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Job Chapter
Two
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO JOB 2
This
chapter gives an account of a second trial of Job's constancy and integrity
the time and occasion of it
Job 2:1; the motion
made for it by Satan
which being granted
he smote him from head to foot with
sore boils
which he endured very patiently
Job 2:4; during
which sad affliction he is urged by his wife to give up his integrity
which he
bravely resisted
Job 2:9; and the
chapter is concluded with an account of a visit of three of Job's friends
and
of their conduct and behaviour towards him
Job 2:11.
Job 2:1 Again
there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord
and Satan
came also among them to present himself before the Lord.
YLT
1And the day is
that sons
of God come in to station themselves by Jehovah
and there doth come also the
Adversary in their midst to station himself by Jehovah.
Again
there was a day
when the sons of God came to present
themselves before the Lord
.... When good men
professors of religion
met together by agreement to worship the Lord; the Targum calls them companies
of angels
interpreting the words of them
and of their standing before the
Lord
as most interpreters do; how long this time of their meeting was from the
former cannot be said
probably but a few days
a week or fortnight at most;
the Targum says
it was on the day of the great judgment
and which
as in Job 1:6; was at the
beginning of the year; so that according to this
and other Jewish writers
there was a whole year between this and the former meeting
and so between the
first and second trial of Job; but this is not likely
since Satan would never
give him so much breathing time; nor can it be thought that Job's friends
should stay so long before they paid him a visit
which was not till after this
day:
and Satan came also among them to present himself before the Lord; being either
obliged to it upon a summons to appear before God
and give an account of what
he had been doing on the earth
and especially to Job; or rather he came
willingly
seeking an opportunity to continue his charge against Job
and to
accuse him afresh
and get his commission enlarged to do him more mischief
which he could not do without a fresh grant.
Job 2:2 2 And the Lord said to Satan
“From where do you come?” Satan answered the Lord and said
“From going to and fro on the earth
and from walking back and forth on it.”
YLT
2And Jehovah saith unto the
Adversary
`Whence camest thou?' And the Adversary answereth Jehovah and saith
`From going to and fro in the land
and from walking up and down in it.'
And the Lord said unto Satan
whence camest thou?.... The same
question is put to him
and the same answer is returned by him; See Gill on Job 1:7.
Job 2:3 3 Then the Lord said to Satan
“Have you considered My servant Job
that there is none like him on the
earth
a blameless and upright man
one who fears God and shuns evil? And still
he holds fast to his integrity
although you incited Me against him
to destroy
him without cause.”
YLT
3And Jehovah saith unto the
Adversary
`Hast thou set thy heart unto My servant Job because there is none
like him in the land
a man perfect and upright
fearing God and turning aside
from evil? and still he is keeping hold on his integrity
and thou dost move Me
against him to swallow him up for nought!'
And the Lord said unto Satan
hast thou considered my servant Job
that there is none like him in the earth
a perfect and an upright man
one that feareth God
and escheweth evil?.... The same with this
is also before put unto Satan
and the same character given of Job
which is
here continued and confirmed
with an addition to it; for Job was no loser
but
a gainer in his character by his afflictions and trials:
and still he holdeth fast his integrity. The first man
Adam was made upright
but by sinning he lost his integrity
and since the fall
there is none in man naturally; it is only to be found in regenerate and
renewed persons
who have right spirits renewed in them; by which principle of
grace wrought in them they become upright in heart
and walk uprightly. The
word used signifies "perfection"F15תמתו
του τελειοτητος
Polychronius in Drusius; "perfectionem suam"
Pagninus
Montanus
Mercerus.
