Lenten Study Job Ch 31
Chapter thirty-one represents Job’s last words on the subject of his persecution and his defense. He makes an impassioned plea to his listeners one last time, and if they won’t hear him or understand him, that’s their problem.
"There was a man in the land of Uz" by andrevanb is marked with CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.Caption
1 “I have made a covenant with my eyes; How then could I gaze at a virgin?
Job 31:1 (NASB)
A covenant is an understanding and agreement between two parties that can be binding on one side or the other regardless of whether or not both sides keep the deal. The person who makes the covenant agrees to be bound by it regardless of what the other side does. In this case, Job states that even though his eyes might break the deal, he will not. How does that work? A virgin is a simple descriptor meaning “very attractive, untouched woman.” Job agrees that even though his eyes might see such a woman, his mind and body won’t dwell on it in an unrighteous way.
2 “And what is the portion of God from above Or the heritage of the Almighty from on high?
Job 31:2 (NASB)
“What does God gain from this?” Nothing. God made everything, needs nothing, and lacks nothing. God does not gain anything by our righteous behavior.
3 “Is it not calamity to the unjust And disaster to those who work iniquity?
Job 31:3 (NASB)
God doesn’t gain anything, but unrighteous people lose something as God gives out justice where it is due as He sees fit.
4 “Does He not see my ways And number all my steps?
Job 31:4 (NASB)
When God decides to hand out justice, it is just that; justice. God cannot make a mistake in this. He decides what good and bad are, and when He does, it is always right because He knows everything. Human beings cannot hide anything from God, so when He makes decisions based on His children’s actions, His decisions are always right. Always.
5 “If I have walked with falsehood, And my foot has hastened after deceit,
6 Let Him weigh me with accurate scales, And let God know my integrity.
Job 31:5-6 (NASB)
Job is making another attempt to convince his friends that he has done nothing to draw the punishment of God.
7 “If my step has turned from the way, Or my heart followed my eyes, Or if any spot has stuck to my hands,
8 Let me sow and another eat, And let my crops be uprooted.
Job 31:7-8 (NASB)
In Job’s day, the common sense approach to life reigned supreme. If you didn’t work, you didn’t eat. Charity was permissible, but not for someone’s entire life unless they were physically unable to work. However, if someone could figure out a job for that person to do, they did it to earn whatever they could. It was a matter of survival. The “social safety net” was to get up in the morning and labor at what you could do to earn what you could earn. I say all of that to add weight to Job’s assertion that if he had broken one of God’s rules, he willingly accepted the punishment of working hard but not gaining any sustenance from his efforts.
9 “If my heart has been enticed by a woman, Or I have lurked at my neighbor’s doorway,
10 May my wife grind for another, And let others kneel down over her.
11 “For that would be a lustful crime; Moreover, it would be an iniquity punishable by judges.
12 “For it would be fire that consumes to Abaddon, And would uproot all my increase.
Job 31:9-12 (NASB)
This section goes back to Job’s opening statement about a covenant with his eyes. Job explains that covenant further here. He states his heart position has not been to follow the attractive women with his eyes, nor has he decided to linger near someone else’s house just to catch a glimpse of that attractive woman who is not his wife. He goes on to explain that both of those actions would be considered unrighteous in God’s eyes and a “…lustful crime…” adding further weight to the idea that God is more interested in our heart position than in almost anything else.
The last verse clarifies what Job believes happens to people who willfully gaze at people with lust in their hearts. Abaddon is the underworld, is Hell. Job is not mincing words. How often do we, in modern times, allow our gaze to drift over the attractive body of another person lingering there with the idea of what might be?
Job’s words should be awfully condemning to that action, yet porn runs rampant among our youth and adults. Ad agencies use sex and sexualization of people to sell their products, and we are routinely bombarded by our fellow human beings out in the world going about their lives dressed immodestly.
Do not for one moment hear in my words that I successfully resist the things I see daily. I am a fallen human no better or worse than any other. I need forgiveness on this front like everyone else. The good news is that we all have it in the form of Jesus the Christ and His sacrifice on the cross. Do I try to avoid as much of it as I can? Yes. Should you? Also, yes. Do I beat myself up when I fail? Again, yes, but I temper that given my fallen nature and try not to be too hard on myself. That last bit doesn’t give us the liberty to do or look at whatever we want, but it does offer us saving when we repent of our sins.
13 “If I have despised the claim of my male or female slaves When they filed a complaint against me,
14 What then could I do when God arises? And when He calls me to account, what will I answer Him?
Job 31:13-14 (NASB)
This is not the slavery we think of today. There are many who claim the title Christian who misuse scripture containing this word, and they will have to answer for that. Slaves in Job’s day weren’t just property owned by a master for their entire lives to do with as he or she pleased. Slaves in Job’s day were a class of people who, because they had committed some offense against someone, a crime against the community, or couldn’t or wouldn’t work, were forced to serve a master. In some cases, these people willingly chose that life because it was the only way they could get food. In other cases, they committed a crime against a person who was made their master until the adjudicated restitution was paid in full. Or they were slaves until the year of jubilee, at which point they were set free. If you’d like to learn more about jubilee, you can go HERE.
15 “Did not He who made me in the womb make him, And the same one fashion us in the womb?
16 “If I have kept the poor from their desire, Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
17 Or have eaten my morsel alone, And the orphan has not shared it
18 (But from my youth he grew up with me as with a father, And from infancy I guided her),
19 If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, Or that the needy had no covering,
20 If his loins have not thanked me, And if he has not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep,
21 If I have lifted up my hand against the orphan, Because I saw I had support in the gate,
22 Let my shoulder fall from the socket, And my arm be broken off at the elbow.
Job 31:15-22 (NASB)
Scripture calls on Christians to take care of the orphan and the widow. It also says to treat others as we would want to be treated, which means if we see someone in need, do to them as we would want to be done to us if we were in that position. If you’ve ever had an injury to an arm that takes it out of commission for any length of time, you know how serious Job’s offer of having his shoulder fall out of its socket or losing the arm at the elbow is. If you haven’t experienced that, go to the thrift store and get one of those blue slings. Put an arm in that sling for a day and try not to use it for anything. You will quickly understand how valuable that limb is.
23 “For calamity from God is a terror to me, And because of His majesty I can do nothing.
Job 31:23 (NASB)
God made the entire universe. There isn’t anything He cannot do. The ways in which God could cause difficulties for a person are too numerous to count, too subtle to envision, and too painful to contemplate. On the reverse, because God made everything, there is no accomplishment a person can achieve to rival anything God has already done.
24 “If I have put my confidence in gold, And called fine gold my trust,
25 If I have gloated because my wealth was great, And because my hand had secured so much;
26 If I have looked at the sun when it shone Or the moon going in splendor,
27 And my heart became secretly enticed, And my hand threw a kiss from my mouth,
28 That too would have been an iniquity calling for judgment, For I would have denied God above.
Job 31:24-28 (NASB)
Job is doing a couple of things in this passage. He is announcing that he is still God’s man and trusts God. He is also explaining that those things people usually find security in, he does not. People tend to find security in money and possessions. Job says that position is foolish. It should be recognized that Job believes this is a foolish position in this passage because of what he said in verse twenty-three. God can do anything He wants and could eliminate any amount of wealth in many ways. A person thinking they are secure because their bank account has a certain balance is foolish. If God wants that money, He will take it and leave a greasy spot where that person once stood (stolen from Dave Ramsey. Thanks, Dave.)
29 “Have I rejoiced at the extinction of my enemy, Or exulted when evil befell him?
30 “No, I have not allowed my mouth to sin By asking for his life in a curse.
Job 31:29-30 (NASB)
I will admit I have a hard time with this one. Yes, I want those who oppose God to fail. I also want those who oppose me to fail. Those two things are not the same thing, and I know that. Have I rejoiced when people who oppose me and or God have failed? Yes. Should I have done that? No. Why? Simple. Those who oppose God cannot succeed because He is God. However, the underlying truth here is that these people cannot enjoy the love of God as He intended. Whether those people realize it or not, we who walk in His love can see the dysfunction, despair, and unhappiness in their lives. We know the cause, and we know the cure. However, like an addict who hasn’t hit rock bottom, they deny the reality of what we know to be true. Like the prodigal son, return to His ways, and life becomes better. Deny His ways, and life remains hard. That is the simple truth of life, which some refuse to learn. That knowledge should sadden us, not make us happy.
31 “Have the men of my tent not said, ‘Who can find one who has not been satisfied with his meat’?
32 “The alien has not lodged outside, For I have opened my doors to the traveler.
Job 31:31-32 (NASB)
The rules of hospitality used to be a big deal, especially in Job’s day. By big deal, I mean a BIG DEAL. People fought and died over affronts committed and rules broken here. We in Western society have very, very little understanding of what true hospitality means. For more on how landowners, homeowners, Lords, and Ladies treated guests, read through the information found HERE.
33 “Have I covered my transgressions like Adam, By hiding my iniquity in my bosom,
34 Because I feared the great multitude, And the contempt of families terrified me, And kept silent and did not go out of doors?
Job 31:33-34 (NASB)
Let’s clear something up here. When I say God says that Job was “righteous,” that doesn’t mean Job didn’t break the rules or sin. It means Job followed God’s laws and did what was required of a person when they did break the rules or sin. These two passages explain that Job is not perfect. He has sinned and broken rules, but he confessed those lapses and did what was required to make himself right with God again. In modern times, that would be repenting of our sins which means acknowledging them as wrong and moving away from them, so we don’t do them again if possible.
35 “Oh that I had one to hear me! Behold, here is my signature; Let the Almighty answer me! And the indictment which my adversary has written,
36 Surely I would carry it on my shoulder, I would bind it to myself like a crown.
Job 31:35-36 (NASB)
This is Job’s answer to his friends. He is begging them for someone who can tell him what sin he has committed, what rule he has broken to so offend God that He would punish him like this? If that person would just tell Job what he has done, Job offers to parade it around on a billboard announcing his confession to the world; if only someone would tell him what he has done because he doesn’t believe he has done anything wrong.
37 “I would declare to Him the number of my steps; Like a prince I would approach Him.
38 “If my land cries out against me, And its furrows weep together;
39 If I have eaten its fruit without money, Or have caused its owners to lose their lives,
40 Let briars grow instead of wheat, And stinkweed instead of barley.” The words of Job are ended.
Job 31:37-40 (NASB)
The words of Job have ended. Things are going to get more interesting from this point on out. Job has made his case. He has said all he can think to say. He is done.