Job 33:14

Job had complained that God kept him wholly in the dark concerning the meaning of his dealings with him, and therefore concluded he dealt with him as his enemy. "No," says Elihu, "he speaks to you, but you do not perceive him; so that the fault is yours, not his; and he is designing your real good even in those dispensations which you put this harsh construction upon." Observe in general, 1. What a friend God is to our welfare: He speaketh to us once, yea, twice, Job 33:14. It is a token of his favour that, notwithstanding the distance and quarrel between us and him, yet he is pleased to speak to us. It is an evidence of his gracious design that he is pleased to speak to us of our own concerns, to show us what is our duty and what our interest, what he requires of us and what we may expect from him, to tell us of our faults and warn us of our danger, to show us the way and to lead us in it. This he does once, yea, twice, that is, again and again; when one warning is neglected he gives another, not willing that any should perish. Precept must be upon precept, and line upon line; it is so, that sinners may be left inexcusable. 2. What enemies we are to our own welfare: Man perceives it not, that is, he does not heed it or regard it, does not discern or understand it, is not aware that it is the voice of God, nor does he receive the things revealed, for they are foolishness to him; he stops his ear, stands in his own light, rejects the counsel of God against himself, and so is never the wiser, no not for the dictates of wisdom itself. God speaks to us by conscience, by providences, and by ministers, of all which Elihu here discourses at large, to show Job that God was both telling him his mind and doing him a kindness, even now that he seemed to keep him in the dark and so treat him as a stranger, and to keep him in distress and so treat him as an enemy. There was not then, that we know of, any divine revelation in writing, and therefore that is not here mentioned among the ways by which God speaks to men, though now it is the principal way.

In these verses he shows how God teaches and admonishes the children of men by their own consciences. Observe,

I. The proper season and opportunity for these admonitions (Job 33:15): In a dream, in slumberings upon the bed, when men are retired from the world and the business and conversation of it. It is a good time for them to retire into their own hearts, and commune with them, when they are upon their beds, solitary and still, Psa 4:4. It is the time God takes for dealing personally with men. 1. When he sent angels, extraordinary messengers, on his errands, he commonly chose that time for the delivery of their messages, when by deep sleep falling on men the bodily senses were all locked up and the mind more free to receive the immediate communications of divine light. Thus he made his mind known to the prophets by visions and dreams (Num 12:6); thus he warned Abimelech (Gen 20:3), Laban (Gen 31:24), Joseph (Mat 1:20); thus he made known to Pharaoh and Nebuchadnezzar things that should come to pass hereafter. 2. When he stirred up conscience, that ordinary deputy of his, in the soul, to do its office, he took that opportunity, either when deep sleep fell on men (for, though dreams mostly come from fancy, some may come from conscience) or in slumberings, when men are between sleeping and waking, reflecting at night upon the business of the foregoing day or projecting in the morning the business of the ensuing day; then is a proper time for their hearts to reproach them for what they have done ill and to admonish them what they should do. See Isa 30:21.

II. The power and force with which those admonitions come, Job 33:16. When God designs men's good by the convictions and dictates of their own consciences, 1. He gives them admission, and makes them to be heeded: Then he opens the ears of men, which were before shut against the voice of this charmer, Psa 58:5. He opens the heart, as he opened Lydia's, and so opens the ears. He takes away that which stopped the ear, so that the conviction finds or forces its way; nay, he works in the soul a submission to the regimen of conscience and a compliance with its rules, for that follows upon God's opening the ear, Isa 50:5. God has opened my ear, and I was not rebellious. 2. He gives them a lodgment in the heart and makes them to abide: He sealeth their instruction, that is, the instruction that is designed for them and is suited to them; this he makes their souls to receive the deep and lasting impression of, as the wax of the seal. When the heart is delivered into divine instructions, as into a mould, then the work is done.

III. The end and design of these admonitions that are sent. 1. To keep men from sin, and particularly the sin of pride (Job 33:17). That he may withdraw man from his purpose, that is, from his evil purposes, may change the temper of his mind and the course of his life, his disposition and inclination, or prevent some particular sin he is in danger of falling into, that he may withdraw man from his work, may make him leave off man's work, which is working for the world and the flesh, and may set him to work the work of God. Many a man has been stopped in the full career of a sinful pursuit by the seasonable checks of his own conscience, saying, Do not this abominable thing which the Lord hates. Particularly, God does, by this means, hide pride from man, that is, hide those things from him which are the matter of his pride, and take his mind off from dwelling upon them, by setting before him what reason he has to be humble. That he may take away pride from man (so some read it), that he may pluck up that root of bitterness which is the cause of so much sin. All those whom God has mercy in store for he will humble and hide pride from. Pride makes people eager and resolute in the prosecution of their purposes; they will have their way, therefore God withdraws them from their purposes, by mortifying their pride. 2. To keep men from ruin, Job 33:18. While sinners are pursuing their evil purposes, and indulging their pride, their souls are hastening apace to the pit, to the sword, to destruction, both in this world and that to come; but when God, by the admonitions of conscience, withdraws them from sin, he thereby keeps back their souls from the pit, from the bottomless pit, and saves them from perishing by the sword of divine vengeance, so iniquity shall not be their ruin. That which turns men from sin saves them from hell, saves a soul from death, Jam 5:20. See what a mercy it is to be under the restraints of an awakened conscience. Faithful are the wounds, and kind are the bonds, of that friend, for by them the soul is kept from perishing eternally.

Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Job 33:14 For God speaketh once, yea twice, [yet man] perceiveth it not.

Ver. 14. For God speaketh once, yea twice] He loveth to foresignify; and although not bound to it, yet he usually gives warning; as "not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance," 2Pe 3:9. For which purpose God saith Elihu here useth two ways to nurture his children; the one more mild, to keep them from falling into sin, Job 33:15-18, the other more rigorous, when they have committed wickedness, to bring them to ammendment of life, Job 33:19-21, &c.

Yet man perceiveth it not] Prae crassitie, et supinitate (ut ita dicam) sua; through his forlorn dullness and heedlessness, his singular inattention and inadvertence. Though God say, as once, "O generation, see ye the word of the Lord," Jer 2:31, "Hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it," Mic 6:9, yet man is not only naturally averse, but adverse, to listen, or lay to heart anything, till it light on his hide, to believe till he feeleth; yea, to his natural dullness he soon addeth a habitual hardness; to his sinews of iron brows of brass, Isa 48:4. This is fearful, Act 28:27, and yet common to all, whose hard hearts God is not pleased to soften with the oil of his grace and to soak in the blood of his Son, that they may be supple and soluble.

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.

For God speaketh once - The object of what is here said is, to show the reason why God brings affliction upon people, or to explain the principles of his government which Elihu supposed had been sadly misunder stood by Job and his friends. The reason why he brings affliction, Elihu says, is because all other means of reclaiming and restraining people fail. He communicates his will to them; he speaks to them again and again in dreams and visions; he warns them of the error of their course Job 33:14-17, and when this is all ineffectual he brings upon them affliction. He lays them upon their bed where they must reflect, and where there is hope that they may be reclaimed and reformed, Job 33:18-28.

Yea, twice - He does not merely admonish him once. He repeats the admonition when man refuses to hear him the first time, and takes all the methods which he can by admonition and warning to withdraw him from his wicked purpose, and to keep him from ruin.

Yet man perceiveth it not - Or, rather, “Although he does not perceive it or attend to it.” Though the sinner is regardless of the admonition, yet still God repeats it, and endeavors to save him from the commission of the crimes which would lead him to ruin. This is designed to show the patience and forbearance of God, and how many means he takes to save the sinner from ruin. Of the truth of what Elihu here says, there can be no difference of opinion. It is one of the great principles of the divine administration that the sinner is often warned, though he heeds it not; and that God sends repeated admonitions even when people will not regard them, but are bent on their own ruin.

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

Job_33:14

For God speaketh once.

Elihus first discourse

Elihu says, God does speak to men in various ways. It is not true that He gives no account of Himself, and of His dealings with men. Two or three of Gods ways Elihu specifies.

1. God quickens men to thought and moral emotion in the silence and slumber of the night; deep religious intuitions and yearnings take form in visions. One method of Divine approach is through the Gate of Dreams. By such solemn visitations God has in all ages uncovered the ear of men otherwise deaf to their instructions, and sealed or stamped on their minds the special admonition of which they stood in need; or--for this may be the force of the image--conveyed to them, in this sealed and private way, the confidential hint or warning He wished them to receive.

2. God speaks to men by pain, when he corrects and chastens them through suffering. In expounding this, Elihu certainly has Job in his eye. Is there no hope even for such a sufferer as this? There is no school in which men learn so much, or so fast, as in the school of suffering; there is no experience by which the soul is so purged and chastened as by the experience of pain and loss. The Divine rebuke is as the ploughing up of the hardened and weed-stained soil, that it may bring forth more and better fruit.

3. If even these fail God sends a messenger--man or spirit--to interpret their thoughts and emotions to them. As he describes this third way, it may be that Elihu, who has already generalised the experience of Job and Eliphaz, turns his eye upon himself. For he himself had been moved and taught by God. The deep conviction to which he was now giving utterance, was, as he more than once insists, an inspiration from above. And this inspiration, this new interpretation of the facts of human life, probably came to him through one of the thousand messengers whom God employs to show man what is right. But while he claims a Divine teaching and inspiration for himself, Elihu does not claim to be favoured above his fellows. Gods messengers come to all, and come with the same end in view--to show us what is right, and to pour the light and peace of heaven on our darkened and distracted hearts. Even grave and sober commentators, however, have found in these verses the whole mystery of redemption. In the angel of verse 23, they see the Angel of the presence, the Angel Jehovah; and in the ransom of verse 24, the Sacrifice of the Cross; and hence they attribute to Elihu at least some provision of the great mystery of godliness. Such a method of interpretation is, in my judgment, forced and unnatural. (Samuel Cox, D. D.)

