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SALUTATION. James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. (On the person who thus describes himself, see the Introduction) It is noteworthy that he keeps entirely out of sight his natural relationship to our Lord, and styles himself simply "a bond-servant of God and the Lord Jesus Christ." That, and that alone, gave him a right to speak and a claim to be heard. Δοῦλος is similarly used by St. Paul in Rom_1:1; Php_1:1; Tit_1:1 by St. Peter in 2Pe_1:1; and by St. Jude Jud_1:1. It is clearly an official designation, implying that his office is one "in which, not his own will, not the will of other men, but only of God and of Christ, is to be performed" (Huther). To the twelve tribes, etc. Compare the salutation in Act_15:23, which was also probably written by St. James: "The apostles and the elder brethren unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch, and Syria, and Cilicia, greeting."
(1) Χαίρειν is common to both, and not found elsewhere in apostolic greet-tugs. (It is used by Ignatius in the opening of all his epistles except that to the Philadelphians)
(2) The letter in the Acts is addressed to Gentile communities in definite regions; St. James's Epistle, to Jews of the dispersion. So also his contemporary Gamaliel wrote "to the sons of the dispersion in Babylonia, and to our brethren in Media, and to all the dispersion of Israel". Ταῖς δώδεκα φύλαις (cf. δωδεκάφυλον in Act_26:7; Clem., 'Rom,' l, § 55.; 'Prefer. Jacob.,' c.i). Such expressions are important as tending to show that the Jews were regarded as representing, not simply the tribes of Benjamin and Judah, but the whole nation, including those so often spoken of as "the lost tribes" (cf. 1 Esdr. 7:8). Διασπορᾷ . The abstract put for the concrete. It is the word used by the LXX. for the "dispersion" (2 Macc. 1:27; Judith 5:19; cf. Deu_28:25, etc), i.e. the Jews "so scattered among the nations as to become the seed of a future harvest" (Westcott on St. Joh_7:35). It was divided into three great sections:
(1) the Babylonian, i.e. the original dispersion;
(2) the Syrian, dating from the Greek conquests in Asia, Seleucus Nicator having transplanted largo bodies of Jews from Babylonia to the capitals of his Western provinces;
(3) the Egyptian, the Jewish settlements in Alexandria, established by Alexander and Ptolemy I., and thence spreading along the north coast of Africa. To these we should, perhaps, add a fourth—
(4) the Roman, consequent upon the occupation of Jerusalem by Pompey, B.C. 63. All these four divisions were represented in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost (see Act_2:8-11)—a fact which will help to account for St. James's letter. The whole expression, "the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad," makes it perfectly clear that St. James is writing
(1) to Jews, and
(2) to those beyond the borders of Palestine.
Jas_1:2-18
THE SUBJECT OF TEMPTATION. This section may be subdivided as follows:—
(1) The value of temptation (Jas_1:2-4).
(2) Digression suggested by the thought 'of perfection (Jas_1:5-11).
(3) Return to the subject of temptation (Jas_1:12-18).
Jas_1:2-4
The value of temptation. Considered as an opportunity, it is a cause for joy.
Jas_1:2
My brethren. A favorite expression with St. James, occurring no less than fifteen times in the compass of this short Epistle. Count it all joy, etc.; cf. 1Pe_1:6, "Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, ye have been put to grief in manifold temptations, that the proof of your faith ( τὸ δοκίμιον ὑμῶν τῆς πίστεως ) … might be found unto praise," etc. The coincidence is too close to be accidental, although the shade of meaning given to δοκίμιον is slightly different, if indeed it has any right in the text in St. Peter. Here it has its proper force, and signifies that by which the faith is tried, i.e. the instrument of trial rather than the process of trial. Thus the passage in 1Pe_1:3 becomes parallel to Rom_5:3, "tribulation worketh patience." With regard to the sentiments of Rom_5:2, "Count it all joy," etc., contrast Matt, Rom_6:13. Experience, however, shows that the two are compatible. It is quite possible to shrink beforehand from temptation, and pray with intense earnestness, "Lead us not into temptation," and yet, when the temptation comes, to meet it joyfully, Περίπέσητε . The use of this word implies that the temptations of which St. James is thinking are external (see Luk_10:30, where the same word is used of the man who fell among thieves). 1Th_2:14 and Heb_10:32, Heb_10:33 will show the trials to which believing Jews were subject. But the epithet "manifold" would indicate that we should not confine the word here to trials such as those.
