just prospect he had of the continuance of his comfort at home, ver. 18-20. And of his interest abroad, ver. 21-25. All this he enlargeth upon, to aggravate his present calamities; like “Naomi, I went out full, but am brought home empty."

VER. 2. "Oh, that I were as in months past!"]— The eternal salvation of the people of God in their election, justification, and their relation to Christ, is secured, yet they are subject to many changes in their frames, comforts, zeal, love, and spiritual life, which makes them wish for their former zeal and love to things spiritual and heavenly. They think if they could but enjoy their former comforts, they should be happy. These words express the soul's lamenta tion for loss of its first love, or rather the loss of the enjoy ment of God's favour, of nearness to him, and communion with him, as their own God and Father. This loss is sensibly felt in the decay of their spiritual life, and the power of godliness; for when the presence of God is removed, the frame of their minds is changed; for they have not those views of their interest in Christ and salvation, nor the joys they had before; therefore they pray that God would return and shine upon them as in months past, when he preserved them in peace and prosperity, from being overcome by the temptations of satan, and the corruptions of their hearts.

Ver. 3. "When by his light I walked through darkness."-This shews what great blessings Job had enjoyed by the favour of God; that he had by the light of God's love walked free from those afflictions and sorrows that were then upon him. It is the light of God's countenance that enables the christian to walk comfortably through the darkness of temptations, sin, and corruptions, and the dark valley of the shadow of death.

CHAPTER XXX.

In this chapter adversity is described as much to the life as prosperity was in the former, and the height of that did but increase the depth of this: God sets the one over against the other, and so did Job, that his afflictions might appear the more grievous, and consequently his case the more pitcous. (1.) He had lived in great honour, but now he had fallen into disgrace, and was as much vilified, even by the meanest, as ever he had been magnified by the greatest, ver. 1-14. (2.) He had had much inward comfort and delight, but now he was a terror and burden to himself, ver. 15, 16. and overwhelmed with sorrow, ver. 28–31. (3.) He had long enjoyed a good state of health, but now he was sick and in pain, ver. 17-19, 29, 30. (4.) Time was when the secret of God was with him, but now his communication with heaven

was cut off, ver. 20-22. (5.) He had promised himself a long life, but now he saw death at the door, ver. 23. One thing he mentions, which aggravated his affliction, that it surprised him when he looked for peace. But two things gave him some relief; (1.) That his trou bles would not follow him to the grave, ver. 24. (2.) That his con science witnessed for him, that in his prosperity he had sympathized with those that were in misery, ver. 25.

VER. 20. "I cry unto thee, and thou dost not hear me."]-Afflictions in themselves are grievous; but when God withdraws his presence, and regards not the cries of the christian in the day of his great distress, it is more grievous to him than all his other afflictions are; and one great comfort to the christian under his affliction is this consideration, that Christ in all the afflictions of his peo ple is himself afflicted: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them, Isaiah Ixiii. 9. He cried, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? O my God, I cry in the day time, but thou hearest not, and in the night season, and am not silent," Psalm xxii. 2, It is a ground of much comfort to remember, that as Christ bore all kind of afflictions for us, so he bore this also, not to be heard when he prayed; even Christ was not heard as to sense and present apprehension, as he was man; Christ endured not only sorrow and death for us, but a denial of deliverance from death, and of sensible comforts under the sorrows of death; and that should bear us up, that as Christ endured and overcame other temptations in our stead, so he did this also, that his Father turned a deaf ear to him when he cried: which shews that a christian is loved by God when his prayers are not heard and answered.

Ver. 21. "Thou art become cruel to me."]-God is gracious and merciful in his name and nature, in his blessings and promises to his people, and hath nothing but mercy, grace, and kindness in his thoughts and purposes to them; yet it is sometimes his sovereign pleasure to lay upon them great afflictions; for this is as though Job had said, Lord, thou hast heretofore been kind and gracious to me; thou hast favoured me with the blessings of thy providence, and with thy gracious presence: I was as a child favoured by thee, and laid in the bosom of thy mercies; but now thy countenance in providence is changed to me, thy manifestative favours are withheld from me; thou frownest upon me, and thou hast stripped me of all my comforts, like an enemy.' At times it is the pleasure of the

Lord to deal thus with his people. Some are of opinion that Job speaks here unadvisedly with his lips concerning the dispensations of providence to him; for the children of God are too apt to judge by outward appearances.

Ver. 26. "When I waited for light, there came darkness."]-The believer has a sure foundation to wait upon God for the light of his countenance; for light is sown for the righteous, in the purposes and decrees of God, in his covenant and promises, in his ordinances and in his word. Yet it is the Lord's sovereign pleasure, for the trial of their faith, hope, and patience, not only to withhold his manifestative favours from them, but to afflict them with the darkness of adversity, desertion, and temptation, and to withhold spiritual light and discoveries of his love to their souls. Thus the christian who is blessed, like Job, with great sincerity and uprightness of walk before God, may, notwithstanding, be under great trials in providence and darkness in his soul; for God acts as a sovereign. This sense explains ver. 28-31.

CHAPTER XXXI.

