a perpetual tendency to die out of human conception: that there is but one Book (I make nothing of the Koran of Mahommed, for it is but a copy of the Biblical view, where correct) of religion, the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament, where this idea is brought forward, sustained, and developed to its fulness. Whence, then, I ask, did Job get this idea, which undoubtedly was a prominent one in his mind whenever he thought of death? It must have been from tradition from his fathers! And could he have thus received it without also receiving somewhat more of the original tradition, viz., that it was not merely a conception of the mind, but also a verity which should be accomplished in God's dealings with His people?

Let us now turn to the two passages in his book where Job unquestionably speaks of resurrection, and of the aspect of his own mind to the wondrous conception. We will first turn our thoughts to what he tells us of it in chap. xix. 23-27. Following Mr. Phillips' example, I will give a translation of verses 25-27, which appears to me to be the closest to the original Hebrew. "I know my Redeemer, Living and Last. He shall stand over the dust. And after they have destroyed my skin this shall be, namely, in my flesh I shall see God. Whom I shall see for me, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another. My reins are consumed in my bosom." I will just make a few observations upon particular words in these verses before I proceed to show what is their general

sense.

I have no doubt that "Redeemer" is the best translation for the Hebrew word "gouail" in verse 25. Fürst, whose authority as a Hebrew scholar ranks in the foremost place, gives as its primary sense, "to free, to redeem, as the life of condemned persons, to redeem captives from slavery, to claim them for freedom." With Fürst Gesenius agrees. There are no higher authorities in the Hebrew language than these. If our readers will turn to the following references, they will find examples of the senses in which this word is used in Scripture, and especially in the earlier Scriptures. It is constantly used for one who pays the price of land sold by a poor brother and gives it back to him, and which transaction is called the "redemption of the land" (Lev. xxv. 25-27). It is frequently used for God's deliverance of His people Israel from captivity (Exod xv. 13; vi. 6; Psalm cvii. 2). It is used also for God's deliverance of individual believers from evil of every kind (Gen. xlviii. 16; Psalm cxix. 154; Isa. xlvii. 4; lxiii. 16). It is also used for God's deliverance of His people from the grave by their resurrection (Hos. xiii. 7). "Redeemer" then would appear to be the very best translation for this word in Job xix. 25, where Job evidently looks to the person spoken of as the object of his hope and trust.

With Mr. Phillips, I prefer the "Last" as the translation of the Hebrew word "akharoun" in ver. 25, and think it applied rather

to the person spoken of as "Redeemer" than to the time when He should stand over the dust. The Hebrew is equally capable, I believe, of both senses.

I differ from Mr. Phillips in preferring the authorised version "in my flesh" to his proposed emendation, "without my flesh." The Hebrew prefix mi is equally capable of both translations, and it depends altogether on the general sense of a passage which translation is to be chosen. Mr. Phillips's translation "without " is altogether inadmissible, as I will now proceed to show.

There is no doubt that in the passage before us, Job expresses his full and confident faith that he will see God at some time or other. No one, I believe, disputes this. Mr. Phillips does not dispute it, but holds it, and therefore I need say no more upon this all-important point. Job, in misery, hating life since it was now only a burden, expresses his certain faith that at some future time he himself with his own eyes should behold God, and that this sight of God should be a blessing and a benefit to him. far as this goes, there is here no dispute.

So

Now, when did Job expect to see God with that clear view that he speaks of here ? Certainly not in this life. He tells us that it was after his skin was destroyed that he expected it, and therefore, he does not refer to any clearing up of his doubts which he might have in this life, such as he speaks of in ch. xlii. 4-6. He looks forward to some other state and some other life beyond this present state and life as that in which his eyes should look upon God, and he should receive blessing from the glorious sight.

Now, there are hence but two states during which he could possibly have looked for this sight of God. The one was the state of death, of which he had a clear and defined idea. The other was the state of resurrection, of which he also had a definite idea. Which of these are we to suppose was in his mind?

