The Pulpit Commentary — Job — Section 604

11 Let light be," Bnd light was. The law it recognlzee Bnd ful6le ie that of him who eet. the eun in the he,wens to give light upon the earth. II. TnE LIGHT OF THE MOR!....ING THE ENEMY OF EVIL·DOERB. 1. The expressive mda- :phor. The light, personified BB B powerful servant or minister of God, is represented as coming forth every morning from the chambers of the dawn, as seizing the broad and beautifully nriegated carpet of the earth by the edges, ae forcibly lil'ting it up, an<\ aa effectively shaking from it the evil-doers who, under cover of darkness, had laid them- selves down to rest, or had gone forth on errands of wickednesa, upon its surface. 2. TM authorized interpretation. So completely does the dawn of day surprise the night-birds, or workers of inquity, who prey upon society that their outstretched arms are broken, i.e. are arrested in the very act of perpetrating their nefarious deeds. When the <lark- ness vanishes, the light in whicla they work is removed from them ; and, shunning the dawn of day o.s if it were the shadow of death (eh. xxiv. 17), they slink away into their dens, disappearing as effectually from the world of light as if they had been shaken violeutly from the surface of the earth. III. THE LIGHT OF THE MORNING THE BEAUTIFIER OF THE EARTH. 1. The imprinting seal. Analyzing the Divine metaphor, one may say that the spreading of the dawn is compared to the rolling of a cylindrical seal across the surface of a prepared sheet of clay. The figure indicates the gradual and progressive opening of the dawn, the silent and onward march of the light, the continually widening diffusion of day, the uprising of objects on the earth's surface into clearness and distinctness of outline. 2. The printed clay. As the seal when it passes over the smooth clay leaves behind it an impression which seems to start up from the clay, so the sweeping of the dawn across the plains of earth causes object after object, mountain, rock, tree, grass, flower, everything that earth supports on its bosom, to start up in succession in to prominence of vision. 3. The radiant garment. The result is expressed by a change of figure. The illuminated earth is com- pared to a richly embroidered garment, whose variegated hues and deftly woven figures, concealed by the preceding darkness, are now brought to light by the effulgent day. Learn: 1. That the constitution and course of nature in all its parts and details rest upon the command of God. 2. That apart from this Divine commandment the sons of men could not enjoy so much as a. single day. 3. That the power of man can interfere with little things no more than with great things in nature. 4. That man ha.s many servants who obey not his.command. 6. 'l'hat light plays an important part in the- moral administration of earth. 6. That the main source of beauty in material things is the light of day. 7. That evil-doers generally and instinctively hate the light. Vers.16-30.-Jehovali to Job: the first answer-the examination: 4. Concerning the mysteries of creation. I. THE MYSTERIES OF CREATION ARE MANIFOLD IN TREIB VARIETY. Jehovah directs Job's attention to some examples of these hidden things, or secrets, of nature. 1. The depths of the ocean. The sea, perhaps more than any other object in nature, the universal emblem of the mysterious, iu respect of its immensity, inconstancy, potency, harmony, is specially invested with a veil of wonder when the mind reflects upon its unfathomable profundity. Ever sounding and singing on its surface, now chanting weird melodies as its tiny wavelets break upon the sbore, now bellowing and roaring with discordant fury when the raging winds catchin1; the ruffian billows by the top bid them clash in mortal conflict, underneath all is still, silent, solemn, voiceless, and, except where there are currents, motionless as the grave. Above inviting mo.n's approach and investigation, below it has deep and dark recesses, untraversed by human foot, unscanned by mortal eye. Continually sending forth its treasnres to the upper air in megic trains of mist, doing homage to the golden sun, it has "springs n or "fountains" underneath (Gen. vii. 11), whence its waste is supplied. 2. The realms o/ the unseen world. The grim and gloomy subterranean regions so eloquently described by Job (eh. x. 22; xxvi. 6) as the abodes of disembodied spirits, are here similarly repre- sented as the habitations of the dead, who are shut within the sunless receptacles by means of doors and bars. Without expressly asserting that the two places," the interior pa.rte of the earth" and" the realm of shades," were identical, the language of Jehovah imports that both alike were among the secret things as yet unveiled to man. And this witness is true. To saint and sinner equally the manner of existence, when the now embodied spirit shall have shuffled off this mortal coil, is an unfathomable mystery. A 620 THE BOOK OF JOB. [oH. xxxvm. 1-41.