Matthew Henry Commentary Job 21
Matthew Henry Commentary
Job 21
Matthew Henry Commentary
Job 21
"Then Job answered and said, Hear diligently my speech; And let this be your consolations. Suffer me, and I also will speak; And after that I have spoken, mock on. As for me, is my complaint to man? And why should I not be impatient? Mark me, and be astonished, And lay your hand upon your mouth. Even when I remember I am troubled, And horror taketh hold on my flesh." — Job 21:1-6 (ASV)
Job comes closer to the question in dispute. This was whether outward prosperity is a mark of the true church and its true members, so that the ruin of a man's prosperity proves him a hypocrite. This they asserted, but Job denied. If they looked upon him, they might see misery enough to demand compassion, and their bold interpretations of this mysterious providence should be turned into silent wonder.
"Wherefore do the wicked live, Become old, yea, wax mighty in power? Their seed is established with them in their sight, And their offspring before their eyes. Their houses are safe from fear, Neither is the rod of God upon them. Their bull gendereth, and faileth not; Their cow calveth, and casteth not her calf. They send forth their little ones like a flock, And their children dance. They sing to the timbrel and harp, And rejoice at the sound of the pipe. They spend their days in prosperity, And in a moment they go down to Sheol. And they say unto God, Depart from us; For we desire not the knowledge of thy ways. What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? And what profit should we have, if we pray unto him? Lo, their prosperity is not in their hand: The counsel of the wicked is far from me." — Job 21:7-16 (ASV)
Job says that remarkable judgments are sometimes brought upon notorious sinners, but not always. Why is it so?
This is the day of God's patience; and in some way or other, he makes use of the prosperity of the wicked to serve his own counsels, while it ripens them for ruin; but the chief reason is that he will make it clear there is another world.
These prospering sinners make light of God and religion, as if, because they have so much of this world, they had no need to concern themselves with another. But religion is not a vain thing. If it is so to us, we may thank ourselves for resting on the outside of it. Job shows their folly.
"How oft is it that the lamp of the wicked is put out? That their calamity cometh upon them? That [God] distributeth sorrows in his anger? That they are as stubble before the wind, And as chaff that the storm carrieth away? [Ye say], God layeth up his iniquity for his children. Let him recompense it unto himself, that he may know it: Let his own eyes see his destruction, And let him drink of the wrath of the Almighty. For what careth he for his house after him, When the number of his months is cut off? Shall any teach God knowledge, Seeing he judgeth those that are high? One dieth in his full strength, Being wholly at ease and quiet: His pails are full of milk, And the marrow of his bones is moistened. And another dieth in bitterness of soul, And never tasteth of good. They lie down alike in the dust, And the worm covereth them." — Job 21:17-26 (ASV)
Job had described the prosperity of wicked people; in these verses he opposes this to what his friends had maintained about their certain ruin in this life. He reconciles this to the holiness and justice of God. Even while they prosper in this way, they are insignificant and worthless, of no importance to God, or to wise men.
In the height of their pomp and power, there is only a step between them and ruin. Job attributes the difference Providence makes between one wicked man and another to the wisdom of God. He is Judge of all the earth, and he will do right.
So vast is the disproportion between time and eternity, that if hell is the fate of every sinner in the end, it makes little difference if one goes singing there, and another sighing. If one wicked man dies in a palace, and another in a dungeon, the worm that dies not, and the fire that is not quenched, will be the same to them.
Therefore, differences in this world are not worth worrying about.
"Behold, I know your thoughts, And the devices wherewith ye would wrong me. For ye say, Where is the house of the prince? And where is the tent wherein the wicked dwelt? Have ye not asked wayfaring men? And do ye not know their evidences, That the evil man is reserved to the day of calamity? That they are led forth to the day of wrath? Who shall declare his way to his face? And who shall repay him what he hath done? Yet shall he be borne to the grave, And men shall keep watch over the tomb. The clods of the valley shall be sweet unto him, And all men shall draw after him, As there were innumerable before him. How then comfort ye me in vain, Seeing in your answers there remaineth [only] falsehood?" — Job 21:27-34 (ASV)
Job opposes the opinion of his friends that the wicked are sure to fall into visible and remarkable ruin, and none but the wicked; upon which principle they condemned Job as wicked. Turn to whomever you will, you will find that the punishment of sinners is designed more for the other world than for this (Jude 1:14, 15). The sinner is here presumed to live with a great deal of power.
The sinner will have a splendid funeral: a poor thing for anyone to be proud of the prospect. He will have a stately monument. And a valley with springs of water to keep the turf green was considered an honorable burial place among Eastern peoples; but such things are vain distinctions.
Death closes his prosperity. It is only a poor encouragement to die that others have died before us. What enables someone to die with true courage is to remember with faith that Jesus Christ died and was laid in the grave, not only before us but for us. That He has gone before us and died for us—He who is alive and lives for us—is true consolation in the hour of death.
Jump to: