Sunday, July 30, 2023

Job's Hymn to Wisdom

The book of Job is often read as theodicy: Why does God let bad things happen to good people? I have once seen it viewed as a treatment of different views of fate, predestination, and freedom as voiced by the different "friends" of Job. 

I found to my surprise tonight that the Book of Job has one of the more developed hymns to wisdom in the Bible, and would like to relate it here: 

But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding? 
Man knows not its price; neither is it found in the land of the living. 
The depth says, It is not in me: and the sea says, It is not with me. 
It cannot be gotten for gold, neither shall silver be weighed for its price. 
It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire. 
The gold and the crystal cannot equal it: and there is no exchanging it for jewels of fine gold. 
Not to mention coral, or pearls: for the price of wisdom is above rubies. 
The topaz of Ethiopia shall not equal it, neither shall it be valued with pure gold. 
From where, then, does wisdom come? And where is the place of understanding? 
It is hid from the eyes of all living, and kept close from the fowls of the air. 
Destruction and death say, We have heard the fame thereof with our ears. 
God understands the way of it, and he knows the place of it. 
For he looks to the ends of the earth, and sees under the whole heaven; 
To make the weight for the winds; and he weighs the waters by measure. 
When he made a decree for the rain, and a way for the lightning of the thunder: 
Then did he see it, and declare it; he prepared it, yes, and searched it out. 
And unto man he said, 
Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding. 
(Job 28:12-28)

And so I begin to see why Job is counted among the "wisdom" books. It's easy for us to complicate wisdom, and in doing that we can lose sight of wisdom. Is it really more complicated than loving God, and leaving behind evil? 


2 comments:

Martin LaBar said...

"Is it really more complicated than loving God, and leaving behind evil?"

Weekend Fisher said...

Hi Martin

Thank you for the encouragement!
Take care & God bless
Anne / WF