Job 31:4

Job 31:4 Doth not he see my ways, and count all my steps?

Ver. 4. Doth he not see my ways, and count, &c.] Yea, sure he doth so; and the conscience of God’s omniscience, who would soon take him tripping, kept him from this great wickedness. So it did Joseph, but so it did not David; who is, therefore, said to despise God and his commandment, {2Sa 12:9-10} to do evil in his sight; and this was no small aggravation of his offence. Ne pecces, Deus ipse videt. "I have seen the lewdness of thy whoredom," Jer 13:27. "Even I know, and am a witness, saith the Lord," Jer 29:23. That should be a powerful retentive from vice, Pro 5:21.

And count all my steps?] Doth not he cipher them up? Habens omnia in numerato; not my ways only, my counsels and cogitations, but my steps also, that is, all mine outward attempts and actions. A most needful and useful consideration surely, to keep men within the compass of obedience. See this doctrine of God’s singular providence plainly and plentifully set forth, Psa 139:1-4.

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.

Doth not he see? &c.--Knowing this, I could only have expected "destruction" (Job 31:3), had I committed this sin (Pro 5:21).

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 4. Doth not he see my ways] Can I suppose that I could screen myself from the eye of God while guilty of such iniquities?

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

(4) Doth not he.—The “He” is emphatic, obviously meaning God. His appeal is to the All-seeing knowledge of God, whom nothing escapes, and who is judge of the hearts and reins (Psa_7:9; Psa_44:21; Jer_17:10; Jer_20:12). (Comp. Act_25:11.)

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

4. Here “ways” and “steps” are said of things so slight as the glance of the eye. These are “seen” and “counted” by God. The thought of God in these verses is as lofty as the conception of morality is close and inward.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Doth not he see my ways, and count all my steps? That is, God, who is above, and the Almighty that dwells on high; he looks down from heaven, and beholds all the ways and works, the steps and motions, of the children of men; there is no darkness where the workers of iniquity can hide themselves; the fornicator and adulterer choose the night season for the commission of their sin, fancying no eye sees them; but they cannot escape the eye of God, who is omniscient; he observes the ways they walk in, the methods they take to compass their designs; he marks and counts every step taken by them, as he does indeed take notice of and reckons up every action of men, good and bad; and the consideration of this was another argument with Job to avoid the sin of uncleanness; for however privately he might commit it, so as not to be seen by men, it could not be hidden from the all seeing eye of God. Some take these words to be an obtestation, or appeal to God for the truth of what he had said; that he made a covenant with his eyes, and took every precaution to prevent his failing into the sin of uncleanness; and he whose eyes were upon his ways, knew how holily and unblamably he had walked; or else, as if the sense was, that had he given in to such an impure course of life, he might expect the omniscient God, that is above, and dwells on high, would bring upon him destruction, and a strange punishment, since he is the avenger of all such; others connect the words with the following, doth he not see my ways and steps, whether I have walked with vanity, &c. or not?

Doth not he see my ways, and count all my steps? That is, God, who is above, and the Almighty that dwells on high; he looks down from heaven, and beholds all the ways and works, the steps and motions, of the children of men; there is no darkness where the workers of iniquity can hide themselves; the fornicator and adulterer choose the night season for the commission of their sin, fancying no eye sees them; but they cannot escape the eye of God, who is omniscient; he observes the ways they walk in, the methods they take to compass their designs; he marks and counts every step taken by them, as he does indeed take notice of and reckons up every action of men, good and bad; and the consideration of this was another argument with Job to avoid the sin of uncleanness; for however privately he might commit it, so as not to be seen by men, it could not be hidden from the all seeing eye of God. Some take these words to be an obtestation, or appeal to God for the truth of what he had said; that he made a covenant with his eyes, and took every precaution to prevent his failing into the sin of uncleanness; and he whose eyes were upon his ways, knew how holily and unblamably he had walked; or else, as if the sense was, that had he given in to such an impure course of life, he might expect the omniscient God, that is above, and dwells on high, would bring upon him destruction, and a strange punishment, since he is the avenger of all such; others connect the words with the following, doth he not see my ways and steps, whether I have walked with vanity, &c. or not?

