less. ueunl but still not uncommon sign of "Jehonh," though eleewhero the "grr,nt gtief, forbidden under the Law of the Jews Name" appeara onlle only in the wor<la of (Lev. xxi. 6; Deut. xiv. I), bill widely Job (eh. xii. 9), and never in the words 01 practised by the Gentiles (lei!.. u. 2; Jer. hie friends. The natural conclmrion is that xlvii. 6; xl viii. 87; Herod., ii. 36 ; ix. 24; the name was known in the land of Uz at Plnt., 1 VH. Pelop.,' § 34; Q. Cnrt.,'Vit. Alex.,' the time, but was very rarely used-scarcely, x. 6, § 17). And fell down upon the ground, except in moments of excitement. Blessed and worshipped. After giving vent to his be the Ne.me of the Lord; literally, mriy natural grief, Job made an net of adoration. the Name of Jelwvah be bless,,d I The em• Recognizing the fa.et that adversity, ae well phatic word is kept for the last. Accorrling O:s prosperity comes from God, nnd sub- to Satau, Job was to have" ctusecl God to mitting himself to the Divine will, he hie face" (ver. 11). The event is that ha "worshipped." How often has his act openly and resolutely blesses God. That the flliehed across the minds of Christiane, and same word is used in its two opposite senses enabled them, in their dark hour, to irnitnte rather accentuates the antithesis. him, and repent hie words, "The Lord Ver. 22.-In e.11 this Job sinned not. It gave," etc.. ! was only the commencement of the proba- Ver. 21--And said, Naked oame I out of tion; but, so fe.r, at any rate, Joh had not my mother's womb, and naked shall I return sinned-he had preserved his integrity, had thither. There is some difficulty in the spoken e.nd done rightly. Nor charged God word "thither," since no man returns to _hie foolishly; literally, ga-,,e not folly to God, mother's womb (John iii. 4), at death or which is explained to mean either " did not otherwise. The expression must not be attribute to God anything inconsistent with pressed. It arises out of the nnalogy, con- wisdom and goodness " (Delitzscb, Men), stantly felt lind acknowledged, between or "did not utter any foolishness against "mother" earth and· a man's actual mother God" (El'"ald, Dillmann, Cook). The (comp. Ps. cxxix. 15). The Lord gave, and latter is probably the true mee.ning (comp. the Lord hath taken away. Job 'is here eh. vi. 6 ; :uiv. 12). represented as knowing God by his name
HOMILETICS. Vere. 1-5.-The hero of the poem. I. THE PATRIARcII's NAME. Job. 1. Historical. Not fictitious, but real (Ezek. xiv.14; Jas. v. 11). Even if the Book of Job proceeded from the brilliant Solomonic period, the person of Job must be looked for in remote patrie.rchal times .. '2 .. Significant. Meaning "Persecuted," or "Repenting," if not better connected with e. root denoting "joyous exultation." Scripture names are fre- quently suggestive of traits in character (e.g. Jacob, Peter, Barna.bas) or points in history_ (e.g. Abraham, Israel, Benjamin, Samuel). 3. Dlustrio11s. Allied to that of princes. (Gen. xl.vi. 13; xxxvL 33), like whom. probably he was descended from the fat'l:ier of the faithful (Gen. xxv. 6). The piety, no less than the intellectual endow- ments, of ancestors sometimes reappears in their posterity. 4. Hono11red. Commended by God (Ezek. xiv. 14), extolled by St. James (v. 11), immortalized by the Hebrew bard. • • II. THE PATRIARCH'S COUNTRY. Uz. 1. Heathen. Though considerably civilized, as surviving monuments attest, the sons of th\3 East .were not embraced within the Abraharnic covenant, in which respect they fell behind the sons of Israel (Rom. ix. 4). For countries, as for individuals, the institutions of religion are a higher honour and a greater privilege the.ii the blessings of civilization. Yet: 2. Not God-forsaken. If Job's countrymen, like Abraham's, were addicted to idolatry (eh. xxxi. 26-~8), it is apparent that a remnant still adhered to the primeval faith of mankind. Probably no age or people has ever been wholly bereft of light from heaven or of the gracious inlluences of ctod'sJ,pirit. In .the darkest times and most idobtrous lands God has been able to find a seed to serve him (1 Kings xix. 18; Rom. xi. 4, 5) . . III, THE PATRIAROH'B PIETY. 1. P1trfect. Used of Noah (Gen. vi. 9) and of Abraham (Gen. xvii. 1); describes. the patriarch's· religious character with reference to i,~self as (1) 11omplete, full-orbed, well-proportioned, thoroughly symmetrical, possessing all the attributes and qualities indispensable to spiritual manhood-an ideal after which Old Tes.tameu.t saints strove (Ps. c.x.ix. 6) and New Testament believers aspired (Acts xxiv.16), e.nd which by Ohiist (Matt. v. 48), Paul (1 Thess. v. 23), and by St.James (i., i) is propoundel;l f,\S the g~l of Christian attainment; and as (2) sincere, clear and 8 THE BOOK OF JOB. (OH, I, 1-92,