James (written)

Monday, 2 September 2019

You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury; you have fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter. James 5:5

The thought continues from the previous verses. James has been addressing the rich, condemning them for their abusive lifestyles. After mentioning how the rich man harms others, he now turns to how they treat themselves, beginning with, “You have lived on the earth in pleasure.” Here is a word found only this once in Scripture. It signifies living in a self-indulgent manner. As HELPS Word Studies describes it –

“‘Dainty living’ in NT times included going to the public baths (‘wash houses’), typically decked out with ornate furnishings (e.g. decorated baths made of marble, etc.) They eventually became huge recreation centers with an adjoining gymnasium and library.”

So, these rich were withholding the wages of their laborers (see previous verse), and they instead head to the public bathhouses to relax. It is a truly criminal act against those in their employ – stealing their labors so that they can find “pleasure and luxury.”

The word translated as “luxury” is also a rare word, being seen only here and in 1 Timothy 5:6. It gives the idea of indulging in unneeded surplus. James Strong describes it as being voluptuous. In this uncaring, self-indulgent, and wanton lifestyle, James says to the rich that “you have fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter.”

The idea here of fattening one’s heart is that of fattening oneself. The heart stands for the person – his reason, intellect, and mind. Here is this person, set on self-indulgence, who has become either –

1) fat from the life he lives and who is ripe for being slaughtered like an animal, or
2) fat from acting as one would in the day of slaughter. When an animal is slaughtered there is great feasting for those who participate in the meal.

If the latter, which is not unlikely, it means that the laborer – whose wages were withheld – was treated as a sacrificial animal. He was slaughtered by the withholding of his wages, and the rich then lives off his life-blood, pictured by the wages which were needed to sustain him. Either way, the imagery is one of over-indulgence, greed, and an uncaring attitude for anything beyond immediate self-absorption.

Life application: James reached back to the Song of Moses for the thought he presents in this verse –

“But Jeshurun grew fat and kicked;
You grew fat, you grew thick,
You are obese!
Then he forsook God who made him,
And scornfully esteemed the Rock of his salvation.” Deuteronomy 32:15

James is writing to the first-century Jewish community and reminding them of the fulfillment of what was prophesied by Moses. Don’t miss the significance of the greater picture though. Just as the Jewish people had become well-fed and fat, and just as they had kicked, so have the nations that once followed the Lord. As prosperity comes, so along with it come ease and a dulling of the senses concerning the things of God.

So it is in the world today. As prosperity, luxury, and self-indulgence have become a way of life, in equal measure have come immorality, turning from the truth of the Bible, and a more liberal approach to life, politics, friendships, etc. Hard work is no longer rewarded, but instead is taxed to feed the lazy. National feelings of devotion are replaced with a desire to burn the flag and complain about even the thought of defending against aggression. Murderers are given light sentences and abortionists are given honors and accolades.

Likewise, preachers water down the truth of Scripture and breathe out easy messages of prosperity and comfort. Surely we have fattened ourselves in the day of slaughter. We must repent and turn back to God or we will be consumed in our unrighteousness. Take time today to pray for repentance and revival in your land.

Heavenly Father, what Your word proclaims is true – that which has been will be again. Just as Israel grew fat and kicked, so have the nations which once proclaimed Your message. Likewise, denominations that once held to the truth of the Bible now dismiss it as myth. Turn our hearts back to You before Your great and awesome Day of Judgment arrives. Help us to be faithful in a world of wickedness and turmoil Amen.

Sunday, 1 September 2019

Indeed the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. James 5:4

James, still speaking to the rich, now directs his words to their ill-treatment of others, beginning with those who are in their employ. They obviously treat their workers unfairly as is evidenced beginning with the words, “Indeed the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields.”

These are people within the employ of the rich. The word “wages” implies one who is hired, not a slave. An agreement for payment for a certain type or amount of work has been made. In this case, it is for those who mow. The word is found only here in Scripture, amaó. It means, to mow or reap.

Next, the word translated as “fields” is not the usual one. It is a common word, but it usually refers to a country. In this sense, it is a larger area than a normal field. It is only used two other times in this fashion. One of those two times, it also speaks of the fields of a rich man –

“Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: ‘The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully.’” Luke 12:16

James notes that the rich man has large swaths of land and he has hired laborers out to tend to them. However, referring to the wages he owes, James says, “which you have kept back by fraud.” The word used signifies to defraud another. The rich man may have changed the conditions which had originally been agreed upon, he may have claimed payment was made when it wasn’t, he may have claimed the job wasn’t performed as required even when it was, or he may have simply withheld payment because he figured he could get away with it. Whatever the reason, the laborer has been denied his rightfully due wages.

