James 5.........patience in waiting
This final chapter deals with some very practical “down to earth” issues:
Verses 1-6 Exploitations of the unjust rich
Verses 7-11 Examples of patience
Verses 12-20 Exhortations to godly living
Overall the call is for patience in the face of trials in light of a twofold Divine intervention in the future. The Lord of Sabaoth will deal with sinful predators (verse 4) and the Lord is coming for His own (verses 7-9). In other words the thrust of the passage is that there is an end to all evil and to the consequent suffering. Everything will continue as they are until the Lord comes when He will put all to right whether for good or bad. Our duty therefore is to exercise patience until that time of restitution. Patience in waiting for that time is the challenge of the chapter. First we consider the realities of exploitation.
The evils of exploitation (verses 1-6) The bible never condemns the possession of riches; many were rich like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, to name but a few, and indeed had the nation of Israel obeyed the law they would all have been rich. God does not wish the impoverishment of any but He does condemn the abuses of riches and they are many.
• Their condemnation(5 v1) “Go to now ye rich men howl and weep for your miseries which shall come upon you.” James is now addressing rich Jews who have gained their riches in an ungodly manner. He drops the phrase “my brethren” here whereas he returns to it four times again in the rest of the chapter (v7, v10, v12, v19). These are men who have made money their God instead of the God of Israel. Chapter 4 v12 is referring to the busy trader making a living, chapter 5 is speaking of those who have become rich unlawfully at the expense of others. Jesus said we cannot serve God and Mammon, in this case the mammon of unrighteousness, that is money gained by fraud. “Howl (loudly) and weep (profusely)” at the coming miseries for all they have left is bitter regret and loss of all they cherished. The word for miseries is only used again in Romans 3 v16 “...destruction and misery are in their ways” and can only refer to eternal punishment. What a poor investment to exchange a few years of luxury for an eternity of misery!
• Their corruption(5 vv2-3) Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver is rusted and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.” Ill gotten gains are corrupt and they have a corrupting effect upon the souls of those who trade in them. Material possessions are gifts of the goodness and generosity of God, and they have abused them for their own gratification and their sins will haunt them forever. The Old Testament is full of warnings against the abuse of riches; Proverbs 4v17 “For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.” Proverbs v17-18 “Stolen waters are sweet and bread of secrecies is pleasant but he knoweth not that the dead are there and that her guests are in the depths of hell.” Proverbs 20v17 “Bread of deceit is sweet to a man but afterwards his mouth shall be filled with gravel.” Every rich Jew would know these scriptures, but the lure of unjust gain was too much. There were normally three indicators of prosperity in Israel; the storage of grain, the wearing of gaudy clothing, and the possession of gold and silver, and all three are alluded to here. Such possessions are corrupted and corrupt those who gain them unlawfully and they are simply heaping up treasure for the day of judgment. Every individual sin will be answered with commensurate judgment.
• Their cheating (5v4) “Behold the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth.” Profit from business, gained either by deception or by defrauding or by violence, will bring down the wrath of God upon all who engage in it. Isaiah Ch.5v8 “Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth.” Jeremiah Ch.22v13 “Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness and his chambers by wrong that useth his neighbours service without wages and giveth him not for his work.” Habakkuk Ch. 2v6 “Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his.” Habakkuk Ch. 2v12 “Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood and stablisheth a city by iniquity.” The Lord, who is the owner of all material things in existence, laid down the rules of employment for his people, and they are intended to be observed by the rest of the world. Those hired on the day were to be paid on the day not later, “thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour neither rob him: the wages of him that is hired shall not abide with thee all night until the morning.” (Leviticus 19v13). Again in Deuteronomy Ch. 24v14-15 “Thou shalt not oppress an hired servant that is poor and needy whether he be of thy brethren or of thy strangers that are in thy land within thy gates: at his day thou shalt give him his hire neither shall the sun go down upon it for he is poor and setteth his heart upon it lest he cry against thee unto the Lord and it be sin unto thee.” The iniquitous practice of paying workers a week or month in arrears, and even worse demanding that new starts work “lying time” is utterly contrary to the will of the Creator and serves only the interests of the rich. In this case mentioned in James, they were not being paid at all and they are answerable to the Lord of Sabaoth. This title of God is the same as the Old Testament “the Lord of hosts” which appears no less than 261 times in the old testament and a study of them will reveal the power at God’s disposal. He is the Lord who commands great armies of insects, land animals, birds of the air, and unnumbered heavenly angels to effect His righteousness on the earth. The cheaters in the end will suffer and their ill-gotten gains will last only for time and in some cases perhaps not even that.
