Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of James 2:12
So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.
12. So speak ye, and so do ] The thoughts of the teacher dwell, as before (chap. Jas 1:26) and afterwards (chap. Jas 3:1-12), on sins of speech as no less tests of character than sins of act. In so doing he was echoing the words of a yet greater Teacher (Mat 12:37).
the law of liberty ] See note on ch. Jas 1:25. The recurrence of the phrase indicates a certain fondness for the thought which it expresses. As a phrase it is peculiar to St James, but the idea is found in Joh 8:32. Verbally it presents something like a contrast to St Paul’s language as to the law “which gendereth unto bondage” (Gal 4:24), but the difference is on the surface only, St James speaking of the moral law when the will accepts it as the guide of life, St Paul of its work as reproving and condemning when the fleshly will resists it, and pre-eminently of its merely ritual and ceremonial precepts, the days and months and years of Gal 4:10.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty – On the phrase, the law of liberty, see the notes at Jam 1:25. Compare the notes at Jam 4:11. The meaning is, that in all our conduct we are to act under the constant impression of the truth that we are soon to be brought into judgment, and that the law by which we are to be judged is that by which it is contemplated that we shall be set free from the dominion of sin. In the rule which God has laid down in his word, called the law of liberty, or the rule by which true freedom is to be secured, a system of religion is revealed by which it is designed that man shall be emancipated not only from one sin, but from all. Now, it is with reference to such a law that we are to be judged; that is, we shall not be able to plead on our trial that we were under a necessity of sinning, but we shall be judged under that law by which the arrangement was made that we might be free from sin. If we might be free from sin; if an arrangement was made by which we could have led holy lives, then it will be proper that we shall be judged and condemned if we are not righteous. The sense is, In all your conduct, whatever you do or say, remember that you are to be judged, or that you are to give an impartial account; and remember also that the rule by which you are to be judged is that by which provision is made for being delivered from the dominion of sin, and brought into the freedom of the gospel. The argument here seems to be, that he who habitually feels that he is soon to be judged by a law under which it was contemplated that he might be, and should be, free from the bondage of sin, has one of the strongest of all inducements to lead a holy life.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Jam 2:12
The law of liberty
The law of liberty
By the law of liberty is meant the gospel, whose principles and precepts form a rule of life now, and will be the rule of reward hereafter.
It is a law, inasmuch as it prescribes a particular form of character and course of conduct with authority and sanctions; and it is a law of liberty, inasmuch as the only adequate obedience to it is one which is perfectly free, voluntary and cheerful. It is a law that has power to work in its subjects such a spirit as will render their service perfect freedom, procure from them a willing and cheerful performance of its behests, and create such a thorough coincidence between its requirements and the choice of their wills, as will rid their submission of any feeling of restraint or awe of authority.
I. The gospel is a law of liberty, BY ITS TRANSFORMING EFFECT UPON THE PRINCIPLES AND DISPOSITIONS OF MEN. The gospel does not repeal or alter Gods law, but republishes it with some remedial and corrective accompaniments. By these, it aims to effect relief for man in that only other way which is practicable–the rectification of his wishes and inclinations, so as to make them coincide with the behests of the law, in order that he may not be free without obedience, but free in obedience.
II. The gospel is a law of liberty, IN RESPECT TO ITS MODE OF LEGISLATING FOR MEN. A free-will service is always a profuse and generous one; and as the gospel produces, expects, and accepts only a free-will service, it deals with its subjects accordingly, as with beings who will have no inclination to economise and stint their service, and dole it out in the very scantiest measures that will answer the literal terms of demand. It does not look for close construction and parsimonious obedience in its subjects, but supposes them to be inflamed with a love of duty, and directed by a spirit of liberal and affectionate loyalty. It is an evil sign of Christian people to see them always hovering on the very verge of positive impropriety and disobedience, casting a wistful eye into Satans territory, and arguing with the world for the last inch of debatable ground between them. Oh, rather let your doings and renunciations for Christ be generous. For your sakes He became poor. In return, be willing to do much and renounce much, and with light and willing heart take up your cross and follow Him. (R. A.Hallam, D. D.)
The law of liberty
Of all the qualities which great books, and especially the Bible, have, few are more remarkable than their power of bringing out the unity of disassociated and apparently contradictory ideas. Take these two words, liberty and law. They stand over against each other. Law is the restraint of liberty. Liberty is the abrogation, the getting rid of law. Each, so far as it is absolute, implies the absence of the other. But the expression of our text suggests that by the highest standards there is no contradiction, but rather a harmony and unity, between the two; that really the highest law is liberty, the highest liberty is law; that there is such a thing as a law of liberty.
I. WHAT DO WE MEAN BY LIBERTY? It is the genuine ability of a living creature to manifest its whole nature, to do and be itself most unrestrainedly. Nothing more, nothing less than that. There is no compulsion, and yet the life, by a tendency of its own educated will, sets itself towards God.
1. What a fundamental and thorough thing this law of liberty must be. It is a law which issues from the qualities of a nature going thence out into external shape and action. It is a law of constraint by which you take a crooked sapling and bend it straight and hold it violently into line. It is a law of liberty by which the inner nature of the oak itself decrees its outward form, draws out the pattern shape of every leaf, and lays the hand of an inevitable necessity on bark and bough and branch.
2. This doctrine of the law of liberty makes clear the whole order and process of Christian conversion. Laws of constraint begin conversion at the outside and work in. Laws of liberty begin their conversion at the inside and work out. Which is the true way?
