Exposition of Job 32-24, Commentary on Job · Chapter 34
JOB. Chap. 34. Verſ. 7, 8, 9.
What man is like Job, who drinketh up ſcorning like water?
Which goeth in company with the workers of iniquity, and walketh with wicked men.
For he hath ſayd, it profiteth a man nothing that he ſhould delight himſelfe with God.
THeſe three verſes containe the ſecond charge or accuſation, which Elihu had drawne up againſt Job. And in it we may diſtinctly conſider; Firſt, the forme of it; Secondly, the matter of it.
The forme of it is by way of queſtion; What man is like Job? The matter of it conſiſts of three heads.
Firſt, That he was a man of a ſcornfull ſpirit towards others, or that he had ſubjected himſelfe to the ſcorne of others; What man is like Job, which drinketh up ſcorning like water?
Secondly, Elihu chargeth him, as having fellowſhip with men of a vaine and offenſive converſation (v. 8th) Which goeth in company with the workers of iniquity, and walketh with wicked men.
Thirdly, He chargeth him (which is indeed the ground of the former) That he was a man, not only of unſound, but of blaſphemous principles and opinions (v. 9th) For he hath ſayd, it profiteth a man nothing that he ſhould delight himſelfe with God. This 9th verſe is the proofe of the eighth; For ſome might enquire, How doth it appeare, that, Job goeth in company with the workers of iniquity, and walketh with wicked men? Elihu anſwers, It appeareth by his words, or from his owne mouth; For he hath ſayd, it profiteth a man nothing, that he ſhould delight himſelfe with God. And if a man once judge that there is no profit in the wayes of God, he thereby declares his conſent to the wayes of the wicked. That's the ſumme of the charge, and theſe the parts of it.
foreign non pro quolibet homine ſumitur ſed pro claro & ſepiente.Verſ. 7. What man is like Job?
The word rendred man, doth not ſignifie every ordinary man, but a great or wiſe man, a famous or a powerfull man. What great or wiſe man is like Job? Poſſibly ſome may be found among the dreggs of the people or among the common ſort like himſelfe, but among men of honour and reputation for wiſdome, ſurely, there are none to be found like him. Yet ſome take it (out of the ſtrictneſs of the original word) for a man of the loweſt or meaneſt condition; What man is like Job? that is, no man, no not of the meaneſt degree is like him. And ſo the queſtion may be carryed under a threefold notion.
Firſt, As a vilifying queſtion, What man is like Job? Who is there that hath but the name and face of a man that would doe or ſpeak things as he? Job, in this matter, is worſe then any man, then the worſt of men. He acts and ſpeaks at a lower rate of prudence and piety then many, if not then any of the loweſt among the ſons of men.
Secondly, We may look upon it as an angry paſſionate queſtion, a queſtion carrying in it higheſt indignation; What man is like Job? who ſo vaine, raſh, fooliſh and inconſiderate as he? I have ſcarce the patience to ſpeake or think of him.
Thirdly, We may take it as an admiring queſtion; What man is like Job? It is a thing unheard of, even a ſtupendious prodigie, that a man ſhould be or doe as Job. All ſorts of men abſtaine from or decline, yea ſcorne ſcorning ('tis a thing ſo unbecoming man) but chiefly they that are great, noble and honourable, ſuch as Job hath been in his time, yet he is turned ſcorner. As if he had ſayd, Who hath heard the like? was there ever ſuch a man heard of, who either uſed ſuch ſcornfull language againſt others, or layd himſelfe ſo open to the ſcorne and contempt of others! What man is like Job, Who drinketh up ſcorning like water?
That's matter of admiration; Elihu might have found out many other matters, wherein Job had no fellow, no parallel, ſcarce any like him in the world; who ſo afflicted, ſo humbled, ſo broken, ſo deſerted by his owne relations, ſo vexed with friends and comforters like Job? But he doth not put the queſtion upon his ſufferings, but upon his ſin; What man is like Job, who drinketh up ſcorning, &c. Drinking is here uſed metaphorically, and ſo likewiſe are eating, devouring, and ſwallowing up often uſed in Scripture, to denote that which is done to be done with much greedineſs, and with a kind of delight. And whereas there is a threefold meaſure or degree of drinking; Firſt, ſoberly, or for neceſſity: Secondly, plentifully or for moderate delight; Thirdly, exceſſively, or for drunkenneſs, and the ſatisfying of a luſt. This third ſeemeth to be here intended, even an exceſſive drinking of ſcorne, till he was as a drunken or mad-man with it, or (as we ſay) mad drunke; For the text ſaith, What man is like Job, who drinketh up ſcorning. He doth not only taſt it a little, and ſip at the ſcorners cup, but drinks it up to a drop, or to the bottome. He drinketh up ſcorning.
