Buildontherock: Job 22-31

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Job 22-31

author: buildontherock

published: 2023-05-12 last updated: 2023-11-07

This section begins with Eliphaz insisting that Job's condition reflects the state of his secret sins. By the end of this section Job has silenced his three friends, . . . the words of Job are ended (Job 31:40).

This website arbitrarily divides the book into four sections i.e. section 1 is chapter 1 to chapter 10, section 2 is chapter 11 to chapter 20, section 3 is chapter 21 to chapter 30 and section 4 is the remainder of the book (chapter 31 to chapter 42).

Job 22 (Eliphaz 3 - Our plight shows the state of our secret sins)

Eliphaz asks what benefit is it to God to be unjust, hence for this to happen Job must have done some great wickedness. He suggests examples of wickedness that Job has done and encourages Job to restore a good relationship with God (verse 21).

the word marked in verse 15

Mickelson defines marked in this way:

H8104 shamar (shaw-mar'): 1. (properly) to hedge about (as with thorns), i.e. guard; 2. (generally) to protect, attend to, etc

So the accusation is that Job is defending the way of the wicked, and perhaps is using it as his guide.

Job Chapter 22 breakdown

Job Chapter 22 [KJV]
Scripture	Comment
[1] Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,	Eliphaz continues to defend his position that God is an accommodating God.
[2] Can a man be profitable unto God, as he that is wise may be profitable unto himself?	Is your human wisdom of any value to God.
[3] Is it any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? or is it gain to him, that thou makest thy ways perfect?	Is your righteousness that valuable to God? Would he benefit somehow if you were perfect?
[4] Will he reprove thee for fear of thee? will he enter with thee into judgment?	Is it out of reverence for you that He corrects you? Is this a debate?
[5] Is not thy wickedness great? and thine iniquities infinite?	No. It is that you are wicked. In secret you have to be evil.
[6] For thou hast taken a pledge from thy brother for nought, and stripped the naked of their clothing.
[7] Thou hast not given water to the weary to drink, and thou hast withholden bread from the hungry.
[8] But as for the mighty man, he had the earth; and the honourable man dwelt in it.	Job 22:8 [LXXE] And thou hast accepted the persons of some; and thou hast established those [that were already settled] on the earth. I suggest that the portion added by the translator should be ignored. The sentence would show that those unsavoury characters that he accepts he also establish.
[9] Thou hast sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless have been broken.
[10] Therefore snares are round about thee, and sudden fear troubleth thee;
[11] Or darkness, that thou canst not see; and abundance of waters cover thee.	I believe that the intention of Eliphaz is to say something like while thick darkness like an ocean of water surrounds you.
[12] Is not God in the height of heaven? and behold the height of the stars, how high they are!
[13] And thou sayest, How doth God know? can he judge through the dark cloud?	You say to yourself that God is too far away to see. I am obscured by the clouds.
[14] Thick clouds are a covering to him, that he seeth not; and he walketh in the circuit of heaven.
[15] Hast thou marked the old way which wicked men have trodden?	re. v 15-16__Is your life guided by the lives of past wicked people who caused the flood?
[16] Which were cut down out of time, whose foundation was overflown with a flood:
[17] Which said unto God, Depart from us: and what can the Almighty do for them?	They wanted to know what use God was to them.
[18] Yet he filled their houses with good things: but the counsel of the wicked is far from me.
[19] The righteous see it, and are glad: and the innocent laugh them to scorn.	Righteous people see these things are are grateful, honest people ridicule the wickedness of those people.
[20] Whereas our substance is not cut down, but the remnant of them the fire consumeth.	Take note that we have thrived while they wait for the fire to consume them.
[21] Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee.
[22] Receive, I pray thee, the law from his mouth, and lay up his words in thine heart.
[23] If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up, thou shalt put away iniquity far from thy tabernacles.
[24] Then shalt thou lay up gold as dust, and the gold of Ophir as the stones of the brooks.
[25] Yea, the Almighty shall be thy defence, and thou shalt have plenty of silver.
[26] For then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty, and shalt lift up thy face unto God.
[27] Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he shall hear thee, and thou shalt pay thy vows.
[28] Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways.
[29] When men are cast down, then thou shalt say, There is lifting up; and he shall save the humble person.
[30] He shall deliver the island of the innocent: and it is delivered by the pureness of thine hands.	This is negative in the Hebrew. He delivereth the not innocent, Yea, he hath been delivered By the cleanness of thy hands (Job 22:30[NET]). i.e. The innocent do not need to be delivered, they are saved by their purity.

