Job 28
28
Job’s Discourse on Wisdom
1“Indeed, there is a mine for silver
and a place for gold to be refined.#Literally “for the gold they refine”
2Iron is taken from dust,
and he pours out copper from ore.
3He puts an end to darkness,
and he searches out the farthest limits
for the ore in gloom and deep shadow.
4He breaks open a mine shaft away from where people dwell;#Literally “from with dwelling”
those who are forgotten by travelers,#Literally “by feet”
they dangle, they sway far away from human beings.
5As for the earth, from it comes food,#Or “bread”
but#Hebrew “and” underneath it, it is turned up as by fire.
6Its stones are the place of sapphire,
and the earthen dirt has#Literally “for it” gold.
7“It is a path a bird of prey does not know
and the black kite’s eye has not seen.
8Proud wild animals#Literally “The sons of pride” have not trodden it;
the lion in its prime has not prowled over it.
9He puts his hand on the hard rock;
he overturns mountains by the roots.
10He cuts out tunnels in the rocks,
and his eye sees every treasure.
11He dams up rivers from their sources,
and he brings secret things to the light.
12“But#Hebrew “And” from where will wisdom be found?
And where in the world#Literally “where this” is the place of understanding?
13A human being does not know its proper value,
and it is not found in the land of the living.
14The deep says, ‘It is not in me,’
and the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’
15“Refined gold cannot be gotten in its place,
and silver cannot be weighed out as its price.
16It cannot be bought for the gold of Ophir,
for precious onyx or#Hebrew “and” sapphire.
17Gold and glass cannot be compared with it,
and its substitution cannot be an ornament of refined gold.
18Black corals and crystal will not be mentioned,
and wisdom’s price is more than red corals.
19The topaz of Cush cannot be compared with it;
it cannot be bought for pure gold.
20Indeed,#Hebrew “And” from where does wisdom come?
And where in the world#Literally “where this” is the place of understanding?
21It is hidden from the eyes of all living,
and it is concealed from the birds of the heaven.
22Abaddon and Death say,
‘We heard its rumor with our ears.’
23“God understands its way,
and he knows its place,
24for he himself#Emphatic personal pronoun looks to the end of the earth;
he sees under all the heaven.
25When he gave#Literally “To give” weight to the wind
and he apportioned the waters by measure,
26when he made#Literally “at his making” a rule for the rain
and a way for the thunder’s lightning bolt,
27then he saw it and talked about it;
he established it, and moreover, he explored it.
28And to the human beings he said,
‘Look, the fear of the Lord is wisdom,
and to depart from evil is understanding.’ ”
Currently Selected:
Job 28: LEB
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
2010 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software
Job 28
28
A Hymn to Wisdom
1Surely there is a mine for silver
and a place where gold is refined.
2Iron is taken from the ground,
and copper is smelted from ore.
3A miner puts an end to the darkness;
he probes#28:3 Lit probes all the deepest recesses
for ore in the gloomy darkness.
4He cuts a shaft far from human habitation,
in places unknown to those who walk above ground.
Suspended far away from people,
the miners swing back and forth.
5Food may come from the earth,
but below the surface the earth is transformed as by fire.
6Its rocks are a source of lapis lazuli,#Ex 24:10; Ezk 1:26; Rv 21:19
containing flecks of gold.
7No bird of prey knows that path;
no falcon’s eye has seen it.
8Proud beasts have never walked on it;
no lion has ever prowled over it.
9The miner uses a flint tool
and turns up ore from the root of the mountains.
10He cuts out channels in the rocks,
and his eyes spot every treasure.
11He dams up the streams from flowing#28:11 LXX, Vg read He explores the sources of the streams
so that he may bring to light what is hidden.
12But where can wisdom#Jb 28:20; Pr 16:16; Ec 7:23,25 be found,
and where is understanding located?
13No one can know its value,#28:13 LXX reads way
since it cannot be found in the land of the living.
14The ocean depths say, “It’s not in me,”
while the sea declares, “I don’t have it.”#Dt 30:11–13; Ps 92:5; Rm 11:33
15Gold cannot be exchanged for it,
and silver cannot be weighed out for its price.
16Wisdom cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,#1Kg 9:28; 10:11; Jb 22:24
in precious onyx or lapis lazuli.#Pr 3:14–16; 8:10–11; 16:16
17Gold and glass do not compare with it,
and articles of fine gold cannot be exchanged for it.#Ps 119:72; Pr 8:19; 20:15
18Coral and quartz are not worth mentioning.
The price of wisdom is beyond pearls.
19Topaz from Cush cannot compare with it,
and it cannot be valued in pure gold.
20Where then does wisdom come from,
and where is understanding located?
21It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing
and concealed from the birds of the sky.
22Abaddon and Death#Jb 25:6; Ps 49:14; Pr 27:20 say,
“We have heard news of it with our ears.”
23But God understands the way to wisdom,
and he knows its location.
24For he looks to the ends of the earth
and sees everything under the heavens.
25When God fixed the weight of the wind
and distributed the water by measure,#Ps 135:7; Pr 30:4; Is 40:12
26when he established a limit#28:26 Or decree for the rain#Jb 5:10; 37:6; 38:25
and a path for the lightning,
27he considered wisdom and evaluated it;
he established it and examined it.
28He said to mankind,
“The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom.
And to turn from evil is understanding.”#Dt 4:6; Pr 1:7; 9:10
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
© 2017 Holman Bible Publishers