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Job 28-29
Amplified Bible
Job 28-29
Amplified Bible
Job Tells of Earth’s Treasures
28 “Surely there is a mine for silver,
And a place where they refine gold.
2
“Iron is taken out of the earth,
And copper is smelted from the stone ore.
3
“Man puts an end to darkness [by bringing in a light],
And to the farthest bounds he searches out
The rock buried in gloom and deep shadow.
4
“He breaks open (mine) shafts far away from where people live,
[In places] forgotten by the [human] foot;
They dangle [in the mines] and hang away from men.
5
“[As for] the earth, out of it comes food,
But underneath [its surface, down deep] it is turned over as fire.
6
“Its stones are the bed of sapphires;
It holds dust of gold.
7
“The path [deep within] no bird of prey knows,
And the falcon’s eye has not caught sight of it.
8
“The proud beasts [and their young] have not walked on it,
Nor has the fierce lion passed over it.
9
“Man puts his hand on [and tears apart] the flinty rock;
He overturns the mountains at the base [looking for treasure].
10
“He cuts out channels and passages among the rocks;
And his eye sees every precious thing.
11
“Man dams up the streams from flowing [so that they do not trickle into the mine],
And what is hidden he brings out to the light.
The Search for Wisdom Is Harder
12
“But where can wisdom be found?
And where is the place of understanding?
13
“Man does not know the value of it;
Nor is it found in the land of the living.
14
“The deep says, ‘It is not in me’;
And the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’
15
“It cannot be obtained for pure gold,
Nor can silver be weighed as its price.
16
“It cannot be valued in [terms of] the gold of Ophir,
In the precious onyx or beryl, or the sapphire.
17
“Gold and glass cannot equal wisdom,
Nor can it be exchanged for articles of fine gold.
18
“No mention of coral and crystal can be made;
For the possession of wisdom is even above [that of] rubies or pearls.
19
“The topaz of Ethiopia cannot compare with it,
Nor can it be valued in pure gold.
20
“From where then does wisdom come?
And where is the place of understanding?
21
“It is hidden from the eyes of all the living
And concealed from the birds of the heavens.
22
“Abaddon (the place of destruction) and Death say,
‘We have [only] heard a report of it with our ears.’
23
“God understands the way [to wisdom]
And He knows its place [for wisdom is with God alone].
24
“For He looks to the ends of the earth
And sees everything under the heavens.
25
“When He gave weight and pressure to the wind
And allotted the waters by measure,
26
When He made a limit for the rain
And a way for the thunderbolt,
27
Then He saw wisdom and declared it;
He established it and searched it out.
28
“But to man He said, ‘Behold, the reverential and worshipful fear of the Lord—that is wisdom;
And to depart from evil is understanding.’”
Job’s Past Was Glorious
29 And Job again took up his discussion and said,
2
“Oh, that I were as in the months of old,
As in the days when God watched over me,(A)
3
When His lamp shone upon my head
And by His light I walked through darkness;
4
As I was in the prime of my days,
When the friendship and counsel of God were over my tent,
5
When [a]the Almighty was still with me
And my boys were around me,
6
When my steps [through rich pastures] were washed with butter and cream [from my livestock],
And the rock poured out for me streams of oil [from my olive groves].
7
“When I went out to the gate of the city,
When I took my seat [as a city father] in the square,
8
The young men saw me and hid themselves,
The aged arose and stood [respectfully];
9
The princes stopped talking
And put their hands on their mouths;
10
The voices of the nobles were hushed,
And their tongues stuck to the roof of their mouths.
11
“For when an ear heard [my name mentioned], it called me happy and fortunate;
And when an eye saw [me], it testified for me [approvingly],
12
Because I rescued the poor who cried for help,
And the orphan who had no helper.
13
“The blessing of him who was about to perish came upon me,
And I made the widow’s heart sing for joy.
14
“I put on [b]righteousness, and it clothed me;
My justice was like a robe and a turban!
15
“I was eyes to the blind
And I was feet to the lame.
16
“I was a father to the needy;
I investigated the case I did not know [and assured justice].
17
“And I smashed the jaws of the wicked
And snatched the prey from his teeth.
18
“Then I said, ‘I shall die in my nest,
And I shall multiply my days as the sand.
19
‘My root is spread out and open to the waters,
And the dew lies all night upon my branch.
20
‘My glory and honor are fresh in me [being constantly renewed],
And my bow gains [ever] new strength in my hand.’
21
“They listened to me and waited
And kept silent for my counsel.
22
“After I spoke, they did not speak again,
And my speech dropped upon them [like a refreshing shower].
23
“They waited for me [and for my words] as for the rain,
And they opened their mouths as for the spring rain.
24
“I smiled at them when they did not believe,
And they did not diminish the light of my face.
25
“I chose a way for them and sat as chief,
And dwelt as a king among his soldiers,
As one who comforts mourners.
Footnotes
- Job 29:5 Heb Shaddai.