Job 23 & 24 (Job - Evil people with disgusting secrets thrive everywhere)

Job 23

Job responds that he would be willing to defend himself in God's presence (verse 3) because he knows that his case is unjust (verse 11).

trouble in verses 15 and 16

From Mickelson we get:

H926 bahal (baw-hal'): 1. to tremble inwardly (or palpitate); 2. (figuratively) to be (suddenly) alarmed or agitated; 3. (causative) to make (suddenly) alarmed or agitated; 4. (by implication) to hasten anxiously

Job is therefore saying that God makes him on edge, jittery, nervous.

Job 24

ISA Basic is a Bible tool that uses Westminster Leningrad Codex with vowels for the Hebrew translation. For verse 1 it shows:

Hebrew	mduo	m·shdi	la	ntzphnu	othim	u·ido·u	u·idoi·u	la	chzu	imi·u
English	for-what-reason	from·Who-Suffices	not	they-are-secluded	times	and·one-knowing-of·him	and·ones-knowing-of·him	not	they-perceive	days-of·him

Job adds that if having a good relationship with God (they that know Him - verse 1) is the key to success then why do we not see it every day around us? Wicked people do all sorts of evil and it never comes to light. If the things that they do were revealed it would be the death of them (verse 17) but you don't see that happen.

Job 24:9 - Debt trap for the poor

Look at the meaning of pledge in and take a pledge of the poor.

H2254 chabal (khaw-bal') v.: 1. to wind tightly (as a rope), i.e. to bind; 2. specifically, by a pledge; 3. (figuratively) to pervert, destroy; 4. also to writhe in pain (especially of parturition)

The verse is about exploiting children from as early as possible and creating debt traps for poor people. It is the same today. Job talks of them doing these things surreptitiously. You don't realise that it is happening. They live outside of the law like wild asses.

Job 24:11

Numbers 18:27 [KJV] And this your heave offering shall be reckoned unto you, as though it were the corn of the threshingfloor, and as the fulness of the winepress

There were two basic types of harvest: the grain harvest and the fruit harvest. The fruit harvest produced oil (from olives), dried fruit (dates and raisins) and wine (from grapes). While the fruit was still fresh the oil was pressed from olives and the juice for wine was squeezed from grapes. It appears that oil was pressed in walled factories. Within the walls a long pole extended horizontally from a hole in one wall. A short distance away it was pivoted over the ram used to press the olives. The ram was a vertical pole going into the chamber or barrel that contained the olives. Weights were attached to the other end of the long pole much further away, forcing down the ram which squeezed the olives.

Job Chapter 23 & 24 breakdown

Job Chapter 23[KJV]
Scripture	Comment
[1] Then Job answered and said,	In this section Job presents that they neither understand his nature nor the depths of his true suffering, i.e. You don't know me.
[2] Even to day is my complaint bitter: my stroke is heavier than my groaning.	His reaction to the pain is mild compared to how intense his suffering is.
[3] Oh that I knew where I might find him! that I might come even to his seat!	I wish that I could address God face to face (someone that really has understanding, presumably instead of these jokers).
[4] I would order my cause before him, and fill my mouth with arguments.
[5] I would know the words which he would answer me, and understand what he would say unto me.	I would understand what He says.
[6] Will he plead against me with his great power? No; but he would put strength in me.	The Septuagint makes more sense here, Though he should come on me in [his] great strength, then he would not threaten me; . . . (Job 23:6 [LXXE]). God would show overwhelming power but He would be fair.
[7] There the righteous might dispute with him; so should I be delivered for ever from my judge.
[8] Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him:	But i cannot locate Him.
[9] On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him:
[10] But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.	Even though I don't see Him He knows everything that I do. An honest examination will show that I am completely innocent.
[11] My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined.
[12] Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.
[13] But he is in one mind, and who can turn him? and what his soul desireth, even that he doeth.	His mind is unique and on the God-plane, who can challenge Him? He cannot be swayed from His objectives.
[14] For he performeth the thing that is appointed for me: and many such things are with him.	He is so busy organising the lives of many others just like me.
[15] Therefore am I troubled{*} at his presence: when I consider, I am afraid of him.	*__Jittery, on edge, lose confidence. Job is afraid to interrupt Him.
[16] For God maketh my heart soft{*}, and the Almighty troubleth me:	*__If a firm heart means full of courage, then a soft heart means that you courage is sapped.
[17] Because I was not cut off before the darkness, neither hath he covered the darkness from my face.	He is in a kind of limbo: God has not killed him but he is staring death in the face constantly

