Job 42:5-6 I have heard of you by the hearing of the ear: but now my eye sees you.… Job's afflictions were charged to secret sins; he defended his innocence with great power; but not till God answered him from the whirlwind, did he know either himself or God's dealings. Seeing God, he abhorred himself. 1. Clear views of God correct errors touching His character. Caught in some speculation, we are whirled about as in an eddy, till, in bewilderment, we may deny that there is a God, or deny some attribute — His justice or His grace, His goodness or His power. But let a man's eyes be opened by the Holy Spirit so that he shall see God, as did Job, Moses, Paul, and error vanishes. 2. Clear views of God correct errors touching God's providence. Here all men are staggered at times, their steps well-nigh slip; the wicked prosper, the righteous suffer. The wise man dies even as the fool. Does it not seem wrong that our lot is cast, and our wishes not regarded? Our purposes are baffled, our plans miscarry, our way is hedged, till hope lies crushed. Does ever an accident distinguish between the innocent and the guilty? Does not a mistake kill as quickly as an intent? Does death spare the child or the mother? We cannot escape these agonising questions; can we find relief in them? With all the light shining from another world on the dark spots of this, tormenting doubts will not be allayed until we come into a clearer view of God. Let the Spirit reveal God, and doubts dissolve in the fulness of the light. 3. Clear views of God correct errors touching our moral condition. They convict of sin. Even the most godly then abhor themselves. The elder Edwards wrote, "I had a view that for me was extraordinary, of the glory of the Son of God." "My wickedness, as I am in myself,...looks like an abyss infinitely deeper than hell." 4. Clear views of God correct errors touching Jesus and His salvation. Shall men never have done with the question, What think ye of Christ? Yes, men are slowly exalting Him to the throne of His glory. Have we had these clearer rays of God? We may see Jesus, and yet nail Him to the Cross. Men seeing God in the face of Christ may turn their backs on Him. But when Christ is accepted, forgiveness, peace, life eternal are sure. (A. Hastings Ross, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee.WEB: I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you. |
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