Berean Standard Bible
James 4:13
13Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business, and make a profit.”
James 4:13 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain:
- New International Version (NIV)Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit"—
- New King James Version (NKJV)Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”;
Context of James 4:13
11Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it. And if you judge the law, you are not a practitioner of the law, but a judge of it. 12There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor? Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business, and make a profit.” 14You do not even know what will happen tomorrow! What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. 15Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord is willing, we will live and do this or that.”
Read all of James 4James 4:13 word by word
Ἄγε νῦν οἱ λέγοντες· σήμερον ἢ αὔριον πορευσόμεθα εἰς τήνδε τὴν πόλιν καὶ ποιήσομεν ἐκεῖ ἐνιαυτὸν καὶ ἐμπορευσόμεθα καὶ κερδήσομεν·Read the interlinear
- Comeἄγωagō · to bringG71
- nowνῦνnun · nowG3568
- you whoὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- sayλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
- Todayσήμερονsēmeron · todayG4594
- orἤē · orG2228
- tomorrowαὔριονaurion · tomorrowG839
- we will goπορεύωporeuomai · to travelG4198
- toεἰςeis · towardG1519
- this or thatὅδεhode hēde tode · thisG3592
- cityπόλιςpolis · cityG4172
- ·καίkai · andG2532
- spendποιέωpoieō · to do/make: spend(TIME)G4160
- a yearἐνιαυτόςeniautos · yearG1763
- thereἐκεῖekei · thereG1563
- carry on businessἐμπορεύομαιemporeuomai · to traffic inG1710
- make a profitκερδαίνωkerdainō · to gainG2770
Cross-references for James 4:13
- James 5:1Come now, you who are rich, weep and wail over the misery to come upon you.
- Genesis 11:3And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” So they used brick instead of stone, and tar instead of mortar.
- Ecclesiastes 2:1I said to myself, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure; enjoy what is good!” But it proved to be futile.
- Isaiah 5:5Now I will tell you what I am about to do to My vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it will be consumed; I will tear down its wall, and it will be trampled.
- Proverbs 27:1Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.
- Isaiah 56:12“Come, let me get the wine, let us imbibe the strong drink, and tomorrow will be like today, only far better!”
- Luke 12:17So he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, since I have nowhere to store my crops?’
- Isaiah 24:2people and priest alike, servant and master, maid and mistress, buyer and seller, lender and borrower, creditor and debtor.
- Isaiah 56:11Like ravenous dogs, they are never satisfied. They are shepherds with no discernment; they all turn to their own way, each one seeking his own gain:
- Ezekiel 7:12The time has come; the day has arrived. Let the buyer not rejoice and the seller not mourn, for wrath is upon the whole multitude.
- 1 Corinthians 7:30those who weep, as if they did not; those who are joyful, as if they were not; those who make a purchase, as if they had nothing;
Commentaries on James 4:13
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 13Go to now - · Come now, the same in meaning as the Hebrew הבה habah, come, Genesis 11:3, Genesis 11:4, Genesis 11:7. Come, and hear what I have to say, ye that say, etc. To-day, or to-morrow, we will go - This presumption on a precarious life is here well reproved; and the ancient Jewish rabbins have some things on the subject which probably St. James had in view. In Debarim Rabba, sec. 9, fol. 261, 1, we have the following little story; "Our rabbins tell…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 13Go to now - The apostle here introduces a new subject, and refers to another fault which was doubtless prevalent among them, as it is everywhere, that of a presumptuous confidence respecting the future, or of forming plans stretching into the future, without any proper sense of the uncertainty of life, and of our absolute dependence on God. The phrase “go to now,” ( ̓́ ͂ age nunis a phrase designed to arrest attention, as if there were something that…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 11-17Verses 11-17 Our lips must be governed by the law of kindness, as well as truth and justice. Christians are brethren. And to break God's commands, is to speak evil of them, and to judge them, as if they laid too great a restraint upon us. We have the law of God, which is a rule to all; let us not presume to set up our own notions and opinions as a rule to those about us, and let us be careful that we be not condemned of the Lord. "Go to now," is a call to…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 13-16Traveling merchants relied on their own determination to overcome poverty and low social status. James encourages acknowledging God's providence. He also warns against making arrogant plans beyond one's control.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1313. Go to now--"Come now"; said to excite attention. ye that say--boasting of the morrow. To-day or to-morrow--as if ye had the free choice of either day as a certainty. Others read, "To-day and to-morrow." such a city--literally, "this the city" (namely, the one present to the mind of the speaker). This city here. continue ... a year--rather, "spend one year." Their language implies that when this one year is out, they purpose similarly settling plans…Read the comment
Topics related to James 4:13
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on James 4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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