Job 31:5

job 31:5

job 31:5

job 31:5If I have walked with vanity,.... Or with vain men, as Bar Tzemach interprets it, keeping company and having fellowship with them in their vain and sinful practices; or in the vanity of his mind, indulging himself in impurity of heart and life; or rather using deceitful methods to cheat and defraud others; for this seems to be another vice Job clears himself of, acting unjustly in his dealings with men, or dealing falsely with them:

or if my foot hath hasted to deceit; to cheat men in buying and selling, being ready and swift to do it, and in haste to become rich, which puts men oftentimes on evil ways and methods to attain it; see Pro 28:20.

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

Doth he not see my ways? - This either means that God was a witness of all that he did - his thoughts, words, and deeds, and would punish him if he had given indulgence to improper feelings and thoughts; or that since God saw all his thoughts, he could boldly appeal to him as a witness of his innocence in this matter, and in proof that his life and heart were pure. Rosenmuller adopts the latter interpretation; Herder seems to incline to the former. Umbreit renders it, “God himself must be a witness that I speak the truth.” It is not easy to determine which is the true meaning. Either of them will accord well with the scope of the passage.

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

i.e. All my counsels and courses. This is another reason why he was so circumspect and exact in restraining his thoughts, and senses, and whole man from sinful practices, because he knew that God would discern them, and therefore punish them, as he said, Job 31:3.

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

Doth not he see my ways, and count all my steps? (see Job_7:18-20; and below, Job_34:21. Comp. also Psa_139:3 Pro_5:21 Pro_15:3, etc.)

HOMILIES BY W.F. ADENEY Ver. 4. God"s watchfulness.

I ITS CONCENTRATION ON CONDUCT. God sees Job"s ways. He is not confined to the observation of external deeds, for he reads the hearts of men and he judges by the course of the inner life. Still, it is by a man"s actions, including the internal actions, that God judges a man. What is of most concern to our great Master is how we exercise our will, what way we choose to walk in, how we shape our daily conduct. He cares little for our opinions and emotions, except in so far as these guide and influence our behaviour. If, then, God values conduct chiefly, conduct should be of primary importance with us. Whatever other things we may be anxious about, our first anxiety should be to see that our ways are right.

II ITS ABSOLUTE THOROUGHNESS. Job speaks of God as counting all his steps. Therefore God takes note of every one of them. No false step can escape his notice. The little slip is not unseen by God. He sees us stumble when we do not fall, and observes how we stray for a brief time, even though we afterwards return to the right path. This truth has an encouraging side to it. God knows how many steps we have taken; therefore if the way is long and weary he has not forgotten us, and he can Rive us rest and strength. He knows how many steps we have yet to take; therefore he will give us a sufficient supply of grace, whether the road be long or short, and he will not expect more of us than the length or brevity of life permits.

III ITS PROMPTING MOTIVE. God does not watch as a spy, like Satan when he was eager to detect some weakness in Job in order to inform against him; (Job_1:7-10) nor with any design of ruining, like Satan who now goes about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour; (1Pe_5:8) nor with cold curiosity, amusing himself with the frailties of his children; nor with merely judicial insight, seeking for truth and dealing fairly, but with no sympathy or interest in his creatures. God watches with the most profound interest with the interest of love. His watchfulness is like that of the mother who bends over the cradle, carefully noting every changing symptom in her ailing child.

IV ITS ULTIMATE RESULTS. God does not watch for nothing. He is more than an inspector; he acts according to what he sees, and his watching is followed by his doing.

1. Sin cannot go unpunished. There is no eluding the eye of the great Watcher of men. The foolish notion that secrecy may find a door of escape is only a delusion when we have to deal with one who knows everything, to whom all secrets are open.

2. Need cannot suffer from neglect. The poor and suffering are forgotten among men, and miserable people drop out of sight after they have fallen into adversity, for great cities hide multitudes of unknown and solitary sufferers. Yet God counts every painful step in the path of disappointment, and as he knows all he will assuredly give the needful help. Because he saw the condition of men he provided for their recovery by redemption through the gift of his Son, W.F.A.

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

and count all my steps and see whether I went with falsehood.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.