Commentary on Ezra Nehemiah Ester Job and Psalms, Commentary 4 · Chapter 2
CHAP. II. Verſe 1. Again there was a day]
WHether the next day, or the next Sabbath day, or the next firſt day of the year, (which is Gods day of general Audit, as the Rabbines will have it) we have not to ſay. God, as he hath in his eternal counſell fore-appointed every thing that is done; ſo he hath ſet the times wherein, Eccleſ. 3.1. ſuch as the creature can neither alter, nor order. This is a comfortable conſideration.
When the Sons of God &c.] See chap. 1.6.
And Satan came alſo among them] Whether ſummoned to give an account, or of his own accord to ſue out a new Commiſſion againſt Job, it skilleth not. Reſtleſſe he is; and it behooveth us to be vigilant: not ignorant of his wiles, nor unmindful of his inveterate envy and enmity.
Verſe 2. And the Lord ſaid unto Satan, &c.] See chap. 1.7.
From going to and fro in the earth] In heaven he comes not; into that earthly paradiſe he could ſcrue himſelf, not ſo into the heavenly. No dirty dog ever trampled on that golden pavement; thoſe that are there, are ex…ra jactum out of Satans gun-ſhot; but whileſt here, he will ever and anon have a bout with the beſt; hee walks about for the nonce, ſpying advantages.
And from walking up and down in it] Doing his feates, and carrying newes. It might very well be he, who when Domitian the Emperour was ſlain by his own ſervants at Rome, informed Apollonius Tyaneus thereof at Epheſus, where he is ſaid to have cryed out the ſame time; To him Stephan; ſtrike him, kill him. But what a vain-glorious vaunt of an impudent caytiffe was this, that though vanquiſhed as he had been by Job, and beaten on his own dunghill, he ſhould take upon him ſtill in this ſort, that he had been walking up and down as a Conqueror or Emperour of this preſent world? Surely as Job ſtill retained his integrity, ſo did Satan his vanity; boaſting that he came now from viſiting his eſtate;Sc…a…lt. and that nothing rendred hm more glorious then the great number of his ſubjects which depended upon his will.
Verſe 3. And the Lord ſaid unto Satan] Before he would condemn him, he thus interrogateth him (which he would not vouchſafe to doe, when he had deceived our firſt parents, Gen. 3.14.) but with a very bitter taunt and ſharp reprehenſion; as if God ſhould have ſaid,Beza. Art thou not aſhamed Satan, thus to anſwer me, as if I had forgotten what I granted thee in our laſt aſſembly, and thus in my preſence to diſſemble &c?
Haſt thou conſidered my ſervant Job] See chap. 1.8.
One that feareth God &c.] This he did not without God (according to that clauſe in the new covenant, I will put my fear into their hearts. Jer. 31.40. I, is emphaticall and excluſive, q. d. I, and I alone) yet God giveth him the honour of it: as if he himſelf had been the ſole doer. Certum eſt, nos facere quod facimus; ſed ille facit ut faciamus, ſaith Auſtin; Sure it is, that we do what good we doe; but as ſure it is, that God doth all our works in us and for us, Iſai. 26.12.
And ſtill be holdeth faſt his integrity] which thou haſt ſtriven quaſi …icedulà extorquere, by wrinch and wile to get from him; but he hath hitherto held it faſt as with tooth and naile. This was a ſingular commendation, and that's a rare faith, which being long tryed, doth not flag and hang the wing. By reaſon of the overflow of iniquity the love of many ſhall wax cold, (ſaith our Saviour) but he that endureth to the end ſhall be ſaved, Ma…th. 24.12, 13. Lo, it is but a He, a ſingle man that retaineth his integrity; when Many loſe their firſt love, and fall from their former ſtedfaſtneſſe, as faſt as leaves fall in Autumne. Job would not part with his integrity to dye for it: when all was taken away, he laid faſt hold on that, and reſolved to let go his life ſooner. Chriſt he ſaw ſtanding over him (as once Steven did) and ſaying,Revel. 3.11. Hold faſt that thou haſt, that no one take thy crown from thee. Omnia perdidit qui fidem amiſit, ſaith Seneca. In a common combuſtion, a man will be ſure to ſecure his jewels, what ever become of his lumber.
Although thou movedſt me againſt him] That is, againſt his perſonall eſtate, and his children, which are called himſelf; againſt theſe Satan is ſaid to have moved the Lord, to have incited and inſtigated him, ſtirring him up with reaſons and arguments; as he is an excellent Orator, if he may but have audience. But that the Lord was hereby moved to do ought againſt Job, muſt be wiſely and rightly underſtood; for God is immutable and unmoveable: neither can he be drawne to do any thing, but what he hath decreed to do from before all beginnings: but here he ſpeaketh after the manner of men, as if he were prevailed with by Satans ſollicitations.
To deſtroy him] So Satan would have had it, when God meant to try him only. See the like, Rev. 2.10.
Without cauſe] or for nothing (as the word ſignifieth, chap. 1.10. Doth Job fear God for nought?) without any provocation or cauſe on his part procuring it. Not but that there is cauſe enough in the beſt, why God ſhould afflict them: But as there was no peccatum flagrans in Jacob, Numb. 23.21. No foule ſin of that people, flaming at that time in the eyes of God, or ſtinking in his noſtrels; and therefore Bala… (the divels Spel-man) could do nought againſt them by his inchantments, verſe 23.Job non erat flagitioſus, Lavat. So there was not in Job that groſſe hypocriſie, wherewith Satan had falſely charged him: he was not that mercenary that Satan would have made of him. In vaine did that arch-ſlandere… and accuſer of the Saints move the Lord againſt Job, Gratis, id eſt, Fruſtra, ſaith Lyra; in vaine did he aſſault this ſtout champion, &c.
