Job 31
- 1 A covenant I made for mine eyes, And what — do I attend to a virgin?
- 2 And what [is] the portion of God from above? And the inheritance of the Mighty from the heights?
- 3 Is not calamity to the perverse? And strangeness to workers of iniquity?
- 4 Doth not He see my ways, And all my steps number?
- 5 If I have walked with vanity, And my foot doth hasten to deceit,
- 6 He doth weigh me in righteous balances, And God doth 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,
- 8 Let me sow — and another eat, And my products let be rooted out.
- 9 If my heart hath been enticed by woman, And by the opening of my neighbour I laid wait,
- 10 Grind to another let my wife, And over her let others bend.
- 11 For it [is] a wicked thing, and a judicial iniquity;
- 12 For a fire it [is], to destruction it consumeth, And among all mine increase doth take root,
- 13 If I despise the cause of my man-servant, And of my handmaid, In their contending with me,
- 14 Then what do I do when God ariseth? And when He doth inspect, What do I answer Him?
- 15 Did not He that made me in the womb make him? Yea, prepare us in the womb doth One.
- 16 If I withhold from pleasure the poor, And the eyes of the widow do consume,
- 17 And I do eat my morsel by myself, And the orphan hath not eat 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.)
- 19 If I see [any] perishing without clothing, And there is no covering to the needy,
- 20 If his loins have not blessed me, And from the fleece of my sheep He doth not warm himself,
- 21 If I have waved at the fatherless my hand, When I see in [him] the gate of my court,
- 22 My shoulder from its blade let fall, And mine arm from the bone be broken.
- 23 For a dread unto me [is] calamity [from] God, And because of His excellency I am not able.
- 24 If I have made gold my confidence, And to the pure gold have said, 'My trust,'
- 25 If I rejoice because great [is] my wealth, And because abundance hath my hand found,
- 26 If I see the light when it shineth, And the precious moon walking,
- 27 And my heart is enticed in secret, And my hand doth kiss my mouth,
- 28 It also [is] a judicial iniquity, For I had lied to God above.
- 29 If I rejoice at the ruin of my hater, And stirred up myself when evil found him,
- 30 Yea, I have not suffered my mouth to sin, To ask with an oath his life.
- 31 If not — say ye, O men of my tent, 'O that we had of his flesh, we are not satisfied.'
- 32 In the street doth not lodge a stranger, My doors to the traveller I open.
- 33 If I have covered as Adam my transgressions, To hide in my bosom mine iniquity,
- 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.
- 35 Who giveth to me a hearing? lo, my mark. The Mighty One doth answer me, And a bill hath mine adversary written.
- 36 If not — on my shoulder I take it up, I bind it a crown on myself.
- 37 The number of my steps I tell Him, As a leader I approach Him.
- 38 If against me my land doth cry out, And together its furrows weep,
- 39 If its strength I consumed without money, And the life of its possessors, I have caused to breathe out,
- 40 Instead of wheat let a thorn go forth, And instead of barley a useless weed! The words of Job are finished.
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