James 1

New King James Version

Greeting to the Twelve Tribes

1 James, ^(A)a bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,

To the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad:

Greetings.

Profiting from Trials

² My brethren, ^(B)count it all joy ^(C)when you fall into various trials, ^3 (D)knowing that the testing of your faith produces ^[a]patience. ⁴ But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be ^[b]perfect and complete, lacking nothing. ^5 (E)If any of you lacks wisdom, ^(F)let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and ^(G)it will be given to him. ^6 (H)But 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. ⁷ For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; ⁸ he is ^(I)a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

The Perspective of Rich and Poor

⁹ Let the lowly brother glory in his exaltation, ¹⁰ but the rich in his humiliation, because ^(J)as a flower of the field he will pass away. ¹¹ For 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

^12 (K)Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive ^(L)the crown of life ^(M)which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. ¹³ Let 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. ¹⁴ But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. ¹⁵ Then, ^(N)when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, ^(O)brings forth death.

¹⁶ Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. ^17 (P)Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, ^(Q)with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. ^18 (R)Of His own will He brought us forth by the ^(S)word of truth, ^(T)that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.

Qualities Needed in Trials

^19 [c]So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, ^(U)slow to speak, ^(V)slow to wrath; ²⁰ for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.

Doers—Not Hearers Only

²¹ Therefore ^(W)lay aside all filthiness and ^[d]overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, ^(X)which is able to save your souls.

²² But ^(Y)be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. ²³ For ^(Z)if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; ²⁴ for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. ²⁵ But ^(AA)he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, ^(AB)this one will be blessed in what he does.

²⁶ If anyone ^[e]among you thinks he is religious, and ^(AC)does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one’s religion is useless. ^27 (AD)Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: ^(AE)to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, ^(AF)and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.