Job 18:1

It seems that Bildad ignores Job when he draws his resolutions, or when the logic of his words comes to him or when the power of his words comes to him, and where his will leads him, because the fighter "continues" to fight. The more Job sees his enemies increase, the more he grows strong against them. The more he sees the number of the slanderers grow, the more he renews himself to fight back in favor of truth. It is not only by exhorting but also by becoming firmer that Job makes the truth appear. But Bildad ignores that, and that is why he has said, "How long will you continue?" It is necessary that Job respond, and since he has not said that, we will say it instead of him, "He will continue until his spirit animates you, until he makes sources spring, until he blows wisdom into sincere vases, until you are tortured by his words as by the strikes of a whip. For you do not understand the wisdom of God and do not know his economy with regard to the righteous and the sinners."

Then answered Bildad the Shuhite, and said, Unto what end will ye cast abroad words? understand first, and so let us speak.

ALLEGORICAL INTERPRETATION

We have already said frequently that blessed Job bears a type of the Holy Church universal, and that his friends bear the likeness of heretics, who as it were on the plea of defence of the Lord find occasion of foolish talking, and let loose insulting words against good men; to whom all is displeasing that is thought by the faithful, as though it were uttered to the wind. Whence it is said now, Should a wise man answer as if speaking into the wind? Nor do they account the words of the good as the sayings of reason, but as the stingings of madness. Whence it is added, And shall he fill his belly with burning? in that those things even which they know themselves to say by way of insult, they are ever bent to palliate, as has been said, on the ground of defending the Lord.

All heretics think that in some things that are known to her Holy Church is full of pride, while some things they fancy that she does not even understand. Whence Bildad the Shuhite, as it were, asserts that blessed Job had broken out into pride, when he declares that he 'casts abroad words.' But he gives a token with what pride he was himself swoln, who supposed that blessed Job spoke things that he did not understand; and whereas all heretics complain that they are despised by Holy Church in her estimate of them, it is fitly subjoined.

Since Baldath of Shuah could not understand what blessed Job meant with his intellect, he thought that what he himself did not understand was spoken without basis even by the speaker, and so in the beginning of his answer he says, "To what end will you just toss out words?" Here he blames Job for three things: first, the ineffectual character of his speech, as though the words Job had spoken had no efficacious proof of anything, which is shown in the fact that he says, "To what end." Second, he blames him for the vain multiplication of words, as though these words of Job lacked the weight of serious consideration, which is shown in the fact that he says, "words." Third he criticizes him for the disordered connection of his words, which is shown when he says, "will you just toss out words?" For one is said to toss out words who scatters them inordinately, although one can also interpret this third thing as a display of bragging. These three faults occur in the speech of someone who has a weak intellect; and so a confrontation with one lacking intelligence is useless, and so he continues, "Understand first, and then we will speak," as if to say: From the fact that you speak inefficaciously, lightly and inordinately it is clear that you have weak intelligence, and so I insist first that you apply yourself to understand and afterwards we can converse with each other.