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Job 28
1599 Geneva Bible
Job 28
1599 Geneva Bible
28 Job showeth that the wisdom of God is unsearchable.
1 The silver surely hath his vein, [a]and the gold his palace, where they take it.
2 Iron is taken out of the dust, and brass is molten out of the stone.
3 God putteth an end to darkness, [b]and he trieth the perfection of all things: he setteth a bond of darkness, and of the shadow of death.
4 The flood breaketh out against the [c]inhabitant, and the waters [d]forgotten of the foot, being higher than man, are gone away.
5 Out of the same earth cometh [e]bread, and under it, as it were fire is turned up.
6 The stones thereof are a place [f]of Sapphires, and the dust of it is gold.
7 There is a path which no fowl hath known, neither hath the kite’s eye seen it.
8 The Lion’s whelps have not walked it, nor the Lion passed thereby.
9 He putteth his hand upon the [g]rocks, and overthroweth the mountains by the roots.
10 He breaketh rivers in the roots, and his eye seeth every precious thing.
11 He bindeth the floods, that they do not overflow, and the thing that is hid, bringeth he to light.
12 But where is wisdom found? [h]and where is the place of understanding?
13 Man knoweth not [i]the price thereof: for it is not found in the land of the living.
14 The depth saith, It is not in me: the Sea also saith, It is not with me.
15 [j]Gold shall not be given for it, neither shall silver be weighed for the price thereof.
16 It shall not be valued with the wedge of gold of Ophir, nor with the precious onyx, nor the sapphire.
17 The gold nor the crystal shall be equal unto it, nor the exchange shall be for plate of fine gold.
18 No mention shall be made of coral, nor of the [k]gabish: for wisdom is more precious than pearls.
19 The Topaz of Ethiopia shall not be equal unto it, neither shall it be valued with the wedge of pure gold.
20 Whence then cometh wisdom? and where is the place of understanding,
21 Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all the living, and is hid from the [l]fowls of the heaven?
22 Destruction and death say, We have heard the fame thereof with our ears.
23 But God understandeth the [m]way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof.
24 For he beholdeth the ends of the world, and seeth all that is under heaven,
25 To make the weight of the winds and to weigh the waters by measure.
26 When he made a decree for the rain, and a way for the lightning of the thunders,
27 Then did he see it, and counted it: he prepared it, and also considered it.
28 And unto man he said, Behold, (A)the [n]fear of the Lord is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding.
Footnotes
- Job 28:1 His purpose is to declare that man may attain in this world to divers secrets of nature, but man is never able to comprehend the wisdom of God.
- Job 28:3 There is nothing but it is compassed within certain limits, and hath an end, but God’s wisdom.
- Job 28:4 Meaning, him that dwelleth thereby.
- Job 28:4 Which a man cannot wade through.
- Job 28:5 That is, come, and underneath is brimstone or coal, which easily conceiveth fire.
- Job 28:6 He alludeth to the mines and secrets of nature, which are under the earth, whereinto neither fowls nor beasts can enter.
- Job 28:9 After that he hath declared the wisdom of God in the secrets of nature he describeth his power.
- Job 28:12 Though God’s power and wisdom may be understood in earthly things, yet his heavenly wisdom cannot be attained unto.
- Job 28:13 It is too high a thing for man to attain unto in this world.
- Job 28:15 It can neither be bought for gold nor precious stones, but is only the gift of God.
- Job 28:18 Which is thought to be a kind of precious stone.
- Job 28:21 Meaning, that there is no natural means whereby man might attain to the heavenly wisdom: which he meaneth by the souls that fly high.
- Job 28:23 He maketh God only the author of this wisdom, and the giver thereof.
- Job 28:28 He declareth that man hath so much of this heavenly wisdom, as he showeth by fearing God, and departing from evil.
Job 28
Wycliffe Bible
Job 28
Wycliffe Bible
28 Silver hath [the] beginning of his veins (Silver hath the beginning of its veins); and a place is to gold, in which it is welled together.
2 Iron is taken from the earth, and a stone dissolved, or melted, by heat, is turned into money (is turned into bronze).
3 God hath set (a) time to darknesses, and he beholdeth the end of all things. Also a strand parteth a stone of darkness, and the shadow of death, (God hath set an end for darkness, and he beholdeth the end of all things; a stone of darkness, and the shadow of death.)
4 from the people going in pilgrimage; it parteth those hills, which the foot of a needy man forgat, and hills without (a) way. (The stream departeth from the people going in pilgrimage; it parteth those hills, which the foot of the needy forgot, and the hills be without a way.)
5 The earth, whereof bread came forth in his place, is destroyed by fire. (Though bread came forth in its place, underneath the earth is destroyed by fire.)
6 The place of a sapphire be the stones thereof, and the clots thereof be gold. (Its stones be the place for sapphires, and its dust containeth gold.)
7 A bird knew not the way, and the eye of a vulture beheld it not.
8 The sons of merchants trode not upon that way, and a lioness passed not thereby. (The sons of a lion trod not on that way, and a lioness passed not by it.)
9 God stretched forth his hand to a flint; he destroyed [the] hills from the roots thereof. (God stretched forth his hand to the stones; he destroyed the mountains down to their roots.)
