Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Job 9:20
If I justify myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me: [if I say], I [am] perfect, it shall also prove me perverse.
20. Were I in the right, mine own mouth would condemn me,
Were I perfect, He would prove me perverse:
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
20. In Job 9:20 Job is the speaker; he describes the effect upon him of the might of God, though he had right on his side his own mouth would make him out wrong; out of terror he would speak at random or say the opposite of what he should say. The word perfect is used as in ch. Job 1:1, not in an absolute sense, but to mean upright and free from transgression. The subject in the second clause is more probably God than it, i. e. my mouth; were Job perfect the effect of God’s power would be that he would appear perverse or wicked.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
If I justify myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me – That is, referring still to the form of a judicial trial, if I should undertake to manage my own cause, I should lay myself open to condemnation even in my argument on the subject, and should show that I was far from the perfection which I had undertaken to maintain. By passionate expressions; by the language of complaint and murmuring; by a want of suitable reverence; by showing my ignorance of the principles of the divine government; by arguments unsound and based on false positions; or by contradictions and self-refutations, I should show that my position was untenable, and that God was right in charging me with guilt. In some or in all of these ways Job felt, probably, that in an argument before God he would be self-condemned, and that even an attempt to justify himself, or to prove that he was innocent, would prove that he was guilty. And is it not always so? Did a man ever yet undertake to repel the charges of guilt brought against him by his Maker, and to prove that he was innocent, in which he did not himself show the truth of what he was denying? Did not his false views of God and of his law; his passion, complaining, and irreverence; his unwillingness to admit the force of the palpable considerations urged to prove that he was guilty, demonstrate that he was at heart a sinner, and that he was insubmissive and rebellious? The very attempt to enter into such an argument against God, shows that the heart is not right; and the manner in which such an argument is commonly conducted demonstrates that he who does it is sinful.
If I say, I am perfect – Should I attempt to maintain such an argument, the very attempt would prove that my heart is perverse and evil. It would do this because God had adjudged the contrary, and because such an effort would show an insubmissive and a proud heart. This passage shows that Job did not regard himself as a man absolutely free from sin. He was indeed said Job 1:1 to be perfect and upright; but this verse proves that that testimony in regard to him was not inconsistent with his consciousness of guilt. See the notes at that verse. And is not the claim to absolute perfection in this world always a proof that the heart is perverse? Does not the very setting up of such a claim in fact indicate a pride of heart, a self-satisfaction, and an ignorance of the true state of the soul, which is full demonstration that the heart is far from being perfect? God adjudges man to be exceedingly sinful; and if I do not mistake the meaning of the Scriptures, this is his testimony of every human heart – totally until renewed – partially ever onward until death. If this be the account in the Scriptures, then the claim to absolute perfection is prima facie, if not full proof, that the heart is in some way perverse. It has come to a different conclusion from that of God. It sets up an argument against him – and there can be no more certain proof of a lack of perfection than such an attempt. There is in this verse an energy in the original which is very feebly conveyed by our translation. It is the language of strong and decided indignation at the very idea of asserting that he was perfect. tam ‘any – perfect I! or, I perfect! The thought is absurd! It can only prove that I am perverse to attempt to set up any such claim! Stuhlman renders this,
However good I may be, I must condemn myself;
However free from guilt, I must call myself evil:
And explains it as meaning, God can through the punishments which he inflicts constrain me to confess, against the clear consciousness of my innocence, that I am guilty.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Job 9:20-21
If I justify myself.
The folly of self-justification
One of Rev. Murray MCheynes elders was in deep darkness and distress for a few weeks, but one Sunday after the pastors faithful preaching he found his way to the Lord. At the close of the service, he told Mr. MCheyne, who knew of his spiritual concern, that he had found the Lord. When he was asked to explain how this happy change had come about, he said, I have been making a great mistake. I have always been coming to the Lord as something better than I was, and going to the wrong door to ask admittance; but this afternoon I went round to the sinners door, and for the first time cried, like the publican, Lord, be merciful to me a sinner; and, oh, sir, I received such a welcome from the Saviour! Are any of our readers like the self-righteous Pharisee? Such have no room for the Saviour; for the Lord came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
If I say I am perfect.
