Teks -- Job 26:1-14 (NET)

Job’s Reply to Bildad

26:1 Then Job replied: 26:2 “How you have helped the powerless! How you have saved the person who has no strength! 26:3 How you have advised the one without wisdom, and abundantly revealed your insight! 26:4 To whom did you utter these words? And whose spirit has come forth from your mouth?

A Better Description of God’s Greatness

26:5 “The dead tremble– those beneath the waters and all that live in them. 26:6 The underworld is naked before God; the place of destruction lies uncovered. 26:7 He spreads out the northern skies over empty space; he suspends the earth on nothing. 26:8 He locks the waters in his clouds, and the clouds do not burst with the weight of them. 26:9 He conceals the face of the full moon, shrouding it with his clouds. 26:10 He marks out the horizon on the surface of the waters as a boundary between light and darkness. 26:11 The pillars of the heavens tremble and are amazed at his rebuke. 26:12 By his power he stills the sea; by his wisdom he cut Rahab the great sea monster to pieces. 26:13 By his breath the skies became fair; his hand pierced the fleeing serpent. 26:14 Indeed, these are but the outer fringes of his ways! How faint is the whisper we hear of him! But who can understand the thunder of his power?”

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Kata/Frasa (per frasa)

Wesley: Job 26:4 - To whom

For whose instruction hast thou uttered these things? For mine? Dost thou think I do not know, that which the meanest persons are not unacquainted with; that God is incomparably greater and better than his creatures? Whose spirit - Who inspired thee with this profound discourse of thine?

Wesley: Job 26:5 - Dead things

Job having censured Bildad's discourse, proceeds to shew how little he needed his information in that point. Here he shews that the power and providences of God reaches not only to the things we see, but also to the invisible parts of the world, not only to the heavens above and their inhabitants, and to men upon earth, of which Bildad discoursed, Job 25:2-3, but also to such persons or things as are under the earth, or under the waters; which are out of our sight and reach; yet not out of the ken of Divine providence. These words may be understood; either, of dead, or lifeless things, such as amber, pearl, coral, metals, or other minerals, which are formed or brought forth; by the almighty power of God, from under the waters; either in the bottom of the sea, or within the earth, which is the lowest element, and in the scripture and other authors spoken of as under the waters; this being observed as a remarkable work of God's providence, that the waters of the sea, which are higher than the earth, do not overwhelm it. Or, of dead men, and of the worst of them, such as died in their sins, and after death were condemned to farther miseries; for of such this very word seems to be used, Pro 2:18, Pro 9:18, who are here said to mourn or groan from under the waters; from the lower parts of the earth, or from under those subterranean waters, which are supposed to be within and under the earth; Psa 33:7, and from under the inhabitants thereof; either of the waters or of the earth, under which these waters are, or with the other inhabitants thereof; of that place under the waters, namely, the apostate spirits. So the sense is, that God's dominion is over all men, yea, even the dead, and the worst of them, who though they would not own God, nor his providence, while they lived, yet now are forced to acknowledge and feel that power which they despised, and bitterly mourn under the sad effects of it in their infernal habitations.

Wesley: Job 26:6 - Hell

Is in his presence, and under his providence. Hell itself, that place of utter darkness, is not hid from his sight.

Wesley: Job 26:6 - Destruction

The place of destruction.

Wesley: Job 26:7 - North

The northern part of the heavens, which is put for the whole visible heaven, because Job and his friends lived in a northern climate.

Wesley: Job 26:7 - Nothing

Upon no props or pillars, but his own power and providence.

Wesley: Job 26:9 - Holdeth

From our view, that his glory may not dazzle our sight; he covereth it with a cloud.

Wesley: Job 26:9 - Throne

The heaven of heavens, where he dwelleth.

Wesley: Job 26:11 - Pillars

Perhaps the mountains which by their height and strength seem to reach and support the heavens.

Wesley: Job 26:11 - Astonished

When God reproveth not them, but men by them, manifesting his displeasure by thunders, or earthquakes.

Wesley: Job 26:14 - Parts

But small parcels, the outside and visible work.

Wesley: Job 26:14 - Portion

Of his power and wisdom, and providence.

Wesley: Job 26:14 - His Power

His mighty power, is aptly compared to thunder; in regard of its irresistible force, and the terror which it causes to wicked men.

JFB: Job 26:2-3 - without power . . . no strength . . . no wisdom

The negatives are used instead of the positives, powerlessness, &c., designedly (so Isa 31:8; Deu 32:21). Granting I am, as you say (Job 18:17; Job 15:2), powerlessness itself, &c. "How hast thou helped such a one?"

JFB: Job 26:2-3 - savest

Supportest.

JFB: Job 26:3 - plentifully . . . the thing as it is

Rather, "abundantly--wisdom." Bildad had made great pretensions to abundant wisdom. How has he shown it?

JFB: Job 26:4

For whose instruction were thy words meant? If for me I know the subject (God's omnipotence) better than my instructor; Job 26:5-14 is a sample of Job's knowledge of it.

JFB: Job 26:4 - whose spirit

Not that of God (Job 32:8); nay, rather, the borrowed sentiment of Eliphaz (Job 4:17-19; Job 15:14-16).|| 13473||1||10||0||As before in the ninth and twelfth chapters, Job had shown himself not inferior to the friends' inability to describe God's greatness, so now he describes it as manifested in hell (the world of the dead), Job 26:5-6; on earth, Job 26:7; in the sky, Job 26:8-11; the sea, Job 26:12; the heavens, Job 26:13.

JFB: Job 26:4 - Dead things are formed

Rather, "The souls of the dead (Rephaim) tremble." Not only does God's power exist, as Bildad says (Job 25:2), "in high places" (heaven), but reaches to the region of the dead. Rephaim here, and in Pro 21:16 and Isa 14:9, is from a Hebrew root, meaning "to be weak," hence "deceased"; in Gen 14:5 it is applied to the Canaanite giants; perhaps in derision, to express their weakness, in spite of their gigantic size, as compared with Jehovah [UMBREIT]; or, as the imagination of the living magnifies apparitions, the term originally was applied to ghosts, and then to giants in general [MAGEE].

JFB: Job 26:4 - from under

UMBREIT joins this with the previous word "tremble from beneath" (so Isa 14:9). But the Masoretic text joins it to "under the waters." Thus the place of the dead will be represented as "under the waters" (Psa 18:4-5); and the waters as under the earth (Psa 24:2). MAGEE well translates thus: "The souls of the dead tremble; (the places) under the waters, and their inhabitants." Thus the Masoretic connection is retained; and at the same time the parallel clauses are evenly balanced. "The inhabitants of the places under the waters" are those in Gehenna, the lower of the two parts into which Sheol, according to the Jews, is divided; they answer to "destruction," that is, the place of the wicked in Job 26:6, as "Rephaim" (Job 26:5) to "Hell" (Sheol) (Job 26:6). "Sheol" comes from a Hebrew root--"ask," because it is insatiable (Pro 27:20); or "ask as a loan to be returned," implying Sheol is but a temporary abode, previous to the resurrection; so for English Version "formed," the Septuagint and Chaldee translate; shall be born, or born again, implying the dead are to be given back from Sheol and born again into a new state [MAGEE].

JFB: Job 26:6

(Job 38:17; Psa 139:8; Pro 5:11).

JFB: Job 26:6 - destruction

The abode of destruction, that is, of lost souls. Hebrew, Abaddon (Rev 9:11).

JFB: Job 26:6 - no covering

From God's eyes.

JFB: Job 26:7

Hint of the true theory of the earth. Its suspension in empty space is stated in the second clause. The north in particular is specified in the first, being believed to be the highest part of the earth (Isa 14:13). The northern hemisphere or vault of heaven is included; often compared to a stretched-out canopy (Psa 104:2). The chambers of the south are mentioned (Job 9:9), that is, the southern hemisphere, consistently with the earth's globular form.

JFB: Job 26:8 - in . . . clouds

As if in airy vessels, which, though light, do not burst with the weight of water in them (Pro 30:4).

JFB: Job 26:9

Rather, He encompasseth or closeth. God makes the clouds a veil to screen the glory not only of His person, but even of the exterior of His throne from profane eyes. His agency is everywhere, yet He Himself is invisible (Psa 18:11; Psa 104:3).

JFB: Job 26:10

Rather, "He hath drawn a circular bound round the waters" (Pro 8:27; Psa 104:9). The horizon seems a circle. Indication is given of the globular form of the earth.

JFB: Job 26:10 - until the day, &c.

To the confines of light and darkness. When the light falls on our horizon, the other hemisphere is dark. UMBREIT and MAURER translate "He has most perfectly (literally, to perfection) drawn the bound (taken from the first clause) between light and darkness" (compare Gen 1:4, Gen 1:6, Gen 1:9): where the bounding of the light from darkness is similarly brought into proximity with the bounding of the waters.

JFB: Job 26:11 - pillars

Poetically for the mountains which seem to bear up the sky (Psa 104:32).

JFB: Job 26:11 - astonished

Namely, from terror. Personification.

JFB: Job 26:11 - his reproof

(Psa 104:7). The thunder, reverberating from cliff to cliff (Hab 3:10; Nah 1:5).

JFB: Job 26:12 - divideth

(Psa 74:13). Perhaps at creation (Gen 1:9-10). The parallel clause favors UMBREIT, "He stilleth." But the Hebrew means "He moves." Probably such a "moving" is meant as that at the assuaging of the flood by the wind which "God made to pass over" it (Gen 8:1; Psa 104:7).