3. This truth throws very striking light into one of the verses which precede our text, one of the hardest verses in the Bible to a great many people. Whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, is guilty of all, it is said. Why? Because the consistent, habitual breakage of one point proves that the others were kept under the law of constraint, not under the law of liberty. You see the flame, and you speak of it as a whole: The house is on fire! There is fire in the house! Just so you see the bad fiery nature which the law constrains breaking through, and again you speak of it as a whole. What particular shingle is burning is of no consequence. The law is broken. The one whole law is broken by the one whole bad heart!
4. The whole truth of the law of liberty starts with the truth that goodness is just as controlling and supreme a power as badness. Virtue is as despotic over the life she really sways as vine can be over her miserable subjects. Free, yet a servant! Free from external compunctions, free from sin; yet a servant to the higher law that issues for ever from the God within him. A God whose service is perfect freedom. Oh for such a liberty in us! Look at Christ and see it in perfection. (Bp. Phillips Brooks.)
The law of liberty
St. Paul claims as one of the distinguished blessings of the gospel that by it the creature shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. It needs but little knowledge of ourselves to perceive that we have a biassed will, a strong natural tendency towards evil rather than good. No effort is needed for the indulgence of our natural appetites in ways forbidden by Gods law: conscience may whisper to us that such indulgence is wrong, but the effort is needed not for their gratification, but for their restraint. And what is thus felt to be the law of nature is confirmed by the unconscious testimony of mankind. Transgressions of Gods law are often spoken of as pleasures; acts of obedience to that law are never so described. It is this natural tendency which is spoken of in the New Testament as a state of bondage; from it Christ would deliver us; but it is obvious that we cannot be said to be completely delivered so long as it demands effort, a struggle, self-denial on our part to obey this higher law. For the very idea of liberty is the ability to do that which we wish or prefer; it is the carrying out our own plans and pursuits without interference on the part of any other, and without constraint; it is the being able to manifest our whole nature in the way we ourselves desire. It is because we are so tied and bound that we are spoken of in Holy Scripture as being in bondage under the elements of the world. From this state we are delivered by our incorporation into Christ, by our receiving His Holy Spirit, by our being made members of His body, children of God, and inheritors of the kingdom of heaven. But without our co-operation such Divine gift will profit us nothing-nay, rather it will increase our guilt, because it will make us more willing instruments in the transgressions to which we are tempted. This gift from God, then, gives us the power of a free choice–of a free choice between two powers struggling for the mastery of our souls. On the one side are the influences of our corrupt nature; and, on the other hand, the moral powers left by the Fall, conscience aided by the inspirations of Gods Holy Spirit. But in the warfare between these opposing powers of good and evil there are secondary influences which often seem to play a most important part in deciding the issue of the contest. We are all greatly affected by our surroundings. Education, the example of those we love, the maxims we are accustomed to hear, cannot fail to exert an influence upon our judgments of right and wrong. Sometimes these influences may cause good men to consent to actions which under other circumstances they would denounce as evil. But much more frequently the effect of these influences is seen in men professing a deference and regard for the principles and practices of religion which, in their hearts, they do not feel. It is quite clear that such a state of mind is not reconcilable with the thought of the happiness of heaven. Even upon earth there can be no real happiness in the discharge of religious duties or obligations with which we have no true hearty sympathy. We have sometimes heard of a temple of truth, in which men were compelled to speak exactly what they thought, in which, whilst they imagined that they were uttering the usual courtesies of life, the customary expressions of civility, or decorous agreement with the friend with whom they were conversing, they really gave vent to their inward feelings, to those thoughts which we are accustomed to keep secret, and which are sometimes far from being in harmony with what we say. To be compelled to say all that we feel, to show to their fullest extent the inclinations of our mind, the hidden preferences of which we are ashamed, and which we labour to keep secret, would be a grievous burden to us, and would sometimes present us in a very different light before others from that we should wish. But when we are in Gods presence this must be our lot. And, moreover, we shall feel that He who knows all is our Judge, that His power is irresistible whilst His knowledge is universal, that He is omnipotent as well as omniscient. And so we shall be compelled to set aside all seeming. We shall then be judged by the law of liberty, for our words and actions will be the true expression of what we are and what we feel–no disguise will be possible. And as we shall be judged at last by this law of liberty, it would be well for us all to test ourselves by it now in this our day of probation. We must have regard to both words and actions; for both are the expression of what we really are. Both with tongue and actions we may play a part for a time, but in spite of ourselves in time we show our true selves. And it is to this that the apostle would incite us. Let us so speak and so do as Christ has bidden us speak and do in His gospel. Let us place it before us as the one great end and aim of our life to do His will, to give effect to the promptings of His grace, to live for the next world and not for this, to copy the life of Him who loved us and gave Himself for us. By His help this can be done; by depending upon Him this can be accomplished, but in no other way. (Dean Gregory.)
The gospel a law of liberty
I. To EXPLAIN THIS CHARACTER OF THE CHRISTIAN RELIGION, that it is a law of liberty.
1. It is evident that it is a law, that is, a revelation of the will of God to men for the direction of their lives, enforced by the sanction of rewards and punishments. Yet our condition is not rendered servile by it. We cannot in any case act without motives, but they do not make us slaves. The human nature being rational, reason does not destroy its freedom, but establish it, and is the rule of it; then only are we indeed free when we conduct ourselves with understanding. On this account principally the gospel is called the law of liberty, it restores the empire of reason in men, and rescues them from servitude to their lusts and passions.
2. Pursuant to this, Christians by the gospel have obtained a deliverance from condemnation, and therefore it may justly be called the law of liberty.
3. The gospel is a law of liberty, as it frees Christians from the burthensome rites of the Mosaic institution.
4. The gospel is a law of liberty, as it sets us free from the power and authority of men in matters of religion and conscience.
