James 1:1James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, ¶ To the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
James 1:2¶ Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials,
James 1:3knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.
James 1:4And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
James 1:5¶ But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.
James 1:6But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.
James 1:7For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord,
James 1:8being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
James 1:9¶ But the brother of humble circumstances is to glory in his high position;
James 1:10and the rich man is to glory in his humiliation, because like flowering grass he will pass away.
James 1:11For the sun rises with a scorching wind and withers the grass; and its flower falls off and the beauty of its appearance is destroyed; so too the rich man in the midst of his pursuits will fade away.
James 1:12¶ Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.
James 1:13Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone.
James 1:14But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.
James 1:15Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.
James 1:16Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.
James 1:17Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.
James 1:18In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures.
James 1:19¶ This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger;
James 1:20for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.
James 1:21Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls.
James 1:22But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.
James 1:23For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror;
James 1:24for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was.
James 1:25But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.
James 1:26¶ If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man's religion is worthless.
James 1:27Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.