PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible — Job
Gill, John, 1697-1771 · 410,186 words · 582 reading sections
Job 1:1
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible. Job 1:1 INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK OF JOB This book, in the Hebrew copies, generally goes by this name, from Job, who is however the subject, if not the writer of it. In the Vulgate Latin version it is called "the Book of Job"; in the Syriac version, the Writing of Job; and …
3,215 wordsSECTION 2Job 1:2
Job 1:2 Ver. 2. And there were born unto him,.... By his wife, in lawful wedlock, who was now living, and after mentioned: seven sons and three daughters; next to his religious character, his graces, and spiritual blessings, and as the chief of his outward mercies and enjoyments, his children are mentioned; and which…
177 wordsSECTION 3Job 1:3
Job 1:3 Ver. 3. His substance also was seven thousand sheep,.... For which he must have a large pasturage to feed them on, as well as these would produce much wool for clothing, and flesh for food; this part of his substance or possessions is mentioned first, as being the largest, and most useful and profitable: and …
789 wordsSECTION 4Job 1:4
Job 1:4 Ver. 4. And his sons went and feasted in their houses, everyone his day,.... It appears by this that Job's sons were grown up to men's estate, that they were from him, and were for themselves, and carried on a separate business on their own accounts, and had houses of their own, and, perhaps, were married; and…
356 wordsSECTION 5Job 1:5
Job 1:5 Ver. 5. And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about,.... When they had been at each other's houses in turn; when the rotation was ended: something like this is practised by the Chinese, who have their co-fraternities, which they call "the brotherhood of the month"; this consists of thirty, a…
11,571 wordsSECTION 6Job 2:1
Job 2:1 INTRODUCTION TO JOB 2 This chapter gives an account of a second trial of Job's constancy and integrity, the time and occasion of it, Job 2:1; the motion made for it by Satan, which being granted, he smote him from head to foot with sore boils, which he endured very patiently, Job 2:4; during which sad afflict…
363 wordsSECTION 7Job 2:2
Job 2:2 Ver. 2. And the Lord said unto Satan, whence camest thou?.... The same question is put to him, and the same answer is returned by him; See Gill on "Job 1:7".…
35 wordsSECTION 8Job 2:3
Job 2:3 Ver. 3. And the Lord said unto Satan, hast thou considered my servant Job, that [there is] none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?.... The same with this is also before put unto Satan, and the same character given of Job, which is here continued and c…
644 wordsSECTION 9Job 2:4
Job 2:4 Ver. 4. And Satan answered the Lord, and said,.... Satan would not as yet own that Job was the man the Lord had described; but still would suggest, that he was a selfish and mercenary man, and that what had been done to him was not a sufficient trial of his integrity; the thing had not been pushed far and clos…
791 wordsSECTION 10Job 2:5
Job 2:5 Ver. 5. But put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh,.... That is, his body, which consisted of flesh and bones; these are the constituent parts of the body, and which distinguish it from spirit, Lu 24:39; this is the motion made by Satan for a second trial of Job's integrity; he moves that G…
272 wordsSECTION 11Job 2:6
Job 2:6 Ver. 6. And the Lord said unto Satan, behold, he [is] in thine hand,.... Well may a behold be prefixed to this, it being matter of wonder and astonishment that a saint and servant of God should be permitted to be in the hand of Satan; which yet must not be so understood; as if he was off of, and no more upon t…
621 wordsSECTION 12Job 2:7
Job 2:7 Ver. 7. So went Satan forth from the presence of the Lord,.... With leave and license, with power and authority, as the Targum; having got his commission enlarged, on a fresh grant, to do more mischief to Job, he departed directly and immediately, being eager to put in execution what he had a permission to do;…
442 wordsSECTION 13Job 2:8
