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James 1 :: New International Version (NIV)

Jas 1:1

Jas 1:1James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes scattered among the nations: Greetings.

Trials and Temptations

Jas 1:2

Jas 1:2Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,[fn] whenever you face trials of many kinds,

Jas 1:3

Jas 1:3because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.

Jas 1:4

Jas 1:4Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

Jas 1:5

Jas 1:5If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.

Jas 1:6

Jas 1:6But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.

Jas 1:7

Jas 1:7That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.

Jas 1:8

Jas 1:8Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

Jas 1:9

Jas 1:9Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position.

Jas 1:10

Jas 1:10But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wild flower.

Jas 1:11

Jas 1:11For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich will fade away even while they go about their business.

Jas 1:12

Jas 1:12Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

Jas 1:13

Jas 1:13When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone;

Jas 1:14

Jas 1:14but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed.

Jas 1:15

Jas 1:15Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

Jas 1:16

Jas 1:16Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters.

Jas 1:17

Jas 1:17Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Jas 1:18

Jas 1:18He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.

Listening and Doing

Jas 1:19

Jas 1:19My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry,

Jas 1:20

Jas 1:20because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.

Jas 1:21

Jas 1:21Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.

Jas 1:22

Jas 1:22Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.

Jas 1:23

Jas 1:23Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror

Jas 1:24

Jas 1:24and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.

Jas 1:25

Jas 1:25But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.

Jas 1:26

Jas 1:26Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless.

Jas 1:27

Jas 1:27Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
See the NIV Preface (Especially for Parenthesis, Brackets, & Asterisks).
NIV Footnotes
The Greek word for brothers and sisters (adelphoi) refers here to believers, both men and women, as part of God’s family; also in verses 16 and 19; and in 2:1, 5, 14; 3:10, 12; 4:11; 5:7, 9, 10, 12, 19.
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For more information on this translation, see the NIV Preface.

James Chapter 1 — Additional Translations:

King James Version New King James Version New Living Translation English Standard Version Christian Standard Bible New American Standard Bible 2020 New American Standard Bible 1995 Legacy Standard Bible Amplified Bible New English Translation Revised Standard Version American Standard Version Young's Literal Translation Darby Translation Webster's Bible Hebrew Names Version Latin Vulgate Morphological Greek New Testament Textus Receptus Smith Van Dyck Arabic Bible Open New Arabic Version Reina Valera 1909 Reina-Valera 1960 Bible in Basic English Chinese Traditional Union Espanol Moderno Korean Holy Bible Louis Segond German Luther Russian Synodal Translation Sagradas Escrituras