Job 12:24 kjv
He taketh away the heart of the chief of the people of the earth, and causeth them to wander in a wilderness where there is no way.
Job 12:24 nkjv
He takes away the understanding of the chiefs of the people of the earth, And makes them wander in a pathless wilderness.
Job 12:24 niv
He deprives the leaders of the earth of their reason; he makes them wander in a trackless waste.
Job 12:24 esv
He takes away understanding from the chiefs of the people of the earth and makes them wander in a trackless waste.
Job 12:24 nlt
He strips kings of understanding
and leaves them wandering in a pathless wasteland.
Job 12 24 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Dan 4:34-35 | "His dominion is an everlasting dominion... He does according to His will..." | God's eternal dominion over kingdoms. |
| Psa 75:6-7 | "For promotion comes neither from the east nor from the west... but God is the Judge." | God exalts and humbles. |
| 1 Sam 2:7-8 | "The LORD makes poor and makes rich... He brings low and lifts up." | God's control over destiny and status. |
| Pro 16:18 | "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." | Consequences of human pride. |
| Isa 40:23 | "He brings princes to nothing and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness." | God nullifies earthly rulers. |
| Isa 44:25 | "Who frustrates the signs of liars and makes fools of diviners..." | God thwarts human wisdom and false prophets. |
| 1 Cor 1:19 | "For it is written: 'I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the cleverness of the clever I will set aside.'" | God renders human wisdom foolish. |
| 1 Cor 1:20 | "Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?" | God humbles worldly wisdom. |
| Psa 33:10-11 | "The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He frustrates the plans of the peoples." | God frustrates national plans. |
| Isa 19:11-14 | "...where are your wise men? Let them tell you now... The LORD has mixed within her a spirit of confusion." | God confounds the wise counselors of Egypt. |
| Dt 28:28-29 | "The LORD will strike you with madness... and you will grope at noon day, as the blind grope in darkness..." | Curse of disorientation for disobedience. |
| Jer 2:6 | "Nor did they ask, 'Where is the LORD... who led us through the wilderness...'" | Israel wandering in a trackless land. |
| Amos 8:12 | "They shall wander from sea to sea... seeking the word of the LORD, but they shall not find it." | Spiritual wandering due to lack of truth. |
| Lam 4:14 | "They wandered blindly through the streets..." | Leaders disoriented due to sin and judgment. |
| Psa 107:4 | "Some wandered in desert wastes, finding no way to a city to dwell in;" | Description of physical/spiritual wandering. |
| Rev 16:12 | "The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up, to prepare the way for the kings from the east." | God preparing paths for judgment. |
| Psa 115:3 | "Our God is in the heavens; He does all that He pleases." | God's absolute sovereign power. |
| Gen 1:2 | "The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep." | Imagery of "tohu" (waste/formless) re-established. |
| Job 5:12-14 | "He frustrates the devices of the crafty, so that their hands achieve no success... in the daytime they meet with darkness." | God thwarts the schemes of the cunning. |
| Dan 2:20-21 | "He changes times and seasons; He removes kings and sets up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding." | God's ultimate control over all rule and wisdom. |
| Luke 1:51-52 | "He has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; He has brought down the mighty from their thrones..." | God's reversal of status for the proud. |
Job 12 verses
Job 12 24 Meaning
This verse declares God's absolute sovereignty over human authority and wisdom. It means that God has the power to remove the sound judgment, discernment, and administrative capacity of even the most prominent and powerful leaders on earth, causing them to lose their direction entirely and wander helplessly as if in a desolate, trackless wilderness. This is an assertion that human strength and intellect are nothing before the divine will, demonstrating God's ultimate control over nations and their leaders, often as a form of judgment or a display of His superior power.
Job 12 24 Context
Job 12:24 is part of Job’s extended response to his friends (chapters 12-14), specifically after Eliphaz’s speech and potentially a reaction to Zophar’s previous speech as well. Job is asserting God's incomprehensible power and sovereignty, contrasting it with the limited wisdom and understanding of humans, including his friends who claimed to understand God's ways perfectly. He emphasizes that God is not only the Creator but also the active Sustainer and Controller of all things, including the destinies of nations and their rulers. This verse particularly highlights God's ability to humble the proud and confuse the wise, undermining the human reliance on intellect or authority. In ancient Near Eastern cultures, a ruler's wisdom was seen as divinely bestowed, making the removal of that wisdom a potent symbol of divine judgment or ultimate control.
