Babylonish captivity; alledging, " that frequent Chaldaisms, as the plural t for are to be found in it; that some paffages are taken from "the Pfalms, Proverbs, and Ecclefiaftes; that there are more than a hun"dred words, partly Syriac, partly Arabic, which are not to be found "in the other parts of Scripture; which are all figns that the author "lived in the later times, when many words, borrowed from the idiom "of the neighbouring nations, were admited into the Hebrew."

It is one mark of the fimplicity of very ancient times, that in the inventory of Job's eftate, no mention is made of money, but only of oxen, fheep, camels, affes, fervants. And Grotius himfelf owns, "That there " is no mention in the book of Job of any law, or religious rites, but "fuch as were traditional, [chap. viii. 8, 9, 10. xv. 18, 19. xxii. 15, 16.] nor of any points of hiftory, nor of any idolatrous practices, but "fuch as were of the more ancient times, before the Mofaic inftitution. [Chap. xx. 4, 5, meaning Adam. xxii. 15, 16.] And that the length "of Job's life, extended to about 200 years, agrees alfo with the fame "times; that the country where it happened was Arabia, as appears, "not only from the names of places, Uz, Teman, Shuhah, but from the

many Arabic words here ufed." And might not Grotius from hence have fairly and ftrongly concluded, that the writer was an Arabian? No. He faith," it was written by fome Hebrew." Why fo? Becaufe Arabia, Job's country, is called the Eaft. Chap. i. 3. And it was ufual with the Hebrews to call Arabia the Eaft, as he has fhewn upon Mat. ii. 1. But the Arabian Magi themfelves, in the next verfe, call their own country Arabia, the Eaft; and fo might Job, or any other Arabian in Job's time. The Eaft-country was the common name of Arabia, as the Weft-country is the general name of one part of England. Many words, ufed in this book, are not to be found in other parts of Scripture. The reafon is, because it is fo ancient, that fome words therein are grown obfolete, and their true meaning is hard to be recovered. It is therefore the moft difficult, because it is the moft ancient book in the facred code. Had it been wrote in later times, the language would have been more intelligible.

It is no argument that the author of this book took fimilar or fame expreffions from David's or Solomon's writings, [compare Pfalm cvii. 40. with Job xii. 21, 24.] becaufe it is more probable, that David and Solomon borrowed fuch expreffions from the book of Job. [Compare Fob xxxix. 33. Mat. xxiv. 28.] Schultens, a very good judge, affirms, that the ftyle of the book hath all the marks of a moft venerable and remote antiquity; and that the Chaldaifms, as fome call them, particularly the plurals in are true Hebrew and Arabic, and that of the most ancient ftamp. Fob is honorably mentioned with Noah and Daniel, Ezek. xiv. 12-20. Hence it follows, (1.) That Fab is no fictitious character, but a real perfon, as truly as Noah and Daniel. (2.) That he was, as well as they, a perfon of diftinguished piety. (3.) That he was well known and celebrated as fuch amongst the Jews, to whom Ezekiel's prophecy was directed. (4.) That he muft either have been of the feed of Ifrael, or, like Noah, of the Patriarchal times; otherwife the Jews, feparated from, and raised in spiritual privileges above all other nations,

would

would never have proposed to themselves one of their Gentile, uncircumcifed neighbours, of whom they had a mean opinion, as an example of the greatest piety, nor have admited his story into their Canon. If he was of the Patriarchal times (for an Ifraelite he could not be) he must have been at the diftance of about a thousand years before Ezekiel. Meer oral tradition of fuch a perfon could not have fubfifted through fo long a fpace of time, without appearing, at laft, as uncertain or fabulous. There muft, therefore, have been some history of Job in Ezekiel's time; no other hiftory, but that which we now have, and which has always had a place in the Hebrew code, was ever heard of, or pretended. Therefore this must be the history of Job in Ezekiel's time; and which muft have been generally known, and read as true and authentic, and, confequently, muft have been wrote near to the age in which the fact was tranfacted, and not in after times, when its credibility would have been greatly diminished.

In fhort, fhould I aver, that this is the oldest and noblest book in the world, I fhould have the vote of all the beft critics; and the very frame and caft of the book itself would justify the affertion.

CH A P. XXIII.

Of JOB's Cafe and Character.

