Job 25-27:6

 1 Then Bildad the Shuhite answered,

2 “Dominion and awe belong to Him

Who establishes peace in His heights.

3 “Is there any number to His troops?

And upon whom does His light not rise?

4 “How then can a man be just with God?

Or how can he be clean who is born of woman?

5 “If even the moon has no brightness

And the stars are not pure in His sight,

6 How much less man, that maggot,

And the son of man, that worm!”

Job 26

1 Then Job responded,

2 “What a help you are to the weak!

How you have saved the arm without strength!

3 “What counsel you have given to one without wisdom!

What helpful insight you have abundantly provided!

4 “To whom have you uttered words?

And whose spirit was expressed through you?

5 “The departed spirits tremble

Under the waters and their inhabitants.

6 “Naked is Sheol before Him,

And Abaddon has no covering.

7 “He stretches out the north over empty space

And hangs the earth on nothing.

8 “He wraps up the waters in His clouds,

And the cloud does not burst under them.

9 “He obscures the face of the full moon

And spreads His cloud over it.

10 “He has inscribed a circle on the surface of the waters

At the boundary of light and darkness.

11 “The pillars of heaven tremble

And are amazed at His rebuke.

12 “He quieted the sea with His power,

And by His understanding He shattered Rahab.

13 “By His breath the heavens are cleared;

His hand has pierced the fleeing serpent.

14 “Behold, these are the fringes of His ways;

And how faint a word we hear of Him!

But His mighty thunder, who can understand?”

Job 27

1 Then Job continued his discourse and said,

2 “As God lives, who has taken away my right,

And the Almighty, who has embittered my soul,

3 For as long as life is in me,

And the breath of God is in my nostrils,

4 My lips certainly will not speak unjustly,

Nor will my tongue mutter deceit.

5 “Far be it from me that I should declare you right;

Till I die I will not put away my integrity from me.

6 “I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go.

My heart does not reproach any of my days.

 Introduction

Bildad’s brief speech concludes the sayings of Job’s friends.

Bildad holds that God established order in the material and moral universe.

As he shines brighter than any creation material,

man in comparison is a moral worm.

So all Job’s claims of purity are meaningless! (25:1–6)

Job dismisses Bildad with scathing sarcasm (26:1–4).

In powerful poetry he affirms God’s majesty.

Surely we can hardly comprehend even the “outer fringe” of so great a God, much less squeeze Him into the friends’ comfortable categories (vv. 5–14).

I.       Man a maggot? (25:6)

Job 25:6

6 How much less man, that maggot,

And the son of man, that worm!”

A.    This thought seems right and for some it’s a theological teeter-totter.

B.   If God is to be exalted, man must be degraded

C.   But as Job saw, this is terribly wrong

D.   Yet only in Christ do we realize how wrong Bildad was

E.   Christ chose to become a real human being, “made a little lower than the angels,” but raised again to bring “many sons to glory”

Hebrews 2:9-10

Jesus Briefly Humbled

     9     But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.

     10     For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings.

F.    God’s love for us proves man is no maggot

G.  Love marks us out as beings of infinite worth

II.     Job 26 well intentioned but lacking

Job 26:1-4

Job Rebukes Bildad

     1     Then Job responded,

     2     “What a help you are to the weak!

How you have saved the arm without strength!

     3     “What counsel you have given to one without wisdom!

What helpful insight you have abundantly provided!

     4     “To whom have you uttered words?

And whose spirit was expressed through you?

A.   Before magnifying God’s great power in the universe

B.   Job first rebuked Bildad for giving him no help

C.   Job had no power, but Bildad’s words didn’t make him stronger

D.    According to his friends, Job lacked wisdom; yet Bildad didn’t share one piece of wisdom or insight

1.     In fact he only repeated what one of the other counselors had said

2.     What Job had already conceded to 

E.   “Who has helped you utter these words? And whose spirit spoke from your mouth?” (v. 4,)

1.     If Bildad’s words had come from God, then they would have done Job good; for Job had been crying out for God to speak to him

2.     The conclusion is that Bildad’s words came from Bildad, and that’s why they did Job no good  

3.     The three friends must have listened impatiently because they already knew the things Job was talking about; but they hadn’t drawn the right conclusion from them.

4.     Because they saw God’s handiwork in nature, they thought they knew all about God; and therefore they could explain God to Job

5.     Job said that just the opposite was true.

“Behold, these are the fringes of His ways; and how faint a word we hear of Him! But His mighty thunder, who can understand?” (v. 14)

F.    “We truly know God perfectly when we find God incomprehensible and unable to be known.”

G.  The more we learn about God, the more we discover how much more there is to know!

H.   Beware of people who claim to know all about God, for their claim is proof they know neither God nor themselves       

III.  Job questions God’s justice (Job 27)

Job 27:1-6

Job Affirms His Righteousness

     1     Then Job continued his discourse and said,

     2     “As God lives, who has taken away my right,

And the Almighty, who has embittered my soul,

     3     For as long as life is in me,

And the breath of God is in my nostrils,

     4     My lips certainly will not speak unjustly,

Nor will my tongue mutter deceit.

     5     “Far be it from me that I should declare you right;

Till I die I will not put away my integrity from me.

     6     “I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go.

My heart does not reproach any of my days.  

A.   Bildad had made it clear that since God is holy, no man can stand righteous in His sight (Job 25:4-6)

B.   The corollary to this proposition is that God is obligated to punish people for their sins; otherwise, He would not be a righteous God

C.   If Job is suffering, it must be that Job is sinning

D.   Once again, Job stood fast in affirming his integrity

E.   What a temptation to say what we think others want to hear

1.     Job declared that, as long as he lived, he would defend himself and maintain his integrity

2.     He would not lie just to please his friends or to “bribe” God into restoring his fortunes

a)    Satan would have rejoiced at that!

3.     Job had to live with his conscience (“heart,” v. 6) no matter what his friends said or his God did to him  

F.    The pious platitude often covers up an aching heart or painful doubts

G.  Job has taken a courageous course and will not desert it

H.   However great the pressure, he will be honest with God and honest with others

I.        Job gave an oath:

“As God lives” (27:2)

1.     Among Eastern people in that day, taking an oath was a serious matter

2.     It was like inviting God to kill you if what you said was not true

3.     Job was so sure of himself that he was willing to take that chance

4.     Job also repeated his charge that God was not treating him fairly

“[He] has denied me justice,” v. 2, NIV)

5.     Job had asked God to declare the charges against him, but the heavens had been silent

6.     Job had called for an umpire to bring him and God together, but no umpire had been provided

a)    Silence does not mean agreement

b)    It means wait you are not in charge of the time line…. 

J.    The fierce honesty that Job chose did not produce any easy or quick answers

K.   But in the end, as we will see, it won commendation from God

L.    In the sight of God, Job was right

M. God had twice declared before the court of heaven that Job was

“a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil” (Job 1:8; 2:3)  

IV.Suffering for nothing…..

A.   This does not mean that everybody who suffers is being punished for his or her sins

B.   Sometimes we suffer because of the sins of others (e.g., Joseph)

C.   Or because God is keeping us from sin (e.g., Paul in 2 Cor. 12)

D.   Jesus suffered, not for His own sins, for He had none, but for the sins of the world (1 Peter 2:22-24; 3:18);

E.   Because of His suffering and death, sinners can believe and receive eternal life

V.   Technology yes, wisdom no (28:1–11).

A.   Man had demonstrated amazing technological proficiency, even in Job’s time

B.   Metals were mined and smelted, tunnels drilled through the rock, and the sources of rivers and streams explored

C.   The mysteries of the material universe have fallen one by one to the probing genius of humanity

D.   Today an explosion of technological advances makes us wonder if there is anything in this universe humanity cannot master

E.   The problem is that technological advances are not matched by advances in wisdom—here defined as the capacity to penetrate the moral mysteries of the universe

F.    In the moral realm man is utterly lost and totally inadequate.

VI.God understands (28:28).

A.   God is the source of wisdom in the moral universe even as He is the Creator of the material

B.   What we cannot grasp, God knows completely

C.   Far too many people are quick to make moral pronouncements:

1.     Practicing homosexuals march for pride

2.     Abortion is merely a matter of a woman’s personal freedom

3.     Sex educators distribute condoms to teens and never mention abstinence

4.     The church needs to be more politically active

5.     Fat bald preachers don’t like anyone

6.     is that really the point????????????   

D.   All loudly proclaim their position is “moral,” while ignoring God’s understanding as expressed in Scripture

E.   The only hope for any of us is to abandon human notions of morality and be subject to God

1.     We need to abandon our legalist as well as our liberal views and embrace God’s view according to scripture

2.     If we have no basis in scripture for our opinion we have no real opinion     

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3. Job seeks God’s wisdom (Job 28)

“But where shall wisdom be found?” (Job 28:12) “Where then does wisdom come from? Where does understanding dwell?” (v. 20, NIV) Job asked these questions because he was weary of the cliches and platitudes that his three friends were giving him in the name of “wisdom.” His friends were sure that their words were pure gold, but Job concluded they were tinsel and trash. The three men had knowledge, but they lacked wisdom.

“Wisdom is the right use of knowledge,” said Charles Spurgeon. “To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as the knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom.”

In this poem about wisdom, Job gives three answers to his question, “Where shall wisdom be found?”

You cannot mine wisdom (Job 28:1–11). Job takes us deep into the earth where brave men are mining gold, iron, copper, and precious stones. Precious metals and precious stones are often used in Scripture as symbols of wisdom (Prov. 2:1–10; 3:13–15; 8:10–21; 1 Cor. 3:12–23). Once you have found it, you must “refine” it in the furnace and “mint” it for practical use. Paul said that the opposite of God’s wisdom is man’s wisdom—“wood, hay, and stubble”—materials that are not beautiful, durable, or valuable (1 Cor. 3:12). You can find wood, hay, and stubble on the surface of the earth; but if you want real treasures, you must dig deep.

Job describes how men work hard and face great danger to find material wealth. They tunnel through hard rock and risk their lives to get rich. Why will men and women not put that much effort into gaining God’s wisdom? The Word of God is  like a deep mine, filled with precious treasures; but the believer must put forth effort to discover its riches. It takes careful reading and study, prayer, meditation, and obedience to mine the treasures of the Word of God; and the Holy Spirit of God is willing to assist us. Why are we so negligent when this great wealth lies so near at hand?

Though man can dig deep into the earth and find great wealth, though he can go places where birds and beasts would not dare to go, though he can even find the hidden sources of the great rivers, man cannot find God’s wisdom by mere human efforts. It takes more than courage and native intelligence; it demands humility and spiritual perception.

The fact that a person succeeds admirably in one area of life doesn’t mean he or she is qualified to speak about other areas of life. Advertisers use athletes to sell razors and automobiles, or actors and actresses to sell medicine. When famous scientists (who have never studied the Bible) speak authoritatively about spiritual things, their opinion is as valuable as that of any other untrained amateur theologian.

You cannot buy wisdom (Job 28:12–19). Modern society thinks that anything can be obtained or accomplished if only you have enough money. Government agencies ask for a bigger slice of the annual budget so they can do a better job of fighting crime, ending pollution, providing jobs, and building a better environment. While a certain amount of money is necessary to survive in modern society, money is not the do- all and be-all that the world says it is. It’s good to enjoy the things money can buy (1 Tim. 6:17) if you don’t lose the things that money can’t buy.

In these verses, Job mentions gold five times, silver once, and names seven different precious stones; yet none of these treasures individually, nor all of them collectively, can purchase the wisdom of God. The real problem is that man doesn’t comprehend the price of wisdom and thinks he can get it cheaply (Job 28:13). “[Wisdom] is more precious than rubies, and all the things you may desire cannot compare with her” (Prov. 3:15, NKJV). True wisdom is expensive. It is not received automatically just because you listen to a cassette tape, attend a seminar, or listen to a dynamic speaker.

Wisdom comes only from God (Job 28:20–28). Go as high as the birds can fly, and you won’t find wisdom there. Go as deep as Abaddon and death, and wisdom is not there. Only God knows where to find wisdom, for God sees everything. (He doesn’t have to dig into the earth to see what’s there!) God has the wisdom to adjust the pressure of the wind and measure the amount of water in the atmosphere. If these proportions were changed, what disturbances in nature might result! God knows how to control the rain and guide the storm as it moves across the earth. Flashes of lightning and peals of thunder may seem arbitrary to us, but God controls even the lightning and thunder.

Job answers his where-is-wisdom question in Job 28:28: “Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding” (see Ps. 111:10; Prov. 1:7; 9:10). This was God’s description of Job (Job 1:8; 2:3); so, in spite of what his friends said about him, Job was a man of wisdom.

What is “the fear of the Lord”? It is loving reverence for God, who He is, what He says, and what He does (Mal. 2:5- 6). It is not a fear that paralyzes, but one that energizes. When you fear the Lord, you obey His commandments (Ecc. 12:13), walk in His ways (Deut. 8:6), and serve Him (Josh. 24:14). You are loyal to Him and give Him wholehearted service (2 Chron. 19:9). Like Job, when you fear the Lord, you depart from evil (Prov. 3:7–8). The “fear of the Lord” is the fear that conquers fear (Ps. 112); for if you fear God, you need not fear anyone else (Matt. 10:26–31).

So, the first step toward true wisdom is a reverent and respectful attitude toward God, which also involves a humble  attitude toward ourselves. Personal pride is the greatest barrier to spiritual wisdom. “When pride comes, then comes  shame; but with the humble is wisdom” (Prov. 11:2, NKJV).

The next step is to ask God for wisdom (James 1:5) and make diligent use of the means He gives us for securing His wisdom, especially knowing and doing the Word of God (Matt. 7:21–29). It is not enough merely to study; we must also obey what God tells us to do (John 7:17). As we walk by faith, we discover the wisdom of God in the everyday things of life. Spiritual wisdom is not abstract; it is very personal and very practical.

As we fellowship with other believers in the church and share with one another, we can learn wisdom. Reading the best books can also help us grow in wisdom and understanding. The important thing is that we focus on Christ, for He is our wisdom (1 Cor. 1:24) and in Him is hidden “all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col. 2:3). The better we know Christ and the more we become like Him, the more we will walk in wisdom and understand the will of the Lord. We must allow the Holy Spirit to open the eyes of our heart so we can see God in His Word and understand more of the riches we have in Christ (Eph. 1:15–23).

Job’s speech is not yet finished. In the next three chapters, Job will review his life and then challenge God to either vindicate him or judge him. That will end the debate and usher in two new participants—Elihu and the Lord. 

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25:1–3  God possesses dominion and fear, and His armies are without number.

25:4–6  When even the moon and the stars are not pure in God’s sight, what hope is there for man, a mere maggot and worm? Bildad’s words are true and beautifully stated, but they are spoken without love and comfort, and so they have not ministered to Job’s needs.

4. Job’s Response (Chap. 26)

26:1–4  First of all Job counters Bildad’s argument. Even granting that Job is without power and has no strength or wisdom, how has Bildad helped? His words have been futile, insensitive, and a total failure as an answer to Job’s arguments.

26:5–13  The rest of the chapter gives a marvelous description of God’s power in the universe: the evaporation/precipitation cycle; the density of the clouds; the cycle of light and darkness; the storm at sea; and the stars and constellations by which His Spirit has adorned the heavens.

While Bildad stressed God’s glory in the heavens, Job here dwells on His power in the depths: under the waters, Sheol, and Destruction.

Job describes—centuries before science taught it—that God hangs the earth on nothing (which is a poetic depiction of the earth’s position and movement in the solar system).

How immeasurably above the cosmogonies of the heathen philosophers are these few grand words! In them we have as in germ the discoveries of a Newton and a Keppler. It is a great mistake to think Scripture does not teach scientific truth. It teaches all needed truth, even if not in scientific language, yet with scientific accuracy.

26:14  If these wonders are only the edges of His ways, and a mere whisper we hear of Him, Job asks, what must the full thunder of His power be if not incomprehensible?[2]

25:1-3. Since God rules (has dominion) He should be respected (awe), and Job, Bildad may have hinted, was not doing that. In His greatness God establishes order or harmony in heaven (so He is just; cf. 8:3). He rules over countless forces, probably referring to angels (so He is omnipotent). Also His light (the light of the sun) pervades everything, picturing His omniscience.

25:4-6. Here Bildad, rather than responding to Job’s concerns about injustice (chaps. 23-24), simply repeated Eliphaz’s twice-trumped-up theme (4:17-18; 15:14-16) that man (’ěnôš, ”weak, mortal man“; cf. 25:6 with comments on 4:17) cannot possibly be righteous or pure. (In using the phrase one born of woman as a synonym for weak man, Bildad intentionally picked up Job’s wording in 14:1; cf. 15:4.) As Eliphaz had said (15:15), ”Even the heavens“ in all their brilliance ”are not pure.“ The moon only reflects light, and the stars (cf. 22:12) lack purity before God because, in comparison with His glory, they are dim. How then could puny man (’ěnôš; cf. 25:4) or a son of man, suggesting man’s creation from mere dust, hope to stand before God? Man is so much smaller than the starry universe and is only a maggot and a worm. This disgusting suggestion may have intentionally harked back to Job’s words about his many sores being covered with worms (7:5).

Bildad sought to humiliate Job, to awaken him to his own unworthiness. But this unkind speech accomplished nothing because Job had already admitted the facts of God’s majesty and of universal sin.

A review of the speeches of Job’s associates shows that they were poor counselors. They failed in several ways: (1) They did not express any sympathy for Job in their speeches. (2) They did not pray for him. (3) They seemingly ignored Job’s expressions of emotional and physical agony. (4) They talked too much and did not seem to listen adequately to their advisee. (5) They became defensive and argumentative. (6) They belittled rather than encouraged Job. (7) They assumed they knew the cause of Job’s problems. (8) They stubbornly persisted in their views of Job’s problem, even when their ideas contradicted the facts. (9) They suggested an inappropriate solution to his problem. (10) They blamed Job and condemned him for expressing grief and frustration. Counselors today do well to be sure they do not fail in similar ways.

4.   job’s third reply to bildad (chaps. 26-31)

In contrast with the shortest speech in the book (chap. 25) chapters 26-31 comprise the longest. Job replied first to Bildad (”you“ in 26:2-4 is sing.) but later (in chaps. 27-31) to all three (”you“ in 27:5, e.g., is pl.).

a.    Job’s description of God’s majesty in nature (chap. 26)

Here Job sought to show Bildad that he, Job, knew more about God’s majesty than his pugilist did. But first he sarcastically rebuked Bildad, hinting that Bildad, not Job, was the puny one.

26:1-4. In stunning irony, Job mocked Bildad’s futile attempt to help him. Bildad had treated Job as if he were powerless . . . feeble (cf. 18:7), and without wisdom (cf. 18:2). But Bildad, Job asserted, had not supported him, or strengthened him, or given him any helpful advice or insight at all. About all Bildad could think about was what happens to the wicked (8:8-19; 18:5-21) and about man’s debased condition (25:4-6). No one helped Bildad with his words, which obviously were of no value. He and his cohorts were ”worthless physicians“ (13:4) and ”miserable comforters“ (16:2).

26:5-6. Some commentators ascribe verses 5-14 to Bildad, to make his third speech longer, or to Zophar to give him a third verbal assault. However, it was typical of Job to outdo his disputers in statements about God’s transcendence. Did Bildad think he knew something of the majesty of the Almighty? (25:2-3) Then he ought to listen to what Job knew of the Lord’s supremacy!

God is over death (26:5-6), outer space and the earth (v. 7), the clouds (vv. 8-9), light and darkness (v. 10), things on the earth (mountains and the sea, vv. 11-12), and the sky (v. 13).

Before God the dead are lying in anguish (an indication of conscious torment; cf. Luke 16:24) beneath the waters, where the dead were envisioned to be, and in še’ôl (”sheol“) or Destruction (”Abaddon,“ a synonym of sheol; cf. Job 28:22; 31:12).

The word ”dead“ (”departed spirits,“ nasb) translates the Hebrew word rep̱ā’îm, which sometimes is used of a people known as the ”Rephaites“ and sometimes is used to refer to the dead. The Rephaites were tall like the Anakim (Deut. 2:20-21). At least four giant Rephaites are mentioned by name in the Old Testament: Og (Deut. 3:11; cf. Josh. 12:4; 13:12); Ishbi-Benob (a descendant of Rapha; 2 Sam. 21:16); Saph (2 Sam. 21:18; spelled Sippai in 1 Chron. 20:4); and Goliath (2 Sam. 21:19). Second Samuel 21:20 refers to another tall Rephaite, who is unnamed. Rephaites are mentioned in Genesis 14:5; 15:20; Deuteronomy 2:11; 3:13; and Joshua 17:15.

In Ugaritic, Rephaites were the chief gods or aristocratic warriors, apparently called that because both groups were seemingly giant-like in their power. When rep̱ā’îm in Ugaritic was used of the dead it seemed to suggest ”the elite among the dead.“ In Hebrew it may suggest the elite among the dead (cf. Isa. 14:9, ”those who were leaders in the world“) or it may simply be a synonym of other common words for the dead. Rep̱ā’îm occurs in Psalm 88:10b, ”those who are dead“; Proverbs 2:18, ”the spirits of the dead“; 9:18, ”the dead“; 21:16, ”the dead“; Isaiah 14:9, ”the spirits of the departed“; 26:14, ”departed spirits“; 26:19c, ”dead.“ Job’s point in Job 26:5 seems to be that even the elite dead are in anguish because God knows and sees them.

26:7-10. God sustains the skies (cf. v. 13) over empty space and supports the earth on nothing—statements amazingly in accord with facts not known or agreed on by scientists till a few hundred years ago. In the clouds in the sky God gathers up water (evaporation), and He can cover the . . . moon with clouds. At the horizon . . . light and darkness seem to separate. The horizon is circular, for the verb marks out translates the word ḥūq, ”to draw a circle,“ and suggests the curvature of the earth. This too accords with the facts known by scientists only in recent times.

26:11-14. Not only is God awesome in His control over space and the earth in space. He also is majestic on the earth. He causes earthquakes and sea storms, which He then calms. The pillars of the heavens figuratively refer to mountains that seem to support the sky (cf. 9:6). The raging sea is pictured as a sea god named Rahab (cf. comments on 9:13), whom God defeated. The gliding serpent may be another description of this sea god, also known as Leviathan (Isa. 27:1). God is over the sea, and He is also superior to all mythological representations of evil.

By the wind, God’s breath, He clears the sky of clouds after a storm. This reveals His power and wisdom (cf. Job 9:4).

All these evidences of God’s power over nature (of things below, above, and on the earth) are only meager indications (the outer fringe) of what He does. People are so distant from God that they hear only a whisper (cf. 4:12) and obviously then cannot possibly fully comprehend all God’s activities in His power.

b.    Job’s description of the fate of the wicked (chap. 27)

27:1-6. Before addressing the plight of the wicked (vv. 7-23) Job again affirmed his innocence (vv. 1-6) perhaps in an effort to show that he was not one of the godless. Repeatedly Job had accused God of injustice (6:4; 7:20; 10:2-3; 13:24; 16:12-13; 19:7; 23:14) and of giving him inner bitterness (3:20; 7:11; 10:1; 23:2). Even so, Job again affirmed his innocence as he had done before in responses to Eliphaz (6:10, 29-30; 16:17; 23:10-12), Bildad (9:21-22; 10:7), and Zophar (12:4; 13:18-19). He said that as long as he lived (27:3, 6), with God’s breath in him (cf. 10:12; 12:10; 34:14-15), he would not admit to wrongdoing; he simply could not accept his friends’ (you is pl. in 27:5, 11-12) viewpoint, or deny (cf. denied in v. 2) his integrity which his wife had urged him to do (2:9). Even with all his friends’ badgering, Job was confident that he would retain his righteousness and that his conscience would not reproach (ḥārap̱, ”speak sharp, accusing things against“) him.

27:7-12. Imprecating his enemies (did Job have in mind his fellows at the ash pile?), he then asked four questions that pointed to the hopeless condition of the godless person (‘awāl, ”an unrighteous person“; cf. 18:21; 29:17; 31:3). When dying (when God takes away his life; cf. God as the source of life, 10:12), he will call on God, but since he prays only when in distress God will not answer him.

Job said he, in contrast with the wicked, could even instruct his compatriots about God’s ways (thus reversing what Eliphaz said in 22:22). Since they had seen evidences of God’s works, they were wrong to continue their false and empty (meaningless, heḇel, 7:16; 9:29, ”in vain“; 21:34, ”nonsense“; 35:16, ”empty“) accusations, claiming God was punishing an innocent person.

27:13-23. Many scholars assign these words to Zophar because this would give him a third speech and because the words seem more consistent with him than with Job. However, Job had already spoken of the fate of the wicked (24:18-24). He never denied the ultimate punishment of God’s enemies, but he did deny their immediate judgment, contrary to Zophar’s claim (20:5; 21:7). If Zophar could speak of the fate of the wicked and their heritage (20:29), so could Job. A vile person’s family members are subject to death by warfare (the sword), starvation, or the plague. He will also lose his possessions. Though he may be ”filthy rich,“ with vast amounts of silver and many clothes, they will pass into the hands of others. His house will be as empty as a deserted cocoon, as unstable as a temporary shelter made by a farmer for guarding his crops. His wealth will be gone suddenly, and will quickly be carried off by a storm, the strong sirocco east wind. It will make fun of him (clap its hands and hiss) while he tries to escape its merciless power.

c.    Job’s discussion of God’s wisdom (chap. 28)

In this chapter Job affirmed people’s inability to ascertain God’s wisdom fully, in contrast with the triad of antagonists who claimed they knew what God was doing in Job’s life. Though seemingly an isolated chapter (which some say was spoken by one of the three, by God, or by an unnamed spokesman), this discourse does agree with Job’s earlier words about man’s inability to know God’s wisdom and with Job’s words about God’s sovereignty over death and nature (cf. 28:24-27 with 26:5-13).

28:1-11. Men search for numerous metals underground (vv. 1-2—silver . . . gold. . . . iron . . . copper—and precious gems such as sapphires (v. 6; cf. v. 16). (Though the Iron Age began ca. 1200 b.c., when tools were commonly manufactured from iron, iron was known long before that; cf., e.g., Gen. 4:22.) Miners dig shafts in the darkness underground and dangle from ropes to reach remote areas. Beneath its surface the earth, overturned by miners at work, is in rubble as if it had been burned.

Birds with keen sight and stealthy animals cannot see or walk on the underground treasure troves. In his mining operations, man hammers away at the rocks, digs tunnels, and even finds where rivers begin which he must dam up (niv marg.). As a result he is able to bring hidden underground things to light. These verses are arranged in an interesting structure (as suggested by David J. Clark, ”In Search of Wisdom: Notes on Job 28,“ The Bible Translator 33. October 1982:401-5):

a.  Getting valuable metals from the earth (Job 28:1-2)

b.  Going underground (v. 3)

c.  Remoteness of the mines (unseen by people, v. 4)

a‘.  Getting valuable metals and gems from the earth (vv. 5-6)

c’.  Remoteness of the mines (unseen by birds and animals, vv. 7-8)

b‘.  Going underground (v. 9)

a”.  Getting valuable metals from the earth (vv. 10-11).

28:12-19. In spite of man’s technological skills, he cannot find, unaided, the greatest treasure of all, wisdom. Its value is not fully known by man (’ěnôš, “weak, mortal man”; cf. comments on 4:17). He can discover other hidden treasures under the earth’s surface (28:4, 10), but he cannot discover wisdom in the inhabited earth (the land of the living) or in any ocean. Nor can wisdom be purchased in a market with other precious metals and jewels man has uncovered (gold . . . silver. . . . onyx . . . sapphires. . . . crystal. . . . coral . . . jasper . . . rubies, or topaz), for wisdom far exceeds their value (cf. Prov. 3:13-15; 8:11; 16:16).

28:20-27. After repeating the two questions Job asked before (v. 20; cf. v. 12), he affirmed that no animal, person, or bird can see wisdom (just as one cannot see mountain-hidden metals, vv. 4, 7-8). And just as the sea does not know where wisdom is obtainable (v. 14), neither do Destruction (“Abaddon,” niv marg; cf. 26:6) nor Death know. The only One who knows is God, for He is omnipresent (He sees what animals, people, and birds are unable to see, 28:7, 21). In creating the universe, God determined the elements; the force (lit., “weight”) of the wind, the amount of water, thedecree (i.e., limit) for the rain, and where each thunderstorm would occur. In His creative genius, He saw and valuedwisdom (cf. Prov. 8:27-30), in contrast with man’s inability to do so (cf. Job 28:12-13).

Verses 12-27 have an interesting arrangement:

a.  Inaccessibility of wisdom (vv. 12-14)

b.  Wisdom’s value beyond [gold, silver] jewels (vv. 15-19)

a‘.  Inaccessibility of wisdom (vv. 20-22)

b’.  Wisdom’s value known by God (vv. 23-27).

28:28. God told man (’āḏām, “mankind”) that the essence of wisdom is to fear (“venerate and submit to”) the Lord,  even when man cannot understand His ways, and to reject evil, living in accord with God’s standards of holiness. Honoring God (the positive) involves hating sin (the negative; Prov. 8:13). Job’s accusers had insisted that he was not fearing God or eschewing sin and that therefore he was not wise. In Job 28 he argued the opposite: he was fearing God and hating evil (as God Himself had already said of Job, 1:1, 8; 2:3), but they were not! Therefore wisdom and understanding were his, not theirs.

This closing verse also links these words of Job with chapter 29, in which he cited evidences that he revered the Lord, and with chapter 31, in which he enumerated evidences that he was not involved in sin.[3]

Job 25.1.

Then Bildad the Shuhite answered: see suggestions on 2.11; 4.1.

Job 25.2.

Dominion and fear are with God: as the rsv footnote indicates, the Hebrew has “with him,” but rsv correctly translates with God. In 12.13, 16 Job said “With God are wisdom and might” and “With him are strength and wisdom.” This line is built on the same pattern. These are characteristics of God. Dominion translates a word meaning “the capacity to rule.” The word is used as a noun but has the form of the causative of an infinitive verb, and so it means “that which gives power or domination.” Some translate it “sovereignty,” which means supreme authority, the highest ruling power. Fear is used as in 13.11. See comments there. Fear is caused by, or inspired by, God’s power. rsv fails to show the relation between dominion and fear. God has dominion, sovereign power over everything, and this causes people to fear, which means “be awed, have reverence for him.” In order to show the relation between what appears to be two nouns, tev has expressed the line as two clauses: “God is powerful; all must stand in awe of him.” njb translates verse 2 as an exclamation: “What sovereignty, what awe is his …!” frcl says “God has a sovereign power which is frightening.” The line may also be rendered, for example, “God rules with frightening force,” “God is powerful, and people should have reverence for him,” or “God’s power causes people to be awed.”

He makes peace in his high heaven is literally “making peace in his heights.” According to Dhorme the Hebrew verb make with peace as the object means “to establish peace,” that is, to impose peace where there is strife. The reference may be to conflicts between angels, as in Daniel 10.13, 20–21; destruction of the monster Rahab in Job 9.13; 26.12; Isaiah 51.9; or destruction of the hosts in heaven in Isaiah 24.21. tev renders high heaven as “heavenly kingdom”: “He keeps his heavenly kingdom in peace.” This translation is less exact than that of frcl, “He imposes peace up to the highest heaven.” gecl translates both lines “God rules with frightening power, with a strong hand he establishes peace in heaven.” This line may also be expressed “he causes there to be peace in heaven,” “he brings about peace in heaven,” or “he establishes peace where he rules in heaven.”

Job 25.3.

Is there any number to his armies? This rhetorical question expresses the thought that God’s troops, armies, are limitless in number. In 19.12 Job said God’s “troops … cast up siege works against me.” There the same word for “troops” is used as here. In 2 Kings 13.20–21 these troops are “marauding bands.” tev “angels” is questionable. There is no evidence that angels or stars are meant here and so “troops,” “armies,” or “bands” are preferred. Translated as a negative statement this line may be rendered, for example, “There is no end to the number of his troops,” “His armies cannot be numbered,” “No one can count how many armies he has,” or “He has so many armies that no one can count them.” The translator will note that the two lines of this verse are not parallel in meaning in the rsv form. This is discussed in the next paragraph.

Upon whom does his light not arise? rsv translates the Hebrew word light. By a change of one letter the Septuagint gets “his ambushes,” and this is followed by Dhorme and neb. The hottp committee was divided, half favoring the Hebrew and half the Septuagint (and both with a “C” rating), and so it recommends either. The use of “his ambushes” provides a parallel for line a; for example, “His squadrons are without number, at whom will they not spring from ambush?” (neb). Following the Hebrew, tev translates “Is there any place where God’s light does not shine?” Following the Septuagint we may also render the line as a statement, particularly if the previous line was translated as a statement. In some languages this line will have to be expressed as a positive statement; for example, “They will attack anyone from ambush” or “They wait in hiding to attack anyone.” rsv’s rendering may also be expressed as a positive statement, “His light shines everywhere,” or as a double negative statement, “There is no place where his light does not shine.”

Job 25.4.

How then can man be righteous before God? Bildad now uses the argument of Eliphaz in 4.17–19. The wording of this question is identical with Job’s own question in 9.2b. See 9.2 for exegesis and translation comments. tev translates 9.2b “But how can a man win his case against God?” but it renders the identical question here “Can anyone be righteous …?” It would be better to keep the sense of this question the same in both places. Therefore translators should refer to the way they have translated 9.2b. In 14.1 man is described as being “born of a woman,” and that expression is repeated in line b and in 15.14 as a sign of human frailty or weakness. The word translated man is not man in contrast to woman, but humanity in contrast to God, and in some languages it will be better translated “human being,” as frcl says, “And how can a human being pretend to be pure?”

How can he who is born of woman be clean? For clean see comments on 15.14. To be clean is to be free from ritual contamination. Since giving birth caused a woman and her child to be unclean, impure, they had to be ritually cleansed. tev has shortened and combined both lines of verse 4: “Can anyone be righteous or pure in God’s sight?” “In God’s sight” has been shifted from line a.

Job 25.5–6.

These two verses can be taken together, since they are linked by the Hebrew words meaning either “how much more” or “how much less,” depending on the context. A similar pattern is found in the speeches of Eliphaz in 4.18–19 and 15.15–16.

Behold, even the moon is not bright: in 15.15b Eliphaz argued that “the heavens are not clean in his sight.” In line b of this verse the stars will be substituted for the “heavens.” tev has shifted in his sight from line b to the beginning of the verse to reinforce the parallel statement made in verse 4, and so it will apply to both lines of verse 5. In rsv in his sight mistakenly applies only to line b. It is better to translate Behold as “If,” which enables the connection between verses 5 and 6 to be understood, and so “If in God’s eyes even the moon is without brightness ….” (hottp prefers “… does not shine.”)

And the stars are not clean in his sight: this line reproduces 15.15b, with stars replacing “heavens.” In many languages it will be awkward or impossible to speak of stars being pure or clean. The thought here is that both the moon and the stars fail to shine as they should, and so they are dim. Therefore it will sometimes be possible to translate “and if the stars are dim,” “if the stars give little light,” or, as in frcl, “and if the stars appear to him (God) as tarnished.”

Verse 6 expresses a negative comparison. How much less man who is a maggot: the two lines of this verse are closely parallel in meaning and serve to emphasize the insignificance of human beings. To Bildad man is morally worth little because of his humble origins. Man translates the same Hebrew term used in verse 4a and may be rendered “person” or “human being.” The parallel form in line b is son of man, and this means the same as the “human person” in line a. Humankind is likened to a maggot. The same word is used to describe Israel in Isaiah 41.14. The word here translated maggot is used in 7.5; 17.14; 21.26, and in those passages rsv translates it “worm.” See the comments on “worm” in 7.5. In those and other passages maggot is associated with a dead body. Only here and in Psalm 22.6 is the term used to express man’s insignificance. According to Dhorme the term is properly maggot, as in rsv, and worm (from the verb meaning “to gnaw”) in line b refers to the “earthworm.”

And the son of man who is a worm: son of man is parallel in meaning to man in line a. This expression represents the poet’s way of intensifying the thought. The heightening of emphasis is not in the pair of terms maggot … worm, but in man … son of man. Since it is the poet’s purpose to depict the insignificance of mankind, translators must find the most effective way to do this. For example, tev has used the pair “worm” and “insect.” frcl says “What will become of these miserable humans as insignificant as an ordinary earthworm?” and spcl “How much less mankind, this miserable worm.” tev’s rendering of the line, “What is man worth in God’s eyes?” does not translate the content of this line but seems to summarize verses 4–6. It is better to stay closer to the text. Due to the complex set of grammatical relations involved in verses 5 and 6, translators may find it necessary to state some aspects of the meaning more directly than the translations cited have done; for example, “If God does not consider the moon and stars to shine brightly, he considers human beings to be even less. To him they are maggots and worms”; “When God looks at the moon and the stars he considers them to be dim lights. When he looks at human beings they are nothing more to him than maggots and worms.”

Chapter 26.

Job Interrupts Job 26.1–4.

Only the first four verses of chapter 26 are considered to be the words of Job. Verses 5–14, the remainder of the chapter, continue the theme of chapter 25 and so are held by most to be the continuation of Bildad’s speech. These verses are identified in tev as belonging to Bildad.

It was said in the introduction to chapter 25 that scholars reorder parts of chapters 25, 26, and 27 in order to obtain a more coherent flow of thought from each speaker. Many different arrangements of the text have been proposed, but translators have as a rule not followed these, since they tend to be the opinions and preferences of individual interpreters. Nevertheless translators should know what some of the proposals for rearranging the verses in these chapters are, and why they have been suggested. What follows is a list of the major reordering by Habel, Dhorme and Pope. “+” means “followed by.”

Habel: 25.1–6 + 26.5–14; 26.1–4 + 27.1–12; 27.13–23.

Dhorme: 25.1–6 + 26.5–14; 26.1–4 + 27.2–12; 27.13 + 24.18–24.

+ 27.14–23.

Pope: 24.1–17; 25.1–6 + 26.5–14; 27.1 + 26.1–4 + 27.2–23 + 24.18–25.

In addition to the block arrangements above, Dhorme and Pope shift a few individual verses. It will be noted that all three (and many others) agree that 26.5–14 belong with 25.1–6; they all attribute these verses to Bildad. Rather than explain the reasons for these rearrangements here, this Handbook will call attention to the explanations in the appropriate sections of the text.

Job Ridicules Bildad’s Speech Job 26.1–4.

Verses 2–4 of chapter 26 appear to be only the introductory remarks of Job addressed to the friends, or to Bildad in particular. Job’s exclamations and questions are bitterly satirical and express stinging criticism of the worthless counsel of the friends.

Subdivision Heading

Translators wishing to provide a heading for the content of these verses may follow the suggestion of the Handbook or say, for example, “Bildad, you are of no help to me,” “Your advice, Bildad, is not worth hearing,” or “Job rejects Bildad’s advice.” tob has “Reply to Bildad,” Rowley “Job answers Bildad,” frcl “What sad help you offer me,” and njb “Bildad’s rhetoric is beside the point.”

Job 26.1.

Then Job answered: see comments on 4.1.

Job 26.2.

How you have helped him who has no power! Here and in the following two verses Job uses you (singular). This is in contrast to his use of “you” (plural) when addressing the friends, and the singular here suggests that he is replying to Bildad’s last speech. Him who has no power refers to Job and means “someone who is weak or oppressed.” tev renders the expression “poor, weak man that I am.” Job is sarcastically asking “Do you think you have been a help to this weak person?” The expected reply is “No!” This line may also be translated as a negative statement, “You certainly have been no help to me, poor and weak as I am.” tev brings out the irony better with an exclamation: “What a big help you are …!” Translators must be alerted to irony and reminded to use the appropriate devices in their own languages which will signal to the reader that Job is saying one thing and meaning another. Literal translations of irony may result in distortion of the author’s purpose. In some languages there are special particles that convey the sense of irony. In others this is done by restructuring. In some languages irony is expressed by adding an expression like “Someone might think …” or “You must imagine ….” Special sound repetitions called ideophones are sometimes used in African languages to signal this kind of irony.

How you have saved the arm that has no strength: this line introduces a figure to heighten the sarcasm. The word saved also means “help.” Since helped in line a and saved in line b have essentially the same meaning, tev does not repeat “help” in line b. rsv saved is less satisfactory in this context than another word meaning help such as “assist” or “aid.” Strength is symbolized by arm and was used in 22.8, translated “the man with power ….” The arm that has no strength is a literal rendering of the Hebrew and means “a powerless person” or “a man without power.” njb expresses the satire of the verse well: “To one so weak, what a help you are, for the arm that is powerless, what a rescuer!” neb translates this line “What deliverance you have brought to the powerless!” Verse 2 may be rendered in some languages, for example, “You must imagine how you (singular) have helped me in my weakness, and imagine also how you came to the rescue of such a weakling!”

Job 26.3.

How you have counseled him who has no wisdom: counseled is the same term used in 12.13b, in which God “has counsel and understanding.” As a verb it means “advise, give advice.” Him who has no wisdom is literally “the one not wise” and therefore “ignorant, uninformed.” tev says “fool,” and njb “the unlearned.” The line may be translated “You have done so well giving advice to this simple-minded person” or “Just look how well you have informed this ignorant man.”

And plentifully declared sound knowledge is a literal translation of the Hebrew. Job is being doubly sarcastic in saying that Bildad’s very brief remarks in 25.1–6 were plentifully declared. The word translated declared means “show, make known, demonstrate.” Sound knowledge is a single word in Hebrew. It is used in 5.12 in the sense of planning ahead (“success”), and so “having foresight in making plans.” It is often used in the wisdom literature of the Old Testament for the wisdom possessed by both people and God. neb translates it “sound advice.” If the translator is retaining the parallelism, this line may be translated, for example, “and shown me great amounts of wisdom!” “and helped me greatly to plan ahead well!” or “and you have shown me so much clear understanding!”

Job 26.4.

In this verse Job continues his sarcasm as he inquires about the source of Bildad’s great knowledge. With whose help have you uttered words …? Translators will note a difference in the meaning in this line in rsv and tev. The Hebrew can be understood to mean “To whom have you uttered words,” which tev expresses as “Who do you think will hear all your words?” Another way of taking the Hebrew is “With whom” in the sense of With whose help or “By means of whom.” This second sense, which is that of rsv, provides a parallel for line b. It seems more fitting in the context of Job’s sarcasm to take it as in rsv. niv has “Who has helped you utter these words?” and neb says “Who has prompted you to say such things?” This line may also be expressed “Who helped you think up all these words?” or “Who helped you speak so well?”

And whose spirit has come forth from you? Spirit is literally “breath.” It can refer to the breath or spirit of God or of a human. This line asks the same question as line a, but it moves to a more specific level. The question whose spirit implies that Job does not accept Bildad’s words as originating within himself, but hears them flowing out of his mouth like the breath or inspiration of someone else. Thus tev has “Who inspired you to speak like this?” In some languages “inspire” is rendered “caused, made, gave you the thoughts”; for example, “Who caused your mouth to speak this way?” or “Who gave you the thoughts to speak as you do?”

Bildad Continues His Speech Job 26.5–14.