Verſe 4. And Satan anſwered the Lord &c.] This impudent adverſary had yet an anſwer in his mouth, and would not be ſo ſet down. Of him and his agents (thoſe falſe teachers, as the Apoſtle calleth them) it may be truly ſaid, — Nihil eſt audacius illis.Juvenal.
Deprenſis: iram atque animes ex crimine ſumunt.
Skin for skin.] Any skin for his own, cattel, ſervants, children may be eaſily parted with by him, to ſave himſelf in a whole skin, to keep himſelfe whole: others read it, skin after skin, or skin upon skin: both the Cutis and the Pellis ſhall go, ſo that life may be preſerved: as a man will hold up his arm to ſave his head, or ſuffer the loſſe of a limb to ſave his life. Ʋt corpus redimas; ferrum patieris & ignes. Job is ſtill integrâcu…e, skin-whole, ſaith Satan; and ſo long there is little trial of him: that man is rich …nough who is well. I read of one, who being asked how old he was, anſwered, that he was in health: and to another that asked how, rich he was, anſwered, that he was not in debt, q. d. He is young enough that is in health; and rich enough that is not in debt. Now all this Job was yet, and therefore Satan ill apaid and unſatisfied.
And all that he hath will a man give for his life] Life is ſweet, we ſay:foreign Aeſop. foreign Ariſt. and man is a life-loving creature, ſaith the Heathen; fond of life, and afraid of death, which is Natures ſlaughterman, and therefore the moſt Terrible of Terribles, as Aristotle ſtileth it. The Gibeonites refuſed not to be perpetuall ſlaves, ſo they might but live. Thoſe that are overcome in battle, are content to be ſtript of all, ſo they may have quarter for their lives. Marriners in a tempeſt, caſt their lading into the ſea, though never ſo precious, in hope of life. If Job may eſcape with the skin of his teeth, it is ſome favour: he may not think much to ſacrifice all that he hath to the ſervice of his life, his conſcience only excepted. Some good people have ſtrained that too for love of life: as when Abraham denyed his wife; David changed his behaviour;Camd. Eliſ. fol. 325. Peter denyed his Maſter; Qu. Elizabeth (though afterwards ſhe could ſay, When I call to mind things paſt, behold things preſent, and expect things to come, I hold them happieſt, that go hence ſooneſt; yet) in Queen Maries time, ſhee ſometimes heard divine ſervice after the Romiſh religion, and was often confeſſed; yea, at the rigorous ſollicitation of Cardinall Pool, ſhee profeſſed her ſelf a Romiſh Catholick; yet did not Queen Mary believe her (ſaith mine Author) remembring that ſhee her ſelf, for feare of death, had by Letters written with her own hand to her father, both renounced for ever the Biſhop of Romes authority,Ibid. Introd. and withall acknowledged her father to be ſupreme head of the Church of England under Chriſt, and her Mothers marriage to have been inceſtuous and unjuſt. Thoſe good ſoules did better, that loved not their lives unto death, Rev. 12.11. that by loſing their lives ſaved them, Matth. 10.39. that held with that Martyr,Julius Palmer. that life is ſweet only to ſuch as have their ſouls linked to their bodies, as a thiefs foot is in a pair of fetters.
Verſe 5. But put forth thy hand now] See notes on chap. 1.11. This God did at Satans motion, yet non ad exitium Jobi, ſed ad exercitium; Jobs temptation is of Satan, but his triall and invincible conſtancy is of god. God in a ſenſe tempted Job. Satan alſo: even as the dog may be ſaid to bait the beaſt, and the owner of the beaſt too, that ſuffered him to be baited.
And touch his bone and his fleſh] pinch him to the quick, that not his fleſh onelyonly may feel it, but the marrow alſo in his bones, Pſal. 6.2. and 32.3. and 51.8. The bone and fleſh are the chief materials of mans body, which is fitly compared to a fabrick, wherein the bones are the timber-work, the head the upper-lodging, the eyes as windowes, the eye-lids as caſements, the browes as pent-houſes, the ears as watch-towers, the mouth as a door, to take in that which ſhall uphold the building, and keep it in reparations; the ſtomack as a kitchin, to dreſſe that which is conveyed into it: the guts and baſer parts as ſinks belonging to the houſe &c. as one maketh the compariſon. Now in all theſe and the reſt of his parts of body, Satan would have Job to be ſmitten: and then he made no queſtion of a conqueſt. Paine is a piercing ſhaft in Satans quiver of temptations: hence he ſtirred up his agents to tympanize and torment the Martyrs with as much cruelty as the wit of malice could deviſe; but all in vain. Heb. 11.35, 36. Apollonia had all her teeth pulled out of her head (hence Papiſts make her the Saint for tooth-ach.) Blandina tired thoſe that tortured her. Theodorus was cruelly whipped, racked,Scerat. Theodor. and ſcraped with ſharp ſhells, by the command of Julian, but yeilded not. Roſe Allen had her hand-wriſt burnt by Juſtice Tyrrell, who held a candle under it till the ſinews brake that all the houſe heard them; and then thruſting her from him, violently ſaid, ah ſtrong whore, wilt thou not cry? thou ſhameleſſe whore, thou beaſtly whore, &c. But ſhe quietly ſuffering his rage for the time, at the laſt ſaid, Sir,Acts & Mon. 1820. have you done what you will doe? and he ſaid yea; and if thou think it not well, then mend it. Mend it, ſaid ſhe? nay, the Lord mend you, and give you repentance, if it be his will. And now, if you think it fit, begin at the feet, and burn the head alſo; for he that ſet you a work, ſhall pay your wages one day, I warrant you. As little got the divel by theſe worthies, as he did by Jobs biles and carbuncles. We are aſhamed, (ſaid one of Julians Nobles to him) we are Aſhamed, O Emperour, the Chriſtians laugh at your cruelty, and grow the more reſolute.