**HE Book of Job is the Hiftory of a real fufferer, Job; and the T Substance of a real conversation with his friends, about his fufferings, in a poetic drefs. Job was a prince of the greatest eminence, wealth, and authority among the people of the eaft; whofe piety and integrity equalled his temporal grandeur, chap. i. 1, 2, 3; of the ftricteft religion and virtue; the patron of the injured poor and fatherless; the fcourge of injuftice and oppreffion; highly honored and esteemed by the good, revered and dreaded by the vicious and profane. Chapters xxix. and xxxi. This man fo good, and fo glorious, was, by the Divine Permiffion, and malice of the Devil, at once reduced to the moft indigent and deplorable circumftances, ftript of all his fubftance, bereaved of all his children, seven fons and three daughters, and, soon after, seized with a moft noifom and painful disease, from head to foot; which rendered him the most shocking spectacle of forrow and wretchedness. The country, fo far as the fame of his grandeur and religion had spread, would be full of his story and of aftonishment. The religious would be inclined to conclude, that fuch fignal and fudden calamities, could be no other than the judgments of God upon a man, who, under the mask of religion, had concealed a wicked and profligate life. The wicked and profane would triumph in his sufferings, as a juftifica tion of their own bad principles and practices, and as a demonftration

of

of the infignificancy of the ftricteft regards to God and his worship. Chap. xvi. 9, 10, 11. xvii. 6. His relations and acquaintance, ftruck with horror and averfion to fuch a despicable, vile, abandoned creature, would not own him. His wife and family treated him with unkindness and neglect, chap. xix. 13-19. The bafeft of men broke in upon him like a legion of fiends, made his afflictions their merriment, treated him with all manner of indignities, calumnies, and flander; and even fpared not to fpit in his face, chap. xxx. 1-15. Scarce ever were the feelings of the human heart oppreffed with fuch a complicated load of grief; scarce ever was a profeffion of religion so much expofed to cenfure, reproach, and insult.

And how did the good man bear all this? With heroic bravery, that is to fay, with a patience as fteady and uniform as human infirmity will admit. [Patience is fincere adherence to God and duty, under all difficulties and difcouragements; and the ground of patience is faith, or a full perfuafion of the power, goodness, and wisdom of God.] When his calamities, the lofs of his numerous herds, flocks and fervants, and of his dearest children, partly by the hands of violence, partly by lightening and ftorm; when these calamities rufhed upon him like an inundation, though he felt all the pangs of the most grievous affliction, and used such expreffions of his doleful cafe, as were customary at that time; [Chap. i. 20. rent his mantle, fhaved his head, fell down upon the ground, chap. ii. 8, 12. Sprinkled duft upon their heads; See 1 Sam. iv. 12. 2 Sam. xiii. 19. Josh. vii. 6. Ezek. xxvii. 30. Iliad xviii. 22.] yet he behaved like a wife and good man, proftrating himself upon the ground in a humble sense of his own unworthiness, and a patient fubmiffion to the Will of God, compofing his mind into a calm and quiet adoration of his fupreme Dominion and unblemished Juftice, chap. i. 20, 21. "I came," faith he, "by the "Divine Will into the world, a naked helpless creature; and by the "fame Will I must shortly return to the duft. I am bereaved of my "most valuable and deareft temporal enjoyments, but by the permiffion ❝of a wife and righteous God. His own he gave; his own, for wife "ends, he hath taken away. I acquiefce in his Sovereign Difpofals,

and adore the inconteftible purity and righteoufnefs of his dealings "with me." O brave Soul! O happy Man, who could keep up good thoughts of God, and communion with him under the fharpeft itrokes of his rod!

-When covered over with painful boyls, in the place and pofture of an humble penitent, he was probably pouring out his fubmiffions and fupplications to Heaven, his wife fpared not to reproach him with his prepofterous godlinefs. Chap. ii. 9, 10. Doft thou ftill retain thine integrity by bleffing God, and dying? q. d. "Will you bless God when he is deftroying you? Will you call upon him, and believe he is good, when he "hath ruined your eftate and family, and, in fpite of all your humble "fubmiffions, is flaughtering your body, and within a stroke of your "life?" But Job returned no other than a mild answer, as became a good man, and affectionate husband. "You fpeak not like yourself," faid he," but as a woman void of underftanding. Is it fit God fhould "always fimile upon finful creatures? Shall we fay, he is not just when "he brings us into affictions? We receive what pleaseth us with joy,

"and

"and it is but reasonable that we receive what is ungrateful with a calm "refignation; feeing both come from the fame Wife and Sovereign "Difpofer of all things." Still Fab is patient, and, under every trial, adheres to God and duty.

