Job 29:2-6

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 29:1-25

From these deep musings upon the nature of true wisdom, and the contrast between the ingenuity and cleverness of man and the infinite knowledge of God, Job turns to another contrast, which he pursues through two chapters ( Job 29:1-25 ; Job 30:1-31 .)—the contrast between what he was and what he is—between his condition in the period of his prosperity and that to which he has been reduced by his afflictions. The present chapter is concerned only with the former period; and gives a... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 29:1-25

Job's second parable: 1. Regretful memories of bygone days. I. DAYS OF RELIGIOUS HAPPINESS . In tender elegiActs strains Job resumes his monologue of sorrow, casting a pathetic glance upon "the times of yore," already faded in the far past and gone beyond recall; not the days of his youth (Authorized Version), hut the autumn season of his mature manhood, when, like a field that the Lord had blessed ( Genesis 27:27 ), groaning beneath the exuberance of its harvest fruits, he was... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 29:1-25

Wistful retrospect of past happy days. I. PICTURES OF MEMORY ; HAPPINESS FOUNDED ON THE FRIENDSHIP OF GOD . ( Job 29:1-10 .) 1 . Friendship with God the source of happiness. ( Job 29:1-5 .) This is beautifully indicated in figurative expressions. He thinks of the days when God's light beamed upon his brow, by God's light he walked through the darkness; the days of his ripe and mellow age (rather than of his "youth"), when the secret, i.e. the intimacy, of the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 29:1-25

A mournful reflection upon a happy past. Job had lived in honour and great respect. He was "the greatest of all the men of the East." The Divine testimony concerning him was, "There is none like him in the earth." Job's was an enviable condition, and his own words indicate how sensible he was of it. In his mournful utterance, made as he looks back upon a dead past, we see wherein consisted his happiness; and we learn what arc the elemental conditions of the highest felicity in human life—at... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 29:2

Oh that I were as in months past! or, in the months of old. To Job the period of his prosperity seems long, long ago—some-thing far away in the mist of time, which he recalls with difficulty . As in the days when God preserved me . Job never forgets to refer his prosperity to God, or to be grateful to him for it (see Job 1:21 ; Job 2:10 ; Job 10:8-12 , etc.). read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 29:2-4

Regrets for the happy past. I. IT IS NATURAL TO LOOK BACK WITH REGRET ON THE HAPPY PAST . The memory of past joy is not wholly pleasant. If the joy is gone, the memory only adds pain to the present sense of loss. Several things contribute to give intensity to the feeling of regret. 1 . Many of the best blessings are not appreciated while we possess them. We have to lose them to learn their value. This is especially true of great common blessings, such as the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 29:3

When his candle shined upon my head (comp. Psalms 18:28 , "For thou wilt light my candle: the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness"). A "candle," or "lamp," is a general symbol in Scripture for life and prosperity. God is said to light men's candles when he blesses them and maizes his countenance to shine upon them; conversely, when he withdraws his favour he is said to put their candles out ( Job 18:6 ; Job 21:17 ). And when by his light I walked through darkness . The light of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 29:4

As I was in the days of my youth ; literally, in the days of my autumn— by which Job probably means the days of his "ripeness" or "full manhood"—which he had reached when his calamities fell upon him . When the secret of God was upon my tabernacle ; or, the counsel of God ; when, i.e; in my tent I held sweet counsel with God, and communed with him as friend with friend (comp. Psalms 25:14 , "The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will show them his covenant;"... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 29:5

When the Almighty was yet with me . These are terribly sad words. Job, in his afflictions, has come to look on the Almighty as no longer "with him "—no longer on his side; but rather against him, an enemy (see Job 6:4 ; Job 7:19 ; Job 9:17 ; Job 10:16 , etc.). When my children were about me (comp. Job 1:2 , Job 1:4 , Job 1:5 ). read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 29:6

When I washed my steps with butter . Trod, as it were, upon fatness, moved amid all that was gladsome, joyful, and delicious. And the rock poured me out rivers of oil . "The rock" is probably the ground, rugged and stony, on which his olives grew. "Olives," says Dr. Cunningham Geikie, "flourish best on sandy or stony soil" They brought him in so great a quantity of oil that the rock seemed to him to flow with rivers of it. read more

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