• The charges against them (5v5-6) In Romans chapter three there are 14 charges against the human race, any one of which disqualify us from heaven. We need not wait for the day of judgment, we have the standard now. Here are the specific charges against the rich; a)“You have lived in pleasure on the earth and been wanton”. God withholds nothing and “gives us all things richly to enjoy”, but these were living in luxury of a voluptuous nature, wading in luxuries beyond any human need, and they were doing it with things unjustly gained. Not only did they acquire the goods, they wanted to parade them. b) “ye have nourished your hearts as in a day of slaughter”; thus glorifying their evil, rejoicing in the misery of others which they caused. It is hollow victory to ride roughshod over vulnerable underlings. c) “Ye have condemned and killed the just(one) and he doth not resist you”. Perhaps this is a reference to the fact that rich men could control the courts and thus corrupt the justice system, denying the weak a voice, and lording it over the poor. There may even be a veiled reference to the Son of God “the just one” who was “trampled underfoot”, by rich men using the force of Rome. In any case this is abhorrent to God.
Examples of patience (verses 7-11) “Be patient therefore brethren unto the coming of the Lord”. Don’t expect the order of things to change, the poor will be oppressed, the believer will go on suffering, the Lord will bring retribution and restitution when He comes. To Him all judgment is given and He will exercise it in full. The incentive of the coming of the Lord should be enough to see us through. In these verses His coming is mentioned three times: v7 in connection to the end of trials; v8 in connection with the establishment of our hearts; v9 in connection with our assessment before Him “...behold the judge standeth at the door”. This is an epoch-making event which will usher in a new order of things and it is worth waiting for, it is worth suffering for. Before we look at some examples of patience in waiting, it is worthy of note that there are two words for patience in the chapter. The Greek word makrothumia found in verses 7, 8, and 9, has the thought of suffering long, a protracted suffering, whereas the word huponome is more suffering under intense stress. Greek scholars are agreed that the first refers to suffering from persons while the second refers to suffering under extreme circumstances. Since we may be called upon to undergo both it is well to learn from the examples he gives.
The husbandman (vinedresser or farmer) waits patiently for the precious fruits of the earth. What is being promoted here is that there is something worth waiting for and impatience won’t hasten it’s coming, only the rains from heaven. The programme of nature will not be changed, nor will the programme of prophecy, which will be fulfilled in it’s proper time; meanwhile we are to be similarly patient. This will involve us getting on with each other, not murmuring against one another, because of the difficulties of the way.
The prophets James holds the prophets of old as an example of patience under suffering. Anyone aspiring to be a prophet (a declarer of God’s truth) take note that the pathway may be rough! Jesus summed it up in two scriptures; Matthew 5 vv11-12 “Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in heaven for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you”; Matthew 23 v34 “Wherefore behold I send unto you prophets and wise men and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them ye shall scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city”. Stephen adds his testimony to this in Acts 7 v52 “Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted; and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers”. The record is sure....the prophets “...spoke in the name of the Lord...” and they were rejected and treated with violence. Jeremiah was imprisoned and held in the stocks; Elijah was threatened by the king and queen of his day; Amos was insulted by the chief priest; Micaiah was imprisoned for telling the truth; Zechariah was stoned on the temple steps; Isaiah the historians say was sawn in half alive with a wooden saw; John the Baptist was beheaded; John the Apostle was exiled on Patmos... and many more.
Job The greatest example of all “Ye have heard of the patience of Job...” he is now famous for patient suffering under catastrophic loss. Through no fault of his own, the subject of a battle between God and the devil, he lost everything; His business collapsed, he lost his home and his children, his wife turned against him, his friends deserted him seeking only to condemn him, and he lost his health. No explanation from heaven came, yet despite a few “wobbles” he maintained his integrity with the now famous utterance “..though He slay me yet will I trust Him”. The devil learned that day that it was impossible to shake the faith of a man who is just before God, and all we saints should learn the unbreakable power of faith in the living God no matter the circumstances. The story did not end in tragedy...”the end of the Lord” refers to the end of the Lord’s dealings with Job....”The Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning...”Job 42 v12. All suffering and loss incurred in His name will be richly compensated, and that message should inspire us to patient waiting for the day of reward.
