Bible Commentaries
Job 31

Introduction

Job Chapter 31

Job 31:1 "I made a covenant with mine eyes; why then should I think upon a maid?" Job had made a covenant with himself never to look upon a woman with lust in his eyes. It appears, from all accounts, that Job was a faithful husband to his wife. He was not an adulterer. This was something he had promised himself.

Job 31:2 "For what portion of God [is there] from above? And [what] inheritance of the Almighty from on high?" Job was saying, that there would have been no inheritance from God, if he had been such a man. One of the worst sins, in God’s sight, is adultery. Job was proclaiming his innocence. Had he committed such a sin, he would not have expected God to bless him.

Job 31:3 "[Is] not destruction to the wicked? and a strange [punishment] to the workers of iniquity?" The inheritance of the wicked was destruction of body, soul, and spirit. Those who sinned could expect the punishment from God that they deserved. This was the reason that Job did not understand the punishment that had come to him. He had not sinned as a wicked man.

Job 31:4 "Doth not he see my ways, and count all my steps?" Job knew that nothing good or bad escaped the eyes of the LORD. God knew that Job was a man after His own heart. The statement above was in the form of a question. It is as if Job was saying, "Since he knows my every step, why am I being punished"?

Job 31:5 "If I have walked with vanity, or if my foot hath hasted to deceit;"

Job 31:6 "Let me be weighed in an even balance that God may know mine integrity." Job was asking to be weighed in the balance by God. If he had committed some sin that he was unaware of, the balance would still tip in his favor for all of the good he had done.

Job 31:7 "If my step hath turned out of the way, and mine heart walked after mine eyes, and if any blot hath cleaved to mine hands;"

Job 31:8 "[Then] let me sow, and let another eat; yea, let my offspring be rooted out." Job was willing for God to test him and see, if he had done any of these evil things. If he had done those things, he was willing to pay the penalty for the sin he committed. He wanted God to examine him and see what it was that he had failed in. Job said if I have lusted with mine eyes, then let me grow a crop and others eat it to punish me. He would even been willing for his children to be disinherited and run off the land, if had committed the sin of lust.

Job 31:9 "If mine heart have been deceived by a woman, or [if] I have laid wait at my neighbour’s door;"

Job 31:10 "[Then] let my wife grind unto another, and let others bow down upon her." Job said if he had been deceived by a woman, or had coveted anything that belonged to his neighbor, he would let another have his wife. Job knew that he had never gone in to a strange woman. He knew he had never coveted anything that belonged to another.

Job 31:11 "For this [is] an heinous crime; yea, it [is] an iniquity [to be punished by] the judges."

Job 31:12 "For it [is] a fire [that] consumeth to destruction, and would root out all mine increase." To lust for any woman except his own wife, Job said would be a terrible crime. He knew that kind of sin burned within a person, until it totally destroyed him. Job was being accused of this sort of thing, but he knew he was innocent, and he knew God knew he was innocent, also.

Job 31:13 "If I did despise the cause of my manservant or of my maidservant, when they contended with me;"

Job 31:14 "What then shall do when God riseth up? and when he visiteth, what shall I answer him?" Job had compassion on the poor and on his servants, as well. He had never mistreated any of them. Job was saying if he had mistreated his servants, he could expect no better from God, whose servant he was.

Job 31:15 "Did not he that made me in the womb make him? and did not one fashion us in the womb?" Job was saying that all men were created by the same God. He was saying in the sight of God, one man does not differ from another. God is no respecter of persons.

Job 31:16 "If I have withheld the poor from [their] desire, or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail;" Eliphaz had accused Job of this very thing, and Job had denied it. In fact, Job did the opposite. He helped the poor and the widow.

Job 31:17 "Or have eaten my morsel myself alone, and the fatherless hath not eaten thereof;" Job had shared his food with those less fortunate than himself. That was one of the good memories he had of his days, before the calamity came upon him.

Job 31:18 "(For from my youth he was brought up with me, as [with] a father, and I have guided her from my mother’s womb;)" It appears, that Job had helped the widow, orphan, and the poor from his earliest years. He had been trained this way as a child. He did not separate himself from these people, but saw their needs and provided for them.

Job 31:19 "If I have seen any perish for want of clothing, or any poor without covering;"

Job 31:20 "If his loins have not blessed me, and [if] he were [not] warmed with the fleece of my sheep;" We see, from this, that Job would even give fleece from his sheep to clothe those who had nothing to wear.

