iPsalm lxxxix. 9; xciii. 4. ם Gen. i. 9; Psa. xxxiii. 7; civ. 9; Prov. viii. 29; Jer. v. 22. k Psalm lxxiv. 16; cxlviii. 5. Or, established my decree upon it.—h Chap. xxvi. 10.- - Heb.Heb, wings. Psa. civ. 35. - Chap. xviii. 5.- Psalm the pride of thy waves. x. 15. its bounds as strongly as if they were fortified with bars and doors. Verses 12, 13. Hast thou commanded the morn their omnipotent Maker. "It is observable from many passages in the prophets, that the angels are spoken of under the metaphor of stars. See particularly Isa. xiv. 12, 14. The beauty and proprietying ?-That is, the morning light, or the sun, which of these allusions of the prophets will appear with is the cause of it. Didst thou create the sun, and greater lustre, when it is considered that the hosts appoint the order and succession of day and night. of heaven were the objects of heathen idolatry: || Since thy days-Since thou wast born: this work both the visible and invisible host; as well the an- was done long before thou wast born. And caused gels as the lights of heaven; for the superstition the day-spring to know its place-To observe the seems to have been originally the same, as the punctual time when, and the point of the heavens worship of the heavenly bodies terminated in the where it should arise; which varies every day. worship of those angels or intelligences who were That it might take hold of the ends of the earthbelieved to animate or conduct them; and hence That this morning light should in a moment spread we see a reason why the angels are called stars and itself from one end of the hemisphere to the other. morning stars in Scripture."-Peters. And the That the wicked might be shaken out of it-From sons of God-The angels, as before, called the sons the face of the earth. And this effect the morning of God, because they had their whole being from light hath upon the wicked, because it discovers him, and because they bear his divine and glorious them, whereas darkness hides them; and because it image; shouted for joy-On the appearance of the brings them to condign punishment, the morning new-made world, in the creation of which they saw being the usual time for executing judgment. new displays of their heavenly Father's wisdom, power, and goodness, and learned to know more of his infinite perfections than they had known before, and, of consequence, to love and praise him with greater fervency and delight. Verse 14. It is turned as clay to the seal-As the seal makes a beautiful impression upon the clay, which, in itself, hath no form or comeliness; so the earth, which in the darkness of the night lies like a confused heap, without either form or beauty, has quite a new face put upon it by the return of the morning light, and appears in excellent order and glory. And they stand as a garment-That is, the twilight and morning stand, as it were, dressed in a beautiful and magnificent garment. Or the meaning is, that the men and things of the earth, whether natural, as living creatures, herbs, and trees; or artificial, as houses or other buildings, present themselves to our view, as if covered and adorned with elegant and beautiful clothing. Verses 8-10. Who shut up the sea with doors? Who was it that set bounds to the vast and raging ocean, and shut it up, as it were, with doors within its proper place, that it might not overflow the earth? When it brake forth, &c.-From the womb or bowels of the earth, within which the waters were for the most part contained, and out of which they were by God's command brought forth into the channel which God had appointed for them. When I made the cloud the garment thereof When I covered it with vapours and clouds which rise out of the sea, and hover above it, and cover it like a garment. And thick darkness-Black and dark clouds; a swaddling-band for it-Having compared the sea to a new-born infant, he continues the metaphor, and makes the clouds as swaddling-bands, to keep it within its bounds; though indeed neither clouds, nor air, nor sands, nor shores, can bound the sea, but God alone. And brake up for it my decreed place-Made those hollow places in the earth, which might serve for a cradle to receive and hold this great and goodly infant when it came out of the womb. And set bars and doors-Fixed || others. Verse 15. And, or, rather, but, from the wicked their light is withholden-The earth, and the men and the things in it, have the comfort and benefit of the light, but so have not the wicked; they enjoy not its beautiful approach; either, because they shun it, and choose darkness rather than light, their deeds being evil; or, by the judgment of God, or of the magistrate, by whom they are shut out through imprisonment, or cut off by capital punishment, from the light of the living. And the high arm shall be broken-Their great strength, which they used tyrannically to the oppression and crushing of The Lord answers Job. JOB. Creation of light, darkness, &c. B. C. 1520. B. C. 1520. A. M. 2484. 