Quis ita ridetur et ſannis exxipitur ut Job? bibit ſubſannationem id eſt ſubſannatur. Druſ: Significat Jobux ad ſe ridendum omnes provocare cum talibus ſermonibus utitur. Merc:And that's a ſtrange kind of drink, one of the worſt if not altogether the worſt of Natures brewing. Scorning may be taken 2 ways, either paſſively or actively; ſome take it in a paſſive ſignification; What man is like Job, who drinketh up ſcorning like water? that is, who is ſo ſcorned, or who ſubjecteth himſelfe to the ſcorn of men as he hath done. What wiſe or diſcreete man did ever lay himſelf ſo naked, ſo open to contempt as he? or who like him would render himſelfe ſo ridiculous, ſuch a laughing ſtock to all his hearers, who are but rationall and underſtanding men? It cannot be denied (nor doth Elihu in ſpeaking thus courſely of him deny it) but that Job, moved doubtleſs by the holy Ghoſt, had ſpoken many excellent things, full of divine light and learning, yet moved with paſſion, he ſpake ſometimes much amiſſe, and is charged for it, as if like a ſhameleſs perſon, he had proffered himſelfe, by laviſh and intemperate language to the laſh of every tongue.
Secondly, Scorning may be taken actively; What man is like Job, who drinketh ſcorning like water? That is, where ſhall we find ſuch a ſcorner? who hath uttered ſo many reproachfull ſpeeches, as Job? He drinketh ſcorning, as if he thought he could never fill himſelfe enough with ſcorning. This interpretation may have a a double reference.
Firſt, To his friends, who it ſeemes, were very ſenſible that he put ſcornes upon them. Zophar complaineth of it (Chap: 11.3.) When thou mockeſt ſhall no man make thee aſhamed; As if he had ſayd, when thou haſt mocked and derided us, ſhall we let thee alone, and ſay nothing? ſhall we ſuffer our ſelves to be abuſed and paſſe it by in ſilence? ought we not to tell thee of it, and rebuke thee for it openly, and to thy face, that thou mayeſt ſee thy error and be aſhamed of it?
Secondly, (which is yet higher, and I judge too high) his ſcorning is referred by ſome to the dealings and providences of God,Bibere ſubſannationem velut aquam eſt eſſe plenum ſermonibus ridiculis. Vatabl: as if he had ſpoken of them with a kind of ſcorne, at leaſt with that irreverence, and ſlightneſs of ſpirit, which Eliphaz did early and earneſtly admoniſh him of (Chap: 5.17.) Deſpiſe not thou the chaſtning of the Lord; and which the Apoſtle cals The exhortation, which ſpeaketh unto us as unto children (Heb: 12.5.) My ſon deſpiſe not thou the chastening of the Lord. Thus alſo Elihu may in a qualified ſence be underſtood charging Job with drinking up ſcorning like water. As if upon the whole matter he had ſayd, Job hath drunke ſcorne till he is almoſt drunken with it, at leaſt, he is ſo full of it, that he powres it out upon every one that comes neare him, and which is worſt of all, he ſpeakes ſo unbecomingly, that we ſhall not much wrong him, if we ſay he hath ſpoken or acted deſpiſingly (which is a degree of ſpeaking or acting ſcornefully) concerning the chaſtenings of God upon him.
Further, When 'tis ſaid, He drinketh ſcorning like water.
It may imply three things; Firſt, the frequency of his ſcorning, he doth it commonly, he is at ſcorning as often as at drinking; Secondly, the content which he was ſuppoſed to take in ſcorning, water cooleth and refreſheth the heated and wearied body: Thirdly, it may note the eaſineſs or naturallneſs of it to him. To drinke is naturall to man, it puts him to no paines nor ſtudy. We ſay proverbially of that which a man doth without trouble; He doth it as eaſily as he drinkes. But of this word drinking and drinking like water, the reader may ſee more upon thoſe words (Chap: 15.16.) Man drinketh iniquity like water.
Once more, whereas Elihu ſaith of Job, He drinketh ſcorning like water.
Some have made a criticall obſervation or diſtinction about it; Elihu doth not ſay, he drinketh ſcorning like wine, but like water; They who are provoked or led on to ſin by the delight and ſweetneſs which they find in ſin, are ſayd to drink it like wine (Prov: 4.17.) They drink the wine of violence; or they drink violence like wine. It goeth downe ſweetly and pleaſantly; But (ſay they) ſuch as ſin, not out of pleaſure but out of will or out of an affected maliciouſneſs, are ſayd to drink iniquity like water, which hath little pleaſure in it, little ſweetneſs or taſt in it. There's ſmall ſavour in water comparatively to wine and other delicate or delicious liquors. So that (according to this notion) they drink iniquity like water, who ſin for ſins ſake. And indeed ſome are ſo delighted in ſin it ſelf, that they will ſin in that which yeilds them no delight. The very act of doing evill is more contentfull to them, then any fruit or conſequent of it. But we need not ſtay in this nicity, the generall ſence falls hard enough upon Job, to drink ſcorning like water, is to be much and often in ſcorning. Water is the cheapeſt liquor, and of moſt common uſe; every man can goe to the price of that which coſts nothing (in moſt places) but the labour of taking it up. What man is like Job, that drinketh ſcorning like water?
