Chap., z 3. AnExpofition upon the BookofJO$. : Verf. i 1. équals, and none willflatter their inferiours) becaufe Haply your dependence is upon them, and your expeEtations from them: but fhould not the excellency of God make you afraid to flatter him ? The excellency of men may provoke you to favour them , and , wrong inferiours to fence their turns ; but fuch excellency as is in God Mould make you forbear to do fo. There are two reafons why it íhould. Ertl, God is above all your flattery and favour, heneeds none ofyour help: great men mayhave need oflies and flatteries, bul God bath none. Secondly, As the Lord is above the flatteries of men, and batti no needof their, fo he loth ab- hor and abominate them. Many men love to be flatter'd, you can do nothing fopleating to them as that, yea, though you flat- ter them with theobfcuringand dimming of the true lure ofo- thers : but the Lord likes it not. Should not his excellency make you afraid? Fourthly, Others interpret the interrogation affirmatively, Doth.not hisgreatnefs makeyouafraid? Yes, his greatnefs doth make you afraid : You fear the greatnefs of God fomuch, that you thereupon condemnme : you are fo afraid that you thould in any thing tax the julliceof God,that you mutt needs tax me for unjuft : As if he had laid, Is not this the reafonthatyou deal thus hoe. quad with me? Is it not becaufe theexcellencyof God doth over-an' you? non terreat arnlac f Y f non . ama_ therefore you wouldrather offend on mypart then onhis; you would cos, fed prapo he fare (asyou hope) not to drfpleafe God, what ever becomes ofltere territos, me - you think(pofbly) thus withyour felves, If wefhouldfpeakmeitu maanitadi_, leftfor God then as his due, he isfogreat that he canpuni fh it; but if nis Deiaccufat. we [peak lefsfor Job then his due, he is but our equal, what can heCoc. do? we need not fear him. Thus many underftand thewords,Jadicatis feeuxò not as if fob did threaten his friends with, but as if he only told dam perfonam them that they were overmuch afraidof the dignity and excel- lencyof God, and thereupon were weighed down in their judg- ments to fpeak they cared not howhardlyof him. Fiftly, Shallnot his excellencymakeou afraid? that is, his ex- cellencyought to make you afraid (11/Lalac. i. 6.) .Afon honour- eth his father, that is, a fon ought tohonour his father, it is the dutyof a fon to honour his father. So here, Shall not his excellen- cy make you afraid ? that is, his excellency ought to make you afraid. It is a due andan equal thing that youdhould be fo kept in awe by the majeltyof God, that you Should not fpeakor do anything to the prejudiceofman. Shouldnot his excellencymake you afraid ? F ff Ob- 40j
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