Job 31:13-28
Job 31:13-28 English Standard Version 2016 (ESV)
“If I have rejected the cause of my manservant or my maidservant, when they brought a complaint against me, what then shall I do when God rises up? When he makes inquiry, what shall I answer him? Did not he who made me in the womb make him? And did not one fashion us in the womb? “If I have withheld anything that the poor desired, or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail, or have eaten my morsel alone, and the fatherless has not eaten of it (for from my youth the fatherless grew up with me as with a father, and from my mother’s womb I guided the widow), if I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, or the needy without covering, if his body has not blessed me, and if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep, if I have raised my hand against the fatherless, because I saw my help in the gate, then let my shoulder blade fall from my shoulder, and let my arm be broken from its socket. For I was in terror of calamity from God, and I could not have faced his majesty. “If I have made gold my trust or called fine gold my confidence, if I have rejoiced because my wealth was abundant or because my hand had found much, if I have looked at the sun when it shone, or the moon moving in splendor, and my heart has been secretly enticed, and my mouth has kissed my hand, this also would be an iniquity to be punished by the judges, for I would have been false to God above.
Job 31:13-28 King James Version (KJV)
If I did despise the cause of my manservant or of my maidservant, 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? If I have withheld the poor from their desire, Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail; Or have eaten my morsel myself alone, And the fatherless hath not eaten thereof; (For from my youth he was brought up with me, as with a father, And I have guided her from my mother's womb;) If I have seen any perish for want of clothing, Or any poor without covering; If his loins have not blessed me, And if he were not warmed with the fleece of my sheep; If I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless, When I saw my help in the gate: Then let mine arm fall from my shoulder blade, And mine arm be broken from the bone. For destruction from God was a terror to me, And by reason of his highness I could not endure. If I have made gold my hope, Or have said to the fine gold, Thou art my confidence; If I rejoiced because my wealth was great, And because mine hand had gotten much; If I beheld the sun when it shined, Or the moon walking in brightness; And my heart hath been secretly enticed, Or my mouth hath kissed my hand: This also were an iniquity to be punished by the judge: For I should have denied the God that is above.
Job 31:13-28 The Message (MSG)
“Have I ever been unfair to my employees when they brought a complaint to me? What, then, will I do when God confronts me? When God examines my books, what can I say? Didn’t the same God who made me, make them? Aren’t we all made of the same stuff, equals before God? “Have I ignored the needs of the poor, turned my back on the indigent, Taken care of my own needs and fed my own face while they languished? Wasn’t my home always open to them? Weren’t they always welcome at my table? “Have I ever left a poor family shivering in the cold when they had no warm clothes? Didn’t the poor bless me when they saw me coming, knowing I’d brought coats from my closet? “If I’ve ever used my strength and influence to take advantage of the unfortunate, Go ahead, break both my arms, cut off all my fingers! The fear of God has kept me from these things— how else could I ever face him? “Did I set my heart on making big money or worship at the bank? Did I boast about my wealth, show off because I was well-off? Was I ever so awed by the sun’s brilliance and moved by the moon’s beauty That I let myself become seduced by them and worshiped them on the sly? If so, I would deserve the worst of punishments, for I would be betraying God himself.
Job 31:13-28 King James Version (KJV)
If I did despise the cause of my manservant or of my maidservant, 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? If I have withheld the poor from their desire, Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail; Or have eaten my morsel myself alone, And the fatherless hath not eaten thereof; (For from my youth he was brought up with me, as with a father, And I have guided her from my mother's womb;) If I have seen any perish for want of clothing, Or any poor without covering; If his loins have not blessed me, And if he were not warmed with the fleece of my sheep; If I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless, When I saw my help in the gate: Then let mine arm fall from my shoulder blade, And mine arm be broken from the bone. For destruction from God was a terror to me, And by reason of his highness I could not endure. If I have made gold my hope, Or have said to the fine gold, Thou art my confidence; If I rejoiced because my wealth was great, And because mine hand had gotten much; If I beheld the sun when it shined, Or the moon walking in brightness; And my heart hath been secretly enticed, Or my mouth hath kissed my hand: This also were an iniquity to be punished by the judge: For I should have denied the God that is above.
