Job 28:11 | New International Reader’s Version

New International Reader’s Version

The place where wisdom is found is explained

1 There are mines where silver is found. There are places where gold is purified. 2 Iron is taken out of the earth. Copper is melted down from ore. 3 Human beings light up the darkness. They search for ore in the deepest pits. They look for it in the blackest darkness. 4 Far from where people live they cut a tunnel. They do it in places where other people don’t go. Far away from people they swing to and fro on ropes. 5 Food grows on the surface of the earth. But far below, the earth is changed as if by fire. 6 Lapis lazuli is taken from the rocky earth. Its dust contains nuggets of gold. 7 No bird knows that hidden path. No falcon’s eye has seen it. 8 Proud animals don’t walk on it. Lions don’t prowl there. 9 Human hands attack the hardest rock. Their strong hands uncover the base of the mountains. 10 They tunnel through the rock. Their eyes see all its treasures. 11 They search the places where the rivers begin. They bring hidden things out into the light. 12 But where can wisdom be found? Where does understanding live? 13 No human being understands how much it’s worth. It can’t be found anywhere in the world. 14 The ocean says, ‘It’s not in me.’ The sea says, ‘It’s not here either.’ 15 It can’t be bought with the finest gold. Its price can’t be weighed out in silver. 16 It can’t be bought with gold from Ophir. It can’t be bought with priceless onyx or lapis lazuli. 17 Gold or crystal can’t compare with it. It can’t be bought with jewels made of gold. 18 Don’t bother to talk about coral and jasper. Wisdom is worth far more than rubies. 19 A topaz from Cush can’t compare with it. It can’t be bought with the purest gold. 20 So where does wisdom come from? Where does understanding live? 21 It’s hidden from the eyes of every living thing. Even the birds in the sky can’t find it. 22 Death and the Grave say, ‘Only reports about it have reached our ears.’ 23 But God understands the way to it. He is the only one who knows where it lives. 24 He sees from one end of the earth to the other. He views everything in the world. 25 He made the mighty wind. He measured out the waters. 26 He gave orders for the rain to fall. He made paths for the thunderstorms. 27 Then he looked at wisdom and set its price. He established it and tested it. 28 He said to human beings, ‘Have respect for the Lord. That will prove you are wise. Avoid evil. That will show you have understanding.’

English Standard Version

Job Continues: Where Is Wisdom?

1 “Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place for gold that they refine. (Mal 3:3) 2 Iron is taken out of the earth, and copper is smelted from the ore. 3 Man puts an end to darkness and searches out to the farthest limit the ore in gloom and deep darkness. (Job 3:5; Job 10:22) 4 He opens shafts in a valley away from where anyone lives; they are forgotten by travelers; they hang in the air, far away from mankind; they swing to and fro. 5 As for the earth, out of it comes bread, but underneath it is turned up as by fire. (Ps 104:14) 6 Its stones are the place of sapphires,^[1] and it has dust of gold. (Ex 24:10) 7 “That path no bird of prey knows, and the falcon’s eye has not seen it. 8 The proud beasts have not trodden it; the lion has not passed over it. (Job 10:16; Job 41:34) 9 “Man puts his hand to the flinty rock and overturns mountains by the roots. (De 8:15; De 32:13; Ps 114:8) 10 He cuts out channels in the rocks, and his eye sees every precious thing. 11 He dams up the streams so that they do not trickle, and the thing that is hidden he brings out to light. 12 “But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding? (Pr 16:16; Ec 7:24) 13 Man does not know its worth, and it is not found in the land of the living. (Ps 27:13) 14 The deep says, ‘It is not in me,’ and the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’ (Ge 49:25) 15 It cannot be bought for gold, and silver cannot be weighed as its price. (Pr 3:14; Pr 8:10; Pr 8:19; Pr 16:16)

Pr 3:14Pr 8:10Pr 8:19Pr 16:16

16 It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire. (Ge 2:12; Ex 24:10; 1Ki 9:28; Ps 45:9; Isa 13:12)

Ge 2:12Ex 24:101Ki 9:28Ps 45:9Isa 13:12

17 Gold and glass cannot equal it, nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold. 18 No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal; the price of wisdom is above pearls. (Pr 3:15; Pr 8:11; Pr 20:15; Pr 31:10; La 4:7; Eze 27:16)

Pr 3:15Pr 8:11Pr 20:15Pr 31:10La 4:7Eze 27:16

19 The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it, nor can it be valued in pure gold. (Ex 28:17; Ex 39:10; Eze 28:13) 20 “From where, then, does wisdom come? And where is the place of understanding? 21 It is hidden from the eyes of all living and concealed from the birds of the air. (Job 12:10; Job 30:23) 22 Abaddon and Death say, ‘We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.’ (Job 26:6) 23 “God understands the way to it, and he knows its place. (Pr 8:22) 24 For he looks to the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens. (Pr 15:3; Zec 4:10) 25 When he gave to the wind its weight and apportioned the waters by measure, (Ps 135:7) 26 when he made a decree for the rain and a way for the lightning of the thunder, (Job 38:25) 27 then he saw it and declared it; he established it, and searched it out. 28 And he said to man, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’” (De 4:6; Ps 111:10; Pr 1:7; Pr 3:7; Pr 14:16; Pr 16:6; Ec 12:13)

De 4:6Ps 111:10Pr 1:7Pr 3:7Pr 14:16Pr 16:6Ec 12:13