4 Who has gone up to heaven and come down? who has taken the winds in his hands, prisoning the waters in his robe? by whom have all the ends of the earth been fixed? what is his name, and what is his son's name, if you are able to say?
And no one has ever gone up to heaven but he who came down from heaven, the Son of man.
And his eyes are a flame of fire, and crowns are on his head; and he has a name in writing, of which no man has knowledge but himself.
For to us a child has come, to us a son is given; and the government has been placed in his hands; and he has been named Wise Guide, Strong God, Father for ever, Prince of Peace.
For this cause the Lord himself will give you a sign; a young woman is now with child, and she will give birth to a son, and she will give him the name Immanuel.
Where were you when I put the earth on its base? Say, if you have knowledge. By whom were its measures fixed? Say, if you have wisdom; or by whom was the line stretched out over it? On what were its pillars based, or who put down its angle-stone, When the morning stars made songs together, and all the sons of the gods gave cries of joy? Or where were you when the sea came to birth, pushing out from its secret place; When I made the cloud its robe, and put thick clouds as bands round it, Ordering a fixed limit for it, with locks and doors; And said, So far you may come, and no farther; and here the pride of your waves will be stopped? Have you, from your earliest days, given orders to the morning, or made the dawn conscious of its place; So that it might take a grip of the skirts of the earth, shaking all the evil-doers out of it? It is changed like wet earth under a stamp, and is coloured like a robe; And from the evil-doers their light is kept back, and the arm of pride is broken. Have you come into the springs of the sea, walking in the secret places of the deep? Have the doors of death been open to you, or have the door-keepers of the dark ever seen you? Have you taken note of the wide limits of the earth? Say, if you have knowledge of it all. Which is the way to the resting-place of the light, and where is the store-house of the dark; So that you might take it to its limit, guiding it to its house? No doubt you have knowledge of it, for then you had come to birth, and the number of your days is great. Have you come into the secret place of snow, or have you seen the store-houses of the ice-drops, Which I have kept for the time of trouble, for the day of war and fighting? Which is the way to the place where the wind is measured out, and the east wind sent out over the earth? By whom has the way been cut for the flowing of the rain, and the flaming of the thunder; Causing rain to come on a land where no man is living, on the waste land which has no people; To give water to the land where there is waste and destruction, and to make the dry land green with young grass? Has the rain a father? or who gave birth to the drops of night mist? Out of whose body came the ice? and who gave birth to the cold mist of heaven? The waters are joined together, hard as a stone, and the face of the deep is covered. Are the bands of the Pleiades fixed by you, or are the cords of Orion made loose? Do you make Mazzaroth come out in its right time, or are the Bear and its children guided by you? Have you knowledge of the laws of the heavens? did you give them rule over the earth? Is your voice sent up to the cloud, so that you may be covered by the weight of waters? Do you send out the thunder-flames, so that they may go, and say to you, Here we are? Who has put wisdom in the high clouds, or given knowledge to the lights of the north? By whose wisdom are the clouds numbered, or the water-skins of the heavens turned to the earth, When the earth becomes hard as metal, and is joined together in masses?
They are not in heaven, for you to say, Who will go up to heaven for us and give us knowledge of them so that we may do them?
And the Lord came down in the cloud and took his place by the side of Moses, and Moses gave worship to the name of the Lord. And the Lord went past before his eyes, saying, The Lord, the Lord, a God full of pity and grace, slow to wrath and great in mercy and faith; Having mercy on thousands, overlooking evil and wrongdoing and sin; he will not let wrongdoers go free, but will send punishment on children for the sins of their fathers, and on their children's children to the third and fourth generation.
And she will give birth to a son; and you will give him the name Jesus; for he will give his people salvation from their sins. Now all this took place so that the word of the Lord by the prophet might come true, See, the virgin will be with child, and will give birth to a son, and they will give him the name Immanuel, that is, God with us.
For this reason he says, He went up on high, taking his prisoners with him, and gave freely to men. (Now this, He went up, what is it but that he first went down into the lower parts of the earth? He who went down is the same who went up far over all the heavens so that he might make all things complete.)
But the righteousness which is of faith says these words, Say not in your heart, Who will go up to heaven? (that is, to make Christ come down:)
All things have been given to me by my Father; and no one has knowledge of the Son, but the Father; and no one has knowledge of the Father, but the Son, and he to whom the Son will make it clear.
Then Jacob said, What is your name? And he said, What is my name to you? Then he gave him a blessing.
