Neither let me give flattering titles - I will not give epithets to any man that are not descriptive of his true state. I will not beguile him by telling him he is what he is not. אכנה acanneh, from כנה canah, is generally supposed to signify to surname, to put a name to or upon a name, as the French word surnom implies. It means to give proud titles to persons who are worthless. It is well known that the Arabs make court to their superiors by carefully avoiding to address them by their proper names, instead of which they salute them with some title or epithet expressive of respect - Scott See below. Titles expressive of office, ecclesiastical, civil, or military, are always proper, and never forbidden, because they serve for distinction; but the Asiatic titles are in general bombastically and sinfully complimentary. The reader will find several specimens at the end of this chapter.
Verse 22
My Maker would soon take me away - Were I to copy this conduct while under the influence which I now feel, God might justly consume me as in a moment. He is my Maker; he made me to know truth, to tell truth, and to live according to truth; for he is the God of truth: I shall, therefore through his help, speak the Truth, the Whole Truth, and Nothing but the Truth.
We find from the above that vain titles of ceremony, expressive of the most eminent qualities, were given to worthless men, from time immemorial; and no wonder, for hypocrisy entered into man at the same time that sin entered into the world.
Of the flattering titles used in the East, I shall give a few specimens from the (Arabic) Kooayid us Sultanet Shah Jehan, or, "The Rules observed during the Reign of the Mogul Emperor Shah Jehan."
Speaking of the emperor, he is entitled, "The Sun which illuminates the firmament in the universe of royalty and dominion; the Moon, which irradiates the sky of monarchy and felicity; the King who in pomp resembles Gem-sheed. His hand is boundless as the ocean in bestowing bounties, being the key of the gates of kindness and liberality!" Again: - "The Sun of the heaven of prosperity and empire, the Shadow of God, the Asylum of the Universe, the splendor of whose instructive front causes light and gladness to the world and to mankind." "The just and vigilant Monarch; the Asylum of Truth, the Refuge of the World; the Diffuser of Light, the Solver of all human difficulties." "The Lord of the Age, who is endowed with such perfect excellence, both in internal and external qualifications, that on all occasions he holds fast the thread of good counsel, prudence, and purity of morals." "The faculty of apprehension is possessed by him in such a degree, that before the matter ha s scarcely obtained utterance he comprehends the purport, and gives answers with the tongue of inspiration."
Addresses to Persons of Distinction "Let them convey to the presence of glorious empire, the Sultan, in pomp like Solomon, the center of the universe, powerful as heaven!" "Let them who kiss the carpet of the palace, in pomp like heaven, convey this letter to his majesty, whose sight is as creative as alchymy, king of kings, the asylum of the world!" "To the exalted presence, which gratifies the desires of all people, the most beneficent of the age, the vizier, protector of the universe, may the Almighty perpetuate his fortune!" "May this letter be dignified in the presence of Naweeb Saheb, diffuser of benefits, of exalted pomp, the respectable, the discriminator of ranks! May his power increase!" "Let them convey this to the perusal of his excellency, conversant in realities and mysteries, the support of excellencies, the cream of his contemporaries, and the cherisher of the poor!"
These are a specimen of the flattering titles given in the East to persons in eminent stations. Their kings they clothe in all the attributes of the Deity, when both in their public and private character they are corrupt and unholy, rascals in grain, and the ruthless oppressors of suffering humanity.
Introduction
Elihu offers himself in God's stead to reason with Job in meekness and sincerity, [Job 33:1-7]. Charges Job with irreverent expressions, [Job 33:8-12]. Vindicates the providence of God, and shows the various methods which he uses to bring sinners to himself: - By dreams and visions, [Job 33:13-15]; by secret inspirations, [Job 33:16-18]; by afflictions, [Job 33:19-22]; by messengers of righteousness, [Job 33:23]; and by the great atonement, [Job 33:24]. How and from what God redeems men, and the blessings which he communicates, [Job 33:25-30]. Job is exhorted to listen attentively to Elihu's teaching, [Job 33:31-33].
Verse 3
My words shall be of the uprightness - As God has given me his Spirit, from that Spirit alone will I speak; therefore all my words shall be of uprightness, knowledge, and truth.
Knowledge clearly - דעת ברור daath barur, pure science. I shall lay down no false positions, and I shall have no false consequences.
Verse 4
The Spirit of God hath made me - Another plain allusion to the account of the creation of man, [Gen 2:7], as the words נשמת nishmath, the breath or breathing of God, and תחיני techaiyeni, hath given me life, prove: "He breathed into his nostrils the breath of lives, and he became a living soul."
Verse 6
I am according to thy wish in God's stead: I also am formed out of the clay - Mr. Good, and before him none other that I have seen, has most probably hit the true meaning: - "Behold, I am thy fellow.
I too was formed by God out of the clay."
