iv. It is a marvel that man lives at all.” (Spurgeon), iv. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. We may request cookies to be set on your device. King James Version. i. The. And to break God's commands, is to speak evil of them, and to judge them, as if they laid too great a restraint upon us. Click to enable/disable Google reCaptcha. b. or shadow was a frequent figure of speech in the Old Testament (Psalm 102:11; Job 8:9; 1 Chronicles 29:15). This helps us to rationally understand the folly of living life after the lusts of the world and our animal appetites. i. Click to enable/disable _gat_* - Google Analytics Cookie. James makes it clear that this contentious manner comes, . (4:4) No scripture corresponding to the quotation in verse 5 is found in the extant recognized “holy writings.” If the original reading of James 4:5 relates to the condition of sinful humans, possibly Genesis 8:21 may be regarded as expressing a similar thought (“the inclination of man’s heart is … These cookies collect information that is used either in aggregate form to help us understand how our website is being used or how effective our marketing campaigns are, or to help us customize our website and application for you in order to enhance your experience. James seemed to present an idea that is alluded to in several passages without quoting any specific passage. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” But now you boast in your arrogance. James 4:17, KJV: "Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin." Often the battles that happen among Christians are bitter and severe. Worldly people are here called adulterers and adulteresses, because of their perfidiousness of God, while they give their best affections to the world. All rights reserved. Covetousness is elsewhere called idolatry, and it is here called adultery; it is a forsaking of him to whom we are devoted and espoused, to cleave to other things; there is this brand put upon worldly-mindedness—that it is enmity to God. iii. James. The evil of their boasting (James 4:16) 2. Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer. “They might easily observe that many things fall out betwixt the cup and the lip, betwixt the chin and the chalice.” (Trapp), iii. KING JAMES BIBLE (KJV) WITH BIBLE COMMENTARY . He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law: When we judge our brother, we put ourselves in the same place as the law, in effect judging the law. Again James looked back to the Sermon on the Mount when Jesus also used. I know not what there is that is too little to slay the greatest king. James 4:4. 4. We also remember the story Jesus told about the rich man who made his great plans for the future, and foolishly lost it all when his soul was required of him (Luke 12:16-21). I hope to stay a while with you, if the Lord permits (1 Corinthians 16:7). He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. – stands in strong contrast to the previous words. This boastful. ii. (1-3) Reasons for strife in the Christian community. is the same verb used to describe the wasteful spending of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15:14. You who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”, : James rebuked the kind of heart that lives and makes its plans apart from a constant awareness of the hand of God, and with an underestimation of our own limitations (, you do not know what will happen tomorrow, i. Your prayer life (or lack thereof) reveals the focus of your heart. Almost all who have such a critical and contentious attitude claim they are prompted and supported by the Spirit of God. This helps us to see that the lines between conflict with God and man are often quite blurry. will convict the Christian who lives in compromise. So we lament and mourn and weep as appropriate under the conviction of sin, and we are compelled to find cleansing at the cross. Destructive desires persist, even if we pray, because our prayers may be self-centered and self-indulgent. God is to be our lover and not the fallen world system C. God is jealous for our affections The same disordered affec… This intuitive app contains the full text of the popular King James Version English translation, with commentaries. c. Who are you to judge another? “This uncertainty of life is not a cause either for fear or inaction. They are living in adultery as God's enemies. a. As an apprentice you are very dilatory and neglectful, and your master would be glad to see the back of you; he wishes that he could burn your indentures; and yet you have an idea you are going to be a missionary, I believe? 2. ii. Click to enable/disable _gid - Google Analytics Cookie. Yet we also see that the uncertainty of life, to which James referred to in the previous passage, should not create fear that makes one passive or inactive. “This was the custom of those ancient times; they traded from city to city, carrying their goods on the backs of camels. 