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Job Chapter
Thirty-three
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO JOB 33
In
this chapter Elihu addresses Job himself, and entreats his attention to what he
had to say to him, and offers several things to induce him to it; and
recommends himself as one that was according to his wish, in the stead of God,
a man like himself, and of whom he had no reason to be afraid, Job 33:1; and then
he brings a charge against him of things which he himself had heard, of words
that had dropped from him in the course of his controversy with his friends; in
which he too much and too strongly insisted on his own innocence and purity,
and let fill very undue and unbecoming reflections on the dealings of God with
him, Job 33:8; to which
he gives an answer by observing the superior greatness of God to man, and his
sovereignty over him, not being accountable to him for anything done by him;
and therefore man should be silent and submissive to him, Job 33:12; and yet,
though he is so great and so absolute, and uncontrollable, and is not obliged
to give an account of his affairs to man, and the reasons of them; yet he
condescends by various ways and means to instruct him in his mind and will, and
even by these very things complained of; and therefore should not be treated as
if unkind and unfriendly to men; sometimes he does it by dreams and visions,
when he opens the ears of men, and seals instruction to them, and with this
view, to restrain them from their evil purposes and doings, and to weaken their
pride and humble them, and preserve them from ruin, Job 33:14; and
sometimes by chastening and afflictive providences, which are described, Job 33:19; and
which become teaching ones; through the interposition of a divine messenger,
and upon the afflicted man's prayer to God, and humiliation before him, God is
gracious and favourable to him, and delivers him; which is frequently the
design and the use that he makes of chastening dispensations, Job 33:23; and the
chapter is concluded with beseeching Job to mark and consider well what had
been said unto him, and to answer it if he could or thought fit; if not,
silently to attend to what he had further to say to him for his instruction, Job 33:31.
Job 33:1 “But
please, Job, hear my speech, And listen to all my words.
YLT
1And yet, I pray thee, O
Job, Hear my speech and [to] all my words give ear.
Wherefore, Job, I pray thee, hear my speeches,.... In the
preceding chapter, Elihu directed his discourse to the three friends of Job
chiefly, here to Job himself, and that by name; which none of his friends in
all their discourses ever used; and in an humble suppliant manner entreats his
attention to what he was about to deliver, and that for reasons which his
address to his friends could furnish him with; and hence begins his speech with
"wherefore", seeing he took not the part of his three friends, but
blamed them; and because he had the Spirit of God in him, and was full of
matter, and uneasy until he had vented it; and which he proposed to deliver in
a plain and faithful manner, with sincerity and without flattery; on all which
accounts be beseeches him to give him a diligent and attentive hearing:
and hearken to all my words; not to some of them
only, but to all; he bespeaks his candid and constant attention, that he would
hear him out, all that he had to say, with patience, and without interruption;
and then judge of the truth, force, and pertinency of them; which he would not
so well be able to do, unless he heard them all; for sometimes the proof, the
evidence, and demonstration of a thing depends not on a single argument, but
upon many put together; each of them alone being insufficient, at least may
appear so, when all considered together give full satisfaction.
Job 33:2 2 Now, I open my mouth; My
tongue speaks in my mouth.
YLT
2Lo, I pray thee, I have
opened my mouth, My tongue hath spoken in the palate.
Behold, now I have opened my mouth,.... Begun to speak in
order to give vent to the fulness of matter within him, which made him, like bottles
of new wine, ready to burst; and since he had opened his lips, that he might
speak and be refreshed, he desires Job to listen to him, and offers same things
to his consideration to induce him to it:
my tongue hath spoken in my mouth: but does not every man's
tongue speak in his mouth when he speaks? is there anything singular and
peculiar in this, that can excite attention? it may be rendered, "in my
palate"F4בחכי "in palato
meo", Pagninus, Montanus, Tigurine version, Beza, Schultens; so Mr.
Broughton. ; which, as it is an instrument of speech, so of tasting and trying
food, see Job 6:30; and
Elihu's sense is, that he had thoroughly considered what he should say, he had
well weighed what he should speak, and should not deliver anything raw, crude,
and undigested; he had palated his words, in order to discern whether there was
anything in them perverse or not.
Job 33:3 3 My words come from
my upright heart; My lips utter pure knowledge.
YLT
3Of the uprightness of my
heart [are] my sayings, And knowledge have my lips clearly spoken.
My words shall be of the uprightness of my heart,.... Not that
the uprightness of his heart, or his own personal integrity, should be the
subject of his discourse; but what he should say would be in or out of the
uprightness of his heart, with all sincerity and faithfulness; what would be
the real sentiments of his mind, and not proceed from a double or insincere
heart:
and my lips shall utter knowledge clearly; what
knowledge he had of God, and of the perfections of his nature, and of his works
in nature and grace, and of his dealings in a providential way with the sons of
men; and what knowledge he had of Christ, his person, office, and grace
somewhat of which speaks in this chapter; and such sort of knowledge is to be
uttered, to be published, and made known to the good of others; and not to be
concealed, and hid, or held, as in a prison, in unrighteousness; and to be
uttered clearly, plainly, and distinctly, in words intelligible, and easy to be
understood; and not in ambiguous terms, or in words of a double meaning; or
which are abstruse and intricate, and serve rather to make the mysteries of
Providence and grace more dark and obscure than to explain them; integrity of
heart, and perspicuity of language, serve much to recommend a speaker, and both
are expressed in this verse.
Job 33:4 4 The Spirit of God has made
me, And the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
YLT
4The Spirit of God hath made
me, And the breath of the Mighty doth quicken me.
The Spirit of God hath made me,.... As a man; so every
man is made by God, and not by himself; Father, Son, and Spirit, are his Makers
or Creators, as we read of them in the plural number, Psalm 149:2; and
this is a proof of the deity of the Spirit, who was not only concerned in the
creation of all things, garnishing the heavens, and moving upon the face of the
waters on the earth; but in the formation of man:
and the breath of the mighty hath given me life; the same with
the Spirit of God, the allusion is to the creation of man at first, when God
breathed into him the breath of life, and he became a living soul: life natural
is from God, he is the God of our life, he gives all the mercies of life, and
by him is this life preserved; and the whole is the effect of almighty power:
now this is observed by Elihu to Job, to encourage him to attend to him without
fear, since he was a man, a creature of God, as he was: it may be understood of
his spiritual formation, the Spirit of God remakes men, or makes them new men,
new creatures; this is done in regeneration, which is the work of the Holy
Spirit; hence regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost, are put together;
and being a work of almighty power, is proof of the deity of the Spirit of God;
it is he that quickens men when dead in trespasses and sins, and makes them
alive to God; which appears by their spiritual breathings after divine things,
and by the exercise of their spiritual senses, and by their performance of
spiritual actions; and now Elihu, being a man regenerated and quickened by the
Spirit, might more justly claim the attention of Job, since what he should say
was what he had heard, felt, and seen, as good man, one that had an experience
of divine and spiritual things.
