut up, are as messes of meat set upon a grave. Where the son of Sirach manifestly alludes to this ceremony of feasting at or upon the graves of the deceased; a comparison, which he would not have used to have explained his meaning, had not the custom been well known and established. (See note in loc.and Spencer, de Leg. Hcbr. torn. ii. p. 1145.) The distinction which Eustathius makes upon that verse of Homer — avrap’ 6 rdim ra<pov fievoziKia Zaiw, (II. ¥.) makes much for our purpose, where he distinguishes between the entertainment on the tomb, call* ing it Ta<pov, from the name of the sepulchre, and that after’ the burying, which he calls irtp&Hirvov. We have express mention of the Trtpt&urvov vtKgov, or the funeral feast, in the Epistle of Jeremy, v. 32. The primitive Christians, many of whose customs it is well known were derived from the Jews, expressed thus their pious regard to their saints and martyrs, by pouring wine upon their tombs, and celebrating the funeral or sepulchral feast over them; but these at length degenerating into dissoluteness and debauchery, St. Ambrosg found it necessary to forbid them in the churches of Milan, as did St. Austin in those of Africa. They obtained also among the Romans; but the same abuse probably induced Numa to give strict orders that no one should honour the dead by pouring wine upon their tombs. Estius and Tirinus upon the place remark, and Bcllarmine abuses it to the same purpose, that Tobit had not recommended to his son such a practice, if he had not thought that this work of mercy regarded, and in some sort affected, the just persons themselves; i.e. that it would procure some ease and refreshment to the souls of the deceased; and from’ hence they infer the advantage and necessity’ of those solemn masses and oblations, which the Romish church offers for the repose of the soul. To this it may be answered, 1. That by these sepulchral feasts no oblation was intended to be made to God, but only a decent honour shewn thereby to the memory of the righteous. 2. That no mention is here made of any prayers or intercessions for the dead. 3. That what is here enjoined was to comfort, by a seasonable cnvol. lr. tcrtainment, the distressed relations and friends of the person deceased, and was purely for the benefit of the living. 4. That the heathens, from whom this rite was borrowed, and who entertained a notion that the ghosts of the deceased were regaled with this sensible repast, yet extended it not so far, as to the purging of the soul thereby, or affecting the condition of it in its separate state. THE BOOK OF JUDITH. likewise, and set up NabuchodoTiosor in his’stead. This appears to have been the avowed purpose of his sending his great armies, not merely from a spirit of resentment, but rather of ambition to be acknowledged the king among gods. And, indeed, as if he had been a professed atheist, as some have represented him, the sense of his great’ success in life had so intoxicated his reason, as to forget that he was a man, or that there was a God that could “control him. But the kirg of Nineveh was not the only prince that we find infected with the folly and impiety of desiring to pass for a god; the flatterers of Darius, who reigned over the Medes and Persians in the time of Daniel, proposed to him to make a decree, under pain of being cast into the den of lions, that no one should dare to ask a petition of any god or man, but of him only, for the space of thirty days. (Dan. vi. 7.) Nor w T as Sennacherib less insolent, who boasted, 2 Kings xviii. 35. that he had not yet met with any god that could withstand his power, Wlio are they among all the gods of the nations, that have delivered their country out of mine hand? and from thence vainly, infers, that neither would the Lord be able to deliver Jerusalem out of his hand; exalting himself above all that is called god, or is worshipped. Alexander the Great, andmany of the Roman emperors, had the like ambition of passing for gods. Nor is it very surprising, that those whom the devil had thus taken possession of, should, like’ him, aspire to be equal with God. For that proud spirit, however jealous of his honour, is not averse for special ends to communicate part of it to his favourites, and willingly allows that th6y shall be looked upon and treated as gods, if he can by such superstition tempt any to leave the service of the true God, and by consequence become his slaves. controversy is founded, is wholly left out; and it is no improbable conjecture of a very learned writer, that it was put into the Greek version (from whence the English is taken) from some of those corrupted copies of the original, which St. Jerome complains of. (Prid. Conncx. vol. i. p. 32.) As the authority, therefore, of this, and that other passage, v. 18. is so dubious, nothing certain can be concluded from cither, or both of them, as to the point in question. THE BOOK OF JUDITH. the reason of Joacim’s acting on this occasion with an absolute and independent power? Vcr.5. My people, the memorial of Israel.*) i.e. Ye poor remains of the Jews, the surviving hopes of sinking Israel, who are preserved to continue the name and memory of ouce so famous a people, the only remaining monument of distressed Sion. CflAP. V.] THE BOOK OF BARUCH. ing it had not been done, but you must oppose a state to a state, a habit to a habit; i. e. as sin before gave you law, so now must the Spirit of God. Habitual sin must be destroyed by a contrary habit, or state of holiness: this is well summed up by the apostle, As ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness, and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. (Rom. vi. 19.) What the Greek makes matter of exhortation and advice here, is spoken prophetically according to the Vulgate, which accordingly came to pass; for after the captivity, the Jews were more observant of the law of God than they were before, especially with respect to idolatry. But it will be best, if this reading is followed, to understand this of those devout Jews in particular who were converted by the preaching of the apostles, and were the first-fruits of the Christian church.
Job 4:1
JL HEN Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said. Then Eliphaz (one of his most ancient friends, descended from Teman) replied to him and said; JL HIS is the booh of the commandments of God, and the law that endureth for ever.] As the gospel comprises the law and the prophets in two commandments;. viz. the love of God and of our neighbour; or, more briefly, in charity; so this writer says, that wisdom, described in the former chapter, contains the substance of the commandments, and of the law, here said to endure for ever; not with respect to its ceremonial ordinances, but the moral and spiritual part, which is fixed and unchangeable. Wisdom therefore here described seems to be no other in effect than charity, so highly extolled, 1 Cor. xiii. 8. whose character it is, never to fail, when even tongues shall cease, and knowledge itself shall vanish away.
