Job 28
1 Habet argentum venarum suarum principia, et auro locus est in quo conflatur.
Truly there is a vein for silver, And a place for gold, which men refine.
2 Ferrum de terra tollitur, et lapis solutus calore in æs vertitur.
Iron is obtained from earth, And stone is melted into copper.
3 Tempus posuit tenebris, et universorum finem ipse considerat: lapidem quoque caliginis et umbram mortis.
Man putteth an end to darkness; He searcheth to the lowest depths For the stone of darkness and the shadow of death.
4 Dividit torrens a populo peregrinante eos quos oblitus est pes egentis hominis, et invios.
From the place where they dwell they open a shaft; Forgotten by the feet, They hang down, they swing away from men.
5 Terra de qua oriebatur panis, in loco suo igni subversa est.
The earth, out of which cometh bread, Is torn up underneath, as it were by fire.
6 Locus sapphiri lapides ejus, et glebæ illius aurum.
Her stones are the place of sapphires, And she hath clods of gold for man.
7 Semitam ignoravit avis, nec intuitus est eam oculus vulturis.
The path thereto no bird knoweth, And the vulture's eye hath not seen it;
8 Non calcaverunt eam filii institorum, nec pertransivit per eam leæna.
The fierce wild beast hath not trodden it; The lion hath not passed over it.
9 Ad silicem extendit manum suam: subvertit a radicibus montes.
Man layeth his hand upon the rock; He upturneth mountains from their roots;
10 In petris rivos excidit, et omne pretiosum vidit oculus ejus.
He cleaveth out streams in the rocks, And his eye seeth every precious thing;
11 Profunda quoque fluviorum scrutatus est, et abscondita in lucem produxit.
He bindeth up the streams, that they trickle not, And bringeth hidden things to light.
12 Sapientia vero ubi invenitur? et quis est locus intelligentiæ?
But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?
13 Nescit homo pretium ejus, nec invenitur in terra suaviter viventium.
Man knoweth not the price thereof, Nor can it be found in the land of the living.
14 Abyssus dicit: Non est in me, et mare loquitur: Non est mecum.
The deep saith, It is not in me; And the sea saith, It is not with me.
15 Non dabitur aurum obrizum pro ea, nec appendetur argentum in commutatione ejus.
It cannot be gotten for gold, Nor shall silver be weighed out as the price thereof.
16 Non conferetur tinctis Indiæ coloribus, nec lapidi sardonycho pretiosissimo vel sapphiro.
It cannot be bought with the gold of Ophir, With the precious onyx or the sapphire.
17 Non adæquabitur ei aurum vel vitrum, nec commutabuntur pro ea vasa auri.
Gold and crystal are not to be compared with it; Nor can it be purchased with jewels of fine gold.
18 Excelsa et eminentia non memorabuntur comparatione ejus: trahitur autem sapientia de occultis.
No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal; For wisdom is more precious than pearls.
19 Non adæquabitur ei topazius de Æthiopia, nec tincturæ mundissimæ componetur.
The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it, Nor can it be purchased with pure gold.
20 Unde ergo sapientia venit? et quis est locus intelligentiæ?
Whence then cometh wisdom? And where is the place of understanding?
21 Abscondita est ab oculis omnium viventium: volucres quoque cæli latet.
Since it is hidden from the eyes of all living, And kept close from the fowls of the air.
22 Perditio et mors dixerunt: Auribus nostris audivimus famam ejus.
Destruction and Death say, We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.
23 Deus intelligit viam ejus, et ipse novit locum illius.
God knoweth the way to it; He knoweth its dwelling-place.
24 Ipse enim fines mundi intuetur, et omnia quæ sub cælo sunt respicit.
For he seeth to the ends of the earth, And surveyeth all things under the whole heaven.
25 Qui fecit ventis pondus, et aquas appendit in mensura.
When he gave the winds their weight, And meted out the waters by measure;
26 Quando ponebat pluviis legem, et viam procellis sonantibus:
When he prescribed a law to the rain, And a path to the thunder-flash, —
27 tunc vidit illam et enarravit, et præparavit, et investigavit.
Then did he see it, and make it known; He established it, and searched it out.
28 Et dixit homini: Ecce timor Domini, ipsa est sapientia; et recedere a malo, intelligentia.
But he said unto man, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, And to depart from evil is understanding.
