Job 12:2

"Then Job answered,"

Key Reflection

In Job 12:2, Job responds to a challenge from Eliphaz, asserting that wisdom and understanding are not limited to him and his friends. This statement reflects the broader cultural context of ancient Israel, where wisdom was often seen as a divine gift or attribute of specific individuals. By saying "No doubt, but you are the people, and wisdom will die with you," Job suggests that true wisdom is not confined to their narrow circle; it can be found elsewhere. This assertion challenges the conventional wisdom held by his friends who believed they possessed exclusive insight from God.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

No doubt but ye are the people -That is, the only wise people. You have engrossed all the wisdom of the world, and all else are to be regarded as fools. This is evidently the language of severe sarcasm; and it shows a spirit fretted and chafed by their reproaches. Job felt contempt for their reasoning. and meant to intimate that their maxims, on which they placed so much reliance, were common-place, and such as every one was familar with. And wisdom shall die with you -This is ironical, but it is language such as is common perhaps every where. “The people of the East,” says Roberts, “take great pleasure in irony, and some of their satirical sayings are very cutting.

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