James 3–4

Taming the Tongue

3^cNot many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. ²For ^dwe all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, ^ehe is a perfect man, ^fable also to bridle his whole body. ³If we put ^gbits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. ⁴Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. ⁵So also the tongue is a small member, yet ^hit boasts of great things.

How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! ⁶And ⁱthe tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, ^jstaining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life,¹ and set on fire by hell.^{2 7}For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, ⁸but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, ^kfull of deadly poison. ⁹With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people ^lwho are made in the likeness of God. ¹⁰From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers,³ these things ought not to be so. ¹¹Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? ¹²Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.

Wisdom from Above

¹³Who is wise and understanding among you? ^mBy his good conduct let him show his works ⁿin the meekness of wisdom. ¹⁴But if you have bitter ^ojealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. ¹⁵This is not ^pthe wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, ^qdemonic. ¹⁶For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. ¹⁷But ^rthe wisdom from above is first pure, then ^speaceable, gentle, open to reason, ^tfull of mercy and good fruits, ^uimpartial and ^vsincere. ¹⁸And ^wa harvest of righteousness ^xis sown in peace by those who make peace.

Warning Against Worldliness

4What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions¹ are ^yat war within you?^{2 2}You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. ³You ask and do not receive, because you ask ^zwrongly, to spend it on your passions. ^4aYou adulterous people!³ Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? ^bTherefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. ⁵Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit ^cthat he has made to dwell in us”? ⁶But ^dhe gives more grace. Therefore it says, ^e“God opposes the proud but ^dgives grace to the humble.” ⁷Submit yourselves therefore to God. ^fResist the devil, and he will flee from you. ^8gDraw near to God, and he will draw near to you. ^hCleanse your hands, you sinners, and ⁱpurify your hearts, ^jyou double-minded. ^9kBe wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. ^10lHumble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

^11mDo not speak evil against one another, brothers.⁴ The one who speaks against a brother or ⁿjudges 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. ¹²There is only ^oone lawgiver and ^pjudge, he who is able to save and ^qto destroy. But ^rwho are you to judge your neighbor?

Boasting About Tomorrow

¹³Come now, you who say, ^s“Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— ¹⁴yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For ^tyou are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. ¹⁵Instead you ought to say, ^u“If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” ¹⁶As it is, you boast in your arrogance. ^vAll such boasting is evil. ^17wSo whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.