Still, their prosperity is not in their own hands, so I stay far from the counsel of the wicked.
Parallel translations
- WEB Behold, their prosperity is not in their hand. The counsel of the wicked is far from me.
- KJV Lo, their good is not in their hand: the counsel of the wicked is far from me.
- NKJV Indeed their prosperity is not in their hand; The counsel of the wicked is far from me.
- NASB “Behold, their prosperity is not in their hand; The advice of the wicked is far from me.
- NLT (They think their prosperity is of their own doing, but I will have nothing to do with that kind of thinking.)
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
Job acknowledges that the wicked's prosperity is not truly in their own control, and he firmly distances himself from their godless counsel. He rejects their way even while noting their success.
Overview
Job clarifies that he does not envy or endorse the wicked; their good fortune is ultimately in God's hand, not theirs. He repudiates 'the counsel of the wicked' (cf. Ps 1:1). The verse is somewhat debated in tone, but most read it as Job affirming that despite appearances, the ungodly are not masters of their own destiny and their path is not his.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Ps 1:1Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers.
- Job 22:18But it was He who filled their houses with good things; so I stay far from the counsel of the wicked.
- Ps 52:5–7Surely God will bring you down to everlasting ruin; He will snatch you up and tear you away from your tent; He will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah
- Gen 49:6May I never enter their council; may I never join their assembly. For they kill men in their anger, and hamstring oxen on a whim.
- Ps 49:6–7They trust in their wealth and boast in their great riches.
- Prov 1:10My son, if sinners entice you, do not yield to them.
- Job 1:21saying: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.”
- Prov 5:8Keep your path far from her; do not go near the door of her house,
- Luke 16:25But Abraham answered, ‘Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things. But now he is comforted here, while you are in agony.
- Eccl 8:8As no man has power over the wind to contain it, so no one has authority over his day of death. As no one can be discharged in wartime, so wickedness will not release those who practice it.
- Job 12:9–10Which of all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this?
- Luke 16:2So he called him in to ask, ‘What is this I hear about you? Turn in an account of your management, for you cannot be manager any longer.’
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 21:16 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.