Job 12:22

"He discovers the depths of darkness," explaining the prophecies. "He produces in the light the shadows of death. That is to say, he makes known what the present life is worth: it is only the shadow of death.

"Revealing deep things out of darkness, and he has brought into light the shadow of death." The literal meaning is, "He manifests the things which are hidden to all, and preserves those who are in danger and close to death." He calls danger "the shadow of death," because, as shadow is very close to the body that produces it, so danger is very close to the death that causes it. However, the profound meaning of this sentence appears to announce prophetically the advent of the Lord, who said to the prisoners, "Come out, and to those who are in the shadow, show yourselves," "and appeared to those, who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death."

Who discovereth deep things out of darkness, and bringeth out to light the shadow of death. For when the several mystical truths are recognised in the secret words of the Prophets by them that believe, what else is it, than that 'deep things are discovered out of darkness?' Whence too 'Truth' Himself, speaking in parables to the disciples, saith, What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light. For when by explaining we unravel the mystical knots of allegories, then we as it were 'speak in light, what we have heard in darkness.' Now 'the shadow of death' was the hardness of the old Law, which made every one that sinned liable to be punished with the death of the body. But when our Redeemer tempered by mildness the harshness of the sanctions of the Law, nor any longer ordained death of the flesh to be inflicted for sin, but shewed how greatly the death of the spirit was to be dreaded, then, surely, 'He brought out to light the shadow of death.' For this death, wherein the flesh is severed from the soul, is a 'shadow' of that death, wherein the soul is severed from God, and so 'the shadow of death is brought out to light,' when, upon the death of the spirit being understood, the death of the body is no whit feared. Which may likewise be understood in another sense also. For the Lord 'revealeth deep things out of darkness,' when He manifests an open sentence from His secret counsels, so as to shew what He thinks concerning each individual. For because now the Creator seeth all things, and Himself is not seen in His counsels, it is well said of Him by the Psalmist, He made darkness His secret place. But it is as if He issued out from that darkness into light, when He shews what are His thoughts concerning the actions of each individual. And whereas when he, who was sunk down by the weight of his sins, is brought to the setting up of uprightness, he for the first time sees that very death, wherein he was going on ruining himself, and at the same time too blind to take account of it; it is lightly added, And bringeth out to light the shadow of death. For 'the shadow of death' is evil doing, which is drawn as if in bodily lineaments by a copy of our old enemy. Concerning whom too, in the character of a certain one, it is said, And his name was Death. And it very often happens that his evil instigation escapes the minds of men, and by this circumstance, that it…