From: Over 50 Interpreters Explain the Book of
James Return to Home
By
Roland H. Worth, Jr. © 2017
List of All Sources
Quoted At End of File
CHAPTER CHAPTER 5
5:1 Translations
WEB: Come
now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming on you.
Young’s: Go,
now, ye rich! weep, howling over your miseries that
are coming upon you.
Conte (RC): Act now,
you who are wealthy! Weep and wail in your miseries, which will soon come upon
you!
5:1 Go to now [Come now, NKJV]. The
words are nearly the same as those we have met with before in James 4:9, but
there is in them less of the call to repentance, and more of the ring of
prophetic denunciation. [38]
ye rich men. As to riches two questions should be
asked: How are they secured? How are they used? The persons whom James condemned [were]
Christians, or, more probably, unconverted Jews; beyond doubt they belonged to
a class with which we are all familiar to-day.
They had amassed their wealth by fraud and cruelty; they were spending
it in selfish luxury. [7]
The apostle does not speak this so much for the sake
of the rich themselves, as of the poor children of God, who were then groaning
under their cruel oppression. [15, 47]
weep and howl. Literally, ‘weep, howling over your miseries.’ [51]
The word for “howl,” not found elsewhere in the New
Testament, is found in three consecutive chapters of Isaiah (13:6, 14:31,
15:3), which may well have been present to St James’ thoughts. [38]
We must bear in mind that Orientals are extremely
demonstrative in the expression of emotion.
[45]
for your miseries
that shall come upon you. That this prediction
was exactly fulfilled by the slaughter and spoiling of the rich Jews throughout
Galilee and Judea [in the Jewish Revolt], Josephus will not suffer us to
doubt: for he informs us, that “the
zealots spared none but those who were poor and low in fortune;” and that they
were so insatiably rapacious, that they searched all the houses of the rich,
killing the men, and abusing the women. [4]
These miseries in the Jewish war fell heavily upon
the rich. They as a class belonged to the
moderate party, who, having much to lose, wished to avoid a war with the
Romans, and therefore were especially persecuted by the Jewish zealots, who
became the ruling party. [51]
In depth: The twin issues of who the following section is addressed to and whether it includes an implicit call to repentance [51]. Whoever may be the persons referred to in the preceding paragraph, we consider that the rich who are here addressed were unbelieving and wicked men not belonging to the Christian community. Some indeed consider that they are rich Christians (so Erdmann); but the crime charged upon them of condemning and killing the just cannot be applicable to believers.
Hence, Stier correctly remarks: ‘The rich men, whom St. James must here meant, are those already mentioned in James 2:6-7: those who practiced violence on the disciples of Christ, the confessors of the Lord of glory, and blasphemed that good name by which they were called. To them St. James predicts, as a prophet and in the style of the old prophets, the impending judgment to which Jerusalem was doomed, the desolation of the land, and all the misery which he, like the Lord Himself, speaks of as His coming to judgment and salvation.’
It has also been disputed whether we have here a pure
and unmixed denunciation of evil, or a call to repentance. Certainly there is in the words no invitation
to repentance, but a mere declaration of vengeance. ‘They are mistaken,’ observes Calvin, ‘who
consider that St. James here exhorts the rich to repentance. It seems to be a simple
denunciation of God’s judgment, by which he meant to terrify them, without
giving them any hope of pardon, for all that he says tends only to
despair.’ But this must not be too
absolutely assumed, for we learn in the case of
And: Calvin and others of his school
fail to see in this passage an exhortation of the rich to penitence, but only a
denunciation of woe upon them; in the sense, however, that all prophecy,
whether evil or good, is conditional, there is sufficient room to
believe that no irrevocable doom was pronounced by “a Christian Jeremiah.” [46]
5:2 Translations
WEB: Your
riches are corrupted and your garments are moth-eaten.
Young’s: your
riches have rotted, and your garments have become moth-eaten.
Conte (RC): Your
riches have been corrupted, and your garments have been eaten by moths.
5:2 Your riches. The
union of the two chief forms of Eastern wealth in this and the following verse,
reminds us of the like combination in Matthew 6:19, “where moth and rust doth
corrupt.” Compare Paul’s “I have coveted
no man’s silver, or gold, or apparel” (Acts
And: The riches of the ancients consisted much in
large stores of corn, wine, oil, and costly apparel. These things the rich men in
are. The verbs in Greek are in the
perfect. In a prophetical manner the
future is described as having already taken place, as in Isaiah liii. 3-10. [50]
corrupted. Some suppose, on account of the term
‘corrupted,’ that riches in grain are to be understood, which are liable to
corruption; but this is refining too much:
the word ‘corrupted’ is evidently a figurative term used to denote the
perishable nature of the riches. The
fact is stated, in a prophetical manner, in the past tense, as having already
occurred—‘your riches are corrupted,’ denoting the certain and impending nature
of the calamity. [51]
A suitable
provision for the time to come cannot be forbidden; but the reference here is
to cases in which great quantities had been laid up, perhaps while the poor
were suffering, and which were kept until they became worthless. [31]
and your garments
are motheaten. As the fashions in the East did not change as
they do with us, wealth consisted much in the garments that were laid up for
show or for future use. See Matthew
6:19. Q. Curtius
says that when Alexander the Great was going to take
However much these possessions might currently look glorious, in God’s
sight they already looked worn out and exhausted: As
expanded in the eloquent gloss of Bishop Wordsworth, “Your wealth is moldering
in corruption, and your garments, stored up in vain superfluity, are become
moth-eaten: although they may still
glitter brightly in your eyes, and may dazzle men by their brilliance, yet they
are in fact already cankered; they are loathsome in God’s sight; the
Divine anger has breathed upon them and blighted them; they are already
withered and blasted.” [46]
5:3 Translations
WEB: Your gold and your silver are
corroded, and their corrosion will be for a testimony against you, and will eat
your flesh like fire. You have laid up your treasure in the last days.
Young’s: your
gold and silver have rotted, and the rust of them for a testimony shall be to
you, and shall eat your flesh as fire. Ye made treasure in the last days!
Conte (RC): Your
gold and silver have rusted, and their rust will be a testimony against you,
and it will eat away at your flesh like fire. You have stored up wrath for
yourselves unto the last days.
5:3 Your gold and silver is cankered [corroded, NKJV]. The other treasures in which their riches consisted. [51]
and the rust
[corrosion, NKJV] of them. These metals do not literally
rust, but do tarnish from long disuse. The idea is that they show they have
been hoarded, not used. [22]
shall be a witness
against you. The doom that falls on the earthly
possessions of the ungodly shall be, as it were, the token of what will fall on
them, unless they avert it by repentance.
[38]
The "lack of use"
interpretation: The tarnish shows that you have
hoarded instead of using. [22]
A witness against you that you have
not used them for any good or charitable purpose. [41]
A different approach: Some render this: the rust which you have allowed to accumulate
on them from want of use shall testify against you in the judgment as an
evidence of your parsimony and sinful hoarding.
But such a meaning is contrary to the context: it is of the destruction
of the rich that St. James here speaks, not of the evidence of their crime. Hence, then, the meaning is: the rust of them
shall be a testimony to your destruction; the like destruction shall befall you
which befalls your gold and silver. [51]
and shall eat your
flesh as it were fire. Will occasion you as great torment as if fire were consuming your
flesh. [15, 47]
Fire being the emblem of judgment: like fire shall
the rust eat your flesh. So also we
speak of the devouring fire. ‘The Lord
shall swallow them up in His wrath, and the fire shall devour them’ (Psalms
21:9). [51]
The last words have been sometimes taken as belonging
to the next clause, “as fire ye laid up treasure,” but the structure of the
English text is preferable. The
underlying image suggested is that the rust or canker spreads from the riches
to the very life itself, and that when they fail, and leave behind them only
the sense of wasted opportunities and the memories of evil pleasures, the soul
will shudder at their work as the flesh shudders at the touch of fire. We may perhaps trace a reminiscence of the
“unquenchable fire” devouring the carcases in Gehenna, as in Mark 9:44.
