Job 37:1

Elihu Proclaims God's Majesty

1 "At this also my heart trembles and leaps out of its place.

Job 37:1 Meaning and Commentary

Job 37:1

At this also my heart trembleth
At the greatness and majesty of God, not only as displayed in those works of his before observed, but as displayed in those he was about to speak of: such terrible majesty is there with God, that all rational creatures tremble at it; the nations of the world, the kings and great men of the earth, and even the devils themselves, ( Isaiah 64:2 ) ( Jeremiah 33:9 ) ( James 2:19 ) . Good men tremble in the worship of God, and at the word of God; and even at the judgments of God on wicked men, and at the things that are coming on the churches of Christ. But Elihu has a particular respect to thunder and lightning, which are very terrible to many persons ^F19, both good and bad ^F20. At the giving of the law, there were such blazes of lightning and claps of thunder, that not only all the people of Israel in the camp trembled, but Moses himself also exceedingly feared and quaked, ( Exodus 19:16 ) ( Hebrews 12:21 ) . It is very probable, that at this time Elihu saw a storm gathering, and a tempest rising; some flashes of lightning were seen, and some murmurs ^F21 of thunders heard, which began to affect him; since quickly after we read that God spoke out of the whirlwind or tempest, ( Job 38:1 ) ;

and is moved out of his place;
was ready to leap out of his body. Such an effect had this phenomenon of nature on him; as is sometimes the case with men at a sudden fright or unusual sound, and particularly thunder ^F23.

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FOOTNOTES:

F19 (----kradih de moi exw) Homer. Il. 10. v. 94, 95.
F20 As it was to Augustus Caesar, who always carried about with him the skin of a sea calf, as a preservative; and, on suspicion of a storm rising, would betake himself to some secret and covered place: and to Tiberius, who wore his laurel to secure him from it: and to Caligula, who, on hearing it, would get out of bed and hide himself under it. Sueton. Vit. August. c. 90. Tiber. c. 69. & Caligul. c. 51. Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 15. c. 30. Vid. Virgil. Georgic. l. 1. v. 330, 331.
F21 "Tonitruorum unum genus grave murmur----aliud genus est acre quod crepitum magis dixerint". Senecae Quaest. Nat. c. 2. c. 27.
F23 "Attonitos, quorum mentes sonus ille coelestis loco pepulit". Ibid.

Job 37:1 In-Context

1 "At this also my heart trembles and leaps out of its place.

2 Keep listening to the thunder of his voice and the rumbling that comes from his mouth.

3 Under the whole heaven he lets it go, and his lightning to the corners of the earth.

4 After it his voice roars; he thunders with his majestic voice, and he does not restrain the lightnings when his voice is heard.

5 God thunders wondrously with his voice; he does great things that we cannot comprehend.