James 4:16

James 4:16 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.
• New International Version (NIV)As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil.
• English Standard Version (ESV)As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.
• New King James Version (NKJV)But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.

Context of James 4:16

14How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. 15What you ought to say is, “If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.” Otherwise you are boasting about your own pretentious plans, and all such boasting is evil. 17Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.

James 4:16 word by word

νῦν δὲ καυχᾶσθε ἐν ταῖς ἀλαζονείαις ὑμῶν· πᾶσα καύχησις τοιαύτη πονηρά ἐστιν.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Butδέde · thenG1161
• nowνῦνnun · nowG3568
• ye rejoiceκαυχάομαιkauchaomai · to boastG2744
• inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• yourσύsu · youG4771
• boastingsὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• boastingsἀλαζονείαalazoneia · boastingG212
• allπᾶςpas · allG3956
• suchτοιοῦτοςtoioutos · such as thisG5108
• rejoicingκαύχησιςkauchēsis · prideG2746
• isεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• evilπονηρόςponēros · evil/badG4190

Cross-references for James 4:16

• James 3:14But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying.
• Psalms 52:1Why do you boast about your crimes, great warrior? Don’t you realize God’s justice continues forever?
• Proverbs 25:14A person who promises a gift but doesn’t give it is like clouds and wind that bring no rain.
• Proverbs 27:1Don’t brag about tomorrow, since you don’t know what the day will bring.
• Isaiah 47:7You said, ‘I will reign forever as queen of the world!’ You did not reflect on your actions or think about their consequences.
• 1 Corinthians 4:7For what gives you the right to make such a judgment? What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if everything you have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift?
• 1 Corinthians 5:6Your boasting about this is terrible. Don’t you realize that this sin is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough?
• Revelation 18:7She glorified herself and lived in luxury, so match it now with torment and sorrow. She boasted in her heart, ‘I am queen on my throne. I am no helpless widow, and I have no reason to mourn.’

Commentaries on James 4:16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16But now ye rejoice in your boastings - Ye glory in your proud and self-sufficient conduct, exulting that ye are free from the trammels of superstition, and that ye can live independently of God Almighty. All such boasting is wicked, , is impious. In an old English work, entitled, The godly man's picture drawn by a Scripture pencil, there are these words: "Some of those who despise religion say, Thank God we are not of this holy number! They who thank God…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16But now ye rejoice in your boastings - That is, probably, in your boastings of what you can do; your reliance on your own skill and sagacity. You form your plans for the future as if with consummate wisdom, and are confident of success. You do not anticipate a failure; you do not see how plans so skilfully formed can fail. You form them as if you were certain that you would live; as if secure from the numberless casualties which may defeat your schemes…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. 16Christians can proudly share what God has done (1:9–10). But they should not brag about their own plans. When people make plans without considering God's will, they act as if they control their own future. These kinds of plans assume that God has no authority over people's lives.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. now--as it is. rejoice in ... boastings--"ye boast in arrogant presumptions," namely, vain confident fancies that the future is certain to you (Jas 4:13). rejoicing--boasting [Bengel].Read the comment

Topics related to James 4:16

• Boasting
• Covetousness
• Presumption

In the dictionaries

• Adulterer
• Amiss
• Consume
• Enmity
• Flee
• Hence
• Lust
• Resist
• Sin
• Unruly

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