Chapter 28:
| Darby
| Geneva
| Gill
| Jamieson Faussett Brown
| Matthew Henry
| Matthew Henry Concise
| Wesley
| Index
| Bible Gateway |
Introduction 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 Esther Psalms
Job 28
The wisdom of God in the works of nature, ver. 1-11. A
wisdom like this cannot be found in man, neither can it be bought
at any price, ver. 12-21. Death makes a report concerning it, ver. 22. It is hid in God, ver. 23-27. To fear God is man's wisdom, ver. 28.
Verse 1. Surely - Job having in the last chapter discoursed of God's
various providences toward wicked men, and shewed that God
doth sometimes, for a season, give them prosperity, but afterwards
calls them to a sad account, and having shewed that God doth
sometimes prosper the wicked all their days, so they live and die
without any visible token of God's displeasure, when on the
contrary, good men are exercised with many calamities; and
perceiving that his friends were, scandalized at these methods of
Divine providence, and denied the thing, because they could not
understand the reason of such dispensations: in this chapter he
declares that this is one of the depths of Divine wisdom, not
discoverable by any mortal man, and that although men had some
degree of wisdom whereby they could search out many hidden
things, as the veins of silver, and gold, yet this was a wisdom of
an higher nature, and out of man's reach. The caverns of the earth
he may discover, but not the counsels of heaven.
Verse 3. Perfection - Whatever is deeply wrought in the deepest caverns.
Stones of darkness - The precious stones which lie hid in the dark
bowels of the earth, where no living thing can dwell.
Verse 4. Breaketh out - While men are searching, water breaks in upon
them. Inhabitants - Out of that part of the earth which the miners
inhabit. Forgotten - Untrodden by the foot of man. Dried up -
They are dried up, (or, drawn up, by engines made for that
purpose) from men, from the miners, that they may not be
hindered in their work.
Verse 5. Fire - Coals, and brimstone, and other materials of fire. Unless
this refer, as some suppose, to a central fire.
Verse 6. Sapphires - Of precious stones; the sapphire, is one of the most
eminent, being put for all the rest. In some parts of the earth, the
sapphires are mixed with stones, and cut out of them and polished.
Hath - The earth continueth. Dust - Distinct from that gold which
is found in the mass, both sorts of gold being found in the earth.
Verse 7. A path - In the bowels of the earth. Vulture's eye - Whose eye
is very quick, and strong, and searcheth all places for its prey.
Verse 8. Lion - Which rangeth all places for prey. The birds and beasts
have often led men to such places as otherwise they should never
have found out; but they could not lead them to these mines, the
finding out of them is a special gift of God.
Verse 9. He, &c. - This and the two next verses mention other eminent
works of God, who overturneth rocks, and produceth new rivers.
Verse 10. Seeth - Even those which no human art or industry was ever
able to discover. 12. That wisdom - Man hath one kind of
wisdom, to discover the works of nature, and to perform the
operations of art; but as for that sublime wisdom which consists in
the knowledge of God and ourselves, no man can discover this,
but by the special gift of God.
Verse 13. Found - Among men upon earth, but only among those
blessed spirits that dwell above.
Verse 14. The depth - This is not to be found in any part of the sea,
though a man may dig or dive ever so deep to find it, nor to be
learned from any creature.
Verse 20. Whence, &c. - By a diligent inquiry, we find at length, that
there is a twofold wisdom; one hid in God, which belongs not to
us, the other revealed to man, which belongs to us and to our
children.
Verse 21. Hid - The line and plummet of human reason, can never
fathom the abyss of the Divine counsels. Who can account for the
maxims, measures and methods of God's government? Let us then
be content, not to know the future events of providence, 'till time
discover them: and not to know the secret reasons of providence,
'till eternity brings them to light.
Verse 22. Death - The grave, the place of the dead, to 'which these
things are here ascribed, as they are to the depths, and to the sea,
by a common figure. Though they cannot give an account of it
themselves yet there is a world, on which these dark regions
border, where we shall see it clearly. Have patience, says death: I
will fetch thee shortly to a place where even this wisdom shall be
found. When the veil of flesh is rent, and the interposing clouds
are scattered, we shall know what God doth, though we know not
now.