Jas_1:3
Patience. Υπομονή in general is patience with regard to things, μακροθυμία is rather long-suffering with regard to persons.
Jas_1:4
Patience alone is not sufficient. It must have scope given it for its exercise that it may have its "perfect work." That ye may be perfect ( ἵνα ἧτε τέλειοι ); cf. Mat_5:48, "Be ye therefore perfect." Both τέλειος and ὁλόκληρος were applied to the initiated, the fully instructed, as opposed to novices in the ancient mysteries; and as early as 1Co_2:6, 1Co_2:7 we find τέλειος used for the Christian who is no longer in need of rudimentary teaching, and possibly this is the thought here. The figure, however, is probably rather that of the full-grown man. Τέλειοι , equivalent to "grown men" as opposed to children; ὁλόκληροι , sound in every part and limb (cf. ὁλοκληρίαν in Act_3:16). From this τέλειος assumes a moral-complexion, that which has attained its aim. Compare its use in Gen_6:9 and Deu_18:13, where it is equivalent to the Latin integer vitae, and the following passage from Stobaeus, which exactly serves to illustrate St. James's thought in verses 4 and 5, Τὸν ἀγαθὸν ἄνδρα τέλειον εἶναι λέγουσιν διὰ τὸ μηδεμίας ἀπολείπεσθαι ἀρετῆς The "perfection" which is to be attained in this life may be further illustrated from Heb_12:23—a passage which is often misunderstood, but which undoubtedly means that the men were made perfect ( πνεύμασι δικαίων τετελειωμένων ), and that not in a future state, but here on earth, where alone they can be subject to those trials and conflicts by the patient endurance of which they are perfected for a higher state of being. The whole passage before us (Heb_12:2-6) affords a most remarkable instance of the figure called by grammarians anadiplosis, the repetition of a marked word at the close of one clause and beginning of another. "The trial of your faith worketh patience; but let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, lacking in nothing. But if any man lack wisdom, let him ask of the giving God … and it shall be given him; but let him ask in faith, nothing doubting, for he that doubteth," etc.
Jas_1:5-11
Digression suggested by the thought of perfection. There can be no true perfection without wisdom, which is the gift of God, and must be sought from him. It is possible that the thought and connection of the passage is due to a reminiscence of Wis. 9:6, "For though a man be never so perfect ( τέλειος ) among the children of men, yet if thy wisdom be not with him, he shall be nothing regarded." But whether this be so or not, the teaching is manifestly founded on our Lord's words with regard to prayer, Mat_7:7, "Ask, and it shall be given you;" and Mar_11:23, "Have faith in God. Verily I say unto you, Whoever shall say … and shall not doubt ( διακριθῇ ) in his heart," etc. Τοῦ διδόντος Θεοῦ . The order of the words shows that God's character is that of a Giver: "the giving God." His "nature and property" is to give as well as to forgive. Man often spoils his gifts,
(1) by the grudging way in which they are given, and
(2) by the reproaches which accompany them.
God, on the contrary, gives to all
(1) liberally, and
(2) without upbraiding
Ἁπλῶς : only here in the New Testament, but cf. ἁπλότης in Rom_12:8; 2Co_8:2; 2Co_9:11, 2Co_9:13. Vulgate, affluenter; A.V. and R.V., "liberally." It is almost equivalent to "without any arriere pensee." Μὴ ὀνειδίζοντος : cf. Ecclesiasticus 41:22, Μετὰ τὸ δοῦναι μὴ ὀνείδιζε
Jas_1:6
The A.V. "nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea," is unfortunate, as suggesting a play upon the words which has no existence in the original. Render, with R.V., nothing doubting: for he that doubteth is like the surge of the sea. Κλύδων , the surge; ἀνεμιζόμενος and ῥιπιζόμενος both occur here only.
Jas_1:7, Jas_1:8
The A.V., which makes Jas_1:8 an independent sentence, is certainly wrong. Render, Let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord, double-minded man that he is, unstable in all his ways. So Vulgate, Vir duplex animi, inconstans in omnibus viis. (The Clementine Vulgate, by reading est after inconstans, agrees with A.V) Another possible rendering is that of the R.V. margin, "Let not that man think that a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways, shall receive," etc. But the rendering given above is better. Double-minded; δίψυχος occurs only here and in Jas_4:8 in the New Testament. It is not found in any earlier writer, and was perhaps coined by St. James to represent the idea of the Hebrew, "an heart and an heart ( áìÅåÈ áìÅáÀ )" (1Ch_12:33). It took root at once in the vocabulary of ecclesiastical writers, being found three times in Clement of Rome, and frequently in his younger contemporary Hermas. St. James's words are apparently alluded to in the Apost. Coust., VII. 11., Μὴ γίνου δίψυχος ἐν προσευχῇ σου εἰ ἔσται ἢ οὑ : and cf. Clem., 'Romans,' c. 23. The same thought is also found in Ecclesiasticus 1:28, "Come not before him with a double heart ( ἐν καρδίᾳ δίσοῃ )." Unstable; ἀκατάστατος , only here and (probably) Jas_3:8.
