Job12
American Standard Version · Public Domain
1Then Job answered and said,
2No doubt but ye are the people, And wisdom shall die with you.
3But I have understanding as well as you; I am not inferior to you: Yea, who knoweth not such things as these?
4I am as one that is a laughing-stock to his neighbor, I who called upon God, and he answered: The just, the perfect man is a laughing-stock.
5In the thought of him that is at ease there is contempt for misfortune; It is ready for them whose foot slippeth.
6The tents of robbers prosper, And they that provoke God are secure; Into whose hand God bringeth abundantly.
7But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; And the birds of the heavens, and they shall tell thee:
8Or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee; And the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee.
9Who knoweth not in all these, That the hand of Jehovah hath wrought this,
10In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, And the breath of all mankind?
11Doth not the ear try words, Even as the palate tasteth its food?
12With aged men is wisdom, And in length of days understanding.
13With God is wisdom and might; He hath counsel and understanding.
14Behold, he breaketh down, and it cannot be built again; He shutteth up a man, and there can be no opening.
15Behold, he withholdeth the waters, and they dry up; Again, he sendeth them out, and they overturn the earth.
16With him is strength and wisdom; The deceived and the deceiver are his.
17He leadeth counsellors away stripped, And judges maketh he fools.
18He looseth the bond of kings, And he bindeth their loins with a girdle.
19He leadeth priests away stripped, And overthroweth the mighty.
20He removeth the speech of the trusty, And taketh away the understanding of the elders.
21He poureth contempt upon princes, And looseth the belt of the strong.
22He uncovereth deep things out of darkness, And bringeth out to light the shadow of death.
23He increaseth the nations, and he destroyeth them: He enlargeth the nations, and he leadeth them captive.
24He taketh away understanding from the chiefs of the people of the earth, And causeth them to wander in a wilderness where there is no way.
25They grope in the dark without light; And he maketh them to stagger like a drunken man.
Study Guide
Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Job 12.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: Job reproves his friends. (1–5). The wicked often prosper. (6–11). Job speaks of the wisdom and power of God. (12–25).
vv1-5
Job upbraids his friends with the good opinion they had of their own wisdom compared with his. We are apt to call reproofs reproaches, and to think ourselves mocked when advised and admonished; this is our folly; yet here was colour for this charge. He suspected the true cause of their conduct to be, that they despised him who was fallen into poverty. It is the way of the world. Even the just, upright man, if he comes under a cloud, is looked upon with contempt.
vv6-11
Job appeals to facts. The most audacious robbers, oppressors, and impious wretches, often prosper. Yet this is not by fortune or chance; the Lord orders these things. Worldly prosperity is of small value in his sight: he has better things for his children. Job resolves all into the absolute proprietorship which God has in all the creatures. He demands from his friends liberty to judge of what they had said; he appeals to any fair judgment. (Job 12:12-25)
vv12-25
This is a noble discourse of Job concerning the wisdom, power, and sovereignty of God, in ordering all the affairs of the children of men, according to the counsel of His own will, which none can resist. It were well if wise and good men, who differ about lesser things, would see how it is for their honour and comfort, and the good of others, to dwell most upon the great things in which they agree. Here are no complaints, or reflections. He gives many instances of God's powerful management of the children of men, overruling all their counsels, and overcoming all their oppositions. Having all strength and wisdom, God knows how to make use, even of those who are foolish and bad; otherwise there is so little wisdom and so little honesty in the world, that all had been in confusion and ruin long ago. These important truths were suited to convince the disputants that they were out of their depth in attempting to assign the Lord's reasons for afflicting Job; his ways are unsearchable, and his judgments past finding out. Let us remark what beautiful illustrations there are in the word of God, confirming his sovereignty, and wisdom in that sovereignty: but the highest and infinitely the most important is, that the Lord Jesus was crucified by the malice of the Jews; and who but the Lord could have known that this one event was the salvation of the world?
Key Words
אִיּוֹב: Ijob, the patriarch famous for his patience
עָנָה: properly, to eye or (generally) to heed, i.e. pay attention; by implication, to respond; by extension to begin to speak; specifically to sing, shout, testify, announce
אָמַר: to say (used with great latitude)
אׇמְנָם: verily
עַם: a people (as a congregated unit); specifically, a tribe (as those of Israel); hence (collectively) troops or attendants; figuratively, a flock
חׇכְמָה: wisdom (in a good sense)
מוּת: to die (literally or figuratively); causatively, to kill
גַּם: properly, assemblage; used only adverbially also, even, yea, though; often repeated as correl. both...and
לֵבָב: the heart (as the most interior organ);
נָפַל: to fall, in a great variety of applications (intransitive or causative, literal or figurative)
Cross References
Job 12Directly quoted in Psalm 107:40 regarding pouring contempt on princes and wandering in a pathless wilderness.
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Job directly counters Zophar's words about God shutting up a man so none can hinder.
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Psalm 107:27 closely mirrors the imagery of reeling and staggering like a drunken man.
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Parallel Hebrew expression and concept of one's foot slipping in times of sudden adversity.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Proverbs 8:14 declares that counsel, sound wisdom, and strength belong inherently to God.
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Parallel imagery of absolute divine key-holding: He shuts and no one can open.
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Illustrates how the deceived and the deceiver are ultimately under God's sovereign control and purpose.
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Job repeats this claim of equal understanding and not being inferior in the next chapter.
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Job responds directly to Zophar's accusation of mocking by stating he is the one mocked.
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Contrasts the stumble of the faltering foot in darkness with those who are at ease.
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Relates to the appeal to the aged and ancient ones for wisdom and traditional understanding.
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Parallels God revealing deep and secret things and knowing what lies in darkness.
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Reflects Job's recurring argument that the earth is given into the hand of the wicked.
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Job repeats this exact proverb later, comparing the ear testing words to the mouth tasting meat.
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The curse of groping at noonday in the dark without light under divine judgment.
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