Divine communications

Here it is said that God sometimes addresses men without their perceiving it,--not certainly from any want of clearness in the communication, but because they are wanting in reverence. Three ways in which we may believe the Deity to hold communications with His children. One is through the visible world around us; another, by direct communion with the human Spirit; and yet another, by commissioned interpreters of His mind and will.

I. In the works of nature. There can be no direct intercourse of mind with mind. The only way that I can intimate to another what is passing in my mind, is by pointing to some other visible object, which shall represent to him the unseen thought. Language consists of images either naturally suggestive of certain thoughts and emotions, or appropriated to that purpose, which are brought up before us by letters or sounds differing according to the dialect of the country. Since this is the language of nature, we might suppose that God would communicate with His children in this way; and most certainly He does, to a far greater extent than is generally understood. There must be very few who, in looking on the natural world, have not been conscious of strong impressions made upon them at times. We ought then to regard the natural world as a medium of communication.

II. By direct action on the spirit of man. This is reasonable; but it cannot be proved to the satisfaction of anyone who doubts it, for the same reason that we cannot demonstrate any of our sentiments and emotions. Still, this unseen communication of the Spirit of God with our spirits is believed by every religious mind. It is true the measure of such communications cannot be ascertained, nor can they be distinguished, as a rule, from the operation of our own minds. We should extend our faith, and believe this to be common, and in the usual order of providence, and not a mysterious and unusual thing. To those who can see God in all things where His agency is present, the moral world becomes more deeply interesting, more sublime and beautiful, than the visible.. We can look through human nature up to the God of nature.

III. Through the scriptures, written by commissioned interpreters of His mind and will,--particularly those who have recorded the life and character of Jesus Christ. In Him the Divine was blended with the human, so as to present at once the perfection of Divine and human character, giving us a living image of that union which we could not otherwise understand. It may be asked, Why should God address men again? Is not the voice of nature clear enough? It was not the defect of Gods previous communications, but the faithlessness of men to their destiny, their worldliness and corruption, which darkened their spiritual vision, and made it necessary to give new light from on high. It was, as the Bible teaches, in concession to human sin, not on account of the want of other original means of light, that the Christian revelation was made. It is not everyone who understands how God communicates with us through the Scriptures. It is not by the letter alone. To this must be added the suggestions which they give, the trains of thought which they awaken. The direct information which the words convey to us, seems to be of little worth compared with the life-giving power of the Spirit which works through the Word. (W. B. O. Peabody.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Job 33:14. For — Or, as כי, chi, should be rather rendered, nevertheless God speaketh — Namely, unto men, by way of instruction or admonition, as appears from the following verses. Although he doth not give men an account of his matters, yet he doth that for them which is much better, and more necessary and important: though he be so high, yet he condescends to teach and admonish them in various ways, that he may withdraw them from such courses as are mischievous and sinful, and bring them to an humble dependance on himself. Once yea twice — Again and again, or ofttimes. When his speaking once does not awaken men, God is pleased to give them another admonition: though he will not gratify their curiosity, by laying open to their view his secret judgments, yet he will acquaint them with their duty and interest, as far as is proper; what he requires of them, and what they may expect from him. Yet man perceiveth it not — He doth not regard it, he doth not discern or understand it; he is not aware that it is the voice of God, nor doth he receive the things revealed, for they are foolishness to him: he stops his ears, stands in his own light, rejects the counsel of God against himself, and is not the wiser, no, not for the dictates of wisdom itself. God speaks to us by conscience, by providence, and by ministers, of all which Elihu here treats at large, to show Job that God was now telling him his mind, and endeavouring to do him good. He shows first, how God admonishes men by their own consciences.

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

Though God by sundry examples of his judgments speak unto man, yet the reason thereof is not known: yea and though God should speak, yet is he not understood.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Translate, "Yet, man regardeth it not"; or rather, as UMBREIT, "Yea, twice (He repeats the warning)--if man gives no heed" to the first warning. Elihu implies that God's reason for sending affliction is because, when God has communicated His will in various ways, man in prosperity has not heeded it; God therefore must try what affliction will effect (Joh 15:2; Psa 62:11; Isa 28:10, Isa 28:13).

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. For God speaketh once] Though he will not be summoned to the bar of his creatures, nor condescend to detail the reasons of his conduct, which they could not comprehend, yet he so acts, in the main, that the operation of his hand and the designs of his counsel may sufficiently appear, provided men had their eyes open upon his ways, and their hearts open to receive his influence.

Elihu, having made the general statement that God would not come to the bar of his creatures to give account of his conduct, shows the general means which he uses to bring men to an acquaintance with themselves and with him: he states these in the six following particulars, which may be collected from Job 33:15-24.

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

(14) For God speaketh once, yea twice.—The two ways are dilated upon (Job_33:15-26). Abimelech (Gen_20:3) and Daniel (Dan_4:5) were instances of this first method. (Comp. also Gen_15:12. &c., Gen_28:12, &c.)