[38]
Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days. When it
is too late; when you have no time to enjoy them. [15]
These
words may also admit of two explanations: — that the rich, as they would always
live, are never satisfied, but weary themselves in heaping together what may be
sufficient to the end of the world, — or, that they heap together the wrath and
curse of God for the last day; and this second view I embrace. [35]
the last days. The last days as referring to those of
Not in the last days of your life; but either in the
days that shall precede the coming of Christ, or in the last days of the Jewish
nation, when those awful judgments threatened by the prophets and predicted by
Jesus Christ will be poured out upon the unbelieving and ungodly Jews. We must not forget that it is to Jews that
St. James writes; and ‘the last days’ is a Jewish expression for the age of the
Messiah, and hence is fitly employed by the sacred writers to denote the end of
the Jewish economy. The zealots during
the Jewish war regarded it as a crime to be rich, and their insatiable avarice
induced them to search into the houses of the rich, and to murder their
inmates. [51]
Or:
every one is always potentially
living in the last days: Some
expositors have seen in this verse an instance of James’s belief that he was
“living in the last days of the world’s history;” and compared his "delusion"
with that of Paul and John (1 Thessalonians 4:15, and 1 John 2:18). But there was no mistake on the part of the
inspired writers; freedom from error in their Sacred
office must be vindicated, or who shall sever the false gospel from the
true? The simple explanation is an old
one—the potential nearness of Christ,
as it is called. In many ways He has
been ever near each individual, as by affliction, or death, or judgment; but
His actual return was probably nearer in the first ages of faith than in the
brutality of the tenth century or the intellectual pride of the
nineteenth. His advent is helped or
hindered by the state of Christendom itself: “one day is with the Lord as a
thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (2 Peter 3:8), there is: neither past nor future in His sight; only the
presence of His own determination: and nought retards
Christ’s Second Coming so much as the false and feeble Christianity which prays
“Thy kingdom come” in frequent words, but waits not as the handmaid of her
Lord, with “loins girded about and lights burning” (Luke 12:35), “until the day
dawn, and the day star arise” (2 Peter 1:19).
[46]
5:4 Translations
WEB: Behold,
the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you have kept back by
fraud, cry out, and the cries of those who reaped have entered into the ears of
the Lord of Armies.
Young’s: lo,
the reward of the workmen, of those who in-gathered your fields, which hath
been fraudulently kept back by you -- doth cry out, and the exclamations of
those who did reap into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth
have entered.
Conte (RC): Consider
the pay of the workers who reaped your fields: it has been misappropriated by
you; it cries out. And their cry has entered into the ears of the Lord of
hosts.
5:4 Behold, the
hire of the labourers. The evil was one of old standing in Judæa. The law had
condemned those who kept back the wages of the hired labourer
even for a single night (Leviticus
who have reaped
down your fields. The
workers had carried out their obligation.
It was the abusive and greedy employer who had acted treacherously. [rw]
which is of you kept
back by fraud, crieth [cries out against you, NASB]. There was no legitimate reason for what they
did. They simply had the power and used
it—more properly, abused it. [rw]
Another display of arrogance was the oppression of
the poor, an offence more than once referred to with displeasure in the
Epistle. Though the law
of Moses contained so many provisions for the protection of poor Israelites, it
is evident, from the Gospel histories, that the rich Jews in the days of our
Lord treated the poor with scorn. (Luke
16:14, 19-21). [19]
“Crieth:” that is, for
assistance to the defrauded, or rather for vengeance on the defrauders; like as
Abel’s blood crieth unto God (Genesis
and the cries of
them which have reaped are entered into the ears. Judgment
has not been carried out on the oppressor—but God knows full well what is going
on. The oppressor is living in the delusion
caused by the current success of their abuse, not caring in the least what will
be done in retribution at some future date.
[rw]
Four sins are mentioned in Scripture as crying to Heaven: the murder of a brother (Genesis
of the Lord of sabaoth. I.e., Lord of Hosts. Sabaoth is the Hebrew. See
Romans 9:29. [13]
The divine Name thus used was pre-eminently
characteristic of the language of the Prophets.
It does not appear at all in the Pentateuch, nor
in Joshua, Judges, or Ruth; and probably took its rise in the Schools of the
Prophets, founded by Samuel. Whether its
primary meaning was that Jehovah was the God of all the armies of earth, the
God, as we say, of battles, or that He ruled over the armies of the stars of
heaven, or over the unseen hosts of angels, or was wide enough, as seems
probable, to include all three ideas, is a question which cannot be very
definitely answered. It is
characteristic of James that he gives the Hebrew form of the word, as also Paul
does in citing Isaiah 1:9 in Romans 9:29.
For the most part the LXX renders it by “Almighty” (Pantokratôr), and in this form it appears in
Revelation 4:8, where “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty” answers to “Lord
God of sabaoth,” or “of hosts” in Isaiah 5:3. This title is specially
characteristic of Malachi, in whom it occurs not less than 23 times. [38]
The point being made: And “by
representing the cries of the reapers defrauded of their hire as entering
into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth, that is, hosts,
or armies, the apostle intimates that the great Ruler of the
universe attends to the wrongs done to his creatures, and is affected by them
as tender-hearted persons are affected by the cries of the miserable; and that
he will, in due time, avenge them by punishing their oppressors. Let all oppressors consider this!” — Macknight. [47]
5:5 Translations
WEB: You
have lived delicately on the earth, and taken your pleasure. You have nourished
your hearts as in a day of slaughter.
Young’s: ye did
live in luxury upon the earth, and were wanton; ye did nourish your hearts, as
in a day of slaughter.
Conte (RC): You have
feasted upon the earth, and you have nourished your hearts with luxuries, unto
the day of slaughter.
5:5 Ye have lived in
pleasure on the earth. The second sin is luxury or
self-indulgence. [51]
God does not forbid us to use pleasure; but to live
in them as if we lived for nothing else is a very provoking sin; and to do this
on the earth, where we are but strangers and pilgrims, where we are but to
continue for a while, and where we ought to be preparing for eternity--this,
this is a grievous aggravation of the sin.
[5]
and been wanton
[substituted: in please and luxury,
NKJV].
Their sin consisted not only in the injustice by which their
wealth was secured, but in the prodigal luxury in which it was spent. [7]
ye have nourished
[fattened, NKJV] your hearts. That is, yourselves. [51]
as in a day of
slaughter. You live as if it were every day a day of
sacrifices, a festival. [5]
Many of the best MSS. omit the particle of comparison, ye nourished your heart in the
day of slaughter. With this
reading, the “day of slaughter” is that of the carnage and bloodshed of war,
such a “sacrifice” as that which the Lord of Hosts had, of old, by the river
Euphrates (Jeremiah 46:10), or the “great slaughter” in the land of Idumæa (Isaiah 34:6).
The “rich men” of Judæa, in their pampered
luxury, were but fattening themselves, all unconscious of their doom, as beasts
are fattened, for the slaughter. The
insertion of the particle of comparison suggests a different aspect of the same
thought. A sacrifice was commonly
followed by a sumptuous feast upon what had been offered. Compare the union of the two thoughts in the
harlot’s words (“I have peace-offerings with me; this day have I paid my vows”)
in Proverbs 7:14. Taking this view James
reproaches the self-indulgent rich with making their life one long continuous
feast. The former interpretation seems
preferable, both on critical and exegetical grounds. [38]
5:6 Translations
WEB: You
have condemned, you have murdered the righteous one. He doesn't resist you.
Young’s: ye did
condemn -- ye did murder the righteous one, he doth not resist you.
Conte (RC): You led
away and killed the Just One, and he did not resist you.
