Hello everyone! Welcome to today’s Bible study on Job 31 – Job asserts his righteousness. According to Bible scholars, the events of the book of Job took place approximately before 2100 B.C.
I encourage you to turn to Job 31 in your Bible. Kindly invite the Holy Spirit to guide you as you read and study Job 31 with me. I mention this in all the Bible Studies because it is through the Holy Spirit that we get fresh revelation and knowledge to understand the word of God. I am using the New King James Version (NKJV) of the Bible, just in case you want to know. All the scriptures that you find highlighted in purple in this post are from the NKJV.
In the Bible Study on Job 30, we read about Job being humiliated by his present state. Well, in this Bible study on Job 31, we will read about Job asserting his righteousness. This is Job’s final discourse to his friends in the book of Job.
Without any further delay, let us study together Job Chapter 31 in-depth, shall we?
Does God Ever See Job’s Righteousness
1“I have made a covenant with my eyes;
Why then should I look upon a young woman?
2 For what is the allotment of God from above,
And the inheritance of the Almighty from on high?
3 Is it not destruction for the wicked,
And disaster for the workers of iniquity?
4 Does He not see my ways,
And count all my steps?
In Verses 1-4 of Job 31, Job talks about how he had made a covenant with his eyes (with God and his wife) and he would never break the covenant by looking upon a young woman (who is not his wife). He did not sin with his eyes. He said that the allotment and the inheritance reserved by God for the wicked is destruction and disaster. Job questions if God ever sees his ways and counts all his steps so that he could be justified in God’s eyes. Job’s question was why has God brought upon destruction and disaster which are reserved for the wicked upon him (Job) who did not even sin with his eyes.
Job Asserts His Integrity
5 “If I have walked with falsehood,
Or if my foot has hastened to deceit,
6 Let me be weighed on honest scales,
That God may know my integrity.
7 If my step has turned from the way,
Or my heart walked after my eyes,
Or if any spot adheres to my hands,
8 Then let me sow, and another eat;
Yes, let my harvest be rooted out.
In Verses 5-8 of Job 31, Job asks God to judge his integrity. If he had ever walked with falsehood or deceit or if he had sinned with his heart or eyes or hands, then let is be so that another man eats Job’s hard-laboured harvest and let it be that he loses his crops that he had worked so hard to cultivate.
Job Shunned Adultery
9 “If my heart has been enticed by a woman,
Or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,
10 Then let my wife grind for another,
And let others bow down over her.
11 For that would be wickedness;
Yes, it would be iniquity deserving of judgment.
12 For that would be a fire that consumes to destruction,
And would root out all my increase.
In Verses 9-12 of Job 31, Job talks about his loyalty to his wife and how he never coveted his neighbours wife or belongings. He never gave in to the spirit of lust, adultery or perverseness. If he had done so, he said let it be so that his wife grinds meal for another man and let other men have intimacy with his wife. Job knew very well that coveting a neighbours wife or belongings, adultery or being filled with lust is wickedness and an iniquity deserving of severe judgment. The punishment for such wickedness would be a fire that consumes to destruction and thereby destroying all his (Job’s) increase and profits.
Job Had Dealt Righteously With His Servants
13 “If I have despised the cause of my male or female servant
When they complained against me,
14 What then shall I do when God rises up?
When He punishes, how shall I answer Him?
15 Did not He who made me in the womb make them?
Did not the same One fashion us in the womb?
In Verses 13-15 of Job 31, Job recalls how he had dealt righteously with his servants. He didn’t despise them even when they complained against him. Because Job feared God and he remembered that the same God that created him also created them.
Job Dealt Righteously With The Poor And Needy
16 “If I have kept the poor from their desire,
Or caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
17 Or eaten my morsel by myself,
So that the fatherless could not eat of it
18 (But from my youth I reared him as a father,
And from my mother’s womb I guided the widow);
19 If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing,
Or any poor man without covering;
20 If his heart has not blessed me,
And if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep;
21 If I have raised my hand against the fatherless,
When I saw I had help in the gate;
22 Then let my arm fall from my shoulder,
Let my arm be torn from the socket.
23 For destruction from God is a terror to me,
And because of His magnificence I cannot endure.
In Verses 16-23 of Job 31, Job talks of how he had helped the poor, the fatherless and the widow. He shared his food with the fatherless and raised the fatherless as his own son and guided the widow. He blessed the poor with clothes made from the fleece of his sheep to keep them warm and they blessed Job for his kindness. Also, Job recalls how he had never raised his hand against the fatherless even when he had the power and opportunity to do so, being the chief and the richest and most powerful man in that entire region.
He said that let his arm be torn from its socket if he had ever acted wickedly with the poor, the needy and the helpless. God’s destruction is a terror to Job and he could not endure the greatness of God’s magnificence.
Note
Job asked for his hand to be cut off from his socket because everything that he explained from Verses 16-21 were things that were done by the hand. When he fed the poor he fed them with his hands. He didn’t prepare one type of food for him with expensive taste and another type of food for the poor. Instead, he gave them the same food that he ate. When he clothed the needy to keep them warm he clothed them with his hands. Job gave to the poor, materials made of fleece and wool from his flock which are quite expensive, to keep them warm. He didn’t ignore them or look down upon them. He treated them with the best materials he had. And, he didn’t raise his hand against the orphan.
