James 2:2-26

2For if a man comes into your 1assembly with a gold ring and dressed in 23fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in 4dirty clothes, 3and you 5pay special attention to the one who is wearing the 6fine 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,” 4have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges 7with evil 8motives? 5Listen, 9my beloved brethren: did not 10God choose the poor 11of this world to be 12rich in faith and 13heirs of the kingdom which He 14promised to those who love Him? 6But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and 15personally 16drag you into 17court? 718Do they not blaspheme the fair name 19by which you have been called?

8If, however, you 20are fulfilling the 21royal law according to the Scripture, “22You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. 9But if you 23show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the 24law as transgressors. 10For whoever keeps the whole 25law and yet 26stumbles in one point, he has become 27guilty of all. 11For He who said, “28Do not commit adultery,” also said, “29Do not commit murder.” Now if you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a transgressor of the 30law. 12So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by 31the law of liberty. 13For 32judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy 33triumphs over judgment.

1434What use is it, 35my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can 36that faith save him? 1537If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, 16and one of you says to them, “38Go in peace, 39be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? 17Even so 40faith, if it has no works, is 41dead, being by itself.

1842But someone 43may well say, “You have faith and I have works; show me your 44faith without the works, and I will 45show you my faith 46by my works.” 19You believe that 4748God is one. 49You do well; 50the demons also believe, and shudder. 20But are you willing to recognize, 51you foolish fellow, that 52faith without works is useless? 2153Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? 22You see that 54faith was working with his works, and 55as a result of the 56works, faith was 57perfected; 23and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “58And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,” and he was called 59the friend of God. 24You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25In the same way, was not 60Rahab the harlot also justified by works 61when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also 62faith without works is dead.