ancients, that Pindar compares his song to them for its smoothness and sweetness: Χαιρε Φιλος. Εγω τοδε του Πεμπω μεμιγμενον μελι λευκῳ Συν γαλακτι κιρναμενὰ δ' εερσ' αμφεπει πομ' αοιδιμον, Αιο λισιν εν πνοαισιν αυλων. forsaken the because he poor; hath violently taken away a house which he builded not; d 20 Surely he shall not feel quietness in his belly, he shall not save of that which he desired. c Heb. crushed. And Joel, iii. 18: And it shall come to pass in that day, And all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters. These expressions denote fertility and abundance; and are often employed to point out the excellence of PIND. Nem. iii. ver. 133. the promised land, which is frequently denominated a land flowing with milk and honey: and even the superior blessings of the gospel are thus characterized, Isai. li. 1. "Hail, friend! to thee I tune my song; J. B. C. Qui te, Pollio, amat, veniat, quo te quoque gaudet; Mella fluant illi, ferat et rubus asper amomum. VIRG. Ecl. iii., ver. 88. "Who Pollio loves, and who his muse admires, Let Pollio's fortune crown his full desires. Let myrrh, instead of thorn, his fences fill; And showers of honey from his oaks distil!" DRYDEN. OVID, describing the golden age, employs the same image Flumina jam lactis, jam flumina nectaris ibant; Flavaque de viridi stillabant ilice mella. : Metam. lib. i., ver. 3. “Floods were with milk, and floods with nectar, filled; And honey from the sweating oak distilled." DRYDEN. HORACE employs a similar image in nearly the same words: Mella cava manant ex ilice, montibus altis; Epod. xvi. ver. 16. "From hollow oaks, where honeyed streams distil, And bounds with noisy foot the pebbled rill." FRANCIS. Job employs the same metaphor, chap. xxix. 6. :When I washed my steps with butter And the rock poured out to me rivers of oil. Isaiah also, chap. vii. 22, uses the same when describing the produce of a heifer and two ewes :— From the plenty of milk that they shall produce, He shall eat butter: butter and honey shall he eat, Whosoever is left in the midst of the land. ,alasa عکس It may be inquired how Mr. Good arrives at this meaning. It is by considering the word by yaalos, which we translate he shall rejoice, as the Arabic "he ate, drank, tasted ;" and the word kehil, which we make a compound word, kecheyl, "according to substance," to be the pure Arabic word "kahala, it was fruitless," applied to a year of dearth: hence kahlan, "a barren year." which he seems to have sufficient authority, he renConceiving these two to be pure Arabic words, for ders n temuratho, his recompence, as in chap. xv 31, and not restitution, as here. The general meaning is, He shall labour and toil but shall not reap, for God shall send on his land blasting and mildew. Houbigant translates the verso thus: Reddet labore partum; neque id absumet copiosæ fuerunt mercaturæ ejus, sed illis non fruetur "He shall restore what he gained by labour, no shall he consume it; his merchandises were abundant but he shall not enjoy them." Oh, how doctors dis agree! Old Coverdale gives a good sense, which is n unfrequent thing with this venerable translator: But laboure shal he, and yet have nothinge to eate great travayle shal he make for riches, but he sha not enjoye them. Verse 19. He hath oppressed and hath forsaken th poor] Literally, He hath broken in pieces the forsake of the poor; ¬ ay yy • ki ritstsats azab dallim. Th poor have fled from famine, and left their childre behind them; and this hard-hearted wretch, meaning Job all the while, has suffered them to perish, when he might have saved them alive. He hath violently taken away a house which he builded not] Or rather, He hath thrown down a house, and hath not rebuilt it. By neglecting or destroying the forsaken orphans of the poor, mentioned above, he has destroyed a house (a family), while he might, by helping the wretched, have preserved the family from becoming extinct. Verse 20. Surely he shall not feel quietness in his belly] I have already remarked that the word beten, which we translate belly, often means in the sacred scriptures the whole of the human trunk; the regions of the thorax and abdomen, with their contents; the heart, lungs, liver, &c., and consequently all the thoughts, purposes, and inclinations of the mind, of which those viscera were supposed to be the functionaries. The meaning seems to be, “He shall never be satisfied; he shall have an endless desire after secular good, and shall never be able to obtain what he covets. Verse 21. There shall none of his meat be left] Coterdale translates thus: He deboured so gredily, that he left