Deuteronomy 6:25

6:25 We will be innocent if we carefully keep all these commandments ¹  before the Lord our God, just as he demands.” ² 

Deuteronomy 15:9-10

15:9 Be careful lest you entertain the wicked thought that the seventh year, the year of cancellation of debts, has almost arrived, and your attitude ³  be wrong toward your impoverished fellow Israelite ⁴  and you do not lend ⁵  him anything; he will cry out to the Lord against you and you will be regarded as having sinned. ⁶  15:10 You must by all means lend ⁷  to him and not be upset by doing it, ⁸  for because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you attempt.

Genesis 15:6

15:6 Abram believed ⁹  the Lord, and the Lord ¹⁰  considered his response of faith ¹¹  as proof of genuine loyalty. ¹² 

Psalms 106:30-31

106:30 Phinehas took a stand and intervened, ¹³ 

and the plague subsided.

106:31 This brought him a reward,

an eternal gift. ¹⁴ 

Psalms 112:9

112:9 He generously gives ¹⁵  to the needy;

his integrity endures. ¹⁶ 

He will be vindicated and honored. ¹⁷ 

Isaiah 58:8

58:8 Then your light will shine like the sunrise; ¹⁸ 

your restoration will quickly arrive; ¹⁹ 

your godly behavior ²⁰  will go before you,

and the Lord’s splendor will be your rear guard. ²¹ 

Daniel 4:27

4:27 Therefore, O king, may my advice be pleasing to you. Break away from your sins by doing what is right, and from your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Perhaps your prosperity will be prolonged.” ²² 

James 1:27

1:27 Pure and undefiled religion before ²³  God the Father ²⁴  is this: to care for orphans and widows in their misfortune and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

James 2:13-23

2:13 For judgment is merciless for the one who has shown no mercy. But mercy triumphs over ²⁵  judgment.

Faith and Works Together

2:14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, ²⁶  if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can this kind of faith ²⁷  save him? ²⁸  2:15 If a brother or sister ²⁹  is poorly clothed and lacks daily food, 2:16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm and eat well,” but you do not give them what the body needs, ³⁰  what good is it? 2:17 So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself. 2:18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” ³¹  Show me your faith without works and I will show you faith by ³²  my works. 2:19 You believe that God is one; well and good. ³³  Even the demons believe that – and tremble with fear. ³⁴ 

2:20 But would you like evidence, ³⁵  you empty fellow, ³⁶  that faith without works is useless? ³⁷  2:21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? 2:22 You see that his faith was working together with his works and his faith was perfected by works. 2:23 And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Now Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness,” ³⁸  and he was called God’s friend. ³⁹ 

[6:25]  ¹ tn The term “commandment” (מִצְוָה, mitsvah), here in the singular, refers to the entire body of covenant stipulations.

[6:25]  ² tn Heb “as he has commanded us” (so NIV, NRSV).

[15:9]  ³ tn Heb “your eye.”

[15:9]  ⁴ tn Heb “your needy brother.”

[15:9]  ⁵ tn Heb “give” (likewise in v. 10).

[15:9]  ⁶ tn Heb “it will be a sin to you.”

[15:10]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute for emphasis, which the translation indicates with “by all means.”

[15:10]  ⁸ tc Heb “your heart must not be grieved in giving to him.” The LXX and Orig add, “you shall surely lend to him sufficient for his need,” a suggestion based on the same basic idea in v. 8. Such slavish adherence to stock phrases is without warrant in most cases, and certainly here.

[15:6]  ⁹ tn The nonconsecutive vav (ו) is on a perfect verbal form. If the composer of the narrative had wanted to show simple sequence, he would have used the vav consecutive with the preterite. The perfect with vav conjunctive (where one expects the preterite with vav consecutive) in narrative contexts can have a variety of discourse functions, but here it probably serves to highlight Abram’s response to God’s promise. For a detailed discussion of the vav + perfect construction in Hebrew narrative, see R. Longacre, “Weqatal Forms in Biblical Hebrew Prose: A Discourse-modular Approach,” Biblical Hebrew and Discourse Linguistics, 50-98. The Hebrew verb אָמַן (’aman) means “to confirm, to support” in the Qal verbal stem. Its derivative nouns refer to something or someone that/who provides support, such as a “pillar,” “nurse,” or “guardian, trustee.” In the Niphal stem it comes to mean “to be faithful, to be reliable, to be dependable,” or “to be firm, to be sure.” In the Hiphil, the form used here, it takes on a declarative sense: “to consider something reliable [or “dependable”].” Abram regarded the God who made this promise as reliable and fully capable of making it a reality.

[15:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[15:6]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and he reckoned it to him.” The third feminine singular pronominal suffix refers back to Abram’s act of faith, mentioned in the preceding clause. On third feminine singular pronouns referring back to verbal ideas see GKC 440-41 §135.p. Some propose taking the suffix as proleptic, anticipating the following feminine noun (“righteousness”). In this case one might translate: “and he reckoned it to him – [namely] righteousness.” See O. P. Robertson, “Genesis 15:6: A New Covenant Exposition of an Old Covenant Text,” WTJ 42 (1980): 259-89.

