A common misinterpretation twists this verse to imply that God actively deceives people or endorses deception as His tool, suggesting He is the source of lies or moral ambiguity; instead, it highlights His sovereignty over human failings without attributing sin's origin to Him, as deception arises from human rebellion under His permissive will.
Job 12:16
King James Version (1769)
16 With him is strength and wisdom: the deceived and the deceiver are his.
Job 12:16 asserts God's absolute sovereignty, declaring that strength and wisdom reside with Him alone, and even the deceived and the deceiver fall under His dominion, meaning no power or cunning operates independently of His ultimate control and purpose in the universe.