They conceive mischief, and bring forth vanity, and their belly prepareth deceit.
Parallel translations
- WEB They conceive mischief, and produce iniquity. Their heart prepares deceit.”
- BSB They conceive trouble and give birth to evil; their womb is pregnant with deceit.”
- NKJV They conceive trouble and bring forth futility; Their womb prepares deceit.”
- NASB “They conceive harm and give birth to wrongdoing, And their mind prepares deception.”
- NLT They conceive trouble and give birth to evil. Their womb produces deceit.”
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
The wicked conceive trouble and give birth to evil, their hearts preparing deceit. Sin springs from within and produces more sin.
Overview
Eliphaz closes his speech with the principle that the godless inwardly conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity and deceit. This echoes the biblical truth that evil flows from the heart (James 1:15; Mark 7:21). It is a fitting description of the unregenerate heart, yet wrongly aimed at Job, and it points to the deeper need the gospel meets, a new heart given by God (Ezekiel 36:26).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Ps 7:14Behold, he travaileth with iniquity, and hath conceived mischief, and brought forth falsehood.
- Hos 10:13Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; ye have eaten the fruit of lies: because thou didst trust in thy way, in the multitude of thy mighty men.
- Isa 59:4–5None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.
- Jas 1:15Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
- Gal 6:7–8Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 15:35 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
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