31 “But I ·made an agreement [L cut a covenant] with my eyes
not to ·look with desire [leer] at a ·girl [L virgin].
2 What ·has God above promised for people [L would be my portion with God above]?
What ·has the Almighty planned from [would be my inheritance/heritage with the Almighty/Shaddai] on high?
3 ·It is ruin [L Isn’t calamity reserved…?] for evil people
and ·disaster [misfortune] for those who do wrong.
4 ·God sees [L Does he not see…?] my ways
and counts every step I take.
5 “If I have ·been dishonest [L walked with falsehood]
or ·lied to others [L my feet hasten to fraud],
6 then let God weigh me on ·honest [just] scales [Prov. 11:1].
Then he will know I ·have done nothing wrong [am blameless/innocent].
7 If ·I have turned away from doing what is right [L my feet have wandered off the path; Prov. 2:20],
or my heart has ·been led by my eyes to do wrong [L followed my eyes],
or ·my hands have been made unclean [L blemish has clung to my hand],
8 then let ·other people eat what I have planted [L me sow and not eat],
and let my crops be ·plowed up [uprooted].
9 “If ·I have desired [L my heart has been enticed/seduced by] another woman [Prov. 5–7]
or have waited at my ·neighbor’s [or friend’s] door for his wife,
10 then let my wife grind ·another man’s grain [L another man; C a euphemism for sexual intercourse],
and let other men ·have sexual relations with [L kneel over] her.
11 That would be ·shameful [a foul deed],
a ·sin to be punished [a criminal offense; L a guilty thing before the judges].
12 It is like a fire that burns ·and destroys [L down to Abaddon; 26:6; 28:22];
all I have done would be ·plowed up [L burned to the root].
13 “If I ·have been unfair to [L reject proper judgment for] my male and female slaves
when they had a ·complaint [case] against me,
14 ·how could I tell God what I did [or what would I do when God rises against me]?
What will I answer when he asks me to explain what I’ve done?
15 God made me in my mother’s womb, and he also made them;
the same God formed both of us in our mothers’ wombs.
16 “I have never ·refused the appeals of the poor [or deprived the poor of some pleasure]
or ·let widows give up hope while looking for help [L caused the eyes of the widow to fail].
17 I have not ·kept my food to myself [eaten my morsel alone]
·but have given it to the orphans [L or not let orphans eat it].
18 Since I was young, ·I have been like a father to the orphans [L I have raised them like a father; or he (God) raised me like a father].
From ·my birth [L the womb of my mother] I guided the widows.
19 I have not let anyone ·die [L perish] for lack of clothes
or let a needy person go without ·a coat [L covering].
20 That person’s ·heart [L loins] blessed me,
because I warmed him with the ·wool [fleece] of my sheep.
21 I have never ·hurt [L raised my hand threateningly against] an orphan
even when I knew I ·could win in court [L had allies in the gate; C the city gate was where court was held].
22 If I have, then let my ·arm [L shoulder blade] fall off my shoulder
and [L my arm] be broken at the ·joint [socket].
23 I fear ·destruction [calamity] from God,
and I fear his ·majesty [ruin], so I could not do such things.
24 “I have not put my trust in gold
or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security.’
25 I have not ·celebrated [exulted in] my great wealth
or the ·riches [substance] my hands had gained.
26 I have not thought about worshiping the sun in its brightness
nor admired the moon moving in glory
27 so that my heart was ·pulled away from God [L enticed in secret].
My hand has never ·offered the sun and moon a kiss of worship [L passed a kiss from my mouth].
28 If I had, these also would have been ·sins to be punished [a criminal offense; L a guilty thing before the judges],
because I would have ·been unfaithful to [deceived; defrauded] God [L above].
29 “I have not been happy ·when my enemies fell [L in the disaster of those who hate me]
or ·laughed when they had trouble [L become excited when evil found them out].
30 I have not let my mouth sin
by cursing my enemies’ life.
31 The servants of my house have always said,
‘All have eaten what they want of Job’s food.’
32 No stranger ever had to ·spend the night [lodge] in the street,
because I ·always let travelers stay in my home [L opened the door to the traveler; C hospitality was highly valued in the ancient Near East].
33 I have not hidden my ·sin [transgression] ·as others do [or like Adam did; Gen. 3],
·secretly keeping my guilt to myself [L concealing my guilt in my bosom].
34 I was not so afraid of the crowd [large multitude]
that I kept quiet and ·stayed inside [L did not go out the door]
because I feared being ·hated [held in contempt] by other families.
35 (“How I wish ·a court would hear my case [L someone would listen to me]!
Here ·I sign my name to show I have told the truth [is my signature].
Now let ·the Almighty [Shaddai] answer me;
let the one who accuses me write ·it [an indictment/writ] down.
36 I would wear ·the writing [L it] on my shoulder;
I would ·put [L bind] it on like a crown.
37 I would ·explain to God [L give him an account of] every step I took,
and I would ·come near to [approach] him like a prince.)
38 “If my land cries out against me
and its ·plowed rows [furrows] ·are wet with tears [L have wept together],
39 if I have taken the land’s harvest without paying
or have broken the spirit of those who ·worked [or own] the land,
40 then let ·thorns [brambles] come up instead of wheat,
and let ·weeds [stinkweed] come up instead of barley.”
The words of Job are ·finished [ended].