Exhortations to godly living (5 vv12-20) We can’t live our lives in a vacuum and in our patient waiting we are to occupy ourselves with matters of the soul that will greatly enhance us as we wait. He opens this section “But above all things brethren....” this phrase appears to cover the whole section, not just verse 12. These are priority issues to which we must pay particular attention. A summary might be something like this; learn to control your language v12/respond becomingly to times of affliction, of happiness, of sickness vv13-15/give attention to confession and prayer v16/ learn to pray effectively vv16-18/ seek the restoration of those who go astray v19-20. All these are very practical and character-forming issues for our good and the benefit of all.
Learn speech control(v12) Loose tongues do not become the Christian believer. The Jews were prone to uttering oaths to back up their words but they would refrain from using the name YHWH (for Yahweh), being afraid to take His name in vain. However they did append their words by oaths of heaven or earth or angels or by anything pertaining to God, but not God Himself. The Lord Jesus condemned this practice in Matthew 5 vv34-37 in no uncertain terms “”But I say unto you, swear not at all, neither by heaven for it is God’s throne, nor by earth for it is His footstool, nor by Jerusalem for it is the city of the great king, nether shalt thou swear by thy head for thou canst not make one hair white or black; but let your communication be “Yea, Yea” and “Nay Nay”, for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil”. Superfluous language, invoking anything of the creator or His creation adds nothing to the words we say, and reveals an insincere and untrustworthy disposition. Modern day equivalents would be “By Jove” or “For God’s sake” or “My God” or “Heavens above”, even “For any sake” or “For Dear’s sake” or “On my mother’s life” or “Goodness” or “S’truth” and many more, are unnecessary expletives which are superfluous and of an evil origin according to our Lord. We shall be judged by our words in the future (Matthew 12 v37 “For by thy words thou shalt be justified and by thy words thou shalt be condemned”).
Proper responses to various facets of life(vv13-15) We will all know affliction, merriment and sickness to one degree or another. How should the Christian respond in the most positive way? In affliction, that is trouble from an external source beyond our control, we are to pray. Seek the Lord’s help and guidance for what we cannot cope with on our own. Pray just means “petition” which is a request from an inferior to a superior ranking person. We cannot demand an answer but we can appeal, knowing the ability of the superior to grant it. In merriment, times of happiness, we do not seek the pleasures of sin, rather do we sing from our hearts the praises of our Lord. We all have the legacy of psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, wonderful edifying words, put to music. In sickness we are to call for help to those who can save us. Much has been said by the “Faith healers” on this, claiming this supports their claims to miracle healing in the present day. There is no denying that the Lord can and does heal in any day, but this was an early church scenario when the gifts of miracles abounded. The reality is this, any Jew who became sick could not call on a Gentile doctor who would refuse to attend them. Equally no Christian Jew could call on an unbelieving Jewish doctor, for Christianity was frowned upon and any such help would result in synagogue excommunication. In a situation like that they were to call the elders of the church (not one miracle worker but a number of elders); their cure involved both prayer and medicinal oil and the visit required the faith of both doctors and patients. Today we have doctors and hospitals for sickness and where they cannot help, certainly call the elders who may be able to help. The notion that this bolsters the faith healing movement is just absurd. However it elevates the work of elders to more than just attending and overseeing meetings. Some sickness may be the result of unconfessed sin and the elders can play a part in healing that also.
Give attention to confession and prayer(v16a) “One to another” and “one for another” are key elements in the Christian life for we are “members one of another”. Confession of faults(transgressions) is not something normally practised in our modern “stiff upper lip” culture, but perhaps we should and it will require humility and transparency with each other, commodities which are in short supply. “Pray one for another...” should be standard practice and regular prayer for each other will tend to repair relationships and demonstrate brotherly love.