which Job had not in himself
but in Christ; though it may denote
the truth and sincerity of his grace
and the uprightness of his walk
and the
simplicity of his conversation
the bias of his mind
and the tenor of his
conduct and behaviour towards God and men; this principle he retained
this
frame and disposition of soul continued with him
and he acted up to it in all
things; he held fast his faith and confidence in the Lord his God
and he
professed his cordial love and sincere affection for God
and his filial fear
and reverence of him; and this he did still
notwithstanding all the assaults
and temptations of Satan
and all the sore afflictions and trials he met with;
an instance this of persevering grace
and of the truth of what Job after
expresses
Job 17:9; and this
he did
even says the Lord to Satan:
although thou movedst me against him
to destroy him without cause; not that
Satan could work upon God as he does upon men
both good and bad
especially
the latter; nor could he so work upon him as to cause him to change his mind
and will
who is unchangeable in his nature and purposes; but the sense is
he
made a motion to him
he proposed it
requested and entreated
and did not
barely propose it
but urged it with importunity
was very solicitous to have
it done; and he prevailed and succeeded according to God's own determinate
counsel and will
though only in part; for he moved him to "destroy
him"
himself
his body
if not his soul; for this roaring lion seeks to
devour men
even the sheep and lambs of Christ's flock: or "to swallow him
up"F16לבלעו "ad deglutiendum
eum"
Montanus; "ad illum absorbendum"
Schultens; "ut
absorberem eum"
Michaelis.
as the word signifies; that he might be
delivered to him
who would make but one morsel of him
swallow him up alive
as a lion any creature
or any other beast of prey. Mr. Broughton renders it
"to undo him"; and we say of a man
when he has lost his substance
that he is undone; and in this sense Job was destroyed or undone
for he had
lost his all: and this motion was made "without cause"
there was no
just reason for it; what Satan suggested
and the calumny he cast upon Job
was
not supported by him
he could give no proof nor evidence of it; and it was in
the issue and event "in vain"
as the wordF17חנם διακενης
Sept.
"frustra"
V. L. Junius & Tremellius
may be rendered; for he did
not appear
notwithstanding all that was done to him
to be the man Satan said
he was
nor to do the things
or say the words
Satan said he would.
Job 2:4 4 So Satan answered the Lord and said
“Skin for skin! Yes
all that a man has he will give for his life.
YLT
4And the Adversary answereth
Jehovah and saith
`A skin for a skin
and all that a man hath he doth give for
his life.
And Satan answered the Lord
and said
.... Satan
would not as yet own that Job was the man the Lord had described; but still
would suggest
that he was a selfish and mercenary man
and that what had been
done to him was not a sufficient trial of his integrity; the thing had not been
pushed far and close enough to discover him; he had lost indeed his substance
and most of his servants
and all his children
but still he had not only his
own life
but his health and ease; and so long as he enjoyed these he would
serve God
though only for the sake of them: and therefore
says he
as it is
usually and proverbially said:
skin for skin
yea
all that a man hath will he give for his life; the Targum
is
"member for member;'which the Jewish commentators
many of them
explain thus
that if a man's head or his eyes are in danger
he will lift up
his hand or his arm
and expose that in order to save the other; but the word
is generally used of the skin
and so it may in this sense; and mean the skin
of his hand
as a shield for the skin of his head or eye
as Gussetius observesF18Ebr.
Comment. p. 582. : some understand it of the skins of others for his own skin
which he will part with
that he may keep that; nay
he will give all that he
is possessed of for the preservation of his life
so dear is that unto him;
meaning either the skins of beasts
in whom the principal substance of men
consisted in those times and countries
and whose skins slain for food
and in
sacrifice
might be of worth and value
and used in traffic; or
as others
think
money cut out of leather made of skins is meant
which a man would part
with
even all such money he had in the world
and even his
"suppellex"
or all the goods of his house
for to save his life: or
the sense is
that Job would not only give the skins of his beasts
even of all
that he had
for his own skin
but the skins of his servants
nay
of his own
children
provided he could but keep his own skin; and hereby Satan suggests
that Job did not regard the loss his cattle
nor of his servants
nor even of
his children
so long as he had his own life and health; and thus represents
him as a lover of himself
and as cruel and hardhearted
and without natural
affections to his children; the contrary to which is very manifest from Job 1:5; or rather
this designs his own skin
and may be rendered
"skin upon skin"
or
"skin even unto skin"
or "skin within skin"F19עור בעד עור
"cutim super cute"
Schultens. ; for man has two skins
an inward and
an outward one
called the "cutis" and "cuticula"
"derma" and "epidermis"; the latter is of a whitish colour
and is properly the covering of the skin
is very thin
and void of sensationF20Vid
Bartholin. Anatomia Reform. l. 1. c. 1. & 9.
