Writers in the Bible often speak of adultery as a metaphor for people who say they love God but do things that God hates. (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-metaphor and /WA-Catalog/en_tw?section=kt#godly)
James probably uses this word in James 4:11 to refer to "the royal law" (James 2:8).
James asks many questions because he wants his readers to think about how they are living. He wants to correct and teach them. (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-rquestion)
This word probably usually refers to people who are not proud. James uses the word here to refer to people who are not proud and who also trust in Jesus and obey him.
In this chapter, the words "yourselves," "your," and "you" are plural and refer to the believers to whom James writes. (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-you)
James rebukes these believers for their worldliness and their lack of humility. He again urges them to watch how they speak to and about each other.
The abstract nouns "quarrels" and "disputes" mean basically the same thing and can be translated with verbs. Alternate translation: "Why do you quarrel and dispute among yourselves?" or "Why do you fight among yourselves?" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-doublet and /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-abstractnouns)
James uses this question to rebuke his audience. This can be translated as a statement. Alternate translation: "They come from your evil desires for things, desires that fight among your members." or "You quarrel and have disputes because of your desires that fight among your members." (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-rquestion)
James writes of the tension or conflict that people feel because of their different desires as if those desires were fighting. Alternate translation: "Do they not come because of the conflict you feel because of your different desires? " or "You quarrel and argue because of the tension caused by your different desires." (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-personification)
Possible meanings are 1) "members" refers to the parts of a person: his body, feelings, and thoughts. Each person wants more than one thing, but he cannot have them all. Alternate translation: "your conflicting desires within you" 2) "members" refers to the individual people in the church. Different members want different things. Alternate translation: "the conflicting desires among you all"
The phrase "You murder" is probably a hyperbole. The words "murder" and "covet" are used to express how badly the people behave in order to get what they want. Alternate translation: "You do all kinds of evil things to get what you cannot have" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-hyperbole)
The words "fight" and "quarrel" mean basically the same thing. James uses them to emphasize how much the people argue among themselves. Alternate translation: "You constantly fight" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-doublet)
Possible meanings are 1) "you ask with wrong motives" or "you ask with bad attitudes" or 2) "you are asking for wrong things" or "you are asking for bad things"
James speaks of believers as being like wives who sleep with men other than their husbands. Alternate translation: "You are not being faithful to God!" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-metaphor)
James uses this question to teach his audience. This can be translated as a statement. Alternate translation: "You know ... God!" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-rquestion)
This phrase refers to identifying with or participating in the world's value system and behavior. (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-metonymy)
Here the world's value system is spoken of as if it were a person that others could be friends with. (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-personification)
One who is friends with the world is an enemy of God. Here "friendship with the world" stands for being friends with the world, and "hostility against God" stands for being hostile against God. Alternate translation: "friends of the world are enemies of God" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-metonymy)
This is a rhetorical question James uses to exhort his audience. To speak in vain is to speak uselessly. Alternate translation: "There is a reason that scripture says ... envious.'" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-rquestion)
Some versions, including the ULB and UDB, understand this as a reference to the Holy Spirit. Other versions translate this as "the spirit" and mean by it the human spirit that each person has been created to have. We suggest that you use the meaning that is presented in other translations used by your readers.
How this phrase relates to the previous verse can be made explicit. Alternate translation: "But, even though our spirits may desire what we cannot have, God gives us even more grace if we will humble ourselves" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-explicit)
"that is why the scripture"
This refers to proud people in general. Alternate translation: "proud people" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-nominaladj)
This refers to humble people in general. Alternate translation: "humble people" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-nominaladj)
"Because God gives grace to the humble, submit"
"obey God"
"Oppose the devil" or "Do not do what the devil wants"
"he will run away"
Here this pronoun is plural and refers to James's audience. (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-you)
The word "you" here is plural and refers to the scattered believers to whom James writes. (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-you)
Here the idea of coming close stands for becoming honest and open with God. (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-metaphor)
These are two phrases in parallel with each other. (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-parallelism)
This expression is a command for people to do righteous acts instead of unrighteous acts. Alternate translation: "Behave in a way that honors God" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-metonymy)
Here "hearts" refers to a person's thoughts and emotions. Alternate translation: "make your thoughts and intentions right" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-metonymy)
The word "double-minded" refers to a person who cannot make a firm decision about something. Alternate translation: "you people who cannot decide if you want to obey God or not" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-metaphor)
These three words have similar meanings. James uses them together to emphasize that the people should be truly sorry for not obeying God. (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-doublet and /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-exclamations)
This is saying the same thing in different ways for emphasis. The abstract nouns "laughter," "mourning," "joy," and "gloom" can be translated as verbs or adjectives. Alternate translation: "Stop laughing and mourn. Stop being joyful and be gloomy" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-parallelism and /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-abstractnouns)
"Be humble toward God." Actions done with God in mind are often spoken of as being done in his physical presence. (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-metaphor)
James indicates that God will honor the humble person by saying God will pick that person up off the ground physically from where that person had prostrated himself in humility. Alternate translation: "he will honor you" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-metaphor)
James speaks of the believers as if they are biological brothers. The term here includes women as well as men. Alternate translation: "fellow believers" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-metonymy and /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-gendernotations)
"but you are acting like the person who gives the law"
This refers to God. "God is the only one who gives laws and judges people"
This is a rhetorical question James uses to scold his audience. This can be expressed as a statement. Alternate translation: "You are just a human and cannot judge another human." (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-rquestion)
James speaks of spending time as if it were money. "stay there for a year" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-idiom)
James uses these questions to correct his audience and to teach these believers that physical life is not that important. They can be expressed as statements. Alternate translation: "No one knows what will happen tomorrow, and your life does not last very long!" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-rquestion)
James speaks of people as if they were a mist that appears and then quickly goes away. Alternate translation: "You live for only a short amount of time, and then you die" (See: /WA-Catalog/en_tm?section=jit#figs-metaphor)
"Instead, your attitude should be"
"we will live long enough to do what we have planned to do." The word "we" does not directly refer to James or his audience but is part of the example of how James's audience should consider the future.
This page has intentionally been left blank.
Anyone who fails to do the good he knows he should do is guilty of sin.