rences that appeared very ftrange and furprizing, have been inconteftibly proved to be real facts and fuch, in this work, as may with fome air of plausibility, be filed marvellous are recorded, not only to engage our curiofity and attention, but to instruct and improve us, and are principally owing to the poetical dress in which the story is conceived: that to admit of an allegorical meaning in the interpretation of SACRED WRIT, is a conceffion of a very fatal and dangerous confequence, and has not only a manifeft tendency. towards making men dubious and unfettled, but contributes too much towards taking off that reverential awe which all mankind fhould have for divine revelation.

Thofe, on the other hand, who are of opinion, that the principal parts of the narrative are fabulous, and the result of invention only, alledge, that it is highly improbable, SATAN should appear before the ALMIGHTY, and prefume to enter into a debate with him before the HOLY ANGELS: that it is equally improbable, fuch a number of meffengers fhould fo clofely follow one another, to make their melancholy reports to their lord and mafter: that it cannot fairly be fuppofed, that Joв, in the height of his affliction, fhould fit fuch a long time among the afhes; and that his friends, who were probably his relations, should so far commiferate his deplorable condition, as to attend him for seven days and nights fucceffively, without fo much as opening their mouths for fear of aggravating his forrows: that it is equally unnatural to imagine, that when they did venture to condole with him, that their conferences with him fhould be fo warm, and fo prolix; or, that JOB, under the weight of fo many complicated maladies, fhould be fo cool and fedate, as to make use of such a number of beautiful fimilies, and fo many metaphorical expreffions in his expoftulations with his vifitors, and misguided friends: that the conduct of the story carries with it visibly enough an air of romance, for it is very incredible, at least, if not morally impoffible, that

any

any man should, within fo fhort a compafs of time, be reduced from the highest affluence of plenty to the very lowest degree of poverty and diftrefs; and then again, that the wheel of fortune should turn round with equal rapidity, and he should not only be restored in some measure to his priftine ftate of felicity, but be bleft with exactly the fame number of children, and just a double portion of the bleffings of this life; thefe, fay they, are circumftances too nice and curious to be accounted as real facts.

As these very men, however, who thus ftrenuously insist, that the book now under confideration is a dramatick performance, and the machinery of it in particular the product only of the great poet's imagination, readily allow it to be a very valuable, and inftructive branch of the infpired writings; and as none but those few, we first mentioned, deny the hero a real existence, and difown the subject-matter of it to be grounded upon fact, we shall in the next place endeavour to discover, as near as poffible, not only the time when, and the place where he probably refided, but who was the author of this fublime piece, which is fo very inftructive and entertaining.

This Job then, in all probability, was a defcendant of the patriarch ABRAHAM by his wife KETURAH; and as he had a numerous iffue by that intermarriage, he portioned them out, and sent them into the EAST; infomuch that the greater part of them fettled in ARABIA. He had a fon likewife, by the aforefaid Keturah, whofe name was SHUAH; from whence there are very good grounds to imagine, that Bildad the Shuhite, one of Job's visitors, was of the fame descent; and as he lived, in all probability, not far from Uz, thought himself in duty bound, as a relation, to go and comfort him in the day of his diftrefs.

As to the fituation of the land of Uz, which was the place of Job's refidence, there are various conjectures concerning it; fince there are no less than three of them mentioned by Mofes, in the

book

book of Genefis.

The firft Uz was the fon of Aram, who was the founder of Damafcus and Trachonitis; for which reafon, fome commentators have fixed his habitation in the plain of Jordan, in the province or district of the before-named Trachonitis; where Job's fepulchre, or monument, is fhewn to paffengers to this very day. This, however, is doubtless a mere fable; as is his fupposed well near Jerufalem, fituate in the aforefaid plain. The second Uz was the son of Nebor; and the country, that from him was called Ufitis, or Aufitis,, is placed by fome geographers near the river Euphrates and the city of Babylon; on which account the feat of Job is thought by fome to be that part of Arabia. The third Uz was the fon of Difhan, mentioned in Genefis, who came from the Horites; and as they were difpoffeffed by the defcendants of Edom, their country was diftinguished by the name of Idumæa, from whence fome authors imagine that Job's refidence was there. Others, again, place his habitation at Conftantinople; but this conjecture is very ridiculous and abfurd. Upon the fuppofition, however, as above hinted, that Job was a defcendant of Abraham and Keturah, his ufual place of abode may with great probability be fixed in one part of Arabia Deserta: and this conclufion may the rather be depended on, fince the facred hiftory makes mention of his poffeffions being plundered by the Chaldeans and Sabeans, who were, as is univerfally allowed, inhabitants of those parts.