II. TO CONSIDER THE APOSTLES DIRECTION TO CHRISTIANS, that they should constantly endeavour to form their whole conduct by a respect to the future judgment, which will be dispensed according to the gospel, to the law of liberty.
1. It ought never to be imagined that the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free was intended to weaken the obligations of our duty, or take away the binding force of the Divine precepts which are indispensable.
2. It would seem by the connection of the apostles discourse that he designed this particularly as a motive to candour and charity in all our deportment towards men.
3. There is in the exhortation of the text a designed reference to the universality of our obedience, as that only which can give us hope of being acquitted in judgment. (J. Abernethy, M. A.)
Amenable to the law of liberty
To be amenable to the law of liberty is a very solemn thing. It involves the question: Shall I be found by the Heart-searcher to have believed its doctrines and obeyed its rules? Many, however, there are who think–unbelieving and disobedient though they be–that, since Christianity is a law of liberty, they themselves will be absolved. Foolish dream! perilous presumption! Yes, Christianity brings freedom in her hand, and offers it to the devils bondslaves. But what kind of freedom? Not liberty to sin, but the emancipation of the soul from the very taste for what is wrong. And how is the freedom which she gives attained? By a moral change which these men have never undergone, and a faith which has never taken possession of their souls. Except by faith, even the blessed and generous religion of Jesus Christ delivers no one from the ban of the broken covenant of works. The apostle requires his readers so to speak, and so to do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty. This rule, of course, implies that words as well as deeds come within the scope of that procedure which will be taken account of at the day of judgment. So Christ expressly speaks (Mat 12:36). And, in accordance with this principle, James dwells largely in this Epistle on the right and wrong use of the tongue. (A. S. Patterson, D. D.)
Law and liberty
Go to a cripples hospital and see the poor creatures all about you with legs or arms tightly bound up with splints, bandages, and irons, cramped and well-nigh useless. We know well enough why their liberty is restrained like this, why they are made so uncomfortable; it is that the limbs may be brought into the proper position to be healed or straightened, so that the patients may have the free use of them when they leave the hospital. It would be a useless and stupid thing to deprive them of what little use they could make of their limbs unless there was some higher end in view. But in order to attain that higher end, the restraint, the bandages, the irons, &c., are indispensable. So it is in our religious life. The sense of duty, moral obligations, self-denial, with their constraining and restraining influence, are like the bandages, invaluable as means to the higher end of free, loving, loyal service of God. But if we rest there, if we do not try to rise above this, we lose all the brightness and joy and peace of life; we defeat the whole purpose of God towards us, which is, that we should serve Him with the free obedience of sons, and not with the forced service of slaves. We need to see that law fails in its object, unless it leads us to Christ, unless it ends in the service of Christ. The love of Christ transforms the hard you must of law into the glad I will of liberty, and so law and liberty are reconciled. (G. H. Fowler.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 12. So speak ye, and so do] Have respect to every commandment of God, for this the law of liberty – the Gospel of Jesus Christ, particularly requires; and this is the law by which all mankind, who have had the opportunity of knowing it, shall be judged. But all along St. James particularly refers to the precept, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
So speak ye, and so do: the apostle concluding his discourse about respecting persons, which consisted both in their words and actions, be directs them how to govern themselves in both.
As they that shall be judged; viz. for both your words and actions, and that, not only in your own consciences at present, but at Gods tribunal hereafter.
By the law of liberty; the gospel, of the liberty of which it is one branch, that these differences among men, of Jew and Gentile, bond and free, circumcised and uncircumcised, &c., are taken away, Act 10:28; Gal 3:28; Col 3:11; against this law of liberty you sin if you respect persons, and then may well fear to be judged by it; as it takes away differences of persons now, so it will make none at last, but will be as impartial in its judgment as it is in its commands.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
12. Summing up of the previousreasonings.
speakreferring back toJas 1:19; Jas 1:26;the fuller discussion of the topic is given Jas3:5-12.
judged by the law of liberty(Jas 1:25); that is, the Gospellaw of love, which is not a law of external constraint, but ofinternal, free, instinctive inclination. The law of liberty,through God’s mercy, frees us from the curse of the law, thathenceforth we should be free to love and obey willingly. If we willnot in turn practice the law of love to our neighbor, that law ofgrace condemns us still more heavily than the old law, which spakenothing but wrath to him who offended in the least particular (Jas2:13). Compare Mat 18:32-35;Joh 12:48; Rev 6:16,”Wrath of the (merciful) Lamb.”
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
So speak ye, and so do,…. Both words and actions should be taken care of; it becomes men to observe what they say, and what they do; for both sinful words and works are transgressions of the law, and will be brought to judgment; every idle word, as well as every evil work, both open and secret, men must give an account of in the day of judgment: wherefore it is incumbent on them so to behave,
as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty:
[See comments on Jas 1:25] with which compare Ro 2:12. Heathens will be judged by the law of nature, Jews by the law of Moses, and those who live under the Gospel dispensation, according to the Gospel of Christ.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
So speak ye, and so do ( ). Present active imperatives as a habit. For the combination see 1:19-21 contrasted with 1:22-25, and 1:26 with 1:27.
By a law of liberty ( ). The law pictured in 1:25, but law, after all, not individual caprice of “personal liberty.” See Ro 2:12 for this same use of with in the sense of accompaniment as in Rom 2:27; Rom 4:11; Rom 14:20. “Under the law of liberty.”
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
So. With reference to what follows, speak and do.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) James thus admonishes that one should habitually and continually speak (Gr. laleite) and act (Gr. poieite) in a lawful way and in an inoffensive manner. Such he describes as becoming to the “law of liberty” – the law of Jesus Christ, by which all shall one day be judged, Psa 1:1-3; Jas 1:25. And by which they are now being judged in chastisement, 1Co 11:31-32; Heb 12:5-11.