Job 31:21 "If I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless, when I saw my help in the gate:"

Job 31:22 "[Then] let mine arm fall from my shoulder blade, and mine arm be broken from the bone." This was a very drastic statement for Job to make, but he knew he was innocent. He knew he had reached out and helped all who truly needed help. He was not a selfish man. Job had been the champion of those in need. He was in no danger of losing his arm. God knew his record on this.

Job 31:23 "For destruction [from] God [was] a terror to me, and by reason of his highness I could not endure." Job’s only fear was of God. He tried to live as near perfect as he could, because he wanted to please God.

Job 31:24 "If I have made gold my hope, or have said to the fine gold, [Thou art] my confidence;" Job had not made gold his god. He knew that gold was nice to have, but would not save a person.

Job 31:25 "If I rejoiced because my wealth [was] great, and because mine hand had gotten much;" Job had not even bragged about his wealth, nor had he bragged on his great ability to make money. He was not overly proud. He knew all of his blessings came from God.

Job 31:26 "If I beheld the sun when it shined, or the moon walking [in] brightness;"

Job 31:27 "And my heart hath been secretly enticed, or my mouth hath kissed my hand:" He had not worshipped the sun, or the moon, or even his own person.

Job 31:28 "This also [were] an iniquity [to be punished by] the judge: for I should have denied the God [that is] above." If he had any other gods, he would have understood this punishment. He had no other gods. Job had been faithful to the LORD. He had never denied God. In fact, he had spoken of God as his Redeemer in chapter 19 of this book.

Job 31:29 "If I rejoiced at the destruction of him that hated me, or lifted up myself when evil found him:" Job was saying, that he had not taken vengeance on his enemies. He had left vengeance to the LORD.

Job 31:30 "Neither have I suffered my mouth to sin by wishing a curse to his soul." Job had never wished destruction to any man. He had never asked God to destroy his enemies. Job did not want them cursed. We saw in an earlier lesson, where he had taught others of the Words of the LORD.

Job 31:31 "If the men of my tabernacle said not, Oh that we had of his flesh! we cannot be satisfied."

Job 31:32 "The stranger did not lodge in the street: [but] I opened my doors to the traveller." I believe both of these Scriptures belong together. It appears in the first verse, that the men might have said they had no place for a stranger, but Job told them to take him in. Job housed and fed the strangers.

Job 31:33 "If I covered my transgressions as Adam, by hiding mine iniquity in my bosom:" Adam had hidden in the garden to keep God from knowing he had eaten of the forbidden fruit. Job was saying, that he had not hidden any sins away. God knew everything about him.

Job 31:34 "Did I fear a great multitude, or did the contempt of families terrify me, that I kept silence, [and] went not out of the door?" This is a reason some men would hide their sins, but Job said he never hid his sins from anyone. Job was not looking for the approval of the people around him. He wanted God’s approval.

Job 31:35 "Oh that one would hear me! behold, my desire [is, that] the Almighty would answer me, and [that] mine adversary had written a book." How many times have we prayed and thought that God did not hear our prayer? Job wanted God to hear his prayer and answer him. Job was saying, that his adversary should write down his complaints against Job. Not any of them were true.

Job 31:36 "Surely I would take it upon my shoulder, [and] bind it [as] a crown to me." Job was willing to take all of these complaints unto himself, and answer them one by one. Job was not trying to run from the problem. He wanted to present the problem to God and let Him settle it.

Job 31:37 "I would declare unto him the number of my steps; as a prince would I go near unto him." Job was willing to give an accounting of himself. Job was willing to face his accuser face to face, and answer him.

Job 31:38 "If my land cry against me, or that the furrows likewise thereof complain;" Job was really searching. He was even saying, he had not offended the land that he cultivated. Even the land had no complaint to make of Job.

Job 31:39 "If I have eaten the fruits thereof without money, or have caused the owners thereof to lose their life:" Job had purchased the land with money that he had received fruit of. Job had not taken any man’s property without payment.

Job 31:40 "Let thistles grow instead of wheat, and cockle instead of barley. The words of Job are ended." Job was saying, If I did that, which I did not, then let the land not produce. Job was willing to pay for any sin that he had committed. He knew that if God would judge him, He would find him innocent of wrong doing. The last few chapters were spoken by Job. He now said, they were ended. He had given an account of himself to God and would accept God’s answer.

