Young's Literal Translation YLT
The Message Bible MSG
1 My brethren, hold not, in respect of persons, the faith of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ,
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My dear friends, don't let public opinion influence how you live out our glorious, Christ-originated faith.
2 for if there may come into your synagogue a man with gold ring, in gay raiment, and there may come in also a poor man in vile raiment,
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If a man enters your church wearing an expensive suit, and a street person wearing rags comes in right after him,
3 and ye may look upon him bearing the gay raiment, and may say to him, `Thou -- sit thou here well,' and to the poor man may say, `Thou -- stand thou there, or, Sit thou here under my footstool,' --
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and you say to the man in the suit, "Sit here, sir; this is the best seat in the house!" and either ignore the street person or say, "Better sit here in the back row,"
4 ye did not judge fully in yourselves, and did become ill-reasoning judges.
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haven't you segregated God's children and proved that you are judges who can't be trusted?
5 Hearken, my brethren beloved, did not God choose the poor of this world, rich in faith, and heirs of the reign that He promised to those loving Him?
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Listen, dear friends. Isn't it clear by now that God operates quite differently? He chose the world's down-and-out as the kingdom's first citizens, with full rights and privileges. This kingdom is promised to anyone who loves God.
6 and ye did dishonour the poor one; do not the rich oppress you and themselves draw you to judgment-seats;
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And here you are abusing these same citizens! Isn't it the high and mighty who exploit you, who use the courts to rob you blind?
7 do they not themselves speak evil of the good name that was called upon you?
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Aren't they the ones who scorn the new name - "Christian" - used in your baptisms?
8 If, indeed, royal law ye complete, according to the Writing, `Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself,' -- ye do well;
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You do well when you complete the Royal Rule of the Scriptures: "Love others as you love yourself."
9 and if ye accept persons, sin ye do work, being convicted by the law as transgressors;
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But if you play up to these so-called important people, you go against the Rule and stand convicted by it.
10 for whoever the whole law shall keep, and shall stumble in one [point], he hath become guilty of all;
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You can't pick and choose in these things, specializing in keeping one or two things in God's law and ignoring others.
11 for He who is saying, `Thou mayest not commit adultery,' said also, `Thou mayest do no murder;' and if thou shalt not commit adultery, and shalt commit murder, thou hast become a transgressor of law;
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The same God who said, "Don't commit adultery," also said, "Don't murder." If you don't commit adultery but go ahead and murder, do you think your non-adultery will cancel out your murder? No, you're a murderer, period.
12 so speak ye and so do, as about by a law of liberty to be judged,
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Talk and act like a person expecting to be judged by the Rule that sets us free.
13 for the judgment without kindness [is] to him not having done kindness, and exult doth kindness over judgment.
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For if you refuse to act kindly, you can hardly expect to be treated kindly. Kind mercy wins over harsh judgment every time.
14 What [is] the profit, my brethren, if faith, any one may speak of having, and works he may not have? is that faith able to save him?
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Dear friends, do you think you'll get anywhere in this if you learn all the right words but never do anything? Does merely talking about faith indicate that a person really has it?
15 and if a brother or sister may be naked, and may be destitute of the daily food,
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For instance, you come upon an old friend dressed in rags and half-starved
16 and any one of you may say to them, `Depart ye in peace, be warmed, and be filled,' and may not give to them the things needful for the body, what [is] the profit?
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and say, "Good morning, friend! Be clothed in Christ! Be filled with the Holy Spirit!" and walk off without providing so much as a coat or a cup of soup - where does that get you?
17 so also the faith, if it may not have works, is dead by itself.
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Isn't it obvious that God-talk without God-acts is outrageous nonsense?
18 But say may some one, Thou hast faith, and I have works, shew me thy faith out of thy works, and I will shew thee out of my works my faith:
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I can already hear one of you agreeing by saying, "Sounds good. You take care of the faith department, I'll handle the works department." Not so fast. You can no more show me your works apart from your faith than I can show you my faith apart from my works. Faith and works, works and faith, fit together hand in glove.
19 thou -- thou dost believe that God is one; thou dost well, and the demons believe, and they shudder!
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Do I hear you professing to believe in the one and only God, but then observe you complacently sitting back as if you had done something wonderful? That's just great. Demons do that, but what good does it do them?
20 And dost thou wish to know, O vain man, that the faith apart from the works is dead?
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Use your heads! Do you suppose for a minute that you can cut faith and works in two and not end up with a corpse on your hands?
21 Abraham our father -- was not he declared righteous out of works, having brought up Isaac his son upon the altar?
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Wasn't our ancestor Abraham "made right with God by works" when he placed his son Isaac on the sacrificial altar?
22 dost thou see that the faith was working with his works, and out of the works the faith was perfected?
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Isn't it obvious that faith and works are yoked partners, that faith expresses itself in works? That the works are "works of faith"?
23 and fulfilled was the Writing that is saying, `And Abraham did believe God, and it was reckoned to him -- to righteousness;' and, `Friend of God' he was called.
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The full meaning of "believe" in the Scripture sentence, "Abraham believed God and was set right with God," includes his action. It's that mesh of believing and acting that got Abraham named "God's friend."
24 Ye see, then, that out of works is man declared righteous, and not out of faith only;
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Is it not evident that a person is made right with God not by a barren faith but by faith fruitful in works?
25 and in like manner also Rahab the harlot -- was she not out of works declared righteous, having received the messengers, and by another way having sent forth?
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The same with Rahab, the Jericho harlot. Wasn't her action in hiding God's spies and helping them escape - that seamless unity of believing and doing - what counted with God?
26 for as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also the faith apart from the works is dead.
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The very moment you separate body and spirit, you end up with a corpse. Separate faith and works and you get the same thing: a corpse.
Young's Literal Translation is in the public domain.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.