Among the bushes they brayed; under the nettles they were gathered together.
All Commentaries on Job 30:7 Go To Job 30
Gregory The Dialogist
AD 604
38. ‘They rejoice in the midst of the like,’ because, surely, they give heed to the transitory things which they receive, and neglect to look at the lasting blessings which they lose. And whilst they are on fire with the love of things temporal, they are willingly ignorant of the true joy. Which same if they earnestly sought to acquaint themselves with, how greatly the delights which they seek after are to be wept for, they would see. But, while they are unconcerned to know what are better, they choose those alone for themselves, as the highest, which flatter the eyes in the visible by a fleeting beguilement. That is to say, they fix fast their heart, following after the visible, and rejoice so much the more outwardly, in proportion as they are without the remembrance of themselves inwardly. Yet, generally, there are mixed with their joys calamities, and by the actual things, by which they are filled with pride, they are scourged. For neither can they, without grievous inconveniences of anxieties, either seek when not possessed, or retain when sought, the temporal things that they desire; among their equals aim at superior glory; from inferiors exact respect beyond what is meet, and to superiors shew forth the same less than they ought; for the most part display the mastery by masterfulness; ever do what is wicked, and yet, that they may not have the credit of wickedness, guard themselves with dread. All these things surely sting the wretched persons, but those same stings they do not feel, from being overcome by the mere love of the things of time. And hence it is rightly said now, And reckoned there were delights under the brambles; because, being closely encompassed by the enjoyments of sins, from the affecting of the present life, how sharp the things they are that they undergo they are not aware.
39. Therefore they ‘rejoice,’ but ‘under brambles’; because they delight in earthly things indeed, but yet, whilst they are unable to manage those same things of time without trouble, the wretched persons are stung by that same care which they are pressed by. They continue ‘under the brambles,’ and this very thing they account delight, because they at once endure hardships indeed from the love of the present life, but yet, being bound about by the absorption of over-great desire, they account the trouble of that endurance to be pleasure. Hence Jeremiah, rightly taking upon himself the likeness of all human conduct, complains in lament, saying, He has made me drunken with; wormwood. [Lam. 3, 15] For as we have already said before in a part above, any one drunk knows nothing what he is undergoing. But he that is made ‘drunk with wormwood,’ both has the thing that he has taken bitter, and yet does not understand that same bitterness which he is filled with. So the race of man, being by the right judgment of God left to themselves in their pleasures, and by those same pleasures consigned to voluntary sufferings, is ‘drunk with wormwood’; because both these are bitter things which it endures for the love of this life, and yet that same bitterness, by the blindness of concupiscence, as by the insensibility of drunkenness, it remains ignorant of. For thirsting after the glory of the world, whilst it finds instead thereof numberless tribulations, what it drinks is bitter. But because it took this too eagerly, from mere drunkenness it is not now able to discern the evil of that bitterness. For bad men, for the sake of the glory of this world, love tribulations even, and on account of it willingly lend themselves to all toils, and most devotedly submit their necks to the yoke of heavy labours. Which is well described by Hosea whilst prophesying, under the likeness of Ephraim, saying, And Ephraim is a heifer that is taught to love threshing. [Hos. 10, 11] For a heifer accustomed to the labours of threshing, very often, when loosed, returns even not forced to the same customariness of labour. So the mind of the wicked being devoted to the services of this world, and accustomed to the wearyings of temporal things, even if it be allowed to be freely at liberty to itself, yet is eager to submit itself to earthly pains and toils, and seeks the usage [al. ‘from usage’] of a wretched way of life, ‘the threshing’ of labour, that it should not be acceptable, even if it were allowable, to give over the yoke of worldly servitude. Which same yoke the Lord loosed from the neck of the disciples, when He said, And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness; and straightway added, and cares of this life; and so that day come upon you unawares. [Luke 21, 34] And again, Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart. [Matt. 11, 28] What is it for the Lord to call Himself ‘meek and lowly’ in preceptorship, save leaving behind the difficulties for exercising self-exaltation, to point out some plain ways of living well? But because the minds of the wicked are more pleased by what is harsh in self-exalting than by what is gentle in mildness and humility, they ‘suppose there are delights under brambles.’ For from love of the world they are ready to bear what is hard as things soft and delightful, whilst they try in this life to lay hold of the topmost pinnacles of affairs.
40. The Lord bids ceasing from the labours of the world, He prompts the sweetness of holy tranquillity, and yet the frenzied mind of the wicked is more rejoiced to obtain what is harsh in the carnal way than to hold what is mild in the spiritual way. It is more fed by the bitterness of wearisomeness than by the sweetness of tranquillity. Which the Israelitish people openly shews us in itself, which same, whilst it received the refreshment of manna from above, lusted after the flesh-pots, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, from Egypt. [Numb. 11, 5] For what is denoted by the ‘manna,’ but the food of grace, having a sweet savour, given from Above for the refreshment of the interior life to persons rightly free? And what by the ‘flesh-pots,’ saving carnal works, which are with difficulty to be dressed by the toils of tribulations, as by fires? What by ‘melons,’ but earthly sweets? What by ‘leeks and onions,’ which those who eat very often shed tears, excepting the hardness of the present life, which is both gone through by the lovers of it not without mourning, and notwithstanding is loved with tears? Therefore, forsaking ‘manna,’ together with melons and fleshmeats they sought leeks and onions, surely because bad minds despise the gifts of tranquillity, sweet by grace, and for the sake of carnal pleasures they covet the wearisome ways of this life, even though full of tears; they scorn to have where they may rejoice in a spiritual manner, and ardently seek where they may even groan in a carnal way. So then, let Job with a truth-telling voice rebuke the madness of these persons, for no other reason than that by a perverted judgment they set the troubled before the tranquil, the hard before the gentle, the harsh before the mild, the transitory before the eternal, the suspicious before the assured. The madness of such let Holy Church call to remembrance, when she is encompassed with cruel adversities without, which persons she held within herself as if believers, but for long endured their life opposing the faith, and let her say, Who rejoiced in the midst of the like, and reckoned there were delights under brambles; surely, because the evil things that they do, they learnt by the badness of the wicked going before.
