New American Standard Bible NAS
New International Version NIV
1 "Surely there is a mine for silver And a place where they refine gold.
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There is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined.
2 "Iron is taken from the dust, And copper is smelted from rock.
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Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore.
3 "Man puts an end to darkness, And to the farthest limit he searches out The rock in gloom and deep shadow.
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Mortals put an end to the darkness; they search out the farthest recesses for ore in the blackest darkness.
4 "He sinks a shaft far from habitation, Forgotten by the foot; They hang and swing to and fro far from men.
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Far from human dwellings they cut a shaft, in places untouched by human feet; far from other people they dangle and sway.
5 "The earth, from it comes food, And underneath it is turned up as fire.
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The earth, from which food comes, is transformed below as by fire;
6 "Its rocks are the source of sapphires, And its dust contains gold.
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lapis lazuli comes from its rocks, and its dust contains nuggets of gold.
7 "The path no bird of prey knows, Nor has the falcon's eye caught sight of it.
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No bird of prey knows that hidden path, no falcon’s eye has seen it.
8 "The proud beasts have not trodden it, Nor has the fierce lion passed over it.
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Proud beasts do not set foot on it, and no lion prowls there.
9 "He puts his hand on the flint; He overturns the mountains at the base.
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People assault the flinty rock with their hands and lay bare the roots of the mountains.
10 "He hews out channels through the rocks, And his eye sees anything precious.
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They tunnel through the rock; their eyes see all its treasures.
11 "He dams up the streams from flowing, And what is hidden he brings out to the light.
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They search the sources of the rivers and bring hidden things to light.
12 "But where can wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?
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But where can wisdom be found? Where does understanding dwell?
13 "Man does not know its value, Nor is it found in the land of the living.
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No mortal comprehends its worth; it cannot be 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.'
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The deep says, “It is not in me”; the sea says, “It is not with me.”
15 "Pure gold cannot be given in exchange for it, Nor can silver be weighed as its price.
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It cannot be bought with the finest gold, nor can its price be weighed out in silver.
16 "It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, In precious onyx, or sapphire.
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It cannot be bought with the gold of Ophir, with precious onyx or lapis lazuli.
17 "Gold or glass cannot equal it, Nor can it be exchanged for articles of fine gold.
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Neither gold nor crystal can compare with it, nor can it be had for jewels of gold.
18 "Coral and crystal are not to be mentioned; And the acquisition of wisdom is above that of pearls.
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Coral and jasper are not worthy of mention; the price of wisdom is beyond rubies.
19 "The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it, Nor can it be valued in pure gold.
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The topaz of Cush cannot compare with it; it cannot be bought with pure gold.
20 "Where then does wisdom come from? And where is the place of understanding?
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Where then does wisdom come from? Where does understanding dwell?
21 "Thus it is hidden from the eyes of all living And concealed from the birds of the sky.
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It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing, concealed even from the birds in the sky.
22 "Abaddon and Death say, 'With our ears we have heard a report of it.'
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Destruction and Death say, “Only a rumor of it has reached our ears.”
23 "God understands its way, And He knows its place.
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God understands the way to it and he alone knows where it dwells,
24 "For He looks to the ends of the earth And sees everything under the heavens.
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for he views the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens.
25 "When He imparted weight to the wind And meted out the waters by measure,
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When he established the force of the wind and measured out the waters,
26 When He set a limit for the rain And a course for the thunderbolt ,
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when he made a decree for the rain and a path for the thunderstorm,
27 Then He saw it and declared it; He established it and also searched it out.
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then he looked at wisdom and appraised it; he confirmed it and tested it.
28 "And to man He said, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord , that is wisdom; And to depart from evil is understanding.' "
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And he said to the human race, “The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.”
New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, California. All rights reserved.
Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica. All rights reserved worldwide.