James 5:1-20.
James 5:1-20 (Good News Translation)
1And now, you rich people, listen to me! Weep and wail over the miseries
that are coming upon you! 2Your riches have rotted away, and your clothes
have been eaten by moths. 3Your gold and silver are covered with rust, and
this rust will be a witness against you and will eat up your flesh like
fire. You have piled up riches in these last days. 4You have not paid any
wages to those who work in your fields. Listen to their complaints! The
cries of those who gather in your crops have reached the ears of God, the
Lord Almighty. 5Your life here on earth has been full of luxury and
pleasure. You have made yourselves fat for the day of slaughter. 6You have
condemned and murdered innocent people, and they do not resist you. 7Be
patient, then, my friends, until the Lord comes. See how patient farmers
are as they wait for their land to produce precious crops. They wait
patiently for the autumn and spring rains. 8You also must be patient. Keep
your hopes high, for the day of the Lord's coming is near. 9Do not complain
against one another, my friends, so that God will not judge you. The Judge
is near, ready to appear. 10My friends, remember the prophets who spoke in
the name of the Lord. Take them as examples of patient endurance under
suffering. 11We call them happy because they endured. You have heard of
Job's patience, and you know how the Lord provided for him in the end. For
the Lord is full of mercy and compassion. 12Above all, my friends, do not
use an oath when you make a promise. Do not swear by heaven or by earth or
by anything else. Say only Yes when you mean yes, and No when you mean no,
and then you will not come under God's judgment. 13Are any among you in
trouble? They should pray. Are any among you happy? They should sing
praises. 14Are any among you sick? They should send for the church elders,
who will pray for them and rub olive oil on them in the name of the Lord.
15This prayer made in faith will heal the sick; the Lord will restore them
to health, and the sins they have committed will be forgiven. 16So then,
confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you
will be healed. The prayer of a good person has a powerful effect.
17Elijah was the same kind of person as we are. He prayed earnestly that
there would be no rain, and no rain fell on the land for three and a half
years. 18Once again he prayed, and the sky poured out its rain and the
earth produced its crops. 19My friends, if any of you wander away from the
truth and another one brings you back again, 20remember this: whoever turns
a sinner back from the wrong way will save that sinner's soul from death
and bring about the forgiveness of many sins.
that are coming upon you! 2Your riches have rotted away, and your clothes
have been eaten by moths. 3Your gold and silver are covered with rust, and
this rust will be a witness against you and will eat up your flesh like
fire. You have piled up riches in these last days. 4You have not paid any
wages to those who work in your fields. Listen to their complaints! The
cries of those who gather in your crops have reached the ears of God, the
Lord Almighty. 5Your life here on earth has been full of luxury and
pleasure. You have made yourselves fat for the day of slaughter. 6You have
condemned and murdered innocent people, and they do not resist you. 7Be
patient, then, my friends, until the Lord comes. See how patient farmers
are as they wait for their land to produce precious crops. They wait
patiently for the autumn and spring rains. 8You also must be patient. Keep
your hopes high, for the day of the Lord's coming is near. 9Do not complain
against one another, my friends, so that God will not judge you. The Judge
is near, ready to appear. 10My friends, remember the prophets who spoke in
the name of the Lord. Take them as examples of patient endurance under
suffering. 11We call them happy because they endured. You have heard of
Job's patience, and you know how the Lord provided for him in the end. For
the Lord is full of mercy and compassion. 12Above all, my friends, do not
use an oath when you make a promise. Do not swear by heaven or by earth or
by anything else. Say only Yes when you mean yes, and No when you mean no,
and then you will not come under God's judgment. 13Are any among you in
trouble? They should pray. Are any among you happy? They should sing
praises. 14Are any among you sick? They should send for the church elders,
who will pray for them and rub olive oil on them in the name of the Lord.
15This prayer made in faith will heal the sick; the Lord will restore them
to health, and the sins they have committed will be forgiven. 16So then,
confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you
will be healed. The prayer of a good person has a powerful effect.
17Elijah was the same kind of person as we are. He prayed earnestly that
there would be no rain, and no rain fell on the land for three and a half
years. 18Once again he prayed, and the sky poured out its rain and the
earth produced its crops. 19My friends, if any of you wander away from the
truth and another one brings you back again, 20remember this: whoever turns
a sinner back from the wrong way will save that sinner's soul from death
and bring about the forgiveness of many sins.
God bless you.
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