James · Bible in Basic English
James 1 Bible in Basic English
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
BBE Bible in Basic English
WEB World English Bible (Classic, with Deuterocanon)
PT1904 Patriarchal Text 1904 (accented, eBible edition)
1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, sends words of love to the twelve tribes of the Jews living in all parts of the earth.
1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are in the Dispersion: Greetings.
1 Ἰάκωβος, Θεοῦ καὶ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ δοῦλος, ταῖς δώδεκα φυλαῖς ταῖς ἐν τῇ διασπορᾷ χαίρειν.
2 Let it be all joy to you, my brothers, when you undergo tests of every sort;
2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you fall into various temptations,
2 Πᾶσαν χαρὰν ἡγήσασθε, ἀδελφοί μου, ὅταν πειρασμοῖς περιπέσητε ποικίλοις,
3 Because you have the knowledge that the testing of your faith gives you the power of going on in hope;
3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.
3 γινώσκοντες ὅτι τὸ δοκίμιον ὑμῶν τῆς πίστεως κατεργάζεται ὑπομονήν·
4 But let this power have its full effect, so that you may be made complete, needing nothing.
4 Let endurance have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
4 ἡ δὲ ὑπομονὴ ἔργον τέλειον ἐχέτω, ἵνα ἦτε τέλειοι καὶ ὁλόκληροι, ἐν μηδενὶ λειπόμενοι.
5 But if any man among you is without wisdom, let him make his request to God, who gives freely to all without an unkind word, and it will be given to him.
5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.
5 Εἰ δέ τις ὑμῶν λείπεται σοφίας, αἰτείτω παρὰ τοῦ διδόντος Θεοῦ πᾶσιν ἁπλῶς καὶ οὐκ ὀνειδίζοντος, καὶ δοθήσεται αὐτῷ·
6 Let him make his request in faith, doubting nothing; for he who has doubt in his heart is like the waves of the sea, which are troubled by the driving of the wind.
6 But let him ask in faith, without any doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, driven by the wind and tossed.
6 αἰτείτω δὲ ἐν πίστει, μηδὲν διακρινόμενος· ὁ γὰρ διακρινόμενος ἔοικε κλύδωνι θαλάσσης ἀνεμιζομένῳ καὶ ῥιπιζομένῳ.
7 Let it not seem to such a man that he will get anything from the Lord;
7 For that man shouldn’t think that he will receive anything from the Lord.
7 μὴ γὰρ οἰέσθω ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐκεῖνος ὅτι λήψεταί τι παρὰ τοῦ Κυρίου.
8 For there is a division in his mind, and he is uncertain in all his ways.
8 He is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
8 ἀνὴρ δίψυχος ἀκατάστατος ἐν πάσαις ταῖς ὁδοῖς αὐτοῦ.
9 But let the brother of low position be glad that he is lifted up;
9 Let the brother in humble circumstances glory in his high position;
9 καυχάσθω δὲ ὁ ἀδελφὸς ὁ ταπεινὸς ἐν τῷ ὕψει αὐτοῦ,
10 But the man of wealth, that he is made low; because like the flower of the grass he will come to his end.
10 and the rich, in that he is made humble, because like the flower in the grass, he will pass away.
10 ὁ δὲ πλούσιος ἐν τῇ ταπεινώσει αὐτοῦ, ὅτι ὡς ἄνθος χόρτου παρελεύσεται.
11 For when the sun comes up with its burning heat, the grass gets dry and the grace of its form is gone with the falling flower; so the man of wealth comes to nothing in his ways.
11 For the sun arises with the scorching wind and withers the grass; and the flower in it falls, and the beauty of its appearance perishes. So the rich man will also fade away in his pursuits.
11 ἀνέτειλε γὰρ ὁ ἥλιος σὺν τῷ καύσωνι καὶ ἐξήρανε τὸν χόρτον, καὶ τὸ ἄνθος αὐτοῦ ἐξέπεσε, καὶ ἡ εὐπρέπεια τοῦ προσώπου αὐτοῦ ἀπώλετο. οὕτω καὶ ὁ πλούσιος ἐν ταῖς πορείαις αὐτοῦ μαρανθήσεται.
