Job 28
1 Though there is, for silver, a vein, and a place for the gold they refine;
“It is true that there are places where men dig to find silver, and there are places where people refine/purify gold [that they have dug].
2 Iron, out of the ore, is taken, and, stone, poureth out copper;
People dig iron [ore] out of the ground, and they (smelt copper ore/heat copper ore to get the copper from it).
3 An end, hath one set to the darkness, and, into every extremity, is, he, making search, for the stone of darkness and death-shade;
Men use lamps while they work far down under the ground to search for the ore inside the mines where it is very dark.
4 He hath sunken a shaft, away from the inhabitants; Places forsaken by the foot, they hang down, away from men, sway to and fro;
They dig (shafts/narrow holes very deep down into the ground) in places that are far from where people live, where travelers do not go. They work far away from [other] people, swinging back and forth on ropes [as they descend into the mine shafts].
5 As for the earth, out of it, cometh forth bread, and, under it, is upturned, as it were fire;
Food grows on the surface of the ground, but down under the ground, [where there is no food, ] the miners make fires to break apart the rocks.
6 The place of sapphires, are the stones thereof, and it hath, nuggets of gold: —
The stones [that are dug from under the ground] contain (sapphires/very valuable blue stones), and the dirt contains bits of gold.
7 A path, the vulture hath not discerned, nor hath the eye of the hawk scanned it;
[Some birds have very good eyes, ] but even hawks do not know [where the mines are], and falcons/vultures have not seen those places.
8 Ravenous beasts have not made a track thereof, neither hath the lion marched thereon:
Lions or [other] proud wild animals have not walked on the roads near those mines.
9 Upon the flint, hath he thrust forth his hand, He hath turned up mountains by the roots;
Miners tear apart [MTY] very hard rock; [it is as though] they turn the mountains upside down [to get the ore].
10 Among the rocks, hath he cut open streams, and, every precious thing, hath his eye seen:
They cut tunnels through the rocks, and they find (precious/very valuable) things.
11 From trickling, he restraineth, rivers, and, some hidden thing, is he bringing out to light.
They dam up small streams in order that water does not flow, and they bring up into the light valuable things that are hidden [in the ground and in the streams].
12 Yet where can, Wisdom, be found? And where is the place of understanding?
“But wisdom: Where can people find that? Where can we find out how to truly understand things?
13 Mortal knoweth not the way thereof, neither can it be found in the land of the living;
Humans do not know where to find it; no one can find it [here on this earth] where they are living.
14 The resounding deep, hath said, It is not in me! And, the sea, hath said, It is not with me!
[It is as though] water that is deep [inside the earth] and [water that is in] the seas say [PRS], ‘Wisdom is not here!’
15 Pure gold cannot be given in its stead, neither can silver he weighed as the value thereof;
[People] cannot buy wisdom by paying for it with silver or gold.
16 It cannot be put into the scales against the gold of Ophir, with costly onyx, or sapphire;
Wisdom is worth much more than fine gold from Ophir [land] or other very valuable stones.
17 Neither gold nor crystal can compare with it, nor can, the exchange thereof, be a vessel of pure gold,
It is worth much more than gold or beautiful glass, worth more than vases made from fine gold.
18 Coral or crystal, cannot be mentioned, Yea, a possession, is wisdom, above red coral;
Wisdom is worth more than coral or crystal/pure quartz; the price of wisdom is higher/more than the price of pearls.
19 The topaz of Ethiopia cannot compare with it, Against purest gold, can it not be weighed.
The prices of (topaz/very valuable yellow stones) from Ethiopia and of pure gold are lower/less than the price of wisdom.
20 Whence then cometh, wisdom? And where is the place of understanding?
“So, where does wisdom come from? Where can we find out how to truly understand things?
21 Seeing it hath been hid from the eyes of every living thing, and, from the bird of the heavens, hath it been concealed?
No living humans can see it [MTY]; and birds cannot see it while they are flying [MTY].
22 Destruction and death, have said, With our ears, have we heard the report thereof!
[It is as though] the places where people go after they die say [PRS], ‘We have only heard rumors about [where to find wisdom].’
23 GOD, understandeth the way thereof, and, he, discerneth the place thereof;
God [is the only one who] knows how to find wisdom; he knows where it is,
24 For, he, unto the ends of the earth, directeth his look, under all the heavens, he seeth;
because he can see things even in the most remote/distant places on the earth; he can see everything that is below the sky.
25 Making, for the wind, a weight, and, the waters, he proved by measure,
When he decided how strongly the winds should blow, and how much rain would be in the clouds,
26 When he made, for the rain, a decree, and a way for the lightning of thunders,
and when he decided where rain [should fall], and what path lightning should take [from the clouds down to the ground],
27 Then, saw he it, and declared it, He settled it, yea also he searched it out;
at that time he saw wisdom and decided that it is extremely valuable. He examined it and (approved it/said that it was very good).
28 And said to the son of earth, Lo! the reverence of the Lord, that, is wisdom, and, to avoid evil, is understanding.
And [then] he said to humans, ‘Listen! To have an awesome respect for me is [what will enable you to become] wise; and to truly understand everything, you must first turn away from doing what is evil.’”