16 Hast thou • entered into the 19 Where is the way where light A. M. 2484. 17 Have the gates of death been opened 18 Hast thou perceived the breadth of the earth? declare if thou knowest it all. o Psa. lxxvii. 19. Verse 16. Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea-Hebrew, ''), nibchee jam, Fletus, qui, ex maris profunditatibus currunt, ut lacrymæ ex occulis. Schindler: the springs which flow || from the depths of the sea, as tears from men's eyes: the several sources from which the waters of the sea proceed. Heath renders it, Hast thou been at the sources of the sea? and the next clause he translates, Hast thou traversed the depth of the abyss? Hast thou found out the utmost depth of the sea; which, in divers places, could never be reached by the wisest mariner? And how then canst thou fathom the depths of my counsels? Verse 17. Have the gates of death been opened "To be, we know not what, and live, we know not how." "When life's close knot, by writ from destiny, Disease shall cut or age untie; When after some delays, some dying strife, The soul stands shivering on the ridge of life; With what a dreadful curiosity Does she launch out into the sea of vast eternity!” once. 20 That thou shouldest take it to the bound thereof, and that thou shouldest know the paths to the house thereof? 21 Knowest thou it, because thou wast then born? or because the number of thy days is great? P Psa. ix. 13.8 Or, at. men do of colours; and when we remove thither, shall be amazed to find how much we were mistaken. Verse 18. Hast thou perceived the breadth of the earth?-Nay, dost thou so much as understand the extent and all the parts of the earth, and the state and quality of all countries, and of the men and things in them? Declare, if thou knowest it all— Give me an answer to these questions, which it is far more easy to do than to answer many other questions which I could put to thee about my secret counsels, and providences, and my reasons for dealing with thee as I do. Verse 19. Where is the way-Or, rather, the place, as the next clause explains it; and, as the Hebrew 777, derech, will bear, where light dwelleth-That is, hath its constant and settled abode. Whither goes the sun when he departs from this hemisphere? Where are the tabernacle and the chamber in which he is supposed to rest? And seeing there was a time when there was nothing but gross darkness upon the face of the earth, what way came light into the world? Which was the place where light dwelt at that time, and whence was it fetched? And whence came that orderly constitution and constant succession of light and darkness? Was this thy work? Or wast thou privy to it, or a counsellor, or assistant in it? Verse 20. That thou shouldest take it-That is, bring, or lead it, namely, principally the light, and secondarily the darkness, as the consequent of it; to the bound thereof?--That is, through its whole course, from the place of its abode, whence it is supposed to come, to the end of the journey which it is to go. Didst thou direct or guide the light, or the sun, that it should at first take, and afterward constantly continue in that course which now it holds; that it should go from east to west, and rise, sometimes in one point or part of heaven, and sometimes in another; and that its day's journey should be longer in one season of the year and shorter in another? This regular and excellent course must needs be the effect of great wisdom. And whose wisdom was it? Thine or mine? And that thou shouldest know-Namely, practically so as to direct or lead it in the manner now expressed, the paths to the house thereof?-Where thou mayest find it, and whence thou mayest fetch it. Verse 21. Knowest thou it, because thou wast then born?-An ironical question. If thou pretendest that thou knowest these things, how camest thou by this knowledge? Was it because thou didst then exist in the full and perfect use of thy faculties, and 25 Who hath divided water-course for the overflowing of waters, or a way for the lightning of thunder; Psa. cxxxv. 7.- Exod. ix. 18; Josh. x. 11; Isa. xxx. 30 ; Ezek. xiii. 11, 13; Rev. xvi. 21. thereby hadst the opportunity of inspecting my works, and of seeing whence the light came? Or, because thou hast gained this knowledge by long experience, as having lived ever since the creation of the world until this time? Whereas, in truth, thou art but of yesterday, and knowest, comparatively, nothing, chap. viii. 9. Verses 22, 23. Hast thou entered into the treasures of snow?