Job 10
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Job 10
Job's Complaint: My Soul Is Weary of My Life
1My soul is weary of my life; I will leave my complaint upon myself; I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
CHAPTER 10
Job 10:1-22. Job's Reply to Bildad Continued.
1. leave my complaint upon myself--rather, "I will give loose to my complaint" (Job 7:11).
CHAPTER 10
Job 10:1-22. Job's Reply to Bildad Continued.
1. leave my complaint upon myself--rather, "I will give loose to my complaint" (Job 7:11).
The Pulpit Commentary
Having answered Bildad, Job proceeds to pour out the bitterness of his soul in a pathetic complaint, which he addresses directly to God. There is not much that is novel in the long expostulation, which mainly goes over ground covered in Job_3:1-26; Job_6:1-30; Job_7:1-21; but some new grounds are alleged as pleas for mercy, if not for justice. These are
(1) that he is God's gesture, and in the past (at any rate) has been the object of his care (Job_7:3, Job_7:8-12);
(2) that God must be above judging as man judges (Job_7:4, Job_7:5);
(3) that God knows his innocence (Job_7:7); and
(4) that he (Job) is entirely in God's power (Job_7:7).
In conclusion, Job begs for a little respite, a little time of comfort (verse 20), before he descends into the darkness of the grave (verses 21, 22).
My soul is weary of my life. This is better than the marginal rendering, and well expresses the original. It strikes the key-note of the chapter. I will leave my complaint upon myself; rather, I will give free course to my complaint over myself, or I will allow myself in the expression of it (see the Revised Version). Job implies that hitherto he has put some restraint upon himself, but now he will give full and free expression to his feelings. I will speak in the bitterness of my soul (comp. Job_7:11).
Having answered Bildad, Job proceeds to pour out the bitterness of his soul in a pathetic complaint, which he addresses directly to God. There is not much that is novel in the long expostulation, which mainly goes over ground covered in Job_3:1-26; Job_6:1-30; Job_7:1-21; but some new grounds are alleged as pleas for mercy, if not for justice. These are
(1) that he is God's gesture, and in the past (at any rate) has been the object of his care (Job_7:3, Job_7:8-12);
(2) that God must be above judging as man judges (Job_7:4, Job_7:5);
(3) that God knows his innocence (Job_7:7); and
(4) that he (Job) is entirely in God's power (Job_7:7).
In conclusion, Job begs for a little respite, a little time of comfort (verse 20), before he descends into the darkness of the grave (verses 21, 22).
My soul is weary of my life. This is better than the marginal rendering, and well expresses the original. It strikes the key-note of the chapter. I will leave my complaint upon myself; rather, I will give free course to my complaint over myself, or I will allow myself in the expression of it (see the Revised Version). Job implies that hitherto he has put some restraint upon himself, but now he will give full and free expression to his feelings. I will speak in the bitterness of my soul (comp. Job_7:11).
2I will say unto God, Do not condemn me; shew me wherefore thou contendest with me.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
2. show me, &c.--Do not, by virtue of Thy mere sovereignty, treat me as guilty without showing me the reasons.
2. show me, &c.--Do not, by virtue of Thy mere sovereignty, treat me as guilty without showing me the reasons.
The Pulpit Commentary
I will say unto God, Do not condemn me; literally, do not pronounce me wicked My friends, as they call themselves, have, one and all, condemned me: do not thou also condemn me. A touching appeal! Show me wherefore thou contendest with me. One of Job's principal trials is the perplexity into which his unexampled sufferings have thrown him. He cannot understand why he has been singled out for such tremendous punishment, when he is not conscious to himself of any impiety or other heinous sin against God. So now, when he has resolved to vent all the bitterness of his soul, he ventures to ask the question—Why is he so tried? What has he done to make God his enemy? Wherefore does God fight against him continually?
I will say unto God, Do not condemn me; literally, do not pronounce me wicked My friends, as they call themselves, have, one and all, condemned me: do not thou also condemn me. A touching appeal! Show me wherefore thou contendest with me. One of Job's principal trials is the perplexity into which his unexampled sufferings have thrown him. He cannot understand why he has been singled out for such tremendous punishment, when he is not conscious to himself of any impiety or other heinous sin against God. So now, when he has resolved to vent all the bitterness of his soul, he ventures to ask the question—Why is he so tried? What has he done to make God his enemy? Wherefore does God fight against him continually?
3Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress, that thou shouldest despise the work of thine hands, and shine upon the counsel of the wicked?
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
3. Job is unwilling to think God can have pleasure in using His power to "oppress" the weak, and to treat man, the work of His own hands, as of no value (Job 10:8; Psa 138:8).
shine upon--favor with prosperity (Psa 50:2).
3. Job is unwilling to think God can have pleasure in using His power to "oppress" the weak, and to treat man, the work of His own hands, as of no value (Job 10:8; Psa 138:8).
shine upon--favor with prosperity (Psa 50:2).
The Pulpit Commentary
Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress? Job assumes that he is oppressed. He has no conception that his sufferings are a purification (Joh_15:2), intended to lead to the elevation and improvement of his moral character. He therefore asks—Is it worthy of God, is it good in him, is it compatible with his perfect excellence, to be an oppressor? It is a sort of argumentum ad verecundiam, well enough between man and man, but quite out of place between a man and his Maker. That thou shouldest despise the work of thine hands (comp. Psa_138:8). This argument is more legitimate. God may be expected, not to despise, but to care for, the work of his own hands (comp. Isa_19:25; Isa_29:23; Isa_64:1-12 :21; Isa_64:8; Eph_2:10). Every maker of a thing, as Aristotle says, loves his work, and naturally guards it, cares for it, and cherishes it. And shine upon the counsel of the wicked (comp. Job_9:24). The prosperity of evil-doers must arise, Job thinks, from God allowing his countenance to shine upon them.
Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress? Job assumes that he is oppressed. He has no conception that his sufferings are a purification (Joh_15:2), intended to lead to the elevation and improvement of his moral character. He therefore asks—Is it worthy of God, is it good in him, is it compatible with his perfect excellence, to be an oppressor? It is a sort of argumentum ad verecundiam, well enough between man and man, but quite out of place between a man and his Maker. That thou shouldest despise the work of thine hands (comp. Psa_138:8). This argument is more legitimate. God may be expected, not to despise, but to care for, the work of his own hands (comp. Isa_19:25; Isa_29:23; Isa_64:1-12 :21; Isa_64:8; Eph_2:10). Every maker of a thing, as Aristotle says, loves his work, and naturally guards it, cares for it, and cherishes it. And shine upon the counsel of the wicked (comp. Job_9:24). The prosperity of evil-doers must arise, Job thinks, from God allowing his countenance to shine upon them.
4Hast thou eyes of flesh? or seest thou as man seeth?
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
4-6. Dost Thou see as feebly as man? that is, with the same uncharitable eye, as, for instance, Job's friends? Is Thy time as short? Impossible! Yet one might think, from the rapid succession of Thy strokes, that Thou hadst no time to spare in overwhelming me.
4-6. Dost Thou see as feebly as man? that is, with the same uncharitable eye, as, for instance, Job's friends? Is Thy time as short? Impossible! Yet one might think, from the rapid succession of Thy strokes, that Thou hadst no time to spare in overwhelming me.
The Pulpit Commentary
Hast thou eyes of flesh? or seest thou as man seeth? Notwithstanding the anthropomorphism of their language, the sacred writers are as fully aware as their modern critics of the immateriality of God, and the immense gap that separates his nature from human nature. It is on this that Job now dwells. God, being so much above man, having eyes that are not of flesh, and seeing not as man sooth, ought not to judge as man judges, with partiality, or prejudice, or even with extreme severity (verse 6).
Hast thou eyes of flesh? or seest thou as man seeth? Notwithstanding the anthropomorphism of their language, the sacred writers are as fully aware as their modern critics of the immateriality of God, and the immense gap that separates his nature from human nature. It is on this that Job now dwells. God, being so much above man, having eyes that are not of flesh, and seeing not as man sooth, ought not to judge as man judges, with partiality, or prejudice, or even with extreme severity (verse 6).
5Are thy days as the days of man? are thy years as man’s days,
The Pulpit Commentary
Are thy days as man's days? In short-lived man, shortsightedness and prejudice are excusable, but not in one whose days are unlike man's days—whose "years endure throughout all generations". Such a one ought to be above all human infirmity. Or thy years as man's days? We should have expected "as man's years." But it marks the disparity more strongly to say, "Are thy years not greater in number even than man's [literally, 'a strong man's'] days?"
