1
"Surely there is a mine for silver,
And a place where gold is refined.
2
Iron is taken from the 1 earth,
And copper is smelted from ore.
3
Man puts an end to darkness,
And searches every recess
For ore in the darkness and the shadow of death.
4
He breaks open a shaft away from people;
In places forgotten by feet
They hang far away from men;
They swing to and fro.
5
As for the earth, from it comes bread,
But underneath it is turned up as by fire;
6
Its stones are the source of sapphires,
And it contains gold dust.
7
That path no bird knows,
Nor has the falcon's eye seen it.
8
The 2 proud lions have not trodden it,
Nor has the fierce lion passed over it.
9
He puts his hand on the flint;
He overturns the mountains 3 at the roots.
10
He cuts out channels in the rocks,
And his eye sees every precious thing.
11
He dams up the streams from trickling;
What is hidden he brings forth to light.
12
"But a where can wisdom be found?
And where is the place of understanding?
13
Man does not know its b value,
Nor is it found in the land of the living.
14
c The deep says, 'It is not in me';
And the sea says, 'It is not with me.'
15
It d cannot be purchased for gold,
Nor can silver be weighed for its price.
16
It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,
In precious onyx or sapphire.
17
Neither e gold nor crystal can equal it,
Nor can it be exchanged for 4 jewelry of fine gold.
18
No mention shall be made of 5 coral or quartz,
For the price of wisdom is above f rubies.
19
The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it,
Nor can it be valued in pure g gold.
20
"From h 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 6 air.
22
i Destruction 7 and Death say,
'We have heard a report about it with our ears.'
23
God understands its way,
And He knows its place.
24
For He looks to the ends of the earth,
And j sees under the whole heavens,
25
k To establish a weight for the wind,
And apportion the waters by measure.
26
When He l made a law for the rain,
And a path for the thunderbolt,
27
Then He saw 8 wisdom and declared it;
He prepared it, indeed, He searched it out.
28
And to man He said,
'Behold, m the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom,
And to depart from evil is understanding.' "