196 Chap. 5 An'Expofition upon the Book of J O B. Verf. 4 lowing, are the formwherein the curfe was pronounced upon the 11Jb4i 8a10 habitation of the foolish man; As if Eliphaz.had Paid, I curfed vim, fora: his habitation. thus, Let his children be far from. fafety, and let milediaionà çße air. them be crufhed in the gate, neither let there be- any to deliver.; as for his harveft, let the hungryeat it up, and, let the robbers fwallow up their fubJtance. And we find Duch a form, Pfai. 109, David pronounces the curfe upon thofe wicked enemies, in latl!c guage very fuitable to this (verf. 6, 7, S, 9, ii , it 1. ). Set thou a wickedman over him,and let Satan (an adverfary) Jtand at &is.right band. When be Jhall.be judged; let him be condemned: andlet hír prayer become fin. Let his children be fatberlefs, and his wife a widdow ; let his children be continually vagabonds andbeg, let them feek their /stead alfo out of defolate placer, let the ex- tortioner catch all that he bath ; and let theffranger fpoiie his la- bour. But we may rather take it; asthe matter; then as the forme of a..curfe_ I curfed his habitation, and the curfe brake forth upon his children, and upon his eflate, upon the branches,and the fruit of that goodly tree: much like that in the vifion, Dan.4. 13,14. I fáw in the vifions of my headupon my bed, andbehold a..watcher, and a holy One, camedoronfrom Heaven, He cryed aloud and-laid thus Hew down the tree, and cut off his branches, Jhak,e off his leaves, andfcatter bis fruit, &c, This Allegorymay be rendred inthe plain words of Eliphaz, l curledhis habitation, his children are far from Jafety. The Mailer of the Family is the tree,. His children are either fruit or branches, His leaves are riches and honour, the beauty and pleafantnefs of his habitation. Some things in the letter of the Text are to beopened, but I (hall firft obferveone thing in the general, from the connexion of this fourth verle with the third, Ifuddenlycurled his habitation (verf 3.) Thenfollows,his - childrenare farfrom fafety. Obferve from it ; That Creatures cannot 'land before the curfe of God. Flow ilrong-- ly foever they are rooted, the blafl of the breath of Gods difplea- lure, will either blow them down, or wither them ftanding. The curfe comes,powerfully,fuddenly and fecretly,it is often an inevi. table firoak. When we fee neither axe nor fpade at the root; nor firome at the top, yet down it comes, or !lands without leafe or- fruit. When Chriflin the Gofpel curff the fruitlefs fig-tree, his Dilciples palling by that way, wondered faying, How quick!y is this.
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