Job 33:5 5 If you can answer me, Set your
words in order before me; Take your stand.
YLT
5If thou art able -- answer
me, Set in array before me -- station thyself.
If thou canst answer me,.... That is, when he had
done speaking, after he had heard him out; if he thought he could make a reply
to him, he gave him full liberty so to do, and tacitly suggests that he should give
him an attentive and candid hearing, as he had requested of him:
set thy words in order before me; put them into
the best form and order thou canst for thy self-defence, and level them at me;
set them, as it were, in battle array against me; give them all the poignancy,
strength, and three thou art capable of:
stand up; not out of veneration to him, but to denote freedom and boldness
in himself; a presentation of himself with boldness, and standing and keeping
his ground: the expressions are military; Mr. Broughton renders it, "stand
to it".
Job 33:6 6 Truly I am as your
spokesman[a] before
God; I also have been formed out of clay.
YLT
6Lo, I [am], according to
thy word, for God, From the clay I -- I also, have been formed.
Behold, I am according to thy wish in God's stead,.... So some
persons are, as civil magistrates, the ministers of the word, the prophets of
the Old Testament, and the apostles of the New; see 2 Corinthians 5:20;
and so in some sense was Elihu; he undertakes to be an advocate for God, to
vindicate his justice in his dealings with the children of men, and clear him
from the charge of severity towards them, and hard usage of them, and
particularly Job; and whom he besought, as in God's stead, to be reconciled to
his providential dealings with him; to bear his afflictions patiently, and wait
the issue of them: or "I am as thou art"; so the Targum and Ben
Gersom interpret it; one that belongs to God, a creature of God's, a sinful
frail mortal creature, as Job was, and accountable to God; one that belonged to
him both as the God of nature and providence, and of grace; and such an one Job
seemed to have wished for, to dispute the point in question with; see Job 9:32;
I also am formed out of the clay; or "cut out"F5קרצתי "excisus", Montanus, Munster, Mercerus,
Cocceius, Michaelis. of it; alluding to the potter, who, out of a mass or lump
of clay before him, cuts a piece out of it to make a vessel of God is the
potter, men are as clay in his hands, their bodies are bodies of clay, houses
of clay, which have their foundation in the dust; reference may be had to the
original formation of man, Genesis 2:7, and
may denote not so, much the pollution of his nature, clay being defiling, but
the frailty of man, a vessel made of clay being brittle, and easily broken; see
Job 4:19, Isaiah 64:8.
Job 33:7 7 Surely no fear of me will
terrify you, Nor will my hand be heavy on you.
YLT
7Lo, my terror doth not
frighten thee, And my burden on thee is not heavy.
Behold, my terror shall not make thee afraid,.... To come
near, join issue in a debate, and speak freely; this Job had wished for, and
desired of God that his fear might not terrify him, and his dread not make him
afraid, and then he could talk and reason freely with him, Job 9:34; now Job
had nothing to fear from Elihu, he was a man and not God, with whom there was
no terrible majesty, as with God; he was but a clod of clay, and had nothing in
him or about him to strike terror into him; he was no great personage, as a
king or prince, nor in any civil authority, nor had so much as age to command
an awe, much less could inject dread and terror:
neither shall my hand be heavy upon thee; which is not
to be literally understood; Job could be in no fear of that, nor Elihu guilty
of such rudeness; but figuratively, that he should not seek to afflict and
distress him, or add to his affliction, and make it heavier, by hard words,
severe reflections, and cruel reproaches; he seems to refer to Job 13:21; the
Targum is,
"my
burden upon time shall not be heavy;'
he
promises not to aggravate things, but make them as easy as they would admit of.
Job 33:8 8 “Surely you have spoken in
my hearing, And I have heard the sound of your words, saying,
YLT
8Surely -- thou hast said in
mine ears, And the sounds of words I hear:
Surely thou hast spoken in mine hearing,.... After the
above preface, Elihu proceeds to the point in hand, and enters a charge against
Job; which he took up, not upon suspicion and surmisings, nor upon report, nor
upon accusations received from others, but what he had heard with his own ears,
unless he was greatly mistaken indeed, which he thought he was not:
and I have heard the voice of thy words; the sound of
them, clearly and distinctly, and took in the sense of them, as he really
believed:
saying; as follows.
Job 33:9 9 ‘I am pure, without
transgression; I am innocent, and there is no iniquity in me.
YLT
9`Pure [am] I, without
transgression, Innocent [am] I, and I have no iniquity.
I am clean without transgression,.... This with what
follows is supposed to be gathered from Job 10:6; for this
is nowhere said by Job in express words; though I rather think, since Elihu so
peremptorily affirms that they were spoken in his hearing, that these words and
the following did drop from Job's lips, in the controversy with his friends,
though not recorded; for we are not to suppose that everything that was said on
both sides is preserved, only so much as the Holy Ghost thought fit should be:
no man is naturally clean, or free from sin; man came clean out of the hands of
God, by sin is become unclean. This impurity is propagated by natural
generation, and is in all without exception. Job expresses himself clearly on
this point, and agreeably to it, Job 14:4; nor is
any man clean by and of himself, or through anything he is capable of doing, in
a moral, ceremonial, or evangelic sense, to make himself clean; as by moral
actions, by ceremonial ablutions and sacrifices, or by submission to evangelic
ordinances, or even by his own tears, repentance, and humiliation. Job seemed
clearly and fully sensible of this, Job 9:30; see Proverbs 20:9; yet
there are some persons that are clean through the blood of Christ, in which
they are washed, and which cleanses from all sin; and through the righteousness
of Christ imputed to them, in which they appear without spot or wrinkle, or any
such thing; and through the sentence of justification pronounced on them, by
which word spoken they are all clean; and through the grace of God bestowed on
them, the clean water that is sprinkled upon them, by which they are cleansed
from all filthiness, and hence said to have clean hearts and clean hands; and
if Job meant it in this sense, as he had knowledge of his living Redeemer, he
no doubt was such an one, Job 19:25, but not
"without transgression": without transgression imputed he was, and
such are all they whose persons are justified, and their sins pardoned; to
those God does not impute sin, Psalm 32:1; but
they are not without the being nor commission of sin; for no man, even the best
of men, are clear of it in this sense. Job might be free from the grosser sins
of life, but not from indwelling sin, and the actings of it; we find him
confessing sin, and disclaiming perfection, Job 7:20;
I am innocent; so he was, as to the
charges brought against him by his friends, or the things it was insinuated he
was guilty of, as hypocrisy, &c. or as to doing any injury to the persons
and properties of men, or with respect to gross enormities, from which he had
sufficiently cleared himself in Job 31:1; but not
so innocent as to be free from all sin, as Adam was in his state of innocence,
which is contrary to his own declarations in the passages before referred to;
some, as Aben Ezra observes, interpret the word "covered"F6חף "tectus", Montanus, Bolducius. , and as having
the same sense with Psalm 32:1; and in
which sense it was true of Job, that his iniquities were covered; and others of
his being covered with righteousness, with civil righteousness, as in Job 29:14; which
was true of the exercise of it; and in an evangelic sense he was covered with
the justifying righteousness of Christ; the Targum renders the word
"washed", as he was in a spiritual sense. Jarchi interprets it
"wiped" or "rubbed", and others combed and brushed, and so
"neat" and "clean", which is the sense of several versionsF7"Mundus",
Beza; "nitidus", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator;
"tersus", Codurcus, Cocceius. :
neither is there iniquity in me; in a Gospel
sense there is none in believers in Christ; their iniquities being removed from
them to him, and are done away and made an end of by him; nor are they to be
seen with the eye of vindictive justice; God has cast them behind his back, and
into the depths of the sea, never to be seen more; but then there is iniquity
in them, as considered in themselves; for men to say they have none shows pride
and ignorance, and is inconsistent with the truth of grace. If Job is to
understood in these expressions in an evangelical sense, or with respect to the
grossest sins of life, or a vicious course of life (and indeed in no other
sense can he well be understood, consistent with himself), he is not to be
blamed for what he said, and I apprehend that Elihu does not blame him for
saying these things in his own defence; but for insisting so much and so long
upon his innocence and purity, and unspotted life; and especially for joining
with it undue and unbecoming reflections on the Lord, for afflicting a person
so holy and righteous, as follows.
Job 33:10 10 Yet He finds occasions
against me, He counts me as His enemy;
YLT
10Lo, occasions against me He
doth find, He doth reckon me for an enemy to Him,
Behold, he findeth occasions against me,.... That is,
sought in order to find them; so Job in some places suggests, that God inquired
after his sins, and sought diligently after them, that he might have something
to bring against him; and because he could not find great sins, gross
enormities, he sought after lesser sins; so some render the word,
"staggerings", "totterings"F8תנואות
"vacillationes", Cocceius; "aut mutationes", Michaelis. ;
frailties, failings, and infirmities; and because he could find none of late of
a very heinous nature, he went back as far as the sins of his youth; see Job 10:6; and this
in order to pick a quarrel with him; and so Mr. Broughton renders the words,
"lo, he picketh quarrels against me"; or that he might have just
reason to depart from him, or to break from him, or to break off friendship
with him, or to break him to pieces in his estate, family, and health; all
which senses some observe the words will bear: but it would be needless for God
to seek in order to find occasions against men; there is enough ready at hand,
the sins that are about them; and to represent the Lord as dealing thus with
good men is to represent him as acting contrary to the declarations and methods
of his grace; yea, as doing what wicked men do to good men, as the enemies of
David, Daniel, and Jeremiah, did to them; nay, even as Satan himself does, who
goes about and seeks for, and picks up accusations against the saints; this
must be owned to be a very irreverent and unbecoming expression of Job's, and
for which he deserved to be sharply rebuked, as well as for some following
ones, and for which he afterwards was thoroughly humbled:
he counteth me for his enemy; this he had often said,
but very wrongly; See Gill on Job 13:24, and See
Gill on Job 16:9, and See
Gill on Job 19:11.
Job 33:11 11 He puts my feet in the
stocks, He watches all my paths.’
YLT
11He doth put in the stocks
my feet, He doth watch all my paths.'
He putteth my feet in the stocks,.... This also he had
said, Job 13:27; by which
he would suggest not only that his afflictions were painful and disgraceful,
and from which he could not extricate himself, being close fettered by them;
but that they were inflicted on him as punishments, and he was treated as a
criminal, as a malefactor, who had been guilty of some notorious breach of the
law:
he marketh all my paths; looked narrowly at them,
numbered and counted them; this also he had said, Job 13:27; meaning
not only his natural and civil paths and steps, but his moral ones, that he
could not step the least awry, but presently it was marked and observed, Job 10:14; but
though God does take notice of the sins of his people, and chastises them for
them, yet he does not mark them in strict justice, for, should he, they could
not stand before him, Psalm 130:3.
Job 33:12 12 “Look, in this you
are not righteous. I will answer you, For God is greater than man.
YLT
12Lo, [in] this thou hast not
been righteous, I answer thee, that greater is God than man.
Behold, in this thou art not just,.... Here
begins Elihu's answer, who does not deny that Job was a just man, both before
God in an evangelic sense, and before men in a moral sense; he did not go about
to detract from Job's general character, as a man that lived soberly,
righteously, and godly in the world; but in this he was not just, nor is it to
be justified, with respect to this thing, he could not acquit him of doing what
was wrong; namely, insisting so much on his own innocence, and tacking
therewith such unbecoming and undue reflections on the dealings of God with
him; he did not give to God his due, he did not do him justice in representing
him in this light; he did not say nor do the right thing, so Mr. Broughton
translates the words,
"lo,
here thou art not in the right;'
see
Job 32:2;
I will answer thee; or "I must tell thee"; as the
same writer renders the words, being able to make it clear and plain:
that God is greater than man: than any man, than the
greatest of men, most famous for power, wisdom, or justice; he is not only
greater in his power, faithfulness, goodness, grace, and mercy, but in his
holiness and righteousness, wisdom and knowledge; and therefore can never do
either an unjust thing, or an unwise one; and for man, who is both sinful and
ignorant, even the best in comparison of him, to arraign him at his bar, is
very arrogant and presumptuous; since he knows best what to do, and what are
his reasons for so doing, and is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his
works.
Job 33:13 13 Why do you contend with
Him? For He does not give an accounting of any of His words.
YLT
13Wherefore against Him hast
thou striven, When [for] all His matters He answereth not?
