James 1:19–27

Listen to the Word and Do What It Says

19My dear brothers and sisters, pay attention to what I say. Everyone should be quick to listen. But they should be slow to speak. They should be slow to get angry. 20A man’s anger doesn’t produce the kind of life God wants.

21So get rid of everything that is dirty and sinful. Get rid of the evil that is all around us. Don’t be too proud to accept the word that is planted in you. It can save you.

22Don’t just listen to the word. You fool yourselves if you do that. You must do what it says.

23Suppose you listen to the word but don’t do what it says. Then you are like a man who looks at his face in a mirror. 24After looking at himself, he leaves. Right away he forgets what he looks like.

25But suppose you take a good look at the perfect law that gives freedom. You keep looking at it. You don’t forget what you’ve heard, but you do what the law says. Then you will be blessed in what you do.

26Suppose you think your beliefs are right because of how you live. But you don’t control what you say. Then you are fooling yourselves. Your beliefs are not worth anything at all.

27Here are the kinds of beliefs that God our Father accepts as pure and without fault. When widows and children who have no parents are in trouble, take care of them. And keep yourselves from being polluted by the world.