the unclean.] They die before their time, in the flower of their age; and perish, like the impure Sodomites, with an hasty and unexpected destruction. Ver. 15. He delivereth the poor in his affliction, and openeth their ears in oppression.] Whereas he delivers the poor humble man in his affliction; and makes his oppression the means of giving him wholesome counsel. Ver. 16. Even so would he have removed thee out of the strait into a broad place, where there is no straitness; and that which should be set on thy table, should be full of fatness.] Even so would he have rescued thee (if thou hadst humbly submitted to his correction) out of those miserable straits to which thou art reduced; and not only enlarged thee, but set thee so far from all danger of falling again into them, that peace and plenty should have been thy portion.

Ver. 17. But thou hast fulfilled the judgement of the wicked: judgement and justice take hold on thee.] But thou hast maintained the cause of the wicked and such as a man's cause is, such will the judgement of God be upon him.

Ver. 18, Because there is wrath, beware lest he take thee away with his stroke; then a great ransom cannot deliver thee.] And because God is angry with thee, take heed lest thou farther incense him to punish thee so heavily, that upon no terms he will deliver thee.

Ver. 19. Will he esteem thy riches? no, not gold, nor all the forces of strength.] Dost thou think he will have any regard to thy riches? No, not if thou hadst all the treasure and all the force which all the power on earth can muster up.

Ver. 20. Desire not the night, when people are cut off in their place.] Do not dream that they can do thee any service; or entertain thyself with vain hopes as thou art musing on thy bed in the night; when God sometimes destroys whole nations on a sudden.

Ver. 21. Take heed, regard not iniquity; for this bast thou chosen rather than affliction.] But let thy sufferings teach thee caution, and make thee afraid to go on to provoke offended justice; for thou hast done it too much already, in chusing rather to accuse Divine Providence, than to submit patiently to his chastisemenst. Ver. 22. Behold, GOD exalteth by his power: who teacheth like him?] Consider the vast extent of God's power, which lifts men up as well as casts them down.

What Lord is there so absolute as he? or who shall teach him how to govern his dominions?

Ver. 23. Who bath enjoined him his way? or who can say, Thou bast wrought iniquity?] What visitor is there over him, to examine and take an account of his actions? or who can presume to say, This or that is not well done?

Ver. 24. Remember that thou magnify his work, which men bebold.] See that thou leave off this carping at his providence, and remember to extol and magnify it, as well as the wonderful fabric of the world, which men behold with admiration and praise.

Ver. 25. Every man may see it, man may behold it afar off] All mankind contemplate it with astonishment there are none so dull, but in the farthest parts of the earth they behold, if they open their eyes, the majesty of God;

Ver. 26. Behold, GOD is great, and we know him

not; neither can the number of his years be searched out.] And must confess that he is great in wisdom and power, and cannot be comprehended by our shallow understandings; which are presently confounded, when they enter into the search of his eternal being. Ver. 27. For be maketh the small drops of water: they pour down rain according to the vapour thereof :] For it is he who dissolves the clouds into water, and doth not pour it down all at once; but by small drops sweetly restores to the earth the vapour which was exhaled from thence :

Ver. 28. Which the clouds do drop, and distil upon man abundantly.] For he hath made the clouds to be fluid bodies, which distil their showers in so many places, that there are multitudes of spectators and admirers of this wonderful contrivance.

Ver. 29. Also can any understand the spreadings of the clouds, or the noise of his tabernacle?] And can any one understand how he spreads those clouds, and makes them hang in the air, when they are full of water? or give an account of the dreadful sounds which are heard from thence, and which tell us that he dwells in those celestial places?

Ver. 30. Behold, he spreadeth his light upon it, and covereth the bottom of the sea.] Observe also how he spreads the beams of the sun upon the sea, and covers it all over with light; which raises new vapours and clouds in the room of those which are exhausted.

Ver. 31. For by them judgeth be the people; he giveth meat in abundance.] Which he useth for quite contrary ends; both to punish mankind by storms, and tempests, and floods, and to make a plentiful provision for them by fruitful showers.

