James 2 (New American Standard)

The Sin of Partiality

1 ¹My brethren, ²do not hold your faith in our ³glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of ⁴personal favoritism. 2 For if a man comes into your ^aassembly with a gold ring and dressed in ^b5fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in ⁶dirty clothes, 3 and you ^cpay special attention to the one who is wearing the ⁷fine clothes, and say, "You sit here in a good place," and you say to the poor man, "You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool," 4 have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges ⁸with evil ^dmotives ? 5 Listen, ⁹my beloved brethren : did not ¹⁰God choose the poor ^eof this world to be ¹¹rich in faith and ¹²heirs of the kingdom which He ¹³promised to those who love Him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and ^fpersonally ¹⁴drag you into ^gcourt ? 7 ¹⁵Do they not blaspheme the fair name ^hby which you have been called ? 8 If, however, you ¹⁶are fulfilling the ⁱroyal law according to the Scripture, "¹⁷YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF," you are doing well. 9 But if you ¹⁸show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the ^jlaw as transgressors. 10 For whoever keeps the whole ^klaw and yet ¹⁹stumbles in one point, he has become ²⁰guilty of all. 11 For He who said, "²¹DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY," also said, "²²DO NOT COMMIT MURDER." Now if you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a transgressor of the ^llaw. 12 So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by ²³the law of liberty. 13 For ²⁴judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy ; mercy ^mtriumphs over judgment.

Faith and Works

14 ²⁵What use is it, ²⁶my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works ? Can ⁿthat faith save him? 15 ²⁷If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, "²⁸Go in peace, ^obe warmed and be filled," and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? 17 Even so ²⁹faith, if it has no works, is ^pdead, being by itself. 18 ³⁰But someone ^qmay well say, "You have faith and I have works ; show me your ³¹faith without the works, and I will ³²show you my faith ³³by my works." 19 You believe that ^r34God is one. ³⁵You do well ; ³⁶the demons also believe, and shudder. 20 But are you willing to recognize, ³⁷you foolish fellow, that ³⁸faith without works is useless ? 21 ³⁹Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar ? 22 You see that ⁴⁰faith was working with his works, and ^sas a result of the ⁴¹works, faith was ^tperfected ; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "⁴²AND ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS," and he was called ⁴³the friend of God. 24 You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 In the same way, was not ⁴⁴Rahab the harlot also justified by works ⁴⁵when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way ? 26 For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also ⁴⁶faith without works is dead.