THE BOOK OF JAMES: JUDGING AND PARTIALITY

The Book of James: Judging and Partiality

A. Judging Ourselves and Our Own Worth

Read James 1:9-11 in the RSV, NAS or KJV. Here we will see the advantage of the NIV.

This is like a parable in that we need to first understand the literal picture before going on to the spiritual analogy. “flowers of the grass” = wildflowers (as in the NIV). The Greek word for “burning heat” is rare; it occurs outside the Bible for the sirocco winds from the desert. I was born and raised in Southern California where we had the equivalent: Santa Ana winds. This simile is easy for me to picture here in central Texas. The lawns in the Spring are lush and the wildflowers are in bloom everywhere. But once Summer arrives, everything turns to straw.

Language from the OT is used here. Read Isaiah 40:6-8, with the last phrase quoted by Peter (I Peter 1:24) to stress the permanence of God's word. As an analogy, the sun is the appearing of Christ in his glory at the Last Judgment.

Verse 9: “Lowly” in this context is to be taken literally (social standing and wealth) rather than spiritual. “Boast” elsewhere in the NT is always negative in sense. However, in the OT it is positive if it is boasting or rejoicing in the Lord, as here. The NIV reads, “take pride in,” even though it translates the same Greek word as “boast” in 4:16 (and rightly so). The poor person should rejoice for he will have an exalted position in heaven.

Verse 10 may be interpreted in two ways. The Greek construction indicates that “brother” applies to the rich as well as the poor. Rich Christians are to rejoice they they have been brought down to the place where they have been freed from the pursuit and deceitfulness of riches. This is not easy, as shown in Mark 4:18-19. This reversal of status when one becomes a Christian is also seen in I Corinthians 7:22.

Others feel that the rich man cannot be a Christian because (a) he is said to wither away and (b) in other places in this letter, the rich are persecutors of the Christians. In that case, James' advice is ironic (i.e., “the only thing you have to boast about is...”).

Verse 11: In either case, the passage teaches that wealth is meaningless in the face of death (You can't take it with you). The Greek phrase translated “in his ways” means literally “while he goes about his business.” (NIV) See Christ's story of the man building barns who dies suddenly (Luke 12:16-21).

B. Judging Outsiders

James 2:1-4. The example is one of non-Christians visiting a congregation. The two are clearly visitors or they wouldn't have to be told where to go. The setting is literally the “synagogue,” which sounds strange to us today but was common terminology for Christian Jews of 50-60 AD who may have continued to worship in the same place as their non-Christian brethren. It helps date the epistle since the term would be totally out of place at a somewhat later date when the Christians were effectively excluded from the synagogues.

Verse 1: “Glory” is hard to translate. Compare various translations. It could also be translated: “the Lord who reigns in glory,” or preferably, “the Lord Jesus Christ, the glory.” This would be equivalent to the Hebrew Shekinah.

See Deuteronomy 1:17 for an OT teaching on this point.

Verse 2: The gold ring indicates he is a Roman nobleman or senator. Only they were permitted to wear gold rings, according to some commentators. Thus, it indicates rank or profession as well as wealth. The splendid robe is a white toga, often worn by those seeking political office. Perhaps he is a visiting politician seeking votes. It opens the question of our currying factor with those in power because we think they can do us some good.

Poor in this case is not poor in heart, but those who are in material poverty.

Verse 3: “Stand there” = just where you are, don't go any closer.

“Under my footstool” = the lower row of stone benches around the synagogue where one rested his feet. Footstool is a place traditionally mentioned in the OT for conquered enemies, not exactly a place of honor.

Verse 4: “Haven't you made a distinction among yourselves.” Another possibility in the NIV = “are you not divided,” i.e. double-minded, serving God and mammon.

James 2:5-7 presents a rational argument.

Verse 5: Note that even though the rebuke may be stern, James softens it by using “beloved brothers.” He believed in speaking the truth, but in love. James actually goes beyond equality here. The poor are actually to be given preferential treatment in line with God's standards of worth. See Luke 1:52 and I Corinthians 1:26-29.