2) All shall be judged one day according to things written in the Word of God, based upon the principles set forth in the New Testament, confirmed by Jesus Christ, and clarified by the Apostles, Gal 5:13; 2Ti 3:16-17.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
12 So speak ye. Some give this explanation, that as they flattered themselves too much, they are summoned to the right tribunal; for men absolve themselves according to their own notions, because they withdraw themselves from the judgment of the divine law. He then reminds them that all deeds and words are there to be accounted for, because God will judge the world according to his law. As, however, such a declaration might have smitten them with immoderate terror, to correct or mitigate what they might have thought severe, he adds, the law of liberty. For we know what Paul says,
“
Whosoever are under the law are under a curse.” (Gal 3:10.)
Hence the judgment of the law in itself is condemnation to eternal death; but he means by the word liberty, that we are freed from the rigor of the law.
This meaning is not altogether unsuitable, though if one examines more minutely what immediately follows, he will see that James meant another thing; the sense is as though he had said, “Except ye wish to undergo the rigor of the law, ye must be less rigid towards your neighbors; for the law of liberty is the same as the mercy of God, which delivers us from the curse of the law” And so this verse ought to be read with what follows, where he speaks of the duty of bearing with infirmities. And doubtless the whole passage thus reads well: “Since none of us can stand before God, except we be delivered and freed from the strict rigor of the law, we ought so to act, that we may not through too much severity exclude the indulgence or mercy of God, of which we all have need to the last.”
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(12) So speak ye, and so do.The writer has shown how unsuspected sins lead quickly to a violation of the Law, and in concluding this part of his Epistle he returns to the warning against an unguarded tongue, with which he commenced in chap 1:26.
The law of liberty.The term is only found here and in Jas. 1:25, and seems one of which James the Wise was peculiarly fond. What, however, did he precisely mean? Neither the ceremonial, nor the moral, most certainly; but the spiritual law of One greater than Moses. The idea, however, is in most of the New Testament writings, and particularly St. Pauls. (Comp. Joh. 8:32; Rom. 8:21; 1Co. 10:29; 2Co. 3:17; Gal. 2:4; Gal. 5:1; Gal. 5:13; and 1Pe. 2:16.)
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
12. Speak do The two great departments of external Christian morality; the manifestations of the character of the internal man. They must so speak and do in all respects, and especially in their dealings with the rich and the poor; for it must be remembered that that subject is still in sight.
The law of liberty As given by a royal lawgiver, and ruling with a royal authority, it is a royal law; as obeyed with a free, spontaneous heart, it is a law of liberty; as enjoining and inspiring universal comity, it is a law of love.
Judged For this law not only requires love, but judges and condemns the want of it as evidenced by the speak and do. This want they evidence in this case by their respect of persons. They do not deal with the poor according to the evangelical law of liberty.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘So speak you, and so do, as men who are to be judged by a law of liberty.’
He then applies his words to the Christians who are hearing his letter read to them. They are to recognise this principle and speak and act accordingly, recognising that their words and their actions are to be judged by means of the perfect law, the law of liberty (Jas 1:25). But that law is not called the law of liberty because it frees men from the need to obey it and lowers God’s standards. It is called the ‘law of liberty’ because:
It has been freed by Jesus from all the extra requirements added by man and stands out in all its purity (Mar 7:13). It has thus become a law of liberation.
It has been amplified and expanded on in order to deal with thoughts as well as actions, freeing men from a dead letter and positively requiring purity of thought.
It is there to be observed gladly and heartily by all who have been set free from its condemnation and its power to drive men to despair by their whole-hearted response to God and the Lord, Jesus Christ (Joh 8:34-36; Rom 8:1-16; compare the Psalmist’s joy in the Law in Psalms 119).
It is the law of all who have been freed from sin and are now His servants (1Pe 2:16) and sons (Rom 8:14-17; Gal 4:4-7).
It lays bare the way of freedom, for if it is observed fully it makes all men free from sin, and it is the law of freedom because it works hand in hand with God’s work in the heart by which He brings those who respond to Him in obedience to Him and His law so that they are free to fulfil it (Jer 31:31 ff. Heb 8:8-12; Php 2:13).
Obedience to it brings men into freedom and blessedness, and gives them fullness of life (Psa 1:1-3; Psa 119:1-3; Psa 119:162-165; Lev 18:5).
Thus we too must come to that law and read and study it. For it will show us what it means to be free from sin, and will drive us to call on the strength and power of Christ in order to overcome. And it will convict us of anything in which we go wrong. For studying that Law is ‘coming to the light’, and that will show us the sin from which we need to be cleansed by the blood of Jesus (1Jn 1:7-10).
And the result of that cleansing is a constant new freedom. As Jesus said, If the Son shall make you free, you will be free indeed’ (Joh 8:36) and that by freeing us from our slavery to sin (Joh 8:34), so that we obey ‘the law of Christ’, God’s perfect Law as revealed especially in the two great commandments and in the Sermon on the Mount. For His service, which brings us under full obedience to Him, is perfect freedom, because it frees us from anything else that might bind us. From then on we need to live only in accordance with the will of our Father (Mat 7:21). And we do this not out of fear (its power to finally condemn is broken) but out of love.
