I was there when He established the heavens, when He inscribed a circle on the face of the deep,
Parallel translations
- WEB When he established the heavens, I was there; when he set a circle on the surface of the deep,
- KJV When he prepared the heavens, I was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth:
- NKJV When He prepared the heavens, I was there, When He drew a circle on the face of the deep,
- NASB “When He established the heavens, I was there; When He inscribed a circle on the face of the deep,
- NLT I was there when he established the heavens, when he drew the horizon on the oceans.
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
When God established the heavens and set the horizon on the deep, wisdom was there. Wisdom was present and active at the founding of the cosmos.
Overview
Now the passage moves from wisdom's existence before creation to her presence during it. As God established the heavens and inscribed the circle of the horizon, wisdom witnessed and shared in the work. This presence at creation is one reason Christians connect this passage to Christ, by whom all things were made (Hebrews 1:2).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Isa 40:22He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth; its dwellers are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.
- Job 26:10He has inscribed a horizon on the face of the waters at the boundary between light and darkness.
- Prov 3:19The LORD founded the earth by wisdom and established the heavens by understanding.
- Ps 136:5By His insight He made the heavens. His loving devotion endures forever.
- Col 1:16For in Him all things were created, things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities. All things were created through Him and for Him.
- Jer 10:12The LORD made the earth by His power; He established the world by His wisdom and stretched out the heavens by His understanding.
- Isa 40:11He tends His flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart. He gently leads the nursing ewes.
- Heb 1:2But in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, and through whom He made the universe.
- Ps 33:6By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and all the stars by the breath of His mouth.
- Ps 103:19The LORD has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Wisdom personified, with God before creation and the agent of all things, anticipates Christ 'in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom' — the wisdom of God made flesh.
How Proverbs 8:27 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.