Why dost thou strive against him?.... A creature against
the Creator, a man against his Maker, the clay against the potter; how absurd
and stupid is this! and a piece of weakness and folly it was in him to desire
to litigate the point with God, and dispute with him, as he often did, when men
cannot answer him one of a thousand, as he himself owned, Job 9:3; and very
sinful and criminal it is to chide with God, or complain of him, on account of
any of his dealings with the sons of men, as well as it is vain and fruitless:
for he giveth not account of any of his matters; he is a
sovereign Being, and does what he pleases in nature, providence, and grace, and
is not accountable to any for what he does; in things temporal, he does all
after the counsel of his will; he bestows riches and honours, wealth and
health, gifts of natural wisdom and knowledge on some, and withholds them from
others; and each of these are his own, and he may do with them as he pleases:
so likewise in things spiritual, he loves, chooses, redeems, regenerates, calls
by his grace, and brings to glory whom he thinks fit; the blessings of grace
and glory are his own, and he disposes of them as seems good in his sight; and
in all respects he acts according to his will in heaven and in earth; none can
stay his hand, or hinder him from doing his pleasure; and none ought to say to
him, what dost thou? or why dost thou thus? or, if they do, he is not obliged
to give any reasons for his so doing. Some take this to be the thing Job strove
and contended with God about, that he did not, and because he did not give an
account of all his matters, or answer all his words; and particularly he did
not show to him wherefore he contended with him; and others think the meaning
is, that God does not reveal all his secrets to men, but only as much as he
thinks fit to acquaint them with; secret things belong to him, and things
revealed to men; the secrets of his own nature, and the modes of subsistence of
the divine Persons in the Godhead, the secret reasons of divine predestination
of men to life or death, and of his dealings with men in a providential way,
afflicting the righteous, and suffering the wicked to prosper.
Job 33:14 14 For God may speak in one
way, or in another, Yet man does not perceive it.
YLT
14For once doth God speak,
and twice, (He doth not behold it.)
For God speaketh once, yea, twice,.... Or, "but God
speaketh"F9כי "sed", Beza,
Piscator. ; though he is not bound to give an account of his matters, and the
reasons of his proceedings in a way of providence or grace; yet such is his
condescension and goodness, that he makes use of various ways and means to make
known his mind and will in his dispensations, if men were but attentive to
them; he speaks once, in dreams and visions, as in Job 33:15; and
twice, or a second time, by chastisements, as in Job 33:18; or he
speaks frequently, again and again, see Psalm 62:11; gives
line upon line, and precept upon precept; if one way is without effect, he will
take another; and if one warning and admonition is not sufficient, he will give
another; so that though he is a sovereign Being, and not accountable to any,
yet he does not act the unkind and unfriendly part Job had suggested:
yet man perceiveth it
not: the voice of God speaking in one way or another; hearkens not to
the admonition given in a dream or vision, nor hears the chastising rod, and
him that has appointed it; he is deaf to all instructions; he understands not
the mind and meaning of God in his dispensations; which is not owing to want of
means of knowledge, but to the blindness and ignorance of his mind, to dulness
of hearing, to negligence and inattention, and to the prevalence of sin and
corruption: the words, "yet man", are a supplement to the text, and
not in it, and some versions are without it, and understand the whole of God,
rendering the words thus, "God speaketh once, and a second time he does
not repeat it"; so the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, and Arabic versions: or
"does not revise it", or "will not see it"F11ובשתים לא ישורנה
"secundo non revidet", Schmidt & Maius apud Michaelis; "et
secunda vice non videbit illud", Schultens. ; to which agrees the Targum,
"and
a second time he needs not to look upon it;'
and
which rendering, as it suits with the context, so is more agreeable to the
accents; but is differently applied, by some to the sufficiency of the word of
God, that God has at once made known all truth, and there is no need to do it a
second time; but certain it is, that God did at sundry times, and in divers
manners, speak unto the fathers by the prophets; though indeed in these last
days he hath spoken at once all his mind and will by his Son, so that no future
revelation is to be expected; but though this is true now, it was not in the
times of Elihu: by others it is referred to God's dealings with a proud man,
that calls him to an account for his actions, to whom he speaks once, and
reproves him for his boldness; but a second time he will not look at him, nor
bear his pride and insolence: and by others to the unalterable decrees and
purposes of God; what he has said or determined in his eternal mind is done at
once, and remains invariably fixed; he has no need to look over a second time,
or revise his first thoughts and designs, or reconsider them, whether it is
proper to make any alteration in them or not, they are at once so wisely
formed; and he has all things before him in one view in his all comprehending
mind, so that there cannot possibly anything turn up unforeseen by him, to
hinder the execution of his purposes, or cause him to make any change in them;
no new thoughts, resolutions, or purposes, can arise in his mind, with whom
there is no variableness, nor shadow of turning. This agrees well with his
sovereignty, expressed in Job 33:13, and
carries in it a strong reason enforcing what is there said. Though some take
the meaning to be this, that God speaks once to a man, and admonishes and
reproves him as he used to do, in the way expressed in the following verse; and
if he regards it not, he do not speak to him a second time in that way, or no
more by words, but now by blows or chastisements.
Job 33:15 15 In a dream, in a vision of
the night, When deep sleep falls upon men, While slumbering on their beds,
YLT
15In a dream -- a vision of
night, In the falling of deep sleep on men, In slumberings on a bed.
In a dream, in a vision of the night,.... That is,
God speaks to men in this way, and which in those times was his most usual way;
see Job 4:12; sometimes
he spake to a prophet, a person in public office, and made known his mind and
will in this manner to him, that he might deliver it to others, Numbers 12:6; and
sometimes directly and immediately to persons themselves, as he did to
Abimelech and Laban, Genesis 20:3;
when deep sleep lieth upon men, in slumberings upon the bed; the former
denotes a fast, heavy, and sound sleep, when the senses are all locked up, and
there is not the least attention to any outward object; the latter a slight
sleep, when a man is between sleeping and waking; and now at such a time, when
he was laid on his bed in the night season, it was usual for God to come to him
in a visionary way, and impress things on his mind; when it was called off
front worldly and earthly thoughts and cares, and was calm and serene, and so
fit to receive what intimations and instructions might be given this way; see Psalm 4:4. Job had
his dreams and night visions, though he seems not to have had any benefit by
them, or to have understood them, but was scared and terrified with them, Job 7:14; to which
Elihu may have some respect.
Job 33:16 16 Then He opens the ears of
men, And seals their instruction.