Our exact worth
A bright little fellow was on the scales, and being anxious to outweigh his playmate, he puffed out his cheeks and swelled up like a small frog. But the playmate was the wiser boy. Oho! he cried in scorn, that doesnt do any good; you can only weigh what you are! How true that is of us bigger children, who try to impress ourselves upon our neighbours and friends, and even upon ourselves, and–yes, sometimes upon God Almighty, by the virtues we would like to have! It doesnt do any good. You may impose upon your neighbours judgment, and get him to say you are a fine fellow–noble, generous, brave, faithful, loving; but if it is not true, you are a sham. You can only weigh what you are.
Not quite perfect
A London publisher once made up his mind to publish a book without a single typographical error. He had the proofs corrected by his own readers until they assured him that they were faultless. Then he sent proofs to the universities and to many other publishing houses, offering a prize of several pounds for every typographical mistake found. A few were discovered, and the book was published. It was considered a perfect specimen of the printers art. Six or eight months after publication the publisher received a letter calling his attention to an error in a certain line on a certain page. Then came another and another letter, until before the year was out half a dozen mistakes were found. St. Paul says that Christians are epistles read and known of all men; and it certainly does not require as much scrutiny as this to discover that we are not free from faults. We must look forward to the new edition of us that will be brought out in another world, revised and amended by the Author. (Quiver.)
A blow at self-righteousness
Ever since man became a sinner he has been self-righteous. When he had a righteousness of his own he never gloried of it, but ever since he has lost it, he has pretended to be the possessor of it.
I. The plea of self-righteousness contradicts itself. If I justify myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me. For the very plea itself is a piece of high and arrogant presumption. God hath said it, let Jew and Gentile stop his mouth, and let all the world stand guilty before God. We have it on inspired authority, that there is none righteous, no, not one. Besides, dost thou not see, thou vain and foolish creature, that thou hast been guilty of pride in the very language thou hast used? Who but a proud man would stand up and commend himself? But further, the plea of self-righteousness is self-contradictory upon another ground; for all that a self-righteous man pleads for, is comparative righteousness. Why, saith he, I am no worse than my neighbours, in fact a great deal better; I do not drink. Just so, but then all that you claim is that you are righteous as compared with others. Do you not see that this is a very vain and fatal plea, because you do in fact admit that you are not perfectly righteous;–that there is some sin in you, only you claim there is not so much in you as in another? Suppose now for a moment that a command is issued to the beasts of the forest that they should become sheep. It is quite in vain for the bear to come forward and plead that he was not so venomous a creature as the serpent; equally absurd would it be for the wolf to say that though stealthy, and cunning, and gaunt, and grim, yet he was not so great a grumbler nor so ugly a creature as the bear; and the lion might plead that he had not the craftiness of the fox. A holy God cannot look even upon the least degree of iniquity. But further, the plea of the self-conceited man is, that he has done his best, and can claim a partial righteousness. It is true, if you touch him in a tender place he acknowledges that his boyhood and his youth were stained with sin. A perfect righteousness you must have, or else you shall never be admitted to that wedding feast.
II. The man who uses this plea condemns the plea himself. Not only does the plea cut its own throat, but the man himself is aware when he uses it that it is an evil, and false, and vain refuge. Now this is a matter of conscience, and if I speak not what you have felt, then you can say I am mistaken. Men know that they are guilty. The conscience of the proudest man, when it is allowed to speak, tells him that he deserves the wrath of God.