Job 4:2
If we assay to commune with thee, wilt thou be grieved? but who can withhold himself from speaking?. We must either still keep silence, or speak what will not please thee. But truth sure is more to be regarded than friendship; and therefore I must remember thee. JL HEREFORE they were exceedingly afraid of him, and were troubled for Jerusalem, and for the temple of the Lord their God.] It is not to be wondered at, that the people of the Jews should be much afraid of, and tremble at, so great a force coming against them, to which so many nations, from an apprehension of greater evils, had submitted, and notwithstanding had been treated with great severity. Their fear therefore was the more excusable^ and had this good effect, that through a distrust of themselves, and their own sufficiency, it put them upon applying to God for his assistance, and asking of him in their distress the help of his all-powerful arm. It is observable, that the Jews arc not represented here as concerned for and afraid of their goods, their liberty, or lives; but the occasion of their uneasiness was the apprehension they were under, that the holy city of Jerusalem and the temple of the Lord should be profaned and treated as other the like places had been, where Holofernes with his army had passed. The Jews, it is well known, had a profound veneration for their temple, and on many occasions have shewed themselves ready to undergo a thousand deaths for the preservation of that holy place, which distinguished them from all other nations; and therefore their thoughts at this time were chiefly fixed, and their wishes and prayers confined to their beloved sanctuary. " What they did from a pure zeal and spirit of Judaism, and to preserve so glorious a monument of their religion, we should be equally zealous to do (say Messieurs of Port-lloyal), from a truer principle, and a more excellent religion. It becomes us to be always more sincerely concerned for, and affected with, what any ways reflects dishonour upon or is injurious to the glory of God and the interest of his church, than for any thing that can happen to ourselves. Wc find that even the meek Jesus was affected with passion upon observing the sanctity of his father’s house profaned by merchandize, and the place of prayer changed into a den of thieves: but one does not read of any resentment he expressed, all the time that he was in the hands of his bitterest enemies; and exposed to their outrageous insults; though his body was without comparison a temple’ far more* glorious and precious than that material one, for which the Jews testi-, fied so much respect, and shewed so much concern for its* safety.”
Job 4:3
Behold, thou hast instructed many, and thou hast strengthened the weak hands. That thou, it is well known, hast given good counsel unto others (and perhaps reproved their impatience); thou hast encouraged those who were dispirited. If X Y son, despise not thy mottter, but honour her all the days of thy life.] The son of Sirach presses the samo duty very strongly, and by a variety of reasons asserts the reverence due to parents. (Eeclus. iii.) With respect to the mother, whose authority is generally less regarded, ho urges filial obedience, from the consideration here insisted on; viz. the sorrows of the mother in the time of gestation, and the dangers attending her bringing forth, (vii, 27, 28.) The advice which Tobit in this chapter gives his son, when he presumed death was approaching, and that God had hoard his petition to be removed from the miseries of life, which he enters upon preferably to the settling his worldly affairs, has always been esteemed an excellent abridgment’of moral duties. The precepts are very plain and obvious,: and require only sincerity and a good disposition to apply them. St. Austin, reflecting upon the fine instruction given. to Tobias by his father, cries out, " O lux quam videbat Tobias, cum clausis oculis istis filium docebat viam vitae, et ei praeibat pede earitatis nunquam errans." (Confess, lib. x. cap. 34.) When she is dead, bury her by me in one grave.’] The ancient patriarchs expressed the same care and concern in, this particular of interment. Abraham purchased the cave of Mach-pelah for the burying-place of Sarah, (Gen. xxiii. 19.) and was afterward deposited in the same himself, (xxv. 10.) Isaac and Jacob with their wives were buried there also, (xlix. 31.) By this officious care providing, that such as were intimate and loving in their lives, in. their deaths should not be divided, but that a kind of friendship should be continued in death, and the conjugal society as, it were made perpetual and indissoluble: thus Apuleius,, " Unita sepultura marito perpetuam conjugera reddidere." (Lib. viii.) And the following is a most memorable instance of conjugal tenderness and union, which Valerius Maximus relates of M. Plautius: " Funerata uxore Orestilla, atque in rogum imposita, inter officium ungendi et osculandi, stricto ferro incubuit. Quem amici, sicut erat, togatum et calceatum corpori conjugis junxerunt, ac deinde subjectis facibus, utruraque una creraaverunt. Qudrum ibi factum sepulcrum Tarenti etiamnum cons’picitur, quod vocatur rwv
Job 4:4
Thy words have upholden him that was falling, and thou hast strengthened the feeble knees. And by thy discourse hast supported those whose hearts were ready to sink, and settled those who trembled under their burden. Therefore they sent into all the coasts of Samaria, and the villages, &c] Nothing could have induced those two irreconcilable enemies, the Jews and the Samaritans, who had a mutual aversion to each other, (see note on Ecclus. 1.25, 2G.) to act jointly, and to be confederates, but tho sense of the common danger which threatened them from the expedition of Holofernes.
Job 4:5
But now it is come upon thee, and thou faintest; it toucheth thee, and thou art troubled. And now that thou art fallen into the same condition, thou canst not practise thy own lessons; but faintest, and art struck with consternation. And possessed themselves beforehand of all the tops of the high mountains, and fortified the villages that were in them.’] As Jonathan the high-priest did against Apollonius, (1 Mace. x. 70.) being by the nature of their situation more tenable and less easy of access. During the captivity, and some time after, riot villages only, but almost all the cities, lay defenceless, and even Jerusalem itself was without sufficient walls for its security, as may easily be imagined in such a time of desolation and distress.