Prayer that works(vv16b-18) By prayer James does not mean saying prayers but asking God in a meaningful way. There is to be nothing ritualistic about our prayers “..the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much”. This is to be the character of prayers, prayers that work, prayers that reach higher than the roof, not repetitive jargon for the sake of religious exercise. “Effectual fervent” is one word in the Greek (energeo) and means efficient, it suggests power in motion. Used 21 times it is mainly translated “works” and refers to actions which produce results. A classic reference is Ephesians 1 v20 “...which He wrought in Christ when He raised Him from the dead...”. Our prayers should be efficient, not something that trips off the end of our tongues because it is the done thing. To be efficient it will need to come from a righteous man, not only one who is judicially righteous, but practically so. We are to lift up “holy hands” for “if I regard iniquity in my heart the Lord will not hear me”( Psalm 66 v18). No priest of old may engage in holy exercise without first a visit to the laver and we need to resurrect these practices if we are to be efficient in our work. “Availeth much” just means “makes happen”, “effects”, “brings to pass”. Are we persuaded that prayer really works, that real prayer changes things? If so why are so many prayers ineffective, have we lost “power with God and men?(Genesis 32). Why is so little happening in response to our prayers. Israel had a similar problem in Isaiah 59. He cites the spectacular case of Elijah who by prayer shut up the heavens for three years and six months...”..he prayed earnestly... and it rained not...” literally “he prayed with prayer”, this is a construction that emphasises the strength of something by repetition; this is an example of effectual prayer, it worked!! The extent to which it worked is awesome....1st Kings 17 v1 “As the Lord God liveth before whom I stand there shall not be dew nor rain these years but according to my word”. “...and he prayed again and the heaven gave rain and the earth brought forth her fruit.” How effective was his prayer, and we are all saying, that was then and this was Elijah, we can’t expect such power today, not with us! The Holy Spirit anticipated such an objection and opened the pericope with this observation “ Elijah was a man of like passions as we are...”. There was nothing superhuman about Elijah, he had the same limitations as us, yet he believed in the power of prayer, *prayer that works, prayer that changes things.*
The necessary work of restoration On the difficult and dangerous pathway to glory there will be casualties. There will be those who fall under the strain and the strong must seek their recovery. This is a vital work as much as evangelism and teaching and requires compassion and skill on the part of those who engage in it. This subject is discussed in Matthew chapter 18 vv15-21; John 15 vv15-19; 2nd Corinthians 2 vv1-11; Galatians 6 vv1-2; Hebrews 5 vv1-3; 1st John 5 v16-17; Jude v23. There is not one of us but we are vulnerable to failure and we need shepherd hearts to tend those who fall into sin and error. This work if effective will “save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins” , that is preserve the individual and protect the wider community from the public association with sins.
*Two books recommended on the subject of prayer; Prayer changes things E.M. Bounds and Prayer a biblical perspective Eric Alexander. Both are available in paperback.
This final chapter deals with some very practical “down to earth” issues:
Verses 1-6 Exploitations of the unjust rich
Verses 7-11 Examples of patience
Verses 12-20 Exhortations to godly living
Overall the call is for patience in the face of trials in light of a twofold Divine intervention in the future. The Lord of Sabaoth will deal with sinful predators (verse 4) and the Lord is coming for His own (verses 7-9). In other words the thrust of the passage is that there is an end to all evil and to the consequent suffering. Everything will continue as they are until the Lord comes when He will put all to right whether for good or bad. Our duty therefore is to exercise patience until that time of restitution. Patience in waiting for that time is the challenge of the chapter. First we consider the realities of exploitation.
The evils of exploitation (verses 1-6) The bible never condemns the possession of riches; many were rich like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, to name but a few, and indeed had the nation of Israel obeyed the law they would all have been rich. God does not wish the impoverishment of any but He does condemn the abuses of riches and they are many.
• Their condemnation(5 v1) “Go to now ye rich men howl and weep for your miseries which shall come upon you.” James is now addressing rich Jews who have gained their riches in an ungodly manner. He drops the phrase “my brethren” here whereas he returns to it four times again in the rest of the chapter (v7, v10, v12, v19). These are men who have made money their God instead of the God of Israel. Chapter 4 v12 is referring to the busy trader making a living, chapter 5 is speaking of those who have become rich unlawfully at the expense of others. Jesus said we cannot serve God and Mammon, in this case the mammon of unrighteousness, that is money gained by fraud. “Howl (loudly) and weep (profusely)” at the coming miseries for all they have left is bitter regret and loss of all they cherished. The word for miseries is only used again in Romans 3 v16 “...destruction and misery are in their ways” and can only refer to eternal punishment. What a poor investment to exchange a few years of luxury for an eternity of misery!