III. The plea is itself evidence against the pleader. There is an unregenerated man here, who says, Am I blind also? I answer in the words of Jesus, But now ye say we see, therefore your sin remaineth. You have proved by your plea, in the first place, that you have never been enlightened of the Holy Spirit, but that you remain in a state of ignorance. A deaf man may declare that there is no such thing as music. A man who has never seen the stars, is very likely to say that there are no stars. But what does he prove? Does he prove that there are no stars? He only proves his own folly and his own ignorance. That man who can say half a word about his own righteousness has never been enlightened of God the Holy Spirit. But then again, inasmuch as you say that you are not guilty this proves that you are impenitent. Now the impenitent can never come where God is. Further than this, the self-righteous man, the moment that he says he has done anything which can recommend him to God, proves that he is not a believer. Now, salvation is for believers, and for believers only. The thirsty are welcome; but those who think they are good, are welcome neither to Sinai nor to Calvary. Ah! soul, I know not who thou art; but if thou hast any righteousness of thine own, thou art a graceless soul.
IV. It will ruin the pleader forever. Let me show you two suicides. There is a man who has sharpened a dagger, and seeking out his opportunity he stabs himself to the heart. Who shall blame any man for his death? He slew himself; his blood be on his own head. Here is another: he is very sick and ill; he can scarcely crawl about the streets. A physician waits upon him; he tells him, Sir, your disease is deadly; you must die; but I know a remedy which will certainly heal you. There it is; I freely give it to you. All I ask of you is, that you will freely take it. Sir, says the man, you insult me; I am as well as ever I was in my life; I am not sick. Who slew this man? His blood be on his own head; he is as base a suicide as the other. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 20. If I justify myself] God must have some reason for his conduct towards me; I therefore do not pretend to justify myself; the attempt to do it would be an insult to his majesty and justice. Though I am conscious of none of the crimes of which you accuse me; and know not why he contends with me; yet he must have some reason, and that reason he does not choose to explain.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
If I plead against God mine own righteousness and innocency, God is so infinitely wise and just, that he will find sufficient matter of condemnation from my own words, though spoken with all possible care and circumspection; or he will discover so much wickedness in me of which I was not aware, that I shall be forced to join with him in condemning myself.
If I say, I am perfect; if I were perfect in my own opinion; if I thought myself completely righteous and faultless, it, i.e. my own mouth, as he now said, or,
he, i.e. God, who is easily understood by comparing this with the former verses, where the same he is oft mentioned,
shall also prove me perverse.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
20. it (Job 15:6;Luk 19:22); or “He,”God.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
If I justify myself,…. Seek for justification by his own righteousness, trust in himself that he was righteous, say that he was so, and pronounce himself a righteous man, what would it signify?
mine own mouth shall condemn me; the words of it being sinful, vain, idle, and frothy; and if a man is to be justified, and condemned by his words, he may be sure of the latter: indeed, “if any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man”, Jas 3:2; but let a man be as careful as he can, and keep ever such a guard upon his lips, such is the imperfection of human nature, that, though a Moses, he will speak unadvisedly with his lips, at one time or another, and in many things will offend; which would be his condemnation, if there was no other way to secure from it; nay, for a sinful man to justify himself, or to say that he is a righteous man by his own righteousness, and insist upon this before God, if he is tried upon it he must be condemned; yea, saying he is so is a falsehood, abominable to God, and enough to condemn him; and besides, a man that knows himself, as Job did, must be conscious of much sin within him, however externally righteous he may be before men; so that, should he say he was righteous, his conscience would speak, or cause his mouth to speak and contradict and condemn him:
[if I say], I [am] perfect; not in an evangelical sense, as he was; but in a legal sense, so as to be free from sin, which no man that is perfect in a Gospel sense is; as Noah, Jacob, David, and others, who were so, yet not without sin; if therefore a man should assert this, he would not say that which was right, but what was perverse, as might be proved:
it shall also prove me perverse; to be a wicked man; either he, God, shall prove, or it, his mouth, as in the preceding clause; for to say this is to tell a lie, which to do is perverseness, see 1Jo 1:8.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
20. I
perfect