Are thy days as man's days? In short-lived man, shortsightedness and prejudice are excusable, but not in one whose days are unlike man's days—whose "years endure throughout all generations". Such a one ought to be above all human infirmity. Or thy years as man's days? We should have expected "as man's years." But it marks the disparity more strongly to say, "Are thy years not greater in number even than man's [literally, 'a strong man's'] days?"
6That thou enquirest after mine iniquity, and searchest after my sin?
The Pulpit Commentary
That thou inquirest after mine iniquity, and searchest after my sin. It seems to Job that God must have been "extreme to mark what he has done amiss" (Psa_130:3), must have searched into every corner of his life, and hunted out all his sins and shortcomings, to have been able to bring together against him a total commensurate or even approximately commensurate, with the punishment wherewith he has visited him.
That thou inquirest after mine iniquity, and searchest after my sin. It seems to Job that God must have been "extreme to mark what he has done amiss" (Psa_130:3), must have searched into every corner of his life, and hunted out all his sins and shortcomings, to have been able to bring together against him a total commensurate or even approximately commensurate, with the punishment wherewith he has visited him.
7Thou knowest that I am not wicked; and there is none that can deliver out of thine hand.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
7. "Although Thou (the Omniscient) knowest," &c. (connected with Job 10:6), "Thou searchest after my sin."
and ... that none that can deliver out of thine hand--Therefore Thou hast no need to deal with me with the rapid violence which man would use (see Job 10:6).
7. "Although Thou (the Omniscient) knowest," &c. (connected with Job 10:6), "Thou searchest after my sin."
and ... that none that can deliver out of thine hand--Therefore Thou hast no need to deal with me with the rapid violence which man would use (see Job 10:6).
The Pulpit Commentary
Thou knowest that I am not wicked; rather, although thou knowest (see the Revised Version). Conscious of his own integrity and faithfulness, Job feels that God too must know them; wherefore it seems to him all the harder that he should be made to suffer as if he were a "chief sinner." And there is none that can deliver out of thine hand.
"'Tis excellent to have a giant's strength;
But tyrannous to use it like a giant."
Job's last ground of appeal is, that he is wholly at God s mercy, can look for no other deliverer, no other support or stay. Will not God, then, have pity, and "spare him a little, that he may recover his strength before he goes hence, and is no more seen "? (see Psa_39:1-13 :15; and comp. below, verse 20).
Thou knowest that I am not wicked; rather, although thou knowest (see the Revised Version). Conscious of his own integrity and faithfulness, Job feels that God too must know them; wherefore it seems to him all the harder that he should be made to suffer as if he were a "chief sinner." And there is none that can deliver out of thine hand.
"'Tis excellent to have a giant's strength;
But tyrannous to use it like a giant."
Job's last ground of appeal is, that he is wholly at God s mercy, can look for no other deliverer, no other support or stay. Will not God, then, have pity, and "spare him a little, that he may recover his strength before he goes hence, and is no more seen "? (see Psa_39:1-13 :15; and comp. below, verse 20).
Thine Hands Have Made Me
8Thine hands have made me and fashioned me together round about; yet thou dost destroy me.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
8. Made--with pains; implying a work of difficulty and art; applying to God language applicable only to man.
together round about--implying that the human body is a complete unity, the parts of which on all sides will bear the closest scrutiny.
8. Made--with pains; implying a work of difficulty and art; applying to God language applicable only to man.
together round about--implying that the human body is a complete unity, the parts of which on all sides will bear the closest scrutiny.
The Pulpit Commentary
Here we have an expansion of the plea in Job_10:3, "Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest despise the work of thine own hands?" Job appeals to God, not only as his Greater, but as, up to a certain time, his Supporter and Sustainer.
Thine hands have made me and fashioned me together round about. Canon Cook observes with much truth, "The processes of nature are always attributed in Scripture to the immediate action of God. The formation of every individual stands, in the language of the Holy Ghost, precisely on the same footing as that of the first man". Yet thou dost destroy me; literally, devour me (comp. Job_9:17, Job_9:22).
Here we have an expansion of the plea in Job_10:3, "Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest despise the work of thine own hands?" Job appeals to God, not only as his Greater, but as, up to a certain time, his Supporter and Sustainer.
