Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Job 38:36
Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts? or who hath given understanding to the heart?
36. The verse is obscure, owing to the terms “inward parts” and “heart” being of uncertain meaning. The translation of the A.V. may be certainly set aside, (1) because the introduction of a reference to the “inward parts” and “heart” of man in the middle of a description of celestial phenomena is not to be thought of; and (2) any laudatory reference to man is out of keeping with the whole drift of the speech, the purpose of which is to abase man before the wonders of God’s creation and His operations outside the sphere of man’s life. The word rendered “inward parts” may be the same as that so rendered, Psa 51:6. There the parallel word is “hidden part,” and the reference may be to the dark and deep cloud-masses. The word “heart” does not occur again; it may mean, form, figure, and refer to the manifold cloud formations or phenomena. These fulfilling the purposes of God seem themselves endowed with wisdom. If this be the sense, the best commentary on the verse would be the words of Elihu, ch. Job 37:12, “And it (the cloud) turneth about every way by His guidance, that it may do whatsoever He commandeth it upon the face of the whole earth.”
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts? – There is great variety in the interpretation of this passage. Jerome renders it, Quis posuit in visceribus heminis sapienttam? Vel quis dedit gallo intelligentiam? Who hath put wisdom in the inner parts of man? Or who has given to the cock intelligence? Just as strangely, the Septuagint has: Who hath given to women skill in weaving, and a knowledge of the art of embroidering?. One of the Targums renders it, Who has given to the woodcock intelligence that he should praise his Master? Herder renders it,
Who gave understanding to the flying clouds,
Or intelligence to the meteors of the air?
Umbreit,
Who placed wisdom in the dark clouds?
Who gave understanding to the forms of the air?
Schultens and Rosenmuller explain it of the various phenomena that appear in the sky – as lightning, thunder, meteoric lights, etc. So Prof. Lee explains the words as referring to the tempest and the thunder-storm. According to that interpretation, the idea is, that these phenomena appear to be endowed with intelligence, There is proof of plan and wisdom in their arrangement and connection, and they show that it is not by chance that they are directed. One reason assigned for this interpretation is, that it accords with the connection. The course of the argument, it is remarked, relates to the various phenomena that appear in the sky – to the lightnings, tempests, and clouds. It is unnatural to suppose that a remark would be interposed here respecting the intellectual endowments of man, when the appeal to the clouds is again Job 38:37 immediately resumed. There can be no doubt that there is much weight in this observation, and that the connection demands this interpretation, and that it should be adopted if the words which are used will admit of it.
The only difficulty relates to the words rendered inward parts, and heart. The former of these ( tuchot) according to the Hebrew interpreters, is derived from tuach, to cover over, to spread, to besmear; and is hence given to the veins, because covered with fat. It occurs only in this place, and in Psa 51:6, Behold thou desirest truth in the inward parts, where it undoubtedly refers to the seat of the affections or thoughts in man. The verb is often used as meaning to daub, overlay, or plaster, as in Lev 14:42; Eze 22:28; Eze 13:12, Eze 13:14. Schultens, Lee, Umbreit, and others, have recourse in the explanation to the use of the Arabic word of the same letters with the Hebrew, meaning to wander, to make a random shot, etc., and thence, apply it to lightning, and to meteors. Umbreit supposes that there is allusion to the prevalent opinion in the East that the clouds and the phenomena of the air could be regarded as furnishing prophetic indications of what was to occur; or to the custom of predicting future events by the aspects of the sky.
It is a sufficient objection to this, however, that it cannot be supposed that the Almighty would lend his sanction to this opinion by appealing to it as if it were so. After all that bas been written on the passage, and all the force of the difficulty which is urged, I do not see evidence that we are to depart from the common interpretation, to wit, that God means to appeal to the fact that he has endowed man with intelligence as a proof of his greatness and supremacy. The connection is, indeed, not very apparent. It may be, however, as Noyes suggests, that the reference is to the mind of Job in particular, and to the intelligence with which he was able to perceive, and in some measure to comprehend, these various phenomena. The connection may be something like this: Look to the heavens, and contemplate these wonders. Explain them, if possible; and then ask who it is that has so endowed the mind of man that it can trace in them such proofs of the wisdom and power of the Almighty. The phenomena themselves, and the capacity to contemplate them, and to be instructed by them, are alike demonstrations of the supremacy of the Most High.
