446 Chap. 29. An Expofstion upon the Book of J p B. Yea. 4: Thirdly, Some give it in thee termes ; As Iwas in the dale: of my reproach; That is, in thole dayes which have been call upon me as my reproach; Or with which I haveoften been reproached. Satan reproached jobwith his good or profperous dayes, as if in them he had played the hypocrite, and ferved God only becaufe God filled his belly, and fecuredall his fulnefs to him. Such was his malicious fence, when he anfwered Gods queflion (Chap. a. ó, 9. ) Haft thou c, nfelereel my fervant job, &c ? with , Doti; job feare Godfor nought?Half thou not made a hedge about him ? &C. jobs friends reproached him fooftenwith fuggeflions of fintul carriages in thofe dayes of his profperity, that he at WI laid (Chap. i 9.3.) Theft ten times haveye reproachedme. So that Job having been fomuch and fo often reproached with thole dayes, might well call them,tbe dayes of bit reproacb;and when he with.. echhere,(according to this reading) O that it werewith me as in the dayes ofmy reproach! his meaning is,O that I were in a: good a flate,both for foul and body,as I was inchofe dayes, with which you have fo frequently and falfly reproached me. We tranflate,O thatit werewith me as in'the dayes of myyouth. in Memo terra The word which we render youtb,doth properly lignifie reproach, nonoffendit or that which brings any kind of difgrace upon a perron. And germen,fedfui thus the winter is expreffed, befe 'cis, ask were, the difgrace epprobt m °° nnbemire of the year; it uncloachs both fields and forrcfls, it foyls chat beauty which the Spring gave and theSummer maintained all things in, and (trips them naked and bare. In the fame fenfe,that the Spring is the glory,winter is the fhameof the year. And as the cold of winter cloth flume the fields, and blafl their bravery, fo the heat ofyouth is apt to thrufi us upon the doing of filch things as turn to our flume, and often bring not only reproofs but reproaches upon us : youth is fubjeet tomany temptations and corruptions, 'cis hurried in the purfuir of divers lulls and pleafures: which,unlefs timely left, leave us under the clouds of difgrace. So the wcrd is rendred(job 22,6.)For whereas we fay, Myheart fhallnot reproach me; others render it, My be ¡hall Nan xpura not youth or becbrldme,that is,it (hall not make me do things like Bold. a child or a youth,rendìng corny reproach. The Prophet (fer. 3s. 19.) reprefeats Ephraim bemoaning himfelf thus, lardy after that I was turned 1 repented, andafter that Iwas inffruEfed,l faeote uponmy thigh, I was afhamed, yea even confounded,6tcauJe I did bear indiebus op- probrii mei. /Y/ont.
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