Companion to the Bible Part 17

Job now humbles himself unconditionally before his Maker. Upon this G.o.d publicly justifies him to his three friends, while He condemns them, declaring that he has spoken of Him the thing which is right (42:8).

This is to be understood as referring not to the _spirit_ manifested by Job, which G.o.d had sharply rebuked, but rather to the _ground_ taken by him in respect to G.o.d's dealings with men. By G.o.d's direction the three friends now offer sacrifices for their folly, which are accepted in answer to Job's prayer in their behalf, and his former prosperity is restored to him in double measure.

6. From the above sketch of the plan of the book its _design_ is manifest. It unfolds the nature of G.o.d's providential government over men. It is not simply retributive, as the three friends had maintained, so that the measure of a man's outward sufferings is the measure of his sins; nor is it simply incomprehensible, so that there can be no reasoning about it; but it is disciplinary, in such a way that sorrow, though always the fruit of sin, comes upon good men as well as upon the wicked, being a fatherly chastis.e.m.e.nt intended for their benefit, and which, if properly improved, will in the end conduct them to a higher degree of holiness, and therefore of true prosperity and happiness. The three friends were right in maintaining G.o.d's justice; but with respect to the manner of its manifestation their error was fundamental. Job's view was right, but inadequate. A disciplinary government, administered over a world in which the wicked and the imperfectly good live together, must be incomprehensible as it respects the particular distribution of good and evil. Elihu was right in the main position, but he wanted authority. The question was settled by G.o.d's interposition not _before_ the human discussion, nor _without_ it, but _after_ it; an interposition in which the three friends were condemned, Job approved, and the argument of Elihu left in its full force.

It has been the fashion with a certain cla.s.s of critics to disparage Elihu as a self-conceited young man, and to deny the authenticity of his discourses. But thus the plan of the book is fatally broken, as must be evident from the account given of it above. It was not necessary that Elihu should be named in the prologue. It is enough that he is described when he takes a part in the argument. Why he is not named in the closing chapter has been already indicated. There was nothing in his argument to be censured. As to the attacks made on other parts of the book as not authentic, for example, what is said of Behemoth and Leviathan, they rest on no valid foundation. They are only judgments of modern critics as to how and what the author of the book before us ought to have written. The attempt to resolve into disconnected parts a book so perfect in its plan, and which has come down to us by the unanimous testimony of antiquity in its present form, is a most uncritical procedure.

7. Job plainly belonged to the patriarchal period. This appears from his longevity. He lived after his trial a hundred and forty years (42:16), and must have been then considerably advanced in life. This points to a period as early as that of Abraham. To the same conclusion we are brought by the fact that no form of idolatry is mentioned in the book, but only the worship of the heavenly bodies. The simplicity of the patriarchal age appears, moreover, in all its descriptions. But we need not from this infer that the book was written in the patriarchal age, for the author may have received from the past the facts which he records. The book is written in pure Hebrew, with all the freedom of an original work, and by one intimately acquainted with both Arabic and Egyptian scenery. Some have supposed Moses to be the author, but this is very uncertain. The prevailing opinion of the present day is that it was written not far from the age of Solomon.

8. There is no ground for denying that the book of Job has a foundation of _true history_. He is mentioned by Ezekiel with Noah and Daniel as a real person. Ezek. 14:14, 20. The apostle James also refers to the happy issue of his trials as a historic event calculated to encourage G.o.d's suffering children. Jas. 5:11. But we need not suppose that all the details of the book are historic. The inspired poet takes up the great facts of Job's history and the great arguments connected with them, and gives them in his own language; probably also, to a certain extent, according to his own arrangement. The scene of the first two chapters is laid in heaven. Undoubtedly they record a real transaction; but it may be a transaction revealed to the author in an allegorical form, like Micaiah's vision (1 Kings 22:19-22), that it might be thus made level to human apprehension.

II. THE PSALMS.

9. We have seen the office of the Book of Job in the system of divine revelation. Very different, but not less important, is that of the book of Psalms. It is a collection of sacred lyrics: that is, of poems expressive of religious feeling and adapted to the public worship of G.o.d. In respect to subjects, the Psalms exhibit a wonderful diversity.

