Job 12:13-22
Spence, H. D. M., etc.
The Pulpit Commentary - Job 12:5-13
Job to Zophar: 2. The dogma of the friends demolished. I. BY THE FACTS OF EXPERIENCE . 1 . The adverse fortunes of the good. Exemplified in Job's own case, which showed 2 . The prosperous fortunes of the bad . Apt illustrations were at hand in the seemingly unchanging success which waited on the footsteps of those marauding caterans with which Arabia Deserta was overrun. (a) Robbers of men, violent and rapacious plunderers, who put might for right, "men of the... read more
Spence, H. D. M., etc.
The Pulpit Commentary - Job 12:11-25
The Devine supremacy illustrated. Bildad appeals to "the ancients." Job replies, "I also know their teaching." But there is a wisdom higher than that of the ancients. Wisdom—unfailing wisdom—is a Divine attribute. From the earthly to the heavenly wisdom Job turns. He speaks of a higher and a mightier One—One "with whom is strength and wisdom," by which he rules. The supremacy of that Divine rule he illustrates from a very wide field of survey. He points to the evidences of the Divine... read more
Spence, H. D. M., etc.
The Pulpit Commentary - Job 12:13
With him is wisdom and strength . With God wisdom and strength dwell essentially. He is not wiser or stronger at one time than at another. Time and experience add nothing to the perfection of his attributes, which are unchangeable. Such wisdom infinitely transcends any to which man can attain, and therefore is doubtless the wisdom whereby the world is governed. He hath counsel and understanding . God has these qualities as his own. They are not acquired or imparted, but belong to him,... read more
Spence, H. D. M., etc.
The Pulpit Commentary - Job 12:13-25
Job to Zophar: 3. The providence of God described. I. As INFINITELY WISE AND POWERFUL . "With God is wisdom and strength, he hath counsel and understanding" (verse 13)—a sentiment repeated in verse 16. Of the two attributes here mentioned, the first is involved in his supreme Divinity; though in the connection Job seems to base it on his eternal existence, as if he meant to say, "You affirm that in length of days is understanding, and I grant it; but what then must be the wisdom of... read more
Spence, H. D. M., etc.
The Pulpit Commentary - Job 12:13-25
Images of the irresistible power of God. I. THE WALL , OR HOUSE , OR CITY THUS DEMOLISHED CANNOT BE BUILT UP AGAIN . ( Job 12:14 .) Swept with the besom of destruction, it becomes the possession of the bittern and pools of water ( Isaiah 14:23 ). The ruined walls of Babylon and her charred gates defy the weary toil of the people ( Jeremiah 51:58 ); she sinks, and shall not rise from the evil that Jehovah will bring upon her ( Jeremiah 51:64 ). Men may build,... read more
Spence, H. D. M., etc.
The Pulpit Commentary - Job 12:13-25
The wisdom and might of God. Job meets his friend's authoritative utterances of proverbs and worldly maxims by a citation of similar sayings, but with a different import. It is not true that the righteous always prosper, and that the wicked always suffer. Such a primitive notion implies too anthropocentric a conception of the universe; it goes on the assumption that all things are done just to suit our condition and conduct. Now, Job takes a higher and wider view. He appeals to sayings that... read more
Spence, H. D. M., etc.
The Pulpit Commentary - Job 12:14
Behold, he breaketh down, and it cannot be built again . Professor Lee thinks that the allusion is to the cities of the plain ( Genesis 19:24-29 ). But the sentiment is so general, that we may well doubt if particular instances were in Job's mind. At any rate, the destructive agencies of nature must be as much included as any supernatural acts. He shutteth up a man (comp. Job 11:10 ). God "shuts up" men when be hedges them in with calamities or other circumstances, which take away from... read more
Spence, H. D. M., etc.
The Pulpit Commentary - Job 12:15
Behold, he withholdeth the waters, and they dry up . God, at his pleasure, causes great droughts, which are among the worst calamities that can happen. He withholds the blessed rain from heaven ( Deuteronomy 11:17 ; 1 Kings 8:35 ; 1 Kings 17:1 ), and the springs shrink, and the rivers dry up, and a fruitful land is turned into a desert, and famine stalks through the land, and men perish by thousands . Also he sendeth them out, and they overturn the earth ; i.e. he causes floods and... read more
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Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Job 12:22
He discovereth deep things out of darkness - This may refer either to God's works in the great deep, or to the plots and stratagems of wicked men, conspiracies that were deeply laid, well digested, and about to be produced into existence, when death, whose shadow had hitherto concealed them, is to glut himself with carnage. read more