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Job Chapter
Forty-two
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO JOB 42
This
chapter contains Job's answer to the last speech of the Lord's, in which he
acknowledges his omnipotence, and his certain performance of his purposes and
pleasure; owns his own folly and ignorance, and confesses his sins; for which
he abhorred himself, and of which he repented, Job 42:1; it also
gives an account of the Lord's decision of the controversy between Job and his
friends, blaming them and commending him above them; and ordered them to take
sacrifices and go to Job and offer them, who should pray for them and be
accepted, which was done, Job 42:7; and it
closes with a relation of the great prosperity Job was restored unto, in which
he lived and died, Job 42:10.
Job 42:1 Then
Job answered the Lord
and said:
YLT
1And Job answereth Jehovah
and saith: --
Then Job answered the Lord, and said. For though he
had said he would answer no more, Job 40:5; yet he
might mean not in the manner he had, complaining of God and justifying himself;
besides he might change his mind without any imputation of falsehood or a lie;
see Jeremiah 20:9; to
which may be added, that he had then said all he had to say, and did not know
he should have more: he then confessed as much as he was convinced of, but it
was not enough; and now through what the Lord had since said to him he was more
convinced of his ignorance, mistakes, and sins, and had such a sight of God and
of himself, that he could not forbear speaking; moreover an injunction was laid
upon him from the Lord to speak again, and therefore he was obliged to give in
his answer; see Job 40:7.
Job 42:2 2 “I know that You can do
everything, And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You.
YLT
2Thou hast known that [for]
all things Thou art able, And not withheld from Thee is [any] device:
I know that thou canst do every thing,.... As the
works of creation, and the sustentation of them, show; so the Targum,
"thou
sustainest all things,'
and
can manage, every creature made by him, even such as were not tractable by men,
such as behemoth and leviathan, the creatures last instanced in; and was able
to abase and bring low the proud, which Job could not do; and could also save
him by his right hand, and bring him out of his low estate in which he was, and
raise him to great prosperity again, which Job always despaired of till now;
and though he had a theoretical knowledge of the omnipotence of God before, see
Job 9:4; yet not a
practical experimental knowledge of it; at least not to such a degree as he now
had, working upon his heart, bowing his will, and bringing him to a resignation
to the will of God; he not only knew he could do all things, but that he had a
right to do what he pleased; and that whatever he did he did well and wisely,
and in a righteous manner, of which before he seemed to have some doubt. And
that no thought can be withholden from thee; either no thought of men, good or
bad, of God or of themselves, and so is an acknowledgment of the omniscience of
God, and may be an appeal to that; that God, who knows the secrets of men's
hearts, knew what thoughts Job now had of God; of the wisdom, righteousness,
and goodness of God in the dispensations of his providence, different from what
he had before; see John 21:17; or
rather it may be understood of every thought of God's heart, of every secret
purpose and wise counsel of his; which, as they are all well known to him, and
cannot be withheld from having effect, or the performance of them hindered, Job
now saw and was fully assured that all that had befallen him was according to
the sovereign and inscrutable purposes of God, and according to the wise
counsels of his will; he knew that not only God could do everything, but that
he also did whatever he pleased.
Job 42:3 3 You asked,
‘Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have
uttered what I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not
know.
YLT
3`Who [is] this, hiding
counsel without knowledge?' Therefore, I have declared, and understand not, Too
wonderful for me, and I know not.
Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge?.... It may be
understood, and supplied, as it is by Cocceius, "thou didst say"; as
the Lord had said, or to this purpose; see Gill on Job 38:2; to which
Job here replies, I am the foolish man that has done it, I own it with sorrow,
shame, and confusion: or it may be interpreted as condemning every other man
that should act the like part. Schultens understands this as spoken by Job of
God, and renders the words,
"who
is this that seals up counsel, which cannot be known?'
the
counsels, purposes, and decrees of God are sealed up by him, among his
treasures, in the cabinet of his own breast, and are not to be unsealed and
unlocked by creatures, but are impenetrable to them, past finding out by them,
and not to be searched and pried into; and so the secret springs of Providence
are not to be known, which Job had attempted, and for which he condemns
himself;
therefore have I uttered that I understood not; concerning
the providential dealings of God with men, afflicting the righteous, and
suffering the wicked to prosper, particularly relating to his own afflictions;
in which he arraigned the wisdom, justice, and goodness of God, as if things
might have been better done than they were; but now he owns his ignorance and
folly, as Asaph did in a like case, Psalm 73:22;
things too wonderful for me, which I knew not; things out of
his reach to search into, and beyond his capacity to comprehend; what he should
have gazed upon with admiration, and there have stopped. The judgments of God
are a great deep, not to be fathomed with the line of human understanding, of
which it should be said with the apostle, "O the depth", Romans 11:33,
&c. Job ought to have done as David did, Psalm 131:1; of
which he was now convinced, and laments and confesses his folly.
