Job 33:2

Behold, now I have opened my mouth,.... Begun to speak in order to give vent to the fulness of matter within him, which made him, like bottles of new wine, ready to burst; and since he had opened his

Behold, now I have opened my mouth, my tongue hath spoken in my mouth. Mouth - rather, palate, whereby the taste discerns.

Now I have begun to speak, and intend with thy good leave to proceed in my discourse with thee. In my mouth, Heb. in or with my palate; for both tongue and palate are instruments of speech; and, that a man should speak plainly and distinctly, (which he designed to do,) it is necessary that his tongue should ofttimes touch the palate or roof of the month.

Job 33:2 Behold, now I have opened my mouth, my tongue hath spoken in my mouth.Ver. 2. Behold, now I have opened my mouth] I have taken upon me to be a speaker, an arbitrator in this controversy, which is usually a thankless office; for he who interposeth in business of this nature, if he had two friends before, is likely enough to lose one of them. I must of necessity blame both parties, however I come off with them. Thy three friends have had their share in the former chapter, and now comes thine, which shall be sound, though sharp, of matters weighty and important, as Psalms 78:2 Habebis sermonem serium, et de re gravi; for so much the Hebrews intend by this expression of opening the mouth. In the Revelation, wherever we read that heaven opened, some great matter followed; so when such open their mouths as have the law of God in their hearts, Psalms 37:31 Proverbs 31:26. Fools indeed have their mouths ever open, blustering out whatsoever lies uppermost, rashly and without consideration, Kεχηνοτες, a Luciano et Aristophane dicuntur. But a wise man weigheth his words before he uttereth them; and speaketh not but for some good purpose. My tongue hath spoken in my mouth] Heb. In my palate, or under my palate, which are two chief of those mine instruments of speech, none of which can well be wanting. Let God be glorified for and with that peculiar faculty; and let our praises proceed, not from the palate only, or roof of the mouth, but from the root of the heart. The voice which is made in the mouth is nothing so sweet as that which cometh from the bottom of the breast. One interpreter saith, that by these words, My tongue hath spoken in my mouth, Elihu meaneth, that he would not speak clamorously, but, as it were, whisperingly, to his ear, in secret.

2. The somewhat formal and circumstantial way in which he intimates that he is going to speak indicates his feeling of the importance of what he is going to say, and bespeaks Job’s attention.

My tongue hath spoken in my mouth - Margin, “palate.” The meaning is, that since he had ventured to speak, and had actually commenced, he would utter only that which was worthy to be heard.

2. That Job has declared God to be arbitrary and cruel toward men, in making him to be his [Job’s] “jailer and most crafty watcher.” (See note on Job 13:27, which Elihu cites quite literally.) In so