From where then does wisdom come, and where does understanding dwell?
Parallel translations
- WEB Where then does wisdom come from? Where is the place of understanding?
- KJV Whence then cometh wisdom? and where is the place of understanding?
- NKJV “Fromwhere then does wisdom come? And where is the place of understanding?
- NASB “Where then does wisdom come from? And where is this place of understanding?
- NLT “But do people know where to find wisdom? Where can they find understanding?
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Job repeats his central question: where does wisdom come from, and where is understanding found?
Overview
Echoing verse 12, Job restates the question after showing that wisdom cannot be mined or purchased. The repetition heightens the suspense and prepares for the answer that only God can give. This question ultimately finds its resolution in the gospel, where the wisdom hidden from the ages is revealed in Christ crucified (1 Corinthians 2:7).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Job 28:12But where can wisdom be found, and where does understanding dwell?
- Jas 1:17Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, with whom there is no change or shifting shadow.
- Job 28:28And He said to man, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’”
- Jas 1:5Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
- Job 28:23But God understands its way, and He knows its place.
- Eccl 7:23–24All this I tested by wisdom, saying, “I resolve to be wise.” But it was beyond me.
- Prov 2:6For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding.
- 1 Cor 2:6–15Among the mature, however, we speak a message of wisdom—but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Commentaries & study tools
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Christ at the center
Job's cry for a mediator who can lay his hand on both God and man, and his confidence that 'my Redeemer lives' and will stand on the earth, reaches forward to Jesus the living Redeemer.
How Job 28:20 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.