James 4
Christian Standard Bible
Proud or Humble
4 What is the source of wars and fights among you? Don’t they come from your passions(A) that wage war within you?[a] 2 You desire and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and wage war.[b] You do not have because you do not ask. 3 You ask and don’t receive because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.(B)
4 You adulterous people![c] Don’t you know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? So whoever wants to be the friend of the world becomes the enemy of God.(C) 5 Or do you think it’s without reason that the Scripture says: The spirit he made to dwell in us envies intensely?[d](D)
6 But he gives greater grace. Therefore he says:
7 Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.(F) 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.(G) 9 Be miserable and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.(H) 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
11 Don’t criticize one another, brothers and sisters. Anyone who defames or judges a fellow believer[f] defames and judges the law. If you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge.(I) 12 There is one lawgiver and judge[g] who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?(J)
Our Will and God’s Will
13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will travel to such and such a city and spend a year there and do business and make a profit.”(K) 14 Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring—what your life will be! For you are like vapor that appears for a little while, then vanishes.(L)
15 Instead, you should say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” 16 But as it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.(M) 17 So it is sin to know the good and yet not do it.(N)
Footnotes
- 4:1 Or war in your members
- 4:2 Or You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and wage war.
- 4:4 Lit Adulteresses
- 4:5 Or Scripture says: He jealously yearns for the spirit he made to live in us?, or Scripture says: The Spirit he made to dwell in us longs jealously?
- 4:6 Pr 3:34
- 4:11 Or his brother or sister
- 4:12 Other mss omit and judge
ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4
SBL Greek New Testament
4 Πόθεν πόλεμοι καὶ [a]πόθεν μάχαι ἐν ὑμῖν; οὐκ ἐντεῦθεν, ἐκ τῶν ἡδονῶν ὑμῶν τῶν στρατευομένων ἐν τοῖς μέλεσιν ὑμῶν; 2 ἐπιθυμεῖτε, καὶ οὐκ ἔχετε· φονεύετε καὶ ζηλοῦτε, καὶ οὐ δύνασθε ἐπιτυχεῖν· μάχεσθε καὶ πολεμεῖτε. οὐκ ἔχετε διὰ τὸ μὴ αἰτεῖσθαι ὑμᾶς· 3 αἰτεῖτε καὶ οὐ λαμβάνετε, διότι κακῶς αἰτεῖσθε, ἵνα ἐν ταῖς ἡδοναῖς ὑμῶν δαπανήσητε. 4 [b]μοιχαλίδες, οὐκ οἴδατε ὅτι ἡ φιλία τοῦ κόσμου ἔχθρα τοῦ θεοῦ ἐστιν; ὃς [c]ἐὰν οὖν βουληθῇ φίλος εἶναι τοῦ κόσμου, ἐχθρὸς τοῦ θεοῦ καθίσταται. 5 ἢ δοκεῖτε ὅτι κενῶς ἡ γραφὴ λέγει· Πρὸς φθόνον ἐπιποθεῖ τὸ πνεῦμα ὃ [d]κατῴκισεν ἐν ἡμῖν; 6 μείζονα δὲ δίδωσιν χάριν· διὸ λέγει· Ὁ θεὸς ὑπερηφάνοις ἀντιτάσσεται ταπεινοῖς δὲ δίδωσιν χάριν. 7 ὑποτάγητε οὖν τῷ θεῷ· ἀντίστητε δὲ τῷ διαβόλῳ, καὶ φεύξεται ἀφ’ ὑμῶν· 8 ἐγγίσατε τῷ θεῷ, καὶ [e]ἐγγιεῖ ὑμῖν. καθαρίσατε χεῖρας, ἁμαρτωλοί, καὶ ἁγνίσατε καρδίας, δίψυχοι. 9 ταλαιπωρήσατε καὶ πενθήσατε καὶ κλαύσατε· ὁ γέλως ὑμῶν εἰς πένθος [f]μετατραπήτω καὶ ἡ χαρὰ εἰς κατήφειαν· 10 ταπεινώθητε ἐνώπιον [g]κυρίου, καὶ ὑψώσει ὑμᾶς.