Job 31:13-28 New American Standard Bible - NASB 1995 (NASB1995)
“If I have despised the claim of my male or female slaves When they filed a complaint against me, What then could I do when God arises? And when He calls me to account, what will I answer Him? Did not He who made me in the womb make him, And the same one fashion us in the womb? “If I have kept the poor from their desire, Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail, Or have eaten my morsel alone, And the orphan has not shared it (But from my youth he grew up with me as with a father, And from infancy I guided her), If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, Or that the needy had no covering, If his loins have not thanked me, And if he has not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep, If I have lifted up my hand against the orphan, Because I saw I had support in the gate, Let my shoulder fall from the socket, And my arm be broken off at the elbow. For calamity from God is a terror to me, And because of His majesty I can do nothing. “If I have put my confidence in gold, And called fine gold my trust, If I have gloated because my wealth was great, And because my hand had secured so much; If I have looked at the sun when it shone Or the moon going in splendor, And my heart became secretly enticed, And my hand threw a kiss from my mouth, That too would have been an iniquity calling for judgment, For I would have denied God above.
Job 31:13-28 New Century Version (NCV)
“If I have been unfair to my male and female slaves when they had a complaint against me, how could I tell God what I did? What will I answer when he asks me to explain what I’ve done? God made me in my mother’s womb, and he also made them; the same God formed both of us in our mothers’ wombs. “I have never refused the appeals of the poor or let widows give up hope while looking for help. I have not kept my food to myself but have given it to the orphans. Since I was young, I have been like a father to the orphans. From my birth I guided the widows. I have not let anyone die for lack of clothes or let a needy person go without a coat. That person’s heart blessed me, because I warmed him with the wool of my sheep. I have never hurt an orphan even when I knew I could win in court. If I have, then let my arm fall off my shoulder and be broken at the joint. I fear destruction from God, and I fear his majesty, so I could not do such things. “I have not put my trust in gold or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security.’ I have not celebrated my great wealth or the riches my hands had gained. I have not thought about worshiping the sun in its brightness nor admired the moon moving in glory so that my heart was pulled away from God. My hand has never offered the sun and moon a kiss of worship. If I had, these also would have been sins to be punished, because I would have been unfaithful to God.
Job 31:13-28 American Standard Version (ASV)
If I have despised the cause of my man-servant or of 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? 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 hath not eaten thereof (Nay, from my youth he grew up with me as with 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 hath not been warmed 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. 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.
Job 31:13-28 New International Version (NIV)
“If I have denied justice to any of my servants, whether male or female, when they had a grievance against me, what will I do when God confronts me? What will I answer when called to account? Did not he who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same one form us both within our mothers? “If I have denied the desires of the poor or let the eyes of the widow grow weary, if I have kept my bread to myself, not sharing it with the fatherless— but from my youth I reared them as a father would, and from my birth I guided the widow— if I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing, or the needy without garments, and their hearts did not bless me for warming them with the fleece from my sheep, if I have raised my hand against the fatherless, knowing that I had influence in court, then let my arm fall from the shoulder, let it be broken off at the joint. For I dreaded destruction from God, and for fear of his splendor I could not do such things. “If I have put my trust in gold or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security,’ if I have rejoiced over my great wealth, the fortune my hands had gained, if I have regarded the sun in its radiance or the moon moving in splendor, so that my heart was secretly enticed and my hand offered them a kiss of homage, then these also would be sins to be judged, for I would have been unfaithful to God on high.
Job 31:13-28 New King James Version (NKJV)
“If I have despised the cause of my male or female servant When they complained against me, What then shall I do when God rises up? When He punishes, how shall I answer Him? Did not He who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same One fashion us in the womb? “If I have kept the poor from their desire, Or caused the eyes of the widow to fail, Or eaten my morsel by myself, So that the fatherless could not eat of it (But from my youth I reared him as a father, And from my mother’s womb I guided the widow); If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, Or any poor man without covering; If his heart has not blessed me, And if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep; If I have raised my hand against the fatherless, When I saw I had help in the gate; Then let my arm fall from my shoulder, Let my arm be torn from the socket. For destruction from God is a terror to me, And because of His magnificence I cannot endure. “If I have made gold my hope, Or said to fine gold, ‘You are my confidence’; If I have rejoiced because my wealth was great, And because my hand had gained much; If I have observed the sun when it shines, Or the moon moving in brightness, So that my heart has been secretly enticed, And my mouth has kissed my hand; This also would be an iniquity deserving of judgment, For I would have denied God who is above.
