Humanitext Reader

New Testament · James §5.1-5.20

Warning to the Rich, Patience, and the Prayer of Faith

Passage 5 of 5 · Greek

Summary

The text warns the unjust wealthy who exploit laborers, encourages believers to endure patiently until the Lord's coming, and highlights the significance of prayer, confession of sins, and restoring those who wander from the truth within the community.

§5.1Ἄγε νῦν οἱ πλούσιοι, κλαύσατε ὀλολύζοντες ἐπὶ ταῖς ταλαιπωρίαις ὑμῶν ταῖς ἐπερχομέναις.
Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you.
§5.2ὁ πλοῦτος ὑμῶν σέσηπεν, καὶ τὰ ἱμάτια ὑμῶν σητόβρωτα γέγονεν,
Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten.
§5.3ὁ χρυσὸς ὑμῶν καὶ ὁ ἄργυρος κατίωται, καὶ ὁ ἰὸς αὐτῶν εἰς μαρτύριον ὑμῖν ἔσται καὶ φάγεται τὰς σάρκας ὑμῶν· ὡς "πῦρ ἐθησαυρίσατε" ἐν ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις.
Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be a evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days.
§5.4ἰδοὺ "ὁ μισθὸς" τῶν ἐργατῶν τῶν ἀμησάντων τὰς χώρας ὑμῶν ὁ ἀφυστερημένος "ἀφʼ ὑμῶν κράζει," καὶ αἱ βοαὶ τῶν θερισάντων "εἰς τὰ ὦτα Κυρίου Σαβαὼθ" εἰσελήλυθαν·
Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth.
§5.5ἐτρυφήσατε ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς καὶ ἐσπαταλήσατε, ἐθρέψατε τὰς καρδίας ὑμῶν "ἐν ἡμέρᾳ σφαγῆς. "
You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.
§5.6κατεδικάσατε, ἐφονεύσατε τὸν δίκαιον.
You have condemned; you have murdered the righteous person.
οὐκ "ἀντιτάσσεται" ὑμῖν;
He does not resist you.
§5.7Μακροθυμήσατε οὖν, ἀδελφοί, ἕως τῆς παρουσίας τοῦ κυρίου.
Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord.
ἰδοὺ ὁ γεωργὸς ἐκδέχεται τὸν τίμιον καρπὸν τῆς γῆς, μακροθυμῶν ἐπʼ αὐτῷ ἕως λάβῃ "πρόϊμον καὶ ὄψιμον. "
See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains.
§5.8μακροθυμήσατε καὶ ὑμεῖς, στηρίξατε τὰς καρδίας ὑμῶν, ὅτι ἡ παρουσία τοῦ κυρίου ἤγγικεν.
You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.
§5.9μὴ στενάζετε, ἀδελφοί, κατʼ ἀλλήλων, ἵνα μὴ κριθῆτε· ἰδοὺ ὁ κριτὴς πρὸ τῶν θυρῶν ἕστηκεν.
Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.
§5.10ὑπόδειγμα λάβετε, ἀδελφοί, τῆς κακοπαθίας καὶ τῆς μακροθυμίας τοὺς προφήτας, οἳ ἐλάλησαν ὲν τῷ ὀνόματι Κυρίου.
As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.
§5.11ἰδοὺ μακαρίζομεν τοὺς ὑπομείναντας·
Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast.
τὴν ὑπομονὴν Ἰὼβ ἠκούσατε, καὶ τὸ τέλος Κυρίου εἴδετε, ὅτι πολύσπλαγχνός ἐστιν ὁ κύριος καὶ οἰκτίρμων.
You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.
§5.12Πρὸ πάντων δέ, ἀδελφοί μου, μὴ ὀμνύετε, μήτε τὸν οὐρανὸν μήτε τὴν γῆν μήτε ἄλλον τινὰ ὅρκον· ἤτω δὲ ὑμῶν τό Ναί ναὶ καὶ τό Οὔ οὔ, ἵνα μὴ ὑπὸ κρίσιν πέσητε.
But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your "yes" be yes and your "no" be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.
§5.13Κακοπαθεῖ τις ἐν ὑμῖν;
Is anyone among you suffering?
προσευχέσθω·
Let him pray.
εὐθυμεῖ τις;
Is anyone cheerful?
ψαλλέτω.
Let him sing praise.
§5.14ἀσθενεῖ τις ἐν ὑμῖν;
Is anyone among you sick?
προσκαλεσάσθω τοὺς πρεσβυτέρους τῆς ἐκκλησίας, καὶ προσευξάσθωσαν ἐπʼ αὐτὸν ἀλείψαντες ἐλαίῳ ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι [τοῦ κυρίου]·
Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.
§5.15καὶ ἡ εὐχὴ τῆς πίστεως σώσει τὸν κάμνοντα, καὶ ἐγερεῖ αὐτὸν ὁ κύριος·
And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up.
κἂν ἁμαρτίας ᾖ πεποιηκώς, ἀφεθήσεται αὐτῷ.
And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
§5.16ἐξομολογεῖσθε οὖν ἀλλήλοις τὰς ἁμαρτίας καὶ προσεύχεσθε ὑπὲρ ἀλλήλων, ὅπως ἰαθῆτε.
Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed.
§5.17πολὺ ἰσχύει δέησις δικαίου ἐνεργουμένη.
The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
Ἠλείας ἄνθρωπος ἦν ὁμοιοπαθὴς ἡμῖν, καὶ προσευχῇ προσηύξατο τοῦ μὴ βρέξαι, καὶ οὐκ ἔβρεξεν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ἐνιαυτοὺς τρεῖς καὶ μῆνας ἕξ·
Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth.
§5.18καὶ πάλιν προσηύξατο, καὶ ὁ οὐρανὸς ὑετὸν ἔδωκεν καὶ ἡ γῆ ἐβλάστησεν τὸν καρπὸν αὐτῆς.
Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.
§5.19Ἀδελφοί μου, ἐάν τις ἐν ὑμῖν πλανηθῇ ἀπὸ τῆς ἀληθείας καὶ ἐπιστρέψῃ τις αὐτόν, §5.20γινώσκετε ὅτι ὁ ἐπιστρέψας ἁμαρτωλὸν ἐκ πλάνης ὁδοῦ αὐτοῦ σώσει ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ἐκ θανάτου καὶ "καλύψει" πλῆθος "ἁμαρτιῶν. "
My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

Notes

  1. 5.3ὡς πῦρ — There are two interpretations of the connection of ὡς πῦρ (like fire). One is that it modifies the preceding φάγεται τὰς σάρκας ὑμῶν (will eat your flesh), and the other is that it serves as the object of the following ἐθησαυρίσατε (you hoarded), meaning "you hoarded [wrath] like fire." This translation adopts the former interpretation, taking it as expressing the manner of consumption.
  2. 5.6οὐκ ἀντιτάσσεται ὑμῖν; — The subject of οὐκ ἀντιτάσσεται ὑμῖν is most naturally understood as the preceding τὸν δίκαιον (the righteous person) ("he does not resist you"). While some interpret this as a question ("Does he not resist you?"), this translation treats it as a declarative statement.
  3. 5.11ὅτι πολύσπλαγχνός ἐστιν — The conjunction ὅτι is commonly taken as causal (for/because), explaining the reason behind "you saw the purpose of the Lord" (for the Lord is compassionate). However, it could also be interpreted as introducing a noun clause objective to εἴδετε (you saw that the Lord is compassionate). This translation adopts the causal interpretation to emphasize the divine character shown in Job's outcome.
  4. 5.17προσευχῇ προσηύξατο — The combination of the dative noun προσευχῇ (with prayer) and the cognate verb προσηύξατο (he prayed) is a Semitic (Hebrew/Aramaic) idiom of emphasis, indicating that "he prayed earnestly."

Cite this passage

New Testament, James §5.1-5.20. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0031.tlg020.humanitext-grc2:5.1-5.20

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Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.