is, as if he had said, my trial will not diminish but add unto me; I shall be more precious, honourable, weighty, durable, and desirable, after I have been in the furnace or fining-pot of my sorest and severest trials. And he speaks thus in opposition to his friends, who had an opinion of him as if he were but dross, or the "offscouring of all things," as the apostles were reckoned in their time: "I shall come forth not dross, but gold;" as if he had said, Were I once tried, I should be for ever quit of those charges brought against me; I should shine in reputation and honour like pure gold coming out of the fire; I should recover my good name, and be found a man loyal to God, and righteous towards men.' Hence note that grace and afflictions render man excellent and precious; for every godly man is as gold, yea, he is more precious than fine gold; the finest gold is but dross to grace; the wicked of the world are reprobate silver, or refuse silver, Jer. vi. 30. The saints are finer than gold refined in the fire;" for they are precious, they are honourable, they are useful, they are durable and lasting, they shall endure everlastingly; they are weighty in their worth, and their portion is an eternal weight of glory.

Ver. 12. "I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food."]-This shews that the word and promises of God are more precious to the mind than necessary food is to the body. Hence saith the psalmist, "How sweet are thy words unto my taste, yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth :" and Psalm xix. 10. "They are sweeter than honey and the honeycomb. He doth not mean the honeycomb barely, as the vessel wherein the honey is kept; but by the honeycomb he means the honey that flows or drops immediately and naturally, without any art or pressing out of the comb, which is esteemed the purest honey. Such is the word of God to the spiritual palate of a godly man. That feast, Matt. xxii. 2. to which sinners are invited, is only the declaration of the word and mind of God in the gospel: the word of grace is the great feast which God makes for his people.

Ver. 13, 14. "But he is in one mind, and who can turn him?"]-This shews the stability and purposes of God in all his designs of love, and settlements of grace upon his people that his decrees are one, that his purposes are one, and that his designs and thoughts of love, are like himself, without any change: that he is constant and fixed in his

own will and wisdom in all the ways he takes, whether in providence, grace, or glory; which explains ver. 14. Hence let the tried christian remember that a due knowledge of God's sovereignty, and a resignation to his immutable counsels and purposes concerning his trials and afflic tions, is one of the greatest comforts he can enjoy under them.

CHAPTER XXIV.

Job having, by his complaints in the foregoing chapter, gained some ease, breaks them off abruptly, and now applies himself to farther discussion of the doctrinal controversy between him and his friends, concerning the prosperity of wicked people. That mauy live at ease who yet are ungodly and profane, and despise all the exercises of devotion he bad shewed, chap. xxi. Here he goes farther, and shews that many who are mischievous to mankind, and live in open defiance to all the laws of justice and common honesty, yet thrive and succeed in their unrighteous practices; and we do not see them reckoned with in this world. What he had said before, chap. xii. 6. "The tabernacles of robbers prosper," he here enlargeth upon. He lays down his general proposition, ver. 1. That the punishment of wicked people is not so visible and apparent as his friends supposed; and then proves it by an induction of particulars. (1.) Those that openly do wrong to their poor neighbours are not reckoned with, nor the injured righted, ver. 2-12. though they are very barbarous, ver. 21, 22. (2.) Those that secretly practise mischief often go undiscovered and unpunished, ver. 13-17. (3.) That God punisheth such by secret judgments, and reserves them for future judgments, ver. 18-20. and ver. 23–25. So that upon the whole matter we cannot say, that all that are in trouble are wicked; for it is certain all that are in prosperity are not righteous.

CHAPTER XXV.

Bildad here makes a very short reply to Job's last discourse, as one that began to be sick of the cause. He drops the main question concerning the prosperity of wicked men, as being unable to answer the proofs Job had produced in the foregoing chapter: but because he thought Job had made too bold with the divine majesty in his appeals to the divine tribunal, chap. xxiii. he in a few words shews the infinite distance there is between God and man, teaching us, (1.) To think highly and honourably of God, ver. 2, 3, 5. (2.) To think meanly of ourselves, ver. 4, 6. which, however misapplied to Job, are good lessons for us all to learn.

VER. 4. "How then can man be justified with God?"] -See explained chap. ix. ver. 2.

CHAPTER XXVI.

This is Job's short reply to Bildad's short discourse; in which he is so far from contradicting him, that he confirms what he had said, and outdoes him in magnifying God, and setting forth his power, to shew what reason he had still to say as he did, chap. xiii. 2. “What ye know, the same do I know also." (1.) He shews that Bildad's discourse was foreign to the matter he was discoursing of; though very true and good, yet not to the purpose, ver. 2-4. (2.) That it was needless to the person he was discoursing with; for he knew it, and believed it, and could speak of it as well as he, and better, and could add to the proofs which he had produced of God's power and greatness, which he doth in the rest of his discourse, ver. 5-13. concluding that when they had both said what they could, all came short of the merit of the subject, and it was still far from being exhausted,

ver. 14.

VER. 9. "He holdeth back the face of his throne."] -By the face of his throne we are to understand the presence of God, or the communications of his favours: but it is often his pleasure to withhold these favours, to teach his children to love him for his own perfections and grace to his people.

CHAPTER XXVII.

