James 1-5 (New American Standard Bible)

James 1

Testing Your Faith

 ^1(A)James, a ^(B)bond-servant of God and ^(C)of the Lord Jesus Christ, To ^(D)the twelve tribes who are ^(E)dispersed abroad: ^(F)Greetings.

 ^2(G)Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter ^(H)various trials,

 ³knowing that ^(I)the testing of your ^(J)faith produces ^(K)endurance.

 ⁴And let ^(L)endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be ^(M)perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

 ⁵But if any of you ^(N)lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and ^(O)it will be given to him.

 ⁶But he must ^(P)ask in faith ^(Q)without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, ^(R)driven and tossed by the wind.

 ⁷For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord,

 ⁸being a ^(S)double-minded man, ^(T)unstable in all his ways.

 ^9(U)But the brother of humble circumstances is to glory in his high position;

 ¹⁰and the rich man is to glory in his humiliation, because ^(V)like flowering grass he will pass away.

 ¹¹For the sun rises with ^(W)a scorching wind and ^(X)withers the grass; and its flower falls off and the beauty of its appearance is destroyed; so too the rich man in the midst of his pursuits will fade away.

 ^12(Y)Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive ^(Z)the crown of life which the Lord ^(AA)has promised to those who ^(AB)love Him.

 ¹³Let no one say when he is tempted, "^(AC)I am being tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone.

 ¹⁴But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.

 ¹⁵Then ^(AD)when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when ^(AE)sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.

 ^16(AF)Do not be deceived, ^(AG)my beloved brethren.

 ¹⁷Every good thing given and every perfect gift is ^(AH)from above, coming down from ^(AI)the Father of lights, ^(AJ)with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.

 ¹⁸In the exercise of ^(AK)His will He ^(AL)brought us forth by ^(AM)the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of ^(AN)first fruits among His creatures.

 ^19[a]This ^(AO)you know, ^(AP)my beloved brethren But everyone must be quick to hear, ^(AQ)slow to speak and ^(AR)slow to anger;

 ²⁰for ^(AS)the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.

 ²¹Therefore, ^(AT)putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive ^(AU)the word implanted, which is able to save your souls.

 ^22(AV)But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.

 ²³For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face ^(AW)in a mirror;

 ²⁴for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was.

 ²⁵But one who looks intently at the perfect law, ^(AX)the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be ^(AY)blessed in what he does.

 ²⁶If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not ^(AZ)bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man's religion is worthless.

 ²⁷Pure and undefiled religion ^(BA)in the sight of our God and Father is this: to ^(BB)visit ^(BC)orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by ^(BD)the world.

James 2

The Sin of Partiality

 ^1(BE)My brethren, ^(BF)do not hold your faith in our ^(BG)glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of ^(BH)personal favoritism.

 ²For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in ^(BI)fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in ^(BJ)dirty clothes,

 ³and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the ^(BK)fine clothes, and say, "You sit here in a good place," and you say to the poor man, "You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,"

 ⁴have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges ^(BL)with evil motives?

 ⁵Listen, ^(BM)my beloved brethren: did not ^(BN)God choose the poor of this world to be ^(BO)rich in faith and ^(BP)heirs of the kingdom which He ^(BQ)promised to those who love Him?

 ⁶But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and personally ^(BR)drag you into court?

 ^7(BS)Do they not blaspheme the fair name by which you have been called?

 ⁸If, however, you ^(BT)are fulfilling the royal law according to the Scripture, "^(BU)YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF," you are doing well.

 ⁹But if you ^(BV)show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.

 ¹⁰For whoever keeps the whole law and yet ^(BW)stumbles in one point, he has become ^(BX)guilty of all.

 ¹¹For He who said, "^(BY)DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY," also said, "^(BZ)DO NOT COMMIT MURDER." Now if you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a transgressor of the law.

 ¹²So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by ^(CA)the law of liberty.

 ¹³For ^(CB)judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.

Faith and Works

 ^14(CC)What use is it, ^(CD)my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him?

 ^15(CE)If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food,

 ¹⁶and one of you says to them, "^(CF)Go in peace, be warmed and be filled," and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?

 ¹⁷Even so ^(CG)faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.

 ^18(CH)But someone may well say, "You have faith and I have works; show me your ^(CI)faith without the works, and I will ^(CJ)show you my faith ^(CK)by my works."

 ¹⁹You believe that ^[b](CL)God is one ^(CM)You do well; ^(CN)the demons also believe, and shudder.

 ²⁰But are you willing to recognize, ^(CO)you foolish fellow, that ^(CP)faith without works is useless?

 ^21(CQ)Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar?

 ²²You see that ^(CR)faith was working with his works, and as a result of the ^(CS)works, faith was perfected;

 ²³and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "^(CT)AND ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS," and he was called ^(CU)the friend of God.

 ²⁴You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone.

 ²⁵In the same way, was not ^(CV)Rahab the harlot also justified by works ^(CW)when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?

 ²⁶For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also ^(CX)faith without works is dead.

James 3

The Tongue Is a Fire

 ^1(CY)Let not many of you become teachers, ^(CZ)my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment.

 ²For we all ^(DA)stumble in many ways ^(DB)If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a ^(DC)perfect man, able to ^(DD)bridle the whole body as well.