12 There is a blessing on the man who undergoes testing; because, if he has God's approval, he will be given the crown of life, which the Lord has said he will give to those who have love for him.
12 Blessed is a person who endures temptation, for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord promised to those who love him.
12 Μακάριος ἀνὴρ ὃς ὑπομένει πειρασμόν· ὅτι δόκιμος γενόμενος λήψεται τὸν στέφανον τῆς ζωῆς, ὃν ἐπηγγείλατο ὁ Κύριος τοῖς ἀγαπῶσιν αὐτόν.
13 Let no man say when he is tested, I am tested by God; for it is not possible for God to be tested by evil, and he himself puts no man to such a test:
13 Let no man say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God,” for God can’t be tempted by evil, and he himself tempts no one.
13 Μηδεὶς πειραζόμενος λεγέτω ὅτι ἀπὸ Θεοῦ πειράζομαι· ὁ γὰρ Θεὸς ἀπείραστός ἐστι κακῶν, πειράζει δὲ αὐτὸς οὐδένα.
14 But every man is tested when he is turned out of the right way by the attraction of his desire.
14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own lust and enticed.
14 ἕκαστος δὲ πειράζεται ὑπὸ τῆς ἰδίας ἐπιθυμίας ἐξελκόμενος καὶ δελεαζόμενος·
15 Then when its time comes, desire gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is of full growth, gives birth to death.
15 Then the lust, when it has conceived, bears sin. The sin, when it is full grown, produces death.
15 εἶτα ἡ ἐπιθυμία συλλαβοῦσα τίκτει ἁμαρτίαν, ἡ δὲ ἁμαρτία ἀποτελεσθεῖσα ἀποκύει θάνατον.
16 Do not be turned from the right way, dear brothers.
16 Don’t be deceived, my beloved brothers.
16 Μὴ πλανᾶσθε, ἀδελφοί μου ἀγαπητοί·
17 Every good and true thing is given to us from heaven, coming from the Father of lights, with whom there is no change or any shade made by turning.
17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom can be no variation nor turning shadow.
17 πᾶσα δόσις ἀγαθὴ καὶ πᾶν δώρημα τέλειον ἄνωθέν ἐστι καταβαῖνον ἀπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς τῶν φώτων, παρ᾽ ᾧ οὐκ ἔνι παραλλαγὴ ἢ τροπῆς ἀποσκίασμα.
18 Of his purpose he gave us being, by his true word, so that we might be, in a sense, the first-fruits of all the things which he had made.
18 Of his own will he gave birth to us by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.
18 βουληθεὶς ἀπεκύησεν ἡμᾶς λόγῳ ἀληθείας εἰς τὸ εἶναι ἡμᾶς ἀπαρχήν τινα τῶν αὐτοῦ κτισμάτων.
19 You have knowledge of this, dear brothers. But let every man be quick in hearing, slow in words, slow to get angry;
19 So, then, my beloved brothers, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger;
19 Ὥστε, ἀδελφοί μου ἀγαπητοί, ἔστω πᾶς ἄνθρωπος ταχὺς εἰς τὸ ἀκοῦσαι, βραδὺς εἰς τὸ λαλῆσαι, βραδὺς εἰς ὀργήν·
20 For the righteousness of God does not come about by the wrath of man.
20 for the anger of man doesn’t produce the righteousness of God.
20 ὀργὴ γὰρ ἀνδρὸς δικαιοσύνην Θεοῦ οὐ κατεργάζεται.
21 For this reason, putting away all dirty behaviour and the overweight of evil, take into your souls without pride the word which, being planted there, is able to give you salvation.