And he will curſe thee to thy face] Heb. If he curſe thee not to thy fade, q. d. then damne me, ſend me to hell preſently. This Satan holds in by an Apoſiopeſis, being therein more modeſt then our deſperate and deteſtable God-damn-mee's; let them ſee how they gratifie the divel, who curſe and blaſpheme, or proteſt openly what they know to be falſe. This the divel did not.
Verſe 6. And the Lord ſaid unto Satan] who hath his requeſt: it is not alwayes a mercy to have what we wiſh. Deus ſaepè dat iratus, quod negat propitius. Be ſure we bring lawful petitions, and true hearts, Heb. 10.22. and then we ſhall have good things, and for our greateſt good.
Behold he is in thine hand] Here God puts his child into his ſlaves hand to correct, but not to deſtroy. And ſurely, if we give reverence to the fathers of our fleſh, who correct us for their own pleaſure, ſhall we not much more be in ſubjection unto the Father of Spirits,Heb. 12 9, 10. Buſbeq. chaſtning us for our profit, and live? The Turks, though cruelly laſht, are yet compelled to return to him that commanded it, to kiſſe his hand, and to give him thanks, and to pay the officer that whipt them. This laſt we need not do, but the former we ought, taking Gods part againſt our ſelves, and reſting contented; though as Paul delivered up ſome to Satan, that they might learn not to blaſpheme, ſo God deliver us up to him and his agents (ſuch as Satanically hate us, and are divelliſhly bent againſt us, Pſal. 32.21.) cauſing us to ſuffer more then any ever did out of hell; that we may learn not to be proud, ſecure, ſenſuall, and may preach forth the vertues of him who hath brought us out of darkneſſe into his marvellous light, 1 Pet. 2.9. Let us not ſay, if God would take the rod into his own hand, I could better beare it: but the tender mercies of that wicked one and his imps are meer cruelties. For 1. this is as if the child ſhould ſay, If I might chooſe my rod, I would not care to be whipt: or the condemned Noble-man, If I might chuſe mine executioner, I would not care to loſe mine head. 2. It is but one hand, and many inſtruments that God ſmiteth us with. Our enemies are but the men of Gods hand, Pſal. 17.14. that can do no more then is given them from above, John …9.…. Gods Maſons, to hew us here in the Mount, that we may be as the poliſhed corners of the Temple, Pſal. 144.12. Gods ſcullions, to ſcowre up the veſſels of his houſhold, that they may ſhine upon the celeſtiall ſhelf, as that Martyr ſaid. 3. God ever reſerveth to himſelf the royaltie of ſetting them their task, limiting them their time, and letting out their …edder; hitherto ye ſhall go, and no further. 4. If they exceed their commiſſion (as they are apt), Gods jealouſie will ſmoke againſt them, Zech. 1.14.
But ſave his life] Heb. his ſoule; put oft for the life, the cauſe for the effect: Satan ſhook his chain at Jobs ſoul, and would have deſtroyed it; but that he might not do: ſcratch him he might with his pawes, but not faſten his fangs in him. Job could ſay (for a ſeaſon at leaſt) as that dying Saint did, My body is weak, my ſoul is well. His afflictions, as afterwards St. Pauls, reached but to his fleſh, Col. 1.24. And ſee that thou ſave his life too, ſaith God: (ſee how he chaineth up the divel, who would faine have been ſucking Jobs blood, and ſwallowing him down his wide gullet;Iſa. 57.16. 1 Pet. 5.8.) Save it, that is, ſpare it; ſee that the Spirit faile not before me, and the ſoul that I have made; I have yet ſome further uſe of him, though a lamentable Lazar.Gal. 4.13, 14. You know how through infirmity of the fleſh; that is, notwithſtanding the infirmity and weakneſſe of my body, I preached the Goſpel, ſaith Paul. and my temptation which was in my fleſh you deſpiſed not. Daniel, though ſick, yet did the Kings buſineſſe; and Job, though ſcabbed all over, was yet of great uſe, and reſerved to great honour: therefore Save his life, ſaith God: and the divel, ſay the Rabbines, was as much vexed and wounded with this reſtraint, as Job was with all his wounds and ulcers. It is ſurely a vexation to malice, not to do its utmoſt.
Verſe 7. So went Satan forth from the preſence of the Lord] The like is ſaid of Cain, when he meditated the murder of his innocent brother, and went to put it in practice. Malefactors amongſt us, we know, are indited in this form. For that thou, not having God before thine eyes, but moved by the inſtigation of the divel, didſt—.
