James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, sends greeting to the twelve tribes that are scattered abroad.

My brethren, count it all joy, when ye fall into divers temptations, Knowing that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.

Let endurance have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

But let him ask in faith, nothing doubting: for he that doubteth is like the surge of the sea driven by the wind and tossed.

For let that man not think that he will receive anything from the Lord.

double-minded creature that he is, wavering at every turn.

But let the brother of low position be glad that he is lifted up;

and the rich, in that he is made humble, because like the flower in the grass, he will pass away.

For the sun comes up with its scorching heat and dries up the grass, and the flowers wither, and all their beauty is gone. That is the way rich men will fade and die in the midst of their pursuits.

Blessed is the man that endureth temptation; for when he hath been approved, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord promised to them that love him.

No one should think when he is tempted that his temptation comes from God, for God is incapable of being tempted by what is evil, and he does not tempt anyone.

But each man is tempted by his own lusts that allure and entice him.

When that desire becomes pregnant, it gives birth to sin; and when that sin grows up, it gives birth to death.

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom can be no variation, neither shadow that is cast by turning.

Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

So that, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath;

For the wrath of man worketh not that which is righteous before God.

So strip yourselves of everything that soils you, and of every evil growth, and in a humble spirit let the message that has the power to save your souls be planted in your hearts.

And see that ye be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves with sophistry.

For if any man be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like a man that looks at his natural face in a glass;

But he that looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and perseveres, this man not being a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, he shall be blessed in his practice.

If anyone thinks that he is religious and does not bridle his tongue, but instead deceives himself, his religion is worthless.

A religious observance that is pure and stainless in the sight of God the Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their trouble, and keep one's self unstained by the world.

and ye have regard to him that weareth the fine clothing, and say, Sit thou here in a good place; and ye say to the poor man, Stand thou there, or sit under my footstool;

have you not wavered and shown that your judgments are guided by base motives?

Hearken, my beloved brethren; did not God choose them that are poor as to the world to be rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he promised to them that love him?

Yet you dishonored that poor man. Don’t the rich oppress you and drag you into the courts?

Do they not blaspheme that honourable name by which ye are called?

If, agreeably to the scriptures, you observe that royal law, "thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self," you do well.

But, if you worship rank, you commit a sin, and stand convicted by that same law of being offenders against it.

for he that violates but one precept of the whole law, is as obnoxious to punishment, as if he had broke thro' all the rest.

For he that said, Thou shalt not commit adultery, said also, Thou shalt not commit murder. Now if thou dost not commit adultery, yet dost commit murder, thou art a transgressor of the law.

So speak ye, and so do, as men that are to be judged by a law of liberty.

For judgment is without mercy to him that hath showed no mercy: mercy glorieth against judgment.

What doth it profit, my brethren, if a man say he hath faith, but have not works? can that faith save him?

Can that faith save him? If a brother or a sister be naked,

and one of you says to them, "Depart in peace, find warmth and food for yourselves," but at the same time you do not give the necessaries of the body, what good would that do them?

You believe that God is one. You do well. The demons also believe, and shudder.

But do you want to know, foolish man, that faith apart from works is useless?

Wasn't Abraham our father justified by works, in that he offered up Isaac his son on the altar?

You see that faith worked with his works, and by works faith was perfected;

and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend."

You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone.

In like manner was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works, in that she received the messengers, and sent them out another way?

Let not many of you be teachers, my brothers, knowing that we will receive heavier judgment.

For we all make many mistakes. Anyone who never makes a mistake in what he says has a character that is fully developed and is able to control his whole body as well.

Now if we put bits into the horses' mouths so that they may obey us, we guide their whole body.

And look at ships! They are so big that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are steered by a tiny rudder wherever the helmsman directs.

And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: in such manner is the tongue placed among our members, that it defileth all the body, and setteth on fire the circle of nature; and is set on fire of hell.

no man can tame the tongue, restless evil that it is, full of deadly poison.

By that we give praises to God the father: and that pronounces curses even against men, who are form'd after the divine resemblance.

Out of the same mouth goes forth blessing and cursing. It is not right, my brethren, that these things should be thus.

can a fig-tree, my brethren, produce olives, or a vine figs? no more can the sea yield water that is fresh.

Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by his good conduct that his deeds are done in gentleness of wisdom.

But if you have bitter jealousy and faction in your heart, do not be boasting of that, and be false to the truth.

This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, sensual, and demonic.

But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceful, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, without hypocrisy.

And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace for them that make peace.

Where do conflicts and quarrels among you come from? Do they not come from your passions that war in your members?

You are jealous and covet [what others have] and your lust goes unfulfilled; so you murder. You are envious and cannot obtain [the object of your envy]; so you fight and battle. You do not have because you do not ask [it of God].

You ask, and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it for your pleasures.

You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, "The Spirit which he made to dwell in us yearns jealously"?

But he gives more grace. So that the Writings say, God is against the men of pride, but he gives grace to those who make themselves low before him.

Come close to God [with a contrite heart] and He will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; and purify your [unfaithful] hearts, you double-minded [people].

Traduce not one another, brethren. He that traduceth his brother, and judgeth his brother, traduceth the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judgest the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but as judge.

There is one lawgiver, who can save or destroy: who art thou that judgest another man?

Come now, ye that talk, To-day or to-morrow we will go to such a town, and do business there during one year, and traffic, and make great profits:

Whereas you do not know what tomorrow will be like. What is your life? For you are a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.

For you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we will both live, and do this or that."

But, as the case stands, it is in mere self-confidence that you boast: all such boasting is evil.

To him therefore that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming on you.

Your gold and silver have rusted and their rust will be a witness against you. It will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have hoarded treasure!

Behold, the hire of the laborers who mowed your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth out: and the cries of them that reaped have entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth.

Do not grumble, brothers, against one another, so that you won't be judged. Behold, the judge stands at the door.

Behold, we call them blessed that endured: ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord, how that the Lord is full of pity, and merciful.

But above all things, my brothers, do not swear, neither by heaven, nor by the earth, nor by any other oath; but let your "yes" be "yes," and your "no," "no;" so that you do not fall under judgment.

and the prayer of faith shall save him that is sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, it shall be forgiven him.

Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous person is powerfully effective.

Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months.

let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death, and will cover a multitude of sins.