They cover the whole field of religious experience, and furnish to the churches an inexhaustible treasury of sacred song for all ages.

Seventy-three of the psalms are ascribed to David in their t.i.tles, and the whole book, as referred to in the New Testament, bears his name. Of the remaining psalms, Asaph is named as the author of twelve; to the sons of Korah eleven are ascribed; to Solomon two (Psalms 72 and 127); to Moses one (Psalm 90); to Ethan one (Psalm 89). The remaining fifty are anonymous. Of these, some appear from their contents to have been written as late as the era of the captivity and restoration. Some writers have referred certain psalms to the Maccabean age. But there is nothing in the contents of these psalms which makes such a reference necessary, and we have decisive evidence that the Hebrew canon was closed long before this period. See below, Chap. 22, No. 21.

10. In regard to the external arrangement of the Psalms, which is generally ascribed to Ezra, and cannot be earlier than his day, they are divided in the Hebrew Bible into _five books_, each closing with a doxology except the last, to which, as well as to the whole collection, the final psalm serves as a doxology.

The _first_ book contains Psalms 1-41. Of these forty-one psalms, thirty-seven bear the name of David. Of the remaining four, the second and tenth undoubtedly belong to him, and in all probability the first and thirty-third also. The psalms of this book are remarkable for the predominance of the name _Jehovah_ over _Elohim_, _G.o.d_.

The _second_ book includes Psalms 42-72. Of these, eighteen bear the name of David; the first eight (including Psa. 43, which is manifestly connected with the preceding psalm) are ascribed to the sons of Korah; one to Asaph (Psa. 50); one to Solomon (Psa. 72); and the remaining three are without t.i.tles. In this book the divine name _Elohim_, _G.o.d_, greatly predominates over the name _Jehovah_.

The _third_ book includes Psalms 73-89, seventeen in all. Of these, the first eleven are ascribed to Asaph; four to the sons of Korah; one to David (Psa. 86); and one to Ethan the Ezrahite (Psa. 89). In the psalms of Asaph the divine name _Elohim_, _G.o.d_, predominates; in the remainder of the book the name _Jehovah_.

The _fourth_ book includes Psalms 90-106. Of these seventeen psalms, only three bear t.i.tles; the ninetieth being referred to Moses, the hundred and first and hundred and third to David. This book is therefore emphatically one of anonymous psalms, which are for the most part of a very general character, being evidently arranged with reference to the service of song in the sanctuary. Throughout this book the divine name _Jehovah_ prevails; the name _Elohim_, _G.o.d_, being rarely used except in connection with a p.r.o.noun or some epithet--_my G.o.d_, _G.o.d of Jacob_, etc.

The _fifth_ book contains the remaining forty-four psalms. Of these, fifteen are ascribed to David; one to Solomon (Psa. 127); and twenty-eight are anonymous. In this book also the divine name _Jehovah_ prevails almost exclusively.

It is probable that these five books were arranged not simultaneously but successively, with considerable intervals between some of them. The subscription appended to the second book: "The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended," may possibly be explained, upon this supposition.

It may have been added as a subscription to the first two books, before the others were arranged for the temple service.

Although the psalms belonging to the respective books are not cla.s.sified upon any strict principle, yet their arrangement is not altogether fortuitous. We find psalms with the same t.i.tle grouped together--eleven psalms of Asaph. (73-83); eight of the sons of Korah (42-49); eight of David (139-145 separated from his other psalms); three psalms inscribed _Al-taschith_ (57-59); the fifteen songs of degrees (120-134), etc. Also we find psalms of similar contents grouped together--Psa. 79, 80; 88, 89; 91-100; 105-107; etc.

Various attempts have been made to cla.s.sify the psalms according to their subjects. But their very richness and variety makes this a very difficult undertaking. They cover the whole field of religious experience for both individual believers and the church at large. Many of them--the so-called _Messianic_ psalms--are prophetic of the Saviour's offices and work. We need not wonder, therefore, that the Psalms are quoted in the New Testament oftener than any other book of the Old Testament, Isaiah not excepted.