-Dost thou know where I have laid up those vast quantities of snow and hail which I draw forth when I see fit? Dost thou know the causes of them, and the way to produce them? But if thou art unacquainted with these treasures, it is intolerable presumption in thee to pretend that thou knowest those treasures of wisdom which lie hid in my own breast. Which I have reserved-That is, which snow, and especially which hail, I have prepared, against the time of trouble-When I intend to bring trouble or calamity upon any country or people, for the punishment of their sins, or for their trial. Or, as the Hebrew 3 ny, legneth tzar, may be properly rendered, against the time of the enemy; that is, when I intend to punish mine or my people's enemies, and to fight against them with these weapons. Against the day of battle and war—“ Though the expression here is general, and means only that the Almighty reserves these powers in nature as the instruments of destruction for wicked men; yet particular cases may well be referred to, as explanatory hereof. See, therefore, Exodus ix. 23, and Josh. x. 11. Respecting the treasures of snow and hail, the philosophical reader will find great satisfaction by referring to Scheuchzer on the place."-Dodd. Verse 24. By what way is the light parted-Or dispersed, or distributed, namely, in the air, or upon the face of the earth. This is variously distributed in the world, shining in one place and time, when it doth not shine in another, or for a longer time, or with greater brightness and power than it doth in another; all which are the effects of God's infinite wisdom and power, and such as were out of Job's reach to understand. Which scattereth the east wind—Which light scattereth, or raises the east wind, and causes it to blow hither and thither upon the earth? For as the sun is called by the poets, the father of the winds, because he rarefies the atmosphere by his heat, or condenses it by drawing up and loading it with vapours, and thereby destroys the equilibrium of it, which produces winds; so, in particular, the Of rain, dew, hoar-frost, &c. B. C. 1520. 26 To cause it to rain on the earth, A. M. 2484. where no man is; on the wilderness, wherein there is no man; t 27 To satisfy the desolate and waste ground; and to cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth?. u 28 " Hath the rain a father? or who hath begotten the drops of dew? 29 Out of whose womb came the ice? and the * hoary frost of heaven, who hath gendered it? Chap. xxviii. 26.— - Psa. cvii. 35.—" Jer. xiv. 22; Psalm cxlvii. 8. Psa. cxlvii. 16. east wind is often observed to rise together with the sun. But as there is no Hebrew for which, the words po, japhetz kadim, would, perhaps, be better translated, By what way does the east wind scatter itself? continuing the interrogation, and making this a distinct question. That is, whence do the winds come, and whither do they go? And how comes it to pass, that they blow in so many manners, and with such various and contrary effects? Verse 25. Who hath divided a water-course, &c. -For the showers of rain, which come down orderly and gradually, as if they were conveyed in pipes or channels; which, without the care of God's providence, would fall confusedly, and overwhelm the earth. Or a way for the lightning-For lightning and thunder?-Who opened a passage for them out of the cloud in which they were imprisoned? And these are joined with the rain, because they are commonly accompanied with great showers of rain. Verses 26, 27. To cause it to rain, &c.-That the clouds, being broken by lightning and thunder, might pour down rain. On the wilderness wherein there is no man?—Namely, no one to water those parts by art and industry, as is usual in cultivated and inhabited places. Which makes this work of Divine Providence more necessary, and more remarkable, as hereby provision is made for the relief of the wild beasts, and plants, and other fruits of those forsaken lands, which otherwise would perish with drought. To satisfy the desolate and waste ground -By raining not sparingly, but liberally and abundantly upon it. To cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth-There being many excellent and useful herbs found in desert places, for the growth of which the rain is absolutely necessary. Thus, as God had before put such questions to Job as were proper to convince him of his ignorance; so he now puts such to him as were calculated to convince him of his impotence. As it was but little that he could know, and therefore he ought not to have arraigned the divine counsels, so it was but little he could do, and therefore he ought not to oppose the divine providence. Verses 28-30. Hath the rain a father?-Is there any man that can beget or produce rain at his pleasure? No; this is my peculiar work. The hoary frost, who hath gendered it? What man can either produce, or doth fully understand where or how it is generated? The waters are hid as with a stone The Lord answers Job. A. M. 2484. z B. C. 1520. 30 The waters are hid as with a stone, || go, and say unto thee, 15 Here we A. M. 2484. and the face of the deep is frozen. 31 Canst thou bind the sweet influences of 10 Pleiades,11 or loose the bands of 12 Orion? 