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Job 9:20. If I justify myself If I call myself righteous, my mouth shall condemn me: if innocent, it shall prove me perverse; Job 9:21. Innocent, or being innocent, yet would I not make trial; nor would my soul be less weary of life. Houbigant and Schultens. The meaning of the 21st verse is sufficiently cleared by the 22nd. Though I were perfect, yet would I not know my soul, or life; i.e. “I would make no account of it,I would despise it; (as it follows) for I should not think this perfection any security either for a long life or a prosperous; much less, were I never so perfect, should I flatter myself with the vain hope that you would instil into me, of being delivered from this deep distress wherein I am now plunged, and from which nothing but a miracle can restore me. For, one thing I have learned from experience, that God destroys the perfect as well as the wicked.” And of this he gives a demonstration in the following verse: If the scourge slay suddenly, &c. i.e. “In times of common calamity, the righteous and the wicked perish for the most part indiscriminately.” This is apparently the general course of Providence; and if any exceptions be made, they are rare and extraordinary, by the special appointment and direction of the great Lord and ruler of the world, for extraordinary reasons of which he alone is judge. But no wise man would ever build any great hopes upon these extraordinary and excepted cases; at least, they can never be a just ground for confidence and assurance. This seems plainly to be the sense of Job in this matter; for, it is very observable, that he builds his arguments on the general course of Providence; the others argue chiefly from the extraordinary exceptions to it. They had seen a good man now and then remarkably delivered; they had seen many a wicked man remarkably punished. These remarkable things, as they are the most sensible demonstrations of a present Providence, led Job’s friends, whose thoughts were full of them, to push the matter of an exactly remunerating Providence in this life too far; so as scarcely to allow a good man to be finally unhappy in the present world, or a wicked man prosperous upon the whole. And I suppose their own prosperity, which they were but too fond, perhaps, of ascribing to the blessing of God upon their piety, (for, except their hard censures of Job, there is nothing but what shews them to have been good religious persons in the main,) might help to confirm them in this notion; for it is an old observation, that we borrow our very thoughts and reasonings sometimes from the state and temper that we are in. Job therefore, on the other hand, being in a state of the deepest distress, we need not wonder that his thoughts were black and cloudy; that, even with the consciousness of an upright heart and righteous life, he could neither enjoy himself by day with cheerful thoughts, nor prevent the dreadfullest dreams by night, especially considering the obscure dispensation under which he lived. See chap. Job 7:13-14. The same melancholic disposition it was, no doubt, which made him dwell upon the general course of Providence, without allowing for those extraordinary and excepted cases, wherein God, as it were, makes bare his arm, to deliver a good man from distress, and of which he himself was in the end a noble instance. Peters. And we must never forget, that Job lived under a dispensation far inferior to ours. Schultens renders the 23rd verse, If the scourge slay suddenly, it [the scourge] will laugh at the trial of the innocent. The figure is bold, but not too bold for the elevated poetry of this book.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
DISCOURSE: 459
THE EVIL OF A SELF-JUSTIFYING SPIRIT
Job 9:20-21. If I justify myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me: if I say, I am perfect, it shall also prove me perverse. Though I were perfect, yet would I not know my soul: I would despise my life.
IN controversies of every kind, and more especially in those which relate to religion, the disputants are, for the most part, more anxious to obtain the victory than to discover truth. Hence, instead of putting that precise construction on each others words which they were designed to bear, they labour to turn to their own advantage every expression of their adversary, and to derive from it an argument for the support of their own cause. Even good men are by no means so candid as they ought to be in relation to this matter, more especially when they become heated by opposition. The friends of Job were exceedingly faulty in this particular. They first charged Job with hypocrisy; and then, when he asserted his own innocence in relation to that heinous sin, they represented him as asserting his freedom from all sin, and as justifying himself as a righteous person before God. This was by no means the intention of Job: on the contrary, he here explicitly declares, that no man can be just before God [Note: ver. 2.], and that he should stand utterly self-condemned if he should presume to arrogate to himself any such measure of perfection. He had stated in the foregoing verse, that if he should dare to contend with God, he could neither withstand his power, nor put himself into a capacity to make good his cause before him [Note: ver. 19.]: and now he renounces with abhorrence any such impious idea. Of the former verse of our text, this is the plain and obvious meaning: and in the latter verse, the same idea seems yet more strongly, though not so plainly, stated: Though I were perfect, so far as not to be aware of any evil that I had ever committed, yet would I not know my soul, or pretend to know it as the heart-searching God does: I would despise my own life, and submit to any death, rather than presume to offer such an insult to the Majesty of heaven. Thus he avows, in opposition to the charge that had been brought against him, first, the folly, and next, the impiety, of a self-justifying spirit. These two we propose to consider in their order:
I.