Verses 5–14 are understood here to be the continuation of 25.1–6, the speech of Bildad. tev and others identify Bildad as the speaker. Habel, Dhorme, and Pope place 26.5–14 immediately after 25.1–6 in order to continue Bildad’s speech and its common theme without interruption.

Division Heading

Translators may wish to retain the order of verses as in the Hebrew Bible, the Handbook, tev, and rsv. In that case they may want to show that verses 5–14 are assigned to Bildad and so are a continuation of Bildad’s speech in 25.1–6. The Handbook heading may be modified to say, for example, “Bildad continues to address Job” or “More of Bildad’s speech.”

The Greatness of God Job 26.5–14.

Verses 5–14 describe the awe and mystery of God’s power.

Subdivision Heading

The Handbook heading may be reworded to say, for example, “God’s power causes people to fear,” “God is great in all the universe,” or “Who can know how truly great God is?” Habel has (5–9) “The awesome mysteries of God” and (10–14) “The establishment of cosmic order.” Rowley has “God’s all embracing rule,” tob “The transcendence of God,” and frcl “The universal power of God.”

Job 26.5.

The shades below tremble: shades, meaning the spirits of the departed dead, translates the Hebrew rePha’im. The last references in 25.5–6 were to the moon and stars in the heavens and to people on earth. The thought continues its downward direction and now speaks of the lower regions and Sheol. Although the rePha’im are also giants in Genesis 14.5; 15.20; Deuteronomy 2.11, 20, their association in verse 6 with Sheol gives the sense of the “spirits of the dead.” This term is found in Psalm 88.10, “Do the shades rise up to praise thee?” and Isaiah 14.9, “The ghosts of those who were powerful on earth are stirring about” (tev). In Hebrew the word translated below belongs to line b, and so some translate “beneath the waters.” rsv and others transfer below to the first line. neb and njb make the same shift (or divide the verse) as does rsv, but supply a verb for line b where there is none in Hebrew. tev does not place below with line a: “The spirits of the dead tremble.” Below is to be understood as “below the earth.”

For many languages there are basic differences from the Hebrew thought of the departed spirits of the dead being in a deep place below the earth. In many societies the spirits of the ancestors inhabit local springs, caves, groves, or rocks. Since readers must understand the Hebrew view in order to comprehend the poem as a whole, translators may find it best to say “The spirits of the dead (ancestors) tremble in Sheol” or “The spirits of the ancestors tremble in the place of the dead.” In some languages it may be necessary to make clear the reason for the trembling of these departed dead. The reason goes back to 25.1–6. It is the awe which God’s power and presence inspires that causes the trembling. Accordingly it may be necessary to render the line “The spirits of the dead ancestors tremble with fear at God’s power” or “God’s greatness makes the spirits of the dead in Sheol tremble with fear.”

The waters and their inhabitants: it is unlikely that in the context of Sheol the author is speaking here of sea life, as rsv seems to imply. He is most likely thinking of the same spirits as in line a, who are thought to occupy a vast pit beneath the waters of the underworld. Tremble in line a is to be understood as the verb also in line b. Dhorme believes that, in the process of copying, the similarity between the Hebrew for below and “terrify” caused the verb to drop out, and so he restores it to give “the waters and their inhabitants became terrified.” neb follows this: “The waters and all that live in them are struck with terror.” It seems more likely that line b is the location of the place of the shades in line a, as in tev. In some languages it will be more natural to place line b before line a and translate, for example, “In Sheol, in the water under the earth, the spirits of the dead tremble with fear.”

Job 26.6.

Sheol is naked before God: the thought here, as in Psalm 139.8, is that God’s presence is everywhere. Job expressed the wish to be hidden in Sheol (14.13), but such a thought is contrary to the idea of the God who is everywhere, and thus even the darkness of Sheol is not hidden from him. tev, which has combined Abaddon from line b with Sheol, translates “The world of the dead lies open to God.” This line will sometimes have to be expressed differently in translation; for example, “God sees the place of the dead called Sheol,” “God knows all about the place of the dead called Sheol,” or “God sees all of Sheol as he sees all of a naked person.”

And Abaddon has no covering: Abaddon is used for Sheol in 28.22; 31.12; Proverbs 15.11; 27.20; and Psalm 88.11. In Revelation 9.11 this name is written in Greek. Abaddon is a noun formed from the verb meaning “to perish.” In Psalm 88.11 tev translates it “the place of destruction.” Has no covering has the literal meaning of “unveiled.” The parallelism means “Abaddon is uncovered, unveiled, exposed (to the eyes of God).” frcl translates “No veil hides the abyss from his eyes.” Since Sheol and Abaddon have the same meaning here, translators may wish to follow tev and not mention Abaddon as a noun in line b. The line may be rendered, for example, “and it is exposed to his eyes” or “and he sees all of it.”

Job 26.7.

He stretches out the north over the void: the verbs in this verse are participles and so contain no marked subjects, but God is clearly the implied subject. The verb translated stretches out is used in 9.8, in which Job said God “alone stretched out the heavens.” Stretches out is also the common verb used with “tent” as its object. The north translates the Hebrew Tsapon, which some interpreters equate with the mythological mountain from where the god Baal ruled (Isa 14.13). However, “stretching out the heavens” is a common expression in the Old Testament (Psa 104.2; Isa 40.22; 44.24; 45.12; Jer 10.12; 51.15), and the verb is not used with the earth or mountains. Since line b parallels line a with earth, the reference in line a is to the heavens, and in this case “the northern sky” (tev). Void is the same term used in Genesis 1.2, which represents the chaos before creation. In 6.18 and 12.24 it refers to the desert (“waste”). The same term is used in Jeremiah 4.23, where tev translates it “barren waste.” In this verse tev translates void as “empty space” and transfers it to line b. Line a will require some adjustments in some languages; for example, “God places the northern sky in its place” or “God puts the northern sky where there was nothing.”

And hangs the earth upon nothing: in 1 Samuel 2.8 and Psalm 75.3, the earth is pictured as supported on pillars. An earth hanging in empty space appears to depict an earth as people have come to know it in modern times, but in verse 11 there is the picture of the heavens supported on pillars. Nothing is said as to what supports the pillars. In some languages it will be awkward if not impossible to speak of “hanging the earth,” and especially when it is hung on nothing. However, this line may be restructured to say, for example, “and he puts the earth where there is nothing to hold it,” or “He sets the earth where there is nothing.”

Job 26.8.

He binds up the waters in his thick clouds: binds up translates a verb meaning to “close in, put in a container, wrap up.” The picture is of God wrapping up water in the clouds in such a way that the clouds do not split under the weight of the water. Proverbs 30.4 says “Who has ever … wrapped up water in a piece of cloth?” (tev). Psalm 33.7 has a similar thought: “He gathered the waters of the sea as in a bottle.” Waters refers to “rain water” more than to water generally. This line may be rendered, for example, “He wraps up the rain in his clouds,” “He uses the clouds to bag up the rain,” or “He fills the clouds with rain water.”

And the cloud is not rent under them: in Hebrew cloud is singular in this line but expresses the same plural image as in the first line. Rent translates the verb used in Genesis 7.11, in which the rain came in the Noah story: “all the fountains of the great deep burst forth ….” In 38.37 the clouds are called the “waterskins of the heavens,” comparing them with sacks made of animal skins, for containing water. The poet pictures them as being so firm they are not “burst, broken, split, torn” by the weight of the rain water in them. In languages in which an active construction must be used, we may translate, for example, “and the rain does not burst the cloud” or “the rain water does not tear the cloud.”

Job 26.9.

He covers the face of the moon: as the rsv footnote indicates, moon is “throne” in the Hebrew text. Moon or full moon is obtained by a change of vowels in the word for “throne.” hottp gives the Hebrew an “A” rating and translates “the front of the throne,” which is accepted by tob and gecl. Poetic passages such as Psalm 11.4 and 103.19 speak of God’s throne being in the heavens. God’s throne is likewise associated with the flood in Psalm 29.10, where “flood” may refer to the waters above the firmament of heaven. It is quite natural, therefore, that the sense here can be that God veils his throne with the clouds to conceal himself. Translators can follow hottp and use, for example, gecl as a model: “In thick clouds he covers his throne.”

And spreads over it his cloud: his cloud is not meant to imply that he has only one cloud, as it would in some languages. The sense is “a cloud” or “clouds.” Verse 9 may also be expressed “He hides his throne by covering it with a cloud” or “He darkens his throne with a cloud.” In languages in which “throne” is unknown, we may say, for example, “He covers the place where he rules, by spreading a cloud over it.”

Job 26.10.

He has described a circle upon the face of the waters: this translation is based on a change of vowels in the verb translated described and the word translated circle. In Hebrew the sense is “he has prescribed a limit.” Proverbs 8.27, speaking of creation, has “he drew a circle on the face of the deep.” Many interpreters believe this is also the intended meaning here, which Syriac has, and it is followed by rsv and tev. tev transposes the lines. Upon the face of the waters means “on the surface of the oceans, seas.” The idea is that the earth stood between seas, and upon these the dome of the sky came down to the surface, like an inverted cup. Within this dome, light alternated with darkness as the sun passed overhead. (See Psa 19.4–6.)

At the boundary between light and darkness: this line has no verb. tev has supplied “divided,” so that it is God who “divided light from darkness.” Boundary refers to the horizon, which is said to be between light and darkness. This line becomes the first line in tev, and the other line becomes the means. frcl says it well and keeps the Hebrew order: “He drew a circle around the ocean, out there where light gives way to darkness.” niv translates “He marks out the horizon on the face of the waters for a boundary between light and darkness.” It is unlikely that many readers will understand how drawing a circle on the sea can divide day from night. The flat earth was thought of as surrounded by water, and the horizon (the circle on the face of the waters) was the place where night would end and daylight would begin, and vice versa. Accordingly we may translate, for example, “He has placed the horizon on the seas like a circle around the earth, and at the horizon daylight changes to night.”

Job 26.11.

The pillars of heaven tremble: in 9.6 Job speaks of the “pillars that support the earth.” Pillars of heaven refers to the distant mountains that support the dome of the heavens. In Greek mythology the Atlas Mountains served this function. Pillars are solid columns or supports for holding up a heavy object, such as the roof of a building. Tremble translates a word found only here, but from related languages and the context it is clear that these supports “tremble” or “shake.” tev has transposed a part of this line so that it becomes the consequence of the action in line b of rsv.

And are astounded at his rebuke: the pillars of the first line are personified in that they are astounded, which translates a verb meaning to be “stupefied, stunned, shocked.” His rebuke translates a noun derived from a verb which means “threaten” when the object is the enemy or the physical elements, as it is here. By rearranging the lines as in tev, we may translate “When God threatens the mountains that hold up the sky, they are stunned and tremble with fear.” Since the cause for the shaking of the pillars is stated in line b, it will be more natural in some languages to transpose the two lines. Also in some cases the translator must state the object of God’s threat to the pillars; for example, “When God threatens to destroy the pillars that hold up the heavens” or “If God threatens to knock down the mountains that support the sky, they shake with fear.” If pillars and mountains may not be said to tremble with fear, it may be possible to shift to a simile and say, for example, “they tremble with fear like a frightened person.”

Job 26.12.

By his power he stilled the sea: as suggested by the note in tev, the background of verse 12 is the ancient Mesopotamian and Ugaritic stories of the conflict between the creator and the sea. Both lines allude to the way in which God created by conquering his enemies. The word translated stilled is disputed by scholars. In Isaiah 51.15 and Jeremiah 31.35, the same Hebrew verb is used in the sense of “stir up.” But a separate root with the same spelling is translated by rsv and others as stilled. This is the sense most appropriate here, and since God uses his power to still the sea, tev correctly translates “conquered the sea.” This line may be translated, for example, “The power (or, strength) of God conquered (or, defeated) the ocean (or, sea)” or “God who is powerful conquered the sea.”

By his understanding he smote Rahab: according to Jeremiah 10.12 “The Lord made the earth by his power; by his wisdom he created the world and stretched out the heavens” (tev). The same Hebrew word meaning “wisdom” is used here and translated understanding. According to Pope understanding would no doubt be taken as “cunning” in terms of the Mesopotamian story, but Job belongs to the Hebrew wisdom literature, and this term is probably best translated “wisdom, intelligence, understanding.” Smote translates a verb meaning “to strike,” but in the context it refers to striking for the purpose of conquering or destroying, and so tev is correct in saying “destroyed.” For Rahab see comments on 7.12 and 9.13. This line may also be rendered, “because he is intelligent he destroyed the sea animal called Rahab” or “he is wise, and because of this he was able to kill the sea monster Rahab.”

Job 26.13.

By his wind the heavens were made fair: his wind translates the Hebrew ruax “spirit, wind, breath.” Since this word is paralleled by hand in line b, it is best to take the meaning to be “breath.” However, in the context “wind” and “breath” are very similar. Were made fair translates a root meaning “sparkling, bright, pretty.” Dhorme takes this word to mean “sweep” and translates “His breath has swept the heavens.” This is followed by frcl and tob. njb says “His breath has made the heavens luminous” (meaning “bright”), and tev “… made the sky clear.” This line may also be rendered, for example, “God blew and made the sky clear,” “God’s breath blew away the clouds from the sky,” or “God made the sky bright by blowing away the clouds with his breath.”

His hand pierced the fleeing serpent: this is no doubt a reference to the same event described in Isaiah 27.1: “In that day the Lord with his hard and great and strong sword will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan the twisting serpent, and will slay the dragon that is in the sea.” This monster is mentioned in 3.8 (see there for comments) and again in 41.1. See also Psalm 74.14 and 104.26. Hand may be taken as part for the whole, representing God, or as a substitute for “sword.” Pierce depicts the action resulting from the use of the sword in God’s hand, and may more generally be rendered “killed or destroyed.” Fleeing in fleeing serpent is uncertain. It may have been a conventional adjective used by poets in speaking of this sea monster. tev prefers “escaping,” but “gliding,” “slippery,” or “wriggling” express its movements. The line may be expressed, for example, “with his hands he killed the slippery snake” or “with the sword in his hand he destroyed the wriggling snake.”

Job 26.14.

Lo, these are but the outskirts of his ways: Lo translates a Hebrew particle which most probably introduces a condition, and Dhorme and others translate “If such are ….” Many others, however, translate this line as a statement. These refers to the descriptions of God’s power in the preceding verses. Outskirts translates a space term which in this context refers not to a distant area such as outskirts suggests (as when referring to the distant outskirts of a city), but rather to something only partially disclosed or revealed; the term can be translated as “outline, glimpse, a small part of,” which njb renders “only a fraction of,” and tev “only hints of.” His ways is translated “his power” by Pope, based on Dahood. frcl has “his actions,” and njb “what he has done.” Dhorme supports these with “his works.” All of these are better translations than his ways. The line may also be rendered, for example, “All that I have been saying is only a small part of what he has done” or “These things are only a hint of his great acts.”

And how small a whisper do we hear of him! Whisper translates a word found only here and in 4.12. The Hebrew interrogative particle is used in this line as an exclamation marker; an English equivalent may be “How small is the whisper we hear of him!” This line can follow the “if” clause which may be used in line a, or it can be translated as a separate comment on line a. njb translates “and all we catch of it is the feeblest echo.” tev translates line b as being in apposition with line a, so that “only the whispers” refers back to the content of line a. Line b may also be rendered “what we have heard is hardly a whisper,” or “and we only catch a slight whisper of all that he does,” or “we know almost nothing of the things he does.”

But the thunder of his power who can understand? The thought now takes shape for the entire verse: if we hear only the tiny whispers (the faintest noises) of God’s great acts, how can we grasp the true greatness of his power? Psalm 104.6–7 says that God rebuked the waters above the mountains and they fled: “at the sound of thy thunder they took to flight.” The threatenings of God in verse 11 are thus expressed in his thunder. In poetic terms thunder in this line stands in sharp contrast to whisper in line b. However, thunder of his power intends to convey far more than “powerful thunder.” Zophar made the point in 11.6–9 that God’s ways belong to the secrets or “mysteries of his wisdom.” They are hidden. The question now asked is who can “grasp, comprehend,” not just the loudness of his power displayed in thunder, but his true greatness? As gecl translates, “How truly great and powerful God must be!” or tev “Who can know how truly great God is?”

Note on the text of chapter 27

It was pointed out in the introduction to division 5D that 26.1–4 appears to be the introductory section of an address by Job, which is then followed at 26.5 by Bildad, and remains Bildad’s speech until the end of chapter 26. Habel, Dhorme, and Pope place 26.5–14 immediately following 25.1–6. Also, with some slight variations, all three place Job’s speech 26.1–4 immediately before 27.1–12. Habel and Dhorme consider 26.1–4; 27.1–12 to be Job’s address, and 27.13–23 to be that of Zophar. tev identifies 27.13–23 as belonging to Zophar because, according to its footnote, “this speech is usually assigned to him.”

An examination of the discourse structure of 27.1–23 makes it necessary to consider the possibility that chapter 27 is entirely the speech of Job, and not of Job and Zophar. The following display shows the typical pattern of alternating themes:

A (2–6) Job defends his integrity before his opponents

B (7–10) The wicked will fail

A’ (11–12) Job would instruct his opponents

B’ (13–23) The wicked will fail

In the light of the above unifying pattern, it does not seem necessary to assign, as do tev and others, verses 13–23 to Zophar, or to any other speaker. For further advice see the note on verses 13–23.

Chapter 27.

Job Replies Job 27.1–23.

Division Heading

This heading may be reworded to say, for example, “Job replies to the friends” or “Job speaks again.” tob has “Job’s tenth poem.”

Job Affirms That His Conscience is Clear Job 27.1–6.

In chapter 27 Job begins his final speech. His arguments cease at the end of chapter 31. Using a series of questions in 26.2–4, Job bitterly denounced the friends for their failure to offer him wise and helpful counsel. In 27.1–6 Job swears to his own integrity. He does this through the use of legal terms, as if he were testifying in court in his own defense. These six verses are particularly significant in the overall structure of the book, in that they are the beginning of the final speech by Job in his defense. Also Yahweh refers to this statement when he speaks later.

Subdivision Heading

The Handbook heading may be adjusted to say, for example, “Job defends himself,” “Job swears to God that he is innocent,” or “Job swears that he is telling the truth.” Habel has “Job’s oath of integrity,” tob (1–10) “Oath of innocence,” frcl “Would a guilty person appeal to God?” gecl “My conscience is clear.”

Job 27.1.

And Job again took up his discourse, and said: in Hebrew Job is identified as the speaker beginning with chapter 26, and normally nothing is said to remind the reader who is speaking until a new speaker starts. Therefore the prose formula in this verse is unusual and suspicious. In 29.1 the same formula is appropriately used following chapter 28. However, in 27.1 it seems out of place. Dhorme explains it as the result of separating 27.2 and the following from 26.4. Therefore, he argues, the natural sequence is 25.1–6 + 26.5–14; 26.1–4 + 27.2–12. The speech of Job continues in 27.2, and 27.1, which is borrowed from 29.1, is no longer necessary. tev follows this by identifying “Job” as the speaker and by indicating verses 1–2 as the opening verse. Took up is literally “raised,” and discourse translates the Hebrew mashal, which has the meaning of “proverb, parable, saying,” but in Isaiah 14.4 it refers to a larger composition, as here. In the context of Job it may be rendered “speech, address, discourse, argument, presentation.” Verse 1 may be rendered, for example, “Job began to argue again,” “Job picked up his argument again,” or “Job began to speak again.”

Job 27.2.

Verse 2 is introductory and requires verses 3 and 4 to complete the thought.

As God lives, who has taken away my right begins literally“As ’el lives”or “ ’el is alive” and is the formula used in swearing an oath that what the speaker says is true. Note that the use of the name Yahweh is avoided in the oath. The thought expressed is “What I say is just as true as the truth that God is alive.” In English the equivalent is “I swear by God.” Taken away translates a verb meaning “remove,” but with the object my right, it has the sense of denying Job access to justice, and so njb “denies me justice,” or tev and others “refuse me justice.” Right translates the term which often means “judgment” and refers here to what is “right and just.” The same noun is used in 8.3, where rsv translates it “justice.” tev has transposed Shaddai from b to line a and rendered the oath formula as “I swear by the living Almighty God.” Because of the nature of the grammatical relations and the links in meaning in verses 2, 3, and 4, it may be necessary to adjust the order of some of the elements. For example, As God lives is followed in the rest of verse 2 by actions that God has taken against Job. Verse 3 has two conditions which accompany the oath and the content of the oath comes in verse 4. Therefore in some languages it may be clearer to shift the opening words As God lives in verse 2a to verse 4. In this case verse 2 can begin, for example, “God has not allowed me to have justice,” “God has prevented me from getting fair treatment,” or “God has not treated me fairly.”

And the Almighty, who made my soul bitter: Almighty translates Shaddai which is parallel with ’el in line a. Job has spoken of the bitterness of his nepesh “soul” in 7.11 and 10.1. This bitterness or resentment is caused by God’s refusal to hear his case. tev has transferred “who refuses me justice” from line a and joined it with “and makes my life bitter” so that the two actions are made coordinate verb phrases. If the translator wishes to keep the two lines closer to the Hebrew form, he may translate, for example, “I swear by God who denies me justice, and who makes me feel bitter” or “… fills me with resentment.” tev ends verse 2 with a dash, “-,” showing that something is to follow. This line may also be rendered “Because of what the Almighty has done to me, I resent it,” or idiomatically sometimes, “The Almighty has made me bitter in my innermost” or “The Almighty has made my liver sour.”

Job 27.3.

As long as my breath is in me: verse 3 may be taken as the conditions which will keep Job faithful to his oath. “I swear … that as long as my breath is … and the spirit of God ….” Job is frail and probably near death but still has the breath which comes from God’s act of creation in Genesis 2.7. To have breath is to have life, and frcl translates “As long as I have a little bit of life left in me.” tev reduces verse 3 to one line: “as long as God gives me breath.”

And the spirit of God is in my nostrils: spirit of God translates ruax eloah, in which the first word can mean “spirit, wind, breath,” but in association with nostrils “breath” is the sense to be understood. Although the two lines of verse 3 are the same in meaning, line a is general and line b specific, which is the stylistic technique often used to raise the poetic intensity in the second line. So Job is saying that he swears “that as long as I have a spark of life and a breath from God in me ….” In languages in which the parallelism is to be retained, verse 3 may be rendered, for example, “As long as I have a bit of life, and as long as God enables me to breathe.” Some may find that the meaning of the two lines is too similar to retain the double lines.

Job 27.4.

In this verse Job finally states what it is he will swear to refrain from doing: my lips will not speak falsehood. My lips is a part of Job representing his whole being. Falsehood translates the same Hebrew word used in 13.7, where tev translated “lying.” In the negative this line may be rendered “I will never tell lies,” or positively, “I will always speak the truth.” The Hebrew word may refer to wickedness or evil, but in the context of speaking and lips, it is to be taken as falsehood or lying.

And my tongue will not utter deceit: tongue is parallel to lips in line a. Utter translates a word that is parallel with “speak” in Psalm 37.30 and has here the same meaning as in line a. The word translated deceit is used in parallel with falsehood in 13.7 (“falsely … deceitfully”). Aside from the changes in images, these two lines say the same thing. tev, which often reduces synonymous lines to one to avoid monotony of style in English, keeps both lines, including lips and tongue. Translators who find it best to shift as God lives to verse 4 should express the oath in a fully idiomatic manner, provided it is acceptable in the mouth of Job; for example, “I tell this truth and God hears my words; I will not lie,” “I say this before God who lives; I will not lie,” “May God who hears me strike me dead if I tell lies.” Translators may find the thought of line b is adequately expressed by line a, or may incorporate it into line a; for example, “I will not lie and will deceive no one.”

Job 27.5.

Far be it from me to say that you are right: Job appears to address the friends directly, and insists again on his innocence. The opening phrase is an emphatic denial. Job cannot accept the thought of the friends that he is guilty of wrongdoing. Far be it from me is translated by neb as “God forbid …,” and by mft as “When I maintain (by God!) that you ….” This phrase may require an idiomatic translation to express the equivalent idea. tev translates the idea but lacks the force of the original: “I will never say that …,” and niv “I will never admit ….” To say that you are right translates the Hebrew “that I should justify you,” where “justify” represents the causative form of the verb TsaDaq “to be right.” It is used in 9.15; 11.2; 13.18. The meaning is “admit that you (plural) are right.” rsv and tev make till I die part of line b, and this is correct. To place that phrase in line a, as some translators do, is to destroy the balance of the two lines. This line may also be expressed, for example, “I will never admit that you (plural) are right” or “As God sees me, you are certainly in the wrong!”

Till I die I will not put away my integrity from me: till I die is not intended to suggest that Job will be willing to renounce his integrity after he dies, but rather that he will never renounce it, or as frcl says, “Never, even till my death.” Put away translates a verb whose meaning is “set aside, remove” but in this context means “renounce, deny.” Integrity is the term God used to refer to the character of Job in 2.3 when speaking to Satan, “He still holds fast his integrity.” Job is not claiming perfection or blamelessness, but innocence of wrongdoing, and so tev and others translate positively, “I will insist on my innocence.” Negatively this may be rendered “I will not say that I am guilty of wrongdoing.”

Job 27.6.

I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go: verse 6 develops further the notion of verse 5b. Just as in 2.3, 9, where Job is said to “hold fast his integrity,” so here too he “clings to, maintains” his being in the right. neb translates “I will maintain the rightness of my cause ….” Righteousness refers to Job’s right behavior, conduct unspoiled by wrongdoing. spcl says “I will not cease to insist on my honor.” It is also used in the sense of “innocence” from wrong and is translated in Psalm 7.8 “Judge in my favor O Lord; you know that I am innocent” (tev). And will not let it go: this statement reinforces the first part I hold fast. tev represents it by “never” in “I will never give up ….” In this line righteousness or “being in the right” is treated as a physical object which can be held. In some languages this thought must be expressed differently; for example, “I insist I am innocent and will not change my mind” or “I know I am in the right and will never surrender.”

My heart does not reproach me for any of my days: a literal translation of this line gives poor sense, as rsv shows. This is due to the uncertainty of the meaning of the Hebrew verb and its relation to the other words in the sentence. The word translated heart here evidently has the meaning of “conscience,” as in tev. In a similar way, in 1 Samuel 24.5 David’s heart smites him. The Hebrew verb is usually translated as “reproach,” but there is no object in the Hebrew. Most translators supply me as the object, but tev expresses the meaning effectively with “my conscience is clear.” For any of my days, which is not represented in tev, means “as long as I live” and is translated by neb as “so long as I live.” “My conscience is clear” is sometimes expressed idiomatically; for example, “my heart does not speak behind me” or “my shadow does not tell me things.” In some languages this line may be rendered “my heart does not scold me as long as I live.”

Job Asks God to Punish Those Who Have Opposed Him Job 27.7–10.

Some scholars find that 27.7–23 is inappropriate for Job. In verses 7–12 the speaker observes that God pays no attention to the cry of the wicked. Job’s complaint is different in that God gives no heed to Job’s cry, even though he is innocent. Although some think verses 7–23 are the words of Bildad, many others would assign them to Zophar. Some, like tev, start Zophar’s speech at verse 13. The Handbook, however, like rsv, considers all of chapter 27 to be the speech of Job.

Subdivision Heading

The Handbook, which follows the display at the beginning of this chapter, suggests a heading for verses 7–10. This may be reworded to say, for example, “Job says the wicked have no hope,” “Let the wicked be punished,” or “God will punish those who oppose me.” Habel has (7–12) “Imprecation against Job’s adversary,” Rowley (7–12) “Desolate state of the godless.”

Job 27.7.

Let my enemy be as the wicked: the same words translated wicked and unrighteous in the following line are found in parallel in Job’s speech in 16.11. Dhorme believes this fact connects verse 7 to verse 6, and so this is still the speech of Job. This line says that my enemies should suffer, that is, they ought to have the same fate as the wicked. tev uses the passive in line b “be punished,” which will often have to be shifted to the active with God as the actor: “May God punish my enemies (cause them to suffer) the way he punishes the wicked.”

And let him that rises up against me be as the unrighteous: him that rises up translates a Hebrew participle which may be rendered “my opponents” or “those who … fight against me,” as in tev. Be as the unrighteous is parallel in meaning to the expression be as the wicked in line a. They are to suffer the same fate. tev has brought the two parallel expressions together in line b as “be punished like wicked, unrighteous men.”

Job 27.8.

For what is the hope of the godless when God cuts him off: most translations understand this verse the same as rsv and tev, namely, that there is no hope for the godless when they come to the end of life. Cuts off translates a verb which has the meaning “to make illicit profit” and which is used in this way in some of the ancient versions and in tob. However, most modern translations use it as rsv and tev in the sense of “God requires a person’s life,” that is, “brings his life to an end.” Dhorme, however, changes cuts him off to “he prays,” which is followed by bj and njb. Preferred is the meaning understood by rsv and tev, “What hope does a godless person have when God takes away his life?” tev translates the godless as plural and maintains the plural through verse 10. When God takes away his life is almost the same in meaning to the previous line, and in those translations which cannot keep the parallelism, these two lines are sometimes reduced to one.

Job 27.9.

Will God hear his cry when trouble comes upon him? This rhetorical question anticipates a negative reply and may also be translated as a negative statement, “God will certainly not hear.” His cry means “his cry for help” or “when he cries for help.” Trouble translates the same word used in 5.19. See there for comments. For stylistic reasons tev reverses the two clauses. Him refers to the godless person in verse 8a. Verse 9 may also be rendered, for example, “When times of distress come, will God hear his cry for help? Certainly not!”

Job 27.10.

Will he take delight in the Almighty? As in verse 9, this is a question that expects a negative reply, and the next line is usually translated as a question also, in order to make the connection between the two lines clear. In 22.26a Eliphaz says to Job “Then you will delight yourself in the Almighty.” Dhorme interprets verse 10a as Job repeating Eliphaz in order to challenge the friends, and accordingly Job is still the speaker in verse 10. For take delight see 22.26a. tev “They should have …” implies in fact that the godless did not do that. Using negative statements we may translate, for example, “He is not a person (or, They are not people) who finds joy (or, happiness) in worshiping the Almighty God.”

Will he call upon God at all times? This echoes Psalm 86.3b, “for to thee do I call all the day.” Call upon means “to call for help, to pray.” At all times means “all the time, at any time.” This may be understood to mean that Job (assuming he is the speaker) does not admit that the godless can call upon God. The friends, who refuse to recognize Job’s innocence, urge him to do just that. But Job constantly calls on God to hear his case. Therefore the friends and Job are at a total impasse. The only way it can be resolved is for the friends to recognize Job’s innocence, and they cannot do this because of the evidence before their eyes: Job’s misfortune.

Job Wishes He Could Instruct His Opponents Job 27.11–12.

Subdivision Heading

Translators who wish to follow the Handbook may supply a heading for verses 11–12. The heading may also be worded “It is useless to teach you anything” or “No one can teach you; you know everything.”

Job 27.11.

I will teach you concerning the hand of God: you is plural, which gives evidence for those who hold that Job is speaking. Hand is used many times in Job, and particularly as an image of God’s power or action in 10.7; 12.9, 10; 19.21. njb translates “But I am showing you the way that God works,” frcl “I myself will show you what the action of God is,” and spcl “I will show you the great power of God.” All of these are good translation models.

What is with the Almighty I will not conceal: what is with the Almighty means “that which is in the mind or thoughts of the Almighty.” This refers to God’s “plans, purposes, what he has kept hidden in his mind.” Not conceal or “not hide” may be rendered positively as “explain, reveal, show.” tev has “and explain what Almighty God has planned.” As Rowley says, “The assumption of superior insight marked all the parties to the debate.” This line may also be rendered “and I will show you what Almighty God has in his thoughts” or “I will explain to you the purpose God has in mind.”

Job 27.12.

Behold, all of you have seen it yourselves: here Behold is better translated “If” or else left untranslated: “If you all have observed this.” tev translates “But no, after all ….” All of you … yourselves translates a pair of pronouns “you (plural), all of you.” In 13.4 these are used in parallel, and here they are put side by side, but the meaning is as in rsv and tev. In Hebrew seen has no object but appears to refer to verse 11b, which speaks about what is in God’s mind.

Why then have you become altogether vain? This is best handled as a question, as in rsv and tev. The Hebrew construction translated become altogether vain is the noun “vain thing” followed by a verb of the same root, and so “become vain with a vain thing.” It may represent an intensification of the worthlessness Job attributes to the friends. tev renders the line well: “So why do you talk such nonsense?” Verse 12 may also be expressed, for example, “All of you have seen these things, so why do you talk in such a foolish way?” or “You have all seen these things for yourselves; why then do you talk such nonsense?”

Note on verses 13–23

As indicated at the beginning of this chapter, tev and others accept Zophar as the speaker of verses 13–23. If translators wish to follow the Handbook and consider Job as the speaker of the entire chapter, they may do so. However, in some languages it may be advisable to follow the lead of a major language Bible read in the area, or to state in a footnote, for example,“Some translations assign verses 13–23 to Zophar.”

How God Punishes the Wicked Job 27.13–23.

This part of chapter 27 repeats the theme of verses 7–10. The subject is the fate of the wicked, and verse 13 serves as a title. The speaker then proceeds step by step through the loss and destruction the wicked suffer: children and wives (verses 14 and 15); silver and clothing (verses 16 and 17); house and wealth (verses 18 and 19); and natural disasters (verses 20–23).

Subdivision Heading

The Handbook heading may be modified to say, for example, “God will not allow the wicked to succeed,” “The wicked have no secure future,” or “The wicked are bound to fail.” Habel has “Zophar on the destiny of the wicked,” Rowley “The fate of the godless,” and frcl “A fleeting success.”

Job 27.13.

This is the portion of a wicked man: these words point forward to the verses that follow. In 20.29 “this” pointed back to what had already been said. For comments on portion and heritage, see 20.29. These terms normally refer to good things or to wealth received, and so their use here represents a form of irony. Hebrew has “with God”; but in 20.29 it has “from God,” and the same should be read here. tev expresses this verse in an active mode: “This is how Almighty God punishes … men.” rsv keeps the singular in reference to the wicked in this section, but tev translates in the plural—a more normal way in English for referring to a class of people. In some languages the appropriate form used will point forward. In others it may be necessary to make it clear by saying, for example, “I will tell you now how God punishes wicked people” or “Here is how God punishes the wicked.”

And the heritage which oppressors receive from the Almighty: heritage is parallel in meaning to portion in the previous line, and oppressors (plural) to a wicked man (singular). These occurred in parallel in 15.20, where the same Hebrew word is translated “the ruthless” by rsv and “who oppresses others” by tev. For oppressor see comments on 6.23. tev reduces the parallelism to a single thought by joining “violent men” with “wicked,” and Almighty with “God.” Verse 13 is translated by spcl as “This is the punishment that God, the Almighty, will give to cruel and evil men.” Translators wishing to avoid the parallel line arrangement may follow this model. To make clear that This points forward to the remaining verses, translators may have to adjust the above model to say, for example, “God Almighty will punish cruel and evil people in the following way” or “… in the way I will tell you now.”

Job 27.14.

If his children are multiplied, it is for the sword: the Hebrew has “sons” in this line and “shoots” of a plant used figuratively to mean offspring or “children” in the next line. Are multiplied means “are increased in number.” It is for the sword means “they will be killed by the sword,” that is, “they will die in war.” The line may be rendered “If he has many sons, they will be killed in war.”

And his offspring have not enough to eat: offspring generalizes “sons” from line a but does not suggest a different group of people. They suffer death and starvation. The Hebrew is literally “they will not be satiated by bread,” that is, “they will not have bread to satisfy them,” “they will not have enough to eat,” or “they will starve.”

Job 27.15.

Those who survive him the pestilence buries: those refers to the children in verse 14. Him refers to their father, the wicked man in verse 13. Any children not killed by war and famine “will die from disease” (tev). The Hebrew says “those who survive him are buried by death.” Here “death” is personified as in Jeremiah 15.2; 18.21; 43.11; and so it is taken as the plague, that is, rsv pestilence. The implication is that they will have no other burial—a tragic end. tev avoids the term pestilence in favor of the more common word “disease.” This line may also be rendered, for example, “The children of the wicked who survive will be killed by disease” or “The offspring of the wicked will die from disease.”

And their widows make no lamentation: the Hebrew has “his widows,” namely, the widows of the wicked man. The Septuagint has “their widows,” which refers to the widows of the surviving family members. Since the subject in line a is plural, it is best to take widows as belonging to those who survive. Translators must make certain that their widows is appropriate in combination with the term used for “offspring” or “survivors” in the previous line. Make no lamentation means, as in tev, “will not mourn their death.” This line is identical in wording with Psalm 78.64b.

Job 27.16–17.

In the next two verses the speaker shifts from the family of the wicked to his wealth. These two verses form a chiastic structure in which the first line is balanced by the fourth and the second by the third. Verse 16 is conditional and verse 17 the consequence. Accordingly the two are handled here as a unit.

Though he heap up silver like dust: heap up is used in Genesis 41.49; Psalm 39.6. In Zechariah 9.3 it is used as here, referring to silver, and with the same simile “like dust.” tev has dropped the similes of heap … like dust and pile up … like clay and expressed abundance in a nonfigurative way: “too much to count” and “more than anyone needs.” The translator must decide if heaping or piling up silver is a natural way to speak of having it in great quantities, and furthermore, if comparing great quantities to dust gives the sense of it being common and plentiful. If these images give another sense, or no sense at all, adjustments must be made. For example, it may be more natural to say “Although the wicked pile up silver like dirt” or “like sand.”

And pile up clothing like clay: the verb here is different than the one in the previous line, but it is used commonly with the sense of “prepare, arrange, put in a pile.” When pile up is used with clay, it refers to heaping the clay in a mound in preparation for shaping it into a vessel. A verb that is parallel to the one in line a, but which can be used with clothing, is desirable. Clothing is a general term and refers to any kind of clothing that is worn on the body. Clothing was a symbol of wealth and so is used in parallel with silver. Clay and dust are used in parallel in 4.19; 10.9; 30.19. Clay and dust may not be appropriate as images for quantity in some languages. frcl says “and piles of clothing like mud,” and spcl avoids the image, “and may have clothes in large quantities.”

He may pile it up, but the just will wear it: this refers to the clothing in verse 16b. Pile it up repeats the same verb used of clothing there. njb, which translates pile up in verse 16b as “gather,” translates it here as “let him gather!” tev does not repeat the verb. Just refers to a person who is the opposite of the wicked, often translated “righteous,” as in njv and niv. The sense is “a good, honorable, upright person,” and so tev, njb, and others have “some good man.” Wear it translates the Hebrew verb from which the noun clothing is derived. It refers to the clothing and will often be translated by a plural pronoun. This line may also be rendered, for example, “The wicked person may have great amounts of clothing, but the good person will wear those clothes.” In some languages the failure of the rich to keep his own possessions may not be clear without further information. In such cases it may be necessary to say, for example, “The wicked person may have lots of clothes, but he will not live to wear them; some good person will wear them instead.”

And the innocent will divide the silver: in 17.8 the “upright” and “the innocent” are used in parallel. See also 22.19. For comments on innocent see 4.7. Divide the silver may be understood as sharing it as one would an inheritance, and so neb “His silver will be shared among the innocent,” or as in tev, “some honest man will get the silver.”

Job 27.18.

The house which he builds is like a spider’s web: as rsv’s note indicates, the Hebrew is “he builds his house like a moth”; but moths do not build houses, unless the poet has the cocoon in mind. The Septuagint has “as moths, as a spider,” and Syriac “as a spider,” which many translators follow, including rsv and tev. (See tev note.) Dhorme opposes the Septuagint and has “nest,” which neb follows. tob has kept “moth,” adding a note: “He believes he is building, but in fact is destroying.” hottp supports the Hebrew text but gives no reason or explanation of how it is to be understood. Spider’s web occurs in 8.14 in a similar context, where frailty is emphasized through this image. If “moth” is not suitable in making clear sense, the translator is forced to choose between what are two kinds of guesses. Spider’s web is a change based on a guess and confirmed by an ancient version, which probably made the same guess, whereas “nest” is a translation guess. In both cases the sense of “weakness, frailty” is involved. If “moth” is used, we may translate as does niv, “like a moth’s cocoon.” frcl has still another solution which avoids both spider and moth: “The house these people have built is fragile,” with a note added, “Like a moth’s or like a bird’s nest.” This is a happy compromise. spcl says “fragile as a nest,” njb “All he has built himself is a spider’s web.” Whether the translator uses “moth,” “spider’s web,” or “nest,” it should be made clear that the image is used to show how impermanent and frail his efforts are.

Like a booth which a watchman makes: booth refers to a hut put together by using fragile materials, where a person stays to protect the harvest from birds and other intruders. (See Isa 1.8.) A literal translation such as rsv may require some expansion to give adequate information. In the context, as in the previous line, this hut or shelter is temporary and fragile. frcl adds the adjective “shaky, rickety” to suggest its lack of firmness. In language areas in which such temporary shelters are not put up or are even unknown, we may sometimes translate “as a shack put in a garden to guard the crop” or “as a hut where a person stays to guard the field.”

Job 27.19.

He goes to bed rich, but will do so no more: this translation rests on the Septuagint and Syriac. In place of will do so no more, the Hebrew has “he will not be gathered.” Similar expressions using the same Hebrew verb, but in different forms, are found in 20.9; 34.32; 40.5. tev translates the same as rsv but in different words, “one last time.” hottp suggests two ways to understand the line based on the Hebrew: “As a rich man he lies down (to sleep) while his house has not yet been taken away”; or “He lies down (dies) as a rich man without (however) being buried (that is, being reunited in the family tomb)”. In the latter sense the Hebrew “they will not be gathered” is understood as the typical euphemism for death: “he was gathered to his ancestors.” There is, however, no reference to ancestors in this verse. The line may also be rendered, for example, “For the last time he goes to bed as a rich man” or “Only once more he goes to bed still having his wealth.”

He opens his eyes, and his wealth is gone: for his wealth is gone the Hebrew has “it is not” or “he is not.” rsv, tev, and others understand “it is not” to mean his wealth is gone. hottp’s first interpretation continues in this line,“he opens his eyes (he awakens) and it (the house in verse 18) is no more”; the second alternative continues “he opens his eyes (in death?) and is no more (that is, he dies in an instant).” It is not possible to say for certain if the man has lost his house, his wealth, or his life. However, other modern translations understand this line in the same way as rsv and tev, namely, “he wakes up to find his wealth gone,” or “when he awakens he has no more wealth,” or “he awakens as a poor man.”

Job 27.20.

Terrors overtake him like a flood: in 18.11 Bildad says “terror frightens the wicked man.” Terrors expresses either the “fear, dread, fright” that is within the heart of the wicked, or things which cause him to be terrified, frightened. Overtake translates a verb whose usual meaning is “strike.” The Hebrew “like the waters” is translated like a flood. tev has “strike like a sudden flood,” since it is the action of the flooding waters that strike him. hottp rates “like the waters” as an “A” reading, meaning there is no doubt about its being original. Their remark is“The waters are those of a waDi (stream bed) which unexpectedly take the traveler by surprise.” Others propose changing the Hebrew for “like the waters“ to get ”daylight,” which is a contrasting parallel with in the night in line b. Dhorme translates “terrors strike him in broad daylight.” This is followed by njb and others. It is best here to stay with the Hebrew, as in rsv and tev. This line may also be expressed “Terror surprises him like a sudden flood,” or “He is caught by terror as a sudden flood that washes things away,” or “As a sudden flood comes and carries things away, fright does the same to him.”