nothinge behynde, therefore his goodes shal not prospere. He shall be stripped of every thing. Verse 22. In the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits] This is a fine saying, and few of the menders of Job's text have been able to improve the version. It is literally true of every great, rich, wicked man; he has no God, and anxieties and perplexities torment him, notwithstanding he has his portion in this life. Every hand of the wicked shall come upon him.] All kinds of misery shall be his portion. Coverdale translates: Though he had plenteousnesse of every thiage, pet was he poore; and, therefore, he is but a Bretch on every syde. Here Verse 23. When he is about to fill his belly] seems a plain allusion to the lustings of the children of Israel in the desert. God showered down quails upon them, and showered down his wrath while the h Ch. xxvii. 13. xxxi. 2, 3. flesh was in their mouth. The allusion is too plain to be mistaken; and this gives some countenance to the bishop of Killala's version of the 20th verse:— "Because he acknowledged not the quail in his In the midst of his delight he shall not escape." stomach, That w, which we translate quietness, means a quail also, the history of the Hebrews' lustings, Exod. xvi. 2-11, and Numb. xi. 31-35, sufficiently proves. Let the reader mark all the expressions here, from ver. 20 to 23, and compare them with Numb. xi. 31-35, and he will probably be of opinion that Zophar has that history immediately in view, which speaks of the Hebrews' murmurings for bread and flesh, and the miraculous showers of manna and quails, and the judgments that fell on them for their murmurings. Let us compare a few passages:- Verse 20. He shall not feel quietness.] w selav, the quail. "He shall not save of that which he desired." Verse 21: "There shall none of his meat be left." Exod. xvi. 19: " 'Let no man leave of it till the morning." Verse 22. In the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits. Exod. xvi. 20: "But some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms and stank. Verse 23. When he is about to fill his belly, God shall cast the fury of his wrath upon him, and shall rain it upon him while he is eating. Numb. xi. 33 : "And while the flesh was yet between their teeth, ere it was chewed, the wrath of the Lord was kindled against the people, and the Lord smote the people with a very great plague." Ps. lxxviii. 26-30: "He rained flesh upon them as dust, and feathered fowls like as the sand of the sea: so they did eat and were filled-but, while the meat was in their mouth, the wrath of God came upon them," &c. These show to what Job refers. Verse 24. He shall flee from the iron weapon] Or, "Though he should flee from the iron armour, the brazen bow should strike him through." So that yf he lle the pron weapens, he shal be shott with the stele bow.-Coverdale. That is, he shall most certainly perish: all kinds of deaths await him. Verse 25. It is drawn, and cometh out] This refers to archery: The arrow is drawn out of the sheaf or quiver, and discharged from the bow against its mark, and pierces the vitals, and passes through the body. So Coverdale: The arowe shal be taken forth, and go out at his backe. Verse 26. A fire not blown shall consume him] As Zophar is here showing that the wicked cannot escape from the divine judgments; so he points out the different instruments which God employs for their destruction. The wrath of God-any secret or supernatural curse. The iron weapon-the spear or such like. The bow, and its swift flying arrow. Darkness deep horror, and perplexity. A fire not blown-a supernatural fire; lightning; such as fell on Korah, and his company, to whose destruction there is probably here an allusion: hence the words, It shall go ill with him who is left in his tabernacle. "And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron, Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment. Get ye up from about the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. Depart from the tents of these wicked men. There came out a fire from the Lord and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense." Numb. xvi. 20, &c. Verse 27. The heaven shall reveal his iniquity; and the earth shall rise up against him.] Another allusion, if I mistake not, to the destruction of Korah and his company. The heaven revealed their iniquity; God declared out of heaven his judgment of their rebellion. "And the glory of the Lord appeared unto all the congregation;" Numb. xvi. 20, &c. And then the earth rose up against them. "The ground clave asunder that was under them, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up; and they went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them;" Numb. xvi. 31-33. Verse 28. The increase of his house shall depart, and his goods shall flow away in the day of his wrath.] A farther allusion to the punishment of the rebellious company of Korah, who not only perished themselves, but their houses also, and their goods." Numb. xvi. 32. These examples were all in point, on the ground assumed by Zophar; and such well-attested facts would not be passed over by him, had he known the record of them; and that he did know it, alludes to it, and quotes the very circumstances, is more than probable. Verse 29. This is the portion] As God has dealt with the murmuring Israelites, and with the rebellious sons of Korah, so will he deal with those who murmur against the dispensations of his providence, and rebel against his authority. Instead of an earthly portion, and an ecclesiastical heritage, such as Korah, Dathan, and Abiram sought; they shall have fire from God to scorch them, and the earth to swallow them up. Dr. Stock, bishop of Killala, who has noticed the allusion to the quails, and for which he has been most unmeritedly ridiculed, gives us the following note on the passage: | the preceding chapter. known usage of Hebrew poets, in adorning their compositions by allusions to facts in the history of their own people. It has escaped all the interpreters; and it is the more important, because it fixes the date of this poem, so far as to prove its having been composed subsequently to the transgression of Israel, at Kibroth Hattaavah, recorded in Numb. xi. 33, 34. Because the wicked acknowledges not the quail, that is, the meat with which God has filled his stomach; but, like the ungrateful Israelites, crammed, and blasphemed his feeder, as Milton finely expresses it, he shall experience the same punishment with them, and be cut off in the midst of his enjoyment, as Moses tells us the people were who lusted." If I mistake not, I have added considerable strength to the prelate's reasoning, by showing that there is a reference also to the history of the manna, and to that which details the rebellion of Korah and his company; and if so (and they may dispute who please), it is a proof that the Book of Job is not so old as, much less older than, the Pentateuch, as some have endeavoured to prove, but with no evidence of success, at least to my mind: a point which never has been, and I am certain never can be, proved; which has multitudes of presumptions against it, and not one clear incontestable fact for it. Mr. Good has done more in this case than any of his predecessors, and yet Mr. Good has failed; no wonder then that others, unmerciful criticisers of the bishop of Killala, have failed also, who had not a tenth part of Mr. Good's learning, nor one hundredth part of his critical acumen. It is, however, strange that men cannot suffer others to differ from them on a subject of confessed difficulty and comparatively little importance, without raising up the cry of heresy against them, and treating them with superciliousness and contempt! These should know, if they are clergymen, whether dignified or not, that such conduct ill becomes the sacerdotal character; and that ante barbam docet senes cannot be always spoken to the teacher's advantage. As a good story is not the worse for being twice told, the following lines from a clergyman, who, for his humility and piety, was as much an honour to his vocation as he was to human nature, may not be amiss, in point of advice to all Warburtonian spirits: "Be calm in arguing, for fierceness makes Error a fault, and truth discourtesy. Why should I feel another man's mistakes More than his sickness or his poverty? In love I should: but anger is not love Nor wisdom neither; therefore, gently move. Calmness is great advantage: he that lets Another chafe, may warm him at his fire, Mark all his wanderings, and enjoy his frets; As cunning fencers suffer heat to tire. Truth dwells not in the clouds: the bow that's there Doth often aim at, never hit, the sphere." HERBERT. Dr. Stock's work on the Book of Job will stand honourably on the same shelf with the best on this "Here I apprehend is a fresh example of the | difficult subject. Job claims the privilege to CHAP. XXI. CHAPTER XXI. complain of his hard lot. Job expresses himself as puzzled by the dispensations of Divine Providence, because of the unequal distribution of temporal good; he shows that wicked men often live long, prosper in their families, in their flocks, and in all their substance, and yet live in defiance of God and sacred things, 1-16. At other times their prosperity is suddenly blasted, and they and their families come to ruin, 17-21. God however is too wise to err; and he deals out various lots to all according to his wisdom: some come sooner, others later, to the grave: the strong and the weak, the prince and the peasant, come to a similar end in this life; but the wicked are reserved for a day of wrath, 22-33. He charges his friends with falsehood in their pretended attempts to comfort him, 34. A. M. cir. 2484. e BUT Job answered and said, 7 Wherefore do the wicked A. M. cir. 2434. 