Job
Chapter 28
1 Surely there is a source for silver and a place where gold is refined.
2 Iron comes from the ground, and copper is melted from the rock.
3 He ends the darkness and explores every detail: the dark rocks and the shadow of death.
4 The flood bursts out from where people live; the waters, once stepped in and forgotten, have dried up and disappeared from human presence.
5 The earth gives us bread, and beneath it is heat like fire.
6 Its rocks are where sapphires are found, and it has particles of gold.
7 There is a path unknown to birds, and unseen by the vulture’s eye.
8 Young lions have not walked on it, nor has the strong lion crossed over it.
9 He reaches out his hand to the rock; he flips the mountains from their base.
10 He carves out rivers in the rocks, and his eye sees every valuable thing.
11 He stops the rivers from flooding; and he brings hidden things into the light.
12 Where can wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?
13 No one knows its value; it cannot be found in the land of the living.
14 The deep says, ‘It’s not in me,’ and the sea says, ‘It’s not with me.’
15 It can’t be bought with gold, nor can you weigh silver to pay for it.
16 It can’t be compared to Ophir’s gold, valuable onyx, or sapphires.
17 Gold and crystal are not its equal: you cannot swap it for any gold jewelry.
18 People will not talk about coral or pearls; wisdom is worth more than rubies.
19 Ethiopia’s topaz won’t match it, nor can it be compared to fine gold.
20 Where does wisdom come from? And where can we find understanding?
21 It is hidden from all living creatures and kept secret from the birds in the sky.
22 Destruction and death say, “We have heard of its fame with our ears.”
23 God understands its way and knows its place.
24 He looks to the earth’s ends and sees everything under the sky.
25 To set the weight for the winds; and he measures the waters by amount.
26 When he set rules for the rain and a path for the thunder’s lightning:
27 He saw it, explained it, got it ready, and thoroughly examined it.
28 To people he said, “Look, respecting God is wisdom, and avoiding evil is understanding.”