Job Asserts His Integrity
“I have made a covenant with my aeyes;How then could I look at a virgin?Matt 5:282 “And what is athe portion of God from above,Or the inheritance of the Almighty from on high?Job 20:293 “Is it not adisaster to the criminal,And misfortune to bthose who practice injustice?Job 18:12; 21:30Job 34:224 “Does He not asee my ways,And bcount all my steps?2 Chr 16:9; Job 24:23; 28:24; 34:21; 36:7; Prov 5:21; 15:3Job 14:16; 31:37
5 “If I have awalked with deception,And my foot has hurried after deceit,Job 15:31; Mic 2:116 Let Him aweigh me with 1accurate scales,And let God know bmy integrity.Lit justJob 6:2, 3Job 23:10; 27:5, 67 “If my step has aturned from the way,Or my heart 1followed my eyes,Or if any bspot has stuck to my hands,Lit walked afterJob 23:11Job 9:308 Let me asow and another eat,And let my 1bcrops be uprooted.Or offspringLev 26:16; Job 20:18; Mic 6:15Job 31:12
9 “If my heart has been aenticed by a woman,Or I have lurked at my neighbor’s doorway,Job 24:15; 31:110 May my wife agrind grain for another,And let bothers 1kneel down over her.I.e., have sexual relations with herIs 47:2Deut 28:30; Jer 8:1011 “For that would be a alustful crime;Moreover, it would be bwrongdoing punishable by judges.Lev 20:10; Deut 22:24Job 31:2812 “For it would be afire that consumes to 1bAbaddon,And would cuproot all my 2increase.I.e., the place of destructionOr yieldJob 15:30Job 26:6Job 20:28; 31:8
13 “If I have arejected the claim of my male or female slavesWhen they filed a complaint against me,Deut 24:14, 1514 What then could I do when God arises?And when He calls me to account, how am I to answer Him?15 “Did aHe who made me in the womb not make him,And the same One create us in the womb?Job 10:3
16 “If I have kept athe poor from their desire,Or have caused the eyes of bthe widow to fail,Job 5:16; 20:19Ex 22:22-24; Job 22:917 Or have aeaten my morsel alone,And bthe orphan has not 1shared itLit eaten from itJob 22:7Job 29:1218 (But from my youth he grew up with me as with a father,And from 1my infancy I guided her),Lit my mother’s womb19 If I have seen anyone perish afor lack of clothing,Or that bthe needy had no covering,Job 22:6; 29:13Job 24:420 If his waist has not 1thanked me,And if he has not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep,Lit blessed; i.e., for clothing21 If I have lifted up my hand against athe orphan,Because I saw 1I had support bin the gate,Lit my helpJob 29:12; 31:17Job 29:722 May my shoulder fall from its 1socket,And my aarm be broken off 2at the elbow.Lit neck-jointLit from the bone of the upper armJob 38:1523 “For adisaster from God is a terror to me,And because of bHis majesty I can do nothing.Job 31:3Job 13:11
24 “If I have put my confidence in agold,And called fine gold my trust,Job 22:24; Mark 10:23-2525 If I have agloated because my wealth was great,And because my hand had obtained so much;Job 1:3, 10; Ps 62:1026 If I have alooked at the 1sun when it shone,Or the moon going in splendor,Lit lightDeut 4:19; 17:3; Ezek 8:1627 And my heart was secretly enticed,And my hand 1threw a kiss from my mouth,Lit kissed my mouth28 That too would have been aa guilty deed calling for 1judgment,For I would have bdenied God above.Lit judgesDeut 17:2-7; Job 31:11Josh 24:27; Is 59:13
29 “Have I arejoiced at the misfortune of my enemy,Or become excited when evil found him?Prov 17:5; 24:17; Obad 1230 “1No, aI have not 2allowed my mouth to sinBy asking for his life in ba curse.Lit AndLit given my palatePs 7:4Job 5:331 “Have the people of my tent not said,‘Who can 1find one who has not been asatisfied with his meat’?Lit giveJob 22:732 “The stranger has not spent the night outside,For I have opened my doors to the 1traveler.MT way33 “Have I acovered my wrongdoings like a man,By hiding my guilt in my shirt pocket,Gen 3:10; Prov 28:1334 Because I afeared the great multitudeAnd the contempt of families terrified me,And I kept silent and did not go out of doors?Ex 23:235 “Oh that I had one to hear me!Here is my 1signature;aLet the Almighty answer me!And the indictment which my badversary has written,Lit markJob 19:7; 30:20, 24, 28; 35:14Job 27:736 I would certainly carry it on my shoulder,I would tie it to myself like a garland.37 “I would declare to Him athe number of my steps;Like ba prince, I would approach Him.Job 31:4Job 1:3; 29:25
38 “If my aland cries out against me,And its furrows weep together;Job 24:239 If I have aeaten its 1fruit without money,Or have bcaused 2its owners to lose their lives,Lit strengthLit the soul of its owners to expireJob 24:6, 10-12; James 5:41 Kin 21:1940 May the athorn-bush 1grow instead of wheat,And stinkweed instead of barley.”The words of Job are ended.Lit come forthJob 32:13; Is 5:6