Jas_1:9-11
A very difficult passage, three interpretations of which are given, none of them entirely satisfactory or free from difficulties.
(1) "But let the brother of low degree glory in his high estate [i.e. his Christian dignity]; but let the rich [brother glory] in his humiliation" (i.e. in being poor of spirit, Mat_5:3).
(2) "But let the brother," etc. (as before); "but the rich man [rejoices] in his humiliation" (i.e. in what is really his degradation; cf. "whose glory is in their shame," Php_3:19).
(3) "But let the brother,… but let the rich [grieve] in his humiliation." The ellipse of ταπεινούσθω in this last is very harsh and unexampled, so that the choice really lies between (1) and (2). And against (1) it may be urged
(a) that the "rich" are never elsewhere spoken of as "brothers" in this Epistle. See Jas_2:6; Jas_5:1, and cf. the way in which they are spoken of in other parts of the New Testament (e.g. Luk_6:24; Mat_19:23; Rev_6:15); and in Ecclesiasticus 13:3;
(b) that in verse 11 the thought is, not of riches which make to themselves wings and fly away, but of the rich man himself, who fades away;
(c) that ταπείνωσις is elsewhere always used for external lowness of condition, not for the Christian virtue of humility (see Luk_1:48; Act_8:33; Php_3:21). On the whole, therefore, it is best to adopt (2) and to supply the indicative: "but the rich man [not ' brother'] glories in his humiliation;" i.e. he glories in what is really lowering. Because as the flower, etc. A clear reference to Isa_40:6, which is also quoted in 1Pe_1:24.
Jas_1:11
Ἀνέτειλε ἐξήρανε ἐξέπεσε … ἀπώλετο . Observe the aorists here and in Jas_1:24. The illustration or case mentioned by way of example is taken as an actual fact, and the apostle falls into the tone of narration. Render, For the sun arose with the scorching wind, and withered the grass; and the flower thereof fell away, and the grace of the fashion of it perished. Καύσων may refer to
(1) the heat of the sun, or
(2) more probably, the hot Samum wind, the îéãÄ÷È of the Old Testament (Job_27:21; Eze_17:10, etc).
Jas_1:12-18
Return to the subject of temptation. Jas_1:2 taught that temptation regarded as an opportunity should be a cause for joy. Jas_1:12 teaches that the endurance of temptation brings a blessing from God, even the crown of life. Comp. Rev_2:10, the only other place in the New Testament where the "crown of life" is mentioned; and there also it stands in close connection with the endurance of temptation. Elsewhere we read of the "crown of righteousness" (2Ti_4:8), and the "crown of glory" (1Pe_5:4). The genitive ( τὸν στέφανον τῆς ζωῆς ) is probably the gen. epex.," the crown, which is life." Ὁ Κύριος of the Received Text has but slight authority. It is wanting in A, B, à , ff, and is deleted by the Revisers, following all recent editors. Render, which he promised, etc. The subject is easily understood, and therefore, as frequently in Jewish writings (e.g. 1 Maccabees), omitted from motives of reverence.
Jas_1:13
God is not the author of temptation; cf. Ecclesiasticus 15:11, 12, "Say not thou, It is through the Lord that I fell away: for thou oughtest not to do the things that he hateth. Say not thou, He hath caused me to err: for he hath no need of the sinful man." From God; ἀπὸ Θεοῦ (the article is wanting in à , A, B, C, K, L). Contrast ὑπὸ τῆς ἰδίας ἐπιθυμίας . Ἀπὸ Θεοῦ is a more general expression than ὑπὸ Θεοῦ , which would refer the temptation immediately to God. Ἀπὸ Θεοῦ is frequently used as a kind of adverb divinitus. Cannot be tempted; ἀπείραστος : an ἅπαξ λεγόμενον . Syriac, "is not tempted with evils;" Vulgate, intentator malorum; R.V., "cannot be tempted of evil;" R.V. margin, "is untried in evil." Alford has a good note on this word, in which he points out that it has but two meanings:
(1) that has not been tried;
(2) that has not tried.
The rendering of the Vulgate is thus etymologically possible, but is against the context. The use of the word may, perhaps, be extended somewhat wider than the renderings given above would allow, so that it may be paraphrased as "out of the sphere of evils" (Farrar). Neither tempteth he, etc. Here the writer has in his mind the conception of a direct temptation from God. Αὐτός is emphatic. Render with R.V., And he himself tempteth no man.
Jas_1:14
states the true origin of temptation. While the occasion might be of God "in the order of his providence and of our spiritual training," the inclination is not of him. Compare with this verse the description of the harlot in Pro_7:6-27. Here lust is personified, and represented as a seducing harlot, to whose embraces man yields, and the result is the birth of sin, which in its turn gives birth to death.
Jas_1:15
shows where temptation passes into sin. Ἐπιθυμία , lust, is clearly not in itself "true and proper sin," but it is no less clear that, as our Article IX. says it "hath of itself the nature of sin." With this whole passage we should compare St. Paul's teaching on ἐπιθυμία , ἀμαρτιὰ , and θανατός , in Rom_7:7-11. Ἀποκύειν occurs only here and in Rom_7:18; translate, gendereth.
Jas_1:16-18
The connection of thought with what goes before appears to be this. God cannot be the author of temptation, which thus leads to sin and death, because all good and perfect gifts, and these only, come from him.
Jas_1:16
Do not err; better, be act deceived; μὴ πλανᾶσθε . The same formula is also found in 1Co_6:9; 1Co_15:1-58 :83; Gal_6:7.
Jas_1:17
Every good gift, etc. The words form a hexameter verse, though this is probably accidental, and no sign that they are a quotation. Δόσις and δώρημα should be distinguished. "Every kind of gift that is good, and every one that is perfect in its kind" (Dean Scott). Δόσις and δῶρον occur together in the LXX. in Pro_21:14. They are expressly distinguished by Philo, who says that the latter involves the idea of magnitude and fullness, which is wanting to the former "Every good gift and every perfect boon, R.V. The Father of lights ( ἀπὸ τοῦ Πατρὸς τῶν φώτων ). The word must refer to the heavenly bodies, of which God may be said to be the Father, in that he is their Creator (for "Father," in the sense of Creator, cf. Job_38:28). From him who "made the stars also" comes down every good and perfect gift, and with him "there can be no variation, neither shadow that is cast by turning." These last words appear to fix the meaning of φῶτα , as τροπή is used in the LXX. as in classical writers for the changes of the heavenly bodies (see Job_38:33; Deu_33:14; Wis. 7:18). Οὐκ ἔνι , "there is no room for." It negatives, not only the fact, but the possibility also (cf. Gal_3:28; Col_3:11).
Jas_1:18
Begat; literally, brought forth; ἀπεκύησεν . The word has been already used of sin in Jas_1:15. The recurrence of it hero points to the connection of thought. The offspring of sin has been shown to be death. God, too, who is both Father and Mother (Bengel), has his offspring. But how different! Us ( ημῦς ). To whom does this refer?
(1) To all Christians.
(2) To Christians of the apostolic age.
(3) To Jewish Christians, to whom the Epistle is specially addressed.
Probably (3). Just as Israel of old was Jehovah's firstborn (Exo_4:22), so now the germ of the Christian Church, as found in these Judaeo-Christian communities, was to be "a kind of firstfruits." The thought may be illustrated from a striking parallel in Philo ('De Creat. Princ.'): Τὸ σύμπαν Ἰουδαίων ἔθνος … τοῦ σύμπαντος ἀνθρώπων γένους ἀπενεμηυη οἷα τις ἀπαρχή τῷ ποιῃτῇ πατρί . Transfer this from the Jewish to the Judaeo-Christian communities, and we have the very thought of the apostle. By the word of truth (cf. 1Pe_1:23, where, as here, the new birth is connected with the Word of God). A kind of firstfruits of his creatures ( ἀπαρχή ). The image is taken from the wave sheaf, the firstfruits of the harvest, the earnest of the crop to follow. St. Paul (according to a very possible reading) has the same figure in 2Th_2:13, "God chose you as firstfruits ( ἀπαρχήν );" see R.V. margin. Elsewhere he applies it to Christ, "the Firstfruits of them that are asleep" (1Co_15:20). "His creatures ( κτισμάτων )." It does not appear to be absolutely necessary to extend the use of this word so as to include the irrational creation as well as mankind. äéãá is frequently used in rabbinical writings for the Gentile world, and κτίσμα may be given the same meaning here, and perhaps κτίσις in Mar_16:15; Rom_8:19, etc.; Col_1:23.