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

14. yet man perceiveth it not] Or, when man regardeth it not.

14–18. To Job’s charge Elihu replies that God speaks to man in many ways, as in dreams and visions of the night, by which He instructs men and seeks to turn them away from doing evil that would destroy them.

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 speaketh once, yea, twice,.... Or, "but God speaketh" (i); though he is not bound to give an account of his matters, and the reasons of his proceedings in a way of providence or grace; yet such is his condescension and goodness, that he makes use of various ways and means to make known his mind and will in his dispensations, if men were but attentive to them; he speaks once, in dreams and visions, as in Job 33:15; and twice, or a second time, by chastisements, as in Job 33:18; or he speaks frequently, again and again, see Psa 62:11; gives line upon line, and precept upon precept; if one way is without effect, he will take another; and if one warning and admonition is not sufficient, he will give another; so that though he is a sovereign Being, and not accountable to any, yet he does not act the unkind and unfriendly part Job had suggested:

yet man perceiveth it not: the voice of God speaking in one way or another; hearkens not to the admonition given in a dream or vision, nor hears the chastising rod, and him that has appointed it; he is deaf to all instructions; he understands not the mind and meaning of God in his dispensations; which is not owing to want of means of knowledge, but to the blindness and ignorance of his mind, to dulness of hearing, to negligence and inattention, and to the prevalence of sin and corruption: the words, "yet man", are a supplement to the text, and not in it, and some versions are without it, and understand the whole of God, rendering the words thus, "God speaketh once, and a second time he does not repeat it"; so the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, and Arabic versions: or "does not revise it", or "will not see it" (k); to which agrees the Targum,

"and a second time he needs not to look upon it;''

and which rendering, as it suits with the context, so is more agreeable to the accents; but is differently applied, by some to the sufficiency of the word of God, that God has at once made known all truth, and there is no need to do it a second time; but certain it is, that God did at sundry times, and in divers manners, speak unto the fathers by the prophets; though indeed in these last days he hath spoken at once all his mind and will by his Son, so that no future revelation is to be expected; but though this is true now, it was not in the times of Elihu: by others it is referred to God's dealings with a proud man, that calls him to an account for his actions, to whom he speaks once, and reproves him for his boldness; but a second time he will not look at him, nor bear his pride and insolence: and by others to the unalterable decrees and purposes of God; what he has said or determined in his eternal mind is done at once, and remains invariably fixed; he has no need to look over a second time, or revise his first thoughts and designs, or reconsider them, whether it is proper to make any alteration in them or not, they are at once so wisely formed; and he has all things before him in one view in his all comprehending mind, so that there cannot possibly anything turn up unforeseen by him, to hinder the execution of his purposes, or cause him to make any change in them; no new thoughts, resolutions, or purposes, can arise in his mind, with whom there is no variableness, nor shadow of turning. This agrees well with his sovereignty, expressed in Job 33:13, and carries in it a strong reason enforcing what is there said. Though some take the meaning to be this, that God speaks once to a man, and admonishes and reproves him as he used to do, in the way expressed in the following verse; and if he regards it not, he do not speak to him a second time in that way, or no more by words, but now by blows or chastisements.

(i) "sed", Beza, Piscator. (k) "secundo non revidet", Schmidt & Maius apud Michaelis; "et secunda vice non videbit illud", Schultens.

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

Time. One decision ought to suffice; and God had declared Job innocent, chap. i. 8., &c. (Worthington) --- His decrees are immutable; and yet thou wouldst have him to explain his conduct, as if he could be under a mistake, and correct it. He manifests his will, and it is our business to be attentive. We cannot expect that he should speak twice, though he does so frequently in his great mercy. Hebrew, "God speaketh once, and he regardeth not a second time." (Calmet) --- Septuagint, "But the second time, (15) a dream," &c. (Haydock) --- Eliu specifies three methods by which God declares his will; (ver. 26) 1. By vision; 2. by afflictions; 3. by the voice of angels, or of preachers, ver. 19, 23.

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).

For; or, nevertheless, as this particle is sometimes used. Although God doth not give men an account of his matters, yet he doth that for them which is much better, and which is sufficient for them.

God speaketh, to wit, unto men by way of instruction or admonition, as appears from the following verses.

Once, yea twice, again and again, or ofttimes, this number being sometimes put indefinitely, as below, Job 33:29; 2Ki 6:10; Psa 62:11. When one speaking doth not awaken men, God is graciously pleased to give them another admonition. So God, though he will not gratify men’s curiosity in inquiring into his hidden judgments, yet he will supply their necessity, and acquaint them with their duty and interest so far as is fit, and they are concerned to know.

Yet man; which is easily and fitly understood here from the former branch of this verse, as being the person to whom God speaketh, as appears from the next verse. And such supplements are not unusual in the Hebrew language, and especially in these poetical books, where the style is very concise and short, and many things to be understood.