Ver. 32. With clouds he covereth the light; and commandeth it to shine by the cloud that cometh betwixt.] By those clouds also he sometimes quite hideth the sun from us, that it cannot ripen the fruits; and sometimes only intercepts its beams a while, that it may not burn them up by immoderate heat.

Ver. 33. The noise thereof sheweth concerning it, the cattle also concerning the vapour.] The very cattle perceive the cloud as soon as it rises, and declare what God intends to do with it; whether to turn it into storins and tempests, or into fruitful rain and showers.

CHAP. XXXVII.

THE ARGUMENT.-Elihu continues his speech, which he had begun before, concerning the incomprehensible works of God; and limits himself chiefly, as he had in the foregoing chapter, to the wonders God doth in the clouds. To which, at last, he subjoins the amazing extent, brightness, and firmness of the sky, in which the sun shines with a lustre which we are not able to behold: And thence concludes, that the splendour of the Divine Majesty is infinitely more dazzling, and that we must not pretend to give an account of his counsels.

Ver. 1. AT IT this also my heart trembleth, and is moved out of his place.] These are few of the works of God; and though there be innu

a

merable more, yet this one single effect of his power strikes terror into me, and makes my heart tremble, as if it would leap out of my body, and leave me dead.

Ver. 2. Hear attentively the noise of his voice, and the sound that goeth out of his mouth.] Hearken, I beseech you seriously, to the horrible noise which comes out of some of those clouds, and it will astonish you also. The smallest murmurs are so dreadful, that it may be fitly styled the voice of God, calling men to stand in awe of him.

Ver. 3. He directeth it under the whole heaven, and bis lightning unto the ends of the earth.] It is heard far and near, for he darts it through the whole region of the air, accompanied with his flashes of lightning, which shoot to the ends of the earth.

Ver. 4. After it a voice roareth; he thundereth with the voice of his excellency, and he will not stay them when his voice is beard.] After them follow the claps of thunder, more terrible than the roarings of a lion; which grow louder and louder, till they conclude in a violent rain, or hail, or tempest.

Ver. 5. GOD thundereth marvellously with his voice; great things doth be, which we cannot comprehend.] And he who thunders thus with his most wonderful voice, doth other great things which the wit of man cannot comprehend.

Ver. 6. For he saith to the snow, Be thou on the earth; likewise to the small rain, and to the great rain, of his strength.] For in those clouds which I have so often mentioned, he makes the snow, and commands it to cover the earth; and on a sudden they turn into rain, which sometimes falls in gentle showers, and sometimes in impetuous spouts of water.

Ver. 7. He sealeth up the band of every man; that all men may know his work.] Which stop the labour of all those whose business is in the fields; and makes the husbandmen know that he disposeth of it as he pleases.

Ver. 8. Then the beasts go into dens, and remain in their places.] The very beasts also are driven at that season into their lurking-places, and are forced to stay in their dens.

Ver. 9. Out of the south cometh the whirlwind; and cold out of the north.] From one quarter of the heavens blow turbulent winds; and from the opposite quarter those cold blasts which clear and purify the air again.

Ver. 10. By the breath of GOD frost is given; and the breadth of the waters is straitened.] By the like sharp blasts God sends the frost; and binds up the waters so fast that they cannot flow.

Ver. 11. Also by waterings he wearieth the thick cloud: he scattereth his bright cloud;] In serene evenings also he presses the cloud into drops of dew upon the earth; or the dewy cloud, receiving the sun-beams by a dispersed and various light, makes the beautiful rain-bow in the heavens.

Ver. 12. And it is turned round about by his counsel; that they may do whatsoever he commandeth them upon the face of the world in the earth.] For it is turned about and whirled several ways, according to the or

ders of his wise counsel; and so are all the rest that I have mentioned, which execute his commands upon the face of the whole earth:

Ver. 13. He causeth it to come, whether for correction, or for his land, or for mercy.] Being sent either to bring a dearth, and to scourge our sins with plagues and pestilential discases; or to produce the wonted crop of the earth. for the necessary sustenance of man and beast; or to reward our obedience with extraordinary plenty, and very healthful seasons.