Jas_1:19-27
EXHORTATION
(1) TO HEAR RATHER THAN TO SPEAK,
(2) NOT ONLY TO HEAR, BUT ALSO TO DO.
Jas_1:19
The text requires correction. For ὥστε … ἔστω πᾶς of the Textus Receptus, read, Ἴστε ἀδελφοί μοι ἀγαπητοι ἔστω δὲ πᾶς , à , A, B, C, Latt. Ἴστε is probably indicative, and refers to what has gone before. "Ye know this, my beloved brethren. But let every man," etc. The verse gives us St. James's version of the proverb, "Speech is silver. Silence is golden." Similar maxims were not infrequent among the Jews. So in Ecclesiasticus 5:11, "Be swift to hear; and let thy life be sincere; and with patience give answer;" cf. 4:29, "Be not hasty in thy tongue, and in thy deeds slack and remiss." In the rabbinical work, 'Pirqe Aboth,' 1. 12., we have the following saying of Rabbi Simeon, the son of Gamaliel (who must, therefore, have been a contemporary of St. James): "All my days I have grown up amongst the wise, and have not found ought good for a man but silence; not learning but doing is the groundwork; and whoso multiplies words occasions sin." This passage is curiously like the one before us, both in the thoughts and in the expressions used.
Jas_1:20
Gives the reason why men should be slow to wrath. Because man's wrath does not work God's righteousness δικαιοσύνην Θεοῦ ), the righteousness which God demands and requires.
Jas_1:21
With the form of expression in this verse, comp. 1Pe_2:1, "Putting away, therefore, all wickedness ( ἀποθέμενοι οὗν πᾶσαν κακίαν ), and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil-speakings, as new-born babes long for the spiritual milk," etc. Filthiness ( ῥυπαρὶαν ). Here only in the New Testament, never in LXX.; but the adjective ῥυπαρός is the word used of the "filthy garments" in Zec_3:3, Zec_3:4—a narrative which illustrates the passage before us. Kakí is not vice in general, but rather that vicious nature which is bent on doing harm to others (see Lightfoot on Col_3:8). Thus the two words ῥυπαρία and κακία comprise two classes of sins—the sensual and the malignant, Engrafted; rather, implanted. The word is only found again in Wis. 12:10, where it signifies "inborn." St. James's teaching here is almost like a reminiscence of the parable of the sower (Mat_13:3, etc). The "implanted Word" is the gospel teaching. "The seed is the Word of God" (Luk_8:11).
Jas_1:22
They are not merely to receive and hear the Word; they must also act upon it. Compare St. Paul's teaching in Rom_2:13, "For not the hearers ( ἀκροαταὶ ) of a law are just before God, but the doers of a law shall be justified." Ἀκροατής occurs nowhere else except in these passages. Deceiving your own selves ( παραλογίζειν ); to lead astray by false reasonings; only here and in Col_2:4. Not uncommon in the LXX.
Jas_1:23, Jas_1:24
Illustration from life, showing the folly of being led astray. His natural face ( τὸ πρόσωπον τῆς γενέσεως αὐτοῦ ); literally, the face of his birth. The expression is an unusual one, but there is no doubt of its meaning. In a glass; rather, in a mirror, ἐν ἐσόπτρῳ : cf. 1Co_13:12, Δἰ ἐσόπτρου . The mirror of burnished brass.
Jas_1:24
Observe the tenses; literally, He considered ( κατενόησε ) himself, and has gone away ( ἀπελήλυθε ), and straightway forgot ( ἐπελάθετο ) what he was like (compare note on Jas_1:11).