To use the illustration in Jas 1:23-25, this law is like a mirror into which we can look so that it shows us the truth about ourselves. But once we have seen what we are the mirror has done its work, and we do not then scrub ourselves with the mirror (which would be of shining metal). Rather we turn from the mirror to the water and wash ourselves clean. In the same way when the Law reveals that we are ‘dirty’ we do not then use the Law as a cleansing agent (although they did under the old Law by turning to offerings and sacrifices). Rather it becomes our tutor to point us to Christ (Gal 3:24). We allow the law to point us to Jesus Christ as the Saviour from sin Who was sacrificed for us (Joh 1:29; 1Co 5:7; 2Co 5:21 ; 1Pe 1:18-19; Hebrews 8-10; Rom 8:3) and was put forth as the propitiation for our sins (Rom 3:24). And we come in order to be cleansed by His blood, that is, by His blood shed for us (1Jn 1:7). James recognises this as well as Paul and Peter, for it is intrinsic in his argument here. Otherwise his words simply leave every man guilty before God. And he now expresses this point succintly.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Jam 2:12. So speak ye, and so do, &c. “Let it therefore be your care, that ye so speak and so act as those that shall be judged by the law of liberty, by the glorious gospel, which is a dispensation that sets us at liberty from the bondage of the Jewish ritual, and directs us to all the branches of that virtue and holiness, which is the truest liberty of the mind, and which, being so excellent, must subject us to the severest punishment, if we presume to contemn it.”
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Jas 2:12 . To what has hitherto been said the general exhortation is annexed: So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty. A new section does not here begin, as Wetstein, Semler, and others assume; but with this and the following verse the course of thought commenced at Jas 2:1 is concluded; not until Jas 2:14 does the thought take a new turn. The connection with what has gone before is to be thus explained, that Jas 2:13 evidently points to the respect of persons with regard to the poor, and refers to chap. Jas 1:27 .
] “is not to be referred to what precedes, but to the following , thus: so as is necessary for those who,” etc.; thus in former editions. But by this explanation the thought is too abruptly introduced; therefore it would be more correct to refer to what precedes ( , i.e. according to the rule stated in Jas 2:10 f., Brckner), and to take not as an explication, but as “a confirmation” (Lange).
James takes up not only the doing ( ), but also the speaking ( ), to which not only the conduct of his readers, specified in Jas 2:2 ff., but their sinful volubility of tongue generally led; see Jas 1:19 , Jas 3:1-12 . The repetition of serves for the heightening of the thought; here is the same as in Rom 2:12 ; see also Joh 12:48 ; Joh 5:45 : correctly Wiesinger: “the law is a means because a measure;” incorrectly Kern: vi ac jure leges. The is also here not the gospel, as the publication of the grace of God, or the Christian religion (Semler, Pott, Gebser), also not specially the mentioned in Jas 2:7 as a single command, but it is the same as is mentioned in chap. Jas 1:25 . [129] The demand which James here expresses is that Christians as such, who shall be judged by the , must regulate by it the whole course of their lives. From what has directly gone before, one might infer that James wishes particularly to warn against the pretext combated in Jas 2:10 , but Jas 2:13 shows that he has rather in view the want of compassionate love, forming the heart and pulse of the , which was renounced by his readers in their (Jas 2:6 ).
[129] Kern: “James, by the expression . ., reminds them that the for Christians is indeed according to form a new one, being converted into a willing impulse, but that it does not on this account cease, according to its nature, to be the rule of moral action, and thus also of judgment.”
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
DISCOURSE: 2364
THE LAW OF LIBERTY
Jam 2:12. So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.
THE law of works contained in the Ten Commandments is continued in force under the Gospel dispensation, as a rule of life. This appears from the frequent reference which is made to it in the New Testament in this particular view. St. Paul, in his Epistle to the Romans, when inculcating the duty of love, says, Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.for love is the fulfilling of the law [Note: Rom 13:8-10.]. In like manner St. James, condemning an undue respect of persons which had obtained to a great extent in the Christian Church, says, If ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors [Note: ver. 9.]. The difference which exists between the Law and the Gospel, is not that the Gospel dispenses with any thing which the law had enjoined, but that it requires the same things in a different manner; the law inculcating them as the means of obtaining life; the Gospel requiring them as the means of honouring God, and of manifesting that life which God has already imparted to the soul. The law in its requirements begets a spirit of bondage: but the Gospel, whilst its requirements are the same, operates as a law of liberty; inspiring us with motives of a more ingenuous kind, and at the same time imparting to the believer such powerful assistance as renders obedience easy and delightful. Hence the Apostle, shewing that the conduct which he was reproving was condemned by the Gospel no less than by the law, (for the Gospel itself declares, that he shall have judgment without mercy, who has shewn no mercy [Note: ver. 13.],) entreats the whole Christian Church so to speak, and so to act, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.
Now in these words we see,
I.
The true character of the Gospel
It is a law, and has all the force of a law, and must be obeyed on pain of Gods heavy displeasure; but it is a law of liberty: and this it is,
1.
As freeing men from the guilt of sin
[The Gospel proclaims, to all who receive it, pardon and peace. It holds forth a Saviour, who has bought us with his blood, and by the sacrifice of himself has effected our reconciliation with the offended Majesty of heaven. It declares, that by receiving that Saviour, however guilty we may have been in times past, we shall have the privilege of becoming the sons of God [Note: Joh 1:12.] In this it differs widely from the law: the law knew nothing of pardon: it simply said, Do this, and live: and if in one single instance it was violated, all hopes of acceptance by it were destroyed for ever [Note: Compare ver. 10. with Gal 3:10.]. A certain kind of forgiveness indeed was obtained by the offering of certain sacrifices: but it was only such a measure of it as exempted the person from present punishment, but could never procure acceptance for him in the eternal world; and hence, as it could never really take away sins, it could never make any man perfect as pertaining to the conscience [Note: Heb 9:9; Heb 10:1-4.]. Moreover, there were some sins for which no sacrifice whatever could be received. But the Gospel offers a full and everlasting remission from all sins, and declares, that all who believe, are justified from all things, even from those from which they could never (even in appearance) be justified by the law of Moses [Note: Act 13:39.]. Thus by announcing to the whole world, that there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus [Note: Rom 8:1.], the Gospel may justly be called A law of liberty.]