Ver. 14. Hearken unto me, O Job; stand still, and consider the wondrous works of GOD.] Listen diligently to these things, O Job; do not dispute any more with God, but silently consider these his wonderful works.

Ver. 15. Dost thou know when GOD disposed them, and caused the light of his cloud to shine ?] Canst thou tell beforehand what orders God will give about them? art thou able to tell so much as when a rainbow will appear in the clouds ?

Ver. 16. Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge?] What canst thou tell us then of the hanging of the clouds in the air, as in an equal balance, and such like stupendous works of his most absolute wisdom?

Ver. 17. How thy garments are warm when he quieteth the earth by the south wind?] Whence comes the violent heat which we sometimes feel? or how do calms come out of the same quarter from whence come whirlwinds? ver. 9.

Ver. 18. Hast thou with him spread out the sky, which is strong, and as a molten looking-glass?] Lift up thy thoughts still higher, and tell us, didst thou join with him when he stretched out the sky; in which, as in a mirror, we behold the admirable power and wisdom of him, who, though it be so wide and vast, made it as firm as it is clear and bright?

Ver. 19. Teach us what we shall say unto him; for we cannot order our speech by reason of darkness.] Teach us (if thou art so well skilled) what we shall say to him of his power and wisdom, for we must confess our ignorance is so great, that our thoughts are confounded when we attempt it.

Ver. 20. Shall it be told him that I speak? if a man speak, surely he shall be swallowed up.] Is any thing that I have said of him worth his hearing? whoever he be that goes about to describe him, shall lose himself, and be dazzled with the brightness of his glory.

Ver. 21. And now men see not the bright light which is in the clouds; but the wind passeth, and cleanseth them.] For, alas! men are not able to look upon the brightness of the sun when it shines in the heavens, after a wind hath swept and cleansed them ;

Ver. 22. Fair weather cometh out of the north: with GOD is terrible majesty.] And brought pure and serene weather out of the northern parts: how then shall they look upon God, whose majesty is most dreadful, and therefore not be pried into with curiosity, but worshipped and praised with the humblest reverence?

Ver. 23. Touching the Almighty, we cannot find him

out be is excellent in power, and in judgement, and in plenty of justice: be will not afflict.] For when we have done all we can, we must acknowledge, that the Almighty cannot be comprehended by our understanding his power is so excellent, his judgement so exact, his justice so abundant, that he ought not to be questioned by us for what he doth; but if he be, he will not give an account of his actions..

Ver. 24. Men do therefore fear him: be respecteth not any that are wise of beart.] Which should make all men stand in awe of him, and lowly adore, rather than boldly dispute with him; for he despiseth all those who are so wise in their own conceit.

CHAP. XXXVIII.

THE ARGUMENT.-What Elihu had said concerning the Divine Majesty, in the 22d verse of the foregoing, God declares to be true, by a sensible demonstration, as I have expressed it in the first verse of this chapter, in which God himself appears as a judge, (according to Job's repeated desires), to decide this great controversy; and taking up the argument begun by Elihu, (who came nearest to the truth), and prosecuting it in inimitable words, (excelling his and all other men's in the loftiness of the style, as much as thunder doth a whisper), he convinces Job of his ignorance and weakness, by shewing him how little he understood of the most obvious things in this world. Intending from thence, at last, to infer, that he who found himself puzzled, when he went about to give an account of the meanset of God's visible works, should not presume to penetrate into his secret counsels, nor question his goodness, no more than he could his wisdom and power, though he knew not why he was afflicted. One instance had been sufficient to bring Job to a nonplus; but he heaps up abundance, to humble him the more, when he saw how much cause there was for it; whether he considered the earth, or the heavens, the sea, or the sun, things contained in the bosom of the sea, or in the bowels of the carth, especially all the meteors (as we call them) which are formed in the clouds, and the constellations in the higher regions; together with the beasts upon the earth, and the birds which fly in the air; one of each of which he mentions in the end of this chapter.

THEN the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said,] No sooner had Elihu spoken these words, but there was a sensible token of the presence of that most dreadful majesty of God (xxxvii. 22.) among them. For there arose an unusual cloud, (after the manner of God's appearing in those days), and a voice came out of it, as loud as a tempest, which called to Job, saying,

Ver. 2. Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge?] Who is this that disparages my counsels, with his ignorant discourses about them?

