James, 4

1. From whence [come] wars and fightings among you? [come they] not hence, [even] of your lusts that war in your members?

1. What causes these fights and quarrels among you? Is it not your inner longings which make war within your own selves?

2. Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.

2. When you long for something you cannot have, you kill for it and when you do not get what you desire, you squabble and fight. The fact is, you do not have what you want because you do not pray for it.

3. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume [it] upon your lusts.

3. You pray for something and you do not get it because you pray with the wrong motive of indulging your pleasures.

4. Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

4. You adulterers! Don't you know that making friends with the world makes you enemies of God? Therefore, whoever chooses to be the world's friend becomes God's enemy.

5. Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?

5. Surely, Scripture is not wrong when it says that our spirit tends towards excess.

6. But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

6. But God has something better to give, and Scripture also says, God opposes the proud but he gives his favor to the humble.

7. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

7. Give in, then, to God; resist the devil and he will flee from you.

8. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse [your] hands, [ye] sinners; and purify [your] hearts, [ye] double minded.

8. Draw close to God and he will come close to you. Clean your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you doubters.

9. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and [your] joy to heaviness.

9. Recognize your distress, be miserable and weep. Turn your laughter into tears and your joy into sadness.

10. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

10. Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will raise you up.

11. Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of [his] brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.

11. Brothers and sisters, do not criticize one another. Anyone who speaks against or condemns another, speaks against the Law and condemns the Law. If, however, you condemn the Law, you are no longer an observer of the Law but a judge of it.

12. There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?

12. There is only one lawgiver and one judge: he who has the power to save or condemn. So you, who are you to judge your neighbor?

13. Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain:

13. Listen now, you who speak like this, "Today or tomorrow we will go off to this city and spend a year there; we will do business and make money."

14. Whereas ye know not what [shall be] on the morrow. For what [is] your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.

14. You have no idea what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? No more than a mist which appears for a moment and then disappears.

15. For that ye [ought] to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.

15. Instead of this, you should say, "God willing, we will live and do this or that."

16. But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.

16. But no! You boast of your plans: this brazen pride is wicked.

17. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth [it] not, to him it is sin.

17. Anyone who knows what is good and does not do it, sins.