- Job 29:14 Blameless and upright as Job had been—and God had so pronounced him—his misunderstood afflictions had caused him to get dangerously off-center. Instead of keeping his mind focused on God and justifying Him, he is giving his whole thought to justifying himself. Instead of humility there is self-righteousness. In this chapter he uses pronouns referring to himself fifty times. But when he was able to see himself as God saw him, he loathed himself and repented “in dust and ashes” (42:6).
Job 28-29
New International Version
Job 28-29
New International Version
Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found
28 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 dwellings they cut a shaft,(E)
in places untouched by human feet;
far from other people they dangle and sway.
5 The earth, from which food comes,(F)
is transformed below as by fire;
6 lapis lazuli(G) comes from its rocks,
and its dust contains nuggets of gold.(H)
7 No bird of prey knows that hidden path,
no falcon’s eye has seen it.(I)
8 Proud beasts(J) do not set foot on it,
and no lion prowls there.(K)
9 People assault the flinty rock(L) with their hands
and lay bare the roots of the mountains.(M)
10 They tunnel through the rock;(N)
their eyes see all its treasures.(O)
11 They search[a] the sources of the rivers(P)
and bring hidden things(Q) to light.
12 But where can wisdom be found?(R)
Where does understanding dwell?(S)
13 No mortal comprehends its worth;(T)
it cannot be found in the land of the living.(U)
14 The deep(V) says, “It is not in me”;
the sea(W) says, “It is not with me.”
15 It cannot be bought with the finest gold,
nor can its price be weighed out in silver.(X)
16 It cannot be bought with the gold of Ophir,(Y)
with precious onyx or lapis lazuli.(Z)
17 Neither gold nor crystal can compare with it,(AA)
nor can it be had for jewels of gold.(AB)
18 Coral(AC) and jasper(AD) are not worthy of mention;
the price of wisdom is beyond rubies.(AE)
19 The topaz(AF) of Cush(AG) cannot compare with it;
it cannot be bought with pure gold.(AH)
20 Where then does wisdom come from?
Where does understanding dwell?(AI)
21 It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing,
concealed even from the birds in the sky.(AJ)
22 Destruction[b](AK) and Death(AL) say,
“Only a rumor of it has reached our ears.”
23 God understands the way to it
and he alone(AM) knows where it dwells,(AN)
24 for he views the ends of the earth(AO)
and sees everything under the heavens.(AP)
25 When he established the force of the wind
and measured out the waters,(AQ)
26 when he made a decree for the rain(AR)
and a path for the thunderstorm,(AS)
27 then he looked at wisdom and appraised it;
he confirmed it and tested it.(AT)
28 And he said to the human race,
“The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom,
and to shun evil(AU) is understanding.”(AV)
Job’s Final Defense
29 Job continued his discourse:(AW)
2 “How I long for the months gone by,(AX)
for the days when God watched over me,(AY)
3 when his lamp shone on my head
and by his light I walked through darkness!(AZ)
4 Oh, for the days when I was in my prime,
when God’s intimate friendship(BA) blessed my house,(BB)
5 when the Almighty was still with me
and my children(BC) were around me,(BD)
6 when my path was drenched with cream(BE)
and the rock(BF) poured out for me streams of olive oil.(BG)
7 “When I went to the gate(BH) of the city
and took my seat in the public square,
8 the young men saw me and stepped aside(BI)
and the old men rose to their feet;(BJ)
9 the chief men refrained from speaking(BK)
and covered their mouths with their hands;(BL)
10 the voices of the nobles were hushed,(BM)
and their tongues stuck to the roof of their mouths.(BN)
11 Whoever heard me spoke well of me,
and those who saw me commended me,(BO)
12 because I rescued the poor(BP) who cried for help,
and the fatherless(BQ) who had none to assist them.(BR)
13 The one who was dying blessed me;(BS)
I made the widow’s(BT) heart sing.
14 I put on righteousness(BU) as my clothing;
justice was my robe and my turban.(BV)
15 I was eyes(BW) to the blind
and feet to the lame.(BX)
16 I was a father to the needy;(BY)
I took up the case(BZ) of the stranger.(CA)
17 I broke the fangs of the wicked
and snatched the victims(CB) from their teeth.(CC)
18 “I thought, ‘I will die in my own house,
my days as numerous as the grains of sand.(CD)
19 My roots will reach to the water,(CE)
and the dew will lie all night on my branches.(CF)
20 My glory will not fade;(CG)
the bow(CH) will be ever new in my hand.’(CI)
21 “People listened to me expectantly,
waiting in silence for my counsel.(CJ)
22 After I had spoken, they spoke no more;(CK)
my words fell gently on their ears.(CL)
23 They waited for me as for showers
and drank in my words as the spring rain.(CM)
24 When I smiled at them, they scarcely believed it;
the light of my face(CN) was precious to them.[c](CO)
25 I chose the way for them and sat as their chief;(CP)
I dwelt as a king(CQ) among his troops;
I was like one who comforts mourners.(CR)
Amplified Bible (AMP) 
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New International Version (NIV) 
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