Bible Strands
Job 31:25
if I have rejoiced in my great wealth because my hand had gained so much,
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Job speaks these words as part of his sworn oath of innocence, addressing God and the assembled witnesses to his moral conduct. He lists specific temptations he has actively resisted to demonstrate his integrity.
The words — The Hebrew verb אֶשְׂמַח ('esmach) means "I rejoiced," paired with חֵילִי (cheili), "my wealth," to describe emotional attachment to material gain. The phrase מָצְאָה יָדִי (matzeah yadi) literally renders "my hand found," indicating personal acquisition.
The thread — This warning against trusting in material provision parallels the prohibition in Deuteronomy 8:17 and the caution in Psalms 62:10. It also contrasts with the boastful recounting of wealth in Esther 5:11.
Why it lands — The text demands a clear examination of whether personal success has become an object of pride rather than a provision to be managed responsibly. It requires the reader to acknowledge that reliance on self-acquired resources displaces reliance on God.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
If I rejoiced because my wealth was great, and because mine hand had gotten much;
Cross-references
- Psalms 62:10 Place no trust in extortion or false hope in stolen goods. If your riches increase, do not set your heart upon them.
- Deuteronomy 8:17 You might say in your heart, “The power and strength of my hands have made this wealth for me.”
- Esther 5:11 Haman recounted to them his glorious wealth, his many sons, and all the ways the king had honored and promoted him over the other officials and servants.
- Proverbs 23:5 When you glance at wealth, it disappears, for it makes wings for itself and flies like an eagle to the sky.
- Isaiah 10:13 For he says: ‘By the strength of my hand I have done this, and by my wisdom, for I am clever. I have removed the boundaries of nations and plundered their treasures; like a mighty one I subdued their rulers.
- Jeremiah 9:23 This is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor the strong man in his strength, nor the wealthy man in his riches.
- Ezekiel 28:5 By your great skill in trading you have increased your wealth, but your heart has grown proud because of it.
- Daniel 4:30 the king exclaimed, “Is this not Babylon the Great, which I myself have built as a royal residence by the might of my power and for the glory of my majesty?”
- Hosea 12:8 And Ephraim boasts: “How rich I have become! I have found wealth for myself. In all my labors, they can find in me no iniquity that is sinful.”
- Habakkuk 1:16 Therefore he sacrifices to his dragnet and burns incense to his fishing net, for by these things his portion is sumptuous and his food is rich.