31:1  "I have made a covenant with my eyes; How then could I gaze at a virgin?

31:2  "And what is the portion of God from above Or the heritage of the Almighty from on high?

31:3  "Is it not calamity to the unjust And disaster to those who work iniquity?

31:4  "Does He not see my ways And number all my steps?

31:5  "If I have walked with falsehood, And my foot has hastened after deceit,

31:6  Let Him weigh me with accurate scales, And let God know my integrity.

31:7  "If my step has turned from the way, Or my heart followed my eyes, Or if any spot has stuck to my hands,

31:8  Let me sow and another eat, And let my crops be uprooted.

31:9  "If my heart has been enticed by a woman, Or I have lurked at my neighbor's doorway,

31:10  May my wife grind for another, And let others kneel down over her.

31:11  "For that would be a lustful crime; Moreover, it would be an iniquity {punishable by} judges.

31:12  "For it would be fire that consumes to Abaddon, And would uproot all my increase.

31:13  "If I have despised the claim of my male or female slaves When they filed a complaint against me,

31:14  What then could I do when God arises? And when He calls me to account, what will I answer Him?

31:15  "Did not He who made me in the womb make him, And the same one fashion us in the womb?

31:16  "If I have kept the poor from {their} desire, Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,

31:17  Or have eaten my morsel alone, And the orphan has not shared it

31:18  (But from my youth he grew up with me as with a father, And from infancy I guided her),

31:19  If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, Or that the needy had no covering,

31:20  If his loins have not thanked me, And if he has not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep,

31:21  If I have lifted up my hand against the orphan, Because I saw I had support in the gate,

31:22  Let my shoulder fall from the socket, And my arm be broken off at the elbow.

31:23  "For calamity from God is a terror to me, And because of His majesty I can do nothing.

31:24  "If I have put my confidence {in} gold, And called fine gold my trust,

31:25  If I have gloated because my wealth was great, And because my hand had secured {so} much;

31:26  If I have looked at the sun when it shone Or the moon going in splendor,

31:27  And my heart became secretly enticed, And my hand threw a kiss from my mouth,

31:28  That too would have been an iniquity {calling for} judgment, For I would have denied God above.

31:29  "Have I rejoiced at the extinction of my enemy, Or exulted when evil befell him?

31:30  "No, I have not allowed my mouth to sin By asking for his life in a curse.

31:31  "Have the men of my tent not said, `Who can find one who has not been satisfied with his meat'?

31:32  "The alien has not lodged outside, {For} I have opened my doors to the traveler.

31:33  "Have I covered my transgressions like Adam, By hiding my iniquity in my bosom,

31:34  Because I feared the great multitude, And the contempt of families terrified me, And kept silent and did not go out of doors?

31:35  "Oh that I had one to hear me! Behold, here is my signature; Let the Almighty answer me! And the indictment which my adversary has written,

31:36  Surely I would carry it on my shoulder, I would bind it to myself like a crown.

31:37  "I would declare to Him the number of my steps; Like a prince I would approach Him.

31:38  "If my land cries out against me, And its furrows weep together;

31:39  If I have eaten its fruit without money, Or have caused its owners to lose their lives,

31:40  Let briars grow instead of wheat, And stinkweed instead of barley. The words of Job are ended."