5:6 Ye have condemned. They
pretend to act legally indeed, they condemn before they kill; but unjust
prosecutions, whatever color of law they may carry in them, will come into the
reckoning when God shall make inquisition for blood, as well as massacres and
downright murders. [5]
This is a charge
against the rich of injustice or of procuring unjust decisions from the legal
tribunals against righteous men, perhaps by influence or bribery or both. [16]
and killed the
just. Indefinitely and collectively, the
just for any just man, viz. such as were innocent and just in comparison of
their persecutors. [28]
It was easy for the wealthy to control the processes
of law for condemning and defrauding the helpless poor; the latter were being
“killed” not necessarily with the sword, but by lack of food and improper
conditions of labor and by the crushing monotony of ceaseless toil; but the
silent appeal of their patient helplessness was unheeded. The rich oppressors were deaf to all
entreaties. [7]
Take it either [literally], or metaphorically of
usurers and extortioners, that not only rob, but
ravish the poor that are fallen into their nets, Psalms 10:9, that is, their
bonds, debts, mortgages, as Chrysostom interpreteth it; there is neither equity nor mercy to be
had at their hands; hence they are called meneaters,
cannibals, &c. One saith there is more justice to be found in hell than here
among men; for in hell no innocent person is oppressed. [29]
and he doth not
resist you. This notes not only the patience of such
in bearing injuries, but their weakness, and being destitute of human help
against their adversaries’ power. [28]
After the example of his Lord, he commits his cause
to God, knowing that He will execute judgment in his behalf. Compare 1 Pet. 2:23. [14]
They were treating the poor who were righteous with the same contempt that the unbelieving religious leadership in Jerusalem had toward Jesus. The Just, or Just One, may mean the Lord Jesus, whom these rich men were as it were slaying, crucifying afresh, when they were persecuting His members (Matthew 25:40; Acts 9:4). If this be the right meaning, then the words, “He doth not resist you,” may be taken to mean, “He no longer strives with you, He hath left you to yourself, He hath ‘given you over to a reprobate mind,’ ” the most hopeless state of all, utter misery and ruin (Isaiah lxvi. 4; Hosea 4:17). But the words “He doth not resist you,” may also mean “they who are the Body of Christ” (for being one body, they may be regarded as an individual), they in their poor estate are unable to resist you:” then the Apostle seems to imply, “Do not think, that because ye have your own way uncontrolled now, it will be always so; the time is coming when all this will be changed.” [42]
The far less likely
option that the text is not
discussing the treatment of the righteous poor, but God having given up hope for the unrighteous who acted this way. The present tense makes this passage
somewhat difficult to understand. We
know Christ did not resist His murderers, for He went to His death “as a lamb
that is led to the slaughter” (Isaiah liii. 7; 1
Peter
In depth: The case in
favor of the description “the just”
having Jesus specifically in mind [41]. By many this
is supposed to mean the Lord Jesus, Whose Name among the Christian Jews was
emphatically the Just One. Thus Ananias said unto Paul, “that thou shouldst
know his will, and see that Just One” (Acts
The
objection of course is from the words which follow, “He doth not resist you,”
but it is evident that this can only refer to open resistance, which the Lord
did not oppose to the Jewish Rulers in Church and State, but allowed them to
persecute His Church, and go in their own bad way till vengeance came upon them
to the uttermost. And no doubt many
unbelieving Jews would urge against the glorification of Christ, that if He was
at the right hand of God, and all things put under His feet, He would not
suffer His enemies to enjoy their triumph.
They little knew how short that triumph now was [during the Great Revolt
and destruction of
That
the word “the Just” refers to Christians in general is scarcely possible. If so it would, we think, not be in the
singular number.
In depth: The case against
the term “the just” having Jesus specifically in mind [38]. The
words have been very generally understood as referring to the death of Christ,
and on this view, the words “he doth not resist you” have been interpreted as
meaning, “He no longer checks you in your career of guilt; He leaves you alone
(comp. Hosea 4:17) to fill up the measure of your sin.” St James, it has been inferred, uses the term
“the Just One” as Stephen had done (Acts
Fuller consideration, however, shows that such a meaning could hardly have come within the horizon of St James’s thoughts:
(1) That
single evil act of priests, and scribes, and the multitude of
(2) The whole context leads us to see in the words, a generic evil, a class sin, characteristic, like those of the previous verse, of the rich and powerful everywhere.
(3) The meaning thus given to “he doth not resist you” seems, to say the least, strained and unnatural, especially as coming so soon after the teaching (James 4:6) which had declared that “God does resist the proud.”
(4) The true meaning of both clauses is found, it is believed, in taking “the just” as the representative of a class, probably of the class of those, who as disciples of Christ the Just One, were reproducing His pattern of righteousness. Such an one, like his Master, and like Stephen, St James adds, takes as his law (note the change of tense from past to present) the rule of not resisting. He submits patiently, certain that in the end he will be more than conqueror.
It is not without interest to note that that title was afterwards applied to St James himself (Euseb. Hist. ii. 23). The name Justus, which appears three times in the New Testament (Acts 1:23; Acts 18:7; Colossians 4:11), was obviously the Latin equivalent of this epithet, and it probably answered to the Chasidim or Assideans (1 Maccabees 2:42; 7:13; 2 Maccabees 14:6) of an earlier stage of Jewish religious history. It is as if a follower of George Fox had addressed the judges and clergy of Charles II’s reign, and said to them, “Ye persecuted the Friend, and he does not resist you.”
(5) It is in
favor of this interpretation that it presents a striking parallel to a passage
in the “Wisdom of Solomon,” with which this Epistle has so many
affinities. There too the writer speaks
of the wealthy and voluptuous as laying snares for “the just” who is also
“poor,” who calls himself “the servant of the Lord,” and
boasts of God as his Father (Wisdom
5:7 Translations
WEB: Be
patient therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. Behold, the farmer
waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient over it, until it
receives the early and late rain.
Young’s: Be
patient, then, brethren, till the presence of the Lord; lo, the husbandman doth
expect the precious fruit of the earth, being patient for it, till he may
receive rain -- early and latter.
Conte (RC): Therefore,
be patient, brothers, until the advent of the Lord. Consider that the farmer
anticipates the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently, until he
receives the early and the late rains.
5:7 Be patient therefore,
brethren. The connection with the preceding
paragraph is obvious and direct. St.
James, having pronounced the doom of the rich oppressors, now proceeds to
comfort the oppressed. [51]
Bear your afflictions without murmuring, your
injuries without revenge; and, though God should not in any signal manner
appear for you immediately, wait for him. [5]
therefore. An inference from what precedes;
seeing that there is a day of vengeance when the unbelieving and ungodly rich
will be punished for their injustice, luxury, and oppression, and consequently
a day of deliverance to them. [51]
unto the coming of
the Lord.
What is wrong will then be redressed; what is evil will then
be removed. The night may be dark and
lonely; but the longest night comes to a close.
By the Lord here is meant Christ, according to the analogy of Scripture,
and the general expectation of the coming of Christ by believers (2
Thessalonians 2:1-2). Though St. James
applies the title ‘Lord’ chiefly to God, yet he had previously applied it to
Christ (James 2:1). [51]
Interpreted
as the coming of the Lord in temporal judgment. Two different meanings have been
attached to the phrase ‘coming of the Lord.’
Some understand by it the coming of Christ in spirit to destroy
Interpreted
as the physical coming of the Lord at the end of earth time.
Many wrongs may be righted, many social customs may be improved, before
the visible reappearing of the Savior, but his coming is “the blessed hope,”
both for the Church and the world; then justice will be meted out to oppressor
and oppressed; then will begin an age of righteousness and peace. [7]
With the exception of 2 Corinthians 7:6-7; 2
Thessalonians 2:9; Philippians 1:26, the Greek word Parousia is always used in the
New Testament to denote the visible return of Jesus from Heaven, the Second Advent of Christ as opposed to
His First Advent. [50]
Interpreted
as foreshadowing the coming of the Lord in judgment at the fall of
And: This
“coming” or parousia
is only mentioned elsewhere in the New Testament in verse 8, in Matthew (4
times), in the Pauline Epistles (15 times), in 2 Peter (
Behold, the husbandman waiteth for
the precious fruit of the earth. The farmer can’t tell whether the harvest is coming at a certain time
even after the plants have started to grow.
He does know it will come sometime this year. It won’t be a matter of waiting an unknown
period of years for it. In contrast the
Christian awaits, not knowing what the time
frame is that the Lord has set. But he does
know that when the right time occurs in His eyes (not necessarily in
ours) that He will decisively act and bring all things to an end. [rw]
and hath long
patience [waiting patiently, NKJV] for it. Many a farmer, on many an occasion, has wished the growing season would
finally come to an end, and that the harvest time had arrived. A degree of patience is learned by all since
all the worrying has never speeded things up by one day or one week. [rw]
until he receive the
early and latter rain. I.e., the rain at
sowing and growing. [13]
The “early rain” fell in the months from October to
February; the latter, from March to the end of April. Compare Deuteronomy 11:14; Jeremiah 3:3,
James exhorts his suffering brethren to be like the
husbandman who has to wait between the sowing time and the harvest. But here is another wrong
interpretation. The latter rain of which
James speaks has been foolishly interpreted as meaning a spiritual latter rain,
another Pentecost. This is one of the star
arguments of present day Pentecostalism with its supposed revival of apostolic
gifts. The former and latter rain of
which James speaks has no such meaning; it is purely the rainfall in nature. In
5:8 Translations
WEB: You
also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.
Young’s: be
patient, ye also; establish your hearts, because the presence of the Lord hath
drawn nigh.
Conte (RC): Therefore,
you too should be patient and should strengthen your hearts. For
the advent of the Lord draws near.
