Chap. 6. AnExpofttiopstpoxibeTsookof J OB. Verf. 8. comfortsof the next; which caufed him fo often to call for death. That,thefe comforts caufed his heart to triumph and glory in the very approaches of the moft,painful death , and made him de fpife, and lightly toefteem all the hopes of life, That, he was - gone further than the motives which Elipbaz ufed,from thehopes' ofa rettitation to temporal happinefs: he nowwas pitcht upon, and log'd in the thoughts of eternal happinefs. That,he call'd for.death, not, as that with which he had made any Covenant or was come to any agreement with, but only, as that, which would bring him to his defired home, The one Thing he defired. That his comforts had not a foundation in a grave, where all things areforgotten, but in the Covenant of God, whoremembers mercy for ever;and therefore, it fhould not trouble him to dyc,be'. fore he was reftor'd to heahh,riches and honours which his friends propofed to him, as a great argument ofcomfort, and patience) for in death he Ihould have riches and glory ; and hence it was, that he had rather endure the extreameft pains of death,than flay to receive any outward comforts in this life. His delires tube dif- foived were not fo much, from the fenfe of his prefentpain (for he wouldharden himfelf to endureyet more) as from theappre-' henlnn of future joy ; this, was not a'fancy or a dream, but he had good proof, and real evidence ofit in thewhole courfe of his life which had been as continuedafing of the word of God, and toa fitting him for nearett communion with God.This in general. The letter of the Hebrew runneth thus, Wbo would give me, that my repel., or that my petition might come, He had lent up a requeft, aprayer, a prayer for death, and he thought his pray- er too long gone upon thatmef age,Prayer was not quick enough in its return from Heaven, every hour was, á year till he heard of ir, therefore ( faith he) O thatfame body wouldgive me, that my requeft might come backagain untome: The word whereby he ex- preffes his requeft, notes a very ttrong defire,a thong cry, a firong prayer; implying that fob had Cent up mighty requetts, or ftrong cries about it. As it is laid of our LordChrijf,;I-ieb. 5. That in the dayes ofhis fjefh he fint up firong cries unto God, who was a- ble to deliver him ; Chriit font up firong cryes to be delivered from death, and fib fent up thong cries for death. A. word of the fame root, fìgnifies the grave ; the grave is a craving, a beg- ging thing : the grave isnever fatisfied, as it is in the Proverbs, Thegravefaithnot, it is enough : And the grave is therefore ex- fva mm 2 prat 45= Lire
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