Job 27:21

Job 27:21 The east wind carrieth him away, and he departeth: and as a storm hurleth him out of his place.

Ver. 21. The east wind carrieth him away] Deus subito et severo suo iudicio (Lavat.). God, by his sudden and severe judgment, hurrieth him hence to the place of torment, without the least hope of ever either mending or ending.

And he departeth] But with as ill a will as ever did Lot out of Sodom; Adam out of Paradise; the Jebusites out of Jerusalem; the unjust steward out of his office; the devil out of the demoniac.

And as a storm hurleth him] Turbinat eum, tosseth him like a ball into a far country, as if he were wherried away by a fierce whirlwind, or served as pastime for tempests.

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 27:21-22. The east wind — Some terrible judgment, fitly compared to the east wind, which, in those parts, was most vehement, furious, pestilential, and destructive; carrieth him away — Out of his place, as it follows; out of his stately mansion, where he expected to dwell for ever; whence he shall be carried, either by an enemy or by death. For God shall cast upon him — His darts or plagues, one after another and not spare — That is, shall show no pity or mercy to him when he crieth to him for it. As there is no Hebrew for God, we may attribute this power to the storm occasioned by the east wind. For, if the tempest, Job 27:20, steals him away, according to the same kind of phraseology, the storm may be said to cast itself upon him, and not spare. He would fain flee out of his hand — That is, God’s hand, or from the power and violence of the storm. He earnestly desires and endeavours, by all possible ways, to escape the judgments of God, but in vain. Those that will not be persuaded to flee to the arms of divine grace, which are now stretched out to receive them, will not be able to flee from the arms of divine wrath, which will shortly be stretched out to destroy them.

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

(Job 21:18; Job 15:2; Psa 58:9).

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 21. The east wind carrieth him away] Such as is called by Mr. Good, a levanter, the euroclydon, the eastern storm of Ac 27:14.

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

21. The east wind is gusty and tempestuous, ch. Job_38:24, Psa_48:7. See Wetzstein’s note in Del.

and as a storm hurleth] Or, and in storm hurleth. With this which Job says of the sinner compare what he says of himself, ch. Job_9:17, Job_30:22, “Thou liftest me up to the wind; thou causest me to ride upon it, and dissolvest me in the tempest”; and see his former query regarding the wicked, ch. Job_21:18.

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.

For God shall cast upon him, and not spare,.... Cast his sins upon him, which will lie as an intolerable weight upon his conscience; and his wrath upon him, which being poured out like fire, he will not be able to bear it; and deserved punishment on him, which, like a talent of lead, will bear him down to the lowest hell; and this will be done without showing any mercy at all; for, though the wicked have much of sparing mercy in this world, they have none in the next; there is sparing mercy now, but none in hell; God, that spared not the angels that sinned, nor the old world, nor Sodom and Gomorrah, will not spare them, Pe2 2:4; he that made them will have no mercy on them; and he that formed them will show them no favour:

he would fain flee out of his hands; in whose hands he is, not as all men are, being the works of his hands, and supported by him; much less as his people are, secure there; but in his hands as an awful and terrible Judge, condemning him for his sins, and sentencing him to everlasting punishment; and a fearful thing it is to fall into the hands of the living and almighty God: there is no getting out of them, though "fleeing, he flees", as the phrase is, with all his might and main, with all the swiftness he can; it is all to no purpose; he is where he was, and must continue in the torment and misery he is in to all eternity; his worm of conscience will never die, nor the fire of divine wrath be ever quenched; though he will desire death ten thousand times over, he shall not find it, it shall flee from him, Rev 9:6.

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

The east wind carrieth him away - He is swept off as by the violence of a tempest. Severe storms are represented in this book as coming from the East; compare the notes at Job 15:2. The ancients believed that people might be carried away by a tempest or whirlwind; compare Isa 41:16; see also Homer, Odyssey xx. 63ff:

“Snatch me, ye whirlwinds far from human race,

Test through the void illimitable space;

Or if dismounted from the rapid cloud,

Me with his whelming wave let Ocean shroud!”

