If mine heart have been deceived by a woman, or if I have laid wait at my neighbour’s door;
Job 31:9 belongs to chapters 3-31, which contain the arguments between Job and his three friends about the cause and purpose of human suffering, and it stands near the close of that discussion, in which the friends condemned him for apparent self-righteousness and he rejected their words because he felt their condemnation was unjust. It is part of his holding to his integrity even while he could not understand God's dealings with him, yet he did not blame God wrongly or charge Him foolishly, while God saw the end from the beginning and was working out what would glorify Himself, bring comfort and hope to later sufferers, and bring blessing to Job.
The verse is part of Job's appeal to his record of moral integrity, denying that his heart was enticed by a woman or that he lurked at his neighbor's door, with the surrounding oath invoking judgment on himself if such moral stains were found in him. The chapter to which it belongs shows he was one of the richest men of his day yet did not trust in his riches or rejoice because his wealth was great. He trusted in the living God and remembered that God gave him power to gain wealth, and he always regarded his wealth only as a means of blessing the poor, the needy, the fatherless, and the widow.
His protestation of integrity, to which the verse belongs, is stronger proof of honesty than merely being free from debt to others.
Job 31:9 belongs to chapters 3-31, which contain the arguments between Job and his three friends about the cause and purpose of human suffering, and it stands near the close of that discussion, in which the friends condemned him for apparent self-righteousness and he rejected their words because he felt their condemnation was unjust. It is part of his holding to his integrity even while he could not understand God's dealings with him, yet he did not blame God wrongly or charge Him foolishly, while God saw the end from the beginning and was working out what would glorify Himself, bring comfort and hope to later sufferers, and bring blessing to Job.
The verse is part of Job's appeal to his record of moral integrity, denying that his heart was enticed by a woman or that he lurked at his neighbor's door, with the surrounding oath invoking judgment on himself if such moral stains were found in him. The chapter to which it belongs shows he was one of the richest men of his day yet did not trust in his riches or rejoice because his wealth was great. He trusted in the living God and remembered that God gave him power to gain wealth, and he always regarded his wealth only as a means of blessing the poor, the needy, the fatherless, and the widow.
His protestation of integrity, to which the verse belongs, is stronger proof of honesty than merely being free from debt to others.