Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of James 1:2
My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
2. count it all joy ] We lose, in the English, the link which connects the wish for “joy” merged in our “greeting,” with the thought which indicates how the wish may be realised even under conditions that seem most adverse to it. The transition may be noticed as characteristic of the style of the Epistle. Other examples of a like method will meet us as we go on. The Greek formula for “all joy” (literally, every kind of joy) suggests the thought of the varied elements of joy that were to be found in the manifold forms of trial.
into divers temptations ] The word, as commonly in the New Testament, stands for trials that take the form of suffering, rather than for the enticements of pleasure. Comp. Luk 22:28; Act 20:19; 1Co 10:13; 1Pe 1:6. Its use implies accordingly that those to whom the Epistle was written were passing through a time of adversity. This was true, more or less, of the whole Jewish race, everywhere, but it was specially true of those who being of the Twelve Tribes, also held the faith of the Lord Jesus Christ, and of those most of all who were most within the writer’s view. Comp. 1Th 2:14; Heb 10:32-33, for the sufferings of Jewish and specially of Hebrew Christians. The word for “fall into” implies an unlooked-for concurrence of adverse circumstances.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
My brethren – Not brethren as Jews, but as Christians. Compare Jam 2:1.
Count it all joy – Regard it as a thing to rejoice in; a matter which should afford you happiness. You are not to consider it as a punishment, a curse, or a calamity, but as a fit subject of felicitation. Compare the notes at Mat 5:12.
When ye fall into divers temptations – Oh the meaning of the word temptations, see the notes at Mat 4:1. It is now commonly used in the sense of placing allurements before others to induce them to sin, and in this sense the word seems to be used in Jam 1:13-14 of this chapter. Here, however, the word is used in the sense of trials, to wit, by persecution, poverty, calamity of any kind. These cannot be said to be direct inducements or allurements to sin, but they try the faith, and they show whether he who is tried is disposed to adhere to his faith in God, or whether he will apostatize. They so far coincide with temptations, properly so called, as to test the religion of men. They differ from temptations, properly so called, in that they are not brought before the mind for the express purpose of inducing people to sin. In this sense it is true that God never tempts men, Jam 1:13-14. On the sentiment in the passage before us, see the notes at 1Pe 1:6-7. The word divers here refers to the various kinds of trials which they might experience – sickness, poverty, bereavement, persecution, etc. They were to count it a matter of joy that their religion was subjected to anything that tried it. It is well for us to have the reality of our religion tested, in whatever way it may be done.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Jam 1:2-4
Count it all Joy when ye fall Into divers temptations
The Christians duty in times of trial
This positive injunction of the Christian ethics may seem too difficult, if not impossible to be obeyed.
And even if the natural repugnance to suffering can be vanquished, the moral sense still shrinks from what is here commanded, to rejoice in temptation. The paradox is not to be removed by violently changing the established meaning of the word, which never means affliction simply, but in every case conveys the idea of a moral trial, or a test of character. A temptation, to which patience is the proper antidote, must be specifically a temptation to impatience, a rebellious temper, to which we are tempted by a state of suffering. We must, therefore, understand the words as having reference to those providential trials of mens faith and patience in which they are rather passive than active, and under which their appropriate duty is not so much resistance as submission. But even these trials and temptations are not to be sought for or solicited. It is not the mere name, or pretence, or some infinitesimal degree of joy, that believers under trial are to exercise, but all joy as opposed to none, and to too little, and to every kind of counterfeit. So far from repining when you fall into divers trials, count it all joy. But as we know, both from Scripture and experience, that no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous, and that afterward () it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness to them which are exercised thereby (Heb 12:11). This is perfectly consistent with the form of expression ( ) which might even be translated to mean when or after, ye have fallen into divers trials. This precise determination of the time at which the joy is to be exercised, as not the time of actual endurance, much less that of previous expectation, but rather that of subsequent reflection–I mean subsequent, if not to the whole trial, yet at least to its inception–this may throw some light on two points. The first is the paradoxical aspect of the exhortation to rejoice in that which necessarily involves pain and suffering. The paradox, to say the least, may seem less startling if we understand the text as calling upon men to rejoice, not that they are suffering, or while they suffer, although even this does not transcend the limits of experience, as we know from the triumphant joy of martyrs at the stake, and of many a lowlier believer on his death-bed, but that they have suffered, that it has pleased God, without their own concurrence, to afford them the occasion of attesting their fidelity, and submission to His will. The other point on which the same consideration may throw some light, is the choice of an expression which, although it primarily signifies no more than moral trial or a test of character, in general usage does undoubtedly denote a positive solicitation to do wrong. For even in this worst sense of temptation, it may be a subject of rejoicing, not beforehand, no, nor in the very crisis of the spiritual conflict; but when that is past, looking back upon the fearful risk which has been escaped, not merely with gratitude for its deliverance, but with unaffected joy that there was such a risk to be delivered from, because it has now, served to magnify Gods grace, and at the same time to attest its own fidelity. Just as the soldier, who would have been guilty of the grossest rashness, if he had deliberately thrown himself into the way of a superior enemy, may–when unexpectedly surrounded and attacked, he has heroically cut his way through–rejoice, not only in his safety, but in the very danger which compelled him to achieve it. But the joy experienced in the case before us is not merely retrospective, but prospective also. It is not an ignorant or blind joy, but is founded in knowledge, not only of the principles on which men ought to act, but of the consequences which may be expected from a certain course of action or of suffering. The trials or temptations of the Christian are the test of his faith, both in the strict and comprehensive sense. They put to the proof his trust in God, his belief of a hat God says, of what He promises. But in so doing, they afford the surest test of his whole religious character. Specific trust in Gods veracity and faithfulness cannot be an insulated act, or habit. It must have its causes and effects homogeneous to itself in the mans creed, in his heart, in his life. But it does not merely furnish present evidence of faith. It produces a permanent effect upon the character. It generates a habit of patient endurance in the way of Gods commandments, For of patience, as of faith, it may be said that it cannot stand alone, independently of other graces of Christian character. The principle of active and passive obedience is the same. He who will not do Gods will cannot endure it in a Christian spirit. He can only endure it in the way of punishment. Evangelical patience carries with it evangelical obedience or activity. It therefore comprehends a very large part of practical religion, and to say that it is matured by trial is to say that trial or temptation, in the sense here put upon the term, is an important means of grace, of spiritual growth, and instead of being angrily complained of as a hardship, ought not indeed to be desired any more than medicines, especially when composed of poisons, should be used as ordinary food; but when administered, without our agency or even option, by the Great Physician, should be thankfully submitted to, and afterwards rejoiced in, as a potent agency of Gods appointment which produces great effects, not by a sudden change, but, as the original expression seems to mean, by a gradual and long-continued process; for the trial of our faith worketh out, elaborates, and as it were laboriously cultivates a habit of persistent obedience and submission to the will of God, both in the way of doing and suffering. That the patience thus commended is not a sluggish principle, much less a mere condition of repose, but something active in itself and tending to activity in others, is evident enough from the apostles exhortation not to hinder it in its operation, but to let it have its perfect work or full effect. Could tills be said of mere inertia, or even patient nonresistance? All this affords abundant room for wise discrimination. It is evidently not a matter which can be conducted to a safe issue by mere audacity or force of will, by cutting knots which ought to be untied, which can neither solve themselves nor be solved by any intellectual force short of wisdom in the highest sense. This wisdom, the idea of which was familiar to the wisest of the heathen, has been realised only in the school of revelation. And woe to him who undertakes, without it, to solve the intricate and fearful problem of mans character and destiny! (J. A. Alexander, D. D.)
Christs school of suffering
Luther has somewhere made that fine confession, that there were chiefly three things which had introduced him into the depths of true divinity, and which he was, therefore, accustomed to recommend to every one as proved–viz., silent meditation on the Word of God; persevering and ardent prayer, together with the Word of God; and inward and outward attacks on account of the Word of God. It is trial which must arouse the spirit plunged into earthly concerns, and benumbed by the influence of the world out of the sleep of security, and point him to that Word which leads the foolish to wisdom, the sinner to righteousness, Besides, in many cases, especially in the days of carnal ease, the flame of prayer, even on the altar of the regenerated mans heart, would burn out, if trials, returning from time to time, did not carry fresh wood to stir anew the fire of devotion. It is only by struggling that the inward life can become strong: it is only in the storm that the stem of life and godliness can take deeper and firmer roots.
I. In Germany it is one of the requisites of civil law, that he who wants to become a citizen SHALL PASS THROUGH THE POPULAR SCHOOL. They, therefore, speak of a legal school-duty which no one is permitted to shun.
There is, also, such a duty in the kingdom of God. He who wants to become a citizen of that kingdom must not refuse to enter the school of suffering which the Lord Himself has instituted on earth, and sanctified by His example. Already, as the natural descendant of Adam, the first sinner, every one has to carry his share of the common misery which weighs on humanity, and cannot avoid it. But what for the natural man is only a constraint laid upon him from without, is, in the case of the Christian, spiritualised and glorified into a deed of voluntary obedience. The disciple is not above his Master, nor the servant above his Lord. If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. We must, through much tribulation, enter into the kingdom of God. They declare the duty of suffering to be a general law of the Christian life. If, therefore, we look into the roll of the citizens of the heavenly kingdom, we do not find there a single one who had not, in the school of suffering, to resolve heavier or easier tasks, and been obliged to stop longer or shorter there. You have, therefore, no right to complain, if the Lord takes you into the school of suffering, and there assigns you your task. You thereby only fulfil an obligation incumbent upon you as a citizen of the kingdom of God. You will not wish to be exempt from what is the lot of every one. Yea, it is an honour for you to belong to a school through which have passed the prophets and the apostles themselves, and out of which are come the first-fruits of the creatures of God.
II. The peculiarity of each school arises out of THE FIXED AIM TRIED TO BE ATTAINED WITH THE PUPILS, AND FOR WHICH, THEREFORE, ALL SCHOOL ARRANGEMENTS ARE CALCULATED. Thus, the burgher-school wants to form able burghers; the practical school, clever tradesmen; the military school, gallant soldiers; the college, intelligent servants of the sate and of the Church. In a similar manner, Christs school of suffering pursues a fixed aim. He wants to form His pupils into thoroughly-qualified men; in short, He wants to make nothing less of them than princes and priests in the kingdom of the immortal God. His patience and His obedience, His meekness and His humility, His firm faith and His persevering hope, His victorious fight and His glorious perfection, are to be reflected in the trial of their sufferings, so that He may be able to behold in them the true followers of His spirit, and sharers of His glorious life. From this point of view the apostles considered their sufferings, and by this the sharpest sting of them was broken, and the bitterest cup was wonderfully sweetened. We always bear about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus. We are sorry to perceive that this apostolical apprehension of sufferings has become so rare among us. If faith can only lay hold on that thought, the burden of suffering is thereby diminished, and we are able to say, with St. Paul, Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.
III. But, besides the aim of the school, there must, in each well-regulated establishment, also exist A FIXED PLAN AFTER WHICH TO PROCEED. If there is to be progress in the studies of the pupils, a well-pondered plan must not be wanting, by which is determined in what gradation the various branches are to be imparted, and what method of teaching must be observed. For Christs school of suffering, too, there is a fixed plan according to which the pupils are treated. It is in good hands, for it has been made by Him who gives term and measure to each thing, and always remembers that we are dust and ashes. As soon as the height fixed by Him is reached, the waters will fall again, the storm will abate, thou wilt again perceive the dry land, and thy soul will be permitted to thank the Lord on her harp, that He has been the help of thy countenance and thy God. (W. Hofacker.)
Trials
I. TRIALS ARE A COMMON CHRISTIAN EXPERIENCE.
1. Numerous. They come one after another in quick succession, attack us at every point, and, by reiterated importunity, wear out resistance. A continual dropping wears the stone, and blow after blow shatters the fortress.
2. Diversified. The trials are addressed to the different elements of our nature, and are brought to bear on the ever-varying conditions of our life.
3. Combined. They conspire to encompass and overthrow, with such close and serried ranks that there seems no way of escape, and the sorely beset sufferer says, All these things are against me.
4. Intensified. Often, in the case of Christians of every age, the trials which befall them are more grievous from the time, place, and manner of their occurrence–sufferings inflicted through those that are dear, or when weakened by age or infirmity, and removed from the sympathy and succour of friends.
II. TRIALS ARE A NECESSARY CHRISTIAN DISCIPLINE. They are designed to reveal to us our own sinfulness and weakness, to discover the graces of the Spirit, to prove the strength of our faith, the ardour of our love, the constancy of our devotion. Like the tree which becomes the more firmly Tooted by the blasts which toss and twist its branches, the believer only clings more tenaciously to his Lord when his soul is tried by affliction.
III. TRIALS ARE A COMPLETION OF CHRISTIAN CHARACTER. What but lives thus perfected by the chastening hand of God can bow cheerfully beneath poverty, feeble health, and dark days of discouragement, or bear up under calumny and vexatious opposition, or wait and work even though the promise tarry and the blessing seems withheld? In proportion as we endure, we obtain grace in fullest measure, and adequate to every demand or emergency.
IV. TRIALS ARE A SOURCE OF CHRISTIAN GLADNESS. The conscious joy of trials springs from the results which follow them.
1. The honour conferred. Suffering for Christ is a gift of favour.
2. The comfort imparted. A stronger sense of assurance is wrought in the soul, and when trials are peculiarly severe, often a foretaste of future felicity is obtained, and martyrs are more than conquerors.
3. The usefulness achieved. The silent heroism and calm endurance of the sufferer are often more effective in maintaining and spreading the truth than the logical reasoning and persuasive eloquence of the preacher. (W. Ormiston, D. D.)
Gods school of trial for the good
I. THE DISCIPLINE OF THIS SCHOOL SHOULD BE CHEERFULLY MET.
1. Because trials test our faith.
2. The working of faith develops patience.
3. Patience tends to completeness of character.
II. THE ADVANTAGES OF THIS SCHOOL ARE OBTAINED BY PRAYER.
1. Spiritual excellence is the chief subject of prayer.
2. The great God is the only object of prayer.
3. Unwavering confidence is the power of prayer. (U. R. Thomas.)
The function of trial
Count it all joy means, Count it nothing but joy, Count it pure joy, Count it the highest joy, when trials of many different kinds surround you. They had trouble enough, and therefore they might have joy enough, if they could but learn the secret of extracting joy from trouble. And why should they not learn it? It is simple enough. A paradox to the thoughtless, it is an axiom with the wise. For trial means test. And it is as we are tested that we learn our own weakness, learn what and where it is, and are set on correcting it. The gospel affirms that we are infected with a moral weakness, or disease, of which our sorrows are the natural result, and of which they may become a sovereign remedy. For the sorrows bred by sin dispose us to hate and renounce the sin which produces them. The sorrows that disclose unsuspected weakness set us on seeking a strength that shall be made perfect in weakness. Nay, even the sorrows which involve shame and remorse have a cleansing virtue, if only our sorrow be of a godly sort. But the Jews of the Dispersion, it may be said, were not suffering for their sins, but for their virtues, for their faith in Christ and their obedience to His law! True; but in suffering for our faith, may we not also be suffering for our faults–for the weakness of our faith, for instance? The faith of these Jews must have been weak and immature. It may be that, but for the many trials which the hostility of the world and the synagogue brought upon them, they would have remained very imperfectly Christian to the end of their lives, even if they had remained Christian at all. Their trials put them on their mettle. When nothing was open to them but publicly renouncing Christ, or cleaving to Him, their choice was clear, their duty plain. They must cleave to Him; and, cleaving to Him, they would be driven closer and closer to Him by the very opposition designed to detach them from Him. On one point, happily for us, St. James is quite clear: viz., that tribulation is discipline; that by the divers trials which befall us God is making, or seeking to make, us perfect and complete. And where can we find a more inspiriting view of tribulation than this? It is God, our reconciled God and Father, who appoints these tests, God who applies them. And therefore we may be sure that they come for good ends. The proving of your faith worketh patience, i.e., it results in a firm and steadfast constancy, in a fidelity which can face all allurements and fears. Tried and faithful are all but synonyms in our common speech, so close is the connection between trials and fidelity, But if our trials are to produce this constant and faithful temper in us, we must let patience have a perfect work. Since chastening is grievous to us, the danger is that we should seek to escape it as soon as we can, forgetting that only he that endureth to the end will be saved. The acid that tries the gold bites the gold, or rather, it bites the alloy in the gold. Tests are painful; and they make unwelcome calls on our fortitude. We must therefore let patience have her perfect work, we must suffer our constancy, our fidelity to God, to be exposed to many and searching trials, if we would reap the full benefit of our trials. And what is this full benefit? That ye may be perfect and entire, lacking nothing, or lacking in nothing. The fall benefit of trial is, that, if we endure it with a patient fidelity, we become mature men in Christ Jesus, nay, complete men, lacking nothing that a Christian man should have and enjoy. And what higher reward could possibly be set before a reasonable and religious being? What we want, what we know we want, most of all, is to have our character fully and happily developed, its various and often hostile affections and aims absorbed and harmonized, by having them all brought under law to Christ. To become such men as He was, and to walk even as also He walked, is not this the supreme end of all who call and profess themselves Christians? is it not our chief good, our highest blessedness? (S. Cox, D. D.)
Joy in serious trial
In Count it all joy, i.e., Consider it as nothing but matter for rejoicing, we miss a linguistic touch which is evident in the Greek, but cannot well be preserved in English. In saying joy () St. James is apparently carrying on the idea just started in the address, greeting (), i.e., wishing joy. I wish you joy; and you must account as pure joy all the troubles into which you may fall. It is just possible that all joy ( ) is meant exactly to balance manifold temptations ( ). Great diversity of troubles is to be considered as in reality every kind of joy. Nevertheless, the troubles are not to be of our own making or seeking. It is not when we inflict suffering on ourselves, but when we fall into it, and therefore may regard it as placed in our way by God, that we are to look upon it as a source of joy rather than of sorrow. The word for fall into () implies not only that what one falls into is unwelcome, but also that it is unsought and unexpected. Moreover, it implies that this unforeseen misfortune is large enough to encircle or overwhelm one. It indicates a serious calamity. What St. James has principally in his mind are external trials, such as poverty of intellect (verse 5), or of substance (verse 9), or persecution (Jam 2:6-7), and the like; those worldly troubleswhich test our faith, loyalty, and obedience, and tempt us to abandon our trust in God, and to cease to strive to please Him. The trials by which Satan was allowed to tempt Job are the kind of temptations to be understood here. They are material for spiritual joy, because–
1. They are opportunities for practising virtue, which cannot be learned without practice, nor practised without opportunities.
2. They teach us that we have here no abiding city, for a world in which such things are possible cannot be a lasting home,
3. They make us more Christlike.
4. We have the assurance of Divine support, and that no more will ever be laid upon us than we, relying upon that support, can bear.
5. We have the assurance of abundant compensation here and hereafter. St. James here is only echoing the teaching of his Brother (Mat 5:11-12). In the first days after Pentecost he had seen the apostles acting in the very spirit which he here enjoins, and he had himself very probably taken part in doing so (Act 5:41; cf. Act 4:23-30). St. Peter (1Pe 1:6) and St. Paul (Rom 5:3) teach the same doctrine of rejoicing in tribulation. There is no inconsistency in teaching such doctrine, and yet praying, Lead us not into temptation. Not only is there no sin in shrinking from both external trials and internal temptations; but such is the weakness of the human will, that it is only reasonable humility to pray to God not to allow us to be subjected to severe trials. Nevertheless, when God in His wisdom has permitted such things to come upon us, the right course is, not to be sorrowful, as though something quite intolerable had overtaken us, but to rejoice that God has thought us capable of enduring something for His sake, and has given us the opportunity of strengthening our patience and our trust in Him. This doctrine of joy in suffering, which at first sight seems to be almost superhuman, is shown by experience to be less hard than the apparently more human doctrine of resignation and fortitude. And here it may be noticed that St. James is no cynic or stoic. He does not tell us that we are to anticipate misfortune, and cut ourselves off from all those things the loss of which might involve suffering; or that we are to trample on our feelings, and act as if we had none, treating sufferings as if they were non-existent, or as if they in no way affected us. He points out to us that temptations, and especially external trials, are really blessings, if we use them aright; and he teaches us to meet them in that conviction. And it is manifest that the spirit in which to welcome a blessing is the spirit of joy and thankfulness. St. James does not bid us accept this doctrine of joy in tribulation upon his personal authority. It is no philosophers ipse dixit. He appeals to his readers own experience: Knowing that the proof of your faith worketh patience. Knowing, i.e., in that ye are continually finding out and getting to know. The verb and the tense indicate progressive and continuous knowledge, as by the experience of daily life; and this teaches us that proving and testing not only brings to light, but brings into existence, patience. This patience (), this abiding firm under attack or pressure, must be allowed full scope to regulate all our conduct; and then we shall see why trials are a matter for joy rather than sorrow, when we find ourselves moving onwards towards, not the barrenness of stoical self-sufficiency (), but the fulness of Divine perfection. That ye may be perfect and entire, lacking in nothing, is perhaps one of the many reminiscences of Christs words which we shall find in this letter of the Lords brother (Mat 5:48). (A. Plummer, D. D.)
The power of trial
It is absolutely essential that a teacher of moral ethics should be–
(1) Of joyful disposition;
(2) Competent to lead men into the depths of Christian character.
I. THE POWER OF TRIAL TO OCCASION CHRISTIAN JOY.
1. The trials to which these Jewish Christians were exposed. Though Christian people are not; now called to endure persecution, yet they are not without their individual trials; though they hear not the shouts and clamour of an invading foe, they are subject to the ravages of death; though they are not exposed to the intrigue of the political marauder, yet they are liable to the crash of commercial panic; though they are not exposed to the invective of aa enraged countryman, yet they are liable to the calumny of the idle gossip.
2. There was in the trials of these Jewish Christians an element of temptation.
(1) These temptations were numerous–divers. They were persecuted; their homes were plundered; their property was pillaged; they were exposed to poverty; they were liable to assassination.
(2) Variegated–divers. There was a blending in them of hope and promise; there was the fortune of war, and the promise of their countrymen to lure them.
(3) Precipitous and all-surrounding–when ye fall into. Grief comes unexpectedly.
3. These trials were to be made the occasion of joy. The Christian life is a grand paradox. In temptation it is in hope; in pain it is in gladness; in sorrow it is in joy; in old age it verges on immortal youth.
4. These Jewish Christians were addressed in the language of deep sympathy. St. James knew that they were in trial, and felt it his duty to write to console and guide them. Some men object to letter-writing; they cannot write even to sorrowing friends. Where are their brotherly instincts? We are near to Christ when trying to aid the sorrowful.
II. THE POWER OF TRAIL TO TEST CHRISTIAN FAITH.
1. Trial tests the reality of Christian faith. If under it we manifest the nobler moral qualities of the Christian character; if we are calm in thought, resigned in temper, prayerful in spirit, and patient in disposition, our faith must be genuine, as such graces are only the outcome of a veritable heart-trust in the Saviour.
2. A tried faith is a potential influence within the soul. No one can estimate the power of a faith that has survived the ordeal of temptation to give energy to a soul, beauty to a character, charm to a life, and influence with the world at large.
III. THE POWER OF TRIAL TO DEVELOP CHRISTIAN PATIENCE.
1. Patience consists in a calm waiting for the unfolding of the Divine will and providence.
2. Patience should be constant and progressive in its exercise–coordinate with every trial, superior to every distress, gathering new energy from its continued exercise.
IV. THE POWER OF TRIAL TO ENHANCE THE PERFECTION OF MORAL CHARACTER. St. James is not writing of the perfection of unrenewed human nature, but of the sublime possibility of Christian manhood. He is writing of a life that is animated by faith, that is cultured by deep sorrow, and that is capable of holy patience. (Joseph S. Exell, M. A.)
All joy in all trials
James calls the converted among the twelve tribes his brethren. Christianity has a great uniting power: it both discovers and creates relationships among the sons of men. It reminds us of the ties of nature, and binds us with the bonds of grace. Whatever brotherhood may be a sham, let the brotherhood of believers be the most real thing beneath the stars. Beginning with this word brethren, James shows a true brotherly sympathy with believers in their trials, and this is a main part of Christian fellowship. If we are not tempted ourselves at this moment, others are: let us remember them in our prayers; for in due time our turn will come, and we shall be put trite the crucible, Remembering the trials of his brethren, James tries to cheer them, and therefore he says, My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers trials. It is a part of our high calling to rise ourselves into confidence; and it is also our duty to see that none of our brethren despond, much less despair. The whole tendency of our holy faith is to elevate and to encourage. The message of the gospel is one of gladness, and were it universally received this world would be no longer a wilderness, but would rejoice and blossom as the rose.
I. THE ESSENTIAL POINT WHICH IS ASSAILED by temptation or trial.
1. It is your faith which is tried. It is supposed that you have that faith. You are not the people of God, you are not truly brethren unless you are believers. It is this faith of yours which is peculiarly obnoxious to Satan and to the world which lieth in the wicked one. The hand of faith is against all evil, and all evil is against faith. Faith is that blessed grace which is most pleasing to God, and hence it is most displeasing to the devil. He rages at faith because he sees therein his own defeat and the victory of grace. Because the trial of your faith brings honour to the Lord, therefore the Lord Himself is sure to try it that out of its trial praise may come to His grace by which faith is sustained. It is by our faith that we are saved, justified, and brought near to God, and therefore it is no marvel that it is attacked. Faith is the standard bearer, and the object of the enemy is to strike him down that the battle may be gained. It is by our faith that we live; we began to live by it, and we continue to live by it, for the just shall live by faith. Hold fast, therefore, this your choice treasure. It is by faith, too, that Christians perform exploits. Faith is the conquering principle: therefore it is Satans policy to slay it even as Pharaoh sought to kill the male children when Israel dwelt in Egypt.
2. Now, think of how faith is tried. According to the text we are said to fail into manifold temptations or into divers temptations–that is to say, we may expect very many and very different troubles. In any case these trials will be most real. Our temptations are no inventions of nervousness nor hobgoblins of dreamy fear. Ay, and note too, that the trials of Christians are such as would in themselves lead us into sin. A man is very apt to become unbelieving under affliction: that is a sin. He is apt to murmur against God under it. He is apt to put forth his hand to some ill way of escaping from his difficulty: and that would be a sin. Hence we are taught to pray, Lead us not into temptation; because trial has in itself a measure of temptation, and if it were not neutralised by abundant grace it would bear us towards sin. I suppose that every test must have in it a measure of temptation. Did ever a flower of grace blossom in this wretched clime without being tried with frost or blight? Our way is up the river; we have to stem the current, and struggle against a flood which would readily bear us to destruction. Thus, not only trials, but black temptations assail the Christians faith. As to what shape they take, we may say this much: the trial or temptation of each man is distinct from that of every other, That which would most severely test me would perhaps be no trial to you; and that which tries you might be no temptation to me. This is one reason why we often judge one another so severely, because feeling ourselves to be strong in that particular point we argue that the fallen one must have been strong in that point too, and therefore must have wilfully determined to do wrong. This may be a cruel supposition. Divers trials, says the apostle, and he knew what he said. And sometimes these divers trials derive great force from their seemingly surrounding us, and cutting off escape. James says, Ye fall into divers temptations: like men who fall into a pit, and do not know how to get out; or like soldiers who fall into an ambuscade.
II. THE INVALUABLE BLESSING WHICH IS GAINED BY THE TRIAL OF OUR FAITH. The blessing gained is this, that our faith is tried and proved. The effectual proof is by trials of Gods sending. The way of trying whether you are a good soldier is to go down to the battle: the way to try whether a ship is well built is not merely to order the surveyor to examine her, but to send her to sea: a storm will be the best test of her staunchness. They have built a new lighthouse upon the Eddystone: how do we know that it will stand? We judge by certain laws and principles, and feel tolerably safe about the structure; but, after all, we shall know best in after-years when a thousand tempests have beaten upon the lighthouse in vain. We need trials as a test as much as we need Divine truth as our food. Admire the ancient types placed in the ark of the covenant of old: two things were laid close together–the pot of manna and the rod. See how heavenly food and heavenly rule go together: how our sustenance and our chastening are equally provided for! A Christian cannot live without the manna nor without the rod. The two must go together. Sanctified tribulations work the proof of our faith, and this is more precious than that of gold which perisheth, though it be tried by fire.
1. Now, when we are able to bear it without starting aside, the trial proves our sincerity.
2. Next, it proves the truthfulness of our doctrinal belief.
3. Next, your own faith in God is proved when you can cling to Him under temptation. Not only your sincerity, but the divinity of your faith is proved; for a faith that is never tried, how can you depend upon it?
4. I find it specially sweet to learn the great strength of the Lord in my own weakness. The Lord suits the help to the hindrance, and puts the plaster on the wound. In the very hour when it is needed the needed grace is given. Does not this tend to breed assurance of faith?
5. It is a splendid thing to be able to prove even to Satan the purity of your motives. That was the great gain of Job. I reckon that the endurance of every imaginable suffering would be a small price to pay for a settled assurance, which would for ever prevent the possibility of doubt. Therefore, when you are tempted, Count it all joy that you are tried, because you will thus receive a proof of your love, a proof of your faith, a proof of your being the true-born children of God. James says, Count it. A man requires to be trained to be a good accountant; it is an art which needs to be learned.
