An exposition with practical observations continued upon the fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth chapters of…An exposition with practicall observations continued upon the fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth chapters of…

As if he had said, Such stuff as thou hast in thy heart, even such flows out of thy mouth; the word Such is added by most Translators; the Hebrew is, And lettest words go out of thy mouth; it is no fault to let words go out of the mouth: 'tis no sin to speak, but to speak such or such words, may be very sinful; and therefore we, and others, for explication sake,¹ make this supplement, Such words; But what words were they? Eliphaz doth not quote any passages in his speech, but leaves them as we and others translate under a term of general distaste, Such words; as if they were not worth the naming, or as if no epithet could be found worthless enough to name them by. For as when Ezra would describe a deliverance in the reality of it beyond words, he doth not tell us what it was, but saith only, Seeing our God hath given us such deliverance as this, (Ez. 9.13.) So when Eliphaz would describe words in the vanity or sinfulness of them below words, he doth not tell us what they were, but saith only, Such words as these; yet ⟨p. 54⟩possibly the words he means were these, Why hast thou set me as a mark, so that I am a burden to my self (Chap. 7.20.) or these (Chap. 9.30.) If I wash me with Snow water, and make my hands never so clear, yet thou wilt plunge me in the ditch, or these (Chap. 13.26.) Thou writest bitter things against me, and thou makest me to possess the iniquities of my youth: These, or such as these, were the words which Eliphaz leaves under this note of disdain, Such words. Yet these Eliphaz should have mollified with a charitable construction, and not have sharpened his own tongue against them, much less should he have interpreted them, as the turning of Jobs spirit against God himself. For as some draw near to God with their lips, and give him smooth words, while their hearts are far from him, and their spirits turned against him: So others may seem to depart from God with their lips, and give him harsh language, while their hearts are near, and their spirits cleave unto him.

As if he had sayd, Such stuffe as thou hast in thy heart, even such flowes out of thy mouth; the word Such is added by most Translators; the Hebrew is, And lettest words goe out of thy mouth; it is no fault to let words goe out of the mouth: 'tis no sin to speak, but to speak such or such words, may be very sinfull; and therefore we, and others, for explication sake,