James 3–5

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.

Warning to the Rich

5Come now, ^xyou rich, weep and howl for the ^ymiseries that are coming upon you. ^2zYour riches have rotted and ^zyour garments are moth-eaten. ³Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. ^aYou have laid up treasure ^bin the last days. ⁴Behold, ^cthe wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and ^dthe cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of ^ethe Lord of hosts. ^5fYou have lived on the earth in luxury and ^gin self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in ^ha day of slaughter. ⁶You have condemned and ⁱmurdered ^jthe righteous person. He does not resist you.

Patience in Suffering

⁷Be patient, therefore, brothers,¹ until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives ^kthe early and the late rains. ⁸You also, be patient. ^lEstablish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord ^mis at hand. ⁹Do not grumble against one another, brothers, ⁿso that you may not be judged; behold, ^othe Judge is standing ^pat the door. ¹⁰As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take ^qthe prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. ¹¹Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of ^rthe steadfastness of Job, and you have seen ^sthe purpose of the Lord, how ^tthe Lord is compassionate and merciful.

¹²But above all, my brothers, ^udo 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.

The Prayer of Faith

¹³Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him ^vsing praise. ¹⁴Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, ^wanointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And ^xif he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. ¹⁶Therefore, ^yconfess your sins to one another and pray for one another, ^zthat you may be healed. ^aThe prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.^{2 17}Elijah was a man ^bwith a nature like ours, and ^che prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for ^dthree years and six months it did not rain on the earth. ^18eThen he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.

¹⁹My brothers, ^fif anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone ^gbrings him back, ²⁰let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering ^hwill save his soul from death and ⁱwill cover a multitude of sins.