5:8 Be ye also
patient. “Let your faith be firm, without wavering,
your practice of what is good constant and continued, without tiring, and your
resolutions for God and heaven fixed, in spite of all sufferings or
temptations.” [5]
stablish [strengthen,
NASB] your hearts. In the faith and
practice of the gospel. [14]
Possess your souls in patience; ‘be ye steadfast and
immoveable.’ ‘Not the weak, but the
strong hearts are qualified to cherish patience’ (Huther). We need strength of mind to be patient;
endurance is an evidence of strength. [61]
for the coming of
the Lord. For the deliverance of
His friends and the destruction of His enemies. [14]
draweth nigh [is at
hand, NKJV]. Case
that the physical return of Jesus at the time of the physical resurrection is
in mind [28]: As before,
His coming to the general judgment, which is said to be nigh, because of the
certainty of its coming, and the uncertainty of the time when it will come, and
because it is continually drawing on, and the whole time of the world’s
duration till then is but short in comparison of the eternity following;
and likewise because the particular judgment of every man is nigh at hand. See Philippians 4:5; Hebrews 10:37.
As judgment on the
city of Jerusalem and traditional Judaism [31]: The most natural interpretation of the
passage, and one which will accord well with the time when the Epistle was
written, is, that the predicted time of the destruction of Jerusalem [in] Matthew 24 was at hand; that there were already
indications that that would soon occur.
The Epistle was written, it is supposed, some ten or twelve years before
the destruction of
How believers could simultaneously believe that there was a “return” in the relatively near future but simultaneously that the physical return of the Lord might, however, still be in the distant future [51]: ‘Lest any,’ observes Calvin, ‘should object, and say that the time of deliverance was too long delayed, he obviates this objection, and says, The Lord was at hand, or, which is the same thing, The coming of the Lord draweth nigh.’
Here, also, two different interpretations are given: some referring this phrase to Christ’s coming in spirit to
destroy
But, it is asked, how can St. James say that Christ’s second coming draweth nigh? Some solve the difficulty by saying that it was so in the sight of God, with whom ‘one day is as a thousand years,’ and that faith enabled believers to see things as God saw them. But St. James mentions this coming for the comfort of the oppressed, and therefore he must allude to a coming in their estimation near at hand.
Others refer it to the then general expectation of the Lord’s advent Believers were then taught to live in constant expectation of the coming of the Lord. This event was indeed shrouded in uncertainty, and our Lord refused to give any revelation as to its time (Acts 1:7); but it was not by the primitive Church regarded, as it is by us, as far removed into the distant future, and as wholly improbable to happen in their days, but as an occurrence which might any time take place—even before that generation had passed away.
‘The longing of the apostolic Church “hasted unto”
the coming of the Lord. All Christian time appeared only as the point of transition to the
eternal, and thus as something passing quickly away’ (Neander). Hence the exhortations of the sacred writers:
‘Let your moderation,’ says
5:9 Translations
WEB: Don't grumble, brothers, against
one another, so that you won't be judged. Behold, the
judge stands at the door.
Young’s: murmur
not against one another, brethren, that ye may not be condemned; lo, the Judge
before the door hath stood.
Conte (RC): Brothers,
do not complain against one another, so that you may not be judged. Behold, the judge stands before the door.
5:9 Grudge not [Do not grumble, NKJV]. Say in
preference, Murmur not. “Grudge” has curiously changed its meaning from an
outward murmur to an inward feeling. It
has unfortunately been retained both here and in 1 Peter 4:9. See also Psalms 59:15, specially the Prayer
Book version, “They will . . . grudge if they be not satisfied”—i.e., complain
and murmur. [46]
This refers not so
much to the feeling of envy—‘be not envious to each other’—as to impatience and
irritability of temper, which are often the effects of severe or protracted
trials. It requires great grace to avoid
all murmuring and petulance in suffering; especially it is a difficult
attainment calmly to endure great pain; but God giveth
more grace. [51]
one against
another, brethren. Murmuring gives rise to mutual
recrimination. [51]
lest ye be
condemned [judged, ESV, NASB]. Or judged.
Their murmuring against their brethren led them to find fault with them, and
thus to accuse them falsely; and this exposed them to the righteous judgment of
God, who is the Avenger of all those who are wrongly condemned. There is here one of those manifest
references in this Epistle to the Sermon on the Mount .
The sentiment is precisely similar to the maxim of our Lord: ‘Judge not, that ye be not judged’ (Matthew
7:1). [51]
behold, the judge. Who will
punish all sin, and render to all their just reward. [14]
By the Judge we are to understand Christ. Christ is at hand; He is even at the door,
ready to render to every man according to his works. ‘Before the door,’ denoting the nearness of
the advent. Compare Matthew 24:33: ‘Likewise, when ye shall see all these
things, know that it is near, even at the door.’ In a different sense, in the Book of
Revelation, but still denoting nearness, Christ is represented as before the
door: ‘Behold, I stand at the door and knock’ (Revelation 3:20). St. James had previously exhorted believers
to patience in the endurance of trials by the consideration of this nearness of
the advent; now he warns them by the same consideration against all murmuring
and rash judgment of each other. [51]
standeth before the
door. He
is as if that close. Not far
distant. But, so to speak, “just beyond
where your eyes can see." [rw]
WEB: Take,
brothers, for an example of suffering and of patience, the prophets who spoke
in the name of the Lord.
Young’s: An example take ye of the suffering of evil, my brethren,
and of the patience, the prophets who did speak in the name of the Lord.
Conte (RC): My
brothers, consider the Prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an
example of departing from evil, of labor, and of patience.
the prophets. These
are the bright ones in the cloud of witnesses, of whom the Epistle to the
Hebrews (Hebrews 12:1) speaks, who, like Daniel, “stopped the mouths of lions”;
like Jeremiah and Elijah, “escaped the edge of the sword;” “out of weakness
were made strong”; who “were stoned,” like Zachariah; “sawn asunder,” like
Isaiah; “slain with the sword,” like Urijah and John;
“of whom the world was not worthy.” Thus
the saints of the Old Covenant are held up for honor and imitation to those of
the New. [46]
who have spoken in
the name of the Lord. Therefore
you can trust their message as fully accurate and reliable: They did not invent it; rather they revealed
the message God wished conveyed to us. [rw]
for an example of
suffering affliction. The very men that gloried in having prophets, yet could not bear their message. Nor did either their holiness or their high
commission screen them from suffering. [15]
Thus Moses, of whom it was
witnessed that he “chose rather to suffer afflictions with the people of God
than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season” (Hebrews
and of patience. There is a sense in which the Lord is
ever at hand and present. But He shall
come again at the end of this age. Then
all wrongs shall be righted and the oppressed avenged. Everything comes to him who can wait for
it; do not judge the Lord by His unfinished work. [33]
WEB: Behold,
we call them blessed who endured. You have heard of the patience of Job, and
have seen the Lord in the outcome, and how the Lord is full of compassion and
mercy.
Young’s: lo, we
call happy those who are enduring; the endurance of Job ye heard of, and the
end of the Lord ye have seen, that very compassionate is the Lord, and pitying.
Conte (RC): Consider
that we beatify those who have endured. You have heard of the patient suffering
of Job. And you have seen the end of the Lord, that the Lord is merciful and
compassionate.
which endure. Because they have fought
their good fight, and finished their course, and are waiting the time of their
perfecting at the coming of Christ (Hebrews
The heathen philosopher Solon called no one “happy”
upon earth; but, with the mystery of pain around him, cried sadly, “Look to the
end.” And the sated and weary soul of
Solomon had no better thought than to praise “the dead which are already dead,
more than the living” (Ecclesiastes 4:2).
How different the teaching of St. James, himself taught by the example
of the suffering Christ: verily, “he
that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than” the greatest and the
wisest who know not of its light and peace (Matthew
Here we have another reference to the Sermon on the
Mount; as the sufferings to which St. James primarily alludes arose from
persecution: ‘Blessed are they which are
persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is
your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before
you’ (Matthew
Ye have heard of the patience [perseverance, NKJV] of Job. He was not very patient, if by patience
we mean freedom from complaint and irritation and anger, but here the thought
is of steadfast “endurance,” the quality of invincible faith in God; this Job
possessed, and His whole life story is an illustration of how, in the end, the
Lord always shows His pity and mercy and vindicates His justice and his love
toward those that trust and “wait for” Him.
[7]
If, however, it be asked, Why does the Apostle so
much commend the patience of Job, as he had displayed many signs of impatience,
being carried away by a hasty spirit? To
this I reply, that though he sometimes failed through the infirmity of the
flesh, or murmured within himself, yet he ever surrendered himself to God, and
was ever willing to be restrained and ruled by Him. Though, then, his patience was somewhat
deficient, it is yet deservedly commended.