III. THE PRICELESS VIRTUE WHICH IS PRODUCED BY TRIAL, namely, patience; for the proof of your faith worketh patience. The man who truly possesses patience is the man that has been tried. What kind of patience does he get by the grace of God?
1. First, he obtains a patience that accepts the trial as from God without a murmur.
2. The next kind of patience is when experience enables a man to bear ill-treatment, slander, and injury without resentment. He feels it keenly, but he bears it meekly.
3. The patience which God works in us by tribulation also takes another form, namely, that of acting without undue haste. In proportion as we grow like the Lord Jesus we shall cast aside disturbance of mind and fury of spirit.
4. That is a grand kind of patience, too, when we can wait without unbelief. Two little words are good for every Christian to learn and to practise–pray and stay. Waiting on the Lord implies both praying and staying.
5. This patience also takes the shape of believing without wavering, in the very teeth of strange providences and singular statements, and perhaps inward misgivings. If, in a word, we learn endurance we have taken a high degree. You look at the weather-beaten sailor, the man who is at home on the sea: he has a bronzed face and mahogany-coloured flesh, he looks as tough as heart of oak, and as hardy as if he were made of iron. How different from us poor landsmen. How did the man become so inured to hardships, so able to breast the storm, so that he does not care whether the wind blows south-west or north-west? He can go out to sea in any kind of weather; he has his sea legs on. How did he come to this strength? By doing business in great waters. He could not have become a hardy seaman by tarrying on shore. Now, trial works in the saints that spiritual hardihood which cannot be learned in ease.
IV. THE SPIRITUAL COMPLETENESS PROMOTED. That ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. Afflictions by Gods grace make us all-round men, developing every spiritual faculty, and therefore they are our friends, our helpers, and should be welcomed with all joy. Afflictions find out our weak points, and this makes us attend to them. Being tried, we discover our failures, and then going to God about those failures we are helped to be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. Moreover, our trials, when blessed of God to make us patient, ripen us. A certain measure of sunlight is wanted to bring out the real flavour of fruits, and when a fruit has felt its measure of burning sun it developes a lusciousness which we all delight in. So it is in men and women: a certain amount of trouble appears to be needful to create a certain sugar of graciousness in them, so that they may contain the rich, ripe juice of a gracious character. Sanctified trials produce a chastened spirit. Some of us by nature are untender; but after awhile friends notice that the roughness is depart-ins, and they are quite glad to be more gently handled. Ah, that sick chamber did the polishing; under Gods grace, that depression of spirit, that loss, that cross, that bereavement–these softened the natural ruggedness, and made the man meek and lowly, like his Lord. Sanctified trouble has a great tendency to breed sympathy, and sympathy is to the Church as oil to machinery. A man that has never suffered feels very awkward when he tries to sympathise with a tried child of God. He kindly does his best, but he does not know how to go to work at it; but those repeated blows from the rod make us feel for others who are smarting, and by degrees we are recognised as being the Lords anointed comforters, made meet by temptation to succour those who are tempted. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Trial a blessing
I. How THEY WERE TO REGARD THEIR TRIALS (Jam 1:2). My brethren, he says–my brethren both by nature and grace, alike as Jews and Christians, as children of Abraham and children of a better father, the God of Abraham–count it–that is, reckon, think it–all joy–joy of the highestkind, and, indeed, of every kind–joy not in some small measure, but in the very largest, not in certain but the whole of its elements and aspects. When ye fall into divers temptations. The language points to our being unexpectedly surrounded by temptations. It does not apply to the case of those who recklessly rush into them, who by their own presumption or folly bring them upon themselves. No happy effects can be looked for then, and the feelings suited to such circumstances are the reverse of joyful. He speaks not simply of temptations, but of divers, that is, manifold, various temptations. He exhorts us to be affected in this way, not merely under one or two of them, but under any number, succession, combination of them–under them not only when they are of this or that kind, but whatever kind they happen to be of–under them not only when they come singly and go speedily, but even when they rush upon us from every side, and seem as if they would never take their departure. James here but reiterates the teaching of the Great Master (Mat 5:12). Many in early times found it possible to obey the injunction (Act 5:41; 2Co Rom 5:3; Heb 10:34). Trials of any kind, such as earthly losses, bodily afflictions, domestic sorrows, spiritual assaults, are painful in their nature. Not only so, there is an element of danger in every one of them, there is the risk of failure, of dishonouring God in the fires, and losing the benefit of the visitation. But when we are providentially brought into such circumstances, then we should feel not only calmly submissive, but even gratefully glad. We are in a Fathers hand, His purposes are all wise and gracious, and, in the very midst of our heaviness, we should greatly rejoice.
II. WHY THEY WERE THUS TO REGARD THEIR TRIALS (verse 3). If we remember how apt we are to deceive ourselves–how ready to rest in mere appearances, when all is prosperous and pleasant–how we need to be shaken and sifted to know what in reality and at bottom we are–we shall hail whatever searches us through and through, even though it may pierce like a sword, or scorch like a furnace. But how is the result brought about? Knowing this, he says, knowing it as you do, both by the testimony of Gods Word and the experience of Gods people–knowing it as a thing often evidenced and indubitably certain–that the trying of your faith worketh patience. Faith is the primary, radical grace of the Christian character. From it, as a root, all the others spring; on it, as a foundation, all the others are built. It is the grand principle of the new life, which grows as it grows, and declines as it declines. It worketh patience–endurance, perseverance, which is more than calm submission to theDivine will, even resolute, energetic constancy in the doing of that will, a standing out, a holding on, and pressing forward in spite of the sufferings undergone. Hence it is said elsewhere, Knowing that tribulation–which corresponds to the trying or proving in the present case, for it is effected by means of tribulation–worketh patience, and patience experience Rom 5:3-4). This is the result brought about, the effect produced. Such dealings not only evince the reality of faith, but promote its growth, for they stir it into more conscious and vigorous exercise. The most tried Christians are the strongest. The proving of faith issues in endurance, and at every step this endurance grows less difficult and less precarious. Past evidences of the Divine love, wisdom, and faithfulness in the time of need, stablish the heart and banish fears in prospect of impending and under the pressure of present trials. Thus there is a going from strength to strength in the path of suffering. But here the apostle pauses, as it were, and turns aside for a moment to exhort those whom he addresses regarding this patience (verse 4). Let this endurance not stop short in its course; let it produce its full effect, work out its complete result. How needful the counsel! We grow weary, grasp at premature deliverances, have recourse to questionable expedients. *We are net willing to wait Gods time and way of extrication. In order to have its perfect work it must act, not partially, but fully; and, I add, it must act not temporarily, but permanently. The purpose of the whole, and the effect, when realised, is, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. Let it be perfect, and we are perfect; so wide is the influence, so precious are the fruits of the grace of patience. The language here may be expressive of Christian completeness or maturity–of the new life in its full development, its well-balanced, vigorous exercise. He who is not only sound but strong, no longer a babe but now a man, is so far perfect. Entire–that is, having every requisite element and feature, and each in its proper place, all that enters into stability and consistency of character, to the exclusion of whatever is of an opposite tendency, and might have the effect of marring or weakening. As if that were not enough, he adds, wanting nothing–nothing essential to spiritual manhood, to the thoroughness of our personal Christianity. In proportion as we have this endurance at work, we possess grace in all its varied forms and ripest fruits–grace adequate to every duty and emergency.
1. See here the mark to which we should ever be pressing forward. Christians, you are not to be satisfied with holiness that is partial either in its extent, its compass, or in its degree. You are to seek that it may fully pervade every power and relation of your being.
2. See the discipline by which alone this mark can be reached. There must be endurance to the end; and that comes only in the way, and as the fruit of trial. The gold cannot be tested and refined without the furnace. It is the lashing-waves, the roaring breakers, which round and polish the smooth pebbles of the beach. It is only by being burned or bruised that certain spices reveal their fragrance. (John Adam.)
Benefit of temptations
Of what temptations, think you, was the apostle speaking? Did he mean, think you, that we were to count it all joy, when we were tempted to the things which are pleasurable to our fleshly appetites, our senses, our pride, but which displease God? Even these temptations may be turned to good by the overpowering grace of God, because every trial in which, by His grace, we stand does bring us larger grace and greater favour of God. But out of such temptations it is a joy to have passed. But there is no joy to fall into them; because even apart from the issue, whether we conquer or are conquered, there is the separate peril whether, by a momentary consent, we displease God. What were, then, the temptations into which the early Christians were chiefly exposed to fall, into which the apostle bids them count it all joy to fall? St. Paul recounts them where he speaks of these things which, by the grace of Christ, shall not separate from the love of Christ (Rom 8:35-37; Rom 5:3). But why, then, are we to count such temptations as these joy? Why is it to be a joy to have to forego what flesh and blood desire, to do what flesh and blood shrink from?
1. First (which contains all), it is a token of the love of God. It is a badge of our sonship, an earnest of our future inheritance. To be without trial would be to be neglected by God. To have trial is a proof that God is thinking of us, caring for us, giving us something which may approve us to Him. It is not the happy lot to have few troubles. The greatest friends of God had most and the heaviest. The happiest lot is to receive in peace, whether more or fewer, what God permits, and by His grace to endure, and to be more than conquerors through Christ that loved us; strengthened by our very conflicts, proofs against temptations through temptations; abounding in grace through the victories of grace, cleaving close to God by overcoming that which would separate us from Him.
2. Then, suffering likens us to Christ; it is a portion of the Cross of Christ.
3. Then, trouble bursts the bonds of this life and shows us the nothingness of all created things. Trouble drives the soul into itself, teaches it to know itself and its own weakness, rouses it when torpid, humbles it when it lifts itself up, strengthens the inner man, softens the heart, cuts off offences, guards virtues. Yet not only are those severer troubles channels of Gods grace to the soul, but even temptation itself, when the soul hates it, purifies it. Then only is temptation dangerous when it is pleasant. Then flee it, as worse than a serpent, for it threatens thy souls life. The apostle speaks not of temptations which we run into, temptations which we seek out for ourselves or make for ourselves, temptations which we tamper with; but temptations into which, by Gods providence, we fall. The least, if thou court it, may destroy thy life; out of the greatest, God, if thou seek Him, will make a way of escape; not a mere escape, but out of it, aloft from it, over it. For this the very faith and truth of God are pledged to us that, if we will, we shall prevail. In this way, too, Davids words come true, It is better to fail into the hands of the Lord than into the hands of man (2Sa 24:14). The trials which God sends, as sorrow, losses, bereavement, sickness, are always directly to our profit if we do not waste them. In strife with temptation only canst thou know thyself. The unrest of temptation sifts whether a man, when in rest, truly loves God. Temptation shows us how weak we are to resist the very slightest assaults. We see in our weakness how any good in us (if there be good) is not of us but of God. And so temptation, if we are wise, makes us more watchful. Slighter temptation is either the way into or the way out of greater. Slighter temptations, if yielded to, prove a broad and high way which leads to greater, and, but for Gods mercy, to destruction and death: slighter temptations, if resisted, open the eyes to the peril of greater. Or, again, a great sudden temptation has revealed to the soul the danger of tampering with less. And so temptation drives us to Him who hath said, Call upon Me in the time of trouble, so will I deliver thee, and thou shalt praise Me. I will be with him in trouble, saith God. I will be unto him a wall of fire round about. My strength is made perfect in weakness. The depth of trouble calls deeply. The deep earnest cry is answered. The longing of the soul is the presence of Christ. He who gives the grace to cry to Him wills to hear. And with the nearer presence of God to the soul come larger gifts of grace and more joyous hope of pleasing God. Experience has made it a Christian proverb, God gives no grace to man except upon trouble. In victory over temptation God gives a holy fervour. He makes the soul to taste and see that it is far sweeter for His sake to forego what the soul desireth than against His will to have it. Then, after or in temptation, God will give thee consolation. As when on earth our Lord called His disciples to rest awhile, He will, after a while, if thou hold out, give thee rest, or else by the very trial He shields thee from some greater trial. And what will the end be? Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee the crown of life. Every temptation resisted by the grace of God is a jewel in the heavenly crown. (E. B. Pusey, D. D.)
The use of trial
The use and ordination of persecution to the people of God is trial. God maketh use of the worst instruments, as fine gold is cast into the fire, the most devouring element. Innocency is best tried by iniquity. But why doth God try us? Not for His own sake, for He is omniscient; but either–
1. For our sakes, that we may know ourselves. In trials we discern the sincerity of grace, and the weakness and liveliness of it; and so are less strangers to our own hearts. Sincerity is discovered. A gilded potsherd may shine till it cometh to scouring. In trying times God heateth the furnace so hot that dross is quite wasted; every interest is crossed, and then hirelings become changelings. Sometimes we discover our own weakness (Mat 13:1-58.); we find that faith weak in danger which we thought to be strong out of danger. In pinching weather weak persons feels the aches and bruises of their joints. Sometimes we discern the liveliness of grace. Stars shine in the night that he hid in the day. Spices are most fragrant when burnt and bruised, so have saving graces their chiefest flagrancy in hard times.
2. Or for the worlds sake. And so–
(1) For the present to convince them by our constancy, that they may be confirmed in the faith if weak, or converted if altogether un-called. It was a notable saying of Luther, The Church converted the whole world by blood and prayer. We are proved, and religion is proved, when we are called to sufferings. Pauls bonds made for the furtherance of the gospel Php 1:12-13). Justin Martyr was converted by the constancy of the Christians. When he saw the Christians so willingly choose death, he reasoned thus within himself: Surely these men must be honest, and there is somewhat eminent in their principles. So I remember the author of the Council of Trent said concerning Anne de Burg, a senator of Paris, who was burnt for Protestantism, that the death and constancy of a man so conspicuous did make many curious to know what religion that was for which he bad courageously endured punishment, and so the number was much increased.
(2) We are tried with respect to the day of judgment (1Pe 1:7). Use: It teaches us to bear afflictions with constancy and patience.
1. Gods aim in your affliction is not destruction, but trial Dan 11:35).
2. The time of trial is appointed (Dan 11:35).
3. God sits by the furnace looking after His metal (Mal 3:3).
4. This trial is not only to approve, but to improve (1Pe 1:7; Job 23:10). (T. Manton.)
The benefit of trial
There are two general grounds on which believers may well do what is here required of them.
1. In spite of their trials they have precious privileges and exalted prospects–such privileges as peace with God and hearts renewed to righteousness.Psa 73:24).
2. Their trials themselves are fraught with good. They are part of Gods paternal discipline. They are fitted to give them many salutary lessons respecting the evil of sin and the value of salvation.
3. And, finally, the trial of their faith, as the apostle goes on to say, worketh patience. (A. S. Patterson, D. D.)
Trial and joy
The first thing he taken notice of is their sufferings–the troubles to which they are exposed on account of their faith in Christ. By and by he will have plenty to say of their sins, of conduct unbecoming Christian believers, conduct he will be sure to rebuke. If you see it to be your duty to point out a mans sins to him, do not do it till you are quite sure you have let him see that you feel for him with all your heart, and that you have no other wish than to do him good.
1. It verified the faith. Without the trial there might have been suspicion about the reality or the strength of it. The trial came and the faith endured. If you suffer because you are a Christian, this tries you whether you are a Christian. If you suffer in what we call the course of Providence, this tries you whether you have faith in Him who guides and governs all things. And so in every event of life that seems antagonistic to your welfare, it is a test of the reality of your faith, and, therefore, a ground of joy.
2. Trial not only verifies faith, it strengthens it as well, strengthens it so that it is stronger through the trial than it was before. The reason is plain. Whatever exercises faith strengthens faith; whatever compels it to come forth from disuse, whatever rouses it to assert its existence, increases its strength. Our antagonist is our friend. Trials provoke faith, and the best thing that can happen to it is just to be provoked. You wrap up a childs limbs, you give them no free play, you compress the very channels in which the life-blood flows, and you wonder there is no increase of strength.
(1) The purpose of all trial is the trying of faith. Life is the very sphere of trial, and everything that crosses us is a cross in the way we travel to a purer and a stronger faith.
(2) Every kind of a trial which the Christian experiences has its special joy. There is a drop of pleasure in every bitter cup which is peculiar to that cup.
(3) The beneficence of the trial-character of life; of the demand for verification of faith. Would you go to sea in a ship whose engines had not been tested? What about the journey to the eternal would?
(4) How does a man come out from his trials? On a higher plane of spiritual life or on a lower one? He may see here the test.
(5) There are trials before us that may be too strong for us. Let us see to it that our faith now be so confirmed that it will be more than conqueror over whatever the future may contain. (Peter Rutherford.)
Rules whereby to estimate trials
That your judgments may be rectified in point of afflictions, take these rules.
1. Do not judge by sense (Heb 12:11).
2. Judge by a supernatural light. Christs eye-salve must clear your sight, or else you cannot make a right judgment: there is no fit apprehension of things till you get within the veil, and see by the light of a sanctuary lamp 1Co 2:11). So David, In Thy light we shall see light Psa 36:9); that is, by His Spirit we come to discern the brightness of glory or grace, and the nothingness of the world.
3. Judge by supernatural grounds. Many times common grounds may help us to discern the lightness of our grief, yea, carnal grounds; your counting must be an holy counting. Gods corrections are sharp, but we have strong corruptions to be mortified; we are called to great trials, but we may reckon upon great hopes, &c. From that all joy; afflictions to Gods people do not only minister occasion of patience, but great joy. The world hath no reason to think religion a black and gloomy way. A Christian is a bird that can sing in winter as well as in spring; he can live in the fire like Mosess bush; burn and not be consumed; nay, leap in the fire. But you will say, Doth not the Scripture allow us a sense of our condition? How can we rejoice in that which is evil?
(1) Not barely in the evil of them; that is so far from being a fruit of grace that it is against nature; there is a natural abhorrency of that which is painful, as we see in Christ Himself (Joh 12:27).
(2) Their joy is from the happy effects, or consequences, or comforts, occasioned by their sufferings. I will name some.
(a) The honour done to us; that we are singled out to bear witness to the truths of Christ: To you it is given to suffer (Php 1:29).
(b) The benefit the Church receiveth. Resolute defences gain upon the world. The Church is like an oak, which liveth by its own wounds, and the more limbs are cut off the more new sprouts.
(c) Their own private and particular comforts. God hath consolations proper for martyrs and His children under trials.
The sun shineth many times when it raineth; and they have sweet glimpses of Gods favour when their outward condition is most gloomy and sad. There is a holy greatness of mind, and a joy that becometh the saddest providences. Faith should be above all that befalleth us; it is its proper work to make a believer triumph over every temporary accident. Again, another ground of joy in ordinary crosses is, because in them we may have much experience of grace, of the love of God, and our own sincerity and patience; and that is ground of rejoicing (Rom 5:3). Lastly, all evils are alike to faith; and it would as much misbecome a Christian hope to be dejected with losses as with violence or persecution. You should walk so that the world may know you can live above every condition, and that all the evils are much beneath your hopes.
4. From that when ye fall, observe that evils are the better borne when they are undeserved and involuntary; that is, when we fall into them rather than draw them upon ourselves.
5. From that divers, God hath several ways wherewith to exercise His people. Crosses seldom come single. When God beginneth once to try He useth divers ways of trial; and, indeed, there is great reason. Divers diseases must have divers remedies. Pride, envy, covetousness, worldliness, wantonness, ambition, are not all cured by the same physic. And learn, too, from hence, that God hath several methods of trial–confiscation, banishment, poverty, infamy, reproach; some trials search us more than others. We must leave it to His wisdom to make choice. Will-suffering is as bad as will-worship.
6. From that word temptations, observe, the afflictions of Gods people are but trials. Well, then, behave thyself as one under trial. Let nothing be discovered in thee but what is good and gracious. Men will do their best at their trial; oh, watch over yourselves with the more care that no impatience, vanity, murmuring, or worldliness of spirit may appear in you. (T. Mounters.)
Joy in temptation
1. Of the nature of temptation.
2. Of the joyful result to the true Christian.
3. Of his duty under it.
I. THE NATURE OF TEMPTATION.
II. THE JOYFUL RESULT TO THE TRUE CHRISTIAN.
1. We must here remember, first, the account which St. Paul has given us of Gods dealings: Whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth. So that, in the suffering of trial, the believer has one especial mark of Gods favour.
2. But though all Gods people are partakers of chastisement, yet, as mere suffering is not a sufficient test of grace, there is another particular to be noticed, namely, the awakening tendency of trials. I have alluded to the extreme danger of the state of quiet and prosperity when the world smiles upon men; when Satan seems to have departed from them; and when their natural propensities to ease are furthered by all surrounding circumstances Jer 48:11).
3. This is another useful tendency of trial–it humbles men. Who is so likely to boast as he who has just put on his armour, and has never yet seen the battle?
4. I think we may now easily see that the results of trial to the believer are joyful. Every branch in the living vine that beareth fruit the heavenly Husbandman purgeth, that it may bring forth more fruit.
III. But it is time, in the third place, to speak more particularly of THE CHRISTIANS DUTY UNDER TEMPTATION.
1. And here, I would say, first, he must meet it in faith. And surely there are enough of precious promises whereon we may stay ourselves.
2. I would make another observation; and that is, you must under trial show submission to the Lords hand. Persons are very often ready, like Cain, to cry out, My punishment is greater than I can bear.
3. The next point that I would press on you is the exercise of patience. This is especially dwelt on by the apostle in my text, when he says, Let patience have her perfect work; that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. Abraham, for instance, was long, very long, kept childless, till he was forced to hope even against hope. It is by slow degrees that the proud heart is humbled, and the self-sufficient spirit moulded into childlike submission to the will of God. If the gold be taken from the furnace before it be thoroughly purified and refined, why surely it had better never have been cast into the fire.
4. I make but one more closing observation. How anxious ought we to be to reap the benefit God intends from trial! When we contend with the enemies of our salvation, there can be no such thing as a drawn battle; if victory be not for us, we shall be worsted. And there is no state of more fearful augury than that of the man whom trial, chastisement, temptation, hardens. It is only sanctified trial that is profitable; and in order that trial may be so sanctified, we must earnestly implore the blessing of the Divine Spirit. (J. Ayre, M. A.)
Trials the law of life
Life is not always easy to any, of whatever condition or fortune. And men increase the painfulness of living by undertaking life on a wrong theory, viz., the conception of the possibility of making life free from trouble. They dream of this; they toil for this; they are all disappointed. It is impracticable, man might just as well seek to live without eating or without breathing. All human beings are born to trouble as the birds fly upward. Why, then, should we increase the difficulties of human life by adding to its natural limitations the attempt to reach the unattainable? They live the less difficult lives who early adjust themselves to the natural fact that trouble is to be the normal condition of life. They prepare themselves for it. They fortify themselves by philosophy and religion to endure the inevitable. Then every hour free from trouble is so much cleat gain. But to him who adopts the other theory–and who does not?–every trouble is so much clear loss. The man in trouble, the fish in water, the bird in air: that is the law; why not accept it? That fact need not discourage us. It does not take from our dignity, nor from our growth, nor from our final happiness. The painter cannot have his picture glowing on the canvas by merely designing it, nor the sculptor transmute his ideal into marble by a wish. The one must take all the trouble of drawing and colouring, and the other that of chiselling and polishing. It is no necessary discouragement to a boy that he must be under tutors, and must go through the trouble and discipline of school-day, even if he be a prince. It is the law. That answers all. It need scarcely be added, that for any success we must conform to the law. (C. F. Deems, D. D.)
The afflictions of the saints diverse
1. These afflictions are manifold in respect of the diversity of instruments which God useth in afflicting them upon the saints. For sometimes He useth the devil, sometimes men, sometimes His other creatures as instruments.
2. As in respect of the divers instruments thereunto by God used, the temptations of men are manifold; so if we look into the nature of temptations they are no less diverse. Some are afflicted by exile and banishment, some by captivity and imprisonment, some by famine and nakedness, some by peril and persecution, some by slander and reproachful contumely, some by rackings and tearings in pieces, some by fire and faggot, some by sores of body and sundry diseases, some suffer in themselves, some are afflicted in their friends, in their wives, in their children, some in their goods, some in their bodies, some in their credits, some by sea, some by land, some at home, some abroad, some by open enemies, some by counterfeit friends, some by cruel oppression, some by manifest injuries, some by force, some by fraud.
3. Finally, the ends wherefore they are afflicted are diverse; therefore in flint respect also they may not amiss be counted diverse. Sometimes we are afflicted to the end we should be humbled, tried, sometimes that in the nature of Gods blessings we may better be instructed; sometimes we are afflicted that God may be glorified, sometimes that our sins may be remitted, sometimes that the pride of our hearts may be repressed and sinful desires mortified; sometimes we are afflicted that Gods love towards us may the more lively be expressed, sometimes that thereby the world may be hated of us, sometimes that we may be more zealous in prayer for deliverance, sometimes that we may be made conformable and like the image of the Son of God, together with Him may be partakers of His glory. Finally, to make us forsake all trust in other, and to bring us home to God. As Isaiah teacheth us, at that day shall the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, stay no more upon him that smote him, but shall stay upon the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. (R. Turnbull.)
A deep spring of joy
Their spring of joy did not flow from the mere surface of life. It bubbled up from the deep underlying strata, and still ran on whatever changes vexed the surface. (S. Cox, D. D.)
Joy in tribulation
Mr. John Philpot was shut up with some Protestant companions in the Bishop of Londons coal-cellar, but they were so merry that they were fetched out to be reprimanded for their unseasonable mirth. The world wonders, wrote the good man to a friend, we can be merry under such extreme miseries, but our God is omnipotent, who turns our misery into joy. I have so much joy that, though I be in a place of darkness and mourning, yet I cannot lament, but both day and night am full of joy. I never was so merry before; the Lords name be praised for ever. Oh, pray instantly that this joy may never be taken from us, for it passeth all the delights in this world. (Sunday at Home.)
Joy commendable in trouble
Every bird can sing in a clear heaven in temperate spring; that one is most commended that sings many notes in the midst of a shower or in the dead of winter. (Bp. Hall.)
Temptations need not discourage
In all temptations be not discouraged. These surges may be, not to break thee, but to heave thee off thyself on the Rock Christ. (T. Wilcocks.)
Temptation a benefaction
Temptation is a necessity, and not only a necessity, but a benefaction. If you were to construct a man, you would have to put into him a certain percentage of temptation that he might become fully developed. (Prof. Hy. Drummond.)
The joyous end of trial
The quartz gold might bitterly complain when the hammer comes down on it–Ah! I shall never be good for anything again. I am crushed to atoms. And when the rushing water came along it might cry out, Here I am drowned. I am lost. I shall never come to the light any more. And when put into the furnace it might say, Now I am for ever undone. But by and by, see that ring that clases the brow of the king. It is that same gold that understood not, through much tribulation it must enter upon honour. It is even thus with us. We need not complain if the terrible temptation comes along. It will give us an opportunity of using the grace which God has bestowed; it will show what metal we are of; it will bring out our character if we have any; and we may thus count it all joy. (W. G. Pascoe.)
Trial a boon
Every possible trial to the child of God is a masterpiece of strategy of the Captain of his salvation for his good. (A. R. Fausset, M. A.)
Advantage of adversity
Tough trees grow in exposed situations, where the mightiest winds of heaven sweep and whirl from year to year. An experienced shipbuilder would not think of using for the mainmast of a ship a tree that had grown in a hot-house, where the whirlwind had never come. (R. V. Lawrence.)
Shaped by sorrow
The best steel is subjected to the alternatives of extreme heat and extreme cold. Were you ever in a cutlery? If you were, you noticed that the knife-blades were heated, and beaten, and then heated again, and plunged into the coldest water, in order to give them the right shape and temper. And perhaps you also noticed that there was a large heap of rejected blades–rejected because they would not bear the tempering process. They cracked and warped; when put upon the grindstone, little flaws appeared in some that, up to that point, had seemed fair and perfect. Hence they were thrown aside as unfit for market. So souls, in order to ensure the right temper, are heated in the furnace of affliction, plunged into the cold waters of tribulation, and ground between the upper and nether stones of adversity and disaster. Some come out of the trial pure, elastic, and bright, ready for the highest service; others come out brittle, with ill-temper, full of flaws and spots of rust, and are thrown into the rubbish-room of the Church as unfit for any but the lowest uses. Now if you would be of any account among the forces that are working out the salvation of this world, be still in the hands of God until He tempers you. Listen to that knife-blade in the hands of the cutler. Stop, now! I have been in the fire often enough. Would you burn the life out of me? But in it goes again into the glowing furnace, and is heated to a white heat. Stop hammering me! I have been pounded enough now. But down comes the sledge. Keep me out of this cold water. One moment in the fiery furnace and the next in ice-cold water. It is enough to kill one! But in it goes. Keep me off the grindstone. Youll chafe the life out of me. But it is made to kiss the stone until the cutler is satisfied. But now see! When all the heating and cooling and pounding and grinding is done you may bend it double, and yet it springs back straight as an arrow; it is as bright as polished silver, hard as a diamond, and will cut like a Damascus blade. It has been shaped, tempered, and polished, and is worth something. (R. V. Lawrence.)
