Job 11:8
It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell; what canst thou know?
Original Language Analysis
שָׁ֭מַיִם
as heaven
H8064
שָׁ֭מַיִם
as heaven
Strong's:
H8064
Word #:
2 of 8
the sky (as aloft; the dual perhaps alluding to the visible arch in which the clouds move, as well as to the higher ether where the celestial bodies r
מַה
H4100
מַה
Strong's:
H4100
Word #:
3 of 8
properly, interrogative what? (including how? why? when?); but also exclamation, what! (including how!), or indefinitely what (including whatever, and
תִּפְעָ֑ל
what canst thou do
H6466
תִּפְעָ֑ל
what canst thou do
Strong's:
H6466
Word #:
4 of 8
to do or make (systematically and habitually), especially to practise
מִ֝שְּׁא֗וֹל
than hell
H7585
מִ֝שְּׁא֗וֹל
than hell
Strong's:
H7585
Word #:
6 of 8
hades or the world of the dead (as if a subterranean retreat), including its accessories and inmates
Cross References
Job 22:12Is not God in the height of heaven? and behold the height of the stars, how high they are!Isaiah 55:9For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.Job 35:5Look unto the heavens, and see; and behold the clouds which are higher than thou.Job 26:6Hell is naked before him, and destruction hath no covering.Amos 9:2Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down:
Historical Context
Ancient cosmology understood the heavens as God's dwelling and Sheol as the realm of the dead—the extremes of the universe. Zophar's rhetoric would resonate with this worldview, emphasizing the vast distance between divine and human knowledge.
Questions for Reflection
- How do we acknowledge the limits of our understanding while still bringing our questions to God?
- What is the difference between humble agnosticism about God's ways and cynical dismissal of His goodness?
Related Resources
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Analysis & Commentary
This verse extends the incomprehensibility theme from verse 7. 'Heaven' (שָׁמַיִם, shamayim) and 'hell' (שְׁאוֹל, she'ol—the grave, the depths) form a merism expressing totality—God's understanding encompasses all reality from highest to lowest. 'What canst thou do? what canst thou know?' emphasizes human limitation. The theology is sound: God's wisdom infinitely exceeds ours (Isaiah 55:8-9, Romans 11:33). However, Zophar uses this truth to delegitimize Job's questions rather than to cultivate humble wonder. The Reformed tradition affirms both God's incomprehensibility (finitum non capax infiniti) and His self-revelation in Scripture and Christ.