Job 28:20 Commentary and Bible Study

Is there no such thing as wisdom then, or is it not available to mortal man? Are there any among the sons of men who know where to find it? It cannot be found by any amount of effort or natural skill. It is not something that can be obtained by any natural gift which some possess and others do not. It is not to be found in the great libraries of the world or places of learning; the universities cannot teach it. Man left to his own devices for hundreds of years could not discover it, and the Greek philosophers, who thought out so much by reason alone, did not find it. There is not a single living soul who has it in their power to give wisdom and therefore it is pointless to set out on some long journey to visit some wise man, some guru who has the secret. The birds of the air with their sharpest of all vision are unable to report its whereabouts. The suspense builds up as Job exhausts the list of possible sources of this surpassing treasure.