242 Chap. 33. An Expefition upon the leok,of J o B. Verf,i2' Fini# operÑ.li- fe&ions. It was not his end when he fpake fo impatiently and eet non oprran- complainingly, to rob God of that honour of his greatnefie, yet rrs Elihu did him no wrong w he fayd his impatience and cotm- plainings did it. And if an', . all be found complaining like y-óó, though they doe not formally- deny; that God is.greater then man, yet that interpretation and conflruedon may ;uilly be put upon theircomplaints. But tome may here obje& and fay, how was job fuch a mirror, fuch a patterne of patience, as the Apòflle James-makes him (Chap: S. i i.) if he. tnanifelled fo much impatience as might, be interpreted by others, thou_ghnot intended by him: a dentall of the Greatneffe of God ? . I anfwer, though all agree ( and the teflithony of the Spirit of God is enough to- confirme it, though all lhould not agree) that the patience of Jobwas exceeding great , yet no man may fay (nor Both the Spirit of God, inScripture, fay it) that his patience was perfect ; his patience was fuch as exceeded the mofl , yea ( for ought that we know ) thebell of men, yet his was but the patience of aman, of amancompaffed about with the like paflti- ons as other men. His patience was fincere and without hypo- crifie, but his patience was not compleatenor wit'ho ,t infirmity ; or his patience (we may fay) was perfe& asto the kind, but it was not perfea as to the degree. His patience deferved both cominendationand imitation; yet he fhewed (at .times) filch impatience as deferved reproofe, and should not he imitated but mortified and avoyded. Good men doe not only a& lefle in goodneffe fometimes; but ill and much amìife. And whilewe fee tallefl Cedars fayle ( they (hall not utterly fall, job didnot ) Let him that thinkethhefiandeth ( that is, who bath a throng opinion of his owné,flrength) tale heed left hefall, (as the Apoflle cau- tions him,.i Cor Io. 12. ) for even theimpatient complaints of fob in his futferings(like thofe fufferingsof the Ifraelites for their fins fpoken of in the former verles of that Chapter) fellfrom him for an enfample (or type )and are written for our admonition, upon*whom the ends of the worldare come. Thus you fee'the .reafon whyElrhuwokeup thiscommon prin- Phi# iP' ciple, which everyChild learnes out of a Catechifine, to con fie deaantata vine this holy man with. What wasmore knowne to job , or to tune,, nabis in geai.luli<a ey any knowing man, t bis, ,that God is greater then man ? yet P,ertuebüGierleN Elshu:.
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