Verse 7: “The name by which you are called” may mean (a) the title “Christian” (an innovation at that time period) or (b) the name of Christ pronounced at their baptism. The latter is more likely since the verb is in the aorist (one-time) tense.

James' opposition to the rich is not just based on general principles, but on actual experience. These verses employ diatribe style and generalities that may not apply to all cases (such as in Proverbs).

James 2:8-13 introduces a biblical argument.

Verse 8: This is from Leviticus 19:15-18. “Royal” because (a) all other laws fall under it and (b) it was stated by Christ, the true king.

Verse 10: James may have been reacting against two Jewish teachings of the time: (a) the strict pharisaical idea that you must keep all of the law to earn your salvation or (b) the lax rabbinical teaching which stated that “the sabbath weighs against all the precepts. If you keep it, you are reckoned as having done all.” Similarly, Hillel said that “to wear phylacteries is to observe the whole law.”

Verse 11: The two specific commandments were perhaps chosen since they were the first two in the second tablet. By his examples, James shows that he is not just talking about keeping the details of the ritual law. “Kill” probably is used in a larger sense, as in hatred. This concept will be revisited later in the letter.

Verse 12: Law of liberty = the law of love mentioned in verse 8 (I realize this phrase sounds like a contradiction), Remember that we are all under one law or another, and we all serve one master or another, as a Bob Dylan song goes.

Verse 13: This is a closing statement to drive the point home. The same teaching is found in the beatitudes (Matthew 5:7): “Blessed are the merciful for the shall obtain mercy” and the parable (Matthew 18) of the unmerciful servant whose debts were forgiven but then refused to forgive a debt himself.

Judging Other Christians: James 4:11-12

These comments are appended to James' description of Christians turning against one another.

Verse 11: “Brethren” is used three times in a row to remind them that they are a family.

“Speak evil” = “talk another down.” This is the practice of backbiting or speaking against someone behind their back. There are two components to this Greek verb: it is in secret and with malice. Backbiting is a form of self-exaltation which assumes that we are better than the one being talked against. The rabbis considered slander one of the most damaging sins because it affected the speaker, the one spoken to, and the one spoken about.

How are we judging the law? If you deliberately break a law and do not repent of it, you are in effect passing judgment on the law itself and declaring it worthless. C. S. Lewis in God in the Dock has a lot to say about us choosing what we do and do not want to believe and obey in God's Word.

Verse 12: Also, judging usurps God's prerogative and sets oneself up as God. Thus, it is, in effect, blasphemy.

In what sense is God THE Judge? Only he has total knowledge of a given situation; only he has the resources to identify and punish all offenders; only he is free from all partiality; and only he has the grace to forgive offenses.

A parallel teaching is in Matthew 7:1: “Do not judge so that you will not be judged.” Note the many times in James' letter that he echoes teachings found in the Sermon on the Mount.

James 5:9

This continues the thought of James 4:11-12 and a note of urgency due to the immanence of the Second Coming. Peter Davids says, “The nearness of the day is not just an impetus to look forward to the judgment of sinners and so stand fast in the faith oneself, but it is also a warning to examine one's own behavior...The coming Lord is also the judge of the Christian.”

Discussion Topics

1. Look at James 1:9-11. In what ways do Christians judge themselves improperly (either more or less highly than we should)? How do we regain a proper perspective on our own worth?

2. Consider James 2:1-13. Analyze the various reasons we have for treating the rich and influential better than the poor (or practice other forms of discrimination). How do we combat this form of improper judgment?

How would we act as a church and individually if we actually treated the poor as being more important than the rich?

3. Backbiting is treated in James 4:11-12; 5:9. Such grumbling against fellow Christians can take different forms, some of them subtle. Share your thoughts and experiences on this subject. Davids uses as an example the case of sighing when someone's name is mentioned. When you are asked what the matter is with that person,

A. Judging Ourselves and Our Own Worth

Read James 1:9-11 in the RSV, NAS or KJV. Here we will see the advantage of the NIV.

