Job 31
International Children’s Bible
31 “But I made an agreement with my eyes
not to look with desire at a girl.
2 What has God above promised those who do this?
What has God All-Powerful on high planned for them?
3 It is ruin for the evil people.
It is disaster for those who do wrong.
4 God sees my ways,
and he counts every step I take.
5 “I have not been a dishonest person.
I have not lied to others.
6 Let God weigh me on honest scales.
Then he will know I have done nothing wrong.
7 I have not turned away from doing what is right.
My heart has not been led by my eyes to do wrong.
My hands have not been made unclean.
8 If I have done these things, then let other people eat what I have planted.
And let my crops be plowed up.
9 “I have not desired another woman.
I have never waited at my neighbor’s door to commit adultery with his wife.
10 If I have done these things, then let my wife grind another man’s grain.
And let other men have physical relations with her.
11 Sexual sin is shameful.
It is a sin which must be punished.
12 It is like a fire that burns and destroys forever.
It would destroy all I have.
13 “I have been fair to my male and female slaves
when they had a complaint against me.
14 If I have not, how could I tell God what I did?
What will I answer when God asks me to explain what I’ve done?
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.
16 “I have never refused anything the poor wanted.
I have never let widows give up hope while looking for help.
17 I have not kept my food to myself.
I have also given it to the orphans.
18 Since I was young, I have been like a father to the orphans.
And from my birth I guided the widows.
19 I have not let a person die because he had no clothes.
I have not let a needy person go without a coat.
20 That person’s heart blessed me.
This was because I warmed him with the wool of my sheep.
21 I have never hurt an orphan
even when I knew I could win in court.
22 If I have, then let my arm fall off my shoulder.
Let it be broken at the joint.
23 This is because I dread destruction from God.
I could not do such things because I fear his majesty.
24 “I have not put my trust in gold.
I have not said to pure gold, ‘You are my safety.’
25 I have not celebrated my great wealth.
I have not celebrated that my hands had gained riches.
26 I have not thought about worshiping the sun in its brightness.
I have not admired the moon moving in glory
27 so that my heart was pulled away from God.
My hand has never offered the sun and moon a kiss of worship.
28 If I had, these also would have been sins to be punished.
I would have been unfaithful to God if I had done these things.
29 “I have not been happy when my enemy was ruined.
I have not laughed when he had trouble.
30 I have not let my mouth sin
by cursing my enemy’s life.
31 The men of my house have always said,
‘Everyone has eaten all he wants of Job’s food.’
32 No stranger ever had to spend the night in the street.
I always let the traveler stay in my home.
33 I have not hidden my sin as other men do.
I did not hide my guilt in my heart.
34 I was not so afraid of the crowd.
I did not keep quiet and stay inside
because I feared being hated by other families.
35 (“How I wish a court would hear my case!
Here I sign my name to show I have told the truth.
Now let God All-Powerful answer me.
Let the one who is against me write down what he accuses me of.
36 I would surely wear the writing on my shoulder.
I would put it on like a crown.
37 I would explain to God every step I took.
I would come near to God like a prince.)
38 “My land did not cry out against me.
Its plowed rows were not wet with tears.
39 I did not take the land’s harvest without paying.
I did not break the spirit of those who took care of the land.
40 If I did, then let thorns come up instead of wheat.
And let weeds come up instead of barley.”
The words of Job are finished.
Job 31
EasyEnglish Bible
Job continues to speak[a]
31 ‘I have made a promise with myself
about how I look at young women.
I will never think that I want to have sex with them.
2 Anyone who does that should expect God to punish them.
Almighty God in heaven above punishes people who do wrong things.
3 He sends trouble to people who do wicked things.
He punishes those people who do evil things.
4 God sees all the things that I do.
He carefully watches how I live my life.
5 He must know that I am an honest man.
I have never tried to deceive people.
6 So he should judge me in a fair way.
He should realize that I am not guilty.
7 God seems to think that I have not lived in the right way.
He may think that I have wanted bad things
when they looked nice to me.
Or perhaps I have done something else that was wrong.
8 If am really guilty of these things,
someone else should eat the crops that I have planted.
They should destroy all the crops in my fields.
9 I have not wanted to love any woman
except my wife.
I have not hidden outside my friend's house
to wait for his wife to be alone.
10 If I had done those things,
my wife should prepare food for another man.
It would be right for other men to have sex with her.
11 I would not have been faithful to my wife.
I would have done a wicked thing
and I would deserve punishment.
12 If I loved another woman,
it would be like a dangerous fire.
It would destroy everything that I have worked hard to get.
13 When my servants complain against me,
I have always been fair to them.
14 If I had been cruel to them,
God would be right to punish me.
When God judges me,
I would have no answer to excuse myself.
15 God made me and he made my servants too.
God brought us all to birth.
16 I have never refused to help people who are poor.
I have always helped widows
to hope for good things.
17 I have never kept all my food for myself.
I have always shared it with children who have no family.
18 Since I was a young man,
I have helped those children like a father.
All my life I have helped widows too.
19 I have seen people without enough clothes to keep them warm,
or without a coat to wear.
20 Then I would give them clothes.
The wool from my sheep would keep them warm.
And they all thanked me.
21 I have not turned against children who have no family,
even when the city judges agreed with me.
22 God should punish me if these things are not true.
I would accept the punishment that I deserve.
23 I was afraid of the trouble that God might bring to me.
So I could not do these bad things,
because God is so great and powerful.
24 I have not trusted in money or in gold.
I have never thought that they would make me strong.
25 When I was very rich,
I was not proud about it.
I did not think that I had worked hard to deserve it.
26 I have looked at the sun when it shines brightly.
And I have seen the moon when it is very beautiful.
27 But I have never wanted to worship them
or to give them honour.
28 If I had done that,
I would not have been faithful to God in heaven.
I would have deserved punishment for that sin.
29 I do not laugh at my enemies
when they suffer.
If my enemy has troubles,
it does not make me happy.
30 I have not cursed my enemies,
to ask God to kill them.
That would have caused a sin to come from my mouth!
31 None of the people who work in my house have ever said,
“Job has not welcomed strangers into his house.
He has not shared his food with them.”
32 Travellers may come to sleep in my house.
They do not have to sleep outside in the street.
33 I do not try to hide my sins,
as some people do.
34 I am not afraid of what people think about me.
Even if a great crowd of people speak against me,
I do not stay inside my house and keep quiet.
35 I want someone to listen to me!
All the things that I say are true.
Almighty God should give me an answer!
I need to know what I have done that is wrong.
He should write down the reason why I am guilty!
36 Then I would show that paper clearly on my shoulders.
I would be proud to wear it like a crown on my head.
37 I would explain to God everything that I have done.
I would stand in front of him without fear, like a ruler.
38 I have not grown crops on land that does not belong to me.
The land itself would accuse me if that were true.
39 I have always paid for the food
that other people have worked to grow.
I have never cheated the farmers
so that they suffered.
40 If I have ever done any of those things,
then may thorn bushes grow in my fields instead of wheat.
May weeds grow in my fields instead of barley.’
That is the end of the things that Job said.
Footnotes
- 31:1 In chapter 31, Job says that he has always lived the right way. He says that he has always spoken true words. He says that he has always been fair. He has helped other people who have been in trouble. He is sure that God knows this. He wants to know why God is punishing him.
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