Job 28:12-28 - ESV Online

JOB 28:12-28

“But where shall wisdom be found?

And where is the place of understanding? 13

Man does not know its worth,

and it is not 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 bought for gold,

and silver cannot be weighed as its price. 16

It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,

in precious onyx or sapphire. 17

Gold and glass cannot equal it,

nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold. 18

No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal;

the price of wisdom is above pearls. 19

The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal 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 living

and concealed from the birds of the air. 22

Abaddon and Death say,

‘We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.’
23

“God understands the way to it,

and he knows its place. 24

For he looks to the ends of the earth

and sees everything under the heavens. 25

When he gave to the wind its weight

and apportioned the waters by measure, 26

when he made a decree for the rain

and a way for the lightning of the thunder, 27

then he saw it and declared it;

he established it, and searched it out. 28

And he said to man,

‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom,

and to turn away from evil is understanding.’”

ESV® Permanent Text Edition (2016). The ESV® text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers.