Warning to the Rich

1Come now, you richa people! Weep and wail over the miseries that are coming on you. 2Your wealth is ruined and your clothes are moth-eaten.b 3Your silver and gold are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You stored up treasure in the last days!c 4Look! The pay that you withheld from the workersd who reaped your fields cries out, and the outcry of the harvesters has reached the ears of the Lord of •Hosts.e, f 5You have lived luxuriously on the land and have indulged yourselves. You have fattened your heartsg forh the day of slaughter.i 6You have condemned — you have murdered — the righteous man; he does not resist you.j

Waiting for the Lord

7Therefore, •brothers, be patient until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth and is patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains.k 8You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, because the Lord’s coming is near.l

9Brothers, do not complain about one another, so that you will not be judged. Look, the judge stands at the door!m

10Brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the Lord’s name as an example of suffering and patience. 11See, we count as blessed those who have endured.n You have heard of Job’s enduranceo and have seen the outcome from the Lord. The Lord is very compassionate and merciful.p

Truthful Speech

12Now above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath.q Your “yes” must be “yes,” and your “no” must be “no,” so that you won’t fall under judgment.r

Effective Prayer

13Is anyone among you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone cheerful? He should sing praises.s 14Is anyone among you sick? He should call for the elders of the church, and they should pray over him after anointing him with olive oil in the name of the Lord.t 15The prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will restore him to health; if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.u 16Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The urgent request of a righteous person is very powerful in its effect.v 17Elijah was a man with a nature like ours; yet he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the land.w 18Then he prayed again, and the sky gave rain and the land produced its fruit.x

19My brothers, if any among you strays from the truth,y and someone turns him back,z 20let him know that whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his •life from death and cover a multitude of sins.aa