James 5

A Warning to the Rich// Proverbs 23:1–5; 1 Timothy 6:17–19

¹Come now, you who are rich, weep and wail over the misery to come upon you. ²Your riches have rotted and moths have eaten your clothes. ³Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and consume your flesh like fire.

• JAS 5:1[PROPHECY]Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you; the wages of the reapers cry out → STILL TO COMEMEDIUM
• JAS 5:1[NOTABLE]James's stinging denunciation of the wealthy who oppress workers and hoard wealth in the last days

You have hoarded treasure in the last days. ⁴Look, the wages you withheld from the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts.

• JAS 5:4[ARCHAEOLOGY]A pottery letter from about 630 BC in which a farm worker at harvest begs an official to return the cloak taken from him
• JAS 5:4[ALLUDES TO]Refers to ← DT 24:14-15; IS 5:9

⁵You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in the day of slaughter. ⁶You have condemned and murdered the righteous, who did not resist you.

Patience in Suffering// Job 1:1–5

⁷Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer awaits the precious fruit of the soil—how patient he is for the fall and spring rains. ⁸You, too, be patient and strengthen your hearts, because the Lord’s coming is near. ⁹Do not complain about one another, brothers, so that you will not be judged. Look, the Judge is standing at the door!

• JAS 5:7[PROPHECY]Be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord... the coming of the Lord is at hand → STILL TO COME
• JAS 5:7[ALLUDES TO]Refers to ← DT 11:14; JOEL 2:23

¹⁰Brothers, as an example of patience in affliction, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. ¹¹See how blessed we consider those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen the outcome from the Lord. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.

• JAS 5:11[ALLUDES TO]Refers to ← EX 34:6; PS 103:8

¹²Above all, my brothers, do not swear, not by heaven or earth or by any other oath. Simply let your “Yes” be yes, and your “No,” no, so that you will not fall under judgment.

• JAS 5:12[NOTE]NO OATHS. This echoes Jesus almost word for word, Matthew 5:34 to 37. Quakers and Mennonites refuse all oaths because of it. Others say it forbids careless swearing, not a sworn promise in court.

The Prayer of Faith

¹³Is any one of you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone cheerful? He should sing praises. ¹⁴Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵And the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick. The Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.

• JAS 5:14[NOTABLE]The New Testament instruction for healing prayer — elders, prayer, anointing with oil in Jesus's name
• JAS 5:14[NOTE]ANOINTING THE SICK. Catholics see a sacrament here, the Anointing of the Sick. The Orthodox practice Holy Unction. Pentecostals and many others still anoint with oil today. Cessationists say healing gifts ended with the apostles, but still pray for the sick.

¹⁶Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power to prevail. ¹⁷Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. ¹⁸Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth yielded its crops.

• JAS 5:16[NOTABLE]The prayer of a righteous man has great power.
• JAS 5:16[NOTE]CONFESS TO EACH OTHER. Catholics and Orthodox use it in support of confession to a priest. Most Protestants read it as believers confessing to one another.
• JAS 5:17[NOTABLE]The great prophet was an ordinary man who prayed, 1 Kings 17 and 18.
• JAS 5:17[FULFILLS]Elijah said there would be no dew or rain until he said so ← 1KI 17:1
• JAS 5:17[NOTE]THREE AND A HALF YEARS. 1 Kings 18:1 says in the third year; Jesus also said three and a half years, Luke 4:25. James and Jewish tradition add that Elijah prayed for it.

Restoring a Sinner

¹⁹My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, ²⁰consider this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and cover over a multitude of sins.

• JAS 5:20[ALLUDES TO]Refers to ← PROV 10:12
• JAS 5:20[NOTE]COVER A MULTITUDE OF SINS. From Proverbs 10:12, also quoted in 1 Peter 4:8.