Job 31:13-28 Amplified Bible (AMP)
¶“If I have despised and rejected the claim of my male or female servants When they filed a complaint against me, What then could I do when God arises [to judge me]? When He calls me to account, what will I answer Him? [Ps 44:21] “Did not He who made me in the womb make my servant, And did not the same One fashion us both in the womb? [Prov 14:31; 22:2; Mal 2:10] ¶“If I have withheld from the poor what they desired, Or have caused the eyes of the widow to look in vain [for relief], Or have eaten my morsel [of food] alone, And did not share it with the orphan (But from my youth the orphan grew up with me as with a father, And from my mother’s womb I have been the widow’s guide), If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, Or any poor person without covering, If his loins have not thanked and blessed me [for clothing them], And if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep, If I have lifted my hand against the orphan, Because I saw [that the judges would be] my help at the [council] gate, Then let my shoulder fall away from its socket, And my arm be broken off at the elbow. “For tragedy from God is a terror to me, And because of His majesty and exaltation I can do nothing [nor endure facing Him]. [Is 13:6; Joel 1:15] ¶“If I have put my trust and confidence in gold, Or have declared fine gold my hope and assurance, If I gloated and rejoiced because my wealth was great, And because my [powerful] hand [alone] had obtained so much, If I beheld the sun [as an object of worship] when it shone Or the moon going in its splendor, And my heart became secretly enticed [by them], And my hand threw a kiss from my mouth [in respect to them], This also would have been [a heinous] sin calling for judgment, For I would have denied God above. [Deut 4:19; 17:2-7]
Job 31:13-28 New Living Translation (NLT)
“If I have been unfair to my male or female servants when they brought their complaints to me, how could I face God? What could I say when he questioned me? For God created both me and my servants. He created us both in the womb. “Have I refused to help the poor, or crushed the hopes of widows? Have I been stingy with my food and refused to share it with orphans? No, from childhood I have cared for orphans like a father, and all my life I have cared for widows. Whenever I saw the homeless without clothes and the needy with nothing to wear, did they not praise me for providing wool clothing to keep them warm? “If I raised my hand against an orphan, knowing the judges would take my side, then let my shoulder be wrenched out of place! Let my arm be torn from its socket! That would be better than facing God’s judgment. For if the majesty of God opposes me, what hope is there? “Have I put my trust in money or felt secure because of my gold? Have I gloated about my wealth and all that I own? “Have I looked at the sun shining in the skies, or the moon walking down its silver pathway, and been secretly enticed in my heart to throw kisses at them in worship? If so, I should be punished by the judges, for it would mean I had denied the God of heaven.
Job 31:13-28 English Standard Version 2016 (ESV)
“If I have rejected the cause of my manservant or my maidservant, when they brought a complaint against me, what then shall I do when God rises up? When he makes inquiry, what shall I answer him? Did not he who made me in the womb make him? And did not one fashion us in the womb? “If I have withheld anything that the poor desired, or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail, or have eaten my morsel alone, and the fatherless has not eaten of it (for from my youth the fatherless grew up with me as with a father, and from my mother’s womb I guided the widow), if I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, or the needy without covering, if his body has not blessed me, and if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep, if I have raised my hand against the fatherless, because I saw my help in the gate, then let my shoulder blade fall from my shoulder, and let my arm be broken from its socket. For I was in terror of calamity from God, and I could not have faced his majesty. “If I have made gold my trust or called fine gold my confidence, if I have rejoiced because my wealth was abundant or because my hand had found much, if I have looked at the sun when it shone, or the moon moving in splendor, and my heart has been secretly enticed, and my mouth has kissed my hand, this also would be an iniquity to be punished by the judges, for I would have been false to God above.