Reflections on Job 31

 Job 31 (Contemporary English Version)

1. I promised myself never to stare with desire at a young woman.
2. God All-Powerful punishes men who do that.
3. In fact, God sends disaster on all who sin,
4. and he keeps a close watch on everything I do.
5. I am not dishonest or deceitful,
6. and I beg God to prove my innocence.
7. If I have disobeyed him or even wanted to,
8. then others can eat my harvest and uproot my crops.
9. If I have desired someone's wife and chased after her,
10. then let some stranger steal my wife from me.
11. If I took someone's wife, it would be a horrible crime,
12. sending me to destruction and my crops to the flames.
13. When my servants complained against me, I was fair to them.
14. Otherwise, what answer would I give to God when he judges me?
15. After all, God is the one who gave life to each of us before we were born.
16. I have never cheated widows or others in need,
17. and I have always shared my food with orphans.
18. Since the time I was young, I have cared for orphans and helped widows.
19. I provided clothes for the poor,
20. and I was praised for supplying woolen garments to keep them warm.
21. If I have ever raised my arm to threaten an orphan when the power was mine,
22. I hope that arm will fall from its socket.
23. I could not have been abusive; I was terrified at the thought that God might punish me.
24. I have never trusted the power of wealth,
25. or taken pride in owning many possessions.
26. I have never openly or secretly
27. worshiped the sun or moon.
28. Such horrible sins would have deserved punishment from God.
29. I have never laughed when my enemies were struck by disaster.
30. Neither have I sinned by asking God to send down on them the curse of death.
31. No one ever went hungry at my house,
32. and travelers were always welcome.
33. Many have attempted to hide their sins from others-- but I refused.
34. And the fear of public disgrace never forced me to keep silent about what I had done.
35. Why doesn't God All-Powerful listen and answer? If God has something against me, let him speak up or put it in writing!
36. Then I would wear his charges on my clothes and forehead.
37. And with my head held high, I would tell him everything I have ever done.
38. I have never mistreated the land I farmed and made it mourn.
39. Nor have I cheated my workers and caused them pain.
40. If I had, I would pray for weeds instead of wheat to grow in my fields. After saying these things, Job was silent.

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In the verses of chapter 31, Job listed a number of sins of which he claimed innocence. Several of which he had been accused by his three friends.

The first sin Job mentioned was lust. He had not looked on a young woman lustfully, having made a "covenant with my eyes." While here Job addressed sinful thoughts, he later mentions the sinful action of allowing himself to be seduced by another's wife. He was not guilty of this sin either.

Another sin of which Job claimed innocence was injustice. He had not been deceitful in his ways nor dishonest in his business dealings. Neither had he dismissed any complaints of his servants against him without addressing them. Furthermore, he had helped the poor, the widow, and the orphan, and he had opened his door to the traveler.

Job was not guilty of covetousness or idolatry either. He had not placed his trust in his wealth rather than God, nor had he worshiped the luminaries, denying God. Job could find nothing of which he was guilty warranting the calamities that had befallen him. Was he overly pious in this assessment? Probably. None of us are completely innocent of sin, though we may be unaware of any.

Some, such as Samuel Ridout, are critical of Job's self assessment saying, "We are glad to be through with Job's words as uttered here." Moreover, he says, "Job's words will be rightly ended when he is ready to give praise to the One who alone is worthy of it." While I agree with this later statement, I don't necessarily agree with the first. I am in no position to be critical of Job and don't know of any who are. I know of no one who has suffered the losses Job had, but know of many who have suffered much smaller losses who have turned away from God. While I have not turned away from God in my losses, my attitude hasn't been any different from Job's. My thoughts in these times, however, have come from the opposite direction of Job's. Instead of claiming innocence of sin, I enumerated the ways I had served God that should have protected me from such loss.

Of course, it doesn't work this way. Serving God is not a protection against suffering just as sin is not a guarantee of suffering. While Job disagreed with his friends' idea that suffering equals sin, his claim of innocence and plea for justice get very close to the same thinking. But I understand Job's cry for justice and cannot be critical. He clung to God's greatness and sovereignty throughout his ordeal.