Job 12 24 Word analysis
- He: Refers to God, as is clear from Job's preceding statements (e.g., Job 12:9-10). It signifies the ultimate, sovereign actor behind the described events.
- takes away (סוּר - sûr): Hebrew verb meaning "to turn aside, remove, depart." It implies an active divine removal, not mere permission. God directly intervenes to strip them of something.
- the understanding (טַעַם - ṭaʿam): This word means "taste," but in this context, it metaphorically signifies discernment, judgment, sense, or discretion. It's the practical wisdom needed for governing and leadership, the ability to make sound decisions.
- of the chiefs (רָאשֵׁי - rāʾshê): From rosh, meaning "head, chief, leader." These are the most prominent and authoritative figures, those at the pinnacle of power in society or a nation.
- of the people of the earth (ʿam hāʾāreṣ): This refers to the nations or societies of the world, emphasizing the global scope of God's power and influence, encompassing all humanity and its established structures.
- and makes them wander (וַיַּתְעֵם - wayyaṯʿêm, from תָּעָה - taʿah): Hebrew verb meaning "to err, wander astray, go astray, stagger, reel." The causative form indicates God actively causes them to lose their way, to be led into confusion and disorientation. It's an internal confusion of mind and purpose.
- in a pathless waste (בְּתֹהוּ לֹא־דֶרֶךְ - bəṯōhû lōʾ-dereḵ): This is a powerful double image. Tohu (תֹּהוּ) means "chaos, desolation, formlessness, emptiness" (as in Gen 1:2). Lo-derekh (לֹא־דֶרֶךְ) means "no path, trackless." Together, it vividly portrays a state of complete disorientation, confusion, and futility, where there is no clear direction, purpose, or escape by their own means.
Words-group by words-group analysis:
- He takes away the understanding: This phrase highlights God's ability to unilaterally revoke the very attribute that makes leaders effective – their wisdom and discretion. It underscores their complete dependence on Him, whether acknowledged or not.
- of the chiefs of the people of the earth: This emphasizes the extent of God's power. It's not just individuals, but the most powerful and influential people, governing vast populations, whose intellectual and decision-making capacities God can remove. This shows no human authority is beyond His reach.
- and makes them wander in a pathless waste: This illustrates the consequence of losing divine guidance and wisdom. Leaders stripped of ṭaʿam become ineffective, their plans collapse, and they lead themselves and their people into chaos and ruin, like blind individuals lost in a desert, with no map or direction. The imagery of tohu connects to a primal, pre-creation state of disorder, signifying a return to confusion and barrenness in human affairs.
Job 12 24 Bonus section
- This verse can be seen as an illustration of the divine response to human pride and self-sufficiency, particularly in positions of power. When leaders attribute their success to their own intellect or strength, God may allow them to fall into disarray to demonstrate His supreme control.
- The phrase "pathless waste" (bəṯōhû lōʾ-dereḵ) contains tohu, which immediately echoes Gen 1:2 ("without form and void"). This connection suggests that God can revert created order, specifically the order established by human governance, back to a state of primordial chaos and confusion if it pleases Him. This speaks to a radical act of divine undoing of human attempts at control and stability.
- The spiritual implication is that apart from God's wisdom, humanity, even its most enlightened minds, will wander aimlessly, demonstrating a dependence on divine guidance not just for individual righteousness, but also for societal function and leadership effectiveness.
Job 12 24 Commentary
Job 12:24 serves as a profound declaration of God's absolute sovereignty over human intellect, power, and destiny. Job uses this vivid imagery to convey that God's power is not just theoretical but actively manifested in the affairs of the world, even to the extent of confounding the wisest and most authoritative leaders. When God removes the "understanding" or sound judgment of rulers, their elaborate plans unravel, their discerning advice becomes foolishness, and their governance leads to chaos rather than order. The "pathless waste" signifies total disorientation and a return to primal disorder, implying that human leadership, devoid of divine wisdom, leads to inevitable self-destruction. This verse reinforces Job's overarching argument that God's ways are beyond human comprehension and control, offering both a warning to the proud and comfort to the afflicted that no earthly power can ultimately stand against God's will.