A Warning against Favoritism

1My brothers, do not with partiality hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ of glory.

2For if a man might come into your assembly in splendid apparel with gold rings, and a poor man in shabby apparel also might come in, 3and you should look upon the one wearing the splendid apparel and should say, “You sit here honorably,” and to the poor should say, “You stand,” or, “Sit there under my footstool,” 4then have you not made a distinction among yourselves and have become judges with evil thoughts?

5Listen, my beloved brothers: Has not God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that He promised to those loving Him? 6But you have dishonored the poor. Are not the rich oppressing you and they dragging you into court? 7Are they not blaspheming the good Name having been called upon you?

8If indeed you keep the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,”a you are doing well. 9But if you show partiality, you are committing sin, being convicted by the law as transgressors.

10For whoever shall keep the whole Law, but shall stumble in one point, he has become guilty of all. 11For the One having said, “You shall not commit adultery,”b also said, “You shall not murder.”c But if you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a transgressor of the Law.

12So speak and so act as being about to be judged by the Law of freedom. 13For judgment without mercy will be to the one not having shown mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

Faith and Works
(Genesis 15:1-7; Romans 4:1-12; Galatians 3:1-9; Hebrews 11:8-19)

14What is the profit, my brothers, if anyone says to have faith, but has no works? Is the faith able to save him? 15Now if a brother or a sister is without clothes and lacking of daily food, 16and anyone out from you says to them, “Go in peace; be warmed and be filled,” but does not give to them the needful things for the body, what is the profit? 17So also, faith by itself if it has not works, is dead.

18But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without works, and I will show you faith by my works. 19You believe that God is one. You are doing well! Even the demons believe that, and shudder!

20But do you want to come to know, O foolish man, that faith apart from works is worthless?d 21Was not Abraham our father justified by works, having offered his son Isaac upon the altar? 22You see that his faith was working with his works, and by his works, his faith was perfected. 23And the Scripture was fulfilled, saying, “And Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness,”e and he was called a friend of God. 24You see that a man is justified by works, and not by faith alone.

25And likewise was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works, having received the messengers and having sent them forth by another way? 26For just as the body apart from spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.