Job 31:1-40
I Have Made a Covenant
1“I have made a covenant with my eyes. How then could I gaze with desire at a virgin?
2For what is the allotment of God from above, or the heritage from the Almighty on high?
3Does not disaster come to the unjust and calamity to the workers of iniquity?
4Does He not see my ways and count my every step?
5If I have walked in falsehood or my foot has rushed to deceit,
6let God weigh me with honest scales, that He may know my integrity.
7If my steps have turned from the path, if my heart has followed my eyes, or if impurity has stuck to my hands,
8then may another eat what I have sown, and may my crops be uprooted.
9If my heart has been enticed by my neighbor’s wife, or I have lurked at his door,
10then may my own wife grind grain for another, and may other men sleep with her.
11For that would be a heinous crime, an iniquity to be judged.
12For it is a fire that burns down to Abaddon; it would root out my entire harvest.
13If I have rejected the cause of my manservant or maidservant when they made a complaint against me,
14what will I do when God rises to judge? How will I answer when called to account?
15Did not He who made me in the womb also make them? Did not the same One form us in the womb?
16If I have denied the desires of the poor or allowed the widow’s eyes to fail,
17if I have eaten my morsel alone, not sharing it with the fatherless—
18though from my youth I reared him as would a father, and from my mother’s womb I guided the widow—
19if I have seen one perish for lack of clothing, or a needy man without a cloak,
20if his heart has not blessed me for warming him with the fleece of my sheep,
21if I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless because I saw that I had support in the gate,
22then may my arm fall from my shoulder and be torn from its socket.
23For calamity from God terrifies me, and His splendor I cannot overpower.
24If I have put my trust in gold or called pure gold my security,
25if I have rejoiced in my great wealth because my hand had gained so much,
26if I have beheld the sun in its radiance or the moon moving in splendor,
27so that my heart was secretly enticed and my hand threw a kiss from my mouth,
28this would also be an iniquity to be judged, for I would have denied God on high.
29If I have rejoiced in my enemy’s ruin, or exulted when evil befell him—
30I have not allowed my mouth to sin by asking for his life with a curse—
31if the men of my house have not said, ‘Who is there who has not had his fill?’—
32but no stranger had to lodge on the street, for my door has been open to the traveler—
33if I have covered my transgressions like Adam by hiding my guilt in my heart,
34because I greatly feared the crowds and the contempt of the clans terrified me, so that I kept silent and would not go outside—
35(Oh, that I had one to hear me! Here is my signature. Let the Almighty answer me; let my accuser compose an indictment.
36Surely I would carry it on my shoulder and wear it like a crown.
37I would give account of all my steps; I would approach Him like a prince.)—
38if my land cries out against me and its furrows weep together,
39if I have devoured its produce without payment or broken the spirit of its tenants,
40then let briers grow instead of wheat and stinkweed instead of barley.” Thus conclude the words of Job.
Berean Standard Bible
Job makes a covenant with his eyes not to look lustfully at a virgin. He asks what portion God assigns from above to a man who acts falsely. His defense begins with private integrity, because he knows public respect can hide what the heart has permitted.
He lists sins he has rejected: adultery, deception, injustice toward servants, neglect of the poor, trusting wealth, worshiping the sun or moon, and rejoicing at an enemy's ruin. His righteousness is not merely avoidance of scandal; it includes treating servants, widows, orphans, strangers, and enemies as people whose lives matter before God.
Job says he has not hidden his sin like Adam or concealed his iniquity in his heart. He invites anyone who hears to answer him and asks for an indictment written by his adversary. He would carry it on his shoulder and approach God like a prince, explaining every step.
He says his land would cry out if he had abused it, and its furrows would weep if he had consumed its strength without paying. The speech ends with a curse on the ground and Job's words complete. His defense is expansive because he wants the whole moral shape of his life examined, not one accusation selected in isolation.
Questions
1 What covenant did Job make?
AnswerHe made a covenant with his eyes not to look lustfully at a virgin.
2 Whom did Job say he treated fairly?
AnswerHe named servants, the poor, widows, orphans, strangers, and even enemies.
3 What did Job say he had not done?
AnswerHe said he had not hidden sin or concealed iniquity in his heart.
4 What did Job invite others to provide?
AnswerHe invited anyone who heard to answer him and provide an indictment he could carry before God.
What This Means for Us
Integrity is larger than avoiding one obvious failure. Job examines desire, money, labor, treatment of the vulnerable, private worship, and the way he responds to enemies.
Use his list as an invitation to honest self-examination, not as a claim that anyone can prove perfection. Let private choices and public treatment of people tell the same story.
Prayer
Holy God, examine the hidden and public parts of our lives. Give us clean desires, fair dealings, compassion for the vulnerable, and courage to confess where our conduct does not match our claims. Amen.