Job 31 Questions

1. I made a covenant with mine ________.

2. Job was not an __________.

3. Job was saying, there would have been no inheritance from God if he had committed these _______.

4. The inheritance of the wicked was destruction of _______, ________, and _______.

5. What does God see on the earth?

6. Job was asking to be weighed in the ________ by God.

7. Why did Job want God to do this?

8. Job told God he was willing to be _________, if God found that he had sinned.

9. If Job had been guilty of being deceived by a strange woman, or if he had laid wait at another’s door, he would accept what punishment?

10. What kind of a crime did Job call that?

11. What had he been accused of, that he denied in Job 31:13?

12. Job said that all men were created by _____.

13. God is no respecter of __________.

14. What had Eliphaz accused Job of that he denies in Job 31:16?

15. How had Job helped those who were without clothing?

16. What drastic promise did Job make in Job 31:22, if he had lifted a hand against the fatherless?

17. Job’s only fear was of ______.

18. What was Job’s opinion of gold?

19. Job knew that all his blessings came from ____.

20. He had not worshipped the _____, or the ________, or even his own ________.

21. Job had been ___________ to the LORD.

22. Job had left vengeance to the _______.

23. Job housed and fed the ___________.

24. Why did Job want his adversary to write down his complaints?

25. Job was willing to give an ___________ of himself.

26. Job had purchased the land with _________.

27. Who had Job given an accounting to of himself?

Verses 1-4

Job 31:1-4

Introduction

Job 31

JOB’S GREAT OATH OF INNOCENCE

This is the third part of the trilogy.

"This priceless testament is a fitting consummation of `the words of Job’ (Job 31:40)." "The picture that Job here presents of himself is extraordinarily like that of a citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven, as revealed by Christ in the Sermon on the Mount. He goes beyond act to thought, and beneath conduct to the heart."

This affirmation by Job regarding his innocence mentions the sins of which his `friends’ had accused him, but it also includes a denial of things which they had not mentioned. "Without any system whatever, sins against God, and sins against one’s neighbor follow each other in the list." This is especially important, because it removes any reason for allowing the various rearrangements of the text which certain scholars have presumed to make. Like many other Biblical books, Job does not always follow the classical rules for writing. We shall receive and interpret the text as it stands.

Job 31:1-4

JOB AFFIRMS HIS INNOCENCE REGARDING THE LUST OF THE EYE

"I made a covenant with mine eyes;

How then should I look upon a virgin?

For what is the portion from God above,

And the heritage from the Almighty on high?

Is it not calamity to the unrighteous,

And disaster to the workers of iniquity?

Doth not he see my ways,

And number all my steps?"

"How then should I look upon a virgin" (Job 31:1). Even as Christ taught in the Sermon on the Mount, Job here traced adultery to the lust of the eye which precedes it. As Hesser noted, "Impure thinking is the sin which Job disclaimed in these first four verses." Pope mentions that, "Critics who retain the reading here transfer the verse to the section that treats on the relations to women after Job 31:12." This is exactly the kind of meddling with the sacred text which this writer finds so offensive. Pope even "emended" the word "virgin" here, making it read "folly" instead. "This list is not arranged according to conventional standards of logical development, degrees, or seriousness, or climactic order. Our standards in such things are not the same as those which in a different culture guided Job."

Job, in these verses, mentions the convictions that had guided him throughout his life, those convictions being exactly the same doctrine of sin and suffering that had been maintained by Job’s friends during the dialogues, indicating that, "Those ideas had been unquestioned by himself until his own personal experience had demonstrated their falsehood."

The sins which Job here solemnly swears that he had not committed reveal a very high ethical standard of morality and excellence. "Here we have the high-water mark of the Old Testament ethic." Job’s ideas, as revealed in this chapter, are not very far from the glorious ideals proclaimed by the Christ himself.

E.M. Zerr:

Job 31:1. Job did not confine his remarks to general statements of denial. The three friends had made many accusations against him that were false. He denied all of them and besides that, he specified a number of prevalent evils in conduct and protested his innocence. Covenant with his eyes is figurative, of course, and means he promised himself not to look with longing upon a virgin.

Job 31:2-3. What portion means that he would not receive any consideration from God were he to be guilty of the wrongs referred to in the preceding verse.

Job 31:4. God knew all about Job’s ways and would chastise him if he were even to long after that which is sinful.

Verses 5-8

Job 31:5-8

Job 31:5-8

JOB’S OATHS OF IMPRECATION ATTEST HIS INNOCENCE

"If I have walked with falsehood,

And my foot hath hasted to deceit

(Let me be weighed in an even balance,

That God may know mine integrity);

If my step hath turned out of the way,

And mine heart walked after mine eyes,

And if any spot hath cleaved to my hands:

Then let me sow, and let another eat:

Yea, let the produce of my field be rooted out."

