Thomas Aquinas Commentary Job 31:24-40

"If I have made gold my hope, And have said to the fine gold, [Thou art] my confidence; If I have rejoiced because my wealth was great, And because my hand had gotten much; If I have beheld the sun when it shined, Or the moon walking in brightness, And my heart hath been secretly enticed, And my mouth hath kissed my hand: This also were an iniquity to be punished by the judges; For I should have denied the God that is above. If I have rejoiced at the destruction of him that hated me, Or lifted up myself when evil found him; (Yea, I have not suffered by mouth to sin By asking his life with a curse); If the men of my tent have not said, Who can find one that hath not been filled with his meat? (The sojourner hath not lodged in the street; But I have opened my doors to the traveller); If like Adam I have covered my transgressions, By hiding mine iniquity in my bosom, Because I feared the great multitude, And the contempt of families terrified me, So that I kept silence, and went not out of the door- Oh that I had one to hear me! (Lo, here is my signature, let the Almighty answer me); And [that I had] the indictment which mine adversary hath written! Surely I would carry it upon my shoulder; I would bind it unto me as a crown: I would declare unto him the number of my steps; As a prince would I go near unto him. If my land crieth out against me, And the furrows thereof weep together; If I have eaten the fruits thereof without money, Or have caused the owners thereof to lose their life: Let thistles grow instead of wheat, And cockle instead of barley. The words of Job are ended." — Job 31:24-40 (ASV)

After Job defended himself against charges of injustice (Job 31:5) and lack of mercy (Job 31:16), he now declares himself innocent of an inordinate love for riches. This sin can arise in two ways. First, a person may trust too much in riches, which Job denies doing when he says, "If I have made gold my strength," meaning that he considered his power to lie principally in riches, "and if to the finest gold," which is the purest gold, "I have said: You are my security." This is contrary to what Paul says, to "tell the rich of this world not to put their hope in the uncertainty of riches" (1 Timothy 6:17).

Second, a person's affection becomes disordered by riches when they rejoice too much in possessing them. Thus, regarding the riches he already possessed, he continues, "If I rejoiced," that is, inordinately, "over my abundant riches," which he possessed as his own. Regarding the acquisition of riches, he says, "and because my hand had grasped even more." For people usually rejoice more over what they have newly acquired.

Next, Job declares himself innocent of the sin of superstition, which is an offense against God. In ancient times, idolaters worshiped the stars of heaven, especially the great lights, because of their brightness. Job shows that he does not do this, saying, "If I looked at the sun when it shone and the moon moving in splendor," which caused idolaters to worship them, "and my heart secretly rejoiced," as if I were devoted to them with internal worship.

As for external worship, he says, "and I kissed my hand with my lips." He shows why he avoided this, saying, "this is the greatest evil." For if it is evil to offer to one person what is due to another, it is the greatest evil for the worship due to God to be offered to a creature. Since it is impossible for a person to offer divine worship to both God and a creature at the same time, he then calls this "the denial of God the Most High." Although the name of God is attributed to some creatures by participation, the worship of latria is due only to the Most High God, who is denied as the Most High if that worship is also offered to others.

After these matters pertaining to justice in general, Job continues with things that pertain to the perfection of virtue. Among these, he first denies hating his enemies. This is shown especially when someone rejoices in an enemy's complete ruin, and Job denies this, saying, "If I rejoiced at the ruin of him who hated me." Or, it is shown when someone rejoices in any evil that befalls an enemy, which Job also denies, adding, "and if I exulted when evil overtook him," that is, when it had unexpectedly overcome him.

He then shows why he shunned this, saying, "For I did not give my tongue to sin by asking for a curse upon his soul." Truly, a person naturally desires those things in which he rejoices, and he expresses his internal desire in words. Therefore, it follows that if someone rejoices in another's misfortune, he must desire it, and consequently, by cursing him, he would call down evil upon him.

Then Job shows the perfection of his virtue regarding the abundance of goods he bestowed on others. First, concerning his own household, he says, "If the men of my tent have not said: Who will give us his meat to satisfy us?" When the meat of an animal is appetizing, people desire to eat their fill of it. By this, he shows us that his company was so pleasing to his household that they desired to be satisfied by his very presence.

As for strangers, he then says, "The traveler did not remain outside," meaning he was always received into Job's house; "my door was open to the traveler," so that entry was not difficult for him.

Job further shows the perfection of his virtue by denying undue fear. People usually hide a sin out of fear of shame, and they sometimes do this unjustly. They may deny it, which Job denies doing, saying, "If I hid like a man my sin," as men often do, by denying it unjustly. Or they may excuse it or cover it up with clever devices, and so he adds, "and if I have hidden in my heart my sin," by hidden pretense when I was bound to confess it.

He then denies having an inordinate fear of bodily danger, which especially comes from a great mob rising up against a person, as Sirach says, My heart fears three things; the fanaticism of the city, the gathering of the people, etc. . So Job says, "If I grew frightened at the great multitude." This fear is increased if a person is despised by his own relatives, who ought to help him, and so he adds, "and if the contempt of my kinsmen terrified me." Presumptuous men are fearless in the face of opposition and sometimes, at least in words, speak out against more powerful people. Job denies this of himself, saying, "and if I have not kept silent." Sometimes they go even further and dare to presumptuously attack a great number of adversaries, but he denies this, saying, "and did not go out of my door."

Since Job has said many great things about himself, he now calls on God as his witness. He says, "Who would give me an advocate," who will appeal to God with me? He shows why he desires help, saying, "that the Almighty might hear my desire!" He then shows what his desire is: that "he who judges" all human acts, both internal and external, should "write the book" of accusation or vindication concerning what he has said.

If the testimony of this book, through the clear manifestation of the truth, shows him to be guilty, he is willing to endure the punishment. Thus he says, "Let me carry it on my shoulders." If, however, after the truth has been revealed, he appears worthy of praise, then let him receive the crown of reward. And so he says, "and let it encircle me like a crown." In this, he shows his desire to be vindicated by the just judgment of God after being condemned unjustly by his friends.

He promises that he will not dispute this book containing God's testimony. "For every one of my steps," that is, the progress of my works, "I will announce it," meaning he will acknowledge the truth of God's testimony and will not refuse to submit to the sentence given according to that divine witness. So he says, "and as to a prince I will offer it," joyfully accepting that he was judged on the basis of God's testimony.

Finally, Job declares himself innocent of the vice of excessive greed, even regarding things he rightfully possessed. This is shown in two ways. First, a person may be eager to extract too much profit from his own possessions through excessive cultivation. Job denies this metaphorically, saying, "If my land cries out against me," as if he had not permitted it to rest and had overworked it. He adds, "and its furrows weep with it," using the metaphor of a person who is excessively anxious.

Second, excessive desire for possessions is shown when a person denies his workers the wages for their labor. So he says, "If I have eaten its yield without payment"—that is, without paying the workers—"and I have afflicted the soul of the farmers," either by forcing them to work excessively or by withholding their salary.

Now, it is just that one who desires excessive and unusual profit should lose even what is due and common. So he says, "in place of wheat," which is sown for human nourishment, "let nettles grow for me," which are not only useless but also prickly. "And for barley," which is sown as cattle feed, "the thorn," which even wounds cattle by pricking them. After he had said all these things, the epilogue follows: "Here the words of Job end," because he proposes nothing further to prove his case.