Job 4:6
Is not this thy fear, thy confidence, thy hope, and the uprightness of thy ways?. Is not this the time to exercise thy piety (so much famed), thy confidence in God, thy hope, thine integrity? If thou deal truly, thy doings shall prosperously succeed to thee, and to all them tliat live justly.] This whole verse is omitted in the Vulgate. Munster and Fagius’s Hebrew copy take no notice of the last sentence, nor does St. Cyprian, who recites all the foregoing part; and indeed it seems improperly inserted here, as one sees no reason why Tobias’s personal honesty and righteousness should succeed prosperously to all others that live justly. But* however, the observation will be found true in the general, applied to all others that deal fairly and uprightly. Ver.‘7. Give alms of thy substance; and, when thou givest alms, let not thine t eye be envious, neither turn thy face from any poor, and the face of God shall not be turned away from thee.] This is agreeable to that of Solomon, Prov. xii. 13, Whoso stoppeth his ears. at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, and not be heard; which may mean, that both God and man shall be deaf to his petition when he cries for Joacim the high-priest which was in those days in Jerusalem.] He is sometimes called Eliakim; accordingly St. Jerome’s version promiscuously uses both names for this high-priest. The Syriac also does the like: and indeed they are both names for the same person. And so Luke iii.23. Some copies have Joiakim instead of Heli, which, according to Chemnitius, is Eliakim contracted; and Philo makes Joiakim, Heli, and Eliakim, to mean the same person. (See 2 Kings xxiii. 34. 2 Chron. xxxvi. 4.) It has been objected against this history, that none of the name of Joiakim or Eliakim is to be found either in the -Scriptures or in Josephus, that was high-priest before the captivity. As to tbatpart of the objection from the Scriptures, it may be answered, that the succession of the high-priests is so imperfectly recorded there, that Joacim might easily be omitted: for whoever examines the succession of the Jewish high-priests, as we have them delivered to us in the first book of Chronicles, and in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, will find them so intricate and perplexed, so many omissions and dislocations, such a diversity of names and numbers, and such seeming contrariety in the several accounts, as will cost no small pains to reduce them to any tolerable regularity. The reason is, because the Scripture no where professes to give an exact catalogue of all such as had been admitted to that office and dignity until the captivity. And in such catalogues as arc delivered, several are inserted that never were high-priests, and several are omitted that were. The high-priests of the family of Eli are instances of the latter, for they arc left out of that pedigree; and those of tho true race who were excluded by them arc instances of the former, for they are in it, though they never were high-priests. It is very likely, as Pridcaux observes, that from the time of Solomon to tho captivity, many more such instances might have happened to hinder that pedigree from being an exact catalogue of the high-priests. But it is not certain that Joacim or Eliakim is not named in Scripture; for several learned men aTO iaclincd to think, that what is said of Eliakim, tho son of Hilkiah, Isa. xxiL doth very well agree, with that part which Joacim is said to have acted in this book. (Conncx. lib. i.) As to the catalogue of Josephus, that too is so imperfect and corrupt, that scarce five names in it agree with the Scripture account. For several arc in his catalogue who never were high-priests, and several are left out that were; particularly Amasiah in the time of Jchoshaphat, Jchoiada in the reign of Joash, and Azariah’in that of Uzziah: and therefore Joacim might have been highpriest at this time, though there be no mention made of him as such, either in the Scriptures or the history of Josephus.
Job 4:7
Remember, I pray thee, who evw perished, being innocent? or where were the righteous cut off?. Consult thine own observation, and tell me when thou ever sawest a righteous man forsaken by God. Ye provoked Jam that made you, by sacrificing to devils.] The Psalmist, according to the version of the LXXi says, 017 TravrtQ of Otoi Svwv Saifiovia, that all the gods of the heatlien are devils. (Psal. xcvi. 5.) And of the Jews who sacrificed to them it is said, they sacrificed to devils, and not to God; DH^ to evil, wasting, and destroying spirits. And so they are styled, 2 Chron. xi. 15. Rev. ix. 20. The pulling down idolatrous worship, is, in our Saviour’s language, the casting out the prince of this ivorld. (John xii. 31. xvi. 11.) The converting of the gentiles from idolatry to the worship of the true God, is called, turning them from the power of Satan unto God; (Acts xxvi. IS.) the delivering them from the power of darkness, (Col. i. 13.) who before walked according to the prince of the power of darkness, (Ephes. ii.2.) and were led captive by Satan at his ivill. (2 Tim. ii. 2G.)