which may be raised up by a
blister
and taken off without pain; but the other is reddish
and very
sensible of pain
and cannot be taken off without putting a man to the most
exquisite misery; and yet a man will part with both skins
and if he had ever
so many
or he willing to be put to the greatest torment
rather than part with
his life: and to this one point all the above senses
and others given by
interpreters
tend
namely
to observe how precious the life of man is to him;
and if this was all that Satan meant
it is very trite; but he seems to
insinuate something more
and that is
that any man
and so Job though reckoned
a good man
would not only part with all the skins he had
and the substance he
was possessed of
to save his life
but he would part with his God
and his
religion
and the profession of it
for the sake of it
which is false; for
there is something more valuable than life to good men; they reckon the loving
kindness of God better than life
and would sooner lose their lives than risk
the danger of losing their interest in it; and are willing to part with their
lives for the sake of God and true religion
for the sake of Christ and his
Gospel
and for his cause and interest
as many have done.
Job 2:5 5 But stretch out Your hand
now
and touch his bone and his flesh
and he will surely curse You to Your
face!”
YLT
5Yet
put forth
I pray
Thee
Thy hand
and strike unto his bone and unto his flesh -- if not: unto Thy
face he doth bless Thee!'
But put forth thine hand now
and touch his bone and his flesh
.... That is
his body
which consisted of flesh and bones; these are the constituent parts
of the body
and which distinguish it from spirit
Luke 24:39; this is
the motion made by Satan for a second trial of Job's integrity; he moves that
God would take off his hand of providence over him
which secured his health
unto him
and stretch his hand of power upon him
and fill his flesh with
diseases
and his bones with rottenness; or break them
and touch him to the
quick
to the marrow
which gives exquisite pain; or by his bone may be meant
him himselfF21So Gussetius and Genevenses
in ib. p. 630. :
and he will curse thee to thy face; he will fly in thy face
arraign thy providence
and call in question thy wisdom
justice
truth
and
faithfulness: or he will "bless thee"F23יברכך "benedicet tibi"
Piscator
Cocceius
Schmidt.
and take his farewell of theeF24"Te valere
jubebit"
Schultens.
and have nothing more to do with thee or religion;
if he does not do this
for something is to be understood
the words being an
imprecation
let me be in a worse condition than I am at present; let me not
have the liberty of ranging about in the earth
to do the mischief I delight
in; let me bound
and cast into the bottomless pit before my time
or be thrown
into the lake burning with fire and brimstone
where I know I must be forever.
Job 2:6 6 And the Lord said to Satan
“Behold
he is in your hand
but spare his life.”
YLT
6And Jehovah saith unto the
Adversary
`Lo
he [is] in thy hand; only his life take care of.'