And ſmote Job] He pretended to touch him only, verſe 5. but let every good man bleſſe himſelf out of Satans bloody fingers: his iron entred into Joſephs ſoule, his ſtroke was very vehement upon Jobs body, making totum pro vulnere corpus: For he ſmote Job
With ſore boiles] hot boyling boyles, ſuch as the Sorcerers of Egypt were ſmitten with, Exod. 9.10. and afterwards the limbs of Antichriſt, Rev. 16.2. The Indian ſcab, ſome ſay it was, or the French diſeaſe, a moſt filthy and odious ulcer it appeareth to have been, ſore and mattery (why elſe ſhould he ſo ſcrape himſelfe with a potſheard, as verſe 8.) ſuch as whoſe ſharp and pricking humour penetrated the very bone, and put him to exquiſite paine, being worſe to him then Augustus his tres vomicae briae carcinomata, above-mentioned: or Philip the ſecond of Spain his loathſome and louſie diſeaſe, whereof he died Anno 1598.Inſtit. princip. cap. 20. Carolus Scribanius thus deſcribeth it. This potent Prince for a long time endured ulcerum magnitudinem, multitudinem, acerbitatem, foetorem &c. i. e. Many great, ſharp and ſtinking ulcers, which faſtned him to his bed, as to a croſſe, for a whole yeare before his death; beſides ſix years torture by the Gout, an hectick fever with a double tertian for two yeers ſpace feeding upon his bowels, and the very marrow of his bones; beſides a moſt grievous flux for two and twenty dayes, a continual nauſeouſneſſe of his ſtomack, an unſatisfiable thirſt, a continuall paine of his head and eyes, abundance of matter working out of his ulcets, quae binas indies ſcutellas divite paedore impleret: beſides a moſt loathſome ſtench that took away his ſleep &c.Alſted. Chron. pag. 314. thus he. Think the ſame, and worſe of Job, the object of Satans utmoſt malice, and that for a whole year, ſay the Hebrewes; for ſeven whole years, ſaith Suidas. chryſoſt. de Laz.Chryſoſtome compareth him with Lazarus▪ and maketh him to be in a farre worſe condition. Pineda ſheweth, that his ſufferings were a great deal worſe then thoſe of the wicked Egyptians under all their ten plagues; this was a boile, an evil boile, ſaith the text, one of the worſt ſort, the moſt painful and malignant that might be, and this all over his body.
From the ſole of the feet, unto his crown] It was all but one continued ſore, univerſall, as the leproſie, and therefore incurable; threatned as an utmoſt plague, an evil, an only evil, D…ut. 28.35. If any part were left untouched, it was his tongue and mouth, that it might be free to blaſpheme God: and that herein he was not ſmitten by Satan, ſome have obſerved from chap. 19.20. I am eſcaped with the skin of my teeth, having no ſores there, as I have all the reſt of my body over.
Verſe 8. And he took him a pot ſheard] a piece of a broken pot, for want of better: oyntments he had none, nor baths to lenifie his ſoreneſſe. Phyſicians and friends were farre from him. He looked on his right hand, and beheld, Pſal. 14.2.4 Beza.but there was no man that would know him: refuge failed and periſhed from him; no man cared for his ſoule. He had ſtill a wife and ſervants, and (as ſome think) his houſhold-ſtuffe left him. He ſhould therefore by them have been helped; but they helped on his miſery, jeering him, and jeſting at him, as he afterwards complaineth. Himſelf therefore in this neceſſity, taketh a potſheard, a piece of an earthen-pot, thereby to mind himſelf, ſaith Gregory, that he was of the earth, earthy. For which cauſe alſo
He ſate down among the aſhes] or duſt, as repenting in duſt and aſhes, chap. 42.6.foreign. So Jonah 3.6. Matth. 11.22. The Septuagint ſay, that he ſat upon the dirt or dung, for want of a better cuſhion, and that he was laid without the City, as if for the ſtink and ill ſavour that came from him, he was not ſuffered to be in the City: as Ʋzziah afterwards being a Leper, dwelt in a houſe by himſelf alone, 2 Chron. 26.21. Diſce hîc, ſi aegrotas, ſaith Lanater, Learn here, if thou be ſick, and have help about thee, of friends, food, phyſick, clean linnen, and the like,In loc. to ſhew thy ſelf patient: poor Job had none of all this. Nay, the Lord Chriſt had not whereon to reſt his head. Sin autem omni curâ & ſolatio es deſtitutus, ſaith he. But ſay thou be deſtitute of all cure and comfort, forced to lie without doors, and upon the hard ground; ſay thou be in ſuch a condition, that thou canſt neither ſtand nor go, nor ſit, nor lie, nor eat (either for want of meat, or want of ſtomack): comfort thy ſelf with this, and the like examples of the Saints. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and what end the Lord made, James 5.11. He raiſeth the poor out of the duſt, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to ſet them among Princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory, 1 Sam. 2.8. Againe, let no man truſt to his preſent proſperity: Job, who heretofore ſpake not to his ſubjects but from his throne, was now ſeated upon a dung-hill: and his hands accuſtomed to bear the Scepter, were employed to wipe the matter which diſtilled from his ſores, as the French Paraphraſt hath it.