JFB: Job 26:12 - the proud

Rather, "its pride," namely, of the sea (Job 9:13).

JFB: Job 26:13

UMBREIT less simply, "By His breath He maketh the heavens to revive": namely, His wind dissipates the clouds, which obscured the shining stars. And so the next clause in contrast, "His hand doth strangle," that is, obscures the north constellation, the dragon. Pagan astronomy typified the flood trying to destroy the ark by the dragon constellation, about to devour the moon in its eclipsed crescent-shape like a boat (Job 3:8, Margin). But better as English Version (Psa 33:6).

JFB: Job 26:13 - crooked

Implying the oblique course, of the stars, or the ecliptic. "Fleeing" or "swift" [UMBREIT] (Isa 27:1). This particular constellation is made to represent the splendor of all the stars.

JFB: Job 26:14 - parts

Rather, "only the extreme boundaries of," &c., and how faint is the whisper that we hear of Him!

JFB: Job 26:14 - thunder

The entire fulness. In antithesis to "whisper" (1Co 13:9-10, 1Co 13:12).

It was now Zophar's turn to speak. But as he and the other two were silent, virtually admitting defeat, after a pause Job proceeds.

Clarke: Job 26:2 - How hast thou helped him

How hast thou helped him - This seems a species of irony. How wonderfully hast thou counselled the unskilful and strengthened the weak! Alas for you! ye could not give what ye did not possess! In this way the Chaldee understood these verses: "Why hast thou pretended to give succor, when thou art without strength? And save, while thy arm is weak? Why hast thou given counsel, when thou art without understanding? And supposest that thou hast shown the very essence of wisdom?"

Clarke: Job 26:4 - Whose spirit came from thee?

Whose spirit came from thee? - Mr. Good renders the verse thus: From whom hast thou pillaged speeches? And whose spirit hath issued forth from thee? The retort is peculiarly severe; and refers immediately to the proverbial sayings which in several of the preceding answers have been adduced against the irritated sufferer; for which see Job 8:11-19; 15:20-35, some of which he has already complained of, as in Job 12:3, and following. I concur most fully therefore with Dr. Stock in regarding the remainder of this chapter as a sample, ironically exhibited by Job, of the harangues on the power and greatness of God which he supposes his friends to have taken out of the mouths of other men, to deck their speeches with borrowed lustre. Only, in descanting on the same subject, he shows how much he himself can go beyond them in eloquence and sublimity

Job intimates that, whatever spirit they had, it was not the Spirit of God, because in their answers falsehood was found.

Clarke: Job 26:5 - Dead things are formed from under the waters

Dead things are formed from under the waters - This verse, as it stands in our version, seems to convey no meaning; and the Hebrew is obscure; הרפאים, harephaim , "the Rephaim,"certainly means not dead things; nor can there be any propriety in saying that dead things, or things without life, are formed under the waters, for such things are formed everywhere in the earth, and under the earth, as well as under the waters

The Vulgate translates: Ecce gigantes gemunt sub aquis, et qui habitant cum eis . "Behold the giants, and those who dwell with them, groan from under the waters.

The Septuagint: Μη γιγαντες μαιωθησονται ὑποκατωθεν ὑδατος, και των γειτονων αυτου ; "Are not the giants formed from under the waters, and their neighbors?

The Chaldee: אפשר דՀ’֥‘ריא דמתמזמזין יתברין ואנון מלרע למיא ומשריתהון eposhar degibraiya demithmazmezin yithbareyan veinnun millera lemaiya umashreiyatehon , "Can the trembling giants be regenerated, when they and their hosts are under the water?

The Syriac and Arabic: "Behold, the giants are slain, and are drawn out of the water."None of these appear to give any sense by which the true meaning can be determined

There is probably here an allusion to the destruction of the earth by the general deluge. Moses, speaking concerning the state of the earth before the flood, says, Gen 6:4, "There were giants נפלים nephilim , in the earth in those days."Now it is likely that Job means the same by רפאים rephaim as Moses does by the nephilim; and that both refer to the antediluvians, who were all, for their exceeding great iniquities, overwhelmed by the waters of the deluge. Can those mighty men and their neighbors, all the sinners who have been gathered to them since, be rejected from under the waters, by which they were judicially overwhelmed

Mr. Good thinks the shades of the heroes of former times, the gigantic spectres, the mighty or enormous dead, are meant

I greatly question whether sea-monsters be not intended, such as porpoises, sharks, narwals, grampuses, and whales. We know, however that an opinion anciently prevailed, that the Titans, a race of men of enormous stature, rebelled against the gods, and endeavored to scale heaven by placing one mountain on the top of another; and that they and their structure were cast down by the thunder of the deities, and buried under the earth and sea; and that their struggles to arise produce the earthquakes which occur in certain countries. Now although this opinion is supported by the most respectable antiquity among the heathens, it is not to be supposed that in the word of God there can be any countenance given to an opinion at once as absurd as it is monstrous. (But still the poet may use the language of the common people). I must therefore either refer the passage here to the antediluvians, or to the vast sea-monsters mentioned above.

Clarke: Job 26:6 - Hell is naked before him

Hell is naked before him - Sheol, the place of the dead, or of separate spirits, is always in his view. And there is no covering to Abaddon - the place of the destroyer, where destruction reigns, and where those dwell who are eternally separated from God. The ancients thought that hell or Tartarus was a vast space in the center, or at the very bottom of the earth. So Virgil, Aen. lib. vi., ver. 577: -

Tum Tartarus ips

Bis patet in praeceps tantum, tenditque sub umbras

Quantus ad aethereum coeli suspectus Olympu

Hic genus antiquum terrae, Titania pubes

Fulmine dejecti, fundo volvuntur in imo

"Full twice as deep the dungeon of the fiends

The huge Tartarean gloomy gulf, descend

Below these regions, as these regions li

From the bright realms of yon ethereal sky

Here roar the Titan race, th’ enormous birth

The ancient offspring of the teeming earth

Pierced by the burning bolts of old they fell

And still roll bellowing in the depths of hell.

Pitt

And some have supposed that there is an allusion to this opinion in the above passage, as well as in several others in the Old Testament; but it is not likely that the sacred writers would countenance an opinion that certainly has nothing in fact or philosophy to support it. Yet still a poet may avail himself of popular opinions.

Clarke: Job 26:7 - He stretcheth out the north over the empty place

He stretcheth out the north over the empty place - על תהו al tohu , to the hollow waste. The same word as is used, Gen 1:2, The earth was without form, תהו tohu . The north must here mean the north pole, or northern hemisphere; and perhaps what is here stated may refer to the opinion that the earth was a vast extended plain, and the heavens poised upon it, resting on this plain all round the horizon. Of the south the inhabitants of Idumea knew nothing; nor could they have any notion of inhabitants in that hemisphere

Clarke: Job 26:7 - Hangeth the earth upon nothing

Hangeth the earth upon nothing - The Chaldee says: "He lays the earth upon the waters, nothing sustaining it."

Clarke: Job 26:8 - He bindeth up the waters

He bindeth up the waters - Drives the aqueous particles together, which were raised by evaporation, so that, being condensed, they form clouds which float in the atmosphere, till, meeting with strong currents of wind, or by the agency of the electric fluid, they are farther condensed; and then, becoming too heavy to be sustained in the air, fall down in the form of rain, when, in this poetic language, the cloud is rent under them.

Clarke: Job 26:9 - He holdeth back the face of his throne

He holdeth back the face of his throne - Though all these are most elegant effects of an omniscient and almighty power, yet the great Agent is not personally discoverable; he dwelleth in light unapproachable, and in mercy hides himself from the view of his creatures. The words, however may refer to those obscurations of the face of heaven, and the hiding of the body of the sun, when the atmosphere is laden with dense vapours, and the rain begins to be poured down on the earth.

Clarke: Job 26:10 - He hath compassed the waters with bounds

He hath compassed the waters with bounds - Perhaps this refers merely to the circle of the horizon, the line that terminates light and commences darkness, called here עד תכלית אור עם חשך ad tachlith or im chosech , "until the completion of light with darkness."Or, if we take תכלית tachlith here to be the same with תכלת techeleth , Exo 25:4, and elsewhere, which we translate blue, it may mean that sombre sky-blue appearance of the horizon at the time of twilight, i.e., between light and darkness; the line where the one is terminating and the other commencing. Or, He so circumscribes the waters, retaining them in their own place, that they shall not be able to overflow the earth until day and night, that is, time itself, come to an end.

Clarke: Job 26:11 - The pillars of heaven tremble

The pillars of heaven tremble - This is probably a poetical description either of thunder, or of an earthquake: -

"He shakes creation with his nod

Earth, sea, and heaven, confess him God.

But there may be an allusion to the high mountains, which were anciently esteemed by the common people as the pillars on which the heavens rested; and when these were shaken with earthquakes, it might be said the pillars of heaven tremble. Mount Atlas was supposed to be one of those pillars, and this gave rise to the fable of Atlas being a man who bore the heavens on his shoulders. The Greek and Roman poets frequently use this image. Thus Silius Italicus, lib. i., ver. 202: -

Atlas subducto tracturus vertice coelum

Sidera nubiferum fulcit caput, aethereasqu

Erigit aeternum compages ardua cervix

Canet barba gelu, frontemque immanibus umbri

Pinea silva premit; vastant cava tempora vent

Nimbosoque ruunt spumantia flumina rictu

"Atlas’ broad shoulders prop th’ incumbent skies

Around his cloud-girt head the stars arise

His towering neck supports th’ ethereal way

And o’ er his brow black woods their gloom display

Hoar is his beard; winds round his temples roar

And from his jaws the rushing torrents pour.