The folly of a self-justifying spirit
By a self-justifying spirit we understand, a persuasion of mind that we do not deserve Gods wrath and indignation, but, on the contrary, that we do deserve his favour and blessing. Now supposing a person to indulge this spirit, what does he, in fact, affirm? He affirms, if not in words, yet by clear inference, what his mouth must utterly condemn. He affirms,
1.
That there is no truth in the Scriptures
[The Scriptures in every part cither affirm, or take for granted, that man is a sinner, justly condemned, and standing in need of mercy at the hands of an offended God. Now to talk of perfection, or of being righteous before God, is to assert directly the reverse of what the Scriptures assert, and, consequently, to say that there is no truth in them. But will any one dare to speak thus concerning the sacred oracles? will not his own mouth instantly condemn him as a proud and wicked infidel? or, if he profess to believe the Holy Scriptures, and yet maintain the notion of his being righteous before God, will not his own mouth still condemn him as guilty of the grossest inconsistency? Believer or unbeliever, he must equally stand self-refuted, and self-condemned.]
2.
That there is no sin in his heart
[We ask not whether there be any flagrant iniquities that can be laid to his charge: it is sufficient if once, in ever so small a degree, in act, word, or thought, he have transgressed, or fallen short of, the perfect law of God: having offended thus far, he has broken the law, and is from that moment subjected to its curse [Note: Gal 3:10.]. Now to be justified by the very law that condemns us, is a contradiction in terms: so that the person who pretends to be just before God must either deny that he has any sin in his heart, or maintain the contradiction before stated. If it be said, that he may imagine that the law admits of imperfections, and justifies us notwithstanding those imperfections, we answer, that we cannot make laws of our own, but must take the law as we find it: and that the law, being a perfect transcript of Gods mind and will, can be satisfied with nothing but perfect and perpetual obedience: and consequently, if ever we have transgressed it in the smallest measure, we are, and must for ever be, condemned by it. To deny the perfection of the law would be to deny the perfection of God, which is atheism: and to admit its perfection, and yet dream of justification by it, is such an absurdity, as every mans own mouth must condemn. The only possible ground of being justified by it must be, that we have no sin in our hearts: and, if any man dare affirm that, his own mouth has already proved him most ignorant and perverse [Note: 1Jn 1:8.].]
3.
That he has no need of a Saviour
[If he be righteous himself, he has no need to be clothed in anothers righteousness, nor any need of an atonement for his sins: consequently, as far at least as relates to that individual, God has sent his own Son in vain. And will any man say that God, in making his Son a propitiation for the sins of the whole world, was under a mistake, and that for himself he needed no such exercise of mercy? Why then does such a man call himself a Christian? If he stood in no need of Christ, and is in a state of justification without Christ, he should cease to name the name of Christ: for whilst he continues to do so, his own mouth condemns him, and proves him perverse. If righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain [Note: Gal 2:21.].]
But let us proceed to notice,
II.
The impiety of it
It was not without good reason that Job expressed such an abhorrence of the spirit that was imputud to him: for the indulging of it is,
1.
A criminating of God
[There is not a perfection of the Deity which is not dishonoured by a self-justifying spirit. It impeaches and vilities his truth; seeing that he has represented all to be in a state of guilt and condemnation before him. It denies his justice; since he threatens all men with death, when there are some who do not deserve it. It degrades his wisdom; since it supposes that that wonderful contrivance of providing a surety for us, and laying our sins upon him, was unnecessary. It holds up to derision also his mercy and grace, which are proclaimed as incomprehensibly great and glorious, when the very offer of them is only an empty sound. Hear what God himself says: If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar [Note: 1Jn 1:10.]. Can any thing be conceived more heinous than this? Should we not despise our own lives, and submit to ten thousand deaths, rather than be guilty of it?]
2.