Job 4:8
Even as I have seen, they that plough iniquity, andsow wickedness, reap the same. Quite contrary, I have seen the wicked reaping the fruit of their doings, Jfthou hast abundance, give alms accordingly: if thou have but a little, be not afraid to give according to that little.’] Our charity to others ought to rise in proportion to what we have received ourselves from the hand of God, who, if he gives much, it is with an intent that men may in return bestow the more. Not to give plenteously, i. e. in proportion as a man is able, is frustrating the designs of God’s providence, who will treat such of the rich as public robbers who look upon that to bo their own which they were intrusted with for the benefit of others; injuring by such niggardly%ehaviour as many poor persons as they were able to relieve. If we take in the whole verse, the advice then is of very great extent, and one may affirm that nobody is exempt: in what state or condition soever he be, it is impossible but that he must have something or other to bestow, either money, or victuals, or clothes; or, if all these be wanting, attendance, or some bodily help and service, may be administered; or, however, advice and kind and tender expressions to such as are in affliction will not be unacceptable, as one testifies thereby a sympathizing and humane temper, which soothes and engages the distressed, and is a relief next to alms. Ver. 9. For thou layest tip a good treasure for thyself against the day qf necessity.] i. e. God will reward the charitable person with temporal blessings, or guard him against necessity, or provide for him under it. David pronounces the same blessedness on him; (Psal. xli. 1.) Blessed is he that considereth the poor and needy, the Lord will deliver him in the time of double, the Lord will preserve him, and keep him alive, and he shall be blessed upoti earth: the Lord will strengthen him 7ipon the bed of latiguishing, and make all his bed in his sickness. And Solomon confirms the same truth, He that giveth to the poor shall not want. (Prov. xxviii. 27.) The phrase Zipa ayaObv %xioav$ff>uv, very much resembles that of St. Paul on the like occasion, aTro%7)cravpiZEtv StfiiXtov kqXqv tic to fiiWov, 1 Tim. vi. 19. where a very learned writer observes, that SqdXiov in the rabbinical dialect signifies a bond or obligation, whereby such as lend are secured to receive their own again; and that the apostle’s meaning in that place is, That those who exercise works of charity and beneficence, do provide themselves as it were of a bill or bond, upon which they may sue and plead for a reward, and a suitable return of their kindness. (Mode’s Works, lib. i. disc. 22.) The like may be said of Olfia here used. And accordingly the Hebrew copy set forth by Fagius^ fenders it by a word which signifies depositum, or a pledgo. And the children of Israel did as Joacim the high priest had commanded them.] One is surprised to find in this important juncture, and indeed throughout this history, the high-priest Joacim giving all the orders, and no mention in any respect made of the king, though this was an affair of state rather than religion, and the supreme power was doubtless in him; as if ho had no concern in or for the event of this war, nor for the danger threatened to his people, and, his duty did not call upon him more loudly to do and order what the high-priest is hero represented as doing. But tho conjecture of very many learned men is not at all improbable, that at this time Manasseh dwelt at Jerusalem, being just returned from the Babylonish captivity, and being deeply affected with that calamity, and with the mercy shewed to him in his deliverance, cared not to concern or interest himself with public affairs, being wholly intent upon serving God. And it is not unlikely, that from his long confinement and the miseries he underwent, he might so have impaired his health, as to be hindered from acting in a public sphere: or it is possible that he might then be engaged in the defence of some other part of his kingdom, and so devolved the care of public business upon the high-priest and senate, who had acted during his absence. Josephus informs us, Antiq. lib. x. cap. 4. from the time that Manasses returned from Babylon, he spent the whole remainder of his time in the service and worship of God \yith the greatest strictness, being a sincere penitent for the many abominations he had committed. And the Scripture intimates the same, 2 Chron. xxxiii. 13. where it is said of him, that he humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers, and took away the strange gods, and the idol, out of the house of the Lord. And though it is said, ver. 14. that he built a wall without the city of David for its defence, and put captains of war in all the fenced cities of Judah, yet in the general, after he was humbled by his great affliction, he committed the management of public business, and especially the fortifying frontier-places, to the high-priest and other great men. On the other hand it is said, that allowing him to be greatly intent on devotion, and not to concern himself with public business, yet, in such a case, the name and authority of the king had not been dropped, nor is usually, though the act was the act of tho minister. And as to the possibility of Manasses being engaged in the defence of some other part of his kingdom, or in some foreign expedition, neither the concurrence of history, sacred or profane, nor Manasses’s own circumstances, are thought to countenance such a supposition: and had it been so, might it not have been expected that the author of this very history should have dropped some notice of it, a$
Job 4:9
By the blast of God they perish, and by the breath of his nostrils are they consumed. God blasts and consumes them, as the nipping wind, or tho fire, doth the corn in the field. ^ Over against the great strait of Judea.] Called the hill country, Luke i. 39. It is particularly described ver. 7. of the next chapter. Then every man of Israel cried to God with great fervency, and ivith great vekemency did they humble their souls.] It is not to be doubted but that the Israelites, by fortifying the hills, and guarding the passages, and the like necessary provision in a time of danger, used all the precautions possible to prevent any surprise from their enemies; but it m manifest that they did not place their whole confidence in human policy or foresight. They did all that was in their power for their security, because God allows his creatures to employ all lawful means for that purpose; but being convinced of the truth of David’s observation, Psal. cxxvii. 2. Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain, they had recourse, according to the direction of the high-priest, to prayer, fasting, and humiliation, as to arms, which alone could render them invincible. And presuming these instances of mortification to be well-pleasing to and successful with God, they continued them for many days in all Judea and Jerusalem, (ver. 13.) waiting for God’s protection and assistance at the time, and in the manner, he should please to send it; and it was this perseverance that at length procured them victory. The Vulgate puts the following speech into the mouth of Joacim the high-priest, Scitote quoniam exaudiet Dominus preces vestras, si manentes permanseritis injejuniis et orationibus in conspectu Domini. Memores estote Moysi servi Dei, qui Amalec conjidentem in virtute et potentia sua, et in exercitu suo, et in clypeis suis, et in curribus et in eqtiitibus suis, nonferro pugnando, sed precibus Sanctis orando dejecit. Sic erunt tmiversi hostes Israel, si perseveraveritis in lioc opere quod ccepistis. One cannot but observe, how different the conduct and behaviour of the Israelites was upon this occasion from that of common armies. They thought the help of man was but vain, and therefore their trust was in the Lord of hosts. Instead of the sound of trumpets, and other warlike instruments, they poured forth their devout supplications to him that was able to save, accompanied with strong fcrying and tears. Instead of outward pomp and the pride of dress, they were distinguished by sackcloth and ashes, and lowly prostrations. And who among the proud Assyrians, seeing such instances of dejection, would not have despised* and laughed at these Israelites, as a people half dead with fear, and even almost below their notice to engage with? and yet it was this profound humiliation that was alone available to oppose and subduethe haughtiness and pride of Holofefnes. Other nations hastily submitted through the very terror of his name, but this people, providingbetter for their safety, humbled themselves under, and thereby obtained, the help of the mighty hand of God, and triumphed over him who threatened revenge upon the whole earth.