Jas_1:25
Application of the illustration in the form of a contrast. Looketh into ( παρακύψας ). For the literal sense of the word, see Joh_20:5, Joh_20:11; Luk_24:12. The figurative meaning occurs only here and in 1Pe_1:12. Properly it signifies to "peep into." See its use in the LXX., Gen_26:8; Pro_7:6; Ecclesiasticus 21:23. When used figuratively, it conveys the idea of looking into, but scarcely with that intensive force which is often given to it and for which ἐγκύπτειν would be required. Its use in St. Peter, loc. cit., is easy enough to explain. Angels desire even a glimpse of the mysteries. But what are we to say of its use hero? Is it that, though the man took a good look at himself in the glass ( κατανοεῖν , consider, is a very strong word; cf. Rom_4:19), yet he forgot what he was like, while the man who only peeps into the law of liberty is led on to abide ( παραμείνας ) and so to act? The perfect law of liberty; rather, the perfect law, even the law of liberty; νόμον τέλειον τὸν τῆς ἐλευθερίας . The substantive is anarthrous, yet the attributive has the article. This construction serves to give greater prominence to the attributive, and requires the rendering given above (see Winer, § 20.4). The conception of the gospel as a "law" is characteristic of St. James (cf. Jas_2:8, "the royal law," and Jas_4:11). A forgetful hearer ( ἀκροατὴς ἐπιλησμονής ); i.e. a hearer characterized by forgetfulness, contrasted with ποιητὴς ἐργοῦ , a doer characterized by work.
Jas_1:26
Seem ( δοκεῖ ); seems to himself rather than to others; translate, with R.V., thinketh himself to be. Vulgate, Si quis Putat se esse. Religious ( θρῆσκος ). It is difficult to find an English word which exactly answers to the Greek. The noun θρησκεία refers properly to the external rites of religion, and so gets to signify an over-scrupulous devotion to external forms (Lightfoot on Col_2:18); almost "ritualism." It is the ceremonial service of religion, the external forms, a body of which εὐσεβεία is the informing soul. Thus the θρῆσκος (the word apparently only occurs here in the whole range of Greek literature) is the diligent performer of Divine offices, of the outward service of God, but not necessarily anything more. This depreciatory sense of θρησκεία is well seen in a passage of Philo ('Quod Det. Pot. 'Jus.,' 7), where, after speaking of some who would fain be counted among the εὐλαβεῖς on the score of diverse washings or costly offerings to the temple, he proceeds: Πεπλάνηται γὰρ καὶ οὖτος τῆς πρὸς εὐσεβείαν ὁδοῦ θρησκείαν ἀντὶ ὁσιότητος ἡγούμενος (see Trench on 'Synonyms,' from whom the reference is here taken). "How delicate and fine, then, St. James's choice of θρῆσκος and θρησκεία ! 'If any man,' he would say, 'seem to himself to be θρῆσκος , a diligent observer of the offices of religion, if any man would render a pure and undefiled θρησκεία to God, let him know that this consists, not in outward lustrations or ceremonial observances; nay, that there is a better θρησκεία than thousands of rams and rivers of oil, namely, to do justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with his God (Mic_6:7, Mic_6:8); or, according to his own words, ' to visit the widows and orphans in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world'". Bridleth not ( μὴ χαλιναγωγῶν ). The thought is developed more fully afterwards (see Jas_3:2, etc., and for the word, cf. Polyc., 'Ad Philippians,' c.v).
Jas_1:27
God and the Father; rather, our God and Father. The article ( τῷ ) binds together Θεῷ and Πατρί , so that they should not be separated, as in the A.V. To visit the fatherless … and to keep himself unspotted. Observe that our duty towards our fellow-men is placed first; then that towards ourselves. Ἐπισκέπτεσθαι is the regular word for visiting the sick; cf. Ecclesiasticus 7:35, "Be not slow to visit the sick ( μὴ ὄκει ἐπισκέτεσπθαι ἀῤῥωστον )." The fatherless and widows ( ὀρφανοὺς καὶ χήρας ). These stand here (as so often in the Old Testament) as types of persons in distress; the "personae miserabiles" of the Canon Law (see e.g. Deu_10:18; Psa_68:5; Psa_82:3; Isa_1:17; and cf. Ecclesiasticus 4:10). "Be as a father unto the fatherless, and instead of an husband unto their mother; so shalt thou be as the son of the Most High, and he shall love thee more than thy mother doth." To keep himself unspotted. Man's duty towards himself. (For ἄσπιλον , cf. 1Ti_6:14; 1Pe_1:19; 2Pe_3:14) From the world. This clause may be connected either with τηρεῖν or with ἄσπιλον , as in the phrase, καθαρὸς ἀπὸ in Act_20:26.
"Sweet are the uses of adversity,
Which, like the toad, ugly and venomous,
Wears yet a precious jewel in his head."