YLT
16Then He uncovereth the ear
of men, And for their instruction sealeth:
Then he openeth the ears of men,.... Not the ears of his
body, which remaining shut while things are presented to his mind in a dream or
vision, but his internal ears; it is the same with opening the heart or
understanding to attend to and receive the things delivered in this visionary
way:
and sealeth their instruction; sends home the
instruction given in this manner, and imprints it upon the mind, so that it is
well remembered when awake, not only the dreams themselves, but the lessons
taught and learnt there, as may be observed in the cases of Abimelech and
Laban, Genesis 20:3; the
word signifies "chastisement"F12במסרם
"disciplinam eorum", Tigurine version; "castigationem
eorum", Beza, Vatablus, Drusius, Mercerus, Piscator, Michaelis, Schultens.
as well as instruction, that being one way in which God teaches and instructs
men, Psalm 94:12; and so
the sense may be, that God in a dream or vision makes it known to men, that if
they regard not what he says to them, and repent not of their evils, and turn
from them, he will correct and chastise them, and this he assures them of; and
they may look for the certain performance of it, that he will visit their
transgressions with a rod, and their iniquities with stripes; things that are
sealed being sure and firm. Mr. Broughton renders the words, "and imprints
why they are chastised."
Job 33:17 17 In order to turn man from
his deed, And conceal pride from man,
YLT
17To turn aside man [from]
doing, And pride from man He concealeth.
That he may withdraw a man from his purpose,.... Or
"work"F13מעשה "opere",
Pagninus, Montanus, Mercerus, &c. , his wicked work, as the Targum; either
which he has begun upon, or which he designed to do. Thus Abimelech and Laban
were restrained from their intentions by a divine admonition in a dream, the one
from taking Abraham's wife, as he intended, and the other from doing harm to
Jacob, which he designed:
and hide pride from man; by pardoning his sins,
in which there is always pride, so some; pardon of sin being expressed by
covering it, Psalm 32:1; or
rather by repressing, weakening, and preventing it; and that by not suffering
vain and proud men to perform their enterprises, but obliging them to submit to
the will of God, and humble themselves under his mighty hand. These are the
ends proposed, and which are effected through the Lord speaking to men in
dreams, opening their ears, and sending instructions to them; and others also
for their good follow.
Job 33:18 18 He keeps back his soul
from the Pit, And his life from perishing by the sword.
YLT
18He keepeth back his soul
from corruption, And his life from passing away by a dart.
He keepeth back his soul from the pit,.... Or,
"that he may keep back"F14יחשך
"ut prohibeat", Mercerus, Piscator. ; for this is another end and use
of God's speaking unto men; it is to preserve them for the present from going
down to the grave, the pit of corruption and destruction; so called because the
bodies of men, being there laid, corrupt, and are entirely destroyed by worms,
and turn to rottenness and dust; and to preserve them from the bottomless pit
of everlasting ruin and destruction; for the Lord's people are reproved by him,
that they may not be condemned with the world, 1 Corinthians 11:32;
and his life from perishing by the sword; by the sword
of men, which is one of God's sore judgments; or by the sword of the civil
magistrate, the man spoken to being warned of God of committing these sins,
which would bring him into the hands of such; or by the sword of divine
justice; Jarchi interprets it of the sword of the angel of death; the word
signifies a missive weapon, as a dart; so Mr. Broughton renders the words,
"and his life from going on the dart": or, as another version has it,
"lest it should go on under the cast of darts"F15Tigurine
version. ; the darts of an enemy in war, or the fiery darts of Satan, Ephesians 6:16.
Job 33:19 19 “Man is also
chastened with pain on his bed, And with strong pain in many of his
bones,
YLT
19And he hath been reproved
With pain on his bed, And the strife of his bones [is] enduring.
He is chastened also with pain upon his bed,.... This
seems to be another way, in which God, according to his eternal purposes,
speaks unto men, as the word "also" intimates; namely, by
afflictions, and sometimes painful ones; which have a voice in them, and men of
wisdom will hearken to it, Micah 6:9. Pain
here signifies not pain of the mind, or a wounded spirit, which is very
afflicting, distressing, and intolerable; but pain of the body, as the next
clause shows; and this endured on the bed, it being so great as to confine a
man to his bed, or is what he felt there, where he might hope for ease and
rest; see Job 7:13;
and the multitude of his bones with strong pain; not with a
slight one, but a very strong one, such as those felt who gnawed their tongues
for pain, Revelation 16:10.
Jarchi interprets it, the multitude of his bones, which are strong; though they
are hardy and strong, yet filled with exquisite pain; and not one, or a few of
them, but a multitude of them, as there are a multitude of them in a man's
body; even all of them, as Hezekiah complains, which must be very excruciating
indeed, Isaiah 38:13; and
which was Job's case; not only his flesh was in pain, through the sores and
ulcers upon him, but his bones were pierced in him, and his sinews had no rest,
and he was full of tossings to and fro, Job 7:3; and in
this way he was, as other good men are, reproved and chastened by the Lord; and
in which way he had spoke to him, as he does to others, and which should be
attended to; and since such painful afflictions are but fatherly chastisements,
they should be patiently endured, and the voice of God in them listened to, and
before long there will be no more pain: the "Cetib", or textual
writing, is, "the contention of his bones is strong"; through pain,
or with which God contends with men; we follow the marginal reading.
Job 33:20 20 So that his life abhors
bread, And his soul succulent food.
YLT
20And his life hath nauseated
bread, And his soul desirable food.
So that his life abhorreth bread,.... Through the force of
pain he loses his appetite for food, and even a nausea of it takes place; he
loathes it as the most abominable and filthy thing that can be thought of; even
bread, so necessary to the support of human life, so strengthening to the heart
of man, and what he every day stands in need of, and should pray for, and in
health is never weary of; it may be put for all common and useful food:
and his soul dainty meat; the most rich and
delicious; such as the tables of the great and rich are furnished with:
"food of desire"F16מאכל תאוה "cibum desiderii", Vatablus, Drusius,
Michaelis; "cibum appetentiae", Mercerus. ; or desirable food, as it
may be rendered; see Daniel 10:3; such
as in the time of health the appetite craves and desires, and is fed on with
delight and pleasure, but now had in the utmost aversion. Pains and diseases of
body often produce such a nausea in men, Psalm 107:17, and
was Job's case, Job 3:24.
Job 33:21 21 His flesh wastes away from
sight, And his bones stick out which once were not seen.
YLT
21His flesh is consumed from
being seen, And high are his bones, they were not seen!
His flesh is consumed away, that it cannot be seen,.... All being
gone, none left to be seen, nothing but skin and bones; and this partly through
the vehemence of strong pain, and partly through the nausea of food; not being
able to take anything for nourishment and the support of the fluids, and so
quite emaciated:
and his bones that were not seen stick out: which before
were covered with flesh and fat, so that they could not be seen; but now the
flesh and fat being wasted, they seem as if they rose up in an eminence, and
stood out to be beheld; this was also Job's case, being reduced to a mere
skeleton, Job 19:20. Elihu,
in this description of an afflicted man, seems to have Job chiefly in view, and
by this would intimate to him that God had been, and was speaking to him by
those afflictions, which he would do well to advert unto.
