1 My brethren, do not have the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, [Lord] of glory, with respect of persons:
These things also come from the wise. It is not good to have respect of persons in judgment.
Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment; thou shalt not respect the person of the lowly, nor honour the person of the great; in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbour.
which none of the princes of this age knew, (for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory;)
And they send out to him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Teacher, we know that thou art true and teachest the way of God in truth, and carest not for any one, for thou regardest not men's person;
And now, let the terror of Jehovah be upon you; be careful what ye do, for there is no iniquity with Jehovah, nor respect of persons, nor taking of presents.
Thou shalt not wrest judgment; thou shalt not respect persons, neither take a bribe; for the bribe blindeth the eyes of the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.
Simon Peter, bondman and apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have received like precious faith with us through [the] righteousness of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ:
Here is the endurance of the saints, who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.
Lift up your heads, ye gates, and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? Jehovah strong and mighty, Jehovah mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, ye gates; yea, lift up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of glory shall come in. Who is he, this King of glory? Jehovah of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah.
who being [the] effulgence of his glory and [the] expression of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, having made [by himself] the purification of sins, set himself down on the right hand of the greatness on high,
Paul, bondman of God, and apostle of Jesus Christ according to [the] faith of God's elect, and knowledge of [the] truth which [is] according to piety;
I testify before God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels, that thou keep these things without prejudice, doing nothing by favour.
having heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and the love which ye have towards all the saints,
For I greatly desire to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to establish you;
testifying to both Jews and Greeks repentance towards God, and faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on James 2
Commentary on James 2 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 2
In this chapter the apostle condemns a sinful regarding of the rich, and despising the poor, which he imputes to partiality and injustice, and shows it to be an acting contrary to God, who has chosen the poor, and whose interest is often persecuted, and his name blasphemed, by the rich (v. 1-7). He shows that the whole law is to be fulfilled, and that mercy should be followed, as well as justice (v. 8-13). He exposes the error and folly of those who boast of faith without works, telling us that this is but a dead faith, and such a faith as devils have, not the faith of Abraham, or of Rahab (v. 14-26).
Jam 2:1-7
The apostle is here reproving a very corrupt practice. He shows how much mischief there is in the sin of prosoµpoleµpsia-respect of persons, which seemed to be a very growing evil in the churches of Christ even in those early ages, and which, in these after-times, has sadly corrupted and divided Christian nations and societies. Here we have,
Jam 2:8-13
The apostle, having condemned the sin of those who had an undue respect of persons, and having urged what was sufficient to convict them of the greatness of this evil, now proceeds to show how the matter may be mended; it is the work of a gospel ministry, not only to reprove and warn, but to teach and direct. Col. 1:28, Warning every man, and teaching every man. And here,
Jam 2:14-26
In this latter part of the chapter, the apostle shows the error of those who rested in a bare profession of the Christian faith, as if that would save them, while the temper of their minds and the tenour of their lives were altogether disagreeable to that holy religion which they professed. To let them see, therefore, what a wretched foundation they built their hopes upon, it is here proved at large that a man is justified, not by faith only, but by works. Now,