Job 28
1 “Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place for gold which they refine.
The siluer surely hath his veyne, and ye gold his place, where they take it.
2 Iron is taken out of the earth, and copper is smelted out of the ore.
Yron is taken out of the dust, and brasse is molten out of the stone.
3 Man sets an end to darkness, and searches out, to the furthest bound, the stones of obscurity and of thick darkness.
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 He breaks open a shaft away from where people live. They are forgotten by the foot. They hang far from men, they swing back and forth.
The flood breaketh out against the inhabitant, and the waters forgotten of the foote, being higher then man, are gone away.
5 As for the earth, out of it comes bread. Underneath it is turned up as it were by fire.
Out of the same earth commeth bread, and vnder it, as it were fire is turned vp.
6 Sapphires come from its rocks. It has dust of gold.
The stones thereof are a place of saphirs, and the dust of it is golde.
7 That path no bird of prey knows, neither has the falcon’s eye seen it.
There is a path which no foule hath knowen, neyther hath the kites eye seene it.
8 The proud animals have not trodden it, nor has the fierce lion passed by there.
The lyons whelpes haue not walked it, nor the lyon passed thereby.
9 He puts his hand on the flinty rock, and he overturns the mountains by the roots.
He putteth his hand vpon the rockes, and ouerthroweth the mountaines by the rootes.
10 He cuts out channels among the rocks. His eye sees every precious thing.
He breaketh riuers in the rockes, and his eye seeth euery precious thing.
11 He binds the streams that they don’t trickle. The thing that is hidden he brings out to light.
He bindeth the floods, that they doe not ouerflowe, and the thing that is hid, bringeth he to light.
12 “But where will wisdom be found? Where is the place of understanding?
But where is wisdome found? and where is the place of vnderstanding?
13 Man doesn’t know its price, and it isn’t found in the land of the living.
Man knoweth not the price thereof: for it is not found in the land of the liuing.
14 The deep says, ‘It isn’t in me.’ The sea says, ‘It isn’t with me.’
The depth sayth, It is not in mee: the sea also sayth, It is not with me.
15 It can’t be gotten for gold, neither will silver be weighed for its price.
Golde shall not be giuen for it, neyther shall siluer be weighed for the price thereof.
16 It can’t be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire.
It shall not be valued with the wedge of golde of Ophir, nor with the precious onix, nor the saphir.
17 Gold and glass can’t equal it, neither will it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold.
The golde nor the chrystall shall be equall vnto it, nor the exchange shalbe for plate of fine golde.
18 No mention will be made of coral or of crystal. Yes, the price of wisdom is above rubies.
No mention shall be made of coral, nor of the gabish: for wisedome is more precious then pearles.
19 The topaz of Ethiopia will not equal it. It won’t be valued with pure gold.
The Topaz of Ethiopia shall not be equall vnto it, neither shall it be valued with the wedge of pure gold.
20 Where then does wisdom come from? Where is the place of understanding?
Whence then commeth wisedome? and where is the place of vnderstanding,
21 Seeing it is hidden from the eyes of all living, and kept close from the birds of the sky.
Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all the liuing, and is hid from the foules of the heauen?
22 Destruction and Death say, ‘We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.’
Destruction and death say, We haue heard the fame thereof with our eares.
23 “God understands its way, and he knows its place.
But God vnderstandeth the way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof.
24 For he looks to the ends of the earth, and sees under the whole sky.
For he beholdeth the endes of the world, and seeth all that is vnder heauen,
25 He establishes the force of the wind. Yes, he measures out the waters by measure.
To make the weight of the windes, and to weigh the waters by measure.
26 When he made a decree for the rain, and a way for the lightning of the thunder,
When he made a decree for the rayne, and a way for the lightening of the thunders,
27 then he saw it, and declared it. He established it, yes, and searched it out.
Then did he see it, and counted it: he prepared it and also considered it.
28 To man he said, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom. To depart from evil is understanding.’”
And vnto man he said, Behold, the feare of the Lord is wisedome, and to depart from euil is vnderstanding.