Job Chapter 24[KJV]
The clandestine evil of the prosperous wicked	Comment
[1] Why, seeing times are not hidden from the Almighty, do they that know him not see his days?	Why do people who serve God (including Bildad) still have this uncertainty about the future?
[2] Some remove the landmarks; they violently take away flocks, and feed thereof.	Job begins a list of evil that God knows of but does not expose to those who know Him so that people can avoid them.
[3] They drive away the ass of the fatherless, they take the widow's ox for a pledge.	Take away the means of earning a living from orphans and widows.
[4] They turn the needy out of the way: the poor of the earth hide themselves together.	They exploit and corrupt the destitute, and cause poor people to hide together for their protection.
[5] Behold, as wild asses in the desert{a}, go they forth to their work; rising betimes for a prey{b}: the wilderness{c} yieldeth food for them and for their children.	a__asses in the desert i.e. outside of law and order. b__prey = Strong's H2964, Hebrew tereph: something torn, i.e. a fragment, e.g. a fresh leaf, prey, food. c__wilderness = a normally unproductive source i.e. they make profits from places that you could not.
[6] They reap every one his corn{a} in the field: and they gather{b} the vintage{c} of the wicked.	a__Strong's H1098, Hebrew bliyl: feed for cattle. b__Strong's H3953, Hebrew laqash: to gather the after crop, i.e. glean like Ruth. They leave nothing for the poor. c__Strong's H3754, Hebrew kerem: a garden or vineyard, luxury items. They leave nothing for the poor and eat the best with the wicked.
[7] They cause the naked to lodge without clothing, that they have no covering in the cold.	They cause people to live without clothes and shelter
[8] They are wet with the showers of the mountains, and embrace the rock for want of a shelter.
[9] They pluck the fatherless from the breast, and take a pledge of the poor.	Force mothers to stop breastfeeding their children and create debt traps for the children and parents.
[10] They cause him to go naked without clothing, and they take away the sheaf{*} from the hungry;	*__Strong's H6016, Hebrew omer: the amount of grain that would feed a person for a day (Exodus 16:16).
[11] Which make oil within their walls{*}, and tread their winepresses, and suffer thirst.	*__see note above on Job 24:11. These hungry people work processing the fruit but cannot drink any, (Deuteronomy 25:4 [KJV],Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the corn).
[12] Men groan from out of the city, and the soul of the wounded crieth out: yet God layeth not folly to them.	The Septuagint says, Who have cast forth the poor from the city and their own houses, and the soul of the children has groaned aloud (Job 24:12[LXXE]).
[13] They are of those that rebel against the light; they know not the ways thereof, nor abide in the paths thereof.	They operate in the shadows, in secret.
[14] The murderer rising with the light killeth the poor and needy, and in the night is as a thief.
[15] The eye also of the adulterer waiteth for the twilight, saying, No eye shall see me: and disguiseth his face.	This is behaviour before the Exodus but outside of Israel. Adultery was considered wrong even then.
[16] In the dark they dig through houses, which they had marked for themselves in the daytime: they know not the light.
[17] For the morning is to them even as the shadow of death: if one know them, they are in the terrors of the shadow of death.	Their secret wickedness never sees the light of day.
[18] He is swift as the waters; their portion is cursed in the earth: he beholdeth not the way of the vineyards.
[19] Drought and heat consume the snow waters: so doth the grave those which have sinned.	All of their wickedness goes to the grave with them leaving no trace.
[20] The womb shall forget him; the worm shall feed sweetly on him; he shall be no more remembered; and wickedness shall be broken as a tree.	It is as though none of it ever happened.
[21] He evil entreateth{*} the barren that beareth not: and doeth not good to the widow.	*__This is talking about overgrazing land, or forcing land.
[22] He draweth also the mighty with his power: he riseth up, and no man is sure of life.	They have friends in high places that support them.
[23] Though it be given him to be in safety, whereon he resteth; yet his eyes are upon their ways.	God allows them to live in safety while He just monitors them.
[24] They are exalted for a little while, but are gone and brought low; they are taken out of the way as all other, and cut off as the tops of the ears of corn.	God allows them to be exalted for now but He will harvest them eventually like all the rest of us (Matthew 13:24-30).
[25] And if it be not so now, who will make me a liar, and make my speech nothing worth?