Job 4:10
TJie roaring of the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion, and the teeth of the young lions,are broken. vol. in. Though they be as fierce as the lions and as strong, their power is broken. Alms do deliver from death, and suffer not to come into darhiess.] i.e. Charity, through the blessing of God, often proves the means and occasion of long life, as seems to be more fully expressed, xii. 9. Or it may mean, that it is effectual for the procuring of God’s mercy and favour in the day or manner of one’s death; that it shall make the good and beneficent man’s exit easy, and his death comfortable; according to that observation of St. Jerome, " Nunquam memini me legisse mala morte mortuum, qui libenter opera caritatis exercuit." (Ad Nepot) Or, lastly, that charity wipes away sins, and delivers from death the consequence of them. (See Dan. iv. 27. Ecclus. iii. 30. 1 Pet. iv. 8.) St. Austin has a fine reflection upon the other part of the verse: " Tobit had the misfortune to be blind, and yet he shewed his son the way of truth. He who had lost his bodily eyes, could say to his son, He that does alms, shall not come into darkness. Being deprived of outward light, he yet found himself in a condition to direct others how to walk. There is therefore another illumination than that of sense, which enlightens the soul of the good man. He feared not any such reply from his son: My father, have not you been careful to give alms, and yet you are blind? Is it possible that alms should deliver from darkness, when you, who have been a cheerful giver, are oppressed with it? Tobit might very consistently say what he did; he knew what light he was then speaking of to his son, and what he saw and perceived was spiritually discerned. The eyes of understanding were his support and comfort, and for the outward help which he “received from his son, he returned a better guidance. Filius patri porrigebat manum ut ambularet super terram, et pater filio, tit habitaret in ccelo” (August, de verb. Dom. Serm. 18.) Ver; 12. Remember that our fathers from the beginning, even that they all married wives of their own kindred, and were blessed in their children, and their seed shall inherit the land.] May not the falsity from hence appear of that vulgar notion, that relations who marry never thrive? and may it not be farther observed, that the whole Jewish nation (whose riches are oven become proverbial) descends from Isaac and Rebecca, who were related in the same degree?
Job 4:11
The old lion perishethfor lack of prey, and the stout lion’s whelps are scattered abroad. The greatest tyrants and their posterity, after they have long enjoyed their power, are deprived of all their riches gotten by oppression, and come to nothing.
Job 4:12
Now a thing was secretly brought to me, and mine ear received a little thereof. If these observations be not sufficient to convince thee, hear what God himself secretly whispered to me. Let no man rejoice over me, a widow, who for the sins of my children am left desolate.] This prosopopoeia of Sion, bewailing her children gone into captivity, is moving and beautiful. She assumes the character of a disconsolate widow, an idea often borrowed to represent deep distress, bemoaning the loss of the favourite of her bosom, with these two sad but common aggravations of her sorrow, her children taking evil courses, and as such exeraplarily punished, stricken of God, and afflicted; and herself, instead of that compassion which her calamities called for from those around her, neglected, insulted, reproached, and injured. The venting her grief in broken accents, (ver. 17.) But what can I help you? is inimitably, says Grotius, affecting; " I who am devoid, not only of my former substance, my ornaments, and pleasant things, my comforts and conveniences, but reduced to the lowest state, and wanting myself the necessaries of life, what am I able, what can I be expected, to do for you?" At length all appearance of human help vanishing, she raises motives of consolation from that never-failing treasury of delight and comfort to afflicted minds, the word of God, whose statutes had been her song in the house of her pilgrimage; and assures them, from the prophets, of a deliverance from their captivity, and remarkable vengeance overtaking their persecutors. In this pleasing prospect she exults and triumphs, (chap, v.) as a fond mother overjoyed for the recovery of her children.
Job 4:13
In thoughts from the visions of the night, when deep sleep falleth on men. As I was ruminating one night, when all were asleep, of some visions which I had had, Behold, he shall come up as clouds.] As clouds of a sudden overspread the face of the sky. And his chariots’ shall be as a whirlwind.] For their swiftness, and the destruction they make. (Compare Isa. v. 28.) " His horses are swifter than eagles.] Moses threatened the Jews, that for their disobedience God would bring ah enemy against them as swift as the eagle flieth, Deut. xxviii.‘49. (Compare Lam. iv. 19. Hos. viii. 1. Habak. i. 8.) And in lewdness is decay, and great want; for lewdness is the mother of famine.] This is undoubtedly a very true observation, and confirmed by the unhappy experience of persons addicted to it. But axpzoTw, the term here used, I apprehend, is an unusual word for lewdness; it signifies rather unprofitableness, or idleness, and to this the observation will equally correspond.’