And the Lord said unto Satan
behold
he is in thine hand
.... Well may
a behold be prefixed to this
it being matter of wonder and astonishment that a
saint and servant of God should be permitted to be in the hand of Satan; which
yet must not be so understood; as if he was off of
and no more upon the heart
of God; or as if he was out of the hands of God
and out of the hands of Christ;
or as if he was become Satan's property
and a child of his; for neither of
these can be true of a good man: nothing can separate him from the love of God;
not Satan and all his principalities and powers; nor can men or devils pluck
them out of his hands
nor out of the hands of his son; nor can those who are
the children of God be any more the servants of sin
or the vassals of Satan;
or in other words
nor can any of them be a child of God one day
and a child
of the devil the next
which is the divinity of some men: nor is the sense of
this passage
that Satan had leave to do with Job as he pleased
for then he
would have utterly destroyed him; but the power granted him was a limited one
as follows:
but save his life: or "soul"F25את נפשו "animum ejus"
Pagninus
Montanus
Cocccius
Schmidt
Schultens. ; which some understand of
his rational soul
that which remains after death
and which
MaimonidesF26Moreh
Nevochim
par. 3. c. 22. p. 398. observes
Satan has no power over; and
according to some the meaning is
do not disturb his mind to distraction
so as
to deprive him of his senses
and of the exercise of his rational powers
which
through the influence of Satan men have sometimes lost; see Mark 5:4; this is
barred against in the permission granted; for otherwise it would not have been
a proper trial of Job's integrity; for
should he have been deprived of his
reason
and uttered ever such bad things
it would have been no proof of his
insincerity; as may be observed in good men in a delirium
they will utter bad
words
and do or attempt to do bad things
which is not to be ascribed to their
want of grace
but to their want of reason: but rather "life" is meant;
not Job's spiritual life
for that was in no danger of being lost; all the
devils in hell cannot deprive a truly good man of his spiritual life; grace in
him is a well of living water
springing: up to eternal life; he can never die
the second death; his life is hid with Christ in God
and is bound up in the
bundle of life with the Lord his God
who so is out of the reach of Satan; but
corporeal life
which the devil by permission may take away
and is said to
have the power of death
which by leave he exercised over men
but here he is
restrained from it: Job's life must be spared
that it might fully appear he
got the victory over Satan
and stood in his integrity; and that he might still
glorify God in a course of afflictions he was yet to endure
in the exercise of
his faith
hope
love
patience
humility
submission
and resignation of his
will to God; and besides
his appointed time was not come
he had many more
days
months
and years
the number of which were with God
to live in the
world
as he accordingly did.
Job 2:7 7 So Satan went out from the
presence of the Lord
and struck Job with painful boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his
head.
YLT
7And the Adversary goeth
forth from the presence of Jehovah
and smiteth Job with a sore ulcer from the
sole of his foot unto his crown.
So went Satan forth from the presence of the Lord
.... With
leave and license
with power and authority
as the Targum; having got his
commission enlarged
on a fresh grant
to do more mischief to Job
he departed
directly and immediately
being eager to put in execution what he had a
permission to do; See Gill on Job 1:12
and smote Job with sore boils
from the sole of his foot unto his
crown: with hot and burning ulcers
such as were inflicted on the
Egyptians in the plague of the boils and blains
called the botch of Egypt
see
Exodus 9:10; it is
in the original text "with a bad boil"
or "the worst"F1בשחין רע "nicere malo"
Pagninus
Montanus
Piscator
Schmidt; "maligno"
Cocceius
Michaelis
"pessimo"
Junius & Tremellius
Schultens. ; it was as
it were but one boil; they stood so thick and close together
that they were as
one
reaching from head to foot
and spreading all over his body
so that there
was no part free; he was full of sores; as Lazarus
and to him may be applied
what is said in a figurative sense of the Jews
Isaiah 1:6; and
this boil or boils were of the worst sort
and most hot and angry
and gave the
most exquisite pain
and what Job was "smitten" with at once; they
did not rise up in pimples and pustules at the first
and gradually gathered
and came to an head
but he was at once covered with burning ulcers at their
height
and with running sores; this was done by Satan
through divine
permission; who
when he has leave
can inflict diseases on the bodies of men
as he did in the days of Christ on earth
see Matthew 17:15; some
Jewish writers
as R. Simeon
say
that the devil heated the air
and thereby
caused inflammation in Job's blood
which broke out in boils; but then this
would have affected others besides him: many are the conjectures of learned menF2Vid.