Job 25 (Bildad 3 - Job has done some undisclosed evil)

Bildad again insists that nobody is perfect implying that Job has not searched himself for his evil deeds.

In verse 2 high places would be better translated on high since it is referring to altitude not esteem.

H4791 marowm (maw-rome') n-m.: 1. altitude; 2. (concretely) an elevated place; 3. (abstractly) elevation4. (figuratively) elation5. (adverbially) aloft

Job Chapter 25[KJV]
Scripture	Comment
[1] Then answered Bildad the Shuhite, and said,
[2] Dominion and fear are with him, he maketh peace in his high places.	Bildad has no answer for Job yet he somehow knows that God would never do this to Job without some infraction. Since God maintains law and order on high then on Earth would be trivial.
[3] Is there any number of his armies? and upon whom doth not his light arise?
[4] How then can man be justified with God? or how can he be clean that is born of a woman?
[5] Behold even to the moon, and it shineth not; yea, the stars are not pure in his sight.
[6] How much less man, that is a worm? and the son of man, which is a worm?

Job 26 to 31 (Job - OK then this is my life)

They claimed to know so much about Job and Job tells them that they don't. He has previously neither set out to brag or express the depth of his true suffering (Job 23:2) but now he talks a bit about himself.

Job 26

Job wants to know just how all of that philosophy is supposed to help him (verses 1-4). God has all this tremendous power but we understand so little of it (verse 14).

Job 27

As far as Job knows he has done nothing wrong and does not intend to because he know the justice of God would eventually catch up with him. What he is saying is described as a parable: Strongs H4912, Greek mashal .1. (properly) a pithy maxim, usually of metaphorical nature, 2. (hence) a simile (as an adage, poem, discourse); according to Mickelson. This is not the earthly story with a heavenly meaning definition that is given to children. It is not even necessarily poetic but it does attempt to highlight the essence of complicated issues by using metaphor and hyperbole.

He makes an oath in verses 3-6 that no matter what, he will maintain his integrity as long as he draws breath.

Job 28

The precious things are hard to reach and obtain. Wisdom is even harder and the only way to it is to fear God and avoid evil.

Job 29

Job is not stupid, he would like to go back to how things were before so if he knew what to do he would do it.

Job 30

. . . instead he has to endure his present condition. Be aware that his friends were with him for 7 days and would have been able to refute him is he was not true about his illness.

Job 31

Job itemises his life to see if he has missed something. He makes four oaths:

(Job 31:7-8 [KJV]) If my step hath turned out of the way, and mine heart walked after mine eyes, and if any blot hath cleaved to mine hands; [8] Then let me sow, and let another eat; yea, let my offspring be rooted out.
(Job 31:9-10 [KJV]) If mine heart have been deceived by a woman, or if I have laid wait at my neighbour’s door; [10] Then let my wife grind unto another, and let others bow down upon her.
(Job 31:21-22 [KJV]) If I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless, when I saw my help in the gate:[22] Then let mine arm fall from my shoulder blade, and mine arm be broken from the bone.
(Job 31:39-40 [KJV]) If I have eaten the fruits thereof without money, or have caused the owners thereof to lose their life:[40] Let thistles grow instead of wheat, and cockle instead of barley. The words of Job are ended.

The oaths are based on many preceding ifs but I have only reproduced the verses where Job states the consequences of breaking each oath. These oaths occupy the whole of chapter 31.

Job 26 to 31 breakdown

Job Chapter 26 [KJV]
Scripture	Comment
[1] But Job answered and said,	Job wants to know just how that is supposed to help him (verses 1-4).
[2] How hast thou helped him that is without power? how savest thou the arm that hath no strength?	Who made you God? Which of these things have you done?
[3] How hast thou counselled him that hath no wisdom? and how hast thou plentifully declared the thing as it is?
[4] To whom hast thou uttered words? and whose spirit came from thee?	How many people have you created?
[5] Dead things are formed from under the waters, and the inhabitants thereof.	Presumably a reference to Genesis 1:6-8 where God created the firmament.
[6] Hell is naked before him, and destruction hath no covering.	Hell and destruction are so familiar that they walk around Him stark naked.
[7] He stretcheth out the north over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing.
[8] He bindeth up the waters in his thick clouds; and the cloud is not rent under them.
[9] He holdeth back the face of his throne, and spreadeth his cloud upon it.
[10] He hath compassed the waters with bounds, until the day and night come to an end.
[11] The pillars of heaven tremble and are astonished at his reproof.
[12] He divideth the sea with his power, and by his understanding he smiteth through the proud.
[13] By his spirit he hath garnished the heavens; his hand hath formed the crooked serpent.
[14] Lo, these are parts of his ways: but how little a portion is heard of him? but the thunder of his power who can understand?	God has all this tremendous power but we understand so little of it.

