Then there are those who rebel against the light, not knowing its ways or staying on its paths.
Parallel translations
- WEB “These are of those who rebel against the light. They don’t know its ways, nor stay in its paths.
- KJV They are of those that rebel against the light; they know not the ways thereof, nor abide in the paths thereof.
- NKJV “There are those who rebel against the light; They do not know its ways Nor abide in its paths.
- NASB ¶“Others have been with those who rebel against the light; They do not want to know its ways Nor stay in its paths.
- NLT “Wicked people rebel against the light. They refuse to acknowledge its ways or stay in its paths.
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 turns to those who rebel against the light, refusing its ways. It matters because it introduces sins of darkness committed in secret.
Overview
Job describes a class of wicked who hate the light and reject its paths. Light here symbolizes both daylight and moral truth, which these rebels shun. The contrast between light and darkness runs through Scripture and culminates in Christ, the Light of the world, whom evildoers reject because their deeds are evil (John 3:19-20).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 19
- John 3:19–20And this is the verdict: The Light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness rather than the Light because their deeds were evil.
- Prov 4:19But the way of the wicked is like the darkest gloom; they do not know what makes them stumble.
- Jude 1:6And the angels who did not stay within their own domain but abandoned their proper dwelling—these He has kept in eternal chains under darkness, bound for judgment on that great day.
- 2 Th 2:10–12and with every wicked deception directed against those who are perishing, because they refused the love of the truth that would have saved them.
- 2 Pet 2:20–22If indeed they have escaped the corruption of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, only to be entangled and overcome by it again, their final condition is worse than it was at first.
- John 9:39–41Then Jesus declared, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind may see and those who see may become blind.”
- 1 Jn 2:19They went out from us, but they did not belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. But their departure made it clear that none of them belonged to us.
- John 15:22–24If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. Now, however, they have no excuse for their sin.
- Rom 1:32Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things are worthy of death, they not only continue to do these things, but also approve of those who practice them.
- John 8:31So He said to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, you are truly My disciples.
- Rom 2:17–24Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God;
- John 12:40“He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, so that they cannot see with their eyes, and understand with their hearts, and turn, and I would heal them.”
- Jas 4:17Anyone, then, who knows the right thing to do, yet fails to do it, is guilty of sin.
- Rom 3:11–17There is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.
- John 8:44You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out his desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, refusing to uphold the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, because he is a liar and the father of lies.
- John 15:6If anyone does not remain in Me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers. Such branches are gathered up, thrown into the fire, and burned.
- John 12:35Then Jesus told them, “For a little while longer, the Light will be among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going.
- Luke 12:47–48That servant who knows his master’s will but does not get ready or follow his instructions will be beaten with many blows.
- Job 23:11–12My feet have followed in His tracks; I have kept His way without turning aside.
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 24:13 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.