| New American Standard Bible 1995 | Berean Study Bible |
| 1My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism. | 1My brothers, as you hold out your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, do not show favoritism. |
| 2For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes, | 2Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in. |
| 3and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, "You sit here in a good place," and you say to the poor man, "You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool," | 3If you lavish attention on the man in fine clothes and say, “Here is a seat of honor,” but say to the poor man, “You must stand” or “Sit at my feet,” |
| 4have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives? | 4have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? |
| 5Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? | 5Listen, my beloved brothers: Has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom He promised those who love Him? |
| 6But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and personally drag you into court? | 6But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you and drag you into court? |
| 7Do they not blaspheme the fair name by which you have been called? | 7Are they not the ones who blaspheme the noble name by which you have been called? |
| 8If, however, you are fulfilling the royal law according to the Scripture, "YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF," you are doing well. | 8If you really fulfill the royal law stated in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. |
| 9But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. | 9But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. |
| 10For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all. | 10Whoever keeps the whole law but stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. |
| 11For He who said, "DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY," also said, "DO NOT COMMIT MURDER." Now if you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. | 11For He who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker. |
| 12So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. | 12Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom. |
| 13For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment. | 13For judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment. |
| 14What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? | 14What good is it, my brothers, if someone claims to have faith, but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? |
| 15If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, | 15Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. |
| 16and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and be filled," and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? | 16If one of you tells him, “Go in peace; stay warm and well fed,” but does not provide for his physical needs, what good is that? |
| 17Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. | 17So too, faith by itself, if it does not result in action, is dead. |
| 18But someone may well say, "You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works." | 18But someone will say, “You have faith and I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. |
| 19You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. | 19You believe that God is one. Good for you! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. |
| 20But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless? | 20O foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is worthless? |
| 21Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? | 21Was not our father Abraham justified by what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? |
| 22You see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected; | 22You see that his faith was working with his actions, and his faith was perfected by what he did. |
| 23and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "AND ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS," and he was called the friend of God. | 23And the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called a friend of God. |
| 24You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. | 24As you can see, a man is justified by his deeds and not by faith alone. |
| 25In the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? | 25In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute justified by her actions when she welcomed the spies and sent them off on another route? |
| 26For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead. | 26As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead. |
| New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org | The Berean Bible (Berean Study Bible (BSB) © 2016, 2018 by Bible Hub and Berean.Bible. Used by Permission. All rights Reserved. |
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