Thine hands have made me and fashioned me together round about. Canon Cook observes with much truth, "The processes of nature are always attributed in Scripture to the immediate action of God. The formation of every individual stands, in the language of the Holy Ghost, precisely on the same footing as that of the first man". Yet thou dost destroy me; literally, devour me (comp. Job_9:17, Job_9:22).
9Remember, I beseech thee, that thou hast made me as the clay; and wilt thou bring me into dust again?
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
9. clay--Job 10:10 proves that the reference here is, not so much to the perishable nature of the materials, as to their wonderful fashioning by the divine potter.
9. clay--Job 10:10 proves that the reference here is, not so much to the perishable nature of the materials, as to their wonderful fashioning by the divine potter.
The Pulpit Commentary
Remember, I beseech thee, that thou hast made me as the clay; rather, that thou hast fashioned me as day; i.e. "Thou hast formed me, as a potter fashions a pot out of clay." This is scarcely a reference to Gen_3:19, but rather an early use of what became a stock metaphor (comp. Isa_29:16; Isa_30:14 :; Isa_45:9; Isa_64:8; Jer_18:6; Rom_9:21-29, etc.). And wilt thou bring us into dust again? After having fashioned me out of clay into a human form, wilt thou undo thine own work, crumble me into powder, and make me mere dust once more?
Remember, I beseech thee, that thou hast made me as the clay; rather, that thou hast fashioned me as day; i.e. "Thou hast formed me, as a potter fashions a pot out of clay." This is scarcely a reference to Gen_3:19, but rather an early use of what became a stock metaphor (comp. Isa_29:16; Isa_30:14 :; Isa_45:9; Isa_64:8; Jer_18:6; Rom_9:21-29, etc.). And wilt thou bring us into dust again? After having fashioned me out of clay into a human form, wilt thou undo thine own work, crumble me into powder, and make me mere dust once more?
10Hast thou not poured me out as milk, and curdled me like cheese?
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
10. In the organization of the body from its rude commencements, the original liquid gradually assumes a more solid consistency, like milk curdling into cheese (Psa 139:15, 16). Science reveals that the chyle circulated by the lacteal vessels is the supply to every organ.
10. In the organization of the body from its rude commencements, the original liquid gradually assumes a more solid consistency, like milk curdling into cheese (Psa 139:15, 16). Science reveals that the chyle circulated by the lacteal vessels is the supply to every organ.
The Pulpit Commentary
Hast thou not poured me out as milk, and curdled me like cheese? "Didst not thou" i.e; "form me as an embryo in the womb, gradually solidifying my substance, and changing soft juices into a firm though tender mass?"
Hast thou not poured me out as milk, and curdled me like cheese? "Didst not thou" i.e; "form me as an embryo in the womb, gradually solidifying my substance, and changing soft juices into a firm though tender mass?"
11Thou hast clothed me with skin and flesh, and hast fenced me with bones and sinews.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
11. fenced--or "inlaid" (Psa 139:15); "curiously wrought" [Umbreit]. In the foetus the skin appears first, then the flesh, then the harder parts.
11. fenced--or "inlaid" (Psa 139:15); "curiously wrought" [Umbreit]. In the foetus the skin appears first, then the flesh, then the harder parts.
The Pulpit Commentary
Thou hast clothed me with skin and flesh. "To thee," that is, "I owe the delicate skin, which encloses my frame, and keeps it compact; to thee I owe the flesh whereof my frame chiefly consists." And hast fenced ms with bones and sinews; rather, and hast woven me, or knit me together (see the Revised Version, and comp. Psa_139:13, where the same verb is used in the same sense). The idea is that the body altogether is woven and compacted of skin, bone, flesh, sinews, etc; into a delicate and elaborate garment.
Thou hast clothed me with skin and flesh. "To thee," that is, "I owe the delicate skin, which encloses my frame, and keeps it compact; to thee I owe the flesh whereof my frame chiefly consists." And hast fenced ms with bones and sinews; rather, and hast woven me, or knit me together (see the Revised Version, and comp. Psa_139:13, where the same verb is used in the same sense). The idea is that the body altogether is woven and compacted of skin, bone, flesh, sinews, etc; into a delicate and elaborate garment.
12Thou hast granted me life and favour, and thy visitation hath preserved my spirit.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
12. visitation--Thy watchful Providence.
spirit--breath.
12. visitation--Thy watchful Providence.
spirit--breath.
The Pulpit Commentary
Thou hast granted me life and favour. God, besides providing Job with a body so delicately and marvellously constructed, had added the gift of "life" (Gen_2:7), and also that of "favour," or loving providential care, whereby his life was preserved from infancy to manhood, and from manhood to a ripe age, in peace and prosperity. Job has not forgotten his former state of temporal happiness (Job_1:2-5), nor ceased to feel gratitude to God for it (comp. Job_2:10). And thy visitation hath preserved my spirit; or, thy providence—"thy continual care."
Thou hast granted me life and favour. God, besides providing Job with a body so delicately and marvellously constructed, had added the gift of "life" (Gen_2:7), and also that of "favour," or loving providential care, whereby his life was preserved from infancy to manhood, and from manhood to a ripe age, in peace and prosperity. Job has not forgotten his former state of temporal happiness (Job_1:2-5), nor ceased to feel gratitude to God for it (comp. Job_2:10). And thy visitation hath preserved my spirit; or, thy providence—"thy continual care."
13And these things hast thou hid in thine heart: I know that this is with thee.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
13. is with thee--was Thy purpose. All God's dealings with Job in his creation, preservation, and present afflictions were part of His secret counsel (Psa 139:16; Ac 15:18; Ec 3:11).
13. is with thee--was Thy purpose. All God's dealings with Job in his creation, preservation, and present afflictions were part of His secret counsel (Psa 139:16; Ac 15:18; Ec 3:11).
The Pulpit Commentary
And these things hast thou hid in thine heart; rather, get these things didst thou hide in thine heart; i.e. "Yet all the while, notwithstanding thy protecting care and gracious favour, thou wert hiding in thy heart the intention to bring all these evils upon me; thou couldst not but have known what thou wert about to do, though thou didst conceal thy intention, and allow no sign of it to escape thee." I know that this is with thee; rather, I know that this was with thee; i.e. this intention to destroy my happiness was "with thee"—present to thy thought—even while thou wert loading me with favour. Job's statement cannot be gainsaid; but it involves no real charge against God, who assigns men prosperity or suffering as is best for them at the time.
And these things hast thou hid in thine heart; rather, get these things didst thou hide in thine heart; i.e. "Yet all the while, notwithstanding thy protecting care and gracious favour, thou wert hiding in thy heart the intention to bring all these evils upon me; thou couldst not but have known what thou wert about to do, though thou didst conceal thy intention, and allow no sign of it to escape thee." I know that this is with thee; rather, I know that this was with thee; i.e. this intention to destroy my happiness was "with thee"—present to thy thought—even while thou wert loading me with favour. Job's statement cannot be gainsaid; but it involves no real charge against God, who assigns men prosperity or suffering as is best for them at the time.
14If I sin, then thou markest me, and thou wilt not acquit me from mine iniquity.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
14-15. Job is perplexed because God "marks" every sin of his with such ceaseless rigor. Whether "wicked" (godless and a hypocrite) or "righteous" (comparatively sincere), God condemns and punishes alike.
14-15. Job is perplexed because God "marks" every sin of his with such ceaseless rigor. Whether "wicked" (godless and a hypocrite) or "righteous" (comparatively sincere), God condemns and punishes alike.
The Pulpit Commentary
If I sin, then thou markest me; rather, if I sinned, then thou didst observe me. Thou tookest note of all my sins as I committed them, and laidest them up in thy memory. And thou wilt not acquit me from mine iniquity. This record of my offences thou still hast against me, and I cannot expect that thou wilt acquit me of them. Without some one to atone for them, men cannot be acquitted of their offences.
If I sin, then thou markest me; rather, if I sinned, then thou didst observe me. Thou tookest note of all my sins as I committed them, and laidest them up in thy memory. And thou wilt not acquit me from mine iniquity. This record of my offences thou still hast against me, and I cannot expect that thou wilt acquit me of them. Without some one to atone for them, men cannot be acquitted of their offences.