Mercies travel along dark way.
Right back of Hackensack is a long railroad cut. In the dim twilight, when evening is far advanced, the cut is dark and gloomy. I was thinking of that one evening and I stopped to look into the entrance. I said to myself, No one would ever imagine, just to glance in there without knowledge, that anything good could come by a way so forbidding. While I was still talking thus to myself, I felt the ground tremble, I saw the darkness light up with a sudden crimson ray, I heard a roar of ever-increasing loudness, and the black entrance of the cut was filled with a shower of sparks and a mixed plume of black and white; a ball of round fire blinded my eyes, a sound of thunder startled my ears, the earth shook up and down as though set upon springs, and then it was gone–the train had rushed by–nothing to be seen in the gloom but the littlered lamp on the rear of the cars that rapidly diminished its lustre, blinked once or twice, and went out. Long after it was out of sight I heard the sound of the distant gong; and I realised that this unsightly cut had let some human happiness safely through. Some of our choicest mercies come in by way of some frowning trouble. The station where we receive them is a little further on, to be sure; but it is well to remember that if the dark way had not been traversed nothing so rich and good would have arrived. (J. W. Dally.)
Manifold temptations needed
The more varied are the moral difficulties of life, the more complete is the discipline. The strain must come upon one muscle after another, if there is to be a perfect development of moral vigour–if, as James puts it, we are to be lacking in nothing. The strength of every separate element of Christian righteousness must be tried, and tried by various tests. The courage which is unmoved by one form of danger maybe daunted by another. The patience which submits without a murmur to familiar suffering may be changed by a new sorrow into angry resentment. The Christian charity which has kept its sweetness through many cruel persecutions may at last be suddenly embittered by some fresh outrage. (R. W. Dale, LL. D.)
Life a perpetual discipline
Life, from first to last, is a perpetual trial, and the trial is perpetually varied. In the school of God there are no vacations. (R. W. Dale, LL. D.)
The record of a dark day
We go to rest sometimes with an impression of guilt on our minds, because all day long we have been under trial, so that we feel as if evil had been with us continually. At other times night finds us calm and serene. All has gone smoothly, and we are pleased with ourselves and our neighbours. And yet there may be a better record for the dark day than for the bright one, in Gods book of remembrance. For temptation is not sin, nor its absence goodness.
Temptation may be a sign of grace
A brother in a religious meeting was suffering from severe temptation, and after a full account of his experience was advised to take courage, For, said Father Taylor, the devil was never known to chase a bag of chaff! You may be sure that there is the pure wheat in your heart, or he would not be after you so hard.
Joy amidst sorrow
Joy lives in the midst of the sorrow; the sorrow springs from the same root as the gladness. The two do not clash against each other, or reduce the emotion to a neutral indifference, but they blend into one another; just as, in the Arctic regions, deep down beneath the cold snow, with its white desolation and its barren death, you shall find the budding of the early spring flowers and the fresh green grass; just as some kinds of fire burn below the water; just as, in the midst of the barren and undrinkable sea, there may be welling up some little fountain of fresh water that comes from a deeper depth than the great ocean around it, and pours its sweet streams along the surface of the salt waste. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)
Joy in trial
When Richard Williams, of the Patagonian Mission, with his few companions, was stranded on the beach by a high tide, and at the beginning of the terrible privations which terminated his life, he wrote in his diary: I bless and praise God that this day has been, I think, the happiest of my life. The fire of Divine love has been burning on the mean altar of my breast, and the torch light of faith has been in full trim, so that I have only had to wave it to the right hand or left, in order to discern spiritual things in heavenly places. Later, when severe illness was added to circumstantial distress, he could say, Not a moment sits wearily upon me. Sweet is the presence of Jesus; and oh, I am happy in His love. Again, though held fast by fatal disease, he wrote: Ah, I am happy day and night, hour by hour. Asleep or awake, I am happy beyond the poor compass of language to tell. My joys are with Him whose delights have always been with the sons of men; and my heart and spirit are in heaven with the blessed.
The trying of your faith worketh patience—
Trial of faith works patience
1. The chief grace which is tried in persecution is faith. Partly because it is the radical grace in the life of a Christian (Heb 2:4); we work by love, but live by faith; partly because this is the grace most exercised, sometimes in keeping the soul from using ill means and unlawful courses Isa 28:16); sometimes in bringing the soul to live under gospel-comforts in the absence or want of worldly, and to make a Christian fetch water out of the rock when there is none in the fountain.
Use 1. You that have faith, or pretend to have it, must look for trials. Graces are not crowned till they are exercised; never any yet went to heaven without conflicts.
Use 2. You that are under trials, look to your faith (Luk 22:32).
(1) Hold fast your assurance in the midst of the saddest trials.
(2) Keep your hopes fresh and lively.
2. Many trials cause patience, that is, by the blessing of God upon them. Habits are strengthened by frequent acts; the more you act grace, the stronger; and often trial puts us upon frequent exercise (Heb 12:11).
(1) It showeth how careful you should be to exercise yourselves under every cross; by that means you come to get habits of grace and patience: neglect causeth decay, and God withdraweth His hand from such as are idle: in spirituals, as well as temporals, diligence maketh rich Pro 10:4).
(2) It showeth that if we murmur or miscarry in any providence, the fault is in our own hearts, not in our condition.
3. It is an excellent exchange to part with outward comforts for inward graces. Fiery trials are nothing, if yon gain patience; sickness, with patience, is better than health; loss, with patience, is better than gain.
4. Patience is a grace of excellent use and value. We cannot be Christians without it; we cannot be men without it: not Christians, for it is not only the ornament, but the conservatory of other graces. How else should we persist in well-doing when we meet with grievous crosses? You see we cannot be Christians without it; so, also, not men. Christ saith, In patience possess your souls (Luk 21:19). A man is a man, and doth enjoy himself and his life by patience: otherwise we shall but create needless troubles and disquiets to ourselves, and so be, as it were, dispessessed of our own lives and souls–that is, lose the comfort and the quiet of them. (T. Manton.)
Incentives to patience
I. The sufferer should look at THE HAND which sends the affliction. Patience springs out of faith.
II. The sufferer should look at THE PRESENT BENEFIT of affliction, which to a believer is unspeakably great.
III. The sufferer should look to THE END of his afflictions. God may perhaps see good not to bless us in this life, as He did His servant Job; but, oh, what glory will it be to hear it said of us at the last day, These are they which came out of great tribulation, &c. (W. Jowett, M. A.)
The advantage of temptation
An iron railway-bridge is no stronger after its strength has been tried by running a dozen heavy trains over it than it was before. A gunbarrel is no stronger when it comes from the proof-house, and has had its strength tried by being fired with four or five times its proper charge, than it was before. But according to James, the trials which test our faith strengthen it; the temptations which assault our integrity confirm it. (R. W. Dale, LL. D.)
Patience and fortitude
People are always talking of perseverance and courage and fortitude, but patience is the finest and worthiest part of fortitude and the rarest too. (John Ruskin.)
Christian pefection
A perfect machine fulfils the object for which it is made, and a perfect Christian is one of such a character that he fulfils the object for which he has been made a Christian. Entire, lacking in nothing, conveys the idea of being properly adjusted and arranged so that our avenues of temptation are properly guarded. A builder never thinks of putting a window in the floor or a door in the ceiling, and God would have our moral nature so adjusted that we may have everything in its place, and consequently Entire, lacking in nothing. (F. Montague Miller.)
Patience Godlike
It would be far easier, I apprehend, for nine men out of ten to join a storming party than to lie on a rack or to hang on a cross without repining. Yes, patience is a strength; and patience is not merely a strength, it is wisdom in exercising it. We, the creatures of a day, make one of the nearest approaches that is posssible for us to the life of God. Of God, St. Augustine has finely said, Patiens quia aeternus Because He lives for ever, He can afford to wait. (Canon Liddon.)
Patience waiting upon providence
Let your hope be patient, without tediousness of spirit, or hastiness of prefixing time. Make no limits or prescriptions to God, but let your prayers and endeavours go on still with a constant attendance on the periods of Gods providence. The men of Bethulia resolved to wait upon God but five days longer; but deliverance stayed seven days, and yet came at last. (Jeremy Taylor, D. D.)
The sphere of patience
It is said that the immortal astronomer, whose genius discovered the laws which govern the movement of the planets, saw his great labours despised by his contemporaries. Reduced to extreme misery, he was on his death-bed, when a friend asked him if he did not suffer intensely in dying thus without seeing his discoveries appreciated. My friend, replied Kepler, God waited five thousand years for one of His creatures to discover the admirable laws which He has given to the stars, and cannot I wait, also, until justice is done me? Take heed to these words you who are doing Gods work. Labour, if necessary, without result; speak, although not listened to; love, without being understood; cast your bread upon the waters; and to subdue the world to the truth, walk by faith and not by sight. (E. Bersier, D. D.)
Patience makes the burden lighter
Two little German girls, Brigitte and Wallburg, were on their way to the town, and each carried a heavy basket of fruit on her head. Brigitte murmured and sighed constantly; Wallbarg only laughed and joked. Brigitte said, What makes you laugh so? Your basket is quite as heavy as mine, and you are no stronger than I am. Wallburg said, I have a precious little herb on my load, which makes me hardly feel it at all. Put some of it on your load as well. Oh, cried Brigitte, it must indeed be a precious little herb! I should like to lighten my load with it; so tell me at once what it is called. Wallburg replied, The precious little herb that makes all burdens.light is called patience.
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 2. Count it all joy] The word , which we translate temptation, signifies affliction, persecution, or trial of any kind; and in this sense it is used here, not intending diabolic suggestion, or what is generally understood by the word temptation.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
My brethren; both as being of the same nation and the same religion; so he calls them, that the kindness of his compellation might sweeten his exhortations.
Count it; esteem it so by a spiritual judgment, though the flesh judge otherwise.
All joy; matter of the chiefest joy, viz. spiritual. So all is taken, 1Ti 1:15.
When ye fall into; when ye are so beset and circumvented by them, that there is no escaping them, but they come upon you, though by the directeth of Gods providence, yet not by your own seeking.
Divers temptations; so he calls afflictions, from Gods end in them, which is to try and discover what is in men, and whether they will cleave to him or not. The Jews were hated by other nations, and the Christian Jews even by their own, and therefore were exposed to divers afflictions, and of divers kinds, 1Pe 1:6.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
2. My brethrena phrase oftenfound in James, marking community of nation and of faith.
all joycause for thehighest joy [GROTIUS].Nothing but joy [PISCATOR].Count all “divers temptations” to be eachmatter of joy [BENGEL].
fall intounexpectedly,so as to be encompassed by them (so the original Greek).
temptationsnot in thelimited sense of allurements to sin, but trials or distressesof any kind which test and purify the Christian character. Compare”tempt,” that is, try, Ge22:1. Some of those to whom James writes were “sick,”or otherwise “afflicted” (Jas5:13). Every possible trial to the child of God is a masterpieceof strategy of the Captain of his salvation for his good.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
My brethren,…. Not only according to the flesh, he being a Jew as they were; but in a spiritual sense, they being born again of the same grace, belonging to the same family and household of faith, and having the same Father, and being all the children of God, by faith in Christ Jesus:
count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; not the temptations of Satan, or temptations to sin; for these cannot be matter of joy, but grief; these are fiery darts, and give a great deal of uneasiness and trouble; but afflictions and persecutions for the sake of the Gospel, which are so called here and elsewhere, because they are trials of the faith of God’s people, and of other graces of the Spirit of God. God by these tempts his people, as he did Abraham, when he called him to sacrifice his son; he thereby tried his faith, fear, love, and obedience; so by afflictions, God tries the graces of his people; not that he might know them, for he is not ignorant of them, but that they might be made manifest to others; and these are “divers”: many are the afflictions of the righteous; through much tribulation they must enter the kingdom; it is a great fight of afflictions which they endure, as these believers did; their trials came from different quarters; they were persecuted by their countrymen the Jews, and were distressed by the Gentiles, among whom they lived; and their indignities and reproaches were many; and their sufferings of different sorts, as confiscation of goods, imprisonment of body, banishment, scourgings, and death in various shapes: and these they “fall” into; not by chance, nor altogether at an unawares, or unexpectedly; but they fell into them through the wickedness and malice of their enemies, and did not bring them upon themselves through any crime or enormity they were guilty of: and when this was their case, the apostle exhorts them to count it all joy, or matter of joy, of exceeding great joy, even of the greatest joy; not that these afflictions were joyous in themselves, but in their circumstances, effects, and consequences; as they tried, and exercised, and improved the graces of the Spirit, and worked for their good, spiritual and eternal, and produced in them the peaceable fruit of righteousness; and as they were attended with the presence and Spirit of God, and of glory; and as they made for, and issued in the glory of God; and because of that great reward in heaven which would follow them; see Mt 5:11. The Jews have a saying g,
“whoever rejoices in afflictions that come upon him, brings salvation to the world.”
g T. Bab. Taanith, fol. 8. 1.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
| Necessity of Faith and Patience; Evil of Indecision. | A. D. 61. |
2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; 3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. 4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. 5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. 7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. 8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. 9 Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted: 10 But the rich, in that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away. 11 For the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the flower thereof falleth, and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth: so also shall the rich man fade away in his ways. 12 Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.
We now come to consider the matter of this epistle. In this paragraph we have the following things to be observed:–
I. The suffering state of Christians in this world is represented, and that in a very instructive manner, if we attend to what is plainly and necessarily implied, together with what is fully expressed. 1. It is implied that troubles and afflictions may be the lot of the best Christians, even of those who have the most reason to think and hope well of themselves. Such as have a title to the greatest joy may yet endure very grievous afflictions. As good people are liable to be scattered, they must not think it strange if they meet with troubles. 2. These outward afflictions and troubles are temptations to them. The devil endeavours by sufferings and crosses to draw men to sin and to deter them from duty, or unfit them for it; but, as our afflictions are in God’s hand, they are intended for the trial and improvement of our graces. The gold is put into the furnace, that it may be purified. 3. These temptations may be numerous and various: Divers temptations, as the apostle speaks. Our trials may be of many and different kinds, and therefore we have need to put on the whole armour of God. We must be armed on every side, because temptations lie on all sides. 4. The trials of a good man are such as he does not create to himself, nor sinfully pull upon himself; but they are such as he is said to fall into. And for this reason they are the better borne by him.
II. The graces and duties of a state of trial and affliction are here pointed out to us. Could we attend to these things, and grow in them as we should do, how good would it be for us to be afflicted!
1. One Christian grace to be exercised is joy: Count it all joy, v. 2. We must not sink into a sad and disconsolate frame of mind, which would make us faint under our trials; but must endeavour to keep our spirits dilated and enlarged, the better to take in a true sense of our case, and with greater advantage to set ourselves to make the best of it. Philosophy may instruct men to be calm under their troubles; but Christianity teaches them to be joyful, because such exercises proceed from love and not fury in God. In them we are conformable to Christ our head, and they become marks of our adoption. By suffering in the ways of righteousness, we are serving the interests of our Lord’s kingdom among men, and edifying the body of Christ; and our trials will brighten our graces now and our crown at last. Therefore there is reason to count it all joy when trials and difficulties become our lot in the way of our duty. And this is not purely a New-Testament paradox, but even in Job’s time it was said, Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth. There is the more reason for joy in afflictions if we consider the other graces that are promoted by them.
2. Faith is a grace that one expression supposes and another expressly requires: Knowing this, that the trial of your faith, v. 3; and then in v. 6, Let him ask in faith. There must be a sound believing of the great truths of Christianity, and a resolute cleaving to them, in times of trial. That faith which is spoken of here as tried by afflictions consists in a belief of the power, and word, and promise of God, and in fidelity and constancy to the Lord Jesus.
3. There must be patience: The trial of faith worketh patience. The trying of one grace produces another; and the more the suffering graces of a Christian are exercised the stronger they grow. Tribulation worketh patience, Rom. v. 3. Now, to exercise Christian patience aright, we must, (1.) Let it work. It is not a stupid, but an active thing. Stoical apathy and Christian patience are very different: by the one men become, in some measure, insensible of their afflictions; but by the other they become triumphant in and over them. Let us take care, in times of trial, that patience and not passion, be set at work in us; whatever is said or done, let patience have the saying and doing of it: let us not allow the indulging of our passions to hinder the operation and noble effects of patience; let us give it leave to work, and it will work wonders in a time of trouble. (2.) We must let it have its perfect work. Do nothing to limit it nor to weaken it; but let it have its full scope: if one affliction come upon the heels of another, and a train of them are drawn upon us, yet let patience go on till its work is perfected. When we bear all that God appoints, and as long as he appoints, and with a humble obedient eye to him, and when we not only bear troubles, but rejoice in them, then patience hath its perfect work. (3.) When the work of patience is complete, then the Christian is entire, and nothing will be wanting: it will furnish us with all that is necessary for our Christian race and warfare, and will enable us to persevere to the end, and then its work will be ended, and crowned with glory. After we have abounded in other graces, we have need of patience, Heb. x. 36. But let patience have its perfect work, and we shall be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
4. Prayer is a duty recommended also to suffering Christians; and here the apostle shows, (1.) What we ought more especially to pray for–wisdom: If any lack wisdom, let him ask of God. We should not pray so much for the removal of an affliction as for wisdom to make a right use of it. And who is there that does not want wisdom under any great trials or exercises to guide him in his judging of things, in the government of his own spirit and temper, and in the management of his affairs? To be wise in trying times is a special gift of God, and to him we must seek for it. (2.) In what way this is to be obtained–upon our petitioning or asking for it. Let the foolish become beggars at the throne of grace, and they are in a fair way to be wise. It is not said, “Let such ask of man,” no, not of any man, but, “Let him ask of God,” who made him, and gave him his understanding and reasonable powers at first, of him in whom are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Let us confess our want of wisdom to God and daily ask it of him. (3.) We have the greatest encouragement to do this: he giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not. Yea, it is expressly promised that it shall be given, v. 5. Here is something in answer to every discouraging turn of the mind, when we go to God, under a sense of our own weakness and folly, to ask for wisdom. He to whom we are sent, we are sure, has it to give: and he is of a giving disposition, inclined to bestow this upon those who ask. Nor is there any fear of his favours being limited to some in this case, so as to exclude others, or any humble petitioning soul; for he gives to all men. If you should say you want a great deal of wisdom, a small portion will not serve your turn, the apostle affirms, he gives liberally; and lest you should be afraid of going to him unseasonably, or being put to shame for your folly, it is added, he upbraideth not. Ask when you will, and as often as you will, you will meet with no upbraidings. And if, after all, any should say, “This may be the case with some, but I fear I shall not succeed so well in my seeking for wisdom as some others may,” let such consider how particular and express the promise is: It shall be given him. Justly then must fools perish in their foolishness, if wisdom may be had for asking, and they will not pray to God for it. But, (4.) There is one thing necessary to be observed in our asking, namely, that we do it with a believing, steady mind: Let him ask in faith, nothing wavering, v. 6. The promise above is very sure, taking this proviso along with us; wisdom shall be given to those who ask it of God, provided they believe that God is able to make the simple wise, and is faithful to make good his word to those who apply to him. This was the condition Christ insisted on, in treating with those who came to him for healing: Believest thou that I am able to do this? There must be no wavering, no staggering at the promise of God through unbelief, or through a sense of any disadvantages that lie on our own part. Here therefore we see,
5. That oneness, and sincerity of intention, and a steadiness of mind, constitute another duty required under affliction: He that wavereth is like a wave of the sea, driven with the wind, and tossed. To be sometimes lifted up by faith, and then thrown down again by distrust–to mount sometimes towards the heavens, with an intention to secure glory, and honour, and immortality, and then to sink again in seeking the ease of the body, or the enjoyments of this world–this is very fitly and elegantly compared to a wave of the sea, that rises and falls, swells and sinks, just as the wind tosses it higher or lower, that way or this. A mind that has but one single and prevailing regard to its spiritual and eternal interest, and that keeps steady in its purposes for God, will grow wise by afflictions, will continue fervent in its devotions, and will be superior to all trials and oppositions. Now, for the cure of a wavering spirit and a weak faith, the apostle shows the ill effects of these, (1.) In that the success of prayer is spoiled hereby: Let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord, v. 7. Such a distrustful, shifting, unsettled person is not likely to value a favour from God as he should do, and therefore cannot expect to receive it. In asking for divine and heavenly wisdom we are never likely to prevail if we have not a heart to prize it above rubies, and the greatest things in this world. (2.) A wavering faith and spirit has a bad influence upon our conversations. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways, v. 8. When our faith and spirits rise and fall with second causes, there will be great unsteadiness in all our conversation and actions. This may sometimes expose men to contempt in the world; but it is certain that such ways cannot please God nor procure any good for us in the end. While we have but one God to trust to, we have but one God to be governed by, and this should keep us even and steady. He that is unstable as water shall not excel. Hereupon,
III. The holy humble temper of a Christian, both in advancement and debasement, is described: and both poor and rich are directed on what grounds to build their joy and comfort, v. 9-11. Here we may observe, 1. Those of low degree are to be looked upon as brethren: Let the brother of low degree, c. Poverty does not destroy the relation among Christians. 2. Good Christians may be rich in the world, <i>v. 10. Grace and wealth are not wholly inconsistent. Abraham, the father of the faithful, was rich in silver and gold. 3. Both these are allowed to rejoice. No condition of lie puts us out of a capacity of rejoicing in God. If we do not rejoice in him always, it is our own fault. Those of low degree may rejoice, if they are exalted to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom of God (as Dr. Whitby explains this place); and the rich may rejoice in humbling providences, as they produce a lowly and humble disposition of mind, which is highly valuable in the sight of God. Where any are made poor for righteousness’ sake, their very poverty is their exaltation. It is an honour to be dishonoured for the sake of Christ. To you it is given to suffer, Phil. i. 29. All who are brought low, and made lowly by grace, may rejoice in the prospect of their exaltation at the last in heaven. 4. Observe what reason rich people have, notwithstanding their riches, to be humble and low in their own eyes, because both they and their riches are passing away: As the flower of the grass he shall pass away. He, and his wealth with him, v. 11. For the sun has no sooner risen with a burning heat than it withereth the grass. Note hence, Worldly wealth is a withering thing. Riches are too uncertain (says Mr. Baxter on this place), too inconsiderable things to make any great or just alteration in our minds. As a flower fades before the heat of the scorching sun, so shall the rich man fade away in his ways. His projects, counsels, and managements for this world, are called his ways; in these he shall fade away. For this reason let him that is rich rejoice, not so much in the providence of God, that makes him rich, as in the grace of God, that makes and keeps him humble; and in those trials and exercises that teach him to seek his felicity in and from God, and not from these perishing enjoyments.
IV. A blessing is pronounced on those who endure their exercises and trials, as here directed: Blessed is the man that endureth temptation, v. 12. Observe, 1. It is not the man who suffers only that is blessed, but he who endures, who with patience and constancy goes through all difficulties in the way of his duty. 2. Afflictions cannot make us miserable, if it be not our own fault. A blessing may arise from them, and we may be blessed in them. They are so far from taking away a good man’s felicity that they really increase it. 3. Sufferings and temptations are the way to eternal blessedness: When he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, dokimos genomenos—when he is approved, when his graces are found to be true and of the highest worth (so metals are tried as to their excellency by the fire), and when his integrity is manifested, and all is approved of the great Judge. Note hence, To be approved of God is the great aim of a Christian in all his trials; and it will be his blessedness at last, when he shall receive the crown of life. The tried Christian shall be a crowned one: and the crown he shall wear will be a crown of life. It will be life and bliss to him, and will last for ever. We only bear the cross for a while, but we shall wear the crown to eternity. 4. This blessedness, involved in a crown of life, is a promised thing to the righteous sufferer. It is therefore what we may most surely depend upon: for, when heaven and earth shall pass away, this word of God shall not fail of being fulfilled. But withal let us take notice that our future reward comes, not as a debt, but by a gracious promise. 5. Our enduring temptations must be from a principle of love to God and to our Lord Jesus Christ, otherwise we are not interested in this promise: The Lord hath promised to those that love him. Paul supposes that a man may for some point of religion even give his body to be burnt, and yet not be pleasing to God, nor regarded by him, because of his want of charity, or a prevailing sincere love to God and man, 1 Cor. xiii. 3. 6. The crown of life is promised not only to great and eminent saints, but to all those who have the love of God reigning in their hearts. Every soul that truly loves God shall have its trials in this world fully recompensed in that world above where love is made perfect.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
Count it (). First aorist middle imperative of , old verb to consider. Do it now and once for all.
All joy ( ). “Whole joy,” ” unmixed joy,” as in Php 2:29. Not just “some joy” along with much grief.
When (). “Whenever,” indefinite temporal conjunction.
Ye fall into (). Second aorist active subjunctive (with the indefinite ) from , literally to fall around (into the midst of), to fall among as in Lu 10:30 (he fell among robbers). Only other N.T. example of this old compound is in Ac 27:41. Thucydides uses it of falling into affliction. It is the picture of being surrounded () by trials.
Manifold temptations ( ). Associative instrumental case. The English word temptation is Latin and originally meant trials whether good or bad, but the evil sense has monopolized the word in our modern English, though we still say “attempt.” The word (from , late form for the old as in Ac 26:21, both in good sense as in Joh 6:6, and in bad sense as in Mt 16:1) does not occur outside of the LXX and the N.T. except in Dioscorides (A.D. 100?) of experiments on diseases. “Trials” is clearly the meaning here, but the evil sense appears in verse 12 (clearly in in verse 13) and so in Heb 3:8. Trials rightly faced are harmless, but wrongly met become temptations to evil. The adjective (manifold) is as old as Homer and means variegated, many coloured as in Matt 4:24; 2Tim 3:6; Heb 2:4. In 1Pe 1:6 we have this same phrase. It is a bold demand that James here makes.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
All joy [ ] . Joy follows up the rejoice of the greeting. The all has the sense of wholly. Count it a thing wholly joyful, without admixture of sorrow. Perhaps, as Bengel suggests, the all applies to all kinds of temptations.
When [] . Lit., whenever : better, because it implies that temptation may be expected all along the Christian course.
Ye fall into [] . The preposition peri, around, suggests falling into something which surrounds. Thus Thucydides, speaking of the plague at Athens, says, “The Athenians, having fallen into [] such affliction, were pressed by it.”
Divers [] . Rev., manifold. See on 1Pe 1:6.
Temptations [] . In the general sense of trials. See on Mt 6:13; 1Pe 1:6.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) My “brethren” (beritu – Syriac, meaning a fetter), (Gr. adelphoi) indicates a tie of affectionate affinity that existed between James and the brethren of the dispersion – individually and collectively -perhaps developed during the weeks following the great Pentecost revival when converts from seventeen nations stayed in Jerusalem for fellowship and instruction in the work of Christ – when many of the church sold possessions io help them meet needs for a time (Act 4:32-37; Act 6:1-7).
2) Calculate (Gr. agesasthe) or consider it “whole joy” when physically surrounded and overwhelmed by testings of variegated (Gr. poikilois) or many colored kinds (Mat 5:11-12; 2Ti 3:12).
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
2 All joy. The first exhortation is, to bear trials with a cheerful mind. And it was especially necessary at that time to comfort the Jews, almost overwhelmed as they were with troubles. For the very name of the nation was so infamous, that they were hated and despised by all people wherever they went; and their condition as Christians rendered them still more miserable, because they held their own nation as their most inveterate enemies. At the same time, this consolation was not so suited to one time, but that it is always useful to believers, whose life is a constant warfare on earth.
But that we may know more fully what he means, we must doubtless take temptations or trials as including all adverse things; and they are so called, because they are the tests of our obedience to God. He bids the faithful, while exercised with these, to rejoice; and that not only when they fall into one temptation, but into many, not only of one kind, but of various kinds. And doubtless, since they serve to mortify our flesh, as the vices of the flesh continually shoot up in us, so they must necessarily be often repeated. Besides, as we labor under diseases, so it is no wonder that different remedies are applied to remove them.
The Lord then afflicts us in various ways, because ambition, avarice, envy, gluttony, intemperance, excessive love of the world, and the innumerable lusts in which we abound, cannot be cured by the same medicine.
When he bids us to count it all joy, it is the same as though he had said, that temptations ought to be so deemed as gain, as to be regarded as occasions of joy. He means, in short, that there is nothing in afflictions which ought to disturb our joy. And thus, he not only commands us to bear adversities calmly, and with an even mind, but shews us that this is a reason why the faithful should rejoice when pressed down by them.
It is, indeed, certain, that all the senses of our nature are so formed, that every trial produces in us grief and sorrow; and no one of us can so far divest himself of his nature as not to grieve and be sorrowful whenever he feels any evil. But this does not prevent the children of God to rise, by the guidance of the Spirit, above the sorrow of the flesh. Hence it is, that in the midst of trouble they cease not to rejoice.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
CRITICAL AND EXEGETICAL NOTES
Jas. 1:2. Temptations.As so often in the New Testament, trials which take the form of suffering, and serve the purposes of Divine discipline.
Jas. 1:3. Trying.Testing, proving. The proof to which your faith is put works out endurance. Patience.; the perseverance which does not falter under suffering. Christian patience is much more than passive submission.