Taking the words in a paſſive ſence, as Job was a perſon ſcorned, and drunk in the ſcornes of men powred upon him, as the earth drinketh in water.
Note.
He behaveth himſelfe unlike a man, that layeth himſelfe open to, and readily admits the ſcorne of men.
It is an affliction to be ſcorned by others; But it is a ſin to render our ſelves a ſcorne to others, and not to be ſencible of it.
Secondly, (which I rather adhere to) taking the active ſence, he is charged with ſpeaking ſcornfully to his friends, or of the dealings of God with him; how farre this charge might reach Job, hath been toucht a little already; and will be cleared yet further before the cloſe of the whole matter brought againſt him in this context. But in the meane time, from the general ſence of the words (not concluding Job broadly ſuch a one)
Obſerve.
Scorners are the vileſt ſort of men.
What man is like Job, who drinketh ſcorning? Not to doe good is ſinfull, but either to ſcorn that which is good or thoſe that are good is farre more ſinfull. That man is gone his furtheſt length, or aſcended to the higheſt ſtep of ſin, who turneth ſcorner, or gives himſelfe a liberty to ſcorne others. The firſt words of David ſpeake this (Pſal: 1.1.) Bleſſed is the man that walketh not in the counſell of the ungodly, nor ſtandeth in the way of ſinners, nor ſitteth in the ſeat of the ſcornfull. Here are three degrees of ſinning; walking, ſtanding, ſitting: He that ſitteth in the ſeate of the ſcornfull, or hath commenced ſcorner, hath taken the higheſt degree, and is the chiefe Graduate in the Schooles of ſin. And as to ſit in the ſeate of the ſcornfull, is the higheſt degree of ſinning, ſo they that are got into that ſeat, care not how long they ſit in it, yea, are hardly ever got out of it. So much that chiding queſtion or expoſtulation of Solomon doth fully import (Prov. 1.22.) Ye ſcorners, how long will ye delight in ſcorning? As if he had ſayd, When ſhall it once be? will ye never have done, nor give over that trade? Scorners are therefore the worſt of men, becauſe they deride the beſt both of things and men (Prov: 21.24.) Proud and haughty ſcorner is his name, who dealeth in proud wrath. Scorners are the children of pride. A proud ſpirit vents it ſelfe in ſcorning. Pride doth not appeare ſo much in apparrell, in gay clothes and new fangled faſhions (all which are often uſed as flaggs of pride and vanity) nor doth pride appeare ſo much in praiſing our ſelves (though there it appeareth much) as it doth in ſcorning others. Proud ſcorner is his name. And as the ſcorner is a proud deſpiſer of others, ſo a quarrelſome contender with others, and till he is ſeparated from men, there is nothing but ſeparation, no peace among men (Prov: 22.10.) Caſt out the ſcorner, and contention ſhall goe out; yea ſtrife and reproach ſhall ceaſe; which plainly intimateth, that ſtrife cannot goe out till the ſcorner be caſt out. And therefore Solomon (Pro: 24.9.) calleth the ſcorner an abomination to man. Thus the Scripture ſets the ſcorner among ſinners of the chiefeſt rank and firſt forme; I may ſay, he is of the firſt three, if not the firſt of that three. Therefore take heed how ye drinke ſcorning, eſpecially take heed it be not your mornings draught; for as it comes from the heart, ſo it will fly up into your head, and unfit you for any good worke, at leaſt, that day.
Againe, from the ſimilitude here uſed, to drink up ſcorning like water, which (as hath been ſhewed) holds out the readineſs and connaturallneſs of an action unto him that is charged with it.
Note.
The more eaſily any one ſinneth, the greater is his ſin.
It is beſt to come hardly off in ſinning, and when it goeth hardly downe; Many ſin as eaſily as they eat or drink. They eat up my people as bread, (ſaith God, Pſal: 14.4.) that is (as we ſay) they make no bones of it; there's nothing ſtickes in their throats, nor troubles their conſcience. Where ſin lives altogether unmorti…ed in any man (it doth ſo in every meere naturall or unregenerate man) 'tis no more to him to ſin, then it is either to live, or to eate and drink for the maintaining of life. But they ſhall feele ſoreſt paines for ſinning, who have ſinned with greateſt eaſe; they ſhall drinke dammage by ſcorning like Gall▪ and Wormewood, who have drunke ſcorning like water, Elihu having thus taxed Job with ſcorning at good men, proceeds to tax him with overmuch freedome and familiarity with evill men.
Verſ. 8. Which goeth in company with the wor…s of iniquity, and walketh with wicked men.
