He looseth the bond of kings, and girdeth their loins with a girdle.
Parallel translations
- WEB He loosens the bond of kings. He binds their waist with a belt.
- BSB He loosens the bonds placed by kings and fastens a belt around their waists.
- NKJV He loosens the bonds of kings, And binds their waist with a belt.
- NASB “He undoes the binding of kings, And ties a loincloth around their waist.
- NLT He removes the royal robe of kings. They are led away with ropes around their waist.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God loosens the authority of kings and then binds them as captives. He raises and removes rulers as He pleases.
Overview
Job affirms that God strips kings of their power and can reduce them to bondage. Earthly authority is entirely subject to the King of kings. Scripture consistently teaches that God removes and sets up rulers, a sovereignty perfectly displayed in the exaltation of Christ above all rule and authority (Daniel 2:21; Ephesians 1:20-22).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Dan 2:21And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:
- Ps 116:16O LORD, truly I am thy servant; I am thy servant, and the son of thine handmaid: thou hast loosed my bonds.
- 2 Chr 33:11–14Wherefore the LORD brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, which took Manasseh among the thorns, and bound him with fetters, and carried him to Babylon.
- Jer 52:31–34And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, in the five and twentieth day of the month, that Evilmerodach king of Babylon in the first year of his reign lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah, and brought him forth out of prison,
- Rev 19:16And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Job's cry for a mediator who can lay his hand on both God and man, and his confidence that 'my Redeemer lives' and will stand on the earth, reaches forward to Jesus the living Redeemer.
How Job 12:18 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.