My brethren, {Or, do ye, in accepting persons, hold the faith glory?}hold not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.
For if there come into your {Or, assembly Compare Hebrews 10:25 (Greek)}synagogue a man with a gold ring, in fine clothing, and there come in also a poor man in vile clothing;
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;
{Or, are ye not divided}do ye not make distinctions {Or, in your own mind}among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?
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?
But ye have dishonored the poor man. Do not the rich oppress you, and themselves drag you before the judgment-seats?
Do not they blaspheme the honorable name {Greek: which was called upon you? See Acts 15:17.}by which ye are called?
Howbeit if ye fulfil the royal law, according to the scripture, {Leviticus 19:18.}Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself, ye do well:
but if ye have respect of persons, ye commit sin, being convicted by the law as transgressors.
For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is become guilty of all.
For he that said, {Exodus 20:13 f. Deuteronomy 5:17 f. }Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou dost not commit adultery, but killest, thou art become 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?
If a brother or sister be naked and in lack of daily food,
and one of you say unto them, Go in peace, be ye warmed and filled; and yet ye give them not the things needful to the body; what doth it profit?
Even so faith, if it have not works, is dead in itself.
{Or, But some one will say}Yea, a man will say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith apart from thy works, and I by my works will show thee my faith.
Thou believest that {Some ancient authorities read there is one God.}God is one; thou doest well: the demons also believe, and shudder.
But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith apart from works is barren?
Was not Abraham our father justified by works, in that he offered up Isaac his son upon the altar?
{Or, Seest thou…perfect?}Thou seest that faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect;
and the scripture was fulfilled which saith, {Genesis 15:6}And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned unto him for righteousness; {Isaiah 41:8; 2 Chronicles 20:7}and he was called the friend of God.
Ye see that by works a man is justified, and not only by faith.
And in like manner was not also Rahab the harlot justified by works, in that she received the messengers, and sent them out another way?
For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, even so faith apart from works is dead.
Querverweise zu Jakobus 2,21 Jak 2,21
And I took your father Abraham from beyond the River, and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed, and gave him Isaac.
{Or, But some one will say}Yea, a man will say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith apart from thy works, and I by my works will show thee my faith.
And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built the altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar, upon the wood.
And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.
And the angel of Jehovah called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I.
And he said, Lay not thy hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him; for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son, from me.
Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you; for when he was but one I called him, and I blessed him, and made him many.
Ye see that by works a man is justified, and not only by faith.
and said, By myself have I sworn, saith Jehovah, because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son,
that in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heavens, and as the sand which is upon the seashore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;
and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth {Or, bless themselves}be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.
and think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.
And enter not into judgment with thy servant;For in thy sight no man living is righteous.
The oath which he sware unto Abraham our father,
For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.
And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am in anguish in this flame.
But when the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the angels with him, then shall he sit on the throne of his glory:
and before him shall be gathered all the nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as the shepherd separateth the sheep from the goats;
and he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
for I was hungry, and ye gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me in;
naked, and ye clothed me; I was sick, and ye visited me; I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungry, and fed thee? or athirst, and gave thee drink?
And when saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
And when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of these my brethren, even these least, ye did it unto me.
And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one go to them from the dead, they will repent.
because {Greek: out of.}by {Or, works of law}the works of the law shall no flesh be {Or, accounted righteous}justified in his sight; for {Or, through law}through the law cometh the knowledge of sin.
They answered and said unto him, Our father is Abraham. Jesus saith unto them, If ye {Greek: are}were Abraham's children, {Some ancient authorities read ye do the works of Abraham.}ye would do the works of Abraham.
Art thou greater than our father Abraham, who died? and the prophets died: whom makest thou thyself?
And he said,Brethren and fathers, hearken: The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran,
What then shall we say {Some ancient authorities read of Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh?}that Abraham, {Or, our forefather according to the flesh found?}our forefather, hath found according to the flesh?
and the father of circumcision to them who not only are of the circumcision, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham which he had in uncircumcision.
For this cause it is of faith, that it may be according to grace; to the end that the promise may be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all