A contempt of our own souls
[God has provided a salvation for us, and offered it freely to all who will accept it in and through his beloved Son; and has told us, that there is no other name under heaven whereby we can be saved, but that of Jesus; and yet we choose to ground our claim of happiness on the purity and perfection of our own character, rather than submit to be saved in his appointed way. But is not this madness? Will a man deal so with his temporal interests? will he risk the loss of them upon a mere phantom of his own imagination, in direct opposition to the plainest dictates of his understanding? Surely, if men had the least value for their souls, they would not so trifle with them; they would at least endeavour to ascertain what degree of weight was due to their opinions, and whether there was any rational ground for them to expect Gods blessing in a way so contrary to his own most express and solemn declarations. But their total indifference about the issue of their confidence shews, that they account their souls of no value, or, as Solomon expresses it, they despise their own souls [Note: Pro 15:32.].]
3.
A trampling under foot the Son of God
[This is Gods own representation of the sin. In rejecting the sacrifice of Christ, there being no other sacrifice, we cut ourselves off from all hope of salvation; yea, we trample under foot the Son of God, and count the blood of the covenant an unholy thing, and do despite to the Spirit of grace [Note: Heb 10:26-29.]. What amazing impiety is this! We are apt to confine our ideas of impiety to gross sins committed against our fellow-creatures: and such an error as self-righteousness we suppose to be of very little importance. But it is not thus that God estimates sin: he views sin chiefly as it dishonours him, and more especially as it militates against that stupendous effort of his love, the redemption of the world by the blood and righteousness of his beloved Son. Know then, that to justify ourselves, is to repeat, in fact, the conduct of those who crucified the Lord of glory; it is to crucify him afresh, and to say, We will not have this man to reign over us.]
This subject may be further improved,
1.
For our conviction
[Who was it that used the language in our text? It was Job, of whom God himself testified, that he was a perfect and upright man. And if he could not justify himself before God, who are we, that we should presume to do so? Are we more perfect than he? Hear how he speaks of himself, a few verses after our text [Note: ver. 30, 31.]; and then see what our views of ourselves should be. Nor was Job singular in his views of himself: the language of all the most eminent saints, both in the Old and New Testament, is precisely similar [Note: See Psa 130:3; Psa 143:2. Pro 20:9. Isa 6:5; Isa 64:6. Php 3:4-9 and especially 1Co 4:4.] And such must be ours also, if ever we would find mercy at the hands of God: we must humble ourselves, if ever we would be exalted.]
2.
For our consolation
[Some are discouraged at the sight of their own vileness, and are ready to think that such unworthy creatures as they can never be saved. And such thoughts they might well have, if justification were, either in whole or in part, by any righteousness of our own. But we are to be justified freely by Gods grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus [Note: Rom 3:24-26.]; it is the ungodly whom God justifies [Note: Rom 4:5.]; not indeed those who continue ungodly, but those who come to Christ in an ungodly state, desiring to be cleansed from the guilt and power of their sins: those persons are justified the very moment they believe in Jesus, and that too from all the sins they have ever committed [Note: Act 13:39.]. Here indeed is abundant consolation for the weary and heavy-laden sinner; here indeed he may find rest to his soul. Remember then what the Apostle has said; This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners: and that Paul himself, when he was a bloody persecutor and blasphemer, obtained mercy, on purpose that the extent and riches of Gods grace might be displayed in him, as a pattern and encouragement to all who should ever desire acceptance with their offended God [Note: 1Ti 1:15-16.]. Follow his example then, and believe in Jesus for the remission of your sins: say, as the prophet encourages you to do, In the Lord Jesus have I righteousness and strength; for in the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and in him shall they glory [Note: Isa 45:24-25.]. The very name by which the Lord Jesus himself delights to be called, is, The Lord our Righteousness [Note: Jer 23:6.].]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
“Handfuls of Purpose”
For All Gleaners
“If I justify myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me.” Job 9:20