"If I have walked ... if my step ... if any spot ... etc." (Job 31:5; Job 31:7). Nearly twenty times in this chapter we encounter these "if’ clauses; and their significance was explained by Van Selms. "Job here appealed to the self-imprecatory oath: "God do so to me, and more also, if I ... etc. (2 Samuel 3:35)."

"Then let me sow, and let another eat" (Job 31:8). This is the imprecation Job invoked upon himself in case he was found to be lying. In this chapter, we may understand all of the "if" clauses as an appeal to exactly this same kind of an oath, even though an imprecation is not always stated. It was the most solemn way that any man could affirm and protest his innocence in ancient times.

Job’s saying, "Let me sow; and let another eat," is only one of a whole avalanche of curses given in Deuteronomy 28." This particular one is Deuteronomy 28:30.

E.M. Zerr:

Job 31:5-6. Weighed in an even balance signifies Job was willing to be tested. If his conduct proved to be evil he would submit to the discipline of the Lord.

Job 31:7. The eye might behold something that is alluring and sinful. One would not be guilty if he merely saw the sinful thing, but he would be if he walked after the thing his eyes had beheld. In that case the evil thing would cling to him which is the meaning of the words blot, cleaved and hands.

Job 31:8. Let me sow, etc., is a clear instance of what is meant by "cursing" another. To wish some misfortune to come to one is the meaning of the word when it is used concerning the action of a man who is uninspired.

Verses 9-15

Job 31:9-15

Job 31:9-15

"If my heart hath been enticed unto a woman,

And I have laid wait at my neighbor’s door;

Then let my wife grind unto another,

And let others bow down upon her.

For that were an heinous crime;

Yea, it were an iniquity to be punished by the judges:

For it is afire that consumeth unto Destruction,

And would root out all mine increase.

If I have despised the cause of my man-servant or my maid-servant,

When they contended with me;

What then shall I do when God riseth up?

And when he visiteth, what shall I answer him?

Did not he that made me in the womb make him?

And did not one fashion us in the womb?"

The secret of righteous living is clearly revealed in these remarkable words. Job’s honorable behavior was entirely due to his consciousness of God’s existence, and of the certainty of God’s bringing every human action into judgment. If today men wonder why immorality and vicious crimes are destroying our society, let them read the answer here. Men are no longer fully aware that God sees and knows their deeds, and that eternal punishment shall eventually reward the reprobate. Men may avoid or deceive policemen, judges and human law-enforcement systems; but they shall not be able to avoid or frustrate their eventual judgment by the Creator.

It should also be noted that Job’s evaluation of the sin of adultery stressed the iniquity of it, "As a flagrant offense, not only subject to divine punishment, but also dealt with by magistrates and the criminal law." Our own beloved country has removed adultery from the list of felonies, and in so doing has invited and encouraged social and national decay. There cannot be any doubt that when the current increasing departure from the wisdom of the ages has run its course in the U.S.A., the ruin and ultimate wreckage of our vaunted culture will be the terminal result.

"Let others bow down upon her" (Job 31:10). "Here the imprecatory sanction is specified, the accused adulterer asking to be repaid in kind (if its true) (see Ruth 1:17). To have one’s betrothed ravished by another man is one of the most repugnant of curses (Deuteronomy 28:30 ff)."

"Did not he that made me in the womb make him" (Job 31:15). "This passage is as close to expressing the full implication of the doctrine of the universal fatherhood of God and its corollary, the brotherhood of all mankind, as anything in the Old Testament. Malachi wrote, `Have we not all one Father? Did not God create us’? But the context there limits the application to Israel. Paul in his letter to Christian masters of slaves at Ephesus said no more on this score than we have here, namely, that both masters and slaves have a common heavenly Master who shows no partiality (Ephesians 6:9)." "A fellow-human being, whom God has fashioned with care must be treated with care and respect by God’s other creatures."

E.M. Zerr:

Job 31:9-10. This is another curse that Job was wishing on himself if he could be found guilty of the sins he had been describing. Grind is from TACHAN which Strong defines, "A primitive root; to grind meal; hence to be a concubine (that being their employment)." This might seem to some as a severe wish, but Job 2:9 shows this woman not to be worthy of a better consideration.

Job 31:11-12. Job justified his severe wishes by the greatness of the crimes he had been describing, if he had been guilty of them.