Reiskii dissert. de Morbo Jobi
in Thesaur. Dissert. Philolog. par. 1. p. 556.
about this disease of Job's
some taking it to be the leprosyF3Origen
contr. Cels. l. 6. p. 305. So Michaelis in Lowth. Praelect. de Sacr. Poes. Heb.
p. 182
201
202.
others the scurvy
others an erysipelas
&c. Bolducius
reckons up no less than fourteen diseases that are attributed to him
collected
from his own words
Job 7:5; a late
learned writerF4Delaney's Life of King David
vol. 2. p. 147. thinks
it was the smallpox.
Job 2:8 8 And he took for himself a
potsherd with which to scrape himself while he sat in the midst of the ashes.
YLT
8And he taketh to him a
potsherd to scrape himself with it
and he is sitting in the midst of the
ashes.
And he took him a potsherd to scrape himself withal
.... His mouth
was shut
his lips were silent
not one murmuring and repining word came from
him
amidst all this anguish and misery he must be in; much less anything that
looked like cursing God and blaspheming him
as some are said to do
because of
their pains and their sores
Revelation 16:11;
but Job bore his with the utmost patience; he took a piece of a broken pot
which perhaps lay in the ashes among which he sat
and scraped himself with it;
either as some think to allay the itching
or rather to remove the purulent
matter that ran from his boils; which he used instead of linen rags to wipe
them with
having no surgeon to come near him
to mollify his ulcers with
ointment
to supple them with oil
and lay healing plasters upon them; there
were none to do any of these things for him; his maids and his servants
and
even his wife
stood at some distance from him; the smell of him might be so
nauseous
that it was intolerable
he was obliged to do what was done himself
which is here mentioned; though it seems something strange and unnatural
considering his case; Schmidt thinks that this scraping was done by him as a
rite and ceremony used by mourners in those times and countries
and which Job
would not omit though his body was full of sores:
and he sat down among the ashes; which was often done in
cases of mourning and humiliation
see Jonah 3:6; and
which Job did to humble himself under the mighty hand of God upon him; whether
these ashes were outside or inside the house is not certain; some think they
were outside
and that he had no house to dwell in
nor bed to lie on
nor
couch to sit upon
and therefore was obliged to do as he did; but the contrary
is evident from Job 7:13; others
say
that his disease being the leprosy
he was obliged to sit alone and
outside; but it is not certain that that was his disease; and besides
the law
concerning lepers did not as yet exist; and had it
it would not have been
binding on Job
who was not of the Israelitish nation: the vulgar notion that
Job sat upon a dunghill outside the city has no other foundation than the
Septuagint version of this passage
which is a wrong one; for his sitting in
ashes
there might be a reason in nature
and it might be chosen on account of
his disease; for ashes are a drier
and an abstersive of ulcers
and GalenF6De
simpl. Med. ad Paternian. apud Schenchzer. Physic. Sacr. vol. 4. p. 661. says
they are used in fresh wounds to stop the flow of the blood.
Job 2:9 9 Then his wife said to him
“Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!”
YLT
9And his wife saith to him
`Still thou art keeping hold on thine integrity: bless God and die.'
Then said his wife to him
.... The JewsF7T.
Hieros. Sotah
fol. 20. 3.
