t o Chap. q.. 'Etn Expofition upon the Bookof J OB. Verf. 3, 4 or idle; a mm with his hands hanging down, and his armes look, Iñanus loffe is the emblem of idlcnefs or of faduefs. Thou haft firengthned the &1eje£la bra- rveakhands : that is,thofe that were idle or grieved, negligent or chia dejected. Hence the word(Kephai;n)is ufed,to lignifie thole that enolliter out are dead; and the reafon is, becaufe all ftrength, natural vigour fegmter ambu- and activity depart, when life departeth : Giants alto arc expref laattr, autcur- fed in the Hebrew by this word, becau(e they are filch dreadful lentironva per(ons that their very afped or tight terrifies the (pirit, makes E contra vero the hands hang down, and the knees of beholders feeble: they adducere bra- called thole mighty men, rveake, from that eked wrought upon ch-a,manur others : becaufe they made others weak and tremble at their ap- à roper la£lsre proaches. Hence,when Goliah the Giant challenged and dctied the ¡biros, tirenue Hoaft of Ifrael,it is faid,that all the men of Ifrael,when they faw rutrent;ref. the man, fled from him, or fled from his face (he overcame them with his looks)and were fore afraid, a Sam. 07, 24. This weaknefs of hands (as we find inflaneed in Scripture) writes four wayes. Firtt, from floth and idlenefs (as we noted bef're) Come have flrongheads, but they have weak hands, they are futlieiently in- firufed, but they cannot ad, or they are unadivc, and an una- dive man is a weak - handed man, Secondly; weaknefs of the hands cometh from fcar;and fo that phrafe, to Jtrengthen the hands, notes encouraging ofa perfon, as Zech.8. 9, 13. Fear not, let thy bands befirong,that is, let not fear weaken thy hands : and fer. 38.4.the Princes came to the King, and begg'dofhim that Jeremiah might be put to death, and they give thereaion from this,For(fay they)heweakneth the handsof the men of war that remainein the City, and the bands ofall the people, that is,he difcourages them, makes them believe they (hail never be able to (hand out againft the King ofBabylon, but that he (hall certainly take the City; this is called weakning of their hands : So 44.35.3Strengthen je the weakhands,and confirm the feeble knees, fay to them that areofafearful heart, be firong,fear not. So ye fee weaknefs of the hands is caged by fear; when the bands of the heart are diffolved (as it were) and loofened by fear, the hand mutt needs be diffolved and loofened from labour ; the Willi is slot able to work at all, when fear works much upon theheart. Thirdly,wcaknefsofthe hands arifeth from irrefolution,when a man is not refolvedwhat to do,not fetled upona buíìnefs,then his hands are weak. Hence it was the counfell ofticbitopbel todh- fal©m
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