Certainly not the state of death. He has described that state too often and too minutely to allow us to suppose any such idea to have been in his mind (chap. xiv. 13-22). With Job, death was, while it should last, the end of life, whether that life was one of prosperity or woe. It was a deep, quiet sleep, undisturbed by sorrow or by joy. The almost infinite varieties of this life were there brought to one common level. But as Mr. Phillips fully admits this, I need say nothing further upon it (RAINBOW, p. 521).

But when this is disposed of, there only remains the conclusion that Job looked to see God in and through resurrection; and, since he was confident that he should see God, he was equally confident of that resurrection in which he was to see Him. Of his sight of God he had no doubt. He did not look for it in this life. He did not look for it during death. He therefore looked for it in that bodily resurrection of which he certainly had the conception. And what is there incredible or improbable in such a supposition? If Abel, Noah, Abraham, Moses believed in this resurrection, why

should not Job? He lived a life of holy obedience and trust in God which could only be based on such a belief. Everything might go against him here. The trouble which had descended upon him with its fearful weight might continue to the close of life. A terrible death might close the life of the patient and the upright man! Yet still Job would "trust" in God (chap. xiii. 15). We may surely then, without doubt, take the passage that is so familiar to all our ears, especially when we mourn for our dead, as expressive of the old patriarchal faith of Job, that there would be a resurrection from the dead. He believed in his Redeemer, the seed of Eve, and yet the ever living, the First and the Last, who should at a coming time stand over the dust of His sleeping ones; and lo, the sleepers should hear His voice, and feel the influence of His Almighty Spirit, and wake up and look upon the God of their redemption.

We now turn to the 14th chapter of Job, to which the patriarch's utterances in chap. xix. 25-28 give us, where we require it, the key. Of the translation of this chapter, as given us in our authorised version, we do not require to make any observation except that, with Mr. Phillips, we prefer "warfare" as the translation to appointed time" in ver. 14.

In the opening verses of this chapter Job speaks of the brevity of human life. When he comes to vers. 7-12, he compares together the cutting down of a tree by the axe of the woodman with the cutting down of human life by the scythe of death. There is hope of the growth of the tree again by a natural process; there is no hope of the continuance of life to the dead man by any or by all the processes of nature.

But

Let us remember that in this comparison of the tree and man, while there is an external resemblance there is an internal and essential difference. The cut down tree is, to all appearance, dead. It has no bough, no leaf. All that appears of it is the stock, and it decays and rots, and dies into the ground. though all this happened, and though the root was old, there was yet in it a principle of life which moisture and heat would encourage and give strength to, so that it should once more send forth boughs like a plant.

But not so when man was cut down by the stroke of death. He was not more apparently dead than was the tree, but he was really more so. In him there remained no latent principle of life which might, if cherished, return to the exercises of the old existence again. No medicine could heal the deadly wound. No skill of science could restore the life. No powers of nature could draw forth a power which had gone finally away.

But was there, therefore, no hope for man in death? There was. Job looks on to a far distant time; the consummation of all things, when the heavens should be no more. It was distant; he knew not how far. It was to human thought a very, very distant thing.

Earthly kingdom after kingdom was to rise, flourish, and decay. Dispensation after dispensation of Divine dealings with man was to elapse. Long centuries-tens of centuries-of struggle, and care, and sin, and suffering, were to pass over this weary earth. But at the end of all this-man was to awake and leave his "long home" of the grave, and be raised out of his sleep!

And then comes the solemn question of ver. 15, “If a man die, shall he live again?"

It is quite plain that this is a question to which two very different replies can be made, according to the belief of the person who is inquired of. The Christian would say, Yes; he shall live again when Christ comes to raise him from the dead. The Epicurean and the Sadducee would say, with a sneer or with a sigh, No; man shall never live again after that he has once passed under the dominion of death. Which of these replies, we are to ask, would Job give?