10 He hewed down rivers in stones (He hewed out rivers among the stones); and his eye saw all precious thing/s.
11 And he sought out the depths/the deepness of (the) floods; and he brought forth hid things into light. (And he dammed up the sources of the rivers; and he brought forth hidden things into the light.)
12 But where is wisdom found, and which is the place of understanding? (But where is wisdom found, and where is the place of understanding?)
13 Man knoweth not the price thereof, neither it is found in the land of men living delicately. (Man knoweth not its price, or its value, nor is it found in the land of the living.)
14 The depth of (the) waters saith, It is not in me; and the sea speaketh, It is not with me.
15 Gold full clean shall not be given for wisdom, neither silver shall be weighed in the (ex)changing thereof. (Pure gold cannot purchase wisdom, or be exchanged for it, nor can its price be weighed out in silver.)
16 It shall not be comparisoned to the dyed colours of India (It cannot be compared to the gold of Ophir), nor to the most precious stone sardius, neither to the sapphire.
17 Neither gold, neither glass shall be made even worth thereto; and high and far appearing vessels of gold shall not be (ex)changed for wisdom, (Neither gold, nor crystal, can be made equal in worth to it; and high-priced and outstanding vessels of gold cannot be exchanged for wisdom,)
18 neither they shall be had in mind in comparison thereof. Forsooth wisdom is drawn out of privy things; (nor shall they even be considered when compared to it. For wisdom is drawn from private, or hidden, things;)
19 topaz of Ethiopia shall not be made even worth to wisdom (the topaz of Ethiopia cannot be made equal in worth to wisdom), and most precious dyeings shall not be set together in price, or comparisoned, thereto.
20 Therefore whereof cometh wisdom, and which is the place of understanding? (And so from where cometh wisdom, and where is the place of understanding?)
21 It is hid from the eyes of all living men; and also it is hid from the birds of (the) heaven(s), or of the air.
22 Perdition and death said, With our ears we have heard (of) the fame of wisdom.
23 God understandeth the way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof.
24 For he beholdeth the ends of the world, and beholdeth all things that be under heaven.
25 He hath made weight to winds (He hath made a counter-weight for the winds), and he hath weighed (the) waters in measure.
26 When he set law to rain, and way to tempests sounding; (When he made a law for the rain, and a way for the sounding tempests;)
27 then he saw wisdom, and told it out, and he made it ready, and sought it out.
28 And he said to man, Lo! the dread of the Lord, that is wisdom (And he said to man, Lo! the fear of the Lord/Lo! reverence for the Lord, that is wisdom); and to go away from evil, (that) is understanding.
Job 28
New International Version
Job 28
New International Version
Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found
28 There is a mine for silver
and a place where gold is refined.(A)
2 Iron is taken from the earth,
and copper is smelted from ore.(B)
3 Mortals put an end to the darkness;(C)
they search out the farthest recesses
for ore in the blackest darkness.(D)
4 Far from human dwellings they cut a shaft,(E)
in places untouched by human feet;
far from other people they dangle and sway.
5 The earth, from which food comes,(F)
is transformed below as by fire;
6 lapis lazuli(G) comes from its rocks,
and its dust contains nuggets of gold.(H)
7 No bird of prey knows that hidden path,
no falcon’s eye has seen it.(I)
8 Proud beasts(J) do not set foot on it,
and no lion prowls there.(K)
9 People assault the flinty rock(L) with their hands
and lay bare the roots of the mountains.(M)
10 They tunnel through the rock;(N)
their eyes see all its treasures.(O)
11 They search[a] the sources of the rivers(P)
and bring hidden things(Q) to light.
12 But where can wisdom be found?(R)
Where does understanding dwell?(S)
13 No mortal comprehends its worth;(T)
it cannot be found in the land of the living.(U)
14 The deep(V) says, “It is not in me”;
the sea(W) says, “It is not with me.”
15 It cannot be bought with the finest gold,
nor can its price be weighed out in silver.(X)
16 It cannot be bought with the gold of Ophir,(Y)
with precious onyx or lapis lazuli.(Z)
17 Neither gold nor crystal can compare with it,(AA)
nor can it be had for jewels of gold.(AB)
18 Coral(AC) and jasper(AD) are not worthy of mention;
the price of wisdom is beyond rubies.(AE)
19 The topaz(AF) of Cush(AG) cannot compare with it;
it cannot be bought with pure gold.(AH)
20 Where then does wisdom come from?
Where does understanding dwell?(AI)
21 It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing,
concealed even from the birds in the sky.(AJ)
22 Destruction[b](AK) and Death(AL) say,
“Only a rumor of it has reached our ears.”
23 God understands the way to it
and he alone(AM) knows where it dwells,(AN)
24 for he views the ends of the earth(AO)
and sees everything under the heavens.(AP)
25 When he established the force of the wind
and measured out the waters,(AQ)
26 when he made a decree for the rain(AR)
and a path for the thunderstorm,(AS)
27 then he looked at wisdom and appraised it;
he confirmed it and tested it.(AT)
28 And he said to the human race,
“The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom,
and to shun evil(AU) is understanding.”(AV)
1599 Geneva Bible (GNV) 
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
Wycliffe Bible (WYC)
2001 by Terence P. Noble
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.