James 2

THE SIN OF FAVORITISM

2My brothers and sisters, do not show favoritism as you hold on to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.^{y 2}For if someone comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and a poor person dressed in filthy clothes also comes in, ³if you look with favor on the one wearing the fine clothes and say, “Sit here in a good place,” and yet you say to the poor person, “Stand over there,” or “Sit here on the floor by my footstool,” ⁴haven’t you made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?

⁵Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Didn’t God choose the poor in this world^a to be rich in faith^b and heirs^c of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him? ⁶Yet you have dishonored the poor.^d Don’t the rich oppress you and drag^e you into court? ⁷Don’t they blaspheme the good name that was invoked over you?^f

⁸Indeed, if you fulfill the royal law prescribed in the Scripture, Love your neighbor as yourself,^Cg you are doing well. ⁹If, however, you show favoritism,^h you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. ¹⁰For whoever keeps the entire law, and yet stumbles at one point, is guilty of breaking it all.^{i 11}For he who said, Do not commit adultery,^D also said, Do not murder.^Ej So if you do not commit adultery, but you murder, you are a lawbreaker.

¹²Speak and act as those who are to be judged by the law of freedom.^{k 13}For judgment is without mercy to the one who has not shown mercy.^l Mercy triumphs over judgment.

FAITH AND WORKS

¹⁴What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can such faith save him?

¹⁵If a brother or sister is without clothes and lacks daily food ¹⁶and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, stay warm, and be well fed,” but you don’t give them what the body needs, what good is it?^{m 17}In the same way faith, if it does not have works, is dead by itself.

¹⁸But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without works, and I will show you faith by my works.^{n 19}You believe that God is one. Good! Even the demons believe—and they shudder.^o

²⁰Senseless person! Are you willing to learn that faith without works is useless? ²¹Wasn’t Abraham our father justified by works in offering Isaac his son on the altar? ²²You see that faith was active together with his works, and by works, faith was made complete,^{p 23}and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,^Aq and he was called God’s friend.^{r 24}You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. ²⁵In the same way, wasn’t Rahab the prostitute also justified by works in receiving the messengers and sending them out by a different route?^{s 26}For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.