James 2
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 2
Rich and Poor in the Christian Assembly.[a] 1 My brethren, since you are believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, you must never practice favoritism. 2 Suppose a man wearing a gold ring and expensive clothes comes into your assembly as well as a poor man dressed in shabby clothes. 3 If you lavish special attention on the one wearing the expensive clothes and say, “Please sit in this good seat,” while to the poor man you say, “Stand over there,” or “Sit on the floor at my feet,” 4 have you not shown favoritism among yourselves and judged by wrongful standards?
5 Listen to me, my beloved brethren. Did not God choose those who are poor[b] in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who love him? 6 But you have humiliated the poor man. Furthermore, is it not the rich who oppress you? Are they not the ones who drag you into court? 7 Is it not they who blaspheme the noble name that was invoked over you?
8 You will be doing well if you truly observe the sovereign law enjoined in Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 9 However, if you show partiality, you are committing a sin and stand convicted by the law as lawbreakers. 10 For whoever observes the whole Law but trips up on a single point is held guilty of breaking all of it.
11 The one who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not kill.” Now if you do not commit adultery but you do kill, you have become a lawbreaker. 12 Therefore, always speak and act as those who will be judged by the law of freedom. 13 For judgment will be without mercy to the one who has not shown mercy, but mercy triumphs over judgment.
14 True Faith Is Proved by Works.[c] What good is it, my brethren, if someone claims to have faith but does not have good works? Can such faith save him? 15 [d]Suppose a brother or sister is naked and lacks his or her daily food. 16 If one of you says to such a person, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat well,” but does not take care of that person’s physical needs, what is the good of that? 17 In the same way, faith by itself is dead if it does not have works.
18 But perhaps someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith without works, and by works I will show you my faith. 19 You believe that there is one God. You do well to assert that. But even the demons believe and tremble.
20 You fool! Do you want proof that faith without works is futile? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 Thus, you can see that his faith and his works were active together; his faith was brought to completion by works.
23 Thus, the words of Scripture were fulfilled that say, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called the friend of God. 24 You can see, then, that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone.
25 Likewise, Rahab the prostitute,[e] was she not also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them away by a different road? 26 For just as the body is dead without a spirit, so faith without works is also dead.
Footnotes
- James 2:1 Remaining impartial is the most difficult as well as the most significant demand of the Bible and the Gospel. But even in the liturgical assembly notables are often honored because of their fortune and their culture, while the poor are sometimes put down. The Gospel cannot stand for such discrimination. On the contrary, it calls for all to be poor.
- James 2:5 Poor: the poor of the Lord, who relied on God alone and were in turn loved by God and under his protection (see Ps 35:10; Isa 61:1; Mt 5:3; 11:5; Lk 6:20; 1 Cor 1:17-20).
- James 2:14 The main concern of the Letter is expressed in this passage. The author attacks a faith that is satisfied with words and ideas that do not lay hold of one’s existence and do not find expression in charity and prayer. Paul had said that salvation comes only through faith in Jesus Christ, but this is a faith that unsettles and transforms one’s life (see Rom 3:28; Gal 2:16). Like him, James, too, gives Abraham, the model for believers, as an example, but at first sight the two writers seem to draw contrary conclusions. In fact, however, James regards Abraham’s action as a gesture and expression of his faith; in this context, Paul speaks rather of the fruits of the Spirit (see Rom 12–14; 1 Cor 13:1; 4:20; Gal 5:13; 6:10). The two writers both cite Rahab, of whom the Book of Joshua speaks. The Letter of James by no means minimizes faith; rather it demands an authentic life.
- James 2:15 These verses illustrate a faith that is faulty similar to the way 1 Jn 3:17 illustrates a love that is faulty. What is needed is a faith that is genuine, i.e., operative.
- James 2:25 Rahab the prostitute: the author of the Letter is not intending to approve Rahab’s occupation but simply to commend the faith she showed in helping the spies (see Jos 2; see also Heb 11:31).
James 2
New International Reader's Version
Treat Everyone the Same
2 My brothers and sisters, you are believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. So treat everyone the same. 2 Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes. And suppose a poor man in dirty old clothes also comes in. 3 Would you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes? Would you say, “Here’s a good seat for you”? Would you say to the poor man, “You stand there”? Or “Sit on the floor by my feet”? 4 If you would, aren’t you treating some people better than others? Aren’t you like judges who have evil thoughts?
5 My dear brothers and sisters, listen to me. Hasn’t God chosen those who are poor in the world’s eyes to be rich in faith? Hasn’t he chosen them to receive the kingdom? Hasn’t he promised it to those who love him? 6 But you have disrespected poor people. Aren’t rich people taking advantage of you? Aren’t they dragging you into court? 7 Aren’t they speaking evil things against the worthy name of Jesus? Remember, you belong to him.
8 The royal law is found in Scripture. It says, “Love your neighbor as you love yourself.” (Leviticus 19:18) If you really keep this law, you are doing what is right. 9 But you sin if you don’t treat everyone the same. The law judges you because you have broken it. 10 Suppose you keep the whole law but trip over just one part of it. Then you are guilty of breaking all of it. 11 God said, “Do not commit adultery.” (Exodus 20:14; Deuteronomy 5:18) He also said, “Do not commit murder.” (Exodus 20:13; Deuteronomy 5:17) Suppose you don’t commit adultery but do commit murder. Then you have broken the law.
12 Speak and act like people who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom. 13 Those who have not shown mercy will not receive mercy when they are judged. To show mercy is better than to judge.
Show Your Faith by What You Do
14 Suppose a person claims to have faith but doesn’t act on their faith. My brothers and sisters, can this kind of faith save them? 15 Suppose a brother or a sister has no clothes or food. 16 Suppose one of you says to them, “Go. I hope everything turns out fine for you. Keep warm. Eat well.” And suppose you do nothing about what they really need. Then what good have you done? 17 It is the same with faith. If it doesn’t cause us to do something, it’s dead.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith. I do good deeds.”
Show me your faith that doesn’t cause you to do good deeds. And I will show you my faith by the goods deeds I do. 19 You believe there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that. And they tremble!
20 You foolish person! Do you want proof that faith without good deeds is useless? 21 Our father Abraham offered his son Isaac on the altar. Wasn’t he considered to be right with God because of what he did? 22 So you see that what he believed and what he did were working together. What he did made his faith complete. 23 That is what Scripture means where it says, “Abraham believed God. God accepted Abraham because he believed. So his faith made him right with God.” (Genesis 15:6) And that’s not all. God called Abraham his friend. 24 So you see that a person is considered right with God by what they do. It doesn’t happen only because they believe.
25 Didn’t God consider even Rahab the prostitute to be right with him? That’s because of what she did for the spies. She gave them a place to stay. Then she sent them off in a different direction. 26 A person’s body without their spirit is dead. In the same way, faith without good deeds is dead.
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