Job 28
The Richness of the Earth
1 “Indeed, there is a place for silver, from whence it comes, And a place for gold, from whence it is refined.†
2 Certainly, iron is taken from the earth, And copper is hewn out like a stone.
3 He set an order to darkness And examines accurately every limit. A stone is darkness and the shadow of death.
4 There is a narrow channel of the brook because of dust; So those who forget the right way Are weakened because of mortal men.
5 As for the earth, from it will come bread, But underneath, it is turned up as by fire;
6 Its stones are the source of sapphires, And its dust contains gold.
7 There is a path no bird knows, Nor has the eye of a vulture seen it.
8 The sons of the arrogant have not trodden it, Nor has the lion passed over it.
9 He has stretched forth his hand to quarry stones And has overturned the mountains by the roots.
10 He has broken asunder the whirlpools of rivers, And my eye has seen every valued thing.
11 He has uncovered the depths of the rivers And has brought his power to light.
Where Is Wisdom Found?
12 “But where can wisdom be found? What is the place of understanding?
13 Mortal man has not known its way, Nor is it found among men.
14 The deep said, ‘It is not in me’; And the sea said, ‘It is not with me.’
15 One shall not give massive piles of gold instead of it, Nor can silver be weighed in exchange for it.
16 It cannot be compared with the gold of Ophir, With the precious onyx or sapphire.
17 Neither gold nor crystal will equal it, Nor can it be exchanged for vessels of gold.
18 No mention shall be made of coral and quartz, But you must hold up wisdom above the most valued things.
19 The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it, Nor can it be compared with pure gold.
20 “From where then is wisdom found, And what is the place of understanding?
21 It has been hidden from every man And concealed from the birds of the sky.
22 Destruction and Death said, ‘We have heard about its fame.’
23 God has well established its way, And He knows its place.
24 For He watches over the whole earth under heaven, Knowing the things in the earth, all He has made—
25 The weight of the winds and the measures of the water.
26 When He made them, He numbered them And made a way for the claps of thunder.
27 Then He saw wisdom and declared it; He prepared it and traced it out.
28 He said to man, ‘behold, the fear of God is wisdom, And to abstain from evils is understanding.’”
Psalms 111
1 Alleluia. †Blessed is the man who fears the Lord; He will delight exceedingly in His commandments;
2 His seed shall be mighty on earth; The generation of the upright shall be blessed;
3 Glory and riches shall be in his house, And his righteousness continues unto ages of ages.
4 For the upright, light springs up in darkness, For he is merciful, compassionate, and righteous.
5 A good man is compassionate and lends; He will manage his words with judgment,
6 For he shall be unshaken forever; A righteous man shall be in everlasting remembrance.
7 He shall not be afraid because of an evil report; His heart is prepared to hope in the Lord.
8 His heart is established; he is not afraid As he surveys his enemies.
9 He dispersed; he gave to the poor; His righteousness continues unto ages of ages; His horn shall be exalted with glory.
10 The sinner shall see this, and be angry; He shall gnash his teeth, and be consumed; The desire of sinners shall perish.
Psalms 112
1 Alleluia. †Praise the Lord, O you servants; Praise the name of the Lord;
2 Blessed be the name of the Lord From this present time and unto the ages;
3 From the rising of the sun to its setting, Praise the name of the Lord.
4 The Lord is high above all the nations; His glory is above the heavens.
5 Who is like the Lord our God, Who dwells in the highest,
6 And who looks upon the humble things In heaven and on earth?
7 He raises the poor man from the earth And lifts up the poor from the dunghills
8 So as to seat him with rulers, With the rulers of His people;
9 He settles the barren woman in a home, To be a joyful mother of children.
Proverbs of Solomon 24
19 Do not rejoice in evildoers, Nor envy sinners;
20 For there is no future for evil men, And the lamp of the ungodly shall be put out.
21 Fear God, my son, and the king, And disobey neither of them;
22 For suddenly they will take retribution on the ungodly, And who will know the punishments of both?
23 A son who guards the word will be free from destruction, For he receives it fully.
John 5
Father and Son Work Together
16 For this reason the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath.†
17 But Jesus answered them, “My Father has been working until now, and I have been working.”
18 Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.
19 Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.
20 For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.
21 For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will.
22 For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son,
23 that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.
24 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.
25 Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live.†
26 For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself,
27 and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man.
28 Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice
29 and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.
30 I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.†
31 “If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.†
32 There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true.
33 You have sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth.
34 Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.
35 He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light.
36 But I have a greater witness than John’s; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish—the very works that I do—bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.
37 And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.
38 But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe.
39 You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.
40 But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.
41 “I do not receive honor from men.
42 But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you.
43 I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.
44 How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?
45 Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you—Moses, in whom you trust.
46 For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.
47 But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?”