DASV: Digital American Standard Version

James 1

¹ From James, a servant of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes dispersed among the nations. Greetings.

² Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you experience all sorts of trials;

³ because you know that the testing of your faith works endurance.

⁴ Let endurance have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

⁵ But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without any rebuke for asking, and it will be given to him.

⁶ But let the one who asks, ask in faith without doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed around by the wind.

⁷ Do not let that person think that he will receive anything from the Lord;

⁸ since his loyalties are divided. He is unstable in all his ways.

⁹ But let the poor believer take pride in his high position.

¹⁰ But the rich should take pride in God’s humbling, because as the flower of the field, he will pass away.

¹¹ For the sun rises with the scorching heat, and the grass withers, and the flower drops off and its beauty fades. So also will the rich fade away.

¹² Blessed is the one who endures testing; for when he has passed the test, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord promised to those who love him.

¹³ Let no one say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God; for God cannot be tempted with evil and he himself tempts no one.

¹⁴ But each one is tempted, when he is lured away and enticed by his own desires.

¹⁵ Then desire, when it conceives gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is mature, gives birth to death.

¹⁶ Do not be deceived, my dear brothers.

¹⁷ Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation, no change like a shifting shadow.

¹⁸ By his own will he gave us birth through the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

¹⁹ Know this, my beloved brothers. Let everyone be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger,

²⁰ for sinful human anger does not produce the righteousness of God.

²¹ Therefore, put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness, receive with humility the implanted word, which will save your souls.

²² Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

²³ For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a person looking at his reflection in the mirror.

²⁴ He sees himself, and then goes away immediately forgetting what he looked like.

²⁵ But the one who looks into the perfect law of liberty and perseveres, acting not as a hearer who forgets but a doer who works, this one will be blessed in what he does.

²⁶ If anyone thinks he is religious, yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.

²⁷ Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. |

James 2

¹ My brothers, do not show favoritism, if you possess faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.

² For if someone with a gold ring and fine clothing enters your synagogue, and then a poor person comes in with ragged clothing,

³ do you pay attention to the one wearing fine clothing, and say, “Sit you here in a good place,” but say to the poor person, “Stand over there,” or “Sit on the floor”?

⁴ Are you not discriminating among yourselves, and creating prejudices with evil thoughts?

⁵ Listen, my beloved brothers! Did not God choose the poor of the world to be rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he promised to those who love him?

⁶ But you have dishonored the poor! Are not the rich the ones who oppress you and drag you into court?

⁷ Do they not blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called?

⁸ But if you fulfill the royal law, according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well.

⁹ But if you show favoritism, you commit sin, being convicted by the law as lawbreakers.

¹⁰ For whoever obeys the whole law, yet stumbles in one point, is guilty of all.

¹¹ For he that said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” Now if you do not commit adultery, but murder, you are still a violator of the law.

¹² So you must speak and live as those who will be judged by the law of liberty.

¹³ For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

¹⁴ What good is it, my brothers, if someone claims he has faith, but does not have works? Can that faith save him?

¹⁵ If a brother or sister lacks food or clothing,

¹⁶ and one of you say to them, “Go in peace, keep warm and be fed,” and yet you do not give them either food or clothing, what good is it?

¹⁷ Even so faith, if it does not have works, is dead by itself.

¹⁸ Someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without works, and I will show you my faith by my works.

¹⁹ You believe that God is one, great; even the demons believe that and tremble.

²⁰ But do you not know, O foolish one, that faith without works is fruitless?

²¹ Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he offered up Isaac his son upon the altar?

²² You see that his faith combined with his works and by his works faith was made complete.

²³ The Scripture was fulfilled which said, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteous,” and he was called God’s friend.

²⁴ You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.

²⁵ In the same way, was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works, when she was visited by messengers and sent them out another way?

²⁶ For as the body without spirit is dead, even so faith without works is dead.

James 3

¹ Not many of you should be teachers, my brothers, because teachers will receive stricter judgment.

² We all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is perfect, able also to control his whole body.

³ If we put bridles in horses’ mouths to make them obey us, then we can control the rest of their bodies as well.

⁴ Look, it is the same with ships too. Though ships are large and driven by strong winds, yet they are controlled by a small rudder to go wherever the pilot wants to.

⁵ The tongue is also a small part of the body, but it boasts of big things. Look how a great forest is destroyed by a small fire!