Verſe 9. Then ſaid his wife] Was this Dinah, Jacobs onelyonly daughter? ſo the Jew-Doctors ſay; and that Job had a fair daughter by her, whom Potipher married; and that of her came Aſenaz whom Joſeph married. They tell us alſo (but who told them all this?) that ſhe was hitherto ſpared, when all Jobs outward comforts were taken away, for Jacob her fathers ſake. Moreover, the Septuagint here help her to ſcold, adding a whole verſe of female paſſion, I muſt now, ſaith ſhe, go wander, and have no place to reſt in, &c. Job ſaid nothing all this while; not becauſe he was either inſenſible or ſullen; but becauſe it was God that did it, Pſalm 39.2. and he had well deſerved it, Mic. 7.9. I will bear (thinks he) the indignation of the Lord, becauſe I have ſinned againſt him. Yet my ſoul be ſilent to Jehovah &c. Pſal. 12.1.Satan therefore (who waited for his curſing of God, as a dog waiteth for a bone, but was defeated) cunningly ſetteth his wife awork, by her venemous words, to make him ſpeak at leaſt, and by her unſeemly and ſinful counſel, to draw him to do wickedly. Some think, ſaith Chryſoſtome, that the divel in the ſhape of Jobs wife, ſpake thus unto him; and ſurely their words agree; He will curſe thee to thy face, ſaith he; Curſe God and die, ſaith ſhee. Chryſostome himſelf thinketh, that the divel (if he ſpake not in her, yet) ſpake by her, as he did once to Eve by the Serpent, and that he borrowed her mouth, uſing her as a ſtrong Engine, to a wall of adamant, as the choiceſt arrow in his quiver, to wound Jobs righteous ſoule; and as a ſcaling-ladder, whereby to get up into this impregnable tower, as Gregory hath it.Per coſtam tanquam ſer ſcalam ad cor Adami aſcendit. Greg. Moral. l. 3. c. 3. He had tried this courſe before with Adam, and had ſingular ſucceſſe, Gen. 3.6. he had by his rib (as by a ladder) gotten up to his heart; yea, with his rib broken his head, as one phraſeth it, darting in death at the windowes of his ears. This he aſſayed upon Job, but without effect: his ears were waxed up, his heart fixed &c. although he could not but be vexed that his wife ſhould do it; eſpecially ſince hereby his ſervants and friends would be encouraged to do the like. O wives, ſaith one! the ſweeteſt poyſon, the moſt deſired evil &c. Sir Thomas Moore was wont to ſay, that men commit faults often, women only twice, that they neither ſpeak well, nor do well. This may be true of bad wives, ſuch as Jezebel who ſtirred up Ahab (of himſelf forward enough) to do wickedly with both hands earneſtly, 1 King. 21.25. This in Jobs wiſe might be a particular failing, though a foul one. Women are the weaker veſſels, and naturally more paſſionate: they muſt have their allowance, as light gold hath. Shee in the text had no ſmall trials, and he is a perfect man that offendeth not with his tongue.
Doſt thou ſtill retain thine integrity?] Cuibono, as he ſaid: what getteſt thou by it? Is not this thy fear, thy confidence; the uprightneſſe of thy wayes, and thy hope? Lo Eliphaz (who ſhould have had more grace and government of his tongue then Jobs wife) ſcoffeth religious Job. as ſome ſenſe that text, chap, 4.6. rendring the words thus; Is not thy fear (or religion) become thy folly? Where is now thine uprightneſſe, and hope of reward? It is an ancient and an ordinary ſlurre and ſlander caſt upon the waies of God, as if they were unprofitable, as if God were an auſtere man, an illiberall Lord: as if there were no gain in godlineſſe, nothing to be got by it but knocks, croſſes, loſſes, &c. whereas God is a rewarder of all thoſe that diligently ſeek him, Heb. 11.6. He recompenſeth the loſſes of his people, as the King of Poland did his noble ſervant Zeliſlaus, to whom having loſt his hand in his warrs, he ſent a golden hand inſtead thereof. He rewardeth the ſufferings of his Saints, as Caius the Emperour did Agrippa, who had ſuffered impriſonment for wiſhing him Emperour. The Hiſtory ſaith, that when he came afterwards to the Empire, the firſt thing he did, was to preferre Agrippa, and gave him a chaine of gold, as heavy as the chaine of iron that was upon him in priſon. The divel could have told this peeviſh woman, that Job did not ſerve God for nought, chap 1.9. See Mal. 1.10. and 3.14. with the Notes.
Curſe God and die] What curſed counſel was this? and from her who ſhould have adminiſtred conjugal help to him? How well might Job have turned her off with Get thee behind me Satan, thou art an offence unto me? Theſe were the divels words and not the womans, ſaith Chryſostome; it was her tongue, but the divel tuned it, ſaith Origen. Curſe God and die, for he will not endure thee to live, having once ſo ſet thy mouth againſt heaven, but will quickly ſet thee packing by a viſible vengeance: or, Curſe God, and then dye by thine own hands; having firſt ſpit thy venome in his face for having handled thee ſo hardly, after ſo good ſervice done him. Hacket did thus at the gallows, Anno 1591. threatning to ſet fire on heaven,Camd. Eli. 403 to pluck God out of his Throne, if he would not ſhew ſome miracle out of the clouds to convert thoſe infidels that brought him to execution, and to deliver him from his enemies: having the rope about his neck, he life his eyes to heaven, and grinning, ſaid, Doſt thou repay me this for a Kingdome beſtow'd? I come to revenge it &c. O wretch I By the way obſerve, that Satan is a foreign (as Hegeſias the Philoſopher was called) a perſwader of people, that death is an end, at leaſt an eaſe of outward troubles, when as to the wicked death is but a trap-door to hell: we ſilly fiſh, ſee one another jerked out of the pond of life, but we ſee not the fire, and the frying-pan whereunto thoſe are caſt that die in their ſins, to whom all the ſufferings of this life are but a typicall hell, the beginning of thoſe terrors and torments which they ſhall hereafter ſuffer, without any the leaſt hope of ever either mending or ending.
