11 John answered, “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.”(A)

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11 He answereth and saith unto them, He that hath two coats, let him impart to him that hath none; and he that hath meat, let him do likewise.

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Is it not to share your food with the hungry(A)
    and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter(B)
when you see the naked, to clothe(C) them,
    and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?(D)
Then your light will break forth like the dawn,(E)
    and your healing(F) will quickly appear;
then your righteousness[a](G) will go before you,
    and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.(H)
Then you will call,(I) and the Lord will answer;(J)
    you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
    with the pointing finger(K) and malicious talk,(L)
10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
    and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,(M)
then your light(N) will rise in the darkness,
    and your night will become like the noonday.(O)
11 The Lord will guide(P) you always;
    he will satisfy your needs(Q) in a sun-scorched land(R)
    and will strengthen(S) your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,(T)
    like a spring(U) whose waters never fail.

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 58:8 Or your righteous One

Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?

Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy reward.

Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity;

10 And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noon day:

11 And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.

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17 If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them,(A) how can the love of God be in that person?(B)

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17 But whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?

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18 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds,(A) and to be generous and willing to share.(B)

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18 That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate;

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22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor,(A) and you will have treasure in heaven.(B) Then come, follow me.”

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22 Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.

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15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food.(A) 16 If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?(B) 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.(C)

18 But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”

Show me your faith without deeds,(D) and I will show you my faith(E) by my deeds.(F) 19 You believe that there is one God.(G) Good! Even the demons believe that(H)—and shudder.

20 You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless[a]?(I) 21 Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar?(J) 22 You see that his faith and his actions were working together,(K) and his faith was made complete by what he did.(L) 23 And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,”[b](M) and he was called God’s friend.(N) 24 You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone.

25 In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction?(O) 26 As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.(P)

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Footnotes

  1. James 2:20 Some early manuscripts dead
  2. James 2:23 Gen. 15:6

15 If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food,

16 And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?

17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.

18 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.

19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.

20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?

21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?

22 Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?

23 And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.

24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.

25 Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way?

26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

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20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister(A) is a liar.(B) For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen,(C) cannot love God, whom they have not seen.(D)

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20 If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?

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27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after(A) orphans and widows(B) in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.(C)

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27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

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41 But now as for what is inside you—be generous to the poor,(A) and everything will be clean for you.(B)

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41 But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and, behold, all things are clean unto you.

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40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’(A)

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40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

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27 Therefore, Your Majesty, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed.(A) It may be that then your prosperity(B) will continue.(C)

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27 Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by shewing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquillity.

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10 God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.(A)

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10 For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.

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For I testify that they gave as much as they were able,(A) and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing(B) in this service(C) to the Lord’s people.(D) And they exceeded our expectations: They gave themselves first of all to the Lord, and then by the will of God also to us. So we urged(E) Titus,(F) just as he had earlier made a beginning, to bring also to completion(G) this act of grace on your part. But since you excel in everything(H)—in faith, in speech, in knowledge,(I) in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you[a]—see that you also excel in this grace of giving.

I am not commanding you,(J) but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. For you know the grace(K) of our Lord Jesus Christ,(L) that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor,(M) so that you through his poverty might become rich.(N)

10 And here is my judgment(O) about what is best for you in this matter. Last year you were the first not only to give but also to have the desire to do so.(P) 11 Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness(Q) to do it may be matched by your completion of it, according to your means. 12 For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has,(R) not according to what one does not have.

13 Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. 14 At the present time your plenty will supply what they need,(S) so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. The goal is equality,

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Corinthians 8:7 Some manuscripts and in your love for us

For to their power, I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves;

Praying us with much intreaty that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints.

And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God.

Insomuch that we desired Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also finish in you the same grace also.

Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also.

I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love.

For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.

10 And herein I give my advice: for this is expedient for you, who have begun before, not only to do, but also to be forward a year ago.

11 Now therefore perform the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to will, so there may be a performance also out of that which ye have.

12 For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not.

13 For I mean not that other men be eased, and ye burdened:

14 But by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may be a supply for their want, that their abundance also may be a supply for your want: that there may be equality:

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