Exposition of Job, Exposition of Job · Chapter 15 · Verses 12-13
Verſ. 12. Why doeth thine heart carry thee away? and what do thine eyes wink at,
13. That thou turneſt thy ſpirit againſt God, and letteſt ſuch words go out of thy mouth?
The Second Branch of his ſuppoſed Preſumption againſt God, is, that he was ſo tranſported with Perturbation and Paſſion, v. 12. that, in ſtead of humbling himſelf, he was proudly bitter againſt God, and impatient before him, both in the frame of his ſpirit, and in his expreſſions, v 13. The words, v. 13. are clear, and ſo alſo the firſt part of ver. 12. where his hearts carrying him away, is nothing elſe but that the perturbation and diſorder of his heart did violently drive him to miſcarry toward God, as it is, v. 13. But the other part of v. 12. concerning the winking of his eyes, is more obſcure. Winking with the eye is taken in Scripture for a ſign of inſolent ſcorn and diſdain, Pſal. 35.19. And ſo it ſeems that Job being forced to wink often through pain, either when himſelf ſpake, or when he was hearing them; Eliphaz looked upon it as an evidence of his diſdain, and an external ſymptom of that inward perturbation mentioned in the beginning of the verſe. Likewiſe, as men wink when they aim at a mark in ſhooting, ſo this winking ſeems to be noticed in Scripture as a ſign of a mans driving ſome pernicious or fooliſh deſign, Prov. 6.13. & 10.10 And ſo he would charge Job that not only he was full of Perturbation, but was upon ſome miſchievous or fooliſh deſign in the courſe he took, which he wiſheth him to conſider what it might be. This verſe thus explained, may have ſome reference to what is ſpoken, v. 11. as if Eliphaz had ſaid; If thou knoweſt not better Conſolations, nor any ſecret thing beſide theſe Conſolations of God which we tender to the…, Why ſuffers… thou thy heart thus to rage? Why ſhutteſt thou thine eyes upon Truth, and ſcornfully rejecteſt it through prejudice? What deſign canſt thou be driving in all this? But it hath more expreſs reference to that which followeth, v. 13. as if had ſaid; Why ſuffereſt thou thy heart thus to be peſtered with rage and paſſion? How great is thy inſolent contempt? And what can thou mean or deſign in this, that not only thou ſhouldeſt thus miſcarry toward us, but even toward God? That thou ſhouldeſt not only reject his Conſolations, but ſet thy ſpirit on edge againſt him, and ſpeak ſo preſumptuouſly and irreverently to him, and of him?
In this Branch of the Accuſation, as the fault challenged is, in it ſelf, groſs and hainous; ſo it cannot be denyed that Job was much guilty of it; his diſordered expreſſions witneſſing how much he was diſtempered in ſpirit. Only it flowed not from any principle of wickedneſs, as his Friends alleaged; But from his weakneſs, which drave him upon thoſe ſits of paſſion, through the vehemency of tentation. And therefore God conſtructeth more tenderly of this his way then they did, accounting thoſe to be (though faults) but friendly complaints in his diſtemper, which they cenſured as hoſtile accuſations. So hard is it to judge wiſely and tenderly of the afflicted, and of their failings under trouble, that godly men would, oft-times, be in a ſad plight, if God were not more favourable to them then even their godly friends are.
The General Doctrine (paſſing their ſevere cenſure) doth teach,
1. Mens hearts being filled with paſſion, will ſtrangely precipitate them, through perturbations and diſtempers, ſo that they will not be themſelves; For, ſaith he, thy heart carries thee away.
2. Where the heart is thus diſordered, mens carriage will be ſtrange and odd; inſolency will not be wanting, and ſtrange projects will then be ſet on foot; For, upon the former it followeth, thine eyes do wink at ſomewhat.
3. Men themſelves will be the ſevereſt cenſurers of ſuch perturbations, if they will ſoberly reveiw them; Therefore he propounds it by way of queſtion, Why doth thine heart carry thee away? and what do thine eyes wink at? Whatever be paſſions verdict, yet thoſe diſtempers are unjuſt and unreaſonable, as the Lord inſinuates in his challenge and queſtions to Jonah. Jon. 4.4, 9. And our inconſiderateneſs, and not reflecting upon our way, doth hold us in many wrong courſes, which if we ſeriouſly examined, we would abhor, Jer. 8.6.
4. When men deſpiſe the Conſolations of God, they will readily fall in an ill frame of ſpirit againſt God; For, upon this, that the Conſolations of God are ſmall, v. 11. it followeth, v. 13. thou turneſt thy ſpirit againſt God, &c.
5. It is a very ſad and lamentable caſe, when mens ſpirits are againſt God, when they oppoſe their wit and counſels to his will, and when, in trouble, they are imbittered at his dealing, and alienated from him; For, it is here a ſad charge, that his ſpirit is againſt God. See Zech. 11.8. To love and adore God brings ſweet eaſe under ſaddeſt diſpenſations.
6. This condition is ſo much the ſadder, when men turn their ſpirits thus againſt God; when they are not ſo much driven upon this through the ſtrength of tentation; as voluntarily they run to this courſe, as their choice, and are not careful to entertain a meek frame of ſpirit: For, it heightens the challenge here, that thou turneſt thy ſpirit againſt God. He reflects upon Job's abandoning that patient way of bearing the Rod, wherewith he had begun, Chap. 1.21. & 2.10. in place whereof he had turned him to impatient complaining. And albeit Job was not wicked in this, and was under more preſſing tentations to miſcarry, then Eliphaz did well conſider; Yet he was not wholly free of blame in his activity to diſtemper his own ſpirit.
7. Diſtemper of ſpirit is at a great height, when it is not ſmothered within, but breaks out in expreſſion; For, that is added to the former here, and letteſt ſuch words go out of thy mouth. He ſeems to point at thoſe expreſſions, Chap 7.20. & 10.2, 3, &c. & 13.27. and others the like, of which in their proper places.
8. When men are in ſuch a diſtempered frame, they ought to conſider well what it is, and what is in it; For, Eliphaz thinks it not enough to charge it upon him, v. 13. but premits queſtions, v. 12. Why doth thine heart carry thee away? and what do thine eyes wink at, that thou turneſt thy ſpirit againſt God, &c. which implieth (according to the Expoſition formerly given.)
1. Men ſhould conſider what reaſon they can pretend for ſuch a carriage; For, they will never be able to produce any that is relevant, let them muſter up never ſo many.
2. They ſhould conſider what pride and inſolency there is in it, eſpecially if they will not be admoniſhed of it. We may think our ſelves cruſhed with trouble, when yet pride is much aloft.
3. They ſhould conſider what deſign they can drive by ſuch practices, and what they will do next, if they behave themſelves thus: For it will be with men, in ſuch a caſe, as with peeviſh Children, who do embrace at laſt what they have often rejected; ſo muſt they abandon ſuch ways, when they have at laſt found they are in vain and to no purpoſe.