[15:6]  ¹² tn Or “righteousness”; or “evidence of steadfast commitment.” The noun is an adverbial accusative. The verb translated “considered” (Heb “reckoned”) also appears with צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah, “righteousness”) in Ps 106:31. Alluding to the events recorded in Numbers 25, the psalmist notes that Phinehas’ actions were “credited to him as righteousness for endless generations to come.” Reference is made to the unconditional, eternal covenant with which God rewarded Phinehas’ loyalty (Num 25:12-13). So צְדָקָה seems to carry by metonymy the meaning “loyal, rewardable behavior” here, a nuance that fits nicely in Genesis 15, where God responds to Abram’s faith by formally ratifying his promise to give Abram and his descendants the land. (See R. B. Chisholm, “Evidence from Genesis,” A Case for Premillennialism, 40.) In Phoenician and Old Aramaic inscriptions cognate nouns glossed as “correct, justifiable conduct” sometimes carry this same semantic nuance (DNWSI 2:962).

[106:30]  ¹³ sn The intervention of Phinehas is recounted in Num 25:7-8.

[106:31]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and it was reckoned to him for righteousness, to a generation and a generation forever.” The verb חָשַׁב (khashav, “to reckon”) is collocated with צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah, “righteousness”) only in Ps 106:31 and Gen 15:6, where God rewards Abram’s faith with a land grant.

[112:9]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “he scatters, he gives.”

[112:9]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “stands forever.”

[112:9]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “his horn will be lifted up in honor.” The horn of an ox underlies the metaphor (see Deut 33:17; 1 Kgs 22:11; Ps 92:10). The horn of the wild ox is frequently a metaphor for military strength; the idiom “exalt/lift up the horn” signifies military victory (see 1 Sam 2:10; Pss 89:17, 24; 92:10; Lam 2:17).

[58:8]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “will burst out like the dawn.”

[58:8]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “prosper”; KJV “spring forth speedily.”

[58:8]  ²⁰ tn Or “righteousness.” Their godly behavior will be on display for all to see.

[58:8]  ²¹ sn The nation will experience God’s protective presence.

[4:27]  ²² tn Aram “if there may be a lengthening to your prosperity.”

[1:27]  ²³ tn Or “in the sight of”; Grk “with.”

[1:27]  ²⁴ tn Grk “the God and Father.”

[2:13]  ²⁵ tn Grk “boasts against, exults over,” in victory.

[2:14]  ²⁶ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.

[2:14]  ²⁷ tn Grk “the faith,” referring to the kind of faith just described: faith without works. The article here is anaphoric, referring to the previous mention of the noun πίστις (pisti") in the verse. See ExSyn 219.

[2:14]  ²⁸ sn The form of the question in Greek expects a negative answer.

[2:15]  ²⁹ tn It is important to note that the words ἀδελφός (adelfos) and ἀδελφή (adelfh) both occur in the Greek text at this point, confirming that the author intended to refer to both men and women. See the note on “someone” in 2:2.

[2:16]  ³⁰ tn Grk “what is necessary for the body.”

[2:18]  ³¹ tn There is considerable doubt about where the words of the “someone” end and where James’ reply begins. Some see the quotation running to the end of v. 18; others to the end of v. 19. But most punctuate as shown above. The “someone” is then an objector, and the sense of his words is something like, “Some have faith; others have works; don’t expect everyone to have both.” James’ reply is that faith cannot exist or be seen without works.

[2:18]  ³² tn Or “from.”

[2:19]  ³³ tn Grk “you do well.”

[2:19]  ³⁴ tn Grk “believe and tremble.” The words “with fear” are implied.

[2:20]  ³⁵ tn Grk “do you want to know.”

[2:20]  ³⁶ tn Grk “O empty man.” Here the singular vocative ἄνθρωπε (anqrwpe, “man”) means “person” or even “fellow.” Cf. BDAG 82 s.v. ἄνθρωπος 8 which views this as an instance of rhetorical address in a letter; the pejorative sense is also discussed under the previous heading (7).

[2:20]  ³⁷ tc Most witnesses, including several important ones (א A C² P Ψ 33 Ï sy bo), have νεκρά (nekra, “dead”) here, while Ì⁷⁴ reads κενή (kenh, “empty”). Both variants are most likely secondary, derived from ἀργή (argh, “useless”). The reading of the majority is probably an assimilation to the statements in vv. 17 and 26, while Ì⁷⁴’s reading picks up on κενέ (kene) earlier in the verse. The external evidence (B C* 323 945 1739 sa) for ἀργή is sufficient for authenticity; coupled with the strong internal evidence for the reading (if νεκρά were original, how would ἀργή have arisen here and not in vv. 17 or 26?), it is strongly preferred.

[2:23]  ³⁸ sn A quotation from Gen 15:6.

[2:23]  ³⁹ sn An allusion to 2 Chr 20:7; Isa 41:8; 51:2; Dan 3:35 (LXX), in which Abraham is called God’s “beloved.”