Jas. 1:4. Entire.Lacking no part essential to full and healthy spiritual life. The figure is taken from the animals, some of whose organs may be undeveloped, or may be mutilated.
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.Jas. 1:2-4
The Ministry of Trial to Christian Character.It is necessary to keep in mind the persons who were directly addressed in this epistle. They were Jewish Christians who were placed in difficult circumstances, and called to bear various persecutions, on account of their faith in Christ. Their troubles were special to their religion. They were such as Hindoos still have to endure when they are baptised in the name of Christ. The trials were not merely the commonplace afflictions that come into every life; and so they were not merely disciplinary and educative. They were distinctly influences acting upon them as temptations to apostasy from Christ; and therefore they are properly called temptations: there was in them something of the element of incitement to evil. Distinguish afflictions from temptations; or rather, see under what conditions afflictions may become temptations. Many of the forms in which earthly trials come prove to be tempting forms. They may be testings; they may be temptings.
I. Right feeling concerning trials.The feeling commended here certainly seems strange. Count it all joy, nought but joy. There cannot be joy in them; there can be joy in seeing into them. Is there any real ground for such joy? There is, if we can give due weight to these considerations.
1. No trial that ever comes to us is either an accident or the work of an enemy. If Satan brought calamity to Job, he was, for the time at least, Gods angel, doing a painful bit of Divine work.
2. The Christian has learned never to connect his trials with personal sin. It is the conscience of connection between personal sin and personal suffering that makes the bitterness of suffering. That bitterness the Christian should never know.
3. Trials assure us of Gods gracious interest in our higher, spiritual welfare. A purpose of grace is in them. A ministry of grace is in them. And it is far better for us to have the grace than to escape the trials that bring it to us.
4. Trial cultures all the finer elements of character, and in that issue of trial the Christian may, and should, unfeignedly rejoice. Could a Christian rightly apprehend what human life is, and leads towards, and rejoice in having been freed from trials? That question may be asked concerning both outward and inward trials. But if we joy in tribulation, it can only be with the joy of faith, with that faith-vision which can see within things, and discern meanings and issues.
II. Right thoughts concerning trials.Worketh patience. They are not to be thought of as mere things, accidents, calamities. They work. And their work may be humbling, separating, arresting, proving, and culturing by proving. They work; but never self-willedly; always under the immediate presidency and direction of our Father-God. And they never get beyond His control. His mission is in every event that happens. The trials work out peaceable fruits of righteousness.
III. Right issues of the work of trials.Patience. This we may see as
(1) self-mastery;
(2) endurance; or
(3) the waiting of expectancy; for in Christian patience there is always active faith. The energy that can do the work of the hour, while we patiently wait. Patience is not listlessness and indifference. It is a sign that patience, under trial, is Christianly-toned when a man keeps bravely on, carrying his burden while he fulfils his duties.
IV. Right anxieties concerning the issues of trial.Let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire. This is the proper anxiety, that the trial should fully do all that it was sent to do. Every plant that grows wants to reach its maturity, wants to flower and seed. So does every grace in us; and therefore we want every influence that bears on the maturing to get its perfect work, and help towards the perfect flowering. Because men cannot hope to become perfect and entire, lacking nothing, in Christian character, without the ministry upon them of earthly sufferings, therefore they may even respond to St. James, and glory in tribulations also.
SUGGESTIVE NOTES AND SERMON SKETCHES
Jas. 1:2-12. The Christian in Times of Suffering.
I. The suffering state of Christians in this world is represented.
1. Implied that troubles and afflictions may be the lot of the best Christians.
2. These outward afflictions and troubles are temptations to them.
3. These temptations may be numerous and various.
4. They are not created by the good man, nor sinfully drawn upon himself.
II. The graces and duties of a state of trial and affliction are here pointed out to us.
1. Joy.
2. Faith.
3. Patience.
4. Prayer.
(1) What to pray for;
(2) how to obtain it;
(3) encouragement to seeking;
(4) condition of success;
(5) steadiness of mind.
III. The holy, humble temper of a Christian, both in advancement and debasement, is described.Matthew Henry.
Jas. 1:2. Temptation and Sin.Temptation is not sin. An old German divine says, You cannot prevent the birds flying over your head; but you can prevent them from making nests in your hair. An old English Divine says, I cannot help it if the devil comes up to my door. I cannot help it if he lifts the latch and walks in. I can help it if I offer him a chair.
The Manifoldness of Human Trials.Diverse, manifold temptations. They touch on all its sides human character, and affect every form of human relation, because the approach to men is by such different avenues; the needs of men and society take such a variety of forms. Very striking is the versatility of human trial; the surprise of the forms it can take; and the adaptation of forms to occasions which can sooner or later be recognised. The angel of affliction is marvellously skilful in his adjustments. The expression fall into suggests an unlooked-for concurrence of adverse circumstances. Every possible trial to the child of God is a masterpiece of strategy of the Captain of his salvation for his good.
Jas. 1:2-8. Christian Joy in Times of Trial.The epistle was written to correct abuses which had already shown themselves in certain portions of the Church. Some of these arose from the influence of persecution, and from the peculiar trials and temptations which it brought along with it. Temptation never means affliction simply, but in every case conveys the idea of a moral trial, or a test of character. Had not popular usage lowered the meaning of our own word trial, as applied to providential changes, so that it now expresses little more than pain or privation, it would correspond exactly to the Greek term here used, and applied to sufferings or afflictions, not as such, or as mere chastisement or means of grace, but as tests or touchstones of the sufferers dispositions and affections, of his faith and patience and obedience. The difficulty of complying with the general injunction of the text may appear to be enhanced by the variety of outward forms and circumstances under which the work of providential trial may be carried on. Though it may be rational and right to rejoice in one variety of such temptations, it does not follow necessarily that it is possible or right in all. But the text has the term divers, manifold, multiform, diversified; so it must be meant that in the full sense we are to count our various providential trials all joy. As, however, no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, it is not unreasonable to suppose that the joy required is not a joy to be experienced in the very article or stress of the temptation, but a joy to be engendered by a believing, grateful retrospection of the trial after it is past, or at least after the first shock is over, and the soul is able to reflect upon it. This distinction helps to explain the paradoxical aspect of the exhortation to rejoice in that which necessarily involves pain and suffering. Christians may reasonably have joy in thinking that they have suffered, and so have had occasions of attesting their fidelity, and patience, and submission to Gods will. But the joy is not merely retrospective; it is prospective also. It is founded on knowledge of the consequences which may be expected from a certain course of action or suffering. The trials or temptations of the Christian are the test or touchstone of his faith, both in the strict and comprehensive sense. They put to the proof his trust in God, his belief in what God says, of what God promises. But in so doing they afford the surest test of his religion, of his whole religious character. And providential trial or temptation produces a permanent effect upon the character. It generates a habitthat of patient endurance, that of steadfast perseverance in the way of Gods commandments. For of patience, as of faith, it may be said that it cannot stand alone, it cannot exist independently of other virtues, other graces, other traits of Christian character. He who will not do Gods will cannot endure it in a Christian spirit. Evangelical patience presupposes, includes, or carries with it evangelical obedience or activity. To say that it is fostered or matured by trial is to say that trial is an important means of grace, and to be thankfully submitted to, and even rejoiced in, as a gracious agency for securing spiritual health. The trial of our faith worketh out, elaborates, and as it were laboriously cultivates, a habit of persistent and unwavering obedience and submission to the will of God, both in the way of doing and suffering. It is implied that this Divine , this principle and habit of patient continuance in doing and suffering the will of God, is not a mere superfluous embellishment of Christian character, a work of supererogation added to its necessary elements by way of doing more than man needs or God requires, but itself an element that cannot be dispensed with, and without which neither sufferers nor actors in Gods service can be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. And all this affords abundant room for wise discrimination and a sound discretion.J. Addison Alexander, D.D.
Temptation, its Meaning and Uses.The subject of temptation, as treated in the Bible, is more than a little perplexing, from the appearance of inconsistency or contradiction in the several statements. In this chapter, within the space of ten or twelve verses, we have these four apparently irreconcilable statements: that it is to be counted all joy when we fall into temptations; that the man who endures temptation is blessed; that temptations do not come from God; and that they do come from our lusts and passions. Now, how can that be joy and blessedness which does not come from God, but from the lowest part of our nature, left in a basely ungoverned condition? The difficulty is somewhat illumined by reflecting on one broad feature of human life and action. Everything that falls within human activity may be said to have two sides to it. On the one side there is a Divine providence in the course a frail thing takes; on the other, there may be the outrage of all good sense and propriety. It is universally impossible in a single instance to escape from this complex position. Take, then, any temptation that arises from our bodily senses; there is a Divine side even to these when they are obeying the holy will of God. And then they help, not mislead, the soul. But in mans exercise of them there comes waywardness, folly. If men would only admit this double aspect of human things, to the fulness of its existence and influence, it would lessen, if it did not remove, many difficulties. It would be seen that temptation must necessarily fill human life, and can arise at any and every point from the action of mans folly and error. With this explanation, can we say in any sense that it is the will of God, and justifiably so, that we, being what we are, should thus find temptations, with the risk of being betrayed by them? To answer this, we must consider a little more what man is, and what his position and calling in this life, possessed of these evil tendencies. Were he innocent and pure, and had he no knowledge of evil, there were then no evil tendencies. Were man either the creature of destiny, or a thing completely pliable to all surrounding influences, temptation would seem a very needless hardship. It is when we reflect that the thought of man most nearly adequate is of a being of great grandeur of nature, yet afflicted with evil tendenciesa being of unlimited though undeveloped capacities in all directions. The great meaning and use of temptation is to reveal the secret and unknown depths of the human soul, which may take three directions:
1. Very many things in human life, from the most startlingly terrible down even to the quite trivial, tell us how very little any one knows of the extent to which evil has invaded the nature of man. Who has not often observed in life a display of perversion that no one could have anticipated? No man knows himself, and no other man knows him, as to evil, until he is tried.
2. A more beautiful aspect of temptation is its power to develop the fortitude of virtue, the resolute moral earnestness of the man. To a being like man, knowing good and evil, and mysteriously allied to both, there would appear to be no other method of spiritual discipline.
3. The full force of these truths comes out to view as our perception becomes quite clear of the extreme opposite qualitiesholiness and sin. Three truths are necessary to our search for the meaning of the difficult problems of life:
1. The paternal care of God.
2. The interpreting light of the future.
3. And the stupendous interests of morality. To him who sees in life no vast meaning to be unfolded, all these temptations may present only a tangled web. But when life emerges from this obscurity, as a God-given thing, with an infinitude of purpose, with a moral intensity that can be measured only by a heaven of ineffable bliss and a hell of unutterable gloom, then temptations are full of a sacred intent, come with the benediction of the all-wise and all-loving Father, it may be with sacred tears, to cast us on His everlasting arms of compassion and strength, and to fill our hearts with His pure joy.Samuel Edger, B.A. (Auckland, N.Z.).
Jas. 1:3. The Trial of Waiting Work.Human trouble never takes on a more serious form, and never becomes a severer test, than when it makes effort and enterprise impossible, and compels us to do nothing, and wait. Estimate
(1) the pain of a condition of indecision;
(2) the restlessness of watching;
(3) the fear that the waiting will be in vain. It is a supreme difficulty to keep the heart rightly toned at such times, and to keep the life filled with right occupations. Difficult to be duly, but not unduly, anxious. Difficult to keep trust joined with prayer. Watch and pray. But it is precisely in dealing with these difficulties that our characters get their culture through temptations.
Patience Something to be Won.Worketh patience. Do not think that the grace will come to its full beauty in an hour. It is a matter of culture through tending and discipline. A child is naturally impatient. A worldly man is naturally impatient. A Christian man is a man cultured unto letting patience have her perfect work. The agencies more especially employed in the cultivation of patience are:
1. The disappointments of life, which become temptations to heartlessness and hopelessness.
2. The delays of life, when hope deferred makes the heart sick, and men feel the temptation to force their own way, and hurry through their own schemes.
3. The afflictions of life which involve severe pain, or the nervous restlessness which seems to make patience impossible.
4. Daily contact with persons whose temper and disposition are specially trying to us, and with whom it is almost impossible to bear.
5. The little incidents of life, which are too small to make demand of any great effort to master ourselves, and consequently are done without self-restraint, and often very impatiently. Patience is the one virtue that is especially cultivated by the sanctifying of the common events and relations of life.
The Praise of Patience.Patience is the guardian of faith, the preserver of peace, the cherisher of love, the teacher of humility. Patience governs the flesh, strengthens the spirit, sweetens the temper, stifles anger, extinguishes envy, subdues pride; she bridles the tongue, restrains the hand, tramples upon temptations, endures persecutions, consummates martyrdom. Patience produces unity in the Church, loyalty in the State, harmony in families and societies; she comforts the poor, and moderates the rich; she makes us humble in prosperity, cheerful in adversity, unmoved by calumny and reproach; she teaches us to forgive those who have injured us, and to be the first in asking forgiveness of those whom we have injured; she delights the faithful and invites the unbelieving; she adorns the woman and approves the man; she is beautiful in either sex and every age. Behold her appearance and her attire. Her countenance is calm and serene as the face of heaven unspotted by the shadow of a cloud, and no wrinkle of grief or anger is seen on her forehead. Her eyes are as the eyes of doves for meekness, and on her eyebrows sit cheerfulness and joy. Her mouth is lovely in silence; her complexion and colour that of innocence and security; while, like the virgin, the daughter of Zion, she shakes her head at the adversary, despising and laughing him to scorn. She is clothed in the robes of the martyrs, and in her hands she holds a sceptre in the form of a cross. She rides not in the whirlwind and stormy tempest of passion, but her throne is the humble and contrite heart, and her kingdom is the kingdom of peace.Bishop Horne.
Patient Bearing is Reasonable.It is but reasonable to bear that accident patiently which God sends, since impatience does but entangle us, like the fluttering of a bird in a net, but cannot at all ease our trouble or prevent the accident. It must be run through, and therefore it were better that we compose ourselves to a patient, than to a troubled and miserable, suffering.Jeremy Taylor.
Jas. 1:4. Perfect and Entire.There is both unity and distinctness in these terms. Perfect means that which fully attains its end. Entire means that which is complete, and harmoniously and healthily developed, in all the parts or regions of the spiritual life. The two words are wanted to express the full idea of a Christian.
Christian Character a Thing of Quiet Growth.It is with the building up of Christian character as with the formation of crystals. In order that a crystal may be properly and perfectly formed, at least three things are necessary: there must be ample time in which all unnecessary fluid can be dissipated, and the component parts of the crystal come gradually together; there must be sufficient room for all the angles and planes of the crystal to attain their regular size; and there must be the absence of agitation, so that all the points and proportions of the crystal shall be evenly and symmetrically formed. Christian character, when it is what it ought to be, is more beautiful than any crystal that natures laboratory ever produced; and in order that it may reach its perfectness time is necessary. It is a thing of quiet growth; it has to rise gradually and by many stages into form and beauty; to hurry through religious processes will be to mar and spoil the result; we must let patience have her perfect work. And space is as needful as time. If we shut ourselves up in a narrow place, if we go away from the broad, open world, and confine ourselves to a monks seclusion, to a hermits solitude, we shall be cramped and restricted; and while some parts of our character may become finely and delicately developed, others will be stunted and dwarfed, and the character as a whole will be anything but perfect. The absence of agitation, too, is important. Whatever may be going on upon the surface of our life to interrupt its tranquillity, deep down in the depths of the spirit in which character has its beginnings, and from which it grows, there must be the unruffled calm which trust in the Fathers will and power and purposes never fails to inspire; otherwise our character will be built up by fits and starts, and so will lack the fulness of harmony, symmetry, majesty, which it ought to possess.B. Wilkinson.
The Ideal of Christian Attainment.Perfect and entire, wanting nothing. Perfection of character is the idea, the aim, to be kept in the soul of the Christian, there to work as a perpetual inspiration to the seeking of perfection in the life and conduct and relationships. St. Paul presents the distinction between full-grown men and little children: the full-grown men are the perfect; they have reached the fulness, the standard, of Christian manhood. St. John has a similar kind of expression: he addresses several classesthe fathers, the young men, the little children; viewing these as different stages on the way to the perfect, that perfect being kept as the thought and aim in the soul of each. The idea of perfect comes out more plainly when it is set beside another word, perfect and entire. A man entire is one who has preserved or regained a lost completeness; or one in whom no grace that ought to be in a Christian man is wanting. But a man perfect is one who has attained his moral end, the standard according to which, in view of which, he was made; or one in whom no grace that ought to be in a Christian is found imperfect or weak, but all have reached a certain ripeness and maturity. The idea of absolute perfection is to be cherished in a mans soul, and that idea is to be sustained by constant communion with the great model of human perfection, Christ Jesus, and a suitable effort is to be made afresh every day to work out that thought of the perfect in the spirit and temper and conduct of the life. Get the thought of perfection within you, and let your whole history be the history of a struggle after the perfect in all the relations of life.
The Christ-model of the Perfect Life.The perfectwhich as merely a creation of our imagination could exert little moral influence upon our lifewas to be realised before the actual vision of men, and amidst our common scenes, and so to become the very mightiest moral influence. Christ is the ideal perfection realised in humanity. Christ is Gods perfect thought of what man should be. Without the help of Christs perfect life we could not form the idea of a perfect man. It is a simple fact that men never have formed such an idea. In Christ we not only think of, we see, the perfect. He is perfect on every side: perfect in all the stages of childhood, youth, manhood; perfect in all the spheres of the spirit, temper, speech, relationship; perfect in all the claims of duty, devotion, charity; perfect in all the scenes of success, loss, suffering, death; perfect in all the exercises of will, affection, and desire. In Him perfection is proved to be, and seen to be, an attainable thing. The ideal of perfect goodness Christ came to preach, and He could preach it with no consciousness that He Himself fell short of it.
The Perfect Work of Patience.The new life in Christ comes to persons having peculiarities of natural disposition and character. It has its work in moulding, restraining, altering, developing, and completing natural character. It perfects graces that may be existingperhaps only in germin natural dispositions; and it brings them, plants them, cultivates them, when they are lacking. Patience is a grace; it is one of the fruits of the Spirit. It takes two forms:
1. It may be the state of our mind and feeling as we go about our duty.
2. It may be the spirit which tones our intercourse with others. What in Christian life is likely to call patience into exercise?
1. The characters and dispositions of those with whom we must associate. Different and difficult temperaments. Some very wilful and trying.
2. The afflictions and trials of life. These often come in a way that disturbs our plans and tries our patience.
3. The element of the future in our redemption. Our best things have to be waited for. If we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. Note the relation of patience to faith and hope. Faith strengthens patience. Patience tempers hope. For examples of patience see Job, Simeon, Paul, and our Divine Lord. The following things tend to support and nourish patience:
1. The sense of Gods presence with us.
2. A fitting apprehension of the holy purpose which God has in His dealings with us.
3. The necessarily gradual character of the work of our sanctification.
4. The strain involved in times of trouble.
5. The exceeding great and precious promises of future blessing.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
CHAPTER II
THE WAGES OF THE WISE
Jas. 1:2-15
TRIALS PRODUCE STEADFASTNESS
Text 1:24
2.
Count it all joy, my brethren, when ye fall into manifold temptations:
3.
Knowing that the proving of your faith worketh patience.
4.
And let patience have its perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, lacking in nothing.
Queries
7.
Is it really fun to be tempted? Should it be? In what sense would it be wrong to have pleasure in temptation?
8.
To the sincere Christian who hates both the thought and practice of sin, wherein is the joy?
9.
What is the real meaning of patience? Use a good Bible dictionary or commentary. . . . look it up!
10.
There is a progression of four qualities in these verses. The first of the four leads to the second, etc. What are the four, and the relationship between them?
11.
In what sense could a work be called a perfect work? (you might profit by looking up the word perfect in a Bible dictionary. Also look it up in an English dictionary and note how the word often has a different meaning today.)
12.
In the light of the possible good results of temptation herein described, why did Jesus, in describing the manner of our prayer, say: Lead us not into temptation?
13.
What ordinary part of an epistle is here omitted? (i.e., why do we classify this as a general epistle?)
Paraphrases
A. 2.
When you are subjected to the many kinds of temptations, my fellow Christians, look on it from the bright side, as if it were joy;
3.
for the result of the temptation that is resisted is that you have passed the test and are approved. This victorious testing results in in a bulldog tenacity.
4.
And, in order that you may become completed and accomplished, having everything worthwhile, continue to hang on like a bulldog and you will finish the course.
B. 2.
Dear brothers, is your life full of difficulties and temptations? They be happy.
3.
For when the way is rough, your patience has a chance to grow.
4.
So let it grow, and dont try to squirm out of your problems. For when your patience is finally in full bloom, then you will be ready for anything, strong in character, full and complete.
Comment
Often the right use of affliction is of more value than the removal of that affliction. If God sees fit not to remove the affliction, then we can only count that the right use of the affliction must be of value. Thus, if out of some affliction we have only grief and sorrow, an occasion of sinning, a stumbling and faltering; but see no profit and no blessing, then, we must have been missing some opportunity. The opportunity may have been growth through resistance of sin; or it may yet be, as with Christ, preparation to have sympathy and compassion on others who have like sufferings; or it may be, as with Paul, the apostle, that we learn all the more to depend upon Gods grace. To really know that Gods grace is sufficient, might give us such an understanding of the grace of God as to make us far more effective teachers and workers for the Lord.
Intense pressure on common carbon makes diamonds. Likewise, the trial of one grace may produce another grace of even more value. While producing patience in you, God may be producing a diamond for this darkened world; and through the trial of your faith, He thus forms one of the most valuable jewels in His kingdom! Gods ability to do the impossible, through the most unlikely subjects, is a continual and amazing demonstration of His grace in molding and making us. No wonder I am asked to look upon affliction as if it were nothing but joy!
God allows our faith to be tested with the expectation that we shall be approved when the test is completed. Proving here has that meaning. It is this successful trial of our faith that results in a bulldog tenacity to hang on. Patience is the concept of hanging on with a grip that will not let go. It is much more than long-suffering, and has no connection with a humble submission to any circumstance. Rather, it is the I-shall-not-be-moved attitude.
If we continue to hold out under all circumstances (literally, the word patience means to hold out under), without wavering, but hanging on unto the end, then, patience will have its complete (perfect) work. This will result in our gaining approval and being purified, as with a trial of fire. It will result in our gaining the crown of life. Its result will be that we shall gain every bit of the spiritual blessing and heavenly promise God has in store for us. Patience, then, can be said to be closely associated with our will. We choose to hang on. Without this continuous spirit of steadfastness, it is very unlikely that we shall finish the course, for both the temptations of the devil and the circumstances of this life are very much against the unstable mans continuing to the end without being led off course.
James is not in this section saying that temptation is good, nor that it is pleasure, but looking to the result of the successful trial, we look upon temptation as if it were joy. The temptation to sin should still be avoided and we should shun even its appearance. Satan will see to it, however, that we are not successful in our effort to shun every temptation. When it cannot be avoided, then, we should tenaciously hang on to Christ with a view to the end when He shall say to us, Well done. There are other kinds of sufferings we face that may not, necessarily, be temptations to sin. Yet, these too are temptations, by the very fact that our suffering is involved.
God has given us the promise that we shall not be tempted beyond our ability to resist. (1Co. 10:13) Perhaps on the judgment day, we shall realize as never before that every sin we have committed is of our doing (Jas. 1:13-14), and that we have absolutely no room for blaming God for even the circumstances that led us to sin. These very circumstances are Gods efforts to make us grow and become approved, not to make us sin.
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
Sermon Outlines
IS TEMPTATION A JOY? Jas. 1:2-4
Proposition: When should a Christian not have joy in temptation, and how could a Christian find joy in temptation?
I.
Temptation is no joy.
A.
The Christian hates sin, and does not want to sin.
B.
The Christian is instructed by God to flee temptation.
C.
God promises the Christian he shall not be tempted beyond that which he is able to bear.
II.
Christians are tempted.
A.
They live in the flesh, and the flesh still has appetites.
B.
The Christian still has his free will. His choice of God means there is the possibility of another choice.
C.
The devil does not give up. He is rather more zealous in his efforts to lead a Christian to sin.
D.
Most of the New Testament is written to Christians to encourage them to faithfulness, thus making it evident that a Christian can wander away from God.
III.
We can count temptation as if it were joy.
A.
Not because of the desire to sin. There is no joy in even the appearance of evil.
B.
Not because of the possibility of doing sin. This horrifies us. We long for the day when we will be beyond temptation.
C.
Because of the result in us if we are faithful in the temptation:
1.
We grow in strength to resist.
2.
We grow in understanding others who are tempted.
3.
We prove our faith in Christ.
4.
Temptation resisted completes our Christ life, and the result is that we have no spiritual shortcoming.
THE ROAD TO TRUE Wis. 1:5-7
Proposition: What is the source of true wisdom, and how do we get it?
Introduction: True Wisdom Defined: More than knowledge . . . the ability to know what to do with knowledge.
I.
The source of True Wisdom: God.
A.
He is all-powerful; He knows everything; He is everywhere.
B.
He wants to help; He giveth.
C.
His nature is to give liberally, abundantly.
D.
He upbraideth not when He gives.
1.
He does not hold it against the one who receives.
2.
He is not continually rubbing it in, nor gloating over us.
3.
He has no subtle and hidden selfish reasons for giving.
II.
The means of obtaining True Wisdom: Seeking.
A.
Seek Wisdom at its source: God.
B.
Hear Gods wisdom that is given: His Word.
C.
Seek in faith, knowing God has the wisdom and His Word is true.
D.
Use the wisdom when received, else it will be useless.
III.
Warning against Double-mindedness.
A.
To waver in your confidence in Gods ability, is to waver between two masters.
B.
The undecided goes nowhere, like a wave of the sea.
C.
To have a double mind is to be unstable in everything else.
THE SUFFERING STATE OF THE CHRISTIAN Jas. 1:2-12
Proposition: To show how and why a Christian faces temptation.
Introduction: Troubles and affliction may be the lot of the best Christians. Closeness to the Lord does not immune from suffering, but rather we may expect that it may be our lot to suffer with Him.
I.
Outward afflictions and sufferings may be a temptation to the Christian.
A.
By the devils drawing men to commit sin.
B.
By the desire to refrain from doing the duties and services to God.
II.
Temptations are numerous and varied.
A.
Divers temptations, includes all kinds and varieties.
B.
They are hard to detect, for they come from within.
C.
Our love for friends and relatives is a subtle and insidious source.
III.
Duties of Christians under trial:
A.
Resistance to be exercised in joy . . . count it as if it were all joy. (Because God allows it for our future benefit.)
B.
Faith is to be exercised.
Jas. 1:3 The trial of your faith.
Jas. 1:6 Let him ask in faith.
C.
There must be a steadfastness.
Faith worketh patience.
Tribulation worketh patience, Rom. 5:3
D.
Prayer requests for needs during trial are in order.
1.
Especially for wisdom.
2.
We are encouraged to pray (Jas. 1:5)
3.
We have the definite promise of God concerning wisdom requests. (Jas. 1:5)
IV.
Temptations Resisted bring Rewards.
A.
Our Christian spirit is tried and made firm.
B.
Our spirit of resistance is made stronger.
C.
Our dependence upon God is strengthened.
D.
By resistance we prove our love for God, and become recipients of the promised crown.
E.
Resisting temptation serves the interest of Gods kingdom and edifies His body.
FOURTEEN SERMON TITLES WITH THREE-POINT OUTLINES
THE JOY OF KNOWING Jas. 1:2-3
A.
Christians are tempted.
B.
Temptations are directed toward the Christians faith.
C.
Patience is the intended result.
THE PERFECT WORK OF PATIENCE Jas. 1:4
That you may be: A. Perfect, B. Entire, C. Lacking in nothing.
SEEKING WISDOM Jas. 1:5
A.
We need it
B.
The only source is of God.
C.
We must seek it to get it.
WISDOM IS FROM GOD Jas. 1:5
A.
He gives liberally.
B.
He does not hold it against those who receive from Him.
C.
He promises results.
HOW TO ASK OF GOD Jas. 1:6
A.
Ask for that which we have a right to receive.
B.
Ask in faith.
C.
Waver not, neither in confidence nor in life.
FAITHLESS FAITH Jas. 1:6-8
A.
A doubting man is like the wave of the sea. Jas. 1:6
B.
A doubting man gets nowhere and receives no results. Jas. 1:7
C.
A doubting man is also unstable in other ways. Jas. 1:8
WAVERING WAVES Jas. 1:6
A.
They have no will of their own, and are at the mercies of others.
B.
They are driven by the pressure of winds outside themselves.
C.
They are tossed to and fro.
WHEN YOURE DOWN AND OUT Jas. 1:9
A.
You will see your need of Christ and seek help of God.
B.
In Christ you have many brothers.
C.
You have great cause of rejoicing through spiritual exaltation.
RAGS OF RICHES Jas. 1:10-11
A.
The rich can go only in one direction: down.
B.
The illusionary beauty of riches is temporary.
C.
The attainments of the rich shall pass away.
