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Speaker 1: Life Audio. For more resources to help you in your

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Speaker 1: walk with Christ, please visit us at Bible Studyheadquarters dot com.

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Speaker 1: You're listening to the Chapter a Day Audio Bible. I'm

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Speaker 1: John Stangey, and today we're in Job chapter thirty one,

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Speaker 1: and we'll be reading from the contemporary English version. I

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Speaker 1: promised myself never to stare with desire at a young woman.

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Speaker 1: God all powerful, punishes men who do that. In fact,

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Speaker 1: God sends disaster on all who sin, and he keeps

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Speaker 1: a close watch on everything I do. I am not

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Speaker 1: dishonest or deceitful, and I beg God to prove my innocence.

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Speaker 1: If I have disobeyed Him, or even wanted to, then

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Speaker 1: others can eat my harvest and uproot my crops. If

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Speaker 1: I have desired someone's wife and chased after her, then

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Speaker 1: let some stranger steal my wife from me. If I

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Speaker 1: took someone's wife, it would be a horrible crime, sending

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Speaker 1: me to destruction and my crops to the flames. When

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Speaker 1: my servants complained against me, I was fair to them.

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Speaker 1: Otherwise what answer would I give to God when he

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Speaker 1: judges me? After all, God is the one who gave

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Speaker 1: life to each of us before we were born. I

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Speaker 1: have never cheated widows or others in need, and I

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Speaker 1: have always shared my food with orphans. Since the time

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Speaker 1: I was young, I have cared for orphans and helped widows.

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Speaker 1: I provided clothes for the poor, and I was praised

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Speaker 1: for supplying woolen garments to keep them warm. If I

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Speaker 1: have ever raised my arm to threaten an orphan when

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Speaker 1: the power was mine, I hope that arm will fall

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Speaker 1: from its socket. I could not have been abuse. I

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Speaker 1: was terrified at the thought that God might punish me.

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Speaker 1: I have never trusted the power of wealth or taken

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Speaker 1: pride in owning many possessions. I have never openly or

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Speaker 1: secretly worshiped the sun or moon. Such horrible sins would

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Speaker 1: have deserved punishment from God. I have never laughed when

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Speaker 1: my enemies were struck by disaster, Neither have I sinned

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Speaker 1: by asking God to send down on them the curse

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Speaker 1: of death. No one ever went hungry at my house,

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Speaker 1: and travelers were always welcome. Many have attempted to hide

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Speaker 1: their sins from others, but I refused, and the fear

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Speaker 1: of public disgrace never forced me to keep silent about

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Speaker 1: what I had done. Why doesn't God all powerful, listen

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Speaker 1: and answer. If God has something against me, let him

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Speaker 1: speak up or put it in writing. Then I would

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Speaker 1: wear his charm just on my clothes and forehead, and

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Speaker 1: with my head held high, I would tell him everything

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Speaker 1: I have ever done. I have never mistreated the land

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Speaker 1: I farmed and made it more, nor have I cheated

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Speaker 1: my workers and caused them pain. If I had, I

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Speaker 1: would pray for weeds instead of wheat to grow in

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Speaker 1: my fields. After saying these things, Job was silent. Let's pray. Lord.

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Speaker 1: We thank you for your word, and we thank you

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Speaker 1: for the privilege of being able to look at it

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Speaker 1: together today. And Lord, we thank you for the things

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Speaker 1: that we see in this portion of scripture, the things

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Speaker 1: that Job has covenanted before you to uphold, and the

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Speaker 1: things that he had promised you that he would do.

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Speaker 1: The fact that he was seeking to walk with integrity,

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Speaker 1: and the fact that he was seeking to be mindful

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Speaker 1: of the fact that your watchful eye was on him. Lord,

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Speaker 1: we know that in the midst of that, however, he

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Speaker 1: was wondering why he hadn't received an answer from you yet,

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Speaker 1: and his heart was heavy as he continued to go

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Speaker 1: through this trial. And Lord we know that Job wasn't

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Speaker 1: a perfect man, and some of the things that he

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Speaker 1: has said up to this point in the book have

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Speaker 1: come across as a little bit self righteous, and we

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Speaker 1: know that in coming chapters that's going to be addressed.

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Speaker 1: But Lord, we're grateful for the example that we see

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Speaker 1: here in this passage of what it looks like when

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Speaker 1: somebody is waiting for an answer from you, because we

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Speaker 1: often find ourselves in that same kind of context. And Lord,

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Speaker 1: you tell us that when we have concerns, to bring

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Speaker 1: them before you, and your peace will guard our hearts

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Speaker 1: and guard our minds. In Christ Jesus. So Lord, we're

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Speaker 1: grateful that we could bring requests before you, but we

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Speaker 1: pray that we would also trust that your timing and

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Speaker 1: that your answers are absolutely perfect. We're grateful, Lord for

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Speaker 1: your love for us. We're grateful for your presence with

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Speaker 1: us today, and we commit this day to your care

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Speaker 1: and pray this all in Jesus' name, Amen. M