Job 33:22 22 Yes, his soul draws near
the Pit, And his life to the executioners.
YLT
22And draw near to the pit
doth his soul, And his life to those causing death.
Yea, his soul draweth near unto the grave,.... Not the
soul, strictly and properly speaking, for that does not, nor is it laid in the
grave at death, but returns to God that gave it; rather the body, for which it
is sometimes put, and of which what is here said is true, see Psalm 16:10; or the
person of the sick man, whose disease being so threatening, all hope is gone,
and he is given up by his physicians and friends, and seemingly is at the
grave's mouth, and that is ready for him, and he on the brink of that; which
were the apprehensions Job had of himself, Job 17:1; see Psalm 88:3;
and his life to the destroyers; the destroying angels,
as Aben Ezra, and so the Septuagint version: or destroying diseases, and so Mr.
Broughton renders it, "to killing maladies"; or it may be to worms,
which destroy the body in the grave, and which Job was sensible of would
quickly be his case, Job 19:26; though
some interpret it of those that kill, or of those that are dead, with whom they
are laid that die; or of deaths corporeal and eternal, and the horrors and
terrors of both, with which persons in such circumstances are sometimes
distressed.
Job 33:23 23 “If there is a messenger
for him, A mediator, one among a thousand, To show man His uprightness,
YLT
23If there is by him a
messenger, An interpreter -- one of a thousand, To declare for man his
uprightness:
If there be a messenger with him,.... Or angel, either
with God, as some think; or rather with the sick man; by which messenger is
meant not an angel by nature, a created angel, though sometimes such are God's
messengers, sent by him on errands to men, are interpreters of things to them,
as Gabriel was to Daniel; of whom there are thousands, and who may be of
service to sick men for their comfort and instruction, since it is certain they
attend saints in their dying moments; yet this proves not that they are to be
invoked as mediators between God and men: but rather a minister of the word is
designed, who is by office an angel, a "messenger" of Christ, and of
the churches; an "interpreter" of the Scriptures, and of the mind of
God in them; and a spiritual, evangelical, faithful minister, is scarce and
rare, one among a thousand; and his business is to visit sick persons, and to
observe the "uprightness" and faithfulness of God in afflicting them,
that they may quietly submit to and patiently bear the affliction; and to
direct them for their peace and comfort to the uprightness or righteousness of
Christ, for their justification before God; and to show them what is right for
them to do in their present circumstances; whether the sick man be stupid and
insensible of his case, and his need of righteousness, or whether he be a truly
gracious man, yet labouring under doubts and fears about the truth of grace in
him, the uprightness of his heart, and his interest in the righteousness of
Christ: but it seems best to understand this of Christ himself, the angel of
God's presence, the messenger of the covenant, who is with the sick man, and
favours him with his spiritual presence; or is "for him"F17עליו "pro eo", V. L. Pagninus, Mercerus. as it
may be rendered, is on his side, an advocate and intercessor for him with God;
an interpreter of his Father's mind, and with which he is
long acquainted, he lying in his bosom; and of the sacred Scriptures, as he was
to his disciples concerning himself; or an "orator"F18מליץ "eloquens", Pagninus, Montanus;
"orator", Tigurine version, Bolducius. , an eloquent one, never man
spake like him, having the tongue of the learned given him as man; and who as a
divine Person is the eternal and essential Word of God; who spake for his
people in the council of peace and covenant of grace; and also as Mediator is
the antitypical Aaron, can speak well for them on all occasions:
one among a thousand: the chiefest among ten
thousand, angels or men; see Song of Solomon 5:10;
to show unto man his uprightness; which to do is his
office as Mediator, and especially as a prophet, even to show the uprightness
of God, the rectitude of his nature, the righteousness required in his holy
law; and this Christ has shown forth and declared in his being the propitiation
for the sins of his people, Romans 3:25; by his
Spirit he shows to man, and so to a sick man, his want of uprightness in
himself, his need of righteousness from another; and brings it near him, and
shows it to be perfect, complete, and suitable; as well as teaches to live
soberly, righteously, and godly.
Job 33:24 24 Then He is gracious to
him, and says, ‘Deliver him from going down to the Pit; I have found a ransom’;
YLT
24Then He doth favour him and
saith, `Ransom him from going down to the pit, I have found an atonement.'
Then he is gracious to him,.... To the sick man;
either the messenger or the minister that is with him, who pities his case and
prays for him; and by some the following words are supposed to be a prayer of
his, "deliver me", &c. since one find in the Gospel there is a
ransom for such persons. Rather Christ, who is gracious to man, as appears by
his assumption of their nature and becoming a ransom for them, and who upon the
foot of redemption which he has "found" or obtained, see Hebrews 9:12;
pleads for the present comfort and future happiness of his people, in such
language as after expressed, "deliver him", &c. Or rather God the
Father is gracious to the sick man for his Son's sake,
and saith, deliver him from going down to the pit; addressing
either the disease, so Mr. Broughton renders the word, "spare him (O
killing malady) from descending into the pit", the grave, for the present
his disease threatened him with. Or the minister of the word attending the sick
man, who is bid to declare to him, as Nathan to David, and Isaiah to Hezekiah,
that he should live longer, and not die for the present: or rather the address
is to law and justice, to let the redeemed of the Lord go free, and
particularly the sick man being one of them; and not thrust him down into the
bottomless pit of everlasting ruin and destruction, for the reason following:
I have found a ransom; which is no other than
Christ the Son of God; whom Jehovah, in his infinite wisdom, found out and
settled upon to be the ransomer of his people; to which he agreed, and in the
fulness of time came to give his life a ransom for many, and for whom he has
given himself as a ransom price, which has been testified in due time: and this
ransom is for all the elect of God, and is of them from sin, Satan, law, hell,
and death; and the finding of it is not of man, nor is the scheme of
propitiation, peace and reconciliation by Christ, or of atonement and
satisfactionF19כפר
"propitiationem", Beza, Pagninus, Montanus, Munster, Bolducius,
Vatablus; "expiationem", Tigurine version; "lytrum",
Cocceius; "satisfactionem", Schmidt. by the sacrifice of Christ, as
the word here used signifies, an invention of men; but is the effect of
infinite wisdom, and a scheme drawn in the eternal mind, and formed in Christ
from everlasting; see 2 Corinthians 5:19.
Some take these words to be spoken by the Father to the Son, upon his
appointment and agreement to be the ransomer and Redeemer, saying, "go,
redeem him", &c. for so the wordsF20פדעהו
"redime eum", Pagninus, Montanus &c. may be rendered; and others
think they are the words of the Son the messenger to his Father, the advocate
with him for his people, as before observed.