11. Besides the names of the authors, or the occasion of their composition, many of the psalms bear other inscriptions. Of these the princ.i.p.al are the following:

(1.) The _dedicatory t.i.tle: To the chief musician_, prefixed to fifty-three psalms, signifies that the psalm is a.s.signed to him, as the leader of the choir at the tabernacle or temple, to be used in the public worship of G.o.d. The t.i.tle rendered in our version: _For the sons of Korah_, is better translated, as in the margin: _Of the sons of Korah_; that is, written by one of their number.

(2.) t.i.tles expressing the _character_ of the composition. Here we have, as the most common and general, _Psalm_, a lyric poem to be sung; _Song_, a t.i.tle borne by sixteen psalms, generally in connection with the word _psalm_, where the rendering should be: _a psalm_, _a song_; or, _a song_, _a psalm_. All the psalms thus designated except two (Psa.

83, 88) are of a joyous character, that is, songs of praise; _Song of degrees_, a t.i.tle the meaning of which is disputed. Many render: _A song of ascents_, and suppose that the fifteen psalms which bear this t.i.tle (120-134) were so called because they were arranged to be sung on the occasion of the ascent of the people to Jerusalem to keep the yearly festivals. For other explanations, the reader is referred to the commentaries. The t.i.tles: _Prayer_ (Psa. 17, 90, 102, 142), and _Praise_ (Psa. 145) need no explanation. Besides these t.i.tles, there are several others left untranslated in our version, as: _Maschil_, _teaching_, that is, a didactic psalm; _Michtam_ (Psa. 16, 56-60) either a _writing_, that is, poem, or a _golden psalm_.

(3.) t.i.tles relating to the _musical_ performance. Of these, the most common is the much disputed word _Selah_. It is generally agreed that it signifies a _rest_, either in singing for the purpose of an instrumental interlude, or an entire rest in the performance. As a general rule, this t.i.tle closes a division of a psalm. Of the t.i.tles supposed to indicate either musical instruments or modes of musical performance, the following are examples: _Neginath_ (Psa. 61), elsewhere _Neginoth_, _stringed instruments_; _Nehiloth_, probably flutes (Psa. 5); _Gitt.i.th_ (Psa. 8, 81, 84), from the word _Gath_, which denotes a Philistine city, and also a wine-press. Gitt.i.th has been accordingly interpreted to mean (1) a musical instrument or a melody brought from Gath; (2) a musical instrument in the form of a winepress, or a melody used in treading the wine-press; _Shoshannim_, _lilies_ (Psa. 45, 69); _Shushan-eduth_, _lily of the testimony_ (Psa. 60); _Shoshannim-eduth_, _lilies of the testimony_ (Psa. 80), either a musical instrument so named from its shape, or a particular melody, or, as some think, an emblematic term referring to the contents of the psalm; _Sheminith_, _the eighth_, or octave, perhaps a musical key (Psa. 6, 12); _Alamoth_, _virgins_, probably denoting treble voices (Psa. 46); _Al-taschith_, _destroy not_ (Psa. 57, 58, 59, 75), according to some, the name of an air taken from a well-known poem; according to others, an indication of the contents of the psalm. For other t.i.tles, occurring but once or twice, the reader must be referred to the commentaries.

Whether the t.i.tles const.i.tute a part of the psalms; that is, whether they were prefixed by the writers themselves, is a question that has been much debated, and answered differently by different writers. That they are very ancient--so ancient that the meaning of the terms employed had pa.s.sed into oblivion when the Alexandrine version was made--must be admitted. But it would be too much to affirm that they are a part of the inspired word.

The correctness of some of them is doubtful. If we admit their general correctness, reserving for critical investigation the question of the historical validity of particular t.i.tles, it is as far as we need go.

