Limitless Word
Yet He is not partial to princes, Nor does He regard the rich more than the poor; For they are all the work of His hands.
Job 34:19 · New King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Who doesn’t respect the persons of princes, nor respects the rich more than the poor; for they all are the work of his hands.
  • KJV How much less to him that accepteth not the persons of princes, nor regardeth the rich more than the poor? for they all are the work of his hands.
  • BSB who is not partial to princes and does not favor rich over poor? For they are all the work of His hands.
  • NASB Who shows no partiality to the prominent, Nor regards the rich as above the poor, Since they are all the work of His hands?
  • NLT He doesn’t care how great a person may be, and he pays no more attention to the rich than to the poor. He made them all.

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 shows no partiality to princes or the rich over the poor, since all are His handiwork. It affirms God's impartial justice.

Overview

Elihu declares that God does not favor the powerful or wealthy, for prince and pauper alike are the work of His hands. God's justice is utterly impartial, grounded in His role as Creator of all. This truth carries into the New Testament, where God 'shows no partiality' (Acts 10:34) and the gospel comes freely to rich and poor alike.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 23

  • Deut 10:17For Yahweh your God, he is God of gods, and Lord of lords, the great God, the mighty, and the awesome, who doesn’t respect persons, nor takes reward.
  • Acts 10:34Peter opened his mouth and said, “Truly I perceive that God doesn’t show favoritism;
  • Jas 2:5Listen, my beloved brothers. Didn’t God choose those who are poor in this world to be rich in faith, and heirs of the Kingdom which he promised to those who love him?
  • Rom 2:11For there is no partiality with God.
  • Col 3:25But he who does wrong will receive again for the wrong that he has done, and there is no partiality.
  • Lev 19:15“‘You shall do no injustice in judgment. You shall not be partial to the poor, nor show favoritism to the great; but you shall judge your neighbor in righteousness.
  • 2 Chr 19:7Now therefore let the fear of Yahweh be on you. Take heed and do it; for there is no iniquity with Yahweh our God, nor respect of persons, nor taking of bribes.”
  • Gal 2:6But from those who were reputed to be important (whatever they were, it makes no difference to me; God doesn’t show partiality to man) — they, I say, who were respected imparted nothing to me,
  • Eph 6:9You masters, do the same things to them, and give up threatening, knowing that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no partiality with him.
  • 1 Pet 1:17If you call on him as Father, who without respect of persons judges according to each man’s work, pass the time of your living as foreigners here in reverent fear:
  • Prov 22:2The rich and the poor have this in common: Yahweh is the maker of them all.
  • Prov 14:31He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for his Maker, but he who is kind to the needy honors him.
  • Eccl 5:8If you see the oppression of the poor, and the violent taking away of justice and righteousness in a district, don’t marvel at the matter: for one official is eyed by a higher one; and there are officials over them.
  • Job 31:15Didn’t he who made me in the womb make him? Didn’t one fashion us in the womb?
  • Isa 3:14Yahweh will enter into judgment with the elders of his people, and their leaders: “It is you who have eaten up the vineyard. The plunder of the poor is in your houses.
  • Ps 2:2–4The kings of the earth take a stand, and the rulers take counsel together, against Yahweh, and against his Anointed, saying,
  • Job 10:3Is it good to you that you should oppress, that you should despise the work of your hands, and smile on the counsel of the wicked?
  • Job 36:19Would your wealth sustain you in distress, or all the might of your strength?
  • Job 12:21He pours contempt on princes, and loosens the belt of the strong.
  • Job 12:19He leads priests away stripped, and overthrows the mighty.
  • Job 13:8Will you show partiality to him? Will you contend for God?
  • Ps 49:6–7Those who trust in their wealth, and boast in the multitude of their riches —
  • Heb 12:28Therefore, receiving a Kingdom that can’t be shaken, let us have grace, through which we serve God acceptably, with reverence and awe,

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (5)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Job videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Job 34:19YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on JobMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 34:19 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.