Job Chapter 27[KJV]
Job swears to maintain his integrity	Comment
[1] Moreover Job continued his parable {1}* and said,	1__the parable continues from chapter 24.
[2] As God liveth, who hath taken away my judgment; and the Almighty, who hath vexed my soul;	This is an oath. Job is not bragging, he is swearing by the God that he worships.
[3] All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils;
[4] My lips shall not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit.	I will not drop to your standards.
[5] God forbid that I should justify you: till I die I will not remove mine integrity from me.
[6] My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go: my heart shall not reproach me so long as I live.
[7] Let mine enemy be as the wicked, and he that riseth up against me as the unrighteous.
[8] For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he hath gained, when God taketh away his soul?	In spite of his condition Job knows that not serving God is an exercise in hopelessness.
[9] Will God hear his cry when trouble cometh upon him?
[10] Will he delight himself in the Almighty? will he always call upon God?
[11] I will teach you by the hand of God: that which is with the Almighty will I not conceal.
[12] Behold, all ye yourselves have seen it; why then are ye thus altogether vain?
[13] This is the portion of a wicked man with God, and the heritage of oppressors, which they shall receive of the Almighty.	Notice the possibilities below, but is Job saying that it always happens this way?
[14] If his children be multiplied, it is for the sword: and his offspring shall not be satisfied with bread.
[15] Those that remain of him shall be buried in death: and his widows shall not weep.
[16] Though he heap up silver as the dust, and prepare raiment as the clay;
[17] He may prepare it, but the just shall put it on, and the innocent shall divide the silver.
[18] He buildeth his house as a moth, and as a booth that the keeper maketh.
[19] The rich man shall lie down, but he shall not be gathered: he openeth his eyes, and he is not.
[20] Terrors take hold on him as waters, a tempest stealeth him away in the night.
[21] The east wind carrieth him away, and he departeth: and as a storm hurleth him out of his place.
[22] For God shall cast upon him, and not spare: he would fain flee{*} out of his hand.	*__fain flee = Strong's H1272, Hebrew = barach: 1. to bolt, 2. (figuratively) to flee suddenly. No last-minute escape.
[23] Men shall clap their hands at him, and shall hiss him out of his place.	chant and clap

Job Chapter 28[KJV]
The search for true wisdom	Comment
[1] Surely there is a vein for the silver, and a place for gold where they fine it.	Precious things are rare and hard to perfect.
[2] Iron is taken out of the earth, and brass is molten out of the stone.
[3] He setteth an end to darkness, and searcheth out all perfection: the stones of darkness, and the shadow of death.	God takes things from even the most obscure and well concealed places and perfects them to something wonderful: precious stones from oblivion and the shadow of death.
[4] The flood breaketh out from the inhabitant; even the waters forgotten of the foot: they are dried up, they are gone away from men.	Men do go to some extremes in search of precious things. NET says, Far from where people live he sinks a shaft, in places travelers have long forgotten, far from other people he dangles and sways.
[5] As for the earth, out of it cometh bread: and under it is turned up as it were fire.	Remember that Job is speaking in parable i.e. metaphor and hyperbole. They stoke the underground like a furnace to churn out precious metals.
[6] The stones of it are the place of sapphires: and it hath dust of gold.
[7] There is a path which no fowl knoweth, and which the vulture’s eye hath not seen:
[8] The lion’s whelps have not trodden it, nor the fierce lion passed by it.
[9] He putteth forth his hand upon the rock; he overturneth the mountains by the roots.
[10] He cutteth out rivers among the rocks; and his eye seeth every precious thing.
[11] He bindeth the floods from overflowing; and the thing that is hid bringeth he forth to light.
[12] But where shall wisdom be found? and where is the place of understanding?	But some things can only come from God.
[13] Man knoweth not the price thereof; neither is it found in the land of the living.
[14] The depth saith, It is not in me: and the sea saith, It is not with me.
[15] It cannot be gotten for gold, neither shall silver be weighed for the price thereof.
[16] It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire.
[17] The gold and the crystal cannot equal it: and the exchange of it shall not be for jewels of fine gold.
[18] No mention shall be made of coral, or of pearls: for the price of wisdom is above rubies.
[19] The topaz of Ethiopia shall not equal it, neither shall it be valued with pure gold.
[20] Whence then cometh wisdom? and where is the place of understanding?	Again, some things can only come from God.
[21] Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all living, and kept close from the fowls of the air.
[22] Destruction and death say, We have heard the fame thereof with our ears.
[23] God understandeth the way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof.
[24] For he looketh to the ends of the earth, and seeth under the whole heaven;
[25] To make the weight for the winds; and he weigheth the waters by measure.
[26] When he made a decree for the rain, and a way for the lightning of the thunder:
[27] Then did he see it, and declare it; he prepared it, yea, and searched it out.
[28] And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.	To get the genuine article, the rare commodity, you must go to God and treat Him with due respect.