2.
As freeing men from the power of sin
[The promise which the Gospel makes to all who truly receive it, is this; Sin shall not have dominion over you; for ye are not under the law, but under grace [Note: Rom 6:14.]. And, whilst it gives this assurance to its votaries, it imparts to them the power of carrying it into effect. The person who is united unto Christ by faith, is like a scion, which when engrafted into a tree, lives by virtue derived from the tree, and is enabled from that time to bring forth its appropriate fruits. Our Lord in this view says, I am the vine; ye are the branches. He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me, or separate from me, ye can do nothing [Note: Joh 15:1; Joh 15:5.]. In this again the Gospel differs widely from the law: for, whilst the law issued its commands, it imparted no power to obey them: but the Gospel conveys to the soul of the believer such a measure of strength, as enables it to mortify sin, and to abound in all the fruits of righteousness to the praise and glory of God. This is what St. Paul expressly tells us: The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, that is, the Gospel, (which St. James in nearly similar terms calls the law of liberty,) hath made me free from the law of sin and death: for what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God, sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, (hath done; that is, he hath) condemned sin in the flesh; that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit [Note: Rom 8:2-4.].
I may add, that the Gospel gives us a more liberal spirit, in that it does not force us to do what is hateful to us, but disposes us willingly to take upon us the yoke of Christ, and renders his yoke easy, and his burthen light. The current of a believers affections is changed by it [Note: Col 3:2.]; so that, though he still feels the workings of corruption strong within him, he delights in the law of God after his inward man [Note: Rom 7:22.], and has his conversation in heaven, as the unbeliever has on earth [Note: Php 3:19-20.].
Thus does the law of faith [Note: Rom 3:27.] make men free [Note: Joh 8:32.]; and the liberty which they receive from Christ renders them free indeed [Note: Joh 8:36.].]
The Apostle, in calling mens attention to the law of liberty, marks,
II.
Our duty in relation to it
If we have been made free by the Gospel, we are bound to regard it,
1.
As our rule of conduct here
[The substance of all its commands is comprehended in one word, Love. As he that loveth fulfils the law, so he that loveth fulfils the Gospel also; as St. Paul has said; Bear ye one anothers burthens, and so fulfil the law of Christ [Note: Gal 6:2.]. But here we must particularly observe, that our obedience to this law is not restricted to overt acts: our whole spirit must accord with it, and be moulded by it. If we notice the particular conduct which the Apostle reproves, we shall find, that it was not such as would have brought down censure from the world at large: it would rather have been commended as a respect due to the higher orders of society. But, when strictly examined, it was contrary to the principle of love: and that was quite sufficient to render it an object of severest reprobation. The doing as we would be done unto, forms the proper standard for our conduct towards all mankind: and if, either in word or deed, we deviate from that, we transgress that holy law which we are bound to obey. How far this heavenly principle extends, may be seen in the description given of it by St. Paul: and, if we do not in the constant habit of our minds endeavour to attain it, we may believe what we will, and do what we will, and suffer what we may, but, after all, we shall be only as sounding brass, and as tinkling cymbals [Note: 1Co 13:1-7.].]
2.
As Gods rule of judgment hereafter
[By this law we shall be judged in the last day. It is remarkable, that in the account which our Lord gives us of the final judgment, there is no mention made of any actual transgression as determining the fate of the ungodly: their performance of the offices of love is the only subject of inquiry; and their neglect of them is the only ground that is specified for their eternal condemnation [Note: Mat 25:34-46.]. Of course, I must not be understood to say, that this will really be the only subject of inquiry, or the only ground of a sinners condemnation; for no doubt the whole of mens lives will be taken into the account in fixing their eternal destiny: but it is the only thing mentioned by our Lord in his account of that day: and this is sufficient to shew us the vast importance of keeping it ever in our view. We must attend to it no less in our words, than in our actions; and so speak, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.]
That we may bring home this subject more powerfully to your hearts, we would entreat you to bear in mind the main points contained in it:
Remember
1.
The true nature of the Gospel
[Men universally conceive of the Gospel as a system of restraints: and when we call upon them to obey the Gospel, they consider us as attempting to abridge their liberty. But the very reverse of this is true. We find men slaves to the world, and sin, and Satan; and we come to break their chains, and to set them at liberty. Our blessed Lord proclaimed this as the great object of his mission, to preach deliverance to the captives, and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord [Note: Luk 4:18-19.]. There are now, as there were in the Jewish state, many who love their bonds, and account the service of their master preferable to the liberty that is proclaimed. But this does not at all change the nature of the Gospel, which is altogether a law of liberty to all who truly embrace it. Do not then imagine, that, when we would induce you to renounce all the lords that have had dominion over you, we would bring you into bondage, or deprive you of any thing that will conduce to your real happiness. We make our appeal to yourselves, and ask, Whether what you have hitherto considered as liberty, has not been in reality the sorest bondage? We ask, Whether sin has not kept you from the love and service of God, and bound you as with adamantine chains to the objects of time and sense? We ask, Whether in proportion as you were brought to the employment and felicity of the heavenly hosts, you would not attain to perfect freedom? To all then we say, Believe in Christ, and give yourselves up to him, and ye shall then be delivered from the bondage of corruption, into the glorious liberty of the children of God [Note: Rom 8:21.].]
2.
