2 “As surely as God lives, who has denied me justice,
the Almighty, who has made my life bitter,
3 as long as I have life within me,
the breath of God in my nostrils,
4 my lips will not say anything wicked,
and my tongue will not utter lies.
5 I will never admit you are in the right;
till I die, I will not deny my integrity...
8 For what hope have the godless when they are cut off,
when God takes away their life?
9 Does God listen to their cry
when distress comes upon them?
10 Will they find delight in the Almighty?
Will they call on God at all times?
11 “I will teach you about the power of God;
the ways of the Almighty I will not conceal.
12 You have all seen this yourselves.
Why then this meaningless talk?
13 “Here is the fate God allots to the wicked,
the heritage a ruthless man receives from the Almighty:
14 However many his children, their fate is the sword;
his offspring will never have enough to eat...
21 The east wind carries him off, and he is gone;
it sweeps him out of his place.
22 It hurls itself against him without mercy
as he flees headlong from its power.
23 It claps its hands in derision
and hisses him out of his place.”
28 (1) There is a mine for silver
and a place where gold is refined.
2 Iron is taken from the earth,
and copper is smelted from ore...
5 The earth, from which food comes,
is transformed below as by fire;
6 lapis lazuli comes from its rocks,
and its dust contains nuggets of gold...
9 People assault the flinty rock with their hands
and lay bare the roots of the mountains.
10 They tunnel through the rock;
their eyes see all its treasures.
11 They search the sources of the rivers
and bring hidden things to light.
12 But where can wisdom be found?
Where does understanding dwell?
13 No mortal comprehends its worth;
it cannot be found in the land of the living.
14 The deep says, “It is not in me”;
the sea says, “It is not with me.”
15 It cannot be bought with the finest gold,
nor can its price be weighed out in silver...
20 Where then does wisdom come from?
Where does understanding dwell?
21 It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing,
concealed even from the birds in the sky.
22 Destruction and Death say,
“Only a rumor of it has reached our ears.”
23 God understands the way to it
and He alone knows where it dwells,
24 for He views the ends of the earth
and sees everything under the heavens.
25 When He established the force of the wind
and measured out the waters,
26 when He made a decree for the rain
and a path for the thunderstorm,
27 then He looked at wisdom and appraised it;
He confirmed it and tested it.
28 And He said to the human race,
“The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom,
and to shun evil is understanding.”
Job 27-28
Job points out the elusiveness of wisdom. What is this wisdom Job is talking about? All through this book we have been confronted with the question, "Why does God treat Job this way?" But we have information that Job does not have. He has no knowledge of Satan's challenge to God regarding him, and so his questioning is even deeper than ours. But we often feel this way ourselves.
On one occasion my wife and I were in San Diego, and a naval officer invited us to dinner. We noticed as he led us into the officer's club that he walked with a cane. Inquiring of some other friends, we learned that he was suffering from melanoma, a cancer that was threatening his life. The friend also told us that this man had lost two sons at the age of nineteen from cancer, and just that week he had received word that his fourteen-year-old son also had cancer. Our hearts went out to him, but his spirit was strong and triumphant. He was gracious, saying no word of this himself, and he appeared to be a man utterly free from care. But our hearts cried out, "Why? Why do these kinds of things happen?"
Life presents these riddles to us. And when we wonder why these things happen, wisdom is the answer. Wisdom is the knowledge of the nature of things, the reasons behind what happens. Someone has described wisdom as the right use of knowledge. It is how to use situations in such a way that things work out right. That is what we lack. We can do all kinds of things with knowledge, but we do not do the right things with it. That is why knowledge of nuclear physics ends up with atom bombs that destroy and become malicious instruments of warfare. Humans lack wisdom. They have lots of knowledge, but they have no wisdom on how to use it. This is what Job in his long hours of torment is searching for: What is the reason behind these things?
Job points out to his friends that humans do not know the way to wisdom. It is not found in the land of the living. Only God understands the way to it and He alone knows where it dwells, Job 28:23 And in all His suffering, yet Job points back to God, And He said to the human race,“The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.”Job 28:28
Prayer: Lord, I am humbled because I lack wisdom. Thank You for this promise: "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God... and it will be given to him" (James 1:5). Thank you for the wisdom that is found in Jesus Christ. In His name I pray, Amen.
Life Application: Culture has substituted knowledge and expertise for wisdom and the loss has been incalculable. Are we humbly seeking to know Christ in whom is hidden all wisdom?
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