III. THE PROVERBS OF SOLOMON.

12. The _place_ of the book of Proverbs in the system of divine revelation is obvious at first sight. It contains a complete code of practical rules for the regulation of life--rules that have a divine breadth and fulness, and can make men wise not for time alone, but also for eternity. The principles embodied in them admit of endlessly varied applications, so that the study of a life cannot exhaust them. The more they are pondered, and prayed over, and reduced to practice, the more are their hidden treasures of wisdom brought to light. Solomon lived himself in the sphere of practical life. He had constantly to deal with men of all cla.s.ses, and he knew men and the course of human events most thoroughly. His maxims are therefore adapted to the actual world, not to some imaginary state of things; and they contain those broad principles of action which meet the wants of all men in all circ.u.mstances and conditions of life. Whoever gives himself, in the fear of G.o.d, to the study of these proverbs, and conforms his life to the principles which they set forth, will be a truly happy and prosperous man. Whoever shapes his conduct by different principles will be compelled in the end to acknowledge his folly. To the young, for whose instruction they were especially intended, they are affectionately commended as their manual of action.

13. In respect to _outward form_, the book of Proverbs naturally falls into four parts. Of these, the first nine chapters, consisting of earnest and fatherly exhortations addressed to the young in a series of discourses, of which the parts are more or less connected with each other, const.i.tute the _first_ part. The t.i.tle prefixed to this part, giving both the author's name and the end which he proposes (1:1-6) refers perhaps to the book considered as a whole. The _second_ part, introduced by the t.i.tle: "The proverbs of Solomon," extends to the end of the twenty-fourth chapter. Of this, the first section (chaps.

10-22:16) consists of proverbs properly so called, each verse const.i.tuting a separate maxim of heavenly wisdom for the regulation of the heart and life. Between the different verses there is either no connection, or one of a slight and casual character, consisting frequently in the common occurrence of the same word. In the remaining section (chap. 22:17-24:34) the method of exhortation in discourse more or less connected is resumed. To the _third_ part (chaps. 25-29) is prefixed the superscription: "These are also the proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah copied out." The proverbs of this part are, in general, expressed in detached maxims, as in the first section of the second part; but occasionally there is a connection between adjacent verses. There is also an effort to bring together related proverbs, as those concerning rulers (25:1-8); concerning fools (26:1-12); concerning sluggards (26:13-16); concerning busybodies and tale-bearers (chap.

26:17-28). In this part also a number of proverbs are repeated that have occurred elsewhere. Finally, the _fourth_ part, which may be considered as a sort of appendix, contains the words of Agur (chap. 30), and of King Lemuel (chap. 31).

According to the most natural interpretation of the words prefixed to chap. 24:23--"these [maxims] also belong to the wise"--the verses that follow to the end of the chapter contain also a short appendix of proverbs not belonging to Solomon.

14. From the above it is manifest that the book of Proverbs was arranged in its present form as late, at least, as the days of Hezekiah. It contains not the whole of the three thousand proverbs which Solomon spake (1 Kings 4:32), but only selections from them, such as the wisdom of G.o.d judged needful for the edification of his people. Whether the proverbs contained in the first and second parts were arranged in their present form by Solomon himself or by some other person, we do not know; but that all the proverbs of the book belong to him as their author, except those which are expressly ascribed to others, there is no valid reason for doubting.

IV. ECCLESIASTES.

15. The Hebrew name of this book is _Koheleth_, respecting the meaning of which there has been much discussion. The Alexandrine rendering of this word, _Ecclesiastes_, _one who gathers or addresses an a.s.sembly_, and the English rendering, _Preacher_, express for substance its probable meaning; or rather, since the form of the word is feminine, it is _Wisdom as a preacher_, Solomon being regarded as her impersonation.

