Job 31:20Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

He did not only express goodness through his words but also through his actions, generously sharing all his wealth of good works with those in need. What does he proclaim in another passage? ‘The blessing of the destitute came upon me; I brought joy to the heart of the widow’ and ‘was he not comforted by the wool of my sheep?’ (Job 29:13). Clearly, he enriched his storehouse of goodness by every possible means—through speech, actions, charitable giving, and prayers for the less fortunate.

In an attempt to demonstrate to his companions that he was undeserving of such tribulation, Job reveals that he was not only clothed in acts of compassion and external devotion but was also a man of integrity within (31:1-4). He asserts that deception was foreign to him (5-8), and that impure desires towards another man's wife never contaminated his mind (9-12). He regarded his peers as beings made in God’s image, similar to himself (13-15). In his assistance to the destitute, Job never perceived himself as someone powerful who could harm others (16-23); he did not place his trust in his riches (24-25), engaged not in secret transgressions (26-28), and found no joy in the downfall of his adversaries (29-30). His home was a welcoming space for all travelers (30-32).