Perceiveth it not; through his inadvertency, or negligence, or dulness. Man therefore hath no reason to charge God as if he were deficient in his notices and manifestations of his will, but to accuse himself for not improving revealed things to his own advantage, but desiring rather to pry into God’s secret counsels, which was Job’s error.

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

14. God speaketh — The reproof is a delicate one. Job’s complaints of the divine indifference are groundless: for God admonishes men, speaketh once, twice, and renews his admonitions when man is inattentive. Let the reader recount the number and various modes of the divine appeals to himself. Each day, like the changes in a kaleidoscope, presents a new combination of goodness, mercy, and love. On the other hand, “Sorrow dogging sin, afflictions sorted, anguish of all sizes,” are no less tender voices of God to the children of men.

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

For God speaketh once, yea twice. God has his own ways of speaking to man, which are not those that Job has been expecting. He speaks silently and secretly, not in thunders and lightnings, as at Sinai, (Exo_19:16-20) not by extraordinary theophanies, but nevertheless quite as effectually. Yet man perceiveth it not. Man often does net recognize God"s action in this silent teaching of his. Man wants something more startling, more sensational. In our Lord"s time, the Jews demanded "a sign sign from heaven;" but no sign of the kind was given them. Job now did not understand that God, whom he called upon to answer him, (Job_10:2 Job_13:22 Job_23:5, etc.) was already speaking to him in various ways by his judgments, by thoughts suggested inwardly to his heart, by the dreams and visions whereof he complained. (Job_7:14)

Vers. 14-33. Elihu"s first address to Job: 2. The philosophy of Divine instruction.

I THE METHODS OF DIVINE INSTRUCTION.

1. Through the medium of dreams. The dreams, or visions, referred to were supernatural revelations in early times imparted to men, when the spirit, probably wrapt in meditation on Divine things, was cast into a deep sleep, such as fell on Adam at the creation of Eve. (Gen_2:21) That nocturnal dreams usually find their psychological basis in the mental idiosyncrasies of the individual, and in large degree borrow their shapes and colours from the phenomena of waking existence, is no proof that God may not sometimes have employed them, and may not still employ them, as channels for imparting instruction to men. That they were so employed in early times, not only for instructing heathens like Abimelech, (Gen_20:6) Laban, (Gen_31:24) Pharaoh, (Gen_41:1) and Nebuchadnezzar, (Dan_4:5) but also saints like Abraham, (Gen_15:12) Jacob, (Gen_31:10) Joseph, (Gen_37:5) Eliphaz, (Job_4:13) and Joseph the husband of Mary, (Mat_1:20) is explicitly declared in Scripture. That men cannot readily distinguish between such dreams and visions as are the creations of their own excited imaginations, and such as are sent from above, does not demonstrate the impossibility of God still in the same supernatural fashion "opening the ears of men, and sealing instruction upon their souls.

2. Through the instrumentality of affliction. The sufferer described by Elihu passes through an experience similar to Job"s. The disease which assails him has many of the characteristics of elephantiasis.

(1) Painful. "He is chastened also with pain upon his bed" (ver. 19), which pain, if we may take advantage of the various readings and translations of the following clause, is represented as sudden, "while the multitude of his limbs is still vigorous" (Ewald); universal, "and the multitude of his limbs with strong pain" (Authorized Version); vehement, "so that he writheth in great agony" (Cox); and incessant, "and with the unceasing conflict of his limbs" (Delitzsch); or, "and the contest never resteth in his bones" (Umbreit); or, "and the racking of his bones is incessant" (Fry).

(2) Nauseating. "So that his life abhorreth bread, and his soul dainty meat;" literally, "meat of desire" (ver. 20). The case of Isaac (Gen_27:4) was exceptional. Loss of appetite and nausea are usual concomitants of a weak and sickly condition of body.

(3) Wasting. "His flesh is consumed away, that it cannot be seen literally, "out of sight," which may also signify "from comeliness, so that it becomes unsightly "(Delitzsch) his bones that were not seen stick out" (ver. 21); or, according to another reading, "his bones waste away and disappear" (Speaker"s Commentary), i.e. they lose their beautiful form, till eventually he becomes little better than a fleshless, bloodless, marrowless, emaciated skeleton.

(4) Destroying. "Yea, his soul draweth near to the grave, and his life to the destroyers" (ver. 22); either to those angels whom God commissions to slay man when he continues impenitent, or to those destructive agencies which God employs to terminate the vital functions.

3. Through the friendly offices of an interpreter. The word "interpreter" has obviously in this place the sense of "internuncius," i.e. ambassador, or representative, who communicates the will of a superior, and indicates the special office entrusted to the "messenger" alluded to by Elihu as that of authoritatively making known, as a Heaven-commissioned teacher or prophet, the will of God. Diversity of view prevails as to whether the messenger to whom this task is deputed should be regarded as human, angelic, or Divine (vide Exposition), as a teacher, prophet, or minister like Elihu, a superhuman angelic being, or the angel of the Presence, the Messenger of the covenant. Against the first, there can be no insuperable objection; only it is obvious that in this case Elihu cannot refer to himself without extraordinary self-conceit, since he characterizes the messenger whom the sick man requires as meditator as "one of a thousand," i.e. not one of many, bat one without an equal, one possessed of pre-eminent gifts of insight and teaching. Nor is it impossible that Elihu, remembering the language of Eliphaz, (Job_4:18) may have been thinking of an angelic helper; only the qualifying clause," one of a thousand," determines that one to be the Angel of Jehovah, who alone among the myriad hosts of angels stands without a peer. That a young Arabian prophet of Aramaean extraction should be familiar with the angel-interpreter is no more remarkable than that the Angel of the Lord should be known to the patriarchs.

