James 5
New American Standard Bible
Misuse of Riches
5 (A)Come now, (B)you rich people, (C)weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you. 2 (D)Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and your silver have corroded, and their corrosion will [a]serve as a testimony against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is (E)in the last days that you have stored up your treasure! 4 Behold, (F)the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and (G)the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of (H)the Lord [b]of armies. 5 You have [c](I)lived for pleasure on the earth and lived luxuriously; you have [d]fattened your hearts in (J)a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and [e](K)put to death (L)the righteous person; he offers you no resistance.
Exhortation
7 Therefore be patient, (M)brothers and sisters, (N)until the coming of the Lord. (O)The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until [f]it gets (P)the early and late rains. 8 (Q)You too be patient; (R)strengthen your hearts, for (S)the coming of the Lord is (T)near. 9 (U)Do not [g]complain, (V)brothers and sisters, against one another, so that you may not be judged; behold, (W)the Judge is standing [h](X)right at the [i]door. 10 As an example, (Y)brothers and sisters, of suffering and patience, take (Z)the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 We count those (AA)blessed who endured. You have heard of (AB)the [j]endurance of Job and have seen (AC)the [k]outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that (AD)the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.
12 But above all, (AE)my brothers and sisters, (AF)do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath; but [l]your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you do not fall under judgment.
13 Is anyone among you (AG)suffering? (AH)Then he must pray. Is anyone cheerful? He is to (AI)sing praises. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for (AJ)the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, [m](AK)anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; 15 and the (AL)prayer of faith will [n](AM)restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will (AN)raise him up, and if he has committed sins, [o]they will be forgiven him. 16 Therefore, (AO)confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be (AP)healed. (AQ)A [p]prayer of a righteous person, when it is [q]brought about, can accomplish much. 17 Elijah was (AR)a man with a nature like ours, and (AS)he prayed [r]earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for (AT)three years and six months. 18 Then he (AU)prayed again, and (AV)the sky [s]poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.
19 My brothers and sisters, (AW)if anyone among you strays from (AX)the truth and someone turns him back, 20 let him know that the one who has turned a sinner from the error of his way will (AY)save his soul from death and (AZ)cover a multitude of sins.
Footnotes
- James 5:3 Lit be for
- James 5:4 Gr sabaoth, for Heb tsebaoth
- James 5:5 Or led a life of self-indulgence
- James 5:5 Lit nourished
- James 5:6 Or murdered
- James 5:7 Or he
- James 5:9 Lit groan
- James 5:9 Lit before
- James 5:9 Lit doors
- James 5:11 Or steadfastness
- James 5:11 Lit end of the Lord
- James 5:12 Lit yours is to be yes, yes, and no, no
- James 5:14 Lit having anointed
- James 5:15 Lit save
- James 5:15 Lit it
- James 5:16 Or supplication
- James 5:16 I.e., granted by God
- James 5:17 Lit with prayer
- James 5:18 Lit gave
James 5
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Warning to Rich Oppressors
5 Come now, you rich people, weep and wail for the miseries that are coming to you. 2 Your riches have rotted, and your clothes are moth-eaten.(A) 3 Your gold and silver have rusted, and their rust will be evidence against you, and it will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure[a] during the last days. 4 Listen! The wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.(B) 5 You have lived on the earth in luxury and in pleasure; you have nourished your hearts in a day of slaughter.(C) 6 You have condemned and murdered the righteous one, who does not resist you.
Patience in Suffering
7 Be patient, therefore, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains.(D) 8 You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near.[b](E) 9 Brothers and sisters, do not grumble against one another, so that you may not be judged. See, the Judge is standing at the doors!(F) 10 As an example of suffering and patience, brothers and sisters, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 Indeed, we call blessed those who showed endurance. You have heard of the endurance of Job, and you have seen the outcome that the Lord brought about, for the Lord is compassionate and merciful.(G)
12 Above all, brothers and sisters, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “Yes” be yes and your “No” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.[c]
The Prayer of Faith
13 Are any among you suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They should sing songs of praise.(H) 14 Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord.(I) 15 The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up, and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective.(J) 17 Elijah was a human like us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth.(K) 18 Then he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth yielded its harvest.(L)
19 My brothers and sisters, if anyone among you wanders from the truth[d] and is brought back by another, 20 you should know that whoever brings back a sinner from wandering will save the sinner’s[e] soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.(M)
James 5
Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition
5 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl in your miseries, which 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 for a testimony against you, and shall eat your flesh like fire. You have stored up to yourselves wrath against the last days.