Job Did Not Sway From Worshipping God
24 “If I have made gold my hope,
Or said to fine gold, ‘You are my confidence’;
25 If I have rejoiced because my wealth was great,
And because my hand had gained much;
26 If I have observed the sun when it shines,
Or the moon moving in brightness,
27 So that my heart has been secretly enticed,
And my mouth has kissed my hand;
28 This also would be an iniquity deserving of judgment,
For I would have denied God who is above.
In Verses 24-28 of Job 31, Job said that he did not put his trust and hope in his wealth and riches. He did not rejoice because his wealth was great and because he prospered in everything. Job did not worship the sun and moon in adoration. He didn’t love himself and kiss his hand being enticed with pride about his achievements and wealth for that was also an iniquity deserving of judgment from God. If he had put his hope and trust in his wealth and loved himself more than God, and worshipped the sun and moon then that would be him denying God who is above all wealth, riches, men and all creation. He did not turn away from God and continued to serve Him alone. He saw every wealth he gained as the blessing of the Lord and not his own merit.
Job Did Not Rejoice At The Destruction Of His Enemies
29 “If I have rejoiced at the destruction of him who hated me,
Or lifted myself up when evil found him
30 (Indeed I have not allowed my mouth to sin
By asking for a curse on his soul);
In Verses 29-30 of Job 31, Job talks of how he did not rejoice at the destruction of his enemies who hated him. He didn’t exalt himself triumphantly when they suffered the consequences for their actions. He did not allow his mouth to sin at any instance by cursing his enemy’s soul.
Job Opened His Doors To The Weary Traveler
31 If the men of my tent have not said,
‘Who is there that has not been satisfied with his meat?’
32 (But no sojourner had to lodge in the street,
For I have opened my doors to the traveler);
In Verses 31-32 of Job 31, Job talks of how he did not allow the weary traveler to lodge on the street, instead he opened his doors to him as an act of kindness. He fed people who were hungry. He fed them with meat and not with mere remains of what he had eaten. It is usual for kings and the people of high status to eat meat (which was a luxury especially in olden days) and feed their servants with the leftovers. It happens even today in many places among people with power and wealth. However, Job was different. He didn’t differentiate and put people into classes and treat them (feed and clothe them) according to their status. Job had the fear of God with him at all times and treated everyone righteously.
Job Did Not Cover Up His Transgressions
33 If I have covered my transgressions as Adam,
By hiding my iniquity in my bosom,
34 Because I feared the great multitude,
And dreaded the contempt of families,
So that I kept silence
And did not go out of the door—
35 Oh, that I had one to hear me!
Here is my mark.
Oh,that the Almighty would answer me,
That my Prosecutor had written a book!
36 Surely I would carry it on my shoulder,
And bind it on me like a crown;
37 I would declare to Him the number of my steps;
Like a prince I would approach Him.
In Verses 33-37 of Job 31, Job talks about how he did not cover his transgressions like Adam out of fear of what people or his family might say or think. He didn’t keep silence and hide his sins. At this point, he yearned for someone to hear him so that he could show his mark (his righteousness and what he did in his life). Job had God in his mind whenever he did anything. And, that is why he is confidently able to show his mark.
He yearned for God to answer him and that his prosecutor (adversary/enemy) had written a book about the sins that Job had done (for he had none that he knew of). If there was indeed such a book he would carry it on his shoulder and put it as a crown proudly and would not hide it as Adam did. He himself would declare to God the number of his steps (what he did in his life and his ways and actions) and like a prince he would approach God if only he knew what sins he commited.
Note
Job said that he would approach God like a prince (triumphantly) because he was aware that if he knew his sins, then he could repent of it and then God would surely forgive him and he would be delivered from his suffering. He had an understanding about who God was because he knew God. Right now, Job does not know what sin he had done to deserve all the torment he was going through. If he had sinned he would accept his punishment and also repent.
However, from all his discourses in the previous chapters and now in Job 31 we see that he recalls his past where he had always been righteous before God. He constantly had the fear of God on his mind that made him make right decisions and do the right things. However, he suffered more than the worst sinner not only in his health but in his life where he had lost everything including his children.
Job was right in thinking that he didn’t sin. He did not. The whole suffering and torment was satan’s idea and a mere test of character by satan himself to prove to God that Job and God’s creation (mankind) did not really love God. He wanted to prove to God that man loves God only because of His blessings and not because of whom He is. So God accepted the challenge and allowed satan to test Job because He trusted in Job and He trusted that Job would still be faithful to Him no matter what torment satan threw at him.
Job Had Dealt Righteously With The Land And Its Fruits
38 “If my land cries out against me,
And its furrows weep together;
39 If I have eaten its fruit without money,
Or caused its owners to lose their lives;
40 Then let thistles grow instead of wheat,
And weeds instead of barley.”
In Verses 38-40 of Job 31, Job talks about how he had never stolen another man’s harvest or food. He had not enjoyed (eaten) freely the fruits of another man’s ground without paying for it. He did not cause the rightful land owners who owned the land and its fruits and crops to lose their lives. If he had done such a thing in God’s eyes then he said let thistles and weeds grow in his (Job’s) land instead of wheat and barley.
Conclusion
This brings us to the end of the bible study lesson on Job 31. It is Job’s last discourse to his three friends, Bildad, Eliphaz and Zophar. He asserts his righteousness and integrity for one last time because he knew fully well that he did not sin. He had lived his entire life carefully and righteously with the fear of God in his mind. I hope you learnt something from this free bible study and found it helpful in your Bible study journey.
If you have any comments or questions for me, kindly leave them in the comments box below. I highly appreciate it. I will get back to you as soon as I can.
Until Next Time!