James 4:13

James 4:13 Meaning and Explanation

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:

King James Version (KJV)

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James addresses those who confidently plan their business ventures without thought of God.

What Does James 4:13 Mean?

James turns to confident planners. Come now, you who say, Today or tomorrow we will go to such a city, spend a year there, trade, and make a profit. He sketches the assured tone of those who map out the future as if it were entirely in their hands.

There is nothing wrong with planning or trade in itself. The fault James is about to name lies in the presumption, the quiet leaving of God out of the reckoning. These speakers arrange the year ahead, the place, the business, the gain, without a thought for the One who holds their days. The reader recognizes the familiar confidence of ordinary ambition. James pauses on it deliberately, preparing to remind us how little of tomorrow any of us actually commands.

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What does James 4:13 mean?

James addresses those who confidently plan their business ventures without thought of God.

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