Is ‘What Goes Around Comes Around’ Biblical?

Vivian Bricker Contributing Writer
Updated Jul 13, 2023

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"What goes around comes around" is a common saying in the modern day. I, for one, have heard this saying many times. Maybe you have too. My parents used to say this all the time to the point that it became gospel truth to me.

I truly believed what went around came around. It wasn't until I was older and had a firm understanding of the Bible that I was able to look at this saying from a biblical perspective.

What Goes Around Comes Around

"What goes around comes around" basically means what you do will come back to you. In a way, it is very similar to the Hindu and Buddhist beliefs of karma. It means if you do something bad, it will come back around to you.

In the same way, if you do something good, it will come back around to you, also. As I mentioned, my parents believed in this saying religiously despite it never actually being true.

I saw both my mom and dad do many great things, yet no great things ever came back around to them. Rather, terrible situation after terrible situation would happen.

Maybe you have noticed this in your life too. You do good to others, only for them to act mean back toward you. Or maybe you do a great job at work, only to lose the promotion to the new hire.

An Example from Job

Things like this happen because "what goes around comes around" isn't true, and it is definitely not a biblical concept. Take the example of Job. Job was a man who loved God and earnestly sought to serve God in every aspect of his life.

Despite doing this, Job was hit by many problems and difficulties. All of his children were killed, he developed sores all over his body, and everyone said harsh words against him.

Everyone treated Job poorly because they believed he had sinned and that God was cursing him for these terrible circumstances.

This was, of course, not true; however, the people believed it. In the same way, many people still believe in this type of thinking, similar to "what goes around comes around." Nowhere in the Bible are we told that Job did wrong.

Never did he curse God or accuse God of wrongdoing. Job went through a lot and suffered great loss through his trials. Despite this, Job never raises a harsh word against the Lord. Instead, He trusts Him and is aware that He didn't do anything wrong.

By looking at the example of Job, we see bad things can happen even if we don't act meanly towards others. In the same way, good things can happen to those who do bad things.

The concept of "what goes around comes around" is not biblical in any sense because it is not based on the Bible.

Throughout the Bible, we see multiple instances of people following God, yet they did not receive good things in their life. Similarly, we see bad people in the Bible who inherit thrones and kingdoms.

If we are truly looking at things with a biblical lens, we can see "what goes around comes around" isn't biblical. Not only is it not biblical, but it also is completely untrue. It is untrue because it is very rare that when we do good things, good things return to us.

Not to mention that we should not do good things with the hopes that something would return to us equally as good. Instead of doing good things to receive good things back, we should instead do good things because we want to serve God in this way.

None of us want to do bad things, but the sad part of living in a sinful world is that we all do bad things, and people will do bad things to us. It is unavoidable as we all fall short of God's glory (Romans 3:23).

Even though we might try our best to only do good to others, there will be times when we mess up and sin against others. It doesn't mean bad things will come our way when we mess up, but there can be consequences for our sins.

These consequences are in no way connected to "what goes around comes around." They are rather just simple side effects of the bad things we do. It is not sending some type of energy into the universe that will return bad things to our souls.

Beliefs like this come from unbiblical viewpoints and secular culture. Rather than basing our worldview on these things, we need to base our worldview on the Bible.

Once we base our worldview on the Bible, we will be able to better understand and deconstruct the unbiblical sayings we heard growing up.

Moving Forward

Moving forward from unbiblical sayings can be difficult because we have heard them most of our lives. Whenever someone we know uses a phrase such as "what goes around comes around," you can remember that it is not biblical.

Instead of falling back into the trap of believing this saying, we can remind ourselves of the Bible. Turn your heart and mind back to the Book of Job during these times. It can help refresh your heart and bring your mind back to being focused on the Word of God.

There are many things out in the world that try to deceive us. At first, they might seem harmless or as though nothing is wrong with saying a harmless saying. However, the phrase "what goes around comes around' is unbiblical and has strong ties with the concept of karma.

Most Christians would reject the belief in karma; however, if they endorse this saying, they are endorsing karma since they are so connected together.

Maybe you have found yourself as the person who normally says this saying. If you are, you can now be aware of the true message behind this saying and how it does not align with the Bible.

Knowing this should help you turn away from saying the phrase in the future as well as help other people stop using this phrase. Whenever people bring up this phrase, you can gently call them out on it and help them know what the Bible says concerning the matter.

Not everyone will be receptive, but you can still try your best to help educate others on the important truths of the Bible and how many sayings in the world are not biblical. If you have time, try to look at other sayings you heard growing up and see if they are biblical or not.

Unfortunately, many of the phrases and sayings we heard growing up are not biblical. If you are ever in doubt, turn to God in prayer and ask Him. He delights to hear from you and wants to help you work through each part of your life, including deconstructing any false beliefs.

It can be hard to break the habit of saying these phrases, yet God can help you. Each time you are tempted to say, "What goes around comes around," turn to the Book of Job or pull it up on your phone. Read a chapter or a verse to ground yourself back to God's Word.

This can help keep your heart and mind focused on the truth. In time, the habit of resorting to saying "what goes around comes around" will go away, and you will instead have biblical truth in your mind.

With this new understanding, you will not only be able to help yourself grow in your walk with Christ, but you will also be able to help others grow in their walk with Christ.

For further reading:

Are Karma and 'Reap What You Sow' the Same Thing?

What Is the Meaning of 'You Reap What You Sow'?

Do ‘Sins of the Father’ in the Bible Affect Us Now?

Vivian Bricker loves Jesus, studying the Word of God, and helping others in their walk with Christ. She has earned a Bachelor of Arts and Master's degree in Christian Ministry with a deep academic emphasis in theology. Her favorite things to do are spending time with her family and friends, reading, and spending time outside. When she is not writing, she is embarking on other adventures.