The uniform belief of the ancient church was that Solomon wrote this book in his old age, when brought to repentance for the idolatrous practices into which his heathen wives had seduced him. He had thoroughly tried the world in all its forms of honor, wealth, pleasure, and the pursuit of wisdom--speculative wisdom--and found it only "vanity and vexation of spirit," when sought as the supreme good. The conclusion to which he comes is that in such an empty and unsatisfying world, where disappointment and trouble cannot be avoided, the cheerful enjoyment of G.o.d's present gifts is the part of wisdom, for thus we make the best of things as we find them. But this enjoyment must be in the fear of G.o.d, who will bring all our works into judgment; and accompanied, moreover, by deeds of love and charity, as we have opportunity. He explicitly a.s.serts a judgment to come; yet his general view of life is that expressed in the Saviour's words: "The night cometh, when no man can work;" words which imply that G.o.d's earthly service, as well as the enjoyment of his earthly gifts, will come to a close at death. This view of the Preacher is not a denial of the future life, as some have wrongly maintained, but implies rather a less full revelation of it than is given in the New Testament.

Many evangelical men, as Hengstenberg, Keil, and others, interpret the first verse of this book as meaning not that Solomon was himself the author, or that the writer meant to pa.s.s himself off as Solomon, but simply that he wrote in Solomon's name, as a.s.suming his character; that monarch being to the ancient Hebrews the impersonation of wisdom. Their reasons for this view are chiefly two: _First_, that the state of things described in the book of Ecclesiastes does not suit Solomon's age, the picture being too dark and sombre for his reign; _secondly_, that the language differs widely from that of the book of Proverbs and of the Canticles. Whether we adopt this view, or that above given, the _canonical authority_ of the book of Ecclesiastes remains as a well-established fact. It always held a place in the Hebrew canon, and existed there in its present form in the days of Christ and his apostles.

16. The following summary of the Preacher's argument is condensed from Scott. He had evidently two objects in view. First, to show where happiness could not be found; and secondly, where it might. The first six chapters are princ.i.p.ally employed on the former part of the argument, yet with counsels interspersed tending to show how the vanity, or at least the vexation of earthly pursuits may be abated. The remaining six chapters gradually unfold the latter part of the argument, teaching us how to make the best of things as we find them, how to live comfortably and usefully in this evil world, and how to derive benefit from the changing events of life. In respect to outward things, the sacred writer inculcates a cheerful, liberal, and charitable use of them, without expecting from them permanent or satisfying delight. He counsels us to take the transient pleasure which agreeable circ.u.mstances can afford, as far as consists with the fear of G.o.d; to be patient under unavoidable evil; not to aim at impracticable results; to fill up our allotted station in a peaceable, equitable, and prudent manner; to be contented, meek, and affectionate; and to do good abundantly as we have opportunity, in the expectation of a gracious reward. These general rules are interspersed with warnings and counsels to princes and great men, and to subjects in respect to their rulers.

V. THE SONG OF SOLOMON.

17. The t.i.tle of this book: _The Song of songs_, that is, the most excellent of songs, indicates its application to the heavenly Solomon, and his spouse the church. So the Jews from the most ancient times have interpreted it. Looking at this song from the position of the Old Testament, its ground-idea is: "Thy Maker is thy husband." Identical with this is the New Testament idea: "The bride, the Lamb's wife." The germ of this representation exists in the Pentateuch, where idolatry is regarded as spiritual adultery. Exod. 34:15; Deut. 31:16. We find it fully developed in the forty-fifth Psalm, which probably belongs to Solomon's age, and which is expressly quoted in the epistle to the Hebrews as a description of the Messiah. The same figure occurs in many pa.s.sages of the prophets who lived after Solomon's day. Isa. 54:5; 62:5; Jer. 2:2; 3:14; Hos. 2:16, 19, 20. In the book of Revelation this imagery is repeated and amplified.

18. This song is not a dramatic representation, in which the action steadily advances to the end, but a series of descriptive pictures, the great theme of which is the separation of the bride from her beloved--the heavenly Bridegroom--for her sins, and her reunion with him by repentance. In the spiritual application of its rich and gorgeous imagery we should confine ourselves to the main scope, rather than dwell on particulars. Thus the fruitfulness of the church is set forth under the image of a garden filled with spices and precious fruits. But we are not to seek for a hidden meaning in each particular spice or fruit--the saffron, the spikenard, the myrrh, the pomegranate, the apple, the nut; and the same is true with respect to the descriptions of the bride and bridegroom with which the book abounds.