Verſe 10. But he ſaid unto her] He did not ſtart up, and lay upon her with his unmanly fiſt, (Chryſostome ſaith, it is the greateſt reproach in the world for a man to beat his wife) but he reproveth her, and that ſharply, as ſhe deſerved: and ſo did Jacob his beſt beloved Rachel, when the offence was againſt God, Gen. 30.2. A wiſe husband, ſaith Marcus Aurelius, muſt often admoniſh, never ſmite, and but ſeldome reprove, and that with the ſpirit of meekneſſe too, Gal. 6.1. Meekneſſe of wiſedome, Jam. 3.13. That was wonderful patience that was exerciſed by D. Youngs Benef. of Afflict. 153.Cowper Biſhop of Lincoln, who, when his wife had burnt all his Notes which he had beene eight years in gathering, left he ſhould kill himſelf with overmuch ſtudy (for ſhe had much ado to get him to his meales) ſhewed not the leaſt token of paſſion, but only replyed, Indeed wife, it was not well done; ſo falling to work again, he was eight years in gathering the ſame Notes, wherewith he compoſed his Dictionary. Job, though ſomewhat more tart, as reaſon required, the offence being of ſo high a nature; yet he breaks not out into fierce and furious language: he ſaith not, Go, go, thou art an arrant fool, a wicked woman, an abominable wretch, but
Thou ſpeakeſt like one of the fooliſh women] like one of the women of Idumea that have no ſap of wiſdome or goodneſſe in them, but do whip their gods, (as the Chinois are ſaid to do at this day) when they cannot have what they would have of them, and revile them for neglecting their worſhippers. Note here, that Jobs wife might be a good woman for the main, though in this particular ſhe did amiſſe: but it is a fault in Gods people, when it ſhall be ſaid unto them, Are ye not carnal, and walk, as men? when it ſhall be ſaid of Gods daughters, that they ſpeak or act like one of the fooliſh women. Davids daughters were known by their party-coloured garments, ſo ſhould Gods by the law of wiſdome in their lips and lives, by their patient minde made known to all men, by their eximious and exemplary holineſſe. What ſhould Jobs wife, the Governeſſe of ſuch a religious Family, the yoak-fellow of ſuch an holy Husband, be talking of curſing God? be ſpeaking after the rate of profane Edomites? The Heathen Comedian can ſay, that ſhe is a wiſe woman who can be well content to ſuffer hardſhip; and not repine, that it is now worſe with her then formerly it hath been: Job would fain bring his wife to this,Quae aquo animo pati poteſt ſibi eſſe pejus quam fuit. and therefore addeth,
What? ſhall we receive good &c] He ſeeketh to ſet her down, not with rage, but with reaſon: and that indeed is the right way of backing a reproof: wherein as there muſt be ſome warmth, ſo it may not be ſcalding hot. Words of reviling and diſgrace, they ſcald, as it were: But words that tend to convince the judgment, and to ſtir up the conſcience to a due conſideration of the fault, they be duely warm, and tend to make the phyſick work the more kindly.
Shall we receive good at the hands of God, and not evill?] Shall we not eat the cruſt with the crumbs? drink the ſowr with the ſweet? bleſſe God as well for taking away, as for giving; accept of the chaſtiſement of our iniquity? receive it patiently, thankfully, fruitfully? Shall we be all for comforts, and nothing at all for croſſes? Is it not equall that we ſhould ſhare in both, ſith it is the Lords mercy that we are not conſumed? Gen. 49.28. Jacob is ſaid to have bleſſed all his ſonnes. Now he ſeemed rather to curſe Reuben, Simeon and Levi; for he ſpeaks only of evill to them: But becauſe they were not rejected from being among Gods people, becauſe they were not cut out of the liſt (as Dan afterwards was, 1 Chron. 7. Revel. 7.7.) though they were under great and ſore afflictions, they are counted bleſſed. Doles quòd amiſiſti? gaude quòd … vaſiſti, ſaith Seneca: Grieveſt thou at thy loſſes? be glad that thy ſelf art eſcaped. Be ready at all hours, to ſend God home again the bleſſings which he lent us, with thankfulneſſe. There is a complaint of ſome men, ſo ungratefull, that if you do them nineteen courteſies,Auſon. and then deny them the twentieth, you loſe all your thank with them: Carry them on your back to the very ſuburbs of Rome, and not into the City it ſelf, you do nothing for them. God is not to be thus dealt with; eſpecially, ſince he altereth the property of thoſe evils and croſſes which he layeth upon us, turning them to our greateſt good, Rom. 8.28. like as the skilfull Apothecary turneth a poyſonfull Viper into a wholeſome Triacle. Good therefore and worthy of all acceptation is that counſell of the Wiſe-man, In the day of proſperity be joyfull, but in the day of adverſity conſider. Conſider? What? This, that God alſo hath ſet the one over againſt the other, Eccleſ. 7.14.and therefore thou muſt take the one as well as the other: that's but reaſonable and equitable. Plato ſaith, that God doth alwayes foreign, act the Geometrician, do and diſpoſe of all things in number weight and meaſure: ſuch an order and viciſſitude he hath ſet of good and evill in the life of man, that they are as it were interwoven. Accept them therefore, and acquieſce in them both, as the Hebrew word here ſignifieth.