2

The composure and steadiness of his mind was more feverely tried by his three friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, men of the fame rank, and of like good fenfe and piety; who dwelt in fome of the adjacent provinces, and in whofe familiarity he had, probably, been long happy. The report of his fufferings, of the ruin of his character, and the wound thereby given to religion, having reached their ears, they agreed, with a fincere intention, to join their endeavours in adminiftering the only ad vice and confolation, they apprehended, his cafe would admit. For, as the fufpicions were very strong, and his calamities carried evident marks of Divine Inflictions, they had the fame opinion of them with the reft of the world, and believed they were the juft judgments of God upon a hypocrite, and therefore were determined, by all means, to fix a sense of guilt upon his confcience, in order to bring him to true repentance, and so to a folid intereft in the Divine Favor and bleffing. But when they were come, and had found their late flourishing, honorable, and highly esteemed friend, reduced to the moft lothfome and miferable wretch, that was fiting in the afhes, they were astonished beyond expreffion; and being confirmed in their evil fufpicions, though they fat with him on the ground, yet, as their bad opinion of him would not allow them to fay any thing comfortable and incouraging, they chose to fay nothing at all for seven or several days together, chap. ii. 12. fight of his old acquaintance, and their unfavorable manner of condolence, raised his paffion of forrow to fuch a pitch, that it burft out into a torrent of the most bitter reflections upon his birth-day; wishing it were struck out of the number of days, or rendered as odious and deteftable to all others, as it was to himself.

The

Upon this, Eliphaz, probably the oldeft and moft honorable of the three, addreffed himfelf to Job, and, in the fofteft manner, openeth their fense of his cafe; namely, that, in their apprehenfions, he had been very defective in the character to which he had pretended; that great fufferings must be the punishment of great fins; and that they could recommend to him no other method of regaining his former peace and profperity, but repentance, and feeking unto God for pardon. In fhort, they foon declared plainly, that they judged he had been a very wicked man, and that his calamities were an evident indication of the wrath of God against him as fuch. This Job flatly denied, and this is the matter in difpute between him and his friends. Which dispute, as is usual in fuch cafes, was carried on with a growing eagerness and heat on both fides; and on both fides might occafion fome expreffions too ftrong and exagerating.

His friends argue from experience, and what they had observed to be the ufual method of Divine Providence. They had feen many inftances of wicked men, or of those who had paffed for fuch, remarkably punifhed; and hence they formed to themselves a general maxim, that where they saw great wretchedness and sufferings, there must be crimes proportionably great. To this Job also opposes observation and expe

rience;

rience; and fhews, that the rule of judging, they had formed to themfelvos, was by no means right, or without exception. That good men were fometimes afflicted, and the wicked flourishing and happy; and that, for the most part, things were dealt out here promifcuously. That this was more especially obfervable in times of war and peftilence, and fuch other sweeping calamities, where the good and bad fall undistinguished. chap. ix. 22, 23. To all which he adds, that it was a very heavy aggravation of his mifery, to hear his friends, fo well acquainted with him, men of sense and distinction, charge him with crimes which his foul abhorred, and of which God, who had afflicted him, knew that he was innocent. To him he would appeal, and still adhere in life and death, though he did not know why he had dealt so severely with him. And fo ftrongly did Job affert the integrity of his religion and virtue, (chapters xxix. and xxxi.) that his friends, though perhaps not convinced, were however put to filence. (Chap. xxxii. 1.)

Upon this, Elihu, a young man of good understanding, who, probably, with others, was a bystander and witnefs to this debate, (chap. xxxii. 15.) acts as moderator between Job and his friends, and cenfures both very freely and judicioufly; only he charges Job with no crime as the cause of his afflictions, but thinks he had not managed the dispute about them with so much calmness and fubmiffion to God as became his piety.

Finally, the Lord answered fob out of the whirlwind, (the Septuagint add, and clouds) a token of the Divine Prefence. So Ezekiel's vifions were introduced, Ezek. i. 4. And I looked, and behold, a whirlwind came out of the North, a great cloud and a fire. Perhaps, Elihu saw this token of the Divine Prefence approaching. Fob xxxvii. 22, &c. Fair weather [ant gold, fplendor, the fplendor of the Divine Prefence. See Schultens in loc.] cometh [ will come, or is coming, speedily,] out of the North; with God is terrible Majefty. The fpeech of Deity, (chap. xxxviii. xxxix. xl. xli.) most inimitably grand and sublime, representing the vast extent of the Divine Wisdom and power in the works of creation, which Job and his friends had well ftudied, and from which they knew how to deduce proper conclufions, fhews, 1. That all things in the skie, the air, the earth, the sea, are produced and disposed in a manner far beyond the reach of human wifdom and power. Confequently, 2. That man is not qualified to difpose of himself, or of any other being. That God may have wife and good reasons for his ways and works, and dealings with us, which we cannot comprehend; and therefore it is our duty, in all cafes, to acquiefce and fubmit. 3. That he who has given various natures and inftincts to animals, can give being and life, when and where, and in what degree he pleases. 4. That he is present to, cares for, fuftains and directs every living thing; and therefore that we ought to trust in him for a happy iffue of any of his inflictions. 5. That the wifest of men fhould be very cautious and modest in censuring the ways of Providence.

Chap. xlii. Job humbleth himself before God, facrificeth for his friends; his family is restored, his estate is doubled,

RULES