[35] If for no other reason: could any of us have done halfway as
well? [rw]
Job displayed his patience not only in his
afflictions, but especially in his persistent trust in God (Job
of Job. Job being introduced here among the
historical examples of patience, is assumed to have been a real person as in
fact he is (Ezekiel
This is the only NT
reference to Job, though the book is quoted, 1 Corinthians 3:19. [24]
Job’s friends were so certain of his misdeeds, that
they would not hear his self-defense; if God tried his endurance, man surely
afflicted his patience. We can hear the
three in council against him, becoming more zealous as they believe themselves
the defenders of God’s justice. (See Job
4-22) They are shocked at Job’s
obstinacy, and annoyed into vehement accusation against him, because he will
“hold fast” to his “integrity.” It is a damning proof to them of his
guilt. [46]
and have seen the
end of [intended by, NJKJV] the Lord. The end which the Lord
gave. [21]
Meaning, probably, the end or result to which the
Lord brings the sufferings of his people.
[34]
that the Lord is
very pitiful [compassionate, NKJV], and of tender mercy. God is
frequently called merciful in the Old Testament, but in the New only
here and in Luke 6:36. [16]
In depth: Could “the end of the Lord” refer to Jesus’ death on the cross [38]? The words have received two very different interpretations. (1) They have been referred to the “end” which the “Lord” wrought out for Job after his endurance had been tried, as in Job 42:12.
(2) The “end of the Lord” has been understood as pointing to the death and resurrection of Christ as the Lord who had been named in James 5:7, the highest example of patience in the Old Testament being brought into juxtaposition with the Highest of all Examples. On this view the passage becomes parallel with 1 Peter 2:19-25.
The clause that follows is,
however, decisively in favor of (1), nor is there any instance of a New
Testament writer using the term “end” of the passion and death of Christ. Matthew 26:58, which is the nearest approach
to such a use, is scarcely in point.
WEB: But
above all things, my brothers, don't swear, neither by heaven, nor by the
earth, nor by any other oath; but let your "yes" be "yes,"
and your "no," "no;" so that you don't fall into hypocrisy.
Young’s: And
before all things, my brethren, do not swear, neither by the heaven, neither by
the earth, neither by any other oath, and let your Yes be Yes, and the No, No;
that under judgment ye may not fall.
Conte (RC): But
before all things, my brothers, do not choose to swear, neither by heaven, nor
by the earth, nor in any other oath. But let your word ‘Yes’ be yes, and your
word ‘No’ be no, so that you may not fall under judgment.
The
writer evidently attached great importance to the prohibition which it
contains, as “above all things” indicates.
[16]
As if he had said, Whatever you forget, do not forget this. [15]
my brethren. I’m not talking to the outsider who isn’t
likely to care what I say. I’m talking
to those who should and, if they are wise, will. [rw]
swear not. However provoked. [15]
The injunction here is against a habit prevailing
among the Jews of attempting to establish truth, or the appearance of truth by
an oath. See Matt. 23:16-22; Mark 14:71. [1]
neither by heaven,
neither by the earth, neither by any other oath. If you can imagine it—don’t swear by
it. Nothing. Nowhere. Period. Aimed at those who would either wish to
wiggle their way around the prohibition or insisted that only one of these
represented a truly binding oath in which only truth must be expressed. [51]
but let your yea
be yea; and your nay, nay. He
refers here to the needless and heedless swearing in ordinary conversation, a
practice so common in ancient times, and of which so many ill-bred persons of
modern times are guilty. [50]
lest ye fall into
condemnation [judgment, NKJV]. Expose yourselves to God’s
judgments. [47]
In depth: Making the prohibition refer exclusively to
reaction to abuse or persecution. It would be interesting to study the
philosophy or the psychology of swearing.
The practice may spring from a desire for emphasis particularly when one
is provoked and seeks to express disapproval and disgust. This explanation may account for the
connection in which these words are found.
James has just referred to the cruel oppression of the rich and
powerful, and to their unjust treatment of Christians he now insists that under
even such provocation one is not to take the name of the Lord, our God, in
vain. [?]
Response: The language covers such
but, as written, covers much more as well: Some understand this too restrictedly,
as if the meaning were,
“Swear not at your persecutors, at those that reproach you and
say all manner of evil of you; be not put into a passion by the injuries
they do you, so as in your passion to be provoked to swear.” This swearing is no doubt forbidden
here: and it will not excuse those that
are guilty of this sin to say they swear only when they are provoked to it, and
before they are aware. But the apostle’s
warning extends to other occasions of swearing as well as this. [5]
Is invoking the name of God in an oath prohibited [46]? The words are put quite distinctly in
Greek and English—neither by the heaven, nor by the earth. And it sounds like special pleading [at
first?], worthy of a rabbi, to hear such a divine as Huther
say that “swearing by the name of God is not mentioned,” nor accordingly is
such an oath prohibited. “We must not
imagine,” he continues (and his argument had best be fairly given), “that this
is included in the last member of the clause, the Apostle evidently intending
by it (i.e., ‘neither by any other oath’) to point only at certain formulæ, of which several are mentioned in Matthew
Had he intended to forbid swearing by the name of God he would most certainly have mentioned it expressly; for not only is it in the Law, in contradistinction to other oaths, commanded (see Deuteronomy 6:13, 10:20; Psalm 63:11), but in the prophets is announced as a token of the future turning of men to God” (Isaiah 65:16; Jeremiah 12:16, 23:7-8).
There were, we learn, many subtle distinctions in
Jewish oaths; and the unlucky foreigner who trusted in an apparently firm one,
too often found out his mistake.
Certainly all such subterfuges are utterly condemned; and further, every
word which breaks the letter or spirit of God’s Third Commandment. As to the higher judicial forms of oaths,
remembering that our Lord answered such before Caiaphas
(Matthew 26:63-64), we can fearlessly conclude, with the 39th Article of
Religion, that “a man may swear, when the magistrate requireth,
in a cause of faith and charity, so it be done according to the prophet’s
teaching—in justice, judgment, and truth.”
[46]
WEB: Is
any among you suffering? Let him pray. Is any cheerful? Let him sing praises.
Young’s: Doth
any one suffer evil among you? let him pray; is any of
good cheer? let him sing psalms.
Conte (RC): Is any
of you sad? Let him pray. Is he even-tempered? Let him sing psalms.
Instead of murmuring
(verse 7), or of breaking out in oaths (verse 12), “let him pray.” [50]
Here perhaps it
specially refers to inward affliction—low spirits, in contrast to merry. [51]
let him pray. Prayer being the natural resort of the afflicted. [51]
Is any merry [cheerful, NKJV]? “Merry”
suggests the outward expression of joyousness, rather than the inward
cheerfulness of the Greek [term found here].
[44]
It is the same word which
let him sing
psalms. (ψαλλέτω) The word means, primarily, to pluck or
twitch. Hence of the sharp twang
on a bowstring or harp-string, and so to play upon a stringed instrument. Our word psalm, derived from this, is,
properly, a tune played upon a stringed instrument. The verb, however, is used in the New
Testament of singing praise generally.
See 1 Cor. 14:15;
It is, perhaps, specially characteristic of St James
that he contemplates what we may call the individual use of such music as well
as the congregational, as a help to the spiritual life. [38]
Nor ought prayer and praise to be separated; they
should be combined; our prayers should often express themselves in praise, and
our praise should be a prayer. Thus Paul
and Silas in prison prayed and sang praises to God (Acts
WEB: Is
any among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the assembly, and let them
pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.
Young’s: is any
infirm among you? let him call for the elders of the
assembly, and let them pray over him, having anointed him with oil, in the name
of the Lord.
Conte (RC): Is
anyone ill among you? Let him bring in the priests of the Church, and let them
pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.
A particular
instance of the general term ‘afflicted;’ to be taken in its literal sense,
denoting ‘bodily sickness,’ and not to be
spiritualized as denoting ‘spiritual trouble.’
[51]
let him call for the elders of the church. That is, they should send for them. They should not wait for them to hear of their sickness, as they might happen to, but they should cause them to be informed of it, and give them an opportunity of visiting them and praying with them. Nothing is more common than for persons--even members of the church--to be sick a long time, and to presume that their pastor must know all about it; and then they wonder that he does not come to see them, and think hard of him because he does not. A pastor cannot be supposed to know everything; nor can it be presumed that he knows when persons are sick, any more than he can know anything else, unless he is apprized of it. [31]
What were “elders” in
the first century church? The term elder was an official title, taken from the Synagogue, given to the
leaders of the local Christian church, to those “that labored . . . and were
over” the congregation (1 Thessalonians
and let them pray
over him.