II THE PURPOSES OF DIVINE INSTRUCTION.

1. To deter man from sin. In particular the withdrawing of man from his purpose (ver. 17), literally, from his work, generally in an evil sense, is exhibited as the specific object aimed at by God"s supernatural warnings to the soul, as e.g. in the cases of Abimelech (Gen_20:6) and Laban; (Gen_31:24) but none the less is affliction designed to exercise on wicked men a deterrent influence, restraining them from sin, as in the cases of Pharaoh (Exo_7:16) and Manasseh; (2Ch_33:12) while the third method of instruction referred to, that of spiritual enlightenment (whether human or Divine as to its agency,) distinctly contemplates as its aim, among other things, the subjugation of evil impulses in the soul, and the obliteration of evil deeds from the life, of man. (Joh_15:3 Joh_17:17 1Th_2:13 2Ti_3:16)

2. To withdraw man from pride. Pride is the homage which a human soul pays to itself, the arrogant assumption by self of that worship which is due to God. The great sin to which man in innocence was tempted by the devil, (Gen_3:5) it has ever since been a characteristic of the fallen heart, (Psa_10:2) which, seemingly oblivious of its weakness, is always looking out for symptoms of its power, styling itself a geber, "a strong one," a valiant hero, when in reality it is an enosh, "a frail and feeble creature" (cf. the Laodicean Christians). Besides being extremely foolish in itself, and infinitely dangerous to the subject of it, such a disposition and mind is intensely hateful to God, (Psa_101:5 Pro_8:13 Isa_13:11 Jer_50:31 1Co_1:29 Jam_4:6) who, by the threefold ministry above specified, aims at its complete extirpation from the human heart first checking its outward manifestations by providential warnings, supernatural or otherwise, as in the cases of Hagar, (Gen_16:9) Miriam and Aaron, (Num_12:2-10) David, (2Sa_24:10) and Hezekiah; (2Ki_20:13 2Ch 1:31) then striking at its inward roots by the sharp axe of affliction, as he did with Pharaoh, (Ex 7, et seq.) Nebuchadnezzar, (Dan_4:30-34) Sennacherib; (2Ki_18:19-35) and finally, by the personal example and teaching of Christ (Mat_11:29) casting it out, and hiding it, from the souls of those in whom such affliction is sanctified.

3. To deliver man from ignorance. More specifically is this declared to be the" object contemplated by the "Maleach Malitz." Sinful man is preeminently in darkness concerning "his uprightness;" i.e. either God"s rectitude and justice in dealing with individuals (Carey), or, what seems preferable, man"s right course to be followed (cf. 1Sa_6:12 Pro_14:2) the path which he ought to pursue when lying under God"s chastening hand; "in one word, the way of salvation, which he must take in order to get free of sin and death, the way, viz., of repentance and of faith" (Delitzsch, Good, Fry, Cox, and others). In large measure this absence of moral and spiritual enlightenment as to the way of salvation accounts for man"s hardness and impenitence of heart. Consequently, the Divine administration has provided for bringing the needful illumination to man"s benighted soul by means of a special Angel-Interpreter (first Christ, then the Holy Ghost, and, under them, the angels or ministers of the Churches); and the time selected for sending in a flood of heavenly light upon man"s darkened understanding is the season of affliction, when, his pride having been laid low, his heart has become soft and amenable to instruction.

4. To save man from death. It is unreasonable to insist that Elihu knew nothing of a spiritual deliverance of the soul from condemnation and everlasting death, and that his language (vers. 18, 24, 30) about the pit must be confined exclusively to the grave. On the other hand, it would be equally preposterous to deny that Elihu does hero allude to the temporal and physical recovery of a sick man as the result of accepting with penitence and faith the teaching of the Angel-Interpreter; as e.g. in the case of Hezekiah, to whom Isaiah acted in the capacity of a "Maleach, Malitz," and who, in answer to his prayers and tears, was restored to health, (Isa_38:5) and as in early Christian times the invalid who called for the elders of the Church and listened to their instructions was directed to hope that in response to the prayer of faith God would raise him up. (Jam_5:14, Jam_5:15) The probability is that both forms of deliverance were in the contemplation of Elihu:

a. of the sinful man"s soul from the pit of condemnation of which David sings, (Psa_40:2) and

b. of the sick man"s body from the pit of corruption into which Hezekiah looked (Isa_38:18) the latter being the consequence as well as the sign of the former.