Pope

Compare the notes at Job 30:22. The parallelism here would seem to imply that the wind referred to was violent, but it is possible that the allusion may be to the burning winds of the desert, so well known in the East, and so frequently described by travelers. The Vulgate here renders the Hebrew word קדים qâdı̂ym, ventus urens, “burning wind;” the Septuagint in like manner, καύσων kausōn; the Syriac simply wind. This east wind, or burning wind, is what the Arabians call Samum. It is a hot wind which passes over the desert, and which was formerly supposed to be destructive of life. More recent travelers however, tell us that it is not fatal to life, though exceedingly oppressive.

And as a storm - See Psa 58:9.

Hurleth him out of his place - Takes him entirely away, or removes him from the earth.

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

The east wind, i.e. some violent and terrible judgment, fitly compared to the east wind, which in those parts was most vehement and furious, and withal pestilent and pernicious; of which see Exo 10:13; 14:21; Psa 48:7; 78:26; Hos 13:15; Jon 4:8.

Carrieth him away, out of his place, as it follows, out of his stately palace, wherein he expected to dwell for ever; whence he shall be carried either by an enemy, that shall take him and carry him into captivity, or by death.

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

21. The east wind — A storm brought on by an east wind is generally very destructive on account of its strong gusts, and it will even uproot the largest trees. (Wetzstein.) This wind, according to “The Hamasa,” is usually most violent at night. See Job_15:2.

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

The east wind carrieth him away, and he departeth. The khamsin wind, coming with all its violence and burning heat, drives him before it, and is irresistible (see "Ancient Monarchies," vol. 2. p. 482). And as a storm hurleth him out of his place. This is little more than a repetition of the previous hemistich. The man is swept from the earth by a storm of calamity.

The east wind.

Kingsley wrote an ode to the east wind. But few men have a good word for it. We in England, however, have quite our share of the presence of this unwelcome visitor. Has the east wind any religious significance to us.

I THERE ARE DESTRUCTIVE FORCES IN NATURE. The east wind is destructive. It brings blight to plants and illness to men. We might have expected that a perfect world would have only fresh, healthy west winds. Yet we must recognize the fact that, like the east wind, lightning, tempest, earthquakes, drought, and deluge are naturally hurtful influences. We need not resort to a Manichaean explanation, and suppose that a malignant being is at the root of these things. For scientific research teaches us that the destroying agencies of nature minister to its progress. The biting east wind that cuts off the more tender plants leaves the hardier ones to flourish with greater freedom, and so tends to promote their growth and propagation. The buffeting of the world helps to develop robustness of character.

II INFLUENCE PARTAKES OF THE CHARACTER OF ITS ORIGIN. The east wind is gendered on the dreary steppes of Russia. Arid plains suck out of it all its exhilarating properties. Cold regions lend it cruel barbs of ice. Even in beautiful, smiling England, the east wind comes as a blast from Siberia, and the desolation of the land of exile accompanies it. Spiritual influence is like its origin. Cruel natures can only spread an atmosphere of cruelty and distress about them. No man can influence others excepting through what he possesses. We cannot permanently disguise our characters. As we are in our hearts and homes, so shall we be ultimately in our work and in the outcome of our lives.

III CHILDHOOD DETERMINES MANHOOD. Leagues away beyond whole empires the east wind is born in the far-off Russian solitude. Yet when it flies over our fields and rushes in at our doors it is true to the character it received in the land of its birth. Not only is its influence true to its origin, but the wind itself continues of the same harsh character, although it is now surrounded by very genial circumstances. The tone and set of life are determined in youth. Some asperity may be softened and mellowed by the discipline of later years; but in the main most men are of the character of their youth. Hence the great importance of a right life at the start.

IV EAST WINDS ARE CONFINED TO EARTH. There are none in heaven. The storms and terrors of life that beset God"s children are peculiar to this brief time of discipline. The fruits of the heavenly Eden are not touched by frost or blighting blast. Those people who have no portion in the better land may well dread the destructive agencies of nature, which tear away all that they have to live for. But true Christians should learn to face the east wind of cutting calamity, knowing that they have but to cross the moor, and a cheerful home will welcome them on the other side. W.F.A.

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

East-wind - Some terrible judgment, fitly compared to the east-wind, which in those parts was most vehement, and pernicious. Carrieth him - Out of his palace wherein he expected to dwell forever; whence he shall be carried either by an enemy, or by death.

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