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For the judgment is merciless to one who has not shown mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment. Faith and Works.
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What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?
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If a brother or sister has nothing to wear and has no food for the day,
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and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well,” but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it?
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So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
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You believe that God is one. You do well. Even the demons believe that and tremble.
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Do you want proof, you ignoramus, that faith without works is useless?
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Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar?
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Thus the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called “the friend of God.”
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See how a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.
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And in the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by a different route?
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For just as a body without a spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.
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Chapter 3
Power of the Tongue. Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you realize that we will be judged more strictly,
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for we all fall short in many respects. If anyone does not fall short in speech, he is a perfect man, able to bridle his whole body also.
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It is the same with ships: even though they are so large and driven by fierce winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot’s inclination wishes.
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In the same way the tongue is a small member and yet has great pretensions. Consider how small a fire can set a huge forest ablaze.
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The tongue is also a fire. It exists among our members as a world of malice, defiling the whole body and setting the entire course of our lives on fire, itself set on fire by Gehenna.
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but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
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With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings who are made in the likeness of God.
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From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. This need not be so, my brothers.
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Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show his works by a good life in the humility that comes from wisdom.
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But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth.
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Wisdom of this kind does not come down from above but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic.
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For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every foul practice.
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But the wisdom from above is first of all pure, then peaceable, gentle, compliant, full of mercy and good fruits, without inconstancy or insincerity.