In the night a whirlwind carries him off: the words translated whirlwind carries him off are a repetition of the words spoken by Job in 21.18. Whirlwind translates a word meaning a destructive or violent wind. This may or may not be a whirlwind. tev has “a wind.” Its force is implied by “blow them away.”

Job 27.21–23.

These three verses will be handled together, since each describes the effect of the wind.

The east wind lifts him up and he is gone: the east wind blows from the desert towards the Mediterranean Sea, bringing scorching heat. Here it is violent, like a tornado or whirlwind, in that it picks the man up and carries him away. In 15.2 Eliphaz asked if a wise man should fill himself with the east wind, using the same Hebrew term. See there for comments. Lifts him up implies for the purpose of taking him away, and so “picks him up and carries him off.” tev reduces the two lines to one.

It sweeps him out of his place: sweeps describes the action of the violent wind and is used in Psalm 58.9b. Out of his place is best taken here as meaning “out of his house” or “out of the place where he lives.” Sweeps may require adjusting in some languages to a nonfigure like “It blows him out of his house,” or to a different figure.

It hurls at him without pity: It refers to the east wind. rsv notes that the Hebrew has “he,” which rsv thinks refers to God, although God has not been mentioned since verse 13. tev also makes the east wind the subject. Hurls translates a verb meaning “to throw at.” There is no direct object expressed in this line nor in Numbers 35.20, where the same verb is used, but according to Dhorme, no object is required. Accordingly frcl, which makes God the subject, translates “Without having pity on them, God uses them as targets.” njb says “Piteously he is turned into a target.” If the east wind is the subject, then the verb “blows” is more appropriate than hurls: “It will blow down on them” (tev, which keeps the plural for the wicked). Without pity is literally “not sparing,” that is, “without holding anything back.” This line may be expressed “This wind blows at them with full force” or “… with all its might.”

He flees from its power in headlong flight: here the wicked man flees from what is literally “his (or, its) hand,” which rsv translates its power, meaning “the force of the wind.” In headlong flight is used translationally by rsv to bring out the force of the Hebrew construction, which serves to intensify the main verb. In a similar way tev “they try their best to escape” emphasizes the urgency of the wicked person’s flight. This line may also be rendered, for example, “he does all he can to run from its power” or “he tries hard to run away from this powerful wind.”

It claps its hands at him: rsv and tev continue with “the wind” as the implied subject. The Hebrew has only the third person singular pronoun prefixed to the singular verb clap. An rsv note indicates “he (that is God).” mft understands it in this sense and translates “God openly derides him.” bj and tob translate with an impersonal subject, as does frcl: “One applauds on seeing them in this state.” njb has “His downfall is greeted with applause.” It seems most consistent with the context to keep “the wind” as the subject, even though the noun is not present in the Hebrew. Claps translates what is literally “beats his palms.” In Numbers 24.10 this gesture symbolizes anger: “And Balak’s anger was kindled against Balaam, and he struck his hands together ….” In Lamentations 2.15 it is used to show “scorn, ridicule, derision.” The sense of scorn is to be taken here as it parallels the similar use of hiss in the next line. Neither rsv nor tev gives the meaning of these two gestures. tev transposes the two lines, but “howls at them” is not made clear, and “frightening them” does not suggest scorn or ridicule. niv is to be preferred here, with “It claps its hands in derision.” In English “The wind howls scornfully at them” would be better. If the image of the wind clapping its hands in ridicule is not clear, it may be necessary to shift to a simile; for example, “The wind howls at them (him), like a person scorning them” or “The wind is like a person shouting ridicule at him.”

And hisses at him from its place: hisses is used in Jeremiah 49.17 and Zephaniah 2.15 to express ridicule, and so is parallel with claps in the previous line. In Lamentations 2.15 the people who pass by “clap their hands at you; they hiss and wag their heads at the daughter of Jerusalem.” From its place is understood variously by different interpreters. It may mean the place from which the wind hisses, as rsv, or the place wherever the wicked person may be, so neb “wherever he may be.” tev “as they run” seems to follow somewhat the second interpretation. In English verse 23 may be rendered “The wind howls scornfully at them, and laughs at them wherever they go.” In some languages it will be possible to make a parallel line in verse 23b by saying “and whistles at him wherever he goes” or “and whistles at him to scorn him wherever he may be.” In some languages to whistle at a person has a connotation which may be undesirable in this context. spcl translates verse 23 as “The wind pursues him with loud noises and whistles.” Translators may be able to adapt from this model.

A POEM ABOUT WISDOM 28.1–28.

Chapter 28.

A Poem By Someone Not Named Job 28.1–28.

Chapter 28 differs significantly from the other chapters of Job. There are no accusations, complaints, or responses to previous comments by earlier speakers. Many scholars consider it an intrusion, a chapter which does not seem to fit the overall design of the book. As it stands Job may be implied as the speaker, and some see in it Job giving up his case in despair. Others views are: that it was inserted later to express a judgment on the previous speeches; that it is a bridge between the speeches in chapters 4–27 and the closing speech of Job in chapters 29–31; that it resolves Job’s problem and therefore makes Yahweh ’s speeches unnecessary; that it summarizes Job’s case and forms the introduction to Yahweh ’s speeches.

There is no doubt that chapter 28 continues the imagery of earlier speeches. For example, in verse 9 “overturn mountains” recalls 9.5; “the thing that is hid he brings forth to light” in verse 11 echoes 11.6 and 12.22; the overall theme of chapter 28 is similar to that in chapter 11, namely, that divine wisdom cannot be attained by human beings unless God reveals it.

The Handbook views chapter 28 as an interlude or bridge between chapters 4–27 and chapters 29–42:6. Before chapter 28 Job is engaged in a dispute with three friends. After chapter 28 Job is confronted by Elihu and God. The overview of the structure of chapter 28 is given below, and the details are handled in the discussion of the verses. This outline agrees generally with “Patterns of Inclusion in Job: Their form and functional significance,” an unpublished paper by Ernst R. Wendland. For a somewhat different approach to the outline of chapter 28, see Habel.

A (1–6) Men mine the earth for precious metals and stones

B (7–8) The way to the mines is not known

A’ (9–11) How men mine for precious stones

B’ (12–14) The source of wisdom is not known

A’’ (15–19) Wisdom is more valuable than precious stones

B’’ (20–22) The source of wisdom is not known

C (23–28) God alone knows the way to wisdom

Section Heading

The section heading used in the Handbook covers only chapter 28, and a division heading, if used, will cover the same material; therefore a division heading is unnecessary. Other titles for chapter 28, for example, are “In search of wisdom” or “Only God knows where wisdom is found.” gecl has “From where does wisdom come,” frcl “The mystery of wisdom,” njb “Wisdom is beyond human reach,” and tev “In praise of wisdom.”

The Places Where Precious Metals Are Mined Job 28.1–6.

Habel sees the basic structure of chapter 28, based as it is on the search for what is rare and precious, consisting of three recurring elements: the place or source of the precious item, the way or means of getting that item, and the process of discovering. Logically it may seem better for the last two to be interchanged, but the logic of the poem is determined by the flow of the poet’s ordering of the items. Verses 1–2 list the places: “mine,” “place,” “earth,” and the metals “silver,” “gold,” “copper.” Verses 3–4 depict the difficult means for obtaining these. Verses 5–6 begin again with the place: “earth,” “underneath it,” and the precious objects “sapphire” and “gold.”

Subdivision Heading

The Handbook supplies headings according to the outline presented at the beginning of this chapter; however, translators may prefer to give only a single heading for verses 1–11. For example, Rowley has “There is no known road to wisdom.” If translators wish to follow the Handbook, they may say, for example, “Men dig in the earth for ore,” “People search the earth for precious stones,” or “Miners explore inside the earth to find ore.”

Job 28.1.

Surely there is a mine for silver: Surely translates the Hebrew word commonly translated “for” or “because.” It may seem strange to open a discourse with Surely; however, the Hebrew for Surely is frequently used to introduce an emphatic assertion. Translators may use whatever structure is available in the receptor language to supply this emphasis. In some languages this opening assertion may be something equivalent to “It is certain that,” “It is true,” or “Indeed it is so.”

Mine translates a word meaning “source” or “outlet” and normally refers to a place in the ground from which water flows. In the context of verse 1 it refers to the place of origin, and for the origin of a precious metal, mine is appropriate. In English the plural is more natural, as in tev. In Jeremiah 10.9 and Ezekiel 27.12, silver is said to be imported from Tarshish, possibly Tartessus in Spain. A mine for silver means a mine or mines where silver is obtained or, as tev says, “where silver is dug.” This line may also be rendered “There are mines where men dig silver.” In languages in which there is no word for silver or gold, the translator may do one of the following: (a) use a loan word from a major language; (b) use a loan word with a classifier; for example, “a valuable metal called silver”; or (c) use a substitute metal if one is known and is highly valuable; this may be the least desirable alternative.

It may be suggested that some adaptation be made in verse 1 that will prepare for the contrast of obtaining wisdom in verses 12–28. For example, mft places verse 12 before verse 1 and renders verse 1a “For silver there are mines,” and then repeats verse 12 after verse 11. However, mft did not use headings, which can accomplish this task even better.

And a place for gold which they refine: a place is parallel to mine in the previous line and means the same thing. tev again pluralizes a place so as to make it general, like “mines” in line a. rsv reflects the Hebrew form, gold which they refine. The plural form of the verb has the meaning of a passive, “where gold is refined,” or of an impersonal actor, “where one refines gold.” Refine refers to the process of heating gold to a liquid and then removing the impurities that float to the surface. In languages which must employ active constructions, this line may be rendered, for example, “and places where men dig gold and refine it.” Refine may sometimes be translated as “purify, clean.” A translation should not attempt to explain in the text the process of refining, as this would place more emphasis on it than is given in the flow of the poem’s discourse. A note may be used in some cases.

Job 28.2.

Iron is taken out of the earth: in verse 2 iron and copper continue the list of valuable metals. In Deuteronomy 8.9 the promised land is described as “a land … in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper.” The verb translated is taken is in the passive. However, the parallel verb in line b is active. rsv shifts both verbs to the passive, and tev has both as active. In translation either is possible and should follow the regular rules of style of the translator’s language. Earth translates the Hebrew for “dust,” but the meaning in this context is as in rsv and tev. In languages which lack words for iron and copper, the same procedure suggested in verse 1a should be followed.

And copper is smelted from the ore: copper is said to have been plentiful in the Middle East, and it was mined and smelted in Cyprus, Edom, and the Sinai Peninsula. Smelted translates a verb meaning “to melt.” Dhorme, however, takes it as an adjective meaning “hard” and translates “and a hard stone becomes copper.” It seems best, however, to follow rsv. Ore translates Hebrew “stones.” tev “melt copper out of the stones” may give the wrong impression that the copper remains in liquid form. Smelted refers to the process of heating the ore in order to extract the copper from it. The copper hardens as it cools. In these verses “refine” (verse 1) and smelt have similar meanings.

Job 28.3.

Men put an end to darkness: this verse, like the following one, has three lines in Hebrew. It describes the miner working under the ground. Men put translates the Hebrew for “one puts.” Put an end to darkness probably means that the miners work in the dark mine by using lamps, or as frcl translates, “Below the ground, miners carry light.” This is clearer than tev “explore the deepest darkness,” which does not show how they overcome the darkness inside the earth. The line may also be rendered “Miners take lamps (lights, torches, fire) into the dark mines” or “They carry their lights into the dark places.”

And search out to the farthest bound: farthest bound translates the term used in 26.10 referring to the boundary between light and darkness. Here it refers to the limit or extent to which the miner can explore underground. This may be rendered “They dig to the very limit” or “… as far as they can possibly go.”

The ore in gloom and deep darkness: according to the Hebrew punctuation the main division in this verse comes at the end of the second line, but this leaves line c unconnected with the rest of the verse. Accordingly neb and nab omit it. However, better sense is made by making the chief division after the first line, as in rsv and tev. Ore translates the Hebrew for “stone,” as in verse 2b. In rsv search in line b serves also as the verb for line c. tev, which makes lines b and c separate clauses, supplies “dig” as the verb in line c. Either solution is possible, but rsv is closer to the Hebrew form. Gloom and deep darkness translates the same expression used in 10.21. There the expression referred to Sheol. Here it refers to the darkness inside the mine. It may be translated “and dig out the ore in the deep darkness” or “search for the rocks in the darkness.”

Job 28.4.

They open shafts in a valley away from where men live: verse 4, like verse 3, has three lines. However, verse 4 is unclear. The translator need only compare kjv’s rendering with tev to see how two translations based on the Hebrew text as it stands can differ. kjv has “The flood breaketh out from the inhabitant; (even the waters) forgotten of the foot: they are dried up, they are gone away from men.” Some scholars have found this verse to be almost meaningless, and nab omits it. The literal Hebrew of line a is approximately “One opens a valley from with a sojourner.” The Hebrew for “valley” probably refers here to a mine shaft, tunnel, or, as hottp suggests, “gorge.” rsv seems to translate this word as both shaft and valley. Dhorme and others change the expression translated away from where men live to get “a foreign people,” which is then used as the subject: “A foreign people has pierced shafts.” tev does not make any change in the text, but expresses away from where men live as an adverbial clause placed at the beginning: “Far from where anyone lives ….” It is possible to keep the Hebrew as it stands and translate “They dig mine tunnels far away from where people live,” or “Miners dig mine shafts in remote places,” or “In isolated places people dig for precious metals.”

They are forgotten by travelers is literally “they are forgotten by the foot.” This line is usually taken to mean that the people who pass by above these mine tunnels or shafts are unaware of what lies beneath their path, but it may also mean “people never pass by there” due to the extreme isolation. It is in this sense that tev translates its second line, “Or human feet ever travel”; this may also be expressed as “No one ever travels that way” or “Travelers don’t even know what is there.”

They hang afar from men, they swing to and fro: this line is commonly interpreted as referring to clinging to a rope while being lowered into the mine. tev has placed part of line a at this point, making it the first verb phrase, “Men dig the shafts of mines,” and has made two lines of line c so that it ends up with five lines. Afar from men repeats the thought away from where men live in line a. rsv they hang … they swing … may be misunderstood if deep shaft mining is unknown to the reader. One restructuring which may be useful is shown in frcl, “They open tunnels beyond the inhabited places. Far from humans, in inaccessible places, the miners swing back and forth, suspended by ropes.” Another sense suggested by hottp is that the word translated “valley” refers to a “gorge,” and the two verbs in line c depict a miner suspended by a rope, high above the bottom of the gorge, against one of the rocky walls in which the galleries are cut. tev has made this clearer with “clinging to ropes in the pits.” Without doubt verse 4 will require some restructuring in many languages. Translators may follow the model of tev or, if frcl is followed, they must be careful not to give the impression that the miners have been executed by hanging from a rope. Accordingly it should be made clear that these miners are either lowered by ropes into the mine or are suspended by ropes while they dig into the walls of the mine shaft. For example, “They dig out the ore while suspended by ropes that swing back and forth.”

Job 28.5.

As for the earth, out of it comes bread: here the contrast seems to be between what happens on the surface of the ground and what takes place underneath. As for has no verbal equivalent in the Hebrew, which is literally “Earth out of it comes bread.” The thought is that the surface is orderly and produces what the farmer expects of it, namely, bread. Bread here symbolizes “food” generally, or “crops”: “Food grows on the surface of the earth.” In order to make the contrast between the two lines of the verse clear, it may be necessary to say, for example, “On top of the ground they harvest crops, but under the ground ….”

But underneath it is turned up as by fire: the meaning of this line is not certain. It may refer to the process of heating rocks in a fire and cooling them to split them open. Another suggestion is that the poet thinks of igneous rocks being formed in fire. tev does not mention the fire, which it takes as a metaphor on the view that the poet was describing the layers of rock under the ground in terms of the havoc left in a town after a severe fire. This line should show a strong contrast with the previous line: “but under the ground it is as if fire had turned everything upside down” or “but below the surface it looks like fire has stirred everything up.”

Job 28.6.

Its stones are the place of sapphires: Its refers to “the earth” in verse 5a, and so tev “the stones of the earth.” In English “rock” is more commonly used when speaking of ore bearing minerals or precious stones. Rowley says that sapphires were probably unknown before Roman imperial times, and that the stone discussed were probably lapis lazuli, as in the rsv footnote. Sapphires are bluish transparent gems. Lapis lazuli is deep blue and is not transparent. This line may be rendered, for example, “Men find sapphires in the rocks of the earth” or “Men find (blue) gems in the rocks in the earth.”

And it has dust of gold: lapis lazuli is speckled with yellow iron pyrites, which give the impression of being gold dust. neb, which translates the word for sapphires as lapis lazuli, renders this line “dusted with flecks of gold.” Some believe that this is the preferred meaning, since the metal “gold” was mentioned earlier, in verse 1. Most modern translations, however, follow rsv and tev. If lapis lazuli is known in the language, neb may serve as a good translation model. Otherwise it is better to follow tev or to say, for example, “and they find gold in the dirt.”[4]

Verses 1-6

Bildad is to be commended here for two things:-1. For speaking no more on the subject about which Job and he differed. Perhaps he began to think Job was in the right, and then it was justice to say no more concerning it, as one that contended for truth, not for victory, and therefore, for the finding of truth, would be content to lose the victory; or, if he still thought himself in the right, yet he knew when he had said enough, and would not wrangle endlessly for the last word. Perhaps indeed one reason why he and the rest of them let fall this debate was because they perceived that Job and they did not differ so much in opinion as they thought: they owned that wicked people might prosper a while, and Job owned they would be destroyed at last; how little then was the difference! If disputants would understand one another better, perhaps they would find themselves nearer one another than they imagined. 2. For speaking so well on the matter about which Job and he were agreed. If we would all get our hearts filled with awful thoughts of God and humble thoughts of ourselves, we should not be so apt as we are to fall out about matters of doubtful disputation, which are trifling or intricate.

Two ways Bildad takes here to exalt God and abase man:—

I. He shows how glorious God is, and thence infers how guilty and impure man is before him, v. 2-4. Let us see then,

1. What great things are here said of God, designed to possess Job with a reverence of him, and to check his reflections upon him and upon his dealings with him: (1.) God is the sovereign Lord of all, and with him is terrible majesty. Dominion and fear are with him, v. 2. He that gave being has an incontestable authority to give laws, and can enforce the laws he gives. He that made all has a right to dispose of all according to his own will, with an absolute sovereignty. Whatever he will do he does, and may do; and none can say unto him, What doest thou? or Why doest thou so? Dan. 4:35. His having dominion (or being Dominus—Lord) bespeaks him both owner and ruler of all the creatures. They are all his, and they are all under his direction and at his disposal. Hence it follows that he is to be feared (that is, reverenced and obeyed), that he is feared by all that know him (the seraphim cover their faces before him), and that, first or last, all will be made to fear him. Men’s dominion is often despicable, often despised, but God is always terrible. (2.) The glorious inhabitants of the upper world are all perfectly observant of him and entirely acquiesce in his will: He maketh peace in his high places. He enjoys himself in a perfect tranquillity. The holy angels never quarrel with him, nor with one another, but entirely acquiesce in his will, and unanimously execute it without murmuring or disputing. Thus the will of God is done in heaven; and thus we pray that it may be done by us and others on earth. The sun, moon, and stars, keep their courses, and never clash with one another: nay, even in this lower region, which is often disturbed with storms and tempests, yet when God pleases he commands peace, by making the storm a calm, Ps. 107:29; 65:7. Observe, The high places are his high places; for the heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord’s (Ps. 115:16) in a peculiar manner. Peace is God’s work; where it is made it is he that makes it, Isa. 57:19. In heaven there is perfect peace; for there is perfect holiness, and there is God, who is love. (3.) He is a God of irresistible power: Is there any number of his armies? v. 3. The greatness and power of princes are judged of by their armies. God is not only himself almighty, but he has numberless numbers of armies at his beck and disposal,—standing armies that are never disbanded,—regular troops, and well disciplined, that are never to seek, never at a loss, that never mutiny,—veteran troops, that have been long in his service,—victorious troops, that never failed of success nor were ever foiled. All the creatures are his hosts, angels especially. He is Lord of all, Lord of hosts. He has numberless armies, and yet makes peace. He could make war upon us, but is willing to be at peace with us; and even the heavenly hosts were sent to proclaim peace on earth and good will towards men, Lu. 2:14. (4.) His providence extends itself to all: Upon whom does not his light arise? The light of the sun is communicated to all parts of the world, and, take the year round, to all equally. See Ps. 19:6. That is a faint resemblance of the universal cognizance and care God takes of the whole creation, Mt. 5:45. All are under the light of his knowledge and are naked and open before him. All partake of the light of his goodness: it seems especially to be meant of that. He is good to all; the earth is full of his goodness. He is Deus optimus—God, the best of beings, as well as maximus—the greatest: he has power to destroy; but his pleasure is to show mercy. All the creatures live upon his bounty.

2. What low things are here said of man, and very truly and justly (v. 4): How then can man be justified with God? Or how can he be clean? Man is not only mean, but vile, not only earthly, but filthy; he cannot be justified, he cannot be clean, (1.) In comparison with God. Man’s righteousness and holiness, at the best, are nothing to God’s, Ps. 89:6. (2.) In debate with God. He that will quarrel with the word and providence of God must unavoidably go by the worst. God will be justified, and then man will be condemned, Ps. 51:4; Rom. 3:4. There is no error in God’s judgment, and therefore there lies no exception against it, nor appeal from it. (3.) In the sight of God. If God is so great and glorious, how can man, who is guilty and impure, appear before him? Note, [1.] Man, by reason of his actual transgressions, is obnoxious to God’s justice and cannot in himself be justified before him: he can neither plead Not guilty, nor plead any merit of his own to balance or extenuate his guilt. The scripture has concluded all under sin. [2.] Man, by reason of his original corruption, as he is born of a woman, is odious to God’s holiness, and cannot be clean in his sight. God sees his impurity, and it is certain that by it he is rendered utterly unfit for communion and fellowship with God in grace here and for the vision and fruition of him in glory hereafter. We have need therefore to be born again of water and of the Holy Ghost, and to be bathed again and again in the blood of Christ, that fountain opened.

II. He shows how dark and defective even the heavenly bodies are in the sight of God, and in comparison with him, and thence infers how little, and mean, and worthless, man is. 1. The lights of heaven, though beauteous creatures, are before God as clods of earth (v. 5): Behold even to the moon, walking in brightness, and the stars, those glorious lamps of heaven, which the heathen were so charmed with the lustre of that they worshipped them—yet, in God’s sight, in comparison with him, they shine not, they are not pure; they have no glory, by reason of the glory which excelleth, as a candle, though it burn, yet does not shine when it is set in the clear light of the sun. The glory of God, shining in his providences, eclipses the glory of the brightest creatures, Isa. 24:23. The moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the Lord of hosts shall reign in Mount Sion. The heavenly bodies are often clouded; we plainly see spots in the moon, and, with the help of glasses, may sometimes discern spots upon the sun too: but God sees spots in them that we do not see. How durst Job then so confidently appeal to God, who would discover that amiss in him which he was not aware of in himself? 2. The children of men, though noble creatures, are before God but as worms of the earth (v. 6): How much less does man shine in honour, how much less is he pure in righteousness that is a worm, and the son of man, whoever he be, that is a worm!—a vermin (so some), not only mean and despicable, but noxious and detestable; a mite (so others), the smallest animal, which cannot be discerned with the naked eye, but through a magnifying glass. Such a thing is man. (1.) So mean, and little, and inconsiderable, in comparison with God and with the holy angels: so worthless and despicable, having his original in corruption, and hastening to corruption. What little reason has man to be proud, and what great reason to be humble! (2.) So weak and impotent, and so easily crushed, and therefore a very unequal match for Almighty God. Shall man be such a fool as to contend with his Maker, who can tread him to pieces more easily than we can a worm? (3.) So sordid and filthy. Man is not pure for he is a worm, hatched in putrefaction, and therefore odious to God. Let us therefore wonder at God’s condescension in taking such worms as we are into covenant and communion with himself, especially at the condescension of the Son of God, in emptying himself so far as to say, I am a worm, and no man, Ps. 22:6.

Chapter 26

This is Job’s short reply to Bildad’s short discourse, in which he is so far from contradicting him that he confirms what he had said, and out-does him in magnifying God and setting forth his power, to show what reason he had still to say, as he did (ch. 13:2), "What you know, the same do I know also.’’ I. He shows that Bildad’s discourse was foreign to the matter he was discoursing of—though very true and good, yet not to the purpose (v. 2-4). II. That it was needless to the person he was discoursing with; for he knew it, and believed it, and could speak of it as well as he and better, and could add to the proofs which he had produced of God’s power and greatness, which he does in the rest of his discourse (v. 5–13), concluding that, when they had both said what they could, all came short of the merit of the subject and it was still far from being exhausted (v. 14).

Verses 1-4

One would not have thought that Job, when he was in so much pain and misery, could banter his friend as he does here and make himself merry with the impertinency of his discourse. Bildad thought that he had made a fine speech, that the matter was so weighty, and the language so fine, that he had gained the reputation both of an oracle and of an orator; but Job peevishly enough shows that his performance was not so valuable as he thought it and ridicules him for it. He shows,

I. That there was no great matter to be found in it (v. 3): How hast thou plentifully declared the thing as it is? This is spoken ironically, upbraiding Bildad with the good conceit he himself had of what he had said. 1. He thought he had spoken very clearly, had declared the thing as it is. He was very fond (as we are all apt to be) of his own notions, and thought they only were right, and true, and intelligible, and all other notions of the thing were false, mistaken, and confused; whereas, when we speak of the glory of God, we cannot declare the thing as it is, for we see it through a glass darkly, or but by reflection, and shall not see him as he is till we come to heaven. Here we cannot order our speech concerning him, ch. 37:19. 2. He thought he had spoken very fully, though in few words, that he had plentifully declared it, and, alas! it was but poorly and scantily that he declared it, in comparison with the vast compass and copiousness of the subject.

II. That there was no great use to be made of it. Cui bono—What good hast thou done by all that thou hast said? How hast thou, with all this mighty flourish, helped him that is without power? v. 2. How hast thou, with thy grave dictates, counselled him that has no wisdom? v. 3. Job would convince him, 1. That he had done God no service by it, nor made him in the least beholden to him. It is indeed our duty, and will be our honour, to speak on God’s behalf; but we must not think that he needs our service, or is indebted to us for it, nor will he accept it if it come from a spirit of contention and contradiction, and not from a sincere regard to God’s glory. 2. That he had done his cause no service by it. He thought his friends were mightily beholden to him for helping them, at a dead lift, to make their part good against Job, when they were quite at a loss, and had no strength, no wisdom. Even weak disputants, when warm, are apt to think truth more beholden to them than it really is. 3. That he had done him no service by it. He pretended to convince, instruct, and comfort, Job; but, alas! what he had said was so little to the purpose that it would not avail to rectify any mistakes, nor to assist him either in bearing his afflictions or in getting good by them: "To whom has thou uttered words? v. 4. Was it to me that thou didst direct thy discourse? And dost thou take me for such a child as to need these instructions? Or dost thou think them proper for one in my condition?’’ Every thing that is true and good is not suitable and seasonable. To one that was humbled, and broken, and grieved in spirit, as Job was, he ought to have preached of the grace and mercy of God, rather than of his greatness and majesty, to have laid before him the consolations rather than the terrors of the Almighty. Christ knows how to speak what is proper for the weary (Isa. 50:4), and his ministers should learn rightly to divide the word of truth, and not make those sad whom God would not have made sad, as Bildad did; and therefore Job asks him, Whose spirit came from thee? that is, "What troubled soul would ever be revived, and relieved, and brought to itself, by such discourses as these?’’ Thus are we often disappointed in our expectations from our friends who should comfort us, but the Comforter, who is the Holy Ghost, never mistakes in his operations nor misses of his end.

Verses 5-14

The truth received a great deal of light from the dispute between Job and his friends concerning those points about which they differed; but now they are upon a subject in which they were all agreed, the infinite glory and power of God. How does truth triumph, and how brightly does it shine, when there appears no other strife between the contenders than which shall speak most highly and honourably of God and be most copious in showing forth his praise! It were well if all disputes about matters of religion might end thus, in glorifying God as Lord of all, and our Lord, with one mind and one mouth (Rom. 15:6); for to that we have all attained, in that we are all agreed.

I. Many illustrious instances are here given of the wisdom and power of God in the creation and preservation of the world.

1. If we look about us, to the earth and waters here below, we shall see striking instances of omnipotence, which we may gather out of these verses. (1.) He hangs the earth upon nothing, v. 7. The vast terraqueous globe neither rests upon any pillars nor hangs upon any axle-tree, and yet, by the almighty power of God, is firmly fixed in its place, poised with its own weight. The art of man could not hang a feather upon nothing, yet the divine wisdom hangs the whole earth so. It is ponderibus librata suis—poised by its own weight, so says the poet; it is upheld by the word of God’s power, so says the apostle. What is hung upon nothing may serve us to set our feet on, and bear the weight of our bodies, but it will never serve us to set our hearts on, nor bear the weight of our souls. (2.) He sets bounds to the waters of the sea, and compasses them in (v. 10), that they may not return to cover the earth; and these bounds shall continue unmoved, unshaken, unworn, till the day and night come to an end, when time shall be no more. Herein appears the dominion which Providence has over the raging waters of the sea, and so it is an instance of his power, Jer. 5:22. We see too the care which Providence takes of the poor sinful inhabitants of the earth, who, though obnoxious to his justice and lying at his mercy, are thus preserved from being overwhelmed, as they were once by the waters of a flood, and will continue to be so, because they are reserved unto fire. (3.) He forms dead things under the waters. Rephaim-giants, are formed under the waters, that is, vast creatures, of prodigious bulk, as whales, giant-like creatures, among the innumerable inhabitants of the water. So bishop Patrick. (4.) By mighty storms and tempests he shakes the mountains, which are here called the pillars of heaven (v. 11), and even divides the sea, and smites through its proud waves, v. 12. At the presence of the Lord the sea flies and the mountains skip, Ps. 114:3, 4. See Hab. 3:6, etc. A storm furrows the waters, and does, as it were, divide them; and then a calm smites through the waves, and lays them flat again. See Ps. 89:9, 10. Those who think Job lived at, or after, the time of Moses, apply this to the dividing of the Red Sea before the children of Israel, and the drowning of the Egyptians in it. By his understanding he smiteth through Rahab; so the word is, and Rahab is often put for Egypt; as Ps. 87:4; Isa. 51:9.

2. If we consider hell beneath, though it is out of our sight, yet we may conceive the instances of God’s power there. By hell and destruction (v. 6) we may understand the grave, and those who are buried in it, that they are under the eye of God, though laid out of our sight, which may strengthen our belief of the resurrection of the dead. God knows where to find, and whence to fetch, all the scattered atoms of the consumed body. We may also consider them as referring to the place of the damned, where the separate souls of the wicked are in misery and torment. That is hell and destruction, which are said to be before the Lord (Prov. 15:11), and here to be naked before him, to which it is probable there is an allusion, Rev. 14:10, where sinners are to be tormented in the presence of the holy angels (who attended the Shechinah) and in the presence of the Lamb. And this may give light to v. 5, which some ancient versions read thus (and I think more agreeably to the signification of the word Rephaim): Behold, the giants groan under the waters, and those that dwell with them; and then follows, Hell is naked before him, typified by the drowning of the giants of the old world; so the learned Mr. Joseph Mede understands it, and with it illustrates Prov. 21:16, where hell is called the congregation of the dead; and it is the same word which is here used, and which he would there have rendered the congregation of the giants, in allusion to the drowning of the sinners of the old world. And is there any thing in which the majesty of God appears more dreadful than in the eternal ruin of the ungodly and the groans of the inhabitants of the land of darkness? Those that will not with angels fear and worship shall for ever with devils fear and tremble; and God therein will be glorified.

3. If we look up to heaven above, we shall see instances of God’s sovereignty and power. (1.) He stretches out the north over the empty place, v. 7. So he did at first, when he stretched out the heavens like a curtain (Ps. 104:2); and he still continues to keep them stretched out, and will do so till the general conflagration, when they shall be rolled together as a scroll, Rev. 6:14. He mentions the north because his country (as ours) lay in the northern hemisphere; and the air is the empty place over which it is stretched out. See Ps. 89:12. What an empty place is this world in comparison with the other! (2.) He keeps the waters that are said to be above the firmament from pouring down upon the earth, as once they did (v. 8): He binds up the waters in his thick clouds, as if they were tied closely in a bag, till there is occasion to use them; and, notwithstanding the vast weight of water so raised and laid up, yet the cloud is not rent under them, for then they would burst and pour out as a spout; but they do, as it were, distil through the cloud, and so come drop by drop, in mercy to the earth, in small rain, or great rain, as he pleases. (3.) He conceals the glory of the upper world, the dazzling lustre of which we poor mortals could not bear (v. 9): He holds back the face of his throne, that light in which he dwells, and spreads a cloud upon it, through which he judges, ch. 22:13. God will have us to live by faith, not by sense; for this is agreeable to a state of probation. It were not a fair trial if the face of God’s throne were visible now as it will be in the great day.

Lest his high throne, above expression bright,

With deadly glory should oppress our sight,

To break the dazzling force he draws a screen

Of sable shades, and spreads his clouds between.

—Sir R. Blackmore

(4.) The bright ornaments of heaven are the work of his hands (v. 13): By his Spirit, the eternal Spirit that moved upon the face of the waters, the breath of his mouth (Ps. 33:6), he has garnished the heavens, not only made them, but beautified them, has curiously bespangled them with stars by night and painted them with the light of the sun by day. God, having made man to look upward (Os homini sublime dedit—To man he gave an erect countenance), has therefore garnished the heavens, to invite him to look upward, that, by pleasing his eye with the dazzling light of the sun and the sparkling light of the stars, their number, order, and various magnitudes, which, as so many golden studs, beautify the canopy drawn over our heads, he may be led to admire the great Creator, the Father and fountain of lights, and to say, "If the pavement be so richly inlaid, what must the palace be! If the visible heavens be so glorious, what are those that are out of sight!’’ From the beauteous garniture of the ante-chamber we may infer the precious furniture of the presence-chamber. If stars be so bright, what are angels! What is meant here by the crooked serpent which his hands have formed is not certain. Some make it part of the garnishing of the heavens, the milky-way, say some; some particular constellation, so called, say others. It is the same word that is used for leviathan (Isa. 27:1), and probably may be meant of the whale or crocodile, in which appears much of the power of the Creator; and why may not Job conclude with that inference, when God himself does so? ch. 41.

II. He concludes, at last, with an awful et caetera (v. 14): Lo, these are parts of his ways, the out-goings of his wisdom and power, the ways in which he walks and by which he makes himself known to the children of men. Here, 1. He acknowledges, with adoration, the discoveries that were made of God. These things which he himself had said, and which Bildad had said, are his ways, and this is heard of him; this is something of God. But, 2. He admires the depth of that which is undiscovered. This that we have said is but part of his ways, a small part. What we know of God is nothing in comparison with what is in God and what God is. After all the discoveries which God has made to us, and all the enquiries we have made after God, still we are much in the dark concerning him, and must conclude, Lo, these are but parts of his ways. Something we hear of him by his works and by his word; but, alas! how little a portion is heard of him? heard by us, heard from us! We know but in part; we prophesy but in part. When we have said all we can, concerning God, we must even do as St. Paul does (Rom. 11:33); despairing to find the bottom, we must sit down at the brink, and adore the depth: O the depth of the wisdom and knowledge of God! It is but a little portion that we hear and know of God in our present state. He is infinite and incomprehensible; our understandings and capacities are weak and shallow, and the full discoveries of the divine glory are reserved for the future state. Even the thunder of his power (that is, his powerful thunder), one of the lowest of his ways here in our own region, we cannot understand. See ch. 37:4, 5. Much less can we understand the utmost force and extent of his power, the terrible efforts and operations of it, and particularly the power of his anger, Ps. 90:11. God is great, and we know him not.

Chapter 27

Job had sometimes complained of his friends that they were so eager in disputing that they would scarcely let him put in a word: "Suffer me that I may speak;’’ and, "O that you would hold your peace!’’ But now, it seems, they were out of breath, and left him room to say what he would. Either they were themselves convinced that Job was in the right or they despaired of convincing him that he was in the wrong; and therefore they threw away their weapons and gave up the cause. Job was too hard for them, and forced them to quit the field; for great is the truth and will prevail. What Job had said (ch. 26) was a sufficient answer to Bildad’s discourse; and now Job paused awhile, to see whether Zophar would take his turn again; but, he declining it, Job himself went on, and, without any interruption or vexation given him, said all he desired to say in this matter. I. He begins with a solemn protestation of his integrity and of his resolution to hold it fast (v. 2-6). II. He expresses the dread he had of that hypocrisy which they charged him with (v. 7–10). III. He shows the miserable end of wicked people, notwithstanding their long prosperity, and the curse that attends them and is entailed upon their families (v. 11–23).

Verses 1-6

Job’s discourse here is called a parable (mashal), the title of Solomon’s proverbs, because it was grave and weighty, and very instructive, and he spoke as one having authority. It comes from a word that signifies to rule, or have dominion; and some think it intimates that Job now triumphed over his opponents, and spoke as one that had baffled them. We say of an excellent preacher that he knows how dominari in concionibus—to command his hearers. Job did so here. A long strife there had been between Job and his friends; they seemed disposed to have the matter compromised; and therefore, since an oath for confirmation is an end of strife (Heb. 6:16), Job here backs all he had said in maintenance of his own integrity with a solemn oath, to silence contradiction, and take the blame entirely upon himself if he prevaricated. Observe,

I. The form of his oath (v. 2): As God liveth, who hath taken away my judgment. Here, 1. He speaks highly of God, in calling him the living God (which means everliving, the eternal God, that has life in himself) and in appealing to him as the sole and sovereign Judge. We can swear by no greater, and it is an affront to him to swear by any other. 2. Yet he speaks hardly of him, and unbecomingly, in saying that he had taken away his judgment (that is, refused to do him justice in this controversy and to appear in defence of him), and that by continuing his troubles, on which his friends grounded their censures of him, he had taken from him the opportunity he hoped ere now to have of clearing himself. Elihu reproved him for this word (ch. 34:5); for God is righteous in all his ways, and takes away no man’s judgment. But see how apt we are to despair of favour if it be not shown us immediately, so poor-spirited are we and so soon weary of waiting God’s time. He also charges it upon God that he had vexed his soul, had not only not appeared for him, but had appeared against him, and, by laying such grievous afflictions upon him had quite embittered his life to him and all the comforts of it. We, by our impatience, vex our own souls and then complain of God that he has vexed them. Yet see Job’s confidence in the goodness both of his cause and of his God, that though God seemed to be angry with him, and to act against him for the present, yet he could cheerfully commit his cause to him.

II. The matter of his oath, v. 3, 4. 1. That he would not speak wickedness, nor utter deceit—that, in general, he would never allow himself in the way of lying, that, as in this debate he had all along spoken as he thought, so he would never wrong his conscience by speaking otherwise; he would never maintain any doctrine, nor assert any matter of fact, but what he believed to be true; nor would he deny the truth, how much soever it might make against him: and, whereas his friends charged him with being a hypocrite, he was ready to answer, upon oath, to all their interrogatories, if called to do so. On the one hand he would not, for all the world, deny the charge if he knew himself guilty, but would declare the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, and take to himself the shame of his hypocrisy. On the other hand, since he was conscious to himself of his integrity, and that he was not such a man as his friends represented him, he would never betray his integrity, nor charge himself with that which he was innocent of. He would not be brought, no, not by the rack of their unjust censures, falsely to accuse himself. If we must not bear false witness against our neighbour, then not against ourselves. 2. That he would adhere to this resolution as long as he lived (v. 3): All the while my breath is in me. Our resolutions against sin should be thus constant, resolutions for life. In things doubtful and indifferent, it is not safe to be thus peremptory. We know not what reason we may see to change our mind: God may reveal to us that which we now are not aware of. But in so plain a thing as this we cannot be too positive that we will never speak wickedness. Something of a reason for his resolution is here implied—that our breath will not be always in us. We must shortly breathe our last, and therefore, while our breath is in us, we must never breathe wickedness and deceit, nor allow ourselves to say or do any thing which will make against us when our breath shall depart. The breath in us is called the spirit of God, because he breathed it into us; and this is another reason why we must not speak wickedness. It is God that gives us life and breath, and therefore, while we have breath, we must praise him.

III. The explication of his oath (v. 5, 6): "God forbid that I should justify you in your uncharitable censures of me, by owning myself a hypocrite: no, until I die I will not remove my integrity from me; my righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go.’’ 1. He would always be an honest man, would hold fast his integrity, and not curse God, as Satan, by his wife, urged him to do, ch. 2:9. Job here thinks of dying, and of getting ready for death, and therefore resolves never to part with his religion, though he had lost all he had in the world. Note, The best preparative for death is perseverance to death in our integrity. "Until I die,’’ that is, "though I die by this affliction, I will not thereby be put out of conceit with my God and my religion. Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him.’’ 2. He would always stand to it that he was an honest man; he would not remove, he would not part with, the conscience, and comfort, and credit of his integrity; he was resolved to defend it to the last. "God knows, and my own heart knows, that I always meant well, and did not allow myself in the omission of any known duty or the commission of any known sin. This is my rejoicing, and no man shall rob me of it; I will never lie against my right.’’ It has often been the lot of upright men to be censured and condemned as hypocrites; but it well becomes them to bear up boldly against such censures, and not to be discouraged by them nor think the worse of themselves for them; as the apostle (Heb. 13:18): We have a good conscience in all things, willing to live honestly.

Hic murus aheneus esto, nil conscire sibi.

Be this thy brazen bulwark of defence,

Still to preserve thy conscious innocence.

Job complained much of the reproaches of his friends; but (says he) my heart shall not reproach me, that is, "I will never give my heart cause to reproach me, but will keep a conscience void of offence; and, while I do so, I will not give my heart leave to reproach me.’’ Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifies. To resolve that our hearts shall not reproach us when we give them cause to do so is to affront God, whose deputy conscience is, and to wrong ourselves; for it is a good thing, when a man has sinned, to have a heart within him to smite him for it, 2 Sa. 24:10. But to resolve that our hearts shall not reproach us while we still hold fast our integrity is to baffle the designs of the evil spirit (who tempts good Christians to question their adoption, If thou be the Son of God) and to concur with the operations of the good Spirit, who witnesses to their adoption.

Verses 7-10

Job having solemnly protested the satisfaction he had in his integrity, for the further clearing of himself, here expresses the dread he had of being found a hypocrite.