J. B. C.

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Clarke: Job 26:12 - He divideth the sea with his power

He divideth the sea with his power - Here is a manifest allusion to the passage of the Red Sea by the Israelites, and the overthrow of Pharaoh and his host, according to the opinion of the most eminent critics

Clarke: Job 26:12 - He smiteth through the proud

He smiteth through the proud - רהב Rahab , the very name by which Egypt is called Isa 51:9, and elsewhere. Calmet remarks: "This appears to refer only to the passage of the Red Sea, and the destruction of Pharaoh. Were we not prepossessed with the opinion that Job died before Moses, every person at the first view of the subject must consider it in this light."I am not thus prepossessed. Let Job live when he might, I am satisfied the Book of Job was written long after the death of Moses, and not earlier than the days of Solomon, if not later. The farther I go in the work, the more this conviction is deepened; and the opposite sentiment appears to be perfectly gratuitous.

Clarke: Job 26:13 - By his Spirit he hath garnished the heavens

By his Spirit he hath garnished the heavens - See the observations below.

Clarke: Job 26:14 - Lo, these are parts of his ways

Lo, these are parts of his ways - קצות ketsoth , the ends or extremities, the outlines, an indistinct sketch, of his eternal power and Godhead

Clarke: Job 26:14 - How little a portion is heard

How little a portion is heard - שמץ shemets , a mere whisper; admirably opposed, as Mr. Good has well observed, to רעם raam , the thunder, mentioned in the next clause. As the thunder is to a whisper, so are the tremendous and infinitely varied works of God to the faint outlines exhibited in the above discourse. Every reader will relish the dignity, propriety, and sense of these expressions. They force themselves on the observation of even the most heedless. By his Spirit he hath garnished the heavens - Numerous are the opinions relative to the true meaning of this verse. Some think it refers to the clearing of the sky after a storm, such as appears to be described Job 26:11, Job 26:12; and suppose his Spirit means the wind, which he directs to sweep and cleanse the face of the sky, by which the splendor of the day or the lustre of the night is restored: and by the crooked, flying, or aerial serpent, as it is variously rendered, the ecliptic is supposed to be meant, as the sun’ s apparent course in it appears to be serpentine, in his approach to and recession from each of the tropics. This tortuous line may be seen on any terrestrial globe. Many will object to this notion as too refined for the time of Job; but this I could easily admit, as astronomy had a very early existence among the Arabians, if not its origin. But with me the chief objection lies against the obscurity of the allusion, if it be one; for it must require no small ingenuity, and almost the spirit of divination, to find out the sun’ s oblique path in the zodiac in the words His hand hath formed the crooked serpent. Others have imagined that the allusion is to the lightning in that zigzag form which it assumes when discharged from one cloud into another during a thunder storm. This is at once a natural and very apparent sense. To conduct and manage the lightning is most certainly a work which requires the skill and omnipotence of God, as much as garnishing the heavens by his Spirit, dividing the sea by his power, or causing the pillars of heaven to tremble by his reproof. Others think that the act of the creation of the solar system is intended to be expressed, which is in several parts of the sacred writings attributed to the Spirit of God; (Gen 1:2; Psa 33:6); and that the crooked serpent means either Satan, who deceived our first parents, or huge aquatic animals; for in Isa 27:1, we find the leviathan and dragon of the sea called נחש ברח nachash bariach , the very terms that are used by Job in this place: "In that day the Lord with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan, the piercing serpent, ( נחש ברח nachash bariach ), even leviathan, that crooked serpent, ( נחש עקלתון nachash akallathon ), and he shall slay the dragon ( התנין hattannin ) that is in the sea."And we know that in Gen 1:21 התנינם הגדלים hattanninim haggedolim , which we translate great whales, includes all sea-monsters or vast aquatic animals. Calmet, who without hesitation adopts this sentiment, says: "I see no necessity to have recourse to allegory here. After having exhibited the effects of the sovereign power of God in the heavens, in the clouds, in the vast collection of waters in the sea, it was natural enough for Job to speak of the production of fishes."The intelligent Dr. Sherlock gives another interpretation. After strongly expressing his disapprobation of the opinion that Job should descend, after speaking of the creation of the heavens and their host, to the formation of snakes and adders, he supposes "that Job here intended to oppose that grand religious system of sabaeism which prevailed in his time, and to which, in other parts of this book, he alludes; a system which acknowledged two opposite independent principles by which the universe was governed, and paid Divine adoration to the celestial luminaries. Suppose, therefore, Job to be acquainted with the fall of man, and the part ascribed to the serpent of the introduction of evil, see how aptly the parts cohere. In opposition to the idolatrous practice of the time, he asserts God to be the maker of all the host of heaven: By his Spirit he garnished the heavens. In opposition to the false notion of two independent principles, he asserts God to be the maker of him who was the author of evil: His hand hath formed the crooked serpent. You see how properly the garnishing of the heavens and the forming of the serpent are joined together. That this is the ancient traditionary explication of this place, we have undeniable evidence from the translation of the Septuagint, who render the latter part of this verse, which relates to the serpent, in this manner: Προσταγματι δε εθανατωσε δρακοντα αποστατην, By a decree he destroyed the apostate dragon. The Syriac and Arabic versions are to the same effect: And his hand slew the flying serpent

"These translators apply the place to the punishment inflicted on the serpent; and it comes to the same thing, for the punishing the serpent is as clear an evidence of God’ s power over the author of evil as the creating him. We need not wonder to see so much concern in this book to maintain the supremacy of God, and to guard it against every false notion; for this was the theme, the business of the author."- Bp. Sherlock on Prophecy, Diss. ii

From the contradictory opinions on this passage, the reader will no doubt feel cautious what mode of interpretation he adopts, and the absolute necessity of admitting no texts of doubtful interpretation as vouchers for the essential doctrines of Christianity. Neither metaphors, allegories, similes, nor figurative expressions of any kind, should ever be adduced or appealed to as proofs of any article in the Christian faith. We have reason to be thankful that this is at present the general opinion of the most rational divines of all sects and parties, and that the allegory and metaphor men are everywhere vanishing from the meridian and sinking under the horizon of the Church. Scriptural Christianity is prevailing with a strong hand, and going forward with a firm and steady step.

Defender: Job 26:6 - Hell

Hell (Hebrew sheol), the place of departed spirits deep within the earth, is invisible to man, but easily seen by God (Psa 139:8).

Defender: Job 26:6 - destruction

Destruction (Hebrew abaddon) seems to be a special compartment of sheol, possibly imprisoning the demonic spirits who will be unleashed on the world during the coming period of great tribulation (Rev 9:3-6)."

Defender: Job 26:7 - empty place

The "empty place" (Hebrew tohu) probably refers to the just-created earth, which was initially "without form" (Gen 1:2)(same word, tohu). As earth received its spherical form, in response to the gravitational force systems activated when the Spirit moved in the presence of the primeval waters, then the north direction was defined when the earth began rotating about its axis. The north was surely "stretched out," without limit, far into the infinite heavens.

Defender: Job 26:7 - earth upon nothing

Not only was the earth rotating, but it also began orbiting in space, suspended from the sun by "nothing" except the mysterious force of gravity, acting at a distance. This verse was written at least 3500 years before Isaac Newton identified and described this force."

Defender: Job 26:8 - cloud is not rent

Only in recent centuries has this "balancing of the clouds" (Job 37:16) been explained. It refers to strong updrafts of air providing the force necessary to keep the water droplets in the clouds from falling to earth."

Defender: Job 26:10 - compassed

The word "compassed" is the Hebrew khug, translated "circle" in Isa 40:22. It refers here to the global sea level, which defines the "circle of the earth" (Isa 40:22) and the "compass upon the face of the depth" (Pro 8:27), and which defines the bounds which the waters cannot transgress as long as the earth endures, in accordance with the Noahic covenant (Gen 8:22; Gen 9:11).

Defender: Job 26:10 - come to an end

This is a reference to the boundary between day and night - that is, along a great circle through the center of the earth, with light on one side and darkness on the other. This follows from the spherical shape of the earth, as implied in the first part of this verse."

Defender: Job 26:13 - garnished the heavens

The "crooked serpent" is one of the constellations, all of which God's hand formed, presumably as signs of His redemptive promises. The serpent is depicted in the ancient star charts as being slain by the great Lion, probably reflecting the protevangelic promise of Gen 3:15 (Job 9:8, Job 9:9; Job 38:31-33)."