4 Behold the hire of the labourers, who have reaped down your fields, which by fraud has been kept back by you, crieth: and the cry of them hath entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth.
5 You have feasted upon earth: and in riotousness you have nourished your hearts, in the day of slaughter.
6 You have condemned and put to death the Just One, and he resisted you not.
7 Be patient therefore, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth: patiently bearing till he receive the early and latter rain.
8 Be you therefore also patient, and strengthen your hearts: for the coming of the Lord is at hand.
9 Grudge not, brethren, one against another, that you may not be judged. Behold the judge standeth before the door.
10 Take, my brethren, for an example of suffering evil, of labour and patience, the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord.
11 Behold, we account them blessed who have endured. You have heard of the patience of Job, and you have seen the end of the Lord, that the Lord is merciful and compassionate.
12 But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, nor by the earth, nor by any other oath. But let your speech be, yea, yea: no, no: that you fall not under judgment.
13 Is any of you sad? Let him pray. Is he cheerful in mind? Let him sing.
14 Is any man sick among you? Let him bring in the priests 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 man: and the Lord shall raise him up: and if he be in sins, they shall be forgiven him.
16 Confess therefore your sins one to another: and pray one for another, that you may be saved. For the continual prayer of a just man availeth much.
17 Elias was a man passible like unto us: and with prayer he prayed that it might not rain upon the earth, and it rained not for three years and six months.
18 And he prayed again: and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.
19 My brethren, if any of you err from the truth, and one convert him:
20 He must know that he who causeth a sinner to be converted from the error of his way, shall save his soul from death, and shall cover a multitude of sins.
James 5
The Message
Destroying Your Life from Within
5 1-3 And a final word to you arrogant rich: Take some lessons in lament. You’ll need buckets for the tears when the crash comes upon you. Your money is corrupt and your fine clothes stink. Your greedy luxuries are a cancer in your gut, destroying your life from within. You thought you were piling up wealth. What you’ve piled up is judgment.
4-6 All the workers you’ve exploited and cheated cry out for judgment. The groans of the workers you used and abused are a roar in the ears of the Master Avenger. You’ve looted the earth and lived it up. But all you’ll have to show for it is a fatter than usual corpse. In fact, what you’ve done is condemn and murder perfectly good persons, who stand there and take it.
* * *
7-8 Meanwhile, friends, wait patiently for the Master’s Arrival. You see farmers do this all the time, waiting for their valuable crops to mature, patiently letting the rain do its slow but sure work. Be patient like that. Stay steady and strong. The Master could arrive at any time.
9 Friends, don’t complain about each other. A far greater complaint could be lodged against you, you know. The Judge is standing just around the corner.
10-11 Take the old prophets as your mentors. They put up with anything, went through everything, and never once quit, all the time honoring God. What a gift life is to those who stay the course! You’ve heard, of course, of Job’s staying power, and you know how God brought it all together for him at the end. That’s because God cares, cares right down to the last detail.
12 And since you know that he cares, let your language show it. Don’t add words like “I swear to God” to your own words. Don’t show your impatience by concocting oaths to hurry up God. Just say yes or no. Just say what is true. That way, your language can’t be used against you.
Prayer to Be Reckoned With
13-15 Are you hurting? Pray. Do you feel great? Sing. Are you sick? Call the church leaders together to pray and anoint you with oil in the name of the Master. Believing-prayer will heal you, and Jesus will put you on your feet. And if you’ve sinned, you’ll be forgiven—healed inside and out.
16-18 Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed. The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with. Elijah, for instance, human just like us, prayed hard that it wouldn’t rain, and it didn’t—not a drop for three and a half years. Then he prayed that it would rain, and it did. The showers came and everything started growing again.
19-20 My dear friends, if you know people who have wandered off from God’s truth, don’t write them off. Go after them. Get them back and you will have rescued precious lives from destruction and prevented an epidemic of wandering away from God.
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