Job 2:8 Ver. 8. And he took him a potsherd to scrape himself withal,.... His mouth was shut, his lips were silent, not one murmuring and repining word came from him, amidst all this anguish and misery he must be in; much less anything that looked like cursing God and blaspheming him, as some are said to do, because of…
487 wordsSECTION 14Job 2:9
Job 2:9 Ver. 9. Then said his wife to him,.... The Jews {g}, who affect to know everything, say, that Job's wife was Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, as the Targum, but this is not very likely; however, we may observe that polygamy had not obtained in these early times; Job had but one wife, and very probably she is the …
668 wordsSECTION 15Job 2:10
Job 2:10 Ver. 10. But he said unto her, thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh,.... The wicked and profane women of that age; he does not say she was one of them, but spake like them; which intimates that she was a good woman, and had always been thought to be so; but now spake not like herself, and one of…
744 wordsSECTION 16Job 2:11
Job 2:11 Ver. 11. Now when Job's three friends heard of all this evil that was come upon him,.... Of the loss of his substance, servants, and children, and of his own health; the news of which soon spread in the adjacent countries, Job being a person of great note, and his calamity so very extraordinary and uncommon: …
531 wordsSECTION 17Job 2:12
Job 2:12 Ver. 12. And when they lifted up their eyes afar off,.... Either when at some distance from Job's house, and he being without in the open air, as some think; or as they entered his house, he being at the further part of the room, or in another further on, which they could see into: and knew him not; at first…
256 wordsSECTION 18Job 2:13
Job 2:13 Ver. 13. So they sat down with him upon the ground seven days and seven nights,.... Which was the usual time of mourning, Ge 50:10; not that they were in this posture all this time, without sleeping, eating, or drinking, and other necessaries of life; but they came and sat with him every day and night for sev…
321 wordsSECTION 19Job 3:1
Job 3:1 INTRODUCTION TO JOB 3 In this chapter we have an account of Job's cursing the day of his birth, and the night of his conception; Job 3:1; first the day, to which he wishes the most extreme darkness, Job 3:4; then the night, to which he wishes the same and that it might be destitute of all joy, and be cursed b…
915 wordsSECTION 20Job 3:2
Job 3:2 Ver. 2. And Job spake, and said. Or "answered and said" {t}, though not a word was spoken to him by his friends; he answered to his own calamity, and to their silence, as Schmidt observes; and this word is sometimes used when nothing goes before, to which the answer is, as many Jewish writers observe, as in Ex…
182 wordsSECTION 21Job 3:3
Job 3:3 Ver. 3. Let the day perish wherein I was born,.... Here begins Job's form of cursing his day, and which explains what is meant by it; and it may be understood either of the identical day of his birth, and then the sense is, that he wished that had never been, or, in other words, that he had never been born; an…
550 wordsSECTION 22Job 3:4
Job 3:4 Ver. 4. Let that day be darkness,.... Not only dark, but darkness itself, extremely dark; and which is to be understood not figuratively of the darkness of affliction and calamity; this Job would not wish for, either for himself, who had enough of that, or for others; but literally of gross natural darkness, t…
512 wordsSECTION 23Job 3:5
Job 3:5 Ver. 5. Let darkness and the shadow of death stain it,.... Let there be such darkness on it as on persons when dying, or in the state of the dead; hence the sorest afflictions, and the state of man in unregeneracy, are compared unto it, Ps 23:4; let there be nothing but foul weather, dirt, and darkness in it, …
351 wordsSECTION 24Job 3:6
Job 3:6 Ver. 6. As [for] that night,.... The night of conception; Job imprecated evils on the day he was born, now on the night he was conceived in, the returns of it: let darkness seize upon it; let it not only he deprived of the light of the moon and stars, but let an horrible darkness seize upon it, that it may be…
255 wordsSECTION 25Job 3:7