Job Chapter 29[KJV]
Job's life in former days	Comment
[1] Moreover Job continued his parable{*}, and said,	*__ i.e. Job is not claiming that he actually breaks people's jaws (v17), they are figurative expressions.
[2] Oh that I were as in months past, as in the days when God preserved me;
[3] When his candle shined upon my head, and when by his light I walked through darkness;
[4] As I was in the days of my youth, when the secret of God was upon my tabernacle;
[5] When the Almighty was yet with me, when my children were about me;
[6] When I washed my steps with butter, and the rock poured me out rivers of oil;	The Septuagint says (Job 29:6 [LXXE]), when my ways were moistened with butter, and the mountains flowed for me with milk.
[7] When I went out to the gate through the city, when I prepared my seat in the street!
[8] The young men saw me, and hid themselves: and the aged arose, and stood up.
[9] The princes refrained talking, and laid their hand on their mouth.
[10] The nobles held their peace, and their tongue cleaved to the roof of their mouth.
[11] When the ear heard me, then it blessed me; and when the eye saw me, it gave witness to me:
[12] Because I delivered the poor that cried, and the fatherless, and him that had none to help him.
[13] The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me{*}: and I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joy.	*__The dying showered him with blessings for his kindness
[14] I put on righteousness, and it clothed me: my judgment was as a robe and a diadem.	His righteousness brought him honour.
[15] I was eyes to the blind, and feet was I to the lame.
[16] I was a father to the poor: and the cause which I knew not I searched out.
[17] And I brake the jaws of the wicked, and plucked the spoil out of his teeth.
[18] Then I said, I shall die in my nest, and I shall multiply my days as the sand.
[19] My root was spread out by the waters, and the dew lay all night upon my branch.	Psalms 1, especially verse 3.
[20] My glory was fresh in me, and my bow was renewed in my hand.
[21] Unto me men gave ear, and waited, and kept silence at my counsel.
[22] After my words they spake not again; and my speech dropped upon them.
[23] And they waited for me as for the rain; and they opened their mouth wide as for the latter{*} rain.	*__latter rain = spring rain. They were eager to drink him in.
[24] If I laughed on them, they believed it not; and the light of my countenance they cast not down.	There is no if in the Hebrew and the Hebrew word aman (translated believed here) also means to be quiet. Job is saying that he laughed with them and they became animated.
[25] I chose out their way, and sat chief, and dwelt as a king in the army, as one that comforteth the mourners.

Job Chapter 30 [KJV]
The striking contrast with his present condition	Comment
[1] But now they that are younger than I have me in derision, whose fathers I would have disdained to have set with the dogs of my flock.	Contrast that with today. Even the most disreputable upstarts now look at me with disdain.
[2] Yea, whereto might the strength of their hands profit me, in whom old age was perished?	I had no need of their strength, in whom now maturity (Hebrew: kelach = maturity not old age) has perished
[3] For want and famine they were solitary; fleeing into the wilderness in former time desolate and waste.	Want and famine were in solitary confinement and fled away from him. Punctuation is a problem here because from in whom old age . . . verse 2, until the end of verse 3 should be in brackets. That is talking about Job while the rest is about the vagrants.
[4] Who cut up mallows{*} by the bushes, and juniper roots for their meat.	*__mallows is a pervasive weed but may not be the precise translation of the Hebrew malluwach. There are edible pond weeds like watercress. Junipers are trees that have deep pervasive root systems that endure drought conditions. Some roots are supposed to be edible and even used as herbal remedies.
[5] They were driven forth from among men, (they cried after them as after a thief;)
[6] To dwell in the clifts of the valleys, in caves of the earth, and in the rocks.
[7] Among the bushes they brayed; under the nettles they were gathered together.	They were raised like wild asses to bray for food and be comfortable is thorny grasses.
[8] They were children of fools, yea, children of base men: they were viler than the earth.
[9] And now am I their song, yea, I am their byword.
[10] They abhor me, they flee far from me, and spare not to spit in my face.
[11] Because he hath loosed my cord {}*, and afflicted me, they have also let loose the bridle before me.	Loosed my cord = leave me to my own devices or take no more responsibility for me. Because of his repulsive disease Job might have been cast out like a leper to live among derelicts.
[12] Upon my right hand rise the youth; they push away my feet, and they raise up against me the ways of their destruction.	Vagabonds pick on Job
[13] They mar my path, they set forward my calamity{a}, they have no helper{b}.	a__Instead of they set forward my calamity YLT has By my calamity they profit. b__Instead of they have no helper the Septuagint has he has shot at me with his weapons. HE i.e. God has shot at Job.
[14] They came upon me as a wide breaking in of waters: in the desolation they rolled themselves upon me.	Assuming that it is arrows as per the Septuagint then it is a mass of them rolling in like a huge wave.
[15] Terrors are turned upon me: they pursue my soul as the wind{*}: and my welfare passeth away as a cloud.	*__Even though it comes from one direction, wind has you surrounded once you are exposed.
[16] And now my soul is poured out upon me; the days of affliction have taken hold upon me.
[17] My bones are pierced in me in the night season: and my sinews take no rest.	(Job 30:17 [YLT]) At night my bone hath been pierced in me, And mine eyelids do not lie down. He cannot sleep for the pain in his bones at night.
[18] By the great force of my disease is my garment changed: it bindeth me about as the collar of my coat.	It feels like his coat tries to choke him in his sleep.
[19] He hath cast me into the mire, and I am become like dust and ashes.	He gets epileptic fits.
[20] I cry unto thee, and thou dost not hear me: I stand up, and thou regardest me not.
[21] Thou art become cruel to me: with thy strong hand thou opposest thyself against me.
[22] Thou liftest me up to the wind; thou causest me to ride upon it, and dissolvest my substance.	dissolvest my substance i.e. his heart melts in fear. Job feels like his life is totally out of control, like paper in a strong breeze.
[23] For I know that thou wilt bring me to death, and to the house appointed for all living.	Job 30:23 [YLT] For I have known To death Thou dost bring me back, And to the house appointed for all living. God repeatedly brings Job to the point of death and then lets him live.
[24] Howbeit he will not stretch out his hand to the grave, though they cry in his destruction.	Job 30:24 YLT Surely not against the heap Doth He send forth the hand, Though in its ruin they have safety. Why waste time beating up an old heap?
[25] Did not I weep for him that was in trouble? was not my soul grieved for the poor?
[26] When I looked for good, then evil came unto me: and when I waited for light, there came darkness.
[27] My bowels boiled, and rested not: the days of affliction prevented me.
[28] I went mourning without the sun: I stood up, and I cried{a} in the congregation{b}.	a__cried = Hebrew shava: shout for help. b__congregation = Hebrew qahal: assemblage. presumably assemblage of assailants.
[29] I am a brother to dragons{a}, and a companion to owls{b}.	Ostriches are daytime creatures, but may be active on moonlit nights. They are most active early and late in the day. Jackals are active during dawn, dusk and night. a__dragons = Jackals. b__owls = ostriches. He is talking about wild creatures of the wilderness (Isaiah 42:20). He has to defend himself from sunrise to sunset.
[30] My skin is black upon me, and my bones are burned with heat.	He is black and blue all over and feverish (bones burned with heat).
[31] My harp also is turned to mourning, and my organ into the voice of them that weep.	He has lost his voice.