 ³Now ^(DE)if we put the bits into the horses' mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well.

 ⁴Look at the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires.

 ⁵So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it ^(DF)boasts of great things ^(DG)See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire!

 ⁶And ^(DH)the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which ^(DI)defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by ^(DJ)hell.

 ⁷For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by the human race.

 ⁸But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of ^(DK)deadly poison.

 ⁹With it we bless ^(DL)our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, ^(DM)who have been made in the likeness of God;

 ¹⁰from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way.

 ¹¹Does a fountain send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water?

 ^12(DN)Can a fig tree, my brethren, produce olives, or a vine produce figs? Nor can salt water produce fresh.

Wisdom from Above

 ¹³Who among you is wise and understanding? ^(DO)Let him show by his ^(DP)good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom.

 ¹⁴But if you have bitter ^(DQ)jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against ^(DR)the truth.

 ¹⁵This wisdom is not that which comes down ^(DS)from above, but is ^(DT)earthly, ^(DU)natural, ^(DV)demonic.

 ¹⁶For where ^(DW)jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing.

 ¹⁷But the wisdom ^(DX)from above is first ^(DY)pure, then ^(DZ)peaceable, ^(EA)gentle, reasonable, ^(EB)full of mercy and good fruits, ^(EC)unwavering, without ^(ED)hypocrisy.

 ¹⁸And the ^(EE)seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

James 4

Things to Avoid

 ¹What is the source of quarrels and ^(EF)conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage ^(EG)war in your members?

 ²You lust and do not have; so you ^(EH)commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask.

 ³You ask and ^(EI)do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.

 ⁴You ^(EJ)adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with ^(EK)the world is ^(EL)hostility toward God? ^(EM)Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

 ⁵Or do you think that the Scripture ^(EN)speaks to no purpose: "^[c]He jealously desires ^(EO)the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us"?

 ⁶But ^(EP)He gives a greater grace Therefore it says, "^(EQ)GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE."

 ^7(ER)Submit therefore to God ^(ES)Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

 ^8(ET)Draw near to God and He will draw near to you ^(EU)Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and ^(EV)purify your hearts, you ^(EW)double-minded.

 ^9(EX)Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom.

 ^10(EY)Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.

 ^11(EZ)Do not speak against one another, ^(FA)brethren He who speaks against a brother or ^(FB)judges his brother, speaks against ^(FC)the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not ^(FD)a doer of the law but a judge of it.

 ¹²There is only one ^(FE)Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is ^(FF)able to save and to destroy; but ^(FG)who are you who judge your neighbor?

 ^13(FH)Come now, you who say, "^(FI)Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit."

 ¹⁴Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. ^(FJ)You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away.

 ¹⁵Instead, you ought to say, "^(FK)If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that."

 ¹⁶But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; ^(FL)all such boasting is evil.

 ¹⁷Therefore, ^(FM)to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.

James 5

Misuse of Riches

 ^1(FN)Come now, ^(FO)you rich, ^(FP)weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you.

 ^2(FQ)Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten.

 ³Your gold and your silver have rusted; and their rust will be a witness against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is ^(FR)in the last days that you have stored up your treasure!

 ⁴Behold, ^(FS)the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and ^(FT)the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of ^(FU)the Lord of Sabaoth.

 ⁵You have ^(FV)lived luxuriously on the earth and led a life of wanton pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in ^(FW)a day of slaughter.

 ⁶You have condemned and ^(FX)put to death ^(FY)the righteous man; he does not resist you.

Exhortation

 ⁷Therefore be patient, ^(FZ)brethren, ^(GA)until the coming of the Lord ^(GB)The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets ^(GC)the early and late rains.

 ^8(GD)You too be patient; ^(GE)strengthen your hearts, for ^(GF)the coming of the Lord is ^(GG)near.

 ^9(GH)Do not complain, ^(GI)brethren, against one another, so that you yourselves may not be judged; behold, ^(GJ)the Judge is standing ^(GK)right at the door.

 ¹⁰As an example, ^(GL)brethren, of suffering and patience, take ^(GM)the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.

 ¹¹We count those ^(GN)blessed who endured You have heard of ^(GO)the endurance of Job and have seen ^(GP)the outcome of the Lord's dealings, that ^(GQ)the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.

 ¹²But above all, ^(GR)my brethren, ^(GS)do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath; but your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you may not fall under judgment.

 ¹³Is anyone among you ^(GT)suffering? ^(GU)Then he must pray Is anyone cheerful? He is to ^(GV)sing praises.

 ¹⁴Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for ^(GW)the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, ^(GX)anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord;

 ¹⁵and the ^(GY)prayer offered in faith will ^[d](GZ)restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will ^(HA)raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.

 ¹⁶Therefore, ^(HB)confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be ^(HC)healed ^(HD)The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.

 ¹⁷Elijah was ^(HE)a man with a nature like ours, and ^(HF)he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for ^(HG)three years and six months.

 ¹⁸Then he ^(HH)prayed again, and ^(HI)the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.

 ¹⁹My brethren, ^(HJ)if any among you strays from ^(HK)the truth and one turns him back,

 ²⁰let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will ^(HL)save his soul from death and will ^(HM)cover a multitude of sins.