Noſcitur ex comite. &c.As if he had ſayd, you may know what he is, by the company he keepes.
He goeth in company with the workers of iniquity, or he aſſociates and puts himſelfe into the ſociety of the workers of iniquity. Elihu doth not ſay, he dwelleth among the workers of iniquity; The beſt man in the world may dwell among bad men; Let dwelt in Sodome. We muſt goe out of the world, if we will not be among the wicked; the world is every where full of the workers of iniquity. But (ſaith he) he goeth in company with them. Which intimates the activenes of his ſpirit with them; yea the election of his ſpirit, or that he choſe their company. Though a good man may be in the company of the wicked, yet he doth not chooſe their company; He is not of their body of their ſociety or gang. A wicked man doth not content himſelfe to be among the ordinary ſort of ſinners, he is for, and beſt likes the worſt of ſinners, workers of iniquity. All are ſinners naturally, but ſome are ſinners artificially; they ſtudy ſin, they contrive and plot miſchiefe; They deviſe iniquity upon their beds, ſaith one Scripture; They weave the ſpiders webb, foreign.ſaith another. Here's artificiall ſinning. The Greekes call ſuch, ſin-workers, and crafts-men in evill. I have had occaſion to ſpeake of theſe from other paſſages of this Booke. Here Elihu to highten the charge againſt Job, ſaith, He goeth in company with (ſuch or chooſeth ſuch kind of company) the workers of iniquity; And walketh with wicked men.
As our holineſſe is expreſſed by walking with God, ſo our ſinfullneſſe by walking with wicked men. To walk with God is all the commendation of Enoch, who was ſo holy on earth that God tooke him up to Heaven, (Gen. 5.22.) He had this teſtimony (faith the Apoſtle, Heb. 11.15.) before his tranſlation, that he pleaſed God. To walk with God, is to pleaſe God, or to give up our ſelves wholly to God. Can two walk together except they be agreed? is the Prophets queſtion, (Amos 3.3.) They who walke together are ſuppoſed to have one will, as they are ſeen to have one way. What God willeth they will, and what God willeth not, they will not who walk with him. To walk with wicked men implyeth an agreement with them, and a conformity to them, as being of their fraternity, company and livery. They that walk with wicked men, declare their familiarity with them, or that their mind and manners are the ſame. The Apoſtle tells the Corinthians (1 Cor. 3.2.) Whereas there is among you envying, ſtrife and diviſions, are ye not carnall and walk as men, that is, as men in their naturall and ſinfull condition walke. Though ye are ſpirituall in your ſtate, yet ye act as carnall men. Now, as it is ſinfull for a godly man to walke as a man, or according to man, (as our Margin hath it, for he ſhould walk as God) ſo it is much more ſinfull to walk with wicked men, or according to the worſt of men. Thus the Apoſtle deſcribes the converſation of the Epheſians before converſion. (Eph. 22.) And you hath he quickened who were dead in ſins and treſpaſſes, in which ſometime ye walked according to the courſe of this World. That is, according to the tide, current and ſtreame of the times and places wherein ye lived.Qua itur non qua …undum. Man naturally doth not walk where he ought to goe, but where he ſeeth the moſt goe. He is led by the worſt of examples (ſuch are the examples of the moſt or of the many) rather then by the beſt of rules. It is our duty, and it ſhould be our delight to walk with thoſe who delight in the Law and in the way of God. David ſaith of his deceitfull friend, but reall enemy. (Pſal. 55.14.) We walked unto the houſe of God in company. As if he had ſaid, time was when he and I were as if he had been I, both of us but one, in that one thing neceſſary, the worſhip and ſervice of God. It is a good argument, that man hath an heart for God, who walks with good men in the wayes of God. To converſe much with or to be much in the company of good men, is a probable ſigne of goodneſſe; but when we walke with them to the houſe and worſhip of God, or converſe with them in the dutyes of holineſſe, this is a great (though no infallible) argument of goodneſſe. And to be ſure to walk with evill men, eſpecially to joyne with them in doing evill is an argument that the man is evill. Therefore Elihu may ſeeme to bring a demonſtration againſt Jobs godlineſſe (that he intended it not ſo I ſhall ſhew afterwards, but, I ſay, he ſeemes to ſay ſo) while he ſaith, Job walketh with wicked men.
The Hebrew Phraſe uſed in the Text is more then (as we expreſſe) wicked men, we may render it men of wickedneſſe; the Scripture calleth thoſe men ſo who are (as it were) transformed into wickedneſſe, or formed up of wickedneſſe. As ſome men are ſo witty, that we call them men of wit, and others ſo judicious that we call them men of judgment, as ſome are ſo skilfull and cunning, that we call them men of skill and cunning; ſo ſome are ſo wicked, that the Scripture calls them men of wickedneſſe; even with theſe very dregs of mankind, it ſeemes Job conſorted. He goeth in company with the workers of iniquity, and walketh with wicked men.