11 Μὴ καταλαλεῖτε ἀλλήλων, ἀδελφοί· ὁ καταλαλῶν ἀδελφοῦ [h]ἢ κρίνων τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ καταλαλεῖ νόμου καὶ κρίνει νόμον· εἰ δὲ νόμον κρίνεις, οὐκ εἶ ποιητὴς νόμου ἀλλὰ κριτής. 12 εἷς [i]ἐστιν νομοθέτης [j]καὶ κριτής, ὁ δυνάμενος σῶσαι καὶ ἀπολέσαι· σὺ δὲ τίς εἶ, [k]ὁ κρίνων τὸν [l]πλησίον;
13 Ἄγε νῦν οἱ λέγοντες· Σήμερον [m]ἢ αὔριον [n]πορευσόμεθα εἰς τήνδε τὴν πόλιν καὶ [o]ποιήσομεν ἐκεῖ [p]ἐνιαυτὸν καὶ [q]ἐμπορευσόμεθα καὶ [r]κερδήσομεν· 14 οἵτινες οὐκ ἐπίστασθε [s]τὸ τῆς αὔριον [t]ποία ἡ ζωὴ ὑμῶν· ἀτμὶς γάρ [u]ἐστε [v]ἡ πρὸς ὀλίγον φαινομένη, [w]ἔπειτα καὶ ἀφανιζομένη· 15 ἀντὶ τοῦ λέγειν ὑμᾶς· Ἐὰν ὁ κύριος [x]θελήσῃ, καὶ [y]ζήσομεν καὶ [z]ποιήσομεν τοῦτο ἢ ἐκεῖνο. 16 νῦν δὲ καυχᾶσθε ἐν ταῖς ἀλαζονείαις ὑμῶν· πᾶσα καύχησις τοιαύτη πονηρά ἐστιν. 17 εἰδότι οὖν καλὸν ποιεῖν καὶ μὴ ποιοῦντι, ἁμαρτία αὐτῷ ἐστιν.
Footnotes
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:1 πόθεν WH Treg NIV ] – RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:4 μοιχαλίδες WH Treg NIV ] Μοιχοὶ καὶ μοιχαλίδες RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:4 ἐὰν WH NIV ] ἂν Treg RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:5 κατῴκισεν WH Treg NIV ] κατῴκησεν RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:8 ἐγγιεῖ Treg NIV RP ] ἐγγίσει WH
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:9 μετατραπήτω WH NIV ] μεταστραφήτω Treg RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:10 κυρίου WH Treg NIV ] τοῦ κυρίου RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:11 ἢ WH Treg NIV ] καὶ RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:12 ἐστιν WH ] + ὁ Treg NIV RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:12 καὶ κριτής WH Treg NIV ] – RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:12 ὁ κρίνων WH Treg NIV ] ὃς κρίνεις RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:12 πλησίον WH Treg NIV ] ἕτερον RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:13 ἢ WH Treg NIV ] καὶ RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:13 πορευσόμεθα WH Treg NIV ] πορευσώμεθα RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:13 ποιήσομεν WH NIV ] ποιήσωμεν Treg RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:13 ἐνιαυτὸν WH Treg NIV ] + ἕνα RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:13 ἐμπορευσόμεθα WH Treg NIV ] ἐμπορευσώμεθα RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:13 κερδήσομεν WH Treg NIV ] κερδήσωμεν RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:14 τὸ Treg NIV RP ] – WH
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:14 ποία WH NIV ] + γὰρ Treg RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:14 ἐστε WH Treg NIV ] ἔσται RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:14 ἡ Treg NIV RP ] – WH
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:14 ἔπειτα WH Treg NIV ] + δὲ RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:15 θελήσῃ Treg NIV RP ] θέλῃ WH
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:15 ζήσομεν WH Treg NIV ] ζήσωμεν RP
- ΙΑΚΩΒΟΥ 4:15 ποιήσομεν WH Treg NIV ] ποιήσωμεν RP
James 4
Revised Standard Version
Friendship with the World
4 What causes wars, and what causes fightings among you? Is it not your passions that are at war in your members? 2 You desire and do not have; so you kill. And you covet[a] and cannot obtain; so you fight and wage war. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. 4 Unfaithful creatures! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you suppose it is in vain that the scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit which he has made to dwell in us”? 6 But he gives more grace; therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you men of double mind. 9 Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to dejection. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you.
Warning against Judging Another
11 Do not speak evil against one another, brethren. He that speaks evil against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 12 There is one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you that you judge your neighbor?
Boasting about Tomorrow
13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and get gain”; 14 whereas you do not know about tomorrow. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and we shall do this or that.” 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. 17 Whoever knows what is right to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.
Footnotes
- James 4:2 Or you kill and you covet
James 4
New Living Translation
Drawing Close to God
4 What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Don’t they come from the evil desires at war within you? 2 You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. 3 And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.
4 You adulterers![a] Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God. 5 Do you think the Scriptures have no meaning? They say that God is passionate that the spirit he has placed within us should be faithful to him.[b] 6 And he gives grace generously. As the Scriptures say,
“God opposes the proud
but gives grace to the humble.”[c]
7 So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. 9 Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.
Warning against Judging Others
11 Don’t speak evil against each other, dear brothers and sisters.[d] If you criticize and judge each other, then you are criticizing and judging God’s law. But your job is to obey the law, not to judge whether it applies to you. 12 God alone, who gave the law, is the Judge. He alone has the power to save or to destroy. So what right do you have to judge your neighbor?
Warning about Self-Confidence
13 Look here, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit.” 14 How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. 15 What you ought to say is, “If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.” 16 Otherwise you are boasting about your own pretentious plans, and all such boasting is evil.
17 Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.
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Scripture quotations marked SBLGNT are from the The Greek New Testament: SBL Edition. Copyright © 2010 by Society of Biblical Literature and Logos Bible Software
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1952, and 1971 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