Job 3:7 Ver. 7. Lo, let that night be solitary,.... Let there be no company for journeys, or doing any business; no meetings of friends, neighbours, or relations on it, for refreshment, pleasure, and recreation, after the business of the day is over, as is frequently done; let there be no associations of this kind, or…
291 wordsSECTION 26Job 3:8
Job 3:8 Ver. 8. Let them curse it that curse the day,.... Their own day, either their birthday, or any day on which evil befalls them; and now such as are used to this, Job would have them, while they were cursing their own day, to throw some curses upon his; or that curse the daylight in general, as adulterers and mu…
529 wordsSECTION 27Job 3:9
Job 3:9 Ver. 9. Let the stars of the twilight thereof be dark,.... Either of the morning or evening twilight; both may be meant, rather the latter, because of the following clause; the sense is, let not these appear to adorn the heavens, and to relieve the darkness of the night, and make it more pleasant and delightfu…
246 wordsSECTION 28Job 3:10
Job 3:10 Ver. 10. Because it shut not up the doors of my [mother's] womb,.... Or "of my belly" {m}, or "womb"; which Aben Ezra interprets of the navel, by which the infant receives its food and nourishment before it is born, and which, if closed, he must have died in embryo; but rather it is to be understood of his mo…
346 wordsSECTION 29Job 3:11
Job 3:11 Ver. 11. Why died I not from the womb?.... That is, as soon as he came out of it; or rather, as soon as he was in it, or from the time that he was in it; or however, while he was in it, that so he might not have come alive out of it; which sense seems best to agree both with what goes before and follows after…
204 wordsSECTION 30Job 3:12
Job 3:12 Ver. 12. Why did the knees prevent me?.... Not of the mother, as Jarchi, but of the midwife, who received him into her lap, and nourished and cherished him, washed him with water, salted, and swaddled him; or it may be of his father, with whom it was usual to take the child on his knees as soon as born, see G…
278 wordsSECTION 31Job 3:13
Job 3:13 Ver. 13. For now should I have lain still, and been quiet,.... Signifying, that if the above had been his case, if he had died as soon as born, or quickly after, then he would have been laid in the grave, where he would have lain as still as on a bed; for such is the grave to dead bodies as a bed is to those …
4,465 wordsSECTION 32Job 4:1
Job 4:1 INTRODUCTION TO JOB 4 Job's sore afflictions, and his behaviour under them, laid the foundation of a dispute between him and his three friends, which begins in this chapter, and is carried on to the end of the thirty first; when Elihu starts up as a moderator between them, and the controversy is at last decid…
560 wordsSECTION 33Job 4:2
Job 4:2 Ver. 2. [If] we assay to commune with thee, wilt thou be grieved?.... Eliphaz speaks in the name of himself and his two friends, who had doubtless consulted together, and compared their sentiments of Job; which appearing to be the same, they formed a plan and scheme in which they should attack him, and the par…
541 wordsSECTION 34Job 4:3
Job 4:3 Ver. 3. Behold, thou hast instructed many,.... This is introduced with a "behold", either as a note of admiration, that such a man, who had instructed others, should act the part he now does; or as a note of attention to Job himself, and all others that should hear and read this, to observe it, and well consid…
742 wordsSECTION 35Job 4:4
Job 4:4 Ver. 4. Thy words have up, holden him that was falling,.... Or "stumbling" {m}; that was stumbling at the providence of God in suffering good men to be afflicted, and wicked men to prosper; which has been the stumbling block of God's people in all ages; see Ps 73:2; or that was stumbling and falling off from t…
526 wordsSECTION 36Job 4:5
Job 4:5 Ver. 5. But now it is come upon thee, and thou faintest,.... The affliction and evil that he feared, Job 3:25; or rather the same trials and afflictions were come upon him as had been on those whom he had instructed and reproved, and whose hands and hearts he had strengthened and comforted; and yet now thou th…
269 wordsSECTION 37Job 4:6
