[1] “I have made a covenant with my eyes; Why then should I look upon a young woman?
[2] For what is the allotment of God from above, And the inheritance of the Almighty from on high?
[3] Is it not destruction for the wicked, And disaster for the workers of iniquity?
[4] Does He not see my ways, And count all my steps?
[5] “If I have walked with falsehood, Or if my foot has hastened to deceit,
[6] Let me be weighed on honest scales, That God may know my integrity.
[7] If my step has turned from the way, Or my heart walked after my eyes, Or if any spot adheres to my hands,
[8] Then let me sow, and another eat; Yes, let my harvest be rooted out.
[9] “If my heart has been enticed by a woman, Or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,
[10] Then let my wife grind for another, And let others bow down over her.
[11] For that would be wickedness; Yes, it would be iniquity deserving of judgment.
[12] For that would be a fire that consumes to destruction, And would root out all my increase.
[13] “If I have despised the cause of my male or female servant When they complained against me,
[14] What then shall I do when God rises up? When He punishes, how shall I answer Him?
[15] Did not He who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same One fashion us in the womb?
[16] “If I have kept the poor from their desire, Or caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
[17] Or eaten my morsel by myself, So that the fatherless could not eat of it
[18] (But from my youth I reared him as a father, And from my mother’s womb I guided the widow);
[19] If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, Or any poor man without covering;
[20] If his heart has not blessed me, And if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep;
[21] If I have raised my hand against the fatherless, When I saw I had help in the gate;
[22] Then let my arm fall from my shoulder, Let my arm be torn from the socket.
[23] For destruction from God is a terror to me, And because of His magnificence I cannot endure.
[24] “If I have made gold my hope, Or said to fine gold, ‘You are my confidence’;
[25] If I have rejoiced because my wealth was great, And because my hand had gained much;
[26] If I have observed the sun when it shines, Or the moon moving in brightness,
[27] So that my heart has been secretly enticed, And my mouth has kissed my hand;
[28] This also would be an iniquity deserving of judgment, For I would have denied God who is above.
[29] “If I have rejoiced at the destruction of him who hated me, Or lifted myself up when evil found him
[30] (Indeed I have not allowed my mouth to sin By asking for a curse on his soul);
[31] If the men of my tent have not said, ‘Who is there that has not been satisfied with his meat?’
[32] (But no sojourner had to lodge in the street, For I have opened my doors to the traveler);
[33] If I have covered my transgressions as Adam, By hiding my iniquity in my bosom,
[34] Because I feared the great multitude, And dreaded the contempt of families, So that I kept silence And did not go out of the door—
[35] Oh, that I had one to hear me! Here is my mark. Oh, that the Almighty would answer me, That my Prosecutor had written a book!
[36] Surely I would carry it on my shoulder, And bind it on me like a crown;
[37] I would declare to Him the number of my steps; Like a prince I would approach Him.
[38] “If my land cries out against me, And its furrows weep together;
[39] If I have eaten its fruit without money, Or caused its owners to lose their lives;
[40] Then let thistles grow instead of wheat, And weeds instead of barley.” The words of Job are ended.