3. James 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. What did they say? There is some root of carnality, an internal, within the believer regarding the lusts of the flesh. “Who art thou; what a sorry creature, a man, a worm, that thou shouldest lift up thyself into God’s place, and make thyself a judge of one not subject to thee!” (Poole). Please enter your email address associated with your Salem All-Pass account, then click Continue. ”) in any specific Old Testament verse. JAS 4:5 Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy? Oh, no, there was not a word about God in it, from beginning to end!” (Spurgeon), iv. The older King James Version says, when ye fall into divers temptations; but the rendering trials in the New King James Version is preferred. Changes will take effect once you reload the page. Here James returned to his consistent theme through his letter: the idea that genuine faith is proved by action. Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? Draw nigh to God, — This seems to be an allusion to the manner in which the Jews in general, or rather the priests, drew nigh to God, by going to the temple, while the Shechinah, the glorious emblem of the divine presence, was there. “This uncertainty of life is not a cause either for fear or inaction. Did they determine with each other ‘We will to-day or to-morrow do such and such a thing for the glory of God, and for the extension of his kingdom’? We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website. ii. Grace and pride are eternal enemies. (11-12) The solutions for strife: get right with other people. James 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. As we, i. King James Version (KJV) Bible Book List. The uncertainty of life should make us ready to recognize what is, . 1. A pretty missionary you would be!” (Spurgeon). (1-10) Exhortations to undertake no affairs of life, without constant regard to the will and providence of God. 3. James (4:2b-3) says, “You do not have because you do not ask. “However high and orthodox our view of God’s law might be, a failure actually to do it says to the world that we do not. Otherwise you will be prompted again when opening a new browser window or new a tab. Alazoneia was originally the characteristic of the wandering quack. It is no good to submit to God’s authority and to resist the devil’s attack and then fail to. “Katalalia is the sin of those who meet in corners and gather in little groups and pass on confidential information which destroy the good name of those who are not there to defend themselves.” (Barclay). The story was about servants and how they obeyed the master in the master’s absence. God is in conflict with us when we make friendship with the world 1. Salem Media Group. i. : The same Holy Spirit convicting us of our compromise will also grant us the, to serve God as we should. TOP PAGES: adam clarke commentary; godrules.net; psalm 19 commentary; adam clarke bible commentary; judges 4:4-6; psalm 51 commentary; martin luther's writings; bible commentaries; He wrote to encourage them to live asChristians should, i… “If he were a tyrant it might be courageous to resist, but since he is a Father it is ungrateful to rebel.” (Spurgeon) Instead, Spurgeon (in another sermon) suggested reasons why we should. For what is your life? Check to enable permanent hiding of message bar and refuse all cookies if you do not opt in. James 4:7-10 The concept of self-denial is at the heart of Paul's teaching on submission to God : We have died with Christ and must sacrifice our lives for Him. This attitude that James challenged goes far beyond making wise plans for the future. Do not speak evil of one another, brethren. The questions exposing the source (James 4:1) b. a. You who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”: James rebuked the kind of heart that lives and makes its plans apart from a constant awareness of the hand of God, and with an underestimation of our own limitations (you do not know what will happen tomorrow). James reminds us here of the great power of prayer, and why one may live unnecessarily as a spiritual pauper, simply because they do not pray, or do not, You ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. James 4:13-15. Men have been choked by a grape stone, killed by a tile falling from the roof of a house, poisoned by a drop, carried off by a whiff of foul air. But grace will not deal with me on the basis of anything in me – good or bad – but only on the basis of who God is. Commentary on James 4:1-10 (Read James 4:1-10) Since all wars and fightings come from the corruptions of our own hearts, it is right to mortify those lusts that war in the members. Drawing near to God helps us to sorrow for sin. (4-5) A rebuke of compromise and covetousness among Christians. In 4:4 James quickly moves into our conflict with theLord. So we must not speak evil of one another and not judge our brother. i. James 4:9 Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. is startling and meant to startle; James sought to force his readers to realize the depth of the evil in their bitter hatred toward others.” (Hiebert), . The Jews traded thus to Tyre, Sidon, Caesarea, Crete, Ephesus, Philippi, Thessalonica, Corinth, Rome, &c. And it is to this kind of itinerant mercantile life that St. James alludes.” (Clarke), ii. But James used the phrase. i. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 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