Ver. 3. Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me] If thou

hast the courage to argue the case with me, (as thou hast often desired), make thyself ready for the debate, and answer me the questions I shall ask thee.

Ver. 4. Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding.] Where wast thou when I founded the earth? Speak, man, and relate how I went about that work, if thou art so skilful as thou pretendest.

Ver. 5. Who bath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? How came it to have these dimensions? (for thou, sure, who presumest to censure my providence, canst not be ignorant of such matters). After what manner was the line and the rule applied, to give it these exact proportions?

Ver. 6. Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner-stone thereof?] Caust thou tell how it was fixed and settled upon its centre, or what it is that holds all the parts of it so firmly toge

ther?

Ver. 7. When the morning stars sung together, and all the sons of GOD shouted for joy.] Where wast thou when the bright stars first appeared to proclaim my praise with one consent, and all the angelical powers expressed their joy, but did not assist at the birth of the world?

Ver. 8. Or who shut up the sea with doors, when it brake forth as if it had issued out of the womb ] What midwife had the sea to bring it forth, when it burst out of the confused abyss, like an infant out of the womb?

Ver. 9. When I made the cloud the garment thereof, and thick durkness a swaddling-band for it,] And I covered it with clouds as with a garmat, and wraped its boisterous waves in a thick mist, with as much ease as a nurse swaddles a new-born child;

Ver. 10. And brake up for it my decreed place, and set bars and doors,] And laid it in that bed, which I had appointed to be broken up for it in the earth; where, though it be tossed to and fro as an infant in a cradle, yet it keeps within its shores, which cannot be overturned :

Ver. 11. And said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further; and here shall thy proud waves be stayed.] For I have fixed its bounds, and resolved, Thus far shalt thou flow, but no farther; these sands and these cliffs shall stop thy swelling waves, be they lifted up never so tempestuously.

Ver. 12. Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days, and caused the day-spring to know his place, Raise up thy thoughts still higher, and tell me, Dost thou remember since the morning-light was made? or was it thou who ordered the sun, in what part of the heaven it should every day arise?

Ver. 13. That it might take bold of the ends of the earth, that the wicked might be shaken out of it?] And spread its beams to the end of the earth, that the wicked, who delight in works of darkness, may be detected and dragged to their deserved punish

ment.

Ver. 14. It is turned as clay to the seal, and they stand as a garment.] For they are daunted at its an

proach, and change colour as oft as the clay doth its form under different seals; they are no more consistent with themselves than a changeable garment;

Ver. 15. And from the wicked their light is withbolden, and the high arm shall be broken.] And at last lose the use of that light, which innocent persons enjoy with so much pleasure; their insolent power, which in the night was so audacious, being broken in pieces in the morning.

Ver. 16. Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea? or hast thou walked in the search of the depth] O thou who adventurest to enter into the abyss of my judgements, didst thou ever penetrate into the spring of the sea? or hast thou perfectly discovered all that lies at the bottom of that great deep?

Ver. 17. Have the gates of death been opened unto thee? or hast thou seen the doors of the shadow of death? Hath the earth opened all her dark caverns to thee? or hast thou gone down to the very centre of it?

Ver. 18. Hast thou perceived the breadth of the earth? Declare, if thou knowest it all.] Nay, dost thou so much as understand all that grows upon the surface of the earth? Shew thy skill, if it be so comprehensive.

Ver. 19. Where is the way where light dwelleth? and as for darkness, where is the place thereof,] Tell me, which is the way that leads to the place where light takes up its dwelling when the sun goes down? or what becomes of the darkness when the sun rises again?

Ver. 20. That thou shouldest take it to the bound thereof, and that thou shouldest know the paths to the house thereof?] Art thou able to go, and bring either of them hither? or to carry them back again away from hence, and prescribe them their limits at thy pleasure?

Ver. 21. Knowest thou it, because thou wast then born; or because the number of thy days is great?] Art thou acquainted with these things, because thou wast then born when I made them? How comest thou to discourse so confidently of my government of mankind, who canst neither tell that thou shouldst be born, nor art able now to say when thou shalt die?