James says that these wages “cry out.” The word is krazó. It is an onomatopoetic expression where a natural sound which is heard reflects the sound of the word itself. It is derived from the raven’s cry which pierces the air, and thus it signifies a loud shriek which uses inarticulate sounds of deeply-affected emotions. The wages themselves are personified as they cry out to heaven for justice.

James then says that “the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth.” A different word for “cries” is seen only here in the Bible, boé. Again, it is an onomatopoetic expression. It signifies visceral sounds of concentrated exclamations. The cries of the workers are a heartfelt and expressive petition for relief. They are so pained that the Lord of Sabaoth becomes attentive to them.

This is a title for the Lord found only here and in Romans 9:29. In Romans, Paul is citing the Old Testament book of Isaiah. Here, James simply uses the word without citation. The title “Sabaoth” is derived from the Hebrew word tsaba, meaning war, warfare, or army. In this form then, it signifies “the Lord of Hosts.” He is the Commander of the armies of heaven, and his ears have heard what the rich man has done. Can anyone imagine He will shut his hearing to such cries?

Life application: James lived in a time when almost all work was physical, and a large percentage of that was agrarian. In fact, throughout its pages, the Bible deals with agricultural themes to make spiritual applications. When Jesus speaks of the wheat harvest, He is referring to the harvest of human souls prepared for the kingdom. When we read of the grape harvest, it is referring to God’s wrath being poured out on His enemies as He stomps them in His fury.

This verse in James is not necessarily spiritual in nature, and we need to be careful not to over-spiritualize every verse. Rather, James is following along in the same line he has spoken of for the past few verses – greed. Instead of paying the workers their wages, the wealthy were holding onto their money longer than necessary. Perhaps they were saying to the workers, “I’ll pay you when you finish the job.” However, just like today, the common people relied on having their pay immediately. To withhold the day’s wages was to deprive them of their evening meal.

Imagine if your boss originally promised to give you a paycheck each Friday. Later, however, he arbitrarily changed that to bi-weekly. At the end of the second week, he comes again and says, “I’m going to give you one big check at the end of the month.” You would rightfully be very upset as you agreed to work for a weekly paycheck. James says that conducting affairs in such a manner is sin. If you are in a position of handling other people’s pay, make sure you deal fairly with them, lest you be found a sinner as well. Though under the Law of Moses, the following words reflect a precept which should be remembered by all –

“You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy, whether one of your brethren or one of the aliens who is in your land within your gates. ¹⁵ Each day you shall give him his wages, and not let the sun go down on it, for he is poor and has set his heart on it; lest he cry out against you to the Lord, and it be sin to you.” Deuteronomy 24:14, 15

Heavenly Father, it is wonderful to read Your word and to see how tenderly You care for Your people. Give us hearts to care for others even as You do, and keep us from the sin of greed. May we never act deceitfully toward others over money, and may we especially be generous to share Your word with others – Your precious word of life. Amen.

Saturday, 31 August 2019

Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days. James 5:3

James continues with the thought from the previous verse, starting with, “Your gold and silver are corroded.” The word translated as “corroded” is found only here in the Bible. It comes from a root, ios, meaning either rust or poison. That word, ios, is used in the next clause and is translated as “corrosion.” That, in turn, comes from a word which signifies “to send.”

A viper will send forth poison (as is the idea in both Romans 3:13 and James 3:8 where the same word is used as in this verse). The gold and silver will wear, sending away their mass. This is important to understand because gold neither rusts nor tarnishes. Therefore, saying “worn away,” or “corroded,” rather than “rust” is appropriate.

The idea is that gold and silver may have value, but to trust in them is a fool’s choice. They will wear away, they can be stolen, they can be lost, etc. In the end, they cannot save a person from his final day of reckoning. Instead, James says that “their corrosion will be a witness against you.”

The intent of these words is that whatever is left of the gold and silver, if anything, will be insufficient to save the soul of the man. Their properties, which are wearing away, means that they are earthly – even if precious by earthly standards. The fool will hope in that which is created; the wise will hope in the Creator.

Throughout Scripture this is seen. When the people rebelled against the Lord and made a golden calf, Moses says, “Then I took your sin, the calf which you had made, and burned it with fire and crushed it and ground it very small, until it was as fine as dust; and I threw its dust into the brook that descended from the mountain” (Deuteronomy 9:21). In Exodus, it then says that he then made the people drink of the water.

In Joshua, Achan, sinned against the Lord by taking gold and silver during the battle of Jericho. It stood as a witness against him, and it cost him his life. He, his family, and all of his possessions – along with the gold and silver – were stoned and then burned. Following the progression of these and other such incidents in Scripture shows that placing one’s trust in silver or gold is unwise. Such treasure “will eat your flesh like fire.”