Job 4:6 Ver. 6. [Is] not [this] thy fear,.... The fear of God, that which is of him, comes from him, is a grace of his implanted in the hearts of his people at conversion, and is increased and encouraged, and drawn forth into fresh exercise through the grace and goodness of God displayed; for a slavish fear, or a fear…
1,202 wordsSECTION 38Job 4:7
Job 4:7 Ver. 7. Remember, I pray thee, who ever perished, being innocent?.... Here Eliphaz appeals to Job himself, and desires him to recollect if ever anyone instance had fallen under his observation, in the whole course of his life, or it had ever been told him by credible persons, that an "innocent" man, by whom he…
541 wordsSECTION 39Job 4:8
Job 4:8 Ver. 8. Even as I have seen,.... Here he goes about to prove, by his own experience, the destruction of wicked men; and would intimate, that Job was such an one, because of the ruin he was fallen into: they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same; figurative expressions, denoting that such who d…
209 wordsSECTION 40Job 4:9
Job 4:9 Ver. 9. By the blast of God they perish,.... They and their works, the ploughers, sowers, and reapers of iniquity; the allusion is to the blasting of corn by the east wind, or by mildew, &c. having used the figures of ploughing and sowing before; and which is as soon and as easily done as corn, or anything els…
186 wordsSECTION 41Job 4:10
Job 4:10 Ver. 10. The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion,.... Which Aben Ezra interprets of God himself, who is compared to a lion; who not only by his voice terrifies, but in his wrath tears the wicked in pieces, and destroys them, and so is a continuation of the preceding account; and others, as R…
400 wordsSECTION 42Job 4:11
Job 4:11 Ver. 11. The old lion perisheth for lack of prey,.... Or rather "the stout" and "strong lion" {e}, that is most able to take the prey, and most skilful at it, yet such shall perish for want of it; not so much for want of finding it, or of power to seize it, as of keeping it when got, it being taken away from …
455 wordsSECTION 43Job 4:12
Job 4:12 Ver. 12. Now a thing was secretly brought to me,.... From reason and experience, Eliphaz proceeds to a vision and revelation he had from God, showing the purity and holiness of God, and the frailty, weakness, folly, and sinfulness of men, by which it appears that men cannot be just in the sight of God, and th…
700 wordsSECTION 44Job 4:13
Job 4:13 Ver. 13. In thoughts from the visions of the night,.... While Eliphaz was thinking of and meditating upon divine things, or while he was revolving in his mind some night visions he had, before this was made unto him, see Da 2:29; in meditation the Lord is often pleased to make known more of his mind and will …
184 wordsSECTION 45Job 4:14
Job 4:14 Ver. 14. Fear came upon me, and trembling,.... Not only a dread of mind, but trembling of body; which was often the case even with good men, whenever there was any unusual appearance of God unto them by a voice, or by any representation, or by an angel; as with Abraham in the vision of the pieces, and with Mo…
189 wordsSECTION 46Job 4:15
Job 4:15 Ver. 15. Then a spirit passed before my face,.... Which some interpret of a wind {q}, a blustering wind, that blew strong in his face; and so the Targum renders it, a stormy wind, such an one as Elijah perceived when the Lord spoke to him, though he was not in that, 1Ki 19:11; or such a whirlwind, out of whic…
243 wordsSECTION 47Job 4:16
Job 4:16 Ver. 16. It stood still,.... That is, the spirit, or the angel in a visible form; it was before going to and fro, but now it stood still right against Eliphaz, as if it had something to say to him, and so preparing him to attend to it; which he might do the better, it standing before him while speaking to him…
3,799 wordsSECTION 48Job 5:1
Job 5:1 INTRODUCTION TO JOB 5 In this chapter Eliphaz goes on to prove, and further confirm and establish, what he had before asserted, that not good men, but wicked men only, are afflicted of God, at least greatly, so as to have their substance wholly destroyed and perish, which was Job's case; and this partly from …
1,041 wordsSECTION 49Job 5:2