The book has always const.i.tuted a part of the Hebrew canon.

The language of this book is pure and elegant, with all the freshness and energy of the best age of Hebrew poetry. Its most striking peculiarity is the uniform use (except once in the _t.i.tle_) of the abbreviated form of the relative p.r.o.noun as a prefix--_shekkullam_ for _asher kullam_; _shehammelek_ for _asher hammelek_, etc.--which is manifestly a _dialectic_ peculiarity of the living Hebrew adopted by Solomon for the purpose of giving to his song a unique costume.

CHAPTER XXII.

THE GREATER PROPHETS.

1. We have already seen (Chap. 15, Nos. 11 and 12) that from Moses to Samuel the appearances of prophets were infrequent; that with Samuel and the prophetical school established by him there began a new era, in which the prophets were recognized as a distinct order of men in the Theocracy; and that the age of _written_ prophecy did not begin till about the reign of Uzziah, some three centuries after Samuel. The Jewish division of the _latter_ prophets--prophets in the more restricted sense of the word--into the _greater_, including Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, chronologically arranged; and the _less_, or twelve _Minor_ Prophets, arranged also, in all probability, according to their view of their order in time, has also been explained. Chap. 13, No. 4.

Respecting the nature of prophecy and the principles upon which it is to be interpreted, much remains to be said in another place. In the present connection, a brief account will be given of _the place which the prophets held in the Theocracy_, followed by a notice, in this and the following chapter, of the separate books of prophecy belonging to the Hebrew canon, according to the order in our English version, Daniel being reckoned with the greater prophets, Lamentations considered as an appendix to Jeremiah, and the minor prophets arranged by themselves.

2. The office of the prophets under the Theocracy, which we first notice, was that of _bold reprovers_. They came to rulers and people with an immediate commission from G.o.d to rebuke them for their sins; and as the contents of their messages were received from G.o.d himself, they exposed the hypocrisy and wickedness of their times in the pure sunlight of truth, denouncing upon great and small alike the awful judgments of Jehovah if they persisted in their impenitence. If we except the preaching of Christ and his apostles, the history of the world furnishes no such bright examples of faithful dealing with men's consciences. They never spare kings and princes from fear of their power and patronage.

They never go round about men's sins, but declare them directly and faithfully. With what majesty of severity did Samuel reprove Saul, and Nathan David, and Elijah Ahab, and Elisha Jehoram, and Jehu Jehoshaphat!

And if we open the books of Hebrew prophecy which have come down to us from distant ages and from a very different civil and social order, we find them not in the least antiquated, but fresh as yesterday, instinct with life and power. They are a mirror of terrible brightness in which we may see reflected our pride, self-sufficiency, vain ostentation, and worldliness; our avarice, fraud, overreaching artifices, breaches of trust, bribery, oppression of the weak, and corrupt combinations for the ama.s.sing of filthy lucre; our ambition, slander, falsehood, intrigues, hypocrisy, and vain pretensions; our luxury, prodigality, sensuality, and intemperance; our profaneness, Sabbath-breaking, neglect of G.o.d's ordinances and contempt of his written word--a mirror too in which we can see in the background dark clouds of judgment, big with awful thunder, such as have already come forth upon our land from the inexhaustible storehouse of divine justice, and are ready to come forth again, but over which hangs the rainbow of mercy for all that will repent and humble themselves before G.o.d.

3. We may next consider the office of the Hebrew prophets as _expounders of the Mosaic law_--the Mosaic law in its substance, as distinguished from its outward form. They never undervalued the letter of the law, since that too was of divine appointment; but they taught men that true obedience must rise above the letter to its spirit. When Saul excused himself to Samuel for disobeying G.o.d's command on the ground that the people had spared the best of the sheep and oxen to sacrifice to the Lord, the prophet indignantly answered: "Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord?

Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." 1 Sam. 15:22. "Bring no more vain oblations," says G.o.d to the Jews whose hands were full of oppression and blood; "incense is an abomination unto me: the new moons and Sabbaths, the calling of a.s.semblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting.