< Job 28 >

1 “Surely there is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined.
Silver has its fissures where it is first found, and gold has a place where it is melted.
2 Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore.
Iron is taken from the earth, and ore, unbound by heat, is turned into brass.
3 Man puts an end to the darkness; he probes the farthest recesses for ore in deepest darkness.
He has established a time for darkness, and he has settled on an end for all things, as well as for the stone that is in the gloom and shadow of death.
4 Far from human habitation he cuts a shaft in places forgotten by the foot of man. Far from men he dangles and sways.
The burning separates a pilgrim people from those who have been forgotten by the feet of the destitute man and from the unapproachable.
5 Food may come from the earth, but from below it is transformed as by fire.
The land, where bread appeared in its place, has been destroyed by fire.
6 Its rocks are the source of sapphires, containing flecks of gold.
Its stones are embedded with sapphires, and its soil, with gold.
7 No bird of prey knows that path; no falcon’s eye has seen it.
The bird does not know its path, nor has the eye of the vulture beheld it.
8 Proud beasts have never trodden it; no lion has ever prowled over it.
The sons of merchants have not walked there, nor has the lioness traveled through it.
9 The miner strikes the flint; he overturns mountains at their base.
He has stretched out his hand to the rocks; he has overturned the foundations of the mountains.
10 He hews out channels in the rocks, and his eyes spot every treasure.
He has cut rivers through the rocks, and his eye has seen all precious things.
11 He stops up the sources of the streams to bring what is hidden to light.
The depths of rivers he has also examined, and he has brought hidden things into the light.
12 But where can wisdom be found, and where does understanding dwell?
But, in truth, where is wisdom to be found, and where is the place of understanding?
13 No man can know its value, nor is it found in the land of the living.
Man does not know its price, nor is it found in the land of those who live in sweetness.
14 The ocean depths say, ‘It is not in me,’ while the sea declares, ‘It is not with me.’
The abyss declares, “It is not in me.” And the sea says, “It is not with me.”
15 It cannot be bought with gold, nor can its price be weighed out in silver.
The finest gold will not be paid for it, nor will silver be weighed in exchange for it.
16 It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire.
It will not be compared with the dyed colors of India, nor with the very costly stone sardonyx, nor with the sapphire.
17 Neither gold nor crystal can compare to it, nor jewels of fine gold be exchanged for it.
Neither gold nor crystal will be its equal; neither will vessels of gold be fitted for it.
18 Coral and quartz are unworthy of mention; the price of wisdom is beyond rubies.
The exalted and the eminent will not be remembered in comparison with it. Yet wisdom is drawn out of concealment.
19 Topaz from Cush cannot compare to it, nor can it be valued in pure gold.
The topaz of Ethiopia will not be equal to it, nor will it be compared to the purest dyes.
20 From where then does wisdom come, and where does understanding dwell?
So then, where does wisdom begin, and where is the place of understanding?
21 It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing and concealed from the birds of the air.
It has been hidden from the eyes of all living things, just as the birds of the heavens escape notice.
22 Abaddon and Death say, ‘We have heard a rumor about it.’
Perdition and death have said, “With our ears, we have heard its fame.”
23 But God understands its way, and He knows its place.
God understands its way, and he knows its location.
24 For He looks to the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens.
For he beholds the limits of the world, and he looks upon all things that are under heaven.
25 When God fixed the weight of the wind and measured out the waters,
He created a counterweight for the winds, and he suspended the waters to measure them.
26 when He set a limit for the rain and a path for the thunderbolt,
At that time, he gave a law to the rain and a path to the resounding storms.
27 then He looked at wisdom and appraised it; He established it and searched it out.
Then he saw and explained it, and he made ready and examined it.
28 And He said to man, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’”
And he said to man, “Behold the fear of the Lord. Such is wisdom. And to withdraw from evil, this is understanding.”

< Job 28 >