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1 Surely there is a vein for the silver, and a place for gold where they fine it.
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2 Iron is taken out of the earth, and brass is molten out of the stone.
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3 He setteth an end to darkness, and searcheth out all perfection: the stones of darkness, and the shadow of death.
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4 The flood breaketh out from the inhabitant; even the waters forgotten of the foot: they are dried up, they are gone away from men.
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5 As for the earth, out of it cometh bread: and under it is turned up as it were fire.
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6 The stones of it are the place of sapphires: and it hath dust of gold.
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7 There is a path which no fowl knoweth, and which the vulture's eye hath not seen:
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8 The lion's whelps have not trodden it, nor the fierce lion passed by it.
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9 He putteth forth his hand upon the rock; he overturneth the mountains by the roots.
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10 He cutteth out rivers among the rocks; and his eye seeth every precious thing.
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11 He bindeth the floods from overflowing; and the thing that is hid bringeth he forth to light.
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12 But where shall wisdom be found? and where is the place of understanding?
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13 Man knoweth not the price thereof; neither is it found in the land of the living.
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14 The depth saith, It is not in me: and the sea saith, It is not with me.
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15 It cannot be gotten for gold, neither shall silver be weighed for the price thereof.
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16 It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire.
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17 The gold and the crystal cannot equal it: and the exchange of it shall not be for jewels of fine gold.
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18 No mention shall be made of coral, or of pearls: for the price of wisdom is above rubies.
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19 The topaz of Ethiopia shall not equal it, neither shall it be valued with pure gold.
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20 Whence then cometh wisdom? and where is the place of understanding?
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21 Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all living, and kept close from the fowls of the air.
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22 Destruction and death say, We have heard the fame thereof with our ears.
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23 God understandeth the way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof.
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24 For he looketh to the ends of the earth, and seeth under the whole heaven;
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25 To make the weight for the winds; and he weigheth the waters by measure.
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26 When he made a decree for the rain, and a way for the lightning of the thunder:
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27 Then did he see it, and declare it; he prepared it, yea, and searched it out.
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28 And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the LORD, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.
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- 1 “Surely there is a mine for silver And a place where they refine gold.
- 2 “Iron is taken from the dust, And copper is smelted from rock.
- 3 “Man puts an end to darkness, And to the farthest limit he searches out The rock in gloom and deep shadow.
- 4 “He sinks a shaft far from habitation, Forgotten by the foot; They hang and swing to and fro far from men.
- 5 “The earth, from it comes food, And underneath it is turned up as fire.
- 6 “Its rocks are the source of sapphires, And its dust contains gold.
- 7 “The path no bird of prey knows, Nor has the falcon's eye caught sight of it.
- 8 “The proud beasts have not trodden it, Nor has the fierce lion passed over it.
- 9 “He puts his hand on the flint; He overturns the mountains at the base.
- 10 “He hews out channels through the rocks, And his eye sees anything precious.
- 11 “He dams up the streams from flowing, And what is hidden he brings out to the light.
- 12 “But where can wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?
- 13 “Man does not know its value, 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 “Pure gold cannot be given in exchange for it, Nor can silver be weighed as its price.
- 16 “It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, In precious onyx, or sapphire.
- 17 “Gold or glass cannot equal it, Nor can it be exchanged for articles of fine gold.
- 18 “Coral and crystal are not to be mentioned; And the acquisition of wisdom is above that of pearls.
- 19 “The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it, Nor can it be valued in pure gold.
- 20 “Where then does wisdom come from? And where is the place of understanding?
- 21 “Thus it is hidden from the eyes of all living And concealed from the birds of the sky.
- 22 “Abaddon and Death say, 'With our ears we have heard a report of it.'
- 23 “God understands its way, And He knows its place.
- 24 “For He looks to 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,
- 26 When He set a limit for the rain And a course for the thunderbolt,
- 27 Then He saw it and declared it; He established it and also searched it out.
- 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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