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31:1  “I have made a covenant with my eyes not to look with desire upon a virgin.
31:2  For what is man’s lot prescribed by God above, his inheritance from the Almighty on high?
31:3  Is it not destruction for the wicked and disaster for wrongdoers?
31:4  Does not God see my ways and number all my steps?
31:5  “If I have walked in falsehood or hastened my steps toward deceit,
31:6  let God weigh me on honest scales; then he will know that I am blameless.
31:7  “If my steps have wandered from the path of righteousness, or if my eyes have led my heart astray, or if any stain has besmirched my hands,
31:8  then let someone else eat what I sow, and let my crops be uprooted.
31:9  “If my heart has been enticed by a woman and I have lain in wait at my neighbor’s door,
31:10  then let my wife grind grain for another and let other men enjoy her.
31:11  For that would be a heinous crime and judged as a criminal offense.
31:12  It would be a fire that leads to Destruction until it consumes all my possessions completely.
31:13  “If I have ever rejected the pleas of my male or female slaves when they lodged a complaint against me,
31:14  what will I do when God confronts me? What will I answer if he calls me to account?
31:15  Did not he who formed me in the womb also make them? Did not the one God create all human beings?
31:16  “Have I ignored the needs of the poor or caused the eyes of widows to overflow with tears?
31:17  Did I ever eat my bread alone without sharing it with an orphan,
31:18  I whom God has reared like a father and guided ever since I left my mother’s womb?
31:19  “Have I ever seen a stranger in need of clothing, or a poor wretch with nothing to cover him,
31:20  whose body has not blessed me after being warmed with the fleece of my sheep?
31:21  Have I ever raised my hand against the innocent, knowing that my friends would support me?
31:22  “If I have done any of these things, then let my shoulder blade fall from my shoulder and let my arm be torn from its socket.
31:23  For then the fear of God would overcome me and I would be unable to stand in his presence.
31:24  “Have I placed my faith in gold and regarded it as my security?
31:25  Have I rejoiced in my great wealth and the abundance of riches in my possession?
31:26  Have I beheld the sun when it shone and the moon moving in its splendor
31:27  and ever found my heart to be secretly enticed so that I blew them a kiss in homage?
31:28  Any of these would be a serious offense, for I would have been unfaithful to God above.
31:29  “Have I ever rejoiced at the ruin of my enemy or exulted when evil overtook him—
31:30  I who would not allow my tongue to sin by laying his life under a curse?
31:31  Have not those of my household said, ‘Who has not eaten his meat and been sated?’
31:32  No stranger has ever had to spend the night in the street; my door has always been open to the traveler.
31:33  “Have I ever concealed my transgressions as others do, keeping my guilt buried within my breast,
31:34  because I feared the gossip that would ensue, and I was terrified at the scorn of the multitude? If so, then I would have remained silent and not ventured out of doors.
31:35  “Oh, if only I had someone to hear my defense and my accuser would write out his indictment!
31:36  I would wear it on my shoulder and place it on my head as a crown.
31:37  I would give him an account of my entire life, and like a prince I would present myself before him.
31:38  “If my land has cried out against me and its furrows have joined in the weeping,
31:39  if I have eaten its produce without payment and caused the death of its owners,
31:40  then let thistles grow instead of wheat and noxious weeds instead of barley.” The words of Job are ended.