• Their corruption(5 vv2-3) Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver is rusted and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.” Ill gotten gains are corrupt and they have a corrupting effect upon the souls of those who trade in them. Material possessions are gifts of the goodness and generosity of God, and they have abused them for their own gratification and their sins will haunt them forever. The Old Testament is full of warnings against the abuse of riches; Proverbs 4v17 “For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.” Proverbs v17-18 “Stolen waters are sweet and bread of secrecies is pleasant but he knoweth not that the dead are there and that her guests are in the depths of hell.” Proverbs 20v17 “Bread of deceit is sweet to a man but afterwards his mouth shall be filled with gravel.” Every rich Jew would know these scriptures, but the lure of unjust gain was too much. There were normally three indicators of prosperity in Israel; the storage of grain, the wearing of gaudy clothing, and the possession of gold and silver, and all three are alluded to here. Such possessions are corrupted and corrupt those who gain them unlawfully and they are simply heaping up treasure for the day of judgment. Every individual sin will be answered with commensurate judgment.
• Their cheating (5v4) “Behold the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth.” Profit from business, gained either by deception or by defrauding or by violence, will bring down the wrath of God upon all who engage in it. Isaiah Ch.5v8 “Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth.” Jeremiah Ch.22v13 “Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness and his chambers by wrong that useth his neighbours service without wages and giveth him not for his work.” Habakkuk Ch. 2v6 “Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his.” Habakkuk Ch. 2v12 “Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood and stablisheth a city by iniquity.” The Lord, who is the owner of all material things in existence, laid down the rules of employment for his people, and they are intended to be observed by the rest of the world. Those hired on the day were to be paid on the day not later, “thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour neither rob him: the wages of him that is hired shall not abide with thee all night until the morning.” (Leviticus 19v13). Again in Deuteronomy Ch. 24v14-15 “Thou shalt not oppress an hired servant that is poor and needy whether he be of thy brethren or of thy strangers that are in thy land within thy gates: at his day thou shalt give him his hire neither shall the sun go down upon it for he is poor and setteth his heart upon it lest he cry against thee unto the Lord and it be sin unto thee.” The iniquitous practice of paying workers a week or month in arrears, and even worse demanding that new starts work “lying time” is utterly contrary to the will of the Creator and serves only the interests of the rich. In this case mentioned in James, they were not being paid at all and they are answerable to the Lord of Sabaoth. This title of God is the same as the Old Testament “the Lord of hosts” which appears no less than 261 times in the old testament and a study of them will reveal the power at God’s disposal. He is the Lord who commands great armies of insects, land animals, birds of the air, and unnumbered heavenly angels to effect His righteousness on the earth. The cheaters in the end will suffer and their ill-gotten gains will last only for time and in some cases perhaps not even that.
• The charges against them (5v5-6) In Romans chapter three there are 14 charges against the human race, any one of which disqualify us from heaven. We need not wait for the day of judgment, we have the standard now. Here are the specific charges against the rich; a)“You have lived in pleasure on the earth and been wanton”. God withholds nothing and “gives us all things richly to enjoy”, but these were living in luxury of a voluptuous nature, wading in luxuries beyond any human need, and they were doing it with things unjustly gained. Not only did they acquire the goods, they wanted to parade them. b) “ye have nourished your hearts as in a day of slaughter”; thus glorifying their evil, rejoicing in the misery of others which they caused. It is hollow victory to ride roughshod over vulnerable underlings. c) “Ye have condemned and killed the just(one) and he doth not resist you”. Perhaps this is a reference to the fact that rich men could control the courts and thus corrupt the justice system, denying the weak a voice, and lording it over the poor. There may even be a veiled reference to the Son of God “the just one” who was “trampled underfoot”, by rich men using the force of Rome. In any case this is abhorrent to God.
Examples of patience (verses 7-11) “Be patient therefore brethren unto the coming of the Lord”. Don’t expect the order of things to change, the poor will be oppressed, the believer will go on suffering, the Lord will bring retribution and restitution when He comes. To Him all judgment is given and He will exercise it in full. The incentive of the coming of the Lord should be enough to see us through. In these verses His coming is mentioned three times: v7 in connection to the end of trials; v8 in connection with the establishment of our hearts; v9 in connection with our assessment before Him “...behold the judge standeth at the door”. This is an epoch-making event which will usher in a new order of things and it is worth waiting for, it is worth suffering for. Before we look at some examples of patience in waiting, it is worthy of note that there are two words for patience in the chapter. The Greek word makrothumia found in verses 7, 8, and 9, has the thought of suffering long, a protracted suffering, whereas the word huponome is more suffering under intense stress. Greek scholars are agreed that the first refers to suffering from persons while the second refers to suffering under extreme circumstances. Since we may be called upon to undergo both it is well to learn from the examples he gives.