III THE RESULTS OF DIVINE INSTRUCTION.

1. Emancipation. When the purpose aimed at by the Divine warnings, afflictions, and teachings is accomplished, the penitent is liberated like a captive from his bondage, like a prisoner from his confinement, this being in all probability the import of the word translated "deliver," which occurs nowhere else; and this emancipation of the chastened soul is minutely depicted by the speaker.

(1) Its primal source is the grace of God (ver. 24). To the true penitent God is pitifully inclined, regarding him with tender mercy and foraying love; and in this Divine emotion towards man all redemption has its rise. (Psa_3:8 Psa_68:19, 20 86:15 Isa_45:21 Eph_2:5, 8 Tit_2:11) Not that God either can or will pardon any on the ground simply of their penitence, without the intervention of an atonement; but that, wherever genuine contrition exists, there God is merciful and gracious, (Psa_51:17 Isa_57:15) while he neither is nor can be forgiving and benignant towards the impenitent and rebellious. (Isa_1:20)

(2) Its essential nature is deliverance; both physical and spiritual, both temporal and eternal (vide supra), the latter being symbolized by the former, the recovery of the soul to God"s favour and fellowship by the restoration of the body to health and vigour. The sick man, who has been reduced by disease to a thin, feeble, emaciated, transparent skeleton, begins to put on flesh till his well-covered bones become fat and plump, as if he had returned to the days of his youth like Naaman the Syrian; (2Ki_5:14) and in this is vouchsafed to him a visible token of God"s returning favour.

(3) Its meritorious ground is the ransom or redemption-price paid for getting free from captivity or death, (Exo_21:30 Exo_30:12 Isa_42:3) that ransom being not the repentance (Hofmann, Carey) or the sufferings (Umbreit) of the chastened one, but the mediatorship of the Angel (Delitzsch, Cook, Fry) a thought in which "we readily recognize a presage of the mystery unveiled in the New Testament, that God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself." To pronounce such a doctrine in the mouth of Elihu "an anachronism," is to forget the portly angel of Eden, (Gen_3:15) and to gratuitously assume that outside the line of the chosen family in patriarchal times faith in this sublime gospel had become entirely extinct. To affirm that such an anachronism (so-called) is "rebuked by the plain and obvious sense of the passage itself, and of the meaning and intention of the chapter in general" (Cox), is to demonstrate that one has failed to distinctly grasp the scope and purpose both of this particular section and of Elihu"s interlocution as a whole. If Elihu spoke by inspiration, why should not the Spirit of Christ which was in him (1Pe_1:11) have testified beforehand of the work of him who, when he came to earth, was to give his life a ransom for many, (Mat_20:28) and all the more that the finding of such a ransom was a work transcending human ability, and requiring as is here declared the intervention of God himself?

2. Acceptation. As a next result of Divine teaching, of accepted warnings, sanctified afflictions, improved instructions, the subdued penitent, now admitted into the Divine favour, receives a recompense for his righteousness, i.e. a gracious reward for his having turned to God in contrition, (cf. Isa_64:5) and for his upright conversation generally, or is henceforth regarded and treated as a righteous or justified person; the treatment accorded to him and the reward bestowed upon him being the same, and comprised in three inestimable privileges.

(1) Free access, to God"s throne. "He shall pray unto God (ver. 26). Prayer is the language of the newborn spirit; (Act_9:11) a necessary characteristic of God"s children; (Rom_8:15) the imperative duty of all men; (Psa_62:8 Isa_65:6 Luk_18:5) and a special privilegeof believers. (Eph_2:18 Heb_4:16 Heb_10:22) The pardoned slither enjoys the fullest liberty to address God in prayer when, where, and how he will, (Php_4:6 1Th_5:17) provided always, of course, he does so in faith, (Heb_11:6) in the Name of Jesus Christ, (Joh_14:13, Joh_14:14) and for things agreeable to God"s will. (1Jn_5:14)

(2) Certain enjoyment of God"s favour. "He," i.e. God, "will be favourable unto him" and to his petitions. God never says to any of the seed of Jacob, "Seek ye me in vain", (Isa_45:19) but, on the contrary, expressly engages to fulfil the desires of them that fear him. (Psa_81:10 Psa_91:15 Isa_65:24 Jer_29:12 Zec_13:9 Mat_7:7 Joh_16:23 1Jn_5:14) "The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord: but the prayer of the upright is his delight in. (Pro_15:8) "The Lord is far from the wicked: but he heareth the prayer of the righteous". (Pro_15:29) Greater encouragement to "continue instant in prayer" can scarcely be imagined.

