Job 28
1 Silver hath beginnings of its veins, and gold hath a place wherein it is melted.
There are silver mines and places where gold is refined.
2 Iron is taken out of the earth, and stone melted with heat is turned into brass.
Iron is extracted from the earth and copper is smelted from its ore.
3 He hath set a time for darkness, and the end of all things he considereth, the stone also that is in the dark and the shadow of death.
Miners take lamps into the darkness underground and search for ore as far as they can go in the shadows and the gloom.
4 The flood divideth from the people that are on their journey, those whom the food of the needy man hath forgotten, and who cannot be come at.
They dig a mineshaft far from where people live or anyone ever goes. They swing from ropes that hang in the pits.
5 The land, out of which bread grew in its place, hath been overturned with fire.
Bread comes from the earth, but underneath it looks as if it has been turned upside-down by fire.
6 The stones of it are the place of sapphires, and the clods of it are gold.
Here the rocks contain lapis lazuli and the dust contains gold.
7 The bird hath not known the path, neither hath the eye of the vulture beheld it.
No birds of prey can see these paths, no falcon's eye can perceive.
8 The children of the merchants have not trodden it, neither hath the lioness passed by it.
No wild beasts have passed that way; the lion has not walked there.
9 He hath stretched forth his hand to the flint, he hath overturned mountains from the roots.
Miners attack the hard rock; they overturn the roots of mountains.
10 In the rocks he hath cut out rivers, and his eye hath seen every precious thing.
They tunnel through the rock, looking carefully for every precious stone.
11 The depths also of rivers he hath searched, and hidden things he hath brought forth to light.
They dam the sources of the rivers, and bring to light what is hidden.
12 But where is wisdom to be found, and where is the place of understanding?
But where can wisdom be found? Where is the place to gain understanding?
13 Man knoweth not the price thereof, neither is it found in the land of them that live in delights.
Human beings do not know the way to wisdom; it is not found among the living.
14 The depth saith: It is not in me: and the sea saith: It is not with me.
The deep waters say, ‘It's not here,’ and the sea says, ‘It's not here either.’
15 The finest gold shall not purchase it, neither shall silver be weighed in exchange for it.
It cannot be bought with gold; nor can it be purchased with silver.
16 It shall not be compared with the dyed colours of India, or with the most precious stone sardonyx, or the sapphire.
Its value cannot be measured, even with the gold of Ophir; it is more precious than onyx or lapis lazuli.
17 Gold or crystal cannot equal it, neither shall any vessels of gold be changed for it.
Gold or fine glass cannot compare with wisdom; it cannot be exchanged for gold jewelry.
18 High and eminent things shall not be mentioned in comparison of it: but wisdom is drawn out of secret places.
Coral and crystal are not worth mentioning; the price of wisdom is far above rubies.
19 The topaz of Ethiopia shall not be equal to it, neither shall it be compared to the cleanest dyeing.
Topaz from Ethiopia can't compare with it; it cannot be bought with the purest gold.
20 Whence then cometh wisdom? and where is the place of understanding?
So where does wisdom come from? Where is the place to gain understanding?
21 It is hid from the eyes of all living. and the fowls of the air know it not.
Wisdom is hidden from the sight of all living things, even the birds of the air cannot see it.
22 Destruction and death have said: With our ears we have heard the fame thereof.
Abaddon and Death say, ‘We've only heard a rumor of it.’
23 God understandeth the way of it, and he knoweth the place thereof.
Only God understands the path to wisdom; he knows where it is found.
24 For he beholdeth the ends of the world: and looketh on all things that are under heaven.
For he looks to the very end of the earth; he sees everything under heaven.
25 Who made a weight for the winds and weighed the waters by measure.
He decided how strong the wind should blow, and regulated the waters.
26 When he gave a law for the rain, and a way for the sounding storms.
He set a limit for the rain and made a path for the lightning.
27 Then he saw it, and declared, and prepared, and searched it.
Then he considered wisdom. He examined it, gave it his approval, and declared it good.
28 And he said to man: Behold the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom: and to depart from evil, is understanding.
He said to humankind, ‘To reverence the Lord is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’”
