James 1:19-27

Doers of the Message, Not Just Hearers

19 Understand [this], my dear brothers: every person must be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger,
20 for human[a] anger does not accomplish the righteousness of God.
21 Therefore, putting aside all moral uncleanness and wicked excess, welcome[b] with humility the implanted message which is able to save your souls.
22 But be doers of the message and not hearers only,[c] deceiving yourselves,
23 because if anyone is a hearer of the message and not a doer, this one is like someone[d] staring at {his own face}[e] in a mirror,
24 for he looks at himself and goes away and immediately forgets what sort of [person] he was.
25 But the one who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues [to do it], not being a forgetful hearer but a doer who acts, this one will be blessed {in what he does}[f].
26 If anyone thinks he is religious, [although he][g] does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion [is] worthless.
27 Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our[h] God and Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their affliction, [and] to keep oneself unstained by the world.

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Footnotes 8

  • [a]. Literally "man's"
  • [b]. Or "receive"
  • [c]. Some manuscripts have "not only hearers"
  • [d]. Literally "a man," but clearly in a generic sense here meaning "someone, a person"
  • [e]. Literally "the face of his existence"
  • [f]. Literally "in his doing"
  • [g]. *Here "[although]" is supplied as a component of the participle ("bridle") which is understood as concessive
  • [h]. *Literally "the"; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.