16 “If I have (A)withheld anything that the poor desired,
    or have (B)caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
17 or have eaten my morsel alone,
    and the fatherless has not eaten of it
18 (for from my youth the fatherless[a] grew up with me as with a father,
    and from my mother's womb I guided the widow[b]),
19 if I have seen anyone (C)perish for (D)lack of clothing,
    or the needy without (E)covering,
20 if his body has not (F)blessed me,[c]
    and if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep,
21 if I have raised my hand against (G)the fatherless,
    because I saw my help in (H)the gate,
22 then let my shoulder blade fall from my shoulder,
    and let my arm be broken from its socket.
23 For I was (I)in terror of calamity from God,
    and I could not have faced his (J)majesty.

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Footnotes

  1. Job 31:18 Hebrew he
  2. Job 31:18 Hebrew her
  3. Job 31:20 Hebrew if his loins have not blessed me

The defenseless

16 If I have denied what the poor wanted,
        made a widow’s eyes tired,
17     eaten my morsel alone,
        and not shared any with an orphan
(18     for from my youth I raised the orphan as a father,
        and from my mother’s womb I led the widow);[a]
19     if I ever saw someone dying without clothes, the needy naked;
20     if they haven’t blessed me fervently,[b]
        or if they weren’t warmed by the wool from my sheep;
21     if I have lifted my hand against the orphans,
        when I saw that I had help in the city gate—
22     may my arm fall from my shoulder,
        my forearm be broken at the elbow—
23     for God’s calamity is terror to me;
        I couldn’t endure his splendor.

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Footnotes

  1. Job 31:18 Heb lacks orphan . . . widow.
  2. Job 31:20 Or his loins