Its proper tendency
[Strange as the inconsistency is, the very persons who will exclaim against the Gospel as making the way to heaven so strait that nobody can walk in it, will cry out against it also as a licentious doctrine, and will represent the preachers of it as saying, that men may live as they please, provided only they believe. But the Gospel is a doctrine according to godliness; and the very grace of God which bringeth salvation, teaches men to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to live righteously, soberly, and godly in this present world. The Gospel, it is true, is a law of liberty; but not of liberty to live in sin: it is a liberty from sin; and a liberty in the ways of God. Instead of superseding morality, it raises the tone of morals to the highest possible pitch, requiring us to walk in all things as Christ walked, and to purify ourselves even as he is pure. And, whilst it sets up this high standard for our attainment, it sets up the same for our trial in the last day; and requires us so to speak and so to do, as they that shall be tried and judged by it. Know therefore, that notwithstanding the Gospel is as free for all as the light we see and the air we breathe, its proper tendency is to assimilate us to God, whose name and nature is love [Note: 1Jn 4:8; 1Jn 4:16.].]
3.
The wisdom of all who profess to have embraced it
[Doubtless it is your privilege to be rejoicing in God your Saviour, and in the freeness and fulness of his salvation But you must also keep in view the future judgment, and be acting continually with a reference to it. There is no dispensation given to you to continue in sin: Shall you continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. The scrutiny which you shall undergo in the last day, so far from being less exact than that of others, will be more strict, in proportion to the advantages you have enjoyed, and the professions you have made [Note: 1Pe 4:17.]. Your acceptance, it is true, will be solely on account of what the Lord Jesus Christ has done and suffered for you: but the truth of your faith will be tried by the works it has produced: and according to the measure and quality of them will be your reward. I say then, in all that you say and do, have respect to the future judgment, when God will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the heart: and in order to your being approved of God in that day, walk in love, as Christ has loved you [Note: Eph 5:2.]; and, whilst you endeavour to walk in his steps let the same mind also be in you as was in Christ Jesus [Note: Php 2:5.].]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
12 So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.
Ver. 12. As they that shall be judged ] Or, as they that should judge by the law of liberty; which is so called, because it doth freely and fully discover unto every man, without respect of persons, the errors and evils of his life. And we should walk as patterns of the rule. See Trapp on “ Mat 11:19 “ It is also called a law of liberty, because it is freely and willingly kept of the regenerate, to whom it is no burden or bondage.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
12, 13 .] Concluding and summary exhortations , to speak and act as subject to the law of liberty and love.
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
12 .] So speak (pres. as regarding a habit of life) and so do ( both times does not regard what has gone before, but what follows: , . Speaking had been before hinted at in ch. Jas 1:19 ; and will come again under consideration in ch. 3.), as being about to be judged by (by means of, as the measure by which your lives will be estimated) the law of liberty (the same as in ch. Jas 1:25 ; that perfect expansion of God’s will, resting on the free unrestrained principle of love, which is the moral code of the gospel. And the point of the exhortation is as Schol.-Matthi, , ).
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Jas 2:12 . : When one thinks of the teaching of our Lord in such passages as Mat 5:22 ; Mat 5:28 , where sinful feelings and thoughts are reckoned as equally wicked with sinful words and acts, it is a little difficult to get away from the impression that in the verse before us the teaching is somewhat inadequate from the Christian, though not from the Jewish, point of view. : See above Jas 1:22 ; Jas 1:25 , and cf. Joh 7:32-36 . : cf. Jas 2:7-8 , and especially Jas 2:9 , .
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
speak. App-121.
shall = are about to.
judged. App-122.
by. App-104. Jam 2:1.
liberty. Compare Jam 1:25.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
12, 13.] Concluding and summary exhortations, to speak and act as subject to the law of liberty and love.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Jam 2:12. , so speak ye) Be such in speech. In this summing up, he refers to ch. Jam 1:26.- , by the law of liberty) See note at ch. Jam 1:25. The law abhors slavery, and therefore also the having respect to persons.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
speak: Phi 4:8, Col 3:17, 2Pe 1:4-8
the: Jam 2:8, Jam 1:25
Reciprocal: Psa 119:45 – And I will Joh 8:32 – and the 1Pe 2:16 – free
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
LAW AND LIBERTY
The law or liberty.
Jam 2:12
Lawmerely lawlaw onlyis a bondage harsh and severe. Liberty alone, and unguarded, passes into licentiousness, runs riot, and becomes tyranny. Law needs to be sweetened by liberty, and liberty is no liberty without the fences of law. St. James strikingly blends them, and finds the blending where only it existsin Gods Word. It would not be too much to say that the Christian religion is the only code in the whole world which ever has united, or can perfectly unite, those two things, so as to make them really one.
See how it is in Gods method.
I. We look at the liberty. Every man who becomes a real Christian becomes a free man.
(a) He is free from the past.
(b) He is free for his future.
(c) He is free to go to the Throne of Grace.
(d) He is free to claim every promise.
II. Now see the lawthe perfect law of liberty. God has given, since the creation, four laws to man; but only one of the four can be rightly called a law of liberty.
(a) The original lam of all was the law of conscience, a law which if man had not fallen would have been, we must believe, a perfect guide. But as man is now, conscience is only law in so far as it is the reflection of other laws which God has given us.
(b) Secondly. There was a law given to Adam and Eve in Paradise. This was a law of prohibition. Therefore it was not a law of liberty. Prohibition can never be distinctly liberty.
(c) The next law which God gave was the law enacted from Mount Sinai, so perfect that St. Paul says to the Galatians, If there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law. But neither was this a law of liberty.