who affect to know everything
say
that Job's
wife was Dinah
the daughter of Jacob
as the Targum
but this is not very
likely; however
we may observe that polygamy had not obtained in these early
times; Job had but one wife
and very probably she is the same that after all
this bore him ten children more; since we never read of her death
nor of his
having any other wife
and might be a good woman for anything that appears to
the contrary; and Job himself seems to intimate the same
though she was in the
dark about this providence
and under a sore temptation on that account; and
therefore says to her husband:
dost thou still retain thine integrity? not as
blaming him for insisting and leaning on his integrity
and justifying
and not
humbling himself before God
when he should rather confess his sins and prepare
for death; for this is contrary to the sense of the phrase used
Job 2:3; where Job
is applauded by the Lord himself for holding fast his integrity; nor will Job's
answer comport with this sense of her words; nor did she speak as wondering
that he should still retain it among so many sore temptations and afflictions;
though indeed persevering grace is a marvellous thing; but then he would never
have blamed her for such an expression: nor said she this as upbraiding and
reproaching him for his religion and continuance in it
and mocking at him
and
despising him on that account
as Michal did David; but as suggesting to him
there was nothing in religion
and advising him to throw up the profession of
it; for he might easily see
by his own case and circumstances
that God had no
more regard to good men than to bad men
and therefore it was in vain to serve
him; the temptation she laboured under was the same with that good man's
Asaph
Psalm 73:11
curse God
and die: which is usually interpreted
curse God and
then destroy thyself; or utter some such blasphemous words
as will either
provoke him to destroy thee
or will make thee liable to be taken notice of by
the civil magistrate and put to death for it; or do this in revenge for his hand
upon thee
and then die; or
though thou diest; but these are all too harsh and
wicked to be said by one that had been trained up in a religious manner
and
had been so many years the consort of so holy and good a man: the words may be
rendered
"bless God and die"F8ברך
אלהים "benedic Deo"
Montanus
Piscator
Schmidt
Michaelis. ; and may be understood either sarcastically
go on
blessing God till thou diest; if thou hast not had enough of it
take thy fill
of it
and see what will be the issue of it; nothing but death; wilt thou still
continue "blessing God and dying?" so someF9"Benedicendo
et moriendo"
Junius & Tremellius
Cocceius
Broughton. render the
words
referring to what he had said in Job 1:21; or else
really and sincerely
as advising him to humble himself before God
confess his
sins
and "pray"F11"Supplica Deo"
Tigurine
version; so some in Munster. unto him that he would take him out of this world
and free him from all his pains and sorrow; or rather the sense is
"bless
God": take thy farewell of himF12"Valere jubeas numen et
morere"
Schultens; "valedic Deo"
so some in Mercer. ; bid
adieu to him and all religion
and so die; for there is no good to be hoped for
on the score of that
here or hereafter; or at least not in this life: and so
it amounts to much the same as before; and this sense is confirmed by Job's
answer
which follows.
Job 2:10 10 But he said to her
“You
speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God
and shall we not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.
YLT
10And he saith unto her
`As
one of the foolish women speaketh
thou speakest; yea
the good we receive from
God
and the evil we do not receive.' In all this Job hath not sinned with his
lips.
But he said unto her
thou speakest as one of the foolish women
speaketh
.... The wicked and profane women of that age; he does not say
she was one of them
but spake like them; which intimates that she was a good
woman
and had always been thought to be so; but now spake not like herself
and one of her profession
but like carnal persons: Sanctius thinks Job refers
to the Idumean women
who
like other Heathens
when their god did not please
them
or they could not obtain of them what they desired
would reproach them
and cast them away from there
throw them into the fire
or into the water
as
the Persians are said to do; and so Job's wife
because of the present afflictive
providence
was for casting off God and all religion; in this she spake and
acted like those wicked people later observed
Job 21:14; and like
those carnal professors among the Jews in later times
Malachi 3:14; this
was talking foolishly
and Job's wife spake after this foolish manner
which he
resented:
what? this he said as being angry with her
and having indignation at
what she said; and therefore
in this quick
short
and abrupt manner
reproves
her for her folly:
shall we receive good at the hand of God
and shall we not receive
evil? as all good things temporal and spiritual
the blessings of
Providence; and all natural
though not moral evil things
even all afflictions
which seem
or are thought to be evil
come from the mouth of God
and are
according to his purpose
counsel
and will; so they are all dispensed by the
hand of God
and should be kindly
cheerfully
readily
and willingly received
the one as well as the other; see Lamentations 3:38.
