48443 matching verse commentaries
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
[As] the waters fail from the sea,.... the words may be rendered either without the as, and denote dissimilitude, and the sense be, that the waters go from the sea and return again, as with the tide: and the flood decays and dries up; and yet is supplied again with water: "but man lieth down, and riseth not again", Job 14:12; or else with the as,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
So man lieth down,.... Or "and", or "but man lieth down" (b); in the grave when he dies, as on a bed, and takes his rest from all his labours, toil and troubles, and lies asleep, and continues so till the resurrection morn: and riseth not; from off his bed, or comes not out of his grave into this world, to the place where he was, and to be engaged...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And that thou wouldest hide me in the grave,.... The house appointed for all living, which some understand by the "chambers" in Isaiah 26:20; The cemeteries or dormitories of the saints, where they lie and sleep until the indignation of God against a wicked world is over and past; or in Hades, the state of the dead, where they are insensible of...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
If a man die,.... This is said not as if it was a matter of doubt, he had before asserted it; as sure as men have sinned, so sure shall they die; nothing is more certain than death, it is appointed by God, and is sure; but taking it for granted, the experience of all men, and the instances of persons of every age, rank, and condition, testifying...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Thou shall call, and I will answer thee,.... Either at death, when the soul of than is required of him, and he is summoned out of time into eternity, and has sometimes previous notice of it; though not by a prophet, or express messenger from the Lord, as Hezekiah had, yet by some disease and distemper or another, which has a voice, a call in it to...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
For now thou numberest my steps,.... Or "but now" (g), at this present time thou seemest to have no desire to me, or affection for me, but the reverse. Job was in a pretty good frame of mind a little before, having in view his last change, and the glorious resurrection; but on a sudden he returns to his former complaints of God, and here of the...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
My transgression [is] sealed up in a bag,.... Denoting either the concealment of it, as in Hosea 13:12; not from God; nor in such sense sealed up as sin is by the sacrifice and satisfaction of Christ, who has thereby removed it out of the sight of divine justice; so that when it is sought for it shall not be found, nor any more seen, which is the...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And surely the mountain falling cometh to nought,.... Job here returns to his former subject of the irreparable state of man at death, which he illustrates by various other similes, as before; and first by a "mountain falling", which may be supposed, and has been fact, and when it does, it "comes to nought"; it crumbles into dust, and where it...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
The waters wear the stones,.... Either by continual running in them, or constant dropping upon them (p); and the excavations or hollow places they: make are never filled up again, these impressions are never effaced, nor the stones reduced to their ancient form; so man, though he may have the strength of stones, yet the waters of afflictions will...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Thou prevailest for ever against him,.... God is a more than a match for man, in anything, in everything; there is no contending with him, or standing against him, he is stronger than he, and always prevails; there is no withstanding any disease, and the force of it, when he sends it; it is a messenger and servant of his, it goes at his command,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
His sons come to honour,.... Or "are multiplied" (s), see Nahum 3:15; their families increase like a flock, become very numerous, which was reckoned a great blessing; or "become heavy" (t); being loaded with gold and silver, with riches and honour, raised to great grandeur and dignity, and possessed of much wealth and large estates: and he knoweth...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
But his flesh upon him shall have pain,.... Either he shall be chastened with strong pains on his sick and dying bed; which is the reason why he neither rejoices at the happiness of his family, nor is distressed at their misfortunes; having so much pain in his flesh and bones to endure himself; or, as Gussetius (x) renders it, "for this" his flesh...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
INTRODUCTION TO Job 15 Job's three friends having in their turns attacked him, and he having given answer respectively to them, Eliphaz, who began the attack, first enters the debate with him again, and proceeds upon the same plan as before, and endeavours to defend his former sentiments, falling upon Job with greater vehemence and severity; he...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite,.... Or, who was of Teman, as the Targum, the first of Job's friends and comforters, the oldest of them, who first began the dispute with him; which was carried on by his two other companions, who had spoken in their turns; and now in course it fell to him to answer a second time, as he here does, and said, as...
Matthew Henry - Complete Commentary - Matthew Henry
Perhaps Job was so clear, and so well satisfied, in the goodness of his own cause, that he thought, if he had not convinced, yet he had at least silenced all his three friends; but, it seems he had not: in this chapter they begin a second attack upon him, each of them charging him afresh with as much vehemence as before. It is natural to us to be...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Should a wise man utter vain knowledge,.... As Job had been thought to be, or as he himself thought he was, which he might say sarcastically; or as he really was, not worldly wise, nor merely wise in things natural, but in things divine; being one that had the fear of God, which is the beginning of wisdom, and wisdom itself; believed in Christ,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Should he reason with unprofitable talk?.... That is, the wise man, such a man as Job; does it become him to talk such idle stuff? that which is false, and foolish, and frothy, that does not minister grace to the hearer, and is not for the use of edifying; as whatever is untrue, unwise, vain, and empty, must be useless and answer no good end;...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Yea, thou castest off fear,.... Not of man; a slavish fear of man is to be cast off, because that brings a snare, deters men from their duty, and leads into sin; though there is a fear and reverence of men which ought to be given to them, "fear to whom fear", Romans 13:7; but here the fear of God is meant, which is to be understood of the grace of...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
For thy mouth uttereth thine iniquity,.... Which was in his heart, and so was an evidence against him, and proved him perverse, and made good the above charges exhibited against him: or "thine iniquity teaches thy mouth" (y); the wickedness that was in his heart prompted his mouth to speak the things he did, see Matthew 12:34; and this, as it was...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Thine own mouth condemneth thee, and not I,.... Or shows thee to be a wicked person, guilty of things charged upon thee; out of thine own mouth thou art convicted, there needs no other evidence to be brought against thee, that is sufficient: and thou savest me, and any other, the trouble of passing the sentence of condemnation upon thee; thou hast...