(d) Fourthly, came the law of the Lord Jesus Christ. See what is the basis and the character of that fourth law. Every other law had failed; no man kept it, or could keep it. If a mans eternal happiness depended upon any law which could be given, no man, from Adam to the latest man, could have fulfilled the condition. Christ saw that, and He came, and He Himself fulfilled all the law, to the minutest point.
III. What, then, is our law?Love; love; love for a law which has been kept for us. For see how it is. As soon as I believereally believein Christ as my Saviour, all my sins are forgiven, my debt to God is paid, and I am free. That sense of freedom is delight. But no one can have that and not love the Giver. If I do not love, I have not it; but if I love, then I am under a lawthe law of love; and the law of that love is holiness. And what is holiness? Obedience; likeness; service; usefulness.
Illustration
In every revelation of Divine truth contained in the Gospel there is a direct moral and practical bearing. No word of the New Testament is given us in order that we may know truth, but all in order that we may do it. Every part of it palpitates with life and is meant to regulate conduct. There are plenty of truths of which it does not matter whether a man believes them or not in so far as his conduct is concerned. Mathematical truth or scientific truth leaves conduct unaffected. But no man can believe the principles that are laid down in the New Testament and the truths that are unveiled there without these laying a masterful grip upon his life and influencing all that he is.
Fuente: Church Pulpit Commentary
Jas 2:12. Law of liberty is the one named in chapter 1:25 and refers to the New Testament. So speak ye and so do. Since that law is the one by which we will be judged, our lives should be regulated by it now.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Jas 2:12. So speak ye and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty. The law of liberty is not here the moral law, nor the love of our neighbour as a single commandment, but the same as that mentioned in the former chapter: Whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty(Jas 1:25). See explanation of that passage. Believers are under the law of liberty, because they are freed from the condemning sentence of the moral law, and are delivered from the enslaving power of sin, a disposition having been implanted within them which renders them willing to obey the Divine commands. The spirit of bondage is superseded by the spirit of adoption. And by this law of liberty believers shall be judged; their good works will be rewarded, and their voluntary obedience to the moral law which springs from faith in Christ will be graciously accepted. They are no longer under the moral law, as a rule of rewards and punishments, but under gracethis law of liberty.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Jas 2:12-13. So speak ye, and so do In all things; as they that shall be judged Without respect of persons; by the law of liberty The gospel, (see on Jas 1:25,) the law of universal love, which alone is perfect freedom. For their transgression of this, both in word and deed, the wicked shall be condemned. And according to their works, done in obedience to this, the righteous will be rewarded. For he shall have judgment without mercy In that day; who hath showed no mercy To his poor brethren; and, or rather but, mercy The mercy of God to believers, answering to that which they have shown, will then rejoice, or glory, over judgment.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Verse 12
So speak; so teach.–The law of liberty; the gospel.
Fuente: Abbott’s Illustrated New Testament
So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.
“So speak ye” calls every believer to watch their speech, especially to the brethren. We will be judged by the law of liberty, thus we need to speak as though we know the hammer is raised over our head and ready to fall if we speak unwisely.
Eph 4:29 “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.”
If, as we have shown before, the law of liberty is that revealed will of God, then we know that we are free or at liberty to do anything that we want, but here we are shown that some of that freedom will be judged if it is incorrectly used freedom.
We are free to show partiality, but we will be held accountable for doing so. We can practice equality among all and we will be rewarded for our good works. We can speak and do anything we want, but we shall be judged one day yet future.
The speaking and doing are imperatives, or commands, if you will. While we are saying and doing, we are to do it correctly. The saying and doing are not options for life, but commands for life. It is of interest that the judging is also a present tense which means we will be judged along the way as we are saying and doing.
Many speak of the judgment seat of Christ and the future date of that occurrence and well it probably is, but in some manner tabs are being set as we go along the way – God is keeping up with how we are saying and doing. That ought to scare the sloppy living believer – to know that God is watching on a day to day basis and keeping track of how they are doing and that tracking is resulting in continuing judgment.
I don’t know the effect of this ongoing judging, but what if, as we are living poorly, we are being judged and as time goes on there is no change in our lives – will God begin to bring changes into our lives relating to how He is judging us?
This probably relates, in part, to the chastisement of the believer mentioned in Hebrews twelve. It is clear that an erring child of God is chastised for their inappropriate life.
It also probably relates to the fact of John fifteen, where it seems clear that an unfruitful branch is removed – not destroyed, but removed. The clear indication is that an unfruitful believer is open to removal from this life rather than be allowed to damage the whole.
Many teach that you only need to take Jesus on and you are in – true, but there are true ramifications to not moving from the point of salvation onto a righteous way of life filled, with proper actions and good works.
Only believers are subject to this law, all others will be judged by the law that they failed to respond to. All are condemned by the law, but all can be commuted by Christ.
Fuente: Mr. D’s Notes on Selected New Testament Books by Stanley Derickson
2:12 {7} So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.
(7) The conclusion of the whole treatise: we are upon this condition delivered from the curse of the law by the mercy of God, that in the same way we should maintain and cherish charity and good will towards one another, and whoever does not do so, shall not taste of the grace of God.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
6. The implication of our own judgment 2:12-13
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
The law of liberty (Jas 1:25) is the law of God that liberates us now. It is the same as the law of Christ (Gal 6:2) in contrast to the Mosaic Law. As free as we are under the law of Christ, we need to remember that God will judge us (Rom 14:10-13; 1Co 3:12-15; 2Co 5:10). We need to speak and act accordingly, namely, without prejudice toward others.
"Since he is speaking to believers, the judgment to which he refers must be the judgment of believers at the judgment seat of Christ (2Co 5:10)." [Note: Burdick, p. 180.]