Job 27:7--28:28

The Condition of the Wicked

27:7 “May my enemy be like the wicked,

my adversary like the unrighteous.

27:8 For what hope does the godless have when he is cut off,

when God takes away his life?

27:9 Does God listen to his cry

when distress overtakes him?

27:10 Will he find delight in the Almighty?

Will he call out to God at all times?

27:11 I will teach you about the power of God;

What is on the Almighty’s mind I will not conceal.

27:12 If you yourselves have all seen this,

Why in the world do you continue this meaningless talk?

27:13 This is the portion of the wicked man

allotted by God,

the inheritance that evildoers receive

from the Almighty.

27:14 If his children increase – it is for the sword!

His offspring never have enough to eat.

27:15 Those who survive him are buried by the plague,

and their widows do not mourn for them.

27:16 If he piles up silver like dust

and stores up clothing like mounds of clay,

27:17 what he stores up a righteous man will wear,

and an innocent man will inherit his silver.

27:18 The house he builds is as fragile as a moth’s cocoon,

like a hut that a watchman has made.

27:19 He goes to bed wealthy, but will do so no more.

When he opens his eyes, it is all gone.

27:20 Terrors overwhelm him like a flood;

at night a whirlwind carries him off.

27:21 The east wind carries him away, and he is gone;

it sweeps him out of his place.

27:22 It hurls itself against him without pity

as he flees headlong from its power.

27:23 It claps its hands at him in derision

and hisses him away from his place.

III. Job’s Search for Wisdom (28:1-28)

No Known Road to Wisdom

28:1 “Surely there is a mine for silver,

and a place where gold is refined.

28:2 Iron is taken from the ground,

and rock is poured out as copper.

28:3 Man puts an end to the darkness;

he searches the farthest recesses

for the ore in the deepest darkness.

28:4 Far from where people live he sinks a shaft,

in places travelers have long forgotten,

far from other people he dangles and sways.

28:5 The earth, from which food comes,

is overturned below as though by fire;

28:6 a place whose stones are sapphires

and which contains dust of gold;

28:7 a hidden path no bird of prey knows –

no falcon’s eye has spotted it.

28:8 Proud beasts have not set foot on it,

and no lion has passed along it.

28:9 On the flinty rock man has set to work with his hand;

he has overturned mountains at their bases.

28:10 He has cut out channels through the rocks;

his eyes have spotted every precious thing.

28:11 He has searched the sources of the rivers

and what was hidden he has brought into the light.

No Price Can Buy Wisdom

28:12 “But wisdom – where can it be found?

Where is the place of understanding?

28:13 Mankind does not know its place;

it cannot be found in the land of the living.

28:14 The deep says, ‘It is not with me.’

And the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’

28:15 Fine gold cannot be given in exchange for it,

nor can its price be weighed out in silver.

28:16 It cannot be measured out for purchase with the gold of Ophir,

with precious onyx or sapphires.

28:17 Neither gold nor crystal can be compared with it,

nor can a vase of gold match its worth.

28:18 Of coral and jasper no mention will be made;

the price of wisdom is more than pearls.

28:19 The topaz of Cush cannot be compared with it;

it cannot be purchased with pure gold.

God Alone Has Wisdom

28:20 “But wisdom – where does it come from?

Where is the place of understanding?

28:21 For it has been hidden

from the eyes of every living creature,

and from the birds of the sky it has been concealed.

28:22 Destruction and Death say,

‘With our ears we have heard a rumor about where it can be found.’

28:23 God understands the way to it,

and he alone knows its place.

28:24 For he looks to the ends of the earth

and observes everything under the heavens.

28:25 When he made the force of the wind

and measured the waters with a gauge.

28:26 When he imposed a limit for the rain,

and a path for the thunderstorm,

28:27 then he looked at wisdom and assessed its value;

he established it and examined it closely.

28:28 And he said to mankind,

‘The fear of the Lord – that is wisdom,

and to turn away from evil is understanding.’”