31:1 “But I ·made an agreement [L cut a covenant] with my eyes not to ·look with desire [leer] at a ·girl [L virgin].
31:2 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?
31:3 ·It is ruin [L Isn’t calamity reserved…?] for evil people and ·disaster [misfortune] for those who do wrong.
31:4 ·God sees [L Does he not see…?] my ways and counts every step I take.
31:5 “If I have ·been dishonest [L walked with falsehood] or ·lied to others [L my feet hasten to fraud],
31:6 then let God weigh me on ·honest [just] scales [Prov. 11:1]. Then he will know I ·have done nothing wrong [am blameless/innocent].
31:7 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],
31:8 then let ·other people eat what I have planted [L me sow and not eat], and let my crops be ·plowed up [uprooted].
31:9 “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,
31:10 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.
31:11 That would be ·shameful [a foul deed], a ·sin to be punished [a criminal offense; L a guilty thing before the judges].
31:12 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].
31:13 “If I ·have been unfair to [L reject proper judgment for] my male and female slaves when they had a ·complaint [case] against me,
31:14 ·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?
31:15 God made me in my mother’s womb, and he also made them; the same God formed both of us in our mothers’ wombs.
31:16 “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].
31:17 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].
31:18 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.
31:19 I have not let anyone ·die [L perish] for lack of clothes or let a needy person go without ·a coat [L covering].
31:20 That person’s ·heart [L loins] blessed me, because I warmed him with the ·wool [fleece] of my sheep.
31:21 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].
31:22 If I have, then let my ·arm [L shoulder blade] fall off my shoulder and [L my arm] be broken at the ·joint [socket].
31:23 I fear ·destruction [calamity] from God, and I fear his ·majesty [ruin], so I could not do such things.
31:24 “I have not put my trust in gold or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security.’
31:25 I have not ·celebrated [exulted in] my great wealth or the ·riches [substance] my hands had gained.
31:26 I have not thought about worshiping the sun in its brightness nor admired the moon moving in glory
31:27 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].
31:28 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].
31:29 “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].
31:30 I have not let my mouth sin by cursing my enemies’ life.
31:31 The servants of my house have always said, ‘All have eaten what they want of Job’s food.’
31:32 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].
31:33 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].
31:34 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.
31:35 (“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.
31:36 I would wear ·the writing [L it] on my shoulder; I would ·put [L bind] it on like a crown.
31:37 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.)
31:38 “If my land cries out against me and its ·plowed rows [furrows] ·are wet with tears [L have wept together],
31:39 if I have taken the land’s harvest without paying or have broken the spirit of those who ·worked [or own] the land,
31:40 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].
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