⁶ The tongue is a fire! The tongue creates a world of evil, defiling the whole body and setting a person’s whole life on fire. The tongue is set on fire by hell.

⁷ For every kind of land animal, bird, reptile and sea creature, is tamed and has been tamed by humans.

⁸ But no one can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

⁹ With it we bless the Lord and Father; and with the same tongue we curse people, who are made in the likeness of God.

¹⁰ Out of the same mouth comes blessing and cursing. My brothers, this should not be.

¹¹ Does a spring pour out sweet water and bitter water from the same place?

¹² Can a fig tree produce olives, or a vine figs, my brothers? Neither can salt water produce fresh.

¹³ Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show this by his good life with humility that comes from wisdom.

¹⁴ But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast or deny the truth.

¹⁵ This wisdom does not come from above, but is earthly, sensual and evil.

¹⁶ For where jealousy and selfishness are, there is disorder and all sorts of evil deeds.

¹⁷ But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceful, gentle, willing to accommodate, full of mercy and goodness, unbiased and sincere.

¹⁸ The harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

James 4

¹ Where do fights and quarrels among you come from? Do they not come from your passions that war within you?

² You desire and do not have. You murder and are jealous and cannot have what you want, so you argue and fight. You do not have because you do not ask.

³ You ask and do not receive because you ask for the wrong reasons, that you may squander it on your own pleasures.

⁴ Adulterers, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility against God? Therefore, whoever befriends the world makes himself God’s enemy.

⁵ Do you think the Scripture speaks for nothing, when it says “God yearns jealously for the spirit he put inside of us”?

⁶ But he gives more grace. Because the Scripture says “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

⁷ So submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

⁸ Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands you sinners, and purify your hearts you with divided loyalties.

⁹ Grieve, mourn, and weep. Let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy into sorrow.

¹⁰ Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

¹¹ Do not speak against each other, brothers. He who speaks against a brother, or judges his brother, speaks against the law, and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but its judge.

¹² There is only one lawgiver and judge, one who is able to save and destroy. But who are you that you judge your neighbor?

¹³ Come now, you that say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into this or that town, and spend a year there, and trade, and get wealth.”

¹⁴ You do not know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little while, and then vanishes away.

¹⁵ You ought to say, “If the Lord wills it, we will live and do this or that.”

¹⁶ But now you boast in your arrogance. All such bragging is evil.

¹⁷ Therefore, whoever knows what is right and does not do it, is guilty of sin.

James 5

¹ Come now, you rich, weep and mourn for the trouble coming your way.

² Your riches have rotted and your clothes are moth-eaten.

³ Your gold and silver are corroded, and this corrosion will be proof against you. It will devour your flesh like fire.

⁴ Look, the payment you kept from the workers who plowed your fields by fraud, cries out against you. The cries of the workers have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.

⁵ You have lived in luxury and self-indulgence on earth, you have fattened yourselves for the day of slaughter.

⁶ You have condemned, you have murdered the righteous who did not resist you.

⁷ Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. Look at how the farmer waits for the earth’s fruit, being patient until it receives the early and latter rains.

⁸ You also should be patient, strengthen your hearts for the Lord’s coming is

near.

⁹ Do not grumble against each other, brothers, so that you will not be judged. Look, the

judge stands at the door.

¹⁰ Brothers, take as an example the suffering and patience of the prophets who spoke

in the name of the Lord.

¹¹ Look, we consider those who stood firm blessed. You have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is full of compassion and

mercy.

¹² But above all, my brothers, do not swear, not by heaven or by earth, or by

any other oath. But let your “yes” mean yes and your “no” mean no, so that you will not

be judged for it.

¹³ Is anyone suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praises.

¹⁴ Is anyone sick? Let him call for the elders of the church and have them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.

¹⁵ A prayer of faith will save the sick and the Lord will raise him up; and if

he has committed sins he will be forgiven.

¹⁶ Therefore, confess your sins to each other, and pray for each other, that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective.

¹⁷ Elijah was a person like us. He prayed fervently for it not to rain and it did not rain on earth for three years and six months.

¹⁸ He prayed again, and the heaven gave rain and the earth produced fruit.

¹⁹ My brothers, if any of you wanders from the truth and someone turns him back,

²⁰ let him know that he who turns a sinner from his wandering ways will save his

soul from death, and will cover a multitude of sins.