But here it may be queſtioned, was it indeed ſo with Job, or was Job ſuch a man as he is expreſly charged to be both in this and the former verſe? Did Elihu judge him a ſcorner, a companion of the workers of iniquity, and a walker with men of wickedneſſe? Doubtleſſe that's not Elihu's ſcope or intention; nor could he imagine that Job, in ſtrict ſence, was either a ſcorner of good men, or choſe the company of wicked men. And ſurely all that knew Job could certifie (upon their knowledge) that he was a man of a gracious ſpirit and unblemiſht life; that he loved good men and ſweetly converſed with them, and therefore was farre from cloſing with deboyſt companions, or men of a profligate ſpirit. Why then doth Elihu ſpeak thus? or ſpake he the words of truth and ſobriety while he ſpake thus?
I anſwer, this forme of ſpeaking doth not alwayes import a likeneſſe of converſation and diſpoſition, as ſometimes it doth, (Prov. 1.11, 15.) Come with us, and caſt in thy lot among us, let us all have one purſe. My ſon, walk not thou in the way with them, refraine thy foot from their path; that is, doe not hearken to the call of thoſe workers of iniquity. Here in the Text to goe in company with the workers of iniquity, and to walke with wicked men, notes only the doing or ſpeaking that which carryeth ſome likeneſſe to them, not a being altogether like them. A man is ſaid to goe and walke with others, when he ſpeaks or doth that which ſeemes to ſuite and favour their principles, opinions or practices, though in truth they are the abhorrence of his ſoul. Elihu durſt not, could not aſſert directly and properly that Job, who was a man famous for piety in the dayes of his proſperity, and who in his affliction had not the leaſt degree of ability or opportunity for it, walked with wicked men: But becauſe in the anguiſh of his ſoul he ſpake ſometimes intemperately of the dealings of God (which is the guiſe, ſpiri…, and common language, in ſuch caſes, of wicked and ungodly men) therefore he chargeth him as ſymbolizing or complying with men of wickedneſſe. So that when Elihu ſaith, he goeth with wicked men, he doth not accuſe him for keeping bad company in his proſperity; but with ſpeaking hardly of God in his adverſity, as ungodly men uſe to doe, when they are under his hand. He doth not ſay, you upon ſuch and ſuch a day kept evill company and converſed with men of wickedneſſe; but you have ſpoken much like the wicked in the day of your calamity. That this was his ſcope appeares plainly by the proofe of this charge, which is alſo a new charge (verſ. 9.) For he hath ſaid, it profiteth a man nothing that he ſhould delight himſelf with God. Elihu doth not ſay, Job walketh with wicked men, for we have ſeen him in their company, and he hath been as vaine and wicked as they. But his proofe that Job walked with the wicked was from his words; For he hath ſaid it profiteth a man nothing, &c. This is the language of the wicked, thus they uſe to ſpeak about the wayes of God; and Job hath ſpoken thus; therefore, What man is like Job that drinketh ſcorning like water, which goeth in company with the workers of iniquity, and walketh with wicked men. I need not ſtay here to ſhew how great an evill it is to keepe evill company, for that was not the ſin which Job was accuſed of. Yet from the letter of the Text,
Note firſt.
To aſſociate with wicked men, or to chuſe wicked men for our company, is the mark of a wicked man.
A godly man may be among wicked men, but he doth not chuſe their company. He while with them is as Lot was in Sodom, his righteous ſoule is vexed. A godly man is among wicked men, as his graces are among his corruptions; as his humility is with his pride, his faith with his unbeliefe, theſe are all in his ſoul at once, but his faith doth alwayes ſtrive againſt his unbeliefe, his humility oppoſeth his pride, his grace of ſelf-deniall, reſiſts his ſelf-ſeeking, his meekneſs his paſſions, and his patience the unquietneſs of ſpirit. A godly man is pained in the company of wicked men, as David was (Pſal: 120.5.) Woe is me that I ſojourn in Meſech, and dwell in the tents of Kedar. David was there but he did not delight to be there. To aſſociate with the wicked is proper to the wicked. The Apoſtle gives that caution (Eph: 5.11.) Have no fellowſhip with the unfruitfull works of darkneſs, but rather reprove them. Seeing the works of darkneſs are unfruitfull of any good, it muſt needs be bad to have followſhip with them. As we muſt not at all joyn with wicked men in ſpirituall communion or Church-fellowſhip (2 Cor: 6.14.) Be not unequally yoaked with unbelievers; for what communion hath light with darkneſs, and Chriſt with Belial, &c. Come out from among them, and touch no uncleane thing. So we ſhould have as little civill communion or fellowſhip with them as we can; and when we are neceſſitated to have civill communion with them, we muſt utterly avoyd all ſinfull communion with them, that is, communion with them in their ſins. It is both a ſhame to Goſpel profeſſion and a great offence to the ſincere profeſſors of the Goſpel, when they who profeſſe it are much in the company of the workers of iniquity, and walke with wicked men.
