Job 22:14

Job 22:14 Thick clouds [are] a covering to him, that he seeth not; and he walketh in the circuit of heaven.

Ver. 14. Thick clouds are a covering to him] He lieth close hid among the clouds, and seeth nothing. But be the clouds never so thick, Christ’s eyes are a flaming fire, Rev 1:14. And the school of nature teacheth, that the fiery eye needeth no outward light, but seeth extra mittendo, by sending out a ray, &c. He will freely blot out the sins of his people as a cloud, and their transgressions as a thick cloud, Isa 44:22; Isa 43:25; but the clouds cannot hinder him from sight of their sins; for he is all eye, ολοφθαλμος, and darkness and light are both alike to him, Psa 139:12. A cloud may come between the body of the sun and us, and the whole hemisphere may be masked and overcast, as we call it, but nothing can keep God from eyeing and ordering all things.

And he walketh in the circuit of heaven] Where it seemeth thou thinkest he only manageth matters and beareth rule, and not below. So indeed the Peripatetics thought, and taught. Agreeably whereunto Lysippus made Alexander’s picture looking up to heaven, with this posy,

Iuppiter, asserni terram mihi, tu assere caelum.

With which picture Alexander was so delighted that he proclaimed that none should take his picture but Lysippus, Plin. l. 6, c. 16.

Augustus also heard with delight,

Divisum imperium cum Iove Caesar habet (Virgil. Vita).

Caesar has with Jupiter divided the empire. And the Great Turk, vexed at his great loss in the last assault of Scodra, most horribly blasphemed against God, saying, That it were enough for him to have care of heavenly things, and not to cross him in his worldly actions. The atheist here taketh it for granted that God hath enough to do to walk from place to place in heaven (as princes do in their progress), and to order those heavenly bodies how they shall affect these lower bodies, by their light, heat, and influence, &c. Fain they would confine him to that circuit or circle (the heavens are supposed to be spherical and circular), that he might meddle no further. Fain they would persuade themselves and others that God hath cast off the care of earthly business, and committed all to fate and fortune; that many might live far more comfortably if they were less conscientious; that it nothing concerneth God, whether men do or not do this or that, &c. Such dust heaps as these may be easily found in every corner; for all places are full of them, and so is hell too. As for Job, the counsel of these wicked ones was far from him, Job 21:16, he was the worse to think of them, whatever Eliphaz (by mistake of his meaning, at the least) thought of him.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Job 22:14. Thick clouds are a covering to him — He is surrounded, thou imaginest, with such thick clouds that they conceal us from his sight. And he walketh in the circuit of the heaven — His delight is in heaven, which is worthy of his care, but he will not burden himself with the care of earth; which was the opinion of many heathen philosophers, and, as his friends fancied, was Job’s opinion also.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

in the circuit of heaven--only, not taking any part in earthly affairs. Job is alleged as holding this Epicurean sentiment (Lam 3:44; Isa 29:15; Isa 40:27; Jer 23:24; Eze 8:12; Psa 139:12).

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 14. He walketh in the circuit of heaven] He confines himself to those infinitely exalted regions and cares nothing for the inhabitants of the earth.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

14. in the circuit of heaven] Rather, on the circle, i. e. the arch of heaven that overspans the earth, Isa_40:22.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Hast thou marked the old way which wicked men have trodden? The evil way that wicked men have walked in ever since man apostatized from God, the way of Cain and his descendants, who were of the wicked one, and lived wicked lives and conversations; "the way of the old world", as Mr. Broughton renders the phrase here, the imagination of the thoughts of whose hearts was evil, and that continually; who filled the earth with rapine and violence, and all flesh corrupted their way with all manner of impurity and wickedness, and indulged themselves in the gratification of their sensual lusts and pleasures; and were, as the Apostle Peter calls them, "the world of the ungodly"; and here, "men of wickedness", or "iniquity" (y); such who gave themselves up to it, and were immersed in it; these trod the paths of sin, and made it a beaten road; they frequented this way, they walked continually in it; their life was a series and course of iniquity, in which they obstinately persisted, and proceeded from evil to evil, to more and more ungodliness. Now Job is asked if he had "marked" this their way and course of life; the evil of their way should have been marked, in order to avoid it; it being an old way should not recommend it; and the end of it, which was sudden ruin and destruction, should be marked to deter from it: but it is suggested that Job kept in this way, and observed it himself, and walked in it; for the words may be rendered, "truly thou keepest the old way", or "the way of the world" (z); trod in the steps of wicked men, was a close follower of them, and companied with them; like manner is Job charged by Elihu, Job 34:7; and this sense agrees with what goes before.

(y) "viri iniquitatis", Montanus, Mercerus; so Drusius, Michaelis. (z) "profecto viam seculi servas", Schultens.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Thick clouds are a covering to him - This is to be understood as expressing what Eliphaz regarded as the sentiment of Job - that so thick clouds intervened between him and man that he could not take cognizance of what was going forward on earth.

And he walketh in the circuit of heaven - Upon the arch of heaven, as it seems to be bent over our heads. He walks above that cerulean, so high, that he cannot see what occurs on earth, and to punish mortals. This was not an uncommon sentiment among the ancients, though it is here, with the greatest injustice, attributed to Job. A similar sentiment is expressed by Lucretius, as quoted by Rosenmuller and Noyes:

Omnis enim per se Divum natura necesse est

Immortali aevo summa cum pace fruatur,

Semota a nostris rebus, sejunctaque longe.

Nam privata dolore omni, privata periclis,

Ipsa suis pollens opibus, nihil in liga nostri,

Nec bene promeritus capitur, nec tangitur ira.

Compare Isa 29:15.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Doth. Hebrew, "seeth not." Septuagint, "is not seen." --- Poles, on which the whole machine seems to turn. (Calmet) --- "Hipparchus intimated that there would be a time when the hinges, or poles of heaven, would be moved out of their places." (Colum. i. 1.) Hebrew and Septuagint, (according to Origen’s edition, ver. 13 to 16) "he walketh about in the circuit of heaven." (Haydock) Immortali ævo summa cum pace fruatur

Semota a nostris rebus, sejunctaque longe. (Lucretius)

This was the error of the Egyptians, (Aristotle, Mun. 84.) which Eliphaz unjustly lays to the charge of Job, as heretics often impute condemned tenets to Catholics. (Worthington)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

His conversation and business and delight is in the higher and heavenly world, which is worthy of his care, but he will not disparage nor burden himself with the care of this contemptible spot of earth; which was the opinion of many heathen philosophers, and, as they fancied, was Job’s opinion also.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

14. In the circuit of — On the vault of. God moves in an orbit so high that he does not care for what takes place on the earth. The sophistry of Eliphaz is plain. Job denies the just distribution of evil and good, (xxi,) therefore he rejects the doctrine of a Divine Providence. The reason for this must be either that God cannot know, or that he is too deeply engrossed in the higher departments of his universe to attend to the affairs of this world.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Thick clouds are a covering to him, that he seeth not (see the comment on the preceding verse); and he walketh in the circuit of heaven; or, on the circumference of the heavens. The heavens are regarded as a solid vault, outside which is the place where God dwells.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Walketh - His delight is in heaven, which is worthy of his care, but he will not burden himself with the care of earth: which was the opinion of many Heathen philosophers, and, as they fancied, was Job's opinion also.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

Thick clouds are a concealment before Him, and He cannot see.

and He walks on the circle of the heavens and does not know what is on the earth.

circle Heb. חוג, the circle of the compass of the heavens, like (Isa. 44:13), “and with a compass (ובמחוגה) he rounds it,” compas in French

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.