In all this Job ſinned not with his lips.] Hitherto he did not, though in a pitifull pickle, and much provoked by the wife of his boſome. He did not murmure againſt God, nor let fly at his wife; he did not threaten her as Lamech, nor fall out with the whole ſex, as he that ſaid, Foemina nulla bona est. He doth not wiſh himſelf ſingle againe,Sylla foelix, ſi non habuiſſes uxorem. Chaldaus Paraphraſtes & Talmudici. as Auguſtus did, or hold himſelf therefore onelyonly unhappy becauſe married, as Sylla did. No ſuch unſavoury ſpeech falls from Jobs lips, as the Divel wiſhed and waited for it. Neither doth it follow (as ſome Rabbines would inferre from this Text) that Job ſinned in his heart, though not with his lips: for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth would have ſpoken. Look what water is in the Well, the like will be in the Bucket: and what ſtuff is in the ware-houſe, the like will be in the ſhop. If his heart had been exulcerate, he would not meekly and wiſely have withſtood his Wives motion to blaſpheme. Hitherto certainly, God had helped him. It was the uncouth and unkind carriage of his friends concurring with the increaſe of his bodily paine, beſides the eclipſe of inward comforts, that drew from him thoſe paſſionate expreſſions, chap. 3.
Ver. 11. And when Jobs three friends] His familiar friends, that did eat of his bread, as Pſal. 49.9. that were as his own ſoul, Deut. 13.6. his boſome friends, and therefore precious Jewels, ſuch as could both keep counſel, and give counſel. Of ſuch there are but few to be found. Friends, there is no friend, ſaid Socrates. Faithfull friends,foreign ſaith Another, are in this age all for the moſt part gone in pilgrimage, and their return is uncertain. A Friend is a changeable creature, ſaith a Third; all in changeable colours like the Peacock, as often changed as moved. Job complaineth of theſe his chief and choice friends, that they were miſerable Comforters, Phyſicians of no value,chap. 16.2. &c. Amicitia ſit tantùm inter binos, eóſque bonos; ſuch as were Jonathan and David. Corporibus geminis ſpiritus unus erat.
Heard of all this evil] Whether by the miniſtry of the good or bad Angels, or of neither, it skilleth not. Ill newes is ſwift of foot, ſaith the Greek Proverb; and like ill weather,foreign which comes ere it be ſent for. The ſins and miſeries of good people are much talked of, and ſoon bruited abroad. The Chaldee Paraphraſt here telleth of ſtrange buſineſſes, viz. that theſe three here mentioned (beſides the report they heard of Jobs calamity) were moved to viſit him by the wonders that fell out with them at the ſame time: for their trees ſuddenly withered in their Ort-yards, their bread at their table was turned into raw fleſh, their wine into bloud, &c. But this may well paſſe for a Jewiſh fable: The Author of that Paraphraſe was R. Joſeph Cacus, nothing ſo ancient or authentick as he who paraphraſeth upon the hiſtorical books, but exceeding full of miſtakes, and ſeldome cometh he near the right meaning of the Text, all along the Hagiographa.
They came every one from his own place] More then theſe came to ſuch a ſight, no doubt: but theſe out of a deſire and deſigne to condole with him, and comfort him. But it fel out far otherwiſe: for they tormented Job well nigh as much as Satan himſelf, though it were of ignorance, and unwittingly, rather then of ill will, or malice fore-thought. Their very ſilence and geſture before ever they ſpake a word, did ſo torment his mind, that at laſt he cryes out in that bitter manner, as chap. 3. like a frantick man, which through ſome grievous ſickneſſe hath loſt his wits.
Eliphaz the Temanite, and Bildad the Shuhitt &c. Idumeans all (likely) and men of much eſtimation for wiſdome (Jer. 49.7. Is Wiſdom no more in Teman?) and godlineſſe, as deſcended all of Abraham, whoſe care was to catechiſe his whole Family, and to teach them the wayes of God, Gen. 18.19. Their following diſputations ſhew as much, wherein they admoniſh him to repent, aſſuring him, that he could be no leſſe then a groſſe ſinner, and an hypocrite, becauſe ſo grievouſly afflicted. Job anſwereth their ſeverall ſpeeches, tormented in body, perplexed in mind, but ſtoutly defending his own innocency, and ſeeming to tax the Lord alſo; like as dogs in a chaſe bark at their own Maſters. To this, his friends reply ſharply from chap. 15. to 22. and he anſwereth them again with greater boldneſſe and courage then before. Hereupon they begin a ſecond reply, and here Eliphaz and Bildad onelyonly ſpake: The third man fainted and ſpake no more, for that Job was invincible &c. till at length Elihu moderateth, cenſuring both parties; and God determineth, to Jobs conviction and finall commendation.