TSK: Job 26:2 - How hast thou // helped

How hast thou : Bildad had produced no argument to refute Job’ s doctrine; and therefore Job ironically admires the assistance which Bildad had given to his friends in their extremity, and the instruction he had afforded him in his perplexity. Job 12:2; 1Ki 18:27

helped : Job 4:3, Job 4:4, Job 6:25, Job 16:4, Job 16:5; Isa 35:3, Isa 35:4, Isa 40:14, Isa 41:5-7

TSK: Job 26:3 - counselled // plentifully

counselled : Job 6:13, Job 12:3, Job 13:5, Job 15:8-10, Job 17:10, Job 32:11-13

plentifully : Job 33:3, Job 33:33, Job 38:2; Psa 49:1-4, Psa 71:15-18; Pro 8:6-9; Act 20:20, Act 20:27

TSK: Job 26:4 - whose spirit

whose spirit : Job 20:3, Job 32:18; 1Ki 22:23, 1Ki 22:24; Ecc 12:7; 1Co 12:3; 1Jo 4:1-3; Rev 16:13, Rev 16:14

TSK: Job 26:5 - Dead things // and

Dead things : Or, ""The giants rephaim are in anguish under the waters and their inhabitants;""probably in allusion to the destruction of the earth by the deluge. Job 41:1-34; Gen 6:4; Psa 104:25, Psa 104:26; Eze 29:3-5

and : or, with

TSK: Job 26:6 - Hell // destruction

Hell : Job 11:8; Psa 139:8, Psa 139:11; Pro 15:11; Isa 14:9; Amo 9:2; Heb 4:13

destruction : Job 28:22; Psa 88:10

TSK: Job 26:7

Job 9:8; Gen 1:1, Gen 1:2; Psa 24:2, Psa 104:2-5; Pro 8:23-27; Isa 40:22, Isa 40:26, Isa 42:5

TSK: Job 26:8 - bindeth up // thick clouds // and the cloud

bindeth up : Job 36:29, Job 38:9, Job 38:37; Gen 1:6, Gen 1:7; Psa 135:7; Pro 30:4; Jer 10:13

thick clouds : Job 37:11-16; Psa 18:10, Psa 18:11

and the cloud : Isa 5:6

TSK: Job 26:9

Exo 20:21, Exo 33:20-23, Exo 34:3; 1Ki 8:12; Psa 97:2; Hab 3:3-5; 1Ti 6:16

TSK: Job 26:10 - compassed // until // day and night come to an end

compassed : Job 38:8-11; Psa 33:7, Psa 104:6-9; Pro 8:29; Jer 5:22

until : Gen 8:22; Isa 54:9, Isa 54:10

day and night come to an end : Heb. end of light with darkness

TSK: Job 26:11 - pillars // are astonished

pillars : 1Sa 2:8; Psa 18:7; Hag 2:21; Heb 12:26, Heb 12:27; 2Pe 3:10; Rev 20:11

are astonished : Job 15:15

TSK: Job 26:12 - divideth // he smiteth // the proud

divideth : Exo 14:21-31; Psa 29:10, Psa 74:13, Psa 93:3, Psa 93:4, Psa 114:2-7; Isa 51:15; Jer 31:35

he smiteth : Job 40:11, Job 40:12; Isa 2:12; Dan 4:37; Jam 4:6

the proud : Heb. pride, Psa 89:9, Psa 89:10; Isa 51:9

TSK: Job 26:13 - his spirit // the crooked serpent

his spirit : Gen 1:2; Psa 33:6, Psa 33:7, Psa 104:30

the crooked serpent : Psa 74:13, Psa 74:14; Isa 27:1; Rev 12:9

TSK: Job 26:14 - how little // the thunder

how little : Job 11:7-9; Psa 139:6, Psa 145:3; Isa 40:26-29; Rom 11:33; 1Co 13:9-12

the thunder : Job 40:9; 1Sa 2:10; Psa 29:3

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Kata/Frasa (per Ayat)

Poole: Job 26:2 - How hast thou helped? // Him that is without power

How hast thou helped? thou hast helped egregiously. It is an ironical expression, implying the quite contrary, that he had not at all helped. See the like, Gen 3:22 1Ki 18:27 1Co 4:8,10 .

Him that is without power either,

1. God, who it seems is weak and unwise, and needed so powerful and eloquent an advocate as thou art to maintain his fights and plead his cause. Or, rather,

2. Job himself: I am a poor helpless creature, my strength and spirits quite broken with the pains of my body and perplexities of my mind, whom nature, and humanity, and religion should have taught thee to support and comfort with a representation of the gracious nature and promises of God, and not to terrify and overwhelm me with displaying his sovereign majesty, the thoughts whereof are already so distractive and dreadful to me.

Poole: Job 26:3 - Him that hath no wisdom // The thing as it is // wisdom

Him that hath no wisdom either,

1. God: thou hast in effect undertaken to teach God how to govern the world. Or rather,

2. Me, whom you take to be a man void of understanding, Job 11:2,3 , whom therefore you should have instructed with wholesome counsels, instead of these impertinent discourses; and who indeed do want wisdom, being perfectly at a loss, and not knowing what to say or do.

The thing as it is Heb. essence , the truth and substance of the thing in question between us; thou hast spoken the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, and all t can be said in the matter. Or,

wisdom as this word is used, Pro 3:21 . A most wise and profound discourse thou hast made, and much to the purpose: an ironical expression, as before.

Poole: Job 26:4 - Whose spirit came from thee? // came from thee?

For whose instruction hast thou uttered these things? For mine? Dost thou think me to be so ignorant, that I do not know that which the meanest persons are not unacquainted with, to wit, that God is incomparably greater and better than his creatures?

Whose spirit came from thee? so the sense is, Whom hast thou revived or comforted by this discourse? Not me surely. The spirit or breath of a man is in a manner suppressed and intercepted in deep sorrows and consternations, such as Job’ s were; and when he is cheered or refreshed, it finds vent and breathes out freely, as it did before. But I do not remember that ever this phrase is used in this sense; but, on the contrary, the giving or restoring of life is expressed by the coming in, and not by the going out, of spirit or breath, as appears from Gen 2:7 Eze 37:5,6,10 . The words therefore are and may be otherwise understood; either thus, Whose spirit or inspiration (as this word signifies, Job 32:8 )

came from thee? Who inspired thee with this profound discourse of thine? Was it by Divine inspiration, as thou wouldst have us to believe? or was it not a rash suggestion of thy own vain and foolish mind? Or thus, Whose spirit went out (to wit, of his body, by an ecstasy of admiration) for thee, by reason of thy discourse? I may be thought partial in my censure of it, but thou mayst perceive none of our friends here present admire it, except thyself. Or, To or for whom (the particle eth being here understood out of the former branch, as is usual among the Hebrews) did breath go out from thee , i.e. didst thou speak? For whose good, or to what end, didst thou speak this? God needed it not; I receive no edification or benefit by it.

Poole: Job 26:5 - the inhabitants thereof

Job having censured Bildad’ s discourse concerning God’ s dominion and power, as insignificant and impertinent to their question, he here proceedeth to show how little he needed his information in that point, and that he was able to instruct him in that doctrine, of which accordingly he gives divers proofs or instances. Here he showeth that the power and providence of God reacheth not only to the things which we see, but also to the invisible parts of the world; not only to the heavens above, and their inhabitants, and to men upon earth, of which Bildad discoursed Job 25:2,3 , but also to such persons or things as are under the earth, or under the waters, which are under the earth; which are out of our sight and reach, and might be thought to be out of the ken or care of Divine Providence. This Hebrew word sometimes signifies giants, as Deu 2:11,20 3:13 1Ch 20:8 ; whence it may be translated to other great and, as it were, gigantic creatures, and more commonly dead men , as Psa 88:11 Pro 2:18 9:18 21:16 Isa 14:9 Isa 26:14,19 whence it is supposed metaphorically to signify also dead or lifeless things; though there be no example of that use of the word elsewhere; and it may seem improper to call those things dead, which never had nor were capable of life. The next Hebrew word, or the verb, is primarily used of women with child, and signifies their bringing forth their young ones with travail or grievous pains , as Job 39:3 Psa 29:9 Isa 23:4 45:10 ; and thence it signifies either to form or bring forth , as below, Job 26:13 Pro 26:10 ; or to grieve or mourn , or to be in pain . Accordingly these words are diversely understood; either,

1. Of dead or lifeless things, such as amber, pearl, coral, metals, or other minerals, which are formed or brought forth , to wit, by the almighty power of God, from under the waters , i.e. either in the bottom of the sea, or within the earth, which is the lowest element, and in the Scripture and other authors spoken of as under the waters; this being observed as a remarkable work of God’ s providence, that the waters of the sea, which are higher than the earth, do not overwhelm it; and from under (which may be repeated out of the former clause of the verse, after the manner of the Hebrews)

the inhabitants thereof i.e. either of the waters, which are fishes; or of the earth, which are men. Or rather,

2. Of the giants of the old world, which were men of great renown whilst they lived, Gen 6:4 , and the remembrance of them and of their exemplary destruction was now in some sort fresh and famous; who once carried themselves insolently towards God and men, but were quickly subdued by the Divine power, and drowned with a deluge, and now mourn or groan from under the waters, where they were buried, and from under the present inhabitants thereof, as before. Or,

3. Of vast and gigantic fishes , or monsters of the sea, who by God’ s infinite power were formed or brought forth under the waters with the other inhabitants thereof, to wit of the waters, the lesser fishes. Or,

4. Of dead men , and of the worst sort of them, such as died in their sins, and after death were condemned to further miseries; for of such this very word seems to be used, Pro 2:18 9:18 , who are here said to mourn or groan from under the waters , i.e. from the lower parts of the earth, or from under those subterranean seas of waters which are by Scripture and by philosophers supposed to be within and under the earth; of which see Deu 8:7 Job 28:4,10 Ps 33:7 ; and from under

the inhabitants thereof i.e. either of the waters, or of the earth, under which these waters are, or with the other inhabitants thereof , i.e. of that place under the waters, to wit, the apostate spirits. So the sense is, that God’ s dominion is over all men, yea, even the dead, and the worst of them, who though they would not own God nor his providence whilst they lived, yet now are forced to acknowledge and feel that power which they despised, and bitterly mourn under the sad effects of it in their subterranean and infernal habitations, of which the next verse speaks more plainly. And this sense seems to be favoured by the context and scope of the place, wherein Job begins his discourse of God’ s power and providence at the lowermost and hidden parts of the world, and thence proceeds to those parts which are higher and visible. Nor is it strange that Job speaks of these matters, seeing it is evident that Job, and others of the holy patriarchs and prophets of old, did know and believe the doctrine of the future life, and of its several recompences to good and bad men. Others understand this of the resurrection of the dead; The dead shall be born (as this word is used, Psa 2:7 Pro 8:24,25 , i.e. shall be raised, which is a kind of regeneration, or second birth, and is so called, Mat 19:28 Act 13:33 )

from under the waters ( i.e. even those of them that lie in the waters, Rev 20:13 , that were drowned and buried in the sea, and devoured by fishes, &c., whose case may seem to be most desperate, and therefore they only are here mentioned,) and (or even , this particle being oft used expositively) the inhabitants thereof, i.e. those dead corpses which lie or have long lain there.

