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." |