Job 12:3

12:3 I also have understanding ¹  as well as you;

I am not inferior to you. ² 

Who does not know such things as these? ³ 

Job 28:28

28:28 And he said to mankind,

‘The fear of the Lord ⁴  – that is wisdom,

and to turn away from evil is understanding.’” ⁵ 

Job 34:10

God is Not Unjust

34:10 “Therefore, listen to me, you men of understanding. ⁶ 

Far be it from ⁷  God to do wickedness,

from the Almighty to do evil.

Job 42:3

42:3 you asked, ⁸ 

‘Who is this who darkens counsel

without knowledge?’

But ⁹  I have declared without understanding ¹⁰ 

things too wonderful for me to know. ¹¹ 

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¹ tn The word is literally “heart,” meaning a mind or understanding.

² tn Because this line is repeated in 13:2, many commentators delete it from this verse (as does the LXX). The Syriac translates נֹפֵל (nofel) as “little,” and the Vulgate “inferior.” Job is saying that he does not fall behind them in understanding.

³ tn Heb “With whom are not such things as these?” The point is that everyone knows the things that these friends have been saying – they are commonplace.

⁴ tc A number of medieval Hebrew manuscripts have YHWH (“Lord”); BHS has אֲדֹנָי (’adonay, “Lord”). As J. E. Hartley (Job [NICOT], 383) points out, this is the only occurrence of אֲדֹנָי (’adonay, “Lord”) in the book of Job, creating doubt for retaining it. Normally, YHWH is avoided in the book. “Fear of” (יִרְאַת, yir’at) is followed by שַׁדַּי (shadday, “Almighty”) in 6:14 – the only other occurrence of this term for “fear” in construct with a divine title.

⁵ tc Many commentators delete this verse because (1) many read the divine name Yahweh (translated “Lord”) here, and (2) it is not consistent with the argument that precedes it. But as H. H. Rowley (Job [NCBC], 185) points out, there is inconsistency in this reasoning, for many of the critics have already said that this chapter is an interpolation. Following that line of thought, then, one would not expect it to conform to the rest of the book in this matter of the divine name. And concerning the second difficulty, the point of this chapter is that wisdom is beyond human comprehension and control. It belongs to God alone. So the conclusion that the fear of the Lord is wisdom is the necessary conclusion. Rowley concludes: “It is a pity to rob the poem of its climax and turn it into the expression of unrelieved agnosticism.”

⁶ tn Heb “men of heart.” The “heart” is used for the capacity to understand and make the proper choice. It is often translated “mind.”

⁷ tn For this construction, see Job 27:5.

⁸ tn The expression “you asked” is added here to clarify the presence of the line to follow. Many commentators delete it as a gloss from Job 38:2. If it is retained, then Job has to be recalling God’s question before he answers it.

⁹ tn The word לָכֵן (lakhen) is simply “but,” as in Job 31:37.

¹⁰ tn Heb “and I do not understand.” The expression serves here in an adverbial capacity. It also could be subordinated as a complement: “I have declared [things that] I do not understand.”

¹¹ tn The last clause is “and I do not know.” This is also subordinated to become a dependent clause.