James 4:2

James 4:2 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.
• New International Version (NIV)You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God.
• English Standard Version (ESV)You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.
• New King James Version (NKJV)You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask.

Context of James 4:2

1From wherecomewars and fightings among you? come theynot from this, even from your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. 3Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. 4Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

James 4:2 word by word

ἐπιθυμεῖτε καὶ οὐκ ἔχετε· φονεύετε καὶ ζηλοῦτε καὶ οὐ δύνασθε ἐπιτυχεῖν· μάχεσθε καὶ πολεμεῖτε· οὐκ ἔχετε διὰ τὸ μὴ αἰτεῖσθαι ὑμᾶς·Read the interlinear

• lustἐπιθυμέωepithumeō · to long forG1937
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• haveἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
• notοὐou · noG3756
• killφονεύωphoneuō · to murderG5407
• haveζηλόωzēloō · be eagerG2206
• cannotδύναμαιdunamai · be ableG1410
• obtainἐπιτυγχάνωepitugchanō · to obtainG2013
• fightμάχομαιmachomai · to quarrelG3164
• warπολεμέωpolemeō · to fightG4170
• yetδέde · thenG1161
• becauseδιάdia · through/because ofG1223
• yeὑμᾶςhumas · youG5209
• askαἰτέωaiteō · to askG154
• notμήmē · notG3361

Cross-references for James 4:2

• James 5:1Come now, ye rich men, weep and wail for your miseries that shall come upon you .
• Proverbs 1:19So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; who taketh away the life of its owners.
• Ecclesiastes 4:8There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a grievous labour.
• Habakkuk 2:5Yea also, because he transgresseth by wine, he is a proud man, neither keepeth at home, who enlargeth his desire as hell, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth to him all nations, and heapeth to him all people:
• 1 Timothy 6:9But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
• James 1:5If any of you lacketh wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given to him.
• Isaiah 7:12But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the LORD.
• Matthew 7:7Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you:
• Luke 11:9And I say to you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you.
• John 4:10Jesus answered and said to her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked him, and he would have given thee living water.
• John 16:24Until now ye have asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.

Commentaries on James 4:2

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2Ye lust, and have not - Ye are ever covetous, and ever poor. Ye kill, and, desire to have - Ye are constantly engaged in insurrections and predatory wars, and never gain any advantage. Ye have not, because ye ask not - Ye get no especial blessing from God as your fathers did, because ye do not pray. Worldly good is your god; ye leave no stone unturned in order to get it; and as ye ask nothing from God but to consume it upon your evil desires and…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2Ye lust, and have not - That is, you wish to have something which you do not now possess, and to which you have no just claim, and this prompts to the effort to obtain it by force. You desire extension of territory, fame, booty, the means of luxurious indulgence, or of magnificence and grandeur, and this leads to contest and bloodshed. These are the causes of wars on the large scale among nations and of the contentions and strifes of individuals. The…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2you kill and covet: Killing was the extreme but logical result of their greedy mindset. Some of James's readers might have joined the Jewish Zealot movement and committed murder for their cause. Hostile attitudes and violent methods do not bring satisfaction—you cannot achieve your goals with them.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. Ye lust--A different Greek word from that in Jas 4:1. "Ye desire"; literally, "ye set your mind (or heart) on" an object. have not--The lust of desire does not ensure the actual possession. Hence "ye kill" (not as Margin, without any old authority, "envy") to ensure possession. Not probably in the case of professing Christians of that day in a literal sense, but "kill and envy" (as the Greek for "desire to have" should be translated), that is, harass…Read the comment

Topics related to James 4:2

• Ambition
• Covetousness
• Lust
• Sin
• Strife

In the dictionaries

• Adulterer
• Amiss
• Consume
• Enmity
• Flee
• Hence
• Lust
• Resist
• Sin
• Unruly

Commentaries on James 4

• 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