3 Is there any number of his armies e ? and upon whom doth not his light ariſe f? . Of the Angels, and Stars, and other Creatures, all which are his Hofls, whelly ſubmitting themſelves to his Will, to, be and do what God would have them : and therefore how inſolent and unrea- ſonable a thing is it forthee to quarrel with him ./ He ſpoke before of God's making peace ; and here he mentions the Armics by which, he keeps 1t. f Either 1; properly, his Sun, which riſeth upon all, Matt. 5. 45 Or rather 2, metaphorically; all that is in Men, which is or may be called /ighz : the light of life, by which men ſubfiſt,and arc kept out of the ſtate of the dead, called a land of darkneſs, Job 10+ 22, The light of Reaſon and Underftanding, cailed Cod's Candle Pro: 20. 27. by which thou O Job, art capable of arguing with God and with us, and all that peace, and proſperity, and comfort which thou ever didſt enjoy, which oft comes under the name of Light, as Eſfth. 8.15, 16. Pſalm $7. I1:& 112, 4. Which being here called light, is to continue the Metaphor, moſt fitly ſaid to arzſe upon men: all this is from God, and therfore 1s wholly at his diſpoſal : he freely gave it all, and he may juſtly take it away 3 as thou thy fclf didſt truly ob- ſerve and confeſs, 0b. 1. 21. and conſequently thou haſt no reaſon to reproach God for diſpoſing of his own as he pleaſeth. Thou haſt loſt nothing which was thine own, and having no propriety, there is 00
and
4 * How
| Cp:
&c,&X 15 145 Cs
d. afe
3, cla« P,
b #
[Or, ua. "me aend be br wider tng Waters? v0 Gr.
? +
*Ch 4.17
x Pſa. - + F
\ an Advucit as thouart, to maintain his Rights and plead his Cauſe.
XXVI. T0
4 * How then, cat man g be juſtified with God 6:
or how can he be clean that is born of a woman 7 ?
» #g The word ſignifies M7 that is -z;ſerable, which ſuppoſeth him co be ſinful ; and that-ſuch a Creature ſhould quarrel with that Do- minion of God, to which the finleſs, and happy, and glorious An- gels willingly ſubmit, is moſt :bſurd and impious. + 1, e- Before God's Tribunal, to which thou doſt ſo boldly appeal- Thou maieſt plead thy caaſe with thy fellow Worms as we are, and expeC& to be juſtified, but wo to thee if the great God undertake to plead his Cauſe againſt rhee ; how ſeverely and certainly wouldſt thou then be condemned! 7 To wit, after the ordinary courſe ; for other- wiſe Chriſt was born of a Woman, but in a ſingular manner. This Birth :5 alledged as an evidence of Man's filchineſs, Job 14- 4- and 15.14 F/o/m 51- 5- and of his Iyableneſs to God's Curſe and Wrath, Gen» 3+ 16+ Epheſ- 2 2+ and conſequently of his condemnation op-
polite to the juſtification here men.1oned, and contidently expett-
ed by Job in this conteſt- 5 Behold even to the moon, and it ſhinneth not 4 ; vea, the ſtars are not pure in his ſight /.
k The Moon, though a bright and glorious Creature, Job 31. 26. Cant. 619: if compared with the ſplendour of the Divine Majefty, 1s but as a dark and earthly lump, without any luſture or glory- He names the Aon and the Stars, rather than the Sum, becaute they ma- ny times are eclipſed or diſappear even toour eyes,which is a plain evidence of theirutter obſcurity in reſpe& of God's Light : Where- as the Sun, though that alſo be obſcure, if compared with God, yet it cas a conſtant and moſt clear Lighr. and thence proceeding to the Stars, the Sun is included between them. 1 He can diſcern many ſpots and blemiſhes in them which we cannot ſee ; and in like manner he can diſcover thoſe corrup- tions or fins in us, which are unknown to our own Conſciences,
_ which ſhould make thee, O 7ov, tremble to appear before his Tri-
bunal. |
6 How much leſs man zhat.is a * worm m9: ſon of man which is a worm »?
»m To wit, mean and vile, and impotent; proceeding from cor- cuption,and retuining to it; and withal filthy and loathlom,and ſo every way a very unfit perſon to appear before the high and holy God, and much more to contend with him- = The fame thing re- peated in other words; on'y for miſerable man in the Jaſt Branch he here puts the ſon of any man, of what degree or quality foever, to thew that this is true cven of the greateſt and belt of Men-
CHAPF. XAFVE
Job's reply ; This toucherh not Job, I —4- Who acknowledgeth God's
power and providence to be infinite and unjearchable ; Of which we have
bt ſmall knowledge, 5 n= 14 HE Foo aniwered and faid,
2 How haſt thou helped 4 bim that is without power b ? Low fſaveſt thou the arm zrhat hath no
{trengrh 2? :
a Thou haſt helped egregiouſly : Ir is an ironical expreſſion, im- plying the quite contrary, that he had not at all helped: See the like, Gen- 3* 22+ 1 Kings 18+ 27+ 1 Cor- 4-8, 10+ b Either 1- God, who it {cems is weak and unwiſz, and needed ſo powerful and eloquent
and the
Or rather 2+ Job himſelf: I am a poor helpiets Creature,my ſtrength and ſpirits quite bruken with the pains ofmy Body and perplexiries of my Mind, whom Nature,and Humanity,and Religion ſhould have taught thee to ſupport and comfort, with a repreſentation of rhe gracious Nature and Promiſes of God, and not ro terrifie and over- whelm me with difplaying his Soveraign Majeſty, the thoughts whereof are already ſo diſtrattive and dreadtul to me- :
2 How hait thou counſelled kim 1hat hath no wit- dome? and bow haſt thou pientifuily declared the thing asSit is 4?
c Either 1. God : Thou haſt in effe& undertaken to teach God how to govern the World. Or rather 2- Me, whom you take to be a man void of Underſtanding, Chap: 11. 2, 3- whom therefore you thould have inſtructed with wholeſome Counſels, in ſtead of thele impertinent diſcourſes; and who indeed do want wiſdom, being paf:aly at a loſs, and not knowing what to ſay or do- d Heb- Ej- Jjence, the truth and ſubſtance of rhe thing in queſtion between us ;\ Thou haſt ſpoken the whole truth, and nothing bur the truth, and 4llthat can be 1fazd in the matter- Or Wiſdom,as this word is uſed, Pro. 3- 21+ A moſt wiſe and profouid Diſcourſe thou haſt made,and much ro the purpoſe : An Ironical Expreſſion as before-
4 To whom haſt thou uttered words e? and whoſe {pirit came trom thee f ?