Ver. 22. Hast thou entered into the treasures of the snow? or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail,] And when wast thou in the clouds, to see how the snow or the hail is made in such abundance;

Ver. 23. Which I have reserved against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war?] That I need no other weapon than these, if I please to use them, for the destruction of mine enemies?

Ver. 24. By what way is the light parted, which scattereth the east wind upon the earth?] Art thou able to give an account how the light diffuses itself all over in an instant? or what makes the east wind blow so violently upon the earth?

Ver. 25. Who hath divided a water-course for the overflowing of waters? or a way for the lightning of thunder,] Didst thou make a channel in heaven for

the conveyance of overflowing showers? or open the way for the breaking out of lightning and thunder? Ver. 26. To cause it to rain on the earth where no man is; on the wilderness, wherein there is no man?] Is it by thy direction that these showers go, and fall upon the desert places, where are no inhabitants to employ their art to provide them with water?

Ver. 27. To satisfy the desolate and waste ground, and to cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth ?] And that they satisfy the dry and barren parts of the earth, where all the labour of man is unprofitable, without such plentiful rains to make them fruitful?

Ver. 28. Hath the rain a father? or who hath begotten the drops of the dew?] What is more common than the rain and the dew? But who is able to produce one drop of either?

Ver. 29. Out of whose womb came the ice? and the boary frost of heaven, who hath gendered it ?] whose womb was the ice formed? or who can make so small a thing as the hoary frost?

Ver. 30. The waters are bid as with a stone, and the face of the deep is frozen.] Whence comes the cold that turns the waters into stone, and fetters the raging waves of the sea?

Ver. 3r. Canst thou bind the sweet influence of Pleiades? or loose the bands of Orion?] Canst thon forbid the sweet flowers to come forth, when the seven stars arise in the spring? or open the earth for the husbandman's labour, when the winter season, at the rising of Orion, tics up their hands?

Ver. 32. Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth in his season? or canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons ?] Is it by thy power that the rest of the stars, great and small, appear in the southern and the northern signs, in their proper seasons?

Ver. 33. Knowest thou the ordinance of heaven? canst thou set the dominion thereof on the earth?] Dost thou understand the orders and the laws which I have established among the heavenly bodies? or couldst thou tell what to do, if it were referred to thee here on earth, to settle the government of them?

Ver. 34. Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, that abundance of waters may cover thee? Let me see an instance of thy power and skill; lift up thy voice to the clouds, and command them to pour out abundance of waters upon the place where thou now art.

Ver. 35. Canst thou send lightnings, that they may go, and say unto thee, Here we are?] Or call to the lightnings, and bid them go whither thou hast a mind to send them; and let me hear them answer, Behold, we are ready to obey thee.

Ver. 36. Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts? or who hath given understanding to the heart?] Didst thou give thyself understanding? How comes it, then, to be so small, that thou canst not tell how a thought is made?

Ver. 37. Who can number the clouds in wisdom? or who can stay the bottles of heaven?] Nor, with all the wisdom thou hast, so much as count the number of the clouds, whose showers thou art as unable to stop, as to make them run:

Ver. 38. When the dust groweth into hardness, and the clots cleave fast together?] Though they have fallen so long, that the earth is abundantly satisfied, and fit for the plough, or for the seed.

Ver. 39. Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion? or fill the appetite of the young lions,] Or dost thou pretend to have great power upon earth, though none in heaven? Wilt thou undertake, then, to provide food for a lion and all his whelps,

Ver. 40. When they couch in their den, and abide in the covert to lie in wait?] And that in a desert, where they lie lurking in their dens, and greedily watch for a prey in close and shady places?

Ver. 41. Who provideth for the raven his food? when his young ones cry unto GOD, they wander for lack of meat. Or, which is less, wilt thou take upon thee to feed the young ravens? who, expelled by the old ones out of their nest, complain to me of their cruelty, but know not where to get a bit of meat.