Job suggests that he and his wife had received many good things from the Lord
many temporal good things
as appears from Job 1:2; they had
their beings in him
and from him; they had been preserved in them by him; they
had had an habitation to dwell in
and still had; God had given them food and
raiment
wherewith it became them to be content; they had had a comfortable
family of children until this time
and much health of body
Job till now
and
his wife still
for ought appears; of their former happy circumstances
see Job 29:1; and
besides these outward mercies
they had received God as their covenant God
their portion
shield
and exceeding great reward; they had received Christ as
their living Redeemer; they had received the Spirit
and his grace
the root of
the matter was in them; they had received justifying
pardoning
and adopting:
grace
and a right unto and meetness for eternal life
which all good men
receive of God; and therefore such must expect to receive evil things
or to
partake of afflictions
since God has appointed these for them
and has told
them of them
that they shall befall them; and beside they are for their profit
and advantage; and the consideration of the good things that have been
received
and are now enjoyed
as well as what they have reason to believe they
shall enjoy in heaven to all eternity
should make them ready and willing to
bear evil things quietly and patiently; see Hebrews 11:26; so
Achilles in HomerF13Iliad 24. ver. 527-530. represents Jove as
having two vessels full of gifts
one of good things
the other of evil
and
sometimes he takes and gives the one
and sometimes the other:
in all this did not Job sin with his lips; not in what
he said to his wife
it was all right and good; nor under the whole of his
affliction hitherto
he had not uttered one impatient
murmuring
and repining
word at the hand of God; the tongue
though an unruly member
and under such
providences apt to speak unadvisedly
was bridled and restrained by Job from
uttering anything indecent and unbecoming: the Targum
and many of the Jewish
writers
observe that he sinned in his heart
but not with his lips; but this
is not to be concluded from what is here said; though it is possible there
might be some risings of corruptions in his heart
which
by the grace of God
that prevailed in him
were kept under and restrained from breaking out.
Job 2:11 11 Now when Job’s three
friends heard of all this adversity that had come upon him
each one came from
his own place—Eliphaz the Temanite
Bildad the Shuhite
and Zophar the
Naamathite. For they had made an appointment together to come and mourn with
him
and to comfort him.
YLT
11And three of the friends of
Job hear of all this evil that hath come upon him
and they come in each from
his place -- Eliphaz the Temanite
and Bildad the Shuhite
and Zophar the
Naamathite -- and they are met together to come in to bemoan him
and to
comfort him;
Now when Job's three friends heard of all this evil that was come
upon him
.... Of the loss of his substance
servants
and children
and of
his own health; the news of which soon spread in the adjacent countries
Job
being a person of great note
and his calamity so very extraordinary and
uncommon: who these three friends were is after observed; they living at some
distance from him
held a correspondence with him
and he with them
being good
men; and now act the friendly part in paying him a visit under such
circumstances; Proverbs 17:17;
they came everyone from his own place; from the
country
city
town
or habitations where they lived; whether they walked or
rode is not said
their names are as follow: arpar
Eliphaz the Temanite
and Bildad the Shuhite
and Zophar the
Naamathite; the first of these
Eliphaz
was either from Teman
a city in
Edom
on the borders of Arabia Deserta
as the Targum; or a descendant of
Teman
a grandson of Esau; not Eliphaz the son of Esau
Genesis 36:11 as
the Targum on that place says; for he was the father of Teman
from whom this
Eliphaz sprang: the second
Bildad
was a descendant from Shuah
a son of
Abraham
by Keturah
Genesis 25:2; whose
posterity with geographers are called Sauchites
Sauchaeans
Sacceans
and
settled in Arabia Deserta
from whence Bildad came: the third
Zophar the
Naamathite
who he was
and why so called
is not certain; there is nothing but
conjectures concerning him; it is most probable that he lived in Arabia
Deserta
or on the borders of it
near to Job's country and that of his other
two friendsF14Vid. Spanhem. Hist. Jobi
c. 11. sect. 3. &c. ;
there was a Naamath in the land of Uz
which was Job's country according to
FreteliusF15Apud Adrichom. Theatrum. T. S. p. 21. : the Septuagint
version calls Eliphaz the king of the Temanites
and Bildad the tyrannus
or
governor
of the Sauchaens
and Zophar king of the MinaeansF16So
Aristeas
Philo and Polyhistor apud Euseb. Praepar. Evangel. l. 9. c. 25. p.
