Wisdom is better than silver
1Job said:
‘It is true, there is a place
where people can get silver,
and a place where they can dig to get gold.
2They take iron from the ground
and melt copper from copper-stones.
3Men who work in the mines
take torches and look deep down into the mines
where it is very dark.
They look for copper-stones.
4They dig holes and tunnels
far away from where people live.
They go to places where people
have never been
and where they hang from ropes,
where there are no other people.
5Food grows on the ground above them,
but under the ground the men
who work in the mines
make big fires to break the rocks.
6There is sapphire in the rocks
of the earth and there is gold in the dust.
7Even eagles don't know this place,
and hawks have never seen it.
8The proud wild animals don't walk there,
and the lions never go there.
9The men who work in the mines
cut away the hard rock
and they dig deep under the mountains.
10They cut holes and tunnels
into the rocks
and they look for precious stones.
11They make dams where water
does not flow
and they find things
that no one knew about before.
12But where can people look to find wisdom?
Where can they look to understand how to live?
13People do not understand
how precious wisdom is.
You will not find it in this world.
14The deep water says:
“Wisdom is not in me.”
The sea says: “Wisdom is not here.”
15You can not buy wisdom,
not even with a lot of gold.
You will never be able
to weigh enough silver to buy it.
16You can not pay for it
with gold from Ophir,
or with precious onyx and sapphire.
17Gold and crystal will never be enough.
You can not buy wisdom with gold and jewellery.
18Coral and crystal will not be enough
to pay for it, not even pearls.
Wisdom is more precious than anything.
19Topaz from the land of Cush
or the purest gold will not be enough.
You can not pay to get wisdom.
20Where does wisdom come from?
Where can you learn to understand it?
21Nothing that lives can see wisdom.
It is hidden from their eyes,
and even the birds can not see it.
22The underworld and Death say:
“We have only heard
that people speak about wisdom,
but we have not found it.”
23Only God knows
where one can find wisdom.
Only He knows where it is
24because He can see to the end of the earth.
He sees everything under the sky.
25When God decided
how strong the wind must be
and how much water there must be in the clouds,
26and when He decided
when the rain must fall
and where the storms and thunder must go,
27then He saw wisdom
and He spoke about it.
He said how much it is worth
and He tested it.
28Then He said to the people:
“Wisdom is to fear the Lord
and to serve Him.
If you want to understand what is important,
you must turn away from things that are wrong.” ’
