Job 28:9

_HE PUTTETH FORTH HIS HAND UPON THE ROCK; HE OVERTURNETH THE MOUNTAINS BY THE ROOTS._ Rock - flint. He puts forth his hand to cleave the hardest rock. BY THE ROOTS - from their foundations, by undermining them....

1-11 Job maintained that the dispensations of Providence were regulated by the highest wisdom. To confirm this, he showed of what a great deal of knowledge and wealth men may make themselves masters. The caverns of the earth may be discovered, but not the counsels of Heaven. Go to the miners, thou sluggard in religion, consider their ways, and be wise. Let their courage and diligence in seeking the wealth that perishes, shame us out of slothfulness and faint-heartedness in labouring for the true riches. How much better is it to get wisdom than gold! How much easier, and safer! Yet gold is sought for, but grace neglected. Will the hopes of precious things out of the earth, so men call them, though really they are paltry and perishing, be such a spur to industry, and shall not the certain prospect of truly precious things in heaven be much more so?...

Verse Job 28:9. _HE PUTTETH FORTH HIS HAND UPON THE ROCK,_] Still there appears to be a reference to _mining_. Man puts his hand upon the rock, he breaks that to pieces, in order to extract the metals which it contains. _HE OVERTURNETH THE MOUNTAINS_] He excavates, undermines, or digs them away, when in search of the metals contained in them: this is not only poetically, but literally, the case in many instances....

HE PUTTETH FORTH HIS HAND - That is, the miner in securing the precious metals and gems. UPON THE ROCK - Margin, “flint.” The word used here (חלמישׁ _challâmı̂ysh_) occurs also in Psalms 104:8. Deuteronomy 8:15; Deuteronomy 32:13. It means “flint, silex;” and the idea is, that the miner approaches the hardest substances. He penetrates even the flint in searching for precious stones. Dr. Good renders it, “Sparry ore.” Michaelis renders the same word in Deuteronomy 7:15, porphyry, or red granite. The idea is that

EXPOSITION JOB 28:1 The connection of this chapter with the preceding is somewhat obscure. Probably we are to regard Job as led to see, even while he is justifying God's ways with sinners (Job 27:8), how many and how great are the difficulties in the way of forming a single consistent theory of the Divine action, which shall be applicable to all cases. Hence he comes to the conclusion that God is incomprehensible by man and inscrutable; and that it is only given to man to know him sufficiently for his practical guidance. To impress this on his hearers is his main object (verses 12-28); and, to impress it the more, he introduces it by a sharp contrast. Wonderful as is man's cleverness and ingenuity in respect of earthly things and physical phenomena (verses 1-11), with respect to h

HE PUTTETH FORTH HIS HAND UPON THE ROCK,.... The discourse is carried on concerning the miner, and digger in the earth for metals and precious stones; who meeting with a rock or flint, and a ridge of them, is not discouraged, but goes to work therewith, and with his hammer in his hand lays upon the rock or flint, and beats it to pieces, and with proper instruments cuts through it; and using fire and vinegar, as Pliny g observes, makes his way into it, and oftentimes by splitting it discovers gold h or silver, or precious stones, in it: HE OVERTURNETH THE MOUNTAINS BY THE ROOTS; or turns them up from the roots; he roots them up, he undermines them; he turns up the earth at the roots of them, to get what is hid at the bottom, or in the bowels of them. Some understand this, and what is said in the following verses, of God, and of wonderful things done by him; so Jarchi, Aben Ezra, and othe...

CHAPTER 28 _ 1. The treasures of the earth (Job 28:1)_ 2. The better treasures (Job 28:7) 3. God knoweth the way and the true wisdom (Job 28:23) Job 28:1. This part of the monologue of Job does not seem to have much relation, if any, to the controversial matter of the previous Chapter s. He speaks first of the treasures of the earth, the riches which man seeks after, but which do not last, and are so often man's undoing. Job shows that he had a good knowledge of mining operations. He knows of veins of silver and how gold is refined. Iron is taken out of the earth and copper molten out of stone. Then he describes how the miner with

JOB 28. Here again we come to a critical question. It is difficult to fit this chapter into the argument, whether Job 27:7 is given to Job or to Zophar. It is a widely accepted conclusion of scholars that the chapter is an independent poem on Wisdom (a very fine one) which has somehow found its way into the text of the Book of Job. In its present form it opens with the word For, marking a connexion with something that has gone before; so that the beginning appears to be lost. Duhm has suggested that since the word whence cometh wisdom (or where shall wisdom be found) and where is the place of understanding? occur as a refrain in the poem, it probably also began with them. The poem has a parallel in Proverbs 8. JOB 28:1. THE FIRST STROPHE. (Where shall wisdom be found?) For silver, gold, iron, and copper c

ROCK. flint....

Description of mining operations. _he setteth_ To prevent ambiguity it is better to translate, MAN setteth, or, MEN SET. The phrase "setteth an end to darkness" hardly refers to the light shed by the miner's lamp; the expression is more general, meaning that men penetrate into what is dark and deep in the earth as if it were light and above ground as the next clause explains. _searcheth out all perfection_ Rather, SEARCHETH OUT TO THE VERY END, or, utmost limit, THE STONES OF DARKNESS AND THE SHADOW OF DEATH, that is, the darkest recesses in the bowels of the earth. The word, very _end_or utmost _limit_is that occurring, ch. Job 26:10 (see notes) and ch. Job 11:7. On "shadow of death" see on ch....