Job 4:14
Fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones to shake. I was on a sudden seized with such a fear, that it made every joint of my body tremble. And Joacim the high-priest, and all the priests that stood before the Lord, and they which ministered unto the Lord, had their loins girt ivith sackcloth, and offered the daily burnt-offerings, ivith thevoivs and free gifts of the people,
Job 4:15
Then a spirit passed before my face; the hair of my flesh stood up. Whereupon I saw a spirit pass by me, which made mine hair stand on end. For a voice declareth from Dan, and publisheth affliction from Mount Ephraim.] The rumour of the enemy’s approach is heard first from’Dan, which, being the most northern part of Judea, was first of all invaded. (See viii. 1G.) And the evil tidings still increase, as the army marcheth forward towards Jerusalem, by the way of Mount Ephraim. Neither let drunkenness go with thee in thy journey.] Fagius’s Hebrew copy has, Neque cum temulento consuetudinem habeas in oimiibus viis tnis. And Junius, by " a Hebraism, understands n&n to signify vir ebrietatis; according to which the sense is, Keep not company at any time with such as are addicted to drunkenness: or may we not suppose, as the expression in the Greek is lv T$ 6&£ aov, that Tobit had the particular journey in his eye he was going to send his son upon, and that the thirst arising from travelling, especially in “a w r arm climate, being a strong temptation to drink plentifully, he might caution his son against any excess? The Vulgate omits this precept relating to sobriety. * And had ashes on their mitres, and cried unto the Lord ivith all their power.] The Vulgate is more cmphatical than our version, Etiam hi qui offerebant Domino holocausta, prcecinCti ciliciis offerrent sacrificia Domino. Only it is observable, that it omits the mention of the highpriest. And indeed the occasion must be more pressing ahd calamitous than ordinary, for the high-priest himself, if not to put off his glorious apparel altogether, at least to appear in. the time of the public ministration in the habit of & mourner, who might not mourn, according to the law, for the death of his nearest kin; (Lev. xxi. 10, 11.) but public calamities, such as affected the very being of the state, admitted of an exemption from the ordinary rule. Accordingly the prophet Joel, in such a time of distress, exhorts that the priests, the ministers of the altar, should gird themselves, lament, and howl, and lie all night in sackcloth, (i. 13.) ] Probably this refers to Deut. xxviii. 49, 50. and may be considered as a fulfilling that prophecy, Tlie Lord shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth, a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand. A nation of fierce countenance, which will not regard the person of the old, nor shew favour to the young. This, if applied to the Chaldeans, the description of the place will not suit, for the Chaldeans did not come from a country which was very far from Judea. If to the Romans, the time will not suit with the supposed age of this writer. Josephus, indeed, informs us, that upon the Romans making themselves rnasters of the temple, they slaughtered all, both old and young indifferently, without any respect to age, having neither mercy nor modesty. Ycr. 1G. And left her that was alone, desolate without daughters.*) The Geneva version I think clearer, Leaving me alone, and destitute of my daughters; i. e. both sons and daughters were carried into captivity. (See ver. 14.)
Job 4:16
It stood still, but I could not discern the form thereof: an image was before mine eyes; there was silence, and I heard a voice, saying. I am not able to describe what it was like; for though it stood still, and I saw an image of something, yet I can only tell what I heard in a still voice, saying, Make ye mention among the nations.] Publish it far and near. That tvatchers come from a far country, and give out.their voice against (lie cities of JudahJ] The use of scouts or w r atchers is to warn men of the approach of the enemy. (See vi. 17.) But here the prophet by way of irony calls the Chaldean army by that name, whose business it would be to beleaguer the cities of Judah, and take care that nobody should escape out of their hands. And as the watchmen use to lift up their voice, to give notice of approaching danger; so these should make a great noise, but it should be to encourage one another to fall on their adversaries, and subdue whatever opposes them. From afar country.] See v. 15.
Job 4:17
Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his Maker?. Can any one think that a miserable man is more righteous than God his judge? or that it is possible for any body to be more unreprovable than he that made him? And Raphael was sent to heal them both.’] The introducing Raphael, a name no where mentioned in Scripture, as the ministering angel for the purposes here mentioned, has beer, objected against this history. But this deserves little attention; for, 1. This name may as inoffensively be used as Gabriel and Michael are by the sacred penmen. 2. As part of Raphael’s commission was to heal Tobit’s blindness, the name of this angel was particularly proper to be used, as being expressive of the business itself; for Raphael signifies one that healeth from God, and in Munster’s version he is called princeps et prceses sanitatum. When God would cure any sick person, says St. Jerome, he sends the archangel Raphael, one of the seven spirits before his throne, to accomplish the cure; Ille minister curationis, Dens autor sanitatis; hoc videlicet nominis interpretationesignificante, quod inDeo sit medicina vera. (Dan.viiL) Some will have the angel that went down at certain seasons to move the waters of the pool, (John v. 4.) for the cure of the distempered, to be Raphael. And in allusion to this history of Tobit, probably, says Calmet, he is invoked as the patron of the sick and guide of the traveller. 3. Such an exalted spirit was proper to be opposed to and to subdue the evil fiend Asmodeus, which will in some measure satisfy the inquiry, why such a distinguished angel was introduced here. And Sara, the daughter ofRaguel, came down from her upper chamber.] Where probably she had been praying: and so Fagius expounds it, Sara descendit e ccenaculo, in quo oraverat* It seems to have been customary among tho devout persons of the Jewish nation, of both sexes, to set apart some upper room for their oratories, where they might attend the business of prayer without noise or disturbance, (See Dan. vi. 10. Acts i. 1G.) Or this might be a sort of gynceceum, whero she sat at work; for it was the custom of the early times to assign the uppermost rooms to the women, that they might be farther removed from interruption in their employment: accordingly Penelope in the Odyssey mounts up into a garret, and there sits to her business. So Priam had chambers for the ladies of his court, under the roof of his palace. (II. vi.) JIunster’s Hebrew copy and the Syriac begin the next chapter with this verse. Four out thy bread on the burial of the just.]
Job 4:18
Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly. The heavenly ministers themselves may fail; for they are not perfectly wise, though they have no flesh and blood as we have. Tins is thy wickedness, because it is bitter, because it reacheth unto thine heart.] These are the bitter effects of thine obstinacy in wickedness, which, like a deadly wound, or disease, toucheth the very heart and seat of life.. -.
