Study Helps for James 2:1-13
Alternate Versions
In the last two passages, I mashed up the three alternate versions phrase by phrase, with a different color for each version. In this chapter, I am going to use whole verses and the different colors will stand for contrasting words or phrases between versions. I may also put a short contrast in parentheses.
Verse 1
NIV: My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. (statement)
NRSV: My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favoritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ? (rhetorical question)
NET: My brothers and sisters, do not show prejudice if you possess faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. (direct command)
Verses 2-4
NIV: Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?
NRSV: For if a person with gold rings and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and if a poor person in dirty clothes also comes in, and if you take notice of the one wearing the fine clothes and say, “Have a seat here, please,” while to the one who is poor you say, “Stand there,” or, “Sit at my feet,” have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?
NET: For if someone comes into your assembly wearing a gold ring and fine clothing, and a poor person enters in filthy clothes, do you pay attention to the one who is finely dressed and say, “You sit here in a good place,” and to the poor person, “You stand over there,” or “Sit on the floor”? If so, have you not made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil motives?
Verse 5
NIV: Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him?
NRSV: Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters. Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him?
NET: Listen, my dear brothers and sisters! Did not God choose the poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who love him?
Verses 6-7
NIV: But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong.
NRSV: But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you? Is it not they who drag you into court? 7 Is it not they who blaspheme the excellent name that was invoked over you?
NET: But you have dishonored the poor! Are not the rich oppressing you and dragging you into the courts? 7 Do they not blaspheme the good name of the one you belong to?
Verse 8-9
NIV: If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers.
NRSV: You do well if you really fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you show partiality, you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.
NET: But if you fulfill the royal law as expressed in this scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. But if you show prejudice, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as violators.
Verse 10-11
NIV: For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.
NRSV: For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it. For the one who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not murder.” Now if you do not commit adultery but if you murder, you have become a transgressor of the law.
NET: For the one who obeys the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it. For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” Now if you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a violator of the law.
Verse 12-13
NIV: Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
NRSV: So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment will be without mercy to anyone who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.
NET: Speak and act as those who will be judged by a law that gives freedom. For judgment is merciless for the one who has shown no mercy. But mercy triumphs over judgment.
Related Bible Verses
The Royal Law of Love
And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good? Deuteronomy 10:12-13
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 26:36-40
Read The Ten Commandments to see references to adultery and murder. See also the part of the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus applies them to our attitudes, not just our actions.
Mercy
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Matthew 5:7
He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8
For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings. Hosea 6:6
“This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’ Zechariah 7:9-10
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. Matthew 23:23
But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior... Titus 3:4-6
But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. James 3:17
Poverty & Prejudice
The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. Matthew 11:5
But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents. Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.” Mark 12:42-44
Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” Luke 14:12-14
For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich. 2 Corinthians 8:9
So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. Revelation 3:16-17
Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly. Leviticus 19:15
The poor are shunned even by their neighbors, but the rich have many friends. Proverbs 14:20
Better the poor whose walk is blameless than a fool whose lips are perverse. Proverbs 19:1
The poor are shunned by all their relatives—how much more do their friends avoid them! Though the poor pursue them with pleading, they are nowhere to be found. Proverbs 19:7
If anyone is poor among your fellow Israelites in any of the towns of the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward them. Deuteronomy 15:7
He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; he seats them with princes and has them inherit a throne of honor. “For the foundations of the earth are the Lord’s; on them he has set the world. 1 Samuel 2:8
You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor, but the Lord is their refuge. Psalm 14:6
Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent? Who may live on your holy mountain? The one whose walk is blameless, who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from their heart; whose tongue utters no slander, who does no wrong to a neighbor, and casts no slur on others; who despises a vile person but honors those who fear the Lord; ho keeps an oath even when it hurts, and does not change their mind; who lends money to the poor without interest; who does not accept a bribe against the innocent. Whoever does these things will never be shaken. Psalm 15
The wicked draw the sword and bend the bow to bring down the poor and needy, to slay those whose ways are upright. Psalm 37:14
There was once a small city with only a few people in it. And a powerful king came against it, surrounded it and built huge siege works against it. Now there lived in that city a man poor but wise, and he saved the city by his wisdom. But nobody remembered that poor man. So I said, “Wisdom is better than strength.” But the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are no longer heeded. Ecclesiastes 9:14-16
You have been a refuge for the poor, a refuge for the needy in their distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat. For the breath of the ruthless is like a storm driving against a wall... Isaiah 25:4
Commentary
Asbury Bible Commentary
James continues to challenge: “Stop condoning favoritism as though it is consistent with Christian faith” (my paraphrase). Jesus, in his exemplary life (“our glorious Lord”), refused to curry the favor of the powerful and rich. Although the courting of the wealthy might enhance the economic and social status of the community, it is nothing less than sin, as evaluated by the royal law (v. 8). It may be smart, but it is sin, as adultery and murder are sin.
In his description of their conduct, James makes the rich person so attractive and the poor person so objectionable as to heighten the reasonableness and propriety of “discriminating” conduct. But the response of the members must be considered evil because the motivation is wrong (v. 4). Moreover, they are acting contrary to God's design. God bestows on the poor true riches because they have learned to love him (v. 5). Furthermore, favoring the wealthy only condones their exploitation and defamation of the poverty-stricken believers (v. 6).
The criterion for such conduct is an ancient law: “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Lev 19:18), which Jesus elevated to a dominating position by his own exemplary life. He demonstrated how one should be as solicitous of the welfare of other persons as he is attentive to his own needs. The life of faith is the way of selflessness.
By heightening the ancient law, Jesus placed the observance of the Jewish law in a new light. He would have his followers live in responsible freedom. James calls it the law that gives freedom (v. 12). It is the spirit with which one approaches the observance of the law that makes the difference between fulfillment and failure. Many of James' contemporaries had adopted an attitude toward the law that allowed them to ignore or violate certain points that did not suit them. They considered themselves approved of God as long as their credits exceeded their debits in observance of the law. But this is contrary to the basic purpose of the law, namely, to make the gathered ones truly the people of God. Excluding just one regulation makes God's goal impossible of attainment. A change in attitude toward the law shifts attention from self and its merits to others and their needs.
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