Job the first to visit Middle-Earth???
Got some Tolkien stuff to chew on folks...
So I was reading through some of the book of Job*, particularly Job 28, and I came across some eerily Tolkien-ish poetry. Or should I say Tolkien's work is eerily Job-ish. Either way, this stanza could easily be mistaken for some old Elven song describing their dwarf neighbors. All you have to do substitute "Dwarf" when it says "Man". Check it out; though it’d be no surprise considering Professor Tolkien’s familiarity with the Bible.
"There is a mine for silver
and a place where gold is refined.
Iron is taken from the earth,
and copper is smelted from ore.
Man puts an end to the darkness;
he searches the farthest recesses
for ore in the blackest darkness.
Far from where people dwell he cuts a shaft,
in places forgotten by the foot of man;
far from men he dangles and sways.
The earth, from which food comes,
is transformed below as by fire;
sapphires come from its rocks,
and its dust contains nuggets of gold.
No bird of prey knows that hidden path,
no falcon's eye has seen it.
Proud beasts do not set foot on it,
and no lion prowls there.
Man's hand assaults the flinty rock
and lays bare the roots of the mountains.
He tunnels through the rock;
his eyes see all its treasures.
He searches the sources of the rivers
and brings hidden things to light."
-Job 28:1-11
*Old Testament book of the Bible... Job is probably the oldest book in the Bible. The literary form of Job is similar to documents which go back to the first part of the 2nd millennium B.C.. In the dialogue section of the book, can be found some of the most difficult and archaic Hebrew in the Bible. Even the name Job is known to be an ancient name. Along with failure to mention covenants or the Law, Job probably lived in the time of the patriarchs, that is around 2100B.C. until 1700 B.C.