James 2:1-13

New American Standard Bible 1995

The Sin of Partiality

2 ^(A)My brethren, ^(B)do not hold your faith in our ^(C)glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of ^(D)personal favoritism. ² For if a man comes into your ^[a]assembly with a gold ring and dressed in ^[b](E)fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in ^(F)dirty clothes, ³ and you ^[c]pay special attention to the one who is wearing the ^(G)fine clothes, and say, “You sit here in a good place,” and you say to the poor man, “You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,” ⁴ have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges ^(H)with evil ^[d]motives? ⁵ Listen, ^(I)my beloved brethren: did not ^(J)God choose the poor ^[e]of this world to be ^(K)rich in faith and ^(L)heirs of the kingdom which He ^(M)promised to those who love Him? ⁶ But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and ^[f]personally ^(N)drag you into ^[g]court? ^7 (O)Do they not blaspheme the fair name ^[h]by which you have been called?

⁸ If, however, you ^(P)are fulfilling the ^[i]royal law according to the Scripture, “^(Q)You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. ⁹ But if you ^(R)show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the ^[j]law as transgressors. ¹⁰ For whoever keeps the whole ^[k]law and yet ^(S)stumbles in one point, he has become ^(T)guilty of all. ¹¹ For He who said, “^(U)Do not commit adultery,” also said, “^(V)Do not commit murder.” Now if you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a transgressor of the ^[l]law. ¹² So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by ^(W)the law of liberty. ¹³ For ^(X)judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy ^[m]triumphs over judgment.