This was the special object for which the presbyters were to
come to him. [50]
This may denote either literally ‘over his bed,’ or
‘over him’ by the imposition of hands; or figuratively ‘with reference to him,’
that is, ‘for him.’ [51]
It is noticeable that the remission of sins thus
promised is dependent not on the utterance of the quasi-judicial formula of the
“Absolvo te” (that, indeed, was not used at all until the
13th century) by an individual priest, but on the prayer of the elders as
representing the Church. Compare John
20:23, where also the promise is in the plural, “Whosesoever sins ye remit.” [38]
anointing him with oil
in the name of the Lord. The use of oil in ancient times
was very common as a remedy in sickness.
[1]
We might paraphrase in more modern fashion, “Use
medicine, and pray that it might be blessed.”
[45]
In the times of miraculous healing, sick were to
be anointed with oil in the name of the Lord. Expositors generally confine this anointing
with oil to such as had the power of working miracles;
and, when miracles ceased, this institution ceased also. In Mark’s gospel we read of the apostle’s
anointing with oil many that were sick, and healing them, Mark
The Parable of the Good Samaritan gives one example
of the medical use of oil (Luke
In depth: Overview of
interpretive options [7]. In reference to a passage so much
debated it would be foolish to speak with dogmatic assurance. A few suggestions, however, may be of help.
1. The use of oil as a medicine, and its
application in cases of disease, has been familiar in all ages; and it is a
sufficiently satisfactory interpretation of these verses to say that they
prescribe, in the case of bodily sickness, prayer and the use of simple
remedies.
2. It may be, however, that sending for “elders”
instead of a “beloved physician” and the anointing with oil “in the name of the
Lord,’ point to the regulated exercise of the miraculous “gift of healing”
which undoubtedly was granted to the early Church, but which, like the gifts of
“tongues” and “prophecy,” and “immunity from deadly poisons,” no longer exists.
3. The emphasis is on “the prayer of faith,” and
possibly the “oil” is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, by whom the cure was to be
effected; the faith of the sufferer would be strengthened by the use of the
familiar remedy, and, as his sins seem to have been connected with the cause of
his disease, he would be reminded of the cleansing and healing power of the
Spirit of God.
4. There is no reference here to “extreme
unction”; this is designed to prepare the soul for death; the anointing by “the
elders” was intended to restore the body to health.
In depth: The case against a miraculous interpretation
of the text [31]. There can be but three views taken of the
passage:
(a) Nothing of this kind is said by the apostle, and this is not necessary to be supposed in order to a fair interpretation of the passage.
(b) The reference, as already observed, is clearly not to the apostles, but to the ordinary officers of the church - for such a reference would be naturally understood by the word presbyters; and to suppose that this refers to miracles, would be to suppose that this was a common endowment of the ordinary ministers of religion.
(c)
If this referred to the power of working miracles, and if the promise was
absolute, then death would not have occurred at all among the early disciples.
It would have been easy to secure a restoration to health in any instance where
a minister of religion was at hand.
In depth: Difficulties in interpreting this as a pre-death ritual as in Roman Catholic practice [31]. It is supposed by the Roman Catholics to give sanction to the practice of “extreme unction,” and to prove that this was practiced in the primitive church. But the objections to this are still more obvious.
(a) It was not to be performed at death, or in the immediate prospect of death, but in sickness at any time. There is no hint that it was to be only when the patient was past all hope of recovery, or in view of the fact that he was to die. But “extreme unction,” from its very nature, is to be practiced only where the patient is past all hope of recovery.
(b) It was not with a view to his death, but to his living, that it was to be practiced at all. It was not that he might be prepared to die, but that he might be restored to health--“and the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up.” But “extreme unction” can be with no such reference, and no such hope. It is only with the expectation that the patient is about to die; and if there were any expectation that he would be raised up even by this ordinance, it could not be administered as “extreme unction.”
(c) The ordinance practiced as “extreme unction” is a rite wholly unauthorized in the Scriptures, unless it be by this passage. There are instances indeed of persons being embalmed after death. It was a fact also that the Savior said of Mary, when she poured ointment on his body, that she “did it for his burial,” or with reference to his burial (Matthew 26:12), but the Savior did not say that it was with reference to His death or was designed in any way to prepare Him to die, nor is there any instance in the Bible in which such a rite is mentioned.
WEB: and
the prayer of faith will heal him who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up.
If he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
Young’s: and
the prayer of the faith shall save the distressed one, and the Lord shall raise
him up, and if sins he may have committed, they shall be forgiven to him.
Conte (RC): And a
prayer of faith will save the infirm, and the Lord will alleviate him. And if
he has sins, these will be forgiven him.
shall save the sick. The effect
of the prayer is that the sick man will recover (“shall save”), stated more
specifically in the words “and the Lord shall raise him up,” from his sick-bed
(Mark
It would appear from Scripture that this faith must
be possessed by both parties; the person who performs the miracle must be
endowed with this miraculous faith; and the person on whom the miracle is
wrought must have faith to be healed (Acts 14:9). [51]
and the Lord. Here, as
in James 5:14, we have to think of James as recognizing not merely the power of
God generally, but specifically that of the Lord Jesus, still working through
His servants, as He worked personally on earth.
So Peter said to Æneas, “Jesus Christ maketh thee whole” (Acts
shall raise him up. This
must be understood, as such promises are everywhere,
with this restriction, that they will be restored to health if it shall be the
will of God; if he shall deem it for the best.
It cannot be taken in the absolute and unconditional sense, for then, if
these means were used, the sick person would always recover, no matter how
often he might be sick, and he need never die.
The design is to encourage them to the use of these means with a strong
hope that it would be effectual. It may
fairly be inferred from this statement:
(1) that there would be cases in large numbers where these means would
be attended with this happy result; and (2) that there was so much
encouragement to do it that it would be proper in any case of sickness so make
use of these means. [31]
and if he have
committed sins. The Greek gives a shade of meaning
which can hardly be transferred neatly into English, representing not merely
the fact that the man has sinned, but his condition as a
sinner. Literally the words read, if
he be having committed sins; i.e., in a state of having committed,
and under the moral or physical consequences of transgression. [2]
The relationship of
the sin to the disease—interpreted as the illness having been punishment for
the sin. i.e. Such sins for which God was pleased to
inflict this bodily disease upon him, as he did on the members of the church of
Corinth, for their disorderly celebrating the Lord’s supper; “for which cause,”
saith the apostle, “many are weak and sickly among
you: (1 Cor. 11:30), they being thus “Chastened of
the Lord” (verse 32); and where the sickness is by way of chastisement, the
healing it is a testimony of God’s forgiveness of it. [4]
Thus in raising up the
paralytic at
The
illness as having no necessary reference to sin at all. By
saying “if,” James clearly implies that illnesses are not to
automatically be considered as “sin caused.”
If there were an automatic connection, the “if” would not be appropriate
at all. Although deducing that if
such is present that it has a relationship to the illness is a quite reasonable
interpretation, but not quite a necessary inference: Unrepented of sin
can easily exist and be ignored for a lengthy period of time. In such cases, sickness reminds us forcefully
of our mortality and should motivate a reconciliation
with God as well as an escape from our temporary pains of the body. [rw]
Why confession would
be useful even if the illness itself is not sin related. Disease
is often greatly aggravated by the trouble of mind which arises from conscious
guilt; and, in such a case, nothing will contribute more directly to recovery
than the restoration of peace to the soul agitated by guilt and by the dread of
a judgment to come. This may be secured
by confession--confession made first to God, and then to those who are wronged. It may be added, that this is a duty to which
we are prompted by the very nature of our feelings when we are sick, and by the
fact that no one is willing to die with guilt on his conscience; without having
done everything that he can to be at peace with all the
world. [31]
they shall be
forgiven him. Upon his
repentance the punishment shall be taken off.
[47]
In depth: The common Jewish conviction that various diseases were attributable to sin and even specific types of sin [36]. The Jewish belief on this subject may be illustrated by the following: in Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs, Simeon, because Simeon continued wrathful against Reuben, he says, “But the Lord restrained me, and withheld from me the power of my hands; for my right hand was half withered for seven days”; in Gad. the patriarch confesses that owing to his hatred against Joseph God brought upon him a disease of the liver, “and had not the prayers of Jacob my father succoured me, it had hardly failed but my spirit had departed”.
