James 1

Be Doers of the Word, and Not Hearers Only

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Greeting

1:1James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes in the dispersion: greetings.

Trials and Wisdom

1:2Count it all joy, my brothers, whenever you encounter trials of various kinds,

1:3knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.

1:4And let endurance have its complete work, so that you may be complete and whole, lacking in nothing.

1:5But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

1:6But let him ask in faith, doubting nothing, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.

1:7For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord,

1:8a man of divided mind, unstable in all his ways.

1:9Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation,

1:10and the rich person in his humiliation, because he will pass away like a flower of grass.

1:11For the sun rose with its scorching heat and dried the grass, and its flower fell, and the beauty of its appearance perished. So also the rich person will wither in his pursuits.

Temptation and Every Good Gift

1:12Blessed is the man who endures a trial, because, having been approved, he will receive the crown of life that He promised to those who love Him.

1:13Let no one who is tempted say, “I am being tempted by God.” For God is not susceptible to temptation by evil, and He Himself tempts no one.

1:14But each person is tempted when drawn away and enticed by his own desire.

1:15Then desire, after conceiving, gives birth to sin; and sin, when fully grown, gives birth to death.

1:16Do not be led astray, my beloved brothers.

1:17Every good giving and every complete gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow from turning.

1:18By His will He gave us birth through the word of truth, so that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.

Hearers and Doers of the Word

1:19Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger,

1:20for a man’s anger does not accomplish the righteousness of God.

1:21Therefore, putting away every impurity and the abundance of evil, receive with gentleness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.

1:22But become doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

1:23For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man looking at his natural face in a mirror,

1:24for he looked at himself and went away and immediately forgot what he was like.

1:25But the one who looks closely into the complete law, the law of freedom, and continues in it, becoming no forgetful hearer but a doer of work, will be blessed in his doing.

Pure Religion

1:26If anyone thinks he is religious while not bridling his tongue but deceiving his heart, that person’s religion is futile.

1:27Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

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Saints Translation · Liturgical reading edition · V1 · working draft awaiting specialist review.