Job chapter 28

 

Memory verse: Job 28:28

 

The book of Job deals with the question of why good people suffer, and why sometimes it seems the wicked do not. This is considered the first book of the Bible to be written. It is unsure who wrote it. It was possibly Elihu, the young man who spoke to Job (Job 32-37). Hebrew tradition says it was Moses. Someone had an insight into the spiritual world which shows us what was behind what happened to Job (Job 1-2). It is also an insight into what is happening in the world and people’s lives today. Job 28 is somewhat of an aside from the context of the book, and talks about the mysterious and incomparable nature of wisdom. Knowledge is information. Wisdom is doing the right thing with that information. There is earthly wisdom, and there is spiritual wisdom (James 3:15-18). Some people know a lot about the things of this earthly life, but nothing about the spiritual and eternal things. There are also people who know a lot of information about God, but do not know Him (2Timothy 3:7). God is more than a collection of facts. His word is more than ink and paper. It is the source of true spiritual wisdom (2Timothy 3:15). It is alive (Hebrews 4:12). It is eternal (Psalm 119:89, Matthew 24:35). It is true (Proverbs 22:20, Ecclesiastes 12:10, Luke 1:3-4, 1John 2:21). It cannot be broken (Jeremiah 23:29, John 10:35).

 

Day 1 – he setteth an end to darkness, and searcheth out all perfection

Verses 1-6

The process of refining precious metals by using fire to melt them and separate the impurities is often used in the Bible as a symbol for being purified through testing and adversity (Job 23:10, Proverbs 17:3, Proverbs 27:21, Zechariah 13:9, Malachi 3:3, Revelation 3:18). In this case it refers to how precious wisdom is. As men dig deep and work hard to get precious metals out of the earth, how much more worthy is wisdom of our efforts to obtain it? “How much better is it to get wisdom than gold! and to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver (Proverbs 16:16)!” Man can be relentless in his pursuit of material wealth, but too often makes a pathetic effort to obtain the spiritual treasures. “Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool to get wisdom, seeing he hath no heart to it (Proverbs 17:16)?” The worth of something is sometimes measured in how rare it is or how hard it is to get. We show how much we value something by the effort we exert to have it. God gave Solomon a blank check to ask what he would (1Kings 3:5-15). He asked for wisdom, and God gave it to him in abundance because he chose it over all the things a king would typically ask for. God also gave him the things he could have asked for, and thus Matthew 6:33 was fulfilled before it was even written.

 

Day 2 – there is a path which no fowl knoweth

Verses 7-11

There are things the highest flying bird and the widest ranging animals have not seen. God can see under the mountains, and over all the earth. There is nothing hidden from God (Luke 8:17, Luke 12:2, Luke 16:15, John 2:24-25, Acts 15:8, Romans 2:16, Hebrews 4:12-13).  The wisdom of God is too expansive for us to comprehend (Isaiah 40:13, Isaiah 55:8-9, Romans 11:33-36). Some men receive a little of it (Job 4:12, Job 26:14, Isaiah 28:10). We cannot handle the full revelation of God while we are in this flesh. Moses saw the burning bush and the miracles in Egypt and the wilderness. His face shone with the glory of God (Exodus 34:29-35). He spoke with God face to face like a friend (Exodus 33:11-33). No other prophet had the same level of intimacy with God (Deuteronomy 34:10). Yet even He could not handle to full glory of God. He only saw the “afterglow” after He passed by him on the mountain. God concentrates His presence in certain places at certain times, but He cannot be contained in space. He created space. He cannot be contained in time, for He also created it (Genesis 1). How could we possibly know the wisdom of God? We know very little about what the next life will even be like (1John 3:1-2). We only know what small parts of His wisdom He chooses to reveal to those who seek it (Proverbs 18:1). The knowledge and wisdom of God do not come by the carnal mind of man, but by the revelation of God (Matthew 16, Romans 8, 1Corinthians 1-2). People that do not understand the Bible or think they get nothing out of it are trying to do it by their own ability instead of by the Holy Ghost, which inspired the scriptures to be written (2Timothy 3:13-17, 2Peter 1:20-21). Being filled with the Holy Ghost makes reading and studying the Bible an entirely different endeavor.

 

Day 3 – where shall wisdom be found? and where is the place of understanding?

Verses 12-17

Throughout the expanse of the earth and the depth of the sea, there is no place to look for wisdom. The value system of the world of man does not understand that wisdom is a spiritual thing from God, and cannot be found in the material things. Man is always trying to find a material explanation for everything including the origin of life, morals, spirituality, matter, energy, order, complexity, and intelligence and information. That is the purpose of the idea of evolution – an explanation outside the wisdom and word of God. Some men even try to find materialistic explanations for the miracles recorded in the Bible. We cannot be materialistic and spiritual at the same time (Matthew 6:19-34). No man can serve two masters. Man does not understand how much wisdom is worth. It cannot be bought with money. No precious metal or stone can gain it. It can only be found in God and the Bible.