This is exactly what happened to Achan, and it is a type and picture of what will happen to all who so trust in earthly riches. In the final judgment, the gold and silver they thought could save will be shown to be a false hope. For them, it will be an eternal swim in the Lake of Fire. For those who are saved and still cling to such things, their judgment at the Bema Seat of Christ will be one of loss and not reward.

James finishes with, “You have heaped up treasure in the last days.” The age of grace has come, and that grace is found in Jesus Christ. He is the only true source of hope, and yet people in these last days (meaning since His resurrection) continue going about pursuing worldly wealth to the exclusion of a relationship with God through Him. This is a false hope indeed.

There is nothing wrong with earning wealth, and the proverbs instruct the wise to save for their children’s children. But this is for use in this temporary world, not for salvation in the next. There is an eternal difference between the two.

Life application: Imagine the final moments of the victims of the volcano at Pompeii. The volcano exploded and the fire and ash came at the people like a freight train. The wealthy along with the poor were snuffed out within a few seconds. That moment in time is recorded for the ages – people grasping their children; people dying in their rooms; people holding onto… their gold.

The last moments of many people’s lives are spent grasping for something they simply cannot take with them. It is certainly the case that if some had not tried to hold on to their money they may have escaped with their lives. But, as Forrest Gump correctly put it, “Stupid is as stupid does.”

People trust in wealth, they boast about wealth, and they die because of their wealth. In the end, it did them no good at all – a few moments of history spent in leisure ended in futility. Solomon speaks about the life of the laborer and the life of the rich. Really, who has it better? The man who sleeps well, even if a little hungry, or the man who can’t sleep though he is filled with cake and ice cream?

“The sleep of a laboring man is sweet,
Whether he eats little or much;
But the abundance of the rich will not permit him to sleep.
¹³ There is a severe evil which I have seen under the sun:
Riches kept for their owner to his hurt.” Ecclesiastes 5:12, 13

Wealth, fancy living, gold, silver, flashy cars, and a life of leisure will testify against us when it is our hope. There is nothing wrong with wealth and abundance as long as it is kept in proper perspective. But when it consumes our lives it becomes sin to us. Let us be careful where we put our hopes, and about what we are reaching for as we head into eternity. Where is your anchor at on the day of your death? Let it be in Christ Jesus alone.

Lord, we thank You for the wonderful abundance You have given us in this life. We are grateful for the things You have blessed us with. But Lord, may these things never take our hearts and eyes away from You. Help us to keep our priorities straight. When we reach out for the last time, may our hands reach out for You. Amen.

Friday, 30 August 2019

Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. James 5:2

In the previous verse, James spoke of the miseries coming upon the rich. Here, he begins to describe what that entails, beginning with, “Your riches are corrupted.” The word sépó, translated as “corrupted,” is found only here in the New Testament. One can see a hint of the modern word “septic” in it. It signifies “to putrefy.” In it, there is a process of rotting and its associated negative happenings – smell, touch, taste, and sight are each brought into the equation.

The reason for this is that the wealth of the rich in ancient times did not only consist of metals and gems, but also of the storing up of food, wine, oil, garments, and etc. Jesus spoke of this type of amassed wealth in Luke 12 –

“‘“Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. ¹⁷ And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ ¹⁸ So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”’” Luke 12:`6-19

Grains and the like, when they get damp, will begin to putrefy. Wine begins to turn to vinegar when its storage is improperly affected. Solomon speaks of the ruining of oil in Ecclesiastes 10:1 –

“Dead flies putrefy the perfumer’s ointment,
And cause it to give off a foul odor;
So does a little folly to one respected for wisdom and honor.”

As the rot – whatever type it might be – sets in, the taste, smell, feel, and sight of the once-valuable commodity is turned to corruption. It is good for nothing. James also says, “and your garments are moth-eaten.”

Today, this doesn’t really bother us as much as it did even a short time ago. Throughout history, people generally had very few garments. So important was the single garment of many individuals, that the Lord spoke out this in the Exodus 22:26, 27 –

“If you ever take your neighbor’s garment as a pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down. ²⁷ For that is his only covering, it is his garment for his skin. What will he sleep in? And it will be that when he cries to Me, I will hear, for I am gracious.”

The wealthy would have more garments, and of varying qualities and materials. However, they needed to be carefully stored to avoid being destroyed. These would be treated as precious commodities which could be traded or sold, and thus they were their own type of wealth. James shows that such wealth is transitory and can come to an end very quickly. Such sources of wealth that the rich man trusted in are actually not trustworthy at all.

