| New Living Translation | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1“People know where to mine silver and how to refine gold. | 1Surely there is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined. |
| 2They know where to dig iron from the earth and how to smelt copper from rock. | 2Iron is taken from the ground, and copper is smelted from ore. |
| 3They know how to shine light in the darkness and explore the farthest regions of the earth as they search in the dark for ore. | 3A miner puts an end to the darkness; he probes the deepest recesses for ore in the gloomy darkness. |
| 4They sink a mine shaft into the earth far from where anyone lives. They descend on ropes, swinging back and forth. | 4He cuts a shaft far from human habitation, in places unknown to those who walk above ground. Suspended far away from people, the miners swing back and forth. |
| 5Food is grown on the earth above, but down below, the earth is melted as by fire. | 5Food may come from the earth, but below the surface the earth is transformed as by fire. |
| 6Here the rocks contain precious lapis lazuli, and the dust contains gold. | 6Its rocks are a source of sapphire, containing flecks of gold. |
| 7These are treasures no bird of prey can see, no falcon’s eye observe. | 7No bird of prey knows that path; no falcon's eye has seen it. |
| 8No wild animal has walked upon these treasures; no lion has ever set his paw there. | 8Proud beasts have never walked on it; no lion has ever prowled over it. |
| 9People know how to tear apart flinty rocks and overturn the roots of mountains. | 9The miner strikes the flint and transforms the mountains at their foundations. |
| 10They cut tunnels in the rocks and uncover precious stones. | 10He cuts out channels in the rocks, and his eyes spot every treasure. |
| 11They dam up the trickling streams and bring to light the hidden treasures. | 11He dams up the streams from flowing so that he may bring to light what is hidden. |
| 12“But do people know where to find wisdom? Where can they find understanding? | 12But where can wisdom be found, and where is understanding located? |
| 13No one knows where to find it, for it is not found among the living. | 13No man can know its value, since it cannot be found in the land of the living. |
| 14‘It is not here,’ says the ocean. ‘Nor is it here,’ says the sea. | 14The ocean depths say, "It's not in me," while the sea declares, "I don't have it." |
| 15It cannot be bought with gold. It cannot be purchased with silver. | 15Gold cannot be exchanged for it, and silver cannot be weighed out for its price. |
| 16It’s worth more than all the gold of Ophir, greater than precious onyx or lapis lazuli. | 16Wisdom cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire. |
| 17Wisdom is more valuable than gold and crystal. It cannot be purchased with jewels mounted in fine gold. | 17Gold and glass do not compare with it, and articles of fine gold cannot be exchanged for it. |
| 18Coral and jasper are worthless in trying to get it. The price of wisdom is far above rubies. | 18Coral and quartz are not worth mentioning. The price of wisdom is beyond pearls. |
| 19Precious peridot from Ethiopia cannot be exchanged for it. It’s worth more than the purest gold. | 19Topaz from Cush cannot compare with it, and it cannot be valued in pure gold. |
| 20“But do people know where to find wisdom? Where can they find understanding? | 20Where then does wisdom come from, and where is understanding located? |
| 21It is hidden from the eyes of all humanity. Even the sharp-eyed birds in the sky cannot discover it. | 21It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing and concealed from the birds of the sky. |
| 22Destruction and Death say, ‘We’ve heard only rumors of where wisdom can be found.’ | 22Abaddon and Death say, "We have heard news of it with our ears." |
| 23“God alone understands the way to wisdom; he knows where it can be found, | 23But God understands the way to wisdom, and He knows its location. |
| 24for he looks throughout the whole earth and sees everything under the heavens. | 24For He looks to the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens. |
| 25He decided how hard the winds should blow and how much rain should fall. | 25When God fixed the weight of the wind and limited the water by measure, |
| 26He made the laws for the rain and laid out a path for the lightning. | 26when He established a limit for the rain and a path for the lightning, |
| 27Then he saw wisdom and evaluated it. He set it in place and examined it thoroughly. | 27He considered wisdom and evaluated it; He established it and examined it. |
| 28And this is what he says to all humanity: ‘The fear of the Lord is true wisdom; to forsake evil is real understanding.’” | 28He said to mankind, "The fear of the Lord is this: wisdom. And to turn from evil is understanding." |
| Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. | Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. |
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