The Righteousness That Fears God: Job's Final Defense Text: Job 31:13-23
Introduction: The Courtroom of Conscience
We come now to the heart of Job's final, climactic defense. After weathering the theological assaults of his friends, who operated on the tidy but false premise that all suffering is direct, immediate punishment for specific sins, Job now takes the stand. He is not addressing his friends anymore. He is making his appeal to the high court of heaven. This chapter is a solemn oath, a series of self-curses, where Job calls down judgment upon himself if he is guilty of the sins his friends have insinuated. He is, in effect, signing his name to his testimony and handing it up to the Judge of all the earth.
But we must understand what is happening here. This is not the arrogant boasting of a self-righteous man. This is the desperate plea of a righteous man who has been slandered, not only by his friends, but seemingly by the very providence of God. He is not claiming sinless perfection. He is, however, claiming a consistent pattern of covenant faithfulness. He is arguing that his life has been characterized by the fear of God, which is the beginning of wisdom, and that this fear has produced tangible, practical righteousness. He is not a hypocrite, and he is willing to put his life and soul on the line to prove it.
The portion of the oath before us today deals with what our modern world calls "social justice." But we must be careful with that term. The world's idea of social justice is a Marxist-infused counterfeit, focused on group identity, enforced equality of outcome, and the redistribution of resources by the coercive power of the state. Biblical justice is something else entirely. It is rooted in the character of God, defined by the law of God, and flows from a heart transformed by the grace of God. It is about individual responsibility, impartial judgment, and a particular concern for the vulnerable, not as a means of virtue signaling, but as a direct outworking of one's relationship with the Creator. Job's defense here is a master class in true, biblical, social righteousness, grounded not in sentimentality, but in the profound theological reality of a common Creator and a final judgment.
The Text
"If I have rejected the justice of my male or female slaves When they filed a complaint against me, What then could I do when God arises? And when He calls me to account, with what will I respond to Him? Did not He who made me in the womb make him, And the same one fashion us in the womb? If I have held back the poor from their desire, Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail, Or have eaten my morsel alone, And the orphan has not eaten from it (But from my youth he grew up with me as with a father, And from the womb of my mother I guided her), If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, Or that the needy had no covering, If his loins have not blessed me, And if he has not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep, If I have waved my hand against the orphan Because I saw my help in the gate, Let my shoulder fall from thesocket, And my arm be broken off at the elbow. For disaster from God is a dread to me, And because of His exaltedness I can do nothing."
(Job 31:13-23 LSB)
Justice Tempered by Awe (vv. 13-15)
Job begins this section of his oath with his conduct toward those under his authority, his servants.
"If I have rejected the justice of my male or female slaves When they filed a complaint against me, What then could I do when God arises? And when He calls me to account, with what will I respond to Him? Did not He who made me in the womb make him, And the same one fashion us in the womb?" (Job 31:13-15)
In the ancient world, a master's power over his servants or slaves was nearly absolute. They were often considered property, with few, if any, legal rights. For a servant to bring a complaint against his master was a risky business. But Job says that he did not despise their cause. He gave them a fair hearing. He recognized that their position in his household did not negate their position as human beings who could be wronged. This was a radically counter-cultural mindset.
But what was the basis for this? It was not a modern, egalitarian sentimentality. It was a robust, God-fearing theology. Job gives two reasons, framed as terrified, rhetorical questions. First, he fears the final judgment: "What then could I do when God arises?" Job lives his life with an awareness that the books will one day be opened. He knows that all his deeds, including how he treated the lowest members of his household, are being recorded. He knows he will have to give an account to a Judge who cannot be bribed or fooled. This vertical accountability to God is what produces horizontal justice toward men.
Second, he understands the doctrine of creation. "Did not He who made me in the womb make him?" This is a profound statement. Job recognizes a shared humanity grounded in a shared Creator. Social status, wealth, and power are all temporary, earthly distinctions. Before God the Maker, all men stand on level ground. God is the one who fashioned both master and servant in the womb. To mistreat a servant, therefore, is to show contempt for the Creator's handiwork. It is to mar the image of God in another. This is the biblical basis for human dignity. It is not found in the autonomous self, but in the fact that every person is a creature made by and for God.
Charity Born of Filial Duty (vv. 16-21)
Job now moves from his servants to the vulnerable outside his immediate household: the poor, the widow, and the orphan.
