JAMES 2 [†]My brothers, [1]  w show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ,  x the Lord of glory. 2[†]For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, 3and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, “You sit here in a good place,”  y while you say to the poor man, “You stand over there,” or, “Sit down at my feet,” 4have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become  z judges with evil thoughts? 5[†]Listen, my beloved brothers,  a has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be  b rich in faith and heirs of  c the kingdom,  d which he has promised to those who love him? 6[†]But you  e have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who  f drag you  g into court? 7Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable  h name by which you were called?

8[†]If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture,  i “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. 9[†]But if you  j show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10[†]For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point  k has become accountable for all of it. 11For he who said,  l “Do not commit adultery,” also said,  l “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. 12[†]So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under  m the law of liberty. 13[†]For  n judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

14[†]What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith  o but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15[†] p If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 q and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good [2] is that? 17[†]So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

18[†]But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith  r apart from your works, and I will show you my faith  s by my works. 19[†] t You believe that God is one; you do well. Even  u the demons believe—and shudder! 20Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? 21[†] v Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22[†]You see that  w faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed  x by his works; 23[†]and the Scripture was fulfilled that says,  y “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a  z friend of God. 24[†]You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25[†]And in the same way was not also  a Rahab the prostitute justified by works  b when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.