Understanding to the heart – To the mind. The common word to denote heart – leb is not used here, but a word ( sekvy from ) meaning to look at, to view; and hence, denoting the mind; the intelligent soul. Gesenius.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 36. Who hath put wisdom in the in ward parts?] Who has given lasechvi, to the contemplative person, understanding? Even the most sedulous attention to a subject, and the deepest contemplation, are not sufficient to investigate truth, without the inspiration of the Almighty, which alone can give understanding. But who has given man the power to conceive and understand? A power which he knows he has, but which he cannot comprehend. Man knows nothing of his own mind, nor of the mode of its operations. This mind we possess, these operations we perform;-and of either do we know any thing? If we know not our own spirit, how can we comprehend that SPIRIT which is infinite and eternal?
Mr. Good thinks that this verse is a continuation of the subject above, relative to the lightnings, and therefore translates thus: –
Who putteth understanding into the vollies?
And who giveth to the shafts discernment?
All the versions, except the Septuagint, which trifles here, understand the place as we do. Either makes a good sense. The Septuagint has, “Who hath given the knowledge of weaving to women; or the science of embroidery?” Instead of understanding to the heart, the Vulgate has, understanding to the cock; that it might be able to distinguish and proclaim the watches of the night.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
In the inward parts, to wit, of a man. Compare Job 19:27; Psa 51:6. Who gave thee that wit and understanding which thou hast, and which thou now usest so arrogantly and wickedly, to contend with me, and to censure my actions?
Who hath given understanding to the heart; so he limits the former general expression of the inward parts. The heart is made by the Hebrews the seat of the understanding, and is commonly put for it in Scripture.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
36. inward parts . . . heartBut”dark clouds” (“shining phenomena”) [UMBREIT];”meteor” [MAURER],referring to the consultation of these as signs of weather by thehusbandman (Ec 11:4). ButHebrew supports English Version. The connection is,”Who hath given thee the intelligence to comprehend in anydegree the phenomena just specified?”
heartnot the usualHebrew word, but one from a root “to view”;perception.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts?…. That is, of man, in his heart, as explained in the next clause; such wisdom as to guide the stars, know the ordinances of heaven, set their dominion on earth, manage and direct the clouds and lightning; no such wisdom is put in man:
or who hath, given understanding to the heart? to understand all the above things, and answer to the several questions put in this chapter; though, as these clauses may respect much one and the same thing, they may be understood of wisdom and understanding in man, whether natural or spiritual; and seeing they are found there, the question is, who put them there, or how came they there? who gave them to him? the answer must be, God himself, and no other; man has his rational soul, his intellectual powers, the light of nature and reason in him; all his understanding in arts and sciences, trades and manufactures, is of the Lord, and not of himself or another, see Job 32:8; all spiritual wisdom and understanding which lies in a man’s concern for his eternal welfare in the knowledge of himself, and of his state and condition by nature, and of the way of life and salvation by Christ, and of the truths and doctrines of the Gospel, is all of God and Christ, and by the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him; no man, therefore, has any reason to glory in his wisdom and knowledge, of whatsoever kind, as though he had not received it; nor should he dare to arraign the wisdom of God in his providential dealings with men; since he that teaches man knowledge must needs know better than man how to govern the world he has made, and dispose of all things in it. The last clause is in the Vulgate Latin rendered, “who hath given to the cock understanding?” and so the Targums and other Jewish writers p interpret it; and they observe q, that in Arabia a cock is called by the word that is here used; and in their morning prayers, and at hearing a cock crow r,
“Blessed be the Lord, who giveth to the cock understanding to distinguish between the day and the night:”
but however remarkable the understanding of this creature is, which God has given it, and which is even taken notice of by Heathen writers s; that it should know the stars, distinguish the hours of the night by crowing, and express its joy at the rising of the sun and moon; yet such a sense of the text seems impertinent, as well as that of the Septuagint version, of giving to women the wisdom and knowledge of weaving and embroidery.
p Jarchi, Ramban, Simeon Bar. Tzemach. q Vajikra Rabba, s. 25. fol. 166. 1. Vid. T. Roshhashanah, fol. 26. 1. r Seder Tephillot. fol. 2. 2. Ed. Basil. & Bab. Beracot, fol. 60. 2. s Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 10. c. 21. Aelian. de Animal. l. 4. c. 29.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(36) Wisdom in the inward parts.The mention of the inward parts and the heart here, in the midst of natural phenomena, perplexes every one; but it is a natural solution to refer them to the lightnings personified: Who hath put such understanding in their inward parts?
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
. Job is plied with questions as to the source of wisdom and understanding, on which man ( Job) prides himself so highly; and whether, with all his wisdom, he can even number the clouds, or make them to incline, that they may empty themselves upon the earth, Job 38:36-38.