Poole: Job 26:6 - Hell // destruction // Destruction // Hath no covering

Hell as this word is frequently used, as Job 11:8 Isa 57:9 , &c. And so it seems to be explained by the following word,

destruction i.e. the place of destruction, which interpreters generally understand of hell, or the place of the damned. Others, the grave , the most secret and obscure places and things. Is naked before him , i.e. it is in his presence, and under his providence. So far am I from imagining that God cannot see through a dark cloud, as you traduced me, Job 22:13 , that I very well know that even hell itself, that place of utter darkness, is not hid from his sight.

Destruction i.e. the place of destruction, as it is also used, Pro 15:11 , by a metonymy of the adjunct.

Hath no covering to wit, such as to keep it out of his sight.

Poole: Job 26:7 - The north // The empty place // Upon nothing

The north i.e. the northern pole, or part of the heavens, which he particularly mentions, and puts for the whole visible heaven, because Job and his friends lived in a northern climate, and were acquainted only with that part of the heavens, the southern pole and parts near it being wholly unknown to them. The heavens are oft and fitly said to be spread or stretched out like a curtain or tent, to which they are resembled.

The empty place to wit, the air, so called, not philosophically, as if it were wholly empty; but popularly, because it seems to be so, and is generally void of solid and visible bodies.

Upon nothing upon its own centre, which is but an imaginary thing, and in truth nothing; or upon no props or pillars, but his own power and providence; which is justly celebrated as a wonderful work of God, both in Scripture and in heathen authors.

Poole: Job 26:8

This also is a miraculous work of God, considering the nature of these waters, which are fluid and heavy, and pressing downward, especially being ofttimes there in great abundance; and withal, the quality of the clouds, which are thin and loose bodies of the same nature with fogs and mists upon the face of the earth, and therefore of themselves utterly unable to bear that weight, and to keep up those waters from falling suddenly and violently upon the earth.

Poole: Job 26:9 - He holdeth back // The face of his throne

He holdeth back i.e. to wit, from our view, that its lustre and glory should not reach us, and so dazzle our sight; he covereth it with a cloud, as the next words explain it. Or, he holdeth fast , or binds together , or strengthens it , that it may be able to bear that burden.

The face of his throne either,

1. This lower air, which is as the face or open part of the heavens, which is often called God’ s throne, as Psa 11:4 Isa 66:1 Amo 9:6 . Or,

2. The appearance or manifestation of the heaven of heavens, where he dwelleth, whose light and glory is too great for mortal eyes, which therefore by clouds and other ways he hides from us.

Poole: Job 26:10 - The waters // With bounds // Until the day and night come to an end

The waters to wit, of the sea; for of the upper waters coming out of the clouds he spoke before.

With bounds which are partly the rocks and shores, and principally God’ s appointment, made at the first creation, and renewed after the deluge, Gen 9:11,15 , that the waters should not overwhelm the earth: see Job 38:8,10,11 Ps 104:3 Jer 5:22 .

Until the day and night come to an end i.e. unto the end of the world, for so long these vicissitudes of day and night are to continue, Gen 8:22 9:9 Jer 5:22 31:35,36 .

Poole: Job 26:11 - The pillars of heaven // At his reproof

The pillars of heaven either,

1. Those mountains which by their height and strength may seem to reach and support the heavens, as the poets said of Atlas; for this is a poetical book, and there are many poetical expressions in it. These tremble sometimes by force of earthquakes, or by God’ s glorious appearance in them, as Sinai did. Or,

2. Holy angels; but they are not subject either to trembling, or to God’ s rebuke. Or,

3. The heavenly bodies, as the sun, and moon, and stars, which as they may seem in some sort to support, so they do certainly adorn the heavens; and we know pillars are oft made, not to support, but only for ornament; as the two famous pillars of the temple, Jachin and Boaz, 1Ki 7:21 . And these ofttimes seem to tremble and be astonished, as in eclipses or tempests, and terrible works of God in the air, by which they are frequently said to be affected and changed, because they seem so to us; and many things are spoken in Scripture according to appearance: see Isa 13:10 24:23 Joe 2:10,31 Mt 24:29 , &c.

At his reproof either,

1. When God rebuketh them: for God is sometimes said in Scripture to rebuke the lifeless creatures; which is to be understood figuratively of the tokens of God’ s anger in them. Or,

2. When God reproveth not them, but men by them, manifesting his displeasure against sinful men by thunders, or earthquakes, or prodigious works.

Poole: Job 26:12 - By his understanding // The proud // king over all the children of pride

He speaks either,

1. Of God’ s dividing the Red Sea for the Israelites to pass over; and consequently the Hebrew word rahab , which here follows, and is translated pride , or the proud , is meant of Egypt, which is oft called Rahab , as Psa 87:4 89:10 Isa 51:9 . But it seems most probable that that work was not yet done, and that Job lived long before Israel’ s coming out of Egypt. Or rather,

2. Of the common work of nature and providence in raising tempests, by which he breaketh or divideth the waves of the sea, by making deep furrows in it, and casting up part of the waters into the air, and splitting part of them upon the rocks and shores of the sea.

By his understanding i.e. by his wise counsel and administration of things, so as may obtain his own glorious ends.

The proud either,

1. The whale, which is called

king over all the children of pride Job 41:34 , and which is sometimes by force of tempests cast upon the shore. Or rather,

2. The sea, which is fitly called proud , as its waves are called, Job 38:11 , because it is lofty, and fierce, and swelling, and unruly; which God is said to smite when he subdues and restrains its rage, and turns the storm into a calm.

Poole: Job 26:13 - By his spirit // He hath garnished the heavens // The crooked serpent

By his spirit either,

1. By his Divine virtue or power, which is sometimes called his spirit , as Zec 4:6 Mat 12:28 . Or,

2. By his Holy Spirit, to which the creation of the world is ascribed, Gen 1:2 Job 33:4 Psa 33:6 .

He hath garnished the heavens adorned or beautified them with those glorious lights, the sun, and moon, and stars.

The crooked serpent by which he understands either,

1. All the kinds of serpents, or fishes, or monsters of the sea. Or,

2. The most eminent of their kinds, particularly the whale, which may be here not unfitly mentioned (as it is afterwards more largely described) amongst the glorious works of God in this lower world; as the garnishing of the heavens was his noblest work in the superior visible parts of the world.

Or, 3. A heavenly constellation, called the great dragon and serpent , which being most eminent, as taking up a considerable part of the northern hemisphere, may well be put for all the rest of the constellations or stars wherewith the heavens are garnished. Thus he persisteth still in the same kind of God’ s works, and the latter branch explains the former. And this sense is the more probable, because Job was well acquainted with the doctrine of astronomy, and knew the nature and names of the stars and constellations, as appears also from Job 9:9 38:31 .

Poole: Job 26:14 - These are parts // Of his ways // The thunder of his power

These are parts or, the extremities , but small parcels, the outside and visible work. How glorious then are his visible and more inward perfections and operations!

Of his ways i.e. of his works. Of him , i.e. of his power, and wisdom, and providence, and actions. The greatest part of what we see or know of him, is the least part of what we do not know, and of what is in him, or is done by him.

The thunder of his power either,

1. Of his mighty and terrible thunder, which is oft mentioned as an eminent work of God; as Job 28:26 40:9 Psa 29:3 77:18 . Or,

2. Of his mighty power, which is aptly compared to thunder, in regard of its irresistible force, and the terror which it causeth to wicked men; this metaphor being used by others in like cases; as among the Grecians, who used to say of their vehement and powerful orators, that they did thunder and lighten ; and in Mar 3:17 , where powerful preachers are called sons of thunder .

Haydock: Job 26:1 - With them // Fulmine dejecti fundo voluntur in imo // -----Aliis sub gurgite vasto // Infectum eluitur scelus aut exuritur igni

With them. The less and greater fishes, (Menochius) or rather the giants and others who were buried in the waters of the deluge, and are confined in the dungeons of hell. The poets speak in the same manner. " Hic genus antiquum terræ, Titania pubes,

Fulmine dejecti fundo voluntur in imo.

-----Aliis sub gurgite vasto,

Infectum eluitur scelus aut exuritur igni. " (Virgil, Æneid vi.)