Job 42:4 4 Listen, please, and let me
speak; You said, ‘I will question you, and you shall answer Me.’
YLT
4`Hear, I pray thee, and I
-- I do speak, I ask thee, and cause thou me to know.'
Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak,.... Not in
the manner he had before, complaining of God and justifying himself, but in a
way of humble entreaty of favours of him, of confession of sin before him, and
of acknowledgment of his wisdom, goodness, and justice in all his dealings with
him, which before he arraigned;
I will demand of thee; or rather "I will
make petition to thee", as Mr. Broughton renders it; humbly ask a favour,
and entreat a gracious answer; for to demand is not so agreeable to the frame
and temper of soul Job was now in;
and declare thou unto me; or make him know what he
knew not; he now in ignorance applies to God, as a God of knowledge, to inform
him in things he was in the dark about, and to increase what knowledge he had.
He was now willing to take the advice of Elihu, and pursue it, Job 34:31.
Job 42:5 5 “I have heard of You by
the hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You.
YLT
5By the hearing of the ear I
heard Thee, And now mine eye hath seen Thee.
I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear,.... From his
ancestors, who in a traditionary way had handed down from one to another what
they knew of God, his will and worship, his works and ways; and from those who
had the care of his education, parents and tutors, who had instilled the
principles of religion, and the knowledge of divine things, into him very
early; and from such as might instruct in matters of religion in a public
manner; and both by ordinary and extraordinary revelation made unto him, as was
sometimes granted to men in that age in which Job lived; see Job 4:16. Though he
had heard more of God through his speaking to him out of the whirlwind than
ever he did before, to which he had attentively listened; and the phrase,
hearing by or with the hearing of the ear, denotes close attention; see Ezekiel 44:5;
but now mine eye seeth thee; thy Shechinah, as
Jarchi; thy divine glory and Majesty; the Logos, the Word or Son of God, who
now appeared in an human form, and spake to Job out of the whirlwind; and whom
he saw with the eyes of his body, as several of the patriarchs had seen him,
and which is the sense of an ancient writerF14Euseb. Demonstr.
Evangel. l. 1. c. 5. p. 11. ; though no doubt he saw him also with the eyes of
his understanding, and had a clearer sight of his living Redeemer, the Messiah,
than ever he had before; and saw more of God in Christ, of his nature,
perfections, and glory, than ever he had as yet seen; and what he had heard of
him came greatly short of what he now saw; particularly he had a more clear and
distinct view of the sovereignty, wisdom, goodness, and justice of God in the
dealings of his providence with the children of men, and with himself, to which
now he humbly submitted.
Job 42:6 6 Therefore I abhor myself,
And repent in dust and ashes.”
YLT
6Therefore do I loathe [it],
And I have repented on dust and ashes.
Wherefore I abhor myself,.... Or all my words, as
Aben Ezra; all the indecent expressions he had uttered concerning God; he could
not bear to think of them; he loathed them, and himself on account of them: sin
is abominable in its own nature, and makes men so; it is loathsome to God, and
so it is to all good men when they see it in its proper light; am especially
when they have a view of the purity and holiness of God, to which that is so
very contrary, and also of his grace and goodness in the forgiveness of it; see
Isaiah 6:3, Ezekiel 16:63;
and repent in dust and ashes; which was an external
ceremony used by mournful and penitent persons; see Job 2:8; and is
expressive of the truth and sincerity of repentance; and never do any more
truly mourn for sin and repent of it, are more ashamed of it, or have a more
godly sorrow for it, or more ingenuously confess it, and heartily forsake it,
than those who with an eye of faith behold God in Christ as a sin forgiving
God; or behold their sins through the glass of pardoning grace and mercy; see Zechariah 12:10.