Job 31:13-14. If Job were unjust with his servant he would expect to receive the judgment of God.

Job 31:15. The meaning of this verse is that Job and his servant had the same origin, therefore he had no right to abuse his servant.

Verses 16-23

Job 31:16-23

Job 31:16-23

JOB STRESSES OTHER AREAS OF HIS INNOCENCE

"If I have withheld the poor from their desire,

Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,

Or have eaten my morsel alone,

And the fatherless have not eaten thereof

(Nay, from my youth he grew up with me as a father,

And her have I guided from my mother’s womb);

If I have seen any perish for want of clothing,

Or that the needy had no covering;

If his loins have not blessed me,

And if he have not been warned with the fleece of my sheep;

If I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless,

Because I saw my help in the gate:

Then let my shoulder fall from the shoulder-blade,

And mine arm be broken from the bone.

For calamity from God is a terror to me,

And by reason of his majesty I can do nothing."

These verses carry Job’s protest that he has not been careless or negligent in his duty toward the fatherless, the widows, the poor, the needy, the hungry, or the naked. Job was rich, "But there is no sin in being rich. The sin comes when we use our riches selfishly and ignore God. Money is not the root of all evil; that root is the love of money. Job was not guilty of this sin; but how about you"?[ In our world today, there are countless thousands of rich and affluent people who use their wealth solely for selfish and personal reasons without regard to anyone except themselves.

"If I have eaten my morsel alone" (Job 31:17). "Job does not mean that he has maintained a continual open house for his friends, but that he has shared his plenty with the destitute. His haunting words here still live in the consciences of many."

"Her have I guided from my mother’s womb" (Job 31:18). This is hyperbole in which Job is saying that as far back as he can remember, he has been careful to minister to the needs of widows, orphans, and the poor.

E.M. Zerr:

Job 31:16-17. If I have, etc., implies his denial of the wrongs described.

Job 31:18. The meaning of the verse is that all his life Job had administered to the needs of others instead of imposing upon them.

Job 31:19. This is another assertion that Job had supplied the naked with clothing.

Job 31:20. The loins are a major portion of the body, and to protect them with warm clothing would be a righteous deed.

Verse 21. The gate was the place where decisions were rendered. Job means he did not oppress the unfortunate with a suit just because he was sure of success. This is the significance of the words saw my help.

Job 31:22. This was another of the curses I have been writing about. It was a severe expression but was intended to show how confident Job was that the friends could not convict him of sin.

Job 31:23. One reason Job would not have committed the wrongs described was in the knowledge he had of God’s terror against evil doers. He felt that he never could have withstood the awful wrath of the Lord.

Verses 24-30

Job 31:24-30

Job 31:24-30

JOB’S INNOCENCE IN OTHER AREAS ALSO

"If I have made gold my hope,

And have said to the fine gold, Thou art my confidence;

If I have rejoiced because my wealth was great,

And because my hand had gotten much;

If I have beheld the sun when it shined,

Or the moon walking in brightness,

And my heart hath been secretly enticed,

And my mouth hath kissed my hand:

This also were an iniquity to be punished by the judges;

For I should have denied the God that is above.

If 50have rejoiced at the destruction of him that hated me,

Or lifted up myself when evil found him

(Yea, I have not suffered my mouth to sin

By asking his life with a curse)."

"And my mouth hath kissed my hand" (Job 31:27). The thing referred to here is that of throwing kisses to idols, or other objects of worship. "Although not alluded to again in the Old Testament, the habit is abundantly attested elsewhere." The actual kissing of idols is mentioned in 1 Kings 19:18 and in Hosea 13:2. "What Job denies here is any participation in the pagan worship of the heavenly bodies."

The appeal of the heavenly host to Job is obvious here; "But Job does not confound the moon with the Maker: the glorious bodies of light (sun and moon) are God’s creatures. Their glory is a witness to God; but to worship or pay homage to them is tantamount to denying the one true God."

I have not suffered my mouth to sin by asking his life with a curse (v. 30). Job is here speaking of his enemies. "He was untainted by bitterness toward his enemies; and in this he is traveling in the direction of our Lord’s words in Matthew 5:44."

E.M. Zerr:

Job 31:24-25. Job had once been rich, but that was no sin provided it did not make him vain; the record we have shows that it did not.

Job 31:26-27. If a man were to kiss his hand in salutation to the sun, that would be an idolatrous act. Job was denying that he had done any such thing.

