Job31

Job 31 presents Job's final, extensive oath of integrity before God and his friends. He meticulously lists various sins he has abstained from, including lust, injustice towards servants, lack of charity, idolatry, and malice towards enemies. Job asserts his blameless conduct, invoking severe self-curses if he has committed any of these transgressions. He concludes by expressing a fervent desire for God to answer his plea and acknowledge his righteousness.

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Job’s Oath of Integrity: Purity of the Eyes

¶ I made a covenant with mine eyes; why then should I think upon a maid?

For what portion of God is there from above? and what inheritance of the Almighty from on high?

Is not destruction to the wicked? and a strange punishment to the workers of iniquity?

Doth not he see my ways, and count all my steps?

Honesty and Uprightness in Conduct

If I have walked with vanity, or if my foot hath hasted to deceit;

Let me be weighed in an even balance, that God may know mine integrity.

If my step hath turned out of the way, and mine heart walked after mine eyes, and if any blot hath cleaved to mine hands;

Then let me sow, and let another eat; yea, let my offspring be rooted out.

Commitment to Marital Fidelity

¶ If mine heart have been deceived by a woman, or if I have laid wait at my neighbour's door;

Then let my wife grind unto another, and let others bow down upon her.

For this is an heinous crime; yea, it is an iniquity to be punished by the judges.

For it is a fire that consumeth to destruction, and would root out all mine increase.

Justice in Dealing with Servants

If I did despise the cause of my manservant or of my maidservant, when they contended with me;

What then shall I do when God riseth up? and when he visiteth, what shall I answer him?

Did not he that made me in the womb make him? and did not one fashion us in the womb?

Generosity to the Poor and Vulnerable

¶ If I have withheld the poor from their desire, or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail;

Or have eaten my morsel myself alone, and the fatherless hath not eaten thereof;

(For from my youth he was brought up with me, as with a father, and I have guided her from my mother's womb;)

If I have seen any perish for want of clothing, or any poor without covering;

If his loins have not blessed me, and if he were not warmed with the fleece of my sheep;

If I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless, when I saw my help in the gate:

Then let mine arm fall from my shoulder blade, and mine arm be broken from the bone.

For destruction from God was a terror to me, and by reason of his highness I could not endure.

Rejection of Materialism and Idolatry

¶ If I have made gold my hope, or have said to the fine gold, Thou art my confidence;

If I rejoiced because my wealth was great, and because mine hand had gotten much;

If I beheld the sun when it shined, or the moon walking in brightness;

And my heart hath been secretly enticed, or my mouth hath kissed my hand:

This also were an iniquity to be punished by the judge: for I should have denied the God that is above.

Ethics toward Enemies and Strangers

If I rejoiced at the destruction of him that hated me, or lifted up myself when evil found him:

Neither have I suffered my mouth to sin by wishing a curse to his soul.

If the men of my tabernacle said not, Oh that we had of his flesh! we cannot be satisfied.

The stranger did not lodge in the street: but I opened my doors to the traveller.

Refusing to Hide Sin

¶ If I covered my transgressions as Adam, by hiding mine iniquity in my bosom:

Did I fear a great multitude, or did the contempt of families terrify me, that I kept silence, and went not out of the door?

Oh that one would hear me! behold, my desire is, that the Almighty would answer me, and that mine adversary had written a book.

Surely I would take it upon my shoulder, and bind it as a crown to me.

I would declare unto him the number of my steps; as a prince would I go near unto him.

Justice Regarding the Land

If my land cry against me, or that the furrows likewise thereof complain;

If I have eaten the fruits thereof without money, or have caused the owners thereof to lose their life:

Let thistles grow instead of wheat, and cockle instead of barley. The words of Job are ended.

Study Notes for Job 31

Verse 1

Job begins his final defense by stating his absolute commitment to moral discipline, specifically controlling his gaze to avoid lust (a covenant with mine eyes). This reflects a profound understanding of internal purity.

Verse 2

Job ironically uses the friends' theology of retribution here: if he had sinned, he knows he would justly receive the portion and inheritance (punishment) due to the wicked.

Verse 3

The phrase strange punishment refers to the catastrophic fate reserved for those who actively commit iniquity, reinforcing the theological premise upon which Job bases his innocence.

Verse 4

The foundation of Job’s integrity is his belief in God's omniscience. He is confident in his ways because he knows God sees and counts every step, making hidden sin impossible.

Verse 6

Job demands a divine accounting, asking to be weighed in an even balance. He invites God to use the scales of justice, confident that his moral wholeness (integrity) will be proven.

Verse 10

The curse Job invokes upon himself—that his wife be forced into hard labor or even prostitution (grind unto another)—shows the severity of the crime (adultery) he denies committing, equating it with total social degradation.

Verse 14

Job recognizes that his actions toward his servants are ultimately judged by God, anticipating the day of divine judgment (when God riseth up) when he will have to give account.

Verse 15

Job grounds his social ethics in creation theology: master and servant share a common creator. This declaration of inherent equality is a radical statement in the ancient world.

Verse 18

This parenthetical statement emphasizes that Job’s charity was not a recent obligation but a lifelong commitment, suggesting he cared for the vulnerable from his youth, acting as a father to the fatherless.

Verse 21

To lift up my hand against the fatherless refers to abusing power or influence, especially in a legal setting (the gate). Job asserts he never took advantage of the defenseless when he had the opportunity.

Verse 24

Job addresses the temptation of materialism, declaring that he never allowed wealth (gold) to replace God as his ultimate source of security or hope (my confidence).

Verse 26

Beheld the sun... or the moon walking in brightness describes astral worship, a common form of idolatry in the Ancient Near East. Job denies this practice, which would be a direct denial of the Creator (v. 28).

Verse 33

To cover my transgressions as Adam refers to the primal sin of hiding guilt (Gen 3:7-10). Job claims he has not compounded his suffering by concealing any unknown sin from God or man.

Verse 35

This is the climax of Job’s defense, his final desperate appeal (and signature) to the Almighty, demanding a formal legal response (that mine adversary had written a book), signaling his readiness for trial.

Verse 36

Job asserts profound respect for divine judgment; he would wear God's indictment (the book) as a crown, affirming his willingness to face the charges openly and confidently, rather than trying to evade them.

Verse 40

Job concludes his comprehensive moral inventory with a curse pertaining to the land, affirming he did not commit injustice against the poor farmer or exploit his property. The editorial note confirms the end of Job’s speeches.

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