Job 42:7 7 And so it was, after the Lord had spoken
these words to Job, that the Lord said to Eliphaz the
Temanite, “My wrath is aroused against you and your two friends, for you have
not spoken of Me what is right, as My servant Job has.
YLT
7And it cometh to pass after
Jehovah's speaking these words unto Job, that Jehovah saith unto Eliphaz the
Temanite, `Burned hath Mine anger against thee, and against thy two friends,
because ye have not spoken concerning Me rightly, like My servant Job.
And it was so,.... What follows came to
pass:
that after the Lord had spoken these words unto Job; which he
spake to him out of the whirlwind, and after he had heard Job's confession, and
the declaration he made of his humiliation and repentance:
the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite; who with his
two friends were still present and heard the speeches of the Lord to Job, and
the acknowledgment he had made of sin; though someF15Vid. Spanhem.
Hist. Jobi, c. 8. s. 1,2. think that, when the dispute ended between Job and
them, they returned to their own country, where Eliphaz is now supposed to be,
and was bid with his two friends to go to Job again, which they did, as is
concluded from the following verses: but no doubt they stayed and heard what
Elihu had to say; and the voice of the Lord out of the whirlwind would command
their attention and stay; and very desirous they must be to know how the cause
would go, for or against Job; the latter of which they might expect from the
appearance of things. Now the Lord directs his speech to Eliphaz, he being
perhaps the principal man, on account of his age, wisdom and wealth, and being
the man that led the dispute, began it, and formed the plan to go upon, and was
the most severe on Job of any of them; wherefore the Lord said to him,
my wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends; who were
Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite; who gave into the same
sentiments with Eliphaz, and went upon the same plan, speaking wrong things of
God, charging Job falsely, and condemning him; which provoked the Lord, and
caused his wrath to be kindled like fire against them, of which there were some
appearances and breakings forth in his words and conduct towards them;
for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my
servant Job hath; they had said many right things of God, and Job had said many
wrong ones of him, and yet upon the whole Job had said more corrcet things of
God than they; their notion, and which they had expressed, was, that God deals
with men in this life according to their outward behaviour; that God did not
afflict good men, at least not sorely, nor long; and that wicked men were
always punished now: from whence they drew this inference, that Job, being so
long and so greatly afflicted, must be a bad man, or God would never have dealt
with him after this manner. Job, on the other hand, affirmed, that wicked men
enjoyed great prosperity, which good men did not; and therefore the love and
hatred of God were not known by these things; and men's characters were not to
be judged of by these outward things; in which he was doubtless right: some
render the words "have not spoken unto me"F16אלי "ad me", Mercerus, Drusius, Cocceius;
"coram me", V. L. "apud me", Tigurine version. , before
him, in his presence; for they were all before God, and to him they all
appealed, and he heard and observed all that was said, and now passed judgment.
No notice is taken of Elihu, nor blame laid on him; he acting as a moderator,
taking neither the part of Job, nor of his friends, but blaming both: nor did
he pretend to charge Job with any sins of his former life as the cause of his
calamities; only takes up some indecent, unguarded, and extravagant expressions
of his in the heat of this controversy, and rebukes him for them; and
throughout the whole vindicates the justice of God in his dealings with him.
Job 42:8 8 Now therefore, take for
yourselves seven bulls and seven rams, go to My servant Job, and offer up for
yourselves a burnt offering; and My servant Job shall pray for you. For I will
accept him, lest I deal with you according to your folly; because you
have not spoken of Me what is right, as My servant Job has.”
YLT
8And now, take to you seven
bullocks and seven rams, and go ye unto My servant Job, and ye have caused a
burnt-offering to ascend for you; and Job My servant doth pray for you, for
surely his face I accept, so as not to do with you folly, because ye have not
spoken concerning Me rightly, like My servant Job.