2 Hear diligently my live, become old, yea, are Ante U.C.c.767. speech, and let this be your mighty in power? cir. 744. consolations. 8 Their seed is established in B. C. cir. 1520. 3 Suffer me that I may speak; and after their sight with them, and their offspring before that I have spoken, a mock on. а 4 As for me, is my complaint to man? and if it were so, why should not my spirit be 'troubled ? their eyes. 10 Their bull gendereth, and faileth not; 5 Mark me, and be astonished, and lay their cow calveth, and casteth not her calf. your hand upon your mouth. 11 They send forth their little ones like a 6 Even when I remember I am afraid, and flock, and their children dance. trembling taketh hold on my flesh. Ch. xvi. 10. xvii. 2.- b Heb. shortened.· C Heb. look unlo me.-d Judg. xviii. 19. Ch. xxix. 9. xl. 4. Ps. Xxx. 9. Ch. xii, 6. Ps. xvii. 10, 14. lxxiii. 3, 12. Jer. NOTES ON CHAP. XXI. Verse 2. Let this be your consolations.] authehi zoth tanchumotheychem may be translated, "And let this be your retractations." Let what I am about to say induce you to retract what you have said, and to recal your false judgments. nacham signifies, not only to comfort, but to change one's mind, to repent; hence the Vulgate translates, et agite pœnitentiam, “and repent," which Coverdale follows in his Version, and amende pour seles. Some suppose the verse to be understood ironically: I am now about to give you consolations for those you have given me. When I have done, then turn them into mockery if you please. Verse 4. As for me] heanochi, "Alas for me!" Is it not with a man that I speak? And, if this be the case, why should not my spirit be troubled? do not reply against my Maker: I suffer much from God and man; why then may I not have the privilege of complaining to creatures like myself? and I Verse 5. Mark me, and be astonished] Consider compare the state in which I was once, with that in which I am now; and be astonished at the dgments and dispensations of God. You will then be confounded; you will put your hands upon your mouths, and keep silence. Putting the hand on the mouth, or the finger on the mysterious workings of Providence; and I tremble at the thought of entering into a detail on such a subject; my very flesh trembles. Verse 7. Wherefore do the wicked live] You have frequently asserted that the wicked are invariably punished in this life; and that the righteous are ever distinguished by the strongest marks of God's providential kindness; how then does it come that many wicked men live long and prosperously, and at last die in peace, without any evidence whatever of God's displeasure? This is a fact that is occurring daily; none can deny it; how then will you reconcile it with your maxims? Verse 8. Their seed is established] They see their own children grow up, and become settled in the land; and behold their children's children also; so that their generations are not cut off. Even the posterity of the wicked continue. Verse 9. Neither is the rod of God upon them.] They are not afflicted as other men. Verse 10. Their bull gendereth] ay ibbar, passes over, i. e., on the cow, referring to the action of the bull when coupling with the female. Their flocks multiply greatly, they bring forth in time, and none of them is barren. Verse 11. They send forth their little ones] It is not very clear whether this refers to the young of the flocks or to their children. The first clause may mean the former, the next clause the latter; while the young of their cattle are in flocks, their numerous children are healthy and vigorous, and dance for joy. Verse 12. They take the timbrel and harp] yisu, they rise up or lift themselves up, probably alluding to the rural exercise of dancing. toph, which we translate timbrel, means a sort of drum, such as the tom-tom of the Asiatics. “ɔ kinnor may mean something of the harp kind. any ugab, organ, means nothing like the instrument now called the organ, though thus translated both by the Septuagint and Vulgate; it probably means the syrinx, composed of several unequal pipes, close at the bottom, which, when blown into at the top, gives a very shrill and lively sound. To these instruments the youth are represented as dancing joyfully. Mr. Good translates: "They trip merrily to the sound of the pipe." And illustrates his translation with the following verse: "Now pursuing, now retreating, d profligacy of the ungodly. 