In the hollow of whose hand have the waters been measured? and who is able to take the heavens in his stretched-out fingers? who has got together the dust of the earth in a measure? who has taken the weight of the mountains, or put the hills into the scales? By whom has the spirit of the Lord been guided, or who has been his teacher? Who gave him suggestions, and made clear to him the right way? who gave him knowledge, guiding him in the way of wisdom? See, the nations are to him like a drop hanging from a bucket, and like the small dust in the scales: he takes up the islands like small dust. And Lebanon is not enough to make a fire with, or all its cattle enough for a burned offering. All the nations are as nothing before him; even less than nothing, a thing of no value. Whom then is God like, in your opinion? or what will you put forward as a comparison with him? The workman makes an image, and the gold-worker puts gold plates over it, and makes silver bands for it. The wise workman makes selection of the mulberry-tree of the offering, a wood which will not become soft; so that the image may be fixed to it and not be moved. Have you no knowledge of it? has it not come to your ears? has not news of it been given to you from the first? has it not been clear to you from the time when the earth was placed on its base? It is he who is seated over the arch of the earth, and the people in it are as small as locusts; by him the heavens are stretched out like an arch, and made ready like a tent for a living-place. He makes rulers come to nothing; the judges of the earth are of no value. They have only now been planted, and their seed put into the earth, and they have only now taken root, when he sends out his breath over them and they become dry, and the storm-wind takes them away like dry grass. Who then seems to you to be my equal? says the Holy One. Let your eyes be lifted up on high, and see: who has made these? He who sends out their numbered army: who has knowledge of all their names: by whose great strength, because he is strong in power, all of them are in their places. Why do you say, O Jacob, such words as these, O Israel, The Lord's eyes are not on my way, and my God gives no attention to my cause? Have you no knowledge of it? has it not come to your ears? The eternal God, the Lord, the Maker of the ends of the earth, is never feeble or tired; there is no searching out of his wisdom. He gives power to the feeble, increasing the strength of him who has no force. Even the young men will become feeble and tired, and the best of them will come to the end of his strength; But those who are waiting for the Lord will have new strength; they will get wings like eagles: running, they will not be tired, and walking, they will have no weariness.
You are clothed with light as with a robe; stretching out the heavens like a curtain: The arch of your house is based on the waters; you make the clouds your carriage; you go on the wings of the wind: He makes winds his angels, and flames of fire his servants. He has made the earth strong on its bases, so that it may not be moved for ever and ever; Covering it with the sea as with a robe: the waters were high over the mountains; At the voice of your word they went in flight; at the sound of your thunder they went away in fear; The mountains came up and the valleys went down into the place which you had made ready for them. You made a limit over which they might not go, so that the earth would never again be covered by them. You sent the springs into the valleys; they are flowing between the hills. They give drink to every beast of the field; the mountain asses come to them for water. The birds of the air have their resting-places by them, and make their song among the branches. He sends down rain from his store-houses on the hills: the earth is full of the fruit of his works. He makes the grass come up for the cattle, and plants for the use of man; so that bread may come out of the earth; And wine to make glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face shining, and bread giving strength to his heart. The trees of the Lord are full of growth, the cedars of Lebanon of his planting; Where the birds have their resting-places; as for the stork, the tall trees are her house. The high hills are a safe place for the mountain goats, and the rocks for the small beasts. He made the moon for a sign of the divisions of the year; teaching the sun the time of its going down. When you make it dark, it is night, when all the beasts of the woods come quietly out of their secret places. The young lions go thundering after their food; searching for their meat from God. The sun comes up, and they come together, and go back to their secret places to take their rest. Man goes out to his work, and to his business, till the evening. O Lord, how great is the number of your works! in wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of the things you have made. There is the great, wide sea, where there are living things, great and small, more than may be numbered. There go the ships; there is that great beast, which you have made as a plaything. All of them are waiting for you, to give them their food in its time. They take what you give them; they are full of the good things which come from your open hand. If your face is veiled, they are troubled; when you take away their breath, they come to an end, and go back to the dust. If you send out your spirit, they are given life; you make new the face of the earth. Let the glory of the Lord be for ever; let the Lord have joy in his works: At whose look the earth is shaking; at whose touch the mountains send out smoke. I will make songs to the Lord all my life; I will make melody to my God while I have my being. Let my thoughts be sweet to him: I will be glad in the Lord. Let sinners be cut off from the earth, and let all evil-doers come to an end. Give praise to the Lord, O my soul. Give praise to the Lord.
For by him it was based on the seas, and made strong on the deep rivers.
All the ends of the earth will keep it in mind and be turned to the Lord: all the families of the nations will give him worship.
By him the waters are shut up in his thick clouds, and the cloud does not give way under them.
But the angel of the Lord said to him, Why are you questioning me about my name, seeing that it is a wonder?
