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28:1 "Surely there is a mine for silver And a place where they refine gold. 28:2 "Iron is taken from the dust, And copper is smelted from rock. 28:3 "Man puts an end to darkness, And to the farthest limit he searches out The rock in gloom and deep shadow. 28:4 "He sinks a shaft far from habitation, Forgotten by the foot; They hang and swing to and fro far from men. 28:5 "The earth, from it comes food, And underneath it is turned up as fire. 28:6 "Its rocks are the source of sapphires, And its dust contains gold. 28:7 "The path no bird of prey knows, Nor has the falcon's eye caught sight of it. 28:8 "The proud beasts have not trodden it, Nor has the fierce lion passed over it. 28:9 "He puts his hand on the flint; He overturns the mountains at the base. 28:10 "He hews out channels through the rocks, And his eye sees anything precious. 28:11 "He dams up the streams from flowing, And what is hidden he brings out to the light. 28:12 "But where can wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding? 28:13 "Man does not know its value, Nor is it found in the land of the living. 28:14 "The deep says, 'It is not in me'; And the sea says, 'It is not with me.' 28:15 "Pure gold cannot be given in exchange for it, Nor can silver be weighed as its price. 28:16 "It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, In precious onyx, or sapphire. 28:17 "Gold or glass cannot equal it, Nor can it be exchanged for articles of fine gold. 28:18 "Coral and crystal are not to be mentioned; And the acquisition of wisdom is above that of pearls. 28:19 "The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it, Nor can it be valued in pure gold. 28:20 "Where then does wisdom come from? And where is the place of understanding? 28:21 "Thus it is hidden from the eyes of all living And concealed from the birds of the sky. 28:22 "Abaddon and Death say, 'With our ears we have heard a report of it.' 28:23 "God understands its way, And He knows its place. 28:24 "For He looks to the ends of the earth And sees everything under the heavens. 28:25 "When He imparted weight to the wind And meted out the waters by measure, 28:26 When He set a limit for the rain And a course for the thunderbolt, 28:27 Then He saw it and declared it; He established it and also searched it out. 28:28 "And to man He said, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; And to depart from evil is understanding.' "