Job 31
1 A covenant I made for mine eyes, And what — do I attend to a virgin?
I made a covenant with my eyes. How then should I look upon a virgin?
2 And what [is] the portion of God from above? And the inheritance of the Mighty from the heights?
For what is the portion from God above, and the heritage from the Almighty on high?
3 Is not calamity to the perverse? And strangeness to workers of iniquity?
Is it not calamity to the unrighteous, and disaster to the workers of iniquity?
4 Doth not He see my ways, And all my steps number?
Does he not see my ways, and number all my steps?
5 If I have walked with vanity, And my foot doth hasten to deceit,
If I have walked with falsehood, and my foot has hastened to deceit
6 He doth weigh me in righteous balances, And God doth know my integrity.
(let me be weighed in an even balance, that God may know my integrity);
7 If my step doth turn aside from the way, And after mine eyes hath my heart gone, And to my hands cleaved hath blemish,
if my step has turned out of the way, and my heart walked after my eyes, and if any spot has clung to my hands,
8 Let me sow — and another eat, And my products let be rooted out.
then let me sow, and let another eat, yea, let the produce of my field be rooted out.
9 If my heart hath been enticed by woman, And by the opening of my neighbour I laid wait,
If my heart has been enticed to a woman, and I have laid wait at my neighbor's door,
10 Grind to another let my wife, And over her let others bend.
then let my wife grind to another, and let others bow down upon her.
11 For it [is] a wicked thing, and a judicial iniquity;
For that is a heinous crime, yea, it is an iniquity to be punished by the judges.
12 For a fire it [is], to destruction it consumeth, And among all mine increase doth take root,
For it is a fire that consumes to destruction, and would root out all my increase.
13 If I despise the cause of my man-servant, And of my handmaid, In their contending with me,
If I have despised the case of my man-servant or of my maid-servant when they contended with me,
14 Then what do I do when God ariseth? And when He doth inspect, What do I answer Him?
what then shall I do when God rises up? And when he visits, what shall I answer him?
15 Did not He that made me in the womb make him? Yea, prepare us in the womb doth One.
Did not he who made me in the womb make him? And did not one fashion us in the womb?
16 If I withhold from pleasure the poor, And the eyes of the widow do consume,
If I have withheld the poor from their desire, or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
17 And I do eat my morsel by myself, And the orphan hath not eat of it,
or have eaten my morsel alone, and the fatherless has not eaten of it
18 (But from my youth He grew up with me as [with] a father, And from the belly of my mother I am led.)
(no, from my youth he grew up with me as with a father, and her I have guided from my mother's womb);
19 If I see [any] perishing without clothing, And there is no covering to the needy,
if I have seen any perish for lack of clothing, or that the needy had no covering;
20 If his loins have not blessed me, And from the fleece of my sheep He doth not warm himself,
if his loins have not blessed me, and if he has not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep;
21 If I have waved at the fatherless my hand, When I see in [him] the gate of my court,
if I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless, because I saw my help in the gate,
22 My shoulder from its blade let fall, And mine arm from the bone be broken.
then let my shoulder fall from the shoulder-blade, and my arm be broken from the bone.
23 For a dread unto me [is] calamity [from] God, And because of His excellency I am not able.
For calamity from God is a terror to me, and I can do nothing because of his majesty.
24 If I have made gold my confidence, And to the pure gold have said, 'My trust,'
If I have made gold my hope, and have said to the fine gold, Thou are my confidence;
25 If I rejoice because great [is] my wealth, And because abundance hath my hand found,
if I have rejoiced because my wealth was great, and because my hand had gotten much;
26 If I see the light when it shineth, And the precious moon walking,
if I have beheld the sun when it shone, or the moon walking in brightness,
27 And my heart is enticed in secret, And my hand doth kiss my mouth,
and my heart has been secretly enticed, and my mouth has kissed my hand
28 It also [is] a judicial iniquity, For I had lied to God above.
(this also is an iniquity to be punished by the judges, for I would have denied the God that is above);
29 If I rejoice at the ruin of my hater, And stirred up myself when evil found him,
if I have rejoiced at the destruction of him who hated me, or lifted up myself when evil found him
30 Yea, I have not suffered my mouth to sin, To ask with an oath his life.
(yea, I have not allowed my mouth to sin by asking his life with a curse);
31 If not — say ye, O men of my tent, 'O that we had of his flesh, we are not satisfied.'
if the men of my tent have not said, Who can find one who has not been filled with his food?
32 In the street doth not lodge a stranger, My doors to the traveller I open.
(the sojourner has not lodged in the street, but I have opened my doors to the traveler);
33 If I have covered as Adam my transgressions, To hide in my bosom mine iniquity,
if like Adam I have covered my transgressions by hiding my iniquity in my bosom
34 Because I fear a great multitude, And the contempt of families doth affright me, Then I am silent, I go not out of the opening.
because I feared the great multitude, and the contempt of families terrified me so that I kept silence, and did not go out of the door-
35 Who giveth to me a hearing? lo, my mark. The Mighty One doth answer me, And a bill hath mine adversary written.
O that I had someone to hear me (Lo, here is my signature, let the Almighty answer me), and that I had the indictment which my adversary has written!
36 If not — on my shoulder I take it up, I bind it a crown on myself.
Surely I would carry it upon my shoulder. I would bind it to me as a crown.
37 The number of my steps I tell Him, As a leader I approach Him.
I would declare to him the number of my steps. I would go near to him as a prince.
38 If against me my land doth cry out, And together its furrows weep,
If my land cries out against me, and the furrows of it weep together;
39 If its strength I consumed without money, And the life of its possessors, I have caused to breathe out,
if I have eaten the fruits of it without money, or have caused the owners of it to lose their lives,
40 Instead of wheat let a thorn go forth, And instead of barley a useless weed! The words of Job are finished.
let thistles grow instead of wheat, and cockle instead of barley. The words of Job are ended.
