Job 28:1-19
Legacy Standard Bible
Where Can Wisdom Be Found?
28 “[a]Surely there is a [b]mine for silver,
And a place [c]where they refine for gold.
2 Iron is taken from the dust,
And copper is smelted from rock.
3 Man puts an end to darkness,
And (A)to the farthest limit he searches out
The rock in thick darkness and shadow of death.
4 He [d]sinks a shaft far from [e]habitation,
Forgotten by the foot;
They hang and swing to and fro far from men.
5 The earth, from it comes food,
And underneath it is overturned as fire.
6 Its rocks are the [f]source of sapphires,
And its dust contains gold.
7 The path no bird of prey knows,
Nor has the falcon’s eye caught sight of it.
8 The [g]proud beasts have not trodden it,
Nor has the fierce lion passed over it.
9 He sends his hand forth to the flint;
He overturns the mountains at the [h]base.
10 He breaks out channels through the rocks,
And his eye sees anything precious.
11 He dams up the streams from [i]flowing,
And what is hidden he brings out to the light.
12 “But (B)where can wisdom be found?
And where is the place of understanding?
13 (C)Man does not know its worth,
And it is not found in the land of the living.
14 The deep says, ‘It is not in me’;
And the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’
15 (D)Pure gold cannot be given in place of it,
Nor can silver be weighed as its price.
16 It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,
In precious onyx or sapphire.
17 (E)Gold or glass cannot meet its worth,
Nor can it be exchanged for articles of fine gold.
18 Coral and crystal are not to be mentioned;
And the acquisition of (F)wisdom is above that of pearls.
19 The topaz of [j]Ethiopia cannot meet its worth,
Nor can it be valued in (G)pure gold.
Job 28:1-19
Common English Bible
Expertise in mining
28 There is a sure source of silver,
a place where gold is refined.
2 Iron is taken from the earth;
rock is smelted into copper.
3 Humans[a] put an end to darkness,
dig for ore to the farthest depths,
into stone in utter darkness,
4 open a shaft away from any inhabitant,
places forgotten by those on foot,
apart from any human they hang and sway.
5 Earth—from it comes food—
is turned over below ground as by fire.[b]
6 Its rocks are the source for lapis lazuli;
there is gold dust in it.
7 A path—
no bird of prey knows it;
a hawk’s eye hasn’t seen it;
8 proud beasts haven’t trodden on it;
a lion hasn’t crossed over it.
9 Humans thrust their hands into flint,
pull up mountains from their roots,
10 cut channels into rocks;
their eyes see everything precious.
11 They dam up the sources of rivers;
hidden things come to light.
Wisdom’s value
12 But wisdom, where can it be found;
where is the place of understanding?
13 Humankind doesn’t know its value;
it isn’t found in the land of the living.
14 The Deep[c] says, “It’s not with me”;
the Sea[d] says, “Not alongside me!”
15 It can’t be bought with gold;
its price can’t be measured in silver,
16 can’t be weighed against gold from Ophir,
with precious onyx or lapis lazuli.
17 Neither gold nor glass can compare with it;
she can’t be acquired with gold jewelry.
18 Coral and jasper shouldn’t be mentioned;
the price of wisdom is more than rubies.
19 Cushite topaz won’t compare with her;
she can’t be set alongside pure gold.
Legacy Standard Bible Copyright ©2021 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org For Permission to Quote Information visit https://www.LSBible.org.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible