An exposition with practical observations upon the three first chapters of the book of…

Yet that place is not to be understood of a hiding from the eye of Gods inspection, as if the Church had any suspicion that the Lord did not know, or did not see how matters went with them, or in what condition they were; but it is to be understood of the eye of Gods compassion; There is a seeing eye, or contemplating eye, and a compassionating or succouring eye. So the meaning of that complaint, is only this, Why sayest thou my way is hidden from the Lord, that is, why doest thou speak as if God did not regard thee in thy troubles, as if God had no pity nor compassion on thee, no bowels toward thee, why sayest thou my way is hid from the Lord? In the third of Exodus, when God comes to help the people of Israel, he telleth Moses, I have seen, I have seen: or I have surely seen, namely with an eye compassionating their condition, as the next words show, for I know their sorrows. Now when the Church complained that her way was hid from God, her meaning was, that God did not take notice, so, as to pity and deliver her. Excepting in that sense, she could not conceive that her way was hidden from God; neither is the way of the Church, So, hidden from God, but as to our sense: for the Lord pities his people when he corrects them, and therefore Jacob is chidden for saying so, Why sayest thou O Jacob, my way is hidden from the Lord? Therefore this Text is not to be understood of Jobs way in respect of God, but of the hiding of Gods way, or the hidden dealings of God toward Job. My way is hid saith Job, that, I cannot understand, nor interpret, nor expound the meaning of Gods dealing with me. I am not able to give an interpretation of it, I know not what this thing meaneth: My way is hid.

Yet that place is not to be understood of a hiding from the eye of Gods inspection, as if the Church had any suspition that the Lord did not know, or did not see how matters went with them, or in what condition they were; but it is to be understood of the eye of Gods compassion; There is a seeing eye, or contemplating eye, and a compassionating or succouring eye. So the meaning of that complaint, is only this, Why sayest thou my way is hidden from the Lord, that is, why doest thou speake as if God did not regard thee in thy troubles, as if God had no pitty nor compassion on thee, no bowels toward thee, why sayest thou my way is hid from the Lord? In the third of Exodus, when God comes to help the people of Israel, he telleth Moses, I have seene, I have seene: or I have surely seene, namely with an eye compassionating their condition, as the next words shew, for I know their sorrowes. Now when the Church complained that her way was hid from God, her meaning was, that God did not take notice, so, as to pitty and deliver her. Excepting in that sense, she could not conceive that her way was hidden from God; neither is the way of the Church, So, hidden from God, but as to our sense: for the Lord pities his people when he corrects them, and therefore Jacob is chidden for saying so, Why sayest thou O Jacob, my way is hidden from the Lord? Therefore this Text is not to be understood of Jobs way in respect of God, but of the hiding of Gods way, or the hidden dealings of God toward Job. My way is hid saith Job, that, I cannot understand, nor interpret, nor expound the meaning of Gods dealing with me. I am not able to give an interpretation of it, I know not what this thing meaneth: My way is hid.