1 J ames, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting.

This letter is from James. I am a servant owned by God and the Lord Jesus Christ. I greet the twelve family groups of the Jewish nation living in many parts of the world. Take Hope When Tests Come

2 M y brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;

My Christian brothers, you should be happy when you have all kinds of tests.

3 K nowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

You know these prove your faith. It helps you not to give up.

4 B ut let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

Learn well how to wait so you will be strong and complete and in need of nothing.

5 I f any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

If you do not have wisdom, ask God for it. He is always ready to give it to you and will never say you are wrong for asking.

6 B ut let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.

You must have faith as you ask Him. You must not doubt. Anyone who doubts is like a wave which is pushed around by the sea.

7 F or let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.

Such a man will get nothing from the Lord.

8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

The man who has two ways of thinking changes in everything he does.

9 L et the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted:

A Christian brother who has few riches of this world should be happy for what he has. He is great in the eyes of God.

10 B ut the rich, in that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away.

But a rich man should be happy even if he loses everything. He is like a flower that will die.

11 F or the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the flower thereof falleth, and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth: so also shall the rich man fade away in his ways.

The sun comes up with burning heat. The grass dries up and the flower falls off. It is no longer beautiful. The rich man will die also and all his riches will be gone.

12 B lessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

The man who does not give up when tests come is happy. After the test is over, he will receive the crown of life. God has promised this to those who love Him. God Does Not Tempt Us

13 L et no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man:

When you are tempted to do wrong, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God cannot be tempted. He will never tempt anyone.

14 B ut every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.

A man is tempted to do wrong when he lets himself be led by what his bad thoughts tell him to do.

15 T hen when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

When he does what his bad thoughts tell him to do, he sins. When sin completes its work, it brings death.

16 D o not err, my beloved brethren.

My Christian brothers, do not be fooled about this.

17 E very good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

Whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God. He is the One Who made all light. He does not change. No shadow is made by His turning.

18 O f his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

He gave us our new lives through the truth of His Word only because He wanted to. We are the first children in His family.

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

My Christian brothers, you know everyone should listen much and speak little. He should be slow to become angry.

20 F or the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

A man’s anger does not allow him to be right with God.

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

Put out of your life all that is unclean and wrong. Receive with a gentle spirit the Word that was taught. It has the power to save your souls from the punishment of sin.

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

Obey the Word of God. If you hear only and do not act, you are only fooling yourself.

23 F or 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:

Anyone who hears the Word of God and does not obey is like a man looking at his face in a mirror.

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

After he sees himself and goes away, he forgets what he looks like.

25 B ut 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.

But the one who keeps looking into God’s perfect Law and does not forget it will do what it says and be happy as he does it. God’s Word makes men free.

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

If a person thinks he is religious, but does not keep his tongue from speaking bad things, he is fooling himself. His religion is worth nothing.

27 P ure 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.

Religion that is pure and good before God the Father is to help children who have no parents and to care for women whose husbands have died who have troubles. Pure religion is also to keep yourself clean from the sinful things of the world.