There are two processes often going on together in human thought, self-justification and self-condemnation. The justification is often outward; that is, it takes a social range, going up and down amongst men, asking for charges, indictments, proofs of blame: but even whilst the soul is thus revelling in social applause, when it turns in upon itself, it is with bitterest reproaches. The hand has been clean, but the heart has been impure; the deed has had all the appearance of charming beneficence, but the motive out of which it came was one of the intensest selfishness. A man may justify himself logically; that is to say, he may prove a literal consistency in his behaviour; yet when he turns to spiritual considerations, he may overwhelm himself with proofs that all his outward life has been but a series of studied attitudes, a marvel in trickery, invention, and cunning arrangement. “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he:” “The Lord looketh on the heart:” “Judge not by the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.” It is at this point that the spirituality of the Christian religion is realised. God searches the heart, and tries the reins of the children of men. Innocence can be simulated; respectability can be put on like a cloak; even piety itself may be turned into a mere colour of the skin: but all these accessories are stripped by the spirit of divine judgment, and the eye of God looks upon the heart, its motive, its purpose, its supreme desire. This is at once a terror and a blessing: a terror to the evil man, how clever soever he may have been in his exterior arrangements, a blessing to the pure and genuine heart that has had to struggle against a thousand social disadvantages and oppositions. The great condemnation is self-condemnation. In vain the world applauds us, when we know that the applause is undeserved. The public assembly may welcome us with overwhelming acclamation, yet the soul within may say, All this noise is a tribute to my hypocrisy, not a recognition of my real state; could these people know me as I really am, these welcoming cheers would be turned into thundering denunciations: I do not accept the huzzas of the ignorant multitude, I tremble and cower under my own judgment. Self-justification is no commendation: he who justifies himself before men, is all the more likely to be guilty before God; for he tries to make up by boisterousness and declamation what is wanting in solidity and spiritual piety. “Brethren, if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.” Blessed is the man who condemns himself justly and thoroughly, for only by so doing does he prepare himself for the true revelation of God in the soul. God never sat down in the heart of self-conceit, but evermore hurled against that heart his judgments and retributions. The Pharisee justified himself, and was left unjustified by God: the publican condemned himself, and went down to his house justified.
Fuente: The People’s Bible by Joseph Parker
Job 9:20 If I justify myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me: [if I say], I [am] perfect, it shall also prove me perverse.
Ver. 20. If I justify myself ] If, in default of other pleaders, I should undertake to manage my cause myself, I should be never the nearer.
Mine own mouth shall condemn me
lf I say I am perfect
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
justify: Job 9:2, Job 4:17, Job 32:1, Job 32:2, Psa 130:3, Psa 143:2, Luk 10:29, Luk 16:15
mine: Job 15:5, Job 15:6, Job 34:35, Job 35:16, Pro 10:19, Isa 6:5, Mat 12:36, Mat 12:37, Jam 3:2
I am perfect: Job 1:1, Phi 3:12-15
it shall: Job 33:8-13, Pro 17:20, 1Ti 6:5
Reciprocal: Job 2:3 – Hast thou Job 9:3 – he will contend Job 9:28 – I know Job 9:31 – shalt Job 10:15 – righteous Job 13:18 – I know Job 14:3 – bringest Luk 18:14 – justified Act 13:39 – from which 1Co 4:4 – yet Tit 3:5 – by works
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Job 9:20. If I justify myself If I plead against God my own righteousness and innocence; my own mouth shall condemn me God is so infinitely wise, and just, and holy, that he will find sufficient matter of condemnation from my own words, though spoken with all possible care and circumspection; or he will discover so much imperfection in me, of which I was not aware, that I shall be compelled to join with him in condemning myself. If I say, I am perfect The words, I say, are not in the Hebrew, but seem to be properly supplied to complete the sense. The meaning is, If I were perfect in my own opinion, if I thought myself completely righteous and faultless; it shall prove me perverse That is, my own mouth shall prove, as he had just said; or he, that is, God shall, who is easily understood from the former verses, where he is often mentioned.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
9:20 If I justify myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me: {o} [if I say], I [am] perfect, it shall also prove me perverse.
(o) If I stood in my own defence yet God would have just cause to condemn me if he examined my heart and conscience.