Job 4:19
How much less on. them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation is in the dust, which are crushed before the moth?. How can we then pretend to perfection, who dwell in bodies of dirt; which stand upon no firm foundation, but arc as subject to be destroyed as a garment to be fretted with moths? 20. My bowels, my boivels, &c] The prophet in very moving expressions sympathizes with the afflictions of his country, which he foresees will be the seat of war, and utterly ruined by a hostile invasion. (Compare Lam. i. “20. Isal xxii. 4.) For every nation hath not counsel] No nation, i. e. no part of mankind, mere mankind, independently of God, hath counsel or wisdom enough to effect any scheme of importance, or establish any business of consequence: which is a sufficient reason for all private persons or communities to trust in the Lord Jehovah, and to depend upon him for direction and assistance. The context warrants this interpretation. Munster’s Hebrew copy has, Quoniam non est in potestate hominis ullum consilium, sed solum in manibus Dei; and’ Fagius, Quoniam non est sapientia, neque prudehtia, neque consilium contra Dominum. Calmet also takes it in the same sense, Mettez en Dieu voire confiance, et desperez en lui; ilfera reussir tous vos desseins; parce qu’il n’y a ni sagesse, ni prudence, ni conseil contre le Seigneur.
Job 4:20
They are destroyed from morning to evening: they perish for ever, without any regarding it. Wtf see continual examples of those that are cut off; they are quite taken away when nobody thinks of it. Suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment.] That is, their cities and houses, in allusion to the ancient way of dwelling in tents. (Compare x. 20. Tsa. xxxiii. 20. liv. 2.) The expressions may withal imply, that fortified towns can no more resist the progress of the enemy, than if they were so manyshepherds’ huts. (Compare lsa. xxxviii. 12.) And now I signify this to thee, that I committed ten talents to Gabael, the son of Gabias.*] Chap.i: 14. he is called hisbrother. The Hebrew versions give no light here, as Munstcr has fcro^er in both places, and Fagius, son. St. Ambrose admires the conduct of Tobit, and his remarkable disinterestedness with respect to this money. “JEEe was poor and in want, and yet, regarding less his own than others’ necessity, he thought not of recalling a very consi-’ derable sum which he had lent, and which would have been * of great service to him in the condition he was in: nor ■ did he resolve to call it in, till he imagined himself near death, and then he thought it but apiece of justice due to his family to inquire after it, that his son should not be deprived of a sum which lawfully belonged to him, " Non tarn cupiens cdmmodatum reposcere, quam sollicitus ne fraudaret h<eredem.” (Ambr. in Tob. cap. 2. torn, ii.) The same writer takes occasion, from this example of 1 Tobit, to reflect on " the prodigious difference between his “conduct and that of those who are so wedded to their interests, that they are glad of an opportunity to take advantage of a brother’s necessity to enrich themselves, under the pretence of doing them a kindness, and on that account exact large and unlawful interest: whilst the generous and open-hearted Tobit, unmindful of the necessity he found himself in, and of the regard which he owed to his family, hasted not to demand this money, nor require any thing more than the bare principal, though it had been lent a long time; even from Tobias’s infancy,” as the Vulgate here adds. (Ibid.) There is also another useful inference, which may be drawn from this place, viz. that though Tobit seems from ver. 1. to have sent for his son on purpose to communicate to him the affair of the money lent, yet it is observable, that he rather chooses to begin his seemingly farewell charge, by laying down rules for his moral conduct, and his instruction in righteousness, which indeed is the substance of it, before ho opens to him the business of the talents in Media; as if in those early time’s he had known the Divine precept, given by him who fulfilled all righteousness, Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you, (Matt. vL 33.) 4L i” have put off the clothing of peace, and put zipon me the sackcloth of my prayer: I will cry unto the Everlasting in my days.] i. e. I have put off the garment of prosperity, as the margin has it, or of gladness, and put upon mo the sackcloth of penance and supplication, Indui cilicium deprecationis mea, Arabic. And Junius renders in the same manner: or, as the Syriac has it, Clothed me xvith sackcloth in the solemn time of my prayer and supplication. The last clause, KtKpaliofiat Trpbg top alwviov iv tcliq ri/ilpaic pov, is inaccurately rendered here. It may either be translated with the margin, in the time of mine affliction, and in this sense we are to understand v/i(pa’UpovadX^fx, Psal. xxxvii/13. exxxvii. 7. or the sense may be, I will cry unto the Everlasting all my days; thus Calmet, Je crieray au treshaut tous les jours de ma vie: and the Geneva version accordingly, As long as Hive I will call upon the Everlasting. This sense is strongly confirmed by Psal. cxvi. 2. where the expression in the LXX. very much resembles this, lv rale yulpaic )iov ImKakiaoixai, and our translators rightly render, 7 will call upon him as long as I live.
Job 4:21
Doth not their excellency which is in them go away? they die, even without wisdom,. Though their dignities be never so great, and their posterity never so numerous, all go away with them, and they die like so many beasts, who have no understanding of their latter end. How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet?] See ver. 5, 6.
They are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge. They have studied all the arts of sin and wickedness, but are perfect strangers to the obligations of religion and virtue; and they never shew any quickness, of thought, but when they are contriving to bring about, some ill design. Ver. 2^3 — 26. I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form and void, &c] The whole face of nature looks dismal; the inhabitants of the land and their houses, together with the fruits of the earth, are destroyed by the war; the birds of the air, and the beasts of the field, are consumed Vol. jij. by the famine: (compare vii. 20. ix..10* xii. 4. xiv. 2, &c. Hos. iy. 3.) so that the country looks. as if it w;ere.reduced to its primitive chaos. (Compare Gen. i. 2.) The* heavens are covered with darkness, and the mountains tremble at the wrath of the Almighty. The prophets often describe God’s judgments upon a land or nation, as if the whole frame of nature were in a state. of dissolution^ because these particular judgments are an earnest of the general judgment.” (See Isa. v. 25. 30.‘xiii. 10. with the notes upon those places.) Because of the mercy which shall soon come unto you from the Everlasting, our Saviour.] The like is repeated ver. 24, 25. but how can this mercy be properly said to come soon, as the captivity was to last seventy years? This, say Mess, of Port-Royal, may be admitted, if considered either with respect to God, who inflicted this punishment, in whose sight a thousand years are but as a day; or with respect to the suffering Jews themselves, those especially among them who were touched with a sense of their sins, and their deserving a much longer and sorer punishment; " for a soul which is truly convinced of and sensibly affected with the eternity of punishment due to its transgressions, counts for nothing, or considers but as a moment, the time of penance and suffering which God is mercifully pleased to inflict in this life." (Ver. 22. 24.) This writer, says Bishop Chandler, personates Baruch, and his book is little else than an epi-. tome of what we have at large in the prophets, concerning a more universal return than that was of the Jews under Cyrus, and in virtue of God’s everlasting covenant, to drive them no more out of the land. The Jews at Babylon, where this Baruch wroto, did not conceive that the prophecies were exhausted in the first return of the Jews under the Assyrian kings, they hoped for another more perfect and more glorious restoration, as foretold by the prophets, which should be the deliverance of.God himself, as the Jews. were wont still to call the salvation of the Messiah. In confidence of this so eminent a deliverance, he breaks forth into admiration of this Emanuel, or God with us. (Def. of Christ, p. 53.)
