Job 28:1-19
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found
28 “Surely there is a mine for silver
and a place for gold to be refined.
2 Iron is taken out of the earth,
and copper is smelted from ore.(A)
3 Miners put[a] an end to darkness
and search out to the farthest bound
the ore in gloom and deep darkness.
4 They open shafts in a valley away from human habitation;
they are forgotten by travelers;
they sway suspended, remote from people.
5 As for the earth, out of it comes bread,
but underneath it is turned up as by fire.(B)
6 Its stones are the place of sapphires,[b]
and its dust contains gold.
7 “That path no bird of prey knows,
and the falcon’s eye has not seen it.
8 The proud wild animals have not trodden it;
the lion has not passed over it.
9 “They put their hand to the flinty rock
and overturn mountains by the roots.(C)
10 They cut out channels in the rocks,
and their eyes see every precious thing.
11 The sources of the rivers they probe;[c]
hidden things they bring to light.
12 “But where shall wisdom be found?
And where is the place of understanding?(D)
13 Mortals do not know the way to it,[d]
and it is not found in the land of the living.(E)
14 The deep says, ‘It is not in me,’
and the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’
15 It cannot be gotten for gold,
and silver cannot be weighed out as its price.
16 It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,
in precious onyx or sapphire.[e]
17 Gold and glass cannot equal it,
nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold.(F)
18 No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal;
the price of wisdom is above pearls.(G)
19 The chrysolite of Cush cannot compare with it,
nor can it be valued in pure gold.(H)
Job 28:1-19
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Job’s Hymn to Wisdom
28 Surely there is a mine for silver
and a place where gold is refined.
2 Iron is taken from the ground,
and copper is smelted from ore.
3 A miner puts an end to the darkness;
he probes[a] the deepest recesses
for ore in the gloomy darkness.
4 He cuts a shaft far from human habitation,
in places unknown to those who walk above ground.[b]
Suspended far away from people,
the miners swing back and forth.
5 Food may come from the earth,
but below the surface the earth is transformed as by fire.
6 Its rocks are a source of sapphire,[c](A)
containing flecks of gold.
7 No bird of prey knows that path;
no falcon’s eye has seen it.
8 Proud beasts have never walked on it;
no lion has ever prowled over it.
9 The miner strikes the flint
and transforms the mountains at their foundations.
10 He cuts out channels in the rocks,
and his eyes spot every treasure.
11 He dams up the streams from flowing[d]
so that he may bring to light what is hidden.
12 But where can wisdom(B) be found,
and where is understanding located?
13 No man can know its value,[e]
since it cannot be found in the land of the living.
14 The ocean depths say, “It’s not in me,”
while the sea declares, “I don’t have it.”(C)
15 Gold cannot be exchanged for it,
and silver cannot be weighed out for its price.
16 Wisdom cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,(D)
in precious onyx or sapphire.[f](E)
17 Gold and glass do not compare with it,
and articles of fine gold cannot be exchanged for it.(F)
18 Coral and quartz are not worth mentioning.
The price of wisdom is beyond pearls.
19 Topaz from Cush cannot compare with it,
and it cannot be valued in pure gold.
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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