Amplified Bible
James 2:19
19You believe that God is one; you do well [to believe that]. The demons also believe [that], and shudder and bristle [in awe-filled terror—they have seen His wrath]!
James 2:19 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.
- New International Version (NIV)You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.
- English Standard Version (ESV)You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!
- New King James Version (NKJV)You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!
Context of James 2:19
17So too, faith, if it does not have works [to back it up], is by itself dead [inoperative and ineffective]. 18But someone may say, “You [claim to] have faith and I have [good] works; show me your [alleged] faith without the works [if you can], and I will show you my faith by my works [that is, by what I do].” You believe that God is one; you do well [to believe that]. The demons also believe [that], and shudder and bristle [in awe-filled terror—they have seen His wrath]! 20But are you willing to recognize, you foolish [spiritually shallow] person, that faith without [good] works is useless? 21Was our father Abraham not [shown to be] justified by works [of obedience which expressed his faith] when he offered Isaac his son on the altar [as a sacrifice to God]?
Read all of James 2James 2:19 word by word
σὺ πιστεύεις ὅτι εἷς ἐστιν ὁ θεός· καλῶς ποιεῖς· καὶ τὰ δαιμόνια πιστεύουσιν καὶ φρίσσουσιν.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Thouσύsu · youG4771
- believestπιστεύωpisteuō · to trust (in)G4100
- thatὅτιhoti · that/since: thatG3754
- there isεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
- oneεἷςheis · oneG1520
- Godὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
- thou doestποιέωpoieō · to do/make: doG4160
- wellκαλῶςkalōs · wellG2573
- the devilsδαιμόνιονdaimonion · demonG1140
- alsoκαίkai · andG2532
- trembleφρίσσωphrissō · to shudderG5425
Cross-references for James 2:19
- Deuteronomy 6:4“Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one [the only God]!
- Isaiah 43:10“You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “And My servant whom I have chosen, That you may know and believe Me And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, And there will be none after Me.
- Isaiah 44:6“For the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts says this, ‘I am the First and I am the Last; And there is no God besides Me.
- Isaiah 45:6That people may know from the rising to the setting of the sun [the world over] That there is no one except Me. I am the Lord, and there is no other,
- Isaiah 46:9Remember [carefully] the former things [which I did] from ages past; For I am God, and there is no one else; I am God, and there is no one like Me,
- Zechariah 14:9And the Lord shall be king over all the earth; in that day the Lord shall be the only one [worshiped], and His name the only one.
- Mark 12:29Jesus answered, “The first and most important one is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord;
- John 17:3Now this is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true [supreme and sovereign] God, and [in the same manner know] Jesus [as the] Christ whom You have sent.
- Romans 3:30since indeed it is one [and the same] God who will justify the circumcised by faith [which began with Abraham] and the uncircumcised through [their newly acquired] faith.
- 1 Corinthians 8:4In this matter, then, of eating food offered to idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world [it has no real existence], and that there is no God but one.
- Galatians 3:20Now the mediator or go-between [in a transaction] is not [needed] for just one party; whereas God is only one [and was the only One giving the promise to Abraham, but the Law was a contract between two, God and Israel; its validity depended on both].
- Ephesians 4:5one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
- 1 Timothy 2:5For there is [only] one God, and [only] one Mediator between God and mankind, the Man Christ Jesus,
- Jude 1:4For certain people have crept in unnoticed [just as if they were sneaking in by a side door]. They are ungodly persons whose condemnation was predicted long ago, for they distort the grace of our God into decadence and immoral freedom [viewing it as an opportunity to do whatever they want], and deny and disown our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
- James 2:8If, however, you are [really] fulfilling the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself [that is, if you have an unselfish concern for others and do things for their benefit]” you are doing well.
- Jonah 4:4Then the Lord said, “Do you have a good reason to be angry?”
Commentaries on James 2:19
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 19Thou believest that there is one God - This is the faith in which these persons put their hope of pleasing God, and of obtaining eternal life. Believing in the being and unity of God distinguished them from all the nations of the world; and having been circumcised, and thus brought into the covenant, they thought themselves secure of salvation. The insufficiency of this St. James immediately shows. The devils also believe, and tremble - It is well to…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 19Thou believest that there is one God - One of the great and cardinal doctrines of religion is here selected as an illustration of all. The design of the apostle seems to have been to select one of the doctrines of religion, the belief of which would - if mere belief in any doctrine could - save the soul; and to show that even this might be held as an article of faith by those who could be supposed by no one to have any claim to the name of Christian. He…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-26Verses 14-26 Those are wrong who put a mere notional belief of the gospel for the whole of evangelical religion, as many now do. No doubt, true faith alone, whereby men have part in Christ's righteousness, atonement, and grace, saves their souls; but it produces holy fruits, and is shown to be real by its effect on their works; while mere assent to any form of doctrine, or mere historical belief of any facts, wholly differs from this saving faith. A bare…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 19that God is one (or there is one God): This is the core belief of Israel's faith (see Deuteronomy 6:4). the demons believe: They know there is one God, and he is their enemy (Mark 1:24).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1919. Thou--emphatic. Thou self-deceiving claimant to faith without works. that there is one God--rather, "that God is one": God's existence, however, is also asserted. The fundamental article of the creed of Jews and Christians alike, and the point of faith on which especially the former boasted themselves, as distinguishing them from the Gentiles, and hence adduced by James here. thou doest well--so far good. But unless thy faith goes farther than an…Read the comment
Topics related to James 2:19
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on James 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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