The particular time when he flourished is another point much controverted by criticks. It is evident, however, that he was either predeceffor, or at leaft contemporary with Mofes, from his mentioning, with the utmost abhorrence and deteftation, the ancient idolatrous custom of paying the tribute of divine adoration to the fun, moon, and stars; and which is ftill a greater proof, from his taking no manner of notice of the bondage of the Ifraelites under their cruel Egyptian tafk-mafters; which was a circumftance of fo great moment and importance, that he would doubtless

VOL. III.

Ee

have

have expatiated thereon, had he not lived before that remarkable occurrence. It is evident likewise, that he lived in the days of the patriarchs from the length of his life; for he was about three-fcore years of age, when God Almighty, for the trial of his faith and patience, first permitted Satan to perfecute him; and he lived one hundred and forty years after his restoration; so that he was about two hundred years old at the time of his decease, which was a fucceffion, or period of years, that feveral of the patriarchs could not boast of

What his distemper in particular was, and how long it lafted, are other matters of meer conjecture, and not abfolutely to be determined: fome will have it, however, to be a leprofy of the most malignant nature; and others, a malady of a more opprobrious denomination; but those would-be-wits, who impute that to his charge, lofe all the fting of their invectives, when, in answer thereto, they are informed that his disease, how contagious foever it might be, was brought upon him, by no irregularities of his own, but by the malice and contrivance, with God's permiffion, of his infernal adversary. Others again imagine, and with fome colour of reason, that his numerous fores and boils, were not the refult of any fingle malady, but a complication of diseases; and as an additional weight to his agonizing pains, Satan not only stirred up his wife to urge him to the unnatural fin of fuicide or felf-murder, but disturbed his mind both fleeping and waking, with imaginary horrors, and. urged him, all he could, to the highest pitch of madness and defpair..

As to the duration of this severe trial, fome extend it to the compass of a whole year; but this seems to be a conjecture derogatory from the character of the Almighty, whofe darling attributes are mercy and loving-kindness; infomuch that when he afflicts the fons of men, we are affured he does it with reluctance. For which reafon, others imagine, and doubtless more juftly, that these fevere trials lafted no longer than a month. The news of his losses came fo thick upon him; that it might not be above ten or twelve days from

from the time of his being first plundered by his barbarous neighbours, to the fudden death of his fons and daughters by a whirlwind from heaven; immediately after which his bodily afflictions, came upon him then there were feven days more, we are told, that his friends, who went to condole with him, spent in filence; and we cannot well imagine the high debates that afterwards arose between them could take up above a week more; and God restored him to his health again, as we are informed, before his visitors departed.

There is but one thing more we have to offer, by way of conjecture and that is, with refpect to the author. Though it is impoffible to fix on the real perfon, yet it is highly probable, that he lived before Mofes had published any part of his works, and confequently, fome confiderable time before the promulgation of the Jewish law; fince there is not the least notice taken of it throughout the whole book. For which reafon, it is a notion almost universally received, that Mofes wrote it, during his refidence in Egypt, or else after he had fled from thence into the land of Midian, in order to encourage the Jews to bear up with fortitude and patience under their Egyptian bondage, and to induce them to put their trust and confidence in God, who would moft certainly deliver them, in his own due time and way.

There are fome, however, rather inclined to think, that this facred book was at first a plain and fimple narrative, and the materials drawn up either by Job himself, or fome of his friends or relations; and that afterwards it fell into the hands of Mofes, who first tranflated it from the Arabic; that in procefs of time it was tranfmitted down to Solomon; and that from him, it is highly probable, it received the beautiful caft in which it now appears, in the Hebrew language, the first part whereof to the beginning of the third chapter, as St. Jerom affures us, is profe; but from that to the forty-second chapter is all compofed in verfe, of the fame nature