Job 28
1 There are silver mines and places where gold is refined.
The siluer surely hath his veyne, and ye gold his place, where they take it.
2 Iron is extracted from the earth and copper is smelted from its ore.
Yron is taken out of the dust, and brasse is molten out of the stone.
3 Miners take lamps into the darkness underground and search for ore as far as they can go in the shadows and the gloom.
God putteth an end to darkenesse, and he tryeth the perfection of all things: he setteth a bond of darkenesse, and of the shadowe of death.
4 They dig a mineshaft far from where people live or anyone ever goes. They swing from ropes that hang in the pits.
The flood breaketh out against the inhabitant, and the waters forgotten of the foote, being higher then man, are gone away.
5 Bread comes from the earth, but underneath it looks as if it has been turned upside-down by fire.
Out of the same earth commeth bread, and vnder it, as it were fire is turned vp.
6 Here the rocks contain lapis lazuli and the dust contains gold.
The stones thereof are a place of saphirs, and the dust of it is golde.
7 No birds of prey can see these paths, no falcon's eye can perceive.
There is a path which no foule hath knowen, neyther hath the kites eye seene it.
8 No wild beasts have passed that way; the lion has not walked there.
The lyons whelpes haue not walked it, nor the lyon passed thereby.
9 Miners attack the hard rock; they overturn the roots of mountains.
He putteth his hand vpon the rockes, and ouerthroweth the mountaines by the rootes.
10 They tunnel through the rock, looking carefully for every precious stone.
He breaketh riuers in the rockes, and his eye seeth euery precious thing.
11 They dam the sources of the rivers, and bring to light what is hidden.
He bindeth the floods, that they doe not ouerflowe, and the thing that is hid, bringeth he to light.
12 But where can wisdom be found? Where is the place to gain understanding?
But where is wisdome found? and where is the place of vnderstanding?
13 Human beings do not know the way to wisdom; it is not found among the living.
Man knoweth not the price thereof: for it is not found in the land of the liuing.
14 The deep waters say, ‘It's not here,’ and the sea says, ‘It's not here either.’
The depth sayth, It is not in mee: the sea also sayth, It is not with me.
15 It cannot be bought with gold; nor can it be purchased with silver.
Golde shall not be giuen for it, neyther shall siluer be weighed for the price thereof.
16 Its value cannot be measured, even with the gold of Ophir; it is more precious than onyx or lapis lazuli.
It shall not be valued with the wedge of golde of Ophir, nor with the precious onix, nor the saphir.
17 Gold or fine glass cannot compare with wisdom; it cannot be exchanged for gold jewelry.
The golde nor the chrystall shall be equall vnto it, nor the exchange shalbe for plate of fine golde.
18 Coral and crystal are not worth mentioning; the price of wisdom is far above rubies.
No mention shall be made of coral, nor of the gabish: for wisedome is more precious then pearles.
19 Topaz from Ethiopia can't compare with it; it cannot be bought with the purest gold.
The Topaz of Ethiopia shall not be equall vnto it, neither shall it be valued with the wedge of pure gold.
20 So where does wisdom come from? Where is the place to gain understanding?
Whence then commeth wisedome? and where is the place of vnderstanding,
21 Wisdom is hidden from the sight of all living things, even the birds of the air cannot see it.
Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all the liuing, and is hid from the foules of the heauen?
22 Abaddon and Death say, ‘We've only heard a rumor of it.’
Destruction and death say, We haue heard the fame thereof with our eares.
23 Only God understands the path to wisdom; he knows where it is found.
But God vnderstandeth the way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof.
24 For he looks to the very end of the earth; he sees everything under heaven.
For he beholdeth the endes of the world, and seeth all that is vnder heauen,
25 He decided how strong the wind should blow, and regulated the waters.
To make the weight of the windes, and to weigh the waters by measure.
26 He set a limit for the rain and made a path for the lightning.
When he made a decree for the rayne, and a way for the lightening of the thunders,
27 Then he considered wisdom. He examined it, gave it his approval, and declared it good.
Then did he see it, and counted it: he prepared it and also considered it.
28 He said to humankind, ‘To reverence the Lord is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’”
And vnto man he said, Behold, the feare of the Lord is wisedome, and to depart from euil is vnderstanding.