The husbandman (vinedresser or farmer) waits patiently for the precious fruits of the earth. What is being promoted here is that there is something worth waiting for and impatience won’t hasten it’s coming, only the rains from heaven. The programme of nature will not be changed, nor will the programme of prophecy, which will be fulfilled in it’s proper time; meanwhile we are to be similarly patient. This will involve us getting on with each other, not murmuring against one another, because of the difficulties of the way.
The prophets James holds the prophets of old as an example of patience under suffering. Anyone aspiring to be a prophet (a declarer of God’s truth) take note that the pathway may be rough! Jesus summed it up in two scriptures; Matthew 5 vv11-12 “Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in heaven for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you”; Matthew 23 v34 “Wherefore behold I send unto you prophets and wise men and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them ye shall scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city”. Stephen adds his testimony to this in Acts 7 v52 “Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted; and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers”. The record is sure....the prophets “...spoke in the name of the Lord...” and they were rejected and treated with violence. Jeremiah was imprisoned and held in the stocks; Elijah was threatened by the king and queen of his day; Amos was insulted by the chief priest; Micaiah was imprisoned for telling the truth; Zechariah was stoned on the temple steps; Isaiah the historians say was sawn in half alive with a wooden saw; John the Baptist was beheaded; John the Apostle was exiled on Patmos... and many more.
Job The greatest example of all “Ye have heard of the patience of Job...” he is now famous for patient suffering under catastrophic loss. Through no fault of his own, the subject of a battle between God and the devil, he lost everything; His business collapsed, he lost his home and his children, his wife turned against him, his friends deserted him seeking only to condemn him, and he lost his health. No explanation from heaven came, yet despite a few “wobbles” he maintained his integrity with the now famous utterance “..though He slay me yet will I trust Him”. The devil learned that day that it was impossible to shake the faith of a man who is just before God, and all we saints should learn the unbreakable power of faith in the living God no matter the circumstances. The story did not end in tragedy...”the end of the Lord” refers to the end of the Lord’s dealings with Job....”The Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning...”Job 42 v12. All suffering and loss incurred in His name will be richly compensated, and that message should inspire us to patient waiting for the day of reward.
Exhortations to godly living (5 vv12-20) We can’t live our lives in a vacuum and in our patient waiting we are to occupy ourselves with matters of the soul that will greatly enhance us as we wait. He opens this section “But above all things brethren....” this phrase appears to cover the whole section, not just verse 12. These are priority issues to which we must pay particular attention. A summary might be something like this; learn to control your language v12/respond becomingly to times of affliction, of happiness, of sickness vv13-15/give attention to confession and prayer v16/ learn to pray effectively vv16-18/ seek the restoration of those who go astray v19-20. All these are very practical and character-forming issues for our good and the benefit of all.
Learn speech control(v12) Loose tongues do not become the Christian believer. The Jews were prone to uttering oaths to back up their words but they would refrain from using the name YHWH (for Yahweh), being afraid to take His name in vain. However they did append their words by oaths of heaven or earth or angels or by anything pertaining to God, but not God Himself. The Lord Jesus condemned this practice in Matthew 5 vv34-37 in no uncertain terms “”But I say unto you, swear not at all, neither by heaven for it is God’s throne, nor by earth for it is His footstool, nor by Jerusalem for it is the city of the great king, nether shalt thou swear by thy head for thou canst not make one hair white or black; but let your communication be “Yea, Yea” and “Nay Nay”, for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil”. Superfluous language, invoking anything of the creator or His creation adds nothing to the words we say, and reveals an insincere and untrustworthy disposition. Modern day equivalents would be “By Jove” or “For God’s sake” or “My God” or “Heavens above”, even “For any sake” or “For Dear’s sake” or “On my mother’s life” or “Goodness” or “S’truth” and many more, are unnecessary expletives which are superfluous and of an evil origin according to our Lord. We shall be judged by our words in the future (Matthew 12 v37 “For by thy words thou shalt be justified and by thy words thou shalt be condemned”).