Job 33:25 25 His flesh shall be young
like a child’s, He shall return to the days of his youth.
YLT
25Fresher [is] his flesh than
a child's, He returneth to the days of his youth.
His flesh shall be fresher than a child's,.... Being
recovered from illness and restored to health, through the gracious dealings of
God with him. This is to be understood not simply and absolutely, but
comparatively, or with respect to his former condition; that he, who before was
reduced to skin and bone, is now become fat and plump; and whose flesh was dry
and withered, now moist, succulent, and juicy; and whose skin was wrinkled, now
soft and smooth, and sleek; and whose face was pale, now bloomy and ruddy. The
Targum is,
"his
flesh is weakened more than a child,'
and
the Vulgate Latin,
"is
consumed,'
referring
to his former state:
he shall return to the days of his youth. His youth
renewed, and he seem young again; become hale and robust as in his youthful
days; see Psalm 103:5.
Job 33:26 26 He shall pray to God, and
He will delight in him, He shall see His face with joy, For He restores to man
His righteousness.
YLT
26He maketh supplication unto
God, And He accepteth him. And he seeth His face with shouting, And He
returneth to man His righteousness.
He shall pray unto God,.... As the former verse
expresses the condition of the body of the man recovered from sickness, this
the frame of his soul, and the spiritual blessings enjoyed by him: some
understand this of his praying in the time of his affliction, and consider it
as one means of his recovery; and indeed a time of affliction is a time for
prayer; and which brings a good man to it, who in health and prosperity has
been negligent of it; such an one will make his application to God for
deliverance, and not to the creature; and it is his mercy and privilege he has
a God to pray unto, who can and will help him. But according to the course and
connection of the words, it seems rather to respect what the good man would do,
and the frame he would be in upon his recovery; who would entreat the Lord to
make him thankful the mercy received, and accept of his thanksgiving for the
same; that his affliction might appear to be sanctified unto him, and that he
is much the better for it, more holy and more humble; and that he would
manifest his pardoning grace to him for all the sins and transgressions he had
been guilty of, his murmurings and repinings, and everything else during his
affliction; and that he may make use of his health and strength given him in
the service of God, and for the glory of his name;
and he will be favourable to him; which, if understood of
the time of affliction, it may be interpreted of his laying no more on him than
he will enable him to bear, and supporting him under it; of granting his
gracious presence in it, and of his taking notice of him, visiting him,
knowing, owning, and choosing him in the furnace of affliction, and manifesting
his care unto him; and of the deliverance of him out of it. But if it respects
the man as recovered out of affliction, it denotes further discoveries of the
special care and favour of God to him, which are very enlivening and
refreshing, strengthening and supporting; and of his gracious acceptance of his
person, and of his sacrifices of prayer, praise, and thanksgiving, through
Christ the Mediator and messenger of the covenant;
and he shall see his face with joy: that is, either God who
is favourable to him, he looks with a smiling countenance upon the man now
recovered, who before seemed to look upon him with frowns in his countenance,
there being a change in the outward dispensations of his providence towards
him, though none in his heart: his countenance beholds the upright with
pleasure, whether they see it or not; he looks upon his people in Christ with
the utmost complacency and delight, and particularly when they come to him in
the exercise of grace, with their prayers, praises, and thanksgivings. Or the
man recovered from illness, God being favourable to him, he beholds the face of
God with joy, who perhaps had hid it from him in his affliction, which caused
trouble; but now showing his face and favour, it causes joy and exultation,
even a jubilee in his soul. He beholds him in Christ as the God of grace and
peace; and through him can come to him, and look him in the face with comfort
and pleasure, as nothing is more delightful to him than the light of his
countenance;
for he will render unto man his righteousness: not the sick
man recovered render to another man what is his right and due, or what he may
have wronged him of; for which being reproved by the affliction, and convicted
of, is desirous of making restitution: but God, who will render, return, or
restore to the man recovered his righteousness, which is the foundation of his
joy; not render to him according to his own righteousness, as the Targum, which
would be but a poor recompense if strictly given; nor restore to him the
righteousness he lost in Adam, which is but a creature righteousness; but the
righteousness of Christ, as Mr. Broughton, which is the good man's or the
believer's in Christ, because wrought out for him, imputed to him, and bestowed
as a free gift on him. Now though this righteousness can never be lost, being
an everlasting one, yet a sense of interest in it may, which is returned,
restored, and rendered to a man, when that righteousness is afresh revealed to
him from faith to faith; the consequence of which is peace and comfort, joy and
triumph.
Job 33:27 27 Then he looks at men and
says, ‘I have sinned, and perverted what was right, And it did not
profit me.’
YLT
27He looketh on men, and
saith, `I sinned, And uprightness I have perverted, And it hath not been
profitable to me.
He looketh upon men,.... According to our
version, and other interpreters, the sense is, God looks upon men as he does on
all men in general, their ways and their works; and particularly he takes
notice of men under affliction, and observes how they behave; if they are
penitent and confess their sins, he restores them to health, and does them good
both in body and soul. But most carry the sense another way, and interpret it
of the sick man recovered, who looks upon his friends and relations about him,
and any others that come within his reach; of he goes about them, as Aben Ezra explains
the word; or will accompany with men, as Mr. Broughton; or sets them in rows,
as Gersom, in order, as at a levee, that he may the better address them; or he
shall direct himself to them, as the Targum; or shall sing over them or before
them, so SchultensF20ישר על "cantabit super vel coram", Schultens. ; in a
joyful manner, in an exulting strain, express himself, as follows; for the
phrase,
and if any sayF21ויאסר "et dicat", V. L. Beza, Montanus, Mercerus, Michaelis,
Schultens. , should be rendered, "and he shall say"; make the
following confession of his acknowledgment of the goodness of God unto him;
I have sinned; against God and man, and that has been the
cause of all my afflictions; I am now sensible of it, and ingenuously own it:
and perverted that which was right: have not done
that which is right in the sight of God, nor what is just and right between man
and man; have perverted the right ways of God, swerved from his commandments,
and gone into crooked paths, with the workers of iniquity; and declined from,
or perverted, justice and judgment among men;
and it profiteth me not; as sin does not in the
issue; though it promises profit and advantage, it does not yield it; but, on
the contrary, much harm and mischief come by it.
Job 33:28 28 He will redeem his[b] soul from
going down to the Pit, And his[c] life shall
see the light.
YLT
28He hath ransomed my soul
From going over into the pit, And my life on the light looketh.'
