It was my observation while reading the 28th chapter of Job, I noticed a central question that the writer asks: Can wisdom be found outside of God? Twice, in Job 28:12 and Job 28:20, we read the echoing question, “Where is wisdom?” The short answer is simple: Elohim is the source. True wisdom as a spiritual gift only exists because it is inherent in Elohim and reflects one of his atributes. That is precisely why it cannot be dug up or discovered in the natural world.
While the natural world can and does point us toward wisdom, simply gaining power from natural resources does not make us wise. True wisdom is spiritual, not earthly. As Colossians 1:9 says: “We have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom.”
Ultimately, wisdom is about yielding to God and the scripture he has written in our heart so that we may know His will. We are getting there (close to embracing Elohim’s wisdom) when we are able to see things from his perspective rather than our own perspective.
The Blueprint of Creation
Job 28:24 tells us, “He looks to the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens.” God is omniscient, which means He sees and knows everything. He does not have to search the earth or scan the skies to discover what is there. He already knows it all because He is the very definition of wisdom (as implied in Romans 16:27).
Job 28:25 continues, “When He gave to the wind its weight and apportioned the waters by measure…” God has the perfect wisdom required to adjust the atmospheric pressure of the wind and measure the exact amount of water vapor in the sky. If these cosmic proportions were changed even a tiny fraction, we would experience catastrophic disturbances in our environment.
Furthermore, Job 28:26-27 states: “…when He made a decree for the rain and a way for the lightning of the thunder, then He saw it and declared it, He established it and searched it out.”
Elohim commands the rain and guides the path of every storm as it moves across the globe. Flashes of lightning and peals of thunder may seem completely random and arbitrary to us, but Elohim controls every single one of them. This shows us that Elohim’s wisdom is applied knowledge.
Trusting the Architect of Our Lives
Elohim’s invisible attributes are woven directly into the fabric of creation. This is especially true of His wisdom, which is clearly demonstrated by how perfectly structured our universe is.
Romans 1:19-20 reminds us: “For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So, they are without excuse.”
As Job considered Elohim’s absolute sovereignty over the universe, it caused him to see God’s sovereignty over the painful events in his own life. Even though his current circumstances looked completely chaotic, he looked at how perfectly Elohim orders nature. This realization, I believe, allowed Job to accept that Elohim had permitted everything he was experiencing.
Job saw Elohim ‘s wisdom resting at the very bedrock of creation, enveloping all of life. This wisdom was established at the very beginning of Elohim’s work, as the first of His ancient acts (implied in Proverbs 8:22). Psalm 19:7 confirms this power: “The instruction of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is trustworthy, making the inexperienced wise.”
This is what ultimately led Job to ask for an audience with Elohim. If God can control all of creation—in its vastness, complexity, and majesty—how much easier can He control our individual circumstances? If we can trust Elohim to order all of nature so perfectly, how much more can we trust Him and yield to Him to order our daily lives?
The Only Reasonable Conclusion
We can learn a great deal about wisdom by analyzing Elohim’s sovereignty over physical things. When we do, we arrive at the only logical conclusion. Job 28:28 states: “Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.”
The world warns us against relying on our own understanding. Proverbs 12:15 says, “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice.” And 1 Corinthians 3:18 cautions, “Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become ‘fools’ so that you may become wise.”
Earlier in the chapter, Job told us where to find wisdom: it comes from Elohim. But here in verse 28, he tells us what wisdom actually is: fearing God. But what does fearing God really mean? In my final essay on this topic, I want to explore the depth of that famous phrase—the Fear of the Lord.
As for me, I choose Jesus.