There are two means of finding this out. If we knew his faith from other passages we could tell. Now, we have already ascertained this from chap. xix. 25-27, and cannot, therefore, hesitate to say that Job would give the Christian, not the Epicurean reply. But we can also refer to the context of this 15th verse as affording us clear and full proof that such would be his reply. He does not say "Yes," but he conveys the affirmative reply beyond a doubt.

I suppose every one will allow that if Job meant to convey his idea that, if a man died he would never live again, that if he made any reflections on this sad end of man they would be those of a hopeless sorrow and despair. We suppose that every one will allow that if words of patient hope occur in connection with this question, they indicate beyond a doubt that Job had faith in the doctrine of the resurrection of man to his second life.

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Now let our readers look at the expressions which immediately follow the question, "If a man die, shall he live again?" They are these: All the days of my appointed time (or warfare) will I wait till my change come. Thou shalt call, and I will answer Thee Thou wilt have a desire to the work of Thy hands."

Are these the words of sorrow and despair, or of joy and patient hope? If Job believed that when a man died he should never live again, his words would be those of a sad despairing man. But they are words of hope and faith in connection with death based on God's love for him, and God's power to do for him what man and nature could not possibly effect. With the hope of the "change" before him, he will wait all the days of his warfare, hard and terrible as it was; he will not "curse God and die." His glorious faith is based upon the only power which could give him his ardent wish— the power of God speaking with the voice which the dead shall hear. He knew God loved him. He knew God had a desire to him as the work of His hands. He, therefore, would reply to

"If a man die, shall he live again?"-"Yes, I know my Redeemer, the Living and the Last. He shall stand over my dust. He shall speak, and I will answer Him by coming forth to His call and praising Him throughout eternity." As the Psalmist would reply to his question, "Shall the dead arise and praise Thee?"-Yes, they certainly shall; so Job would reply to his question, "If a man die, shall he live again ?"-Yes, he shall live when God shall call him out of his grave. This glorious faith it was which was at the base of Job's patience when every earthly comfort was withdrawn from him, and he saw no prospect of their return. This faith nerved Paul to fight his good fight; it nerved Job also to the warfare of a good soldier of his loving God (2 Cor. iv. 18; 2 Tim. iii. 7, 8).

I will now just say a few words in reply to two objections of Mr. Phillips, against the idea that Job believed in a future life.

He tells us then, in the first place, that passages such as chap. vii. 9, x. 21, xvi. 22, are absolutely inconsistent with the belief of Job in any future life. Our readers will examine these. We will quote but one:- "When a few years are come, then I shall go the way whence I shall not return.”

I think I have already explained this in my observations on chap. xiv. 7-10. They convey no more than this, that to recall the human life which has departed, is beyond all nature and beyond all human skill. Perhaps the use of similar language from one who was a great master of language will show best what I mean, and justify what I say. I believe the verse which I have quoted from (chap. xvi. 22), is the source from whence Shakespeare derived one of his most frequently quoted passages. How does he describe the state of death? He calls it

"The undiscovered country, from whose bourn

No traveller returns."-Hamlet, A. iii. S. i.

This is just as strong a passage as any of those which occur in Job, and yet Shakespeare, we know, was a believer in resurrection. There is another objection, of a different kind, which Mr. Phillips makes to the idea that Job was a believer in a future life. He thinks that if Job had had such a faith, he would have had no difficulty in explaining those dealings of God with him which perplexed him and his friends so much; a belief in a future life would have solved them all, when "what is crooked shall be made straight" (RAINBOW, p. 523). It is sufficient to reply to this that men who have undoubtedly a faith in a future life have experienced the very same difficulties which Job did. They, too, are perplexed, astonished at, know not how to explain the ways of God here with His people. I suppose all will allow that the prophet Habakkuk believed in the resurrection from the dead. He was an inspired man, and lived after Isaiah and Hosea had uttered those plain predictions which enabled Martha to express her clear belief in the