15If I be wicked, woe unto me; and if I be righteous, yet will I not lift up my head. I am full of confusion; therefore see thou mine affliction;
The Pulpit Commentary
If I be wicked, woe unto me! If, on the whole, this record of my sins be such that I am pronounced guilty before God, then I accept my doom. Woe unto me! I must submit to suffer. And if I be righteous, yet will I not lift up my head. If, on the contrary, it be admitted that I have not sinned so grievously as to be pronounced unrighteous, even then I will not beast; I will not exalt myself; I will not hold up my head as if I were sinless. I am full of confusion. This clause should not be separated from the last. The sense runs on: "I will not lift up my head (being, as I am), full of confusion," or "of shame," through consciousness of my own imperfections (see the Revised Version). Therefore see thou mine affliction; rather, and seeing my afflictions. The sense given in the Authorized Version is maintained by Rosenmuller, De Wette, Stanley Leathes, and Merx, and defended by Canon Cook; but opposed by Schultens, Professor Lee, and our Revisers. If we accept the views of these last, the whole passage will run thus: "If I be [pronounced] wicked, woe unto reel but if righteous, yet will I not lift up my head, being [as I am] full of confusion, and seeing my afflictions." Job still views his afflictions as signs of God's disfavour, and therefore proofs of his sinfulness.
If I be wicked, woe unto me! If, on the whole, this record of my sins be such that I am pronounced guilty before God, then I accept my doom. Woe unto me! I must submit to suffer. And if I be righteous, yet will I not lift up my head. If, on the contrary, it be admitted that I have not sinned so grievously as to be pronounced unrighteous, even then I will not beast; I will not exalt myself; I will not hold up my head as if I were sinless. I am full of confusion. This clause should not be separated from the last. The sense runs on: "I will not lift up my head (being, as I am), full of confusion," or "of shame," through consciousness of my own imperfections (see the Revised Version). Therefore see thou mine affliction; rather, and seeing my afflictions. The sense given in the Authorized Version is maintained by Rosenmuller, De Wette, Stanley Leathes, and Merx, and defended by Canon Cook; but opposed by Schultens, Professor Lee, and our Revisers. If we accept the views of these last, the whole passage will run thus: "If I be [pronounced] wicked, woe unto reel but if righteous, yet will I not lift up my head, being [as I am] full of confusion, and seeing my afflictions." Job still views his afflictions as signs of God's disfavour, and therefore proofs of his sinfulness.
16For it increaseth. Thou huntest me as a fierce lion: and again thou shewest thyself marvellous upon me.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
16. increaseth--rather, "(if) I lift up (my head) Thou wouldest hunt me," &c. [Umbreit].
and again--as if a lion should not kill his prey at once, but come back and torture it again.
16. increaseth--rather, "(if) I lift up (my head) Thou wouldest hunt me," &c. [Umbreit].
and again--as if a lion should not kill his prey at once, but come back and torture it again.
The Pulpit Commentary
For it increaseth. Thou huntest me. This passage is very obscure, and has been taken in several quite different senses. On the whole, it is not clear that any better meaning can be assigned to it than that of the Authorized Version, "For my affliction increaseth," or "is ever increasing. Thou huntest me;" i.e. thou art continually pursuing me with thy plagues, thy "arrows" (Job_6:4), thy" wounds" (Job_9:17), thy poisoned shafts (Job_6:4). Thou givest me no rest, therefore I am ever conscious of my afflictions. As a fierce lion. Schultens regards Job as the lion, and so Jarchi and others. But most commentators take the view that the lion is God (comp. Isa_31:4; Isa_38:13; Jer_25:38; Lam_3:10; Hos_5:14; Hos_13:7, Hos_13:8). And again thou showest thyself marvellous upon me; or, thou dealest marvellously with me; i.e. "inflictest on me strange and marvellous sufferings.''
For it increaseth. Thou huntest me. This passage is very obscure, and has been taken in several quite different senses. On the whole, it is not clear that any better meaning can be assigned to it than that of the Authorized Version, "For my affliction increaseth," or "is ever increasing. Thou huntest me;" i.e. thou art continually pursuing me with thy plagues, thy "arrows" (Job_6:4), thy" wounds" (Job_9:17), thy poisoned shafts (Job_6:4). Thou givest me no rest, therefore I am ever conscious of my afflictions. As a fierce lion. Schultens regards Job as the lion, and so Jarchi and others. But most commentators take the view that the lion is God (comp. Isa_31:4; Isa_38:13; Jer_25:38; Lam_3:10; Hos_5:14; Hos_13:7, Hos_13:8). And again thou showest thyself marvellous upon me; or, thou dealest marvellously with me; i.e. "inflictest on me strange and marvellous sufferings.''
