GOLD, RUBIES, COPPER, and other TREASURES from the EARTH.

Unrefined native gold found on Rock Creek, 
South Pass, Wyoming (photo by W.D. Hausel)

The photos are mine: collected by earthly wisdom and given to me as a gift from God. 

But the words are not mine - they are 2,700 years old, and provide heavenly wisdom. Earthly wisdom may be good for some, but I would trade all for a little heavenly wisdom.

“Surely there is a mine for silver,

A mine for silver - ruby silver (reddish) in chlorite schist with
some sphalerite (zinc ore), and galena (lead ore) from the 
Mayflower mine, Park City Utah.

And a place where gold is refined.
Iron is taken from the earth,
And copper is smelted from ore.
Man puts an end to darkness,

Putting an end to darkness - Thomas prepares to take
ore from the darkness at Arizona's Resolution mine

And searches every recess
For ore in the darkness and the shadow of death.
He breaks open a shaft away from people;

Breaking opening a shaft - geologist stands
under square set on the 350-foot deep 
Carissa gold mine shaft, South Pass, Wyoming.

In places forgotten by feet
They hang far away from men;

Copper ore consisting of blue azurite, green malachite, and black
tenorite, Kirwin district, Wyoming (W.D. Hausel photo)

They swing to and fro.

As for the earth, from it comes bread,
But underneath it is turned up as by fire;

The earth is turned up as by fire - folded
banded iron formation in the Seminoe
Mountains greenstone belt, Wyoming, has
been squeezed, torn, and turned up.

Its stones are the source of sapphires,
And it contains gold dust.
That path no bird knows,
Nor has the falcon’s eye seen it.
The proud lions have not trodden it,
Nor has the fierce lion passed over it.
He puts his hand on the flint;
He overturns the mountains at the roots.

Overturning mountains at the root - the Bingham open pit
mine in the Oquirrah Mountains of Utah - a source for gold,
silver, copper, lead, zinc and many other metals has provided
for the miners of many generations.

He cuts out channels in the rocks,

He cuts channels in the rocks - exposing 'blue ground'
(weathered kimberlite) to find diamonds at the 
Aultman 1 kimberlite pipe in Wyoming.

And his eye sees every precious thing.

Iolite (gem-quality cordierite), a beautiful blue, sometimes 
purple, sometimes lavender gemstone - a precious thing
found in the central Laramie Mountains of Wyoming.

He dams up the streams from trickling;
What is hidden he brings forth to light.”
“But where can wisdom be found?

Iron from the earth - specular hematite (botryoidal with 
limonite (yellow) and earthy hematite (red) from the
Hartville uplift, Wyoming.

And where is the place of understanding?
Man does not know its value,
Nor is it found in the land of the living.
The deep says, ‘It is not in me’;
And the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’
It cannot be purchased for gold,
Nor can silver be weighed for its price.
It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,
In precious onyx or sapphire.
Neither gold nor crystal can equal it,
Nor can it be exchanged for jewelry of fine gold.
No mention shall be made of coral or quartz,
For the price of wisdom is above rubies.
The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it,
Nor can it be valued in pure gold.”

Searching for rubies, I found them - right where they were 
suppose to be. Ah, to be endowed in earthly wisdom - but I
would trade it all for a little Heavenly wisdom (photo by Hausel).

“From where then does wisdom come?
And where is the place of understanding?
It is hidden from the eyes of all living,
And concealed from the birds of the air.
Destruction and Death say,
‘We have heard a report about it with our ears.’
God understands its way,
And He knows its place.
For He looks to the ends of the earth,
And sees under the whole heavens,
To establish a weight for the wind,
And apportion the waters by measure.
When He made a law for the rain,
And a path for the thunderbolt,
Then He saw wisdom and declared it;
He prepared it, indeed,
He searched it out.
And to man He said,
‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom,
And to depart from evil is understanding.’”

A crystal from the Sierra Madre, Wyoming - a chlorite 
pseudomorph after almandine garnet.