Proper responses to various facets of life(vv13-15) We will all know affliction, merriment and sickness to one degree or another. How should the Christian respond in the most positive way? In affliction, that is trouble from an external source beyond our control, we are to pray. Seek the Lord’s help and guidance for what we cannot cope with on our own. Pray just means “petition” which is a request from an inferior to a superior ranking person. We cannot demand an answer but we can appeal, knowing the ability of the superior to grant it. In merriment, times of happiness, we do not seek the pleasures of sin, rather do we sing from our hearts the praises of our Lord. We all have the legacy of psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, wonderful edifying words, put to music. In sickness we are to call for help to those who can save us. Much has been said by the “Faith healers” on this, claiming this supports their claims to miracle healing in the present day. There is no denying that the Lord can and does heal in any day, but this was an early church scenario when the gifts of miracles abounded. The reality is this, any Jew who became sick could not call on a Gentile doctor who would refuse to attend them. Equally no Christian Jew could call on an unbelieving Jewish doctor, for Christianity was frowned upon and any such help would result in synagogue excommunication. In a situation like that they were to call the elders of the church (not one miracle worker but a number of elders); their cure involved both prayer and medicinal oil and the visit required the faith of both doctors and patients. Today we have doctors and hospitals for sickness and where they cannot help, certainly call the elders who may be able to help. The notion that this bolsters the faith healing movement is just absurd. However it elevates the work of elders to more than just attending and overseeing meetings. Some sickness may be the result of unconfessed sin and the elders can play a part in healing that also.
Give attention to confession and prayer(v16a) “One to another” and “one for another” are key elements in the Christian life for we are “members one of another”. Confession of faults(transgressions) is not something normally practised in our modern “stiff upper lip” culture, but perhaps we should and it will require humility and transparency with each other, commodities which are in short supply. “Pray one for another...” should be standard practice and regular prayer for each other will tend to repair relationships and demonstrate brotherly love.
Prayer that works(vv16b-18) By prayer James does not mean saying prayers but asking God in a meaningful way. There is to be nothing ritualistic about our prayers “..the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much”. This is to be the character of prayers, prayers that work, prayers that reach higher than the roof, not repetitive jargon for the sake of religious exercise. “Effectual fervent” is one word in the Greek (energeo) and means efficient, it suggests power in motion. Used 21 times it is mainly translated “works” and refers to actions which produce results. A classic reference is Ephesians 1 v20 “...which He wrought in Christ when He raised Him from the dead...”. Our prayers should be efficient, not something that trips off the end of our tongues because it is the done thing. To be efficient it will need to come from a righteous man, not only one who is judicially righteous, but practically so. We are to lift up “holy hands” for “if I regard iniquity in my heart the Lord will not hear me”( Psalm 66 v18). No priest of old may engage in holy exercise without first a visit to the laver and we need to resurrect these practices if we are to be efficient in our work. “Availeth much” just means “makes happen”, “effects”, “brings to pass”. Are we persuaded that prayer really works, that real prayer changes things? If so why are so many prayers ineffective, have we lost “power with God and men?(Genesis 32). Why is so little happening in response to our prayers. Israel had a similar problem in Isaiah 59. He cites the spectacular case of Elijah who by prayer shut up the heavens for three years and six months...”..he prayed earnestly... and it rained not...” literally “he prayed with prayer”, this is a construction that emphasises the strength of something by repetition; this is an example of effectual prayer, it worked!! The extent to which it worked is awesome....1st Kings 17 v1 “As the Lord God liveth before whom I stand there shall not be dew nor rain these years but according to my word”. “...and he prayed again and the heaven gave rain and the earth brought forth her fruit.” How effective was his prayer, and we are all saying, that was then and this was Elijah, we can’t expect such power today, not with us! The Holy Spirit anticipated such an objection and opened the pericope with this observation “ Elijah was a man of like passions as we are...”. There was nothing superhuman about Elijah, he had the same limitations as us, yet he believed in the power of prayer, *prayer that works, prayer that changes things.*
The necessary work of restoration On the difficult and dangerous pathway to glory there will be casualties. There will be those who fall under the strain and the strong must seek their recovery. This is a vital work as much as evangelism and teaching and requires compassion and skill on the part of those who engage in it. This subject is discussed in Matthew chapter 18 vv15-21; John 15 vv15-19; 2nd Corinthians 2 vv1-11; Galatians 6 vv1-2; Hebrews 5 vv1-3; 1st John 5 v16-17; Jude v23. There is not one of us but we are vulnerable to failure and we need shepherd hearts to tend those who fall into sin and error. This work if effective will “save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins” , that is preserve the individual and protect the wider community from the public association with sins.
*Two books recommended on the subject of prayer; Prayer changes things E.M. Bounds and Prayer a biblical perspective Eric Alexander. Both are available in paperback.
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