--- Homer (Iliad viii.) and Hesiod (Theog.) place the giants at the extremity of the earth, in the utmost darkness. See also Proverbs ix. 18., and Isaias xiv. 9. (Calmet)

Haydock: Job 26:4 - Life

Life. Septuagint also seem to understand this of God. (Calmet) ---

Job does not blame his friends for undertaking to approve the ways of Providence, but for condemning himself (St. Chrysostom) rashly, (Haydock) and, with an air of haughtiness, endeavouring to restrain him from pleading his cause before the divine tribunal. (Menochius) ---

Hebrew, "Whose spirit came from thee?" (Protestants) (Haydock) Did I receive my life, or do I seek advice from thee? (Calmet) ---

God stood in no need of Baldad's wisdom (Worthington) no more than Job. (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 26:6 - Hell // Destruction

Hell. The grave. ---

Destruction. Hebrew abaddon. (Haydock) ---

St. John (Apocalypse ix. 11.) styles the bottomless abyss; (Calmet) or its angel, (Haydock) Abaddon, or Apollyon. It may here be called destruction, (Calmet) as all its victims are lost for ever to every thing that is good. The obscurity of the grave, and even that of hell, can hide nothing from God.

Haydock: Job 26:7 - North // Nothing. Terra, pilæ similis, nullo fulcimine nixa

North pole, which alone was visible in Idumea, and continued unmoved, while all the stars performed their revolutions. (Calmet) ---

Nothing. Terra, pilæ similis, nullo fulcimine nixa. (Ovid, Fast, vi.) (Calmet) ---

All tends to the centre, (Menochius) by the laws of attraction. (Newton, &c.) (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 26:8 - Clouds

Clouds, as in a vessel or garment, Proverbs xxx. 4.

Haydock: Job 26:9 - Over it

Over it. The firmament, with all its beauty, is but like a cloud, to conceal from our feeble eyes the splendor of God's throne.

Haydock: Job 26:10 - End

End. Till the end of the world, the ocean will respect these limits. (Haydock) ---

The ancients looked upon it as a continual miracle that the world was not deluged, as the waters are higher than the earth, Jeremias v. 22., and Amos v. 8. (St. Basil and St. Ambrose, Hexem.) (Cicero, Nat. ii.) ---

Philosophers have explained this phenomenon. But it is still certain that the power and wisdom of God preserve the equilibrium, without which all would return to the ancient chaos. (Calmet)

Haydock: Job 26:11 - Heaven

Heaven. The mountains are so styled by Pindar; and the poets represent them supporting the heavens. Totum ferre potest humeris minitantibus orbem. (Petronius) ---

Yet others understand that power which keeps all things together, (Calmet) or the angels, to whose rule the ancients attributed the celestial bodies. (St. Gregory; Ven. Bede, &c.)

Haydock: Job 26:12 - Together

Together, at the beginning, Genesis i. 9. Hebrew, "By his strength he has divided the sea; and by his wisdom he has pierced the proud, or Egypt." Rahab, (Haydock) or Rachab, is often put for Egypt; (Psalm lxxxviii. 11.) and all would naturally have concluded that the fall of Pharao was pointed at, if it had not been supposed that Job lived before that event. That is, however, dubious. Isaias (li. 9.) uses the same terms in describing the fall of this tyrant. (Calmet) ---

Yet the Septuagint translate, "the whale," (Haydock) or some sea monster, which God holds in subjection, (Pineda) like the weakest creature. (Haydock) ---

The foaming billows (Menochius) are likewise subject to his control. (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 26:13 - Heavens // Artful // Serpent

Heavens, with stars, &c., Psalm xxxii. 6., and Wisdom i. 7. God also sends winds to disperse the clouds, that the heavens may appear. (Calmet) ---

Artful, ( obstetricante ) "being the midwife." The least things are ruled by Providence. (Worthington) ---

Serpent; a constellation, lightning, the devil, or rather the leviathan, Isaias xxvii. 1. (Drusius) (Calmet) ---

Septuagint, "by his decree, he killed the apostate dragon." (Haydock) ---

But there is no need of having recourse to allegory. (Calmet)

Haydock: Job 26:14 - Drop

Drop. This comparison is often applied to speech, Deuteronomy xxxii. 2., and Isaias lv. 10. If the little that we know of God's works give us such an exalted idea of his greatness, what should we think if we could fully comprehend his mysteries? (Calmet)

Gill: Job 26:1 - But Job answered // and said

But Job answered,.... In a very sharp and biting manner; one would wonder that a man in such circumstances should have so much keenness of spirit, and deal in so much irony, and be master of so much satire, and be able to laugh at his antagonist in the manner he does:

and said; as follows.

Gill: Job 26:2 - How hast thou helped him that is without power // how savest thou the arm that hath no strength

How hast thou helped him that is without power?.... This verse and Job 26:3 either are to be understood of God, as many do, by reading the words, "who hast thou helped? God" ^r? a fine advocate for him thou art, representing him as if he was without power, and could not help himself, but stood in need of another; as if he had no arm, and could not save and protect himself, but needed one to rise and stand up in his behalf, when he is God omnipotent, and has an arm strong and mighty, and there is none like his; and as if he wanted wisdom, and one to counsel him, when he is the all wise God, and never consults with any of his creatures, or admits them to be of his council; and as if his "essence" ^s, or "what he is", as he is, had been very copiously and plentifully declared in a few words by him; in supposing which he must be guilty of the greatest arrogance, stupidity, and folly; and therefore he asks him, who it was he uttered such things unto? and by whose spirit he must be aided in so doing? see Job 13:7; or else Job refers to the cause undertaken by Bildad; and which he, in a sarcastic way, represents as a very weak and feeble one, that had neither strength nor wisdom in it, and was as weakly and as foolishly supported, or rather was entirely neglected and deserted, Bildad having wholly declined the thing in controversy, and said not one word of it; therefore Job ironically asks him, "in what", or "wherein hast thou helped?" ^t what good hast thou done to this poor tottering cause of yours? or what light hast thou thrown upon it? and to what purpose is anything that has been said by thee? Some are of opinion that Job refers to Bildad's friends, whom he represents as weak and stupid, as men of no argument, and had no strength of reasoning, and were as poorly assisted and defended by Bildad: but, why not to Bildad himself? for the sense of the question, agreeably enough to the original text, may be put after this manner; a fine patron and defender of a cause thou art; thou canst help and save a dying cause without power, and with a strengthless arm, or without any force of argument, or strength of reasoning; thou canst give counsel without any wisdom, without any show or share of it, and in half a dozen lines set the thing in a true light, just as it is and should be; a wonderful man indeed thou art! though I choose to join with such interpreters, who understand the whole of Job himself, who was without might and power, a weak and feeble creature in booty and mind, being pressed and broken with the weight of his affliction, but was poorly helped, succoured, strengthened, and comforted, with what Bildad had said: it is the duty of all good men, and it is what Job himself had done in former times, to strengthen weak hands and feeble knees, by sympathizing with persons under affliction, by bearing their burdens and infirmities, by speaking comfortably unto them, and telling them what comforts they themselves have received under afflictions, see Job 4:3; but miserable comforters of Job were Bildad and his friends:

how savest thou the arm that hath no strength? the sense is the same as before, that he had done nothing to relieve Job in his bodily or soul distresses, and save him out of them; nor had contributed in the least towards his support under them; and be it that he was as weak in his intellectuals as he and his friends thought him to be, and had undertaken a cause which he had not strength of argument to defend; yet, what had he done to convince him of his mistake, and save him from the error of his way?

Gill: Job 26:3 - How hast thou counselled him that hath no wisdom // and how hast thou plentifully declared the thing as it is

How hast thou counselled him that hath no wisdom?.... A man deprived of wisdom has need of counsel, and it should be given him; and he does well both to ask and take it; and be it so, as if Job should say, that I am the foolish and unwise creature you take me to be, what counsel and advice have you given me? what a wise counsellor have you shown yourself to be? or rather, what a miserable part have you acted under this character?

and how hast thou plentifully declared the thing as it is? the thing in controversy, set it forth in a clear light, and in a copious manner, when he had not said one word about it, namely, concerning the afflictions of the godly, and the prosperity of the wicked; thus jeering at him, and laughing at the short reply he had made, and which was nothing to the purpose.

Gill: Job 26:4 - To whom hast thou uttered words // and whose spirit came from thee

To whom hast thou uttered words?.... That others know not; dost thou think thou art talking to an ignorant man? be it known to thee, that he knows as much, and can say as much of the Divine Being, of his glories, and of his wondrous ways and works, as thyself, or more: or dost thou consider the circumstances he is in thou art speaking to? one under great affliction and distress, to whom it must be unsuitable to talk of the greatness and majesty of God, of his power and strength, of his purity, holiness, and strict justice; it would have been more proper and pertinent to have discoursed concerning his loving kindness, grace, and mercy, his pity and compassion towards his afflicted people, his readiness to forgive their sins, and overlook their failings; and concerning the promised Redeemer, his righteousness and sacrifice, and of the many instances of divine goodness to the sons of men, and in such like circumstances, by raising them up again, and restoring them to their former happiness. Some things of this nature would have been more pertinent and suitable, and would have been doing both a wise and friendly part:

and whose spirit came from thee? Not the spirit of God; dost thou think thyself inspired by God? or that what thou hast said is by the inspiration of his Spirit? or that thou speakest like such who are moved by the Holy Ghost? nor indeed was it his own spirit, or the words and things uttered were not of himself, or flowed not from his own knowledge and understanding: of things, but what he had borrowed from Eliphaz; for he had delivered very little more than what Eliphaz had said, Job 4:17; or else the sense is, whose spirit has been restored, revived, refreshed, and comforted by what thou hast said? The word of God has such efficacy as to restore the soul, to revive it when drooping, and as it were swooning away and dying, see Psa 19:7; and the words of some good men are spirit and life, the savour of life unto life, and are as life from the dead, very refreshing and comforting; but no such effect followed on what Bildad had said. Mr. Broughton renders the words, "whose soul admired thee?" thou mayest admire thyself, and thy friends may admire thee, at least thou mayest think they do, having said in thine own opinion admirable things; but who else does? for my own part I do not; and, if saying great and glorious things of God are to any purpose in the controversy between us, I am capable of speaking greater and better things than what have been delivered; and, for instance, let the following be attended to.

