Reflections on Job 28

 Job 28 (Contemporary English Version)

1. Gold and silver are mined, then purified;
2. the same is done with iron and copper.
3. Miners carry lanterns deep into the darkness to search for these metals.
4. They dig tunnels in distant, unknown places, where they dangle by ropes.
5. Far beneath the grain fields, fires are built to break loose those rocks
6. that have jewels or gold.
7. Miners go to places unseen by the eyes of hawks;
8. they walk on soil unknown to the proudest lions.
9. With their own hands they remove sharp rocks and uproot mountains.
10. They dig through the rocks in search of jewels and precious metals.
11. They also uncover the sources of rivers and discover secret places.
12. But where is wisdom found?
13. No human knows the way.
14. Nor can it be discovered in the deepest sea.
15. It is worth much more than silver or pure gold
16. or precious stones.
17. Nothing is its equal-- not gold or costly glass.
18. Wisdom is worth much more than coral, jasper, or rubies.
19. All the topaz of Ethiopia and the finest gold cannot compare with it.
20. Where then is wisdom?
21. It is hidden from human eyes and even from birds.
22. Death and destruction have merely heard rumors about where it is found.
23. God is the only one who knows the way to wisdom,
24. because he sees everything beneath the heavens.
25. When God divided out the wind and the water,
26. and when he decided the path for rain and lightning,
27. he also determined the truth and defined wisdom.
28. God told us, "Wisdom means that you respect me, the Lord, and turn from sin."

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This chapter brings us closer to the depth of this man Job. "Where can wisdom be found, and where is understanding located?" he asks. (28:12) As metals and precious gems cannot be found on the earth but must be mined below ground, so wisdom is not found in the land of the living. Nor can it be bought with gold or silver. As for value, gold and glass do not compare and its price is beyond pearls.

Having established the rarity and value of wisdom, Job returns to the questions mentioned above, "Where then does wisdom come from, and where is understanding located?" (28:20) It is hidden from every living thing and cannot be found in destruction and death. "But God understands the way to wisdom, and He knows its location." says Job. (28:23) As God considered everything He created, the weight of the wind, the limits of the water, and the path for the lightning, He also "considered wisdom and evaluated it." (28:27)

And what did God determine concerning wisdom? What He determined, He told to mankind, and this is what He said, "The fear of the Lord--that is wisdom, and to turn from evil is understanding." Honoring God and hating evil is the essence of wisdom and knowledge, and of revering God. If we get this right understanding of God's dealings, as with Job, will come, though it will never be complete. We, instead, want to reverse the process. We want to understand God's dealings before we give Him honor, hate evil, and submit to His teachings. This is like a dog chasing its tail. It is never caught. Nor do we gain understanding of God's ways until we first pursue God rather than understanding. Once we have God, understanding follows.

Job's friends thought they had understanding, but what they had was their own ignorant and uninformed ideas which they presumed to be understanding. But they did not arrive at these ideas by honoring God or hating evil. If evil is to withhold food from one in need, as they accused Job, it is also to withhold comfort from one in need of comfort as they had done with Job.