The Pulpit Commentary — Job — Section 21

(lea. xl. 13, H; Rom. xi. 34), but as ambassadors returning from their respe!tir• circuits to render account of their ministra.tions and to receive commissions for future executio1?. Eve11 so mu~t all God's intelligent creatures upon euth appear before the dread tribunal of the skies (2 Cor. v. 10), and every one give an account of hinisell ro ~d (Rom. xiv. 12). 2. The ,1111,e:,;pected visitor. (1) 'l'he import of his name. "Satan," the adversary, the calumniator, the accuser; not the evil genius of tho later theology of the Jews, but the dark, sullen spirit of Di\·ine revelation, who headed the :evolt _in hea.ve°;_~nst the author_ity of God (Rev. xii. 7-9~, seduced our first parents mto sm (Gon. m. 1-6 ; 2 Cor. x1. 3), tempted Jesus Cbnst (Matt, iv. 1) wured against him throughout. his entire career on earth (Matt. xiii. 39; Luke x. 18 · John xii. 31_), now r~leth in the _children of disobedience (Eph. ii. 2), and fights ~gainst the children of light (Eph. v1. 11-16). (2) The nature of his ocoupalion. "Going t? and ~r~ throu~h the oa.rth, a~d wa.lki~g up an~ down in it;" which_points out Ins domm1on -this lower world, i.e. conceived as alienated from God and rnvolved in moral and spiritual darkness (Eph. ii. 2; 1 John v. 19; Rev. xvi. 10); his activity,~ though at present, in some casef', reserved in chains (Jude 6), he is still permitted a largt 11.Dlount of liberty (1 Pet. v. 8); his diligence,-he never intermits his, business but ever prosecutes his iufernal errands, going. to and fro, and walking ,tip- and down; his unrest, having, as afterwards Cain, fallen under a ban of wande'rfog, which has doomed him to be always seeking rest, but fiuding none (Matt. xii .. 45), as ever. since his chilclren have been like the troubled sea which cannot rest (Isa. lvii. 20, 21). (3) The object of his coming. If to present himself before the Lord with the other sons of God (eh. ii. 1), i.e. to report concerning his wicked machinations, his appearance, we may rest assured, was wholly involuntary and compulsory, which may remind us that Satan, no less than other creatures, is subject to Divine authority; that Satan's pro- ceedings in the world are under the perpetual surveillance of the Almigb ty; 1"nd that Satan can neither travel further nor work longer than he receives express commission from Jehovah to do. But it is probable that the underlying motive of Satan's intruding upon Heaven's assembly was not to render an account of any :irussion witli which he had been entrusted, but to prosecute bis diabolic work of calumniating God's children who were yet on earth (cf. Rev. xii. 10; Zech. iii. 1). .: . II. THE PARTIES TO THE CO:!<.'TBOVE!lSY. Jehovah and Satan. 1.· Jehovah. (1) The se!f-e:i.::istent and all-sufficient Deity (E:i.::od. iii. 14). (2) The .Lord of angels (ch .. iv. 18). (3) The Fear of saints (Gen. xxxi. 42; eh. i. 1). (4) The Governor ·of the universe ( eh. i:i.::. 12; n:::i.::iv. 13; xxxvi. 23 ; xli. n); 2. Satan. (1) The creature of God. {2) The impersonation of evil. (3) The adversary of Christ. (4) T_he ac~ser of the brethren. • : IIL 'l'HE BUBJEal' OF THE CON'I'BOVERSY. The disinterested character of piety or religion. L The Divine challenge. "Hast thou considered my servant Job, that theni is none like him in the earth?" The language of: (1) Di vine condescension, in riot only noticing e. creature, but stooping to converse with an adversary, yea, with a devil (Ps. cxili 6). (2) Divine observation, in particularizing Job by name, and dilating on his character, which demonstrates that God's knowledge of his people ex.tends to sucI:i minute details as the names the_y bear, the professions they make, the characters they possess (Exod. xxxiii. 12; Isa.. xlix. 1; John x. 3). (3) Divine e.dmiratic;m, hi. so commending Job's piety as to show that he took a holy pride in bis s~rvant's worth, as he ever does (Zeph. iii. 17). (4) Divine affection, in so speaking of the patriarch as to evince that he was a special object of Divine regard, .calling him ''.my. servant," as Christ afterwards styled his followers" my friends" (John xv. 14). (5) And Divine protection, the question instinctively sug!!;esting J ebovah's jealous care of his servant (Zech. ii. 8). 2. The Satanic answer. "Doth Job fear God for nought?" etc. Con- taining: (1) A reluctant admission-that Job did fear God, and that, in respect of outward appearance at least of religion, he bad attained to incomparable emine~cp. Saints should aim to possess a piety so conspicuous that, however lj,l!persed, it cannot be cootre.d.icted, even by the devil, (2) A base insinuation-that the piety of the patriarch proceeded from purely: mercenary motives. See the malignity of Satan in attempting to deprect'at,e what he finds it impossible to deny-an art in which Sate.n'e 11erva.nts are genera.Uy adepts. (3) A momentous impli~ation-the_ ~igµer quest~p~ of ijie efficacy of the plan of ~!ldemptioB an.d the _suffic1en\:y of Dmne gr~ beuJg tmr, I, 1-22,] THE. BOOK OF .JOB, 11