James 1:2–18

Profiting from Trials

²My brethren, ^bcount it all joy ^cwhen you fall into various trials, ^3dknowing that the testing of your faith produces ¹patience. ⁴But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be ²perfect and complete, lacking nothing. ^5eIf any of you lacks wisdom, ^flet him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and ^git will be given to him. ^6hBut let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. ⁷For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; ⁸he is ⁱa double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

The Perspective of Rich and Poor

⁹Let the lowly brother glory in his exaltation, ¹⁰but the rich in his humiliation, because ^jas a flower of the field he will pass away. ¹¹For no sooner has the sun risen with a burning heat than it withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beautiful appearance perishes. So the rich man also will fade away in his pursuits.

Loving God Under Trials

^12kBlessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive ^lthe crown of life ^mwhich the Lord has promised to those who love Him. ¹³Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. ¹⁴But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. ¹⁵Then, ⁿwhen desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, ^obrings forth death.

¹⁶Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. ^17pEvery good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, ^qwith whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. ^18rOf His own will He brought us forth by the ^sword of truth, ^tthat we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.