Job 31:16 - Meaning and Application

Eliphaz had especially accused Job of being cruel to the poor (Job 22:6), saying that he had withheld bread from the hungry, taken clothing from the naked, and sent widows away empty. Eliphaz spoke as if he were sure of it, but Job’s own defense shows that the charge was false. In this part of his speech, Job gives the witness of his own conscience about how he treated needy people.

Job says he was never unwilling to do good to the poor whenever he had the chance. He was always compassionate, especially toward widows and orphans who had no one to help them. If a poor person asked him for help, he was ready to give it. Even if a widow only looked at him with silent hope, he had enough pity to respond, and he never let her eyes fail by denying her aid.

He also showed honor to the poor. He took fatherless children to eat with him at his own table, so they shared his food and were treated as welcome guests (Job 31:17). Poverty is painful enough without contempt added to it, so respect itself is a real kindness to the poor. Job says he also cared for them like a father, especially the fatherless, and guided widows in their affairs. Some people do not need money as much as they need wise help, and Job treated that kind of help as part of mercy.

Job says this had been his habit from his youth, even from his mother’s womb. He means that tenderness for the weak was built into his life early, and he had long been used to caring for widows and orphans. His parents had taught him to pity and relieve the poor, and he had grown up with that kind of compassion around him. This was not a new habit he learned later in life.

He also made sure they had enough to eat and wear. He did not just let them pick up scraps from his table, but gave them food from the same dishes he ate himself (Job 31:17). Those with plenty should not eat as if no one else matters, but should share with others, as David did with Mephibosheth. Job also gave clothing to those who lacked it, which could be an even greater expense than feeding them (Job 31:19).

Poor people can suffer just as much from lack of clothing as from lack of food, since they need clothing for warmth and for daily use. If Job knew of anyone in that condition, he was quick to help. Rather than dressing his servants in rich clothes while the poor wore rags, he had warm garments made from the wool of his sheep for needy people (Job 31:20). Their loins blessed him when they wore those clothes. They praised his generosity, thanked God for him, and prayed that God would bless him in return.

Job’s sheep were later destroyed by fire from heaven, but he could still take comfort in knowing that he had come by them honestly and used them well. He had fed the poor with their flesh and clothed them with their wool. Wealth is best when it is used in mercy.

Job also says he never joined in hurting poor people. Someone might say he was kind to a few favored orphans but harsh to others, yet Job denies that completely. He was gentle with all and unfair to none. He never even lifted a hand against the fatherless, never threatened them, frightened them, or tried to strike them (Job 31:21).

He did not use his power to crush helpless people or squeeze advantage out of them, even though he had influence at the city gate, where legal and public matters were decided. He had enough standing to do wrong and get away with it, but he chose justice and mercy instead. People who have the power to oppress, and the chance to profit from it, yet still refuse to do it, can later look back on their conduct with real peace, as Job does here.

Job seals this protest with a solemn curse on himself if he has been guilty of oppression (Job 31:22). He says that if he has been cruel to the poor, then his arm should fall from his shoulder and be broken from the bone. In other words, let the arm rot and be shattered. He would not have spoken so boldly unless he was sure of his innocence in this matter. He also shows that God justly breaks the arm that is raised against the fatherless, as God once withered Jeroboam’s arm when it was stretched out against a prophet.

Job explains what kept him from being harsh or unjust. He feared God’s destruction whenever he was tempted to such sin, and he could not bear the thought of making God his enemy (Job 31:23). He stood in awe of God’s greatness, remembering the vast distance between the Lord and himself. That sense of God’s highness made him careful in all his conduct. People who oppress the poor forget that there is One higher than the highest, who sees and can judge them (Ecclesiastes 5:8).

He also feared God’s anger. He knew that if he wronged the poor, destruction from God would surely follow, and that fear restrained him. Even the best people need this kind of warning to keep them from sin. This is especially true in matters of injustice and oppression, because God himself defends the oppressed and will not leave the oppressor unpunished. Even when God’s salvation comforts us, his judgment should still make us careful. Even Adam, before he sinned, was restrained by a warning.