431. :
for they had made an appointment together; upon hearing
of Job's trouble
they got together
and fixed upon a time and place to meet
together and proceed on in their journey to Job's house:
to come to mourn with him
and to comfort him; the first
word signifies to "move to him"F17לנוד
לו "verbum" נוד
"migrare
et sese movere significat"
Mercerus
so Ben Melech. not as
Sephorno explains it
to go with him from place to place
that he might not lay
hands on himself; but rather
as the Latin interpreter of the Targum
to move
their heads at him; as persons
to show their concern for
and sympathy with
the afflicted
shake their heads at them: the meaning is
that they came to
condole his misfortunes
and to speak a word of comfort to him under them; and
no doubt but they came with a real and sincere intent to do this
though they
proved miserable comforters of him; Job 16:2.
Job 2:12 12 And when they raised their
eyes from afar
and did not recognize him
they lifted their voices and wept;
and each one tore his robe and sprinkled dust on his head toward heaven.
YLT
12and they lift up their eyes
from afar and have not discerned him
and they lift up their voice and weep
and rend each his robe
and sprinkle dust on their heads -- heavenward.
And when they lifted up their eyes afar off
.... Either
when at some distance from Job's house
and he being without in the open air
as some think; or as they entered his house
he being at the further part of
the room
or in another further on
which they could see into:
and knew him not; at first sight; until they came nearer to
him
his garments being rent
and his head shaved
and his body covered all
over with boils; so that he was so deformed and disfigured that they could not
know him at first
and could scarcely believe him to be the same person:
they lifted up their voice and wept: they wept and cried
aloud
being greatly affected with the sight of him
and their hearts
sympathizing with him under his afflictions
being his cordial friends
and of
that disposition
to weep with those that weep:
and they rent everyone his mantle
or "cloak"; in
token of mourning
as Job had done before; see Gill on Job 1:20
and sprinkled dust upon their heads towards heaven; that is
they
took up handfuls of dust from off the ground
and threw it up in the air over
their heads
which fell upon them and covered them; which was another rite or
ceremony used by mourners
as Jarchi observes
and showed the vehemence of
their affections and passions
and the confusion they were in at seeing their
friend in such a miserable condition; see Joshua 7:6.
Job 2:13 13 So they sat down with him
on the ground seven days and seven nights
and no one spoke a word to him
for
they saw that his grief was very great.
YLT
13And they sit with him on
the earth seven days and seven nights
and there is none speaking unto him a
word when they have seen that the pain hath been very great.
So they sat down with him upon the ground seven days and seven
nights
.... Which was the usual time of mourning
Genesis 50:10; not
that they were in this posture all this time
without sleeping
eating
or
drinking
and other necessaries of life; but they came and sat with him every
day and night for seven days and nights running
and sat the far greater part
of them with him
conforming themselves to him and sympathizing with him:
and none spake a word unto him; concerning his
affliction and the cause of it
and what they thought about it; partly through
the loss they were at concerning it
hesitating in their minds
and having some
suspicion of evil in Job; and partly through the grief of their own hearts
and
the vehemence of their passions
but chiefly because of the case and
circumstances Job was in
as follows:
for they saw that his grief was very great; and they knew
not well what comfort to administer
and were fearful lest they should add
grief to grief; or they saw that his "grief increased exceedingly"F18כי גדל הכאב
מאד "quod creverat dolor valde"
Pagninus
Montanus; so Mercerus Schultens
Michaelis
and the Targum. ; his boils
during
these seven days
grew sorer and sorer
and his pain became more intolerable
that there was no speaking to him until he was a little at ease
and more
composed and capable of attending to what might be said; they waited a proper
opportunity
and which they quickly had
by what Job said in the following
chapter: this account is given of his three friends in this place
because the
greater part of the book that follows is taken up in giving an account of a
dispute which passed between him and them
occasioned by what he delivered in
the next chapter.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》