32 Canst thou bring forth 13 Mazzaroth in his season? or canst thou 14 guide Arcturus with his sons? 33 Knowest thou a the ordinances of heaven? canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth? 34 Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, that abundance of waters may cover thee? 35 Canst thou send lightnings, that they may 9 Heb. is taken.- -y Chap. xxxvii. 10.- - Chap. ix. 9; Amos v. 8. 10 Or, the seven stars.11 Heb. Cimah.12 Heb. Cesil. -13 Or, the twelve signs.—14 Heb. guide them.- Jer. xxxi. 35. are? b 36 Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts? or who hath given understanding to the heart? 37 Who can number the clouds in wisdom? or 16 who can stay the bottles of heaven, 38 17 When the dust 18 groweth into hardness, and the clods cleave fast together? с 39 Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion? or fill 19 the appetite of the young lions, 40 When they couch in their dens, and abide in the covert to lie in wait? 15 Behold us.- li. 6; Eccles. ii. 26. Or, When the dust is Psa. civ. 21; cxlv. thou perfectly know them? Canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth?-Canst thou manage and overrule their influences, that they shall bring such seasons and such weather as thou wouldest have? -That is, with ice as hard as a stone. And the||lower world. Didst thou give these laws? Or dost face of the deep is frozen-Of the great sea, which is often called the deep, and which in some parts is frozen, so that its surface grows solid. The ice and the frost are very common things, and therefore do not appear to us remarkable; but considering what a mighty change is made by them in a little time, and how the waters of rivers, lakes, and oceans, are hid by them, as though a grave-stone were laid upon them, we may well ask, Out of whose womb came the ice? What created power could produce such a wonderful work? Verses 34, 35. Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds ?-Either thundering in them, or calling to them with a loud voice, and commanding them to rain. That abundance of waters may cover thee?— That is, may cover thy land, when it needs and requires rain. Canst thou send lightnings that they may go? แ Here we are?-Ready to do thy will, as servants to obey their master. Nothing can be more elevated and sublime than this verse. How strong the image! How simple the expression! We read of winged lightnings in the heathen poets; but where do they live, and act, and speak, and wait for orders with impatience as here ?" See Peters and Dodd. Verse 31. Canst thou bind the sweet influences-At thy pleasure, and upon thy errand? and say, of Pleiades?-Generally understood of the seven stars, which, rising about the time of the vernal equinox, bring in the spring. Canst thou restrain or hinder their influences? Or loose the bands of Orion? By which it binds up the air and earth,|| rising in November, and bringing in the winter, attended with storms of rain and hail, or frost and snow. See note on chap. ix. 9. Whatever be the meaning of the words rendered Pleiades and Orion, the sense of which is disputed among the learned; by the former, 72, chimah, we are to understand the sign which appears in the heavens at the spring of the year, and by the latter, 'D, chesil, the sign which presents itself when the season is cold and severe: and the plain interpretation of the passage is, Is it in thy power to hinder either the mild or the rigid seasons of the year from making their regular appearance? Both summer and winter will have their course; God indeed can change them when he pleases, can make the spring cold, and so bind the influences of Pleiades and the winter warm, loose the bands of Orion, but we cannot. and so Verses 32, 33. Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth? Namely, into view? Canst thou make the stars in the southern signs arise and appear? Or canst thou guide Arcturus?—A northern constellation; with his sons?--The lesser stars which belong to it, which are placed round about it, and attend upon it as children upon their parents. Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven?—The laws which are firmly established concerning their order, motion or rest, and their powerful influences upon this Verse 36. Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts ?—Namely, of a man; who gave thee that understanding which thou hast, and which thou now usest so arrogantly as to contend with me, and censure my dispensations? Or who hath given understanding to the heart?-Considered by the Hebrews as the seat of understanding, and commonly put for it in Scripture. Verses 37, 38. Who can number the clouds in wis dom?-Who can wisely search, and exactly find out, the number of the clouds? which are indeed numberless, and filled with water as the next clause implies. Or who can stay the bottles of heaven?