James 4 16

James 4:16 kjv

But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.

James 4:16 nkjv

But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.

James 4:16 niv

As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil.

James 4:16 esv

As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.

James 4:16 nlt

Otherwise you are boasting about your own pretentious plans, and all such boasting is evil.

James 4 verses

James 4 16 Meaning

James 4:16 states that the human tendency to boast arrogantly about one's future plans and self-assured abilities, without acknowledging God's sovereignty, is not merely unseemly but profoundly evil. It highlights that such prideful presumption and self-reliance, which elevate the self above God, are morally wrong and wicked in God's eyes, originating from a heart of worldly pride.

James 4 16 Context

James 4 opens with a sharp critique of conflicts among believers, tracing them back to selfish desires, covetousness, and prayerlessness rooted in wrong motives (v. 1-3). James then strongly condemns "friendship with the world" as spiritual adultery, emphasizing that God is a jealous God who fiercely desires the devotion of His people (v. 4-5). This leads to the fundamental truth in verse 6 that "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble," serving as a foundation for his exhortations to submission, repentance, and humility before God (v. 7-10). The epistle then shifts to caution against judging one another, reminding believers that only God is the Lawgiver and Judge (v. 11-12). Verses 13-15 directly precede our verse, addressing the folly of those who arrogantly plan their future business ventures ("Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit") without acknowledging the brevity and uncertainty of life, or God's sovereign will ("if the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that"). Verse 16 directly follows this, identifying the specific "boasting" arising from such self-reliant future planning as arrogance and declaring it "evil." It is a direct polemic against a prevalent worldly mindset that operates as if human plans and desires are paramount, completely independent of God's ultimate control.

James 4 16 Word analysis

• νῦν δὲ (nyn de) – "As it is" / "But now": A conjunction denoting a strong contrast or transition. It signals a shift from the humble, God-dependent mindset described in the previous verse (v. 15, "If the Lord wills") to the ungodly reality of the audience's current behavior, setting up the condemnation that follows.
• καυχᾶσθε (kauchasthe) – "you boast": This verb is in the present tense, implying a habitual, ongoing practice rather than an isolated incident. Kauchaoomai means to boast, brag, or glory. While it can be used positively in the Bible (e.g., boasting in the Lord), here, the surrounding context and especially the accompanying noun alazoneia make it clear it refers to an arrogant and unwarranted form of boasting.
• ἐν ταῖς ἀλαζονείαις ὑμῶν (en tais alazoneiais hymōn) – "in your arrogance" / "in your boastings":
  • Alazoneia (ἀλαζονεία): This crucial Greek term signifies boastful presumption, vainglory, insolent display, or arrogant swagger. It refers to an empty, inflated pretense of what one is not or what one does not truly possess. It often implies a deceptive and exaggerated self-importance, linked to the "pride of life" (1 Jn 2:16). It represents a confident display of one's own power or foresight without a proper grounding in reality or acknowledgment of divine control.
  • The plural form ("ἀλαζονείαις") suggests that the audience engages in multiple acts or forms of this arrogant, empty boasting.
• πᾶσα (pasa) – "All": This term is an emphatic and absolute quantifier, stressing that every single instance or every type of such boastful arrogance is encompassed by the condemnation. It leaves no room for exception.
• καύχησις (kauchēsis) – "boasting": The noun form of kauchaomai. Here, it functions as a summary term, referring to the entire act of boasting as just described, i.e., "such boasting."
• τοιαύτη (toiautē) – "such": This demonstrative adjective clarifies that not all boasting is evil, but only boasting of this particular kind—namely, boasting that stems from arrogance (alazoneia). It explicitly connects the condemnation back to the specific quality of the boasting previously defined.
• πονηρά (ponēra) – "is evil": This is a strong, definitive word choice. Ponēra describes that which is fundamentally bad, wicked, or malicious in a moral sense. It indicates active wrongdoing, often implying destructiveness or a harmful quality, rather than merely "unwise" or "improper." It carries a more severe moral judgment than simply "bad"; it suggests hostility to God's nature and is the same term often used to refer to "the evil one" (Satan) or moral wickedness.

Words-group by words-group analysis

• "you boast in your arrogance": This phrase directly links the outward action of "boasting" (their presumptuous plans for the future) to the inward, corrupt root of "arrogance" (alazoneia). It reveals that their speech is merely an outward manifestation of an inward spiritual disease of self-sufficiency and overconfidence, a deep-seated contempt for acknowledging God's role in their lives.
• "All such boasting is evil": This sentence serves as James's stark verdict. The combination of "All" and "such" emphasizes that every instance of boasting rooted in arrogance—their worldly confidence in future ventures apart from God—is universally and inherently sinful. Calling it "evil" (ponēra) elevates this behavior beyond mere foolishness or social impropriety, identifying it as an active offense against God's nature and sovereignty. It means it is morally corrupt and leads to detrimental outcomes, both spiritually and practically.

James 4 16 Bonus section

The term alazoneia often carries the connotation of a display, an empty pretense intended to impress others or bolster one's own sense of significance. It's an outward show of strength or wisdom that lacks substance in the sight of God. This particular condemnation is part of James's broader attack on worldliness, pride, and hypocrisy, urging believers to align their attitudes and actions with the will of God rather than with the prevailing self-reliant values of the age. It forces a self-examination of one's fundamental trust: is it placed in human ability and foresight, or humbly in the benevolent and sovereign will of the Almighty?

James 4 16 Commentary

James 4:16 provides a penetrating insight into the spiritual danger of pride and self-sufficiency, particularly in the context of planning for the future. The apostle condemns a specific type of boasting: that which arises from alazoneia, a boastful presumption born of inflated self-importance and a disregard for God's sovereign control over life. This is not mere ambition but a spiritual arrogance that assumes full command over one's life, time, and success, as though God's will were irrelevant. James does not just call it foolish or unwise; he labels it "evil" (ponēra), underscoring its inherent sinfulness. Such a strong word signifies that this arrogant independence is not merely a venial fault but an active offense against the God who gives breath and ordains every moment. It reveals a heart alienated from humility and submission to God, breeding conflict (as seen earlier in James 4) and standing in opposition to grace (v. 6). Instead of humbly submitting all plans to divine will, this attitude demonstrates a practical atheism, where human capacity and determination become the ultimate standard.

Practical examples:

• An entrepreneur declaring, "By this time next year, I'll have tripled my income, no matter what," without a sense of dependence on God.
• A student proclaiming, "I'll ace this exam and get into that top university, without breaking a sweat," relying purely on self-ability and dismissing divine providence.
• Individuals confidently mapping out a perfect retirement scenario years in advance, assuming continuous health, stable finances, and uninterrupted peace, neglecting to humbly entrust their days to the Lord.