Job 28 - Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

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.

20 Where then does wisdom come from,
and where is understanding located?
21 It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing
and concealed from the birds of the sky.
22 Abaddon and Death(G) say,
“We have heard news of it with our ears.”
23 But God understands the way to wisdom,
and He knows its location.
24 For He looks to the ends of the earth
and sees everything under the heavens.
25 When God fixed the weight of the wind
and limited the water by measure,(H)
26 when He established a limit[g] for the rain(I)
and a path for the lightning,
27 He considered wisdom and evaluated it;
He established it and examined it.
28 He said to mankind,
“The fear of the Lord is this: wisdom.
And to turn from evil is understanding.”(J)

Footnotes

  1. Job 28:3 Lit probes all
  2. Job 28:4 Lit far from with inhabitant, things forgotten by foot
  3. Job 28:6 Or lapis lazuli
  4. Job 28:11 LXX, Vg read He explores the sources of the streams
  5. Job 28:13 LXX reads way
  6. Job 28:16 Or lapis lazuli
  7. Job 28:26 Or decree

Cross references

  1. 28:6 : Ex 24:10; Ezk 1:26; Rv 21:19
  2. 28:12 : Jb 28:20; Pr 16:16; Ec 7:23, 25
  3. 28:14 : Dt 30:11-13; Ps 92:5; Rm 11:33
  4. 28:16 : 1Kg 9:28; 10:11; Jb 22:24
  5. 28:16 : Pr 3:14-16; 8:10-11; 16:16
  6. 28:17 : Ps 119:72; Pr 8:19; 20:15
  7. 28:22 : Jb 25:6; Ps 49:14; Pr 27:20
  8. 28:25 : Ps 135:7; Pr 30:4; Is 40:12
  9. 28:26 : Jb 5:10; 37:6; 38:25
  10. 28:28 : Dt 4:6; Pr 1:7; 9:10

You Might Also Like:

Job 28 - Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

28 Surely there is for silver a source, And a place for the gold they refine; 2 Iron from the dust is taken, And [from] the firm stone brass. 3 An end hath he set to darkness, And to all perfection he is searching, A stone of darkness and death-shade. 4 A stream hath broken out from a sojourner, Tho...
Read More

Job 28 - Wycliffe Bible (WYC)

28 Silver hath [the] beginning of his veins (Silver hath the beginning of its veins); and a place is to gold, in which it is welled together. 2 Iron is taken from the earth, and a stone dissolved, or melted, by heat, is turned into money (is turned into bronze). 3 God hath set (a) time to darknesses...
Read More

Job 28 - World English Bible (WEB)

28 “Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place for gold which they refine.2 Iron is taken out of the earth, and copper is smelted out of the ore.3 Man sets an end to darkness, and searches out, to the furthest bound, the stones of obscurity and of thick darkness.4 He breaks open a shaft away fro...
Read More

Job 28 - The Voice (VOICE)

28 Job: There is a place where silver is mined, a place where gold is refined.2 There iron is dug from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore.3 Humans put an end to darkness, and search in every last corner For the ore that is in gloom and darkness.4 In the earth they cut a shaft in a place fo...
Read More

Job 28 - Tree of Life Version (TLV)

Where Can Wisdom be Found?28 “Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined.2 Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore.3 Man puts an end to darkness;he searches to the farthest reaches for ore in gloom and blackest darkness.4 He cuts open a shaft far from d...
Read More

Job 28 - Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)

Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found28 “Surely there is a mine for silver,and a place for gold which they refine.2 Iron is taken out of the earth, and copper is smelted from the ore.3 Men put an end to darkness, and search out to the farthest bound the ore in gloom and deep darkness.4 They open shafts i...
Read More

Job 28 - Revised Standard Version (RSV)

Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found28 “Surely there is a mine for silver,and a place for gold which they refine.2 Iron is taken out of the earth, and copper is smelted from the ore.3 Men put an end to darkness, and search out to the farthest bound the ore in gloom and deep darkness.4 They open shafts i...
Read More

Job 28 - New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found28 “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.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...
Read More

Job 28 - New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised (NRSVA)

Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found28 ‘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.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...
Read More

Job 28 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found28 “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 i...
Read More

Job 28 - New Living Translation (NLT)

Job Speaks of Wisdom and Understanding28 “People know where to mine silver and how to refine gold.2 They know where to dig iron from the earth and how to smelt copper from rock.3 They know how to shine light in the darkness and explore the farthest regions of the earth as they search in the dark for...
Read More

Job 28 - New Life Version (NLV)

Where Can Wisdom Be Found?28 “For sure there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is made pure. 2 Iron is taken out of the earth. And copper is melted from the rock. 3 Man looks into the deepest darkness. And he goes out to the farthest part of the earth to look for rocks in the dark place...
Read More

Job 28 - New King James Version (NKJV)

Job’s Discourse on Wisdom28 “Surely there is a mine for silver,And a place where gold is refined.2 Iron is taken from the [a]earth,And copper is smelted from ore.3 Man puts an end to darkness,And searches every recessFor ore in the darkness and the shadow of death.4 He breaks open a shaft away from ...
Read More

Job 28 - New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

Interlude: where wisdom is found28 There is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined.2 Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore.3 Mortals put an end to the darkness; they search out the farthest recesses for ore in the blackest darkness.4 Far from human dwellings they ...
Read More

Job 28 - New International Version (NIV)

Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found28 There is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined.(A)2 Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore.(B)3 Mortals put an end to the darkness;(C) they search out the farthest recesses for ore in the blackest darkness.(D)4 Far from human dwe...
Read More

Job 28 - New International Reader's Version (NIRV)

The Place Where Wisdom Is Found Is Explained28 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 blacke...
Read More

Job 28 - New English Translation (NET)

III. Job’s Search for Wisdom (28:1-28)No Known Road to Wisdom[a]28 “Surely[b] there is a mine[c] for silver,and a place where gold is refined.[d]2 Iron is taken from the ground,[e]and rock is poured out[f] as copper.3 Man puts an end to the darkness;[g]he searches the farthest recessesfor the ore in...
Read More