Job 31:33 - Meaning and Application

Here Job protests against three more sins and then makes his final appeal to God’s court, with a request to be heard there. It seems this was meant to close his speech, and we should treat it that way, though he also clears himself from one more charge. He answers the accusation of false religion, fear of people, and oppression of the poor. In each case, he speaks as a man who wants God’s judgment more than human opinion.

First, he denies dissimulation and hypocrisy. His friends had said that, while he looked religious, he secretly lived in sin and only knew how to hide it. Zophar had hinted that Job kept his sin under his tongue (Job 20:12). Job answers, “No, I never covered my transgression like Adam” (Job 31:33). That is, he never tried to excuse sin with empty excuses, and he never tried to hide shame the way Adam did with fig leaves.

This is natural to us because we are all descended from Adam. We do not like to confess faults. We try to lessen them, make ourselves look better, and push blame onto others, just as Adam blamed his wife and, in effect, spoke against God himself. But the one who covers his sins will not prosper (Proverbs 28:13). Job’s words show two things about his integrity. He was not hiding some serious, secret evil, and when he did sin, he was ready to admit it, repent, confess it to God and people, and turn from it.

Second, he clears himself from the charge of cowardice and base fear. He says, “Did I fear a great crowd, that I kept silent?” (Job 31:34). Everyone who knew Job knew that he was bold for what was right. He spoke and acted for religion and justice, and he did not let fear of people stop him. He set his face like flint. He believed that silence can itself be sin when God calls a person to speak.

Job had a strong sense of duty as a magistrate, or as a respected man in his community. He did not dare stay silent when he should speak for truth, or stay home when he should go out and do good. Sometimes it is wrong to remain quiet or withdrawn. That is true when we are called to rebuke sin, defend God’s truth and ways, help the oppressed, or serve the public in a way that honors God. He also thought little of the pressure he met along the way. He did not fear mobs, nor did he care about threats from powerful people, insults, or scorn from important families.

Third, he denies oppression and violence against his poor neighbors. He says that the estate he had was gotten and used honestly, so that his land could not cry out against him, and the furrows could not complain (Job 31:38). In Scripture, unjust gain is often pictured as crying out against the one who took it (Habakkuk 2:9-11). Job says that if he had gained wealth by wrong, then even the ground itself would stand as a witness against him.

He says two more things about his property. He never ate its fruit without paying for it (Job 31:39). If he bought something, he paid for it, like Abraham did when he bought land (Genesis 23:16), or David when he bought the threshing floor (2 Samuel 24:24). If he used land he had let out, he paid his tenants fairly or gave them credit for it in their rent. He also says he never caused the owners of the land to lose their lives. He never got an estate the way Ahab got Naboth’s vineyard, by killing the heir and taking the inheritance.

Job then confirms his protest with a solemn curse on himself if he is lying: “If I have gotten my estate unjustly, let thistles grow instead of wheat” (Job 31:40). In other words, let his fields fail and bring weeds instead of grain. People who gain wealth by wrong are rightly denied any real joy in it. They sow their land, but they do not know what the harvest will become. If God gives the crop a body, what was sown as wheat may come up as thistles. What people do not gain honestly will never truly do them good.

At the close of this protest, Job again calls on God’s judgment. “Oh, that the Almighty would answer me!” (Job 31:35-37). This was the answer he had long wanted, and the thing he had often said he could not get. Now that he has laid out his defense in full, he leaves it on record, ready for hearing when the case is called. He asks for any fair judge to hear him, because he is sure his cause is just. But above all, he wants the Almighty himself to decide. An honest heart does not fear inspection. A sincere person would gladly have every thought seen, and especially wants God’s verdict, because God judges according to truth.

This was the prayer of David, “Search me, O God, and know my heart,” and it was the comfort of Paul, “The Lord is the one who judges me.”

The plaintiff is then called, and Job asks for his case to be put in writing. He wants his accuser to set out the charge clearly, so the matter can be examined fairly. Job says he would be very glad to see the written complaint, a copy of the indictment, because then he could deal with it openly.

He would not hide such a charge under his arm. He would carry it on his shoulder and let everyone see it, even wear it like a crown. If it exposed some sin he had not yet noticed, he would be thankful to know it so he could repent and be forgiven. A good man is willing to learn the worst about himself and grateful to anyone who speaks honestly about his faults.

If the charge was false, Job had no doubt he could prove it wrong. Then his innocence would stand out like the light, and he would come out with even more honor. But he also believed that once his enemies had to state their case carefully in writing, the accusations would turn out to be small and weak. Anyone who saw them would say it was a shame they had caused him so much trouble for so little.

Job is also ready to appear in court and give his accusers every fair chance. He says he will declare the number of his steps, meaning he will open up the whole story of his life. He will show them every stage and part of his conduct, both what might count against him and what supports him. He is so sure of his integrity that he would go near his accuser and his judge like a prince ready to be crowned, not like a prisoner on trial.

This is why his conscience was his joy. The old line says it well: let this be your bronze wall of defense, to keep a clear conscience. People who have kept themselves clean from the world, as Job had, can lift up their faces before God without shame. They can also take comfort when men judge them unfairly, because if our hearts do not condemn us, then we have confidence toward God.

So the words of Job are ended here. That means he has finished all he meant to say in answer to his friends. He later spoke in a humbler way, reproaching himself and submitting to God (Job 40:4, Job 40:5, Job 42:2, etc.), but this is the end of his self-defense and vindication. If this is not enough, he will say no more. He knows when he has said enough, and he is willing to accept the court’s judgment.

Some think the way this is stated shows that Job ended with confidence and even a sense of victory. He still holds the field and does not doubt that he will win it. Who can bring any charge against God’s chosen ones? It is God who justifies.