21 Therefore, putting away all filthiness and overflowing of wickedness, receive with humility the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
21 διὸ ἀποθέμενοι πᾶσαν ῥυπαρίαν καὶ περισσείαν κακίας ἐν πραΰτητι δέξασθε τὸν ἔμφυτον λόγον τὸν δυνάμενον σῶσαι τὰς ψυχὰς ὑμῶν.
22 But be doers of the word, and not only hearers of it, blinding yourselves with false ideas.
22 But be doers of the word, and not only hearers, deluding your own selves.
22 Γίνεσθε δὲ ποιηταὶ λόγου καὶ μὴ μόνον ἀκροαταί, παραλογιζόμενοι ἑαυτούς.
23 Because if any man is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man looking at his natural face in a glass;
23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man looking at his natural face in a mirror;
23 ὅτι εἴ τις ἀκροατὴς λόγου ἐστὶ καὶ οὐ ποιητής, οὗτος ἔοικεν ἀνδρὶ κατανοοῦντι τὸ πρόσωπον τῆς γενέσεως αὐτοῦ ἐν ἐσόπτρῳ·
24 For after looking at himself he goes away, and in a short time he has no memory of what he was like.
24 for he sees himself, and goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.
24 κατενόησε γὰρ ἑαυτὸν καὶ ἀπελήλυθε, καὶ εὐθέως ἐπελάθετο ὁποῖος ἦν.
25 But he who goes on looking into the true law which makes him free, being not a hearer without memory but a doer putting it into effect, this man will have a blessing on his acts.
25 But he who looks into the perfect law of freedom and continues, not being a hearer who forgets but a doer of the work, this man will be blessed in what he does.
25 ὁ δὲ παρακύψας εἰς νόμον τέλειον τὸν τῆς ἐλευθερίας καὶ παραμείνας, οὗτος οὐκ ἀκροατὴς ἐπιλησμονῆς γενόμενος, ἀλλὰ ποιητὴς ἔργου, οὗτος μακάριος ἐν τῇ ποιήσει αὐτοῦ ἔσται.
26 If a man seems to have religion and has no control over his tongue but lets himself be tricked by what is false, this man's religion is of no value.
26 If anyone among you thinks himself to be religious while he doesn’t bridle his tongue, but deceives his heart, this man’s religion is worthless.
26 Εἴ τις δοκεῖ θρῆσκος εἶναι ἐν ὑμῖν μὴ χαλιναγωγῶν γλῶσσαν αὐτοῦ, ἀλλ᾽ ἀπατῶν καρδίαν αὐτοῦ, τούτου μάταιος ἡ θρησκεία.
27 The religion which is holy and free from evil in the eyes of our God and Father is this: to take care of children who have no fathers and of widows who are in trouble, and to keep oneself untouched by the world.
27 Pure religion and undefiled before our God and Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
27 θρησκεία καθαρὰ καὶ ἀμίαντος παρὰ [τῷ] Θεῷ καὶ πατρὶ αὕτη ἐστίν, ἐπισκέπτεσθαι ὀρφανοὺς καὶ χήρας ἐν τῇ θλίψει αὐτῶν, ἄσπιλον ἑαυτὸν τηρεῖν ἀπὸ τοῦ κόσμου.
