What Does Job 28:28 Mean in the King James?
And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The verse locates wisdom in awe of the LORD and understanding in the turn away from evil, so discernment is revealed by the direction it takes.
THE MEANING
Your wisdom begins in awe of the LORD, a recognition that shapes what counts as wisdom within you. Understanding takes form as a turn away from evil: it is discernment that changes direction, not only the ability to name what is wrong.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the belief that understanding is complete once evil is recognized; here, understanding includes departing from it.
THE ROOT
יִרְאַת
yir'at
GROWS FROM
ירא
To fear, revere, or stand in awe.
The root holds more than alarm: it includes awe and reverence before the LORD. Wisdom begins in that stance of recognition, so “fear” carries a depth of regard that English can leave hidden.
ALSO GROWS
yare: To fear, revere, or stand in awe.
יָרֵא
The related verb shows that awe is a lived stance, not only an idea about God.
mora: Awe, reverence, or dread.
מוֹרָא
This branch preserves the root’s range from reverence to fearsome weight.
סוּר
sur
GROWS FROM
סור
To turn aside or depart; in a causative form, to remove.
“to depart” in this verse is sur. “Depart” carries the motion of turning aside, while related forms can mean removing something. Paired with understanding, the word makes discernment a change in direction, not simply an inward judgment.
ALSO GROWS
sar: Turning aside or departing.
סָר
This form makes the movement away from evil visible in the root itself.
hesir: Removed or took away.
הֵסִיר
The causative form links turning aside with removing what is in the way.
בִּינָה
binah
GROWS FROM
בין
To discern or distinguish, with the sense of seeing what is between.
English “understanding” can sound like knowledge held in the mind; this root also carries the act of distinguishing one thing from another. In the verse, that discernment becomes visible as a turn away from evil.
ALSO GROWS
bein: Between.
בֵּין
The related word points to the distinctions discernment makes.
mevin: One who discerns or understands.
מֵבִין
This form shows understanding as the active capacity to distinguish.
THE PATTERN
Awe of the LORD takes practical form in turning away from evil and cleaving to what is good.
Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.THE THREAD
Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.Psalm 34:14 uses the same Hebrew verb, סוּר (sur), meaning “turn aside” or “depart.” It joins that turning with doing good and pursuing wholeness, showing understanding as a change of course that opens toward what is good.
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