"If I have held back the poor from their desire, Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail, Or have eaten my morsel alone, And the orphan has not eaten from it... If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, Or that the needy had no covering, If his loins have not blessed me, And if he has not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep, If I have waved my hand against the orphan Because I saw my help in the gate..." (Job 31:16-21)
Job's defense here is a beautiful picture of practical righteousness. He denies sins of omission, failing to help, and sins of commission, actively harming. He did not withhold what the poor needed. He did not cause the widow's eyes to fail from looking in vain for help. He did not hoard his food but shared his table with the orphan. He provided clothing for the naked, using the wool from his own flocks. The image of the needy man's "loins" blessing Job is a powerful picture of heartfelt gratitude from someone who has been warmed and covered by Job's generosity.
Notice the personal, paternal nature of his care. He says of the orphan, "from my youth he grew up with me as with a father." This is not impersonal, bureaucratic charity, managed by a committee. This is hands-on, covenantal, fatherly care. He saw a need and met it himself. This is the biblical pattern. We are to know the state of our flocks, and that includes the people God has placed in our path.
But Job also denies the sin of oppression. "If I have waved my hand against the orphan Because I saw my help in the gate..." The "gate" was the place of business and legal proceedings. Job is saying he never used his influence, his "help in the gate," to exploit the fatherless. He never bullied the weak because he knew he could get away with it. This is a direct assault on the kind of cronyism and abuse of power that is endemic to fallen human systems.
The Curse and the Motivation (vv. 22-23)
For this sin of oppressing the orphan, Job invokes a specific, graphic curse upon himself, and then reveals the ultimate motive for all his righteous conduct.
"Let my shoulder fall from the socket, And my arm be broken off at the elbow. For disaster from God is a dread to me, And because of His exaltedness I can do nothing." (Job 31:22-23)
The curse is fitting. If he used his arm, his strength, to threaten an orphan, then let that arm be ripped from his body. This is the principle of lex talionis, an eye for an eye. The severity of the self-imprecation shows how seriously Job takes this sin and how confident he is in his innocence.
But verse 23 is the key that unlocks the entire passage, and indeed, Job's entire ethic. Why did he do all this? Why was he just to his servants and generous to the poor? "For disaster from God is a dread to me." The word for dread here is terror. Job is not motivated by a desire for public praise or a warm, fuzzy feeling. He is motivated by a holy terror of God's judgment. He knows that God is a consuming fire, and that He is the avenger of the orphan and the widow. This is not the cowering fear of a slave, but the reverential, awesome fear of a son who knows his Father is holy and just.
And he adds, "and because of His exaltedness I can do nothing." This is a statement of utter creaturely dependence and humility. Before the majesty of God, before His sheer, towering greatness, Job knows he is small and helpless. He cannot stand against God. He cannot defy His law and expect to prosper. All his righteousness, then, is the fruit of this one thing: a right-sized view of God and a right-sized view of himself. He fears God, and therefore he has no need to fear men, and every reason to treat them with justice and mercy.
The Gospel According to Job
As we read this, we must be careful not to fall into the trap of thinking that Job is saved by his righteousness. No man is. Job is a sinner, just like us, and he will later repent in dust and ashes when he comes face to face with God. But his testimony here is not a claim to sinless perfection that earns him salvation. Rather, it is evidence of a life that has been gripped by the fear of God. His good works are the fruit of his faith, not the root of it.
And in this, Job is a magnificent pointer to the Lord Jesus Christ. Job was a righteous man who suffered unjustly. Christ was the only truly righteous man, and He suffered as no other. Job defended his own righteousness. But Christ, who had a perfect righteousness to defend, did not open His mouth. He became sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Job's oath reveals the standard of God's law. And as we read it, we should all feel a sense of conviction. Who among us can say we have perfectly fulfilled this? Who has never been selfish with their resources? Who has never failed to care for the vulnerable? Who has never harbored an unjust thought toward someone under them? This chapter should drive us to our knees. It shows us our need for a righteousness that is not our own.
The good news of the gospel is that such a righteousness is available. It is found in Christ alone. When we, by faith, are united to Christ, His perfect record is credited to our account. And then, and only then, can we begin to live out this kind of practical righteousness. Not in order to be saved, but because we have been saved. The Holy Spirit is given to us, and He begins to produce in us the same fruit that was evident in Job's life: a fear of God that leads to a love for our neighbor. We are to care for the poor, the widow, and the orphan, not as a grim duty, but as a joyful expression of the mercy we ourselves have received from God, who, when we were spiritual orphans, adopted us as sons.