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Christian Standard Bible
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A HYMN TO WISDOM

28 Surely there is a mine for silver

and a place where gold is refined.

Iron is taken from the ground,

and copper is smelted from ore.

A miner puts an end to the darkness;

he probesD the deepest recesses

for ore in the gloomy darkness.

He 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.

Food may come from the earth,

but below the surface the earth is transformed as by fire.

Its rocks are a source of lapis lazuli,a

containing flecks of gold.

No bird of prey knows that path;

no falcon’s eye has seen it.

Proud beasts have never walked on it;

no lion has ever prowled over it.

The miner uses a flint tool

and turns up ore from the root of the mountains.

10 He cuts out channels in the rocks,

and his eyes spot every treasure.

11 He dams up the streams from flowingA

so that he may bring to light what is hidden.

12 But where can wisdomb be found,

and where is understanding located?

13 No one can know its value,B

since it cannot be found in the land of the living.

14 The ocean depths say, “It’s not in me,”

while the sea declares, “I don’t have it.”c

15 Gold cannot be exchanged for it,

and silver cannot be weighed out for its price.

16 Wisdom cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,d

in precious onyx or lapis lazuli.e

17 Gold and glass do not compare with it,

and articles of fine gold cannot be exchanged for it.f

18 Coral and quartz are not worth mentioning.

The price of wisdom is beyond pearls.

19 Topaz from Cush cannot compare with it,

and it cannot be valued in pure gold.

20 Where then does wisdom come from,

and where is understanding located?

21 It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing

and concealed from the birds of the sky.

22 Abaddon and Deathg say,

“We have heard news of it with our ears.”

23 But God understands the way to wisdom,

and he knows its location.

24 For he looks to the ends of the earth

and sees everything under the heavens.

25 When God fixed the weight of the wind

and distributed the water by measure,h

26 when he established a limitC for the raini

and a path for the lightning,

27 he considered wisdom and evaluated it;

he established it and examined it.

28 He said to mankind,

“The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom.

And to turn from evil is understanding.”j

CSB

About Christian Standard Bible

The Christian Standard Bible (CSB) is a highly trustworthy, faithful translation that is proven to be the optimal blend of accuracy and readability. It’s as literal to the original as possible without sacrificing clarity. The CSB is poised to become the translation that pastors rely on and Bible readers turn to again and again to read and to share with others.

The CSB is an original translation: more than 100 scholars from 17 denominations translated directly from the best available Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic source texts into English. Its source texts are the standard used by scholars and seminaries today.

The CSB is trustworthy: the conservative, evangelical scholars of the CSB affirm the authority of Scripture as the inerrant Word of God and seek the highest level of faithfulness to the original and accuracy in their translation. These scholars and LifeWay, the non-profit ministry that stewards the CSB, also champion the Bible against cultural trends that would compromise its truths.

The CSB is clear: it is as literal a translation of the ancient source texts as possible, but, in the many places throughout Scripture where a word-for-word rendering might obscure the meaning for a modern audience, it uses a more dynamic translation. In all cases, the intent is to convey the original meaning of God’s Word as faithfully and as clearly as possible.

Copyright

Copyright 2017 Holman Bible Publishers.

CSB UltraThin Reference Bible Copyright © 2020 by Holman Bible Publishers.

All Rights Reserved.

The text of the Christian Standard Bible may be quoted in any form (written, visual, electronic, or audio) up to and inclusive of one-thousand (1,000) verses without the written permission of the publisher, provided that the verses quoted do not account for more than 50 percent of the work in which they are quoted, and provided that a complete book of the Bible is not quoted. Requests for permission are to be directed to and approved in writing by Holman Bible Publishers, One LifeWay Plaza, Nashville, Tennessee 37234.

When the Christian Standard Bible is quoted, one of the following credit lines must appear on the copyright page or title page of the work:

Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2020 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2020 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

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