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.
