16 If I have refused the wishes of the poor
or let the widow’s(A) eyes go blind,
17 if I have eaten my few crumbs alone
without letting the fatherless eat any of it—
18 for from my youth, I raised him as his father,
and since the day I was born[a] I guided the widow—
19 if I have seen anyone dying for lack of clothing
or a needy person without a cloak,(B)
20 if he[b] did not bless me
while warming himself with the fleece from my sheep,
21 if I ever cast my vote[c] against a fatherless child
when I saw that I had support in the city gate,(C)
22 then let my shoulder blade fall from my back,
and my arm be pulled from its socket.
23 For disaster from God terrifies me,
and because of his majesty I could not do these things.(D)

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Footnotes

  1. 31:18 Lit and from my mother’s womb
  2. 31:20 Lit his loins
  3. 31:21 Lit I raise my hand

16 “If I have withheld the desire of the poor from them,
or[a] I have caused the widow’s eyes to fail,
17 or I have eaten my morsel alone,[b]
and the orphan has not eaten from it
18 (for from my childhood he[c] grew up with[d] me like a father,
and from my mother’s womb I guided her[e]),
19 if I have seen the one who perishes because of no clothing
or[f] that there is no covering for the poor,
20 if his loins have not blessed me,
or[g] by means of my sheep’s fleece he has warmed himself,
21 if I have raised my hand against an orphan
because I saw my supporters at the gate,
22 then let my shoulder blade fall from my shoulder,
and let my arm be broken from its socket.
23 Indeed, the disaster from God was a dread for me,
and I was powerless[h] because of his majesty.

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Footnotes

  1. Job 31:16 Hebrew “and”
  2. Job 31:17 Literally “to alone me”
  3. Job 31:18 Probably referring to “the orphan”
  4. Job 31:18 Literally “reared”
  5. Job 31:18 Probably referring to “the widow”
  6. Job 31:19 Hebrew “and”
  7. Job 31:20 Hebrew “and”
  8. Job 31:23 Literally “I was not able”