(3) Filial joy in God"s presence. "He," i.e. the pardoned sinner, "shall see his," i.e. God"s "face with joy." Now by faith coming before him as a happy child exulting in a father"s love; (Eph_2:18) and hereafter in heaven when as one of the glorified he shall stand before the throne. (Psa_17:15 Rev_22:4)

3. Jubilation. Like Hezekiah (Isa_38:20) and like David, (Psa_40:3 Psa_104:33) the recovered sick man and accepted penitent breaks forth into singing. "He chanteth unto men and saith" (ver. 27), the burden of his anthem being:

(1) A humble acknowledgment of sin. "I had sinned, and perverted that which was right, and it was not requited unto me." Confession of sin, though indispensable to forgiveness, (Lev 26:40-42Jo Lev_7:19 Pro_28:13 Psa_32:5 Hos_5:15 Luk_18:13 1Jn_1:9) is never so frank, full, or fervent before conversion as after it.

The justified sinner sees more clearly than the newly awakened penitent the exceeding heinousness of sin, realizes more acutely the greatness of his own personal guilt, and appreciates more highly the Divine clemency in passing by the transgression he might justly have visited with condign punishment.

(2) A hearty acknowledgment of grace. Not only does he magnify the Divine clemency in not requiting to him his evil deeds, but he extols the Divine loving-kindness in delivering his guilty soul from condemnation and death. "He hath delivered my soul from going down into the pit, and my life rejoiceth in the light." Cf. David"s anthem. (Psa_103:1-5)

Learn:

1. The extreme anxiety with which God seeks man"s instruction.

2. The natural insensibility of man to Divine teaching.

3. The efficiency with which God can seal instruction on the human heart.

4. The indebtedness of wicked men to God"s restraining grace.

5. The folly as well as sin of indulging in pride.

6. The inevitableness of man"s destruction unless God interposes to save.

7. The beneficent design of affliction.

8. The facility with which God can destroy the pleasantness of life, and conduct even the strong man to the grave.

9. The infinite mercy of God in providing man with an Angel-Interpreter and a ransom.

10. The impossibility of any man escaping the pit unless God says, "Deliver.

11. The blessedness of the man whose sins are pardoned, and whose transgression is covered.

12. The obligation lying on all saints to declare what great things God hath done for their souls.

Vers. 14-17. Divine voices.

I THE ADVENT OF THE DIVINE VOICES. Elihu reminds us of Eliphaz, yet with a difference. Both men believe in superhuman influences, in God-sent messages, But Eliphaz tells of a stately vision, an awful and overwhelming apparition; Elihu, on the other hand, is satisfied with dream-voices. God approaches man in various ways. The most awe-inspiring is not necessarily the most instructive. Dreams have been continually recognized among the channels of Divine communication, e.g. the stories of Joseph and Daniel and the prediction of Joel. (Joe_2:28) It is very easy to misinterpret a dream, and to attribute to a Divine impulse what only springs from the vagaries of one"s own fancy. We need some assurance that the voices are from God. Now, the test is in their character. All holy thoughts proceed from God, and none that are unholy. When we are visited by a holy thought, whether in sleep or in waking hours, we may rejoice with gratitude to know that God has spoken to us.

II THE REPETITION OF THE DIVINE VOICES. "God speaketh once, yea twice." Pharaoh"s dreams were repeated. (Gen_41:32) Joseph"s different dreams reiterated the same message. (Gen_37:9) Prophet followed prophet with warning and promise for Israel. The new Christian voice followed the old Jewish voice. God is speaking now, sending one message after another in his providence. We have all heard from God more than once. His was the Voice that instilled the first eager desires for goodness in childhood, and his the voice that pleaded amid the passionate enthusiasms of youth. It has sounded in our ears repeatedly among the varied scenes of life warning against sin, and calling to Christian service. It is repeated whenever the Bible is read, whenever Divine truth is preached, whenever conscience is aroused.

III THE RECEPTION OF THE DIVINE VOICES. Too often they are unheeded. "Man perceiveth it not." A mood of spiritual dullness may let the voices pass unheard. But this is not a natural condition. The little child is not thus deaf. "Heaven lies about us in our infancy. Later years deaden our perceptions, not indeed by the simple wear and tear of life, but by the evil things that are engendered. Distracting worldliness and sin, the deadliest foes to the heavenly voices, make us careless of the messages from God.

IV THE PURPOSE OF THE DIVINE VOICES. They are to guide and save. "To withdraw man from his purpose," when that purpose is evil or dangerous. "To hide pride from man," i.e. to save man from his pride. Thus the voices are warning and deterrent. They remind us of the "demon" of Socrates, which, he said, told him when he was not to do something, but did not prompt him to do anything. We know that God inspires for action, that heavenly voices summon to toil and battle. Yet perhaps we may perceive that the inner voice is more often a restraining than a stimulating voice. For the stimulus we look to the living Christ. Yet the restraint is sent in mercy. God warns, that he may save. 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.

Yet - Although he doth not give men an account of his matters, yet he doth that which is sufficient for them. Twice - When once speaking doth not awaken men, God is graciously pleased to give them another admonition: though he will not gratify men's curiosity in enquiring into his hidden judgments, yet he will acquaint them with their duty. God speaks to us by conscience, by providence, and by ministers, of all which Elihu here treats at large, to shew Job, that God was now telling him his mind, and endeavouring to do him good. He shews first, how God admonishes men by their own consciences.

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