WILTING WONDERS OF THIS WORLD Jas. 1:11
A.
Circumstances of this life scorch and burn them.
B.
Their results fail and fall.
C.
Their beauty is temporary.
WHY ENDURE Jas. 1:12
A.
We are blessed when we do.
B.
We have the approval of God when we do.
C.
We shall receive the crown of life if we do.
DONT BLAME GOD Jas. 1:13
A.
God, who has no lust, cannot be tempted with evil.
B.
God tempts no man to do evil.
C.
To blame God is to attempt to avoid the responsibility for our temptation.
TEMPTATIONS SOURCE Jas. 1:14
A.
Temptation comes when we are drawn away from God.
B.
Temptation comes from the lust within man himself.
C.
Temptation is an enticement that snares and entraps.
THREE GENERATIONS Jas. 1:14-15
A.
Lust plus enticement begets temptation.
B.
Temptation plus giving in begets sin.
C.
Sin plus its continuance begets death.
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(2) Count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations.Better, Account it all joy whenever ye fall into divers temptationsi.e., trials; but even with this more exact rendering of the text, how can we, poor frail creatures of earth, it may well be asked, feel any joy under such? Do we not pray in our Saviours words, Lead us not into temptation? (See Mat. 6:13, and Note there.) Yet a little consideration will open out the teaching of Holy Scripture very plainly. The Apostle here is following the same line of thought as that expressed in Heb. 5:14. By use (or habit, more properly) our senses may be exercised to the discernment of good and evil. The grace of God given to the soul is capable of growth and enlargement, like the powers of body and mind. If either be unemployed, weakness must supervene, and eventually decay and death. And just as the veteran who has proved his armour well, and learned to face habitual danger as a duty, is more trustworthy than a raw recruit, however large of limb and stout of heart, so with the Christian soldier. He must learn to endure hardness (2Ti. 2:3), and bear meekly and even gladly all the trials which are to strengthen him for the holy war. Innocence is a grace indeed, and yet there is a higher stage of the same virtue, viz., the purity which has been won by long and often bitter conflict with the thousand suggestions of evil from without, stirring up the natural impurity within. Temptation is not sin. You cannot, says the old German divine, prevent the birds flying over your head, but you can from making nests in your hair; and the soul victorious over some such trying onset is by that very triumph stronger and better able to undergo the next assault, The act of virtue has, in truth, helped to build up the habit, from which, when it is perfected, a happy life cannot fail to spring. The interpretation of our Lords prayer is rather the cry for help to God our Father in the trial, than for actual escape from it: Lead us not, i.e., where we in our free will may choose the wrong and perish. And there is a strangely sweet joy to be snatched from the most grievous temptation in the remembrance that God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it (1Co. 10:13).
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
(2-27) Immediately after the salutation, and with more or less a play upon the word which we translate greeting (rejoice, Jas. 1:1; count it all joy, Jas. 1:2) there follow appeals on behalf of patience, endurance. and meekness.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
2. My brethren The plural of brother in English is brothers, to designate relationship; brethren, confraternity. The primitive Hebrews made very extensive applications of the word. Besides descent from common parents it was applied to cousins, countrymen, and fellow Jews. The Rabbies called a born Jew, brother; a proselyte, neighbour; but a Gentile, neither. From the Jews the Christians adopted it as title for all fellow Christians. St. James repeatedly uses it: Jas 4:11; Jas 5:7-8; Jas 5:19. He also uses beloved: Jas 1:16; Jas 1:19; Jas 2:5.
Count it all joy At the very opening our apostle places his suffering brethren upon the highest point of consolation, namely, that height of Christian life in which trials are sure of being antecedents to triumph, and so are sources of joy. The Christian hero must not tremble at the danger, but rejoice in anticipation of the victory, and rejoice in the trial as the condition of triumph. To a people in the agony of persecution such an address is a thrilling note of cheer.
All joy That is, pure joy and nothing else.
Fall For even the martyr must not court or rush into trial. He must rather flee from persecution. Note Mat 10:23. Yet when it is forced upon him, such should be his spiritual elevation that the trial shall be an occasion of joy. Especially should he rejoice that he is counted worthy to suffer for Christ. Act 5:41.
Temptations There are divers or various forms of external things which become internal temptations. They may be hostile forms, as persecutions and assaults, (as in Luk 8:13,) and these tempt to yield through cowardice: or they may be seducing forms, to which we yield by compliance. The moral firmness with which the soul wards off these divers temptations and retains its pure integrity is called by St. James , persistent firmness, imperfectly translated patience.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
2. Being not hearers only, but doers of the word, 22-27.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘Count it all joy, my brothers, whenever you find yourself involved with many kinds of temptations,’
James begins by calling on all Christians (‘my brothers’) to rejoice in trials and temptations whenever they are faced up with them, seeing all testing as a means for exercising faith and confidence in the Lord, Jesus Christ, and in His promises, whether those trials be in terms of persecution, problems of life, or inward temptations. They should thus rejoice in them, as they rise above them hand in hand with Him, with their eyes fixed on things above where Christ is seated on the right hand of God (Col 3:1-3), looking not at the things that are seen, but at the things which are unseen (2Co 4:18). For in the light of what is unseen, the things that are seen are unimportant, and can be seen in their proper perspective. And in the process of experiencing these tests and trials they should continually rejoice because they know that their successful enduring of their trials is accomplishing much good in them.
‘Count it all joy.’ That is reckon on it as the most delightful and joyous thing in the world. ‘Reckon it as a thing of unreserved joy’, almost hilarity, because of the blessing that is going to result. We can compare Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount, ‘blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and speak all kinds of evil against you falsely on My account, rejoice and be exceeding glad’ (Mat 5:12). And why are we to rejoice? Because it is the evidence that we are acceptable to God, and that God is treating us as His children who need to learn the lessons of life (Heb 12:3-11). And it is evidence that we have got Satan worried (Luk 22:31). And it is evidence that through our Lord Jesus Christ we have been reconciled to God, and have been made at one with Him (Rom 5:11), which has resulted in men turning against us because they see us as presumptious. See also for this joy Joh 16:20-24; Joh 17:13; Act 13:52; Act 15:3; Act 20:24; Rom 14:17; Rom 15:13; Php 2:29 ; 1Pe 1:8.
‘Temptations.’ The word indicates trials of any kind whether through the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches or the desire for other things (Mar 4:19), or through physical persecution and harassment because they are Christians (see Act 14:22; 1Pe 1:6; 1Pe 4:12; also Heb 2:18 etc). For the comparison of joy with trials compare 1Pe 1:8 with Jas 1:7, but see also Luk 6:21-23 and the blessedness of the faithful as found in the beatitudes (Mat 5:3-13). The point behind such temptations and trials is the activity of God in ‘proving’ His people, as the next verse reveals. Compare Sir 2:1 ; Sir 36:1 where the context similarly implies affliction on the one hand and being ‘proved’ on the other.
It was the response of Christians to trials and persecution in the early church that often resulted in many becoming Christians. They knew that men who had such joy in the midst of suffering must have something worth having. And the early church saw it as a privilege, a favour granted by God, which is why Paul could say, “it has been granted to you to suffer for the sake of Christ” (Php 1:29). Thus far from being seen as a matter for discouragement, it was seen as a grounds for thanksgiving. Peter indicated the same thing, ‘if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but under that name let him glorify God’ (1Pe 4:16). That is why the early Christians went away “rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name” (Act 5:41). They were honoured to be dishonoured for His sake.
Note the emphasis on ‘my brothers’ which will continue. He wants them to see that they are all one family, that he loves them as a brother (later ‘my beloved brothers’), and that they are brothers to each other.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Testing Produces Patient Endurance Which Finally Results In Being Made Perfect ( Jas 1:2-4 ).
In these words that follow James sums up the essence of the Christian life. He speaks of the joy of a vibrant faith, which boldly faces up to tests and trials, and results in patient endurance, and final spiritual completeness and maturity (compare Rom 5:3-5). It underlines the fact that we must ‘through much tribulation enter under the Kingly Rule of God’ (Act 14:22).
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Christians Are To Rejoice When They Are Tested Because They Know That It will Teach Them How To Endure And Will Result In Their Becoming Spiritually Mature ( Jas 1:2-4 ).
We should note that there is no suggestion here that Christians should seek to experience trials and tests. Indeed Jesus taught us to pray, ‘Do not lead me into testing’. What James is rather dealing with is the fact that in the course of life the Christian can expect to be tested in various ways, for it is by such testing that he can be weaned away from the world and can become strong.
Certainly such testing was true in the early days. The Jews were beginning to hate the Christians, seeing them as heretics and blasphemers. Gentiles were beginning to be suspicious of them. The net result was that they often had to face up to niggling persecution and ridicule, with it sometimes even growing more severe. We have various examples of it in the book of Acts. Certainly James knows that that is what God’s people must expect.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Those Who Face Trial for The Sake Of Their Faith in God and the Lord Jesus Christ Will Be Blessed ( Jas 1:2-12 ).
The letter commences by outlining the basic themes that will be dealt with later (see Analysis above), for as we have seen the whole letter is in the form of a chiasmus based on those themes. But it is also interesting that the opening verses of the letter after the greeting may also be seen as a chiasmus, coming between the two inclusios of Jas 1:2; Jas 1:12. Jas 1:2 commences with the overwhelming joy that they should have as they face up to trials for His sake, trials which will strengthen them and enable them to endure, while Jas 1:12 speaks of the blessedness of those who face up to those trials because it will result in their receiving the crown of life which God has prepared for those who love Him.
Analysis of Jas 1:2-12 .
a
b And let patient endurance have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and entire, lacking in nothing (Jas 1:4).
c But if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and does not upbraid, and it will be given him (Jas 1:5).
d But let him ask in faith, nothing doubting, for he who doubts is like the surge of the sea driven by the wind and tossed (Jas 1:6).
e For let not that man think that he will receive anything of the Lord (Jas 1:7).
d A doubleminded man, unstable in all his ways (Jas 1:8).
c But let the brother of low degree glory in his high estate, and the rich, in that he is made low, because as the flower of the grass he will pass away (Jas 1:9-10).
b For the sun arises with the scorching wind, and withers the grass: and its flower falls, and the grace of the fashion of it perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in his goings (Jas 1:11).
a Blessed is the man who endures temptation, for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord promised to those who love him (Jas 1:12).
Note that in ‘a’ they will fall into temptation and testing which will result in patient endurance and in the parallel they will be blessed by enduring temptation and testing. In ‘b’ the one who endures will have an abundance and lack nothing, while in the parallel the rich man who does not overcome his riches will be left with nothing. In ‘c’ wisdom will be given to those who ask, and in the parallel both rich and poor are to learn wisdom from their experience. In ‘d’ the believer and the doubter are compared, and the doubter is like the sea as stirred up by the wind, and in the parallel the doubleminded man is unstable in all his ways. Centrally in ‘e’ those who are lacking in faith and are doubleminded will receive nothing from the Lord.
We might also see these verses as a summary, within the wider outline shown above, of the whole letter. It commences with testing (‘a’, compare Jas 1:1-11), which will result in patient endurance (‘b’, compare Jas 1:17; Jas 1:25-27), which will lead on to true faith and wisdom (‘c to e’ compare Jas 2:14-26; Jas 3:13-18), which leads on to how the rich and poor are to behave in the face of that persecution (‘d to b’ compare Jas 4:1 to Jas 5:6), which finally leads on to the Lord’s final coming and judgment (‘a’, compare Jas 5:7 onwards).
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Facing the Trial – We first recognize trials as an opportunity to develop a mature character (Jas 1:2-4). We can find a place of joy in the midst of trials because each lesson in life that brings trials and pressures allows us to learn how to exercise our faith, which is worked out by patience endurance. It is only with our patience during such trials that faith can operate to bring us through the problems. Without such patience our faith can never brought to maturity (Jas 2:22). Therefore, the epistle of James gives us different types of pressures and trials in life and teaches us how to patiently walk through each one by faith. James calls this the “testing of our faith” (Jas 1:3) and he will give us wisdom in his epistle on how to walk by faith (Jas 1:5).
Faith Overcomes by Patience: The Role of Joy in Our Patient Endurance – Note these words of comfort from Frances J. Roberts book, Come Away My Beloved. This passage exhorts us to learn how to rejoice during times of distress. It tells us to look to God as our Maker, who is mighty to restore our lives.
“Praise Me. This I ask of thee in times when it seemeth indescribably difficult to do so. I ask it of thee in love that is stern at this point because I know unequivocally that it is your only hope for survival. Distress of soul and grief of heart can only bring on destruction of body. Joy alone is a healer, and ye can have it in the darkest hour if ye will force thy soul to rise to Me in worship and adoration. I have not failed thee and ye have not failed Me. It is only that ye have failed thyself or, so to speak, the disappointment has come on the human plane not on the divine. Why should ye allow any human experience to alter or affect thy divine relationship with thy Father? Bring thy sorrow, and watch for the sunrise of the resurrection.Thy God is thy maker. He is thy defender. And He is mighty to save. Yea, He is not only mighty to save from sin, but He is mighty to save from despair, from sorrow, from disappointment, from regret, from remorse, from self-castigation, and from the hot, blinding tears of rebellion against fateful circumstances. He can save thee from thyself, and He loveth thee when ye find it hard to love thyself.” [82]
[82] Frances J. Roberts, Come Away My Beloved (Ojai, California: King’s Farspan, Inc., 1973), 27.
It is our position of righteousness that brings true peace in our hearts. This peace will allow the presence of the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with a joy unspeakable and full of glory (1Pe 1:8)
1Pe 1:8, “Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:”
We see this same order of righteousness, peace and joy in Rom 14:17.
Rom 14:17, “For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.”
If we do not learn to rejoice during difficult times, it will affect our physical health. We will become weak and sick if there is sustained sorrow. Thus, James addresses this issue in Jas 5:13-15 by asking if anyone is sick.
“ Jas 5:13-15, “Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms. Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.”
Faith Overcomes by Patience: The Necessity of Trials – The process of patience and endurance is necessary in order to learn how to live by faith. Creflo Dollar tells of a divine vision that the Lord gave him concerning the subject of faith and patience. In the vision he saw a set of keys to unlock a door. The Lord then asked him if this set of keys would unlock the door. Dollar replied that it would not because the keys were not yet cut to match the lock. The Lord then explained to him that faith is like a set of keys. You can preach the Word of God to a congregation, but until they experience the pressures and trials of life, they will not know how to use their faith. [83] Just as a metal door key must be placed in a vise and pressure applied to its surface and cut to match a lock, so do the pressures in life serve the same purpose for our faith. Each lesson in life that brings trials and pressures allow us to learn how to exercise our faith. It is only with our patience during such trials that faith can operate to bring us through the problems. Without such patience our faith can never brought to maturity (Jas 2:22). Therefore, the epistle of James gives us different types of pressures and trials in life and teaches us how to patiently walk through each one by faith. James calls this the “testing of our faith” (Jas 1:3) and he will give us wisdom in his epistle on how to walk by faith (Jas 1:5).
[83] Creflo Dollar, Changing Your World (College Park, Georgia: Creflo Dollar Ministries), on Trinity Broadcasting Network (Santa Ana, California), television program.
Marilyn Hickey teaches that trials serve to transform us. It exposes our weaknesses so that we can recognize them and make corrections in our own lives. She gives the example of the prodigal son, whose suffering caused him to come to himself, repent and return to his father’s house (Luk 15:11-32). [84]
[84] Marilyn Hickey, Today With Marilyn and Sarah (Englewood, Colorado: Marilyn Hickey Ministries), on Trinity Broadcasting Network (Santa Ana, California), television program.
Jas 1:2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
Jas 1:2
Jas 1:2 “count it all joy” Word Study on “count” Strong says the Greek word “count” “hegeomai” ( ) (G2233) literally means, “to lead, to command (with official authority),” and figuratively it means, “to consider, deem.” The Enhanced Strong says it is used 28 times in the New Testament, being translated in the KJV as “count 10, think 4, esteem 3, have rule over 3, be governor 2, misc 6.” Strong says this word is a strengthened form of the word ( ) (G71), which means, “to lead, bring, drive, go, pass, induce.”
Comments – The phrase “all joy” perhaps carries the idea of “fullness of joy” (Joh 15:11). James was telling the Jewish Christians that serving the Lord was not like serving under the Mosaic Law, which required obeying ordinances regarding meats and food. Rather, serving the Lord was a service that comes from the heart, bearing the fruit of joy (Rom 14:17).
Joh 15:11, “These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full .”
Rom 14:17, “For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.”
Comments Why should we consider joy in the midst of trials? It is because the joy of the Lord is our strength.
Neh 8:10, “Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength .”
Joh 10:10, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly .”
Paul’s ministry helped the Corinthians to rejoice:
2Co 1:24, “Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy : for by faith ye stand.”
Paul did not want to make them heavy of heart because they were his source of joy:
2Co 2:1-3, “But I determined this with myself, that I would not come again to you in heaviness. For if I make you sorry, who is he then that maketh me glad, but the same which is made sorry by me? And I wrote this same unto you, lest, when I came, I should have sorrow from them of whom I ought to rejoice; having confidence in you all, that my joy is the joy of you all.”
The Macedonian’s abundance of joy in poverty and great trials is an example of those who rejoiced amongst trials:
2Co 8:2, “How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality.”
The book of 2 Corinthians is Paul’s testimony of counting it all joy in the midst of trials, which is the theme of the book of James. Notice how many time Paul refers to joy in 2 Corinthians.
In the letter to the Hebrews we are told that they took their trial joyfully when their possessions were taken from them.
Heb 10:34, “For ye had compassion of me in my bonds, and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance.”
Jas 1:2 “when ye fall into divers temptations” Word Study on “divers” Strong says the Greek word “divers” ( ) (G4164) means, “motley, i.e., various in character.” The Enhanced Strong says this Greek word is used 10 times in the New Testament, being translated in the KJV as “divers 8, manifold 2.”
Comments – The Greek conjunction (when) implies that trials come to all of us as children of God. Although we may cause ourselves problems and trials by making foolish decision, we are not the cause of all of them. In either case, we have a legal right as children of God’s kingdom for divine assistance in dealing with every single trial that comes our way during the course of our moral life on earth.
Comments – The Greek word translated “ye fall into” implies that we do not plan to get into these situations. Rather, we accidentally stumble into them because we often do not see them coming. They appear to ambush us during the course of life. Now, the Lord can and will show us many things that are coming, and even how to avoid them; but, as if often the case, Christians still miss God’s directions and have to endure many trials that they otherwise could have avoided had they been hearing from God. We should walk in wisdom daily and seek the Lord’s guidance in this area so carefully.
Comments – James is writing to believers that have undergone many types of temptations. John Calvin said concerning the plight of Jewish Christians, “For the very name of the nation was so infamous, that they were hated and despised by all people wherever they went; and their condition as Christians rendered them still more miserable, because they held their own nation as their most inveterate enemies.”
1. Persecutions The early Christians had scattered abroad in order to avoid these trials. If fact, the church at Jerusalem had suffered the most, as alluded to in Rom 15:26.
Rom 15:26, “For it hath pleased them of Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor saints which are at Jerusalem.”
2. Famine – Beside persecutions, the church as Jerusalem has undergone famine during the days of Claudius Caesar, the f ourth Roman emperor, who reigned for over 13 years (A.D. 41-54).
Act 11:27-30, “And in these days came prophets from Jerusalem unto Antioch. And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar. Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judaea: Which also they did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.”
3. Oppression – Beside persecutions and famine, this epistle reveals that the rich were oppressing the poor believers in an evil manner. These believers needed instruction in how to deal with being mistreated.
Jas 2:6-7, “But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats? Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called?”
Jas 5:6, “Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.”
4. Sickness – Some of those to whom James writes were “sick,” or otherwise “afflicted,” due to sin in their lives.
Jas 5:13-14, “Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms. Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:”
Amidst all these manifold trials, James will give them the greatest illustration of a trial in the Scriptures of a man who overcame his trial, the man Job (Jas 5:11). Thank the Lord for His manifold grace that takes us through any trial (1Pe 4:10).
Jas 5:11, “Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.”
1Pe 4:10, “As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”
Jas 1:2 Comments – Jas 1:2 is telling God’s children to anticipate trials with joy because the lessons to be learned are precious. This verse could also read “Be of good cheer,” instead of “Count it all joy;” for this is what Jesus told His disciples each time He found them in a difficult situation. For example, when the disciples were in a storm at sea, Jesus came walking on the water and said, “Be of good cheer,” because He was there to calm the storm (Mat 14:27). At the Lord’s Supper Jesus told them to be of good cheer when He left them because they would overcome the world by His Resurrection (Joh 16:33). When Paul was thrown in prison in Jerusalem an angel appeared to him by night and said, “Be of good cheer,” because Jesus would use him to testify at Rome (Act 23:11). When Paul was on the ship in the storm and all hope seemed lost an angel stood by him to encourage him and he told the others to be of good cheer (Act 27:22; Act 27:25). We can be of good cheer because He will see us through those difficult times if we will trust in Him and look to Him for wisdom and guidance. This is what James is about to tell his readers by saying, “If any man lack wisdom let him ask of God,” (Jas 1:5).
Mat 9:2, “And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.”
Mat 14:27, “But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.”
Joh 16:33, “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
Act 23:11, “And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome.”
Act 27:22, “And now I exhort you to be of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man’s life among you, but of the ship.”
Act 27:25, “Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me.”
Jas 1:2 Comments – Notice that James did not say to be joyful during our trials and afflictions; but rather, “count it joy,” or “consider it joy.” He was telling them to look at their situation from a different point of view, that is, from a divine perspective. The process of rejoicing in the midst of trials was something that must be learned by patience and prayer. Paul uses this same Greek word “count” in Philippians to explain how he views the carnal things of this world in comparison to the riches of Christ. The author of Hebrews uses it to explain how Moses looked beyond temporal pleasures in hopes of eternal rewards.
Php 3:8, “Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,”
Heb 11:26, “ Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.”
We see an excellent example of counting it all joy in Heb 12:2, “who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame” The next verse says to look their lives from this perspective lest they “be wearied and faint in their minds.” Thus, it is a mental decision to “count it all joy” because we are looking forward to something better. James tells his readers in the next two verses that they can look forward immediately to the development of our character. Thus, our hope becomes the basis of our ability to have joy in the midst of trials and sufferings.
Now why would James say that joy is our goal when experiencing difficult trials in life? We are asked to rejoice in difficult times because joy alone is the healer.
“Distress of soul and grief of heart can only bring on destruction of body. Joy alone is the healer, and ye can have it in the darkest hour if you will force thy soul to rise to Me in worship and adoration.” [85]
[85] Frances J. Roberts, Come Away My Beloved (Ojai, California: King’s Farspan, Inc., 1973), 27.
We do know that joy is the outward manifestation of an inward peace. “Counting it all joy” does not mean that we have to laugh and be excited about the distressful situations in life. Rather, God considers a Christian in the midst of trials to be joyful when they are patiently enduring the storm, while they allow the peace of God calm their inner souls. We are given Job in this epistle as an example of someone who learned to count it all joy in the midst of trials. It is this peace that produces a joy that is unexplainable, but the only way to walk in peace and joy in the midst of the storm is by drawing near to God (Jas 4:8). It is in this place of rest and trusting in God to carry us through that we can find true peace and joy. It is in God’s presence that the Holy Spirit will come and fill our hearts with joy, which the Scriptures call “joy unspeakable and full of glory.” (1Pe 1:8)
The manifestation of this inner peace in the midst of a storm is called “endurance” in this epistle. Jas 5:11 says, “Behold, we count them happy which endure. The theme of the book of James is not that you have to laugh during your trials of affliction, although there may be times to do so. Rather, the phrase “counting it all joy” means that we allow the peace of God that passes all understanding to guard our hearts from overwhelming sorrow and despair.
Php 4:7, “And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
God wants to bring us into a place of resting in Him, where we keep our peace while the storms rage. Note these words by Frances J. Roberts:
“Behold, in the hollow of My hand, there have I made thee a nest, and thou shalt lay thee down and sleep. Though the elements rage, though the winds blow and the floods come, thou shalt rest in peace.” [86]
[86] Frances J. Roberts, Come Away My Beloved (Ojai, California: King’s Farspan, Inc., 1973), 85.
Thus, James is not referring to the outward joy that the world expresses during afflictions when it says, “Let us eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die!” (Isa 22:13) Rather, is it an inner peace and strength that abides within our hearts that God is leading us into. Thus, “counting it all joy” is a decision that one takes in faith, believing that God will carry him through. We may be afraid or distressed at the beginning, but this decision will bring us into God’s presence to see an Almighty God who is in control of our lives. This is the way that God revealed Himself to Job when this man of righteousness drew near to God. Thus, James will use Job as an example later in this epistle.
We see a similar situation in the life of the church at Corinth. They learned how to walk in joy in a great trial of affliction.
2Co 8:1-2, “Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia; How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality.”
As we look to God, we find that He becomes our joy; He is our wisdom and our source of strength. Notes these words from Frances Roberts.
“I will give to thee the needed grace and wisdom for each moment as it cometh, and thou shalt rejoice in the victory. For I will overcome timidity, and I Myself will displace inadequacy. This is My work. I will do it Myself through thee if thou but allow thyself to be a channel for the flow of My Spirit. For I Myself am the life. I Myself am thy wisdom and thy strength, even as I am thy joy and thy peace. I am thy victory. My word is power because My work is spirit and truth. Do not bear about needless burdens. They will but press upon thy spirit and interfere with My movings.” [87]
[87] Frances J. Roberts, Come Away My Beloved (Ojai, California: King’s Farspan, Inc., 1973), 92.
Jas 1:2 Illustration – As a young Seminary student, I took a part-time job as a night janitor at a private school. While getting ready to dust mop the gym floor one night, I had to wait for the girls’ basketball game to end. In this last game of the conference playoffs, I watched the final struggling moments of the game. The score was 20 to 21. The team that was behind had the ball in their court. The clock was about to run out. The ball went up, and the buzzer sounded ending the game. The ball bounced on the rim. All the players froze, watching the ball. If the ball went in the rim, the losing team would become the winning team, with a score of 22-21. If it missed, they would lose. The ball danced around the rim for a prolonged period of time and fell in. The winning team shouted, screamed, hugged one another and danced. The losing team hung their heads and went to a corner to talk. Several began crying. The young girls’ joy for that night was determined by moments when the ball went into the basket. If our minds are on the cares of this world, our joy cannot be full, so that it will be determined by the circumstances of life; but we, as believers, can be lifted above the cares of this life. (February 18, 1983)
Isa 40:31, “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”
Joh 15:11, “These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.”
Jas 1:2 Illustration – Kenneth Hagin tells the story of how he stood upon this verse while going through a trial of his faith. [88] As a young minister, his faith was being tested. While visiting his grandfather’s farm, he went behind the barn to pray. He looked the devil in the face and began to laugh. Although he felt like crying, he continued to laugh by faith, because he knew that the victory belonged to him. As he began to laugh, he began to shout and jump in the Holy Ghost. He said to the devil, “Just go ahead and put on all the pressure you can. But the tougher it gets, the more I’m going to shout and praise God”. Hagin says that he kept shouting until the burden lifted and the oppression of the enemy was gone. Soon afterwards, the situation changed for the better.
[88] Kenneth Hagin, Following God’s Plan For Your Life (Tulsa, Oklahoma: Faith Library Publications, c1993, 1994), 35-6.
Jas 1:2 Scripture References – Note similar verses to Jas 1:2:
Rom 5:3-5, “And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.”
1Pe 1:6, “Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:”
Jas 1:3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
Jas 1:3
Why is patience so vitally important to develop for us a believers? James will explain that it is our patience that will anchor us in the faith during trials so that we might be brought to maturity. This patience keeps us on the path of redemption. Thus, patience is necessary for the salvation of your souls.
Luk 21:19, “In your patience possess ye your souls.”
Joyce Meyer said that patience is the only fruit of the Spirit that develops under trials. [89] Paul dealt with this same theme in the book of Romans:
[89] Joyce Meyer, “Kampala Uganda Bible Conference,” (Fenton, Missouri: Joyce Meyer Ministries), 16-19 January 2003
Rom 5:2-5, “By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience ; And patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.”
Andrew Wommack notes that patience is not developed because of the trial, but because of a believer’s faith in God’s Word in the midst of a trial. Otherwise, those who have suffered the most in life’s difficult situations would have the most faith in God; but this is not the case. [90]
[90] Andrew Wommack, Living in the Balance of Grace and Faith: Combining Two Powerful Forces to Receive from God (Tulsa, Oklahoma: Harrison House, 2009), 24.
Illustration – Job is an excellent illustration of patience, as James will tell us later in Jas 5:11. It was Job’s willingness to develop patience that brought him through his trial of faith.
Jas 5:11, “Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.”
We were all born without patience. If anyone has ever had children, they are fully aware of this fact. An infant will wake up in the morning and cry for milk. It has no patience to wait while mother prepares the bottle. It will cry as if its life is going to end.
Jas 1:4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
Jas 1:4
Comments BDAG translates this statement to read, “Let endurance show itself perfectly in practice” (see 1b).
John Calvin says, “For ‘ work’ here means the effort not only to overcome in one contest, but to persevere through life.”
It takes patience to bring forth the fruit that God wants us to produce. The completed work of patience is to bear fruit in the kingdom of God:
Luk 8:15, “But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience .”
Creflo Dollar says that patience is not putting up with the trouble, but rather, out lasting it. It is being consistent with the faith that you had before the trouble came. [91]
[91] Creflo Dollar, Changing Your World (College Park, Georgia: Creflo Dollar Ministries), on Trinity Broadcasting Network (Santa Ana, California), 18 September, 2009, television program.
Jas 1:4 “that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing” – Comments – God wants to perfect the whole man, spirit, soul and body. God is concerned about every part of our being, not just the heart (spirit).
1Th 5:23, “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Jas 1:4 Scripture Reference – Note a similar verse:
2Ti 3:16-17, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works .”
Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures
Introduction: Two Paths to Choose – After greeting his readers (Jas 1:1), the author addresses their present condition of hardships and trials. James begins by stating the theme of this epistle, which is that our faith in God and our patience to obey His Word will produce perseverance to overcome the trials of life with joy (Jas 1:2-4). Jas 1:2-27 will shows us that we can respond to trials in two different ways. If we will humble ourselves and seek God’s wisdom, trials become tests of faith. As we patiently obey God’s Word, we develop maturity in our character (Jas 1:3-4), which eventually results in a crown of life (Jas 1:12). If we face trials with a proud heart and seek to do things our own way, we find that trials then become a temptation to do evil. If this situation, our fleshly passions and carnal reasoning lead us into sin, and when we follow sin long enough, it results in death (Jas 1:13-15). Thus, the journey that we take initially depends upon how we face trials, with humility or with pride.
Trials ” (Humility: The trial becomes a test of faith) Patience ” Maturity ” Crown of Life
Trials “(Pride: The trial becomes an temptation to do evil) Lust ” Sin ” Death
We can also see God’s redemptive plan for us reflected in the words “faith, patience and completion,” which can be translated “justification, perseverance, and glorification.”
The underlying theme of the epistle of James is the saint’s perseverance in the faith amidst the trials of this Christian life. This journey of perseverance must be walked out joyfully if one is to find the strength to endure its trials, for the joy of the Lord is our strength. We first make a decision to endure trials joyfully (Jas 1:2). This decision is based upon the hope that is set before us (Jas 1:3-4) (compare Heb 12:1-2). Once this decision is made, we must start the journey by getting divine wisdom (Jas 1:5). At first, walking in divine wisdom is not easy, for we have not tested it in our lives, having lived with carnal reasonings (Jas 1:6-7). If we will humble ourselves before the Lord (Jas 1:9-18), He will show us exactly what to do to walk through each trial victoriously (Jas 1:19-27). Thus, the author will take us on a series of lessons in order to learn how to walk in the wisdom of God so that we can persevere. We can be certain that God’s plan for our lives always leads us into victory (Rom 8:37, 1Co 15:57, 2Co 2:14).
Rom 8:37, “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.”
1Co 15:57, “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
2Co 2:14, “Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.”
This passage in Jas 1:2-27 gives us the steps to overcoming trials by faith in God.
Outline – Note the proposed outline:
1. Facing the Trial Jas 1:2-4
2. Asking for Wisdom Jas 1:5-8
3. Responding with Humility or with Pride Jas 1:9-18
4. Become Doers of God’s Word Jas 1:19-27
The Purpose of Trials – We must ask the question within the context of Jas 1:2-27 of why God allows such difficult trials to come our way. The answer can be found in the fact that these trials give men an opportunity to demonstrate their love for God. We see a clear example of this in the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eve. They faced a trial when the serpent tempted them to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The Lord had told them to eat from every tree in the garden except this tree. God did not put this tree in the Garden because He wanted Adam and Eve to sin, but rather, it was the one tree that God would use to give them a trial, or test, of faith as a way that they could demonstrate their love to Him. Unfortunately, Adam and Eve chose the path of lust, sin and death.
Patience and Prayer – The need for patience (Jas 1:2-4) and prayer (Jas 1:5-8) is found in the opening verses of this epistle. We find this same theme of patience (Jas 5:7-11) and prayer (Jas 5:8-20) in the closing passage of this same epistle. The greatest example of patience in the Old Testament is Job, while the greatest example of the power of prayer was prayed by Elijah when he shut up heaven. Both of these examples are given in the closing passage; for it is through patience and prayer that we find the strength to endure trials while counting it all joy.
Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures
Temptation and prayer:
v. 2. My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations,
v. 3. knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
v. 4. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
v. 5. If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him.
v. 6. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
v. 7. For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord. Without any introduction or preliminary discussion, the apostle immediately plunges into his admonitions, taking up the question of temptation and prayer first: All joy consider it, my brethren, if you meet with various temptations, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. The picture used by the writer is that of a soldier when he meets face to face an opponent against whose attack he has been warned and whose mode of fighting he has studied. The suspense of waiting for the threatened onslaught is over; the Christian may close with his enemies. Just as a form of exultation takes hold of a soldier at such a time, because he can now go into action, so the Christian should rejoice that he may become engaged in the combat which the spiritual warfare in this world demands of him. For it is not in his own strength that he is battling, but in the might of the Lord communicated to him by faith. No matter what the temptation may therefore be, this thought serves for comfort, namely, that the testing of faith through the various temptations with which the Christians have to battle teaches them patient endurance, actually accomplishes, works this state of mind in them. Every confessing Christian, therefore, that stands firm in the midst of such trials, Eph 6:10-16, gives proof that his faith is sound, and this evidence in itself induces him to take courage, bear patiently, and persevere.
This patience is necessary in the life of the Christians, as the apostle says: But let patience have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, deficient in nothing. The patient endurance of Christians must not be a mere pretense, but should be real, true, the finished product, bearing the name with full propriety. For it is only then that believers themselves will be as they should be, fulfilling their lot in the world, fully equal to their high calling, not deficient or lacking in any essential of Christian sanctification. If a person calling himself a Christian yields to the very first attack of his enemies or does not hold out under their repeated onslaughts, proof is given that he does not yet possess the faith which is founded on the Lord’s power, a faith which overcomes the world with all its temptations.
Another thought is now introduced by the apostle concerning a factor which is just as essential in the life of the Christians: But if any one of you is lacking in wisdom, let him ask of God in sincerity and without reproach, and it will be given him. In view of man’s helplessness and lack of prudence and foresight in the various situations of life, this admonition with its assurance gives a great deal of comfort. It happens so often that Christians are at their wit’s end, being able to see neither what is the best policy under given circumstances nor how to attain to the end that is plainly to be reached. In every situation, however, no matter how complicated, we have the assurance of God’s help, and should therefore ask for it in simple trust, knowing that God distributes His gifts with all singleness of aim, without requiring anything in return. Nor does He resent it if our prayer seems childish, unworthy of His august attention. Neither our own essential unworthiness nor the majesty of the Lord should serve to keep us from asking Him for what we need to assist us in our own sanctification and in the work of His kingdom. See Heb 4:16. Here, as in other passages of Scriptures, we are definitely told that God will hear the prayer of those that believe in Him. See Mat 7:7; Mar 11:24; Luk 11:9; Joh 14:13.
But the apostle adds a word of warning: But let him ask in faith, doubting nothing; for he that doubts is like a billow of the sea agitated and swayed by the wind. For let that man not imagine that he will receive anything from God. Every true prayer is a fruit of faith by which the believer enters into the relation of a child toward God. As dear children ask their dear father, so should the faith of the Christians urge them to place their wants before their Father in heaven. To doubt is the very antithesis of faith, and is an insult to the kindness and goodness of the Lord. The doubter is fitly described as being like a wave, a billow of the great sea, which is driven and fanned by the wind, first in one direction and then in another, whence waves have always been used to describe instability of character and thought. The faith of a Christian has a firm foundation; the doubt of the timid, though he profess to be a Christian, has no foundation. And therefore such a person should not delude himself into thinking that he will receive anything from the Lord, for his very attitude shuts him out from the promises that have been given to faith and to the prayer of faith. Note that there is a ring of contempt in the passage at the idea of a man with halting faith expecting his prayer to be answered.
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
Jam 1:2. Count it all joy Under the law, great temporal blessings were promised to the people of God as long as they continued obedient, and terrible afflictions threatened if they were disobedient: but the Jews expected even far better temporal things under the Messiah; there was great occasion therefore to set the Jewish Christians right in this particular; for they were in general deeply tinctured with the national prejudices, and could not easily be reconciled to suffer for righteousness’ sake; especially now that the Messiah was come,and they continued to believe in and obey him. Temptations are here put for trials and afflictions. The Jewish Christians about this time seem to have endured many hardships and persecutions through the enmity of the unbelieving Jews.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Jas 1:2 . James begins with the hortative words: ] esteem it complete joy. , complete joy = nothing but joy. Luther: “Esteem it pure joy.” Many old expositors incorrectly explain = , summum, perfectum gaudium; [35] it is more correct to resolve the adjective here by the adverb , (Carpzov), with which the explanation of Theile coincides: rem revera omnique ex parte laetam. The meaning is: the are to you a joy which is entire joy , excluding all trouble. See Hom. Od. xi. 507. , i.e. “of Neoptolemus I will declare to thee the whole truth” ( i.e. nothing but the truth, which excludes all falsehood).
, a metonymy = gaudendi materia, res laeta; see Luk 2:10 .
It is not improbable that James by this exhortation to joy refers to the in Jas 1:1 ; comp. Jas 1:5 ; Jas 1:19 (Wiesinger).
The address (or alone, Jas 4:11 , Jas 5:7 ; Jas 5:9 ; Jas 5:19 ; also , Jas 1:16 ; Jas 1:19 , Jas 2:5 ), which is James’ constant form, expresses the consciousness of fellowship, namely, the fellowship in nationality and belief (Paraeus), with the readers. [36]
] involvit ( a ) notionem adversi , ( b ) notionem inviti atque inopinati (Theile); it is synonymous with (see Luk 10:30 compared with Luk 1:36 ), but has a stronger meaning: to fall into something, so that one is entirely surrounded by it; thus in the classics it is particularly used of misfortune: , Plato, Leg. ix. 877 e; , Isocrates, i. 39.
By are commonly here understood the , which are prepared for Christians on account of their faith by an unbelieving world (comp. Luk 8:13 : ; in connection with Mat 13:21 : , ); and undoubtedly James had these in view. Yet there is nothing in the context which necessitates us to such a limitation; rather the additional epithet justifies us to extend the idea, and to understand by it all the relations of life which might induce the Christian to withdraw from the faith, or to become wavering in it. When Lange explains specially of “the allurements and threats by which the Gentiles on the one side, and the fanatical Jews on the other, and also the Ebionites, who were already in the field, sought to draw the readers to their side,” he founds this particular statement on his erroneous view of the tendency of the Epistle. To refer the idea only to inward temptations (Pfeiffer) is the more erroneous, as it is even questionable whether James had these in view at all.
On , see 2Co 6:4 ff; 2Co 11:23 ff. The adjective does not allude to the different sources from which the sprung, but is to be referred to their manifold forms. In a far-fetched manner, Lange finds in , according to its original meaning, “an allusion to the manifold-dazzling glitter of colours of the Jewish-Christian and Jewish temptations, in which they might even represent themselves as prophetic exhortations to zeal for the glory of God.”
Inasmuch as the Christian has to rejoice not only in the , but on account of them, Oecumenius strikingly observes: , . With reference to joy in , see Mat 5:11-12 ; Act 4:23 ff; Act 5:41 ; Rom 5:3 ; also Sir 2:1 ff.; particularly comp. the parallel passage 1Pe 1:6 .
[35] Winer (p. 101 [E. T. p. 138]) explains “all (full) joy.” This would signify such a joy as wants nothing; which, however, does not suit the context.
[36] Incorrectly Semler: Hoc nomen praecipue de doctoribus intelligo.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
Jas 1:2-12 . Exhortation in reference to the endurance of temptations.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
DISCOURSE: 2352
THE DUTY OF PATIENCE
Jam 1:2-4. My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
WE at this time are scarcely able to form a conception of the state of the Church in the apostolic age. Christianity amongst us is attended with none of the evils to which the primitive professors of it were exposed. But to what is this owing? Is Christianity altered at all? or is it less offensive than it was in the eyes of ungodly men? No: it is the same as ever: and, if those who profess it be not despised and hated now as they were in former times, it is because they retain the form only of godliness, and have none of its power. Let persons enter into the spirit of Christianity now, as the Christians did in the Apostles days, and they will be treated precisely as they were, so far at least as the laws of the land will admit of it: and, if they be not persecuted unto death, it will not be from there being any more love to piety in the carnal heart now, than there was then; but from the greater protection which is afforded by the laws of the land, and from a spirit of toleration which modern usages have established. Real vital godliness was then universally hated; and it is so still. It was not to the Jewish converts in Palestine only that St. James wrote, but to the twelve tribes who were scattered abroad. Religion was persecuted not by one party only, but by every party and in every place: and it is still, in every place, to the Jews a stumbling-block, and to the Greeks foolishness: and all who will cultivate it will sooner or later need to have the consolations of our text administered to them for their support.
In the words which we have read, we see,
I.
The appointed portion of Gods people
In former ages they were hated for righteousness sake
[Go back to the time of Abel. You well know that he was murdered by his own brother Cain. And what was the ground of Cains enmity against him? We are informed on infallible authority: Cain slew his brother, because his own works were evil, and his brothers righteous [Note: 1Jn 3:12.]. Descend through all successive ages, and you will still find the same enmity subsisting between the seed of the woman, and the seed of the serpent. As light and darkness, so Christ and Belial, both in themselves and in their members, ever have been, and ever must be, opposed to each other [Note: 2Co 6:14-15.]. As to the diversity of trials to which the godly have been exposed, we need look no further than to the short summary given us in the 11th chapter of the Epistle to the Hebrews: Some were tortured: others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover, of bonds and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheep-skins and goat-skins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented: (yes, they were so treated of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth [Note: Heb 11:35-38.]. Come we to the time of Christ and his Apostles: it might be hoped that their superior light and piety, and the innumerable miracles with which their divine commission was confirmed, would screen them from such evil treatment; and especially that the Lord Jesus Christ, whose character was so spotless, and whose wisdom was infinite, should be able to overcome the prejudices of a blind infatuated world. But they were only the more exposed to the taunts and cruelty of the ungodly in proportion as their light shined with the brighter splendour. And all who in the first ages of the Church became their followers, were, in their measure, subjected to the same trials, and made to drink of the same bitter cup.]
The same treatment they meet with in the present day
[We have observed, that a mere form of piety will pass without opposition: but real, vital godliness, will subject us to reproach at this day, as much as ever: All that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution [Note: 2Ti 3:12.]. That kind of godliness which arises from self and terminates in self, will bring us into favour with the world: but that which is derived altogether from Christ as its proper source and author, and is exercised altogether for the advancement of his glory, is, and ever will be, odious in the eyes of the ungodly: and a man who exemplifies it in his life and conversation can no more escape persecution than Christ himself could. To receive all from Christ, and to do all for Christ, is the very essence of Christian piety: and in requiring this of his followers, our blessed Lord has bequeathed to his Church a never-failing source of variance with the world. This he himself tells us: Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law: and a mans foes shall be they of his own household. Accordingly we find universally, that where a person begins to live by faith on the Lord Jesus Christ, and to devote himself to his service, all his friends and relatives will take the alarm, and try, by every method of ridicule, or menace, or persuasion, to divert him from his purpose. Let him live in an entire neglect of his soul, and no one will trouble himself about him. He may live his whole life in such a state, and not a friend will exhort him to serve the Lord: but the least approach to piety will be discouraged by every friend and relative that he has. Not that religion will be discountenanced as religion: some evil name must be given to it first; and then it will be reprobated under that character. But the very persons who hold in the highest veneration the names of the Apostles, and of the great reformers of our Church, and who would raise shrines and monuments to departed saints, will persecute the living saints with the utmost rancour: and were the Apostles or reformers to live again upon the earth, they would receive the very same treatment from them that they met with from the people of the age in which they lived. If they called the Master of the house Beelzebub, it is in vain for any servant of his to hope that he shall escape a similar reproach [Note: Mat 10:24-25.].]
Painful as this portion is to flesh and blood, none need to fear it, if only they attend to
II.
The Apostles directions in relation to it
God graciously appoints to his people this portion, in order to promote their spiritual welfare, and progressively to transform them into the Divine image in righteousness and true holiness. Hence St. James exhorts his afflicted brethren to regard their trials as means to an end; and,
1.
To welcome the means
[The proper tendency of trials is to work patience in our souls. At first indeed they operate to the production of impatience, or, rather I should say, to the eliciting of those evil dispositions which lurk in our hearts. Till we have had our pride in some measure subdued, we know not how to bear the unkindness which we meet with: we fret under it, and rage even as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke: but when we discover our weakness, we are ashamed of it, and humble ourselves before God on account of it, and implore grace from him to support us, and thus gradually become instructed by the discipline, and are at last strengthened with all might by his Spirit unto all patience and long-suffering, with joyfulness, giving thanks unto the Father, who has wrought in us that very change of heart and life which has exposed us to the enmity of the ungodly world [Note: Col 1:11-12.].
Now when we see what good our God designs us by these trials, we should not only be reconciled to them, but be thankful for them, and count them just occasions for exalted joy. For, what price can be too great for so valuable an acquisition as that of a meek, submissive, and patient spirit? We submit with readiness to many things which are displeasing to flesh and blood for the advancement of our bodily health: and shall we not thankfully take the prescriptions of our heavenly Physician for the health of our souls? What, if they be unpalatable to our taste? We should regard the affliction as good, when we know what benefits will ultimately result from it [Note: Isa 27:9.]; assured, that the sufferings of this present life are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us [Note: Rom 8:18.]. When therefore we see the clouds gathering around us, we should not be alarmed, but should say rather, like the countryman whose fields are burnt up with drought, Now God is about to refresh and fructify my barren heart, and his clouds shall drop fatness on my soul. What if your enemies meditate nothing but evil? Should that be of any concern to you, when you know who has engaged to overrule it all for good [Note: Rom 8:28.]? I say then with the prophet, Fear not any menaces or preparations, how formidable soever they may appear [Note: Isa 8:12-13.]; nor complain of any trials, however oppressive they may be at the time; but rejoice in them [Note: Luk 6:22-23.], and bless God who counts you worthy to bear them [Note: Act 5:41.], and accept them as an invaluable gift at his hands [Note: Php 1:29.], and take pleasure in them [Note: 2Co 12:10.], as knowing that they will assuredly issue in your welfare, and in the honour of your God [Note: 1Pe 4:14; 1Pe 4:16.].]
2.
To cultivate the end
[Does God design by means of trials to make you resemble him who was led as a sheep to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so opened he not his mouth? Seek to experience this benefit from them; and let patience have its perfect work in you, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. Complain not that your trials are heavy, or of long continuance: but be more anxious to have your dross consumed, than to have the intensity of the furnace diminished. It was through sufferings that the Lord Jesus Christ himself was made perfect [Note: Heb 2:10.]: and if he learned obedience by the things which he suffered [Note: Heb 5:8.], will not ye be content to learn it in the same way? We are ready to think that perfection consists in active virtue: but God is not a whit less honoured by passive virtue: and when patience has so far operated upon your soul as to make you glory in tribulations for the Lords sake [Note: Rom 5:3.], and you can say from your inmost soul, under all circumstances, Not my will, but thine be done, you will have attained that measure of holiness which constitutes perfection; and you will ere long, as a shock of corn that is fully ripe, be treasured up in the garner of your heavenly Father. You have seen Jesus, after having endured the cross, and despised the shame, set down at the right hand of the throne of God [Note: Heb 12:2.]: be content then to suffer with him, that in due time you may be glorified together [Note: Rom 8:17. 2Ti 2:11-12.]. Let this be the one object of your concern: and pray that the God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus through the blood of the everlasting covenant, would make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight through Christ Jesus [Note: Heb 13:20.].]
Address
1.
The timid Christian
[Who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the son of man that shall be as grass, and forgettest the Lord thy Maker? O! fear not the oppressor, as if he were able to destroy: for where is the fury of the oppressor [Note: Isa 51:12-13.]? Look at Pharaoh and all his host: what could they do against the God of Israel [Note: Rom 9:17.]? Look at Herod, when he would stretch out his hand to vex the Church: he falls a prey even to worms, which eat him up alive [Note: Act 12:1-3; Act 12:23.]. Know that the creature is no more than an axe or saw in your Fathers hands: and that he can do nothing, but as your Father sees fit to employ him for your good [Note: Isa 10:7; Isa 10:11; Isa 10:15.]. In all that he attempts, he is limited and controlled [Note: Rev 2:10.], and shall effect nothing which shall not subserve your eternal interests [Note: 1Pe 1:7.]. Be strong then, and of good courage: and whatever cross may lie in your way, take it up cheerfully, and bear it after your Lord and Saviour: for be well assured, that your Saviour deserves it richly at your hands ]
2.
The suffering Christian
[Shall I pity you? No; rather let me congratulate you as being made conformable to your Lord and Saviour [Note: 1Pe 4:12-13.]. Repeated are St. Jamess declarations, that sufferings for Christs sake are subjects rather for joy than for grief. We count them happy that endure [Note: Jam 5:11.]. And again, Blessed is the man that endureth temptation; for, when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him [Note: Jam 1:12.]. Receive then trials as the portion which God has appointed you [Note: 1Th 3:3.]; and expect that, if your afflictions abound for Christs sake, so shall your consolations also abound by Christ [Note: 2Co 1:5.]; and whatever you may lose for his sake, you shall even in this present life receive an hundred-fold more than you have lost [Note: Mar 10:28-30.], and, in the world to come, an accumulated weight of happiness and glory to all eternity [Note: 2Co 4:17.]. And when you shall have arrived at the realms of glory, it will be no grief to you that you came out of great tribulation; for then will your Saviour lead you to the living fountains of bliss, and God himself will wipe away all tears from your eyes [Note: Rev 7:14-17.].]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; (3) Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. (4) But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
Observe, that it is the brethren to whom the Apostle speaks, That is, brethren in Christ, partakers of the heavenly calling. Carnal men can never rejoice in temptations, or trials; for the sorrow of the world, worketh death. But there is great cause for joy, when the faithful child of God, is called to the fellowship of God’s dear Son. The Apostle Paul declares, that this is a testimony of God’s faithfulness, 1Co 1:9 . See Rom 5:1-5 and Commentary; Rom 8:29-30 . So that when a child of God falls into temptations, observe, the Apostle doth not say, falls by the temptations, but falls into divers temptations, there is cause of joy. For it becomes an honor, to be conformed to Christ’s image. It is a mark of sonship, And it is intended, for the believer’s good, and the Lord’s glory, Paul, called a messenger of Satan, a gift. There was given to me, (saith he,) a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me. And by the sequel it proved so. Paul’s triumph over Satan in Christ; and the Lord’s glory were the more manifested in Paul’s creature-weakness, 2Co 12:7-10 . And the same must be the issue, in all the exercises of the faithful. For there is nothing doubtful in this war. God’s promises in Covenant with Christ, the intercession of Jesus, as in the instance of Peter; and the ultimate ruin of Satan, are all in the appointment. Hence, these are sufficient motives for joy; since however painful to flesh and blood, grace is sure to triumph. See verse 12 (Jas 1:12 ) and Commentary.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
Ver. 2. Count it all joy ] The world wondereth (saith Mr Philpot the martyr) how we can be so merry in such extreme misery. But our God is omnipotent, who turneth misery into felicity. Believe me, there is no such joy in the world as the people of Christ have under the cross; I speak it by experience, &c. He counted it so upon mature deliberation, as the apostle here adviseth.
All joy ] That is, full joy (by a Hebraism), complete and perfect; such as is the joy of merchants when they see their ships come laden in.
When ye fall into ] Not go in step by step, but are precipitated, plunged. Or when ye fall among, as he that went down towards Jericho fell among thieves,Luk 10:30Luk 10:30 . When ye are so surrounded that there is no escaping them, being distressed, as David was, Psa 116:3 .
Into divers temptations ] Crosses seldom come single ( Catenata piorum crux ), as neither do mercies, but trooping and treading one upon the heels of another. a After rain cometh clouds, Ecc 12:2 . As in April, no sooner is one shower unburdened, but another is brewed. And when the apostle calleth them temptations, he meaneth such afflictions as will put us hard to it, and show what metal we are made of; pressing and piercing crosses.
a Aliud ex alio malum. Teren.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
2 12 .] Exhortations regarding the endurance of trials .
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
2 .] Think it all joy ( , following up , a characteristic of the style of this Epistle: so , Jas 1:3 ; , Jas 1:4 f.; , Jas 1:6 ; , Jas 1:13 ; , Jas 1:19 f.; . , Jas 1:21 f.; . . ., Jas 1:26 f.; yea, and that when &c. , as in reff., not “ all ( of it ) joy ,” eitel Freude, as Luther: but “ all sorts of ,” “ every kind of ,” “ all conceivable ,” “rem revera omnique ex parte ltam,” as Theile, in Huther. Bengel’s idea is good, that ‘all’ is used as applying to all kinds of temptations; transferred from the subject to the predicate), my brethren (this is the constant address in our Epistle. It betokens community of origin and of faith), whensoever ye fall into ( is used of becoming unexpectedly surrounded by adverse circumstances of any kind: so in reff.: so , Plato, Legg. ix. p. 877 C: , , Polyb. iv. 19. 13: , ib. iii. 116. 9. Herodotus also uses the expression, cf. vi. 16, and Thuc. ii. 54) various temptations (the here are not only what we properly call temptations , but any kind of distresses which happen to us, from without or from within, which in God’s purpose serve as trials of us: the latter word being, in this its now common general meaning, a word derived from the Christian life. See ref. 1 Pet., which is strictly parallel. c. says, after Chrys. (in Catena), , . Then, after quoting Sir 2:1 ; Joh 16:33 ; and Mat 7:14 , ):
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Jas 1:2 . : Cf. Phi 2:29 , : the rendering in Syr lec , which is rather a paraphrase than a translation, catches the meaning admirably: , “With all joy be rejoicing my brethren.” : the writer is not to be understood as meaning that these trials are joyful in themselves, but that as a means to beneficial results they are to be rejoiced in; it is the same thought as that contained in Heb 12:11 : f1 , . : this term of address was originally Jewish; in Hebrew, is used, in the first instance, of those born of the same mother, e.g. , Gen 4:2 , etc.; then in a wider sense of a relative, e.g. , Gen 14:12 , etc.; and in the still more extended meaning of kinship generally, e.g. , of tribal membership, Num 16:10 ; as belonging to the same people, e.g. , Exo 2:11 ; Lev 19:7 , and even of a stranger ( ) sojourning among the people, Lev 19:34 ; it is also used of those who have made a covenant together, Amo 1:9 ; and, generally, of friends, 2Sa 1:26 , etc.; in its widest sense it was taken over by the Christian communities, whose members were both friends and bound by the same covenant ( cf. the origin of the Hebrew word for “covenant,” , from the Assryo-Babylonian Biritu which means “a fetter”). This mode of address occurs frequently in this Epistle, sometimes the simple without (Jas 4:11 , Jas 5:7 ; Jas 5:9-10 ), sometimes with the addition of (Jas 1:16 ; Jas 1:19 , Jas 2:5 ). : in Jas 1:12 ff. obviously means allurement to wrong-doing, and this would appear to be the most natural meaning here on account of the way in which temptation is analysed, though the sense of external trials, in the shape of calamity, would of course not be excluded; “it may be that the effect of external conditions upon character should be included in the term” (Parry). It is true that the exhortation to look upon temptations with joy is scarcely compatible with the prayer, “Lead us not into temptation” (Mat 6:13 ; Luk 11:4 ) or with the words, “Pray that ye enter not into temptation” (Mat 26:41 ; Luk 22:40 ; see too Mar 14:38 ; Luk 22:46 ; Rev 3:10 ); but, as is evident from a number of indications in this Epistle, the writer’s Judaism is stronger than his Christianity, and owing to the Jewish doctrines of free-will and works, a Jew would regard temptation in a less serious light than a Christian (see Introduction iv.). Most pointedly does Parry remark: “There is a true joy for the warrior when he meets face to face the foe whom he has been directed to subjugate, in a warfare that trains hand and eye and steels the nerve and tempers the will ”; this is precisely the Jewish standpoint; while the Christian, realising his sinfulness and inherent weakness, and grounded in a spirit of humility, reiterates the words which he has been taught in the Lord’s Prayer. This passage is one of the many in the Epistle which makes it so difficult to believe that it can all have been written by St. James. : the connection in which this word stands in the few passages of the N.T. which contain it supports the idea that in external trials are included (Luk 10:30 ; Act 27:41 ). : Cf. 1Pe 1:6 ., , Pesh. adds , cf. Mal 2:6Mal 2:6 ,
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT Jas 1:2-4
2Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 3knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
Jas 1:2 “Consider it” This is an aorist middle imperative. The TEV translates it as “consider yourselves.” The Williams NT translates it as “you must consider.” James is calling on believers to make a decisive personal choice about how they face their life situations. Knowing Christ changes everything (i.e., Php 3:7-8)! It is literally “add it all up!” In the ancient world sets of numbers were totaled at the top, not the bottom, as in our culture.