17Thou renewest thy witnesses against me, and increasest thine indignation upon me; changes and war are against me.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
17. witnesses--His accumulated trials were like a succession of witnesses brought up in proof of his guilt, to wear out the accused.
changes and war--rather, "(thou settest in array) against me host after host" (literally, "changes and a host," that is, a succession of hosts); namely, his afflictions, and then reproach upon reproach from his friends.
17. witnesses--His accumulated trials were like a succession of witnesses brought up in proof of his guilt, to wear out the accused.
changes and war--rather, "(thou settest in array) against me host after host" (literally, "changes and a host," that is, a succession of hosts); namely, his afflictions, and then reproach upon reproach from his friends.
The Pulpit Commentary
Thou renewest thy witnesses against me. Each fresh calamity that Job suffers is a new witness that God is displeased with him, both in his own eyes, and in those of his "comforters." Hie disease was no doubt continually progressing, and going from bad to worse, so that every day a new calamity seemed to befall him. And increasest thine indignation upon me; i.e. "makest it more and more evidently to appear, that thou art angry with me." Changes and war are against me; rather, changes and a host; i.e. attacks that are continually changing—a whole host of them, or "host after host", come against me.
Thou renewest thy witnesses against me. Each fresh calamity that Job suffers is a new witness that God is displeased with him, both in his own eyes, and in those of his "comforters." Hie disease was no doubt continually progressing, and going from bad to worse, so that every day a new calamity seemed to befall him. And increasest thine indignation upon me; i.e. "makest it more and more evidently to appear, that thou art angry with me." Changes and war are against me; rather, changes and a host; i.e. attacks that are continually changing—a whole host of them, or "host after host", come against me.
Job Begs for Respite
18Wherefore then hast thou brought me forth out of the womb? Oh that I had given up the ghost, and no eye had seen me!
The Pulpit Commentary
Wherefore then hast thou brought me forth out of the womb? A recurrence to his original complaint (Job_3:3-10); as if, after full consideration, he returned to the conviction that the root of the whole matter—the real thing of which he might justly complain—was that he had ever been born into the world alive! Oh that I had given up the ghost! Before birth, or in the act of birth (so Job_3:11). And no eye had seen me! "No eye," i.e; "had looked upon my living face." For then—
Wherefore then hast thou brought me forth out of the womb? A recurrence to his original complaint (Job_3:3-10); as if, after full consideration, he returned to the conviction that the root of the whole matter—the real thing of which he might justly complain—was that he had ever been born into the world alive! Oh that I had given up the ghost! Before birth, or in the act of birth (so Job_3:11). And no eye had seen me! "No eye," i.e; "had looked upon my living face." For then—
19I should have been as though I had not been; I should have been carried from the womb to the grave.
The Pulpit Commentary
I should have been as though I had not been; I should have been carried from the womb to the grave. So short an existence would have been the next thing to no existence at all, and would have equally satisfied my wishes.
I should have been as though I had not been; I should have been carried from the womb to the grave. So short an existence would have been the next thing to no existence at all, and would have equally satisfied my wishes.
20Are not my days few? cease then, and let me alone, that I may take comfort a little,
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
20. But, since I was destined from my birth to these ills, at least give me a little breathing time during the few days left me (Job 9:34; 13:21; Psa 39:13).
20. But, since I was destined from my birth to these ills, at least give me a little breathing time during the few days left me (Job 9:34; 13:21; Psa 39:13).
The Pulpit Commentary
Are not my days few? Cease then, and let me alone, that I may take comfort a little. Job here returns from vague longings and idle aspirations to actual realities—the facts of the case—and asks, "Is not the time that I now have to live short? Must not my disease make an end of me in a very brief space? If so, then may I not make a request? My petition is that God will 'cease' from me, grant me a respite, 'let me alone' for a short time, remove his heavy hand, and allow me to 'take comfort a little,' recover my strength, and obtain a breathing-space, before my actual end, before the time comes for my descent to Sheol," which is then (verses 21, 22) described. The parallel with Psa_39:13 is striking.
