Jam 2 | NASB1995 | STEP | My brethren , do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism .

James 2

The Sin of Partiality

1 ^aMy brethren, ^bdo not hold your faith in our ^cglorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of ^dpersonal favoritism. 2 For if a man comes into your ^{▼▼ Or synagogue}assembly with a gold ring and dressed in ^{▼▼ Or bright
,} ^gfine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in ^hdirty clothes, 3 and you ^{▼▼ Lit look at}pay special attention to the one who is wearing the ^jfine 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 ^kwith evil ^{▼▼ Lit reasonings}motives? 5 Listen, ^mmy beloved brethren: did not ⁿGod choose the poor ^{▼▼ Lit to the}of this world to be ^prich in faith and ^qheirs of the kingdom which He ^rpromised to those who love Him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and ^{▼▼ Lit they themselves}personally ^tdrag you into ^{▼▼ Lit courts}court? 7 ^vDo they not blaspheme the fair name ^{▼▼ Lit which has been called upon you}by which you have been called?

8 If, however, you ^xare fulfilling the ^{▼▼ Or law of our King}royal law according to the Scripture, ^z“You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. 9 But if you ^aashow partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the ^{▼▼ Or Law}law as transgressors. 10 For whoever keeps the whole ^{▼▼ Or Law}law and yet ^adstumbles in one point, he has become ^aeguilty of all. 11 For He who said, ^af“Do not commit adultery,” also said, ^ag“Do not commit murder.” Now if you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a transgressor of the ^{▼▼ Or Law}law. 12 So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by ^ai the law of liberty. 13 For ^ajjudgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy ^{▼▼ Lit boasts against}triumphs over judgment.

Faith and Works

14 ^alWhat use is it, ^ammy brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can ^{▼▼ Lit the}that faith save him? 15 ^aoIf a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, ^ap“Go in peace, ^{▼▼ Or warm yourselves and fill yourselves}be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? 17 Even so ^arfaith, if it has no works, is ^{▼▼ Or dead by its own standards}dead, being by itself.

18 ^atBut someone ^{▼▼ Lit will}may well say, “You have faith and I have works; show me your ^avfaith without the works, and I will ^awshow you my faith ^axby my works.” 19 You believe that ^{▼▼ One early ms reads there is one God
,} ^azGod is one. ^baYou do well; ^bbthe demons also believe, and shudder. 20 But are you willing to recognize, ^bcyou foolish fellow, that ^bdfaith without works is useless? 21 ^beWas not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? 22 You see that ^bffaith was working with his works, and ^{▼▼ Or by the deeds}as a result of the ^bhworks, faith was ^{▼▼ Or completed}perfected; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, ^bj“And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,” and he was called ^bkthe 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 ^blRahab the harlot also justified by works ^bmwhen she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26 For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also ^bnfaith without works is dead.