He will deliver his soul from going into the pit,.... Into the
pit of the grave; and then the soul is put for the man or for the body; or into
the pit of hell or perdition:
and his life shall see the light; or he shall live and
enjoy outward prosperity here, and the light of eternal happiness hereafter;
and so the Targum interprets it of superior light, or the light above, even the
inheritance of the saints in light. These words have a double reading; the
"Keri", or marginal reading, is what we follow; but the
"Cetib", or textual reading, is, "he hath delivered my soul from
going into the pit, and my life sees the light"; and which seems to be the
better reading; and so the words are a continuation of the address of the man
recovered from illness to his friends; setting forth and acknowledging, with
joy and thankfulness, the great goodness of God unto him, that he had delivered
him from the grave, and spared his life, and given him to enjoy great
prosperity, both temporal and spiritual.
Job 33:29 29 “Behold, God works all
these things, Twice, in fact, three times with a man,
YLT
29Lo, all these doth God
work, Twice -- thrice with man,
Lo, all these things worketh God oftentimes with man. This is a
summary or recapitulation of what goes before, from Job 33:15; God is
an operating Being, he is always at work in a providential way: "my father
worketh hitherto", John 5:17;
sometimes on the minds of men in dreams and visions; and sometimes by
affliction; and sometimes by his prophets, messengers and ministers of the
word; he works with and by these, and all according to the internal workings
and actings of his mind, his eternal purposes and decrees, which are hereby
brought about: and these he works "oftentimes", or, as in the
original, "twice"F23פעמים שלש "bis aut ter", Tigurine version; "bis et
ter", Beza; "bis, ter", Mercerus, Cocceius. ; therefore when
once is not sufficient, he repeats it in dreams and visions; when men are not
admonished by one, he comes to them in another: and afflictions, when one does
not bring men to repentance, or answer a good purpose, he sends another; and
continues the ministry of the word, in which he waits to be gracious, till all
his people are brought to repentance, and all his ends answered by it: and all
this he works "with man", his darling object, the special care of his
providence; and for whom his great concern is in redemption and salvation. He
works with men distributively considered, with various men, in the several ways
before expressed; and with men personally and individually; to one and the same
man he has often appeared in dreams and visions, and on the same person has
laid his afflicting hand again and again; and to the same individual has given
line upon line, and precept upon precept. And because this is certain and to be
depended upon as truth, and is worthy of notice and consideration, as well as
is very wonderful and astonishing, that God should thus be mindful of man, and
work with him and for him, "lo", or "behold", is prefixed
unto it: the ends for which all this is done follow.
Job 33:30 30 To bring back his soul
from the Pit, That he may be enlightened with the light of life.
YLT
30To bring back his soul from
the pit, To be enlightened with the light of the living.
To bring back his soul from the pit,.... From the pit of the
grave; at the mouth or on the brink of which he seemed to be in the
apprehension of his friends, and having the sentence of death in himself; see Psalm 90:3. Or
"to turn away"F24להשיב "ut
avertat", Beza, Mercerus, Piscator, Michaelis, Schultens. , or "stay
his soul from the pit", as Mr. Broughton; prevent his going into it by
removing his disorder, and restoring him to health, as in the case of Hezekiah,
Isaiah 38:17. Or
figuratively, from the pit of an unregenerate state, which may be compared to a
pit or grave, because in it lie such who are dead in trespasses and sins; and
which is a pit of corruption, or a corrupt state: men in it are corrupt and
corrupters, corrupt both in principles and practices; and is an impure one,
like to mire and clay; and a very uncomfortable one, a pit wherein is no water,
no refreshment, no solid peace and comfort. In conversion, which sometimes is
brought about by the above means, afflictive providences, as well as by the
ministry of the word, souls are brought back from hence; are regenerated,
quickened, and raised from the graves of sin, and live spiritually, as they are
also secured from going down into the pit of hell and everlasting destruction:
to be enlightened with the light of the living; in a natural
sense, to enjoy the light of living men, the light of the sun, and to live in
health and prosperity, which is called light in opposition to affliction and
adversity, expressed by darkness; see Esther 8:15, Isaiah 8:22. And in
a spiritual sense, to live a spiritual life, who before were dead in sin, to
live a life of faith on Christ as their righteousness, and to live a life of
holiness from him, and in newness of life to his honour and glory; and to have
spiritual light into their state by nature, and their recovery and salvation by
Christ; to see their need of him, his suitableness, worth, and excellency, and
to have a glimpse of eternal glory; as also hereafter to partake both of
eternal life and eternal light, called by our Lord "the light of
life", John 8:12.
Job 33:31 31 “Give ear, Job, listen to
me; Hold your peace, and I will speak.
YLT
31Attend, O Job, hearken to
me, Keep silent, and I -- I do speak.
Mark well, O Job,.... Consider and weigh well what has been
said; or rather attend to what is further to be said:
hearken unto me; to what he was about to say; for he was full
of matter, and had not yet vented all he had to utter:
hold thy peace, and I will speak; be silent and do not
interrupt, and I will go on with my discourse.
Job 33:32 32 If you have anything to
say, answer me; Speak, for I desire to justify you.
YLT
32If there are words --
answer me, Speak, for I have a desire to justify thee.
If thou hast anything to say, answer me,.... Any thing
to object to what he had delivered, or any answer to return to what he had
charged him with:
speak, for I desire to justify thee. Elihu was a fair
antagonist, and gave free liberty, time and space, to make whatsoever reply he
thought fit, and which he should patiently and attentively hear: his view was
not victory, but that truth might come out, and take place and prevail, having
nothing more at heart than Job's good; and could wish it would appear that he
was in all respects a just man, and even in that in which he thought he was not
just; but could he fairly acquit himself it would be a pleasure to him.
Job 33:33 33 If not, listen to me; Hold
your peace, and I will teach you wisdom.”
YLT
33If there are not -- hearken
thou to me, Keep silent, and I teach thee wisdom.
If not, hearken to me,.... If he had no
objection to make, nor answer to return, then he desires he would attend and
listen to what he had further to lay before him:
hold thy peace, and I shall teach thee wisdom. For though
Job was a wise and good man, he might become wiser and more knowing; and indeed
when instruction is given to a wise man, he will be yet wiser, Proverbs 9:9; and
this may be received sometimes from persons inferior in age and abilities.
Elihu proposed to teach him, as he did, natural, moral, and evangelical wisdom,
especially the wisdom of God in his providential dealings with men, and what is
man's highest wisdom under them; which is to be reconciled unto them, and
patiently to submit, and to fear the Lord, and be careful not to offend him, which
to do is wisdom and understanding.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)