Verse 23. God - God alone. The way - The methods which he takes in
the management of all affairs, together with its grounds and ends
in them. The place - Where it dwells, which is only in his own
mind.
Verse 24. For - He, and he only knows it, because his providence, is
infinite and universal, reaching to all places, and times, past,
present, and to come; whereas the most knowing men have
narrow understandings, and the wisdom, and justice, and beauty
of God's works are not fully seen 'till all the parts of them be laid
together.
Verse 25. Winds - God manageth them all by weight, appointing to
every wind that blows, its season, its proportion, its bounds, when,
and where, and how much, and how long each shall blow. He only
doth all these things, and he only knows why he doth them. He
instanceth in some few of God's works, and those which seem to
be most trivial, and uncertain, that thereby he might more strongly
imply that God doth the same in other things which are more
considerable, that he doth all things in the most exact order, and
weight, and measure. The waters - Namely, the rain-waters, which
God layeth up in his store-houses, the clouds, and thence draws
them forth, and sends them down upon the earth in such times and
proportions as he thinks fit. Measure - For liquid things are
examined by measure, as other things are by weight: and here is
both weight and measure to signify with what perfect wisdom
God governs the world.
Verse 26. When - At the first creation, when he settled that course and
order which should be continued. A decree - An appointment and
as it were a statute law, that it should fall upon the earth, in such
times, and places, and proportions.
Verse 27. It - Wisdom, which is the subject of the present discourse.
This God saw within himself; he looked upon it in his own mind,
as the rule by which he would proceed in the creation and
government of all things. Declare - Or reveal it. Prepared - He had
it in readiness for doing all his works, as if he had been for a long
time preparing materials for them. So it is a speech of God after
the manner of men. Searched - Not properly; for so searching
implies ignorance, and requires time and industry, all which is
repugnant to the Divine perfections; but figuratively, he did, and
doth, all things with that absolute and perfect wisdom, so exactly,
and perfectly, as if he had bestowed a long time in searching, to
find them out.
Verse 28. Man - Unto Adam in the day in which he was created. And in
him, to all his posterity. Said - God spake it, at first to the mind of
man, in which he wrote this with his own finger, and afterwards
by the holy patriarchs, and prophets, and other teachers, whom he
sent into the world to teach men true wisdom. Behold - Which
expression denotes the great importance of this doctrine, and
withal man's backwardness to apprehend it. The fear of the Lord -
True religion. Wisdom - In man's wisdom, because that, and that
only, is his duty, and safety, and happiness, both for this life and
for the next. Evil - From sin, which is called evil eminently, as
being the chief evil, and the cause of all other evils. Religion
consists of two branches, doing good, and forsaking evil; the
former is expressed in the former clause of this verse, and the
latter in these words; and this is the best kind of knowledge or
wisdom to which man can attain in this life. The design of Job in
this close of his discourse, is not to reprove the boldness of his
friends, in prying into God's secrets, and passing such a rash
censure upon him, and upon God's carriage towards him; but also
to vindicate himself from the imputation of hypocrisy, which they
fastened upon him, by shewing that he had ever esteemed it to be
his best wisdom, to fear God, and to depart from evil.
Chapter 28:
| Darby
| Geneva
| Gill
| Jamieson Faussett Brown
| Matthew Henry
| Matthew Henry Concise
| Wesley
| Index
| Bible Gateway |
Introduction 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 Esther Psalms
This version of Wesley's Notes on the Bible is a derivative of an electronic version, Copyright 1997, by Sulu D. Kelley. All rights reserved. Used by permission. It may not be modified or used commercially without permission of Wesleyan Heritage Publishing and Sulu Kelley. A special thanks to Mr. Kelley and Wesleyan Heritage Publishing for permission to create and post this version of Wesley's Notes on the Bible.
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