I. He tells us how he startled at the thought of it, for he looked upon the condition of a hypocrite and a wicked man to be certainly the most miserable condition that any man could be in (v. 7): Let my enemy be as the wicked, a proverbial expression, like that (Dan. 4:19), The dream be to those that hate thee. Job was so far from indulging himself in any wicked way, and flattering himself in it, that, if he might have leave to wish the greatest evil he could think of to the worst enemy he had in the world, he would wish him the portion of a wicked man, knowing that worse he could not wish him. Not that we may lawfully wish any man to be wicked, or that any man who is not wicked should be treated as wicked; but we should all choose to be in the condition of a beggar, an out-law, a galley-slave, any thing, rather that in the condition of the wicked, though in ever so much pomp and outward prosperity.

II. He gives us the reasons of it.

1. Because the hypocrite’s hopes will not be crowned (v. 8): For what is the hope of the hypocrite? Bildad had condemned it (ch. 8:13, 14), and Zophar (ch. 11:20), and Job here concurs with them, and reads the death of the hypocrite’s hope with as much assurance as they had done; and this fitly comes in as a reason why he would not remove his integrity, but still hold it fast. Note, The consideration of the miserable condition of wicked people, and especially hypocrites, should engage us to be upright (for we are undone, for ever undone, if we be not) and also to get the comfortable evidence of our uprightness; for how can we be easy if the great concern lie at uncertainties? Job’s friends would persuade him that all his hope was but the hope of the hypocrite, ch. 4:6. "Nay,’’ says he, "I would not, for all the world, be so foolish as to build upon such a rotten foundation; for what is the hope of the hypocrite?’’ See here, (1.) The hypocrite deceived. He has gained, and he has hope; this is his bright side. It is allowed that he has gained by his hypocrisy, has gained the praise and applause of men and the wealth of this world. Jehu gained a kingdom by his hypocrisy and the Pharisees many a widow’s house. Upon this gain he builds his hope, such as it is. He hopes he is in good circumstances for another world, because he finds he is so for this, and he blesses himself in his own way. (2.) The hypocrite undeceived. He will at last see himself wretchedly cheated; for, [1.] God shall take away his soul, sorely against his will. Lu. 12:20, Thy soul shall be required of thee. God, as the Judge, takes it away to be tried and determined to its everlasting state. He shall then fall into the hands of the living God, to be dealt with immediately. [2.] What will his hope be then? It will be vanity and a lie; it will stand him in no stead. The wealth of this world, which he hoped in, he must leave behind him, Ps. 49:17. The happiness of the other world, which he hoped for, he will certainly miss of. He hoped to go to heaven, but he will be shamefully disappointed; he will plead his external profession, privileges, and performances, but all his pleas will be overruled as frivolous: Depart from me, I know you not. So that, upon the whole, it is certain that a formal hypocrite, with all his gains and all his hopes, will be miserable in a dying hour.

2. Because the hypocrite’s prayer will not be heard (v. 9): Will God hear his cry when trouble comes upon him? No, he will not; it cannot be expected he should. If true repentance come upon him, God will hear his cry and accept him (Isa. 1:18); but, if he continue impenitent and unchanged, let him not think to find favour with God. Observe, (1.) Trouble will come upon him, certainly it will. Troubles in the world often surprise those that are most secure of an uninterrupted prosperity. However, death will come, and trouble with it, when he must leave the world and all his delights in it. The judgment of the great day will come; fearfulness will surprise the hypocrites, Isa. 33:14. (2.) Then he will cry to God, will pray, and pray earnestly. Those who in prosperity slighted God, either prayed not at all or were cold and careless in prayer, when trouble comes will make their application to him and cry as men in earnest. But, (3.) Will God hear him then? In the troubles of this life, God has told us that he will not hear the prayers of those who regard iniquity in their hearts (Ps. 66:19) and set up their idols there (Eze. 14:4), nor of those who turn away their ear from hearing the law, Prov. 28:9. Get you to the gods whom you have served, Jdg. 10:14. In the judgment to come, it is certain, God will not hear the cry of those who lived and died in their hypocrisy. Their doleful lamentations will all be unpitied. I will laugh at your calamity. Their importunate petitions will all be thrown out and their pleas rejected. Inflexible justice cannot be biassed, nor the irreversible sentence revoked. See Mt. 7:22, 23; Lu. 13:26, and the case of the foolish virgins, Mt. 25:11.

3. Because the hypocrite’s religion is neither comfortable nor constant (v. 10): Will he delight himself in the Almighty? No, not at any time (for his delight is in the profits of the world and the pleasures of the flesh, more than in God), especially not in the time of trouble. Will he always call upon God? No, in prosperity he will not call upon God, but slight him; in adversity he will not call upon God but curse him; he is weary of his religion when he gets nothing by it, or is in danger of losing. Note, (1.) Those are hypocrites who, though they profess religion, neither take pleasure in it nor persevere in it, who reckon their religion a task and a drudgery, a weariness, and snuff at it, who make use of it only to serve a turn, and lay it aside when the turn is served, who will call upon God while it is in fashion, or while the pang of devotion lasts, but leave it off when they fall into other company, or when the hot fit is over. (2.) The reason why hypocrites do not persevere in religion is because they have no pleasure in it. Those that do not delight in the Almighty will not always call upon him. The more comfort we find in our religion the more closely we shall cleave to it. Those who have no delight in God are easily inveigled by the pleasures of sense, and so drawn away from their religion; and they are easily run down by the crosses of this life, and so driven away from their religion, and will not always call upon God.

Verses 11-23

Job’s friends had seen a great deal of the misery and destruction that attend wicked people, especially oppressors; and Job, while the heat of disputation lasted, had said as much, and with as much assurance, of their prosperity; but now that the heat of the battle was nearly over he was willing to own how far he agreed with them, and where the difference between his opinion and theirs lay. 1. He agreed with them that wicked people are miserable people, that God will surely reckon with cruel oppressors, and one time or other, one way or other, his justice will make reprisals upon them for all the affronts they have put upon God and all the wrongs they have done to their neighbours. This truth is abundantly confirmed by the entire concurrence even of these angry disputants in it. But, 2. In this they differed—they held that these deserved judgments are presently and visibly brought upon wicked oppressors, that they travail with pain all their days, that in prosperity the destroyer comes upon them, that they shall not be rich, nor their branch green, and that their destruction shall be accomplished before their time (so Eliphaz, ch. 15:20, 21, 29, 32), that the steps of their strength shall be straitened, that terrors shall make them afraid on every side (so Bildad, ch. 18:7, 11), that he himself shall vomit up his riches, and that in the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits, so Zophar, ch. 20:15, 22. Now Job held that, in many cases, judgments do not fall upon them quickly, but are deferred for some time. That vengeance strikes slowly he had already shown (ch. 21 and 24); now he comes to show that it strikes surely and severely, and that reprieves are no pardons.

I. Job here undertakes to set this matter in a true light (v. 11, 12): I will teach you. We must not disdain to learn even from those who are sick and poor, yea, and peevish too, if they deliver what is true and good. Observe, 1. What he would teach them: "That which is with the Almighty,’’ that is, "the counsels and purposes of God concerning wicked people, which are hidden with him, and which you cannot hastily judge of; and the usual methods of his providence concerning them.’’ This, says Job, will I not conceal. What God has not concealed from us we must not conceal from those we are concerned to teach. Things revealed belong to us and our children. 2. How he would teach them: By the hand of God, that is, by his strength and assistance. Those who undertake to teach others must look to the hand of God to direct them, to open their ear (Isa. 50:4), and to open their lips. Those whom God teaches with a strong hand are best able to teach others, Isa. 8:11. 3. What reason they had to learn those things which he was about to teach them (v. 12), that it was confirmed by their own observation—You yourselves have seen it (but what we have heard, and seen and known, we have need to be taught, that we may be perfect in our lesson), and that it would set them to rights in their judgment concerning him—"Why then are you thus altogether vain, to condemn me for a wicked man because I am afflicted?’’ Truth, rightly understood and applied, would cure us of that vanity of mind which arises from our mistakes. That particularly which he offers now to lay before them is the portion of a wicked man with God, particularly of oppressors, v. 13. Compare ch. 20:29. Their portion in the world may be wealth and preferment, but their portion with God is ruin and misery. They are above the control of any earthly power, it may be, but the Almighty can deal with them.

II. He does it, by showing that wicked people may, in some instances, prosper, but that ruin follows them in those very instances; and that is their portion, that is their heritage, that is it which they must abide by.

1. They may prosper in their children, but ruin attends them. His children perhaps are multiplied (v. 14) or magnified (so some); they are very numerous and are raised to honour and great estates. Worldly people are said to be full of children (Ps. 17:14), and, as it is in the margin there, their children are full. In them the parents hope to live and in their preferment to be honoured. But the more children they leave, and the greater prosperity they leave them in, the more and the fairer marks do they leave for the arrows of God’s judgments to be levelled at, his three sore judgments, sword, famine, and pestilence, 2 Sa. 24:13. (1.) Some of them shall die by the sword, the sword of war perhaps (they brought them up to live by their sword, as Esau, Gen. 27:40, and those that do so commonly die by the sword, first or last), or by the sword of justice for their crimes, or the sword of the murderer for their estates. (2.) Others of them shall die by famine (v. 14): His offspring shall not be satisfied with bread. He thought he had secured to them large estates, but it may happen that they may be reduced to poverty, so as not to have the necessary supports of life, at least not to live comfortably. They shall be so needy that they shall not have a competency of necessary food, and so greedy, or so discontented, that what they have they shall not be satisfied with, because not so much, or not so dainty, as what they have been used to. You eat, but you have not enough, Hag. 1:6. (3.) Those that remain shall be buried in death, that is, shall die of the plague, which is called death (Rev. 6:8), and be buried privately and in haste, as soon as they are dead, without any solemnity, buried with the burial of an ass; and even their widows shall not weep; they shall not have wherewithal to put them in mourning. Or it denotes that these wicked men, as they live undesired, so they die unlamented, and even their widows will think themselves happy that they have got rid of them.

2. They may prosper in their estates, but ruin attends them too, v. 16–18. (1.) We will suppose them to be rich in money and plate, in clothing and furniture. They heap up silver in abundance as the dust, and prepare raiment as the clay; they have heaps of clothes about them, as plentiful as heaps of clay. Or it intimates that they have such abundance of clothes that they are even a burden to them. They lade themselves with thick clay, Hab. 2:6. See what is the care and business of worldly people—to heap up worldly wealth. Much would have more, until the silver is cankered and the garments are moth-eaten, Jam. 5:2, 3. But what comes of it? He shall never be the better for it himself; death will strip him, death will rob him, if he be not robbed and stripped sooner, Lu. 12:20. Nay, God will so order it that the just shall wear his raiment and the innocent shall divide his silver. [1.] They shall have it, and divide it among themselves. In some way or other Providence shall so order it that good men shall come honestly by that wealth which the wicked man came dishonestly by. The wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just, Prov. 13:22. God disposes of men’s estates as he pleases, and often makes their wills against their wills. The just, whom he hated and persecuted, shall have rule over all his labour, and, in due time, recover with interest what was violently taken from him. The Egyptians’ jewels were the Israelites’ pay. Solomon observes (Eccl. 2:26) that God makes the sinners drudges to the righteous; for the sinner he gives travail to gather and heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God. [2.] They shall do good with it. The innocent shall not hoard the silver, as he did that gathered it, but shall divide it to the poor, shall give a portion to seven and also to eight, which is laying up the best securities. Money is like manure, good for nothing if it be not spread. When God enriches good men they must remember they are but stewards and must give an account. What bad men bring a curse upon their families with the ill-getting of good men bring a blessing upon their families with the well-using of. He that by unjust gain increaseth his substance shall gather it for him that will pity the poor, Prov. 28:8. (2.) We will suppose them to have built themselves strong and stately houses; but they are like the house which the moth makes for herself in an old garment, out of which she will soon be shaken, v. 18. He is very secure in it, as a moth, and has no apprehension of danger; but it will prove of as short continuance as a booth which the keeper makes, which will quickly be taken down and gone, and his place shall know him no more.

3. Destruction attends their persons, though they lived long in health and at ease (v. 19): The rich man shall lie down to sleep, to repose himself in the abundance of his wealth (Soul, take thy ease), shall lie down in it as his strong city, and seem to others to be very happy and very easy; but he shall not be gathered, that is, he shall not have his mind composed, and settled, and gathered in, to enjoy his wealth. He does not sleep so contentedly as people think he does. He lies down, but his abundance will not suffer him to sleep, at least not so sweetly as the labouring man, Eccl. 5:12. He lies down, but he is full of tossings to and fro till the dawning of the day, and then he opens his eyes and he is not; he sees himself, and all he has, hastening away, as it were, in the twinkling of an eye. His cares increase his fears, and both together make him uneasy, so that, when we attend him to his bed, we do not find him happy there. But, in the close, we are called to attend his exit, and see how miserable he is in death and after death.

(1.) He is miserable in death. It is to him the king of terrors, v. 20, 21. When some mortal disease seizes him what a fright is he in! Terrors take hold of him as waters, as if he were surrounded by the flowing tides. He trembles to think of leaving this world, and much more of removing to another. This mingles sorrow and wrath with his sickness, as Solomon observes, Eccl. 5:17. These terrors put him either [1.] Into a silent and sullen despair; and then the tempest of God’s wrath, the tempest of death, may be said to steal him away in the night, when no one is aware or takes any notice of it. Or, [2.] Into an open and clamorous despair; and then he is said to be carried away, and hurled out of his place as with a storm, and with an east wind, violent, and noisy, and very dreadful. Death, to a godly man, is like a fair gale of wind to convey him to the heavenly country, but, to a wicked man, it is like an east wind, a storm, a tempest, that hurries him away in confusion and amazement, to destruction.

(2.) He is miserable after death. [1.] His soul falls under the just indignation of God, and it is the terror of that indignation which puts him into such amazement at the approach of death (v. 22): For God shall cast upon him and not spare. While he lived he had the benefit of sparing mercy; but now the day of God’s patience is over, and he will not spare, but pour out upon him the full vials of his wrath. What God casts down upon a man there is no flying from nor bearing up under. We read of his casting down great stones from heaven upon the Canaanites (Jos. 10:11), which made terrible execution among them; but what was that to his casting down his anger in its full weight upon the sinner’s conscience, like the talent of lead? Zec. 5:7, 8. The damned sinner, seeing the wrath of God break in upon him, would fain flee out of his hand; but he cannot: the gates of hell are locked and barred, and the great gulf fixed, and it will be in vain to call for the shelter of rocks and mountains. Those who will not be persuaded now to fly to the arms of divine grace, which are stretched out to receive them, will not be able to flee from the arms of divine wrath, which will shortly be stretched out to destroy them. [2.] His memory falls under the just indignation of all mankind (v. 23): Men shall clap their hands at him, that is, they shall rejoice in the judgments of God, by which he is cut off, and be well pleased in his fall. When the wicked perish there is shouting, Prov. 11:10. When God buries him men shall hiss him out of his place, and leave on his name perpetual marks of infamy. In the same place where he has been caressed and cried up he shall be laughed at (Ps. 52:7) and his ashes shall be trampled on.

Chapter 28

The strain of this chapter is very unlike the rest of this book. Job forgets his sores, and all his sorrows, and talks like a philosopher or a virtuoso. Here is a great deal both of natural and moral philosophy in this discourse; but the question is, How does it come in here? Doubtless it was not merely for an amusement, or diversion from the controversy; though, if it had been only so, perhaps it would not have been much amiss. When disputes grow hot, better lose the question than lose our temper. But this is pertinent and to the business in hand. Job and his friends had been discoursing about the dispensations of Providence towards the wicked and the righteous. Job had shown that some wicked men live and die in prosperity, while others are presently and openly arrested by the judgments of God. But, if any ask the reason why some are punished in this world and not others, they must be told it is a question that cannot be answered. The knowledge of the reasons of state in God’s government of the world is kept from us, and we must neither pretend to it nor reach after it. Zophar had wished that God would show Job the "secrets of wisdom’’ (ch. 11:6). No, says Job, "secret things belong not to us, but things revealed,’’ Deu. 29:29. And here he shows, I. Concerning worldly wealth, how industriously that is sought for and pursued by the children of men, what pains they take, what contrivances they have, and what hazards they run to get it (v. 1–11). II. Concerning wisdom (v. 12). In general, the price of it is very great; it is of inestimable value (v. 15–19). The place of it is very secret (v. 14, 20, 22). In particular, there is a wisdom which is hidden in God (v. 23–27) and there is a wisdom which is revealed to the children of men (v. 28). Our enquiries into the former must be checked, into the latter quickened, for that is it which is our concern.

Verses 1-11

Here Job shows, 1. What a great way the wit of man may go in diving into the depths of nature and seizing the riches of it, what a great deal of knowledge and wealth men may, by their ingenious and industrious searches, make themselves masters of. But does it therefore follow that men may, by their wit, comprehend the reasons why some wicked people prosper and others are punished, why some good people prosper and others are afflicted? No, by no means. The caverns of the earth may be discovered, but not the counsels of heaven. 2. What a great deal of care and pains worldly men take to get riches. He had observed concerning the wicked man (ch. 27:16) that he heaped up silver as the dust; now here he shows whence that silver came which he was so fond of and how it was obtained, to show what little reason wicked rich men have to be proud of their wealth and pomp. Observe here,

I. The wealth of this world is hidden in the earth. Thence the silver and the gold, which afterwards they refine, are fetched, v. 1. There they lay mixed with a great deal of dirt and dross, like a worthless thing, of no more account than common earth; and abundance of them will so lie neglected, till the earth and all the works therein shall be burnt up. Holy Mr. Herbert, in his poem called Avarice, takes notice of this, to shame men out of the love of money:—

Money, thou bane of bliss, thou source of woe,

Whence com’st thou, that thou art so fresh and fine?

I know thy parentage is base and low;

Man found thee poor and dirty in a mine.

Surely thou didst so little contribute

To this great kingdom which thou now hast got

That he was fain, when thou wast destitute,

To dig thee out of thy dark cave and grot.

Man calleth thee his wealth, who made thee rich,

And while he digs out thee falls in the ditch.

Iron and brass, less costly but more serviceable metals, are taken out of the earth (v. 2), and are there found in great abundance, which abates their price indeed, but is a great kindness to man, who could much better be without gold than without iron. Nay, out of the earth comes bread, that is, bread-corn, the necessary support of life, v. 5. Thence man’s maintenance is fetched, to remind him of his own original; he is of the earth, and is hastening to the earth. Under it is turned up as it were fire, precious stones, that sparkle as fire—brimstone, that is apt to take fire—coal, that is proper to feed fire. As we have our food, so we have our fuel, out of the earth. There the sapphires and other gems are, and thence gold-dust is digged up;, v. 6. The wisdom of the Creator has placed these things, 1. Out of our sight, to teach us not to set our eyes upon them, Prov. 23:5. 2. Under our feet, to teach us not to lay them in our bosoms, nor to set our hearts upon them, but to trample upon them with a holy contempt. See how full the earth is of God’s riches (Ps. 104:24) and infer thence, not only how great a God he is whose the earth is and the fulness thereof (Ps. 24:1), but how full heaven must needs be of God’s riches, which is the city of the great King, in comparison with which this earth is a poor country.

II. The wealth that is hidden in the earth cannot be obtained but with a great deal of difficulty. 1. It is hard to be found out: there is but here and there a vein for the silver, v. 1. The precious stones, though bright themselves, yet, because buried in obscurity and out of sight, are called stones of darkness and the shadow of death. Men may search long before they light on them. 2. When found out it is hard to be fetched out. Men’s wits must be set on work to contrive ways and means to get this hidden treasure into their hands. They must with their lamps set an end to darkness; and if one expedient miscarry, one method fail, they must try another, till they have searched out all perfection, and turned every stone to effect it, v. 3. They must grapple with subterraneous waters (v. 4, 10, 11), and force their way through rocks which are, as it were, the roots of the mountains, v. 9. Now God has made the getting of gold, and silver, and precious stones, so difficult, (1.) For the exciting and engaging of industry. Dii laboribus omnia vendunt—Labour is the price which the gods affix to all things. If valuable things were too easily obtained men would never learn to take pains. But the difficulty of gaining the riches of this earth may suggest to us what violence the kingdom of heaven suffers. (2.) For the checking and restraining of pomp and luxury. What is for necessity is had with a little labour from the surface of the earth; but what is for ornament must be dug with a great deal of pains out of the bowels of it. To be fed is cheap, but to be fine is chargeable.

III. Though the subterraneous wealth is thus hard to obtain, yet men will have it. He that loves silver is not satisfied with silver, and yet is not satisfied without it; but those that have much must needs have more. See here, 1. What inventions men have to get this wealth. They search out all perfection, v. 3. They have arts and engines to dry up the waters, and carry them off, when they break in upon them in their mines and threaten to drown the work, v. 4. They have pumps, and pipes, and canals, to clear their way, and, obstacles being removed, they tread the path which no fowl knoweth (v. 7, 8), unseen by the vulture’s eye, which is piercing and quick-sighted, and untrodden by the lion’s whelps, which traverse all the paths of the wilderness. 2. What pains men take, and what vast charge they are at, to get this wealth. They work their way through the rocks and undermine the mountains, v. 10. 3. What hazards they run. Those that dig in the mines have their lives in their hands; for they are obliged to bind the floods from overflowing (v. 11), and are continually in danger of being suffocated by damps or crushed or buried alive by the fall of the earth upon them. See how foolish man adds to his own burden. He is sentenced to eat bread in the sweat of his face; but, as if that were not enough, he will get gold and silver at the peril of his life, though the more is gotten the less valuable it is. In Solomon’s time silver was as stones. But, 4. Observe what it is that carries men through all this toil and peril: Their eye sees every precious thing, v. 10. Silver and gold are precious things with them, and they have them in their eye in all these pursuits. They fancy they see them glittering before their faces, and, in the prospect of laying hold of them, they make nothing of all these difficulties; for they make something of their toil at last: That which is hidden bringeth he forth to light, v. 11. What was hidden under ground is laid upon the bank; the metal that was hidden in the ore is refined from its dross and brought forth pure out of the furnace; and then he thinks his pains well bestowed. Go to the miners then, thou sluggard in religion; consider their ways, and be wise. Let their courage, diligence, and constancy in seeking the wealth that perisheth shame us out of slothfulness and faint-heartedness in labouring for the true riches. How much better is it to get wisdom than gold! How much easier and safer! Yet gold is sought for, but grace neglected. Will the hopes of precious things out of the earth (so they call them, though really they are paltry and perishing) be such a spur to industry, and shall not the certain prospect of truly precious things in heaven be much more so?

[5]

Chapter 25

Bildad shows that man cannot be justified before God.

Bildad drops the question concerning the prosperity of wicked men; but shows the infinite distance there is between God and man. He represents to Job some truths he had too much overlooked. Man’s righteousness and holiness, at the best, are nothing in comparison with God’s, Ps 89:6. As God is so great and glorious, how can man, who is guilty and impure, appear before him? We need to be born again of water and of the Holy Ghost, and to be bathed again and again in the blood of Christ, that Fountain opened, Zec 13:1. We should be humbled as mean, guilty, polluted creatures, and renounce self-dependence. But our vileness will commend Christ’s condescension and love; the riches of his mercy and the power of his grace will be magnified to all eternity by every sinner he redeems.

Chapter 26

Job reproves Bildad

1–4

Job acknowledges the power of God

5–14

Verses 1–4

Job derided Bildad’s answer; his words were a mixture of peevishness and self-preference. Bildad ought to have laid before Job the consolations, rather than the terrors of the Almighty. Christ knows how to speak what is proper for the weary, Isa 50:4; and his ministers should not grieve those whom God would not have made sad. We are often disappointed in our expectations from our friends who should comfort us; but the Comforter, the Holy Ghost, never mistakes, nor fails of his end.

Verses 5–14

Many striking instances are here given of the wisdom and power of God, in the creation and preservation of the world. If we look about us, to the earth and waters here below, we see his almighty power. If we consider hell beneath, though out of our sight, yet we may conceive the discoveries of God’s power there. If we look up to heaven above, we see displays of God’s almighty power. By his Spirit, the eternal Spirit that moved upon the face of the waters, the breath of his mouth, Ps 33:6, he has not only made the heavens, but beautified them. By redemption, all the other wonderful works of the Lord are eclipsed; and we may draw near, and taste his grace, learn to love him, and walk with delight in his ways. The ground of the controversy between Job and the other disputants was, that they unjustly thought from his afflictions that he must have been guilty of heinous crimes. They appear not to have duly considered the evil and just desert of original sin; nor did they take into account the gracious designs of God in purifying his people. Job also darkened counsel by words without knowledge. But his views were more distinct. He does not appear to have alleged his personal righteousness as the ground of his hope towards God. Yet what he admitted in a general view of his case, he in effect denied, while he complained of his sufferings as unmerited and severe; that very complaint proving the necessity for their being sent, in order to his being further humbled in the sight of God.

Chapter 27

Job protests his sincerity

1–6

The hypocrite is without hope

7–10

The miserable end of the wicked

11–23

Verses 1–6

Job’s friends now suffered him to speak, and he proceeded in a grave and useful manner. Job had confidence in the goodness both of his cause and of his God; and cheerfully committed his cause to him. But Job had not due reverence when he spake of God as taking away his judgment, and vexing his soul. To resolve that our hearts shall not reproach us, while we hold fast our integrity, baffles the designs of the evil spirit.

Verses 7–10

Job looked upon the condition of a hypocrite and a wicked man, to be most miserable. If they gained through life by their profession, and kept up their presumptuous hope till death, what would that avail when God required their souls? The more comfort we find in our religion, the more closely we shall cleave to it. Those who have no delight in God, are easily drawn away by the pleasures, and easily overcome by the crosses of this life.

Verses 11–23

Job’s friends, on the same subject, spoke of the misery of wicked men before death as proportioned to their crimes; Job considered that if it were not so, still the consequences of their death would be dreadful. Job undertook to set this matter in a true light. Death to a godly man, is like a fair gale of wind to convey him to the heavenly country; but, to a wicked man, it is like a storm, that hurries him away to destruction. While he lived, he had the benefit of sparing mercy; but now the day of God’s patience is over, and he will pour out upon him his wrath. When God casts down a man, there is no flying from, nor bearing up under his anger. Those who will not now flee to the arms of Divine grace, which are stretched out to receive them, will not be able to flee from the arms of Divine wrath, which will shortly be stretched out to destroy them. And what is a man profited if he gain the whole world, and thus lose his own soul?

Chapter 28

Concerning wordly wealth

1–11

Wisdom is of inestimable value

12–19

Wisdom is the gift of God

20–28

Verses 1–11

Job maintained that the dispensations of Providence were regulated by the highest wisdom. To confirm this, he showed of what a great deal of knowledge and wealth men may make themselves masters. The caverns of the earth may be discovered, but not the counsels of Heaven. Go to the miners, thou sluggard in religion, consider their ways, and be wise. Let their courage and diligence in seeking the wealth that perishes, shame us out of slothfulness and faint-heartedness in labouring for the true riches. How much better is it to get wisdom than gold! How much easier, and safer! Yet gold is sought for, but grace neglected. Will the hopes of precious things out of the earth, so men call them, though really they are paltry and perishing, be such a spur to industry, and shall not the certain prospect of truly precious things in heaven be much more so?

Verses 12–19

Job here speaks of wisdom and understanding, the knowing and enjoying of God and ourselves. Its worth is infinitely more than all the riches in this world. It is a gift of the Holy Ghost which cannot be bought with money. Let that which is most precious in God’s account, be so in ours. Job asks after it as one that truly desired to find it, and despaired of finding it any where but in God; any way but by Divine revelation. [6]

25:2 In referring to God’s dominion and fear,  Bildad seems to be responding to Job’s comments (in 23:13–17) that the very thought of God’s sovereignty made him afraid.

25:4 Bildad repeats the previous rhetorical questions posed by Job (see 9:2) and Eliphaz (see 4:17; 15:14) to emphasize that a person cannot be righteous or pure before the Lord.

25:5, 6 Bildad’s view of God’s dominion and majesty in the heavens causes him to devalue mortal man as a maggot. He responds insensitively to Job by suggesting that Job does not need to wait until he dies to be grouped with the maggots (the same Hebrew word that Job used in 17:14). This was caustic sarcasm, for Job was in fact covered with worms (see 7:5).

26:2–4 How have: Rather than presenting genuine questions, these verses are probably sarcastic exclamations by Job to imply how little Bildad has helped him. To paraphrase Job: “You’ve really been a big help to me! How encouraging that you tell me I’m nothing but a worm (see 25:6)! Finally my cries for help have been answered.”

[7]

26:7 the north over empty space: The Hebrew word translated north probably does not refer to a geographical designation (see Ps. 48:1, 2, where the same Hebrew term describes God’s mountain), but to God’s dwelling place in the heavens (see v. 9, which mentions God’s throne). If the statement that God hangs the earth on nothing (see Gen. 1:2) refers to the suspension of earth in space, it preceded Newton’s concept of gravitational attraction by thousands of years. Though this may ultimately be the divine intent, it is not clear that Job himself would have understood the complete meaning of his own words. He probably thought, as did other ancients, that the earth was a circular disk (see v. 10) supported by nothing. In other words, he thought of the earth as floating on the vast subterranean waters.

26:10, 11 Job’s graphic description of the circular horizon and the pillars of heaven—probably the mountains that held up the heavens in ancient cosmology—pictures the way the earth appears to the human eye.

26:12, 13 With his power God controls the sea, which was a symbol of evil and chaos. The highly figurative language may express the power of God over creation in a wide variety of ways. Here the sea and storm are merely creatures under the control of the Creator.

26:14 This is one of the most stunning of all the verses in the Bible that describe the power of God. Job asserts that if we truly considered God’s great power, we would know that what we observe of creation represents the mere edges of His garment—just His whisper. What would happen to us if ever He were to thunder?

27:1 Moreover Job continued his discourse: The different editorial formula for introducing the speaker (as in 29:1) suggests something unusual. Perhaps Job had paused briefly to wait for Zophar before he continued speaking.

27:2 As God lives: These words reflect part of an oath formula used in ancient courts. Job paradoxically combines these words with two accusations against God. According to Job, the living God is the very one who has denied him justice—his legal right to due process. Job swears in the name of the divine Judge who, as his opponent, has perverted justice in His own favor. He alleges that God has made him bitter. Though Job repeatedly complained of a bitter spirit (see 7:11; 10:1), the Lord did not cause him to respond that way. Job’s responses only exposed the attitude that lay deep within his being. The message of the Lord for Job was that no matter what the circumstances, one should resolutely trust in God (see 40:8; 42:1–6).

27:4, 5 Job denies that he would use the tactics of his so-called friends (see 13:7). He not only refuses to speak wickedness, he will not lie nor attempt to defend himself. you: This Hebrew plural (also in vv. 11, 12) refers to all of Job’s three friends. Job maintains that they are erroneous in their reasoning, and to agree with them would be to compromise his integrity.

27:5, 6 Job’s determination to hold fast his righteousness and integrity was remarkable. The Hebrew word translated hold fast also occurs in 2:9. Though Job believed that God had taken away a fair trial (v. 2), he would not put away his integrity. He persevered despite the discouraging words of his wife and friends.

27:7–12 In this imprecatory prayer, Job wishes that his enemy would receive the fate reserved for the wicked. Since he turns the words of his friends back against them, he may be alluding to his friends collectively as an enemy who rises up against him and deserves the fate of the wicked.

27:10, 11 Job returns Eliphaz’s own advice back to him (in 22:22–27). Whereas Eliphaz counseled Job to turn to the Almighty for instruction and to delight in Him, Job denies that a godless person would turn to God, much less delight himself in the Almighty. Therefore, Job insists that Eliphaz and his friends should turn to the Almighty and receive instruction.

27:13–23 Since these verses sound more like the friends’ words than Job’s, some scholars assign them to Zophar or Bildad. However since Job had a fondness for turning the words of his friends back in their faces, these verses may be a satirical paraphrase of the friends’ teaching about the fate of the wicked (see 24:18–25).

27:17 Job’s prediction that the innocent will divide the silver may foreshadow what happens to Job himself in 42:11.

28:1–28 This is a magnificent wisdom hymn that is naturally divided into three stanzas by the refrain of vv. 12, 20, with v. 28 serving as a conclusion. The rhetorical questions in the initial refrains (v. 12) link the first two stanzas which provide a negative answer: (1) Though human ingenuity can discover precious metals, it cannot find true wisdom (vv. 1–11). (2) People cannot find wisdom because they cannot fathom its value, which is beyond silver or gold (vv. 12–19). The final stanza (vv. 21–28) supplies a positive answer to the questions of the refrain (v. 20): Only God knows true wisdom, the wisdom He has placed in the fabric of creation (vv. 21–27) and has revealed to humanity (v. 28).

28:2–4 The mention of iron being mined from the earth implies a time after the beginning of the Iron Age (around 1200 b.c.) for the writing of the Book of Job.

28:6 The term translated sapphires probably means lapis lazuli.

[8]

25:1, 2 In referring to God’s dominion and fear, Bildad seems to be responding to Job’s comments (23:13–17) that the very thought of God’s sovereignty made him afraid.

25:3, 4 Bildad repeats the previous rhetorical questions posed by Job (9:2) and Eliphaz (4:17; 15:14) to emphasize that a person cannot be righteous or pure before the Lord.

25:5, 6 Bildad’s view of God’s dominion and majesty in the heavens causes him to devalue mortal man as a maggot. He responds insensitively to Job by suggesting that Job does not need to wait until he dies to be grouped with the maggots (the same Hebrew word that Job used in 17:14). This was caustic sarcasm, for Job was in fact covered with worms (7:5).

26:1–4 How have: Rather than presenting genuine questions, these verses are probably sarcastic exclamations by Job to imply how little Bildad has helped him. To paraphrase Job: “You’ve really been a big help to me! How encouraging that you tell me I’m nothing but a worm (25:6)! Finally my cries for help have been answered.”

26:5, 6 The words of these verses echo the thoughts of God’s omnipotence found in the Psalms (Ps. 139:7–12). While Sheol and Destruction—that is, death or the place of the dead—were fearful, hidden concepts to Job and his contemporaries, they caused no fear and held no secrets for the all-knowing God.

26:7, 8 the north over empty space: The Hebrew word translated north probably does not refer to a geographical designation (the same Hebrew term describes God’s mountain in Ps. 48:1, 2) but to God’s dwelling place in the heavens (v. 9 mentions God’s throne). If the statement that God hangs the earth on nothing (Gen. 1:2) refers to the suspension of earth in space, it preceded Newton’s concept of gravitational attraction by thousands of years. Though this may ultimately be the divine intent, it is not clear that Job himself would have understood the complete meaning of his own words. He probably thought, as did other ancients, that the earth was a circular disk (v. 10) supported by nothing. In other words, he thought of the earth as floating on the vast subterranean waters.

26:9 The translation throne (Heb. kisseh, an alternate spelling of the word, kisse˒, “throne”) follows the Masoretic Text, which is probably correct. However, some translate “full moon” (changing the word to keseh, an alternate spelling of kese˒).

26:10, 11 Job’s graphic description of the circular horizon and the pillars of heaven—probably the mountains that held up the heavens in ancient cosmology—pictures the way the earth appears to the human eye.

26:12, 13 With his power God controls the sea, which was a symbol of evil and chaos. The highly figurative language may express the power of God over creation in a wide variety of ways. Here the sea and storm are merely creatures under the control of the Creator.[9]

26:14 This is one of the most stunning of all the verses in the Bible that describe the power of God. Job asserts that if we truly considered God’s great power, we would know that what we observe of creation represents the mere edges of His garment—just His whisper. What would happen to us if ever He were to thunder?

27:1 Moreover Job continued his discourse: The different editorial formula for introducing the speaker (as in 29:1) suggests something unusual. Perhaps Job had paused briefly to wait for Zophar before he continued speaking.

27:2, 3 As God lives: These words reflect part of an oath formula used in ancient courts. Job paradoxically combines these words with two accusations against God. According to Job, the living God is the very one who has denied him justice—his legal right to due process. Job swears in the name of the divine Judge who, as his opponent, has perverted justice in His own favor. He alleges that God has made him bitter. Though Job repeatedly complained of a bitter spirit (7:11; 10:1), the Lord did not cause him to respond that way. Job’s responses only exposed the attitude that lay deep within his being. The message of the Lord for Job was that no matter what the circumstances, one should resolutely trust in God (40:8; 42:1–6).

27:4, 5 Job denies that he would use the tactics of his so-called friends (13:7). He not only refuses to speak wickedness, he will not lie nor attempt to defend himself. you: This Hebrew plural (vv. 11, 12) refers to all of Job’s three friends. Job maintains that they are erroneous in their reasoning, and to agree with them would be to compromise his integrity.

27:5, 6 Job’s determination to hold fast his righteousness and integrity was remarkable. The Hebrew word translated hold fast also occurs in 2:9. Though Job believed that God had taken away a fair trial (v. 2), he would not put away his integrity. He persevered despite the discouraging words of his wife and friends.

27:7–12 In this imprecatory prayer, Job wishes that his enemy would receive the fate reserved for the wicked. Since he turns the words of his friends back against them, he may be alluding to his friends collectively as an enemy who rises up against him and deserves the fate of the wicked.

27:10–12 Job returns Eliphaz’s own advice back to him (22:22–27). Whereas Eliphaz counseled Job to turn to the Almighty for instruction and to delight in Him, Job denies that a godless person would turn to God, much less delight himself in the Almighty. Therefore, Job insists that Eliphaz and his friends should turn to the Almighty and receive instruction.

 [10]

owever, since Job had a fondness for turning the words of his friends back in their faces, these verses may be a satirical paraphrase of the friends’ teaching about the fate of the wicked (24:18–25).

27:17 Job’s prediction that the innocent will divide the silver may foreshadow what happens to Job himself in 42:11.

28:1–28 This is a magnificent wisdom hymn that is naturally divided into three stanzas by the refrain of vv. 12, 20, with v. 28 serving as a conclusion. The rhetorical questions in the initial refrains (v. 12) link the first two stanzas which provide a negative answer: (1) Though human ingenuity can discover precious metals, it cannot find true wisdom (vv. 1–11). (2) People cannot find wisdom because they cannot fathom its value, which is beyond silver or gold (vv. 12–19). The final stanza (vv. 21–28) supplies a positive answer to the questions of the refrain (v. 20): Only God knows true wisdom, the wisdom He has placed in the fabric of creation (vv. 21–27) and has revealed to humanity (v. 28).

28:1–5 The mention of iron being mined from the earth implies a time after the beginning of the Iron Age (around 1200 b.c.) for the writing of the Book of Job.

[11]

15. Bildad: How Can We Be Righteous? (25:1–6)

This is Bildad’s third and last speech, and it is very short. He and the others have run out of things to say to Job. Already they have become repetitious. Zophar has no third speech, and we hear no more of any of them until 42:7.

(1) God’s Greatness (25:1–3)

1Then Bildad the Shuhite replied:

2“Dominion and awe belong to God;

he establishes order in the heights of heaven.

3Can his forces be numbered?

Upon whom does his light not rise?

Happily Bildad did not end his and the friends’ portion of the book on a caustic and critical note. Instead he began with another look at the greatness of God. In this way he, like Job and his friends elsewhere, foreshadowed the revelation of God in the whirlwind (chaps. 38–41).

25:1 See comments at 4:1.

25:2 Bildad began his first two speeches with insults and irony (8:2; 18:2), much as Job did in his response (26:2–4). It is a welcome change to hear him begin with this lofty and worshipful theological statement. God rules. He reigns. He resides in the “heights,” where all is šālôm, “peace/order.”

25:3 These two rhetorical questions underscore two divine attributes: God is powerful; he is the Lord of hosts.‍‍ And second, his revelation of himself is universal (cf. Ps 19:1–6[2–7]).

(2) Human Failure at Being Right (25:4–6)

4How then can a man be righteous before God?

How can one born of woman be pure?

5If even the moon is not bright

and the stars are not pure in his eyes,

6how much less man, who is but a maggot—

a son of man, who is only a worm!”

Bildad turned from the perfections of God to the imperfections of humanity. In light of divine demands, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). Compared to God, the Creator, the Sovereign, the Judge, we are but maggots and worms.

25:4 With these two questions Bildad emphasized the fact of total depravity. Sin has infected the entire race. Each one inherits it from parents because all of us are “born of woman.” Eliphaz asked similar questions in 4:17, and so did Job in 14:4.

25:5 Speaking cosmically and with hyperbole, Bildad faulted “the moon” and “stars,” created bodies incapable of sin, with failure to please God.‍‍ This too is reminiscent of something Eliphaz said in 15:15–16.

25:6 Certainly people cannot be pure in God’s sight because each is “a son of man” or “a descendant of Adam.” Paul, speaking of our common Father, said, “The first man was of the dust of the earth. . . . As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth” (1 Cor 15:47–48). But Bildad spoke in terms of “maggots” and “worms” (cf. Ps 22:6[7]; Isa 14:11), an extreme depiction that seems to deny human worth and dignity as God-given (cf. 7:17–20; Gen 1:26–27; 5:1–3; Ps 8:4–5).‍‍ Thus he concluded his short speech, and “on this disgusting and hopeless note the words of Job’s friends end.”‍‍

16. Job’s Review of Themes: Divine Sovereignty, His Own Innocence, and the Fate of the Wicked (26:1–14)

After an initial retaliatory flurry of insults, Job filled the rest of chap. 26 with observations about the Creator and his creation. This is where Job’s words, more than at any other point, anticipated the theophany. Such passages point to the unity of the authorship of the book, but they also raise the question of why Job needed God to impress these facts on him when he seemed to understand so well already.

(1) Insult with Irony (26:1–4)

1Then Job replied:

2“How you have helped the powerless!

How you have saved the arm that is feeble!

3What advice you have offered to one without wisdom!

And what great insight you have displayed!

4Who has helped you utter these words?

And whose spirit spoke from your mouth?

The brief and unoffensive speech of Bildad hardly warranted this bitter response from Job, but the pronouns are singular, so he most likely was addressing the Shuhite.‍‍ Certainly it is true that Bildad’s words were not helpful and offered no new insights. Perhaps Job was hoping for something more—sympathy, comfort, support, a truly helpful perspective, wise counsel, or affirmation. Hearing only more of what he had heard before, he even may have cut Bildad off by butting in or with the wave of a hand.

26:1 See comments at 6:1.

26:2 The four exclamations or rhetorical questions that begin this section have the effect of saying that his friend’s counsel has neither “helped the powerless” nor “saved the arm that is feeble.” Several times earlier Job spoke of his lack of strength, especially in the face of God’s omnipotence (6:11–13; 9:19; 12:16; 24:22), so he alluded to himself in these two lines.

26:3 Likewise, none of them “displayed/made known” any “advice” or “great insight.” The friends failed physically (v. 2) and intellectually (v. 3) to help their suffering comrade.

26:4 The first line is awkward. The Hebrew text has only “With whom did you utter words?” The gist of the question is like that of the second line—Whence came this information that is so lacking in profundity and so helpless in its effects? By these words Job rejected their counsel, their subtle accusations, and their neat and inflexible theology of retribution.

(2) God’s Absolute Control (26:5–14)

5“The dead are in deep anguish,

those beneath the waters and all that live in them.

6Death is naked before God;

Destruction lies uncovered.

7He spreads out the northern skies over empty space;

he suspends the earth over nothing.

8He wraps up the waters in his clouds,

yet the clouds do not burst under their weight.

9He covers the face of the full moon,

spreading his clouds over it.

