James 1:15

James 1:15 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
• New International Version (NIV)Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.

Context of James 1:15

13No one is to say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. 14But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it has run its course, brings forth death. 16Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers and sisters. 17Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.

James 1:15 word by word

εἶτα ἡ ἐπιθυμία συλλαβοῦσα τίκτει ἁμαρτίαν, ἡ δὲ ἁμαρτία ἀποτελεσθεῖσα ἀποκύει θάνατον.¶Read the interlinear

• Thenεἶταeita · thenG1534
• when lustἐπιθυμίαepithumia · desireG1939
• has conceivedσυλλαμβάνωsullambanō · to seize/conceive/helpG4815
• it givesτίκτωtiktō · to give birth toG5088
• to sinἁμαρτίαhamartia · sinG266
• when it has runἀποτελέωapoteleō · to completeG658
• bringsἀποκυέωapokueō · to generateG616
• deathθάνατοςthanatos · deathG2288

Cross-references for James 1:15

• Genesis 3:6When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took some of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband with her, and he ate.
• Genesis 4:5but for Cain and his offering He had no regard. So Cain became very angry and his face was gloomy.
• Job 15:35They conceive harm and give birth to wrongdoing, And their mind prepares deception.”
• Psalms 7:14Behold, an evil person is pregnant with injustice, And he conceives harm and gives birth to lies.
• Isaiah 59:4No one sues righteously and no one pleads honestly. They trust in confusion and speak lies; They conceive trouble and give birth to disaster.
• Micah 2:1Woe to those who devise wrongdoing, Who practice evil on their beds! When morning comes, they do it, Because it is in the power of their hands.
• Matthew 26:14Then one of the twelve, named Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests
• Acts 5:1But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property,
• Genesis 2:17but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for on the day that you eat from it you will certainly die.”
• Genesis 3:17Then to Adam He said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat from it’; Cursed is the ground because of you; With hard labor you shall eat from it All the days of your life.
• Psalms 9:17The wicked will return to Sheol, All the nations who forget God.
• Romans 5:12Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all mankind, because all sinned--
• Romans 6:21Therefore what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death.
• Revelation 20:14Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.

Commentaries on James 1:15

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 15When lust hath conceived - When the evil propensity works unchecked, it bringeth forth sin - the evil act between the parties is perpetrated. And sin, when it is finished - When this breach of the law of God and of innocence has been a sufficient time completed, it bringeth forth death - the spurious offspring is the fruit of the criminal connection, and the evidence of that death or punishment due to the transgressors. Any person acquainted with the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15Then when lust hath conceived - Compare Job 15:35. The allusion here is obvious. The meaning is, when the desire which we have naturally is quickened, or made to act, the result is that sin is produced. As our desires of good lie in the mind by nature, as our propensities exist as they were created, they cannot be regarded as sin, or treated as such; but when they are indulged, when plans of gratification are formed, when they are developed in actual…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-18Verses 12-18 It is not every man who suffers, that is blessed; but he who with patience and constancy goes through all difficulties in the way of duty. Afflictions cannot make us miserable, if it be not our own fault. The tried Christian shall be a crowned one. The crown of life is promised to all who have the love of God reigning in their hearts. Every soul that truly loves God, shall have its trials in this world fully recompensed in that world above…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 15Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin: James describes sin as if it were a baby. If this “baby” sin becomes mature, it results in death. This spiritual death stands in direct opposition to "crown of life" (1:12).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1515. The guilty union is committed by the will embracing the temptress. "Lust," the harlot, then, "brings forth sin," namely, of that kind to which the temptation inclines. Then the particular sin (so the Greek implies), "when it is completed, brings forth death," with which it was all along pregnant [Alford]. This "death" stands in striking contrast to the "crown of life" (Jas 1:12) which "patience" or endurance ends in, when it has its "perfect work"…Read the comment

Topics related to James 1:15

• Death
• Lust
• Sin
• Temptation
• Wicked (People)

In the dictionaries

• Entice
• Fade
• Lack
• Lay
• Liberally
• Lust
• Pure
• Receive
• Religion
• Sin

Commentaries on James 1

• 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
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• 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