Job 12
The Message
Job Answers Zophar
Put Your Ear to the Earth
12 1-3 Job answered:
“I’m sure you speak for all the experts,
and when you die there’ll be no one left to tell us how to live.
But don’t forget that I also have a brain—
I don’t intend to play second fiddle to you.
It doesn’t take an expert to know these things.
4-6 “I’m ridiculed by my friends:
‘So that’s the man who had conversations with God!’
Ridiculed without mercy:
‘Look at the man who never did wrong!’
It’s easy for the well-to-do to point their fingers in blame,
for the well-fixed to pour scorn on the strugglers.
Crooks reside safely in high-security houses,
insolent blasphemers live in luxury;
they’ve bought and paid for a god who’ll protect them.
7-12 “But ask the animals what they think—let them teach you;
let the birds tell you what’s going on.
Put your ear to the earth—learn the basics.
Listen—the fish in the ocean will tell you their stories.
Isn’t it clear that they all know and agree
that God is sovereign, that he holds all things in his hand—
Every living soul, yes,
every breathing creature?
Isn’t this all just common sense,
as common as the sense of taste?
Do you think the elderly have a corner on wisdom,
that you have to grow old before you understand life?
From God We Learn How to Live
13-25 “True wisdom and real power belong to God;
from him we learn how to live,
and also what to live for.
If he tears something down, it’s down for good;
if he locks people up, they’re locked up for good.
If he holds back the rain, there’s a drought;
if he lets it loose, there’s a flood.
Strength and success belong to God;
both deceived and deceiver must answer to him.
He strips experts of their vaunted credentials,
exposes judges as witless fools.
He divests kings of their royal garments,
then ties a rag around their waists.
He strips priests of their robes,
and fires high officials from their jobs.
He forces trusted sages to keep silence,
deprives elders of their good sense and wisdom.
He dumps contempt on famous people,
disarms the strong and mighty.
He shines a spotlight into caves of darkness,
hauls deepest darkness into the noonday sun.
He makes nations rise and then fall,
builds up some and abandons others.
He robs world leaders of their reason,
and sends them off into no-man’s-land.
They grope in the dark without a clue,
lurching and staggering like drunks.”
Job 12
1599 Geneva Bible
12 2 Job accuseth his friends of ignorance. 7 He declareth the might, and power of God. 17 And how he changeth the course of things.
1 Then Job answered, and said,
2 Indeed because that ye are the people only, [a]wisdom must die with you.
3 But I have understanding as well as you, and am not inferior unto you: yea, who knoweth not such things?
4 (A)I am [b]as one mocked of his neighbor, who calleth upon God, and he [c]heareth him: the just and the upright is laughed to scorn.
5 [d]He that is ready to fall, is as a lamp despised in the opinion of the rich.
6 The tabernacles of robbers do prosper, and they are in safety, that provoke God, [e]whom God hath enriched with his hand.
7 Ask now the beasts, [f]and they shall teach thee, and the fowls of the heaven, and they shall tell thee:
8 Or speak to the earth, and it shall show thee: or the fishes of the sea, and they shall declare unto thee.
9 Who is ignorant of all these, but that the hand of the Lord hath made these?
10 In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all [g]mankind.
11 Doth not the ears [h]discern the words, and the mouth taste meat for itself?
12 Among the [i]ancient is wisdom, and in the length of days is understanding.
13 With him is wisdom and strength: he hath counsel and understanding.
14 Behold, he will break down, and it cannot be built: he shutteth a man up, and he cannot be loosed.
15 Behold, he withholdeth the waters, and they dry up: but when he sendeth them out, they destroy the earth.
16 With him is strength and wisdom: he that is deceived, and that [j]deceiveth, are his.
17 He causeth the counselors to go as spoiled, and maketh the judges fools.
18 [k]He looseth [l]the collar of kings, and girdeth their loins with a girdle.