10He marks out the horizon on the face of the waters

for a boundary between light and darkness.

11The pillars of the heavens quake,

aghast at his rebuke.

12By his power he churned up the sea;

by his wisdom he cut Rahab to pieces.

13By his breath the skies became fair;

his hand pierced the gliding serpent.

14And these are but the outer fringe of his works;

how faint the whisper we hear of him!

Who then can understand the thunder of his power?”

Abruptly Job launched into this magnificent hymn that sings of the powers God himself revealed to him at the end of the book. The focus is on cosmic evidences of divine power far beyond human control or understanding. God is the subject of most of the verbs. The elements have no will of their own. Also the verbs are in the active voice, as God is active in the administration of his cosmos. The chapter concludes with one of the loftiest and most beautiful expressions in the entire Bible: “These are but the outer fringe of his works.”

26:5 The meaning of this verse is uncertain. “The dead” are rĕpā˒îm, “ghosts/shades/spirits of the deceased,” and they are parallel to “those beneath the waters.” As Bildad just spoke of God’s dominion over the heights, so now Job speaks of that rule in the depths. All who are there “writhe” in abjection before him from whom nothing is hidden.

26:6 “Death” and “Destruction” are translations of Hebrew “Sheol” and “Abaddon,” as the NIV footnote indicates. The capital letters indicate the translators’ ambivalence about whether these should be personified with Hebrew names or translated as common nouns (cf. 28:22; 31:12; Prov 15:11; 27:20; Ps 88:11[12]). My earlier remarks about Job’s use of popular mythology, specifically about Yam and Leviathan in 3:8, Rahab in 9:13, and Mot in 18:13, also apply here. Hebrews 4:13 interprets this verse: “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”

26:7 Echoes of Gen 1 sound here, especially in the choice of tōhû, “empty space” (cf. Gen 1:2, “formless”). Some commentators remind us that pagans considered the north to be the dwelling of the gods.‍‍ Even if Job had that in mind, line a indicates that that sacred mountain was created by the God our hero honored. Job’s assertion that the earth hangs on nothing is amazingly accurate and certainly counters the charge that the Bible’s writers held that the earth stood on something else.

26:8 Another advanced meteorological observation appears next. Clouds are water, but in the language of poetry they appear as overstuffed bags. Job was intrigued, knowing how heavy water was, that it did not always and immediately fall from the clouds.

26:9 The NIV follows Ibn Ezra and those who read “full moon” (RSV, AB, JB, NAB, NEB, GNB, NASB) rather than “throne” (KJV, ASV, AT, NJPS).‍‍ “Spreading” is widely agreed on although it translates an unusual verb form.‍‍ Again the point of the verse is that God is in complete control of celestial phenomena, uncovering “the grave” in v. 6 but covering the “moon” in v. 9.

26:10 Yet another prescientific observation contributes to the fascination of this passage. “The horizon/circle”‍‍ is that dividing point from the viewer’s perspective between what can be seen (“light”) and what cannot (“darkness”), separating the lighted world above the ground and water from the dark world under the ground or water. Technicalities aside, both here and in Gen 1 the important fact is that God is the subject of the verb. The earth and the heavens are his design and his handiwork (Ps 19:1; Prov 8:27, 29; Isa 40:22).

26:11 The description of “pillars” rebuked and quaking‍‍ demonstrates the poet’s artistic imagination (cf. 9:6; 26:7). Why would God “rebuke” heaven’s pillars? Job chose these figures to describe the rumbling of the thunder (v. 14). Verses 11–12 portray a storm, while v. 13 depicts the subsequent calm. As a servant quakes at the rebuke of his master, so the heavens thunder in subjection to God’s will.

26:12 The verb rg˓ has two opposite meanings—“divide/churn” or “calm/rest.”‍‍ “Churn” links the verse with the preceding. “Calm” would link it to the following. The NIV’s choice makes the two lines approximate parallels. Rahab was the mythical monster of the deep, supposedly responsible for tempestuous seas; however, no creature, real or imaginary, is beyond God’s control. The behemoth and leviathan chapters (40–41) also make this point.

26:13 If one chose “calm” in v. 12a, a case could be made for vv. 12–13 paralleling each other thus:

A   calm

B   Rahab

A   fair

B   serpent

As it is, however, “the skies became fair” because “his hand pierced the gliding serpent.”‍‍ He put to death the source of the oceans’ agitation (cf. Mark 4:39).

26:14 Job concluded this poem with the astute observation that all these celestial and terrestrial manifestations of divine power “are but the outskirts of his ways” (ASV). We mortals do not see or appreciate what is behind these operations of the universe. When we hear God speak through wind and thunder, it is only his “whisper.”‍‍ Job’s final question is still with us, “Who could understand” if he spoke in full voice, that is, with “the thunder of his power?” With finite minds we, like Job, seek to grasp the ways of God, forgetting what he said in Isa 55:8–9.

“My thoughts are not your thoughts,

neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD.

As the heavens are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Beginning in chap. 38 Yahweh “whispered” to Job out of the storm.

17. Job’s Ongoing Discourse (27:1–23)

The introductory formula is different from any of the preceding chapters. Zophar should have replied, and it is likely that Job waited for him to do so. When he did not, Job began speaking (cf. 29:1). The features of this last speech in the debate cycle are characteristic of Job’s other speeches. He protested his innocence and spoke of the fate of the wicked. Because vv. 13–23 sound more like what the friends had been saying, these verses can be understood as a quotation of them introduced by Job’s term “meaningless words” at the end of v. 12.‍‍

(1) Protest of Innocence (27:1–6)

1And Job continued his discourse:

2“As surely as God lives, who has denied me justice,

the Almighty, who has made me taste bitterness of soul,

3as long as I have life within me,

the breath of God in my nostrils,

4my lips will not speak wickedness,

and my tongue will utter no deceit.

5I will never admit you are in the right;

till I die, I will not deny my integrity.

6I will maintain my righteousness and never let go of it;

my conscience will not reproach me as long as I live.

As in other places through the course of this debate, Job asserts his innocence (cf. 6:29–30; 9:15, 20–21; 10:2; 13:23; 16:17; 19:7; 23:10–12). Since this is the last time our hero addresses his friends, there is more vehemence in his voice, and we can imagine his fists clenched tighter than ever.

27:1 In typically wordy semitic fashion this introduction literally reads, “And Job continued lifting up his parable/proverb/speech,‍‍ and he said.” This separate introduction indicates that chap. 27 is distinct from chap. 26. Apparently there was no response from Zophar, so Job simply “continued.”

27:2 Verses 2–3 introduce the oath, the essence of which is in vv. 4–6. He invoked two of the standard names for God, ˒ēl and šadday, and, by way of apposition, charged him with “turning aside his legal case” and “embittering his soul.” For Job, as for anyone convinced of the former charge, the latter charge followed naturally. “Bitterness” usually is the first spontaneous reaction when we draw a miserable lot in life.

27:3 The third common name for “God” is here (˒ĕlôah), along with two more synonyms for “soul” (nepeš in v. 2): “life” (nišmâ) and “breath” (rûaḥ). Job would sooner die than compromise his integrity by admitting to sins he did not commit. He would not fabricate a confession simply to placate his friends. That, in itself, would be a sin.

27:4 Job 13:7 has the same two synonyms for “wickedness” and “deceit” as we find here. But there Job charged his friends with speaking falsely, something that he here forbad himself to do. The lies he refused to tell are in the next verses. He vigorously repudiated his friends’ explanation for his suffering.

27:5 A strong exclamation (“far be it from me!” or “God forbid!”‍‍) opens the first line. Admitting that they were right on this issue would mean denying his “integrity,”‍‍ an idea that repulsed Job.

27:6 Once more and with different words, Job averred his innocence. “Righteousness,” ṣdq in its nominal, verbal, and adjectival forms, is also widespread in Job; but elsewhere in the Old Testament its sense is broader than “integrity.”‍‍

(2) Curse on Enemies (27:7–10)

7“May my enemies be like the wicked,

my adversaries like the unjust!

8For what hope has the godless when he is cut off,

when God takes away his life?

9Does God listen to his cry

when distress comes upon him?

10Will he find delight in the Almighty?

Will he call upon God at all times?

Verse 7 is Job’s imprecation on his enemy (singular or generic), and the other three verses describe God’s treatment of such wicked people. It is unclear who the enemy was, whether the most recent antagonist or all three of the friends, or perhaps all who had treated Job disrespectfully. Verses 8–10 are somewhat out of character for him since they describe bad things happening to bad people. That is what the friends usually said, not Job.

27:7 Bildad had accused Job of being “wicked” (rāšā˓, 18:5, 22) and “unjust” (˓awwāl, 18:21), and the other two had done the same;‍‍ now Job prayed that Bildad (or all three friends) might be punished as the wicked deserve. Some of the trouble and trust psalms are freighted with imprecations (Pss 35:1–8, 22–26; 69:22–28[23–29]; 109:6–20, especially v. 17). The curses are usually tied to the nature of the abuse the psalmist suffered at the hands of the ones he cursed. While not recommended procedure for Christians (Rom 12:14; 1 Cor 4:12), imprecation did serve a legal purpose and constituted a nonviolent form of retaliation.‍‍

27:8 The verbs “cut off” and “take away”‍‍ describe the death of the “godless.” That seems out of chronological order in view of unheard and unanswered prayer in the next verse, but logical or chronological considerations in composition were not necessary in making his point.

27:9 Actually, God would not “listen to his cry” if the godless were alive, much less “cut off” as v. 8 indicated. All these rhetorical questions in vv. 8–10 expect a negative answer. On the other hand, Job earlier said that wicked people had neither room nor time for God (21:14–15); so it is unlikely they would call to him unless, as is often the case, “distress comes upon him” (cf. 35:12; Isa 1:15; Mic 3:4). Trouble turns all sorts of godless people to God.

27:10 No, the ungodly find no “delight in the Almighty” (see comment at 22:26). No, they rarely call upon God, so he does not respond on those occasions of extreme distress when they do cry out.

(3) Fate of the Wicked (27:11–23)

11“I will teach you about the power of God;

the ways of the Almighty I will not conceal.

12You have all seen this yourselves.

Why then this meaningless talk?

13“Here is the fate God allots to the wicked,

the heritage a ruthless man receives from the Almighty:

14However many his children, their fate is the sword;

his offspring will never have enough to eat.

15The plague will bury those who survive him

and their widows will not weep for them.

16Though he heaps up silver like dust

and clothes like piles of clay,

17what he lays up the righteous will wear,

and the innocent will divide his silver.

18The house he builds is like a moth’s cocoon,

like a hut made by a watchman.

19He lies down wealthy, but will do so no more;

when he opens his eyes, all is gone.

20Terrors overtake him like a flood;

a tempest snatches him away in the night.

21The east wind carries him off, and he is gone;

it sweeps him out of his place.

22It hurls itself against him without mercy

as he flees headlong from its power.

23It claps its hands in derision

and hisses him out of his place.

Since the “you” is plural, Job clearly addressed all three friends in these two verses. The problem turns on whether vv. 13–23 are Job’s teaching “about the power of God” or (more likely) the “meaningless talk” he quoted from them. Because the canonical shape of the book must have made sense to its first readers and there is no compelling reason to emend the text, it is best to understand these verses as Job’s.

INTRODUCTION (27:11–12). These two verses serve as an introduction to what follows in this chapter and perhaps even to chap. 28, for which there is no introduction.

27:11 Job spoke of God’s “power” in his first response to Zophar (12:13) and most recently in response to Bildad (26:12, 14).‍‍ That he intended to “teach” more than simply God’s power is evident by the broader parallel phrase in line b, literally, “whatever is with the Almighty.”

27:12 The first line is reminiscent of 12:3c; 13:1–2a; 16:2a. Job maintained that his side of the argument was also patently obvious, that is, that the righteous sometimes suffer and the wicked often prosper. The long quotation of the friends’ position is introduced and caricatured as jabbering gibberish.‍‍

TERRORS THE WICKED CAN EXPECT (27:13–23). As noted above, many commentators posit that this is the lost third speech of Zophar. Since it lacks the introductory formula common to all the other speeches, we are understanding it as Job’s quotation of their position, which he has just labeled “meaningless talk.” Several subjects in these verses reflect things the friends said to Job through the course of the dialogue.

27:13 Within this section v. 13 is another introduction. After it follows the assorted tragedies that are here called the “fate” and the “heritage” of the “wicked” and “ruthless.”

27:14 Eliphaz in 5:4, Bildad in 8:4 and 18:19, and Zophar in 20:10 all indirectly connected Job’s alleged sin to the fate of his children. It was the old popular theology that children suffered for their parents’ misdeeds (see comment on 21:19).

27:15 The usual word for “death” (māwet)‍‍ is read as “plague.”‍‍ The NIV has followed the LXX and Syriac in reading the singular pronoun as a collective, translating “their widows,” to avoid an allusion to polygamy; but why should wicked men not have multiple wives?‍‍

27:16 Verses 16 and 17 form one sentence structured chiastically with several lexical parallels.‍‍ The wicked may accumulate money and clothes (v. 16), but they will eventually forfeit to the righteous/innocent both clothes and money (v. 17). The accumulation of material goods is not limited to a modern Western phenomenon.

27:17 According to Job, he who dies with the most clothes and silver does not win anything but loses all. The happy prospect for the “righteous” and “innocent” is that they will enjoy these goods left behind by those whose behavior is exactly the opposite. Proverbs 28:8 and Eccl 2:26 both address this anomaly with the same results (cf. Jas 5:1–5).

27:18 The moth’s house is a cocoon, a frail and temporary shelter, and the shack a watchman sets up only for the duration of the harvest is similarly flimsy and impermanent. Both are gone with the turn of the seasons, and, by analogy, so will the elaborate dwellings of the wicked disintegrate. Bildad’s illustration in 8:14–15 was “a spider’s web” (cf. Luke 12:16–34).

27:19 The overall message of the verse is clear—wealth can disappear overnight. The verb translated “will do so no more” has been emended from ˒sp, “gather,” to ysp, “add/repeat,” on the basis of the LXX and because it makes better sense.‍‍

27:20 Some advocate emending kammayim, “like a flood” (lit. “the waters”), to a form of yāmîm, “days,” so that line a has a parallel to “night” in line b.‍‍ Water and floods, however, are found elsewhere in Job as illustrations of disasters or punishment (14:19; 20:28; 22:11, 16; 24:18).

27:21 As in v. 20, where the agent of destruction was “a tempest,” here “the east wind” is the vehicle God uses to eliminate the wicked.‍‍

27:22 The metaphor of the punishing storm that began in v. 20 continues through v. 23. The wind blows against the wicked man and his house. But the man finds there is no way to “flee” its punishing blasts.‍‍ Job spoke in this vein when he described the plight of the victims of oppressors in chap. 24. Now those wretched conditions will be the lot of the oppressors themselves. For those who have not made a friend of God, there is no shelter in the time of storm.

27:23 The two verbs that describe the sound of the storm were chosen for onomatopoetic and alliterative reasons. “It claps” is yiśpōq‍‍ and “hisses” is yišrōq.‍‍ Thus the wicked comes to his end, blown away by the shrieking wind, erased from the face of the earth. To these sentiments the three friends would assent, but for Job, God’s moral administration of the world was not that simple.

This is the end of the debate cycle. The four contenders have not come to any resolution. Fortunately truth is not determined by popular vote. We will hear no more from the three friends, but Job has much yet to discuss, including the source of real wisdom.

SECTION OUTLINE

IV. THE WISDOM CHAPTER (28:1-28)

1.   Wisdom Cannot Be Mined (28:1-11)

2.   Wisdom Cannot Be Bought (28:12-19)

3.   Wisdom Cannot Be Found (28:20-22)

4.   Wisdom Is with God (28:23-28)

IV. THE WISDOM CHAPTER (28:1–28)

The wisdom chapter is distinct from anything in the Book of Job. Commentators discuss whether these are Job’s words or those of the author/ editor(s) of the book or some combination of those.‍‍ As with the rest of the book, it seems best to credit the substance of the speeches to the speakers named but believe that the Holy Spirit worked through an inspired author to turn the whole into the magnificent literary masterpiece that has come down to us.

As chap. 3 served as an interlude between the prose introduction and the debate cycle, so chap. 28 serves as an interlude between the debate cycle and the four major sections that follow. Efforts to explain why it should be elsewhere in the book and theories about its origin are speculative and diverse.

Chapter 28 is a little beyond the halfway point in the book as a whole. Job and his three friends have been unable to resolve the tension that Job’s experience presents, that is, the suffering of a good man. The readers, of course, know from the first two chapters that Job is a test case that God chose to prove the Satan wrong about why people worship God. This chapter provides the readers a chance to reflect on the dilemma from the point of view of those who do not know the whole story. With its conclusion that God is the repository of all wisdom, it looks forward to the concluding chapters of the book where God makes that point repeatedly with his many questions about the operation of the universe.

The chapter is about wisdom, a topic touched on only randomly so far. As is characteristic of the wisdom literature of the Bible and other ancient Near Eastern writings, wisdom is described as elusive and precious, something that can only be had through “the fear of the Lord” (v. 28). Job would have been a wisdom book without this chapter, but its inclusion raises the value of Job to even loftier heights.

1. Wisdom Cannot Be Mined (28:1–11)

1“There is a mine for silver

and a place where gold is refined.

2Iron is taken from the earth,

and copper is smelted from ore.

3Man puts an end to the darkness;

he searches the farthest recesses

for ore in the blackest darkness.

4Far from where people dwell he cuts a shaft,

in places forgotten by the foot of man;

far from men he dangles and sways.

5The earth, from which food comes,

is transformed below as by fire;

6sapphires come from its rocks,

and its dust contains nuggets of gold.

7No bird of prey knows that hidden path,

no falcon’s eye has seen it.

8Proud beasts do not set foot on it,

and no lion prowls there.

9Man’s hand assaults the flinty rock

and lays bare the roots of the mountains.

10He tunnels through the rock;

his eyes see all its treasures.

11He searches the sources of the rivers

and brings hidden things to light.

The author evidenced considerable familiarity with mining methods. Poetically and graphically he portrayed the inaccessibility of precious ores and the extreme measures human beings have taken to extract them. Not much changed in the thousands of years between Job and the California gold rush of 1849 and the Colorado rush a decade later.‍‍ This passage could be a description of the challenge and the meeting of that challenge from the second millennium b.c. or the nineteenth century of our era.

28:1 The chapter opens with the simple chiastically‍‍ arranged statement of the two basic steps in the production of precious metals. First is the mine;‍‍ then there is the smelter or the refining process because only rarely are these metals found unmixed with worthless gravel or rock. “Wisdom” is not mentioned until v. 12, but at many points there is an analogy between it and mining.‍‍ Wisdom is precious like silver and needs refining like gold.

28:2 From the nobler elements, gold and silver, the poet moved to the more common but functional ones, iron and copper. Deuteronomy 8:9 spoke of “a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills.”‍‍ The verb is “pour/smelt” and is found only here and in 29:6.‍‍

28:3 “Man” was supplied by the translators‍‍ for the subject of the verb here and in the following verses. Verse 3 has three words for “darkness,” words that are scattered through this book but in altogether different contexts. Such repetition may have prompted the Greek translators to abridge this chapter to half the length of the Hebrew.‍‍ This verse begins the section on hard rock mining versus placer or surface mining. The result of digging into the ground is that light is brought into the darkness.‍‍

28:4 Mines were and are often located in the most inaccessible and inhospitable places, not the places “where people dwell.” Unknown, unexplored, and unmapped, they could be described as “forgotten.” The most vivid scene of all is the miners swinging on ropes as they lowered themselves down vertical shafts in order to access the drifts or horizontal passageways where the exposed veins were being worked. It was a scary and dangerous business, but the rewards could be great if they struck it rich.‍‍

28:5 While vegetation grows on the surface, below ground miners turned the earth upside down, meaning that they exposed the insides of mountains. Lacking explosives and pneumatic hammers, ancient miners would crack the rock by heating it with “fire.” Two other explanations are that this line refers to a volcanic eruption or to the miners’ torches.‍‍

28:6 “Sapphires,” sappîr, appear also in v. 16 among other jewels. Here sapphires rather than silver are coupled with “gold.” The Hebrew syntax is almost nonexistent, just a list of words that translators must put together into sentences. Neither of these treasures had utilitarian value, but both had great commercial value.‍‍

28:7 With v. 8 there are four varieties of wild animals who have never explored (underground) for these jewels and metals. Verse 7 lists two kinds of birds, the first an unspecified raptor‍‍ and the second a peregrine “falcon.” These are the fowl with especially good eyesight, but even they do not discover what the ambitious miner finds.

28:8 “Lion” in the second line helps define the creatures in the first line who are called in Hebrew “sons of pride,” from a word that occurs only here and 41:34[26].‍‍ As the falcon rules the skies, the lion rules the land. Yet no lion has ever been down a mine shaft or found wisdom.

28:9 In his effort to locate the gold vein and silver-bearing ore, the miner “assaults”‍‍ the “flint”‍‍ and “lays bare” or brings to the surface the lowest parts of the mountains. The latter verb is the same as “transformed” in v. 5b.‍‍

28:10 The verb “tunnels” translates both the verb “cleave/split/ chop” and its object “rivers/channels” or “galleries” (NEB). It is a moment of special triumph for a miner to break away rock and realize he has hit pay dirt. With special joy “his eyes see all its treasures.” Would that people ferreted out wisdom with equal effort and viewed its discovery as a treasure.

28:11 Two adjustments of the Hebrew text were necessary to arrive at the reading of the first line, a reading that most commentators and modern versions adopt.‍‍ Tailing piles spilling down from mountainside mines are the innards of the earth that miners have “brought to light.” With luck they have not discarded the treasures with the trash. R. Gordis conveys the point thus: “All hidden material things man can bring to light, but not Wisdom, the light of the world.”‍‍

 [12]

25:1–6 Bildad’s third speech: ‘How can a man be righteous before God?’

Something seems wrong with the text at this point. Bildad’s speech begins without the usual address and is only five verses long. There is no speech from Zophar at all, and there are three speeches of Job in a row (chs. 26, 27–28, 29) without any words from the friends. Some of the passages in Job’s speeches here do not sound like him at all. Perhaps Bildad’s speech was originally 25:2–6 plus 26:5–14. As Bildad’s speech now stands, it is rather like some of the thoughts of Eliphaz, especially the idea that as compared with God there is nothing in the world that is perfectly clean (4–6; cf. 4:17–19). The gulf that separates humans from God is highlighted by Bildad’s opening words about the power of God, whose armies are without number (2–3). The same theme of God’s all-powerful rule is continued in 26:5–14, if these verses also are really Bildad’s.

26:1–14 Job’s ninth speech: ‘Your advice has been useless’

We seem to have in ch. 26 only the opening fragment of a speech by Job, a taunt against Bildad that says he has been of no help. Job’s reply is all the more appropriate if Bildad’s previous speech had included 26:5–14, stressing the power of God. It is all very well, Job would then mean, to tell me about the majesty of God, but of what use is that to one like myself who is powerless (2)? And how can your praise for the wisdom of God (7, 12) possibly help someone like myself who is supposed to be without wisdom (3)? Perhaps Job’s speech continues in ch. 27.

5–14 These verses are perhaps really part of Bildad’s third speech. They reflect on the wisdom and power of God. God is the one who could create the universe by hanging the earth upon nothing (7). Various aspects of the creation are mentioned, many of them not in Genesis, e.g. building the pillars of heaven (11) and marking out the horizon in a circle (10). There are references too to other creation stories, in which creation was spoken of as a victory by God over the monsters of chaos (Rahab, 12; the gliding serpent, Leviathan, 13). God’s creative power continues even now, of course. He wraps up the waters in his clouds (8), the waterskins of the sky, and covers the face of the moon (9) during its different phases. But the main point is that these proofs of God’s greatness that are visible and known to humans are but the outer fringe of his works, and convey only a faint whisper of the thunder of his power (14). Humans cannot hope to comprehend the real God, but can catch only a glimpse of him.

27:1–28:28 Job’s tenth speech: the wisdom of God

Again we face the problem of who is really speaking in these chapters. There is no doubt that in 27:2–12 we have the genuine voice of Job, but perhaps the rest of chs. 27 and 28 are not from his lips. He surely is not repeating the same stale ideas on the fate of the wicked that the friends have uttered (27:13–23). Perhaps 27:13–28:28 was originally the third speech of Zophar; for the themes we find here, the fate of the wicked (27:13–23), the secret wisdom of God (28:1–27) and the duty of humans to do righteousness and avoid evil (28:28), have previously been made by Zophar in 11:7–20.

27:2–12 ‘I will never abandon my integrity’. God has denied Job justice (2), and though his friends continue to judge him to be in the wrong (5), Job intends to maintain that he is righteous (6). Anyone who attacks Job’s innocence lies under Job’s curse and will suffer the fate of the wicked (7–10). Job now knows so much about the hidden ways of the Almighty that he can teach anyone what he has learned from experience. Yet the friends themselves ought already to have learned from listening to Job all that he has to teach them (12). Considering what they have heard so far, the surprising thing is that their speeches have been so meaningless (12).

27:13–23 The fate of a wicked man. After Job’s passionate self-defence, this section reads rather dully. It contains only the traditional ideas we have met before about the fate of the wicked. This fact suggests that it is no longer Job’s speech but perhaps Zophar’s. The fate of a wicked man is here pictured as what happens to his family, his wealth and his own person. His children are destined to be killed by the sword or plague (14–15), his wealth is left to other more righteous people than him (16–19), while he himself is carried off as if by flood, whirlwind or devastating east wind (20–23). Obviously, much of the fate of the wicked man has already happened to Job. This fits with Zophar’s attitude throughout the book: ‘God has even forgotten some of your sin’ (11:6).

28:1–28 ‘Where may wisdom be found?’. The theme of this majestic poem is that ‘wisdom’ is unattainable by humans. That is not the practical kind of wisdom taught by the book of Proverbs but rather full understanding of the world and the order according to which it runs. This use of ‘wisdom’ would make sense to the author of Ecclesiastes, who stresses that humans ‘cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end’ (Ec. 3:11; cf. 8:17). This poem sounds somewhat strange coming from Job, since it is only after God has spoken to him at length (chs. 38–41) that he comes to accept its ideas (cf. 42:3). This is another reason for thinking that it was originally part of Zophar’s speech.

There is a great gulf between human and divine wisdom, but we do not need to belittle human wisdom in order to magnify the wisdom of God. The poem begins as a hymn of praise to the ingenuity of humankind (1–11) and only then goes on to say that even so true wisdom is beyond their grasp and is known only to God (12–27). What is given to humans is not ‘wisdom’, but the knowledge of God’s law: what is wisdom for humans is to live in the fear of the Lord (28).

1–11 Just one example of the wisdom of humans is chosen: their ability to mine metals hidden beneath the surface of the earth. Four mined metals are noted (1–2). Lamps are used underground (3). It is a dangerous and isolated job the miner does: he dangles and sways (4) as he descends the shaft. There is a paradox in mining: on the surface peaceful farming goes on, while underneath there may be a violent over-turning of obstacles to get at the metal (5, 9). Through their wisdom, humans have created beneath the earth paths unknown to birds and beasts (7–8) and have made themselves masters of the earth (11).

12–28 Plainly the ‘wisdom’ that cannot be found by searching is something different from human technological wisdom. The poet does not tell us immediately what he means but allows a suspenseful climax to build up which increasingly shows the impossibility of obtaining this wisdom. Its place is unknown (12), and so too the way to it (13); it cannot be valued in gold or silver or precious stones (15–19). The world itself does not know where it is to be found (14). Even the supernatural powers of Destruction (the underworld) and Death know no more of it than a rumour (22). But God knows all about it (23); for it is his own wisdom, which he used in establishing the creation (24–27). This supernatural knowledge of the universe and its purpose and the laws that govern it is inaccessible to humans. What has been given to humans, however, is another kind of wisdom, one which is more manageable and practicable. It is a wisdom that consists in doing: to fear the Lord, i.e. true religion, and to shun evil (28) is what constitutes wisdom for humans.[13]

I.    Bildad’s Denunciations (25:1–6): Bildad gives the final rebuke of Job’s three friends.

A.  God is powerful (25:1–3): Bildad begins by asserting that God is powerful.

B.  No one is righteous (25:4–6): Bildad tells Job that no one can stand before God and claim to be righteous.

II.    Job’s Defense (26:1–31:40): Job begins his final defense before his friends.

A.  How have you helped anyone? (26:1–4): Job rebukes his critics by asking whom they have helped by their comments.

B.  Creation is but a minor work of God (26:5–14): Job reminds his friends that the entire universe is only a feeble example of God’s mighty power!

C.  A twofold vow (27:1–6): Job vows to speak no evil and to maintain his innocence until he dies.

D.  The godless have no hope (27:7–23): Job notes that the godless are ultimately headed for destruction.

E.  Finding valuable things (28:1–11): Job notes how humans have amazing ways to find and extract valuables from the earth.

F.   Wisdom cannot be found or bought (28:12–21): Wisdom is far more valuable than precious metals and stones. It cannot simply be discovered by people or bought for a price.[14]

Vers. 1–6.—Far from accepting Job’s challenge, and grappling with the difficulty involved in the frequent, if not universal, prosperity of the wicked, Bildad, in his weak reply, entirely avoids the subject, and limits himself to briefly touching two old and well-worn topics—the might of God (vers. 2, 3) and the universal sinfulness of men. On neither of these two points does he throw any fresh light. He avoids, however, the reckless charges of Eliphaz (ch. 22:5–9) as well as the coarse menaces of Zophar (ch. 20:5–29).

Vers. 1, 2.—Then answered Bildad the Shuhite, and said, Dominion and fear are with him (i.e. with God). God is the absolute Sovereign of the universe, to whom, therefore, all created beings must perforce submit themselves. He is also terrible in his might, so that for their own sakes men should submit to his decrees. Through his active sovereignty, and the fear which he inspires, he maketh peace in his high places. The meaning may be that, through these high attributes, God maintains peace among the dwellers in the supernal regions; but beyond this there is a possible allusion to a time in which peace was disturbed, and the Almighty had to “make” it, or re-establish it. (On the subject of the “war in heaven,” and the defeat and subjection of the rebels, see the comment on ch. 9:13.)

Ver. 3.—Is there any number of his armies? (comp. Ps. 68:17, “The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of angels;” and Dan. 7:10, “Thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him;” see also 2 Kings 6:16, 17; Matt. 26:53; Heb. 12:22; Rev. 9:16). The number of the angels at any given time must be a definite one. But as there is nothing to limit the further exercise of creative power in this direction, the possible number is indefinite. And upon whom doth not his light arise? Upon what being among all the countless thousands whom he hath created, or will create, does not the brightness of his effulgence shine in such sort that they are illumined by him, and themselves shine with a mere reflected splendour?

Ver. 4.—How then can man be justified with God? If God’s creatures have no brightness of their own, and, when they shine, shine only with a reflected radiance, then certainly can no man be justified by his own merits. “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). Or how can he be clean that is born of a woman? (comp. ch. 14:4, “Who shall bring a clean thing out of an unclean? Not one;” and the comment ad loc.).

Ver. 5.—Behold even to the moon, and it shineth not. Observe, i.e., all that is purely bright in creation, “even to the moon,” the most purely bright object of all, and consider that in God’s sight, compared to his radiance, it has no brightness—“it shineth not.” Or turn your attention from the moon to the stars, rivals of the moon in purity and brilliance, and reflect that the stars are not pure in his sight. A sort of dusky veil overspreads them.

Ver. 6.—How much less man, that is a worm? And the son of man, which is a worm? (comp. Ps. 22:6). How much less can man be pure in God’s sight! An undoubted truth, or rather, perhaps, a truism, but not to the point, for Job has never really maintained that he is without sin (see ch. 7:20, 21; 9:2, 20, etc.). He has only maintained that his sins have not been of such a character as to account for his sufferings.

HOMILETICS

Vers. 1–6.—Bildad to Job: The greatness of God and the littleness of man: an old sermon reproduced. I. The greatness of God. To impress Job with suitable conceptions of the ineffable majesty of that Divine Being before whom he desires so confidently and, as it appeared to the speaker, so irreverently to come (ch. 23:3–5), Bildad depicts God’s dominion as: 1. Absolute in its character. “Dominion is with him” (ver. 2); i.e. as it is with no other. Earthly potentates derive their sovereignty from him (Prov. 8:15; 1 Pet. 2:14). He also is the Fountain of authority for whatever principalities and powers exist in the heavenly places (Col. 1:16). But dominion exists in God essentially, absolutely, permanently. The uncreated, underived, and governmental supremacy of God is exhibited in Scripture with singular lucidity and fulness (Gen. 14:19; Deut. 10:14; 2 Kings 19:15; 1 Chron. 29:11; Ps. 95:3; Matt. 11:25; Rev. 19:6). 2. Awe-inspiring in its influence. “Dominion and fear are with him” (ver. 2), the term “fear” defining the effect produced upon the creaturely imagination by the sublime majesty of the unnamed Deity, Bildad’s omission of that Deity’s name being a striking illustration of the precise import of his words. Reverential awe is the proper attitude for a creature to assume in presence of God (Deut. 5:29; 10:12; Josh. 24:14; 2 Kings 17:36; Ps. 2:11); who should be feared by the inhabitants of earth generally (Ps. 33:8), by his redeemed ones especially (Exod. 15:11; Ps. 89:17), by such as would serve him acceptably (Heb. 12:28), by those who would dwell with him continually (Rev. 11:18), by angelic hosts (Isa. 6:2) and glorified saints (Rev. 15:4). This fear should be based on the majestical government of God, as Lord of heaven and earth. 3. Peaceful in its efficiency. “He maketh peace in his high places” (ver. 2), i.e. “among the celestial beings immediately surrounding him” (Delitzsch); producing (1) harmony instead of discord, quenching all symptoms of internal dissension, and, where internecine warfare may have broken out, restoring the contending combatants to a state of tranquil amity; (2) reconciliation instead of estrangement, pointing probably to some sublime act of mediation by which the holy angels were confirmed in obedience (e.g. the enthronement of Christ as Mediator: Candlish, ‘The Fatherhood of God,’ p. 279); and (3) subjugation instead of revolt, exhibiting his power so effectively against the rebel angels that they are completely prevented from working harm against his throne or empire, but are kept in chains against the judgment of the great day. As God rules in heaven, so also does he reign on earth in and through Christ, who is our Peacemaker (Eph. 2:14), having by his incarnation made peace (unity instead of division) between Jew and Gentile, by his cross produced at-one-ment (the reconciliation of both in one body unto God), and by his power will ultimately effect the complete subjugation of his foes (1 Cor. 15:24–28). 4. Illimitable in its sway. “Is there any number of his armies?” (ver. 3). The armies alluded to are (1) the angels (Ps. 103:21), who are represented in Scripture as an innumerable (Ps. 68:17; Heb. 12:22; Rev. 5:11) host, arrayed in military order (Dan. 4:35), whose shining legions are led on by the power of the supreme Creator (Ps. 104:4; Matt. 25:31), every individual member thereof being promptly obedient to that Creator’s will (Zech. 6:5; Matt. 24:21; Heb. 1:14). (2) The stars, which also are in Scripture depicted as an army (Isa. 40:26), are discovered by modern science to be immensely more numerous than ever entered into the mind of Bildad to conceive. Though not intended by Bildad, God’s armies may be said also to include (3) the creatures generally, which are all in his hand and under his control. 5. Beneficent in its administration. “And upon whom doth not his light arise?” (ver. 3). (1) The light of his material sun, whose cheering beams, created (Gen. 1:16) and directed by him, diffuse themselves abroad upon the face of earth (Ps. 19:6), awaking life, imparting health, producing beauty, inspiring joy, blessing all creatures animate and inanimate, rational and irrational, good and bad alike (Matt. 5:45). A sunless earth would be an arctic region of perpetual ice, a dismal chamber of horrors, a prison-house of misery, a cheerless sepulchre of death. Besides being signal demonstrations of God’s creative wisdom and power, the making of light and the disposition of it in a central orb are striking tokens of his goodness. (2) The light of his providential favour, in respect of which he is styled “the Father of lights” (Jas. 1:17). The goodness of God, like the light of the sun, is freely flowing (Jas. 1:5), far-extending (Ps. 33:5), allenriching (Ps. 145:9), never-failing (Ps. 100:5). As the Divine beneficence blesses all God’s terrestrial creatures, we may rest assured it does not forget his celestial armies of saints and angels. (3) The light of his gracious truth, which is also set forth in Scripture under the emblem of light (Isa. 2:5; 9:2; John 12:35; 2 Cor. 4:4). Christ, in whom that light is embodied (John 1:4; 9:5), is characterized as the true Light (John. 1:8, 9), being designed for the saving illumination of the spiritually benighted, collectively and individually. The light of his gospel is destined to circle round the earth like the sun (Ps. 19:4; Rom. 10:18). 6. All-transcending in its splendour. “Whom doth not his light surpass?” (Delitzsch). The resplendent Ruler of the numberless legions of heaven is One whose glory, i.e. as a personal Sovereign, outshines in radiance that of each and all of those beings of light over whom he reigns. These latter have no light they derive not from him, as the moon and planets have none they receive not from the sun, and Christians none that does not come to them from Christ, round whom they revolve like attendant satellites; and so the glory which the angels or other creatures have is as no glory by reason of “the glory that excelleth.”

II. The littleness of man. With a painful lack of originality, Bildad, the master of ancient laws and popular traditions, quietly appropriates a sentiment which already Eliphaz has uttered (ch. 4:17–21; 15:14–16), and to which even Job had assented (ch. 9:2; 14:4), that in comparison with so transcendently glorious a Being man must for ever be immeasurably insignificant and mean. 1. Guilty. “How then can man be justified with God?” (ver. 4). The argument is aà fortiori: If these radiant beings constituting God’s celestial armies would never think of contending with him in order to establish the faultless purity of their characters, it is simply monstrous to suppose that a frail man, whose feebleness is the result of a depraved moral constitution, would ever succeed in securing acquittal before the bar of a holy God. The language implies (1) that no man can be justified by works—a doctrine pervading both the Old and New Testaments (ch. 9:2; Ps. 143:2; Isa. 57:12; Rom. 3:20; Eph. 2:9; Titus 3:5); (2) that if a man is to be justified, it must be by grace (Gen. 15:6; Ps. 32:2; Rom. 3:24; 5:21; Titus 3:7), i.e. without works and by faith; while it seems also to teach (3) that the legal standing of the angels before the throne is not of works any more than man’s—a doctrine of which obscure hints are believed to be found in Scripture (cf. Candlish’s ‘Fatherhood of God,’ lect. vi. p. 250). 2. Impure. “How can he be clean that is born of a woman?” (ver. 4). In Bildad’s estimation the moral defilement of man is (1) involved in his origin, as being the child of woman—a sentiment in which Job (cf. ch. 14:1, 4) and Eliphaz (ch. 15:14) alike concur (cf. homiletics, in loc.); (2) proved by his station: “Behold even to the moon, and it shineth not; yea, the stars are not pure in his sight: how much less, then, man?” (vers. 5, 6). Bildad, soaring at a lower altitude than Eliphaz (ch. 4:18), contrasts the glory of God with the purity of his highest creatures. The incomparable brilliance of an Oriental evening sky is attested by travellers; yet the pale, clear, silver whiteness of the moon’s light, and the sparkling lustre of the starry orbs, become dimmed beside the insufferable radiance of the Divine glory (1 Tim. 6:16). The imperfection of the highest creatures being thus established, it follows that man, one of the lowest (physically considered), cannot be pure. 3. Feeble. “Man that is a worm, and the son of man that is a worm” (ver. 6). Man is compared by Eliphaz to a dweller in a mud hut (ch. 4:19), and by Job to a flower springing up from the soil (ch. 14:2). He is here likened to a worm bred by putrefaction, i.e. a mean, despicable, and insignificant creature (Ps. 22:6), which he is (1) in comparison with the rest of creation (Ps. 8:3, 4; Isa. 41:24), but much more (2) in comparison with the God of creation (Isa. 40:22).

Learn: 1. The claim God has on the reverential homage of his creatures. 2. The antiquity of the gospel doctrine of justification by faith. 3. The humility man should cultivate in thinking of himself. 4. The infinite condescension of him who is the Lord of all the armies of light in becoming a worm and no man. 5. The transcendent glory of Divine grace which contemplates the elevation of “man that is a worm, and the son of man that is a worm,” to a position higher than the stars or the angels; yea, to a partnership in that very dominion (Rev. 3:21) which belongs to God.

HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS

Vers. 1–6.—The majesty of God and the weakness of man. Leaving untouched the perplexing question of the prosperity of bad men, Bildad makes the point of his attack upon Job his assertions of innocence (ch. 23:10–12). His object is to insist that, the distance between man and God being infinite, man cannot enter into controversy with God, nor can he be pure in his eyes. The address of Bildad consists mainly of repetitions from the previous discourses of Eliphaz (ch. 4:17, sqq.; 15:14, sqq.)—descriptions of the majesty and sublimity of God. In reply, Job seizes the opportunity offered by his antagonist, and, after a few bitter words of self-vindication, proceeds to outvie and far surpass Bildad in his description of the greatness of God.

I. God’s majesty; and application. (Vers. 2–4.) 1. Absolute power, carrying with it overwhelming awe into the minds of his subjects—a power which has quelled the earlier discord of heaven and made peace in those heights—is associated with God (ver. 2). He is “Lord of hosts,” and those hosts are innumerable—the stars of heaven, the angels who inhabit and guide them (ch. 15:15); and all the marvellous forces of nature—winds, lightnings, waves (ch. 38:19–21; Ps. 104:4), which do his bidding (ver. 3). 2. He is the absolute Light, from which all others are but reflected and derived. It is his garment and his glory (Ps. 104:2; Ezek. 1:27, 28; 1 Tim. 6:16). It blesses and cheers all that lives (Matt. 5:45). No living creature is exempt from its all-pervading beams. Then how can a mortal be just with God? How can man, in his feebleness, enter into court and contend with absolute Power (comp. ch. 9:2)? Thus the speaker would convict Job of folly. And then comes the second member of Ver. 4 leading to the second great thought of the speech: “How can he be pure that is born of a woman?”

II. God’s purity; and application. (Vers. 5, 6.) The bright silver lustre of the moon seems pale, the stars are dimmed, when compared with the essential and eternal splendour of the Highest—to say nothing of man, the maggot, the worm! The stars are but the outer adornments of the palace and abode of God; and how, then, shall man, living on this dim spot that men call earth, think to meet God on equal terms and dispute with him? If he, like moon and stars, keeps to his rank and order, he may enjoy the benefit of God; if he attempts to travel beyond it, he will be crushed by the weight of the Divine majesty (Cocceius). The view of yonder glory reminds man of his sin and corruption. The celestial luster is the sign of celestial purity in the inhabitants of heaven; his frailty and mortality are the evidence of his sin. The time has not yet come when, life and immortality being brought to light, man is conscious of the grandeur of his inward faith and of his spiritual destiny, when he refuses to be crushed by the dazzling might and splendour of the material universe because conscious of affinity to the creative thought.—J.

