Bible Strands
Job 42:3
You asked, ‘Who is this who conceals My counsel without knowledge?’ Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Job addresses God directly at the conclusion of his trials, immediately after affirming that no divine plan can be thwarted. This response closes the dialogue following God’s speeches.
The words — The Hebrew מַעְלִים (ma'lim) translates to "concealing," while עֵצָ֗ה ('etzah) means "counsel." Job admits he spoke of matters he did not understand.
The thread — This tension between human ignorance and divine counsel appears in Job 38:2, where God questions who obscures His counsel without knowledge. It also aligns with Psalm 139:6, which notes knowledge too lofty to attain.
Why it lands — The text requires readers to accept the boundary between human understanding and divine purposes. It demands admission of ignorance rather than insistence on full comprehension.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge? therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not.
Cross-references
- Job 38:2 “Who is this who obscures My counsel by words without knowledge?
- Psalms 131:1 A song of ascents. Of David. My heart is not proud, O LORD, my eyes are not haughty. I do not aspire to great things or matters too lofty for me.
- Psalms 139:6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.
- Psalms 40:5 Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders You have done, and the plans You have for us—none can compare to You—if I proclaim and declare them, they are more than I can count.
- Proverbs 30:2 Surely I am the most ignorant of men, and I lack the understanding of a man.