Shortly thou shalt see his destruction, and shalt tread ttpon his neck. This, says Calmet, was literally accomplished in the time of queen Esther and Mordecai, at Susa; and under Daniel, at Babylon; for when they wero exalted to the highest dignity, and the most important posts of the government, the Chaldeans themselves were obliged to submit to their authority, and to bow before them, as Isaiah had long before expressly foretold, (ls< 14.)
Yet will I not make a full end. In the severest judgments God brings upon his people, he still reserves a remnant, to whom he will make good his promises: (see xxx. 11. xlvi. 28.) or the words may be understood to,this sense: Though I make the whole land desolate by sword and famine, yet still I have severer judgments in reserve:’ (compare v. 10.18.) viz. tfie destruction of the city and temple, and the captivity of the people that outlive the former calamities. The former sense of the words may be confirmed, by comparing them with that passage, 1 Sam. ^ iii. 12. Wlienlbegin, I will also make anend;i. e. I will make a thorough destruction, and pursue Eli’s family with judgments, till I have utterly consumed it. t
For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens be black. See ver. 23, 24. Because I have spoken it, I have purposed it, and will not repent, &c] God’s purpose of delivering up the Jews into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar was irreversible, upon the’ supposition that the greatest part of them would continue impenitent, which he likewise foresaw. (See ver. 22. of this; chapter, and vii. 16. 27, 28. xiii.14. xiv. 11, 12.xxvl9— 11.) Though elsewhere, upon their repentance, to which God frequently exhorted them by his prophets, (see xxv. 4, 5.) he promises the removal of his judgments. (See ver. 14. of this chapter, and vii. 3. xvii. 25. xviii. 11. xxii. 4. xxvi. 3. xxxvi. 3.) Herein Jeremy’s preaching was very different from that of the false prophets, who preached peace and safety to the people, without interposing the condition. of repentance and reformation. (See ver. 10. of this chapter; and xiv. 13. xxviii. 3, 4.) For as it was their mind to go astray from God, so being returned, seek him ten times more.] It is not enough, says a pious writer, morally to revoke what is past, by wish- -
They shall go into thickets, and climb up upon the rocks. To save their lives. (Compare Isa. ii. 10. 19,*’ 1 Sam. xiii. G.)
Though thou rendest thy face tvith painting. The’Hebrew reads, Though thou rendest thine eyes with painting.. The use of their paint was to contract the eyelids, and make the eyes appear more large and full, which they thought a great beauty. (See Plin. Nat. Hist. lib. xxxiii. cap. 6.) In vain shalt thou make thyself fair; thy lovers shall despise thee, they shall seek thy life.] The verse represents the people of the Jews, under the metaphor of a woman that sought, by the finery of her dress, and other allurements, to procure men’s kindnqss,butali in vain. So should it be with them; all the arts they had m^de use of to engage the Egyptians, or other foreigners, to assist them against the Chaldeans, should stand them in no stead; nay, those very allies of theirs would join with their enemies. (Compare ii. 13. 18. 25. 3G. xviu 5. xxii. 20. 22. Lam. i. 2. 19. iv. 17.)
For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish, as of her that bringeth forth her first 4 H * *: *
And she shall be inhabited by devils.". This expression is grounded on a vulgar notion, that desolate and forlorn places are inhabited by evil spirits, who have their haunts there. The canonical Scriptures seem to countenance this opinion; thus the demoniac (Luke viii. 29.) is said to abide in no house, but to be driven of the devil into the wilderness, and thither was our Saviour led, as being the devil’s residence, to be tempted by him. (Matt. iv. 1.) And accordingly our Saviour, in the parable of the unclean spirit, says, that he walks through dry or uninhabited places. (Matt. xii. 43. see also Tobit viii. 3.)
Look about thee towards the East. This, no doubt, primarily relates to the restoration of the Jews under Cyrus, and the return from their long captivity by his appointment, or rather God’s influencing his heart for that purpose; and though Babylon, properly speaking, was rather to the north with respect to Jerusalem, yet Persia, where Cyrus reigned, and from whence the happy orders were to come, was to the cast. That’AvaroX^ here is the title of the Messiah likewise, there is no question, whether it be literally rendered the East, as the title formerly was bestowed upon him, (Zcch. vi. 12.) or the rising of the sun, that Sun of righteousness, mentioned Mai. iv. 2. However that be, it is certain that where J Avaro\rj, the East, is used in most places of Scripture, the commentators and scholiasts have still applied it to Christ, meaning, by the East, that orient or rising sun, and not the point from whence it rises: (see Jcr. xxiii. 5.) and this seems the more probable, because, ver. 22. he is called the Everlasting, our Saviour.