Ver. 4.—Condemnation. If, in the course of Job’s replies to his friends, he has sought to exculpate himself from all blame, and to aver his righteousness in the sight of God, he is now answered by a brief speech of his friend, “How can man be justified in the sight of God?” True, Job holdeth fast his integrity; true, he may be free from the accusations brought against him by his friends, who are unable in any other way to explain his suffering lot; yet, although he is so far clear, he shares the deep humiliation which attaches to all, of standing before the Divine throne a condemned criminal. He is unjust. Alas! the very “stars are not pure in his sight; how much less man, that is a worm?” This condemnation and inability of man to justify himself—

I. Puts an end to all boastful self-confidence before God. How shall the condemned and sinful even enter into controversy with the Most High? How shall the frail child of earth—earth-born and earthly—contend with God. Not Job only, but every one, must be silenced in presence of this truth, which has its witness in each man’s breast.

II. Is a cause for penitent humiliation before God. Truly the place of man—sinful man—is the dust. How shall the unclean dare to draw nigh unto the Holy One? Human feebleness and imperfectness should be sufficient to put men as in the dust; but if sinfulness, if a sense of condemnation before God, be added to this, how much greater cause for self-abasement is there? In penitence man has ground of hope, for the Lord lifteth up the meek; but in presumed self-justification he can only meet with confusion.

III. Is a reason for the eager embrace of the mercy of God in Christ. Whither shall a sinner fly? Where is true safety for him? In the revelation of the mercy of God to the penitent sinner there is an assured hope. This graciousness on the part of the Most High holds out the utmost encouragement to the self-condemned to return; while the inability to justify himself is in itself the highest reason why the gracious overture of God should receive from man an eager response.

IV. Is a high motive to strictness of life. With how much carefulness and lowliness and effort ought not he to live who by his very nature is so prone to err! “The son of man, which is a worm,” ought to seek to order his course before God with the utmost lowliness and care. A pensioner upon the Divine bounty, a criminal at the Divine bar, he has no warrant for rude self-assumption, but has need to seek, in patient, humble effort, to avoid deeper condemnation.—R. G.

Ver. 2.—“Peace in high places.” Bildad tries to overawe Job by presenting what is indeed a true idea of God, although, if he had known the patriarch, he would have seen that there was nothing in it that was likely to be accepted as a specific rebuke. Job had maintained his innocence, and had cried out for God to vindicate it: “Oh that I knew where I might find him!” Bildad replies that God is a great Ruler in the heavenly heights, maintaining peace among his angelic armies; how can man be justified with One so great? It is meant to be a rebuke to Job’s presumption in appealing to so awful a Judge. Yet, if Job is innocent, why should he not dare to do so? Bildad is right in saying that God is so holy that none can stand before him without being abashed by shame. The unfairness is in making this truth a ground for accusing Job, not of the general evil of fallen creatures, but of exceptional enormities of guilt.

I. God rules over all. 1. He is above all. We rise through the hierarchy of being from one stage to another, and at the head of all we find God. None can equal him, none can reach up to his might and holiness. Supreme in solitary perfection, he crowns the temple of being. 2. He includes all in his sway. His exaltation does not avolve has separation from his creatures. On the contrary, it gives him a wide scope; from his exalted position he surveys the whole panorama of existence, and administers the affairs of the universe. 3. He exerts active influence over all. God is not an ornamental figure-head. He not only reigns, he rules. His government is absolute; not despotic, only because it is paternal.

II. God’s rule is a necessity of the universe. The worlds could not go on without it. Confusion and chaos would follow if he withdrew his hand. 1. It is needed in heaven. Even there it is God who keeps the peace. The best-tempered society needs order and government to save it from falling into confusion. Heaven would become a babel of disorder if no regulating power were supreme there. The highest intelligences and the purest spirits require a regulative influence to keep them all in harmony. However well its harps are tuned, and however perfect is its music, the celestial orchestra needs one great leader. 2. Much more is it needed on earth. If heavenly beings cannot live aright without Divine guidance and rule, much more is this the case with earthly creatures, who are weak, ignorant, and sinful. If God makes his rule felt in maintaining the perfect order of heaven, assuredly he must make it felt in rectifying the wild disorder of earth.

III. God’s rule secures peace. 1. It maintains “peace in high places.” There is peace above, though at present there may be confusion below. The heavens are calm, though the earth is storm-tossed. The changeless blue sky is above the shifting rack of clouds. Stars keep to their spheres. Angels perform their functions. The blessed dead are at rest. If we do but look high enough we shall see peace. 2. It will bring “peace on earth.” When heaven touches earth the peace of heaven comes down among men. If God can keep peace among the greatest beings, surely he can establish it among puny mortals. He can reconcile all enmity or crush all opposition. Christ has come from the peace of heaven to be “our Peace” (Eph. 2:14).—W. F. A.

Ver. 3.—The innumerable armies of God. I. Their vast numbers. We can see no limit to the physical universe. The starry hemisphere dazzles us with its multitudinous splendour, but the telescope greatly increases our idea of its vastness, resolving fleecy mist into galaxies of worlds, and discovering distant suns invisible to the naked eye; and photography carries the process much further, and peoples the interstellar spaces of the telescope with hosts of still more remote stars. It is not reasonable to suppose that all these worlds are destitute of life, that our little planet is the solitary home of living creatures in a terrific desert of dead worlds. But if the material world be peopled, this may be but a small part of the universe. There may be other realms of existence unseen by the eye of sense; there may be material worlds that do not contain properties that can be detected by any of our five senses, although they are perceptible to the different senses of different orders of beings; and there may be creatures of God existing in regions that are not material, spirits that do not require what we understand by bodies. The revelation of Scripture gives us glimpses of inhabitants of other worlds than ours. It is reasonable to think that the great God rules over hosts of such beings.

II. Their orderly array. They are armies, not mobs. As the physical universe is regulated by law and maintained in order, it is most probable that the same is true of the unseen universe. All that is revealed about God’s heavenly hosts shows them to us in obedience to God’s will. It is a human figure of speech that represents them as constituting armies. Milton’s poetry, added to the visions of the Apocalypse, have impressed our imaginations with military conceptions of the angelic hosts. But we do not know what tasks may be laid upon those armies of God in subduing the evil of the universe. We may be sure that the vulgar thirst for glory, the pride of brute strength, and the cruel rage of bloodshed that characterize our hideous wars, cannot be found among the hosts of heaven. Therefore the military idea of the angels needs to be received with caution. We are directed rather to the higher warlike qualities, e.g. discipline and obedience joined to courage and strength.

III. Their Divine light. They all have their light from God. On what earthly multitudes does the sun rise every day! Yet there is light for all. But an infinitesimal proportion of the sunlight and heat is received by our world; by far the greater quantity of it is scattered through realms of space. God’s light of love reaches all his creatures. There are no remote and dark regions of the universe that lie beyond his care. As there seems to be no end to the radiation of light when this is not hindered by obstructing objects, so no limit can be discovered to the radiation of God’s love. Though the hosts of beings are innumerable, there is a share of God’s goodness for each.

“Its streams the whole creation reach,

So plenteous is the store;

Enough for all, enough for each,

Enough for evermore.”

W. F. A.

Vers. 5, 6.—The awe of God’s holiness. I. The incomparable holiness of God. This is a thought that cannot be described in human language. When conscience is aroused, some thrill of the awe of it may open our minds to its sublime meaning. We start from the conception of the absolute sinlessness of God. Not a spot of evil can be found on all he is or does. But holiness is more than negative freedom from sin. It is a real excellence, and on its positive side it expands into infinity. We do not know how far goodness may go. It is like light. No one can conceive how intense this may be; after a short time it becomes too brilliant for our eyes, and we are only blinded when we look at it; but it is conceivable that its intensity may be increased a thousandfold beyond the highest degree that we are capable of perceiving. There may be a brilliancy of light compared with which the glare of a tropical noon is as dull and gloomy as an English November. So there may be a holiness which in its positive character rises above all we can conceive or imagine of goodness into infinite regions of perfection. We can see no limit to the strength and depth of love. Human love may be strong as death. Yet compared to God’s love it is but as a feeble, flickering flame lost in the full sunlight. No one can conceive how full and rich God’s love is. All the attributes of the Divine holiness expand into infinity. Their greatness is immeasurable and inconceivable.

II. Its overawing influence. It is as though the moon cannot shine before such a Divine light. Even that silver shield seems to be tarnished when set by the side of the brightness of God’s holiness. The stars, which are far above the filth and corruption of earth, and move in heavenly spheres, do not seem to be pure in the light of God. This impression is natural, though of course it is thrown into the form of poetic imagery. It leads to the humiliation of all human pride. If what is brightest looks dark in comparison with the splendour of God’s holiness, what must man be in his sight? Now, it is possible to abuse these conceptions, as Bildad was doing. God does not make men out to be worse than they are. He does not blame his creatures for not being equal to himself. He does not judge them by his own perfection, but only by their capacities. There is also a foolish way of depreciating humanity. There may be much pride in the heart of a man who calls himself “a worm.” Such language is only natural and right when it is wrung out of the soul by a deep consciousness of sin, and by an overwhelming perception of God’s holiness. On the other hand, when this is the case, there is no ground for despair. The last stronghold of pride being abandoned, there is room for the mercy of God to come in. God’s holiness is just the perfection of his love. The error has been in the separation of the two attributes. In the present day a shallow conception of holiness is tempting men to think lightly of sin, for it is the awe of God’s holiness that impresses on us the feeling of our own guilt. Out of the humiliation thus produced springs our only hope—the hope of free pardon and gracious renewal. Then the holiness of God becomes our inspiration; we are called to be perfect, as our Father in heaven is perfect.—W. F. A.

EXPOSITION

CHAPTER XXVI

The long discourse of Job now begins, which forms the central and most solid mass of the book. It continues through six chapters (ch. 26–31). In it Job, after hastily brushing aside Bildad’s last speech as superfluous and out of place (vers. 1–4), proceeds to deliver his real sentiments apart from controversial issues. He sets forth, first of all, the might and majesty of God (vers. 5–14), after which he proceeds to deal with the questions which concern his own integrity, and God’s dealings with mankind. The former he still maintains; with respect to the latter, he recants his earlier argumentative contention (ch. 24:2–24), and admits that retribution always or almost always comes upon the wicked at last (ch. 27.). In ch. 28., after paying a deserved tribute of admiration to man’s intelligence and ingenuity in regard to earthly things and physical phenomena, he pronounces the spiritual world and the principles of the Divine government to be inscrutable by him, and his only true wisdom to be right conduct. Finally, he returns to himself, and having given a pathetic description of his old life, with its prosperity and honour (ch. 29.), and contrasted it with his actual life of degradation, contempt, and suffering (ch. 30.), he concludes with a solemn protestation of his integrity in all the various duties and obligations imposed upon man by natural law and natural religion (ch. 31.). In this way he brings to its termination the colloquy begun with his three friends in ch. 3., and, emphatically to mark that here he closes his own part in the debate, he winds up with the statement, “The words of Job are ended” (ch. 31:40).

Vers. 1, 2.—But Job answered and said, How hast thou helped him that is without power? Assuming Bildad’s benevolent intentions towards himself, Job asks, how he can suppose that what he has said will in any way be helpful to a person in so helpless a condition? He had told Job nothing that Job had not repeatedly allowed. How savest thou the arm that hath no strength? It could not invigorate Job’s arm, any more than it could cheer his heart, to be told that man was a worm, or that he was wholly unclean in God’s sight (ch. 25:4, 6).

Ver. 3.—How hast thou counselled him that hath no wisdom? What counsel or advice is there in anything that thou hast said, by following which I might be benefited? Admitting my own want of wisdom, how hast thou bettered my case? And how hast thou plenteously declared the thing as it is? rather, How hast thou plenteously declared sound knowledge? What can there be said to have been in the way of sound knowledge, or good practical common sense (תוּשִׁיהָ), in the discourse which thou hast addressed to me?—a discourse made up of truisms.

Ver. 4.—To whom hast thou uttered words? Whom didst thou intend to address? Surely not me, since thy words touch none of my arguments. And whose spirit came from thee? Who prompted thy speech? Was it Eliphaz (comp. Ch. 4:17–19)?

Vers. 5–14.—Job now turns from controversy to the realities of the case, and begins with a full acknowledgment of God’s greatness, might, and inscrutableness. As Bildad seemed to have supposed that he needed enlightenment on these points (ch. 26:2–4), Job may have thought it right to make once more a plain profession of his belief (comp. ch. 9:4–13; 12:9–25, etc.).

Ver. 5.—Dead things are formed from under the waters; rather, the dead from under the waters tremble. Hebraists generally are agreed that one of the meanings of Rephaim (רְפָאִים) is “the dead” or the departed, considered especially as inhabitants of Hades (comp. Ps. 88:11; Prov. 2:18; Isa. 14:9; 26:14). And if so, this meaning is certainly appropriate here. Bildad had illustrated God’s dominion from his power in heaven. Job shows that it exists alike in heaven and earth (vers. 7–13), and in the region under the earth (vers. 5, 6). There, in Sheol, under the waters of the ocean, the dead tremble at the thought of the Most High; they tremble together with other inhabitants thereof, as evil spirits, rebel intelligences, cast down to Hades, and there held in durance (Jude 6).

Ver. 6.—Hell is naked before him; i.e. “can hide nothing from his eyes”—shows all its inmost recesses. And destruction hath no covering; rather, Abaddon hath no covering (see the Revised Version). Abaddon is sometimes “destruction,” sometimes “the angel of the bottomless pit” (Rev. 9:11), sometimes “the bottomless pit itself” (Prov. 15:11). Here the last of these three senses seems to suit best—“the deepest depth of the bottomless pit is no secret to God,” but “naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do” (Heb. 4:13)

Ver. 7.—He stretcheth out the north over the empty place. Over what was “empty space” or “chaos” (תּהוּ) God stretches out “the north”—a portion of his orderly creation—perhaps the northern portion of the heavens, where are the grandest constellations visible to the inhabitants of the world’s northern half. And hangeth the earth upon nothing. “Takes,” i.e., “the huge ball of the earth, and suspends it in vacancy, with nothing to support it but his own fixed will, his own firm laws.” This is an idea scarcely reached by astronomers in general, at any rate till the time of Hipparchus; and it has, not without reason, been regarded as “a very remarkable instance of anticipation of the discoveries of science” (Stanley Leathes).

Ver. 8.—He bindeth up the waters in his thick clouds; i.e. he makes the clouds, that we see floating in the atmosphere, contain and hold the waters on which the productiveness of the earth depends, and which he restrains, or allows to fall in fertilizing rain, at his pleasure (comp. 1 Kings 17:1). And the cloud is not rent under them. The metaphor is, no doubt, drawn from those water-skins, so well known in the East, and especially in Arabia, in which men stored the water for their journeys and other needs, which were liable to be “rent” by the weight of the liquid within them.

Ver. 9.—He holdeth back the face of his throne; rather, he covereth up. He makes the clouds to gather in the vault of heaven, above which is his throne, and in this way conceals it and covers it up. And spreadeth his cloud upon it; or over it, so blotting it out from sight. Behind the more obvious meaning lies one which is deeper and more spiritual. God withdraws himself from sight, gathers clouds and darkness around him to be the habitation of his seat, hides from men the principles of his government and administration, makes himself unapproachable and inscrutable, is a mystery and an enigma which man cannot hope to understand or solve (comp. 1 Kings 8:12; Ps. 18:11; 97:2).

Ver. 10.—He hath compassed the waters with bounds. God restrains within limits alike the “waters that are above the firmament” and those that are beneath it (ch. 38:11). The boundary is placed, somewhat vaguely, “at the confines of light and darkness.” Until the day and night come to an end is a mistranslation.

Ver. 11.—The pillars of heaven tremble. The “pillars of heaven” are the mountains, on which the sky seems to rest. These “tremble,” or seem to tremble, at the presence of God (Ps. 18:7; 114:4; Isa. 5:25) when he visits the earth in storm and tempest, either because the whole atmosphere is full of disturbance, and the outline of the mountains shifts and changes as rain and storm sweep over them, or because the reverberations of the thunder, which shake the air, seem to shake the earth also. And are astonished at his reproof. To the mind of the poet this “trembling” is expressive of astonishment and consternation. He regards the mountains as hearing the voice of God in the storm, recognizing it as raised in anger, and so trembling and cowering before him.

Ver. 12.—He divideth the sea with his power. “Divideth” is certainly a wrong translation. The verb used (יָגַע) means either “stirreth up” or “stilleth.” In favour of the former rendering are Rosenmüller, Schultens, Delitzsch, Merx, and Canon Cook; in favour of the latter, the LXX., Dillmann, and Dr. Stanley Leathes. In either case the general sentiment is that God has full mastery over the sea, and can regulate its movements at his pleasure. And by his understanding he smiteth through the proud: literally, he smiteth through Rahab. (On Rahab, as the great power of evil, see the comment on ch. 9:13.) God is said to have “smitten him through by his understanding, ” since in the contest between good and evil it is rather intelligence than mere force that carries the day. Power alone is sufficient to control the sea.

Ver. 13.—By his spirit he hath garnished the heavens; or, by his spirit the heavens are brightness; i.e. at a breath from his mouth the heavens, lately all cloud and storm (vers. 8–11), recover their serenity, are calm and clear and bright. Our experience says, “After a storm comes a calm.” Job notes that both alike are from God. His hand hath formed the crooked serpent; rather, his hand hath pierced the swift serpent (see the Revised Version). The reference is probably to “the war in heaven,” already suggested by the mention of “Rahab” (ver. 12). In that war, according to the tradition that had reached Job, a great serpent, like the Egyptian Apepi (Apophis), had borne a part.

Ver. 14.—Lo, these are parts of his ways; literally, ends of his ways; i.e. the mere outskirts and fringe of his doings. But how small a portion is heard of him? rather, how small a whisper? But the thunder of his power who can understand? or, the thunder of his mighty deeds. Job implies that he has not enumerated one-half of God’s great works—he has just hinted at them, just whispered of them. If they were all thundered out in the ears of mortal man. who could receive them or comprehend them?

HOMILETICS

Vers. 1–14.—Job to Bildad: another sermon on the foregoing text. I. The preface to the sermon; or, the discourse of Bildad criticized. In Job’s estimation it was: 1. Wholly unserviceable. With stinging irony Job, according to our view, represents it as having been extremely helpful to him in his feebleness, as having imparted strength to his powerless arm and wisdom to his ignorant mind (vers. 2, 3); meaning, of course, the opposite—that in these respects the brief but pompous harangue to which he had listened had been of no use whatever to him in the way of assisting him either to bear his own misfortunes or to understand the mysterious enigma of Divine providence. Not only should a good man by his words, and a Christian minister by his sermons, always aim at the edification of his hearers (1 Cor. 14:3), but the same duty is incumbent upon all (Eph. 4:29). The world and the Church are full of sorrowful hearts requiring comfort, and ignorant minds in need of counsel. It is sad when neither the disconsolate can find a word of cheer nor the uninstructed hear a note of direction, to help them on in life’s battle. The lips of the wise should disperse knowledge (Prov. 15:7), and the tongue of the wise should prove health to the feeble and diseased (Prov. 12:18). 2. Extremely superficial. Bildad had plentifully declared the thing as it was (ver. 3); i.e. while imagining he had dived into the heart of a great subject, he had merely skimmed along its surface. Yet superficial and shallow views of men and things are not to be despised. To the mass of mankind, who are themselves commonplace in their capacities, only commonplace ideas are of use. What is called profound or original thinking belongs to another sphere from that which they usually inhabit. Hence to the extent to which it is unfamiliar to their minds it fails to make an adequate impression on their hearts. Still, superficial views of truth cannot satisfy souls of nobler faculty than the uneducated crowd possess; neither can they fully represent the deep things of God on the subject either of religion or of providence. It is, however, doubtful whether all men’s thoughts, those of a Job no less than of a Bildad, are not, in comparison with the unfathomable profundity of Divine truth, at the best superficial. 3. Utterly irrelevant. Correct enough in themselves so far as they went, Bildad’s views were inappropriate to the theme under discussion, were in truth so little pertinent to the great subject by which the thoughts of Job were engrossed, that Job felt constrained to ask to whom they had been addressed (ver. 4). Bildad is not the only person against whom the charge of irrelevant talking can be advanced. Modern controversialists, lecturers, preachers, orators, writers, are as prone to commit this fault as were their brethren of antiquity. Discoursing wide of the mark, whether in the pulpit, at the bar, or on the bench, in Parliament, or in common life, usually results from ignorance, want of capacity, lack of preparation, too great fluency in speech or composition, or from deliberate design. Fitness is a higher excellence in speech or writing than eloquence or elegance (1 Cor. 14:19). “The heart of the righteous studieth to answer” (Prov. 15:28); and “a word spoken in due season, how good it is!” (Prov. 15:23). “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver” (Prov. 25:11). 4. Entirely second-hand. Whatever Job was, he was always original; whereas Bildad could only cite proverbs and quote traditionary maxims. Here Job rather wickedly asks him from whom he had borrowed his last brief oration (ver. 4). Since it could not be from God—Bildad always swore by the fathers—it must have been either from him (Job) or from Eliphaz, both of whom had already twice descanted on the subject of man’s insignificance as contrasted with the majesty of God. It is not wrong to borrow good thoughts or to repeat them to others, provided their authorship be carefully acknowledged. Good thoughts at second hand are distinctly better than poor thoughts at first hand. Still, ministers and preachers should aim to set forth their own views of Divine truth rather than those of other men. A clergyman who has no ideas of his own to set forth has mistaken his calling. Much can be done by earnest study and prayer to improve the feeblest capacity, and to enable it to look at truth for itself.

II. The body of the sermon; or, the majesty of God extolled. Catching up the anthem which Bildad had commenced (ch. 25:2), Job continues in a strain of lofty adoration to dilate upon the transcendent greatness of God as absolute and universal Ruler, tracing his governmental power and authority through every department of creation. 1. In the realm of shades. (Vers. 5, 6.) Bildad had said that God’s dominion pervaded “the heights,” or heavenly places (ch. 25:2). Job adds that it also extends to the dark underworld of departed spirits; concerning which may be noted: (1) The names given to this mysterious region—Sheol and Abaddon; the first a subterranean abode, full of Tartarean darkness (ch. 10:21, 22), to which are attributed gates (Isa. 38:10) and abysmal depths (Prov. 9:18); and the second a trackless waste, in which wanderers having lost their way stumble forward to destruction (Rev. 9:11). On the exact import of the two terms which are here used as synonyms for the disembodied state, the Exposition may be consulted. (2) The situation assigned to this invisible region—under the waters, i.e. beneath the ocean (cf. Luke 8:31), or in the lowest parts of the earth (Eph. 4:9), at the remotest distance from heaven (Ps. 139:8); and therefore, as such a fitting receptacle for the dead (Rom. 10:7), and a proper place of confinement for the wicked (Ps. 55:15). (3) The persons who inhabit this sunless region. While departed spirits generally are commonly represented as descending into Sheol (ch. 14:13–15; 17:15, 16), it is here the shades of the wicked that are spoken of as tenanting its chambers. The Rephaim alluded to by Job were not the people of that name, but the pale, flaccid, bloodless ghosts of dead persons (Isa. 14:10), in particular, it is supposed, of the giants, or mighty ones (Gen. 6:4), who perished in the Deluge, since the word “Rephaim” may also signify heroes of colossal stature. (4) The misery experienced in this doleful region. Besides being a place of darkness (ch. 10:21, 22; Ps. 88:12) and of pain (ch. 14:22) generally, it is here exhibited as being specially a place of anguish for the wicked, whose marrowless and bloodless phantoms shiver and writhe, as if they were undergoing the pains of parturition every time the majesty of God is felt by them, “as perhaps by the raging of the sea, or the quaking of the earth” (Delitzsch). And certainly in other Scriptures the Hadean or disembodied state is set forth as a place of woe for the ungodly (Matt. 5:29; 18:8, 9; Mark 9:43; Luke 16:25). So the ancient Egyptians celebrated Ra as “the supreme power who cuts off the head of those who are in the infernal regions” (vide ‘Records of the Past,’ vol. viii. p. 111). (5) The supreme Lord of this subterranean region; he is not the Abaddon of the Apocalypse (Rev. 9:11), but Shaddai, whose majesty Job depicts, since his eyes penetrate to its darkest depths, and his arm reaches to its remotest corners. As David testifies to God’s presence in Sheol (Ps. 139:8), so Job affirms that presence to be the true cause of the misery of the lost, as John afterwards declares it to be the secret source of happiness to the saved (Rev. 7:15). 2. In the realm of creation. (Vers. 7–13.) Rising from the dark underworld, Job expatiates on the great power of God as displayed in the world of light. (1) In spreading out the northern firmament above the self-poised earth (ver. 7). That Job here alludes to the northern hemisphere of the sky which he, in common with the ancients generally, believed to be a vast arch, vault, or canopy extended above the earth, and folding it in like a tent, is more certain than it is that he anticipated the discoveries of modern astronomy concerning the sphericity and revolutions of the earth, although there is some reason for believing that these were understood by the ancient Egyptians. But whether or not Job had attained to a dim guess of the earth’s form, he distinctly understood that it rested with its aerial canopy on no material prop, but was supported solely by the power of God. The continual upholding, not of this globe merely, but of innumerable worlds, of suns and systems past reckoning, by the word of his power, is a signal demonstration of God’s almightiness. (2) In appointing the meteorological laws of the atmosphere (vers. 8, 9), by which first rain is collected in the clouds, then the clouds are preserved from bursting before the proper moment beneath the weight of the watery particles they contain, and thirdly, the dark masses are spread around God’s throne, i.e. distributed over the face of the sky previously to bursting forth upon the thirsty soil. The clouds are preminently his clouds, i.e. God’s; since he hath ordained the wonderful mechanism by which they are formed, preserved, dispersed, distributed, and emptied; since he employs them in accordance with his own sovereign will, e.g. to shut off the face of his throne from the gaze of man whensoever it may please him; and since when they descend upon the earth they seem to proceed from his throne. (3) In establishing a bound between light and darkness (ver. 10). Job perhaps imagined that the globe was encompassed by an ocean, out of which the sun rose in Oriental splendour, and into which again it descended with Occidental glory, passing at the end of day into a dark world, which its golden beams could not illumine, and emerging at the call of morn into the clear bright realm of light. Passing by the misconception as to the sun’s movements and function, which science better enables us to understand, the truth remains that the boundaries of old ocean have been as firmly fixed (Prov. 8:29), and the alternations of day and night as securely determined (Gen 1:14), by the power of the omnipotent Creator, as have been the habitations and the times of man (Acts 17:26). (4) In producing the phenomena connected with storms upon land, sea, and sky (vers. 11–13). Such a storm depicted by the poet in three different stages. At its commencement, “the pillars of the heavens,” i.e. the mountains towering to the sky, appear to tremble, to sway backwards and forwards as if struck by some sudden impact, by the violent agitations of the wind, or by the crashing blow of a fiery thunderbolt. Personified, they are pictured as filled with consternation at the token of Jehovah’s anger displayed in the commotion of the elements (Ps. 29:3–8; 104:32; Nah. 1:5; Hab. 3:10). During its continuance, “he divideth the sea with his power.” The fierce hurricane let loose among the mountains sweeping down upon the calm, still ocean, cleaves it to its inmost depths.

“The fire, and cracks

“Of sulphurous roaring, the most mighty Neptune

Seem to besiege, and make his bold waves tremble,

Yea, his dread trident shake.”

(‘Tempest,’ act i. sc. 2.)

The spirit of evil (Rahab), awakened by the hurly-burly, bellows forth its indignant rage, “lifting up its voice on high, and thundering back to the thundering mountains,” but is again wounded to the quick by the stroke of the tempest; for “by his understanding he breaketh Rahab in pieces”—words which are understood by many to point rather to the power of God in calming the troubled waters of the sea. At the close of the storm, he once more brightens up the sky with his breath (Ver. 13), dispersing the storm-clouds with his wind, and fixing the fugitive Dragon. This may perhaps be understood of the constellation of that name which seems to wind itself in like a sinuous serpent between the Greater and Lesser Bears, as if endeavouring to make its escape from its appointed orbit, where, however, God fixes it, wounding it or slaying it, so that its flight is arrested—a poetical representation of the sublime truth that it is God’s hand that hath beautified the evening sky with stars, and that keeps all the stellar world moving on in harmony and order. Or the idea may be, in accordance with ancient mythology, that this gliding serpent, winding itself round the sun, seeks to eclipse its light; but that God wounds it, and so liberates the sun to renew his shining on the earth. So viewed, the poet’s language suggests the thought which reappears in other parts of Scripture (Matt. 13:39; Rom. 8:19–23; Rev. 12:4)—that, in the great conflict which is continually going on between the powers of light and darkness, victory will eventually, through God’s help, incline to the side of the former.

III. The lesson from the sermon; or, the truth it contains applied. Job concludes his lofty anthem in celebration of the majesty of God by two remarks. 1. That man’s knowledge of the power of God is infinitesimally small. The magnificent pictures which had been given of the mysterious operation of the Almighty’s hand were only as the edges, fringes, or extremest end-points of the glorious garment in which the incomparable Worker was arrayed, as the faintest whisper of a voice which in the fulness of its tones is as the roaring of the thunder or the grand diapason of the sea. What Job asserts about his own representations of the transcendent greatness of God is equally correct about the richest and most impressive that have ever yet been given. Man’s understanding of God’s power in nature is at best fragmentary and imperfect (1 Cor. 13:9). 2. That the wonder-working power of God is infinitely great. So great, in fact, that it passes human comprehension. If these stupendous phenomena be only the whispers of his almighty voice, what must be the thunder-roar of its fully uttered tones? If these be occasioned, as it were, by the mere flutterings of the extreme end of his garment, what must be power residing in his Almighty arm? If the phenomena of nature, as witnessed in this lower sphere, are sufficient to impress the human mind with exalted conceptions of the greatness of God, how much more sublime should our ideas be of the incomparable glory of him who presides over, and works in, a universe, in which this globe on which man dwells is but as the small dust of the balance to the huge forms of the mountains, as a drop of water to the ocean, as a spark of fire to the blazing sun!

Learn: 1. It is the duty of all men to seek, entertain, and as opportunity offers, set forth, lofty conceptions of the supreme God. 2. If God’s power extends to the underworld of spirits, it cannot be withdrawn from the upper world of men. 3. If the eye of the omniscient can explore the caverns of hell and the caves of the sea, it must also be able to search the chambers of the heart. 4. The Almighty’s hand that can hold up a world, yea, a universe, will not surely fail in sustaining one who is at best but a worm. 5. He who prepares and distributes the clouds of rain for the earth can also provide and dispense clouds of spiritual blessing for the souls of men. 6. When God draws a cloud before his throne, it is partly for his glory and partly for man’s good. 7. He who hath set a bound to the sea is able also to restrain the wrath of man. 8. If God has divided light from darkness in the physical world, much more will he do so in the intellectual and spiritual. 9. If things inanimate, as well as bloodless spirits, tremble at God’s reproof, men possessed of reason should not be callous or indifferent to the same. 10. Those who are proud God is able to abase. 11. The power of God in nature is only an emblem and shadow of a higher power which God wields in the realm of grace. 12. The fullest knowledge of God which a saint attains to on earth is small and insignificant when compared with that which awaits him in heaven.

HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS

Vers. 1–14.—Praises of the Eternal. I. Repartee and reproof. (Vers. 2–4.) The tone seems to be ironical; “How well hast thou helped feebleness, supported the arm of him that has no strength, counselled unwisdom, and in fulness given utterance to good sense! To whom hast thou offered words, and whose breath went forth from thee? By whose inspiration?” possibly pointing to the borrowed character of Bildad’s speech. Words may be good in themselves, yet not pleasant or profitable if not spoken in good season. It would have been more to the purpose had Bildad spoken to the wounded spirit of his friend of the tenderness and the compassion rather than the majesty and greatness of God. The minister of God should know how to speak a word in season to the weary (Isa. 50:4). “We are often disappointed in our expectations of our friends who should comfort us; but the Comforter, who is the Holy Ghost, never mistakes in his operations, nor misses his ends.” Job takes a noble revenge by painting in far more glowing and noble language the sublime greatness of God, thus showing how true in faith was his heart at bottom. His petulance and outcries are the involuntary irritation of pain; they are superficial; at the core of his being piety lives in all its intensity.

II. Job’s surpassing description of the majesty of God. (Vers. 5–14.) “Truth, like a torch, the more it’s shook, it shines.” “It were well if all disputes about religion might end thus, in glorifying God as Lord of all, and our Lord, with one mind and one mouth (Rom. 15:6), for in that we are all agreed.” 1. Hell and heaven. (Vers. 5–7.) Job begins at the opposite end of the great scale of creation from that with which Bildad began; with the lower world, the region of shadows, thence to rise to the heavenly world. “The shadows are made to tremble below the water and its inhabitants” (ver. 5). By the shadows are meant the ghostly, bloodless forms as Homer has described them in the eleventh book of the ‘Odyssey,’ leading a joyless, melancholy existence, deprived of the light of the sun (Ps. 88:11; Prov. 2:18; 9:18; Isa. 26:14, 19; comp. ch. 14:9, 10). Even in Hades the vast power of the Almighty is felt, and its inhabitants own it and tremble (Ps. 139:8; Prov. 15:11; Jas. 2:19). This lower world is naked to the eyes of God (Heb. 4:13), and the chasm of Hades has no covering (Prov. 15:11; ver. 6). The Northern heaven—taken here by a figure, as the part for the whole—is stretched over the void, and the earth hangs upon nothing (ver. 7). The expression “nothing” here denotes the same as the “void”—the vast emptiness of space in which the earth with its heavenly canopy is placed. Compare the classical parallels in Lucret., ii .600, sqq.; Ovid, ‘Fast.,’ vi. 269, sqq. A Persian poet says—

“He stretches out the heaven without pillars as the tent of the earth, … What doth the air bear? it beareth nothing, and nothing on nothing, and absolutely nothing.”

And an Arab poet, “He has made the heaven out of smoke.” And in the Koran, “It is Allah who has built high the heaven, without supporting it on visible pillars.” The poets say that Atlas bore the heaven on his shoulders; but we confess the true Atlas, the Lord our God, who by his word upholds both heaven and earth (Brenz). As the work witnesses of the master, so does the universe testify of its Creator, Sustainer, and Governor (Ps. 19:1–6); and no faint-hearted one has contemplated the eternal order which here confronts him and its secret but ever-blessed sway, and no sinner longing for salvation has tarried in the halls of this great temple of God, without being richly blessed with heavenly blessings (Wohlfarth). 2. The clouds and the heavenly region. (Vers. 8–10.) Waters are firmly bound up in the clouds as in vast water-skins, according to the conception of the poet, without their bursting with the weight, if God wills to retain the rain (ver. 8; Gen. 7:11; 8:2). God veils the “outer side” of his heavenly throne, the side turned towards earth, by drawing the clouds between (ver. 9). He has drawn a circling boundary over the water’s surface to the crossing of the light with the darkness (ver. 10; Prov. 8:27). In both passages the idea is that the earth is surrounded by water (in Homer, by the flowing stream of ocean). Above is the circle of the hemisphere, where sun and stars run their course. Within this circle is the region of the heavenly bodies and of light, and outside it begins the realm of darkness. 3. Mountains; the sea; constellations. (Vers. 11–13.) The heaven’s pillars—that is, the great mountains, conceived as bearing up the firmament—fall into trembling, and the earthquake is represented as caused by their affright at his reproof (ver. 11; comp. Ps. 29.; 104:7; Isa. 50:2; Nah. 1:4; Rev. 6:12–14; 20:11). He terrifies the sea by his power, and by his understanding breaks in pieces Rahab (ver. 12). Rahab being here not Egypt, as in other places, but some huge monster of legendary fame. His breath makes the heaven bright and clear; and his hand has pierced through the flying serpent (ver. 13). This may, perhaps, allude to the mythical representation of eclipses of sun or moon as the attempt of a monstrous dragon to swallow up the heavenly bodies. The ceremony is practised, among the Turks and others, of beating off this dragon at the time of eclipses by cries and noises. These descriptions of the Creation are founded on astronomical myths belonging to the childhood of the world; but our better knowledge of the mechanism of the heavens need not destroy our sense of the reverence and awe which pervade these descriptions. The wonder of ignorance is replaced by the nobler wonder of intelligence, of reason.

Conclusion. (Ver. 14.) “Lo, these are ends of his ways”—but the outlines or sketches—the nearest and most familiar evidences of his government of the world; “and what a gently whispering word it is that we hear!—but the thunder of his omnipotence who can understand?” The full unfolding of his power, the thundering course of the heavenly spheres, what mortal ear could bear?

“If nature thundered in our opening ears,

And stunned us with the music of the spheres,

How should we wish that Heaven had left us still

The gentle zephyr and the purling rill!”

The whole contemplation is fitted to teach us our ignorance, and to lead to humility, to wonder, to adoration. We see but a small part of the immeasurable kingdom of God. We play with a few pebbles on the verge of the infinite ocean of existence. The knowledge of the greatest philosopher is but the short-sighted glance of a tiny insect! Our earth is but a grain of sand in the vast whole, a drop in the bucket. Thus the discoveries made of God lead us to the depth and height of the undiscovered and unknown. A modern philosopher says that religion and science find their point of union and reconciliation here—in the recognition of the unknown, unknowable Power in the universe. This recognition stills vain rivalries and idle controversies. “When we have said all we can concerning God, we must, even as St. Paul (Rom. 11:33), despair to find the bottom; we must sit down at the brink and adore the depth: ‘Oh the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God!’ ” (comp. 1 Cor. 13:9–12). But, again, the sense of what is unknown should lead us to hold the more firmly to that which is known, especially through the gospel of his grace and love. There he speaks to us from out the vastness and splendour of the creation with a voice that we can understand, that touches the heart—“My child!” This everlasting God is ours—our Father and our Love. Without the knowledge of his grace and mercy in Christ, the knowledge of his majesty and purity must drive us to despair.—J.

Vers. 2–4.—Cruel reproof helps not the sufferer. Job has endured the reproaches of his would-be friends. Their words, instead of calming and comforting his wounded spirit, have only irritated and tried him. He has sought in vain for the refreshment of sympathy. One prolonged attempt to prove his guiltiness, and to establish the justice of his affliction on that ground, he has had to meet by protestations of innocence. But the ill-judged and imperfectly instructed comforters, mistaking the ground of Job’s affliction, had poured gall into his troubled spirit. The testimony of the book is to the insufficiency of human consolation, and to the great truth that there are afflictions which come upon men for other reasons than as punishments of offence. The picture of Job suffering bodily pain is sad enough, but it is heightened by the cruel manner in which the professed words of comfort are turned into keen reproofs. Such reproofs are powerless to help the sufferer, for—

I. There is no element of real consolation in them. The wise consoler may take opportunity to lead the sufferer to a just penitence for his sin; but merely to dwell upon wrong, and to point to it as the sole cause of suffering, is to leave the sufferer devoid of all true consolation. There is no word of hope, no promise of relief, no bracing of the spirit, by the whisper of lofty principles.

II. They but serve to irritate the already tried spirit. Bowed down by manifold sufferings, the afflicted one is sensitive to every word, even every look, of those around him. Their tender patience, even their very silence, gives them some assurance of kindly feeling; but to speak words of reproof when the spirit is weak and oppressed with anguish is to add weight to weight, and to subject the sufferer to greater pain. He needs the balmy word of friendship, the touch of the tender hand; not to be rudely taunted with keen thrusts of accusation which are as the bite of an adder, nor to be scourged by the severities of an antagonist.

III. They afford no evidence of that sympathy which is the basis of all true consolation. With the words of inspiriting brotherly love the truly afflicted one has borne the heaviest calamity and remained calm under the severest trials. Pain has lost its power in presence of sympathy. To lay the aching head upon the shoulder of a strong friend gives might to the weak. The truest succour for the wounded is tender sympathy, whether the wounds pierce the flesh or the spirit. But sympathy knows nothing of severity or harsh accusation. It hides offence and soothes the self-accused spirit until it has gained strength to bear the weight of condemnation. But no sign of this is present in the words of Job’s friends; no sympathy is expressed by cruel reproof: “How hast thou helped him that is without power?”

IV. To all they add The painful recall of the frailties of the soul at the time when it is overburdened and unable to make answer. This is not the appropriate time to speak accusingly. When the soul is in its strength it is hard to reply to either just or unjust accusation, but in its weakness and sorrow it is utterly incapable of reply. It is adding weight to weight, and taking unfair advantage of feebleness. This is neither neighbourly, nor brotherly, nor even kind. It shows a faulty judgment and an unsympathetic spirit.—R. G.

Vers. 6–14.—The Divine ways but partially revealed. Bildad had given Job no comfort. And Job at first (vers. 1–3) retorts upon him a reproof for his unhelpful words. He then bursts into an impressive representation of the wonderful works of God to whom Bildad had referred. The works of God in the heavens, the earth, and the deep sea are great and manifold; so are his works amongst the creatures of his power, of whom the serpent alone is mentioned. But the hidden hand of God Job confesses, and the greatness of the Divine works and ways, of which only a part is revealed. We may take a wider sweep than even Job does, and say—

I. Parts of the Divine ways are revealed in the visible creation. His wonderful works.

II. In his ways to the children of men. In the working of that providence that ever guards the interests of the human life.

III. In the revelations of Holy Scripture. Here light falls especially (1) on the Divine Name; (2) on the mysteries of the Divine providence; (3) on the spiritual future—on God, on human life and duty, on immortality. Yet with all the teachings it must still be said, “How little a portion is heard of him?” We have heard the whisper; “but the thunder of his power who can understand?” A plain duty is to judge of that which is hidden by that which is made known. And the question instantly arises to our lips—Are the revelations which God has made of himself and of his ways in nature, in human life, in the Holy Scriptures, such as encourage us to trust in those ways, and in him, where all is covered with clouds and thick darkness? If the revealed things are good and trustworthy, it is most reasonable to demand faith in the hidden and unseen. Faith in the unseen is warranted by (1) the beauty, (2) utility, (3) perfectness, (4) beneficence of the Divine ways, as they are traceable in the works of the Divine hand; but faith’s highest warrant is in the Divine Name—the absolutely good, pure, just, and beneficent One.—R. G.

Ver. 2.—Helping the weak. Job returns to the old complaint, more than ever justified by the obstinacy of his friends. They came to sympathize and help in the time of trouble; how have they carried out their self-appointed task?

I. It is a Christian duty to help the weak. The worldly maxim is “each for himself.” This seems to be natural; but it is not true to our better nature. The higher self is required to rectify the cruel impulses of the lower regions of nature. 1. Because of the solidarity of the race. We are members one of another, and when one member suffers all the members suffer. It is not good for us that any of our fellowmen should fail. 2. Because of the brotherhood of Christians. We are called to more than a care for the whole body; individual needs appeal to our sympathy, and the special cases of those who are known to us come before us with peculiar claims. We have to remember our family relationship as children of our Father. 3. Because of the work of Christ. He came to help the weak, and our standing is only on the ground that he has done so for us. If all had come to us by self-seeking and personal exclusiveness, we should not have had the power to help others, for that power was given to us in our weakness by the grace of God in Christ.

