Job 28 :: New International Version (NIV)

Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found

Job 28:1There is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined.

Job 28:2Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore.

Job 28:3Mortals put an end to the darkness; they search out the farthest recesses for ore in the blackest darkness.

Job 28:4Far from human dwellings they cut a shaft, in places untouched by human feet; far from other people they dangle and sway.

Job 28:5

Job 28:5The earth, from which food comes, is transformed below as by fire;

Job 28:6

Job 28:6lapis lazuli comes from its rocks, and its dust contains nuggets of gold.

Job 28:7

Job 28:7No bird of prey knows that hidden path, no falcon’s eye has seen it.

Job 28:8

Job 28:8Proud beasts do not set foot on it, and no lion prowls there.

Job 28:9

Job 28:9People assault the flinty rock with their hands and lay bare the roots of the mountains.

Job 28:10

Job 28:10They tunnel through the rock; their eyes see all its treasures.

Job 28:11

Job 28:11They search[fn] the sources of the rivers and bring hidden things to light.

Job 28:12

Job 28:12But where can wisdom be found? Where does understanding dwell?

Job 28:13

Job 28:13No mortal comprehends its worth; it cannot be found in the land of the living.

Job 28:14

Job 28:14The deep says, “It is not in me”; the sea says, “It is not with me.”

Job 28:15

Job 28:15It cannot be bought with the finest gold, nor can its price be weighed out in silver.

Job 28:16

Job 28:16It cannot be bought with the gold of Ophir, with precious onyx or lapis lazuli.

Job 28:17

Job 28:17Neither gold nor crystal can compare with it, nor can it be had for jewels of gold.

Job 28:18

Job 28:18Coral and jasper are not worthy of mention; the price of wisdom is beyond rubies.

Job 28:19

Job 28:19The topaz of Cush cannot compare with it; it cannot be bought with pure gold.

Job 28:20

Job 28:20Where then does wisdom come from? Where does understanding dwell?

Job 28:21

Job 28:21It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing, concealed even from the birds in the sky.

Job 28:22

Job 28:22Destruction[fn] and Death say, “Only a rumor of it has reached our ears.”

Job 28:23

Job 28:23God understands the way to it and he alone knows where it dwells,

Job 28:24

Job 28:24for he views the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens.

Job 28:25

Job 28:25When he established the force of the wind and measured out the waters,

Job 28:26

Job 28:26when he made a decree for the rain and a path for the thunderstorm,

Job 28:27

Job 28:27then he looked at wisdom and appraised it; he confirmed it and tested it.

Job 28:28

Job 28:28And he said to the human race, “The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.”

See the NIV Preface (Especially for Parenthesis, Brackets, & Asterisks).

NIV Footnotes

(28:11)

Septuagint, Aquila and Vulgate; Hebrew They dam up

(28:22)

Hebrew Abaddon

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