Job had sometimes complained of his friends, that they were so eager in disputing, that they would scarce let him put in a word; "Suffer me that I may speak; and O that you would hold your peace!" But now it seems they left him room to say what he would; either they were themselves convinced that Job was in the right, or they despaired of convincing him that he was in the wrong; and therefore they gave up the cause: Job was too hard for them, and forced them to quit the field; for great is the truth, and it will prevail. What Job had said, chap. xxvi. was a sufficient answer to Bildad's discourse: and now Job paused a while, to see whether Zophar would take his turn again; but he declining it, Job himself went on, and, without any interruption or vexation given him, said all he desired to say in this matter. (1.) He begins with a solemn protestation of his integrity, and of his resolution to hold it fast, ver. 2-6. (2.) He expresseth the dread he had of that hypocrisy which they charged him with, ver. 7-10. (3.) He shews the miserable end of wicked people, notwithstanding their long prosperity, and the curse that attends them, and is entailed upou their families, ver. 11—23.

VER. 6. "My righteousness I hold fast."]-This is not to be understood of his personal or inherent righ

teousness this was not Job's dependence for eternal life, but his trust was in his living Redeemer, and the righteousness which he enjoyed in him: and by righteousness bere we are to understand his integrity, that he was no hypocrite or wicked person.

CHAPTER XXVIII.

The strain of this chapter is very unlike the rest of this book: Job forgets his sores, and all his sorrows, and talks like a philosopher: here is a great deal, both of natural and moral philosophy, in this discourse; but the question is how it comes in here. Doubtless it was not merely for an amusement, or diversion from the controversy; and if it had been only so, perhaps it had not been much amiss. When disputes grow hot, better lose the question than lose our temper: but this is pertinent, and to the business in hand. Job and his friends had been discoursing about the dispensations of providence towards the wicked and the righteous. Job had shewn that some wicked men live and die in prosperity, while others are presently and openly arrested by the judgments of God: but if any ask the reason why some are punished in this world, and not others, they must be told it is a question that cannot be resolved but in God's sovereignty. The knowledge of the reasons of state in God's government of the world is kept from us, and we must neither pretend to it, nor reach after it. Zophar had wished that God would shew Job the "secrets of wisdom," chap. xi. 6. No, saith Job, "secret things belong not to us, but things revealed," Deut. xxix. 29. And here he shews, (1.) Concerning worldly wealth, how industriously that is sought for and pursued by the children of men, what pains they take, what contrivances they have, and what hazards they run to get it, ver. 1-11. (2.) Concerning wisdom, ver. 12. In general, the price of it is very great; it is of inestimable value, ver. 15-19. The place of it is very secret, ver. 14, 20, 22. In particular, there is a wisdom which is hid in God, ver. 23—27. and there is a wisdom which is revealed to the children of men, ver. 28.

VER. 10. "He cutteth out rivers among the rocks; and his eye seeth every precious thing."]-These words are considered by some in a spiritual sense, who has cut rocks and opened rivers of love for his people, which flow from the rock Christ, and from the throne of God and the Lamb, as a river of water in a dry land; and his grace, word, and ordinances, which are the rivers of his pleasure: of these he makes his saints to drink, and his omniscient eye beholds all the precious blessings designed for them: like wise he always sees their persons, as they are said to be precious in his sight, comparable to fine gold: he likewise beholds his precious Son, his precious righteousness and atonement, with pleasure, and sees all the precious fruits of

it in the hearts of his people, in pardon, peace, and salvation.

Ver. 12. "But where shall wisdom be found?"]The answer is, in Christ; in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge: he is that "wisdom that dwelleth with prudence," Prov. viii. 12. that is, in the counsels of God. Dr. Gill says that the only answer that can be given is, that He, the LOGOs, or WISDOM, was with God, as one brought up with him, rejoicing always before him, who lay in his bosom, Prov. viii. 30. John i. 1, 18. which is a solid proof of his union and ancient headship to his church. And in this wisdom of God, his love, grace, and goodness, are displayed to the sons of men.

Ver. 18. "For the price of wisdom is above rubies."] -Which similitude sets forth Christ as the wisdom of God, in his infinite worth, preciousness, and value; that he is of such worth and glory as to be above all comparison.

Ver. 23. "God understandeth the way thereof."]This shews that Christ, who was from everlasting, the wisdom of the Father in his counsel, purpose, and transactions of grace, was only known to him in union with him, in his rejoicing before him, and in all the glorious displays of salvation by him. "He knoweth the place thereof;' that is, where Christ, the Logos was, with himself, and in his bosom, as the man of his right hand. Others by wisdom understand the display of the divine perfections in the work of redemption, Rom. xi. 33, 34.

CHAPTER XXIX.

After that excellent discourse concerning wisdom in the foregoing chapter, Job sat down and paused a while, because he would give room for his friends, if they pleased, to make their remarks on what he had said; but they had nothing to say, and therefore after he had recollected himself a little, he went on with his discourse concerning his own affairs, in this and the two following chapters. In which, (1.) He describes the height of the prosperity from which he was fallen. And, (2.) The depth of the adversity into which he was fallen; and this he doth to move the pity of his friends, and to justify, or at least excuse, his own complaints. But then, (3.) To obviate his friends' censures of him, he makes a very ample and particular protestation of his own integrity notwithstanding. In this chapter he looks back to the days of his prosperity; and shews, (1.) What comfort and satisfaction he had in his house and family, ver. 1-6. (2.) What a great deal of honour and power he had in his country, and what respect was paid him by all sorts of people, ver. 7-10. (3.) What abundance of good he did in his place, as a magistrate, ver. 11—17. (4) What a