Job 28:19

Topaz from Cush cannot compare to it, nor can it be valued in pure gold.

Berean Standard Bible

Study note

Setting — The speaker addresses the audience within Job 28, a poetic discourse examining the nature and location of wisdom. This verse appears between two rhetorical questions about wisdom's origin and its supreme value.

The words — יַ֭עַרְכֶ/נָּה (Ya.'ar.khe./nah) translates literally as "it will be comparable," while תְסֻלֶּֽה (te.su.Leh) means "it will be paid" or valued. These verbs frame the verse's claim that material wealth cannot match or purchase wisdom.

The thread — The contrast between wisdom and precious materials appears in Proverbs 8:19, which states wisdom's fruit surpasses pure gold. The mention of topaz also echoes Exodus 28:17 and Exodus 39:10, where topaz is listed among the high priest's gemstones.

Why it lands — The text declares that Cushite topaz and pure gold cannot equal or purchase wisdom, placing material value in direct opposition to spiritual understanding. The reader must decide whether to pursue tangible wealth or seek the source of true understanding.

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The Hebrew words

לֹֽא־lo'-not יַ֭עַרְכֶנָּהYa.'ar.khe./nahit will be comparable to/ it פִּטְדַת־pit.dat-<the> topaz of כּ֑וּשׁKushCush בְּכֶ֥תֶםbe./Khe.temin/ gold טָ֝ה֗וֹרta.Horpure לֹ֣אlo'not תְסֻלֶּֽה׃ פte.su.Lehit will be paid

King James Version

The topaz of Ethiopia shall not equal it, neither shall it be valued with pure gold.

Cross-references

Exodus 28:17 And mount on it a setting of gemstones, four rows of stones: In the first row there shall be a ruby, a topaz, and an emerald;
Exodus 39:10 And they mounted on it four rows of gemstones: The first row had a ruby, a topaz, and an emerald;
Proverbs 8:19 My fruit is better than gold, pure gold, and my harvest surpasses choice silver.
Ezekiel 28:13 You were in Eden, the garden of God. Every kind of precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, turquoise, and emerald. Your mountings and settings were crafted in gold, prepared on the day of your creation.
Revelation 21:20 the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.