Job 31:28. Had Job done homage to the sun he could have justly been punished by the rulers. It would have been a denial of God, and the same was taught in Matthew 6:24

Job 31:29. Job teaches that it would be wrong to take pleasure in the misfortune of others, even if they be personal enemies.

Job 31:30. If it would be wrong to rejoice at another’s calamities, it would likewise be wrong to wish for such a thing to come upon him.

Verses 31-34

Job 31:31-34

Job 31:31-34

JOB’S PERSONAL SERVANTS NAMED AS WITNESSES OF HIS INNOCENCE

"If the men of my tent have not said,

Who can find one that hath not been filled with his meat?

(The sojourner hath not lodged in the street;

But I have opened my doors to the travelers);

If like Adam I have covered my transgressions,

By hiding mine iniquity in my bosom,

Because I have feared the great multitude,

And the contempt o f families terrified me,

So that I kept silence, and went not out of the door -"

In all of the holy Scriptures there is not a more beautiful portrait of an upright, godly, righteous man than that which reaches a climax in this chapter. Here is the man whom God Himself in the prologue has called, "blameless and upright." "This is a true picture of Job the righteous, the perfect example of Old Testament righteousness for which the Law provided incentive and direction." In the last analysis, Job’s friends were silenced; they were unable to deny anything that he had said. Note that he broke off his words at this point and concluded with a paragraph which some of the scholars have, without any authority, relocated earlier in the chapter. It is this writer’s opinion that the final paragraph belongs exactly where it is.

E.M. Zerr:

Job 31:31. The members of Job’s household never had reason to complain of not having that which was necessary to satisfy their requirements.

Job 31:32. Job was given to hospitality which is one of the qualifications of elders in the New Testament (1 Timothy 3:2).

Job 31:33. The word Adam is from an original that could apply to mankind in general. It is true that man in general is disposed to hide his sins and the marginal rendering gives it that way. But the Hebrew word used here has its first application to the first man. The trial of evasion from guilt was made manifest in Genesis 3:10. Job denied having resorted to such conduct.

Job 31:34. If Job were ever challenged to meet any accusation he was not afraid to do so. No multitude could have frightened him into hiding behind his own door.

Verses 35-40

Job 31:35-40

Job 31:35-40

JOB’S FINAL WORDS

"Oh that I had one to hear me!

(Lo, here is my signature, let the Almighty answer me)

And that I had the indictment which mine adversary hath written!

Surely I would carry it upon my shoulder;

I would bind it unto me as a crown:

I would declare unto him the number of my steps;

As a prince I would go near unto him.

If my land crieth out against me,

And the furrows thereof weep together;

If I have eaten the fruits thereof without money,

Or have caused the owners thereof to lose their life:

Let the thistles grow instead of wheat,

And cockle instead of barley.

The words of Job are ended."

Driver and other scholars relocated this final paragraph; but not even James Moffatt’s Translation of the Bible (1929) accepted such an act as valid. It does seem that the word "signature" here should have restrained any such maneuver. Where else should the signature of anything be expected except at the end? Van Selms pointed out that, "Scholars find no agreement on the place where these verses may belong," adding that, "The Aramaic version has these verses in the same location as our text. So we shall just leave them there."

"The words of Job are ended" (Job 31:40). "This marks the end of the long discussion between Job and his three friends." Job will speak again before the book ends, but he will not honor the speech of Elihu with any notice whatever.

E.M. Zerr:

Job 31:35. A righteous man is not afraid to face his accusers. Job wished that his adversary had committed himself in writing. Job 31:36-37. Had the adversary done as wished in the preceding verse, Job would have faced the issue squarely, for he would have had no fear of the results.

Job 31:38. David wrote "The earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof (Psalms 24:1). A man may claim the land as his own but that is true only in a limited sense. God intended it to be for the support of humanity while the earth remains. Because of that no farmer has the right to misuse his ground. He must take care of it for the next generation and leave it to them in as good condition as he received it. Job claimed that he had never misused his land so that it could have cried against him.

Job 31:39. The preceding verse shows the wrong of misusing the land because of the rights of the land itself. This verse considers the wrong of taking the fruit of land belonging to another without paying him for it. Such teaching shows the right to rent land to another for hire.

Job 31:40. This verse is a summingup curse or wish for an evil to come. It means that if Job had been guilty of the things described in the several preceding verses, then may these misfortunes come to him. Cockle is defined by Strong as any noxious or useless plant. Words of Job are ended means that Job ended his long speech to the three friends who had been opposing him in his position.