The Pulpit Commentary — Job — Section 347

against God. (b) The wickedness of it. The prosperous sa.y to God, "Depart from us," not R8 Peter said to Christ (Luke v. 8), but rather as the Gadarenee besought him (Luke viii. 37), desiring that God would lesve them to the enjoyment of their lusts, aa these letter wished to hsve their swine, not troubling them with either the reproofs of conscience, the checks of Providence, the precepts of his Law, or the prickings of his Spirit, Whet the sinner most fee.re the s&int most desires-the presence and fellowship of God, Whet makes the wicked man's hell constitutes the good man's heaven. (c) The foolishness of it. The arguments adduced in its support are three: that the wayR of God ere und~irable-whic_h was not tb~ __ opinion of Enoch (Gen . .Y: 21-24), or of Noah (fu!n. vi. 9), of David (Ps. cxxxvm. 5), of Solomon (Prov. m. 17), of Isaiah (l". 2), of Jeremiah (xxxi.12-14), of St. Paul (Phil. iv, 4), of St. Peter (1 Epist. i. 8) o: of St. John (1 Epist. ,•. 3), and certainly not of Christ (Matt, xi. 28--30); th&t the ser;ice of God is unreasonable-which it cannot be, considering who God is, Elohim, Jehova,h, Shaddai, the All-powerful, All-sufficient, Self-existent, wonder-working Supreme and the relations he sustains to man as Crea.tor, Preserver, Redeemer, Judge; that the worship of God is unprofitable-which it is not, since, besides having the promise which belongs to godliness generally (1 Tim. iv. 8), prayer has the special guarantee that its desires shall be fulfilled (Mstt. vii. 7; John xv. 7), while it is inconceivable that a creature could commune with his Creator, or a saint hold fellowship with his Saviour. :v,,ith~ut _<'xperie1;1cing therefr?m, in continualt~ augme~ting measure, pesce, joy, 1llummst10n, holiness, everything comprehended m what 1s styled "growth in grace." (d) The repulsiveness of it. The counsel of the wicked Job regards with abhorrence (ver. 16); and so do ell truly pious souls. 2. The plan ef providence. (Vers. 22-26.) This Job characterizes as (1) arranged by Divine wisdom,-to maintain a theory out or harmony with which, therefore, was a practical impeaclµnen_t of the Divine \\"isdom, an attempt to teach God (ver. 22), who can receive no accession. to h~ knowledge or understanding from any of his creatures, an assumption of spillty.-to prescribe to him the scheme in aocordance with which his universe should be governed; (2) all-embracing in its sweep, comprehending in its provisions and enactments all crea.ture.s from the lowest to the highest, "those in hesven," i.e. angels, authorities, and powers, 11nd " the highest" on earth, lordly potentates, mighty magnates, pret·en- tious sages, as well as common serfs and lowly peasants, being subject to his sway, and therefore again, because of its all-inclusive character, sce.rcely admitting of criticism on the part of puny man; (3) non-retributive in its character, frequently assigning to the wicked man a life of ease and prosperity (ve_rs. 23, 24), and to the godly man a pilgrimage of poverty ending in a bi1ter death (ver. 25), all the same as if it were regardless of the difference between virtue n.nd vice, piety and wickedness, holiness and sin; and (4) indiscriminate in its execution, reducing good aud bad' alike to the same dead level of equality in the grave (ver. 26), and therefore as unlike as possible to the plan of providence which should have prevailed had the theory of the friends been correct. 3. T~ te&timony of ordi'11111f"!/ men. (V ers. 27,--33,) 'l'he "tokens" of" them that go by the way," i.e. the observations made by them, abundantly declared six things concernillg the ungodly, viz. (1) that they were not usually overwhelmed with retribu- tion OD earth and in time, as the friends asserted (ver. 28), with special reference to Job (ver. 27), whose homestead and family had bceD engulfed in ruin by swUt calamity; (2) that they were generally exempted from the ills of life, even in a season of widespread BD.versity (ver. 30), escaping the stroke of evil fortnne by which other and better.men were pro:;trated. ; (3) that they were commonly allowed to pass through the world without either punishment or reproof (ver. 31), amenable to no human law, suffering no sort of check in their wickedness, becaw.e no one was bold eDough to bear witness to them of their misdeeds, as Nathan did to David (2 Sam. xii. 7), Elijah to Ahab (1 KiDgs xviii. 17), and John the Baptist to Herod (Matt. xiv. 4), or powerful enough to exact retribution for tLeir offences; (4) that hoIJour and prosperity attended them even to their graves, the wicked tyr,e.nt'I! lifeless body being coQ.d.ucted, as were the corpses of rich men in the oays of the P.reache,r(Eccles. viii, 10), and as probably was that of Dives (Luke xvi. 22), with immense pomp and magnificent ceremony, to "the vaults or chambers in sepulchral caverns or-tombs in which the dead were laid" (Carey), where affectionate friends and relatives shall watch over his tomb (Good, Fry), or he himself ehall keep gL1.11Cd Offl' bill heap_. i.e. over the mound or pile in which he lies buri~ OH. X.XI, 1-34,1 TUE OOOK OF JOB. 861