Job 31:12
For it is a fire that consumeth to destruction, and would root out all mine increase.
Original Language Analysis
כִּ֤י
H3588
כִּ֤י
Strong's:
H3588
Word #:
1 of 9
(by implication) very widely used as a relative conjunction or adverb (as below); often largely modified by other particles annexed
הִ֭יא
H1931
הִ֭יא
Strong's:
H1931
Word #:
3 of 9
he (she or it); only expressed when emphatic or without a verb; also (intensively) self, or (especially with the article) the same; sometimes (as demo
עַד
H5704
עַד
Strong's:
H5704
Word #:
4 of 9
as far (or long, or much) as, whether of space (even unto) or time (during, while, until) or degree (equally with)
וּֽבְכָל
H3605
וּֽבְכָל
Strong's:
H3605
Word #:
7 of 9
properly, the whole; hence, all, any or every (in the singular only, but often in a plural sense)
Historical Context
Ancient agricultural imagery pervades this verse—fire destroying crops represented total economic ruin. For Job, a wealthy landowner, to lose all his 'increase' meant complete devastation. The connection between sexual immorality and material loss appears throughout Wisdom literature (Proverbs 5:7-14, 6:26-35). This reflects covenant theology: obedience brings blessing, disobedience brings curse (Deuteronomy 28).
Questions for Reflection
- How does the image of fire consuming to destruction challenge the lie that sexual sin can be contained or controlled?
- What 'increase' in your life could be rooted out by harbored lust or sexual compromise?
- How does Job's understanding of sin's totality inform pastoral counseling for sexual sin today?
Analysis & Commentary
It is a fire that consumeth to destruction (כִּי־אֵשׁ הִיא עַד־אֲבַדּוֹן תֹּאכֵל, ki-esh hi ad-abaddon tokhel)—adultery is compared to esh (אֵשׁ, fire) that devours until abaddon (אֲבַדּוֹן, destruction/the grave). The term abaddon appears six times in Job, always denoting the realm of death or the abyss (Proverbs 15:11, 27:20). Would root out all mine increase (tevu'ati, תְּבוּאָתִי, my produce/harvest) shows that sexual sin doesn't stay contained—it consumes everything: family, legacy, prosperity.
This imagery anticipates Proverbs 6:27-28: "Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?" Sexual sin is self-destructive fire. The progression from heart-lust (v. 1) to potential action (v. 9) to total destruction (v. 12) traces sin's deadly trajectory, paralleling James 1:15: "When lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death."