I let myself be seen by Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as God, the Ruler of all; but they had no knowledge of my name Yahweh.
And Moses said to God, When I come to the children of Israel and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you: and they say to me, What is his name? what am I to say to them? And God said to him, I AM WHAT I AM: and he said, Say to the children of Israel, I AM has sent me to you. And God went on to say to Moses, Say to the children of Israel, The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has sent me to you: this is my name for ever, and this is my sign to all generations.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Proverbs 30
Commentary on Proverbs 30 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 30
Pr 30:1-33.
1. This is the title of this chapter (see Introduction).
the prophecy—literally, "the burden" (compare Isa 13:1; Zec 9:1), used for any divine instruction; not necessarily a prediction, which was only a kind of prophecy (1Ch 15:27, "a song"). Prophets were inspired men, who spoke for God to man, or for man to God (Ge 20:7; Ex 7:14, 15, 16). Such, also, were the New Testament prophets. In a general sense, Gad, Nathan, and others were such, who were divine teachers, though we do not learn that they ever predicted.
the man spake—literally, "the saying of the man"; an expression used to denote any solemn and important announcement (compare 2Sa 23:1; Ps 36:1; 110:1; Isa 1:24, &c.). Ithiel and Ucal were perhaps pupils.
2-4. brutish—stupid, a strong term to denote his lowly self-estimation; or he may speak of such as his natural condition, as contrasted with God's all-seeing comprehensive knowledge and almighty power. The questions of this clause emphatically deny the attributes mentioned to be those of any creature, thus impressively strengthening the implied reference of the former to God (compare De 30:12-14; Isa 40:12; Eph 4:8).
5. (Compare Ps 12:6; 119:140).
6. Add … words—implying that his sole reliance was on God's all-sufficient teaching.
reprove thee—or, "convict thee"—and so the falsehood will appear.
7-9. A prayer for exemption from wickedness, and the extremes of poverty and riches, the two things mentioned. Contentment is implied as desired.
8. vanity—all sorts of sinful acts (Job 11:11; Isa 5:18).
9. be full … deny—that is, puffed up by the pride of prosperity.
take the name … vain—This is not (Hebrew) the form (compare Ex 20:7), but "take" rather denotes laying violent hold on any thing; that is, lest I assail God's name or attributes, as justice, mercy, &c., which the poor are tempted to do.
10. Accuse not—Slander not (Ps 10:7).
curse … guilty—lest, however lowly, he be exasperated to turn on thee, and your guilt be made to appear.
11-14. Four kinds of hateful persons—(1) graceless children, (2) hypocrites, (3) the proud, (4) cruel oppressors (compare on Pr 30:14; Ps 14:4; 52:2)—are now illustrated; (1) Pr 30:15, 16, the insatiability of prodigal children and their fate; (2) Pr 30:17, hypocrisy, or the concealment of real character; (3 and 4) Pr 30:18-20, various examples of pride and oppression.
15, 16. horse leech—supposed by some to be the vampire (a fabulous creature), as being literally insatiable; but the other subjects mentioned must be taken as this, comparatively insatiable. The use of a fabulous creature agreeably to popular notions is not inconsistent with inspiration.
There are three … yea, four—(Compare Pr 6:16).
17. The eye—for the person, with reference to the use of the organ to express mockery and contempt, and also as that by which punishment is received.
the ravens … eagles … eat—either as dying unnaturally, or being left unburied, or both.
18-20. Hypocrisy is illustrated by four examples of the concealment of all methods or traces of action, and a pertinent example of double dealing in actual vice is added, that is, the adulterous woman.
20. she eateth … mouth—that is, she hides the evidences of her shame and professes innocence.
21-23. Pride and cruelty, the undue exaltation of those unfit to hold power, produce those vices which disquiet society (compare Pr 19:10; 28:3).
23. heir … mistress—that is, takes her place as a wife (Ge 16:4).
24-31. These verses provide two classes of apt illustrations of various aspects of the moral world, which the reader is left to apply. By the first (Pr 30:25-28), diligence and providence are commended; the success of these insignificant animals being due to their instinctive sagacity and activity, rather than strength. The other class (Pr 30:30, 31) provides similes for whatever is majestic or comely, uniting efficiency with gracefulness.
26. conies—mountain mice, or rabbits.
28. spider—tolerated, even in palaces, to destroy flies.
taketh … hands—or, uses with activity the limbs provided for taking prey.
32. As none can hope, successfully, to resist such a king, suppress even the thought of an attempt.
lay … hand upon thy mouth—"lay" is well supplied (Jud 18:19; Job 29:9; 40:4).
33. That is, strife—or other ills, as surely arise from devising evil as natural effects from natural causes.