Then came there unto him all his brethren, and all his
sisters
Which may be taken not in a strict sense, but in a larger sense for all that were related to him; the same with his kinsfolks, ( Job 19:14 ) ;
and all they that had been of his acquaintance before;
that knew him, visited him, conversed with him, and kept up a friendly correspondence with him; the circle of his acquaintance must have been large, for wealth makes many friends: now these had been shy of him, and kept at a distance from him, during the time of his affliction and distress; see ( Job 19:13 Job 19:14 Job 19:19 ) ; but hearing he was in the favour of God, and the cause was given on his side, and against his friends, and his affairs began to take a more favourable turn, they came to him again, and paid him a friendly visit, even all of them;
and did eat bread with him in his house:
expressing their joy for his recovery, and renewing their friendship with him: this was done either at their own expense or at Job's, for he might not be so poor at the worst as he is by most represented; for he had still an house of his own, and furniture in it, and servants to wait upon him, as appears from ( Job 19:15 Job 19:16 ) ; nor do we read of anything being taken out of his house from him; he might still have gold and silver, and so could entertain his friends: and being a man of an excellent spirit received them kindly, without upbraiding them with their unkindness in deserting him when afflicted;
and they bemoaned him;
shook their heads at him, pitying his case, that is, which he had been in; for this they might do, though things were now better with him, and might express themselves in such manner as this,
``Poor man, what hast thou endured? what hast thou gone through by diseases of body, loss of substance, and vexation from friends?''and besides, though things began to mend with him, he was not come at once to the pitch of happiness he arrived unto; so that there might be still room for bemoaning, he being comparatively in poor circumstances to what he was before;
and comforted him over all the evil that the Lord had brought upon
him;
the evil of afflictions, of body and estate; which, though by means of Satan and wicked men, was according to the will of God, and might be said to be brought on him and done to him by the Lord, ( Amos 3:6 ) ; and they congratulated him upon his deliverance from them;
every man also gave him a piece of money,
or a "lamb"; which some understand in a proper sense, as being what might serve towards making up his loss of sheep, and increasing his stock of them; but others with us take it for a piece of money, in which sense it is used in ( Genesis 33:19 ) ( Joshua 24:32 ) , compared with ( Acts 7:16 ) ; which might have the figure of a lamb impressed upon it; as we formerly had a piece of money called an angel, having the image of one stamped on it; and it was usual with the ancients both to barter with cattle instead of money before the coining of it, and when it was coined to impress upon it the figure of cattle; hence the Latin word "pecunia", for money, is from "pecus", cattle F18; this piece of money in Africa is the same with the Jewish "meah" F19, which weighed sixteen barley corns; the value of a penny;
and everyone earring of gold;
or a jewel set in gold; such used to wear in Arabia, as appears from, ( Judges 8:24 ) ; however Job could turn them into money, and increase his stock of cattle thereby. Though, perhaps, these presents were made him, not so much to enrich him, but as tokens of renewing their friendship with him; it being then usual in the eastern countries, as it is to this day, that whenever they pay visits, even to the greatest personages, they always carry presents with them; see ( 1 Samuel 9:7 ) .