19 He leadeth away the princes as a prey, and overthroweth the mighty.
20 He taketh away the speech from the [m]faithful counselors, and taketh away the judgment of the ancient.
21 He poureth contempt upon princes, and maketh the strength of the mighty weak.
22 He discovereth the deep places from their darkness, and bringeth forth the shadow of death to light.
23 He [n]increaseth the people, and destroyeth them: he enlargeth the nations, and bringeth them in again.
24 He taketh away the hearts of them that are the chief over the people of the earth, and maketh them to wander in the wilderness out of the way.
25 They grope in the dark without light: and he maketh them to stagger like a drunken man.
Footnotes
- Job 12:2 Because you feel not that which you speak, you think the whole standeth in words, and so flatter yourselves as though none knew anything, or could know but you.
- Job 12:4 He reproveth these his friends of two faults: the one that they thought they had better knowledge than indeed they had: and the other, that instead of true consolation, they did deride and despise their friend in his adversity.
- Job 12:4 The which neighbor being a mocker and a wicked man, thinketh that no man is in God’s favor but he, because he hath all things that he desireth.
- Job 12:5 As the rich esteem not a light, or torch that goeth out, so is he despised that falleth from prosperity to adversity.
- Job 12:6 Hebrew, to whom God hath brought in with his hand.
- Job 12:7 He declareth to them that did dispute against him, that their wisdom is common to all, and such as the very brute beasts do daily teach.
- Job 12:10 Or, flesh.
- Job 12:11 He exhorteth them to be wise in judging, and as well to know the right use why God hath given them ears, as he hath done a mouth.
- Job 12:12 Though men by age, and continuance of time attain to wisdom, yet it is not comparable to God’s wisdom, nor able to comprehend his judgments, wherein he answereth to that which was alleged, Job 8:8.
- Job 12:16 He showeth that there is nothing done in this world without God’s will and ordinance, for else he should not be Almighty.
- Job 12:18 He taketh wisdom from them.
- Job 12:18 He abateth the honor of princes, and bringeth them into the subjection of others.
- Job 12:20 He causeth that their words have no credit, which is when he will punish sin.
- Job 12:23 In this discourse of God’s wonderful works, Job showeth that whatsoever is done in this world both in the order and change of things, is by God’s will and appointment: wherein he declareth that he thinketh well of God, and is as able to set forth his power in words as they that reasoned against, were.
Job 12
King James Version
12 And Job answered and said,
2 No doubt but ye are the people, and wisdom shall die with you.
3 But I have understanding as well as you; I am not inferior to you: yea, who knoweth not such things as these?
4 I am as one mocked of his neighbour, who calleth upon God, and he answereth him: the just upright man is laughed to scorn.
5 He that is ready to slip with his feet is as a lamp despised in the thought of him that is at ease.
6 The tabernacles of robbers prosper, and they that provoke God are secure; into whose hand God bringeth abundantly.
7 But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee:
8 Or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee: and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee.
9 Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this?
10 In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.
11 Doth not the ear try words? and the mouth taste his meat?
12 With the ancient is wisdom; and in length of days understanding.
13 With him is wisdom and strength, he hath counsel and understanding.
14 Behold, he breaketh down, and it cannot be built again: he shutteth up a man, and there can be no opening.
15 Behold, he withholdeth the waters, and they dry up: also he sendeth them out, and they overturn the earth.
16 With him is strength and wisdom: the deceived and the deceiver are his.
17 He leadeth counsellors away spoiled, and maketh the judges fools.
18 He looseth the bond of kings, and girdeth their loins with a girdle.
19 He leadeth princes away spoiled, and overthroweth the mighty.
20 He removeth away the speech of the trusty, and taketh away the understanding of the aged.
21 He poureth contempt upon princes, and weakeneth the strength of the mighty.
22 He discovereth deep things out of darkness, and bringeth out to light the shadow of death.
23 He increaseth the nations, and destroyeth them: he enlargeth the nations, and straiteneth them again.
24 He taketh away the heart of the chief of the people of the earth, and causeth them to wander in a wilderness where there is no way.
25 They grope in the dark without light, and he maketh them to stagger like a drunken man.
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