Therefore take unto you now seven bullocks, and seven rams,.... Creatures
used in sacrifice before the giving of the Levitical law, Genesis 4:4; and
the same number of the same creatures were offered by Balaam in the country of
Moab, not far from where Job lived, nor at any great distance of time from his
age, Numbers 23:1; and
among the Gentiles in later timesF17"----Septem mactare
juvencos", &c. Virgil. Aeneid. 6. v. 38, 39. . And these were typical
of Christ, being strong creatures, especially the bullocks, and which were used
for labour; and the number seven may point at the perfection of Christ's
sacrifice; to which these men were directed in their sacrifices to look for the
complete atonement of their sins: now though they were not at their own dwellings,
and could not take these out of their own herds and flocks, and Job had none,
yet they could purchase them of others; and which having done, they are bid to
do as follows:
and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt
offering; that is, by Job, who was to offer it for them in their name, and
at whose hands the Lord would accept it, and for his sake. Job, as the head and
master of his family, was wont to sacrifice, as every such man did before the
Aaronic priesthood took place, Job 1:5. Now this
was doing Job a great deal of honour, both by calling him his servant, as
before in Job 42:7, and twice
more in this; which was plainly giving the cause on his side; confirming the
character he always bore, and still retained; and declaring he had other
thoughts of him than his friends had; as well by sending them to him with their
sacrifices to offer for them; which was saying, that they had sinned, and must
offer sacrifice, and that Job was in the right; and therefore must offer the
sacrifice for them. This was putting them on a great piece of self-denial; that
men, who were older than Job, great personages, heads of families, and who had
been wont to offer sacrifices in them, yet are now sent to Job to offer them
for them; a man now in mean circumstances, and who in they had treated with
great contempt; and he in his turn had used them as roughly. And it was also a
trial of Job's grace, and of his forgiving spirit, to do this for them, and
pray to God on their behalf: and the Lord's design in it was, to exercise the
graces of them both, and to reconcile them to one another, and to himself;
and my servant Job shall pray for you; that their
sacrifice might be accepted, and their sin pardoned. In this Job was a type of
Christ, as he was in many other things; see the notes on Job 16:9. There is
an agreement in his name; Job, whether it signifies love or hatred, desired or
hated, in both ways the etymology of it is given; it agrees with Christ, who is
beloved of God and man, and the desire of all nations; who hates iniquity, and
was hated for his inveighing against it. Job was a type of him in his threefold
state; before his low estate, in it, and after it; see Philemon 2:6. In
his temptations by Satan, and sufferings from men; and particularly in his
office as a priest, who both offered himself a sacrifice for his people, and
offers their services and sacrifices of prayer and praise to God; and who
prayed for his disciples, and for all the Father has given him, for
transgressors and sinners, and even for his enemies that used him ill;
for him will I accept; or his face, that is,
hear his prayer, and grant what is asked by him; as well as accept his
sacrifice;
lest I deal with you after your folly; as all sin
is, being committed against God, a breach of his law, and injurious to men
themselves; see Deuteronomy 32:6.
Though here it seems to be restrained to their particular sin and folly in
their dispute with Job; want of wisdom in them was discerned by Elihu, Job 32:7. So it
follows:
in that ye have not spoken of me the thing which is right,
like my servant Job; and if by neglect of his advice, which would have been another
instance of their folly, they had provoked the Lord to deal with them as their
sin deserved, it must have gone hard with them. The Targum is,
"lest
I should do with you "what would be" a reproach'
(or
disgrace); would put them to shame, and make them appear ignominious to men; as
by stripping them of their substance and honour, and reducing them to the
condition Job was in.
Job 42:9 9 So Eliphaz the Temanite
and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did as the Lord commanded
them; for the Lord
had accepted Job.
YLT
9And they go -- Eliphaz the
Temanite, and Bildad the Shuhite, Zophar the Naamathite -- and do as Jehovah
hath spoken unto them; and Jehovah doth accept the face of Job.
So Eliphaz the Temanite, and Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar
the Naamathite, went,.... Having taken the above creatures for sacrifice, as directed,
they went to Job with them;
and did according as the Lord commanded them; offered them
by Job for a burnt offering, and desired him to pray for them. This they did,
both as to matter and manner, as the Lord ordered them; and they did it immediately,
without consulting flesh and blood, the pride and other passions of their
hearts; and they all united in it, and served the Lord with one consent, which
showed them to be good men;
the Lord also accepted Job; the sacrifice he
offered; perhaps by sending fire from heaven, which consumed the burnt
offering: or "the face of Job"; he heard his prayer for his friends,
and granted his request for them: or "the person of Job", as Mr.
