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Job 31
New King James Version

### Job Defends His Righteousness

31 “I have made a covenant with my eyes;
Why then should I [a]look upon a (A)young woman?
2 For what is the (B)allotment of God from above,
And the inheritance of the Almighty from on high?
3 Is it not destruction for the wicked,
And disaster for the workers of iniquity?
4 (C)Does He not see my ways,
And count all my steps?

5 “If I have walked with falsehood,
Or if my foot has hastened to deceit,
6 [b]Let me be weighed on honest scales,
That God may know my (D)integrity.
7 If my step has turned from the way,
Or (E)my heart walked after my eyes,
Or if any spot adheres to my hands,
8 Then (F)let me sow, and another eat;
Yes, let my harvest be [c]rooted out.

9 “If my heart has been enticed by a woman,
Or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,
10 Then let my wife grind for (G)another,
And let others bow down over her.
11 For that would be wickedness;
Yes, (H)it would be iniquity deserving of judgment.
12 For that would be a fire that consumes to destruction,
And would root out all my increase.

13 “If I have (I)despised the cause of my male or female servant
When they complained against me,
14 What then shall I do when (J)God rises up?
When He punishes, how shall I answer Him?
15 (K)Did not He who made me in the womb make them?
Did not the same One fashion us in the womb?

16 “If I have kept the poor from their desire,
Or caused the eyes of the widow to (L)fail,
17 Or eaten my morsel by myself,
So that the fatherless could not eat of it
18 (But from my youth I reared him as a father,
And from my mother’s womb I guided [d]the widow);
19 If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing,
Or any poor man without covering;
20 If his [e]heart has not (M)blessed me,
And if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep;
21 If I have raised my hand (N)against the fatherless,
When I saw I had help in the gate;
22 Then let my arm fall from my shoulder,
Let my arm be torn from the socket.
23 For (O)destruction from God is a terror to me,
And because of His magnificence I cannot endure.

24 “If(P) I have made gold my hope,
Or said to fine gold, ‘You are my confidence’;
25 (Q)If I have rejoiced because my wealth was great,
And because my hand had gained much;
26 (R)If I have observed the [f]sun when it shines,
Or the moon moving in brightness,
27 So that my heart has been secretly enticed,
And my mouth has kissed my hand;
28 This also would be an iniquity deserving of judgment,
For I would have denied God who is above.

29 “If(S) I have rejoiced at the destruction of him who hated me,
Or lifted myself up when evil found him
30 (T)(Indeed I have not allowed my mouth to sin
By asking for a curse on his [g]soul);
31 If the men of my tent have not said,
‘Who is there that has not been satisfied with his meat?’
32 (U)(But no sojourner had to lodge in the street,
For I have opened my doors to the [h]traveler);
33 If I have covered my transgressions (V)as[i] Adam,
By hiding my iniquity in my bosom,
34 Because I feared the great (W)multitude,
And dreaded the contempt of families,
So that I kept silence
And did not go out of the door—
35 (X)Oh, that I had one to hear me!
Here is my mark.
Oh, (Y)that the Almighty would answer me,
That my [j]Prosecutor had written a book!
36 Surely I would carry it on my shoulder,
And bind it on me like a crown;
37 I would declare to Him the number of my steps;
Like a prince I would approach Him.

38 “If my land cries out against me,
And its furrows weep together;
39 If (Z)I have eaten its [k]fruit without money,
Or (AA)caused its owners to lose their lives;
40 Then let (AB)thistles grow instead of wheat,
And weeds instead of barley.”

The words of Job are ended.

#### Footnotes

1. Job 31:1 look intently or gaze
2. Job 31:6 Lit. Let Him weigh me
3. Job 31:8 uprooted
4. Job 31:18 Lit. her
5. Job 31:20 Lit. loins
6. Job 31:26 Lit. light
7. Job 31:30 Or life
8. Job 31:32 So with LXX, Syr., Tg., Vg.; MT road
9. Job 31:33 Or as men do
10. Job 31:35 Lit. Accuser
11. Job 31:39 Lit. strength

#### Cross references

1. Job 31:1 : [Matt. 5:28]
2. Job 31:2 : Job 20:29
3. Job 31:4 : [2 Chr. 16:9]; Job 24:23; 28:24; 34:21; 36:7; [Prov. 5:21; 15:3; Jer. 32:19]
4. Job 31:6 : Job 23:10; 27:5, 6
5. Job 31:7 : Num. 15:39; [Eccl. 11:9]; Ezek. 6:9; [Matt. 5:29]
6. Job 31:8 : Lev. 26:16; Deut. 28:30, 38; Job 20:18; Mic. 6:15
7. Job 31:10 : Deut. 28:30; 2 Sam. 12:11; Jer. 8:10
8. Job 31:11 : Gen. 38:24; [Lev. 20:10; Deut. 22:22]; Job 31:28
9. Job 31:13 : [Deut. 24:14, 15]
10. Job 31:14 : [Ps. 44:21]
11. Job 31:15 : Job 34:19; Prov. 14:31; 22:2; [Mal. 2:10]
12. Job 31:16 : Job 29:12
13. Job 31:20 : [Deut. 24:13]
14. Job 31:21 : Job 22:9
15. Job 31:23 : Is. 13:6
16. Job 31:24 : [Matt. 6:19, 20; Mark 10:23–25]
17. Job 31:25 : Job 1:3, 10; Ps. 62:10
18. Job 31:26 : [Deut. 4:19; 17:3]; Ezek. 8:16
19. Job 31:29 : [Prov. 17:5; 24:17]; Obad. 12
20. Job 31:30 : [Matt. 5:44]
21. Job 31:32 : Gen. 19:2, 3
22. Job 31:33 : Gen. 3:10; [Prov. 28:13]
23. Job 31:34 : Ex. 23:2
24. Job 31:35 : Job 19:7; 30:20, 24, 28
25. Job 31:35 : Job 13:22, 24; 33:10
26. Job 31:39 : Job 24:6, 10–12; [James 5:4]
27. Job 31:39 : 1 Kin. 21:19
28. Job 31:40 : Gen. 3:18

New King James Version (NKJV)

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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