Job 5:2 Ver. 2. For wrath killeth the foolish man,.... Not one that is an idiot, and destitute of common sense, and has no understanding in things natural and civil; but a wicked man, who has no knowledge of things divine and spiritual, and so foolish; which is the character of every natural man, and of God's people b…
375 wordsSECTION 50Job 5:3
Job 5:3 Ver. 3. I have seen the foolish taking root,.... Such foolish wicked men as before described; those Eliphaz had observed to prosper in the world, and increase in riches, and even to have attained to a seeming stability and firmness, as if they would ever continue in such happy circumstances, see Jer 12:2; by t…
343 wordsSECTION 51Job 5:4
Job 5:4 Ver. 4. His children are far from safety,.... From outward safety, from evils and dangers, to which they are liable and exposed, not only from men, who hate them for their father's sake, who have been oppressors of them, or from God, who visits the iniquity of the fathers upon the children; and from spiritual …
237 wordsSECTION 52Job 5:5
Job 5:5 Ver. 5. Whose harvest the hungry eateth up,.... This is to be understood of the foolish rich man before described, as taking root and flourishing; though he sows, and reaps and gathers in his harvest, and fancies he has goods laid up for many years, to be enjoyed by him, yet he is taken away by death, and anot…
618 wordsSECTION 53Job 5:6
Job 5:6 Ver. 6. Although affliction cometh not forth of the dust,.... Or rather, "for" or "indeed" {y}, this being a reason showing that wicked men are justly afflicted and punished; seeing their afflictions come not from the creatures, though they may be instruments, but from God for the sins of men: the word for aff…
568 wordsSECTION 54Job 5:7
Job 5:7 Ver. 7. Yet man is born unto trouble,.... Or but {b}, after the negative follows the positive part of the assertion; before we have what is denied as the cause of affliction, here what it is affirmed to be, or what it is to be ascribed unto, even to the appointment of God for sin: to be born to it is to be app…
629 wordsSECTION 55Job 5:8
Job 5:8 Ver. 8. I would seek unto God,.... Or "truly" {e}, "certainly, doubtless, I do seek unto God", verily I do so; for so the words are introduced in the original text, and express what Eliphaz had done when under afflictions himself; for he was not without them, though he had not them to such a degree as Job had;…
477 wordsSECTION 56Job 5:9
Job 5:9 Ver. 9. Which doeth great things,.... The things of creation are great things, the making of the heavens and the earth, and all therein, by the word of the Almighty, out of nothing, and which is a display of great power, wisdom, and goodness; the things of Providence are great things, which God is always doing…
528 wordsSECTION 57Job 5:10
Job 5:10 Ver. 10. Who giveth rain upon the earth,.... Not upon the land of Israel only, as the Targum and Jarchi, see De 11:11; but upon the whole earth; this is particularly mentioned as being of God, and which none of the vanities of the Gentiles can give; and it is a free gift of his, which tarries not for the dese…
249 wordsSECTION 58Job 5:11
Job 5:11 Ver. 11. To set up on high those that be low,.... Not the low plants, which, through rain, are made to run up on high, though there is a truth in that; but husbandmen and gardeners, and such like persons, in low circumstances, who, by means of showers of rain, which make their gardens, fields, and lands fruit…
215 wordsSECTION 59Job 5:12
Job 5:12 Ver. 12. He disappointeth the devices of the crafty,.... Or, "it disappointeth"; that is, the rain, as some Jewish commentators {m} interpret it, and the whole paragraph to this sense; the rain coming upon the earth makes it fruitful, and causes it to produce a plentiful crop, whereby the schemes of crafty me…
909 wordsSECTION 60Job 5:13
Job 5:13 Ver. 13. He taketh the wise in their own craftiness,.... As beasts are taken in a pit, or birds in a snare or net, or with birdlime; so these crafty men, who are wise in their own opinion, and really so in things natural, civil, and worldly, or however, to do evil are entangled and taken in their own schemes;…
7,496 wordsSource & rights
Public domain; John Gill (1697–1771). Source item is marked Public Domain on Internet Archive.
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.