For they had made an appointment together to come] Not by accident, or at adventure, as Origen will needs have it againſt the Text; but by ſolemn agreement; it was a pitcht meeting. Neither ſtaid they till they were ſent for, but came (as friends) to do Job all friendly offices: like as in a fright, the blood and ſpirits run to the heart to relieve it. A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adverſity, Prov. 17.17. See the Note there.
To mourn with him] Heb. To ſhake the head, or other parts of the body, in token of commiſeration: to bewail his condition, as Cyprian did the perſecuted Saints of his time, Cum ſingulis pectus meum copulo, ſaith he: Moeroris pondera luctuoſa participo, &c. Who is offended, and I burn not? 2 Cor. 11.29.
And to comfort him] This they intended, but proved miſerable comforters too, by reaſon of the deceitfulneſſe of their hearts, fitly therefore compared to a broken or a deceitfull bow, that carrieth the arrow a clean contrary way. So Jonah prayed unto the Lord. chap. 4.2. He thought to have prayed, but it proved that he brawled:Pſal. 78.57 The word rendred to comfort, ſignifieth likewiſe to mourn with the mourning of repentance, to teach us here to begin our pity to others, to bewail their and our owe ſins. ſee the Note there. Theſe mens words were as a murthering weapon in Jobs bones; pious they were, and divine all along, but much miſ-applied. It is ſaid of them, that they handled an ill matter well, and Job a good cauſe as ill, eſpecially when once he came to be wet through.
Verſe 12. And when they lift up their eyes afarre off] Hence ſome conclude that Job lay abroad, as lepers uſed.
And knew him not] for they had never ſeen him before, but in a ſplendidous faſhion; now then to ſee him in ſuch a pickle, that he hàd loſt all form and faſhion, more like a dead beaſt, then a living man; this amazed and amuſed them; they might alſo by this ſo ſad a ſpectacle, be admoniſhed of their own mutable and miſerable condition (Aut ſumus, aut fuimus, aut poſſumus eſſe quod hic eſt) and have the ſame thoughts, as the Pſalmiſt afterwards had, Man being in honour, abideth not; Pſal. 45.12▪he is like the beaſts that periſh, pecoribus morticinis, ſaith Tremellius, the beaſts that die of the murraine, and ſo become carrion, and are good for nothing. Job was now no otherwiſe to be ſeene, then as a ſtinking carcaſſe full of ſores, more like then a living man, as he painteth out himſelf in moſt lively colours.
They lifted up their voice and wept] Good men are apt to do ſo, ſaith the Poet, & faciles motus mens generoſa capit; we are bound to weep with thoſe that weep, and to be both pitifull and courteous, 1 Pet. 3. To him that is in miſery, pity ſhould be ſhewed from his friend. (it was ſo to Job here at firſt) but he forſaketh the fear of the Lord, Job 6.14. Jobs friends did ſo, when amazed with the greatneſſe of his calamity, they therehence concluded him an arrant hypocrite, unworthy of any one word of comfort.
And they rent every one his mantle] His ſtately mantle, his robe of ſtate, ſuch as men of great honour uſed to weare, Stolam regiam. Some Hebrewes and Jeſuites will have theſe three friends of Job to have been Kings; ſuch I believe they were as the three Kings of Collen, ſo the Papiſts call thoſe wiſe men, Matth. 1.2. be they what they will; they rent every man his mantle in token of greateſt ſorrow at their friends calamity, a ceremony not unuſual among other Nations, then thoſe of the Eaſt. Suetonius telleth us, that Julius Caeſar, when he had paſſed his Army th River Rebican, In vita C. Jul Caeſar.and was marching toward Rome, he made a ſpeech to his Souldiers, weeping and rending his garment: that thereby he might teſtifie to them what a grief it was to him to fight againſt his Country: which he would never have done, had there not been a neceſſity.
And ſprinkled duſt upon their heads toward heaven] They ſo threw it up into the air, that it might fall upon their heads: to import 1. That all things were full of ſorrowful confuſion, as here earth and air were mingled. 2. That themſelves and all mortals were but duſt, Gen. 18. a little dirt neatly made up) and to duſt they ſhould return, Gen. 3 little deſerving in the mean while to tread upon the earth, or to be above ground, Joſh. 7.6. See chap. 1.16.
Verſe 13. So they ſat down with him upon the ground] Though his ſent and loathſomeneſs were intolerable, yet they bare him company: this was love and ſympathy, thus to ſit by him on the ground, then when every one loathed him, and would not lend him a hand to help to ſcrape him.
Seven dayes and ſeven nights] Not all this time, but the moſt part of it, without giving almoſt any regard to their ordinary reſt, and neceſſary ſuſtenance. Origen ſaith, they were ſuſtained and preſerved all that while without ſleep and meat, by a miracle: Others holding it a thing impoſſible, have therefore judged this whole book to be a parable only.
And none ſpake a word unto him] So great was their grief; Curae leves l… quuntur, ingentes ſtupent. Calvin thinks they were too blame, to be ſo long ſilent. Belike, they were loth to be troubleſome, and waited a fit opportunity; looking that he ſhould ſpeak firſt, and harbouring hard conceits of him.
For they ſaw that his grief was very great] His paine was extreme, and therefore no time to talk with him. Beſides, though they came prepared, yet altering their opinions of him, they doubted how, and what to ſpeak, till at length they became Satans advocates.