Gill: Job 26:5 - Dead things are formed from under the waters // and // the inhabitants thereof

Dead things are formed from under the waters,.... It is difficult to say what things are here meant; it may be understood of "lifeless" things, as Mr. Broughton renders it; things that never had any life, things inanimate, that never had at least an animal life, though they may have a vegetable one; and so may be interpreted of grains of corn, and which indeed die before they are quickened; to which both Christ and the apostle allude, Joh 12:24; and which, as they cannot grow without water, and their fructification and increase are owing to the earth being plentifully watered with rain, may be said to be formed under the waters; and of these Aben Ezra and Ben Gersom interpret the words; and the latter also makes mention of herbs, plants, and trees in the sea, particularly almug trees, as being probably intended; to which may be added, corals, and other sea plants, formed from under the waters; yea, some make mention of woods and forests there: but the last mentioned writer, seems inclined to think that metals and minerals may be intended; and it is well known that much of gold is taken out of rivers, as also pearls and precious stones; and that iron is taken out of the earth, and brass molten out of stone; and that the several metals and minerals are dug out of mountains and hills, from whence fountains and rivers flow; but as the word used has the signification of something gigantic, it has inclined others to think of sea monsters, as of the great whales which God made in the seas, and the leviathan he has made to play therein:

and or "with"

the inhabitants thereof; the innumerable company of fishes, both of the larger and lesser sort, which are all formed in and under the waters: but why may not giants themselves be designed, since the word is sometimes used of them, Deu 2:11; and so the Vulgate Latin and the Septuagint version here render the word, and may refer to the giants that were before the flood, and who were the causes of filling the world with rapine and violence, and so of bringing the flood of waters upon it; in which they perished "with the inhabitants thereof"; or their neighbours; of whom see Gen 6:4; and the spirits of these being in prison, in hell, as the Apostle Peter says, 1Pe 3:19; which is commonly supposed to be under the earth, and so under the waters, in which they perished; they may be represented as in pain and torment, and groaning and trembling under the same, as the word here used is by some thought to signify, and is so rendered ^t; though as the word "Rephaim" is often used of dead men, Psa 88:10; it may be understood of them here, and have respect to the formation of them anew, or their resurrection from the dead, when the earth shall cast them forth; and especially of those whose graves are in the sea, and who have been buried in the waters of it, when that shall deliver up the dead that are therein, Rev 20:13; which will be a wonderful instance of the mighty power of God. The Targumist seems to have a notion of this, or at least refers unto it, paraphrasing the words thus,

"is it possible that the mighty men (or giants) should be created (that is, recreated or regenerated; that is, raised from the dead); seeing they are under the waters, and their armies?''

Gill: Job 26:6 - Hell is naked before him // and destruction hath no covering

Hell is naked before him,.... Which may be taken either for the place of the damned, as it sometimes is; and then the sense is, that though it is hidden from men, and they know not where it is, or who are in it, and what is done and suffered there; yet it is all known to God: he knows the place thereof, for it is made, ordained, and prepared by him; he knows who are there, even all the wicked dead, and all the nations that forget God, being cast there by him; he knows the torments they endure, for the smoke of them continually ascends before him; and he knows all their malice and envy, their enmity to him, and blasphemy of him; for thither are they gone down with their weapons of war, and have laid their swords under their heads, Eze 32:27; or for Hades, the invisible world of spirits, or state of the dead, as the Septuagint version renders the word; though that is unseen to men, it is naked and open to the eye of God; or for the grave, in which the bodies of men are laid; which is the frequent sense of the word used, Psa 88:11; and though this is a land of darkness, and where the light is as darkness, yet God can look into it; and the dust of men therein is carefully observed and preserved by him, and will be raised again at the last day; who has the keys of death and hell, or the grave, and can open it at his pleasure, and cause it to give up the dead that are therein:

and destruction hath no covering; and may design the same as before, either hell, the place of the damned, where men are destroyed soul and body with an everlasting destruction; or the grave, which the Targum calls the house of destruction, as it sometimes is, the pit of destruction and corruption; because bodies cast into it corrupt and putrefy, and are destroyed in it; and there is nothing to cover either the one or the other from the all seeing eye of God; see Psa 139:7; as hell is supposed to be under the earth, and the grave is in it, Job is as yet on things below, and from hence rises to those above, in the following words.

Gill: Job 26:7 - He stretcheth out the north over the empty place // and hangeth the earth upon nothing

He stretcheth out the north over the empty place,.... The northern hemisphere, which is the chief and best known, at least it was in the time of Job, when the southern hemisphere might not be known at all; though, if our version of Job 9:9 is right, Job seems to have had knowledge of it. Scheuchzer ^u thinks the thick air farthest north is meant, which expands itself everywhere, and is of great use to the whole earth. But if the northern hemisphere is meant, as a learned man ^w expresses it, it

"was not only principal as to Job's respect, and the position of Arabia, but because this hemisphere is absolutely so indeed, it is principal to the whole; for as the heavens and the earth are divided by the middle line, the northern half hath a strange share of excellency; we have more earth, more men, more stars, more day (the same also Sephorno, a Jewish commentator on the place, observes); and, which is more than all this, the north pole is more magnetic than the south:''

though the whole celestial sphere may be intended, the principal being put for the whole; even that whole expansion, or firmament of heaven, which has its name from being stretched out like a curtain, or canopy, over the earth; which was done when the earth was "tohu", empty of inhabitants, both men and beasts, and was without form and void, and had no beauty in it, or anything growing on it; see Gen 1:2;

and hangeth the earth upon nothing; as a ball in the air ^x, poised with its own weight ^y, or kept in this form and manner by the centre of gravity, and so some Jewish writers ^z interpret "nothing" of the centre of the earth, and which is nothing but "ens rationis", a figment and imagination of the mind; or rather the earth is held together, and in the position it is, by its own magnetic virtue, it being a loadstone itself; and as the above learned writer observes,

"the globe consisteth by a magnetic dependency, from which the parts cannot possibly start aside; but which, howsoever thus strongly seated on its centre and poles, is yet said to hang upon nothing; because the Creator in the beginning thus placed it within the "tohu", as it now also hangeth in the air; which itself also is nothing as to any regard of base or sustentation.''

In short, what the foundations are on which it is laid, or the pillars by which it is sustained, cannot be said, except the mighty power and providence of God. The word used seems to come from a root, which in the Syriac and Chaldee languages signifies to "bind and restrain"; and may design the expanse or atmosphere, so called from its binding and compressing nature, על, "in" or "within" which the earth is hung; see Psa 32:9.

Gill: Job 26:8 - He bindeth up the waters in his thick clouds // and the cloud is not rent under them

He bindeth up the waters in his thick clouds,.... The clouds are of his making; when he utters his voice, or gives the word of command, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens; and the vapours he exhales from the ends of the earth and forms them into clouds, and they are his chariots, in which he rides up and down in the heavens, and waters his gardens and plantations on earth; see Jer 10:13; which may be said to be thick in comparison of the air, in which they are; otherwise they are but thin, and the thinner they are, the greater wonder it is that the waters, and such a heavy body of them, should be bound up in them, as there often is; and which is bound up, held, and retained therein, as anything bound up in a sack or bag, or in a garment, or the skirt of a man's coat; see Pro 30:4; and what is still more marvellous:

and the cloud is not rent under them; under the waters, and through the weight of them; which, if it was, would fall in vast water spouts, and were such to fall upon the earth, as it may be supposed they did at the general deluge, they would destroy man and beast, and wash off and wash away the things of the earth: but God has so ordered it in his infinite wisdom, and by his almighty power, that clouds should not be thus rent, but fall in small drops and gentle showers, as if they passed through a sieve or colander, whereby the earth is refreshed, and made fruitful; see Job 36:26.

Gill: Job 26:9 - He holdeth back the face of his throne // and spreadeth his cloud upon it

He holdeth back the face of his throne,.... His throne is the heaven of heavens; the face of it, or what is before it, is the starry and airy heavens; this face of his throne is sometimes held back, or covered with clouds, that so his throne is so far from being visible, that even the face of it, or the outside or external appearance of it, is not to be seen, as follows:

and spreadeth his cloud upon it; and both he and his throne are invisible; clouds and darkness are round about him, and his pavilion round about are dark waters, and thick clouds of the skies, Psa 18:11; and even the light in which he dwells, and with which he clothes himself, is impervious to us, and is so dazzling, that itself covers and keeps back himself and throne from being seen by mortals. The Targum suggests, that what is here said to be done is done that the angels may not see it; but these always stand before the throne of God, and always behold the face of God himself.