(Shakespeare)
(On temptation regarded as an opportunity, see Mozley's 'Parochial Sermons,' Sermon 2)
Jas_1:5-8
2. The reason why so many prayers remain unanswered. Man too often betakes himself to prayer as a dernier ressort when all other means have failed, hoping against hope, not entirely disbelieving and yet not entirely believing; now buoyed up for a moment with hope, and now again sinking into the depths of despair. To such a one there is not merely no promise; we are especially told that be is not to think that he will receive anything from the Lord. "A doubtful petitioner offers not to God a steady hand or heart, so that God cannot deposit in it his gift" (Stier).
"Faith and unfaith can ne'er be equal powers;
Unfaith in aught is want of faith in all."
(Tennyson)
Jas_1:9-12
Jas_1:13-18
(1) The desire—the appetite draws the man towards evil indulgence.
(2) The will yields to the desire, which thus becomes pregnant with action.
(3) Sin is born, the offspring of the unhallowed union between will and desire or lust.
(4) Lastly, sin, "when it is full grown, bringeth forth death". "First there cometh into the mind a bare thought of evil, then a strong imagination thereof, afterwards delight, and evil motion, and then consent. And so little by little our wicked enemy getteth complete entrance, for that he is not resisted at the beginning" (Thomas a Kempis).
2. God is not tempted with evil, and he doth not temps to evil. "Ascribe it not to the Father of lights, but to the prince of darkness. But ascribe all good, from the smallest spark to the greatest beam, from the least good giving to the best and most perfect gift of all, to him, the Father of lights'. If there can be no change with the Father of lights, no "shadow east by turning," what folly to suppose that the works of darkness come from him! Temptation may be regarded
(1) as a test to prove a man;
(2) as a discipline to improve him;
(3) as an allurement to entice him.
In the two former aspects it has been already treated of by the apostle, and has been shown to be a cause for joy. As an allurement it can have no power, unless it meets with some response in man. Thus man has no right to charge his sins upon God, or to make God the author of his temptations. The outward occasion may indeed be from him, sent either as a test or a discipline; but the inward inclination, that which leads a man away and entices him, is entirely evil.
Jas_1:19-27
2. A receptive spirit is not alone sufficient. Action must follow. Holy Scripture is a mirror, in which a man may see his own image reflected. The man who merely listens to it sees his own likeness, perhaps, but "goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was." Without doing, what is the good of hearing sermons? Knowledge without obedience only increases condemnation. So our Lord's severest denunciations were for those cities which had known most of his mighty works; and "many stripes" were reserved for that servant who knew his Lord's will and did it not (Luk_12:47). (On the subject of Jas_1:22, see a good sermon of Bishop Andrews, 'Sermons,' vol. 5. Serm. 9)
3. Government of tongue may serve as a test of a man's religion, it being "a most material restraint which religion lays us under; without it no man can be truly religious." Sins of the tongue include not only such flagrant ones as lying, swearing, filthy conversation, etc., but what Bishop Butler calls "unrestrained volubility and wantonness of speech," which is the sin more particularly alluded to by St. James, and which is "the occasion of numberless evils and vexations in life." "If people would
(1) observe the obvious occasions of silence; if they would subdue
(2) the inclination to tale-bearing, and
(3) that eager desire to engage attention which is an original disease in some minds, they would be in little danger of offending with their tongue, and would, in a moral and religious sense, have due government over it" (Bishop Butler. See the whole sermon 'On the Government of the Tongue:' 'Sermons,' No. 4). It has been well said that the talkative often do more harm than the willfully false and malicious. They betray secrets, part friends, embitter foes, wound hearts, blight characters, hinder truth. Is not this true of many a man who seems to himself to be religions? 4. If the external service, the ritual of Christianity, is a life of purity and self-devotion in the service of others, what must its inmost spirit be?
I. THE CHRISTIAN SHOULD REJOICE AMIDST TRIALS. (Verse 2) It was natural that the readers of the Epistle, when they received this counsel, should ask how they could reasonably be expected to do so.
1. This is possible. Only, however, to the Christian. The worldly-minded man will regard such a suggestion as unnatural, and indeed unintelligible. The Stoic, when plunged into adversity, can at best only school himself to submit to inevitable fate. The Epicurean becomes quite helpless in presence of calamity. Only the man who holds the faith of the Lord Jesus Christ possesses the alchemy by which sorrow may be turned into joy.