36. The inward parts : a word which appears once besides, Psa 51:6. Its root meaning, covered, hidden, points to the seat of affections, or moral nature, which, of all the elements of our being, is the most concealed. According to the Rabbis, whom Gesenius follows, it means the reins or kidneys, in Hebrew physiology regarded as the abode of instinctive yearnings, and which also were deemed so Delitzsch thinks to be the organs of the faculty of foreboding. See note on Job 16:13. These and similar functions were, according to Plato, discharged by the liver a fancy which probably gave rise to the prophetic inspection of the liver among the ancient Babylonians, (Eze 21:21,) Etruscans, Greeks, and Romans. See Diodorus Siculus, ii, ch. iii, Booth ed., 1:125. Recent German commentators for the most part regard tuhhoth as phenomenal, in like manner with the corresponding word of the next clause, ( sekvi,) and render it “dark clouds,” (Zockler, Dillmann, Hitzig,) on the assumption that it is demanded by the context.
The heart Sekvi. Another rare word, whose meaning also is difficult to determine. Its radical idea, of insight, some of the best critics associate with mind or heart, and it is thus rendered. The context induces others to seek a meaning in the phenomena or powers of nature. The derivation of the word , heart, from , “to see,” figuratively “to understand,” is now generally admitted, and yet it has led to weak and insipid interpretations: such as, “phenomena caused by light,” (Hahn, Ewald;) “the full moon,” (Dillmann;) “atmospheric phenomena,” (Zockler, Hitzig;) while Conant, Schlottmann, Renan, Hengstenberg, and others, properly render as in the Authorized Version. The word is evidently cognate with , (Psa 73:7,) “thoughts,” and seemingly justifies the view of Gesenius, ( Thes. 1329,) that it signifies that which sees rather than that which is seen. The mention of the subtle lightning not unnaturally suggests the subtler spiritual nature of man. If the wonderful endowments of a mental and moral being powers infinitely superior to the brute forces of nature are not alluded to in this verse, the discourse altogether ignores them; an omission simply incredible. The connexion of thought Schlottmann finds in the mention of the celestial laws and their ruling in the earth, which suggests most naturally that greater work of God, the making and implanting of the faculties which may comprehend his works. Hengstenberg finds the pivot of thought in wisdom, ( hhokmah, Job 38:36-37,) of which man is the great embodiment. To say the least, the “putting wisdom ( hhokmah) into ” the dark clouds, and “the giving intelligence ( binah, see note on Job 28:12,) to ” fiery meteors, full moons, or atmospheric phenomena of any kind, involves a medley which is no more to be tolerated in the Hebrew use of words or their modes of thought than in our own. The interpretation of the Septuagint, from an apparently corrupted text. “And who has given woman skill in weaving, or knowledge of embroidery,” may be mentioned as one of the many vagaries to which this text has given occasion.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Job 38:36. Or who hath given understanding to the heart? Or who hath given discernment to the eyes? Heath: who renders the last clause of the next verse, Who can cause the bottles of heaven to pour down abundantly? which seems to connect much better with Job 38:38.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Job 38:36 Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts? or who hath given understanding to the heart?
Ver. 36. Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts? ] Hitherto God hath set forth his own admirable power, wisdom, and providence in making and governing the lifeless creatures, the meteors especially. Now he comes to declare the same in things endued with life; and first with man, his masterpiece: Who hath given him wisdom (saith God) in the inward parts, or reins? where the reasonable soul sitteth and sovereigneth. The Hebrews say, That the heart understandeth, and the reins deliberate. They have their name here from plastering over, or covering, because they are overly covered with fat and flesh; howbeit the Lord trieth them, Jer 17:10 ; and hath given wisdom to man to moderate his affections and concupiscences which are here seated, and to get truth into these inward parts, Psa 51:6 , that this hidden man of the heart may be highly accepted in heaven, 1Pe 3:4 .
Or who hath given understanding to the heart? in the inward parts. Hebrew. tuchoth: Occurs only here and Psa 51:6. See note on Job 28:28 and Pro 1:7.
Who hath put: Job 32:8, Psa 51:6, Pro 2:6, Ecc 2:26, Jam 1:5, Jam 1:17
who hath given: Exo 31:3, Exo 36:1, Exo 36:2, Isa 28:26
Job 38:36. Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts? Namely, of a man; who gave thee that understanding which thou hast, and which thou now usest so arrogantly as to contend with me, and censure my dispensations? Or who hath given understanding to the heart? Considered by the Hebrews as the seat of understanding, and commonly put for it in Scripture.
38:36 Who hath put wisdom in the {x} inward parts? or who hath given understanding to the heart?
(x) In the secret parts of man.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes