Job 28:6

Job 28:6 The stones of it [are] the place of sapphires: and it hath dust of gold.

Ver. 6. The stones of it are the place of sapphires] Which are excellent stones, and, therefore, here joined with gold, Quod punctis aureis collucant, because they shine with golden sparklings. Exo 24:10, the Sanhedrim "saw the God of Israel, and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone," &c. To show, saith one, that God had now changed their condition, their bricks made in their bondage to sapphire. So, Isa 54:11, God graciously promiseth unto his afflicted Church, that had been tossed with tempests, and not comforted, to lay her stones with fair colours and her foundation with sapphires; to make her windows of agates, and her gates of carbuncles, and all her borders of pleasant stones; to render her all glorious within, by the curious enamel and embroidery of holy graces, and to beautify also and bespangle her with outward plenty and prosperity, that she might glitter in the eyes of God and men.

And it hath dust of gold] Or, ore of gold; better than that which our Frobisher, in his voyage to discover the strait, brought back with him; from which, when there could be drawn neither gold nor silver, nor any other metal, we have seen it cast forth to repair the highways, saith Mr Cambden.

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_28:6

And it hath dust of gold.

How to turn everything to gold

This chapter in Job describes with all a poets force and beauty the miners life in its loneliness, its dangers, and its triumphs. In those old days men endured the toil, and faced the dangers, to win the hidden gold, or precious stones. And from then till now men have ever been eager to find gold. The passion for gold is one of the strongest in the human heart. It has done much to shape the worlds history. It has given us new arts, new sciences, and new industries. It has made solitary places populous, and filled empty lands with busy multitudes. Why is gold so coveted? For one thing, it is very rare. Gold has many properties peculiar to itself. And it is very durable. The principal reason of the high esteem for gold, is because it is the chief means of exchange between buyers and sellers. Some things, precious as it is, gold cannot buy. It cannot buy wisdom, knowledge, or goodness. Its possession means power to acquire all worldly good. Happiness cannot be bought with gold. The secret I am going to tell you is,--How to turn everything into gold. Not in a literal sense. Some people, though poor, are as happy as if all gold was theirs. Their purses may never be very full, but their hearts always are of faith and love They are always bright, and have a cheery smile and a kindly word for all in trouble. Such people have found the secret of turning everything to gold. What is the secret? Paul says, I have learned, in whatever state I am, therewith to be content He had learned so to love the Heavenly Fathers will, so to trust Him, that all care and fear and darkness had fled out of life, and left it touched with perpetual golden light. And that is the secret that all men know who can turn things to gold. Love Christ, and follow Him, and you will have discovered the secret--how to turn everything to gold. (James Legge, M. A.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

He alludeth to the mines and secrets of nature, which are under the earth, whereinto neither fowls nor beasts can enter.

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

Sapphires are found in alluvial soil near rocks and embedded in gneiss. The ancients distinguished two kinds: 1. The real, of transparent blue: 2. That improperly so called, opaque, with gold spots; that is, lapis lazuli. To the latter, looking like gold dust, UMBREIT refers "dust of gold." English Version better, "The stones of the earth are, &c., and the clods of it (Vulgate) are gold"; the parallel clauses are thus neater.

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 6. The stones - the place of sapphires] In the language of mineralogists, the gangue, matrix, or bed in which the sapphire is found. For a description of this stone, see on Job 28:16.

Dust of gold] Or rather, gold dust.

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

(6) The stones of it are the place of sapphires.—So ingenious is man that he discovereth a place of which the stones are sapphires and the very dust gold, and a path that no bird of prey knoweth, and which the falcon’s eye hath not seen.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

6. Through these operations which carry ruin into the bowels of the earth men, however, find the richest reward. The stones of the heart of the earth are the place of sapphires, and of auriferous dust.

it hath dust of gold] “It” refers to the “place” in the first clause, hardly to the sapphire, although a particular kind of sapphire is described as being grained or striated with gold. This, however, can hardly be what is meant by “dust of gold.” Instead of it hath dust we might render he hath—i. e. man; he finds his way to the place of sapphires and possesses himself of the auriferous earth.

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.

The stones of it are the place of sapphires,.... In some parts of the earth its stones are a quarry of sapphires, put here for all precious stones: this is a most excellent precious stone, of a sky colour, with golden specks, and was one of the stones in the breast plate of the high priest; and by which are represented the pavement under the feet of the God of Israel, the throne of Christ, his bowels and affections for his people, the comeliness of them, and the glory of his church in the latter day, Exo 24:10;

and it hath dust of gold; some parts of the earth abound with the dust of gold; its dust is gold, or it hath gold as plenty as dust; though some think this refers to the sapphire in the preceding clause, which, as Pliny says (d), has "pulvis aureus", dust of gold, in it, and shines and sparkles with golden points, or specks; and so say other writers (e); but the word used rather signifies clods, lumps, masses of gold, which better agree with the earth; and, besides, no very good reason can be given why there should be such a particular description of the sapphire; whereas the earth is the original of that, and of all the other things before spoken of.

