A Warning against Favoritism

1My brethren, hold not, in respect of persons, the faith of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ, 2for if there may come into your synagogue a man with gold ring, in gay raiment, and there may come in also a poor man in vile raiment, 3and ye may look upon him bearing the gay raiment, and may say to him, ‘Thou — sit thou here well,’ and to the poor man may say, ‘Thou — stand thou there, or, Sit thou here under my footstool,’ — 4ye did not judge fully in yourselves, and did become ill-reasoning judges. 5Hearken, my brethren beloved, did not God choose the poor of this world, rich in faith, and heirs of the reign that He promised to those loving Him? 6and ye did dishonour the poor one; do not the rich oppress you and themselves draw you to judgment-seats; 7do they not themselves speak evil of the good name that was called upon you?

8If, indeed, royal law ye complete, according to the Writing, ‘Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself,’ — ye do well; 9and if ye accept persons, sin ye do work, being convicted by the law as transgressors; 10for whoever the whole law shall keep, and shall stumble in one [point], he hath become guilty of all; 11for He who is saying, ‘Thou mayest not commit adultery,’ said also, ‘Thou mayest do no murder;’ and if thou shalt not commit adultery, and shalt commit murder, thou hast become a transgressor of law; 12so speak ye and so do, as about by a law of liberty to be judged, 13for the judgment without kindness [is] to him not having done kindness, and exult doth kindness 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 brethren, if faith, any one may speak of having, and works he may not have? is that faith able to save him? 15and if a brother or sister may be naked, and may be destitute of the daily food, 16and any one of you may say to them, ‘Depart ye in peace, be warmed, and be filled,’ and may not give to them the things needful for the body, what [is] the profit? 17so also the faith, if it may not have works, is dead by itself.

18But say may some one, Thou hast faith, and I have works, shew me thy faith out of thy works, and I will shew thee out of my works my faith: 19thou — thou dost believe that God is one; thou dost well, and the demons believe, and they shudder! 20And dost thou wish to know, O vain man, that the faith apart from the works is dead? 21Abraham our father — was not he declared righteous out of works, having brought up Isaac his son upon the altar? 22dost thou see that the faith was working with his works, and out of the works the faith was perfected? 23and fulfilled was the Writing that is saying, ‘And Abraham did believe God, and it was reckoned to him — to righteousness;’ and, ‘Friend of God’ he was called. 24Ye see, then, that out of works is man declared righteous, and not out of faith only; 25and in like manner also Rahab the harlot — was she not out of works declared righteous, having received the messengers, and by another way having sent forth? 26for as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also the faith apart from the works is dead.