This is like a parable in that we need to first understand the literal picture before going on to the spiritual analogy. “flowers of the grass” = wildflowers (as in the NIV). The Greek word for “burning heat” is rare; it occurs outside the Bible for the sirocco winds from the desert. I was born and raised in Southern California where we had the equivalent: Santa Ana winds. This simile is easy for me to picture here in central Texas. The lawns in the spring are lush and the wildflowers are in bloom everywhere. But once summer arrives, everything turns to straw.

Language from the OT is used here. Read Isaiah 40:6-8, with the last phrase quoted by Peter (I Peter 1:24) to stress the permanence of God's word. As an analogy, the sun is the appearing of Christ in his glory at the Last Judgment.

Verse 9: “Lowly” in this context is to be taken literally (social standing and wealth) rather than spiritual. “Boast” elsewhere in the NT is always negative in sense. However, in the OT it is positive if it is boasting or rejoicing in the Lord, as here. The NIV reads, “take pride in,” even though it translates the same Greek word as “boast” in 4:16 (and rightly so). The poor person should rejoice for he will have an exalted position in heaven.

Verse 10 may be interpreted in two ways. The Greek construction indicates that “brother” applies to the rich as well as the poor. Rich Christians are to rejoice they they have been brought down to the place where they have been freed from the pursuit and deceitfulness of riches. This is not easy, as shown in Mark 4:18-19. This reversal of status when one becomes a Christian is also seen in I Corinthians 7:22.

Others feel that the rich man cannot be a Christian because (a) he is said to wither away and (b) in other places in this letter, the rich are persecutors of the Christians. In that case, James' advice is ironic (i.e., “the only thing you have to boast about is...”).

Verse 11: In either case, the passage teaches that wealth is meaningless in the face of death (You can't take it with you). The Greek phrase translated “in his ways” means literally “while he goes about his business.” (NIV) See Christ's story of the man building barns who dies suddenly (Luke 12:16-21).

B. Judging Outsiders

James 2:1-4. The example is one of non-Christians visiting a congregation. The two are clearly visitors or they wouldn't have to be told where to go. The setting is literally the “synagogue,” which sounds strange to us today but was common terminology for Christian Jews of 50-60 AD who may have continued to worship in the same place as their non-Christian brethren. It helps date the epistle since the term would be totally out of place at a somewhat later date when the Christians were effectively excluded from the synagogues.

Verse 1: “Glory” is hard to translate. Compare various translations. It could also be translated: “the Lord who reigns in glory,” or preferably, “the Lord Jesus Christ, the glory.” This would be equivalent to the Hebrew Shekinah.

See Deuteronomy 1:17 for an OT teaching on this point.

Verse 2: The gold ring indicates he is a Roman nobleman or senator. Only they were permitted to wear gold rings, according to some commentators. Thus, it indicates rank or profession as well as wealth. The splendid robe is a white toga, often worn by those seeking political office. Perhaps he is a visiting politician seeking votes. It opens the question of our currying factor with those in power because we think they can do us some good.

Poor in this case is not poor in heart, but those who are in material poverty.

Verse 3: “Stand there” = just where you are, don't go any closer.

“Under my footstool” = the lower row of stone benches around the synagogue where one rested his feet. Footstool is a place traditionally mentioned in the OT for conquered enemies, not exactly a place of honor.

Verse 4: “Haven't you made a distinction among yourselves.” Another possibility in the NIV = “are you not divided,” i.e. double-minded, serving God and mammon.

James 2:5-7 presents a rational argument.

Verse 5: Note that even though the rebuke may be stern, James softens it by using “beloved brothers.” He believed in speaking the truth, but in love. James actually goes beyond equality here. The poor are actually to be given preferential treatment in line with God's standards of worth. See Luke 1:52 and I Corinthians 1:26-29.

