Job 28:14

KJV

¶ The depth saith, It [is] not in me: and the sea saith, [It is] not with me.

KJV (with Strong's)

The depth {H8415} saith {H559}, It is not in me: and the sea {H3220} saith {H559}, It is not with me.

Complete Jewish Bible

The deep says, 'It isn't in me,'and the sea says, 'It isn't with me.'

Berean Standard Bible

The ocean depths say, ‘It is not in me,’ while the sea declares, ‘It is not with me.’

American Standard Version

The deep saith, It is not in me; And the sea saith, It is not with me.

Commentary

### SUMMARY
A pivotal verse within a profound poetic interlude that shifts the Book of Job's focus from human suffering to the majestic, yet elusive, nature of true wisdom. This verse employs striking personification to declare that even the deepest, most mysterious, and inaccessible realms of the created world—the abyss and the vast ocean—do not possess or contain genuine wisdom, thereby underscoring its transcendent and non-material origin. It serves as a powerful testament to humanity's inability to discover or acquire divine wisdom through earthly exploration or ingenuity.

### CONTEXT
* **Literary Context:** Chapter 28 stands as a magnificent "wisdom hymn" or interlude, distinct from the preceding dialogues between Job and his friends. It interrupts the narrative flow, providing a theological commentary on wisdom's source and accessibility before the speeches of Elihu and God Himself. The chapter opens by marveling at humanity's impressive ability to mine the earth for precious metals and stones, digging deep into the earth's hidden places (e.g., [Job 28:1-11](/job/28-1 "Job 28:1-11 - Human Ingenuity in Mining")). However, it then starkly contrasts this human ingenuity with the utter inability to find wisdom. Verses [Job 28:12-19](/job/28-12 "Job 28:12-19 - Wisdom's Unattainable Price") repeatedly pose the rhetorical question, "But where shall wisdom be found?" and unequivocally state that it cannot be purchased with any earthly treasure, no matter how valuable. Our specific verse, [Job 28:14](/job/28-14 "Job 28:14 - Wisdom Not Found in Depths"), contributes to this negative assertion, eliminating the most remote and hidden parts of creation as potential sources. The chapter culminates in [Job 28:20-28](/job/28-20 "Job 28:20-28 - God's Exclusive Possession of Wisdom"), revealing that only God truly knows the way to wisdom and that for humanity, wisdom lies in the fear of the Lord.
* **Historical & Cultural Context:** In the ancient Near East, mining was a testament to human ingenuity and perseverance, requiring advanced techniques to extract valuable resources from the earth's deepest recesses. The imagery of "the depth" (Hebrew: *tehōm*) and "the sea" (Hebrew: *yam*) would have evoked profound mystery and inaccessibility to an ancient audience. *Tehōm* often referred to the primeval deep or the subterranean waters, symbolizing the farthest reaches below the earth's surface, a place of hidden dangers and unknown secrets. The "sea" represented the vast, uncontrollable, and often terrifying expanse beyond human dominion, a realm of hidden creatures and unfathomable depths. These were the ultimate frontiers of human exploration and knowledge. The cultural value placed on wisdom was immense, often equated with prosperity, good governance, and a flourishing life, as seen throughout [the book of Proverbs](/proverbs/1 "Proverbs 1 - Introduction to Wisdom"). By stating that wisdom is not found even in these most remote and challenging places, the text emphasizes its transcendent nature, placing it beyond all human discovery and acquisition.
* **Key Themes:** This verse powerfully contributes to several overarching themes in Job 28 and the broader book. Firstly, it highlights **The Elusiveness and Inaccessibility of True Wisdom**. Despite humanity's remarkable capacity for exploration and acquisition of earthly treasures, divine wisdom remains utterly beyond its grasp. Secondly, it underscores **Human Limitations and the Finitude of Human Knowledge**. While humans can conquer the physical world to extract riches, there are profound boundaries to what they can discover or acquire independently, especially regarding ultimate truth and understanding. This contrasts sharply with God's omniscient knowledge, as detailed in [Job 28:23-24](/job/28-23 "Job 28:23-24 - God's Understanding of Wisdom"). Finally, by stating where wisdom is *not* found, the poem implicitly points to the **Divine Origin and Exclusive Possession of Wisdom**. If wisdom is not found in creation, it must reside with the Creator. This theme is explicitly stated in [Job 28:23](/job/28-23 "Job 28:23 - God Understands Wisdom's Way") and culminates in the declaration that "the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding" ([Job 28:28](/job/28-28 "Job 28:28 - The Fear of the Lord is Wisdom")).

### EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
#### Key Word Analysis
* **Depth (Hebrew, _təhōm'_):** This term refers to the primeval deep, the abyss, or the subterranean waters. In biblical cosmology, it often signifies the chaotic, untamed, and mysterious waters beneath the earth's surface, or the vast, unfathomable deep. Its use here emphasizes the most remote and hidden places imaginable, far beyond human reach, yet even there, wisdom is absent.
* **Sea (Hebrew, _yam'_):** The sea represents the vast, unknown, and often dangerous expanse of water. For ancient peoples, the sea was a symbol of immense power, mystery, and hidden things, often associated with chaos and forces beyond human control. By pairing "depth" and "sea," the text covers the entirety of the hidden, inaccessible realms of creation, both below the earth and across its surface.
* **Saith (Hebrew, _ʾāmar'_):** The verb "saith" (or "says") is crucial as it personifies "the depth" and "the sea." It attributes speech and conscious denial to these inanimate, vast entities. This personification elevates the declaration, making it a universal, self-evident truth proclaimed by creation itself, rather than merely a human observation.

#### Verse Breakdown
* **"The depth saith, It [is] not in me":** This clause personifies the subterranean abyss, the deepest and most hidden parts of the earth, as speaking. It emphatically denies that wisdom resides within its vast, mysterious confines, no matter how deeply humanity might delve or how many secrets it might uncover from the earth. The "depth" itself, a symbol of ultimate hiddenness, confesses its lack of wisdom.
* **"and the sea saith, [It is] not with me":** Similarly, this clause personifies the immense and unfathomable ocean. The sea, with its boundless expanse and countless hidden wonders, also declares its inability to contain or provide wisdom. Together, "the depth" and "the sea" represent the totality of the created world's most inaccessible and mysterious realms, highlighting that wisdom transcends all physical boundaries and earthly discovery.

#### Literary Devices
Job 28:14 masterfully employs **Personification**, attributing human speech and denial to inanimate entities—"the depth" and "the sea." This device lends a profound sense of authority and universality to the declaration that wisdom is not found in the created world. By having these ultimate symbols of mystery and inaccessibility explicitly disavow possession of wisdom, the text powerfully emphasizes its transcendent nature. The pairing of "the depth" and "the sea" also functions as a **Merism**, a rhetorical device where two contrasting parts represent a whole (in this case, all of creation's hidden and vast realms). This merism underscores the comprehensive scope of wisdom's absence from the material world. The repeated negation ("not in me," "not with me") serves as **Repetition** for emphasis, driving home the point that wisdom cannot be found through any human exploration or acquisition of earthly treasures.

### THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Job 28:14 serves as a crucial theological statement about the nature and source of wisdom. It distinguishes between human knowledge, which can explore and extract from the physical world, and divine wisdom, which remains utterly beyond human grasp and acquisition. This verse sets the stage for the chapter's conclusion: true wisdom is not a commodity to be found or bought, but a divine attribute revealed by God. It aligns with the broader biblical understanding that genuine wisdom originates from God alone and is rooted in a right relationship with Him. This concept is foundational to the wisdom literature, emphasizing that human ingenuity, while impressive, is ultimately limited in its ability to comprehend ultimate truth or secure true understanding apart from divine revelation.
* [Proverbs 2:6](/proverbs/2-6 "Proverbs 2:6 - Wisdom Comes from the Lord")
* [James 1:5](/james/1-5 "James 1:5 - Asking God for Wisdom")
* [Proverbs 8:22-31](/proverbs/8-22 "Proverbs 8:22-31 - Wisdom's Pre-existence with God")

### REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Job 28:14 calls us to a profound humility in our pursuit of knowledge and understanding. In a world that often equates wisdom with intellectual achievement, scientific discovery, or accumulated wealth, this verse reminds us that the deepest truths about life, purpose, and reality cannot be unearthed by human effort alone, nor can they be purchased with any earthly currency. It challenges us to recognize the limits of our own capabilities and to acknowledge that true, life-giving wisdom resides beyond the material realm. This should lead us away from self-reliance and toward a posture of dependence on God, who alone possesses and bestows wisdom. Our most diligent searches in the "depths" of human knowledge or the "seas" of worldly experience will ultimately fall short if we neglect the divine source. It compels us to prioritize seeking God's wisdom, which begins with reverence for Him and a commitment to living righteously.

#### Questions for Reflection
* **In what areas of my life do I tend to seek wisdom or answers apart from God?**
* **How does the elusiveness of wisdom, as described in Job 28:14, challenge my assumptions about human capability and self-sufficiency?**
* **What practical steps can I take to cultivate a greater reliance on God as the source of true wisdom in my daily decisions and understanding?**

### FAQ
**Why is wisdom portrayed as so difficult to find in Job 28?**

Answer: Wisdom is portrayed as difficult, indeed impossible, to find through human means in Job 28 to emphasize its divine origin and transcendent nature. The chapter contrasts humanity's remarkable ability to extract earthly treasures with its utter inability to discover or purchase true wisdom. This highlights that genuine wisdom is not a material commodity, a scientific discovery, or a philosophical construct that can be unearthed or acquired by human effort. Instead, it is a spiritual and divine attribute, exclusively possessed by God and revealed by Him to those who fear Him ([Job 28:23-28](/job/28-23 "Job 28:23-28 - God's Wisdom and Human Fear")). The difficulty underscores that true understanding of life's deepest mysteries and God's ways is beyond human capacity alone.

### CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
While Job 28:14 declares that wisdom is not found in the depths of creation, the New Testament reveals that this elusive, divine wisdom is fully embodied and made accessible in Jesus Christ. The Old Testament's search for wisdom culminates in Him, for He is "the power of God and the wisdom of God" ([1 Corinthians 1:24](/1_corinthians/1-24 "1 Corinthians 1:24 - Christ, the Wisdom of God")). In Christ, "are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" ([Colossians 2:3](/colossians/2-3 "Colossians 2:3 - Christ, in Whom are Hidden All Treasures of Wisdom")). The very wisdom that the "depth" and "sea" could not contain or reveal is perfectly manifested in the Son of God, who came down from heaven to reveal the Father's truth. He is the pre-existent wisdom personified, through whom all things were created ([Proverbs 8:22-31](/proverbs/8-22 "Proverbs 8:22-31 - Wisdom's Role in Creation"); [John 1:1-3](/john/1-1 "John 1:1-3 - The Word Was God and Creator")). Therefore, the ultimate fulfillment of humanity's quest for wisdom is not in exploring the physical world, but in knowing Christ, for "Christ Jesus... has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption" ([1 Corinthians 1:30](/1_corinthians/1-30 "1 Corinthians 1:30 - Christ Our Wisdom, Righteousness, Holiness, and Redemption")).

Note: Commentary is generated by AI with a directive for Biblical fidelity. Always rely on the Holy Spirit for discernment. The Scripture text and cross-references are from verified, non-AI sources.

Cross-References

Romans 11:33

¶ O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable [are] his judgments, and his ways past finding out!

Romans 11:34

For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor?