Job 28:1

Surely there is a vein for the silver,.... Silver is mentioned first, not because the most valuable, for gold is preferable to it, as brass is to iron, and yet iron is mentioned first in Job 28:2;

Surely there is a vein for the silver, and a place for gold where they fine it.

JOB CHAPTER 28 The power and wisdom of God in his works of nature, . A knowledge and wisdom answering this is not found in man, nor to be bought or acquired, . Death and destruction make their report of it, . It is only in God, . Man’ s wisdom is to fear God, . There is a vein for the silver; where it is hid by God, and found and fetched out by the art and industry of man. The connexion of this chapter with the former is difficult, and diversly apprehended; but this may seem to be the fairest account of it: Job having in the last chapter discoursed of God’ s various providences and carriages towards wicked men, and showed that God doth sometimes for a season give them wealth and prosperity, but afterwards calls them to a sad account, and punisheth them severely for their abuse of his mercies; and having formerly showed that God doth sometimes prosper the wicked all their days, so as they live and die without any visible token of God’ s displeasure against them, when, on the contrary, good men are exercised with many and grievous calamities; and perceiving that his friends were, as men in all ages have been, scandalized at these methods of Divine Providence, and denied the thing, because they could not understand the reason of such unequal dispensations: in this chapter he declares that this is one of the depths and secrets of Divine Wisdom, not discoverable by any mortal man in this world; and that although men had some degree of wisdom whereby they could dig deep, and search out many hidden things, as the veins of silver, gold, &c., yet this was a wisdom of a higher nature, and out of man’ s reach. And hereby he secretly checks the arrogance and confidence of his friends, who, because they had some parts of wisdom, the knowledge of natural things, such as are here contained, and of human affairs, and of some Divine matters, therefore presumed to fathom the depths of God’ s wisdom and providence, and to judge of all God’ s ways and works by the scantling of their own narrow understandings. Possibly it may be connected thus: Job having been discoursing of the wonderful ways of God, both in the works of nature, , and in his providential dispensations towards wicked men, to the end, he here returns to the first branch of his discourse, and discovers more of God’ s wisdom and power in natural things.

Job 28:1 Surely there is a vein for the silver, and a place for gold [where] they fine [it].Ver. 1. Surely there is a vein for the silver] For there is a vein, &c., so Tremellius readeth it. But here is no reason rendered of God’ s heavy judgments on the wicked, last discoursed of; but the unsearchableness of God’ s wisdom, and the righteousness of his proceedings asserted, while some bad men prosper, and some good men suffer. The reason whereof lieth hid (as a river that runneth underground) from the natural man (and in part, from the spiritual also), be he never so perspicacious or industrious in prying into Nature’ s secrets. The silver vein lieth very low, and far out of sight; yet is found out and known; as also is the art of fining it. This art was soon learned in the world; and mortals were quickly become metallaries. Effodiuntur opes, &c. (Ovid). A great part of their skill they might have from Adam, according to that of the Divine chronologer, Ex Adami sapientissimi Doctoris ore promanavit, tanquam ex fonte, quicquid in mundo est utilium doctrinarum, disciplinarum, scientiae et sapientiae. He that knew so much before his fall (far more than ever Solomon did) of Nature’ s most hidden mysteries, who can doubt that afterwards also he retained and imparted to his nephews a great deal of abstruse and rich skill? such as was this here instanced, and afterwards by Cicero, among others, celebrated in his second book, De Nat. Deor., where, discoursing about men’ s witty inventions, he saith among other things, Nos aeris, argenti, auri venas penitus abditas invenimus, &c., We have found out the veins of brass, silver, gold, and other metals, though deeply hidden in the bowels of the earth. Some of the ancients have wished that we had never found out these metals, because of the great abuse of them. Josephus saith that Cain heaped up great store of them. Strabo saith, that Phaletius feared lest, in digging for gold and silver, men would dig themselves a new way to hell, Et Plutonem brevi ad superos adducturos, and bring up the devil among them (Geog. l. 5). Some say that he haunteth the richest mines, and will not suffer them to be searched. Sure it is, that, by the inordinate love of these metals, he drowneth many a soul in perdition and destruction, 1 Timothy 6:9-10 Auri sacra fames, &c. So subject they are to sin, as that God made a law to have them purified before he would have them used by his people, Numbers 31:22-23, &c., who should herein have the mind of those Persians, Isaiah 13:12; Isaiah 13:17, which regarded not silver, nor were desirous of gold.

XXVIII.(1) Surely there is a vein for the silver.—In this chapter Job draws out a magnificent contrast between human skill and ingenuity and Divine wisdom. The difficulty to the ordinary reader is in not perceiving that the person spoken of in Job 28:3 is man, and not God. Man possesses and exercises this mastery over nature, but yet is ignorant of wisdom unless God bestows it on him. That Job should say this is but natural, after his painful experience of the want of wisdom in his friends.

CHAPTER XXVIII Job, in showing the vanity of human pursuits in reference to genuine wisdom, mentions mining for and refining gold and silver, 1; iron and other minerals, 2; the difficulties of mining, 3, 4; produce of grain for bread from the earth, and stones of fire from under it, 5. He speaks of precious stones and gold dust, 6; of the instinct of fowls and wild beasts in finding their way, 7, 8; and of the industry and successful attempts of men in mining and other operations, 9-11: but shows that with all their industry, skill, and perseverance, they cannot find out true wisdom, 12; of which he gives the most exalted character, 13-22; and shows that God alone, the fountain of wisdom, knows and can teach it, 24-27; and in what this true wisdom consists, 28. NOTES ON CHAP. XXVIII Verse 1. Surely there is a vein for the silver] This chapter is the oldest and finest piece of natural history in the world, and gives us very important information on several curious subjects; and could we ascertain the precise meaning of all the original words, we might, most probably, find out allusions to several useful arts which we are apt to think are of modern, or comparatively modern, invention. The word מוצא motsa, which we here translate vein, signifies literally, a going out; i.e., a mine, or place dug in the earth, whence the silver ore is extracted. And this ore lies generally in veins or loads, running in certain directions. A place for gold where they fine it.] This should rather be translated, A place for gold which they refine. Gold ore has also its peculiar mine, and requires to be refined from earthy impurities.

1. surely there is] Rather, for there is. The connexion, however, with the preceding is difficult to perceive (see at the end of the chapter). there is a vein] lit. an issue or source. The emphasis falls on is—there is a place from which silver comes forth, it has a source out of which it may be gotten. where they fine it] Rather, which they (men) refine. The most precious ores, both silver and gold, have a place where they may be found; however distant and dark and deep in the earth their place be, such a place is known, men penetrate to it, and bring them forth. The antithesis is presented in Job 28:12, But whence shall Wisdom be found? and where is the place of understanding? It hath no place known to man.

Surely there is a vein for silver - Margin, “mine” Coverdale renders this, “There are places where silver is molten.” Prof.

Section third — OF WISDOM, chap. 28.First strophe — Man has wonderful power and skill for surmounting the obstacles of nature and extracting from the gloomiest depths of earth her most precious treasures, Job 28:1-11.1.