Job 28
1 Truly there is a vein for silver, And a place for gold, which men refine.
For there is a place for the silver, whence it comes, and a place for the gold, whence it is refined.
2 Iron is obtained from earth, And stone is melted into copper.
For iron comes out of the earth, and brass is hewn out like stone.
3 Man putteth an end to darkness; He searcheth to the lowest depths For the stone of darkness and the shadow of death.
He has set a bound to darkness, and he searches out every limit: a stone [is] darkness, and the shadow of death.
4 From the place where they dwell they open a shaft; Forgotten by the feet, They hang down, they swing away from men.
There is a cutting off the torrent by reason of dust: so they that forget the right way are weakened; they are removed from [among] men.
5 The earth, out of which cometh bread, Is torn up underneath, as it were by fire.
[As for] the earth, out of it shall come bread: under it has been turned up as it were fire.
6 Her stones are the place of sapphires, And she hath clods of gold for man.
Her stones are the place of the sapphire: and [her] dust [supplies] man with gold.
7 The path thereto no bird knoweth, And the vulture's eye hath not seen it;
[There is] a path, the fowl has not known it, neither has the eye of the vulture seen it:
8 The fierce wild beast hath not trodden it; The lion hath not passed over it.
neither have the sons of the proud trodden it, a lion has not passed upon it.
9 Man layeth his hand upon the rock; He upturneth mountains from their roots;
He has stretched forth his hand on the sharp [rock], and turned up mountains by the roots:
10 He cleaveth out streams in the rocks, And his eye seeth every precious thing;
and he has interrupted the whirlpools of rivers, and mine eye has seen every precious thing.
11 He bindeth up the streams, that they trickle not, And bringeth hidden things to light.
And he has laid bare the depths of rivers, and has brought his power to light.
12 But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?
But whence has wisdom been discovered? and what is the place of knowledge?
13 Man knoweth not the price thereof, Nor can it be found in the land of the living.
A mortal has not known its way, neither indeed has it been discovered among men.
14 The deep saith, It is not in me; And the sea saith, It is not with me.
The depth said, It is not in me: and the sea said, It is not with me.
15 It cannot be gotten for gold, Nor shall silver be weighed out as the price thereof.
One shall not give fine gold instead of it, neither shall silver be weighed in exchange for it.
16 It cannot be bought with the gold of Ophir, With the precious onyx or the sapphire.
Neither shall it be compared with gold of Sophir, with the precious onyx and sapphire.
17 Gold and crystal are not to be compared with it; Nor can it be purchased with jewels of fine gold.
Gold and crystal shall not be equalled to it, neither shall vessels of gold be its exchange.
18 No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal; For wisdom is more precious than pearls.
Coral and fine pearl shall not be mentioned: but do you esteem wisdom above the most precious things.
19 The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it, Nor can it be purchased with pure gold.
The topaz of Ethiopia shall not be equalled to it; it shall not be compared with pure gold.
20 Whence then cometh wisdom? And where is the place of understanding?
Whence then is wisdom found? and of what kind is the place of understanding?
21 Since it is hidden from the eyes of all living, And kept close from the fowls of the air.
It has escaped the notice of every man, and has been hidden from the birds of the sky.
22 Destruction and Death say, We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.
Destruction and Death said, We have heard the report of it.
23 God knoweth the way to it; He knoweth its dwelling-place.
God has well ordered the way of it, and he knows the place of it.
24 For he seeth to the ends of the earth, And surveyeth all things under the whole heaven.
For he surveys the whole [earth] under heaven, knowing the things in the earth:
25 When he gave the winds their weight, And meted out the waters by measure;
all that he has made; the weight of the winds, the measures of the water.
26 When he prescribed a law to the rain, And a path to the thunder-flash, —
When he made [them], thus he saw and numbered them, and made a way for the pealing of the thunder.
27 Then did he see it, and make it known; He established it, and searched it out.
Then he saw it, and declared it: he prepared it [and] traced it out.
28 But he said unto man, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, And to depart from evil is understanding.
And he said to man, Behold, godliness is wisdom: and to abstain from evil is understanding.