“all joy” “All” is placed first in the Greek text for emphasis. In James the trials are not joy, but their possible results are (cf. Mat 5:10-12; Luk 6:22-23 : Act 5:41; Rom 5:3; 1Pe 1:6). Jesus suffered and we must share this maturing experience (cf. Act 14:22; Rom 8:17; 2Co 1:5; 2Co 1:7; Php 1:29; Php 3:10; Heb 5:8-9; and especially 1Pe 2:21; 1Pe 3:14-17; 1Pe 4:12-16).
“my brethren” James uses the term “brethren” (adelphos/adelphoi) to (1) introduce a new subject (like Paul) and (2) to endear himself to his readers, which was necessary because of his hard-hitting prophetic style. James uses this literary technique often (cf. Jas 1:2; Jas 1:16; Jas 1:19; Jas 2:1; Jas 2:5; Jas 2:14; Jas 3:1; Jas 3:10; Jas 3:12; Jas 4:11; Jas 5:7; Jas 5:9-10; Jas 5:12; Jas 5:19).
The Greek term follows the Hebrew connotation of a blood relative, close kin, neighbor, or covenant partner. The Greek term is a combination of “womb” (delphys) and “a” (i.e., one from the same womb). The people of God perceive themselves as God’s children. This led to the use of many familial metaphors in the NT: (1) child/children; (2) born again/born from above; (3) adopted; and (4) brother/brothers.
NASB”when you encounter”
NKJV”when you fall into”
NRSV”whenever you face”
TEV”when. . .comes your way”
NJB”when. . .come upon you”
This is an aorist active subjunctive of the compound terms “to fall” and “around.” The subjunctive speaks of possible future action, but with some degree of doubt. These believers were experiencing some problems, but apparently not all of them. Trials and problems are common for believers in this fallen world.
“various trials” This is literally “many colored” or “rainbowed” (cf. 1Pe 1:6). In 1Pe 4:10 the same word translated by NASB “manifold,” is used to describe God’s grace. For every trial we face there is a matching grace of God! In Jas 1:3 a trials purify faith, in Jas 1:3 b they produce patience, and in Jas 1:4 they produce maturity. Problems happen! How believers face them is the crucial issue!
The word “trials” (peirasmos, cf. Jas 1:12) denotes an attempt to destroy (cf. Jas 1:13-14). See Special Topic following.
In Jas 1:3 the other word with the connotation of “tempt,” “text,” or “try” (dokimion, cf. 1Pe 1:7) is used. This word often has the connotation of “tested for strengthening.”
Jas 1:3 “the testing of” The Greek term dokimos was used of testing metals to prove their genuineness (cf. Pro 27:21 in the Septuagint). It developed the connotation of “to test with a view toward approval” (cf. Jas 1:12; 1Pe 1:7). God tests His children (cf. Gen 22:1; Exo 15:25; Exo 16:4; Exo 20:20; Deu 8:2; Deu 8:16; Deu 13:3; Jdg 2:22; Jdg 3:1; Jdg 3:4; 2Ch 32:31; Mat 4:1; 1Pe 4:12-16), but it is always for strengthening, never for destruction. See Special Topic below.
“faith” Here, the word pistis is used in the sense of personal trust in God through Christ, not Christian doctrine as it does in Jud 1:3; Jud 1:20.
The Greek term pistis may be translated in English as “trust,” “believe,” or “faith.” This term conveys two distinct aspects of our relationship with God: (1) we put our trust in the trustworthiness of God’s promises and Jesus’ finished work and (2) we believe the message about God, man, sin, Christ, salvation, etc. Hence, it can refer to the message of the gospel or our trust in the gospel. The gospel is a person to welcome, a message to believe, and a life to live.
SPECIAL TOPIC: FAITH (PISTIS [noun], PISTEU, [verb], PISTOS [adjective])
“produces” This is a present middle (deponent) indicative. Notice that an ongoing process, not an instantaneous result, is being emphasized. A similar chain of growth stages is seen in Rom 5:3-4; Col 1:11-12; 1Pe 1:6-7. Salvation is a gift and a process! See Special Topic: Greek Terms for Testing at Jas 1:13.
SPECIAL TOPIC: GREEK TERMS FOR TESTING AND THEIR CONNOTATIONS
“endurance” This Greek word means a “voluntary, active, steadfast, patient endurance.” This is a recurrent theme in James (cf. Jas 1:3-4; Jas 1:12; Jas 5:11).
SPECIAL TOPIC: PERSEVERANCE
Jas 1:4 “And let endurance have” This is a present active imperative. Of the 108 verses in the book of James there are 54 imperatives. It is a book of exhortation to practical living.
“its perfect results, so that you may be perfect and complete” The Greek word “perfect” (teleios used twice, cf. Jas 1:17; Jas 1:25; Jas 3:2) means “fully equipped,” “mature,” or “ripe.” Noah is described by this same word in the Septuagint of Gen 6:9. It seems to have the connotation of a mature faith which issues in faithful, loving service. It does not imply or suggest “sinlessness” or “without fault.” It is just possible that this could have an eschatological reference. James often looks toward the culmination of the Christian hope (cf. Jas 1:8-9; Jas 1:12; Jas 5:7-8).
The second term “complete” (holoklria) is used of the health and wholeness of the physical body (cf. Act 3:16) and metaphorically of the well-being of all mankind, both physically and spiritually (cf. 1Th 5:23 and in an eschatological sense).
“lacking in nothing” Notice that a mature Christian is described in three ways.
1. perfect (telos)
2. with integrity or complete (holoklros cf. 1Th 5:23)
3. lacking in nothing (NJB “not deficient in any way”)
Trials are God’s means of producing maturity (cf. Heb 5:8-9). Maturity is not theological insight only, but daily faithful endurance! Maturity is who we are, not what we know! Its fruit is seen and developed in crisis.
SPECIAL TOPIC: CHRISTIAN GROWTH
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT Jas 1:5-8
5But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. 7For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, 8being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
Jas 1:5 “if” This is a first class conditional sentence which means it is assumed to be true from the author’s perspective or for his literary purposes. Believers need wisdom to live a godly life in this fallen world. James knew that trials are often taken as a sign of God’s displeasure, but when caused by godliness, exactly the opposite (cf. Job and Psalms 73).
“any of you lacks wisdom” There is a wordplay between Jas 1:4 c and 5a. It is captured in the NASB translation “. . . lacking in nothing. But if any of you lacks wisdom.” This theme is continued in Jas 3:13-18.
Notice the universal offer of wisdom “if any of you. . . .” God’s wisdom is available to His children, but they must sense the need, ask, and receive. Wisdom, like maturity, is not automatic.
“wisdom” In the OT wisdom/knowledge represents two aspects: (1) intellectual and (2) practical (cf. Pro 1:1-6). In this context it is the practical, daily insight from God that sustains His persecuted people.
God’s gift, through sustained prayer, of wisdom is conditioned on faith without doubt, Jas 1:5-8. Both believing prayer and God’s wisdom are our spiritual weapons in trials and temptations (cf. Eph 6:10-18).
“let him ask of God” This is a Present active imperative, which is literally “let him continue to ask of God” (cf. Mat 7:7-8; Luk 11:9). This same verbal form is repeated in Jas 1:6 with the additional qualifying phrase “in faith” (cf. Mat 17:20; Mat 21:21). In Matthew it is God who gives “good things”; in Luke it is God who gives “the Holy Spirit”; and in James it is God who gives “wisdom.” Wisdom can be personified, as in Pro 8:22-31. In Joh 1:1 God’s wisdom refers to Jesus (the Logos).
“gives to all” This is a universal promise to all of God’s children. Notice how the context develops this universal theme: “if any ask,” “gives to all generously,” “without reproach,” “it will be given.” But, there are conditions: “ask in faith,” “without doubting.” See Special Topic at Jas 4:3.
The universal availability of daily wisdom for believers to know how to live in a way that is pleasing to God is a wonderful truth, especially in times of trials. It is even possible that a gracious God would answer the heartfelt prayer of the lost person (i.e., Acts 10, Cornelius) in giving him/her wisdom also, a wisdom that leads to salvation (cf. 2Ti 3:15).
NASB, NRSV,
TEV, NJB”generously”
NKJV”liberally”
This form of the term hapls is found only here in the NT. Its root form (haploos) means “single” or “with an undivided motive or mind” (cf. Mat 6:22 for another possible link to the Sermon on the Mount).
It (haplots) came to be used metaphorically of sincerity, genuineness, or purity of motive (cf. Rom 12:8; 2Co 1:12; 2Co 11:3; Eph 6:5; Col 3:22) or liberality (cf. 2Co 8:2; 2Co 9:11; 2Co 9:13). James uses it here to describe God’s free gift of wisdom to those who ask and continue to ask in faith.
“and without reproach” God is not a harsh, stingy disciplinarian! He is a loving parent who wants the best for His children! He does not play favorites.
Jas 1:6 “he must ask in faith” This is the condition for all of God’s spiritual gifts and provisions. This does not refer to doubting our abilities, but doubting God’s ability and willingness (cf. Jas 5:15; Hebrews 11). Faith establishes fellowship with God; doubt destroys it! God has limited Himself to respond to the believing/faithful/trusting prayers of His children! The concept of “unanswered” prayer is discussed again in Jas 4:1-3.
“without any doubting” In the Greek text the term “doubting” is a present middle participle. It is repeated twice. The term “diakrin” usually means “to discern by making distinctions” (cf. Jas 2:4), but in several passages it takes on the connotation of wavering between two decisions or opinions, which implies an unsettled mind, a lack of mature faith (cf. Mat 21:21; Mar 11:23; Rom 4:20; Rom 14:23). It illustrates the continual struggle of (1) the doubting Christian or (2) the Christian with two allegiances (God vs. self).
Jas 1:7 “that man” This is a Semitic idiom of contempt. This is parallel to the doubter of Jas 1:6.
“ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord”
SPECIAL TOPIC: EFFECTIVE PRAYER
Jas 1:8
NASB”being a double-minded man”
NKJV”he is a double-minded man”
NRSV”being double-minded”
TEV”unable to make up your mind”
NJB”inconsistent in every activity”
Literally this means “two-souled” (only here and in Jas 4:8). This term is unique to James in the NT and in Greek literature. Many believe James coined it. It probably comes from the OT’s “double-heart” (cf. 1Ch 12:33; Psa 12:2). An OT illustration of this concept would be David (a whole heart toward YHWH) vs. Solomon (a half heart). It was used early and often by the early church, first by clement of Rome about A.D. 96. This is possibly an evidence for the early date of this letter. In Paul Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress, this is seen in “Mr. Facing Both Ways.” He is described in Jas 1:6 as a restless ocean and in Jas 1:8 as a double-minded, unstable person. Jas 1:6-8 describe a person who claims to know God and is part of the believing community. It is possible that Jas 1:6 deals with a doubting person and Jas 1:7-8 deal with a double-minded person. This passage may reflect the proverbial “two ways” or the Jewish “two intents” (yetzers, cf. Deu 30:15-20; Or. Jas 4:10-17; Mat 7:13-14).
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN Jas 1:7-11
A. The conjunction used in Jas 1:9 (de) signals the reader that these verses are somehow connected with what goes before. However, the link is unspecified. It is obvious that the discussion of trials, which is introduced in Jas 1:2, begins again in Jas 1:12 ff.
B. The contextual connection is uncertain. Some say:
1. the “all joy” of Jas 1:2 relates to “rejoice” of Jas 1:9
2. the trials of Jas 1:2 relate to the tests of poverty or wealth in Jas 1:9-11.
C. Most commentators relate Jas 1:9-11 to the “trials” of Jas 1:2. These trials are discussed again in Jas 1:12 ff. The trials of Jas 1:9-11 would uniquely refer to temptations caused by poverty or wealth, not persecution.
D. Remember this is a Jewish-type sermon, possibly an anthology of sermons.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
This is a study guide commentary, which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.
These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this section of the book. They are meant to be thought-provoking, not definitive.
1. To whom is this letter addressed?
2. What is the purpose of trials according to Jas 1:3-4?
3. What is doubt? How does doubt affect believers’ prayers?
4. Are there two kinds of people spoken of in Jas 1:6-8 or only one?
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT Jas 1:9-11
9But the brother of humble circumstances is to glory in his high position; 10and the rich man is to glory in his humiliation, because like flowering grass he will pass away. 11For the sun rises with a scorching wind and withers the grass; and its flower falls off and the beauty of its appearance is destroyed; so too the rich man in the midst of his pursuits will fade away.
Jas 1:9 “brother” Although James has a Jewish flavor, it is addressed to a Christian audience. This is confirmed by
1. the use of the term “brother” (cf. Jas 1:2; Jas 1:16; Jas 1:19; Jas 2:1; Jas 2:5; Jas 2:14; Jas 3:1; Jas 3:10; Jas 3:12; Jas 4:11; Jas 5:7; Jas 5:9-10; Jas 5:12; Jas 5:19)
2. the use of the term “Lord” (cf. Jas 1:1; Jas 1:7; Jas 1:12; Jas 2:1; Jas 4:10; Jas 4:15; Jas 5:4; Jas 5:7-8; Jas 5:10-11; Jas 5:14-15)
3. the specific mention of faith in Christ (cf. Jas 2:1); and (4) the expectation of Jesus’ return (cf. Jas 5:8)
NASB”of humble circumstances”
NKJV”lowly”
NRSV”who is lowly”
TEV”who are poor”
NJB”in humble circumstances”
This word can refer to physical poverty (i.e., Luke’s Sermon on the Plain, cf. Luk 6:20), but in the parallel of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew it refers to the “spiritually poor” (cf. Mat 5:3). The word occurs again in Jas 4:6 and is translated “humble” (cf. Rom 12:16; 2Co 10:1).
NASB”to glory”
NKJV”glory”
NRSV”boast”
TEV”must be glad”
NJB”should glory”
This present imperative (kauchaomai) can be seen in the Septuagint of Psa 32:11 and in the NT in Php 3:3. This is a strong Greek term and should be translated “exult” (cf. Rom 5:2-3; Rom 5:11).
SPECIAL TOPIC: BOASTING
“in his high position” This refers to one’s personal exaltation at being a Christian (cf. Jer 9:23-24). In light of this, worldly distinctions and trials fade into insignificance.
Jas 1:10 “the rich man is to glory in his humiliation” The exact point of the comparison is not clear, but it becomes obvious if we assume that both are believers. The NT emphasizes that lack of humility brings a reaction from God (cf. Mat 23:12; Luk 14:11; Luk 18:14). However, the term “brother” does not appear in Jas 1:10. This passage may be contrasting poor believers and wealthy unbelievers, like Jas 5:1-6 and the parable of Jesus in Luk 16:19-31.
SPECIAL TOPIC: WEALTH
“like flowering grass he will pass away” This metaphor refers to the transitory nature of all material things (cf. 2Co 4:18). These words in Jas 1:10-11 are an allusion to Isa 40:6-8 or Psa 103:15-16 (cf. 1Pe 1:24-25). The poor need a sense of worth and the rich need a sense of humility. Earthly distinctions fade away in Christ (cf. 1Co 12:13; Gal 3:25; Col 3:11) and will one day fade away in the consummated kingdom of God.
Jas 1:11 “For the sun rises with a scorching wind” This refers to the desert Sirocco winds. Grass (and humanity) is fragile, dependant, and transitory.
“appearance” This is literally the word “face” used in a specialized sense (cf. Mat 16:3).
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
fall. Greek. peripipto. See Act 27:41.
temptations = trials. Compare Luk 22:28. Act 20:19. 1Pe 1:6; 1Pe 4:12.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
2-12.] Exhortations regarding the endurance of trials.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Jam 1:2. , all joy) The meaning is, Every trial ought to be esteemed a joy. Hence the word all is transferred from the subject to the predicate, while this meaning is retained. A trial ought not to be esteemed otherwise than a joy.[2] Comp. Heb 12:11. So 1Pe 5:10, , of all grace; Isa 60:21, , Thy people (shall be) all righteous. So Num 13:2-3; Dan 12:1, compared with the Apocalypse, Rev 20:15. The other degrees of patience are contained in joy, which is the highest.-, brethren) James frequently uses this address, especially at the beginning of a new section.- , various temptations) So Jam 1:12; 1Pe 1:6; various of soul and body; for instance, diseases: ch. Jam 5:16.-, ye fall into) The same word is used Luk 10:30, compared with 36.
[2] Thus Luther: eitel Freude (all joy, nothing but joy); and ch. Jam 3:16, eitel bse Ding, a completely bad thing. (Thus also omnis is sometimes used for merus. See note on ver. 17.-T.)
Every evil work, for every work flowing from thence is evil; the every being transferred from the subject to the predicate.-E.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
Jas 1:2-4
SECTION 2
Jas 1:2-18
VALUE OF TRIALS
Jas 1:2-4
2 Count it all joy, my brethren, when ye fall into manifold temptations;-Having expressed a wish for joy for his readers, James proceeds to reveal how such may be experienced in a situation which would, by most people, be regarded as the most unlikely one possible to produce such,-a state of manifold (many and varied) temptations. If some among his readers were disposed to feel that a wish for happiness for people who were then enduring the most severe persecution for their faithfulness and fidelity to Christ was an empty and thoughtless gesture, the writer would have them know that these very trials would provide the occasion for the happiness which he wished for them. “Count” (hegesasthe, aorist of hegeomai) means to consider, deem, reckon, think, regard; hence, regard it as an occasion for joy when divers temptations come; not merely some joy, but all joy! Joy complete, whole, without any admixture of regret or sorrow whatsoever.
Such a disposition was to characterize them when they “fall” into manifold temptations. Fall ( peripipto, from peri, round about, and pipto, to fall, “so to fall into so as to be encompassed about,” Thayer), emphasizes (a) the external character of the temptation; (b) the suddenness with which it may entrap; and (c) the inability of one to escape such. These temptations are “manifold,” (poikilois), hence, of many different kinds (Mat 4:24; 2Ti 3:6; Heb 2:4; 1Pe 1:6.) The trials of Christians are of vastly different character and appear in many forms. One must, therefore, maintain a guard against such in every direction.
“Temptations,” ( peirasmois) in both Greek and English can mean (a) inward temptation; (b) outward trial. Here, it is the latter-outward trial-which is meant. While inward temptation is a form of trial, it is apparent from the context that it is a trial in which much suffering is experienced but for which the sufferer sustains no moral blame that is under contemplation here. James would not bid the brethren rejoice when being subjected to the enticements of sin, Satan and the world. From this, and many other similar statements in the Epistle, it is clear that those to whom the Letter was addressed were experiencing great hardship and severe trial in their efforts to live the Christian life.
Those thus addressed are simply styled “brethren,” (adelphoi), a word denoting fellow-believers, joined to each other in love, and constituting a single family with God as their Father. It is noteworthy that the inspired writers uniformly avoided the use of terms and designations which would establish class distinctions among the disciples. The terms used, such as disciple, believer, brother, saint, fellow-laborer, beloved brother, etc. denote characteristics, relationships, dispositions, activities, etc. ; and all distinctive titles and honorary appellations were eschewed. Here, those to whom James wrote were his “brethren,” his “beloved brethren,” (1: 19); and all were regarded as on an equal plane. (Jas 2:1; Jas 2:5; Jas 2:14; Jas 3:1; Jas 3:10; Jas 4:11; Jas 5:7; Jas 5:12; Jas 5:19.) The Hebrew writer referred to “our brother Timothy” (Heb 13:23); to Paul Tychicus was “the beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow-servant in the Lord” (Col 4:7) ; Epaphras was “a servant of Christ Jesus” (Col 4:12) ; and Luke was “the beloved physician” (Col 4:14). Our Lord, on the occasion of the ambitious request of the mother of the sons of Zebedee-that one might sit on the right and the other on the left in his kingdom-renounced all such self-seeking and vain ambition for his followers, and taught them instead that true greatness is along the road to useful service: “Ye know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. Not so shall it be among you: but whosoever would become great among you shall be your minister; and whosoever would be first among you shall be your servant : even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” (Mat 20:20-28.) He thus made it clear that the way up is first down and that he who would be truly great must render the greatest possible service to mankind.
3 knowing that the proving of your faith worketh patience. -This is the reason why James’ readers were to regard, as an occasion for rejoicing, the varied trials of life. There is, of course, no merit in the mere submission of one’s self to difficulties; multitudes of people suffer sorely in life because of their misdeeds, and without profit therefrom. “For let none of you suffer as a murderer, or a thief, or an evil-doer, or as a meddler in other men’s matters: but if a man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God in this name.” (1Pe 4:15-16.) It is because of the blessing resulting from patient endurance under trial by the faithful Christian that there is occasion for joy in the face of such.
Children of God are to know that the proving of their faith produces patience. “Knowing” is from ginosko, to learn to know, to understand; knowledge obtained through observation and personal experience. The form of the word which is in our text is the present active participle and which means here, “Ye are continually finding out, and getting to know .. .. ” It is therefore progressive knowledge under contemplation here. Christians are to recognize the purpose of trial, and learn a lesson from each conflict they experience. It is indeed this fact that enables one to endure patiently.
“Proving” ( dokimion, from dokimos, the crucible t h r o u g h which ore is made to pass so that the heat thereof separates the genuine ore from the dross, and possibly here the result of the smelting), indicates the test to which faith is subjected and out of which it appears fully vindicated. Trials become a furnace through which the Christian passes, and thus demonstrates the genuineness of his faith.
This trial of faith and the assurance of its genuine quality “worketh” patience. “Worketh” is from katergazetai, present middle indicative, and means more than merely to work. It signifies to work out (cf. Php 2:12), to accomplish, to bring about, and so assures the success of the proof of faith earlier mentioned. That which is thus successfully brought about is patience.
“Patience” (hupomone) resulting from the proof of faith growing out of sore trial is much more than mere submissiveness. The Greek word thus translated has a much more active significance than our English word patience suggests. It means not only the willingness to bear up under the manifold burdens of life, but also indicates the ability to use these burdens as instruments for good and greater glory. This the etymology of the word clearly suggests. It is from the preposition hupo, under, and nieno, to remain, to abide; and thus to stand unwaveringly without yielding to any outside pressure. It denotes the ability to exhibit stedfastness and constancy in the face of the most formidable difficulty. It is this characteristic which, when found in the follower of the Lord, enables him not only to endure the trials of life bravely, but to face up to them and overcome them. It was this which our Lord meant when he said, “In your patience (margin, stedfastness), ye shall win your souls.” (Luk 21:19.)
It will be observed, from a careful reading of the inspired text, that the test which trials provide, is in this instance, for the benefit of him whose faith is thus proved, and not as evidence for God. Why does man need to prove (test, establish as genuine) his own faith? Faith is the ground of our hope in God, that upon which our convictions rest. (Heb 11:1.) But for it we would be without assurance, and hence without reason or motive for endurance and patience in the face of trial. Thus, when difficulties assail us, we need first of all to be certain of the genuineness of our faith and to have the assurance that it has laid hold on, and will not relinquish, its aims for the future. Obviously, one who does not believe that it is worthwhile faithfully to endure the afflictions of life incident to Christianity will not fight the good fight of faith. (1Ti 6:12.) Man must first assure himself of the genuineness and reliability of his own faith if this is the ground on which he is to resist. This may be accomplished only by some such method as is followed when gold ore is made to pass through the fire in order that the genuine metal may be separated from the dross, and identified as the pure gold. Jam es thus teaches that life’s afflictions become the trials of faith, the fiery furnace through which the individual is made to pass, and in which experience he is enabled to determine whether his faith is sufficiently grounded to guarantee its genuineness and reliability.
The “faith” (pis’tis) which trials prove is, in the New Testament, “the conviction or belief respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, generally with the included idea of trust and holy fervor of faith and conjoined with it.” (Thayer.) It continues and exhibits the same characteristics of the faith which the alien sinner exercises and which leads him on to salvation, “a conviction full of joyful trust, that Jesus is the Messiah-the divinely appointed author of salvation in the kingdom of God, conjoined with obedience to Christ.” (Ibid.) Thus faith involves (a) unquestioned acceptance of the truth revealed regarding Christ and God; (b) full and unreserved obedience to their commands ; and ( c) humble and unreserved reliance on their promises. (Heb 11:6; Jam Ezr 2:20-26.)
Trials prove faith by enabling the believer to determine tire e:dent and degree of willingness to endure and to be obedient to Christ.
4 And let patience have its perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, lacking in nothing.-We have seen above that the patience of this passage is stedfastness, unwavering constancy in the face of severe and manifold trial. This patience we are to permit to have “its perfect work,” (teleion), accomplish its purpose, achieve its end. The word translated “perfect” in this passage does not denote sinlessness, but completeness, wholeness, maturity. It is a term which, in classical Greek, was used of animals which had reached full growth ; of scholars past the elementary period of their studies and therefore mature students; of men full-grown. In the New Testament, it is used of those who have attained to spiritual manhood in Christ, to full maturity and understanding in spiritual matters, and are thus no longer babes and immature persons in Christ. It is said of our Lord that he was made “perfect (teleios) through sufferings” (Heb 2:10), where, of course, it cannot possibly mean that he was made sinless through suffering as if such a state did not obtain before. There, the word has its usual significance of completeness; our Lord accomplished his mission through suffering, and thus perfected (brought to maturity) the plan for which he came into the world. This patience is to be allowed to have its full effect in order that its possessor “may be perfect and entire, lacking in nothing.”
In the phrase, “perfect and entire,” the Greek is teleioi kai holokleroi, signifying that which is complete and without blemish. The words perfect and entire here are not used synonymously. We have seen that the first as used here denotes maturity, wholeness, completeness. It describes that which has accomplished its purpose, achieved its end; as, for example, a surgeon whose schooling and internship is wholly behind him and he is therefore mature in preparation. The second, entire (from the Greek hololtleros), means that the thing to which it is applied has all that belongs to it, as, for example, a baby, born with all of its parts, and thus in every respect normal. It was used in ancient times of an offering without blemish; of an heir who has received the full portion of his inheritance; of the lame man who had been healed. (Act 3:16.) Thus those whose faith is sufficiently strong to enable them to endure trial develop patience which, when allowed to reach maturity, completely equip them, leaving them “lacking in nothing.”
These words, “lacking in nothing,” (en medeni leipomenoi, present passive participle of leipo, to leave), mean “not being left behind by another,” thus signifying that those who become “perfect and entire” in no sense lag behind, or are inferior to others. Basically, the word is a racing term, and points to the fact that those who develop into mature Christians are not outdistanced by any. This emphasizes the fact that the most advanced children of God may not relax their efforts, but must ever remember that they are engaged in a race which is won only when the entire distance is covered. There is no place in life where one may ~uspend effort and no longer strive for the victor’s laurels. The severe discipline of life does indeed, when properly used, prepare us for continued progress in Christian attainment ; and, to terminate the effort before reaching the goal is to lose the crown. ”Know ye not that they that run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? Even so run that ye may attain.” ( 1Co 9:24.) “Therefore let us also, seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight, and the sin which doeth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and perfector of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising shame, and hath sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Heb 12:1-2.)
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
count: Jam 1:12, Mat 5:10-12, Luk 6:22, Luk 6:23, Act 5:41, Rom 8:17, Rom 8:18, Rom 8:35-37, 2Co 12:9, 2Co 12:10, Phi 1:29, Phi 2:17, Col 1:24, Heb 10:34, 1Pe 4:13-16
divers: Heb 11:36-38, 1Pe 1:6-8, 2Pe 2:9, Rev 2:10
Reciprocal: Jdg 14:14 – Out of the eater 1Ki 17:17 – the son of the woman Job 23:10 – he hath Pro 18:14 – spirit Pro 27:17 – so Pro 29:6 – but Ecc 7:3 – by Dan 11:35 – to try Hab 3:18 – I will rejoice Mat 5:12 – Rejoice Mar 10:30 – with persecutions Luk 6:21 – ye that weep Joh 16:20 – your Act 13:52 – were Act 16:25 – sang Act 20:19 – temptations Rom 5:3 – but we 2Co 1:7 – as ye 2Co 4:8 – yet 2Co 6:10 – sorrowful 2Co 7:4 – I am filled Phi 2:18 – do Phi 3:1 – rejoice Phi 4:4 – alway Col 1:11 – unto Heb 11:17 – when Jam 1:13 – no man 1Pe 4:16 – but Rev 13:10 – Here
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Jas 1:2. Count it all joy cannot mean to pretend that they get enjoyment out of that which is disagreeable, for that would be an act of insincerity. The idea is they should regard it as something that would result in a benefit. Temptations refers to adversities or hardships such as might be imposed upon them by their enemies.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Jas 1:2. My brethren: the constant form of address in this Epistle; his readers were his brethren, both on account of their nationality and of their Christian faith; both in the flesh and in the Lord.
count it all joy, that is, complete or pure joya joy which excludes trouble and sorrow. Some suppose a reference here to the greeting of James, wherein he wishes his readers joy.
when ye fall into, when ye become unexpectedly surrounded or encompassed by. The idea of surprise is here to be taken into account Trials are not to be sought for or rushed into; believers fall into them.
divers temptations. The adjective divers does not indicate the different sources from which the temptations proceed, but rather the different forms which they assume. Temptations are generally regarded in two points of viewenticements to sin, and trials or tests of character; here it is evident that they are chiefly regarded in the latter point of view, though the former is not excluded (see note to Jas 1:13). They are outward trials as contrasted with inward temptations to evil. St. James may primarily allude to those trials to which, in the form of persecution, the Jewish Christians were exposed from their unbelieving countrymen; but the epithet divers would appear to include temptations or trials of all kinds. It is not the mere falling into trials that is the cause of joy; but the beneficial effects which result from them, as is evident from the verse which follows.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Our apostle’s design in this epistle being to support the believing Jews under their great sufferings for the cause of Christianity, he first acquaints them with the nature of those sufferings which they might expect to fall under for the same; he calls them temptations, that is, trials, they are correcting trials for sin, and they are experimental trials of the truth of grace, and of the strength of grace; the affliction of God’s children are trials castigatory, probatory trials.
