Job 31:20

Job 31:20 If his loins have not blessed me, and [if] he were [not] warmed with the fleece of my sheep;

Ver. 20. If his loins have not blessed me] As being warm clothed by me; not with a suit of words, as those great benefactors, Jas 2:15-16, who were much in mouth mercy, which indeed is good cheap; but a little handful of Job’s wool is much better than a mouthful of such airy courtesies, and would open more mouths to bless men who, today, for the most part, will be but as friends at a sneeze, the most you can get of them is, God bless you. These have as many flouts and curses as Job had well wishes, and God thereby had praises, according to that of our Saviour, Mat 5:16.

And if he were not warmed with the fleece of my sheep] His sheep were his own, else his charity had been unwarrantable. "Honour the Lord with thy substance," Pro 3:9, but see it be thine, and not another’s. "He that hath a bountiful eye shall be blessed; for he giveth of his bread to the poor," Pro 22:9; specially if he have spared it out of his own belly to give to the hungry; if it were the bread of his own demense, or allowance, as some interpret it.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

loins--The parts of the body benefited by Job are poetically described as thanking him; the loins before naked, when clad by me, wished me every blessing.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 20. If his loins have not blessed me] This is a very delicate touch: the part that was cold and shivering is now covered with warm woollen. It feels the comfort; and by a fine prosopopoeia, is represented as blessing him who furnished the clothing.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

If I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless,.... Either in a menacing way, threatening what he would do to them; which, from a man of wealth and authority, a civil magistrate, a judge, is very terrible to the poor and fatherless; or in order to strike him, which would be to smite with the fist of wickedness; or give a signal to others, by lifting up the hand to smite, as Ananias gave orders to smite the Apostle Paul; or thereby to give his vote against the fatherless wrongly, suffrages being sometimes made by lifting up the hands; or hereby Job signifies, that he was so far from doing the fatherless any real injury, that he had not so much as lifted up his hand, and even a finger against him:

when I saw my help in the gate; in the court of judicature held in the gate of the city, as was usual; though he knew he had the bench of judges for him, or they would give sentence in his behalf, and against the fatherless, if he did but hold up his hand, or lift up a finger to them, so ready would they be take his part and be on his side; yet he never made use of his power and interest to their detriment, or took such an advantage against them.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

If his loins have not blessed me - This is a personification by which the part of the body that had been clothed by the benevolence of Job, is supposed to speak and render him thanks.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Blessed me for clothing. (Menochius)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Blessed me, i.e. given him occasion to bless and praise me, and to pray to God to bless me for covering them; the loins being put synecdochically for the whole body: see the like expression Deu 24:13, and compare Gen 4:10; Luk 16:9.

With the fleece of my sheep; with clothing made of my wool.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

20. The loins, previously naked, are personified and poetically described as invoking upon him every blessing.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

If his loins have not blessed me, (see above, Job_29:11, Job_29:13) and if he were not warmed with the fleece of my sheep. Clothed, i.e., with a garment spun from wool yielded by my own sheep. A great sheikh like Job would keep in store many such garments, ready to be given to such as were naked or poorly clad, when they came under his observation. (Isa_58:7)

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.