Poetry – Job 27-28

Sundays around my neighbourhood is always a busy place.

Even though it is supposed to be an ‘off’ day for both parents and children, you will find that for many of them, they are just as busy, if not busier on a Sunday.  The children seem to rush from one enrichment class to the next – with parents, maids and sometimes even grandparents in tow.

All this for the hope that the child will be better developed and enriched for their life ahead.

I am reminded of this as I read today’s passage:

Bible Passage:  Job 27-28

Job, at this time, had just about had it with the ‘advice’ from his 3 friends.

There are many people who seem to suffer from ‘acts of God’ that strike without warning.  Fires.  Floods.  Earthquakes.  Tsunami.  Like Job, they appear to be relatively innocent of any wrongdoing and like many who suffered, wondered, “Is God fair to let these things happen?”

Job and his 3 friends wrestled with this question.

The 3 friends of Job took the view that God was punishing Job for some wickedness on Job’s part and that he deserved it.

But Job disagreed because he was very certain of his own integrity.  He further concluded that the good life the wicked seem to have now is only temporary but it will soon fall apart (Job 27:13-23).  In the end, God will humble the proud.  Their possessions will be inherited by those with integrity and justice will be served.

Ultimately, we know and believe, if not in this life, then most definitely in the life to come.  God is and will be fair.

But I seemed to have digressed from the main point I was trying to drive at in Chapter 28.

Job now turns to something that is still happening very much around us today.  People are searching the earth for riches – even to the dark recesses, in places forgotten by men and not visited by the animals.

But despite all these pursuit for riches, and all these seeking – no amount of searching reveals wisdom (28:12-19).

Money can buy education, information and even expert counsel.  But no amount of wealth can purchase true wisdom – not even the godl of Ophir.

Job 28:13

Man does not know its value,
Nor is it found in the land of the living.

Job stated that wisdom cannot be found in the land of the living.  When I look at the Sunday crowd around my place, it does seem natural that people who do not know God tend to look for wisdom here on earth.  They hope that with all these enrichment courses will provide a better future for their children – and they do to a certain extent.

But… true wisdom is not found in the schools of men.

He carries on the theme that the authors of proverbs started in Proverbs 1 that the fear of the Lord is wisdom.  In fact, the key theme for the books of poetry from Job to Song of Solomon is the “fear of the Lord”.

What does fear of the Lord mean?  Think about it.

It is the starting point to find true wisdom (Proverbs 1:7-9).