—Can prevent the rain from being poured upon the earth out of the clouds, in which it is kept as in bottles; when the dust groweth into hardness--When the earth grows very hard, in the time of a great drought; and the clods cleave fast together-Become close and compact. Or the condition of the earth may be intended presently after a fall of rain, when the ground, which in the time of drought was much of it dissolved into dust, is now, by the rain, cemented or united together. Verses 39, 40. Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion?-Is it by thy care and providence that the The Lord answers Job. A. M. 2484. 41 Who provideth for the raven || unto God, they wander for lack of A. M. 2484. his food? when his young ones cry B. C. 1520. meat. 9; Matt. vi. 26. B. C. 1520. d Psa. cxlvii. lions, who live in desert places, are furnished with Verse 41. Who provideth for the raven his food? necessary provisions? This is justly mentioned as -Having mentioned the noblest of brute creatures, another wonderful work of God. When they couch || he now mentions one of the most contemptible; to in their dens-When, through age and infirmity, show the care of God's providence over all creatures, they cannot range abroad for prey as the young both great and small. Their young ones are so lions do, but lie still in their dens, as it were, expect soon forsaken by their dams, that if God did not ing their food from God, from whom also they re- provide for them in a more than ordinary manner, ceive it. And abide in the covert, to lie in wait--they would be starved to death. And will He that Watching till some beast comes that way, which provides for the young ravens fail to provide for they may make their prey. his own children? CHAPTER XXXIX. The more fully to convince Job of his ignorance, God here discourses of the wild goats and hinds, 1-4; of the wild ass, 5-8 ; of the unicorn, 9-12; of the peacock and ostrich, 13–18; of the horse, 19-25; of the hawk and eagle, 26–30. Verses 1, 2. Knowest thou the time when the wild goats of the rock-Which dwell in high and steep rocks, where no man can come; bring forth? Which they do with great difficulty, as is implied, Psa. xxix. 9, and observed by naturalists, and in which they have no help save from God only. "Vain man, who wouldest so fain pry into my secrets! Didst thou ever climb the rocks to see the wild goats bring forth? Or hast thou assisted at the hard labour of the hinds, and helped to ease them of their burdens? Canst thou number the months that they fulfil, &c.—“ Dost thou know the moment of their conception? Or keepest an account when they will be delivered?"-Patrick. The questions here, as Bochart argues, do not relate to a mere idle and speculative knowledge of the particular time when the wild goats bring forth, or the hinds calve, and the months they fulfil, (which by common observation might easily be found out,) but to the various circumstances thereof, and that divine and providential oversight and care by which God not only knows all things, but directs and governs them. For this reason, he supposes that the LXX interpreters render the clause, epuñasas de divas thapur, Hast thou observed, or guarded the bringing forth of the inds? Without the custody of God, (as he argues,) who preserves with the utmost care whatever he has once created, this kind of wild goats must quickly fail, amidst the numberless dangers to which they are exposed, both from hunters and from savage Deasts; not to mention how often the dams themselves bring their young into the utmost peril. To this he subjoins St. Chrysostom's observation, || namely, how properly the word equλağaç is here applied, because the wild goat being always on the flight, in fear and agony, continually leaping and prancing about; why does it not produce mere abortions, instead of bringing any of its young to maturity? No other reason can be assigned than the wonderful providence of God, in the preservation of the dams and their young. We have also an account, in Bochart, from Aristotle, Pliny, &c., of the pregnant hinds' receiving great assistance in parturition from the herb seselis, to which they are directed by instinct, and the eating of which greatly forwards their delivery. To all which may be added what we read in Psa. xxix. 9, concerning thunder, or the voice of the Lord, which, jecholel, aijaloth, (the very words in our text,) maketh the hinds to calve: that is, (as the same learned writer observes,) among the many wonderful effects of thunder this is one, that those wild beasts, which with difficulty bring forth their young at other times, upon the hearing of it are immediately delivered; the terror they are thereby thrown into being so great as to have a strong effect on those parts which have need to be relaxed. See Chappelow. Verse 3. They bow themselves-Being taught by a divine instinct to put themselves into such a posture as may be most fit for their safe and easy bringing forth. They bring forth their young ones -Hebrew, nonbon, tephallachnah, dissecant, discindunt, scilicet matricem, aut ventrem ad pullos edendos.-Buxtorf. They tear, or rend, themselves |