Broughton renders it; Job in this was a type of Christ also, who is always
heard in his intercession and mediation for his people. God has respect to his
person, which always acceptable to him, and in whom he is well pleased; and he
has respect to his offering and sacrifice, which is of a sweet smelling savour
to him. And the persons of his people are accepted in him the Beloved, and all
their services and sacrifices of prayer and praise, Matthew 3:17. The
Targum is,
"they
did as the Word of the Lord spake unto them, and the Word of the Lord accepted
the face of Job.'
Job 42:10 10 And the Lord restored Job’s
losses[a] when he
prayed for his friends. Indeed the Lord gave Job twice as much as
he had before.
YLT
10And Jehovah hath turned
[to] the captivity of Job in his praying for his friends, and Jehovah doth add
[to] all that Job hath -- to double.
And the Lord turned the captivity of Job,.... Not
literally, in such sense as Lot's captivity was turned, Genesis 14:12; for
Job's person was not seized on and carried away, though his cattle were: nor
spiritually, being delivered from the captivity of sin; that had been his case
many years ago, when first converted: but it is to be understood of his
restoration from afflictions and calamities to a happy state; as of the return
of his substance, his health and friends, and especially of his deliverance
from Satan, in whose hands he had been some time, and by him distressed both in
body and mind. But now his captivity was turned, and he was freed from all his
distresses; and even from those which arose from the dealings of God with him,
which he was now fully satisfied about; and this was done,
when he prayed for his friends; as he was directed to
do. A good man will not only pray for himself, as Job doubtless did, but for
others also; for his natural and spiritual friends, yea, for unkind friends,
and even for enemies likewise: and the prayer of an upright man is very
acceptable to the Lord; and many mercies and blessings come by it; and even
prayer for others is profitable to a man's self; and sometimes he soon reaps
the benefit of it, as Job now did. For when and while he was praying, or
quickly upon it, there was a turn in his affairs: he presently found himself in
better health; his friends came about him, and his substance began to increase;
Satan had no more power over him, and the presence of God was with him. All
which was of the Lord; and he enjoyed it in the way of prayer, and as the fruit
of that;
also the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before: or added to
him double. Which chiefly respects his substance; his cattle, as appears from Job 42:12, and
might be true both with respect to things temporal and spiritual.
"Double" may denote an abundance, a large measure of good things; see
Zechariah 9:12.
Job 42:11 11 Then all his brothers, all
his sisters, and all those who had been his acquaintances before, came to him
and ate food with him in his house; and they consoled him and comforted him for
all the adversity that the Lord had brought upon him.
Each one gave him a piece of silver and each a ring of gold.
YLT
11And come unto him do all
his brethren, and all his sisters, and all his former acquaintances, and they
eat bread with him in his house, and bemoan him, and comfort him concerning all
the evil that Jehovah had brought upon him, and they gave to him each one
kesitah, and each one ring of gold.
Then came there unto him all his brethren, and all his sisters,.... Which may
be taken not in a strict sense, but in a larger sense for all that were related
to him; the same with his kinsfolks, Job 19:14;
and all they that had been of his acquaintance before; that knew
him, visited him, conversed with him, and kept up a friendly correspondence
with him; the circle of his acquaintance must have been large, for wealth makes
many friends: now these had been shy of him, and kept at a distance from him,
during the time of his affliction and distress; see Job 19:13; but
hearing he was in the favour of God, and the cause was given on his side, and
against his friends, and his affairs began to take a more favourable turn, they
came to him again, and paid him a friendly visit, even all of them;
and did eat bread with him in his house: expressing
their joy for his recovery, and renewing their friendship with him: this was
done either at their own expense or at Job's, for he might not be so poor at
the worst as he is by most represented; for he had still an house of his own,
and furniture in it, and servants to wait upon him, as appears from Job 19:15; nor do
we read of anything being taken out of his house from him; he might still have
gold and silver, and so could entertain his friends: and being a man of an
excellent spirit received them kindly, without upbraiding them with their
unkindness in deserting him when afflicted;
and they bemoaned him; shook their heads at
him, pitying his case, that is, which he had been in; for this they might do,
though things were now better with him, and might express themselves in such
manner as this,
"Poor
man, what hast thou endured? what hast thou gone through by diseases of body,
loss of substance, and vexation from friends?'
