Job 28; Job 29; Acts 13:1-25

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Job 28

1 Surely there is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined.
2 Iron is taken from the ground, and copper is smelted from ore.
3 A miner puts an end to the darkness; he probes the deepest recesses for ore in the gloomy darkness.
4 He cuts a shaft far from human habitation, [in places] unknown to those who walk above ground. Suspended far away from people, the miners swing back and forth.
5 Food may come from the earth, but below the surface the earth is transformed as by fire.
6 Its rocks are a source of sapphire, containing flecks of gold.
7 No bird of prey knows that path; no falcon's eye has seen it.
8 Proud beasts have never walked on it; no lion has ever prowled over it.
9 The miner strikes the flint and transforms the mountains at [their] foundations.
10 He cuts out channels in the rocks, and his eyes spot every treasure.
11 He dams up the streams from flowing so that he may bring to light what is hidden.
12 But where can wisdom be found, and where is understanding located?
13 No man can know its value, since it cannot be found in the land of the living.
14 The ocean depths say, "It's not in me," while the sea declares, "I don't have it."
15 Gold cannot be exchanged for it, and silver cannot be weighed out for its price.
16 Wisdom cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire.
17 Gold and glass do not compare with it, and articles of fine gold cannot be exchanged for it.
18 Coral and quartz are not worth mentioning. The price of wisdom is beyond pearls.
19 Topaz from Cush cannot compare with it, and it cannot be valued in pure gold.
20 Where then does wisdom come from, and where is understanding located?
21 It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing and concealed from the birds of the sky.
22 Abaddon and Death say, "We have heard news of it with our ears."
23 But God understands the way to wisdom, and He knows its location.
24 For He looks to the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens.
25 When God fixed the weight of the wind and limited the water by measure,
26 when He established a limit for the rain and a path for the lightning,
27 He considered wisdom and evaluated it; He established it and examined it.
28 He said to mankind, "Look! The fear of the Lord-that is wisdom, and to turn from evil is understanding."
Holman Christian Standard Bible ® Copyright © 2003, 2002, 2000, 1999 by Holman Bible Publishers.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved.

Job 29

1 Job continued his discourse, saying:
2 If only I could be as in months gone by, in the days when God watched over me,
3 when His lamp shone above my head, and I walked through darkness by His light!
4 [I would be] as I was in the days of my youth when God's friendship rested on my tent,
5 when the Almighty was still with me and my children were around me,
6 when my feet were bathed in cream and the rock poured out streams of oil for me!
7 When I went out to the city gate and took my seat in the town square,
8 the young men saw me and withdrew, while older men stood to their feet.
9 City officials stopped talking and covered their mouths with [their] hands.
10 The noblemen's voices were hushed, and their tongues stuck to the roof of their mouths.
11 When they heard me, they blessed me, and when they saw me, they spoke well of me.
12 For I rescued the poor man who cried out for help, and the fatherless child who had no one to support him.
13 The dying man blessed me, and I made the widow's heart rejoice.
14 I clothed myself in righteousness, and it enveloped me; my just decisions were like a robe and a turban.
15 I was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame.
16 I was a father to the needy, and I examined the case of the stranger.
17 I shattered the fangs of the unjust and snatched the prey from his teeth.
18 So I thought: I will die in my own nest and multiply [my] days as the sand.
19 My roots will have access to water, and the dew will rest on my branches all night.
20 My strength will be refreshed within me, and my bow will be renewed in my hand.
21 Men listened to me with expectation, waiting silently for my advice.
22 After a word from me they did not speak again; my speech settled on them [like dew].
23 They waited for me as for the rain and opened their mouths as for spring showers.
24 If I smiled at them, they couldn't believe [it]; they were thrilled at the light of my countenance.
25 I directed their course and presided as chief. I lived as a king among his troops, like one who comforts those who mourn.
Holman Christian Standard Bible ® Copyright © 2003, 2002, 2000, 1999 by Holman Bible Publishers.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved.

Acts 13:1-25

1 In the local church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius the Cyrenian, Manaen, a close friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.
2 As they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work that I have called them to."
3 Then, after they had fasted, prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them off.
4 Being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they came down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus.
5 Arriving in Salamis, they proclaimed God's message in the Jewish synagogues. They also had John as their assistant.
6 When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they came across a sorcerer, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus.
7 He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man summoned Barnabas and Saul and desired to hear God's message.
8 But Elymas, the sorcerer, which is how his name is translated, opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul away from the faith.
9 Then Saul-also called Paul-filled with the Holy Spirit, stared straight at the sorcerer
10 and said, "You son of the Devil, full of all deceit and all fraud, enemy of all righteousness! Won't you ever stop perverting the straight paths of the Lord?
11 Now, look! The Lord's hand is against you: you are going to be blind, and will not see the sun for a time." Suddenly a mist and darkness fell on him, and he went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand.
12 Then the proconsul, seeing what happened, believed and was astonished at the teaching about the Lord.
13 Paul and his companions set sail from Paphos and came to Perga in Pamphylia. John, however, left them and went back to Jerusalem.
14 They continued their journey from Perga and reached Antioch in Pisidia. On the Sabbath day they went into the synagogue and sat down.
15 After the reading of the Law and the Prophets, the leaders of the synagogue sent [word] to them, saying, "Brothers, if you have any message of encouragement for the people, you can speak."
16 Then standing up, Paul motioned with his hand and spoke: "Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen!
17 The God of this people Israel chose our forefathers, exalted the people during their stay in the land of Egypt, and led them out of it with a mighty arm.
18 And for about 40 years He put up with them in the desert;
19 then after destroying seven nations in the land of Canaan, He gave their land to them as an inheritance.
20 This all took about 450 years. After this, He gave them judges until Samuel the prophet.
21 Then they asked for a king, so God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for 40 years.
22 After removing him, He raised up David as their king, of whom He testified: ' I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My heart, who will carry out all My will.'
23 "From this man's descendants, according to the promise, God brought the Savior, Jesus, to Israel.
24 Before He came to public attention, John had previously proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel.
25 Then as John was completing his life work, he said, 'Who do you think I am? I am not the One. But look! Someone is coming after me, and I am not worthy to untie the sandals on His feet.'
Holman Christian Standard Bible ® Copyright © 2003, 2002, 2000, 1999 by Holman Bible Publishers.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved.