Original Word: כְּסִלָה
Part of Speech: Noun Feminine
Transliteration: kiclah
Pronunciation: kis-lah'
Phonetic Spelling: (kis-law')
KJV: confidence, folly
NASB: confidence, folly
Word Origin: [feminine of H3689 (כֶּסֶל - loins)]

1. in a good sense, trust
2. in a bad one, silliness

confidence, folly

Feminine of kecel; in a good sense, trust; in a bad one, silliness -- confidence, folly.

see HEBREW kecel

Word Origin
from kasal
Definition
stupidity, confidence
NASB Translation
confidence (1), folly (1).

כִּסְלָה noun feminine (Gie^{ZAW i, 1881, 304}).

1 stupidity Psalm 85:9 (but read לִבָּם לֹה ᵐ5 Bae Che).

2 confidence, suffix כִּסְלָתֶ֑ךָ Job 4:6.

Semantic Range and Core Idea

כְּסִלָה joins two apparently opposite notions—settled confidence and self-deceived folly. In Job 4:6 it speaks of assurance founded on godly reverence, whereas in Psalm 85:8 it warns against a relapse into reckless stupidity. The term therefore highlights the razor-thin boundary between faith-grounded security and arrogant, self-reliant complacency.

Occurrences in Scripture

• Job 4:6. Eliphaz asks Job, “Is not your reverence your confidence and the integrity of your ways your hope?”. Here כְּסִלָה stands for the solid inner rest that the righteous derive from walking in the fear of the LORD.
• Psalm 85:8. The psalmist resolves, “I will listen to what God the LORD will say; for He will surely speak peace to His people, His saints— but let them not return to folly.”. After exile, Israel must guard against falling back into the very mind-set that provoked divine discipline.

Historical and Literary Context

Job belongs to the wisdom corpus, wrestling with suffering and the reliability of traditional retribution theology. Eliphaz appeals to Job’s prior reputation for piety; his use of כְּסִלָה assumes that true fear of God normally yields unshakeable serenity.

Psalm 85 arises from the post-exilic period. Having tasted restoration, the community stands at a crossroads. Peace (שָׁלוֹם) is promised, but only if the people reject the folly of former generations. כְּסִלָה functions as a moral checkpoint, urging the returned exiles to remain vigilant.

Theological Significance

1. Confidence grounded in reverence. Scripture commends assurance that flows from a rightly ordered heart (Proverbs 3:26; Hebrews 10:35). Job 4:6 (even though voiced by an erring counselor) affirms this principle.
2. Folly as self-confident blindness. Psalm 85:8 echoes the wider biblical portrayal of folly as obstinate, self-satisfied rebellion (Proverbs 1:32; Romans 1:22).
3. Continuity of covenant themes. Both passages tie well-being to covenant fidelity. Security collapses when reverence is replaced by presumption.

Pastoral and Ministry Applications

• Encourage believers to cultivate a confidence that rests not in circumstances but in “the integrity of your ways” before God.
• Warn against the drift from healthy assurance to heedless complacency—an ever-present danger after seasons of blessing.
• Employ Psalm 85:8 in calls to repentance and renewal, reminding congregations that revival requires renouncing old patterns of כְּסִלָה.
• Use Job 4:6 to comfort sufferers: genuine piety does provide inner strength, though mysterious trials may still come.

Relation to Other Biblical Vocabulary

כְּסִלָה contrasts with חָכְמָה (wisdom) and בטח (trust). It overlaps with אִוֶּלֶת (folly) yet carries the added nuance of misplaced self-security. In the New Testament, the tension surfaces between πίστις (faith) that produces boldness (Hebrews 4:16) and the μωρία (folly) of self-boasting (2 Corinthians 11:17).

Summary

כְּסִלָה draws attention to the heart’s posture: when anchored in the fear of the LORD it yields calm confidence; when detached from that fear it degenerates into destructive folly. Scripture therefore treats the term as both promise and warning, urging God’s people to cultivate reverent trust while shunning the self-reliance that courts disaster.

כִּסְלָתֶ֑ךָ כסלתך לְכִסְלָֽה׃ לכסלה׃ kis·lā·ṯe·ḵā kislaTecha kislāṯeḵā lə·ḵis·lāh lechisLah ləḵislāhInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts