Job 28

NEW JERUSALEM	NEW AMERICAN BIBLE
1 Silver has its mines, and gold a place for refining.	1 There is indeed a mine for silver, and a place for gold which men refine.
2 Iron is extracted from the earth, the smelted rocks yield copper.	2 Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is melted out of stone.
3 Man makes an end of darkness, to the utmost limit he digs the black rock in shadow dark as death.	3 He has set a boundary for the darkness; to the farthest confines he penetrates.
4 Foreigners bore into ravines in unfrequented places, swinging suspended far from human beings.
5 That earth from which bread comes is ravaged underground by fire.	5 The earth, though out of it comes forth bread, is in fiery upheaval underneath.
6 There, the rocks have veins of sapphire and their dust contains gold.	6 Its stones are the source of sapphires, and there is gold in its dust.
7 That is a path unknown to birds of prey, unseen by the eye of any vulture;	7 The path to it no bird of prey knows, nor has the hawk's eye seen that path.
8 a path not trodden by the lordly beasts, where no lion ever walked.	8 The proud beasts have not trodden it, nor has the lion gone that way.
9 Man attacks the flint, upturning mountains by their roots.	9 He sets his hand to the flinty rock, and overturns the mountains at their foundations.
10 He cuts canals through the rock, on the watch for anything precious.	10 He splits channels in the rocks; his eyes behold all that is precious.
11 He explores the sources of rivers, bringing hidden things to light.	11 He probes the wellsprings of the streams, and brings hidden things to light.
12 But where does Wisdom come from? Where is Intel igence to be found?	12 But whence can wisdom be obtained, and where is the place of understanding?
13 No human being knows the way to her, she is not to be found on earth where they live.	13 Man knows nothing to equal it, nor is it to be had in the land of the living.
14 'She is not in me,' says the Abyss; 'Nor here,' replies the Sea.	14 The abyss declares, "It is not in me"; and the sea says, "I have it not."
15 She cannot be bought with solid gold, nor paid for with any weight of silver,	15 Solid gold cannot purchase it, nor can its price be paid with silver.
16 nor valued against gold of Ophir, precious agate or sapphire.	16 It cannot be bought with gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx or the sapphire.
17 Neither gold nor glass compares with her, for her, a vase of fine gold would be no exchange,	17 Gold or crystal cannot equal it, nor can golden vessels reach its worth.
18 let alone coral or crystal: better go fishing for Wisdom than for pearls!	18 Neither coral nor jasper should be thought of; it surpasses pearls and
19 Topaz from Cush is worthless in comparison, and gold, even refined, is valueless.	19 Arabian topaz.
20 But where does Wisdom come from? Where is Intel igence to be found?	20 Whence, then, comes wisdom, and where is the place of understanding?
21 She cannot be seen by any living creature, she is hidden from the birds of the sky.	21 It is hid from the eyes of any beast; from the birds of the air it is concealed.
22 Perdition and Death both say, 'We have heard only rumours of her.'	22 Abaddon and Death say, "Only by rumor have we heard of it."
23 God alone understands her path and knows where she is to be found.	23 God knows the way to it; it is he who is familiar with its place.
24 (For he sees to the remotest parts of the earth, and observes al that lies under heaven.)	24 For he beholds the ends of the earth and sees all that is under the heavens.
25 When he wil ed to give weight to the wind and measured out the waters with a gauge,	25 He has weighed out the wind, and fixed the scope of the waters;
26 when he imposed a law on the rain and mapped a route for thunderclaps to fol ow,	26 When he made rules for the rain and a path for the thunderbolts,
27 then he saw and evaluated her, looked her through and through, assessing her.	27 Then he saw wisdom and appraised it, gave it its setting, knew it through and through.
28 Then he said to human beings, 'Wisdom? - that is fear of the Lord; Intel igence? - avoidance of evil.'	28 And to man he said: Behold, the fear of the LORD is wisdom; and avoiding evil is understanding.