That sin brings disease was, likewise in the later
Jewish literature, an article of faith, indeed here one finds specified what are the particular sicknesses that particular sins bring in
their train. According to
Rabbinical teaching there are four signs by means of which it is possible to
recognize the sin of which a man has been guilty: dropsy is the sign that the
sin of fornication has been committed, jaundice that of unquenchable hatred,
poverty and humiliation that of pride, liver complaint (?) (אסכרה) that of back-biting. In Shabbath,
55 a, it says: “No death without sin, no chastisement without
evil-doing,” and in Nedarim, 41a it
says: “No recovery without forgiveness”. Leprosy may be due to one of eleven
sins, but most probably to that of an evil tongue (see Weber, Jüdische Theologie,
pp. 245 f.).
WEB: Confess
your offenses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed.
The insistent prayer of a righteous person is powerfully effective.
Young’s: Be
confessing to one another the trespasses, and be praying for one another, that
ye may be healed; very strong is a working supplication of a righteous man.
Conte (RC): Therefore,
confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be
saved. For the unremitting prayer of a just person prevails over many things.
As to the sick brother’s confession of sin, it is
surely with a wisdom higher than his own that the
Apostle refrains from saying “Confess your sins to the presbyters,” and
generalizes the exhortation this, “Confess your faults one to another.” Christians are to confess to each other their
faults against each other, in order to brotherly forgiveness and reconciliation
(Matt.
and pray one for
another. One for the other;
mutually. Those who have done injury, and those who are injured, should
pray for each other. The apostle does
not seem here, as in James 5:14-15, to refer particularly to the prayers of the
ministers of religion, or the elders of the church, but refers to it as a duty pertaining
to all Christians. [31]
In details the precept is singularly wide. The confession is not to be made by the
layman to the elder, more than by the elder to the layman. In either case the
question whether it was to be public or private, spontaneous or carried on by
questions, is left open. Examples such
as those of Matthew 3:6; Acts 19:18-19, suggest the thought of the public
confession of individual sins, which was, indeed, the practice of the Church of
the third and fourth centuries, as it was afterwards that of many Monastic
orders. A later revival of the custom is
found in the “class-meetings” of the followers of John Wesley. [38]
that ye may be
healed. [This has] been
thought to limit the counsel thus given to times of sickness. It may be admitted that the words are to be
taken primarily of bodily healing, but on the other hand, the tense of the
imperatives implies continuous action.
The writer urges the habit of mutual prayer and intercession, that when
sickness comes, there may be a quicker work of healing in the absence of
spiritual impediments to the exercise of supernatural powers working through
natural media. [38]
Some restrict this to bodily healing, as in the case
of the sickness mentioned above. But
there is no reason for this restriction; as the confession and the prayer are
mutual, spiritual healing may also be included.
The term, therefore, is to be taken generally, including both spiritual
and bodily healing. And certainly
confession has a healing efficacy. There
is no burden heavier to bear than the burden of some guilty secret. Now this burden is lessened, if not removed,
by confession. Confession expels sin
from the soul, and restores a man to his true self; whereas secrecy retains
sin, and causes a man to live a false life.
[51]
the effectual
[effective, NKJV] fervent prayer. [Effectual=] Sincere, earnest,
believing. [14]
of a righteous
man.
Prayer, in order to prevail, must proceed from an earnest
heart, and be made by a righteous man; that is, by a good, sincere,
true-hearted man. [51]
availeth much. Has
great influence in procuring blessings from God. [14]
In depth: Use by the
Roman Catholic Church to justify “confession” to a priest [31]: This
passage is one on which Roman Catholics rely to demonstrate the propriety of
“auricular confession,” or confession made to a priest with a view to an
absolution of sin. The doctrine which is
held on that point is, that it is a duty to confess to a priest, at certain
seasons, all our sins, secret and open, of which we have been guilty; all our
improper thoughts, desires, words, and actions; and that the priest has power
to declare on such confession that the sins are forgiven. But never was any text less pertinent to
prove a doctrine than this passage to demonstrate that. Because:
(1) The
confession here enjoined is not to be made by a person in health, that he may
obtain salvation, but by a sick person, that he may be healed. [Even
if this is specifically in mind, the wording is so broad that it seems
to be laying down an all-encompassing principle--applicable both in that case
as well as times when one is in good health.
[rw]]
(2) as mutual confession is here enjoined, a priest would be as much bound to confess to the people as the people to a priest.
(3) no mention is made of a priest at all, or even of a minister of religion, as the one to whom the confession is to be made.
(4) the confession referred to is for “faults” with reference to “one another,” that is, where one has injured another; and nothing is said of confessing faults to those whom we have not injured at all.
(5) there is no mention here of absolution, either by a priest or any other person.
(6) if anything is meant by absolution that is Scriptural, it may as well be pronounced by one person as another; by a layman as a clergyman. All that it can mean is, that God promises pardon to those who are truly penitent, and this fact may as well be stated by one person as another. No priest, no man whatever, is empowered to say to another either that he is truly penitent, or to forgive sin. Who can forgive sins but God only?” None but he whose law has been violated, or who has been wronged, can pardon an offence. No third person can forgive a sin which a man has committed against a neighbor; no one but a parent can pardon the offences of which his own children have been guilty towards him; and who can put himself in the place of God, and presume to pardon the sins which Hs creatures have committed against Him?
WEB: Elijah
was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain,
and it didn't rain on the earth for three years and six months.
Young’s: Elijah
was a man like affected as we, and with prayer he did pray -- not to rain, and
it did not rain upon the land three years and six months.
Conte (RC): Elijah
was a mortal man like us, and in prayer he prayed that it would not rain upon
the earth. And it did not rain for three years and six months.
was a man subject
to like passions [nature, NKJV] as we are. As much as to say, Do
not think of Elias as some superhuman being, whose prevalent intercession with
God you are forbidden to imitate. He was
a fellow-man with you, and a sharer with you of all the infirmities of human
nature. [14]
Elijah, through natural infirmity, suffered as we do
from diseases, from temptation, from persecution, &c. [47]
and he prayed
earnestly that it might not rain. Literally, ‘he prayed with prayer;’ a
Hebraism for ‘he prayed earnestly.’ [51]
Not to gratify any private resentment of his, but as
a punishment on the land for the idolatry which prevailed in
the time of Ahab. Famine was one
of the principal methods by which God punished his people for their sins. [31]
No mention is made in the Old Testament of this
prayer, but it is announced prophetically.
He prayed, either before or after, that rain might be withheld until
and it rained not
on the earth. On the
This Orientalism need not
be a snare to the most literal of readers.
The punishment, because of Ahab and Jezebel, fell on their own kingdom,
and not the whole world. In a similar
hyperbole Obadiah told Elijah, concerning this very famine, “there is no
nation, or kingdom, whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee” (1 Kings
by the space of
three years and six months. The same period is stated by our Lord
(Luke
Three years--Cf. 1 Kings 18:1, “The third year,” viz.,
from Elijah’s going to Zarephath; the prophecy (v.1)
was probably about five or six months previously. [21]
In depth: Recent
historical precedent that might have encouraged this example to especially weigh
upon James’ mind (depending upon the date
of the epistle of course) [38]. An interesting coincidence in
connection with this reference to Elijah’s history presents itself in the
narrative given in Josephus (
It was one of the years of drought that brought about
the great famine foretold by Agabus (Acts
According to the date which, on independent grounds,
has here been assigned to St James’s Epistle, the event referred to must have
happened but a few months before, or but a few months after, it. If before, he may well have
had it in his thoughts. If after, it may well have been in part the effect of his teaching. Students of Church History will remember the
strikingly parallel instance of the prayers of the soldiers of the Thundering
Legion in the Expedition of Marcus Aurelius against the Marcomanni
(Euseb. Hist.;. Tertull. Apol. c. 5).
WEB: He
prayed again, and the sky gave rain, and the earth brought forth its fruit.
Young’s: and
again he did pray, and the heaven did give rain, and the land did bring forth
her fruit.
Conte (RC): And he
prayed again. And the heavens gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.
WEB: Brothers,
if any among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back.
Young’s: Brethren,
if any among you may go astray from the truth, and any one may turn him back.
Conte (RC): My
brothers, if anyone of you strays from the truth, and if someone converts him.
if any of you do
err from the truth. Depart from the faith and practice of the
gospel. [14]
The case is that of one who has gone astray:
he has erred “from the truth,” not so much in the matter of belief as of
practice. [7]
err. A passive verb, and rightly
rendered by Alford be seduced. [39]
It matters
now whether the wanderer goes astray of his own will or is led astray by
others. [50] The result is the same in either
case. [rw]
and one convert
him [turns him back, NKJV]. Turn him from his error to the belief and
practice of truth and duty. [14]
Is the instrument in the hand of God of his restoration. [51]
WEB: let
him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul
from death, and will cover a multitude of sins.