II. Help to the weak should be by aiding them to become strong. There is an excessive helplessness that can only be relieved by direct aid. But in the main it is not wise to make people simply dependent on us. While we help them materially we may hurt them morally. It is a more difficult task to lift men than to dole out charity while they grovel in destitution; but it is a much more truly helpful thing. When we deal with men in spiritual work the same principle applies. It is not enough to bring consolation and peace and other spiritual blessings. The more important work is to lead feeble, broken-down creatures to the Source of new life and strength, that they may be renewed and converted. It is well to help the weak in their weakness, but it is better to help them out of it.

III. It is possible to fail miserably in attempting to help the weak. This is one of the most obvious lessons of the Book of Job, and it is constantly recurring to us from different points of view. Few tasks are more difficult, and therefore it is not surprising that failure is frequent, but the surprising thing is that it is not anticipated. We are astounded at the confidence of Job’s comforters. Their self-assurance is perfectly amazing. They persevere in their conventional assertions without perceiving how utterly useless, how vexatiously mischievous, their whole method of procedure is. Not understanding Job, they cannot help him. Too often blundering attempts at doing good only aggravate the evil they would alleviate. We must study social problems; we must understand the people; we must come to know the individual persons we desire to help. A large part of the duty of Christian angels of mercy is to visit the afflicted, to enter into their condition, see their homes, hear their troubles, know their circumstances and the cause of their misery. The story of Christian charity is full of most disheartening failures which arise simply from neglecting these first conditions of success.—W. F. A.

Ver. 6.—God’s vision of death. Bildad has just spoken of the exalted dominion of God that reaches to heavenly heights, overawing the very moon and stars. Job now replies, turning his eyes downward, and noticing how the dim underworld is all open to the inspection of God.

I. The dead are not beyond the vision of God. He lives in light, and they lie in darkness; yet he sees them. There is no escaping from his presence. “If I make my bed in Hades, behold, thou art there” (Ps. 139:8). 1. There is no eluding his observation. A man cannot flee from God by dying. Indeed, is not suicide rightly regarded as rushing into the presence of God? No darkness hides from God, for day and night are alike with him, and no change of sphere removes from the reach of him who rules through all the spheres. 2. There is no loss of his notice. No one can be beneath the attention of God—too low, too degraded, in too dark and desolate a region to be seen by him. Perhaps this was Job’s thought. He was longing for God to come and vindicate his cause; but he could not but admit that death might come first, for his disease was making fearful inroads on his constitution. Still, he would not lose the chance of meeting God. If not on earth, then it should be after death. God will follow his children wherever they go in the next world, as he follows them in this world.

II. God’s vision of the dead is of great consequence to them. If Hades and destruction have no covering before God, this means very much to Hades and destruction. It cannot be the same thing whether we are looked upon by God or not. Surely it means much to know that the abode of death is not deserted by God. God cannot look down into this dark region as a mere spectator. He is everywhere a Life, a Power, an Authority. Therefore we must conclude that the rule of God extends over the unseen world. Certain important consequences flow from this truth. 1. Justice will be done there. God will not allow injustice to go on for ever. The process of rectification is slow; but God is infinitely patient, and he has eternity before him. The unpunished sinner will meet his dreadful deserts in the next world, and the ill-used and misunderstood good man will be vindicated there. 2. Life will be given there. God cannot look on the dead and leave them in their natural darkness. His gaze quickens. If he visits the realm of the dead he will bring about a resurrection. The dead are not cast out, forgotten, left to fade and melt out of all being. God touches them, and they awake, like the frost-bound earth at the touch of spring. 3. Mercy will extend to them. How and to what extent this may be received by the dead is a mystery concerning which we have little or no light. But we know that “the mercy of the Lord endureth for ever.” We know that God is changeless. His love is unfailing. He must ever desire the recovery of his children. Yet dogmatic universalism is as false to human nature as it is to the warnings of Scripture. For men may harden themselves against the mercy of God; if they do so on earth, how can we say that they will not do so after death?—W. F. A.

Ver. 8.—Clouds. As we proceed through the poem we cannot but be struck with the wonderful wealth of its nature-imagery, which continues to open out with everincreasing luxuriance till it reaches its fulness in the burst of splendour that accompanies the final theophany. Each aspect of nature touched by the poet has its special lessons. Now he calls us to look at the gorgeous pageantry of the clouds. Here truths of Divine order and government are displayed before our eyes.

I. Clouds are of Divine origin. God bindeth up the waters; the thick clouds are his. Whenever we touch nature we should move with reverence, for we are in the temple of God. Whether we understand the clouds, whether we can see the wisdom by which they are shaped and led out over the heavens or not, at least we must discuss them with the humility that becomes a consideration of the works of the infinitely Wise and the perfectly Good.

II. Clouds are beneficial to the world. In Southern countries they are greatly valued both for their shade and for the much-needed showers they bring to the parched land. The arrangement by which they float overhead, and then descend on broad areas in finely distributed drops of water, makes man’s most advanced system of irrigation look childish and clumsy. Great masses of water are stored aloft and driven through the air, and made to descend so that every minute plant is watered, and not a blade of grass is crushed. Here is the perfection of the art of distribution.

III. Clouds illustrate the mutual ministries of nature. Drawn up from the sea in invisible vapour, driven over the land by strong winds, condensed against the mountains or in cool currents of the upper air, descending in gentle rain over fields and gardens, over woods and hills and plains, trickling through the soil, breaking out in little springs, streaming down the slopes in minute rills, gathering supplies from all directions in the valleys, and flowing back to the sea in full-fed rivers, the water of the clouds moves through a circuit, every stage of which is of use in the economy of nature, while the whole is completed by the help of many forces and circumstances.

IV. Clouds come as mercies in disguise. Thick clouds are black and ugly, hiding the blue sky, and casting gloom on the earth. They do not always have a silver lining. They may be heavy and lowering, sombre and threatening. Yet they burst in refreshing showers. When shall we believe that it is the same with those apprehensions of trouble which are really the chariots in which God’s love rides?

V. Clouds are beautiful in the sunlight. It is only a difference of light, and their gloom is turned into splendour. When the sun touches the clouds it sets them on fire. Morning and evening unroll leagues of rose and gold curtains on the distant horizon. When God’s love touches our clouds, by a magic alchemy they pass into heavenly beauty.

VI. Clouds are fleeting and transient. Moulded out of invisible vapours, they melt while we gaze at them. Their high bastions and clustered domes, their silvery lakes and purple mountains, are in rapid dissolution. For they must serve their purpose. They must vanish to fulfil their mission. Earthly joys like palaces of cloudland, earthly terrors like its gloomy shadows, both melt away, and must do so to serve their purpose of blessing and discipline. But beyond the clouds is the blue sky. We are thankful for the clouds. But we must neither cling to them, nor shrink from them. Standing on the solid earth, our lasting hope is in the eternal heavens.—W. F. A.

Ver. 14.—“The thunder of his power.” We only see the edges of God’s ways; we hear but a slight whisper of him; the thunder of his power is beyond our comprehension.

I. In nature. We can see but a small part of God’s works. Astronomy hints at vast regions of unexplored space. Even in limited regions the variety of teeming life goes beyond our comprehension. We cannot see the infinitely small. Further, we only use our five senses. Who can tell but that a sixth sense would reveal much more of the wonderful works of God? We can conceive of an indefinite multiplication of senses. Suppose there were ten senses, or fifty, or any number more; who can say but that they would discover corresponding objects that are quite unknown to us because we have not the faculty of perceiving them? Next consider how small a period of time our observation extends over. Geology stretches back a long way, but with how meagre a record of immense ages! Then note that all these observations deal with the material universe. But what of the spiritual? How far may this extend? What are its contents?

II. In providence. The mistake of Job’s friends was that they were both shortsighted and narrow in their vision. They could see but a very small part of God’s work and purpose; yet they drew universal conclusions, and dogmatized. Their mistake is only too common. We have to recollect that we have not the materials with which to form a judgment of God’s actions. In our own lives we see a very small part of the Divine plan. All may look dark and dreadful. But we are only at the early seed-sowing. We have to see the harvest before we can judge of the crop. And the harvest is not yet.

III. In revelation. This was true of the Old Testament in comparison with the New. But a fringe of the grace afterwards revealed in Christ was made known to the ancient Jews. Now it is impossible to say how much more of the nature and thought of God still lies beyond the region of revelation. We have enough to guide us, sufficient for salvation and for duty. But we dare not limit God to his revelations of himself. All attempts to define God, to draw a circle about the Divine, refute themselves, for they would make out that the Infinite is finite.

IV. In judgment. Whispers of God’s judgment make us tremble; and we have only heard whispers as yet. What, then, must the thunder of his power be? At a mere touch from “the Traveller unknown” the sinew of Jacob’s thigh shrank (Gen. 32:25). What would have been the result if the mysterious Wrestler had put forth his full power? Earthly troubles are hard to bear; these are but whispers compared to the thunder of doom!

V. In redemption. There is a bright side to this picture. “God is love,” and the half has not been told us of God’s nature. Future ages have yet to explore its marvellous wealth of grace. Throughout eternity it will still stretch beyond all human experience. With the grace is a corresponding blessing. The future blessedness that God offers to his children is also beyond all present estimates. “Beloved, now are we children of God, and it is not yet made manifest what we shall be” (1 John 3:2).—W. F. A.

EXPOSITION

CHAPTER XXVII

Vers. 1–23.—This chapter divides itself into three distinct portions. In the first, which extends to the end of ver. 6, Job is engaged in maintaining, with the utmost possible solemnity (ver. 2), both his actual integrity (ver. 6) and his determination to hold fast his integrity as long as he lives (vers. 4–6). In the second (vers. 7–10) he imprecates a curse upon his enemies. In the third (vers. 11–23) he returns to the consideration of God’s treatment of the wicked, and retracts the view which he had maintained controversially in ch. 24:2–24, with respect to their prosperity, impunity, and equalization with the righteous in death. The retractation is so complete, the concessions are so large, that some have been induced to question whether they can possibly have been made by Job, and have been led on to suggest that we have here a third speech of Zophar’s, such as “the symmetry of the general form” requires, which by accident or design has been transferred from him to Job. But the improbability of such a transfer, considering how in the Book of Job the speech of each separate interlocutor is introduced, is palpable; the dissimilarity between the speech and the other utterances of Zophar is striking; and the judgment of two such liberal critics as Ewald and Renan, that the passage is rightly placed, and rightly assigned to Job, should set all doubt at rest, and make an end of controversy (see Mr. Froude’s ‘Short Studies on Great Subjects,’ vol. i. pp. 315, 316; and Canon Cook’s “Introduction to the Book of Job,” in the ‘Speaker’s Commentary’ vol. iv. p. 7).

Ver. 1.—Moreover Job continued his parable, and said. The word translated “parable” (משׁל) is only used previously in Numb. 23. and 24. It is thought to “comprehend all discourses in which the results of discursive thought are concisely or figuratively expressed” (Cook). The introduction of a new term seems to imply that the present discourse occupies a position different from that of all the preceding ones. It is not tentative, controversial, or emotional, but expresses the deliberate judgment of the patriarch on the subjects discussed in it. Note the repetition of the term in ch. 29:1.

Ver. 2.—As God liveth, who hath taken away my judgment. Job has not previously introduced any form of adjuration. His “yea has been yea, and his nay nay.” Now, however, under the solemn circumstances of the occasion, when he is making his last appeal to his friends for a favourable judgment, he thinks it not inappropriate to preface what he is about to say by an appeal to God as his Witness. “As God liveth,” or “As the Lord liveth,” was the customary oath of pious Israelites and of God-fearing men generally in the ancient world (see Judg. 8:19; Ruth 3:13; 1 Sam. 14:39; 20:3; 2 Sam. 4:9; 12:5; 1 Kings 2:24; 17:21; 2 Kings 5:20; 2 Chron. 18:13; Jer. 38:16). Job adds that the God to whom he appeals is he who has “taken away,” or “withheld,” his judgment, i.e. who has declined to enter with him into a controversy as to the justice of his doings (ch. 9:32–35; 13:31; 23:3–7). And the Almighty, who hath vexed my soul; or, made my soul bitter. Though he slays him, yet does Job trust in God (ch. 13:15). He is his Witness, his Helper, his Redeemer (ch. 19:25).

Ver. 3.—All the while my breath is in me. This verse is parenthetic. Job claims in it to be in possession of all his faculties, notwithstanding his sufferings. The right translation would seem to be, “For my life is yet whole within me” (see the Revised Version). And the spirit of God is in my nostrils. The spirit of God, originally breathed into man’s nostrils, whereby he became a living soul (Gen. 2:7), is still, Job says, within him, and makes him capable of judging and declaring what is right.

Ver. 4.—My lips shall not speak wickedness. Nothing shall induce him, Job says, to speak knowingly wicked words. Nor my tongue utter deceit. Neither will he be induced, whatever happens, to utter untruth. A confession of guilt, such as his friends have endeavoured to extort from him, would be both wicked and false.

Ver. 5.—God forbid that I should justify you; i.e. allow that you have been right all along, and that I have drawn these judgments down upon me by secret sins. Till I die I will not remove mine integrity from me. So long as he continues to live, Job will not cease to maintain his innocence. It has been repeatedly pointed out that he does not mean to declare himself absolutely without sin, but only to deny such heinous guilt as his friends imputed to him (see ch. 22:5–9).

Ver. 6.—My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go. Not only will Job never cease to maintain his integrity in the past, but he will hold fast to the same course of blameless life in the future. He will not “curse God, and die.” Resolutely he will maintain his faith in God, and his dependence on him. “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him.” My heart shall not reproach me so long as I live. This is probably the true meaning, though some suggest “My heart doth not reproach me for any of my days.” Job determines to “have always a conscience void of offence, both toward God and toward man” (Acts 24:16; comp. Acts 23:1; 1 Cor. 4:4; 2 Tim. 1:3; 1 John 3:21).

Ver. 7.—Let mine enemy be as the wicked. The nexus of this passage with what goes before is uncertain. Some suppose Job’s full thought to have been, “Ye try to persuade me to act wickedly by making a false representation of my feelings and convictions; but I absolutely refuse to do so. Let that rather be the act of my enemy.” Others regard him as simply so vexed by his pretended friends, who are his real enemies, that he is driven to utter an imprecation against them. And he that riseth up against me as the unrighteous. This is another instance of a mere pleonastic hemistich—a repetition of the preceding clause in different words.

Ver. 8.—For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he hath gained. The hypocrite and liar may get advantage in this life by his lies and his hypocrisy. He may deceive men; he may raise himself in their opinion; he may derive worldly advantage from having secured their approval. But what will he have to look forward to in the end, when God taketh away (i.e. removeth from earth) his soul? Job evidently regards the soul that is “taken away” or removed from earth as still existing, still conscious, still capable of hope or of despair, and asks what hope of a happy future could the man who had lived a hypocrite entertain, when God required his soul, and he fell under God’s judgment. The question reminds us of those words of our blessed Lord, “What shall it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Mark 8:36, 37).

Ver. 9.—Will God hear his cry when trouble cometh upon him? Can he expect that in the day of trouble, “when distress and auguish come upon him” (Prov. 1:27), God will hear his cry, and respond to it, and give him relief? No; conscious hypocrisy—living a lie—cuts off from God, severs between a man and his Maker, makes all prayers for help vain, until it is repented of and put away from us. The man who dies in it is in a desperate case.

Ver. 10.—Will he delight himself in the Almighty? A further ill result of hypocrisy is noted. Not only does it alienate God from us, but it alienates us from God. The hypocrite cannot “delight in the Almighty.” He must shrink from him, fear him, dislike to dwell on the thought of his presence and realize it. His natural inclination must be to withdraw his thoughts from God, and give himself up to the worldliness which has been his attraction to assume the hypocrite’s part. Will he always call upon God? Can be even be depended on not to renounce the service of God altogether? The mutual alienation above spoken of must tend to check communion, to disincline to prayer and calling upon God, to erect a barrier between the hypocrite and the Almighty, which, though for a while it may be insufficient to withstand the force of use and wont, will yet, in the long run, be sure to tell, and will either put an end to prayer altogether, or reduce it to a formality.

Vers. 11–23.—It is impossible to deny that this passage directly contradicts Job’s former utterances, especially ch. 24:2–24. But the hypotheses which would make Job irresponsible for the present utterance and fix on him, as his steadfast conviction, the opposite theory, are unsatisfactory and have no solid basis. To suppose that Zophar is the real speaker is to imagine the absolute loss and suppression of two entire verses—one between vers. 10 and 11, assigning the speech to him, and another at the beginning of ch. 28., reintroducing Job and making him once more the interlocutor. That this should have happened by accident is inconceivable. Τὰ κατὰ τύχην οὐ πάνυ συνδυάζεται. To ascribe it to intentional corruption by a Hebrew redactor, bent on maintaining the old orthodox view, and on falsely and wickedly giving the authority of Job to it (Froude, ‘Short Studies on Great Subjects,’ vol. i. p. 316), is to take away all authority from the existing text of the Hebrew Scriptures, and to open a door to any amount of wild suggestion and conjectural emendation. The other hypothesis—that of Eichhorn—that Job is here simply anticipating what his adversaries will say, though a less dangerous view, is untenable, since Job never does this without following up his statement of the adversaries’ case with a reply, and here is no reply whatever, but a simple turning away, after ver. 23, to another subject. The explanation of the contradiction by supposing that Job’s former statement was tentative and controversial, or else hasty and ill-considered, and that now, to prevent misconception, he determines to set himself right, is, on the other hand, thoroughly defensible, and receives a strong support from the remarkable introduction in ver. 11, which “prepares us, if not for a recantation, yet (at any rate) for a modification of statements wrung from the speaker when his words flowed over from a spirit drunk with the poison of God’s arrows” (see the remarks of Canon Cook, in the ‘Speaker’s Commentary,’ vol. iv. p. 90, which are in substantial agreement with those of Ewald and Dillmann).

Ver. 11.—I will teach you by (or, concerning) the hand of God. Job is now at last about to deliver his real sentiments respecting God’s dealings with men in the world, and prefaces his remarks with this solemn introduction, to draw special attention to them. He is aware that his previous statements on the subject, especially in ch. 24:2–24, have been overstrained and exaggerated, and wishes, now that he is uttering his last words (ch. 31:40), to correct his previous hasty utterances, and put on record his true views. That which is with the Almighty will I not conceal. By “that which is with the Almighty” Job means the Divine principles of action.

Ver. 12.—Behold, all ye yourselves have seen it. The true Divine scheme of action has been so long and so frequently made manifest—openly set forth in the sight of men—that Job cannot believe that those whom he addresses are ignorant of it. They must themselves have seen the scheme at work. Why then are ye thus altogether vain? Why, then, do they not draw true inferences from the facts that come under their notice?

Ver. 13.—This is the portion of a wicked man with God. In “this” Job includes all that follows from ver. 14 to ver. 23—“this, which I am going to lay down.” He pointedly takes up the words of Zophar in ch. 20:29, admitting their general truth. And the heritage of oppressors, which they shall receive of the Almighty. Retribution is “their portion,” “their heritage,” i.e. the natural result and consequence of their precedent sin.

Ver. 14.—If his children be multiplied, it is for the sword. Among the items of prosperity which Job had assigned to the wicked man in one of his previous discourses (ch. 21:8, 11) was a numerous and flourishing offspring. Now he feels forced to admit that, frequently at any rate, this flourishing offspring is overtaken by calamity (ch. 21:19)—it falls by the sword, either in predatory warfare, to which it was bred up, or as the consequence of a blood-feud inherited from its progenitor. They who “take the sword,” either in their own persons or in their posterity, “perish with the sword.” And his offspring shall not be satisfied with bread. If they escape this fate, then, mostly, they fall into poverty, and suffer want, no one caring to relieve them, since they have an ill reputation, the memory of their parent’s wickedness clinging to them long after his decease.

Ver. 15.—Those that remain of him shall be buried in death. Not simply “shall die,” but shall “be buried,” i.e. lost sight of, and forgotten, “in death.” And his widows shall not weep (comp. Ps. 78:64). The deaths of his offspring shall not be lamented by their widows—a very grievous omission in the eyes of Orientals.

Ver. 16.—Though he heap up silver as the dust. The city of Tyre, we are told by Zechariah, “heaped up silver as the dust” (Zech. 9:3), i.e. in vast quantities, beyond count. So might the wicked man do. He might also prepare raiment as the clay; i.e. fill his house with rich dresses, partly for his own wear, partly to be given as robes of honour to his friends and boon companions (comp. Gen. 45:22; 2 Kings 5:22; 10:22; Matt. 6:19; Jas. 5:2). Robes of honour are still kept in store by Eastern monarchs, and presented as marks of favour to visitors of importance.

Ver. 17.—He may prepare it, but the just shall put it on. The raiment thus accumulated shall pass from the wicked into the hands of the just, who at his death shall enter upon his inheritance (ch. 20:18, 20, 28). And the innocent shall divide the silver (see the first clause of ver. 16).

Ver. 18.—He buildeth his house as a moth. The moth is the symbol of fragility, decay, and weakness. The wicked man’s attempt to build himself up a house, and establish a powerful family, is no better than a moth’s attempt to make itself a permanent habitation. As moths do not construct dwellings for themselves, it has been proposed (Merx) to read כעכבישׁ, “as a spider,” for כעשׁ, “as a moth;” but the change is too great to be at all probable. May not the cocoon, from which the moth issues as from a house, have been in Job’s mind? The hawk-moth buries itself in a neat cave for the pupa stage; and there may have been even better examples in Uz. But we ourselves have not known these facts long, and therefore we need not be surprised to find Job making a mistake in natural history. And as a booth that the keeper maketh. Huts or lodges of boughs were set up in vineyards and orchards by those who had to watch them (see Isa. 1:8; Lam. 2:6). They were habitations of the weakest and frailest kind.

Ver. 19.—The rich man lieth down; rather, he lieth down rich (see the Revised Version). But he shall not be gathered. If we accept the present text, we may translate, But it (i.e. his wealth) shall not be gathered, and suppose his wealth to have consisted in agricultural produce. Or we may alter יאסף into יוסיף, and translate, He lieth down rich, but he shall do so no more— a correction to which the οὐ πρυσθήσει of the Septuagint points. He openeth his eyes, and he is not. Some translate, “It is not;” i.e. the harvest, in which his wealth consisted, is not—it has been all destroyed by blight or robbers. Those who render, “He is not,” generally suppose that he opens his eyes only to find himself in the hands of murderers.

Ver. 20.—Terrors take hold on him as waters (comp. ch. 18:11). Terrors sweep over the wicked man like a flood of waters—vague terrors with respect to the past, the present, and the future. He fears the vengeance of those whom he has oppressed and injured, the loss of his prosperity at any moment by a reverse of fortune, and a final retribution at the hand of God commensurate with his ill desert. He is at all times uneasy; sometimes he experiences a sudden rush upon him of such gloomy thoughts, which overwhelms him, and sweeps him away like a mighty stream. A tempest stealeth him away in the night. While he is off his guard, as it were, in the night, a sudden storm bursts on him, and removes him from his place.

Ver. 21.—The east wind carrieth him away, and he departeth. The khamsin wind, coming with all its violence and burning heat, drives him before it, and is irresistible (see ‘Ancient Monarchies,’ vol. ii. p. 482). And as a storm hurleth him out of his place. This is little more than a repetition of the previous hemistich. The man is swept from the earth by a storm of calamity.

Ver. 22.—For God shall cast upon him, and not spare. Some commentators regard the storm as still the subject, and translate, “For it shall cast itself upon him [or, ‘rush upon him’], and not spare” (Schultens, Merx). The difference is not great, since the storm represents God’s judgment. He would fain flee out of his hand; or, if the storm is meant, out of its hand.

Ver. 23.—Men shall clap their hands at him. Applauding, i.e., the just judgment of God upon him. And shall hiss him out of his place. Accompany with hisses his final ruin and downfall—hissing him, while they applaud the action of God in respect to him.

HOMILETICS

Vers. 1–10.—Job’s first parable: 1. The transgressions of a godly man. I. A daring accusation. 1. Against whom directed? Against Eloah, the All-sufficient One; Shaddai, the All-powerful One, the Self-existent, Living One, whose universal dominion, resistless might, and ineffable majesty Bildad (ch. 25:1–3) and Job himself (ch. 26:5–14) had eloquently pictured. With exalted conceptions of the transcendent greatness of the invisible Supreme, whose continual presence also he vividly realized (ch. 23:8, 9, 15), Job should have feared to speak rashly, much more accusingly, before him (Deut. 28:58; Ps. 76:7, 11; Jer. 5:22). But clear and accurate notions of Divine truth do not always possess that moral force, even over good men, that they should. Job a little while ago was afraid of God and troubled at his presence (ch. 23:15); now, having lost, perhaps, his former luminous sense of the Divine presence, he hesitates not to bring against him a serious accusation.

2. By whom uttered? Job, a man who had not only been fashioned by the hands of Shaddai (ch. 10:8, 9), but depended for life every moment on the breath of Eloah in his nostrils (ver. 3), and therefore should have paused ere he called into question the conduct of a Being who could any instant cause him to return to the dust; a feeble man, wasted into a skeleton, shivering on the edge of the tomb, expecting every second to pass into God’s presence in the world of spirits—hence one who should have feared to affront the Eternal; a guilty man, i.e. a man who, however conscious of integrity, was yet sinful in God’s sight, and whom accordingly it ill became to question the proceedings of God; and likewise a pardoned man, whom God had accepted as righteous, in proof thereof sending answers to his prayers (ver. 9), which only added to the rashness of Job in impeaching Eloah as he did. 3. Of what composed? The charge preferred against God was twofold in appearance, vexing Job’s soul, and taking away Job’s judgment, though in reality the two things were connected as cause and effect. What irritated and inflamed the patriarch’s spirit was the thought which he here, indirectly indeed but none the less really on that account, utters, viz. that God, the righteous Judge of all the earth, had denied him justice. Already had he complained that God seemed to treat him as an enemy (ch. 9:28; 13:24; 14:16, 17); never until now does he in terms so explicit accuse God of withholding from him justice. For this sin Job was afterwards reproved by Elihu (ch. 34:5) and by God (ch. 40:8).

II. An overweening assumption. 1. To declare the truth about himself. There was nothing wrong or extravagantly self-asserting in the declaration that “his lips should not speak wickedness, nor his tongue utter deceit” (ver. 4; cf. 2 Cor. 11:31; Gal. 1:20). Not only should good men tell no lies (Exod. 20:16; Lev. 19:11; Ps. 34:13), though, alas! they sometimes do (Gen. 12:13; 26:7), but they should so hate untruthfulness (Prov. 13:5) as to render the utterance of falsehoods impossible (Isa. 63:8; Col. 3:9). Job, however, claimed that he would state the exact truth about his own inward integrity, forgetting that “the heart of man is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked” (Jer. 17:9), that God alone is competent to pronounce an accurate verdict on its character (Jer. 17:10; ch. 36:4; Ps. 7:9; Prov. 15:11), and that not even a saint can be trusted to deliver a perfectly unbiassed judgment about himself.

“If self the wavering balance shake,

It’s rarely right adjusted.”

(Burns.)

2. To reveal the mind of God concerning others. With an air of authority Job avows his ability to give what he had often stormed at his friends for professing to deliver—an oracular exposition of the Divine mode of action in dealing with ungodly men (ver. 11). Though “the secret of the Lord is with them that fear him” (Ps. 25:14; Prov. 3:32), it is not absolutely certain that good men do not sometimes mistake their own cogitations for Heaven’s inspirations. Under any circumstances good men, in setting forth what they believe to be Divine truth, should avoid the appearance and tone of dogmatical assertion. Least of all should they speak dictatorially to those whom they have already charged with the same offence (Rom. 2:21).

III. An overbold protestation. 1. With solemn adjuration. That Job should have maintained his integrity against the calumniations of his friends was both legitimate and reasonable. That he should even have exhibited a degree of warmth in repelling their accusations was perhaps excusable. But that he should have deemed it fitting to preface his self-vindication by an oath betrayed a degree of confidence, if not of selfrighteousness, which was unbecoming in a humble-hearted and truly pious man. The matter was one that did not require more than calm, quiet, modest affirmation. Yet Job, in at least two different forms, adds an oath for confirmation (vers. 2, 5), as if the vindication of his (i.e. the creature’s) righteousness were, and ought to be, the supreme end of his existence, and not rather the maintenance of the unchallengable righteousness of God. Nevertheless, Job’s conduct in thus asserting with an oath that he faithfully followed God compares favourably with that of Peter, who with curses affirmed that he knew not the Man (Mark 14:71). 2. With vehement repetition. Not content with one affirmation of his integrity, Job insists upon it with a fourfold asseveration (vers. 5, 6), declaring (1) that he could not justify his friends, i.e. admit the truth of their contention with regard to himself without profanity; (2) that he would continue to assert his innocence while he lived; (3) that his righteousness he would on no account let go; and (4) that his heart should not reproach him even one of his days. So Paul protested to the Sanhedrin that he had lived in all good conscience before God up till then (Acts 23:1), and, writing to the Corinthians (2 Cor. 1:12), rejoiced in the testimony of his conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity he had had his conversation in the world. The words, “not with fleshly wisdom, but by the grace of God,” exhibit the difference between St. Paul’s assertion of his personal integrity and Job’s.

IV. A wicked imprecation. 1. The persons upon whom it is pronounced. Job’s “enemy;” not the ungodly in general, but the men who rose up against him to impeach his integrity (ver. 7). While it is well-nigh certain that a good man will have enemies (Matt. 10:22; John 15:19), who hate him because they first dislike his principles (1 Pet. 3:16; 4:4), it is a splendid testimony to a good man’s character when he has no enemies except the ungodly. The mere fact, however, that his integrity is challenged by another is no proof that that other is either wicked in himself or hostilely disposed toward him. Though keenly resenting, therefore, the unjust imputations of his friends, it was wrong in Job to denounce them, as they had denounced him, as inherently ungodly. 2. The malediction of which it consists. Nothing is really gained by endeavouring to soften down Job’s language into a prediction. Supposing him to merely signify that the man who spoke against him was a wicked person who would eventually meet the wicked person’s recompense, he asserts it with a degree of confidence which was not warranted by the facts of the case, and which painfully suggests that the wish was father to the thought. The language of Job towards Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar finds an echo in the terrific outburst of David against his adversaries in the imprecatory psalms (69:22–28; 109:6–15; 140:8–11), which, in so far as it was directed against individuals, we are not required to regard as entirely free from blame.

V. A self-exalting comparison. In order further to set forth his integrity, Job tacitly contrasts his own case with that of the hypocrite, indirectly exhibiting himself as possessed of: 1. A better hope. However prosperous the wicked man may be in life, however successful in heaping up wealth, when he comes to die he has no hope whatever to sustain him (cf. ch. 8:13; 20:5, homiletics), no expectation of acceptance with God; while he, Job, though standing on the verge of the grave, has. Worldly success cannot provide, and will not suffice as a substitute for, hope in death. Accumulated wealth prevents not death’s approach. If God does not cut off a man’s gains before death, he will certainly cut off a wicked man’s soul at death. It is a poor bargain to gain the world which one must soon leave, and lose the soul which one cannot regain throughout eternity (Matt. 16:26). 2. A better privilege. When trouble comes upon the wicked man so severely as to make him cry unto the Lord, the Lord turns a deaf ear to his entreaty (Prov. 1:28). But the good man, i.e. Job, can reckon that his prayer will find an entrance into God’s ear (Ps. 34:17; 50:15; 107:13; 145:18, 19); the good man’s supplication being breathed forth in penitence, humility, and faith, the outcry of the hypocrite being merely an exclamation of alarm. 3. A better spirit. The imperilled hypocrite may cry to God when the fear of death is on him, or when trouble crushes him; but he has no true delight in fellowship with God. The good man derives his principal felicity from such communion with Heaven (Isa. 58:14; 1 John 1:3), as Eliphaz had already admitted (ch. 22:15); and such a good man Job distinctly claims to be. Delight in God expresses itself in happy meditation on and cheerful obedience to God’s Law (Ps. 119:16, 35, 47, 70); it is an indispensable condition of receiving answers to prayers (Ps. 37:4). 4. A better practice. The devotion of the hypocrite is only exceptional, whereas Job’s was habitual (ver. 10). An occasional prayer is no true mark of piety. The child of God should be instant in prayer (Rom. 12:12), and should pray without ceasing (Eph. 6:18; Phil. 4:6; 1 Thess. 5:17). Christ’s disciples should pray always, and not faint (Luke 18:1).

Learn: 1. That the most eminent saints are not beyond the danger of falling into grievous sins. 2. That good men, while conscious of their integrity, should guard against self-exaltation on that account. 3. That piety as little as impiety stands in need of oaths to support it. 4. That good men should never renounce their integrity while they live, however they may sometimes forbear from asserting it. 5. That however much a wicked man may gain on earth, he loses all at death. 6. That that hope only is good which extends beyond the grave. 7. That God delights in them who delight in him. 8. That a man’s piety can be pretty accurately gauged by the intensity and frequency of his prayers.

Vers. 11–23.—Job’s first parable: 2. The portion of a wicked man with God. I. Job’s language explained. The lot, or earthly inheritance, of the ungodly Job exhibits in three particulars. 1. The wicked man’s family. However numerous the children that gather round a sinner’s hearth, they will all be overwhelmed in eventual destruction. (1) Designed. If his sons and daughters multiply, it is not because of any special favour with which they are regarded by Heaven, but only to meet their appointed portion. If the wicked send forth their little ones like a flock (ch. 21:11), it is purely that, like oxen, they may be fattened for the slaughter. (2) Violent. Instead of dying peacefully in the course of nature after long, prosperous, and happy lives, they shall perish by the sword, by famine, or by pestilence—the three most usual forms of calamity in the East, and the three customary modes of inflicting Divine punishment (2 Sam. 24:13; Jer. 14:12). Job’s children were not removed in either of these ways. (3) Humiliating. Such indignity will fall upon his offspring, when they in turn follow him to the grave, that they shall be “buried in death,” meaning either left unburied, or, as is more probable, totally forgotten the instant they are dead. Contrast the picture of the wicked man’s funeral in a previous oration (ch. 21:9, 32). (4) Appalling. Either so complete will the ruin of this ungodly person’s family be that no widows shall remain to mourn for himself and children; or so sudden will be the shock of bereavement, that, paralyzed with grief, they will be unable to weep; or so attended with indications of Divine displeasure that they will fear to indulge in outward tokens of sorrow. 2. The wicked man’s wealth. This also shall be dissipated. (1) His money. Should it be plentiful as the dust (Zech. 9:3; cf. 1 Kings 10:27), he must leave it behind him, but not to his children, for “his silver the innocent shall divide” (ver. 17). The dying millionaire cannot calculate, or secure, that his accumulated treasures will be enjoyed by his family (Ps. 39:6; Luke 12:20). God can scatter a man’s wealth as easily as destroy a man’s life or extinguish a man’s house. (2) His raiment. This is another form of Oriental wealth (vide Exposition), which, though abundant as the mire, must share the same fate, and become the property of the righteous. (3) His palace. Strongly built and gorgeously decorated, it yet is frail and brittle, as easily destroyed and as quickly removed as a moth-web (ch. 8:15) or a watchman’s hut (Isa. 1:8). 3. The wicked man’s person. Equally with his family and possessions, the wicked man himself is engulfed in an awful doom. (1) Surprised by sudden death. At night retiring to bed rich, he knows not that before morning he shall be removed from life and riches at a stroke; or, if permitted to see the dawn, he is quite unconscious that he does so for the last time, and that, ere the night falls, he shall be no more (ver. 19). Death, which comes to all men suddenly (Matt. 24:44), is no surprise to them who habitually look for its approach (2 Tim. 4:6), but a fearful awakening to them who live in careless unconcern about their latter end (1 Thess. 5:3). (2) Terrified by impending judgment. While the violent surprise with which death seizes on the sinner is represented by three more metaphors—of a flood from which it is impossible to run (Ps. 18:4), a tempest or whirlwind which stealeth one away by night (ch. 21:18; Prov. 10:25), and an east wind accompanied by destructive storms (Isa. 41:16), sometimes “so severe as to smite down whole villages and uproot the largest trees” (Cox)—the effect produced upon the sinner’s mind is depicted as one of paralyzing, overwhelming, devouring consternation (Ps. 73:19). This fear is probably the apprehension of something after death (cf. ‘Macbeth,’ act i. sc. 7). (3) Overtaken by merited punishment. Upon the head of this unhappy wretch God shall rain down calamities so fast and furious that every attempt to escape his doom will be in vain. Such also David thought would be the portion of the wicked (Ps. 11:6); and such St. Paul asserts will be the ultimate reward of the unbelieving and impenitent (Rom. 2:9). (4) Pursued by universal execration. Even if we read (Carey) it, i.e. the wind, shall clap its hands at him, and whistle at him in derision, the image must be interpreted to mean that the storm-chased sinner will be beheld with malignant joy and withering scorn; that, in fact, men will clap their hands with infinite delight over his tragic fate, and hunt his guilty spirit from the world with expressions of bitter hatred and contempt.

II. Job’s meaning cleared. 1. The difficulty. The above exposition of the wicked man’s portion bears so close a resemblance to the pictures already sketched by the friends, that much perplexity has been occasioned by Job’s seeming inconsistency, in at this stage admitting the very dogma he had so powerfully assailed in his previous contendings. If this were true, it would only prove that great men sometimes change their minds and modify their opinions. But the contradiction is more apparent than real. 2. The solution. For a detailed statement of the different schemes proposed with a view to either bridge over or remove this difficulty, the Exposition may be consulted. Here it may suffice to say that either we may understand Job as recapitulating the theory of the friends, which he has just characterized as “foolish notions” (ver. 12); or, holding that the sentiments he delivers are his own, we may affirm that in previously painting the prosperous fortunes of the ungodly (e.g. ch. 12:6; 21:7) he was merely placing exceptional cases against the exclusive theory of the friends, that ungodly men have always evil fortunes, which was all that strict logic required as its refutation, but that here he desires to intimate his acquiescence in the main element of their dogma, viz. that as a rule “the retributive justice of God is manifest in the case of the evil-doer” (Delitzsch).

Learn: 1. That every man’s portion from God is twofold, relating to the life that is to come as well as to that which now is. 2. That the higher a wicked man rises in worldly prosperity, the more ignominious will be his final overthrow. 3. That God can effect sudden and surprising transfers of property on earth. 4. That sudden death may overtake the person who appears best secured against it. 5. That sudden death is not the same thing to a wicked man that it is to a good one. 6. That the wicked man cannot face the future without a fear. 7. That if a wicked man’s death is a cause of joy to the world, the departure of a saint should be a source of lamentation.

HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS

Vers. 1–23.—Job a victor in the controversy. After the last speech of Job the friends appear to be completely overcome and silenced, and the third of them does not venture to renew the attack. The sufferer therefore continues, in a speech of high poetic beauty, to instruct the friends, while once more insisting on his own innocence.

I. Innocence maintained. (Vers. 2–10.) 1. Conscious rectitude of resolve. (Vers. 2–4.) In the profoundest sense that his thoughts are open to the eye of the all-seeing God, and that he need not fear to have his words overheard, Job speaks. He declares that he has still strength and sanity enough to know what he is saying, and to speak as a responsible witness on this question of his innocence. And although it has pleased God, as he thinks, to withhold justice from him, and to distress his soul, the light of duty and of conscience shines as brightly as ever. He will be true in word and deed to the last. Truth is the supreme duty we owe to ourselves, to our fellows, to our God, to eternity. The resolve to be true should be inseparable from the resolve to live; and we should part with life sooner than with truth. And no suffering should be allowed to disturb our genuine convictions about ourselves. The discouragement of others’ harsh opinion may well lead us to cast more searching glances into the state of our heart, but ought not to extort confessions of guilt which are exaggerated and unreal. It is only superstition which can suppose such to be acceptable to God. But this is the language of a man who has found, deep below all his doubts, an immovable ground of confidence in God. This makes him bold in the presence of his fellow-men. Happy those whose hearts condemn them not, and who have confidence with God. A false humility is an affectation of being worse than we really are. A genuine humility teaches us to see ourselves as we are; and every recognition of facts as facts, truths as truths, gives confidence. 2. The steadfastness of a good conscience. (Vers. 5–7.) Job will never give way to his friends, nor own them in the right. The language of dogged egotism and stupid obstinacy imitates that of conscious right: “I will never give in!” But the one is the mark of folly and weakness, the other is the evidence of vitality and strength. He will not part with the sense of his integrity; it is as the jewel for which he has sold everything, which represents, amidst poverty and suffering and shame, all the property he has in the world. “Conscience is the great magazine and repository of all those pleasures that can afford any solid refreshment to the soul. When this is calm and serene and absolving, then properly a man enjoys all things, and what is more, himself; for that he must do before he can enjoy anything else. But it is only a pious life, led exactly by the rules of a severe religion, that can authorize a man’s conscience to speak comfortably to him; it is this that must word the sentence before the conscience can pronounce it, and then it will do it with majesty and authority; it will not whisper, but proclaim a jubilee to the mind; it will not drop, but pour in oil upon the wounded heart” (South). 3. Inward peace and joy denied to the wicked. (Vers. 8–10.) This is a further argument of innocence. How can Job be numbered amongst the wicked? No hypocrite can possibly enjoy this serenity and unshaken hope in God which have been the portion of his soul amidst all calamities, and in the approach of death (ch. 17. and 19.). When the cords of his life-tent are cut (comp. ch. 4:21), the wicked man has nothing more to hope for. His prayers will receive no answer, and joyous and trustful intimacy with God is denied him. Whatever disturbs innocence, in the same degree makes inroad upon the comfort of the soul. To be in the dark; to find that the gate of prayer is closed; to carry about a sick, ulcerated mind; to be harassed by the returning paroxysms of diffidence and despair; to be haunted with the dismal apparitions of a reviving guilt—the old black sores of past forgotten sins; to have the merciless handwriting against him, presented in new and flowing characters to his apprehension—is the case and condition of the sinner. But “why should a man choose to go to heaven through sloughs and ditches, briars and thorns, diffidence and desertion, trembling and misgiving, and by the very borders of hell, with death staring him in the face, when he might pass from comfort to comfort, and have all his way paved with assurance, and made easy and pleasant to him by the inward invaluable satisfaction of a well-grounded peace”? (South).