2. It is dutiful. To rejoice amidst trials is in the line of all Christian knowledge and faith and hope. The believer knows that God is his Father, and that he "pitieth his children." He is sure that God's arrangements for him must be absolutely the best. He is persuaded that, although God chastises his sons, he has still the heart of a Father. Not only do tribulation and distress not separate the believer from the Divine love; they work for him "more and more exceedingly an eternal weight of glory." So it belongs to the afflicted Christian to adorn in his own experience this paradox of the renewed life—"Sorrowful, yet always rejoicing."
3. It is often exemplified. Only, however, in the most exalted ranks of the peerage of faith. Moses "accounted the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt." Paul sang hymns to God in the prison of Philippi, although his feet were fast in the stocks. The apostles "rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for Christ's name." Latimer closed his brave career at the stake with the famous words, "Be of good comfort, Master Ridley." Bunyan lay for twelve years in an execrable prison, but he made his cell the vestibule of heaven. Dr. Arnold could say, between the paroxysms of angina pectoris, "Thank God for pain." And from thousands of death-beds, of which the world has never heard, there has gone forth the testimony of God's hidden ones: "We glory in tribulations also."
II. THE REASONS FOR SUCH REJOICING. These may be reckoned. Verses 3 and 4 supply a basis of judgment.
1. Trial promotes self-knowledge. It is "the proof of your faith" (verse 3). It tests the reality and the strength of character. The person who stands on the deck of a sinking ship will learn, if he did not know it before, whether he is a hero or a coward. Affliction shows a man "all that is in his heart." The strain caused by some unexpected calamity may reveal defects of character which he would not otherwise discover, or possibilities of holy attainment about which he might never have dreamed.
2. It develops patience. (Verse 3) James, throughout his Epistle, exalts and inculcates this grace. His word for it here means "persevering endurance." Christian patience is not the submission of indifference, or merely the determination of an obstinate will; it is inspired by living piety, and is therefore full of intelligence and manliness. Patience consists in the holding still of some parts of our nature in calm waiting upon the Divine will, in order that other parts may be exercised and educated. The apostle's words show that he regards this grace of endurance as inexpressibly precious. He looks upon its possessor as in the truest sense a wise and wealthy man. The man who uses every fresh trial in such a way as only to increase his power of holy endurance is unspeakably a gainer by his calamities, and should receive the congratulations ("greeting") of his brethren rather than their sympathy.
3. It contributes to moral perfection. (Verse 4) This is the end which God has in view in all his dealings with his people. He wants them to be "perfect and entire;" that is, complete and all-accomplished in spiritual culture. Now, the habit of persevering and joyful endurance conduces to the maturity and the symmetry of the soul. Sanctified trial educates. Some of the most refined Christian virtues—such, e.g., as resignation and sympathy-can be acquired only in connection with affliction. A delicately balanced Christian spirit is not the outcome of a smooth and unruffled life. life character can approximate in finish to the ideal standard which does not "come out of the great tribulation," and which is not made "perfect through sufferings." This thought is emphasized everywhere in the New Testament, from the Gospels to the Apocalypse. It has interpenetrated all literature. Our life must be "battered with the shocks of doom, to shape and use." "'Tis sorrow builds the shining ladder up," on which our souls climb nearer God.
Notice in conclusion:
1. While it is positively unchristian to murmur amid trials, the model Christian frame is not mere submission.
2. It is very comforting to the believer to know that his crosses are sent to promote his perfection.
3. The child of God has here a crucial test of the measure of his spiritual attainment.—C.J.
Jas_1:5-8
I. A UNIVERSAL WASTE. (Jas_1:5) Wisdom means the right use of knowledge. A man may know a very great deal, and yet not be a wise man. Wisdom classifies the materials of knowledge, and studies to use them so as to build up and beautify the life. It proposes right ends, and chooses the best means by which to reach them. It shows itself not so much in doing the right thing, as in doing it at the proper time. In the highest use of the word, "wisdom" is just another name for piety. It is that state of mind and heart which is produced by the believing reception of gospel truth. The one fool of the Bible is the sinner. The only wise man is he who regards the glory of God as the end of his life, and who makes his acts and habits means to that end. Now, we all naturally lack wisdom, and a thoughtful man realizes this lack most thoroughly in the time of trial. What a rare and difficult attainment is that holy discretion which can welcome even the contrary winds of calamity, and the driving storms of tribulation, because it can make them helpful in steering joyfully towards the desired haven!
II. AN ABUNDANT SOURCE OF SUPPLY. "God, who giveth to all" (Jas_1:5); literally, "the giving God." The living, loving Jehovah is the