Verse 7: “The name by which you are called” may mean (a) the title “Christian” (an innovation at that time period) or (b) the name of Christ pronounced at their baptism. The latter is more likely since the verb is in the aorist (one-time) tense.

James' opposition to the rich is not just based on general principles, but on actual experience. These verses employ diatribe style and generalities that may not apply to all cases (such as in Proverbs).

James 2:8-13 introduces a biblical argument.

Verse 8: This is from Leviticus 19:15-18. “Royal” because (a) all other laws fall under it and (b) it was stated by Christ, the true king.

Verse 10: James may have been reacting against two Jewish teachings of the time: (a) the strict pharisaical idea that you must keep all of the law to earn your salvation or (b) the lax rabbinical teaching which stated that “the sabbath weighs against all the precepts. If you keep it, you are reckoned as having done all.” Similarly, Hillel said that “to wear phylacteries is to observe the whole law.”

Verse 11: The two specific commandments were perhaps chosen since they were the first two in the second tablet. By his examples, James shows that he is not just talking about keeping the details of the ritual law. “Kill” probably is used in a larger sense, as in hatred. This concept will be revisited later in the letter.

Verse 12: Law of liberty = the law of love mentioned in verse 8 (I realize this phrase sounds like a contradiction), Remember that we are all under one law or another, and we all serve one master or another, as a Bob Dylan song goes.

Verse 13: This is a closing statement to drive the point home. The same teaching is found in the beatitudes (Matthew 5:7): “Blessed are the merciful for the shall obtain mercy” and the parable (Matthew 18) of the unmerciful servant whose debts were forgiven but then refused to forgive a debt himself.

Judging Other Christians: James 4:11-12

These comments are appended to James' description of Christians turning against one another.

Verse 11: “Brethren” is used three times in a row to remind them that they are a family.

“Speak evil” = “talk another down.” This is the practice of backbiting or speaking against someone behind their back. There are two components to this Greek verb: it is in secret and with malice. Backbiting is a form of self-exaltation which assumes that we are better than the one being talked against. The rabbis considered slander one of the most damaging sins because it affected the speaker, the one spoken to, and the one spoken about.

How are we judging the law? If you deliberately break a law and do not repent of it, you are in effect passing judgment on the law itself and declaring it worthless. C. S. Lewis in God in the Dock has a lot to say about us choosing what we do and do not want to believe and obey in God's Word.

Verse 12: Also, judging usurps God's prerogative and sets oneself up as God. Thus, it is, in effect, blasphemy.

In what sense is God THE Judge? Only he has total knowledge of a given situation; only he has the resources to identify and punish all offenders; only he is free from all partiality; and only he has the grace to forgive offenses.

A parallel teaching is in Matthew 7:1: “Do not judge so that you will not be judged.” Note the many times in James' letter that he echoes teachings found in the Sermon on the Mount.

James 5:9

This continues the thought of James 4:11-12 and a note of urgency due to the immanence of the Second Coming. Peter Davids says, “The nearness of the day is not just an impetus to look forward to the judgment of sinners and so stand fast in the faith oneself, but it is also a warning to examine one's own behavior...The coming Lord is also the judge of the Christian.”

Discussion Topics

1. Look at James 1:9-11. In what ways do Christians judge themselves improperly (either more or less highly than we should)? How do we regain a proper perspective on our own worth?

2. Consider James 2:1-13. Analyze the various reasons we have for treating the rich and influential better than the poor (or practice other forms of discrimination). How do we combat this form of improper judgment?

How would we act as a church and individually if we actually treated the poor as being more important than the rich?

3. Backbiting is treated in James 4:11-12; 5:9. Such grumbling against fellow Christians can take different forms, some of them subtle. Share your thoughts and experiences on this subject. Davids uses as an example the case of sighing when someone's name is mentioned. When you are asked what the matter is with that person,the reply is, "Well since you asked..." Why do we do that?