II. Instruction on the fate of the wicked. (Vers. 11–23.) 1. Introduction. (Vers. 11–13; comp. ch. 20:29; 16:20.) The theme of discourse is to be the “hand of God”—his power and his mode of moral government as seen by daily examples in the lives of men; and the “sense” or mind of the Almighty—the contents of his thoughts and counsels (ch. 10:13; 23:10). And experience is to furnish the evidence and the illustrations (ver. 12). The facts are open to the view of all, but what was wanting in the friends of Job, as in many others, is a correct understanding and appreciation of them. Wisdom to mark the signs of the times, the hints of God’s will, his meanings, his judgments, not only in the course of nations, the great crises of history, but in the smaller sphere of every day, is what we need. Then the theme is announced (ver. 13): “the lot of the wicked man—the heritage of the tyrant.” Compare the words of Zophar (ch. 20:29). 2. The instability of the wicked man’s condition. (Vers. 14–18.) His household and family are first mentioned. The corruption working outward is first felt in the nearest circle and surrounding of his life. The sins of the father are visited upon the children. The sword, or famine, or pestilence makes them a prey. All modern as well as ancient experience confirms this law. The doctrine of “heredity” throws light upon many diseases, many vices, many woes. The children’s teeth are set on edge because the fathers have eaten sour grapes. And this law of eternal retribution would seem intolerably stern and harsh did we not perceive that it is thus God constantly warns the world. The connection of causes and effects, constant, unbroken, alike in the physical, the moral, and the spiritual sphere, is the natural revelation of the will of God. But there are compensations, redeeming agencies at work for the individual. He suffers often as the scapegoat of others’ sins externally; he is the victim of a solemn necessity; but in the large realm of inward freedom he may be emancipated, redeemed, and blessed. “His widows weep not” (ver. 15) behind his bier, perhaps because in the fearful ravages of the pestilence the funeral rites are suspended. The plural is used to indicate the wives of the heads of other families and relatives of the deceased generally. Then, not only is the wicked cursed in his family, but in his property. A picture of immense wealth and profuse display follows (ver. 16)—his silver being heaped up like dust, and fine raiment being as common as dirt. Yet there is no more real substantiality in all this than in the frail cocoon of the moth, or the but which the watchman puts up in the vineyard or orchard (Isa. 1:8). The striking story is told by Herodotus (vi. 86) of one Glaucus, the son of Epicydes, who was requested by a man of Miletus to take charge of the half of his fortune. When the sons of the Milesian claimed the money, Glaucus denied all knowledge of it, and consulted the oracle as to the results of perjury, and whether he could safely retain the money. The oracle replied, “Glaucus, son of Epicydes, for the present moment, indeed, it is more profitable to prevail by an oath, and to make the money thy booty. Swear; for death in truth awaits the man who is true to his oath. But, on the other hand, the child of the oath is nameless, and hath neither hands nor feet; yet he swiftly comes on, until he has ruined and destroyed thy whole race, yea, all thy house. With the race of the faithful man it shall fare better hereafter.” He restored the money, but was told it was too late; and Leotychides, who related the story to the Athenians, says, “There is now no descendant of Glaucus living, no hearth that owns his name; he has been utterly rooted out, and has passed away from Sparta.” 3. Insecurity of life. (Vers. 19–23.) “He lies down rich, and—doth it not again,” according to the best reading. This is a picture of the evening. The next is a picture of the morning. “Opens his eyes, and—is gone!” Both depict the suddenness of the wicked man’s end (ver. 19). A multitude of terrors rush in upon him, like the waters of an inundation (ver. 20; comp. ch. 20:28; Ps. 18:5; Jer. 47:2), and fill his death-bed with horror (comp. ch. 18:14; 20:25), and the east wind carries him away (ver. 21)—the east wind being often mentioned as one of great violence (ch. 1:19; 15:2; 38:24; Isa. 27:8; Ezek. 27:26). God slings without sparing the bolts of his wrath against him, and he must flee before his hand (ver. 22). The fearful scene closes amidst the scornful laughter and clapping of hands of those who exult in the tyrant’s doom (ver. 23; comp. ch. 34:37; Lam. 2:15; Nah. 3:19), and he departs from his place amidst the hisses of execration. The powerful picture of the great moralist, Juvenal, may be compared with this passage (‘Sat.,’ viii. 210, sqq.). After depicting the sufferings of a guilty conscience, he proceeds, “What, then, if the sinner has achieved his purpose? A respiteless anxiety is his, that ceases not, even at the hours of meals; his jaws are parched as though with fever, and the food he loathes swells between his teeth. All wines the miserable wretch spits out; old Alban wine, of highly prized antiquity, disgusts him. At night, if anxious care has granted him perchance some brief slumber, and his limbs, that have been tossing over the whole bed, at length are at rest, immediately he sees in dreams the temple and altar of the deity he has insulted; and, what weighs upon his soul with especial terror, he sees thee [the wronged one]! Thy awful form, of more than human bulk, confounds the trembling wretch, and wrings confession from him!” These pictures of the doom of the godless are fitted to teach patience to all the ill-used and the suffering in this world. God forgets nothing; neither the work of faith and labour of love of his children, nor the rank offences of the rebels against his laws. In due time he will both reward and punish, commonly even in this life (Exod. 32:34; Rom. 2.). Calamity is not a mere accident, as the worldly and the infidel think. It follows sin, according to a fixed connection, by the will of God (Amos 3:6).—J.

Vers. 5, 6.—Determined integrity. Job is resolved to retain his integrity in spite of every rude assault. He will not suffer himself to be withdrawn from his fixed resolve. By firm resolution integrity may be preserved, though a boastful spirit exposes itself to temptation. Between the perils of presumptuous boasting on the one hand and timid irresolution on the other, lies the path of safety in a lowly, humble determination.

I. Resolution fortifies the mind against the attacks of temptation. Evil finds its easiest prey in the irresolute and undetermined. Subtle and sudden suggestions of wrong are instantly rejected by the determined mind. They are cast off. There is a spirit of antagonism—a cherished antipathy to wrong; and before temptation has power to draw away the feet of the unwary, the determined one casts back the offending presence. He waits not to parley. There is a law established to cleave to the right; and the presence of the wrong becomes the watchword for an uprising of the whole strength against the usurper.

II. Resolution, by its decisions, prevents the mind from the injurious effects of vacillation. The mind is kept braced up to its duty. Its judgments are formed beforehand. It has not to wait for any mental process. The instant wrong is suggested, that instant its reply is at hand. While the wavering and uncertain are being overcome, the resolute man walks on his plain path fearlessly and safe.

III. Resolution to maintain integrity arising out of a just estimate of its worth preserves from deception by false views. Low estimates of the worth of personal integrity make a man the sport of the trafficker in evil. Personal rectitude being held cheaply would be bartered away for any gilded bait.

IV. The encouragement of resoluteness of spirit becomes an obvious and pressing duty. No one can be neglectful of this without doing great wrong to himself. To stand firm, entrenched by a strong will, guards the soul from the delusions that are rife enough; but that the will may be well supported, it is needful to encourage the spirit of resolute, unyielding determination. Then, with a high sense of the preciousness of conscious integrity, and with a mind adjusted to an attitude of purposed resistance against whatever would threaten to impair that integrity, the faithful one holds fast to his possession, and gains, in addition to his own quiet approval, that of all observers, and, above all, that of the great Judge of human conduct. In this Job succeeds, and becomes a pattern to all tempted ones. From the depth of his acute and prolonged suffering arises the cry of holy resolve, “Till I die will I not remove mine integrity from me.” So that from his inmost heart cometh no reproach upon his days.

He that thus acts secures (1) peace of mind; (2) consciousness of the Divine approval; (3) the benefit of daily growth in goodness; (4) the final reward of fidelity.—R. G.

Vers. 8–12.—The hope of the hypocrite. Job, the man of integrity, who was determined to hold fast his integrity until death, saw plainly that the hypocrite had no ground of confidence, and he boldly makes the demand, “What is the hope of the hypocrite?” It is an appeal that can receive no satisfying answer. There is no hope for him, indeed; whatever he may imagine it to be, it is as a bubble that floats on the water for a short time, then bursts, and no trace is left of it. His confidence is placed on an unsafe foundation; he may build his expectations upon it, but the inevitable flood of time will wash it away. It is a vain, groundless, lost, disappointed hope. Job directs his inquiry into one channel—What is the hypocrite’s hope as towards God? The earthly hopes of the hypocrite are not safe, though for a time he may prosper. But his hopes towards God are vain indeed. The hypocrite is estranged from God.

I. He has no hope in God in death. When the righteous man filleth his bosom with sheaves, the hope of the wicked is found to be cut off. Beyond the grave all is darkness.

II. He cannot turn to God in time of trouble. When affliction falls upon the humble and righteous one, he whom he has sought to know and obey proves to be a reality to him. But the hypocrite has made God to be a sham. He has not known or obeyed him, or acted towards him as though he were a reality. To him, indeed, there is no God. How can he call on him in trouble whom he has denied in health?

III. He cannot find in God a spring of joy. He cannot delight himself in him whom he has represented to himself as an unreality. God has not been really God in the estimate of the hypocrite. The man who is himself conscious of being false makes all false around him. He does not live in a real but a deceitful world. He has deceived himself in respect of it.

IV. He cannot call upon God in prayer. Thus the hope of the hypocrite perishes. It is vain. In the exigencies of life, when he most needs help, the false foundation which he has laid for himself fails him. The man who acts falsely towards God really acts falsely towards himself, and turns the most substantial grounds of hope into airy nothingness.—R. G.

Vers. 13–23.—The reward of iniquity. Job’s eye had been open to behold the ways of God with men. He had seen the effects of righteous living and of wickedness. His own suffering, coupled with his consciousness of integrity, would quicken his inquiries and his observations on the relative results of [15]

25:1–6 BILDAD

Bildad avoided Job’s challenge (24:25) to prove him wrong, but he tried to bring Job to his knees before God’s power and holiness (25:1–6).

26:1–31:40 Integrating God’s Power and Wisdom with Innocent Suffering

Overview: The section of 26:1–31:40 presents Job’s best attempt at uniting the power and wisdom of God with his own experience of innocent suffering. It was a three-part effort (26:1–14; 27:1–28:28; 29:1–31:40). Job clearly asserted God’s power (26:1–14). Then he asserted his own righteousness and God’s great wisdom (27:1–28:28). Job ended this address by declaring that he was open to justified punishment for any sin of his that might be revealed to him (31:1–40).

26:1–14 ASSERTION OF GOD’S POWER

For “great sea monster” (or “Leviathan,” 26:12), see the note on 3:8. Job insisted that when a person had described God’s wisdom and power to the best of his ability, he had just scratched the surface. There was infinitely more that could be said.

27:1–28:28 ASSERTION OF JOB’S RIGHTEOUSNESS AND GOD’S WISDOM

Some scholars suggest that Job 27 contains Zophar’s speech. But the reference in 27:1 to Job being the speaker is clear. Zophar apparently dropped out of the dialogue after he last spoke in 20:1–29 and no more is heard from him.

In 27:13–23 Job appears to have modified his earlier position by admitting that the wicked would not enjoy their prosperity (27:14) and that it would not be their final destiny (27:19). But he held firm to his opinion that the wicked prosper for a season.

The heat of the debate was past, and Job reflected on the wisdom of God, where he was certain the answer to his dilemma had to be found. While man is able to mine the treasures hidden in the ground (28:1–11), wisdom cannot be found so easily. The major theme of the wisdom books (Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs) is introduced: “the fear of the Lord” (28:28). This concept is the beginning point and the fundamental lesson in one’s search for wisdom (Prov. 1:7). The parallel phrase, “to forsake evil is real understanding” (28:28), explains how the fear of the Lord may be practically applied.[16]

     Bildad avoids Job’s challenge (24:25). Anxious, however, to say something, he repeats ideas expressed earlier by Eliphaz (cf. 4:17ff.; 15:14ff.) and accepted by Job (cf. 9:2; 14:4). The inept repetition indicates that the philosophers have exhausted their resources of wisdom. Bildad’s brief, feeble effort represents their expiring breath. Zophar’s subsequent failure to speak is the silence of the vanquished (cf. 29:22).

     Job, an insignificant worm of the dust, says Bildad, by comparison with the glorious heavenly bodies (v. 6), may not hope to prove his innocence before God (v. 4), whose awe-inspiring majesty prevails universally (vv. 2, 3), putting to shame even the brightness of moon and stars (v. 5). The speech is reverent but irrelevant.

d) Job’s Third Reply to Bildad. 26:1-14.

     Job pursues more impressively and to better purpose the theme attempted by Bildad—God’s wondrously wise ways (cf. 9:4-10; 12:13-25).

     2-4. The patriarch indulges his bent for sarcasm as he turns in disdain from Bildad’s useless recitation. From whom hast thou declared words (4a. On ˒ēt, “from,” cf. Akk. ittu; on this use of ˒ēt, with higgı̂d, cf. Mic 3:8). Bildad’s ideas were but echoes of Eliphaz’, and his use of them to condemn Job was more likely inspired by Satan than by God.

     5-14. They that are deceased tremble Beneath the waters and the inhabitants thereof (v. 5, ASV). More remarkable than the awe God instills in beings near his heavenly throne (25:2) is the consternation his wisdom and dominion bring to the shades in Sheol (26:5, 6). Whether Job’s cosmology actually agreed with ancient concepts or is merely figuratively expressed, it is not presented as necessarily normative revelation. In his survey of the evidences of God’s greatness, the speaker now passes from the underworld to this world (vv. 7-13). Though verse 7 might envisage creative action, this section as a whole pictures God’s general providential rule of nature. The north over empty space (v. 7a, ASV), refers to the northern heavens. He incloseth the face of his throne (v. 9a, ASV) means, He veils the heaven with clouds. The qualification in 26:10b is not temporal (AV) but spatial (ASV). The pillars of heaven (v. 11), are mountains, their peaks hidden in clouds. He smiteth through Rahab (v. 12b, ASV) ... His hand hath pierced the fleeing serpent (v. 13b, ASV marg.). God controls the upper and lower waters to procure favorable climatic order. For the mythological imagery, cf. Isa 27:1; Ugaritic text, Gordon UH 67, I, 1ff. Lo, these are but the outskirts of his ways: And how small a whisper do we hear of him! (v. 14a,b, ASV; cf. ch. 28) If Job’s friends had recognized the limitations of their knowledge, they would have avoided their misinterpretations. Job’s praise of the perfection of God’s knowledge contradicts their identification of him with ungodly men.

e) Job’s Instruction of the Silenced Friends. 27:1–28:28.

     Since Zophar fails to speak, Job continues, now addressing all the friends (cf. plurals in 27:11, 12). Aware of his mastery, he assumes the role of teacher (27:11). After once again declaiming his righteousness, with a strong oath (27:1-7), he contrasts his own experience with that of the wicked (27:8-23). Chapter 28 is an artistic introduction to the way of wisdom. Modern critics have argued forcefully that the text from 27:7 on has suffered disarrangement. They contend that the sentiments expressed contradict Job’s previous remarks, or, in the case of chapter 28, are incompatible with the sequel. It seems possible, however, to defend the originality of the present textual arrangement, and the following exposition is based upon it.

     27:1-7. As God liveth, who hath taken away my right (v. 2a, ASV). This oath remarkably epitomizes Job’s spiritual dilemma. On the one hand, it proclaims God the God of truth, and on the other, charges that his treatment of Job is unjust. Surely my lips do not speak unrighteousness (v. 4a, ASV, marg.). This is not a vow (AV); it is a declaration that Job’s unshakable claim to integrity (vv. 5, 6) is true to conscience and fact. Let mine enemy be as the wicked (v. 7a). The reader of the Prologue appreciates how diabolical was the accusation that Job’s piety was not genuine.

     8-23. For what is the hope of the godless when God cuts him off? (v. 8a, RSV) No longer driven to reactionary extremes by the pressure of debate, Job achieves a more penetratingly spiritual analysis of the ungodly. They are without God in the world. That means not only that they will suffer eternal perdition (v. 8), but that they have no divine refuge amid present trouble (vv. 9, 10; cf. 22b). Why then are ye become altogether vain? (v. 12b, ASV) The friends should have recognized by Job’s persistent crying to God that their identification of him with the godless was false (cf. 35:9ff.). This is the portion of a wicked man with God (v. 13a; cf. 20:29; 31:2). The prosperity of an ungodly family (vv. 14-18) is not passed down through successive generations. As for a wicked individual, prosperity is not his final destiny (vv. 19-23). Job so far modifies his former statement as to agree with his silenced opponents that the prosperity of the wicked is not the dominant trend in the world. But he still recognizes that the wicked may prosper for a season. And any such exception is fatal to the logic of the theory that condemned him.

     28:1-28. Some commentators regard this chapter as a hymnic interlude inserted by the author to separate the dialogue from Job’s final summing up (chs. 29–31). It is treated here as a continuation of Job’s instruction “concerning the hand of God” (27:11a, ASV) and, as such, further demonstrates that his piety is both genuine and fervent.

     1-11. As a foil to the following theme of the failure of man to gain true wisdom apart from God (v. 12ff.), there is pictured the success of the daring sons of Tubal-cain (cf. Gen 4:22) in exploiting earth’s hidden treasures. Mankind’s conquest of the earth, commanded by God at the beginning (Gen 1:28), is marked by phenomenal technological triumphs.

     12-19. But where shall wisdom be found? (v. 12a) The next section (20-27) is also introduced by this refrain question. There it receives a positive answer, but here a negative one. In spite of amazing achievements in scientific enterprise (vv. 1-11), men are unable by the techniques or treasures of science to attain wisdom. That supreme prize cannot be obtained by probing or purchase, because it is not, like some precious stones, deposited in earth or sea (vv. 13, 14).

     20-27. Back of the assumption that man can discover wisdom lies the presupposition that the Creator possesses infinite wisdom. Wisdom is not found in the land of the living (v. 21; cf. 13, 14), nor in the realm of the dead (v. 22). The way of wisdom is beyond the unaided ken of man here or hereafter. It is directly visible only to the One who enjoys all-encompassing, all-penetrating perception (vv. 23, 24). Note the use of hearing and seeing for partial and perfect knowledge respectively (vv. 21-27). The Creator perceived wisdom in the beginning, when he was ordaining the laws of the world (vv. 25, 26). In fact, the natural creation, with its governing laws, established by God, is an expression and embodiment of wisdom (v. 27; cf. Prov 8:22-31). For wisdom is the word of his will and becomes articulate for man in God’s law—natural and moral. Divine law is the form in which God reveals his wisdom to men.

     28. The fear of the Lord, that is wisdom. Man’s reverent acknowledgment that he and his world are subject to the Creator is so much the lifeblood of human wisdom that it can be identified with wisdom. A man begins to be wise when he ceases to strive for wisdom independently of God and in his own power. He advances in wisdom through meditation on the moral law and investigation of natural law. Apart from a true recognition of divine revelation, whether in the natural creation or in the Word, man’s meditation and investigation produce not wisdom but folly. The cultural enterprise not begun and consummated in the cult is vain. And the cult, if it be not the true cult of the Lord, is vanity. The fear of the Lord, covenant consecration, is the beginning and chief part of wisdom.

f) Job’s Final Protest. 29:1–31:40.

     The engagement with the friends is over; now the encounter with God comes to the fore. In a final monologue Job summarizes his cause. The direct address in 30:20-23

marks it as part of Job’s continuing recourse to God. This speech is a reiteration of Job’s opening complaint, considerably tempered for having passed through the fires of the great debate. It is a trilogy, consisting of a description of Job’s former exaltation (ch. 29), a description of his present humiliation (ch. 30), and a final protestation of innocence (ch. 31).

     1-25. Job begins this exposition of his extraordinary history where the Book of Job begins it—in the prosperous months of old (v. 2a, ASV). In the ripeness of my days (v. 4a, ASV); not youth (AV). Job starts with the heart of the matter (as the book also does)—the close covenant bond between himself and God (cf. 1:1). The blessedness of those former days which now stirs such longing in Job was not the paradise-like abundance as such (v. 6), but the friendly favor of God (cf. Ps 25:14), from which that prosperity flowed (vv. 2-5). When I went forth to the gate (v. 7a, ASV). Because Job’s estate was adjacent to the city, Job was active in civil and judicial affairs. The gate and adjoining “street,” or open market place, was the location of the town forum. The eminent role the patriarch had played in council and court seems to him now the most significant aspect of his past (vv. 7-17, 21-25), viewed from his present personal struggle for justice. The last word, so grudgingly granted him in the present debate, had always before been his undisputed right (vv. 21-23) as he sat a king among his fellows (v. 25). The irony was that he who had been the celebrated champion of the poor and oppressed (vv. 11-17), the beloved comforter of mourners (v. 25c), was now, in his trouble, denied a fair hearing by friends (cf. esp. ch. 22) and, apparently, by God. I put on righteousness and it clothed itself with me (v. 14a, ASV marg.). The righteous cause became incarnate in Job, who, undaunted by despondency or difficulty (v. 24, ASV), wielded the sword of justice to deliver the innocent from predatory men (v. 17a; cf. Isa 11:2-5; Ps 72:12-14). One of the blessings of Job’s lost paradise had been his happy hopes of prolonged days in the bosom of his family (Job 29:18), of honor (20a), and of strength (20b) constantly renewed (v. 19). Job presently relates the sad confounding of these hopes (ch. 30).

[17]

Job 25:1–6. Bildad’s Reply.

He tries to show Job’s rashness (Job 23:3), by arguments borrowed from Eliphaz (Job 15:15), with which compare Job 11:17.‍

2. Power and terror, that is, terror-inspiring power.

peace in his high places—implying that His power is such on high as to quell all opposition, not merely there, but on earth also. The Holy Ghost here shadowed forth Gospel truths (Col 1:20; Eph 1:10).‍

3. armies—angels and stars (Is 40:26; Je 33:22; Ge 15:5; “countless,” Da 7:10).

his light—(Jam 1:17).‍

4. (Job 4:17, 18; 14:4; 15:14).‍

5. “Look up even unto the moon” (Job 15:15). “Stars” here answer to “saints” (angels); the moon” here to “the heavens” there. Even the “stars,” the most dazzling object to man’s eye, and the angels, of which the stars are emblems (Job 4:18; Rev 9:1), are imperfect in His sight. Theirs is the light and purity but of creatures; His of the Creator.‍

6. (Job 4:19–21; 15:16).

worm … worm—Two distinct Hebrew words. The first, a worm bred in putridity; alluding to man’s corruption. The second a crawling worm; implying that man is weak and grovelling.

CHAPTER 26‍

third series.

Job 26:1–14. Job’s Reply.‍

2, 3. without power … no strength … no wisdom—The negatives are used instead of the positives, powerlessness, &c., designedly (so Is 31:8; De 32:21). Granting I am, as you say (Job 18:17; 15:2), powerlessness itself, &c. How hast thou helped such a one?”

savest—supportest.‍

3. plentifully … the thing as it is—rather, “abundantly—wisdom.” Bildad had made great pretensions to abundant wisdom. How has he shown it?‍

4. For whose instruction were thy words meant? If for me I know the subject (God’s omnipotence) better than my instructor Job 26:5–14 is a sample of Job’s knowledge of it.

whose spirit—not that of God (Job 32:8); nay, rather, the borrowed sentiment of Eliphaz (Job 4:17–19; 15:14–16).‍

5–14. As before in the ninth and twelfth chapters, Job had shown himself not inferior to the friends’ inability to describe God’s greatness, so now he describes it as manifested in hell (the world of the dead), Job 26:5, 6; on earth, Job 26:7; in the sky, Job 26:8–11; the sea, Job 26:12; the heavens, Job 26:13.

Dead things are formed—Rather, “The souls of the dead (Rephaim) tremble.” Not only does God’s power exist, as Bildad says (Job 25:2), “in high places” (heaven), but reaches to the region of the dead. Rephaim here, and in Pr 21:16 and Is 14:9, is from a Hebrew root, meaning “to be weak,” hence “deceased”; in Ge 14:5 it is applied to the Canaanite giants; perhaps in derision, to express their weakness, in spite of their gigantic size, as compared with Jehovah [Umbreit]; or, as the imagination of the living magnifies apparitions, the term originally was applied to ghosts, and then to giants in general [Magee].

from under—Umbreit joins this with the previous word “tremble from beneath” (so Is 14:9). But the Masoretic text joins it to “under the waters.” Thus the place of the dead will be represented as “under the waters” (Ps 18:4, 5); and the waters as under the earth (Ps 24:2). Magee well translates thus: “The souls of the dead tremble; (the places) under the waters, and their inhabitants.” Thus the Masoretic connection is retained; and at the same time the parallel clauses are evenly balanced. “The inhabitants of the places under the waters” are those in Gehenna, the lower of the two parts into which Sheol, according to the Jews, is divided; they answer to “destruction,” that is, the place of the wicked in Job 26:6, as “Rephaim” (Job 26:5) to “Hell” (Sheol) (Job 26:6). “Sheol” comes from a Hebrew root—“ask,” because it is insatiable (Pr 27:20); or “ask as a loan to be returned,” implying Sheol is but a temporary abode, previous to the resurrection; so for English Version “formed,” the Septuagint and Chaldee translate; shall be born, or born again, implying the dead are to be given back from Sheol and born again into a new state [Magee].‍

6. (Job 38:17; Ps 139:8; Pr 5:11).

destruction—the abode of destruction, that is, of lost souls. Hebrew, Abaddon (Rev 9:11).

no covering—from God’s eyes.‍

7. Hint of the true theory of the earth. Its suspension in empty space is stated in the second clause. The north in particular is specified in the first, being believed to be the highest part of the earth (Is 14:13). The northern hemisphere or vault of heaven is included; often compared to a stretched-out canopy (Ps 104:2). The chambers of the south are mentioned (Job 9:9), that is, the southern hemisphere, consistently with the earth’s globular form.‍

8. in … clouds—as if in airy vessels, which, though light, do not burst with the weight of water in them (Pr 30:4).‍

9. Rather, He encompasseth or closeth. God makes the clouds a veil to screen the glory not only of His person, but even of the exterior of His throne from profane eyes. His agency is everywhere, yet He Himself is invisible (Ps 18:11; 104:3).‍

10. Rather, “He hath drawn a circular bound round the waters” (Pr 8:27; Ps 104:9). The horizon seems a circle. Indication is given of the globular form of the earth.

until the day, &c.—to the confines of light and darkness. When the light falls on our horizon, the other hemisphere is dark. Umbreit and Maurer translate “He has most perfectly (literally, to perfection) drawn the bound between light and darkness” (compare Ge 1:4, 6, 9): where the bounding of the light from darkness is similarly brought into proximity with the bounding of the waters.‍

11. pillars—poetically for the mountains which seem to bear up the sky (Ps 104:32).

astonished—namely, from terror. Personification.

his reproof—(Ps 104:7). The thunder, reverberating from cliff to cliff (Hab 3:10; Na 1:5).‍

12. divideth—(Ps 74:13). Perhaps at creation (Ge 1:9, 10). The parallel clause favors Umbreit, “He stilleth.” But the Hebrew means “He moves.” Probably such a “moving” is meant as that at the assuaging of the flood by the wind which “God made to pass over” it (Ge 8:1; Ps 104:7).

the proud—rather, “its pride,” namely, of the sea (Job 9:13).‍

13. Umbreit less simply, “By His breath He maketh the heavens to revive”: namely, His wind dissipates the clouds, which obscured the shining stars. And so the next clause in contrast, “His hand doth strangle,” that is, obscures the north constellation, the dragon. Pagan astronomy typified the flood trying to destroy the ark by the dragon constellation, about to devour the moon in its eclipsed crescent-shape like a boat (Job 3:8, Margin). But better as English Version (Ps 33:6).

crooked—implying the oblique course, of the stars, or the ecliptic. “Fleeing” or “swift” [Umbreit] (Is 27:1). This particular constellation is made to represent the splendor of all the stars.‍

14. parts—Rather, “only the extreme boundaries of,” &c., and how faint is the whisper that we hear of Him!

thunder—the entire fulness. In antithesis to “whisper” (1Co 13:9, 10, 12).

CHAPTER 27‍

Job 27:1–23.

It was now Zophar’s turn to speak. But as he and the other two were silent, virtually admitting defeat, after a pause Job proceeds.

1. parable—applied in the East to a figurative sententious embodiment of wisdom in poetic form, a gnome (Ps 49:4).

continued—proceeded to put forth; implying elevation of discourse.‍

2. (1Sa 20:3).

taken away … judgment—words unconsciously foreshadowing Jesus Christ (Is 53:8; Ac 8:33). God will not give Job his right, by declaring his innocence.

vexed—Hebrew, “made bitter” (Ru 1:20).‍

3. Implying Job’s knowledge of the fact that the living soul was breathed into man by God (Ge 2:7). “All the while.” But Maurer, “As yet all my breath is in me” (notwithstanding my trials): the reason why I can speak so boldly.‍

4. (Job 6:28, 30). The “deceit” would be if he were to admit guilt against the witness of his conscience.‍

5. justify you—approve of your views.

mine integrity—which you deny, on account of my misfortunes.‍

6. Rather, my “heart” (conscience) reproaches “not one of my days,” that is, I do not repent of any of my days since I came into existence [Maurer].‍

7. Let … be—Let mine enemy be accounted as wicked, that is, He who opposes my asseveration of innocence must be regarded as actuated by criminal hostility. Not a curse on his enemies.‍

8. “What hope hath the hypocrite, notwithstanding all his gains, when?” &c. “Gained” is antithetic to “taketh away.” Umbreit’s translation is an unmeaning tautology. “When God cuts off, when He taketh away his life.”

taketh away—literally, “draws out” the soul from the body, which is, as it were, its scabbard (Job 4:21; Ps 104:29; Da 7:15). Job says that he admits what Bildad said (Job 8:13) and Zophar (Job 20:5). But he says the very fact of his still calling upon God (Job 27:10) amid all his trials, which a hypocrite would not dare to do, shows he is no “hypocrite.”‍

9. (Ps 66:18).‍

10. Alluding to Job 22:26.

always call—He may do so in times of prosperity in order to be thought religious. But he will not, as I do, call on God in calamities verging on death. Therefore I cannot be a “hypocrite” (Job 19:25; 20:5; Ps 62:8).‍

11–23. These words are contrary to Job’s previous sentiments (see notes on Job 21:22–33; 24:22–25). They therefore seem to be Job’s statement, not so much of his own sentiments, as of what Zophar would have said had he spoken when his turn came (end of the twenty-sixth chapter). So Job stated the friends’ opinion (Job 21:17–21; 24:18–21). The objection is, why, if so, does not Job answer Zophar’s opinion, as stated by himself? The fact is, it is probable that Job tacitly, by giving, in the twenty-eighth chapter, only a general answer, implies, that in spite of the wicked often dying, as he said, in prosperity, he does not mean to deny that the wicked are in the main dealt with according to right, and that God herein vindicates His moral government even here. Job therefore states Zophar’s argument more strongly than Zophar would have done. But by comparing Job 27:13 with Job 20:29 (“portion,” “heritage”), it will be seen, it is Zophar’s argument, rather than his own, that Job states. Granting it to be true, implies Job, you ought not to use it as an argument to criminate me. For (Job 28:1–28) the ways of divine wisdom in afflicting the godly are inscrutable: all that is sure to man is, the fear of the Lord is wisdom (Job 28:28).

by the hand—rather, concerning the hand of God, namely, what God does in governing men.

with the Almighty—the counsel or principle which regulates God’s dealings.‍

12. “Ye yourselves see” that the wicked often are afflicted (though often the reverse, Job 21:33). But do you “vainly” make this an argument to prove from my afflictions that I am wicked?‍

13. (See on Job 27:11).‍

14. His family only increases to perish by sword or famine (Je 18:21; Job 5:20,the converse).‍

15. Those that escape war and famine (Job 27:14) shall be buried by the deadly plague—“death” (Job 18:13; Je 15:2; Rev 6:8). The plague of the Middle Ages was called “the black death.” Buried by it implies that they would have none else but the death plague itself (poetically personified) to perform their funeral rites, that is, would have no one.

his—rather, “their widows.” Transitions from singular to plural are frequent. Polygamy is not implied.‍

16. dust … clay—images of multitudes (Zec 9:3). Many changes of raiment are a chief constituent of wealth in the East.‍

17. Introverted parallelism. (See Introduction). Of the four clauses in the two verses, one answers to four, two to three (so Mt 7:6).‍

18. (Job 8:14; 4:19). The transition is natural from “raiment” (Job 27:16) to the “house” of the “moth” in it, and of it, when in its larva state. The moth worm’s house is broken whenever the “raiment” is shaken out, so frail is it.

booth—a bough-formed hut which the guard of a vineyard raises for temporary shelter (Is 1:8).‍

19. gathered—buried honorably (Ge 25:8; 2Ki 22:20). But Umbreit, agreeably to Job 27:18, which describes the short continuance of the sinner’s prosperity, “He layeth himself rich in his bed, and nothing is robbed from him, he openeth his eyes, and nothing more is there.” If English Version be retained, the first clause probably means, rich though he be in dying, he shall not be honored with a funeral; the second, When he opens his eyes in the unseen world, it is only to see his destruction: the Septuagint reads for “not gathered,” He does not proceed, that is, goes to his bed no more. So Maurer.‍

20. (Job 18:11). Like a sudden violent flood (Is 8:7, 8; Je 47:2): conversely (Ps 32:6).‍

21. (Job 21:18; 15:2; Ps 58:9).‍

22. cast—namely, thunderbolts (Job 6:4; 7:20; 16:13; Ps 7:12, 13).‍

23. clap … hands—for joy at his downfall (La 2:15; Na 3:19).

hiss—deride (Je 25:9). Job alludes to Bildad’s words (Job 18:18).

CHAPTER 28‍

Job 28:1–28. Job’s Speech Continued.

In the twenty-seventh chapter Job had tacitly admitted that the statement of the friends was often true, that God vindicated His justice by punishing the wicked here; but still the affliction of the godly remained unexplained. Man has, by skill, brought the precious metals from their concealment. But the Divine Wisdom, which governs human affairs, he cannot similarly discover (Job 28:12, &c.). However, the image from the same metals (Job 23:10) implies Job has made some way towards solving the riddle of his life; namely, that affliction is to him as the refining fire is to gold.

1. vein—a mine, from which it goes forth, Hebrew, “is dug.”

place for gold—a place where gold may be found, which men refine. Not as English Version, “A place—where,” (Mal 3:3). Contrasted with gold found in the bed and sand of rivers, which does not need refining; as the gold dug from a mine does. Golden ornaments have been found in Egypt, of the times of Joseph.‍

2. brass—that is, copper; for brass is a mixed metal of copper and zinc, of modern invention. Iron is less easily discovered, and wrought, than copper; therefore copper was in common use long before iron. Copper-stone is called “cadmium” by Pliny [Natural History, 34:1; 36:21]. Iron is fitly said to be taken out of the “earth” (dust), for ore looks like mere earth.‍

3. “Man makes an end of darkness,” by exploring the darkest depths (with torches).

all perfection—rather, carries out his search to the utmost perfection; most thoroughly searches the stones of darkness and of the shadow of death (thickest gloom); that is, the stones, whatever they be, embedded in the darkest bowels of the earth [Umbreit] (Job 26:10).‍

4. Three hardships in mining: 1. “A stream (flood) breaks out at the side of the stranger”; namely, the miner, a strange newcomer into places heretofore unexplored; his surprise at the sudden stream breaking out beside him is expressed (English Version, “from the inhabitant”). 2. “Forgotten (unsupported) by the foot they hang,” namely, by ropes, in descending. In the Hebrew, “Lo there” precedes this clause, graphically placing it as if before the eyes. “The waters” is inserted by English Version. “Are dried up,” ought to be, “hang,” “are suspended.” English Version perhaps understood, waters of whose existence man was previously unconscious, and near which he never trod; and yet man’s energy is such, that by pumps, &c., he soon causes them to “dry up and go away” [So Herder]. 3. “Far away from men, they move with uncertain step”; they stagger; not “they are gone” [Umbreit].‍

5. Its fertile surface yields food; and yet “beneath it is turned up as it were with fire.” So Pliny [Natural History, 33] observes on the ingratitude of man who repays the debt he owes the earth for food, by digging out its bowels. “Fire” was used in mining [Umbreit]. English Version is simpler, which means precious stones which glow like fire; and so Job 28:6 follows naturally (Ez 28:14).‍

6. Sapphires are found in alluvial soil near rocks and embedded in gneiss. The ancients distinguished two kinds: 1. The real, of transparent blue: 2. That improperly so called, opaque, with gold spots; that is, lapis lazuli. To the latter, looking like gold dust, Umbreit refers “dust of gold.” English Version better, “The stones of the earth are, &c., and the clods of it (Vulgate) are gold”; the parallel clauses are thus neater.‍

7. fowl—rather, “ravenous bird,” or “eagle,” which is the most sharp-sighted of birds (Is 46:11). A vulture will spy a carcass at an amazing distance. The miner penetrates the earth by a way unseen by birds of keenest sight.‍

8. lion’s whelps—literally, “the sons of pride,” that is, the fiercest beasts.

passed—The Hebrew implies the proud gait of the lion. The miner ventures where not even the fierce lion dares to go in pursuit of his prey.‍

9. rock—flint. He puts forth his hand to cleave the hardest rock.

by the roots—from their foundations, by undermining them.‍

10. He cuts channels to drain off the waters, which hinder his mining; and when the waters are gone, he he is able to see the precious things in the earth.‍

11. floods—“He restrains the streams from weeping”; a poetical expression for the trickling subterranean rills, which impede him; answering to the first clause of Job 28:10; so also the two latter clauses in each verse correspond.‍

12. Can man discover the Divine Wisdom by which the world is governed, as he can the treasures hidden in the earth? Certainly not. Divine Wisdom is conceived as a person (Job 28:12–27) distinct from God (Job 28:23; also in Pr 8:23, 27). The Almighty Word, Jesus Christ, we know now, is that Wisdom. The order of the world was originated and is maintained by the breathing forth (Spirit) of Wisdom, unfathomable and unpurchasable by man. In Job 28:28, the only aspect of it, which relates to, and may be understood by, man, is stated.

understanding—insight into the plan of the divine government.‍

13. Man can fix no price upon it, as it is nowhere to be found in man’s abode (Is 38:11). Job implies both its valuable worth, and the impossibility of buying it at any price.‍‍

15. Not the usual word for “gold”; from a Hebrew root, “to shut up” with care; that is, purest gold (1Ki 6:20, Margin).

weighed—The precious metals were weighed out before coining was known (Ge 23:16).‍

16. gold of Ophir—the most precious (See on Job 22:24 and Ps 45:9).

onyx—(Ge 2:12). More valued formerly than now. The term is Greek, meaning “thumb nail,” from some resemblance in color. The Arabic denotes, of two colors, white preponderating.‍

17. crystal—Or else glass, if then known, very costly. From a root, “to be transparent.”

jewels—rather, “vessels.”‍

18. Red coral (Ez 27:16).

pearls—literally, “what is frozen.” Probably crystal; and Job 28:17 will then be glass.

rubies—Umbreit translates “pearls” (see La 4:1; Pr 3:15). The Urim and Thummim, the means of consulting God by the twelve stones on the high priest’s breastplate, “the stones of the sanctuary” (La 4:1), have their counterpart in this chapter; the precious stones symbolizing the “light” and “perfection” of the divine wisdom.‍

19. Ethiopia—Cush in the Hebrew. Either Ethiopia, or the south of Arabia, near the Tigris.‍

20. Job 28:12 repeated with great force.‍

21. None can tell whence or where, seeing it, &c.

fowls—The gift of divination was assigned by the heathen especially to birds. Their rapid flight heavenwards and keen sight originated the superstition. Job may allude to it. Not even the boasted divination of birds has an insight into it (Ec 10:20). But it may merely mean, as in Job 28:7, It escapes the eye of the most keen-sighted bird.‍

22. That is, the abodes of destruction and of the dead. “Death” put for Sheol (Job 30:23; 26:6; Ps 9:13).

We have [only] heard—the report of her. We have not seen her. In the land of the living (Job 28:13) the workings of Wisdom are seen, though not herself. In the regions of the dead she is only heard of, her actings on nature not being seen (Ec 9:10).‍

23. God hath, and is Himself, wisdom.‍

24. “Seeth (all that is) under,” &c.‍

25. God has adjusted the weight of the winds, so seemingly imponderable, lest, if too weighty, or too light, injury should be caused. He measureth out the waters, fixing their bounds, with wisdom as His counsellor (Pr 8:27–31; Is 40:12).‍

26. The decree regulating at what time and place, and in what quantity, the rain should fall.

a way—through the parted clouds (Job 38:25; Zec 10:1).‍

27. declare—manifest her, namely, in His works (Ps 19:1, 2). So the approval bestowed by the Creator on His works (Ge 1:10, 31); compare the “rejoicing” of wisdom at the same (Pr 8:30; which Umbreit translates; “I was the skilful artificer by His side”).

prepared—not created, for wisdom is from everlasting (Pr 8:22–31); but “established” her as Governor of the world.

searched … out—examined her works to see whether she was adequate to the task of governing the world [Maurer].‍

28. Rather, “But unto man,” &c. My wisdom is that whereby all things are governed; Thy wisdom is in fearing God and shunning evil, and in feeling assured that My wisdom always acts aright, though thou dost not understand the principle which regulates it; for example, in afflicting the godly (Jn 7:17). The friends, therefore, as not comprehending the Divine Wisdom, should not infer Job’s guilt from his sufferings. Here alone in Job the name of God, Adonai, occurs; “Lord” or “master,” often applied to Messiah in Old Testament. Appropriately here, in speaking of the Word or Wisdom, by whom the world was made (Pr 8:22–31; Jn 1:3; Ecclesiasticus 24:1–34).[18]

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[1]Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Patient, An Old Testament study. (Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books, 1996, c1991). Job 26:1.

[2]William MacDonald and Arthur Farstad, Believer's Bible Commentary  : Old and New Testaments (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995). Job 25:1.

[3]John F. Walvoord, Roy B. Zuck and Dallas Theological Seminary, The Bible Knowledge Commentary : An Exposition of the Scriptures (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1983-c1985). 1:748.

[4]William David Reyburn, A Handbook on the Book of Job, UBS handbook series; UBS helps for translators (New York: United Bible Societies, 1992). 465.

[5]Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible : Complete and Unabridged in One Volume (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1996, c1991). Job 25:1.

[6]Matthew Henry and Thomas Scott, Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, 1997). Job 25:1.

[7]Earl D. Radmacher, Ronald Barclay Allen and H. Wayne House, The Nelson Study Bible : New King James Version (Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers, 1997). Job 25:2.

[8]Earl D. Radmacher, Ronald Barclay Allen and H. Wayne House, The Nelson Study Bible : New King James Version (Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers, 1997). Job 26:5.

[9]Earl D. Radmacher, Ronald Barclay Allen and H. Wayne House, Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary (Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers, 1999). Job 25:1-26:13.

[10]Earl D. Radmacher, Ronald Barclay Allen and H. Wayne House, Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary (Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers, 1999). Job 26:14-27:12.

[11]Earl D. Radmacher, Ronald Barclay Allen and H. Wayne House, Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary (Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers, 1999). Job 27:13-28:5.

[12]Robert L. Alden, Job, electronic ed., Logos Library System; The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2001, c1993). 255.

[13]D. A. Carson, New Bible Commentary : 21st Century Edition, 4th ed. (Leicester, England;  Downers Grove, Ill., USA: Inter-Varsity Press, 1994). Job 25:1-28:1.

[14]H. L. Willmington, The Outline Bible (Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers, 1999). Job 25-28:21.

[15]The Pulpit Commentary: Job, ed. H. D. M. Spence-Jones (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2004). 422.

[16]Robert B. Hughes, J. Carl Laney and Robert B. Hughes, Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary, The Tyndale reference library (Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers, 2001). 195.

[17]Charles F. Pfeiffer, The Wycliffe Bible Commentary : Old Testament (Chicago: Moody Press, 1962). Job 25:1.

[18]Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, A. R. Fausset, David Brown and David Brown, A Commentary, Critical and Explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997). Job 25:1.

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[i]Larry Richards, The Bible Reader's Companion (Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books, 1991). 340.