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244
JOB, CHAP. XXVIII.
There's a path to the fowl, as it flieth, ne'er shown,
Unseen by the vulture's keen eye,
By the whelps of the lion, untrodden, unknown,
Nor the fierce lion passeth it by:
Unseen by the vulture's keen eye,
By the whelps of the lion, untrodden, unknown,
Nor the fierce lion passeth it by:
There's an arm on the cliff, on the ice-crested brow,
By the roots that o'er-turneth the mountains,
And cutteth the rocks where the fresh springs shall flow,
And bindeth the floods in their fountains.
By the roots that o'er-turneth the mountains,
And cutteth the rocks where the fresh springs shall flow,
And bindeth the floods in their fountains.
But where is the path, where shall Wisdom be found,
And where, Understanding! thy way?—
Not the land of the living inherits that ground,
No price can its value repay.
And where, Understanding! thy way?—
Not the land of the living inherits that ground,
No price can its value repay.
A voice of the Earth saith “it is not in me:”
“Not in me,” saith a voice of the Deep.
Not mines roof'd with gold can its purchase price be,
Nor caves where the silver ores sleep.
“Not in me,” saith a voice of the Deep.
Not mines roof'd with gold can its purchase price be,
Nor caves where the silver ores sleep.
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Not the onyx, its price, nor the pearl-seeded main,
Of the coral no mention be made:
Nor thy topaz, oh Æthiop, that gift can obtain,
Nor a crown with bright rubies array'd.
Of the coral no mention be made:
Nor thy topaz, oh Æthiop, that gift can obtain,
Nor a crown with bright rubies array'd.
Whence then cometh Wisdom? her dwelling pro-claim:
Thy place, Understanding! say, where?
Destruction and Death say “we heard of its fame,
“But cannot its secret declare.”
Thy place, Understanding! say, where?
Destruction and Death say “we heard of its fame,
“But cannot its secret declare.”
But—God understandeth, oh Wisdom! thy birth:
God knoweth the man to whom giv'n:
For he looketh at once to the ends of the earth,
And seeth the whole under heav'n:
God knoweth the man to whom giv'n:
For he looketh at once to the ends of the earth,
And seeth the whole under heav'n:
Thence He maketh a weight for the winds as they sweep,
Thence weighed the waters by measure,
When He made a decree that controuleth the deep,
And stampt on the thunder his pleasure.
Thence weighed the waters by measure,
When He made a decree that controuleth the deep,
And stampt on the thunder his pleasure.
Then He search'd it, and saw it, and utter'd the word,
To man his high precept commanding:
“Behold that is Wisdom, the fear of the Lord,
“And from evil to fly, Understanding.”
To man his high precept commanding:
“Behold that is Wisdom, the fear of the Lord,
“And from evil to fly, Understanding.”
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