Job 31:21-40 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs,
Today’s passage is Job 31:21-40. Let’s go!
Job 31:21-23 (NIV)
21 if I have raised my hand against the fatherless, knowing that I had influence in court,
22 then let my arm fall from the shoulder, let it be broken off at the joint.
23 For I dreaded destruction from God, and for fear of his splendor I could not do such things.
On verses 21-23: In verses 16-22 Job denies taking advantage of the poor, the widow and the fatherless. In verse 23 he says he did not sin in this way because of his fear of the Lord and the destruction that God could bring if he sinned in that way. It’s as if Job took seriously Jesus’ parable on the sheep and goats in Matthew 25:31-46 without even hearing it. In that parable, Jesus describes himself as a King who rewards or punishes people based on how they treated the most vulnerable in society. This parable is where Jesus famously says, “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:40) and “whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’” (Matthew 25:45).
What can we learn from this? God cares about how we treat the most vulnerable around us. He cares about it so much that He takes it personally.
Job 31:24-28 (NIV)
24 “If I have put my trust in gold or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security,’
25 if I have rejoiced over my great wealth, the fortune my hands had gained,
26 if I have regarded the sun in its radiance or the moon moving in splendor,
27 so that my heart was secretly enticed and my hand offered them a kiss of homage,
28 then these also would be sins to be judged, for I would have been unfaithful to God on high.
On verses 24-28: In verses 24-28 Job denies worshiping wealth (v24-25) or worshiping other idols (v26-27). Job says that if he had done these things, he would have sinned, been worthy of judgment, and “been unfaithful to God on high” (v28). What can we learn from this? You can’t worship the Lord and something else at the same time, whether that something else is money, status, pleasure, a plan, a relationship, the god of another faith or another person. As Jesus says, we are to “worship the Lord and serve Him only.” (Matthew 4:10)
Job 31:29-40 (NIV)
29 “If I have rejoiced at my enemy’s misfortune or gloated over the trouble that came to him–
30 I have not allowed my mouth to sin by invoking a curse against his life–
31 if the men of my household have never said, ‘Who has not had his fill of Job’s meat?’–
32 but no stranger had to spend the night in the street, for my door was always open to the traveler–
33 if I have concealed my sin as men do, by hiding my guilt in my heart
34 because I so feared the crowd and so dreaded the contempt of the clans that I kept silent and would not go outside
35 (“Oh, that I had someone to hear me! I sign now my defense–let the Almighty answer me; let my accuser put his indictment in writing.
36 Surely I would wear it on my shoulder, I would put it on like a crown.
37 I would give him an account of my every step; like a prince I would approach him.)–
38 “if my land cries out against me and all its furrows are wet with tears,
39 if I have devoured its yield without payment or broken the spirit of its tenants,
40 then let briers come up instead of wheat and weeds instead of barley.” The words of Job are ended.
On verses 29-40: Here Job denies ever gloating over his enemy’s misfortune (v29), cursing another person (v30), refusing to take care of strangers (v31-32), or refusing to confess his son out of fear of being humiliated (v33-34). He also denies mistreating the tenants who worked on his fields (v38-40).
Sandwiched in between these final denials, in verses 35-37 Job expresses his longing for God to hear his case and to answer Him (v35). Job calls God his accuser and welcomes Him to write down His accusations against Him (v35). When Job says “I would wear [God’s accusations] on my shoulder, I would put it on like a crown”, he means that he is not afraid of God’s accusations (v36) and is confident that he will be able to defend himself on every point and prove himself righteous (v36-37).
Job’s words here remind me of another parable Jesus once told about a Pharisee and a tax collector who prayed (Luke 18:9-14). The Pharisee boasted about his own righteousness while the tax collector simply admitted that he was a sinner and asked God for mercy. Jesus says it was the tax collector who admitted his need for God’s mercy who went home justified and righteous. Jesus told this parable to rebuke those “who were confident in their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else” (Luke 18:9). Jesus ends the parable by saying, “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 18:14). Because Job was “righteous in his own eyes” (Job 32:1), Job would later be humbled by God.
What can we learn from this? Trying to show God how good you think you are is a game you can never win. For we can never meet God’s standards no matter how hard we try. Instead of coming to God like a Pharisee trying to prove how righteous you think you are, come to God humbly, recognizing your need for His mercy. As 1 Peter 5:6 says, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.”
Heavenly Father, thank You for showing me today that You care about the way I treat those who are the most vulnerable. Thank You for also showing me that there is no way I could ever reach Your standards. But thank You that when I humble myself before You, admitting my need for You, You will lift me up in due time. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