Secondly, From the matter of the charge,
Obſerve.
While godly men behave themſelves like wicked men, they may be ſayd to goe in company with them.
This heavy charge falls juſtly upon them whether they demeane themſelves in their affliction (as Job in ſome ſort did) like the wicked, or in the dayes of their fullneſs and proſperity. If we ſpeake or doe like wicked men, we have our amends in our hands if we are numbred with them, though we are not really of their number. Some good men when they have got much of the world about them make but an ill uſe of it. Are wicked rich men proud? ſo are they in a great meaſure, you may ſee vanity in their houſes, and ſuperfluity upon their tables, as if they alſo were making proviſion for the fleſh to fullfill the luſts thereof. Now if a godly man, when he hath the abundance of this world makes himſelfe more unfit for the next world; is he not in this like the wicked? or if when God layeth him low, he be full of complainings and have riſings of heart againſt the dealings of God; what is this but to do like the wicked, who in their ſtraits quarrell with God, & blaſpheme his name? (Iſa: 8. ult.) When they are hungry and hard beſtead, they curſe their God and their King. Thus the wicked doe; and it was the Devills plot to make Job do ſo too; and becauſe in the extremity of his ſufferings he ſpake ſuch things as ſavour'd of a murmuring ſpirit, Elihu taxeth him as walking with wicked men. For as when wicked men act and ſpeake like good men, it may be ſayd they goe in the company with the godly, and walke with the workers of righteouſneſs, though they are ſtarke nought all the while, being (as the Apoſtle gives their character, Tit: 1.16.) Abominable, diſobedient, and unto every good worke reprobate; So ſome good men under temptation act and ſpeak like the wicked, yet retaine their goodneſs, and are as to the generall ſtate of their perſons, and bent of their hearts, acceptable, obedient, and enclined to every good worke. It will doe the wicked no good at laſt, that they have thus gone in company with the good; but it is very ſinfull for and hurtfull to good men, to goe in company or walk with wicked men, though it be but (as Elihu makes his proofe of it againſt Job) only in uſing their Sibboleth, or ſpeaking a language like theirs.
Verſ. 9. For he hath ſayd, it profiteth a man nothing that he ſhould delight himſelfe with God.
I ſhall, Firſt, open the words a little, and then, Secondly, inquire, (as of the former) how Job might fall under this accuſation.
He hath ſayd, it proſiteth a man nothing.
That is, a man ſhall get nothing, or have no advantage by it. As Chriſt ſaith (Mark 8.36.) What ſhall it profit a man to gaine the whole world, and loſe his owne ſoule? But what was this trade which Elihu accuſeth Job to have called unprofitable? Surely that which of all others is moſt profitable. It profiteth a man nothing that he ſhould delight himſelfe with God.
This goes deep; Elihu doth not tax him with ſaying it profiteth a man nothing to doe this or that good, which God commandeth, but (which is more) that he ſhould delight himſelfe with God.
foreignThe word rendred to delight, hath a three-fold ſignification, and all very full to this poynt and text.
Firſt, To run, which is the ſpeed of our pace. Thus the Septuagint render it, Although he run with God (Cant: 1.4.) By reaſon of the ſavour of thy good oyntments, therefore doe the virgins love thee, draw us and we will run after thee. To run is more then to walk. To walk with God, notes our obſervance of all holy duties, but to run the way of Gods commandements, notes us zealous in them and for them. To run, requires not only an honeſt heart, but a large one; and therefore David ſayd (Pſal: 119.32.) I will run the way of thy commandements, when thou ſhalt enlarge my heart. Thou (ſaith Elihu to Job) haſt ſayd, (according to this reading of the word) it ſhall not profit a man though he run with God, though he make never ſo much ſpeed in his work and wayes; though he be (beſides faithfull and upright) forward and active for God.
Secondly, The word ſignifieth To have or be of the ſame will or mind with another. Thus alſo ſome render it here; It profiteth not a man, though he willeth with God, or be of the ſame mind with God. The Apoſtle exhorts (Phil: 2.5.) Let this mind be in you which was in Chriſt Jeſus. To will is an internall motion, to run an externall; How faſt ſoever a man may run with God in outward actings, yet, poſſibly, he doth not will with God at all, nor hath a mind conformable to the mind of God. The hypocrite is thus ſet out (Pſal: 50.18, 19.) When thou ſaweſt a thiefe, thou conſentedſt with him, &c. Thou hadſt a mind to be a thiefe as well as he. One wicked man minds and wills the ſame things with another, and all godly men will the ſame things with God. Yet (ſaith Job) it ſhall not profit a man, though he have the ſame will with God, or though he willeth the ſame good things which God himſelfe willeth.