Jesus spoke of exactly this, and where true wealth is –

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; ²⁰ but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:19-21

Life application: In this verse, and in the verses to come, James really goes on the attack against worldly wealth. The very thing most people treasure above all else is the thing that is often most fleeting. People who once possessed millions of dollars are found homeless and eating out of dumpsters. Wealthy traders have lost everything in a single afternoon leading them to jump out of their high-rise apartments rather than face poverty. Money simply cannot be relied on as a good indicator of what our status will be in 24 hours.

In the past, to flaunt flashy outfits was similar to flaunting lots of money. It showed an arrogance which, unfortunately, hasn’t changed even today. Instead, we put value in labels and designers. To wear something by a noted designer often leads to feelings of superiority over others. But James states that this type of attitude is shallow and reflects poor priorities. Instead of trusting in money or fancy clothing, let us trust wholeheartedly in the Lord – the Everlasting God.

Heavenly Father, we need forgiveness for our times of trusting in wealth, cars, clothing, or any other thing which is so temporary and uncertain. Give us wisdom to use these things without loving them; to enjoy them without clinging to them; and to trust in no earthly thing, but rather in You alone. This we ask that You will be glorified and that we will be found faultless in Your eyes. Amen.

Thursday, 29 August 2019

Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you! James 5:1

James now speaks in a manner similar to verse 4:13. There he said, “Come now, you who say…” Here he begins with, “Come now, you rich.” This is his way of calling to attention an error in thinking that needs to be corrected. In 4:13, it was to the boastful. Here, it is to the rich who trust that their riches mean they are in God’s favor, and/or that their riches will save them in the day of disaster. Both are decidedly errors in thinking. To show how true this is, he will continue with this thought until verse 5:6.

For those who are rich, he says, “weep and howl.” This is similar to what he has already said in verse 4:9, “Lament and mourn and weep!” James is showing that haughtiness in the Lord’s presence is unacceptable. As he later said, “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.” This is the same thought process that he will continue with here.

In this verse, the Greek more precisely reads, “weep, howling…” The thought is active and alive. The word translated as “weep” is the standard and common word signifying sobbing, or wailing aloud. However, the word for “howl” is used only here in Scripture, ololuzó. It is an onomatopoetic expression (the sound resembles what it signifies) which means to cry out audibly in order to express feelings which are too intense for mere words. One can think of the mid-eastern sound still made by Arabs today as they wail in agony or shriek for joy – olololololololo (or, ulululululululu).

James tells the rich to sob out and howl in this way because of “your miseries that are coming upon you!” For those who trust in riches, their end will be misery. This is a thought which echoes the words of the prophets. For example, Isaiah says of the coming judgment of Babylon –

“Wail, for the day of the Lord is at hand!
It will come as destruction from the Almighty.” Isiah 13:6

Ezekiel shows the folly of believing there is value in being wealthy when the judgment of the Lord comes –

“They will throw their silver into the streets,
And their gold will be like refuse;
Their silver and their gold will not be able to deliver them
In the day of the wrath of the Lord;
They will not satisfy their souls,
Nor fill their stomachs,
Because it became their stumbling block of iniquity.” Ezekiel 7:19

Such imagery is found in numerous places in Scripture. This is now what James also begins to explain to those who are wealthy in the world, but who have not taken their state before the Lord into consideration.

Life application: One of the great mistakes of our society, and one from which Christians are not immune, is to make assumptions based on wealth:

1) God favors me because I’m rich.

2) I am important because I’m rich.

3) My wealth will save me during times of crisis.

On today’s TV, there are hosts of companies and commercials which speak of the security of gold. But when the ball drops and the economy collapses, that gold will be useless – just as it was in Ezekiel’s time.

What is the time of the Lord’s wrath? Read the terrifying words of Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28. Such was the case for the Lord’s wrath upon Israel, and such will be the case on a worldwide scale someday. They are words so appalling that despite the gruesome horror of movies we may sit and watch, those shows can’t even compare to the reality of God’s wrath –

“The tender and delicate woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground because of her delicateness and sensitivity, will refuse to the husband of her bosom, and to her son and her daughter, ⁵⁷ her placenta which comes out from between her feet and her children whom she bears; for she will eat them secretly for lack of everything in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you at all your gates.” Deuteronomy 28:56, 57

Horror lies ahead for those who fail to come to Christ and to be healed from their lives of sin. If you are trusting in wealth, gold and silver, or fancy objects, then your trust is in vain. Weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you. Instead, be secure in the joyous covering of Christ and in the hope of the rapture of the saints. Those left behind will face unimaginable sorrow.

Lord Jesus, may our souls delight in You alone. May our very lives be dedicated to You and Your service. And Lord, may our eyes never stray from Your glory to any lesser object – no, not even gold or gems. All wealth is perishing, and a trust in riches is vanity. But for those who place their trust in You, there is safety and life. Thank You for the hope of life that we possess because of Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.