James 5
Wycliffe Bible
5 Do now, ye rich men, weep ye, yelling in your wretchednesses that shall come to you.
2 Your riches be rotten, and your clothes be eaten of moths.
3 Your gold and silver hath rusted, and the rust of them shall be to you into witnessing, and shall eat your fleshes, as fire. Ye have treasured to you wrath in the last days.
4 Lo! the hire of your workmen, that reaped your fields, which is defrauded of you [which is frauded of you], crieth; and the cry of them hath entered into the ears of the Lord of hosts.
5 Ye have eaten on the earth, and in your lecheries ye have nourished your hearts. In the day of slaying
6 ye brought, and slew the just man, and he against-stood not you [and he withstood you not].
7 Therefore, brethren, be ye patient, till to the coming of the Lord. Lo! an earth-tiller abideth [the] precious fruit of the earth, patiently suffering, till he receive timeful and lateful fruit.
8 And be ye patient, and confirm ye your hearts, for the coming of the Lord shall approach. [And be ye patient, and confirm your hearts, for the coming of the Lord shall nigh.]
9 Brethren, do not ye be sorrowful each to other [Brethren, do not ye be scornful each to other], that ye be not deemed. Lo! the judge standeth nigh before the gate.
10 Brethren, take ye ensample of evil going out, and of long abiding, and travail [Brethren, take ye example of evil going out, and of long abiding of travail], and of patience, the prophets, that spake to you in the name of the Lord.
11 Lo! we bless them that suffered. Ye have heard the patience of Job, and ye saw the end of the Lord, for the Lord is merciful, and doing mercy.
12 Before all things, my brethren, do not ye swear, neither by heaven, neither by earth, neither by whatever other oath. But be your word Yea, yea, Nay, nay, that ye fall not under doom.
13 And if any of you is sorrowful [Soothly if any of you is sorrowful, or heavy], pray he with patient soul, and say he a psalm.
14 If any of you is sick, lead he in priests of the church, and pray they for him, and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord [anointing with oil in the name of the Lord];
15 and the prayer of faith shall save the sick man, and the Lord shall make him light[a]; and if he be in sins, they shall be forgiven to him.
16 Therefore acknowledge ye each to other your sins, and pray ye each for other, that ye be saved [Therefore acknowledge ye one to another your sins, and pray ye for each other, that ye be saved]. For the continual prayer of a just man is much worth.
17 Elias was a deadly man like us [Elias was a man like to us passible, or able to suffer], and in prayer he prayed, that it should not rain on the earth, and it rained not three years and six months.
18 And again he prayed, and heaven gave rain, and the earth gave his fruit.
19 And, brethren, if any of you erreth from truth, and any converteth him, [Brethren, forsooth if any of you shall err from the truth, and any shall convert him,]
20 he oweth to know, that he that maketh a sinner to be turned from the error of his way, shall save the soul of him from death, and covereth the multitude of sins. [Amen.]
Footnotes
- James 5:15 and the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall discharge him, or make him light
James 5
New Matthew Bible
He threatens the wicked rich people. He exhorts to patience, to beware of swearing, to acknowledge our faults to one another, to pray for one another, and one to labour to bring another to the truth.
5 Come now, ye rich people. Weep and howl over your wretchedness that will come upon you. 2 Your riches are corrupt; your garments are moth eaten. 3 Your gold and your silver are cankered, and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and will eat your flesh as it were fire.
You have heaped treasure together in your last days. 4 Behold, the wages of the labourers who have reaped down your fields (which wages you kept back by fraud) cry out, and the cries of those who reaped have entered into the ears of the Lord Sabaoth. 5 You have lived in pleasure on the earth, and in wantonness. You have fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and have killed the just, and he has not resisted you.
7 Be patient therefore, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waits for the precious fruit of the earth, and has long patience for it, until it receives the early and the latter rain. 8 You also, be patient therefore, and settle your hearts. For the coming of the Lord draws near.
9 Do not grudge against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the judge stands before the door.
10 Take, my brethren, the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord for an example of suffering adversity, and of long patience. 11 Behold, we count them happy who endure. You have heard of the patience of Job, and have known what end the Lord made. For the Lord is very pitiful and merciful.
12 But above all things, my brethren, swear not – neither by heaven, nor by earth, nor by any other oath. Let your yes be yes, and your no no, lest you fall into hypocrisy.
13 If any of you be vexed with sorrows, let him pray. If any of you be merry, let him sing psalms. 14 If any be diseased among you, let him call for the elders of the congregation, and let them pray over him, and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.
16 Confess your faults to one another. And pray for one another, that you may be healed: The fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. 17 Elijah was a man mortal just as we are, and he prayed in his prayer that it might not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. 18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruits.
19 Brethren, if any of you err from the truth and another converts him, 20 let him know that he who turned the sinner from going astray out of his way will save a soul from death, and will hide the multitude of sins.
The end of the epistle
of Saint James.
James 5
1599 Geneva Bible
5 1 He threateneth the rich with God’s severe judgment, for their pride, 7 that the poor hearing the miserable end of the rich, 8 may patiently bear afflictions, 11 as Job did, 14 even in their distresses.