(d) Nat. Hist. l. 37. c. 9. (e) Ruaeus de Gemmis, l. 2. c. 2.

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

The stones of it are the place - Among the stones of the earth sapphires are found. “The situation of the sapphire is in alluvial soil, in the vicinity of rocks, belonging to the secondary floetz trap formation, and imbedded in gneiss.” Jameson. “The sapphire occurs in considerable abundance in the granitic alluvion of Matura and Saffragam, in Ceylon.” Davy.

Sapphires - Compare the note at Isa 54:11. The sapphire is a precious stone, usually of a blue color, though it is sometimes yellow, red, violet. green, or white. In hardness it is inferior to the diamond only:

“In unroll’d tufts, flowers purpled, blue and white,

Like sapphire, pearl, in rich embroidery.”

Shakespeare

“He tinctures rubies with their rosy hue,

And on the sapphire spreads a heavenly blue.”

Blackmore

The mineral is, next to the diamond, the most valuable of the precious stones. The most highly prized varieties are the crimson and carmine red; these are the “Oriental ruby” of the traveler, and next to the diamond are the most valuable jewels hitherto discovered. The blue varieties - the sapphire of the jeweler - are next in value to the red. The yellow varieties - the “Oriental Topaz” of the jeweler - are of less value than the blue or true sapphire. Edinburgh Encyclopedia, article “Mineralogy.”

And it hath dust of gold - Margin, or “gold ore.” Literally, “The dusts of gold are in it.” Gold is often found in the form of dust. It is obtained by washing it from the sand, and passing it over a fleece of wool, to which the gold adheres.

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

Sapphires. The best are found in Media, in the country of the Taphyri, (Ptol.) or Raspires. (Herodotus iii. 94.) --- Gold. This precious metal, like all others, is found in the bowels of the earth, (Haydock) and in the bed of rivers, in Ophir, Peru, &c. (Calmet)

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).

The place of sapphires, i.e. of precious stones; the sapphire, as one of the most eminent, being put for all the rest. In some parts of the earth the sapphires are mixed with stones, and cut out of them and polished. Of this stone, see Exo 24:10; Son 5:14; Lam 4:7; Eze 1:26.

It hath, i.e. the earth containeth in or under it.

Dust of gold; which is a distinct thing from that gold which is found in the mass or lump, of which Job 28:2; both sorts of gold being found in the earth.

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

6. Sapphires — The precious stone we call the sapphire is generally of a sky-blue colour, transparent, and harder than ruby. The ancients seem to have called the lapis lazuli by that name. But this was too plentiful, as Winer (i, 282) well says, to admit of its being accounted one of the precious stones of Job. There was discovered (A.D. 1859) at the opening of the tomb of Amosis, in Thebes, an axe made of lapis lazuli.

Dust of gold — “Modern science, instead of confuting, only confirms the aphorism of the patriarch Job, who has shadowed forth the downward persistence of the one, (silver,) and the superficial distribution of the other, (gold.) Surely there is a vein for the silver, the earth hath dust of gold.” — Sir Roderick Murchison. Hitzig supposes the words of this verse to be the reply of the miner, justifying his ingratitude by the consideration of the sapphires and gold he expects to gain out of the earth.

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

The stones of it are the place of sapphires. Among the rocks and stones whereof the interior of the earth is mainly composed are found gems of inestimable value, for instance, sapphires. It is doubtful whether the Hebrew sapphire (ryps) was the gem which bears that name among ourselves, or the lapis lazuli. In either case it was highly esteemed, and appeared in kings" crowns, (Eze_28:13) and in the high priest"s breastplate; (Exo_28:18) Job notes its high value in ver. 16. And it (i.e. the earth) hath dust of gold; literally, dusts; i.e. a multitude of small specks or atoms. In the auriferous rocks gold is commonly scattered in such specks.

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

Sapphires - Of precious stones; the sapphire, is one of the most eminent, being put for all the rest. In some parts of the earth, the sapphires are mixed with stones, and cut out of them and polished. Hath - The earth continueth. Dust - Distinct from that gold which is found in the mass, both sorts of gold being found in the earth.

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

a place of sapphire its stones were.

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.