1 James, a servant of God {Theos, Supreme Ruler} and of the Lord Jesus Christ {Kyrios Iesous Christos, Exalted Messiah}, to the twelve tribes in the Dispersion: greetings.
2 My brothers {adelphoi: fellow believers}, when you run into various trials {peirasmois: tests of faith}, regard it as pure joy.
3 You know that the testing {dokimion: evaluative trial} of your faith brings about endurance {hypomonen: steadfast perseverance}.
4 And let endurance {hupomone: steadfast perseverance} finish its complete task, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing {medeni: not a single thing}.
5 If any of you is without wisdom, let him ask God {Theos, Source of Wisdom}, who gives generously {haplos: with openhearted simplicity} to all and never reproaches, and wisdom will be given to him.
6 But he must ask in faith {pistei: firm trust}, doubting nothing; for the one who doubts resembles a wave of the sea {thalassēs: vast waters}, being blown and tossed by the wind.
7 Let that person not imagine that he will receive anything{ti: unspecified gift} from the Lord{Kyrios, Discerning Giver}.
8 A double-minded {dipsychos: holding divided loyalties} man is unstable {akatastatos: unsettled or restless} in every way he lives.
9 But let the lowly brother {adelphos: fellow believer} boast in his exaltation {hypsei: divinely bestowed honor}.
10 But the rich man {plousios: socially prosperous one} should boast in his humiliation, because he will pass away {pareleusetai: vanish from sight} like a flower of grass.
11 For the sun rises with scorching heat {kauson: intense heat} and dries up the grass; its flower falls, its beauty {euprepeia: fleeting splendor} perishes, and in the same way the rich man will fade away in the midst of his pursuits.
12 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast through trial, because after he has become approved, he will receive the crown {stephanos: victor’s reward} of life that He {Theos, Faithful Rewarder} promised to those who love Him.
13 Let no one who is being tempted say, "I am being tempted by God {Theos, Moral Sovereign}," for God is untemptable by evil {kakos: moral corruption}, and He Himself tempts no one.
14 Rather, each person is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desire {epithymia: inward longing} and enticed {deleazomenos: lured by bait}.
15 Then the desire {epithymia: inward longing}, after it has conceived, gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is completed {apoteleo: brought to its end}, brings forth death.
16 My beloved {agapetoi: deeply loved ones} brothers, do not be deceived {planasthe: led astray}.
17 Every good gift and every perfect gift originates from above, descending from the Father of lights {Pater ton photon, Steadfast Giver}, with whom there is neither variation {parallage: shifting change} nor shadow of turning.
18 Because He {Theos, Sovereign Life-Giver} willed it, He gave birth to us by the word {logos: living message} of truth, so that we would be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.
19 Understand this, my beloved brothers {adelphoi: covenant family}: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger {orge: intense emotion}.
20 For the anger {orge: intense hostile emotion} of a man does not accomplish the righteousness of God {Theos, Unchanging Standard of Justice}.
21 Therefore, having put aside all filthiness {rhuparian: moral uncleanness} and the abundance of wickedness, receive in meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls {psuchas: whole person}.
22 Yet be practitioners {poietai: active doers} of the word and not hearers only, thus deceiving {paralogizomenoi: self-deception} yourselves.
23 For if someone is a hearer {akroates: passive listener} of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks carefully at his natural face in a mirror {esoptron: metal mirror}.
24 For he looked carefully {katenoesen: attentive observation} at himself and went away, and immediately forgot what kind of person he was {hopoios: inner character}.
25 But the one who has looked into the perfect law—the law of liberty—and has continued, not having become a hearer of forgetfulness but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed {makarios: experiencing divine favor} in his practice {poiesis: active practice}.
26 If anyone thinks he is religious yet does not bridle his tongue {glossa: spoken expression} but deceives his own heart {kardia: inner self}, his religion is worthless.
27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God {Theos, Righteous Evaluator} and Father {Pater, Compassionate Source} is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.