5 i 2 Chap. 29. An Expoftion upon. the Book, of O B. Va;rf. r a,' (v. 170) Ibrake the jaws ofthe wicked, and pulled the fpoil oat of his teeth ; here wasthe true reafon why fob was hononoured he minitired juflice, and he minifIred it impartially to the poor, in helping them, to the proud and wicked io punifhing them. But it may be queflioned, whether or no Job did well, thus to cry up his juflice, and to proclaim his own righteoufnefs ? Doth he well to fay, this I have done, and that I have done ; I have delivered the poor that cryed, and the fatberlefs, and him that bath no helper ; I have past en righteoufntfs, andit cloathed mea &c. Was this comely for fob -? doth not this commendation of himfelf difcommend him ? Aid is it not a mans difpraife to praire himfelf ? I anfwer, for a man ao fpread his plumes, to let forth his own worker, todeck himfelf with what he hach done, that,. thereby he may appear glorious in the eyes of the world, andgo away with theapplaufe of :men , this is nor only vanity and weaknefs, but a kind of madneffe, yea this is to play the fool in carnet+ ; and hence in the Hebrew the fame word figniñes to praife our felves, and co be foolifh ; nor is there any greater argument of foolifh- nefs then felf-praife: Surely fob had another defïgn then this; he reported his gooddeeds, not toboafi of them, or to blaze them abroad, and tell the world what a rare men, what a miracle of Magiflracy he had been : No, he was conf+rained to it in a way of felf-vindication, he had no itch todoe it in a way of felt-com- mendation. And thus it is not only lawful, but aduty for anyman to let forth the goodnefs of his anions, when charged with evil, and to affect the rìghteoufnefs of his wayes, when he is challenged wrongfully. Scandals call upon a good man in reach further then himfelf, they reffe& upon, the whole kind,- even wyon all good men, they refle& upon the very profeflion of Godlinefr, yea up- on God himfelf , and if fo, then every good man is bound to the urmofI line of truth to wipe them off, and quit himfelf from them. And therefore, FirfI, lob , fpake what he had done , becaufe his friends had accgfed him for doing otherwife. Secondly, he fpake what he had done for truths_ fake, and that God might be glorified, not for his own fake, or that he might be applauded. Thirdly, He fpake what he had done, that he might not be pre- judiced inwhat he was further both todoe and fpckk. Fourthly, He
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