Job 28:13

Job 28:13 Man knoweth not the price thereof; neither is it found in the land of the living.

Ver. 13. Man kaoweth not the price thereof] Or, the order thereof, in what manner and method God proceedeth; no, though in other things he knew as much as Homer did, of whom one saith that he was πανσοφος, και παντα τα ανθρωπεια επισταμενος, a man that knew all human affairs; or as Aristotle did, whom some have called an eagle fallen from the clouds; or as Jerome, quem nullum scibile latuit, who knew all that was knowable; or as Bishop Andrew, whom one calleth (but how truly I inquire not) a gulf of learning. Sure it is that man, sorry man, knoweth neither the price of Divine wisdom, for it is invaluable; nor the place of it, for it is investigable; nor the order of it, for that is unattainable till we come to heaven; there being a wheel within a wheel, Eze 1:16, and providence shall one day be unriddled.

Neither is it found in the land of the living] That is, here upon earth, by any human wit or industry. In other texts of Scripture the time while we live in this world is called, the day, Joh 9:4, and the light of the living, Psa 56:13, in opposition to death, which is called, a land of darkness, as darkness itself, Job 10:22, where they that inhabit are said to be free among the dead, Psa 88:5, free of that company. See Isa 38:11. None but those that live spiritually, and have senses habitually exercised to discern good and evil, Heb 5:14, can see anything of the worth of this wisdom so as to seek after it as silver, and prize it above gem; for ignoti nulla cupido, men covet not what they value not. Now the cock on the dunghill knows not the price or place of this inestimable jewel, and, therefore, slights it. Those epicures especially, qui suaviter vivunt, as the Vulgate here translateth, who live in pleasure upon earth, and are wanton, Jas 5:5.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Job 28:13-14. Man knoweth not the price thereof — Its immense, its unspeakable value: nor can it be purchased with all that he hath to give for it. Neither is it found in the land of the living — It is not a thing that any part of this world affords. Nor is it found in perfection among mortal men, that live on earth, but only among those blessed spirits that live in heaven. The depth saith, It is not in me, &c. — Could the profound abysses of the sea speak, they would tell us they do not conceal this wisdom in their great depths. It is not to be found in any part of the land or sea, though a man should dig or dive ever so deep to find it; nor is it to be learned from any creature. For though the creatures of God discover his being, and power, and, in part, his wisdom, yet they do not instruct us in the methods and reasons of his providential dispensations toward good and evil men; nor communicate that experimental, practical knowledge of him of which cometh salvation.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

13 A mortal knoweth not its price,

And it is not found in the land of the living.

14 The abyss saith: It is not in me,

And the sea saith: It is not with me.

15 Pure gold cannot be given for it,

And silver cannot be weighed as its price;

16 And it is not outweighed with fine gold of Ophir,

With the precious onyx and the sapphire.

It is self-evident that wisdom is found nowhere directly present and within a limited space, as at the bottom of the sea, and cannot be obtained by a direct exchange by means of earthly treasures. It is, moreover, not this self-evident fact that is denied here; but the meaning is, that even if a man should search in every direction through the land of the living, i.e., (as e.g., Psa 52:7) the world - if he should search through the תּהום, i.e., the subterranean waters that feed the visible waters (vid., Gen. 39:25) - if he should search through the sea, the largest bounded expanse of this water that wells up from beneath - yea, even if he would offer all riches and precious things to put himself in possession of the means and instruments for the acquirement of wisdom, - wisdom, i.e., the profoundest perception of the nature of things, would still be beyond him, and unattainable. ערך, Job 28:13, an equivalent (from ערך, to range beside, to place at the side of), interchanges with מחיר (from מחר, cogn. מהר, מכר, mercari). סגור is זהב סגוּר, Kg1 6:20 and freq., which hardly signifies gold shut up = carefully preserved, rather: closed = compressed, unmixed; Targ. דּהב סנין, aurum colatum (purgatum). Ewald compares Arab. sajara, to seethe, heat; therefore: heated, gained by smelting. On the other hand, כּתם from כתם, Arab. ktm, occulere, seems originally to denote that which is precious, then precious gold in particular, lxx χρυσίῳ Ωφείρ, Cod. Vat. and Cod. Sinaiticus, Σωφίρ (Egyptized by prefixing the Egyptian sa, part, district, side, whence e.g., sa-rees, the upper country, and sa-heet, the lower country, therefore = sa-ofir, land of Ophir). שׁהם is translated here by the lxx ὄνυξ (elsewhere σαρδόνυξ or σάρδιος), of which Pliny, h. n. xxxvii. 6, 24, appealing to Sudeines, says, in gemma esse candorem unguis humanii similitudinem; wherefore Knobel, Rdiger, and others, compare the Arab. sâhim, which, however, does not signify pale, but lean, and parched by the heat, with which, in hot countries at least, not pallor, but, on the contrary, a dark brown-black colour, is identified (Fl.). Arab. musahham, striped (Mich.), would be more appropriate, since the onyx is marked through by white veins; but this is a denom. from sahm, a dart, prop. darted, and is therefore wide of the mark. On the etymology of ספּיר, vid., Jesurun, p. 61. Nevertheless both שׁהם and ספּיר are perhaps foreign names, as the name of the emerald (vid., ib. p. 108), which is Indian (Sanskr. marakata, or even marakta); and, on the other hand, it is called in hieroglyph (determined by the stone) uot, the green stone (in Coptic p. auannēse, the green colour) (Lauth).

