James 1:19-27 Lesson 438

James 1:19-27
Lesson 438

Read both the "King James Bible" and the "New Living Translation."

In this lesson:

This lesson opens the segment "Faith at Work."
It runs through verse 4:12 (lesson 442).

Practical religion.
Hear the word (1:19-21).
Remember the word (1:22-25).
Obey the word (1:26-27).

Study Tip:

Remember to read the "Margin Notes" in blue and click on the links.

The General Epistle of James

The King James Bible

James 1:19-27
Obey the word

19 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:

20 For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

21 Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:

24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.

25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

26 If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain.

27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

Margin notes:

"Be...slow to speak." (1:19) - Why? Read Proverbs 10:19, 17:27, 15:1, and 29:20.

"Be...slow to wrath." (1:19) - See Ecclesiastes 7:9 and Proverbs 14:17.

"Wherefore, lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness." (1:21) - "Therefore, rid yourself of moral decay and excess evil (in your life)." Great advice we see reinforced in Ephesians 4:31 and 1 Peter 2:1.

"Receive with meekness the engrafted word." (1:21) - Reject sin and "accept with humility the word of God implanted in you."

"Able to save your souls." (1:21) - The word of God will save your soul.

"Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only." (1:22) - This verse tells us to practice what we learn, as proclaimed in Jeremiah 11:6 and reinforced in Romans 2:13.  This is the principal reason to study the Bible; to learn the truth and apply it to our lives. To do otherwise is "foolish" (Matthew 7:26).

"He is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass." (1:23) - "He is like a man looking at himself in a mirror." This is a metaphor; a mirror (God's teachings) shows us the type of person we are, flaws and all. See verse 1:24 for what happens next.

"He beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was." (1:24) - "He sees himself, then walks away, and immediately forgets what kind of person they are."  When we leave the mirror (God's teachings), we forget our faults and go back to living in ignorance.

"The perfect law of liberty." (1:25) - Perfect because it frees us from sin and guilt (John 8:34-36; Romans 6:17-23).

"This man shall be blessed." (1:25) - A promise from God.

"And bridleth not his tongue." (1:26) - "But doesn't control his tongue."

"This man's religion is vain." (1:26) - "This person's faith is worthless."

"Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this." (1:27) - "This is religion, pure and holy before God."

"Visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." (1:27) - "Visit the orphans and widows in trouble, and keep from being defiled by the world." In other words, live your faith. Not everyone who calls Jesus "Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doeth the will of my Father" (Matthew 7:21).  To see what Jesus said about kindness, read Matthew 25:34-46.

Read Jesus' words in Matthew 5:38-48 and 6:14-15 when feeling angry.

New Living Translation

James 1:19-27
Listening and Doing

19 Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.

20 Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires.

21 So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls.

22 But don't just listen to God's word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.

23 For if you listen to the word and don't obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror.

24 You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like.

25 But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don't forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.

26 If you claim to be religious but don't control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless.

27 Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.

This second Bible text from the "New Living Translation" (Tyndale House, Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois) is a paraphrase and not an accurate word-for-word translation of the Bible. However, it is a helpful tool when read with the "King James Version."

Today's question:

1. Is it ever okay to get angry? (1:19-20)

"All that you have is your soul."

Tracy Chapman, American singer-songwriter

Answer: (Do you agree?)

1. "Anger is a God-given human emotion and not sinful in itself. Even God and Jesus have been angry. In fact, anger at sin, injustice and evil is a sign of godliness and righteousness. But anger that leads to malice, rage and revenge is clearly forbidden and should be handled quickly to prevent damaging attitudes and actions."

(The "Quest Study Bible" published by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan; page 1743)

Application thought for the day:

The Bible warns us not to let anger lead us into sin (Ephesians 4:26).
But anger itself is not a sin.
Jesus was angry at the moneychangers in the Temple, and
mankind has repeatedly angered God. It is uncontrolled anger that leads to sin.

Thanks to the writings and commentary of John Wesley and Adam Clarke. Also, "The Layman's Bible Study Notebook" by Irving Jensen published by Harvest House Publishing, Irvine, California; the "Life Change Series" published by NavPress books, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the "Life Application Study Bible" published by Tyndale House Publishing, Carol Stream, Illinois; the "Quest Study Bible" published by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "Robertson's New Testament Word Studies;" "The MacArthur Bible Commentary" by John MacArthur published by Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee; "Wisdom of the Bible" CD by Topics Entertainment, Inc., Renton, Washington for their inspiring pictures; "My utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers, published by Barbour Publishing, Inc., Uhrichsville, Ohio; The "Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge" by Reuben Archer Torrey; "Hope For Each Day" by Billy Graham published by J. Countryman, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee; "Easton's Bible Dictionary" by Matthew George Easton; "Unger's Bible Dictionary" by Merrill F. Unger, published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois; "Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "The Everyday Bible" published by World Wide Publications, Minneapolis, Minnesota; "The Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Testament" translated from the Latin Vulgate, published by Guild Press, New York, New York; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course, the "King James Bible." All were critical in putting these lessons together.
© 2023 evolke

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