Job 27-28
GOD’S WORD Translation
Job Continues: I Insist I Am Innocent
27 Job continued his poems and said,
2 “I swear an oath
by God, the one who has taken away my rights,
by the Almighty, who has made my life bitter:
3 ‘As long as there is one breath ⌞left⌟ in me
and God’s breath fills my nostrils,
4 my lips will not say anything wrong,
and my tongue will not mumble anything deceitful.’
5 It’s unthinkable for me to admit that you are right.
Until I breathe my last breath, I will never give up my claim of integrity.
6 I cling to my righteousness and won’t let go.
My conscience won’t accuse me as long as I live.
7 “Let my enemy be ⌞treated⌟ like wicked people.
Let anyone who attacks me be ⌞treated⌟ like unrighteous people.
8 After all, what hope does the godless person have when he is cut off,
when God takes away his life?
9 Will God hear his cry when trouble comes upon him?
10 Can he be happy with the Almighty?
Can he call on God at all times?
What God Has in Store for Wicked People
11 “I will teach you about God’s power.
I will not hide what the Almighty has done.
12 Certainly, you have all seen it.
Why then do you chatter on about such nonsense?
13 This is what God has waiting for the wicked person,
the inheritance that tyrants receive from the Almighty:
14 If he has many children, swords will kill them,
and his descendants won’t have enough food.
15 Those who survive him will be buried by a plague,
and their widows won’t cry ⌞for them⌟.
16 Though he collects silver like dust
and piles up clothing like dirt,
17 righteous people will wear what he piles up,
and the innocent will divide the silver ⌞among themselves⌟.
18 He builds his house like a moth,
like a shack that a watchman makes.
19 He may go to bed rich, but he’ll never be rich again.
When he opens his eyes, nothing will be left.
20 Terrors overtake him like a flood.
A windstorm snatches him away at night.
21 The east wind carries him away, and he’s gone.
It sweeps him from his place.
22 It hurls itself at him without mercy.
He flees from its power.
23 It claps its hands over him.
It whistles at him from his own place.
Job Continues: Wisdom Is Inaccessible to Humans
28 “There is a place where silver is mined
and a place where gold is refined.
2 Iron is taken from the ground,
and rocks are melted for ⌞their⌟ copper.
3 ⌞Humans⌟ bring an end to darkness ⌞there⌟
and search to the limit of the gloomy, pitch-black rock.
4 They open up a mineshaft far from civilization,
where no one has set foot.
⌞In this shaft⌟ men dangle and swing back and forth.
5 “Above the ground food grows,
but beneath it the food decays as if ⌞it were burned⌟ by fire.
6 That place’s stones are sapphire.
Its dust contains gold.
7 No bird of prey knows the way to it.
No hawk’s eye has ever seen it.
8 No proud beast has ever walked on it.
No ferocious lion has ever passed over it.
9 “Humans exert their power on the flinty rocks
and overturn mountains at their base.
10 They cut out mineshafts in the rocks.
Their eyes see every precious thing.
11 They explore[a] the sources of rivers
so that they bring hidden treasures to light.
Wisdom Is Inaccessible to Decay and Death
12 “Where can wisdom be found?
Where does understanding live?
13 No mortal knows where it is.[b]
It cannot be found in this world of the living.
14 The deep ocean says, ‘It isn’t in me.’
The sea says, ‘It isn’t with me.’
15 You cannot obtain it with solid gold
or buy it for any amount of silver.
16 It can’t be bought with the gold from Ophir
or with precious onyx or sapphire.
17 Neither gold nor glass can equal its value.
Nor can gold ornaments, jewels, or crystal
18 be exchanged for it.
Wisdom is more valuable than gems.
19 Topaz from Ethiopia cannot equal its value.
It cannot be bought for ⌞any amount of⌟ pure gold.
20 “Where does wisdom come from?
Where does understanding live?
21 It is hidden from the eyes of every living being,
hidden even from the birds in the air.
22 Decay and Death say,
‘We’ve heard a rumor about it.’
Wisdom Is Accessible Only to the Creator
23 “God understands the way to it.
He knows where it lives
24 because he can see to the ends of the earth
and observe everything under heaven.
25 When he gave the wind its force
and measured the water ⌞in the sea⌟,
26 when he made rules for the rain
and set paths for the thunderstorms,
27 then he saw it and announced it.
He confirmed it and examined it.
28 So he told humans,
‘The fear of the Lord is wisdom!
To stay away from evil is understanding.’ ”
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