Twenty - James - 1

1:1  James, a Servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, greets The Twelve Tribes that are living abroad.

1:2  My Brothers, whatever may be the temptations that beset you from time to time, always regard them as a reason for rejoicing,

1:3  Knowing, as you do, that the testing of your faith develops endurance.

1:4  And let endurance do its work perfectly, so that you may be altogether perfect, and in no respect deficient.

1:5  If one of you is deficient in wisdom, let him ask wisdom from the God who gives freely to every one without reproaches, and it will be given to him.

1:6  But let him ask with confidence, never doubting; for the man who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven hither and thither at the mercy of the wind--

1:7  Such a man must not expect that he will receive anything from the Lord,

1:8  Vacillating as he is, irresolute at every turn.

1:9  Let a Brother in humble circumstances be proud of his exalted position, but a rich Brother of his humiliation;

1:10  For the rich man will pass away 'like the flower of the grass.'

1:11  As the sun rises, and the hot wind blows, 'the grass withers, its flower fades,' and all its beauty is gone. So is it with the rich man. In the midst of his pursuits he will come to an untimely end.

1:12  Blessed is the man who remains firm under temptation, for, when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of Life, which the Lord has promised to those who love him.

1:13  Let no one say, when he is tempted, "It is God who is tempting me!" For God, who cannot be tempted to do wrong, does not himself tempt any one.

1:14  A man is in every case tempted by his own passions--allured and enticed by them.

1:15  Then Passion conceives and gives birth to Sin, and Sin, on reaching maturity, brings forth Death.

1:16  Do not be deceived, my dear Brothers.

1:17  Every good thing given us, and every perfect gift, is from above, and comes down to us from the Maker of the Lights in the heavens, who is himself never subject to change or to eclipse.

1:18  Because he so willed, he gave us Life, through the Message of the Truth, so that we should be, as it were, an earnest of still further creations.

1:19  Mark this, my dear Brothers--Let every one be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry;

1:20  For the anger of man does not forward the righteous purpose of God.

1:21  Therefore, have done with all filthiness and whatever wickedness still remains, and in a humble spirit receive that Message which has been planted in your hearts and is able to save your souls.

1:22  Put that Message into practice, and do not merely listen to it-- deceiving yourselves.

1:23  For, when any one listens to it and does not practice it, he is like a man looking at his own face in a mirror.

1:24  He looks at himself, then goes on his way,

1:25  But he who looks carefully into the perfect Law, the Law of Freedom, and continues to do so, not listening to it and then forgetting it, but putting it into practice--that man will be blessed in what he does.

1:26  When a man appears to be religious, yet does not bridle his tongue, but imposes upon his own conscience, that man's religious observances are valueless.

1:27  That religious observance which is pure and spotless in the eyes of God our Father is this--to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself uncontaminated by the world.