¹ For there is a mine for silver, and a place for gold which they refine.

² Iron is taken out of the dust, and brass is molten out of the stone.

³ Man setteth an end to darkness, and searcheth out to the furthest bound the stones of thick darkness and of the shadow of death.

⁴ He breaketh open a shaft away from where men sojourn; they are forgotten of the foot that passeth by; they hang afar from men, they swing to and fro.

⁵ As for the earth, out of it cometh bread, and underneath it is turned up as it were by fire.

⁶ The stones thereof are the place of sapphires, and it hath dust of gold.

⁷ That path no bird of prey knoweth, neither hath the falcon's eye seen it;

⁸ The proud beasts have not trodden it, nor hath the lion passed thereby.

⁹ He putteth forth his hand upon the flinty rock; He overturneth the mountains by the roots.

¹⁰ He cutteth out channels among the rocks; and his eye seeth every precious thing.

¹¹ He bindeth the streams that they trickle not; and the thing that is hid bringeth he forth to light.

¹² But wisdom, where shall it be found? And where is the place of understanding?

¹³ Man knoweth not the price thereof; neither is it found in the land of the living.

¹⁴ The deep saith: 'It is not in me'; and the sea saith: 'It is not with me.'

¹⁵ It cannot be gotten for gold, neither shall silver be weighed for the price thereof.

¹⁶ It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire.

¹⁷ Gold and glass cannot equal it; neither shall the exchange thereof be vessels of fine gold.

¹⁸ No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal; yea, the price of wisdom is above rubies.

¹⁹ The topaz of Ethiopia shall not equal it, neither shall it be valued with pure gold.

²⁰ Whence then cometh wisdom? And where is the place of understanding?

²¹ Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all living, and kept close from the fowls of the air.

²² Destruction and Death say: 'We have heard a rumor thereof with our ears.'

²³ G-d understandeth the way thereof, and He knoweth the place thereof.

²⁴ For He looketh to the ends of the earth, and seeth under the whole heaven;

²⁵ When He maketh a weight for the wind, and meteth out the waters by measure.

²⁶ When He made a decree for the rain, and a way for the storm of thunders;

²⁷ Then did He see it, and declare it; He established it, yea, and searched it out.

²⁸ And unto man He said: 'Behold, the fear of the L-rd, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.'