Young’s: let
him know that he who did turn back a sinner from the straying of his way shall
save a soul from death, and shall cover a multitude of sins.
Conte (RC): he ought
to know that whoever causes a sinner to be converted from the error of his ways
will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
As
an inducement to attempt the work of restoring the erring. [51]
that he which converteth [turns, NKJV] the sinner from the error of his
way.
From the false doctrine and bad practice to
which he had turned aside. [47]
error. The noun always involves the idea of
being deceived as well as erring.
Compare 2 Peter 2:18,
shall save a soul
from death.
The soul is obviously that of the sinner who is
converted. Death, bodily and spiritual,
would be the outcome of the error if he were left alone, and in being rescued
from the error he is therefore saved also from death. [38]
Here, evidently, eternal death is meant, the
punishment of the condemned, the death of the soul; a death compared with which
the death of the body is but a trifle; thus intimating in the strongest manner
the infinite importance of the restoration of the erring. [51]
and shall hide a
multitude of sins. Cover them, by leading the person who has
committed them to obtain, through repentance and faith in Christ, forgiveness
of them. Compare Psalm 32:1: “Blessed is he whose transgression is
forgiven, whose sin is covered.” [14]
The phrase is one of those which St. James has in
common with St. Peter (1 Peter 4:8). It
occurs also in the LXX of Psalm 85:2, and in a nearly identical form in Psalm
32:1. The Hebrew, and English version,
of Proverbs 10:12 present a still closer parallel, but the LXX seems to have
followed a different text, and gives “Friendship covers all those that are not
contentious.” The context leaves hardly any room for doubt that the “sins”
which are thought of as covered are primarily those of the man converted, and
not those of the converter. There is, however, a studied generality in the form
of the teaching, which seems to emphasize the wide blessedness of love. [38]
a multitude of sins. In the
man saved, by preventing their growth and maturity. [13]
The sins not of the person who converts, but of the
person who is converted; the multitude of his sins are blotted out; his actual
sins, not the possible sins which the sinner might have committed, but of which
his conversion has prevented the commission.
[51]
Or: The case for
applying this to the person convincing the other to change their lifestyle: The concluding words (quoted from
Proverbs
Concluding
thought on why there is no traditional epistle style conclusion [37]. The abrupt
termination of the Epistle may be accounted for by the character of the
document. It may be regarded as a series
of decisions on the duties, temptations and difficulties of the Christian life
suggested by actual facts which had been brought to the Apostle’s notice; hence
it takes the form of a charge or message to the Churches rather than that of an
epistle in the ordinary sense of the word. The message ended, the conclusion comes
without the usual epistolary greetings.
Another approach [38]. The absence of any formal close to the Epistle is in many ways remarkable. In this respect it stands absolutely alone in the New Testament, the nearest approach to it being found in 1 John 5:21. It is a possible explanation of this peculiarity, that we have lost the conclusion of the Epistle. It is, however, more probable that the abruptness is that of emphasis. The writer had given utterance to a truth which he desired above all things to impress on the minds of his readers, and he could not do this more effectually than by making it the last word he wrote to them.
BOOKS/COMMENTARIES UTILIZED
IN THIS STUDY:
1 [Anonymous]. Teacher’s Testament/Nelson’s Explanatory
Testament
Thomas
Nelson & Sons;
2 Marvin
R. Vincent, D.D. Word
Studies in the New Testament.
Charles
Scribner’s Sons;
3 Robert
Young. Commentary
on the Holy Bible. A. Fullarton & Co;
4 Daniel
Whitby, D.D. and Moses Lowman. A Critical Commentary and
Paraphrase
on the New Testament. Carey Hart,
5 Matthew
Henry. Vol. IV: Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible.
6 Rev. Dr
C. G. Barth. The Bible Manual.
1865
7 Charles
R. Erdman. The
General Epistles.
Press, 1918.
8 Joh. Ed. Huther, Th. D., Critical
and Exegetical Handbook to the
General
Epistles of James, Peter, John, and Jude
[Meyer’s Commentary
on the New Testament].
9 Professor
Bernhard Weiss, D.D. A
Commentary of the New Testament Vol. IV.
10 Charles
Simeon, M.A. Horae
Homileticae Vol. XX.
and Ball, 1833.
11 Rev. S.
T. Bloomfield, M.A. Recensio
Symoptica Annotations Sacrae
[
12 George
Leo Haydock. Haydock’s Catholic Family Bible and Commentary
UTS,
13 Howard
Crosby, D.D. New
Testament, With Brief Explanatory Notes. New
14 Anonymous [Justin
Edwards]. The New
Testament of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
This edition has more notes, but Edwards’ name is
attached to a shorter
edition of the
same material at UTS,
15 John
Wesley, M.A. Explanatory Notes upon
the New Testament.
16 Orello Cone, D.D. International Handbooks to the N.T. Vol. 3:
The Epistles. New York:
G. P. Putnam’s Sons / Knickerbocker Press,
1901.
17 Philip
Doddridge, D.D. The Family Expositor
(Paraphrase and Version of
the New
Testament [American edition]).
Amherst, Ms.: J. S. & C.
Adams,
and L. Boltwood;
18 Adam
Clarke, LL.D., F.S.A., etc.
The New Testament of our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ Vol. VI.
19 Donald
Fraser, M.A., D.D. Synoptical
Lectures of the Books of Holy Scripture Vol.
II.
20 Rev. William
Jenks, D.D. The Conprehensive
Commentary of the Holy
Bible. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott
& Co., 1838 copyright; 1847 printing.
21 Rev. Robert Jamieson, D.D., Rev. A. R. Fausset, A.M., Rev. David Brown, D.D. A Commentary, Critical and explanatory, on
the Old and New Testaments
Vol. II.
22 Barton
W. Johnson. People’s New Testament. 1891.
23 Arno Gaebelein. Annotated Bible. 1920s.
24 John R. Dummelow. Dummelow’s Commentary on the Bible.
1909.
25 Robert Hawker. Poor Man’s Commentary. 1828.
26 Johann
A. Bengel. Gnomon of the New
Testament. 1742.
27 Alexander
MacLaren. Exposition of the Holy Scriptures. 18--.
28 Matthew
Poole. English
Annotations on the Holy Bible.
1685.
29 John Trapp. Complete Commentary. Written 1600s; 1865-1868 edition.
30 Joseph Sutcliffe. Commentary on the Old
and New Testaments. 1835.
31 Albert Barnes. Notes on the New
Testament. 1870.
32 James Gray. Concise Bible Commentary. 1897-1910.
33 F.
B. Meyer. Thru The
Bible (Commentary). 1914 edition.
34 John and Jacob Abbott. Abbott’s Illustrated New Testament. 1878.
35 John Calvin. Commentaries. Written in 1500s. Printing:
1840-1857.
36 William R. Nicoll,
editor. Expositor’s Greek Testament. 1897-1910.
37
38
E. M. Plumptre. 1890.
39 D. (Daniel) D. Whedon. Commentary on the New Testament;
volume 5:
Titus to Revelation.
40 Ariel A. Livermore. The Epistles to the Hebrews, the Epistles
of James,
Peter, John, and Jude and the Revelation of John the Divine[:] Commentary
and Essays.
41 M[ichael] F.
Sadler. The General Epistles of SS.
James, Peter, John, and
Jude. Second
Edition.
42 Robert S. Hunt. The Epistle to the
Hebrews and the General Epistles.
In
the Cottage Commentary series.
43 A. T. Robertson. New Testament Interpretation (Matthew to
Revelation):
Notes on
Lectures. Taken
stenographically. Revised Edition by William
M.
Fouts and Alice M. Fouts.
44 William G. Humphry. A Commentary on the Revised Version of the
New
Testament.
45 W. H. Bennett. The General Epistles: James, Peter, John and Jude. In the
Century Bible series.
46 E. G. Punchard. “James” in Ellicott’s New Testament
Commentary for
English Readers.
1884.
47 Joseph Benson. Commentary on the Old
and New Testaments. 1811-1815.
48 William B. Godbey. Commentary on the New
Testament. 1896-1900.
At:
http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/ges/
49 James Nisbett,
editor. Church
Pulpit Commentary. 1876. [Note:
this is not
“The Pulpit
Commentary.”] At:
http://www.studylight.org/ commentaries/cpc/
50 Revere F. Weidner. Annotations on the General Epistles of
James, Peter,
John,
and Jude. In the Lutheran
Commentary series.
Literature Company, 1897.
51 Schaff’s
Popular Commentary on the New Testament.
1879-1890.
At: http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/scn/