Through My Bible Yr 1 – August 8

Through My Bible – August 8

Bible reading based on Job 28-29 (NIV84)

See series: Through My Bible

Job 28

¹ “There is a mine for silver
and a place where gold is refined.

² Iron is taken from the earth,
and copper is smelted from ore.

³ Man puts an end to the darkness;
he searches the farthest recesses
for ore in the blackest darkness.

⁴ Far from where people dwell he cuts a shaft,
in places forgotten by the foot of man;
far from men he dangles and sways.

⁵ The earth, from which food comes,
is transformed below as by fire;

⁶ sapphires ^[a] come from its rocks,
and its dust contains nuggets of gold.

⁷ No bird of prey knows that hidden path,
no falcon’s eye has seen it.

⁸ Proud beasts do not set foot on it,
and no lion prowls there.

⁹ Man’s hand assaults the flinty rock
and lays bare the roots of the mountains.

¹⁰ He tunnels through the rock;
his eyes see all its treasures.

¹¹ He searches ^[b] the sources of the rivers
and brings hidden things to light.

¹² “But where can wisdom be found?
Where does understanding dwell?

¹³ Man does not comprehend its worth;
it cannot be found in the land of the living.

¹⁴ The deep says, ‘It is not in me’;
the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’

¹⁵ It cannot be bought with the finest gold,
nor can its price be weighed in silver.

¹⁶ It cannot be bought with the gold of Ophir,
with precious onyx or sapphires.

¹⁷ Neither gold nor crystal can compare with it,
nor can it be had for jewels of gold.

¹⁸ Coral and jasper are not worthy of mention;
the price of wisdom is beyond rubies.

¹⁹ The topaz of Cush cannot compare with it;
it cannot be bought with pure gold.

²⁰ “Where then does wisdom come from?
Where does understanding dwell?

²¹ It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing,
concealed even from the birds of the air.

²² Destruction ^[c] and Death say,
‘Only a rumor of it has reached our ears.’

²³ God understands the way to it
and he alone knows where it dwells,

²⁴ for he views the ends of the earth
and sees everything under the heavens.

²⁵ When he established the force of the wind
and measured out the waters,

²⁶ when he made a decree for the rain
and a path for the thunderstorm,

²⁷ then he looked at wisdom and appraised it;
he confirmed it and tested it.

²⁸ And he said to man,
‘The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom,
and to shun evil is understanding.’ ”

Job 29

¹Job continued his discourse:

² “How I long for the months gone by,
for the days when God watched over me,

³ when his lamp shone upon my head
and by his light I walked through darkness!

⁴ Oh, for the days when I was in my prime,
when God’s intimate friendship blessed my house,

⁵ when the Almighty was still with me
and my children were around me,

⁶ when my path was drenched with cream
and the rock poured out for me streams of olive oil.

⁷ “When I went to the gate of the city
and took my seat in the public square,

⁸ the young men saw me and stepped aside
and the old men rose to their feet;

⁹ the chief men refrained from speaking
and covered their mouths with their hands;

¹⁰ the voices of the nobles were hushed,
and their tongues stuck to the roof of their mouths.

¹¹ Whoever heard me spoke well of me,
and those who saw me commended me,

¹² because I rescued the poor who cried for help,
and the fatherless who had none to assist him.

¹³ The man who was dying blessed me;
I made the widow’s heart sing.

¹⁴ I put on righteousness as my clothing;
justice was my robe and my turban.

¹⁵ I was eyes to the blind
and feet to the lame.

¹⁶ I was a father to the needy;
I took up the case of the stranger.

¹⁷ I broke the fangs of the wicked
and snatched the victims from their teeth.

¹⁸ “I thought, ‘I will die in my own house,
my days as numerous as the grains of sand.

¹⁹ My roots will reach to the water,
and the dew will lie all night on my branches.

²⁰ My glory will remain fresh in me,
the bow ever new in my hand.’

²¹ “Men listened to me expectantly,
waiting in silence for my counsel.

²² After I had spoken, they spoke no more;
my words fell gently on their ears.

²³ They waited for me as for showers
and drank in my words as the spring rain.

²⁴ When I smiled at them, they scarcely believed it;
the light of my face was precious to them. ^[d]

²⁵ I chose the way for them and sat as their chief;
I dwelt as a king among his troops;
I was like one who comforts mourners.