THE BOOK OF JAMES: THE RICH

In dealing with this economic class of people, James starts out with mild rebukes but ends more harshly.

James 4:13-17

Compare this with Luke 12:15-21. These were independent businessmen, middle-class merchants, probably Christians who “never hurt anyone.” So what was their problem?

Verse 14: Their problem was that they thought they knew what the future held, but man has limited perspective. The word “mist” is related to the Hebrew word translated as “vanity” in the Book of Ecclesiastes.

Verse 15: “If the Lord wills” is a common idea in the New Testament:

God willing (Acts 18:21), if the Lord permits (I Corinthians 16:7), if God permits (Hebrews 6:3)

This is like the old country saying: “The good Lord willin' and the cricks don't rise.”

Verse 16: Boasting is dependence on self, not God.

Verse 17: James concludes with their sin of omission. They knew they should live a life of humility and dependence upon God. This may hint at the absence of charity to the poor, as in the case with the rich young ruler.

James 5:1-6

In this case, James is probably talking about rich landowners who were not Christians. In that respect, he is acting like the OT prophets who would curse pagan nations in the middle of a book addressed to Israel. The upper classes grow rich at the expense of the poor. This goes beyond a sin of omission and becomes a sin of commission.

Verses 1-3: Their first sin was that they were piling up their riches and not using them, which is poor stewardship of the blessings God had given them. Contrast some of the wealthy people in America such as Carnegie who used some of their riches to benefit others. Again, there is a strong parallel to Jesus' teachings in the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 6:19-21 says, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven...for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”

The last part of this Matthew quotation points to another sin pointed out by James – possessions had become their idols. It has bothered some literalists that James says gold can “rust.” Actually, the Greek word can have the meaning of becoming poisoned or useless. The irony is that the rich thought it was treasure being stored up, but it was really evidence to be used against them. I think of Imelda Marcos' extensive shoe collection and President Nixon's tapes.

Verses 4-5: The third sin the rich have committed is to defraud their workers (My father used to say words to the effect that the bigger they were, the slower they were in paying him for work.)

The mention of fields indicates a large estate.

“Cry out” is reminiscent of the blood of Abel crying out from the earth or Jesus' talking about the rocks crying out. In each case, the point is that the truth can't be hidden.

“Lord of Saboath” = Lord of Hosts (i.e., His army of angels). This is actually the only instance in the New Testament (other than in quotes from the OT) of that phrase being used to refer to God. He is portrayed here as the God of war.

“Day of Slaughter” = the Day of Judgment. The rich are pictured as animals who continue to gorge themselves right up to the minute they are slaughtered. Read Jeremiah 12:1-4 for a similar condemnation.

How pervasive a practice is taking advantage of the poor workers today? Unfortunately, the answer would probably depend more on your political views than on your religious beliefs.

James 5:6

Toward the end of James' letter he accelerates his comments against the rich and powerful by accusing them of murder. There are at least three different understandings here:

1. It may be a prophecy of James own death at the hands of the authorities.

2. The rich may have used their influence in the court system to have the poor who were in their way literally murdered, sold into slavery, or deprived of their land needed to support their families.

3. It may be a figurative way of referring to fraudulent practices.

The apocryphal OT book of Sirach (also called Ecclesiasticus) written about 180 BC says this:

“The bread of the needy is the life of the poor; whoever deprives them of it is a man of blood. To take away a neighbor's living is to murder him; to deprive an employee of his wages is to shed blood.”