thou hast moued me against him, that I should afflict him in vaine. 4To whom Satan answering, said: Skinne for skinne, and al things that a man hath, he wil geue for his life: 5otherwise put thy hand, and touch his bone and flesh, and then shalt thou see that he wil blesse thee in the face. 6Our Lord therfore sayd to Satan: Behold he is in thy hand, but yet saue his life. 7Satan therfore going out from the face of our Lord, strucke Iob with a verie sore boile, from the sole of the foot euen to the top of his head: 8who with a shel scraped the corruption, sitting on a dunghil. 9And [1] his wife sayd to him: Doest thou yet continue in thy simplicitie? blesse God and die. 10Who sayd to her: Thou hast spoken like one of the foolish women, if we haue receiued good things of the hand of God, euil things why should we not receiue? In al these things Iob sinned not with his lippes. 11Therfore ″ Iobs three freinds hearing al the euil, that had chanced to him, came euerie one out of their place, Eliphaz a Themanite, and Baldad a Suhite, and Sophar a Naamathite. For they had appointed, that comming together they would visite him, and comfort him. 12And when they had lifted vp their eies a far off, they knew him not, and crying out they wept, and renting their clothes sprinkled dust ouer their head toward heauen. 13And they sate with him on the ground [2] seuen daies and seuen nights, and no man spake to him a word: for they saw the paine to be vehement.
ANNNOTATIONS.
CHAP. II.
These visiters of Iob were indeed his freinds, & professed true religion.
They erred in Iobs particular case.11. Iobs three freinds.) For better intelligence of these conflicts betwen holie Iob and his freinds, it may here be obserued, that they were indeed his freinds, as the text simply calleth them: that they belieued rightly in God Almightie, and were not idolaters: that they came of freindly good affection to comfort him, though they fel into words of reprouing him, li. 3. c. 24.(as S. Gregorie teacheth) they alleadged also many excellent diuine sentences very truly, which therfore Iob reproued not. But they erred in their illations against Iob: and that of ignorance rather then of set malice, concluding that Iob was guiltie of some enormious sinnes, because they saw him so grieuously punished, and heard him complaine therof; his owne conscience knowen to him and hid to them (wherof they rashly iudged) testifying that he was innocent, in respect of so great crimes. And prefigured Heretikes.And in this their particular errour, though they were not heretikes, being not obstinate after that the truth was sufficiently reueiled vnto them, yet they prefigured heretikes, endeauouring by one truth to destroy an other, and by arrogating knowledge which they had not: li. 5. c. 18.promising also new things & vnheard of, rather to draw others to admire them, then to edification.
