James 2:2-26

2For if a man comes into your 1assembly with a gold ring and is dressed in 2bright clothes, and a poor man in 3dirty clothes also comes in, 3and you 4pay special attention to the one who is wearing the 5bright 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 6with evil 7motives? 5Listen, 8my beloved brothers and sisters: did 9God not choose the poor 10of this world to be 11rich in faith and 12heirs of the kingdom which He 13promised to those who love Him? 6But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and 14personally 15drag you into 16court? 717Do they not blaspheme the good name 18by which you have been called?

8If, however, you 19are fulfilling the 20royal law according to the Scripture, “21You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. 9But if you 22show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the Law as violators. 10For whoever keeps the whole Law, yet 23stumbles in one point, has become 24guilty of all. 11For He who said, “25Do not commit adultery,” also said, “26Do not murder.” Now if you do not commit adultery, but do murder, you have become a violator of the Law. 12So speak, and so act, as those who are to be judged by 27the law of freedom. 13For 28judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy 29triumphs over judgment.

1430What use is it, 31my brothers and sisters, if someone says he has faith, but he has no works? Can 32that faith save him? 1533If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, 16and one of you says to them, “34Go in peace, 35be warmed and be filled,” yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? 17In the same way, 36faith also, if it has no works, is 37dead, being by itself.

1838But someone 39may well say, “You have faith and I have works; show me your 40faith without the works, and I will 41show you my faith 42by my works.” 19You believe that 4344God is one. 45You do well; 46the demons also believe, and shudder. 20But are you willing to acknowledge, 47you foolish person, that 48faith without works is useless? 2149Was our father Abraham not justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22You see that 50faith was working with his works, and 51as a result of the 52works, faith was 53perfected; 23and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “54And Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called a 55friend of God. 24You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25In the same way, was 56Rahab the prostitute not justified by works also 57when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also 58faith without works is dead.