31:1 “I made a covenant with1 my eyes;
how then could I entertain thoughts against a virgin?2
31:2 What then would be one’s lot from God above,
one’s heritage from the Almighty3 on high?
31:3 Is it not misfortune for the unjust,
and disaster for those who work iniquity?
and count all my steps?
31:5 If4 I have walked in falsehood,
and if5 my foot has hastened6 to deceit—
31:6 let him7 weigh me with honest8 scales;
then God will discover9 my integrity.
31:7 If my footsteps have strayed from the way,
if my heart has gone after my eyes,10
or if anything11 has defiled my hands,
31:8 then let me sow12 and let another eat,
and let my crops13 be uprooted.
31:9 If my heart has been enticed by a woman,
and I have lain in wait at my neighbor’s door,14
31:10 then let my wife turn the millstone15 for another man,
and may other men have sexual relations with her.16
31:11 For I would have committed17 a shameful act,18
an iniquity to be judged.19
31:12 For it is a fire that devours even to Destruction,20
and it would uproot21 all my harvest.
31:13 “If I have disregarded the right of my male servants
or my female servants
when they disputed22 with me,
31:14 then what will I do when God confronts me in judgment;23
when he intervenes,24
how will I respond to him?
31:15 Did not the one who made me in the womb make them?25
Did not the same one form us in the womb?
31:16 If I have refused to give the poor what they desired,26
or caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
31:17 If I ate my morsel of bread myself,
and did not share any of it with orphans27—
31:18 but from my youth I raised the orphan28 like a father,
and from my mother’s womb29
I guided the widow!30
31:19 If I have seen anyone about to perish for lack of clothing,
or a poor man without a coat,
31:20 whose heart did not bless me31
as he warmed himself with the fleece of my sheep,32
31:21 if I have raised my hand33 to vote against the orphan,
when I saw my support in the court,34
31:22 then35 let my arm fall from the shoulder,36
let my arm be broken off at the socket.37
31:23 For the calamity from God was a terror to me,38
and by reason of his majesty39 I was powerless.
31:24 “If I have put my confidence in gold
or said to pure gold,
‘You are my security!’
31:25 if I have rejoiced because of the extent of my wealth,
or because of the great wealth my hand had gained,
31:26 if I looked at the sun40 when it was shining,
and the moon advancing as a precious thing,
31:27 so that my heart was secretly enticed,
and my hand threw them a kiss from my mouth,41
31:28 then this42 also would be iniquity to be judged,43
for I would have been false44 to God above.
31:29 If45 I have rejoiced over the misfortune of my enemy46
or exulted47 because calamity48 found him—
31:30 I49 have not even permitted my mouth50 to sin
by asking51 for his life through a curse—
31:31 if52 the members of my household53 have never said,54
‘If only there were55 someone
who has not been satisfied from Job’s56 meat!’—
31:32 But57 no stranger had to spend the night outside,
for I opened my doors to the traveler58—
31:33 if59 I have covered my transgressions as men do,60
by hiding61 iniquity in my heart,62
31:34 because I was terrified63 of the great multitude,64
and the contempt of families terrified me,
so that I remained silent
and would not go outdoors—65
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