and
besides, though things began to mend with him, he was not come at once to the
pitch of happiness he arrived unto; so that there might be still room for
bemoaning, he being comparatively in poor circumstances to what he was before;
and comforted him over all the evil that the Lord had brought upon
him; the evil of afflictions, of body and estate; which, though by
means of Satan and wicked men, was according to the will of God, and might be
said to be brought on him and done to him by the Lord, Amos 3:6; and they
congratulated him upon his deliverance from them;
every man also gave him a piece of money, or a
"lamb"; which some understand in a proper sense, as being what might
serve towards making up his loss of sheep, and increasing his stock of them;
but others with us take it for a piece of money, in which sense it is used in Genesis 33:19,
compared with Acts 7:16; which
might have the figure of a lamb impressed upon it; as we formerly had a piece
of money called an angel, having the image of one stamped on it; and it was
usual with the ancients both to barter with cattle instead of money before the
coining of it, and when it was coined to impress upon it the figure of cattle;
hence the Latin word "pecunia", for money, is from "pecus",
cattleF18Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 18. c. 3. & l. 33. c. 3. Alex. ab.
Alex. Genial. Dier. l. 4. c. 15. ; this piece of money in Africa is the same
with the Jewish "meah"F19T Bab. Roshhashanah, fol. 26. 1.
, which weighed sixteen barley corns; the value of a penny;
and everyone earring of gold; or a jewel set in gold;
such used to wear in Arabia, as appears from, Judges 8:24;
however Job could turn them into money, and increase his stock of cattle
thereby. Though, perhaps, these presents were made him, not so much to enrich
him, but as tokens of renewing their friendship with him; it being then usual
in the eastern countries, as it is to this day, that whenever they pay visits,
even to the greatest personages, they always carry presents with them; see 1 Samuel 9:7.
Job 42:12 12 Now the Lord blessed the
latter days of Job more than his beginning; for he had fourteen thousand
sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of oxen, and one thousand female
donkeys.
YLT
12And Jehovah hath blessed
the latter end of Job more than his beginning, and he hath fourteen thousand of
a flock, and six thousand camels, and a thousand pairs of oxen, and a thousand
she-asses.
So the Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning,.... Which
verified the words of Bildad, Job 8:6; though
they were spoken by him only by way of supposition. All blessings are of the
Lord, temporal and spiritual; and sometimes the last days of a good man are his
best, as to temporal things, as were David's, and here Job's; though this is
not always the case: however, if their last days are but the best in spiritual
things, that is enough: if they have more faith, hope, love, patience,
humility, and self-denial, and resignation of will to the will of God; are more
holy, humble, spiritually and heavenly minded; have more light and knowledge in
divine things; have more peace and joy, and are more fruitful in every good
work, and more useful; and often they are in their very last moments most
cheerful and comfortable: the best wine is reserved till last;
for he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a
thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she asses: just double the number
of each of what he had before, Job 1:3.
Job 42:13 13 He also had seven sons and
three daughters.
YLT
13And he hath seven sons and
three daughters;
He had also seven sons, and three daughters. The same
number of children, and of the same sort he had before, Job 1:2; and
according to Nachman the very same he had before, which the additional letter
in the word "seven" is with him the notification of; so that the
doubting of what he had before, Job 42:10; respects
only his substance, and particularly his cattle; though the Targum says he had
fourteen sons, and so JarchiF20Vid. Balmes. Gram. Strat. 26. ;
others think these may be said to be double to Job in their good qualities,
external and internal, in their dispositions, virtues, and graces; and others,
inasmuch as his former children were not lost, but lived with God, and would
live for ever, they might now be said to be double; and so they consider this
as a proof of the immortality of the soul, and of the resurrection of the body;
but these senses are not to be trusted to; whether these children were by a
former wife or another is uncertain.
Job 42:14 14 And he called the name of
the first Jemimah, the name of the second Keziah, and the name of the third
Keren-Happuch.
YLT
14and he calleth the name of
the one Jemima, and the name of the second Kezia, and the name of the third
Keren-Happuch.
And he called the name of the first Jemima,.... That is,
the name of the first and eldest daughter was called by Job Jemima; which
either signifies "day", so the Targum interprets it, and most do, and
so is the same with Diana; or, as SpanheimF21Hist. Jobi, c. 12. s.