Gill: Job 26:10 - He hath compassed the waters with bounds

He hath compassed the waters with bounds,.... Not the waters above the firmament, compassed by that, as if Job was contemplating on and discoursing about what is done in the heavens above; though the Targum seems to incline to this sense, paraphrasing the words,

"he hath decreed that the firmament should be placed upon the face of the waters unto the end of light, with darkness;''

but the waters of the sea, Job descending now to consider the waters of the great deep, and the wonderful restraint that is laid upon them; which is as astonishing as the binding up of the waters in the clouds without being rent by them; for this vast and unwieldy body of waters in the ocean Jehovah manages with as much ease as a mother or nurse does a newborn infant, makes the cloud its garment, and thick darkness a swaddling band for it, Job 38:8; he has as it were with a compass drawn a line upon the face of it; he has broke up for it its decreed place, and set bars, and doors, and bounds to its waves, that they, nay come no further than is his pleasure, as is observed in the same place; the bounds he hath compassed it with are the shores, rocks, and cliffs, so that the waters cannot return and cover earth, as they once did; yea, which is very surprising, he has placed the sand, as weak and fluid as it is, the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree; so that though its waves toss and roar, they cannot prevail, nor pass over it; which must be owing to the almighty power and sovereign will of God, who has given the sea a decree that its waters should not pass his commandment; and it must be ascribed to his promise and oath that the waters no more go over the earth to destroy it; see Psa 104:9, Pro 8:27; until the dark and night come to an end; that is, as long as there will be the vicissitudes of day and night, till time shall be no more, as long as the world stands; for the those shall constitute so long are the ordinances of God, which shall never depart, and the covenant he has made, which shall never become void; wherefore, as long as they remain, the sea and its waters will be bounded as not to overflow the earth, Gen 8:22; or "until the end of light with darkness" ^a; until both these have an end in the same form and manner they now have; otherwise, after the end of all things, there will be light in heaven, and darkness in hell. Aben Ezra interprets it thus,

"unto the place which is the end of light, for all that is above it is light, and below it the reverse;''

he seems to have respect to the place that divides the hemispheres, where when one is light the other is dark; and so others seem to understand it of such places or parts of the world as are half day and half night, and where one half of the year is light, and the other dark; but the first sense is best.

Gill: Job 26:11 - The pillars of heaven tremble // and are astonished at his reproof

The pillars of heaven tremble,.... Which may be understood either of the air, the lower part of the heavens, which may be thought to be the foundation, prop, and support of them, and is sometimes called the firmament, and "the firmament of his power", Psa 150:1; and which seems to tremble when there are thunder and lightnings, and coruscations in it; or else the mountains, which, reaching up to the heavens, look as if they were the pillars and support of them; and are indeed said to be the foundations of heaven, which move and shake and tremble at the presence and power of God, and at any expressions of his wrath and anger, and particularly through earthquakes and storms, and tempests of thunder and lightning; see 2Sa 22:8, which are meant by what follows:

and are astonished at his reproof; his voice of thunder, which is sometimes awful and terrible, astonishing and surprising; and, to set forth the greatness of it, inanimate creatures are represented as trembling, and astonished at it; see Psa 104:7; some interpret this figuratively of angels, who they suppose are employed in the direction of the heavens, and the motion of the heavenly bodies; and who they think are the same which in the New Testament are called "the powers of heaven said to be shaken", Mat 24:29; and to be the seraphim that covered their faces upon a glorious display of the majesty of God, and when the posts of the door of the temple moved at the voice of him that cried, Isa 6:1; but if a figurative sense may be admitted of, the principal persons in the church, sometimes signified by heaven in Scripture, may be thought of; as ministers of the word, who are pillars in the house of God; yea, every true member of the church of God is made a pillar in it; and these tremble, and are astonished oftentimes when the Lord rebukes them by afflictions, though it is in love and kindness to them, Pro 9:1.

Gill: Job 26:12 - He divideth the sea with his power // and by his understanding he smiteth through the proud

He divideth the sea with his power,.... As at the first creation, when the waters were caused to go off the face of the earth, and were separated from it; and the one was called earth, and the other seas, Gen 1:9; or it may respect the division of those waters into divers seas and channels in the several parts of the world, for the better accommodation of the inhabitants of it, in respect of trade and commerce, and the more convenient supply of them with the various produce of different countries, and the transmitting of it to them: some have thought this has respect to the division of the Red sea for the children of Israel to walk in as on dry land, when pursued by the Egyptians, supposed to be meant by "Rahab" in the next clause; rather it may design the parting of the waves of the sea by a stormy wind, raised by the power of God, which lifts up the waves on high, and divides them in the sea, and dashes them one against another; wrinkles and furrows them, as Jarchi interprets the words, which is such an instance of the power and majesty or God, that he is sometimes described by it, Isa 51:15; though the word used is sometimes taken in a quite different sense, for the stilling of the waves of the sea, and so it is by some rendered here, "he stilleth the sea by his power" ^b; the noise of its waves, and makes them quiet, and the sea a calm, which has been exceeding boisterous and tempestuous, and is taken notice of as an effect of his sovereign and uncontrollable power, Psa 65:7; and may be observed as a proof of our Lord's divinity, whom the winds and sea obeyed, to the astonishment of the mariners, who were convinced thereby that he must be some wonderful and extraordinary person, Mat 8:26;

and by his understanding he smiteth through the proud; the proud waves of the sea, and humbles them, and makes them still, as before; or the proud monstrous creatures in it, as whales and others, particularly the leviathan, the king over all the children of pride, Job 41:34; see Psa 74:13. The word used is "Rahab", one of the names of Egypt, Psa 87:4; and so Jarchi interprets it of the Egyptians, who were smitten of God with various plagues, and particularly in their firstborn; and at last at the Red sea, where multitudes perished, and Pharaoh their proud king, with his army; who was an emblem of the devil, whose sin, the cause of his fall and ruin, was pride; and the picture of proud and haughty sinners, whose destruction sooner or later is from the Lord; and which is an instance of his wisdom and understanding, who humbles the proud, and exalts the lowly.

Gill: Job 26:13 - By his spirit he hath garnished the heavens // his hand hath formed the crooked serpent

By his spirit he hath garnished the heavens,.... The visible heavens, with the sun, moon, and stars, with which they are studded and bespangled, and look exceeding beautiful; and the invisible heavens, with angels, the morning stars, and glorified saints, who especially in the resurrection morn will shine not only like stars, but as the sun in the firmament of heaven; and the church, which is the heaven below, is garnished with Gospel ministers, adorned with the gifts and graces of the spirit of God:

his hand hath formed the crooked serpent; because Job in the preceding clause has respect to the heavens and the ornament of them, this has led many to think that some constellation in the heavens is meant by the crooked serpent, either the galaxy, or milky way, as Ben Gersom and others; or the dragon star, as some in Aben Ezra ^c: but rather Job descends again to the sea, and concludes with taking notice of the wonderful work of God, the leviathan, with which God himself concludes his discourse with him in the close of this book, which is called as here the crooked or "bar serpent", Isa 27:1; and so the Targum understands it,

"his hand hath created leviathan, which is like unto a biting serpent.''

Some understand it of the crocodile, and the epithet agrees with it, whether it be rendered a "bar serpent", as some ^d; that is, straight, stretched out, long, as a bar, the reverse of our version; or "fleeing" ^e, as others; the crocodile being, as Pliny ^f says, terrible to those that flee from it, but flees from those that pursue it. Jarchi interprets it of Pharaoh, or leviathan, both an emblem of Satan, the old serpent, the devil, who is God's creature, made by him as a creature, though not made a serpent, or a devil, by him, which was of himself. Some have observed the trinity of persons in these words, and who doubtless were concerned in the creation of all things; here is "Jehovah", of whom the whole context is; and "his Spirit", who, as he moved upon the face of the waters at the first creation, is here said to beautify and adorn the heavens; "and his hand"; his Son, the power and wisdom of God, by whom he made all things.

Gill: Job 26:14 - Lo, these are parts of his ways // but how little a portion is heard of him // but the thunder of his power who can understand

Lo, these are parts of his ways,.... This is the conclusion of the discourse concerning the wonderful works of God; and Job was so far from thinking that he had taken notice of all, or even of the chief and principal, that what he observed were only the extremities, the edges, the borders, and outlines of the ways and works of God in creation and providence; wherefore, if these were so great and marvellous, what must the rest be which were out of the reach of men to point out and describe?

but how little a portion is heard of him? from the creatures, from the works of creation, whether in heaven, earth, or sea; for though they do declare in some measure his glory, and though their voice is heard everywhere, and shows forth the knowledge of him; even exhibits to view his invisible things, his eternal power and Godhead; yet it is comparatively so faint a light, that men grope as it were in the dark, if haply they might find him, having nothing but the light of nature to guide them. We hear the most of him in his word, and by his Son Jesus Christ, in whose face the knowledge of him, and his glorious perfections, is given; and yet we know but in part, and prophesy in part; it is but little in comparison of what is in him, and indeed of what will be heard and known of him hereafter in eternity:

but the thunder of his power who can understand? meaning not literally thunder, which though it is a voice peculiar to God, and is very strong and powerful, as appears by the effects of it; see Job 40:9; yet is not so very unintelligible as to be taken notice of so peculiarly, and to be instanced in as above all things out, of the reach of the understanding of men; but rather the attribute of his power, of which Job had been discoursing, and giving so many instances of; and yet there is such an exceeding greatness in it, as not to be comprehended and thoroughly understood by all that appear to our view; for his mighty power is such as is able to subdue all things to himself, and reaches to things we cannot conceive of. Ben Gersom, not amiss, applies this to the greatness and multitude of the decrees of God; and indeed if those works of his which are in sight cannot be fully understood by us, how should we be able to understand things that are secret and hidden in his own breast, until by his mighty power they are carried into execution? see 1Co 2:9.