Thirdly, The word (according to our tranſlation) ſignifieth more then barely to will, it takes in the affections and joyes of the ſoule. He that delighteth in God, hath ſweet content and complacency in God, he not only approves of all the ſayings and doings of God, he not only followeth his counſell, and his conduct, but is highly pleaſed and fully ſatisfied in God. Delight is the reſt of the ſoule. When we delight in God, and find every act of obedience our joy and our ſong, our meat and our drink, then the heart is wound up to the higheſt pitch of holineſs. And therefore as his heart is fallen downe to the loweſt pitch of unholineſs, who ſayth, it profiteth a man nothing to ſerve God, ſo is his much more who ſaith, What ſhall it profit a man though he delight in God?
But here againe it may be queried, Where did Job ſay, that it ſhould profit a man nothing though he delight himſelfe with God? If you read his diſcourſe all over, he never ſpake theſe words directly or explicitely, they are the language of hell. But Job had ſpoken words, which (unleſs taken in a very favourable conſtruction) might beare this cenſure. He ſpake thus, in a manner, while he at once juſtified himſelfe ſo much, and cryed out as much of the hard dealings of God wich him. And while in many paſſages of this Booke he denieth that the godly have a preſent reward in this life, and alſo affirmeth that many wicked men injoy outward proſperity, and paſſe unpuniſhed. Theſe ſpeeches might eaſily be interpreted (by common and carnal men eſpecially) that, Job thought it an unprofitable thing to delight in God. For if All things in this life come alike to all, to the godly, and to the wicked, what doth it profit a man (as to this life) that he ſhould delight himſelfe in God? who among the ſons of men (that knoweth of no profit beyond this life) can delight himſelfe in that, which brings no profit? Job alſo ſayd (Chap: 9.22.) God deſtroyeth the wicked and the righteous, that is, he afflicts the good as much as the bad, this was a principle which he held out all along. Now becauſe the Scripture ſaith,Vtdetur principium undo ad omnia peccata feruntur improbi approbaſſo, eſt enim praemij fides non tantum futuri ſed et hujus vitae magnum incitamentum ad obſequium. Coc: He that cometh to God, muſt believe that God is, and that he is a rewarder of thoſe that diligently ſeek him (Heb: 11.6.) and (1 Tim: 4.8.) Godlineſs is profitable for all things, having the promiſe of the life that now is, and of that which is to come; (which Scriptures though not extant when Job lived, yet the truth contained in them was) Elihu might well be led into this apprehenſion, that Job had brought up an ill report upon the wayes of God, as (in this life) unprofitable unto man. But though Job ſpake thus, yet he was farre from ſpeaking this to juſtifie ſuch an opinion, that there is no profit for a man to delight himſelfe with God. His meaning was only this, that a man may want temporall preſent profit, notwithſtanding his delighting in God. He was full and poſitive enough, that they who now delight in God, beſides the preſent inward peace and profit which they find and feele, ſhall hereafter be crowned with everlaſting rewards and delights. Job ſhould indeed have been more in juſtifying God, more in ſetting forth the preſent profitableneſs of his wayes in the practiſe of an holy life; And becauſe he was ſo ſparing in this poynt, and inſiſted ſo often upon the afflictions of the people of God. Elihu chargeth him with ſaying, It profiteth a man nothing to delight himſelfe with God.
Hence note; Firſt.
It is our duty, and the ſumme of all holy duties to delight our ſelves in God.
The very ſpirit of holineſs conſiſts in this; There is (as I may call it) a body of holineſs, but if you would have the ſpirit of holineſs (as by diſtillation we take the ſpirits of any liquor, or of any thing that liquor and moyſture hath in it, if, I ſay, we would have the ſpirits of holineſs) 'tis delighting in God. For as 'tis the ſpirit of ſinfullneſs to delight in ſin; ſo the ſpirit of Godlineſs is to delight in God.
Note.
Secondly, To account the ſervice of God unprofitable, is wickedneſs bordering upon blaſphemy.
Job himſelfe is now charged with that, which he charged upon the wicked (Chap: 21.15.) What is the Almighty that we ſhould ſerve him? and what profit ſhall we have that we pray unto him? This grand prophaneſſe the Prophet rebukes (Mal: 3.14.) Ye have ſaid, It is in vaine to ſerve God, and what profit is there that we have kept his ordinances? Thus the carnal heart, which would faine free or keepe it ſelfe from keeping the ordinances of God, is ready to queſtion, whether there be any profit in keeping them. And while ſuch ſeeme only to put the queſtion, they indeed conclude, that there is no profit in keeping them; yet the truth is, the very keeping the ordinances of God, as it is an act of obedience to him, and of communion with him is very profitable, though we ſhould have no viſible nor ſenſible profit by it. In keeping the commandements of God, there is great reward (Pſal: 19.11.) that is, the keeping of them is a reward, as well as a reward is promiſed to thoſe that keepe them. The Reader may conſult this poynt further, at the 15th verſe of the 21th Chapter.
