The Pulpit Commentary — Job — Section 633

pride. Let him BB jlll!t Judge cBBt the wicked down; etrew thetn in the dust before hla righteous retribution. Let man do the!e things, e.nd Jehove.h will praise him, and there wi II be no need of !!elf-praise e.nd boasting, beoe.uee bis right he.nd helps him; because he nctue.lly po!!sees('e the power t.o Ollrry out hie ideas of justice and make them prevail on the earth (comp. Ps. xiv. 4; Isa. !ix. 18; lxiii. 6). If man can do none of these things, how can he venture to challenp;e him who alone can and doee execute judgment in the earth'? God does ever punish and destroy the wickc-d, and is ever ready to help the faithful; can man excel or equal God in his ideas or practice of righte<>usne!B? "The Lord says to Job, Shall my judgment, by which l either afflict the godly or declare &JI men to be lie.re, be empty and vain in thy opinion? Doth it behove me to be unjust, that thy justice may et.a.nd? Thou a.rt indeed just, and thou hast my testimony to this (eh. ii.), but it shall not therefore be lawful for thee to Blander thejudg- ments of God in affliction." "They who ascribe to themselves in their own strength righteousnese before God, simply condemn God and make his judgrnent void, as if he had not the competence and power to judge and condemn them (Rom. iii. 4)" (Cramer), II. REBUKE OF JoB's PRIDE; DESORIP'l'ION OF THE GREAT BEASTS. {Ver. 16-ch. xli. 34.) These two vast monsters, behemoth and leviathan, are types of God'11 creative power. Their gigantic strength fills feeble man with wonder; nnd yet they are but aa toys in the hand of the Almighty. They are subject to the Divine will; and in them we are to sec an exemplification of the manner in which God subdues the pride of the creature. Tiu behemoth. (Vers. 15-24.) This huge and terrible animal is a fellow- creature of Job, an effect of the same almighty power. Let Job consider him, and perceive how small and feeble in the presence of God are all created existences, and of how little avail is all haughty and proud confidence in external things before him. Then follows the striking description of the power of the hippopotamus, or horse of the Nile, uniting elasticity with firmness, so that he iB "a firstling of the ways of God," or a masterpiece of the Creator. Everything about this creature is noteworthy; his sword-like, gigantic teetl!'; his fodder, which whole mountain tracts supply. As he lies among the reeds and lotus-plants, taking his noonday repose, he is the very image of living force. Were a river, a very Jordan, to force its way into his mouth, he could make light of it. Yet this huge beast is entirely in the power of God. His size and strength avail him nought, if God has determined to destroy him. How aptly says the :Roman poet, "Force devoid of judgment sinks beneath its own weight; while that which is self-controlled Heaven advances in greatness. God hates the strength that sets in motion ill with the mind" (Hor., • Od.,' 3. 4) I He, amidst the obscure notions of the pagan mythology, still sees clearly the truth here and in so many Scriptures set forth, that no might, bestial, human, or superhuman, can stand against that will which is of almighty power and absolute righteonsness.-J. Vers. 3-5.-Humility. Job, unconvicted of a lack of integrity or willing departure from the law of rectitude, is nevertheless capable of self-humiliation, and, like all sensitive spiritual persons, is quick to mark his own faults in presence of a purer model. He ie now bowed to the very earth. The Lord had spoken and showed Job his littleness and insignificance, aod yet Job had ventured to defend himself in presence of the dealings of Jehovah. Now he is humbled and subdued. The process of the Divine discipline of the righteous ie being unfolded. Job knows that though he can reply to his companions and friends, if he would contend with God "he cannot answer him one of a thouaand." The voice of the Lord has brought Job to the dust. He is convicted of his error in pretending to justify himself in presence of the Lord's dealings. He, not Jehovah, must have been in the wrong. Then, in the attitude of conscious si11fulness before the Holy One, he confesses himself "of no account." Henceforth he will "answer" no more, but lay hill hand upon his mouth and keep silence. Job's attitude of lowly humility before the Lord is another instructive feature in the drama. The man who could stand up before his fellow-men may well bow down before the Lord. The attitude of humility before the Lord the true one for sinful man. 1 lT IS .AN A'l'TITUlJE BECOMING lliN IN PRESENCE OF THE HOLINESS A.liD ILUBSTY OF THE DIVINE Nill£. ll. IT IS AN ATTITUIJE BECOlli11NG TO THE BINFULNE88 OF KAN, Where should the creaturt so full of imperfection be found but in the duat? OH, J:L, 1-24,] THE BOOK OF JOD. 649