The transcendent excellence of wisdom above the most precious earthly treasures, which the author of the introduction to the book of Proverbs briefly describes, Job 3:14, is now drawn out in detail.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

28:13 Wisdom does not originate among the living. God is the source of true wisdom (28:23-28).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

It is too high a thing for man to attain unto in this world.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Man can fix no price upon it, as it is nowhere to be found in man's abode (Isa 38:11). Job implies both its valuable worth, and the impossibility of buying it at any price.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 13. Man knoweth not the price thereof] It is of infinite value; and is the only science which concerns both worlds. Without it, the wisest man is but a beast; with it, the simplest man is next to an angel.

Neither is it found in the land of the living.] The world by wisdom, its wisdom, never knew God. True religion came by Divine revelation: that alone gives the true notion of God, his attributes, ways, designs, judgments, providences, &c., whence man came, what is his duty, his nature, and his end. Literature, science, arts, &c., &c., can only avail man for the present life, nor can they contribute to his true happiness, unless tempered and directed by genuine religion.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

13. the price thereof] For “price” the Sept. read way—man knoweth not the way thereof (cf. Job_28:23), i. e. the way to it, and very many commentators adopt this reading, which gives a more direct answer to the question in Job_28:12. It price be read, the phrase “man knoweth not the price thereof” does not mean that “it is too precious to be bought with money,” but that it is no article of merchandise in the markets of mankind, in other words, it has never been found and is unknown among men. This meaning is clearly expressed in the second clause, “neither is it found in the land of the living.”

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Man knoweth not the price thereof,.... The worth and value of it, what price to set upon it, or offer and give for it; nor does he know where to find an equivalent to it, or what is a valuable consideration for it: as for the wisdom of God in his dealings with men, if a man was to give all the substance of his house to know the secret reasons of them, it would utterly be condemned; yea, if he had all the riches in the world in his possession, and would offer them on that consideration, he would not be able to attain the knowledge of them: or "the order thereof" (o); the order of divine Providence, the wise disposal of thing, and the reasons thereof. In the first sense it is applicable to all the things before mentioned; to spiritual wisdom in men, supernatural grace, experimental religion, and real godliness; the worth of which is not known by carnal men, they despise it, and scoff at it; and to the Gospel, which is reckoned foolishness by them, and is of no account; and so is Christ himself rejected and disallowed of men, though chosen of God, and precious both to him and them that believe, who only know the price and value of him:

neither is it found in the land of the living; meaning not wisdom, though that in every sense is not from below, or earthly, but from above, and heavenly, but the price of it; and the sense is, that there is nothing in the whole globe that is equal to its worth, or can be proposed as a valuable consideration for it.

(o) "ordinem ejus", Montanus, Bolducius.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Man knoweth not the price thereof - The word rendered “price” (ערך ‛êrek) means properly that which is set in a pile or row, or which is arranged in order. Here it means preparation, equipment - that is, anything put in order, or ready, Jdg 17:10. It is also used in the sense of estimation or valuation, Lev 5:15, Lev 5:18. The word “price” here, however, seems to form no proper answer to the question in the previous verse, as the question is, “where” wisdom is to be found, not what is its “value.” Many expositors have, therefore, introduced a different idea in their interpretation. Dr. Good renders it, “Man knoweth not its source.” Prof. Lee, “Man knoweth not its equal.” Herder, “Man knoweth not the seat thereof.” Coverdale, “No man can tell how worthy a thing she is.” The Septuagint renders it, “Man knoweth not - όδὸν άυτῆς hodon autēs - her way.” But the word used here is not employed to denote a “place” or “way,” and the true interpretation doubtless is, that Job does not confine himself to a strict answer of the question proposed in Job 28:12, but goes on to say that man could not buy it; he could neither find it, nor had he the means of purchasing it with all the wealth of which he was the owner.

Neither is it found in the land of the living - That is, it is not found among human beings. We must look to a higher source than man for true wisdom; compare Isa 38:11; Isa 53:8.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Price. It has none, like other precious things, Baruch iii. 15. --- In delights is not expressed in Hebrew or Septuagint. (Calmet) --- But to live in misery is hardly to be accounted living, (Haydock) and the addition restrains the proposition, as some men possess this treasure, though not those who take no pains (Calmet) to mortify corrupt nature. (Haydock) --- Chaldean, "it is not found in the land of the proud, whose life is spent in sin." (Calmet) --- True wisdom is found, not in natural, but in supernatural, things. (Worthington)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Man knoweth neither where to purchase it, nor how much it is worth, nor what to offer in exchange for it.

In the land of the living; amongst mortal men that live upon earth, but only amongst those blessed spirits that dwell above.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

13. The price thereof — The Septuagint reads, “way thereof” which Dillmann and Hitzig follow on the supposition that it agrees better with the context. As wisdom is “the highest power in God,” so for man it is the highest good. Its value is not known, for it is above all valuation.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Man knoweth not the price thereof. The real value of wisdom cannot be estimated in terms of ordinary human calculation. It transcends figures. Neither is it found in the land of the living. True wisdom, such as Job is speaking of (see the comment on vers. 12-28), does not exist among men. It transcends human faculties, and is among the peculiar possessions of the Most High (ver. 23). Hence the Most High is altogether inscrutable by man" his ways are past finding out."

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Found - Among men upon earth, but only among those blessed spirits that dwell above.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

and it will not be found in the land of the living with one who enlivens himself, but with one who “puts himself to death” with toil and hunger.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.