Job 28:9-11 (ESV)
“Man puts his hand to the flinty rock
and overturns mountains by the roots.
He cuts out channels in the rocks,
and his eye sees every precious thing.
He dams up the streams so that they do not trickle,
and the thing that is hidden he brings out to light.
The title of chapter 28 in the ESV, placed by those who organized this version of the Bible, is, “Where is Wisdom.” The entire chapter is about how man, animals and all creation is looking for wisdom. The conclusion at the end of the chapter is this:
Job 28:28 (ESV)
And he said to man,
‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom,
and to turn away from evil is understanding.’”
In the context of the entire theme of Job, he is responding to his three accusers about their belief that his suffering is a result of his sin. He continues to maintain his innocence:
Job 27:5-6 (ESV)
Far be it from me to say that you are right;
till I die I will not put away my integrity from me. I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go; my heart does not reproach me for any of my days.
In the above text he is exposing from the beginning of the chapter until now, the resourcefulness of man’s endeavors. He writes eloquently about mankind’s exploits in mining. Man, even in Job’s day, had a great interest and ingenuity to dig under the earth for the hidden gems, still to this day, valuable to mankind. Job is not bashful in telling us how great man’s skills are to go beneath the surface and find the most rarest of treasures. He is truly complimenting mankind. Why? Because he is about to ask this question:
Job 28:12 (ESV)
“But where shall wisdom be found?
And where is the place of understanding?
Mankind is so eager to find treasure. If you said you buried $10,000.00 on a particular beach you would have thousands show up to start digging. Imagine if you did that during a Spring Break on a popular southern state beach! People would dig with their hands to find this small amount of money, as compared to the true riches of the world systems. Yet, if you put one person on the beach to teach mankind about wisdom they would ignore at best and ridicule and persecute at the worse. Mankind is diligent, resourceful and skilled at digging for treasure they can see with their eyes and touch with their hands and trade for their wealth. But, give them one piece of wisdom that comes from the fear of the Lord and they opening reject this treasure. Yet, what did Solomon tell us about wisdom:
Proverbs 8:10-11 (ESV)
Take my instruction instead of silver,
and knowledge rather than choice gold,
for wisdom is better than jewels,
and all that you may desire cannot compare with her.
We go to work each day to make a living to care for our family. We bring home a pay check to use for trade for the things we want. We spend little time digging for and diving into the wisdom that God so freely provides that is worth more than all the careers, retirement funds, and property we could ever amass. And it is completely fear to those who fear the Lord and ask Him for wisdom:
James 1:5 (ESV)
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.
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