The spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty has given me life.
All Commentaries on Job 33:4 Go To Job 33
Gregory The Dialogist
AD 604
28. Intending to subjoin truth, he first uttered boastful words, and being about to state the sound opinions he held, he first made known how huge was his swelling. The minds of the arrogant are doubtless so very mad, that even in what they think rightly, they are disfigured by the deformity of their pride. And hence even their sound opinions do not instruct their hearers, because in truth they lead them by their haughty sentiments not to reverence but to despise them. And when words of folly are blended with wise sayings, even their wisdom is not kept in mind, because their folly is despised by him who hears it. For hence it is said by Moses, A man who suffers a running of seed shall be unclean. [Lev. 15, 16] For what are our words but seed? And when this is poured forth in due measure, the mind of the hearer, as the womb of her who conceives, is made fruitful for an offspring of good works. But if it escapes at improper times, polluting him that emits it, it loses its generating power. For if words were not seed, the Athenians would never have said of Paul, as he was preaching to them, What would this word-sower [‘seminiverbius] say? [Acts 17, 18] of whom Luke says, He was the chief speaker. [Acts 14, 12] Seed, then, which is intended for the purpose of procreation, when it escapes in an improper manner, pollutes the other members: and speech also, by which learning ought to be implanted in the hearts of the hearers, if uttered out of due order, brings disgrace even on the truths it utters. And hence Eliu also pollutes even the truths he is able to entertain, when he is ignorant of what he is saying, or to whom he is saying it, and suffers, as it were, discharge of seed, when he employs his tongue, which is fitted to answer useful purpose, in words of empty sound. But he speaks in proper order of his being made, and receiving life. For he says, that he was made by the Spirit, and that he received life by the breath of God. For it is written of Adam when created, He breathed into his face the breath of life, and man was made into a living soul. [Gen. 2, 7] But let us listen whether he proceeds properly with what he has well laid down.