Note, 2. The advice given in these trials, to count it joy, all joy, when they fall into temptations, yea, into divers temptations; not that afflictions are in themselves joyous, the temptation or trial is not matter of joy, but of sorrow and heaviness considered in itself, but because of their good effects and sweet fruits, in proving our faith, and increasing our patience; but mark, he says, when ye fall into temptations, not when ye run yourselves into them, or draw them upon yourselves; we lose the comfort of our sufferings, when, either by guilt or by imprudence, we bring them upon ourselves.
Note here, that trials, how evil and afflictive soever in themselves, and in their own nature, yet administer occasion of great joy to sincere Christians, We glory in tribulation Rom 5:3; it denotes the highest joy, even to exultation and ravishment; there is joy resulting from the consideration of the glory that rebounds to God, of the honour done to us, of the benefit done to the church, and to ourselves, by confirming the faith of others; evidencing the sincerity of grace to ourselves, preparing us for, and giving us a swifter passage to heaven.
Note, 3. Our apostle’s argument to press them to joy and rejoice under their afflictions; and this is taken, 1. From the nature of them, they are trials of faith. 2. From the effect and fruit of them, they beget or work patience.
Learn hence, 1. That the afflictions which the people of God meet with, are trials of all their graces, but especially of their faith. This is a radical grace: we live by faith, we work by love: now of graces, Satan has a particular spite agianst the Christian’s faith, and God has a particular care for the preservation and perfection of it, Knowing the trial of your faith worketh patience; that is, it administers matter and occasion for patience, and, by the blessing of God upon it, it produces and increases patience; often trial puts us upon frequent exercises, and the frequent exercise of grace strengthens the habits of grace: Consequently the more our trials are, the stronger will our patience be: Knowing that the trial of your faith worketh patience: it follows, Jam 1:4.
Fuente: Expository Notes with Practical Observations on the New Testament
Reasons For Having Joy In Trials
Robertson emphasizes the fact that one falls unwittingly into these trials. He is unexpectedly, and through no fault of his own, surrounded, much like the man who fell among thieves ( Luk 10:30 ). Notice, James assumes trials will come. Becoming a Christian does not make one immune from life’s troubles. Jesus told his disciples, “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” ( Joh 16:33 ). At the close of his first missionary journey, Paul went back to the churches and worked to strengthen the faith of the brethren. He said, “We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God” ( Act 14:22 ). Peter also told the brethren not to be surprised when they experienced fiery trials. In fact, he urged them to rejoice because they had proven worthy to suffer for the Lord’s sake ( 1Pe 4:12-14 ).
The reason for joy in trials is that they produce patience ( Jas 1:3 ). The word “testing” here suggests raw ore going through a furnace to remove the dross ( 1Pe 1:6-7 ). So, this is like a trial to prove the purity of one’s faith (Compare Gen 22:1-14 ). Such trials produce a quality of lasting endurance, like a long distance runner must have. Furthermore, if patience is allowed to progress to its absolute end, the man of God will be full grown and whole, or possess all his parts ( Jas 1:4 ). Woods says of the words “lacking nothing”, “Basically, the word is a racing term, and points to the fact that those who develop into mature Christians are not out-distanced by any.”
Fuente: Gary Hampton Commentary on Selected Books
Jas 1:2-4. Count it all joy That is, matter of the greatest joy; when ye fall into divers temptations , trials; for though rendered temptations, it does not signify here what is commonly meant by temptations, for these we are directed to pray against, but it denotes trials by affliction and persecution. To these God, by whose providence they come, exposes men, not to lead them into sin, but to afford them an opportunity of exercising and improving their graces and virtues. Hence our Lord declared those to be blessed who were persecuted for righteousness sake, Mat 5:10; and exhorted such, (Mat 5:42,) to rejoice and be exceeding glad; sentiments which doubtless the Apostle James had in his eye when he spoke to the Jewish Christians in this manner. Knowing that the trying, or proving, of your faith By persecution and affliction; worketh patience Exercises and thereby increases your patience, through the divine blessing, and your resignation to Gods will, from which many other virtues will flow. But let patience have her perfect work Let it be duly and fully exercised, that it may rise to the highest degree of perfection: 1st, By composing your minds to a sweet and humble frame under your sufferings. 2d, By acknowledging Gods hand in them, and blessing him for them. 3d, By resisting all inclinations to impatience, fretfulness, and murmuring. 4th, By quietly waiting for deliverance, in the way God hath appointed, till he shall see fit to grant Jas 2:5 th, By enduring to the end of the time of your trial; that ye may be perfect and entire Adorned with every Christian grace and virtue; wanting nothing No kind or degree of grace which God requires to be in you; but may be complete in all the parts of holiness.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
2. My brethren, consider it all joy when ye fall into many temptations. How striking the contrast of Apostolic preaching with the puny, timorous, howling religion of the present day. Doubtless temptation is the grandest source of blessing this side of heaven, for it simply opens the way for a fight with the devil, in which we are sure to conquer if we are true to our Great Captain. The soldier that fights no battles wins no victories, lives and dies a coward, receiving no diadem. The terrible conflicts with the strong intellect of Satan constitute our grandest means of grace this side of heaven.
Fuente: William Godbey’s Commentary on the New Testament
Jas 1:2-8. The paragraph, like its successors, has no special link with its context: it is the writers habit to throw out a series of aphoristic comments on topics, with as much connexion as there is between the essays of Bacon or successive cantos of Tennysons In Memoriam. It is the manner of Wisdom literature (cf. especially Ecclus.). The paradox with which the epistle opens is an expansion of the Beatitudes (Luk 6:20-23). The tense of the verb, when you have fallen, gives the key. James has not forgotten the Lords Prayer; but when a devout man has been brought into trial, he recognises it as Gods will, and therefore to be received with joy. He who has inflicted the trial will deliver from the evil which alone makes it distressing. A man untried is rejected, was a saying attributed to Christ. The word rejected is the negative of the adjective here wrongly translated proof: read (as in 1Pe 1:7) the approved (genuine) partwhat is sterling in your belief. Faith, as elsewhere in Jas., means religious belief or creed. Truth which has been inwardly digested, and not swallowed whole, can produce spiritual robustness. Endurance is a great note of Jas. (cf. Jas 5:11). Let it work thoroughly, and you will be thorough and complete, with nothing wanting. By a characteristic feature of style, the word wanting suggests the next thought. Wisdom, practical knowledge that informs conduct, is to be had for the asking from the only Wise. God gives to all (Mat 5:45) bountifullyGr. nearly as in Rom 12:8without reproaches for their failure to attain. Cf. especially 1Ki 3:9-12. Note the echo of Mat 7:7. The condition of Jas 1:6 is also from Christs teaching (Mar 11:23, etc.). He who hesitates is lost when he prays. For the simile, cf. Isa 57:20, Eph 4:14. The two-selfed mana trimmer or wobbler, or even one living a double life, a Dr. Jekyll alternating with Mr. Hydecannot expect to win the answer that only Faiths virile grasp can seize. The man has no firm footing, whatever path he treads.
Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible
Verse 2
Temptations; trials; that is, the privations, suffering, and poverty, which they were called upon to endure.
Fuente: Abbott’s Illustrated New Testament
My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
He jumps right into the doctrine. Count it joy when the Devil attacks. It is a joyful occasion because you are saying no and defeating the Devil on his own grounds.
When you are walking down the mall and that really neat guy or gal struts by, you can be joyful knowing that you did not succumb to a lonnnnnng look that might lead to incorrect thoughts. When you find that billfold with two thousand dollars in it, you can be joyful as you attempt to return it to its rightful owner without those thoughts of pulling the cash and dumping the rest.
God would have us closing the door on the devil at every opportunity and that, not only should make us happy, it most assuredly pleases Him as well.
Fuente: Mr. D’s Notes on Selected New Testament Books by Stanley Derickson
1:2 {1} My brethren, {c} count it all joy {2} when ye fall into divers temptations;
(1) The first place or part concerning comfort in afflictions, in which we should not be cast down and be faint hearted, but rather rejoice and be glad.
(c) Seeing their condition was miserable because of the scattering abroad, he does well to begin as he does.
(2) The first argument, because our faith is tried through afflictions: which ought to be most pure, for so it suits us.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
II. TRIALS AND TRUE RELIGION 1:2-27
James began his letter, which is in many ways a lecture, by dealing with the problem of trials that all believers encounter. Jews who became Christians in the early history of the church experienced much antagonism and persecution from their unbelieving fellow Jews, as is clear in the Book of Acts. All Christians who take a stand for the Lord continue to have to deal with such trials. Thus James’ inspired advice is perennially relevant.
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
A. The Value of Trials 1:2-11
The writer pointed out the value of trials to encourage his readers to adopt a positive attitude toward these experiences, to endure them, and to view them as God’s tools. God uses trials to shape believers into people that will glorify Himself.
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
1. The proper attitude toward trials 1:2
What kinds of trials was James talking about? Did he mean troubles such as running out of money, or failing a test in school, or having to stay up all night with a sick child: everyday troubles? Yes. The Greek word translated "trials" (peirasmois) means a "proving," specifically, "the trial of a man’s fidelity, integrity, virtue, constancy . . . also an enticement to sin, temptation." [Note: A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, s.v. "peirasmos."] Various temptations to depart from the will of God are in view. The context supports this conclusion. Jas 1:3 restates these trials as "the testing of your faith." James was speaking of the different kinds of trials in which we experience temptation to accompany sinners rather than remaining faithful to the Savior. He was not distinguishing between internal and external temptations. [Note: James B. Adamson, The Epistle of James, p. 53; Sidebottom, p. 30.] Trials come from both sources (cf. Jas 1:14). Any trial can constitute a test of our faith, namely, a temptation to cease trusting and obeying God.
"Trials rightly faced are harmless, but wrongly met become temptations to evil." [Note: Robertson, 6:11.]
Note that James was speaking to Christians: "my brethren." This title for the readers occurs 15 times in this epistle (cf. Jas 1:16; Jas 1:19; Jas 2:1; Jas 2:5; Jas 2:14; Jas 3:1; Jas 3:10; Jas 3:12; Jas 4:11; Jas 5:7; Jas 5:9-10; Jas 5:12; Jas 5:19).
"Even a superficial reading of Jas 1:2-18 shows that the author regards his readers as Christians. It may be said that nowhere in the letter-not even in Jas 2:14-26!-does he betray the slightest doubt that those in his audience are truly his brothers or sisters in the Lord. If we do not observe this simple and obvious fact, we may fall into a quagmire of skewed interpretations, just as so many expositors of James have actually done." [Note: Hodges, p. 18. See also Hiebert, p. 56; and Thomas D. Ice, "Dispensational Hermeneutics," in Issues in Dispensationalism, p. 32.]
What follows is instruction concerning how Christians should respond when we experience temptation to sin.
James counseled his readers to view the various kinds of trials and tribulations they were encountering in their lives as opportunities for growth. He did not urge them to rejoice that they were undergoing trials. He did not advocate a masochistic attitude that unnaturally rejoices in painful experiences. Rather he commanded them to view their trials as profitable even though unpleasant. Another translation of "all joy" can be "pure joy." The opposite would be "some joy" along with much grief. The attitude James advocated can take all the bitterness out of even very uncomfortable trials. Regardless of the source of our difficulties-the world, our flesh, or the devil-we can and should be glad as we go through them. The reason follows.
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
Chapter 4
THE PERSONS ADDRESSED IN THE EPISTLE: THE JEWS OF THE DISPERSION.
“James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are of the Dispersion, greeting.” – Jam 1:2
THESE words appear to be both simple and plain. At first sight there would seem to be not much room for any serious difference of opinion as to their meaning. The writer of the letter writes as “a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,” i.e., as a Christian, “to the twelve tribes which are of the Dispersion,” i.e., to the Jews who are living away from Palestine. Almost the only point which seems to be open to doubt is whether he addresses himself to all Jews, believing and unbelieving, or, as one might presume from his proclaiming himself at the outset to be a Christian, only to those of his fellow-countrymen who, like himself, have become “servants of the Lord Jesus Christ.” And this is a question which cannot be determined without a careful examination of the contents of the Epistle.
And yet there has been very great difference of opinion as to the persons whom St. James had in his mind when he wrote these words. There is not only the triplet of opinions which easily grow out of the question just indicated, viz., that the letter is addressed to believing Jews only, to unbelieving Jews only, and to both: there are also the views of those who hold that it is addressed to Jewish and Gentile Christians regarded separately, or to the same regarded as one body, or to Jewish Christians primarily, with references to Gentile Christians and unconverted Jews, or finally to Gentile Christians primarily, seeing that they, since the rejection of Jesus by the Jews, are the true sons of Abraham and the rightful inheritors of the privileges of the twelve tribes.
In such a Babel of interpretations it will clear the ground somewhat if we adopt once more as a guiding principle the common-sense canon of interpretation laid down by Hooker (“Eccles. Pol.,” 5. 59:2), that where a literal construction will stand, the farthest from the letter is commonly the worst. A literal construction of the expression “the twelve tribes of the Dispersion” will not only stand, but make excellent sense. Had St. James meant to address all Christians, regarded in their position as exiles from their heavenly home, he would have found some much plainer way of expressing himself. There is nothing improbable, but something quite the reverse, in the supposition that the first overseer of the Church of Jerusalem, who, as we have seen, was “a Hebrew of Hebrews,” wrote a letter to those of His fellow-countrymen who were far removed from personal intercourse with him. So devoted a Jew, so devout a Christian, as we know him to have been, could not but take the most intense interest in all who were of Jewish blood, wherever they might dwell, especially such as had learned to believe in Christ, above all when he knew that they were suffering from habitual oppression and ill-treatment. We may without hesitation decide that when St. James says “the twelve tribes which are of the Dispersion” he means Jews away from their home in Palestine, and not Christians away from their home in heaven. For what possible point would the Dispersion ( ) have in such a metaphor? Separation from the heavenly home might be spoken of as banishment, or exile, or homelessness, but not as “dispersion.” Even if we confined ourselves to the opening words we might safely adopt this conclusion, but we shall find that there are numerous features in the letter itself which abundantly confirm it.
It is quite out of place to quote such passages as the sealing of “the hundred and forty and four thousand out of every tribe of the children of Israel,” {Rev 7:4-8} or the city with “twelve gates, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel”. {Rev 21:12} These occur in a book which is symbolical from the first chapter to the last, and therefore we know that the literal construction cannot stand. The question throughout is not whether a given passage is to be taken literally or symbolically, but what the passage in question symbolizes. Nor, again, can St. Peters declaration that “ye are an elect race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for Gods own possession,” {1Pe 2:9} be considered as at all parallel. There the combination of expressions plainly shows that the language is figurative; and there is no real analogy between an impassioned exhortation, modeled on the addresses of the Hebrew prophets, and the matter-of-fact opening words of a letter. The words have the clear ring of nationality, and there is nothing whatever added to them. to turn the simple note into the complex sound of a doubtful metaphor. As Davidson justly remarks, “The use of the phrase twelve tribes is inexplicable if the writer intended all believers without distinction. The author makes no allusion to Gentile converts, nor to the relation between Jew and Gentile incorporated into one spiritual body.”
Let us look at some of the features which characterize the Epistle itself, and see whether they bear out the view which is here advocated, that the persons addressed are Israelites in the national sense, and not as having been admitted into the spiritual “Israel of God”. {Gal 6:16}
(1) The writer speaks of Abraham as “our father,” without a hint that this is to be understood in any but the literal sense. “Was not Abraham. our father justified by works, in that he offered up Isaac his son upon the altar?” {Jam 2:21} St. Paul, when he speaks of Abraham as “the father of all them that believe,” clearly indicates this. {Rom 4:11}
(2) The writer speaks of his readers as worshipping in a “synagogue,” {Jam 2:2} which may possibly mean that, just as St. James and the Apostles continued to attend the Temple services after the Ascension, so their readers are supposed to attend the synagogue services after their conversion. But at least it shows that the writer, in speaking of the public worship of those whom he addresses, naturally uses a word () which had then, and continues to have, specially Jewish associations, rather than one () which from the first beginnings of Christianity was promoted from its old political sphere to indicate the congregations, and even the very being, of the Christian Church.
(3) He assumes that his writers are familiar not only with the life of Abraham, {Jam 2:21; Jam 2:23} but of Rahab, {Jam 2:25} the prophets, {Jam 5:10} Job, {Jam 5:11} and Elijah. {Jam 5:17} These frequent appeals to the details of the Old Testament would be quite out of place in a letter addressed to Gentile converts.
(4) God is spoken of under the specially Hebrew title of “the lord of Sabaoth”; {Jam 5:4} and the frequent recurrence of “the Lord” throughout the Epistle {Jam 1:7; Jam 3:9; Jam 4:10; Jam 4:15; Jam 5:10; James 11:11; James 15:15} looks like the language of one who wished to recall the name Jehovah to his readers.
(5) In discountenancing swearing {Jam 5:12} Jewish forms of oaths are taken as illustrations.
(6) The vices which are condemned are such as were as common among the Jews as among the Gentiles – reckless language, rash swearing, oppression of the poor, covetousness. There is little or nothing said about the gross immorality which was rare among the Jews, but was almost a matter of course among the Gentiles. St. James denounces faults into which Jewish converts would be likely enough to lapse; he says nothing about the vices respecting which heathen converts, such as those at Corinth, are constantly warned by St. Paul.
(7) But what is perhaps the most decisive feature of all is that he assumes throughout that for those whom he addresses the Mosaic Law is a binding and final authority. “If ye have respect of persons, ye commit sin, being convicted by the law as transgressors. If thou dost not commit adultery, but killest, thou art become a transgressor of the law”. {Jam 2:9-11} “He that speaketh against a brother, or judgeth his brother, speaketh against the law and judgeth the law”. {Jam 4:11}
Scarcely any of these seven points, taken singly, would be at all decisive; but when we sum them up together, remembering in how short a letter they occur, and when we add them to the very plain and simple language of the address, we have an argument which will carry conviction to most persons who have no preconceived theory of their own to defend. And to this positive evidence derived from the presence of so much material that indicates Jewish circles as the destined recipients of the letter, we must add the strongly confirmatory negative evidence derived from the absence of anything which specially points either to Gentile converts or unconverted heathen. We may therefore read the letter as having been written by one who had been born and educated in a thoroughly Jewish atmosphere, who had accepted the Gospel, not as canceling the Law, but as raising it to a higher power; and we may read it also as addressed to men who, like the writer, are by birth and education Jews, and, like him, have acknowledged Jesus as their Lord and the Christ. The difference between writer and readers lies in this, that he is in Palestine, and they not; that he appears to be in a position of authority, whereas they seem for the most part to be a humble and suffering folk. All which fits in admirably with the hypothesis that we have before us an Epistle written by the austere and Judaic-minded James the Just, written from Jerusalem, to comfort and warn those Jewish Christians who lay remote from his personal influence.
That it is Jewish Christians, and not unbelieving Jews, or Jews whether believing or not, who are addressed, is not open to serious doubt. There is not only the fact that St. James at the outset proclaims himself to be a Christian, {Jam 1:1} but also the statement that the wealthy oppressors of his poor readers “blaspheme the honorable Name by which ye are called,” or more literally “which was called upon you,” viz., the Name of Christ. Again, the famous paragraph about faith and works assumes that the faith of the readers and the faith of the writer is identical. {Jam 2:7; Jam 2:14-20} Once more, he expressly claims them as believers when he writes, “My brethren, hold not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.” {Jam 2:1} And if more be required, we have it in the concluding exhortations: “Be patient, therefore, brethren, until the coming of the LordStablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord is at hand.” {Jam 5:7-8}
Whether or no there are passages which glance aside at unbelieving Jews, and perhaps even some which are directly addressed to them, cannot be decided with so much certainty; but the balance of probability appears to be. on the affirmative side in both cases. There probably are places in which St. James is thinking of unbelieving Israelites, and one or more passages in which he turns aside and sternly rebukes them, much in the same way as the Old Testament prophets sometimes turn aside to upbraid Tyre and Sidon and the heathen generally. “Do not the rich oppress you, and themselves drag you before the judgment-seats?,” {Jam 2:6} seems to refer to rich unconverted Jews prosecuting their poor Christian brethren before the synagogue courts, just as St. Paul did when he was Saul the persecutor. {Act 9:2} And “Do not they blaspheme the honorable Name by which ye are called?” can scarcely be said of Christians. If the blasphemers were Christians they would be said rather to blaspheme the honorable Name by which they themselves were called. There would lie the enormity-that the name of Jesus Christ had been “called upon them,” and yet they blasphemed it. And when we come to look at the matter in detail we shall find reason for believing that the stern words at the beginning of chap. 5. are addressed to unbelieving Jews. There is not one word of Christian, or even moral, exhortation in it; it consists entirely of accusation and threatening, and in this respect is in marked contrast to the equally stern words at the beginning of chap. 4, which are addressed to worldly and godless Christians.
To suppose that the rich oppressors so often alluded to in the Epistle are heathen, as Hilgenfeld does, confuses the whole picture, and brings no compensating advantage. The heathen among whom the Jews of the Dispersion dwelt in Syria, Egypt, Rome, and elsewhere, were of course, some of them rich, and some of them poor. But wealthy Pagans were not more apt to persecute Jews, whether Christians or not, than the needy Pagan populace. If there was any difference between heathen rich and poor in this matter, it was the fanatical and plunder-seeking mob, rather than the contemptuous and easy-going rich, who were likely to begin a persecution of the Jews, just as in Russia or Germany at the present time. And St. James would not be likely to talk of “the Lord of Sabaot” in {Jam 5:4} addressing wealthy Pagans. But the social antagonism so often alluded to in the Epistle, when interpreted to mean an antagonism between Jew and Jew, corresponds to a state of society which is known to have existed in Palestine and the neighboring countries during the half-century which preceded the Jewish war of A.D. 66-70. {Comp. Mat 11:5; Mat 19:23; Luk 1:53; Luk 6:20; Luk 6:24; Luk 16:19-20} During that period the wealthy Jews allied themselves with the Romans, in order more securely to oppress their poorer fellow-countrymen. And seeing that the Gospel in the first instance spread chiefly among the poor, this social antagonism between rich and poor Jews frequently became an antagonism between unbelieving and believing Jews. St. James, well aware of this state of things, from personal experience in Judea, and hearing similar things of the Jews of the Dispersion in Syria, reasonably supposes that this unnatural tyranny of Jew over Jew prevails elsewhere also, and addresses all “the twelve tribes which are of the Diaspora” on the subject. In any case his opportunities of knowing a very great deal respecting Jews in various parts of the world were large. Jews from all regions were constantly visiting Jerusalem. But the knowledge which he must have had respecting the condition of things in Palestine and Syria would be quite sufficient to explain what is said in this Epistle respecting the tyranny of the rich over the poor.
The Diaspora, or Dispersion of the Jews throughout the inhabited world, had been brought about in various ways, and had continued through many centuries. The two chief causes were forcible deportation and voluntary emigration. It was a common policy of Oriental conquerors to transport whole populations, in order more completely to subjugate them; and hence the Assyrian and Babylonian conquerors of Israel carried away great multitudes of Jews to the East, sending Eastern populations to take their place. Pompey on a much smaller scale transported Jewish captives to the West, carrying hundreds of Jews to Rome. But disturbances in Palestine, and opportunities of trade elsewhere, induced large multitudes of Jews to emigrate of their own accord, especially to the neighboring countries of Egypt and Syria: and the great commercial centers in Asia Minor, Alexandria, Antioch, Ephesus, Miletus, Pergamus, Cyprus, and Rhodes contained large numbers of Jews. While Palestine was the battle-field of foreign armies, and while newly founded towns were trying to attract population by offering privileges to settlers, thousands of Jews preferred the advantages of a secure home in exile to the risks which attended residence in their native country.
At the time when this Epistle was written three chief divisions of the Dispersion were recognized the Babylonian, which ranked as the first, the Syrian, and the Egyptian. But the Diaspora was by no means confined to these three centers. About two hundred years before this time the composer of one of the so-called Sibylline Oracles could address the Jewish nation, and say, “But every land is full of thee, -aye and every ocean.” And there is abundance of evidence, both in the Bible and outside it, especially in Josephus and Philo, that such language does not go beyond the limits of justifiable hyperbole. The list of peoples represented at Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost, “from every nation under heaven,” tells one a great deal. {Act 2:5-11. Comp. Act 15:21, and RAPC 1Ma 15:15-24} Many passages from Josephus might be quoted (“Ant.,” 11. 5:2; 14. 7:2; “Bell. Jud,” 2 16:4 7 3:3), as stating in general terms the same fact. But perhaps no original authority gives us more information than Philo, in his famous treatise “On the Embassy to the Emperor Caius,” which went to Rome (cir. A.D. 40) to obtain the revocation of a decree requiring the Jews to pay divine homage to the Emperors statue. In that treatise we read that “Jerusalem is the metropolis, not of the single country of Judea, but of most countries, because of the colonies which she has sent out, as opportunity offered, into the neighboring lands of Egypt, Phoenicia, Syria, and Coelesyria, and the more distant lands of Pamphylia and Cilicia, most of Asia, as far as Bithynia and the utmost corners of Pontus; likewise unto Europe, Thessaly, Boeotia, Macedonia, Aetolia, Attica, Argos, Corinth, with the most parts and best parts of Greece. And not only are the continents full of Jewish colonies, but also the most notable of the islands – Euboea, Cyprus, Crete-to say nothing of the lands beyond the Euphrates. For all, excepting a small part of Babylon and those satrapies which contain the excellent land around it, contain Jewish inhabitants. So that if my country were to obtain a share in thy clemency it would not be one city that would be benefited, but ten thousand others, situated in every part of the inhabited world-Europe, Asia, Libya, continental and insular, maritime and inland” (“De Legat. ad Caium,” 36., Gelen., pp. 1031-32). It was therefore an enormous circle of readers that St. James addressed when he wrote “to the twelve tribes which are of the Dispersion,” although it seems to have been a long time before his letter became known to the most important of the divisions of the Diaspora, viz., the Jewish settlement in Egypt, which had its chief center in Alexandria. We may reasonably suppose that it was the Syrian division which he had chiefly in view in writing, and it was to them, no doubt, that the letter in the first instance was sent. It is of this division that Josephus writes that, widely dispersed as the Jewish race is over the whole of the inhabited world, it is most largely mingled with Syria on account of its proximity, and especially in Antioch, where the kings since Antiochus had afforded them undisturbed tranquility and equal privileges with the heathen; so that they multiplied exceedingly, and made many proselytes. {“Belt. Jud,” 7:3:3}
The enormous significance of the Dispersion as a preparation for Christianity must not be overlooked. It showed to both Jew and Gentile alike that the barriers which had hedged in and isolated the hermit nation had broken down, and that what had ceased to be thus isolated had changed its character. A kingdom had become a religion. What henceforth distinguished the Jews in the eyes of all the world was not their country or their government, but their creed, and through this they exercised upon those among whom they were scattered an influence which had been impossible under the old conditions of exclusiveness. They themselves also were forced to understand their own religion better. When the keeping of the letter of the Law became an impossibility, they were compelled to penetrate into its spirit; and what they exhibited to the heathen was not a mere code of burdensome rites and ceremonies, but a moral life and a worship in spirit and truth. The universality of the services of the synagogue taught the Jew that Gods worship was not confined to Jerusalem, and their simplicity attracted proselytes who might have turned away from the complex and bloody liturgies of the Temple. Even in matters of detail the services in the synagogue prepared the way for the services of the Christian Church. The regular lessons-read from two divisions of Scripture, the antiphonal singing, the turning towards the east, the general Amen of the whole congregation, the observance of the third, sixth, and ninth hours as hours of prayer, and of one day in seven as specially holy-all these things, together with some others which have since become obsolete, meet us in the synagogue worship, as St. James knew it, and in the liturgies of the Christian Church, which he and the Apostles and their successors helped to frame. Thus justice once more became mercy, and a punishment was turned into a blessing. The captivity of the Jew became the freedom of both Jew and Gentile, and the scattering of Israel was the gathering in of all nations unto God. “He hath scattered abroad; He hath given to the poor: His righteousness abideth forever”. {Psa 112:9; 2Co 9:9}