James 1:13

1:13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted by evil, ¹  and he himself tempts no one.

James 1:17

1:17 All generous giving and every perfect gift ²  is from above, coming down ³  from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or the slightest hint of change. ⁴ 

James 1:19

Living Out the Message

1:19 Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters! ⁵  Let every person be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger.

James 1:23

1:23 For if someone merely listens to the message and does not live it out, he is like someone ⁶  who gazes at his own face ⁷  in a mirror.

James 1:26

1:26 If someone thinks he is religious yet does not bridle his tongue, and so deceives his heart, his religion is futile.

James 3:4-5

3:4 Look at ships too: Though they are so large and driven by harsh winds, they are steered by a tiny rudder wherever the pilot’s inclination directs. 3:5 So too the tongue is a small part of the body, ⁸  yet it has great pretensions. ⁹  Think ¹⁰  how small a flame sets a huge forest ablaze.

James 3:17

3:17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, accommodating, ¹¹  full of mercy and good fruit, ¹²  impartial, and not hypocritical. ¹³ 

James 4:14

4:14 You ¹⁴  do not know about tomorrow. What is your life like? ¹⁵  For you are a puff of smoke ¹⁶  that appears for a short time and then vanishes.

James 5:11

5:11 Think of how we regard ¹⁷  as blessed those who have endured. You have heard of Job’s endurance and you have seen the Lord’s purpose, that the Lord is full of compassion and mercy. ¹⁸ 

James 5:15

5:15 And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick and the Lord will raise him up – and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. ¹⁹ 

James 5:17

5:17 Elijah was a human being ²⁰  like us, and he prayed earnestly ²¹  that it would not rain and there was no rain on the land for three years and six months!

[1:13]  ¹ tn Or “God must not be tested by evil people.”

[1:17]  ² tn The first phrase refers to the action of giving and the second to what is given.

[1:17]  ³ tn Or “All generous giving and every perfect gift from above is coming down.”

[1:17]  ⁴ tn Grk “variation or shadow of turning” (referring to the motions of heavenly bodies causing variations of light and darkness).

[1:19]  ³ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.

[1:23]  ⁴ tn The word for “man” or “individual” is ἀνήρ (anhr), which often means “male” or “man (as opposed to woman).” However, as BDAG 79 s.v. 2 says, here it is “equivalent to τὶς someone, a person.”

[1:23]  ⁵ tn Grk “the face of his beginning [or origin].”

[3:5]  ⁵ tn Grk “a small member.”

[3:5]  ⁶ tn Grk “boasts of great things.”

[3:5]  ⁷ tn Grk “Behold.”

[3:17]  ⁶ tn Or “willing to yield,” “open to persuasion.”

[3:17]  ⁷ tn Grk “fruits.” The plural Greek term καρπούς has been translated with the collective singular “fruit.”

[3:17]  ⁸ tn Or “sincere.”

[4:14]  ⁷ tn Grk “who” (continuing the description of the people of v. 13). Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[4:14]  ⁸ tn Or “you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow.”

[4:14]  ⁹ tn Or “a vapor.” The Greek word ἀτμίς (atmis) denotes a swirl of smoke arising from a fire (cf. Gen 19:28; Lev 16:13; Joel 2:30 [Acts 2:19]; Ezek 8:11).

[5:11]  ⁸ tn Grk “Behold! We regard…”

[5:11]  ⁹ sn An allusion to Exod 34:6; Neh 9:17; Ps 86:15; 102:13; Joel 2:13; Jonah 4:2.

[5:15]  ⁹ tn Grk “it will be forgiven him.”

[5:17]  ¹⁰ tn Although it is certainly true that Elijah was a “man,” here ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") has been translated as “human being” because the emphasis in context is not on Elijah’s masculine gender, but on the common humanity he shared with the author and the readers.

[5:17]  ¹¹ tn Grk “he prayed with prayer” (using a Hebrew idiom to show intensity).