Note, Thirdly.
Good men ſometimes ſpeak worſe then they meane.
Job never thought it was no profit to ſerve God, yet he had let fall words which might beare that gloſſe. As wicked men often ſpeake better then they meane; They have golden words in their mouths, when there is nothing but droſs in their hearts; their words are ſmoother then oyle, yet they are drawne ſwords; their words ſound well, while they wound deep, (now as a carnal man ſpeakes often better then he meanes, and ſometimes ſpeakes purpoſely the beſt when he meanes worſt) ſo a godly man ſpeakes ſometimes worſe then he meanes, or he may ſpeak ill when he intends nothing but good. Holy David (which comes up fully to the ſence of what Job is taxed for ſaying here) ſayd (and what could he ſpeak more unholyly) (Pſal: 73.15.) Verily I have cleanſed my heart in vaine, &c. What language was here? would one think to heare David foule his mouth with ſuch words as theſe? would one think, that ſuch a word could have dropt from the mouth of David, whoſe mouth uſed to drop like an honey-comb, & whoſe lips were wont to be like a tree of life feeding many? yet David in temptation, that is, in great affliction (for he there complaines that he was chaſtened every morning) ſpake thus with his tongue to the griefe of his heart a little after. The tongue is an unruly member, (as the Apoſtle James ſaith, Chap: 3.8.) The tongue can no man tame; we need a great command upon the heart to bridle the tongue, and tame that unruly beaſt. Many a good man hath been over-borne with his tongue. That little member hath ſometimes cruſht both ſoule and body very ſorely. Jobs tongue fell heavily upon him.
Obſerve.
Fourthly, Inconſiderate words render us obnoxious to ſevereſt cenſures.
Thou haſt ſayd, It profiteth a man nothing to delight himſelfe in God, is a very ſevere cenſure; And though Joh did not deſerve it fully, yet he might have expreſſed himſelfe more commodiouſly and profitably. Juſt conſequences from what we ſay, may be charged upon us as our ſayings. Indeed to wier-draw words or ſtraine conſequences from them, is very unchriſtian. Some deale ſo with the holy Scriptures (2 Pet: 3.16.) Wreſting them to their owne deſtruction; They torture and ſtretch them upon the tenters to their owne hurt. And to wreſt a mans words, or as the Prophet ſpeakes (Iſa: 29.21.) To make a man an offender for a word, is an act of great uncharitableneſs towards man, and to God an high offence (Not but that a man may be an offender for his words; nor can a man be more truly an offender for any words, then when he ſpeakes reproachfully or ſleightly of the workes of God) But when men ſpeak ſuch words as are reall offences, and yeild foule conſequences, fairly, they muſt beare the burden. And that was Jobs caſe here.
But ſome may ſay, If Job never ſpake theſe words in termes, nor any words like them, with ſuch an intent, why doth he ſuffer Elihu to to accuſe him, and not take off his accuſation, nor give a word of anſwer for himſelfe? Why did he not vindicate himſelfe, or make his Apology?
I anſwer, and my anſwer ſhall be the laſt note from this context.
A godly man will rather beare more blame then he deſerveth, then ſtand to excuſe himſelfe when he hath deſerved any blame.
Job replyed no more, ſpake no more, but to ſhew that he yeilded to what was ſayd, and ſubmitted to this diſpenſation of God in ſending Elihu to charge him thus. He tooke more upon him then he had ſayd, leſt he ſhould ſeeme to juſtifie any thing that he had ſayd amiſſe. (Chap: 40.5.) Once have I ſpoken, but I will not anſwer: yea twice, but I will proceed no further. As if he had ſayd, I will make no more pleas for my ſelfe, nor excuſes, I will cry guilty to the whole matter of my charge, though I might cleare and diſcharge my ſelfe of much of it. How far was the ſpirit of Job from theirs, who though charged with that only which they have directly done, or ſpoken, yet ſtand it out in pleading their excuſe, and will never fall downe before reproofes, though what they have done or ſpoken amiſſe, be ſo plaine, that it needs no proofe.
We ſhould be carefull to ſpeake and doe ſuch things as are not ſubject to reproofe, but when through ignorance or raſhneſs we have run into an error, either of ſpeech or practiſe, we ſhould be ſo humble as to ſubject our ſelves to reproofe, and take it well that we are rebuked for any evill. As it doubles an offence to undertake the defence of it, ſo not to defend an offence abateth and leſſeneth it. And as he who goeth about to cover his fault by finding out arguments and pleas for it, ſheweth that he hath a will or purpoſe to continue in it; ſo he that is ſilent, and hath not a word to ſay for it, gives a good teſtimony both of his ſorrow that he ever committed it, and of his reſolution never to commit it any more. They are highly to be commended who live unblameably, and they deſerve no ſmall commendation, who being ſenſible of their owne fayling, can patiently beare the blame of it, without replying upon their reprovers.