7Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. [4:8] Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. [4:9] Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. [4:10] Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you. [4:11] Do not speak against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother speaks against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge of it. [4:12] There is one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?
JAS 4:7-12
Drawing Near to God
In the world it was spoken into
In the 1st-century Greco-Roman world, submission was a familiar concept, often tied to hierarchical relationships like those between patrons and clients, masters and slaves, or rulers and subjects. Here, submission to God is framed as voluntary and active, contrasting with the coercive submission common in societal structures. The call to resist the devil reflects the widespread belief in spiritual forces influencing daily life, a reality both Jewish and pagan audiences would recognize. Cleansing hands and purifying hearts evoke Jewish ritual purity practices, while the term 'double-minded' highlights the tension between loyalty to God and worldly allegiances. The exhortation to grieve, mourn, and weep aligns with Jewish penitential practices, contrasting sharply with the Greco-Roman pursuit of public honor and avoidance of shame. The warning against slander addresses the honor-shame dynamics of communal life, where reputation was paramount. The Lawgiver reference underscores Jewish reverence for Torah, while cautioning against assuming the role of judge, a position reserved for God alone.
›See the receipts
How other translations render this
JAS 4:7
- KJV
- Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
- BSB
- Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
- Koinōnos
- Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
JAS 4:8
- KJV
- Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
- BSB
- Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
- Koinōnos
- Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
JAS 4:9
- KJV
- Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.
- BSB
- Grieve, mourn, and weep. Turn your laughter to mourning, and your joy to gloom.
- Koinōnos
- Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.
JAS 4:10
- KJV
- Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
- BSB
- Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you.
- Koinōnos
- Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
JAS 4:11
- KJV
- Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.
- BSB
- Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it. And if you judge the law, you are not a practitioner of the law, but a judge of it.
- Koinōnos
- Do not speak against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother speaks against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge of it.
JAS 4:12
- KJV
- There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?
- BSB
- There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?
- Koinōnos
- There is one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?
Only verses where the wording diverges meaningfully are shown. Identical phrasings are suppressed.
Where the historical framing draws from
- Josephus, WarsWars 2.9.2
- Josephus, AntiquitiesAntiquities 18.5.2
- Josephus, WarsWars 1.33.2
›Josephus, Wars Wars 2.9.2
“Now Pilate, who was sent as procurator into Judea by Tiberius, sent by night those images of Caesar that are called ensigns into Jerusalem.”
Cited to ground: Pilate was procurator under Tiberius
›Josephus, Antiquities Antiquities 18.5.2
“for that the washing [with water] would be acceptable to him, if they made use of it, not in order to the putting away [or the remission] of some sins [only], but for the purification of the body”
Cited to ground: Cleansing hands and purifying hearts evoke Jewish ritual purity practices
›Josephus, Wars Wars 1.33.2
“There were two men of learning in the city [Jerusalem,] who were thought the most skillful in the laws of their country, and were on that account had in very great esteem all over the nation”
Cited to ground: The Lawgiver reference underscores Jewish reverence for Torah
Translator's notes
JAS 4:7
- do be subjected:The word translated 'do be subjected' implies an active, willing submission to authority, not a passive or forced subjugation. It suggests aligning oneself under a higher order.
JAS 4:8
- [you] double-minded.:The term 'double-minded' describes someone with a divided loyalty or purpose, wavering between two different paths or masters. It speaks to an internal conflict of will.
JAS 4:9
- do be grieved:The word translated 'do be grieved' carries a sense of enduring hardship or misery, often through hard work or toil. It's a deep, internal suffering, not just a fleeting sadness.
JAS 4:11
- do speak against:The word translated 'do speak against' refers to speaking evil or slanderously about someone, often with the intent to harm their reputation. It's more than just disagreeing.