7. observes, it may be the same with the Arabic word "jemama", which
signifies a turtle or doveF23Golii Lexic. Arab. col. 2767, 2768. ;
and who also observes that a country in Arabia is so called, and perhaps from
her; and which seems to be confirmed by the Arabic geographerF24Geograph.
Nub. Climat. 2. par. 6. , who speaks of a queen called Jamama, who dwelt in a
city of the country he describes as being on the north of Arabia Felix, and
also speaks of a way from thence to Bozrah in Edom;
and the name of the second, Kezia; or Cassia; an aromatic
herb of a very fragrant smell, as we render the word, Psalm 45:8; and
from this person the above learned writer conjectures Mount Casius in Arabia
might have its name;
and the name of the third, Kerenhappuch; which
signifies an horn or vessel of paint, such as the eastern women used to paint
their faces, particularly their eyes with, Jeremiah 4:30; and
as Jezebel did, 2 Kings 9:30; or
"the ray of a precious stone"; some say the carbuncleF25Hiller.
Onomastic. Sacr. p. 356. or ruby; according to the Targum, the emerald; in 1 Chronicles 29:2,
the word is rendered "glittering stones". Now these names may have
respect to Job's daughters themselves, to their external beauty, afterwards
observed, so the Targum,
"he
called the one Jemima, because her beauty was as the day; the other he called
Kezia, because she was precious like cassia; and another he called
Kerenhappuch, because great was the brightness of the glory of her countenance,
as the emerald.'
The
complexion of the first might be clear as a bright day, though like that but of
a short duration; see Song of Solomon 6:10;
the next might have her name from the fragrancy and sweetness of her temper; and
the third, as being so beautiful that she needed no paint to set her off, but
was beauty and paint herself; or her beauty was as bright and dazzling as a
precious stone; see Lamentations 4:7.
Or these may respect their internal qualities, virtues, and graces; being
children of the day, and not of the night; having a good name, which is better
than all spices; and possessed of such graces as were comparable to jewels and
precious stones. Though it might be, that Job, in giving them these names, may
have respect to the change of his state and condition; his first daughter he
called Jemima, or "day", because it was now day, with him: he had
been in the night and darkness of adversity, temporal and spiritual, but now he
enjoyed a day of prosperity, and of spiritual light and joy; the justness of
his cause appeared, his righteousness was brought forth as the light, and his
judgment as noonday; and the dispensations of divine Providence appeared to him
in a different light than he had seen them in: his second daughter he called
Kezia, or Cassia, an herb of a sweet smell, in opposition to the stench of his
ulcers and of his breath, which had been so very offensive, and from which he
was now free; and may denote also the recovery of his good name, better than
precious ointment, in which cassia was an ingredient: his youngest daughter he
called Kerenhappuch, the horn of paint, in opposition to his horn being defiled
in the dust, and his face foul with weeping, Job 16:15; or if
Kerenhappuch signifies the horn turned, as Peritsol interprets it, it may have
respect to the strange and sudden turn of Job's affairs: and it is easy to
observe, that men have given names to their children on account of their
present state and condition, or on account of the change of a former one; see Genesis 41:51.
Job 42:15 15 In all the land were found
no women so beautiful as the daughters of Job; and their father gave
them an inheritance among their brothers.
YLT
15And there have not been
found women fair as the daughters of Job in all the land, and their father doth
give to them an inheritance in the midst of their brethren.
And in all the land were no women found so fair as the
daughters of Job,.... Either in the whole world, which is not improbable: or it
may be rather in the land or country in which they dwelt; and which may be
gathered from their names, as before observed. The people of God, and children
of Christ, the antitype of Job, are all fair, and there is no spot in them; a
perfection of beauty, perfectly comely, through the comeliness of Christ put
upon them, and are without spot or wrinkle, or any such thing;
and their father gave them inheritance among their brethren; which was
done not on account of their beauty or virtue; nor is this observed so much to
show the great riches of Job, that he could give his daughters as much as his
sons, as his impartiality to his children, and his strict justice and equity in
distributing his substance to them all alike, making no difference between male
and female. And so in Christ, the antitype of Job, there is neither male nor
female, no difference between them, Galatians 3:28, but
being all children, they are heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ,
and equally partake of the same inheritance with the saints in light, Romans 8:17.
