James (The General Epistle of )
James, Chapter 4
From where do wars and fightings among you [come]? [Is it] not from this, from your lusts warring in your members?
You desire greatly and do not have. You murder, and are jealous, and are not able to obtain. You fight and you war, and you do not have, because you do not ask [God].
You ask, and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order that you may spend on your lusts.
Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that the friendship of the world is enmity [with] God? Whoever, then, purposes to be a friend of the world is shown to be an enemy of God.
Or do you think that vainly the Scripture says, The spirit which has dwelt in us yearns to envy? [No OT passage]
But He gives greater grace. Because of this it says, "God sets [Himself] against proud ones, but He gives grace to humble ones."
Then be subject to God. Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.
Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse [your] hands, sinners! And purify [your] hearts, double minded ones!
Be distressed, and mourn, and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning, and [your] joy into shame.
Be humbled before the Lord, and He will exalt you.
Do not speak against one another, brothers. He that speaks against a brother, and is judging a brother, [he] speaks against law, and judges law. But if you judge law, you are not a doer of law, but a judge.
One is the Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you who judges another?
Come now, those saying, Today or tomorrow we will go into this city, and we will spend one year there, and we will trade and will make a profit,
who do not know of the morrow. For what [is] your life? For it is a mist, which for a little [while] appears, and then disappears.
Instead of you saying, If the Lord wills, even we will live, and we will do this or that;
but now you boast in your presumptions. All such boasting is evil.
Therefore, to [anyone] knowing to do good, and not doing [it], it is sin to him.