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
James
The Gospels name him first among Jesus' brothers (Matthew 13:55; Mark 6:3), and Paul calls him 'James, the Lord's brother' (Galatians 1:19); he led the church in Jerusalem and is…
Cited in the guide: Matthew 13:55; Acts 15; James 1:1
Cross references (27)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Ezekiel 12:15; 1 Peter 1:1; John 7:35; Acts 8:1; Acts 26:7
- 2 1 Peter 1:6–8; James 1:12; 2 Corinthians 12:9–10; Matthew 5:10–12; Luke 6:22–23
- 3 Romans 5:3–4; Hebrews 10:36; Colossians 1:11; 2 Corinthians 4:17; Romans 8:28
- 4 1 Peter 5:10; Luke 21:19; Matthew 5:48; 2 Timothy 3:17; Galatians 6:9
- 5 Proverbs 2:3–6; John 15:7; Jeremiah 29:12–13; Proverbs 3:5–7; 1 John 5:14–15
- 6 Matthew 21:21–22; Hebrews 11:6; Mark 11:22–24; Ephesians 4:14; Hebrews 10:23
- 7 James 4:3; Proverbs 15:8; Isaiah 1:15; Isaiah 58:3–4; Proverbs 21:27
- 8 1 Kings 18:21; Matthew 6:24; James 4:8; Isaiah 29:13; 2 Peter 2:14
- 9 Jeremiah 9:23–24; Proverbs 19:1; James 2:5–6; 2 Corinthians 6:10; Psalm 62:9
- 10 1 Peter 1:24; 1 John 2:17; Job 14:2; 1 Timothy 6:17; Matthew 5:3
- 11 Isaiah 40:7–8; Psalm 37:35–36; Luke 16:19–25; Mark 4:6; Psalm 49:6–14
- 12 1 Peter 5:10; 1 Peter 1:6–8; Revelation 2:10; James 5:11; Romans 8:28
- 13 James 1:12; Habakkuk 2:12–13; Romans 9:19–20; James 1:2; Genesis 3:12
- 14 Mark 7:21–22; Ephesians 4:22; Matthew 15:18; Hebrews 3:13; Proverbs 4:23
- 15 Psalm 7:14; Job 15:35; Romans 5:12–21; Genesis 2:17; Isaiah 59:4
- 16 James 1:19; Galatians 6:7; Colossians 2:8; Hebrews 13:1; Colossians 2:4
- 17 John 3:27; Matthew 7:11; Hebrews 13:8; John 8:12; Numbers 23:19
- 18 Romans 8:29–31; 1 Peter 1:23; John 3:3–5; John 1:13; 1 Peter 1:3
- 19 Proverbs 17:27; Proverbs 21:23; Proverbs 14:29; Proverbs 10:19; Proverbs 18:13
- 20 2 Timothy 2:24–25; Ephesians 4:26; James 3:17–18; Numbers 20:11–12
- 21 Ephesians 4:22; Ephesians 1:13; 1 Peter 2:11; John 6:63; Psalm 25:9
- 22 Romans 2:13; Luke 6:46–48; John 13:17; James 4:17; 1 John 2:3
- 23 Matthew 7:26–27; James 2:14–26; Ezekiel 33:31–32; Luke 6:47; Jeremiah 44:16
- 24 2 Peter 3:11; Luke 1:66; Luke 7:39; 1 Thessalonians 1:5; Matthew 8:27
- 25 Luke 11:28; John 13:17; 2 Corinthians 3:17–18; 1 Peter 2:16; Luke 6:47–49
- 26 Psalm 141:3; Ephesians 4:29; 1 Peter 3:10; Ephesians 5:4; Proverbs 19:1
- 27 Isaiah 1:16–17; 1 John 3:17–19; Galatians 6:9–10; Romans 12:2; Matthew 25:34–46
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
But I hungered and thirsted not even after those first works of Thine, but after Thee Thyself, the Truth, "with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning;" yet they still served up to me in those dishes glowing phantasies, than which better were it to love this very sun (which, at least, is true to our sight), than those …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 1 (1886)
… not by passion, or union, not in ignorance, not by effluence, not by diminution, not by alteration, for every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom can be no variation, neither shadow of turning.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 7 (1894)
How, therefore, are demons driven off by them, diseases dispelled, sick persons made well, the blind restored to sight, lepers purified, temptations and troubles overcome, and how does every good gift from the Father of lights come down through them to those who pray with sure faith?
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 9 (1899)
… light my candle; the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness; and "of His fulness have all we received," for "that was the true Light which lighted every man that cometh into the world;" for in Thee there is "no variableness, neither shadow of turning."
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 1 (1886)
For if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God who giveth, and he shall receive.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 7 (1894)