CHAP. XXXIX.

the

THE ARGUMENT.-This chapter continues the discourse begun in the latter end of the foregoing, concerning God's providence about beasts and birds. And to the two before mentioned, he adds seven more. First, the wild goat, or hind, whose hard labour among the rocks, God is wont to help and promote (as the psalmist observes, xxix. 9. and other authors agree) by a clap of thunder; terror of which puts her into such an agony, that she presently excludes her young one, which sticks in the birth. Then he mentions the wild ass; and after that a tall creature, in those countries called Reem, which we render an unicorn; but Bochartus hath proved to be a two-horned goat in Arabia, of great strength, with an erected head and ears. Of the rest I need say nothing here, they are so well known.

wild

Ver. 1. KNOW EST thou the time when the goats of the rock bring forth? or canst thou mark when the hinds do calve?] Vain man, who wouldst so fain pry into my secrets! didst thou ever climb the rocks to see the wild goats bring forth? or hast thou assisted at the hard labour of the hinds, and helped to ease them of their burden?

Ver. 2. Canst thou number the months that they ful fil? or knowest thou the time that they bring forth ?] Dost thou know the moment of their conception? or keepest an account when they will be delivered?

Ver. 3. They bow themselves, they bring forth their young ones, they cast out their sorrows.] Hast thou seen how they bow themselves, with what pain they bring forth, and with how much difficulty they are freed from their sorrow?

Ver. 4. Their young ones are in good liking, they grow up with corn: they go forth, and return not unto them.] And yet their young ones are lusty and strong; they grow up in the open fields; they leave their mothers,

and return to them no more.

Ver. 5. Who hath sent out the wild ass free?
VOL. III.

bith losed the bands of the wild ass?] Was it thon that gave the wild ass his liberty, and made him so free from their servitude, in which you keep no other

creatures?

Ver. 6. Whose house I have made the wilderness, and the barren land his dwellings.] Who but I made that difference between him and them; and laying no burden on them, assigned them the wilderness, and barren countries for his habitation ?

Ver. 7. He scorneth the multitude of the city, neither regardeth be the crying of the driver.] Where he laughs at those that live in the tumult and bustle of cities; and hears none of the cries of him that drives other asses to their labour:

Ver. 8. The range of the mountains is his pasture, and he searches after every green thing.] Nor is confined is small inclosures, but hath whole mountains to range in for his pasture; where he finds sufficient food to appease his hunger.

Ver. 9. Will the unicorn be willing to serve thee, or abide by thy crib?] Go to the unicorn, (thou who wouldst have all things conformable to thy will), and see if thou canst persuade him to serve thee will he be content to be tied to thy crib all night?

Ver. 10. Canst thou bind the unicorn with his band in the furrow? or will be harrow the valleys after thee?] Or submit his proud neck to thy yoke all day? canst thou make him go to plow? or will he draw the harrow over thy land?

Ver. 11. Wilt thou trust him, because his strength is great? or wilt thou leave thy labour to him?] Wilt thou rely upon him (because his strength is great) to do all the rest of thy work in the field?

Ver. 12. Wilt thou believe him that he will bring home thy seed, and gather it into thy barn?] Or leave thy harvest out of doors, till thou hast prevailed with him to bring it home, and lay it in thy barn?

Ver. 13. Gavest thou the goodly wings unto the peacocks? or wings and feathers unto the ostrich 2] Have other birds any reason to complain that they are not

so goodly as the ostrich; whose wing is triumphant, if it be compared with the wing and the feather of the stork.

Ver. 14. Which leaveth her eggs in the earth, and warmeth them in the dust ?] But her inward qualities are not so beautiful as her plumes: for she doth not seek for solitary places wherein to lay her eggs, but drops any where upon the ground, and negligently leaves them to be corrupted by the heat of the sand and of the sun.

Ver. 15. And forgetteth that the foot may crush them, or that the wild beast may break them.] She doth not secure them from the foot of travellers, or of wild beasts, who frequently tread upon them, and crush them in pieces:

Ver. 16. She is hardened against her young ones, as though they were not hers: her labour is in vain without fear.] But is hardened against the fruit of her own womb, as if it were not hers; and so she loses all her labour, because she hath no fear it may be lost.

Ver. 17. Because GOD hath deprived her of wisdom; neither hath he imparted to her understanding.] For