Job 42:16 16 After this Job lived one
hundred and forty years, and saw his children and grandchildren for four
generations.
YLT
16And Job liveth after this a
hundred and forty years, and seeth his sons, and his sons' sons, four
generations;
After this lived Job an hundred and forty years,.... Not after
he had arrived to the height of his prosperity; not after the birth of his
children, and they were grown up, and had their portions given them, which must
take in a considerable number of years; but after his afflictions were over, and
his prosperity began: and if his years were doubled, as some think, though that
is not certain, then he must be seventy years of age when he was so sorely
afflicted and must live to the age of two hundred and ten; which is the common
notion of the Jewish writersF26T. Bava Bathra, fol. 15. 1. Seder
Olam Rabba, c. 3. : however, he must be fifty or sixty years of age at that
time, since his former children were grown up and were for themselves; and it
is saidF1Suidas in voce ιωβ. , his
afflictions continued seven years. So that it is not at all improbable that he
lived to be about two hundred years of age; and which was a singular blessing
of God to him, if you compare his age with that of Jacob, Joseph, Moses, and
Joshua, between the two former and the two latter he may be supposed to live;
and saw his sons, and his sons' sons, even four generations; Joseph saw
but the third, Job the fourth, he was a great-great-grandfather. This was no
doubt a pleasant sight to him, to see such a numerous offspring descending from
him; and especially if they were walking in the ways of God, as probably they
were, since no doubt he would take all the care of their education that in him
lay. This is the great blessing promised to the Messiah, the antitype of Job, Isaiah 53:10; see
also Isaiah 59:21.
Job 42:17 17 So Job died, old and full
of days.
YLT
17and Job dieth, aged and
satisfied [with] days.
So Job died,.... As every man does, though he lived so long, and as
Methuselah the oldest man did, Genesis 5:27; and
though a good man, the best of men die as well as others: so Job died, as a
good man, in the Lord, in faith and hope of eternal life and happiness; and so
he died in all his outward prosperity and happiness, having great substance and
a numerous offspring;
being old; as he might
be truly called, being two hundred years of age or thereabout:
and full of days; lived out all his days, the full term of
life in common, and longer than it was usual for men to live. He had a long
life to satisfaction, as is promised, Psalm 91:16. He
lived as long as he desired to live, was quite satisfied with living; not that
he loathed life, as he once did, and in that sense he did, and from such
principles and with such views as he then had, Job 7:15. But he
had enough of life, and was willing to die; and came to his grave, as Eliphaz
said, "like a shock of corn in his season", Job 5:26.
AdrichomiusF2Theatrum Terrae S. p. 93. , from certain travellers,
speaks of the sepulchre of Job, in the form of a pyramid, in the plains of the
land of Uz, to the east of the city Sueta, shown to this day, and had in great
honour by Greeks and others; and which is more probable than what some sayF3Juchasin,
fol. 9. 2. , that his grave is in Constantinople, where there is a gate called
Job's gate, from thence: but the Job there buried was a general of the
Saracens, who died besieging that city with a numerous army, and was there
buried, A. D. 675F4Schindler. Lexic. Pentaglott. col. 64. . There is
a fragment at the end of the Septuagint and Arabic versions of this book, said
to be translated from a Syriac copy, which gives a very particular account of
Job's descent as,
"that
he dwelt in the land of Ausitis, on the borders of Idumaea and Arabia; that his
name was first Jobab; that he married an Arabian woman, and begot a son, whose
name was Ennon; that his father was Zare, a son of the sons of Esau; that his
mother was Bosorra (or Bosra); and that he was the fifth from Abraham. And
these are the kings that reigned in Edom, which country he reigned over; the
first was Balac, the son of Beor, the name of whose city was Dennaba; after
Balac, Jobab, called Job; after him Asom, who was governor in the country of
Theman; after him Adad, the son of Barad, who cut off Midian in the field of
Moab, the name of whose city was Gethaim. The friends that came to him (Job)
were Eliphaz, of the sons of Esau, the king of the Themanites; Baldad, king of
the Sauchseans; and Sophar, king of the Minaeans.'
The
substance of this is confirmed by Aristaeus, Philo, and PolyhistorF5Apud
Euseb. Praepar. Evangel. l. 9. c. 25. , ancient historians.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)