The word כפיך kephicha, which we translate according to thy wish, and which, if Hebrew, would mean like to thy mouth; he considers as pure Arabic, with a Hebrew postfix, (Arabic) kefoo, signifying fellow, equal, like. Taken in this way, the passage is very plain, only לאל lael, by or through God, must be added to the last clause of the verse instead of the first, as Mr. Good has properly done.
Verse 7
My terror shall not make thee afraid - This is an allusion to what Job had said, [Job 9:34] : "Let him take his rod away from me, and let not his fear terrify me." Being thy equal, no fear can impose upon thee so far as to overawe thee; so that thou shouldst not be able to conduct thy own defense. We are on equal terms; now prepare to defend thyself.
Verse 8
Surely thou hast spoken - What Elihu speaks here, and in the three following verses, contains, in general, simple quotations from Job's own words, or the obvious sense of them, as the reader may see by referring to [Job 13:27] (note); [Job 14:16] (note), and [Job 31:4] (note), and also to the notes on those passages.
Verse 11
He putteth my feet in the stocks - See the note on [Job 13:27].
Verse 12
In this thou art not just - Thou hast laid charges against God's dealings, but thou hast not been able to justify those charges; and were there nothing else against thee, these irreverent speeches are so many proofs that thou art not clear in the sight of God.
Verse 13
Why dost thou strive against him? - Is it not useless to contend with God? Can he do any thing that is not right? As to his giving thee any account of the reasons why he deals thus and thus with thee, or any one else, thou needest not expect it; he is sovereign, and is not to be called to the bar of his creatures. It is sufficient for thee to know that "he is too wise to err, and too good to be unkind."
Verse 14
For God speaketh once - Though he will not be summoned to the bar of his creatures, nor condescend to detail the reasons of his conduct, which they could not comprehend, yet he so acts, in the main, that the operation of his hand and the designs of his counsel may sufficiently appear, provided men had their eyes open upon his ways, and their hearts open to receive his influence. Elihu, having made the general statement that God would not come to the bar of his creatures to give account of his conduct, shows the general means which he uses to bring men to an acquaintance with themselves and with him: he states these in the six following particulars, which may be collected from [Job 33:15-24].
Verse 15
I. In a Dream
In a Dream - when deep sleep falleth upon men - Many, by such means, have had the most salutary warnings; and to decry all such, because there are many vain dreams, would be nearly as much wisdom as to deny the Bible, because there are many foolish books, the authors of which supposed they were under a Divine influence while composing them.
II. In a Vision
In a Vision of the night - in slumberings upon the bed - Visions or images presented in the imagination during slumber, when men are betwixt sleeping and waking, or when, awake and in bed, they are wrapt up in deep contemplation, the darkness of the night having shut out all objects from their sight, so that the mind is not diverted by images of earthly things impressed on the senses. Many warnings in this way have come from God; and the impression they made, and the good effect they produced, were the proofs of their Divine origin. To deny this would be to call into doubt the testimony of the best, wisest, and holiest men in all ages of the Church. Of one of these visions we have a remarkable account in this book, [Job 4:12-21]. And this vision seems to have taken place in the night season, when Eliphaz awoke from a deep sleep. There is this difference between the accidents of the dream and the vision: the former takes place when deep sleep falleth upon men; the latter, in the night, in or after slumberings upon the bed.
Verse 16
III. By secret Inspirations
Then he openeth the ears of men, and sealeth, etc. - A dream or a vision simply considered is likely to do no good; it is the opening of the understanding, and the pouring in of the light, that make men wise to salvation. Serious alarms, holy purposes, penitential pangs for past sins, apprehension of death and judgment, discoveries of God's justice, of Christ's love, of the world's vanity, of heaven's excellence, etc., etc., etc., are often used by the Divine Spirit to withdraw men from their evil purpose, and to hide pride from man, [Job 33:17]; and of all these openings of the ear of the heart, and sealing instructions upon the conscience, we have numerous examples in the history of the Church, in the experience of good men, and even in the civil and providential history of all nations.
Verse 18
He keepeth back his soul from the pit - By the above means, how many have been snatched from an untimely death! By taking the warning thus given, some have been prevented from perishing by the pit - some sudden accident; and others from the sword of the assassin or nocturnal murderer. It would be easy to give examples, in all these kinds; but the knowledge of the reader may save this trouble to the commentator.
Verse 19
IV. By Afflictions
He is chastened also with pain upon his bed, etc. - Afflictions are a fourth means which God makes use of to awaken and convert sinners. In the hand of God these were the cause of the salvation of David, as himself testifies: Before I was afflicted, I went astray, [Psa 119:67], [Psa 119:71], [Psa 119:75].
The multitude of his bones - By such diseases, especially those of a rheumatic kind, when to the patient's apprehension every bone is diseased, broken, or out of joint.