Job Chapter 31[KJV]
Job's oaths	Comment
[1] I made a covenant with mine eyes; why then should I think upon a maid?	Job has established boundaries that he will not cross.
[2] For what portion of God is there from above? and what inheritance of the Almighty from on high?	What are the eternal consequences?
[3] Is not destruction to the wicked? and a strange{*} punishment to the workers of iniquity?	*__strange punishment = Hebrew neker: unexpected punishment.
[4] Doth not he see my ways, and count all my steps?
[5] If I have walked with{*} vanity, or if my foot hath hasted to deceit;	There is no with in the Hebrew. I prefer following.
[6] Let me be weighed in an even balance, that God may know mine integrity.	know = Hebrew yada ascertain. Job wants to be put to a test.
[7] If my step hath turned out of the way, and mine heart walked after mine eyes, and if any blot hath cleaved to mine hands;
[8] Then let me sow, and let another eat; yea, let my offspring be rooted out.
[9] If mine heart have been deceived by a woman, or if I have laid wait at my neighbour’s door;
[10] Then let my wife grind unto another, and let others bow down upon her.
[11] For this is an heinous crime; yea, it is an iniquity to be punished by the judges.
[12] For it is a fire that consumeth to destruction, and would root out all mine increase.	The hatred from having another man's wife is the fire that job speaks of.
[13] If I did despise the cause of my manservant or of my maidservant, when they contended with me;
[14] What then shall I do when God riseth up? and when he visiteth, what shall I answer him?
[15] Did not he that made me in the womb make him? and did not one fashion us in the womb?
[16] If I have withheld the poor from their desire, or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail;	Been an obstruction to the defenseless.
[17] Or have eaten my morsel myself alone, and the fatherless hath not eaten thereof;
[18] (For from my youth he was brought up with me, as with a father, and I have guided her from my mother’s womb;)	but from my youth I raised the orphan like a father, and from my mother’s womb I guided the widow! (Job 31:18 [NETFree])
[19] If I have seen any perish for want of clothing, or any poor without covering;
[20] If his loins have not blessed me, and if he were not warmed with the fleece of my sheep;
[21] If I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless, when I saw my help in the gate:	Job was significant in the gate and never the abused the helpless
[22] Then let mine arm fall from my shoulder blade, and mine arm be broken from the bone.
[23] For destruction from God was a terror to me, and by reason of his highness I could not endure.
[24] If I have made gold my hope, or have said to the fine gold, Thou art my confidence;
[25] If I rejoiced because my wealth was great, and because mine hand had gotten much;
[26] If I beheld the sun when it shined, or the moon walking in brightness;	Worshipped the heavens
[27] And my heart hath been secretly enticed, or my mouth hath kissed my hand:	The hand represents who provides for you. Kissing your own hand is like worshipping yourself.
[28] This also were an iniquity to be punished by the judge: for I should have denied the God that is above.
[29] If I rejoiced at the destruction of him that hated me, or lifted up myself when evil found him:
[30] Neither have I suffered my mouth to sin by wishing a curse to his soul.
[31] If the men of my tabernacle{*} said not, Oh that we had of his flesh! we cannot be satisfied.	*__the Tabernacle was accessed by all of Aarons line. I believe that the context shows that it means al of Job's relatives.
[32] The stranger did not lodge in the street: but I opened my doors to the traveller.
[33] If I covered my transgressions as Adam, by hiding mine iniquity in my bosom:	Job and his friends knew of Adam. We also saw that they knew about the flood. The knowledge of God had been preserved by the righteous apart from Israel. Job took responsibility for his misdeeds.
[34] Did I fear a great multitude, or did the contempt of families terrify me, that I kept silence, and went not out of the door?	Job was not intimidated by size of opposition or significance of family name.
[35] Oh that one would hear me! behold, my desire is, that the Almighty would answer me, and that mine adversary had written a book.	If the Almighty would write a book to correct him (no Bible at that time)
[36] Surely I would take it upon my shoulder, and bind it as a crown to me.	then he would proudly live by it.
[37] I would declare unto him the number of my steps; as a prince would I go near unto him.
[38] If my land cry against me, or that the furrows likewise thereof complain;
[39] If I have eaten the fruits thereof without money, or have caused the owners thereof to lose their life:
[40] Let thistles grow instead of wheat, and cockle instead of barley. The words of Job are ended.

How many of us can swear what Job swears in chapters 27 and 31?

Acknowledgements

Throughout the study of Job I have frequently consulted the website Abarim Publications , https://www.abarim-publications.com/ , and Wikipedia , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page for background in various areas.

Dictionary used by default is Mickelson's Enhanced Strong's Greek and Hebrew Dictionaries (Michelson)

Other less frequently access websites include Britannica , https://www.britannica.com/

Young's Literal Translation [YLT]

English Septuagint (Brenton’s) [LXXE]

Interlinear Scripture Analyzer (ISA basic): Hebrew-English Interlinear (14 Jan 2008)