James 2:1

James 2:1 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.
• New International Version (NIV)My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism.
• English Standard Version (ESV)My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.
• New King James Version (NKJV)My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality.

Context of James 2:1

My brothers and sisters, do not show prejudice if you possess faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. 2For if someone comes into your assembly wearing a gold ring and fine clothing, and a poor person enters in filthy clothes, 3do you pay attention to the one who is finely dressed and say, “You sit here in a good place,” and to the poor person, “You stand over there,” or “Sit on the floor”?

James 2:1 word by word

Ἀδελφοί μου, μὴ ἐν προσωπολημψίαις ἔχετε τὴν πίστιν τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τῆς δόξης.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Myἐγώegō · I/weG1473
• brethrenἀδελφόςadelphos · brotherG80
• haveἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
• notμήmē · notG3361
• the faithὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• the faithπίστιςpistis · faithG4102
• Lordκύριοςkurios · lord: GodG2962
• JesusἸησοῦςIēsous · JesusG2424
• ChristΧριστόςChristos · ChristG5547
• of gloryδόξαdoxa · gloryG1391
• withἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• respect of personsπροσωποληψίαprosōpolēpsia · favoritismG4382

Cross-references for James 2:1

• Acts 20:21testifying to both Jews and Greeks about repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus.
• Acts 24:24Some days later, when Felix arrived with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish, he sent for Paul and heard him speak about faith in Christ Jesus.
• Colossians 1:4since we heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you have for all the saints.
• 1 Timothy 1:19To do this you must hold firmly to faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and so have suffered shipwreck in regard to the faith.
• 2 Peter 1:1From Simeon Peter, a slave and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ, have been granted a faith just as precious as ours.
• Revelation 14:12This requires the steadfast endurance of the saints – those who obey God’s commandments and hold to their faith in Jesus.
• Psalms 24:7Look up, you gates! Rise up, you eternal doors! Then the majestic king will enter!
• 1 Corinthians 2:8None of the rulers of this age understood it. If they had known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
• Hebrews 1:3The Son is the radiance of his glory and the representation of his essence, and he sustains all things by his powerful word, and so when he had accomplished cleansing for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.
• James 2:3do you pay attention to the one who is finely dressed and say, “You sit here in a good place,” and to the poor person, “You stand over there,” or “Sit on the floor”?
• James 3:17But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, accommodating, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial, and not hypocritical.
• Leviticus 19:15“‘You must not deal unjustly in judgment: you must neither show partiality to the poor nor honor the rich. You must judge your fellow citizen fairly.
• Deuteronomy 1:17They must not discriminate in judgment, but hear the lowly and the great alike. Nor should they be intimidated by human beings, for judgment belongs to God. If the matter being adjudicated is too difficult for them, they should bring it before me for a hearing.
• Deuteronomy 16:19You must not pervert justice or show favor. Do not take a bribe, for bribes blind the eyes of the wise and distort the words of the righteous.
• 2 Chronicles 19:7Respect the Lord and make careful decisions, for the Lord our God disapproves of injustice, partiality, and bribery.”
• Proverbs 24:23These sayings also are from the wise: To show partiality in judgment is terrible:

Commentaries on James 2:1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1My brethren, have not - This verse should be read interrogatively: My brethren, do ye not make profession of the faith or religion of our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with acceptance of persons? That is, preferring the rich to the poor merely because of their riches, and not on account of any moral excellence, personal piety, or public usefulness. , faith, is put here for religion; and , of glory, should, according to some critics, be construed with it as…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1My brethren - Perhaps meaning brethren in two respects - as Jews, and as Christians. In both respects the form of address would be proper. Have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ - Faith is the distinguishing thing in the Christian religion, for it is this by which man is justified, and hence, it comes to be put for religion itself. Notes, 1 Timothy 3:9. The meaning here is, “do not hold such views of the religion of Christ, as to lead you to manifest…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1Chapter Outline All professions of faith are vain, if not producing love and justice to others. (1-13) The necessity of good works to prove the sincerity of faith, which otherwise will be of no more advantage than the faith of devils. (14-26) Verses 1-13 Those who profess faith in Christ as the Lord of glory, must not respect persons on account of mere outward circumstances and appearances, in a manner not agreeing with their profession of being disciples…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1My brothers (Greek adelphoi): The Greek word here means members of the same family. In this case, it refers to fellow Christians of either sex. James often starts a new section with this loving greeting, seeking their loyal response (1:2, 16; 2:14; 3:1; 5:7, 19). James contrasts our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with the glory of a well-dressed man (2:2). The glory of Christ includes his resurrection from the dead, his exalted position in heaven, and his…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-26James illustrates "the perfect law of liberty" (Jas 1:25) in one particular instance of a sin against it, concluding with a reference again to that law (Jas 2:12, 13). 1. brethren--The equality of all Christians as "brethren," forms the groundwork of the admonition. the faith of ... Christ--that is, the Christian faith. James grounds Christian practice on Christian faith. the Lord of glory--So 1Co 2:8. As all believers, alike rich and poor, derive all…Read the comment

Topics related to James 2:1

• Commandments
• Faith
• Jesus Continued
• Jesus, the Christ
• Respect of Persons
• Worldliness

In the dictionaries

• Christ
• Jesus
• Christ, Messiah
• Jesus, Jesus Christ, Christ Jesus
• Jesus Christ
• Respect of Persons
• Convince
• Dead
• Draw
• Justify

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