15 What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? and e what profit should we have, if we pray unto him? B. C. cir. 1520. A. M. cir. 2484. Ante I. Ol. cir. 744. Ante U.C.c.767. 16 Lo, their good is not in their hand: 'the counsel of the wicked is far from me. h 17 How oft is the candle of the wicked put out? and how oft cometh their destruction Ch. xxii, 18. Ps. i. 1. Prov. i. 10. Ezek. xi. 2. Luke xxiii. 51. Acts v. 33.- -g Ch. xviii. 6. Or, lamp. strength from this circumstance; they not only spend their days in faring sumptuously every day; but they even wear out so as to grow old in it; they are not cut off by any sudden judgment of God. This is fact; therefore your doctrine, that the wicked are cut off suddenly and have but a short time, is far from the truth. In a moment go down to the grave.] They wear out their years in pleasure; grow old in their gay and giddy life; and die, as in a moment, without previous sickness; or, as Mr. Good has it, They quietly descend into the grave. Verse 14. They say unto God] This is the language of their conduct, though not directly of their lips. Depart from us] Let us alone; we do not trouble thee. Thy ways are painful; we do not like crossbearing. Thy ways are spiritual; we wish to live after the flesh. We have learned to do our own will; we do not wish to study thine. Verse 15. What is the Almighty] What allegiance do we owe to him? We feel no obligation to obey him; and what profit can we derive from prayer? We are as happy as flesh and blood can make us: our kingdom is of this world; we wish for no other portion than that which we have. Those who have never prayed as they ought, know nothing of the benefits of prayer. Verse 16. Their good is not in their hand] With all their boasting and self-dependance, God only lends them his bounty; and though it appears to be their own, yet it is at his disposal. Some of the wicked he permits to live and die in affluence, provided it be acquired in the ordinary way of his providence, by trade, commerce, &c. Others he permits to possess it for a while only, and then strips them of their illegally procured property. The original is intended to convey the true notion | of the gambols of the rustic nymphs and swains on | festival occasions; and let it be observed that this is spoken of the children of those who say unto God, "Depart from us; for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways. What is the Almighty that we should serve him? and what profit should we have if we pray unto him?" ver. 14, 15. Is it any wonder that the children of such parents should be living to the flesh, and serving the lusts of the flesh? for neither they nor their parents know God, nor pray unto him. Verse 13. They spend their days in wealth] There is a various reading here of some importance. In the text we have → yeballu, they grow old, or wear out as with old age, terent vetustate; and in the margin, → yechallu, they consume; and the Masora states that this is one of the eleven words which are written with beth and must be read with caph. Several editions have the former word in the text, and the latter in the margin; the former being what is called the kethib, the latter keri. yeballu, they grow old, or wear out, is the reading of the Antwerp, Paris, and London Polyglots; yechallu, they accomplish or spend, is the reading of the Complu- Verse 17. How oft is the candle of the wicked pu tensian Polyglot, thirteen of Kennicott's and De Rossi's out?] The candle or lamp is often used, both as the MSS., the Septuagint, Chaldee, Syriac, and Arabic. | emblem of prosperity and of posterity. Oftentimes The Vulgate has ducunt, "they lead or spend," from which our translation is borrowed. I incline to the former, as Job's argument derives considerable The counsel of the wicked is far from me.] Some understand the words thus: "Far be it from me to advocate the cause of the wicked." I have nothing in common with them, and am not their apologist. I state a fact: they are often found in continual prosperity. I state another fact: they are often found in wretchedness and misery. the rejoicing of the wicked is short; and, not unfrequently, his seed is cut off from the earth. The roo is dried up, and the branch is withered. |