James 4 WBT
Summary: James traces quarrels and fights among believers to the passions warring within them, and to selfish, wrongly motivated prayer, declaring that friendship with the world is enmity with God. He calls readers to submit to God, resist the devil, draw near to God, and humble themselves before the Lord, who "gives grace to the humble" (v. 6). He warns against speaking evil of and judging one another, since there is only one lawgiver and judge, and rebukes presumptuous planning that boasts of tomorrow without acknowledging, "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that" (v. 15), closing with the principle that whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it sins.
1From whence [come] wars and fightings among you? [come they] not hence, [even] from your lusts that war in your members?
2Ye lust and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.
3Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume [it] upon your lusts.
4Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
5Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?
6But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble.
7Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
8Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse [your] hands, [ye] sinners, and purify [your] hearts, [ye] double-minded.
9Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and [your] joy to heaviness.
10Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he will lift you up.
11Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of [his] brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judgest the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.
12There is one lawgiver, who is able to save, and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?
13Come now, ye that say, To-day or to-morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy, and sell, and get gain:
14Whereas ye know not what [will be] on the morrow: For what [is] your life? It is even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.
15Instead of that ye [ought] to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.
16But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.
17Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth [it] not, to him it is sin.
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