The Pulpit Commentary — Job — Section 580

Yer. 18.-The ttselessness of a great rwnsom. Job b&.d sinned, s&.ya Elihu, though not in the black and hypooritical way that hie three friends attributed to him. Hie sin had been in judging God, and charging the Holy One with injustice; and thie sin brought its own punishment; indeed, it wae ite own punishment, because to think that God, our Maker aud our Judge, ie unjust is to be in torment. N"ow Job ie told thflt if be hoids to this sin the greatness of a ransom will be of no avail; he cannot be i;aYed. I. MAN LOOKS FOR DELlVERANCE THROUGH A RAKSOM. This is not only a Christian idea. It is found in the Old Testament, and it is to be traced through heathen systems of religion, though among these systems it appears in a degraded and corrupted state. 1. .Van l,as a sense of bondag6. This be feels. When conscience is aroused, he has the most intense consciousness of its galling fetters. "Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" (Rom. vii. 24). 2. Man cannot esr:apefrom his bondage. The old brigand, Satan, that great robber of souls, has too tight a hand .on his victims to let them go free when~ver they choose to escape from his clutches. Habit is a stroncrer banda)!e tha.n the cords with which Sa.mson was bound. The deliverance must co~e from without. 3. 1'his deliverance must be at a great cost. We do not kpow what the cost must be, nor how it should be settled. It cannot be true, as some of the Fathers held, that a price must be pa.id to Satan that he may c·onsent to _liberate man. He never consents. He can have no compensation. The liberation is by the overthrow of Satan and the conquest of his domain. The.Ba:,tille must be stormed and hurled down if its prisoners a.re to escape. But this can only be done at great cost. . II. CHRIST IS THE RANSOJI FOR THB DELIVERANCE OF MAN. This is his own statement (Matt. xx. 28). His advent with humiliation in a state of servitude was a Divine pay- ment-a sacrifice on the part of God. His death was his own surrender of his life for the liberation of man from sin. We need not understand why the ransom had to be paid in order to see that it has been paid. A clear idea of the reason and necessity of the payment might help our faith, Still, the fact is the great thing to know. Christ hlUl given hlII1B6lf for us, and through him we have liberty, Ill. Tm: GREATEST RANSOM MAY BE UNAVAILrnG. 1. If it ia not rightly paid. .Men make great sacrifices in ascetici;;m; yet there is no reason to think that they are of any adequate value, because they are not required by God, and they serve no good enri. 2. lf there is no repentance. The work of Christ is for the benefit of all who will avail themselves of it. But a first conditic,n of profiting by it is repent.a.nee. While a man holds to his sin he cannot enjoy the benefits of Christ's sacrifice. For him Christ has died in vain. 3. If it is not =mpanie,d by faith. This is the con- necting link that joins the soul to Christ. All that he has done for us remains outside us, not touching our life and need, till we learn to confide in him. CoJiCLUSION. It is worse for the ransom to be paid in vain than for it not to be pa.id at all. They who reject Christ are doubly without hope, for they are without acuse.-W. F. A. Ver. 22.-ExoJ,tation and instruction. Both of these are from God, and both of them exceed any .human effort. It is his power that exalts ; he is the incomparable Teacher. Let us look at both of these truths and then at their mutual relations, I. DIVINB EXALTATION. 1. The experience. God's people are not kept in perpetual depression. Sometimes they a.re cast down to the dust. But this is not their continual state. Salvation is not attained by me&n11 of uaeeless humiliation. There is e,x.alta- tion (1) in gladnee8, rejoicing over tlle love of God; (2) in strength, rising to achieve great service in the kingdom; (3) in victory, triumphing over failure and evil. 2. Its 80fJA"ce. God exalt,;. Man cannot truly exalt himself, and. when he tries to do so, pride and vanity give him an ugly fall. Success in this world even is dependent on God's providence; much more are true elevation of character and exaltation of energy dependent on his favour. 3. Its accompluihment. God exalts by his power. It is much to know that God is almighty as well as most merciful and gracious. To be favoured. by one who had em.all resources would be pleasant, but it could not be very helpful But God's power goes with his Jove to effect his good designs. 11. hlooKPAB.AllLE DlllTBU0TION. "Who teacheth like him?" 1. How God teachu. •OH, DXVI, 1-88.) THE BOOK OF JOB.