1 Go [a]to now, ye rich men: weep, and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.
2 Your riches are corrupt, and your garments are moth eaten.
3 Your gold and silver is cankered, and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh, as it were fire. Ye have heaped up treasure for the last days.
4 Behold, the hire of the laborers, which have reaped your fields (which is of you kept back by fraud) crieth, and the cries of them which have reaped, are entered into the [b]ears of the Lord of hosts.
5 Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and in wantonness. Ye have [c]nourished your hearts, as in a [d]day of slaughter.
6 Ye have condemned, and have killed the just, and he hath not resisted you.
7 [e]Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. [f]Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the former, and the latter rain.
8 Be ye also patient therefore, and settle your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth near.
9 [g][h]Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: [i]behold, the judge standeth before the door.
10 [j]Take, my brethren, the Prophets for an example of suffering adversity, and of long patience, which have spoken in the name of the Lord.
11 Behold, we count them blessed which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have known what [k]end the Lord made. For the Lord is very pitiful and merciful.
12 [l]But before all things, my brethren, (A)swear not, neither by heaven, nor by earth, nor by any other oath: but let [m]your yea, be yea, and your nay, nay, lest ye fall into condemnation.
13 [n]Is any among you afflicted? Let him pray. Is any merry? Let him sing.
14 [o]Is any sick among you? Let him call for the Elders of the Church, and let them pray for him, and anoint him with (B)[p]oil in the [q]Name of the Lord.
15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up: and if he have committed [r]sins, they shall be forgiven him.
16 [s]Acknowledge your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed: [t]for the prayer of a righteous man availeth much, if it be fervent.
17 (C)Elijah was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it rained not on the earth for three years and six months.
18 And he prayed again: and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.
19 [u]Brethren, (D)If any of you hath erred from the truth, and some man hath [v]converted him,
20 Let him know that he which hath converted the sinner from going astray out of his way, shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.
Footnotes
- James 5:1 He denounceth utter destruction to the wicked and profane rich men, and such as are drowned in their riotousness, mocking at their foolish confidence when as there is nothing indeed more vain than such things.
- James 5:4 The Lord who is more mighty than ye are, hath heard them.
- James 5:5 Ye have pampered up yourselves.
- James 5:5 The Hebrews call a day that is appointed to solemn banqueting, a day of slaughter or feasting.
- James 5:7 He applieth that to the poor, which he spake against the rich, warning them to wait for the Lord’s coming patiently, who will revenge the injuries which the rich men do them.
- James 5:7 The taking away of an objection: Although his coming serve to linger, yet at the least we must follow the husbandmen, who do patiently wait for the times that are proper for the fruits of the earth. And again, God will not defer the least iota of the time that he hath appointed.
- James 5:9 He commendeth Christian patience, so that whereas others through impatience use to accuse one another, the faithful on the contrary side complain not, although they receive injury.
- James 5:9 By grudging, he meaneth a certain inward complaining which betokeneth impatience.
- James 5:9 The conclusion: The Lord is at the door, who will defend his own, and revenge his enemies, and therefore we need not to trouble ourselves.
- James 5:10 Because most men are wont to object, that it is good to repel injuries by what means soever, he setteth against that, the examples of the Fathers, whose patience had a most happy end, because God as a most bountiful Father, never forsaketh his.
- James 5:11 What end the Lord gave.
- James 5:12 Because even the best men sometimes through impatience break out into oaths sometimes lesser, sometimes greater, the Apostle warneth us to detest such wickedness, and to accustom our tongues to simple and true talk.
- James 5:12 That that you have to say or affirm, speak or affirm it simply, and without an oath: and that that you will deny, deny it simply and flatly.
- James 5:13 He showeth the best remedy against all afflictions, to wit, prayers which have their place both in sorrow and joy.
- James 5:14 He showeth peculiarly, to what physicians especially we must go, when we are diseased, to wit, to the prayers of the Elders, which then also could cure the body, (for so much as the gift of healing was then in force) and take away the chiefest cause of sickness and diseases, by obtaining for the sick through their prayers and exhortations, remission of sins.
- James 5:14 This was a sign of the gift of healing: and now seeing we have the gift no more, the sign is no longer necessary.
- James 5:14 By calling on the Name of the Lord.
- James 5:15 He hath reason in making mention of sins, for diseases are for the most part sent because of sins.
- James 5:16 Because God pardoneth their sins which confess and acknowledge them, and not theirs which justify themselves, therefore the Apostle addeth, that we ought freely to confer one with another touching those inward diseases, that we may help one another with our prayers.
- James 5:16 He commendeth prayers by the effects that come of them, that all men may understand that there is nothing more effectual than they are, so that they proceed from a pure mind.
- James 5:19 The taking away of an objection: All reprehensions are not condemned, seeing that on the contrary part there is nothing more acceptable to God, than to call into the way a brother that was wandering out of the way.
- James 5:19 Hath called him back from his way.
James 5
Authorized (King James) Version
5 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. 2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten. 3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days. 4 Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth. 5 Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter. 6 Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.
7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. 8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. 9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door. 10 Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. 11 Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.
12 But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.
13 Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms. 14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: 15 and the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. 16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. 17 Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. 18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.
19 Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; 20 let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.
2001 by Terence P. Noble
Copyright © 2016 by Ruth Magnusson (Davis). Includes emendations to February 2022. All rights reserved.
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
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