Job had often protested his integrity in general, here he doth it in particular, not in a way of commendation, for he doth not here proclaim his good deeds; but in his own just and necessary vindication, to clear himself from those crimes with which his friends had falsely charged him, which is a debt every man owes to his own reputation. Job's friends had been particular in their articles of impeachment against him, and therefore he is so in his protestation, which seems to refer especially to what Eliphaz had accused him of, chap. xxii. 6, &c. They had pro duced no witnesses against him, neither could they prove the things whereof they accused him, and therefore he may well be admitted to purge himself upon oath, which he doth very solemnly, and with many awful imprecations of God's wrath, if he were guilty of those crimes; this protestation confirms God's character of him, that there was none like him in the earth; perhaps some of his accusers durst not have joined with him; for he not only acquits himself from those gross sins which lie open to the eye of the world, but from many secret sius, which, though he had been guilty of them, nobody could have charged him with, because he will prove himself no hypocrite. Nor doth he only maintain the cleanness of his practices, but shews also that in them he went upon good principles; that the reason of his eschewing evil was because he feared God, and his piety was at the bottom of his justice and charity; and this crowns the proof of his sincerity. The sins from which he here acquits himself are, (1.) Uucleanness of heart, ver. 1-4. (2.) Fraud and injustice in commerce, ver. 4-8. (3.) Adultery, ver. 9-12. (4.) Haughtiness and severity towards his servants, ver. 13-15. (5.) Unmercifulness to the poor, the widows, and the fatherless, ver. 16-23. (6.) Confidence in his

worldly wealth, ver. 24, 25. (7.) Idolatry, ver. 26-28. (8.) Revenge, ver. 29-31. (9.) Neglect of poor strangers, ver. 32. (10.) Hypocrisy in concealing his own sins, and cowardice in conniving at the sins of others, ver. 33, 34. (11.) From oppression, and the violent invasion of other people's rights, ver. 38-40. And towards the close he appeals to God's judgment concerning his integrity, ver. 35-37. Now in all this we may see, (1.) The sense of the patriarchal age concerning good and evil, and what was so long ago condemned as sinful; that is, both hateful and hurtful. (2.) A noble pattern of piety and virtue proposed to us for our imitation, which, if our consciences can witness for us will be our rejoicing, as it was Job's in the day of evil.

VER. 33. "If I covered my transgressions as Adam."] This shews that Job was acquainted with the fall of Adam, and the manner of his attempting to hide or cover his sin by laying it upon his wife, as his wife laid it upon the serpent; which were among the inventions that fallen man found out, Eccles. vii. 29. and though Job acknowledges his transgressions, yet he still pleads his integrity and sincerity, that he did not hide his sins as an hypocrite doth; and therefore he was not punished for any secret sin that he inwardly entertained. This shews that God's own children are often mistaken in judging of the state of other chris tians when they are under trials, darkness, and tribulations.

CHAPTER XXXII.

The stage is clear, for Job and his three friends are set down, and neither be nor they have any thing more to say; it is therefore very seasonable for a moderator to interpose, and Elihu is the man. In this chapter we have, (1.) Some account of him, his parentage, his presence at this dispute, and his sentiments concerning it, ver. 1—5. (2.) The apology he made for his bold undertaking to speak to a question which had been so largely and learnedly argued by his seniors. He pleads, (1.) That though he had not the experience of an old man, yet he had the understanding of a man, ver. 6-10. (2.) That he had patiently heard all they had to say, ver. 11--13. (S.) That he had something new to offer, ver. 14-17. (4.) That his mind was full of this matter, and it would be a refreshment to him to give it vent, ver. 18-20. (5.) That he was resolved to speak impartially, ver. 21, 22 And he did speak so well to this matter, that Job made no reply to him, and God gave him no rebuke, when he checked both Job, himself, and his other three friends.

VER. 2. "Then was kindled the wrath of Elihu, the son of Barachel, the Buzite, of the kindred of Ram: against Job was his wrath kindled, because he justified him

self rather than God."]-Who this Elihu was is matter of enquiry: his authority to decide the controversy is remarkable; for when he spake, Job and his friends were attentive and silent: they bear his rebukes, and hear his reasoning; and it is evident, if we consider, that the speeches of Elihu and those that are delivered by God, are to the same purpose. This, with the signification of his name and his descent, shew him to be an extraordinary person. Some have thought that he was the same person who appeared to Abraham under the character of Melchizedeck, king of Salem, king of peace. The name Elihu signifies he is my God, or my God is he. The son of Barachel, which Dr. Gill thus explains, the son of the blessed God. Buzite sig fies one low or despised; which is a character of the Messiah. "Of the kindred of Ram;" which Dr. Gill explains, of the high and holy line.

"Against Job was his wrath kindled, because he justi fied himself rather than God."]-This shews that, though the cause of Job's affliction was God's sovereignty, yet we find that Job had too great confidence in his own innocency and uprightness, and justified himself to his friends upon that foundation, rather than justify God; that is, own and acknowledge his right in the proceedings of his providence to him; therefore Elihu seems not to condemn Job as an unrighteous person, but as one that had too high an opinion of his own integrity and uprightness; see chap. xxxiii. 8, 9. The christian stands in need of great grace, great affliction, and great teachings from the Lord, to keep him from trusting to his own sincerity, uprightness, and spiritual frames, and to enable him to acknowledge and glorify God under all his dispensations; to teach him how unworthy he is of all his mercies, and how justly he may afflict and try him for his own glory,

CHAPTER XXXIII.

Pompons prefaces oft-times, like the teeming mountain, introduce but poor performances: but Elihu's discourse here doth not disappoint the expectations which his preface had raised: it is substantial and lively, and very much to the purpose. He had in the foregoing chapter said what he had to say to Job's three friends; and now he comes up close to Job himself, and directs his speech to him. (1.) He bespeaks Job's favourable acceptance of what he should say, and desires he would