 

Day 4 – it is hid from the eyes of all living

Verses 18-22

Since wisdom cannot be bought or found through material things, where does it come from? Why can’t man find it? It is not because God made it impossible to find. The atheist Bertrand Russell was asked what he would say to God if he met Him after this life. He said he would ask God why he took such pains to hide Himself. God is not hiding from man. Man is hiding from God because he chooses sin instead of God (John 3:19-21). When Adam sinned, he hid from God (Genesis 3:1-10). When God asked him where he was, it was not because God did not know. He was giving Adam a chance to confess and repent. He was calling Adam to confront what his sin did to him, and to his relationship with God. Before sin, when God came into the garden, Adam and Eve would commune with Him. After sin, they hid from Him. God was not just asking Adam where he was physically, but spiritually. Also, because of the high value of what God desires to give us, He expects us to treat it accordingly. We must search for it and treasure it when we find it (Deuteronomy 4:29, Proverbs 8:17, Proverbs 25:2, Jeremiah 29:13, Matthew 7:7, John 5:39, Acts 17:27). It is hard to find when we are not seeking it sincerely and diligently, or are only seeking Him to get us out of the trouble we created for ourselves (Proverbs 1:28, Proverbs 14:6, Hosea 5:6, Amos 8:12, Matthew 13:10-17, John 7:34-36). The Hebrew word translated destruction in Job 28:22 is abaddon. It relates to death, hell, and the devil (Job 26:6, Psalm 88:11, Proverbs 15:11, Proverbs 27:20, Revelation 9:11). Death in this verse is not just referring to the state of being dead, but those that are in that state. The words death and hell appear together in 13 verses in the Bible. Hell was not created for man, but for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41). Man only goes there because he chooses sin instead of salvation. Even the demons and those in hell have heard something about wisdom. The devil knows he has a short time (Revelation 12:12). The devils know there is only one God (James 2:19). In the story of the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man went to hell and knew Abraham and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31). He knew about Moses and the law. He also knew he did not want his family to go there. It can be discussed whether or not this was a parable. The Bible does not call it a parable, and Jesus specifically named the man Lazarus. Usually His parables did not give specifics like that. The point here is that even the demons and those in hell have some idea. How about us?

 

Day 5 – the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom

Verses 23-28

God is the Creator and Lord over all. He controls nature. He is the God over all spirits, and all spiritual things (Numbers 16:22, Numbers 27:16, Matthew 28:18, John 4:24, Colossians 1:16). He owns everything twice over. He is the Creator and Lord, and He is the redeemer. He defines wisdom, not man. This is the definition of wisdom God gave to man: “Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.” The fear of God is not just for the Old Testament. It is also for us today (Matthew 10:28, Luke 1:50, 1Peter 1:17, 1Peter 3:15, Revelation 15:4, Revelation 19:5). When we fear God, we do not have to fear anyone or anything else. The fear of man and other things is a snare (Proverbs 29:25, Hebrews 2:15, 1John 4:18). The fear of God has at least 41 benefits listed in the Bible:

   1. Deut 6:2 - obedience (Deut 10:12, Deut 17:19, Deut 31:12)

   2. 1Sam 11:7 – Saul, fear fell on, one consent

   3. 1Sam 12:14 – continue following the Lord

   4. 2Ki 17:39 – deliverance from enemies

   5. 1Chr 16:30 - stability

   6. 2Chr 14:14 – on cities of enemies (2Chr 20:29)

   7. 2Chr 17:10 – on cities of enemies, no war

   8. 2Chr 19:7-9 – on judges, faithfully w. perfect heart

   9. Job 28:28 – wisdom (Ps 110:10, Prov 1:7)

   10. Ps 19:9 – clean

   11. Ps 25:14 – secret of Lord, covenant

   12. Ps 33:18 – eye of Lord upon

   13. Ps 34:7 – angel of Lord encamping

   14. Ps 34:9 – no want

   15. Ps 85:9 – glory in the land

   16. Ps 103:11 & 17 – great mercy

   17. Ps 103: 13 – pity

   18. Ps 111:5 – meat

   19. Ps 128 – family blessed

   20. Ps 145:19 – fulfilled desire

   21. Ps 147:11 – Lord’s pleasure

   22. Prov 1:29 – knowledge (Prov 2:5, Prov 9:10, Prov 15:33, Is 11:3)

   23. Prov 8:13 – hate evil

   24. Prov 10:27 – prolongs days (Deut 6:2)

   25. Prov 14:26-27 – strong confidence, fountain of life

   26. Prov 15:16 – better than great treasure

   27. Prov 16:6 – depart from evil

   28. Prov 19:23 – tends to life

   29. Prov 22:4 – riches, honor, life

   30. Ecc 8:12 – be well

   31. Ecc 12:13 – whole duty of man

   32. Is 33:6 – treasure

   33. Is 59:19 – standard against enemy

   34. Jer 5:24 – rain and harvest

   35. Jer 26:19 – God repents of evil

   36. Mal 2:5 – covenant of life and peace

   37. Lk 1:50 - mercy

   38. Lk 7:16 – glorified God (Ps 22:23, Rev 14:7)

   39. 2Cor 7:1 – perfecting holiness

   40. Eph 5:21 – cooperation (Lev 25:36)

   41. Heb 11:7 – salvation (Ps 85:9)

Most importantly it keeps us from sin, and causes us to obey God. The fear of God does not drive us from Him. It drives us to Him.