Are not my days few? Cease then, and let me alone, that I may take comfort a little. Job here returns from vague longings and idle aspirations to actual realities—the facts of the case—and asks, "Is not the time that I now have to live short? Must not my disease make an end of me in a very brief space? If so, then may I not make a request? My petition is that God will 'cease' from me, grant me a respite, 'let me alone' for a short time, remove his heavy hand, and allow me to 'take comfort a little,' recover my strength, and obtain a breathing-space, before my actual end, before the time comes for my descent to Sheol," which is then (verses 21, 22) described. The parallel with Psa_39:13 is striking.
21Before I go whence I shall not return, even to the land of darkness and the shadow of death;
The Pulpit Commentary
Before I go whence I shall not return (comp. Job_7:9; and see 2Sa_12:23). Even to the land of darkness and the shadow of death. Job's idea of the receptacle of the dead, while it has some analogies with the Egyptian under-world, and even more with the Greek and Roman conceptions of Hades or Orcus, was probably derived from Babylonia, or Chaldea, on which the land that he inhabited bordered (Job_1:17). It was within the earth, consequently dark and sunless (compare the Umbrae of the Romans, and Euripides's νέκρων κευθμῶνα καὶ σκότου πύλας), deep (Job_11:8), dreary, fastened with belts and bars (Job_17:16). The Babylonians spoke of it as "the abode of darkness and famine, where earth was men's food, and their nourishment clay; where light was not seen, but in darkness they dwelt; where ghosts, like birds, fluttered their wings; and where, on the doors and on the door-posts, the dust lay undisturbed".
Before I go whence I shall not return (comp. Job_7:9; and see 2Sa_12:23). Even to the land of darkness and the shadow of death. Job's idea of the receptacle of the dead, while it has some analogies with the Egyptian under-world, and even more with the Greek and Roman conceptions of Hades or Orcus, was probably derived from Babylonia, or Chaldea, on which the land that he inhabited bordered (Job_1:17). It was within the earth, consequently dark and sunless (compare the Umbrae of the Romans, and Euripides's νέκρων κευθμῶνα καὶ σκότου πύλας), deep (Job_11:8), dreary, fastened with belts and bars (Job_17:16). The Babylonians spoke of it as "the abode of darkness and famine, where earth was men's food, and their nourishment clay; where light was not seen, but in darkness they dwelt; where ghosts, like birds, fluttered their wings; and where, on the doors and on the door-posts, the dust lay undisturbed".
22A land of darkness, as darkness itself; and of the shadow of death, without any order, and where the light is as darkness.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
22. The ideas of order and light, disorder and darkness, harmonize (Ge 1:2). Three Hebrew words are used for darkness; in Job 10:21 (1) the common word "darkness"; here (2) "a land of gloom" (from a Hebrew root, "to cover up"); (3) as "thick darkness" or blackness (from a root, expressing sunset). "Where the light thereof is like blackness." Its only sunshine is thick darkness. A bold figure of poetry. Job in a better frame has brighter thoughts of the unseen world. But his views at best wanted the definite clearness of the Christian's. Compare with his words here Re 21:23; 22:5; 2Ti 1:10.
22. The ideas of order and light, disorder and darkness, harmonize (Ge 1:2). Three Hebrew words are used for darkness; in Job 10:21 (1) the common word "darkness"; here (2) "a land of gloom" (from a Hebrew root, "to cover up"); (3) as "thick darkness" or blackness (from a root, expressing sunset). "Where the light thereof is like blackness." Its only sunshine is thick darkness. A bold figure of poetry. Job in a better frame has brighter thoughts of the unseen world. But his views at best wanted the definite clearness of the Christian's. Compare with his words here Re 21:23; 22:5; 2Ti 1:10.
The Pulpit Commentary
A land of darkness, as darkness itself; or, a land of thick darkness (see the Revised Version). And of the shadow of death, without any order. The absence of order is a new and peculiar feature. We do not find it in the other accounts of Hades. But it lends additional horror and weirdness to the scene. And where the light is as darkness. Not, therefore, absolutely without light, but with such a light as Milton calls "darkness visible."
A land of darkness, as darkness itself; or, a land of thick darkness (see the Revised Version). And of the shadow of death, without any order. The absence of order is a new and peculiar feature. We do not find it in the other accounts of Hades. But it lends additional horror and weirdness to the scene. And where the light is as darkness. Not, therefore, absolutely without light, but with such a light as Milton calls "darkness visible."
THE HOLY BIBLE
Job
Chapter 10
Translated out of the original tongues, and with the former translations diligently compared and revised.
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