Chapter 2
[James 2:1] -- My brothers, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ of glory with partiality. He showed that those to whom he wrote were indeed imbued with evangelical faith, but were empty in works. And since the Lord taught that his commandments should be fulfilled through alms for the poor, he saw that they, contrary to what should be done for the poor for the sake of eternal rewards, were rather doing it for the rich for the sake of earthly advantages, and therefore he reproved them as they deserved. And fittingly, at the beginning of this passage, he surnames our Lord Jesus Christ as "of glory," so that we may remember that it is to his commands we ought to obey, who, being the splendor of glory (Hebrews 1), rewards eternally whatever is given to the poor out of love for him, rather than any human dignity which is generally said to be all flesh is grass, and all its glory like the flower of grass, etc. (Isaiah 40).
[James 2:2-3] -- For if there comes into your assembly a man with a gold ring, in fine clothing, and there also comes in a poor man in shabby clothing, and you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, "You sit here in a good place," while you say to the poor man, "You stand over there," or "Sit down at my feet." In this exposition of the sentence let us use the words of blessed Augustine. "If," he says, "we refer this difference of sitting and standing to ecclesiastical honors, it must not be thought a small sin to have the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ of glory with partiality. For who can tolerate that a rich man should be chosen to the seat of honor in the Church, disregarding a poorer but more learned and holier man? But if he speaks of everyday seating arrangements, who sins here (if indeed he sins) except when he judges internally within himself that the other seems better to him to the degree that he is richer?"
[James 2:4] -- Do you not judge among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? It follows:
[James 2:5] -- Listen, my beloved brothers. He says, pay closer attention, because those who are richer in the world are not necessarily better in the divine judgment.
[James 2:5] -- Has not God chosen the poor of this world, rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he promised to those who love him? He calls the poor, humble, and those who, through contempt of visible things, but faith in invisible riches, are despicable to this world. For such the Lord Jesus Christ has chosen by saying: Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. He has chosen such when he created poor parents for himself, whose service nourished him coming into the world. But he has made them illustrious and noble by the expectation of the future kingdom.
[James 2:6] -- But you have dishonored the poor. For the one to whom it was said: You stand there, when it was said to the one with the gold ring: You sit here well.
[James 2:6] -- Do not the rich oppress you by power, and drag you into courts? Do they not blaspheme the honorable name which was invoked upon you? Here he shows more clearly who are the rich, concerning whose humiliation and destruction he previously disputed. Truly, those who place their riches before Christ, entirely alien to his faith, nonetheless oppress those who believe by power, dragging them into the courts of the powerful, and blaspheming the name of Christ, which is above every name. This is shown quite clearly in the Acts of the Apostles and in the Epistles of Paul the Apostle, that many leaders among the Gentiles, especially among the Jews, did this in the times of the apostles.
[James 2:8] -- If, however, you fulfill the royal law according to the Scriptures: You shall love your neighbor as yourself, you do well. But if you show partiality, you commit sin, being convicted by the law as transgressors. See how he calls them transgressors, because it is said to the rich: Sit here, and to the poor: Stand there. Thus, lest they think it a contemptible sin to transgress the law in this one matter, he added:
[James 2:10] -- Whoever shall keep the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all. For he who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not kill." Now if you do not commit adultery but you kill, you have become a transgressor of the law. Because of what was said: Convicted by the law as transgressors. Therefore, it seems accordingly (unless it can be otherwise understood) that he who says to the rich man: Sit here, and to the poor man: Stand there, giving more honor to this one than to that one, should be judged guilty of all crimes. For he who offends in one is made guilty of all. Hence, it must be questioned, how is he guilty of all if he has offended in one who has kept the whole law? Or perhaps because the fullness of the law is love, by which God and neighbor are loved, upon which commandments of love the whole law and the prophets depend, he rightly becomes guilty of all who acts against that in which all things hang? No one sins except by acting against it. Because "You shall not commit adultery," "You shall not kill," "You shall not steal," "You shall not covet," and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this word: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore, love is the fulfillment of the law (Rom. XIII). Hence, he becomes guilty of all by doing against that in which all things hang. Why then are not all sins said to be equal? Or perhaps because he acts more against charity who sins more gravely, and less who sins lightly? Yet even if he offends in one, he is guilty of all, because he acts against that in which all things hang.
[James 2:12] -- Thus speak, and thus act, as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. The law of liberty is the law of charity, of which it is said: If, however, you fulfill the royal law according to the Scriptures: You shall love your neighbor as yourself, you do well. Therefore, he says, speak thus, and act thus, that by loving your neighbors, you may deserve to be loved by God, and by showing mercy to your neighbors, you may expect mercy in the divine judgment. Otherwise, as the law of servitude is what was given through Moses, so the law of liberty is the grace of the Gospel which was given through Jesus Christ, as the Apostle attests, who says: For you have not received the spirit of slavery again to fear, but you have received the spirit of adoption of sons, in which we cry, Abba, Father (Hebr. VII). And again, where there is the Spirit of the Lord, there is liberty (II Cor. III). Therefore, if you speak, he says, and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. This is indeed to begin being judged. For it is more severe to be judged by the law of Moses than by the natural law. Likewise, it is more severe for those who despise the known grace of the Gospel than those who despise the edicts of the Mosaic law. For to whom much is given, much will be required from him. And to whom much has been entrusted, more will be asked from him (Luke XII). Hence, the Apostle also says: For if the word spoken by angels was confirmed, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? Which at the beginning was spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard him (Hebr. II). And again: If anyone sets aside the law of Moses, he dies without compassion on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severe do you think the punishment will be deserved by the one who has trampled the Son of God, and has considered the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified to be defiled, and has insulted the Spirit of grace (Hebr. X)? But both meanings regard one end, namely that responding to divine grace with just works, we should be kind to one another, merciful, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ forgave us.
[James 2:13] -- For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Without mercy shall be judged the one who, though able to show mercy, did not do so before being judged. While this is rightly thought of all the unmerciful, it is certainly understood that the greater the mercy someone has received from the Lord, the more unjustly they have denied mercy to a needy neighbor and thereby will more justly suffer the penalties for their wickedness. Hence the Lord wisely warns: Do not judge, so that you may not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you (Luke 6). Therefore, judgment without mercy will be for the one who has shown no mercy.
[James 2:13] -- But mercy exalts over judgment. For as the one condemned in God's judgment will grieve who did not show mercy, so the one who did will rejoice and exult when rewarded. Alternatively: Mercy exalts over judgment. It is not said: Mercy overcomes judgment. For it is not opposed to judgment but exalts over it, because many are gathered through mercy, but those who have shown mercy. For blessed are the merciful, since God will have mercy on them (Matthew 5). Again, Mercy exalts over judgment, that is, mercy is placed above judgment. In which, if a work of mercy is found, even if there is reason for punishment in judgment, like a wave of mercy, the fire of sin is extinguished.
[James 2:14] -- What will it profit, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? And so on. Here he discusses the works of mercy more extensively, so that he might console those he had strongly frightened with knowledge preceding, by reminding them how even daily sins, which cannot be lived without here, are expiated by daily remedies. Lest a person, who, by offending in one thing, becomes guilty of all, and by offending many, since we all offend in many ways (James 3), brings a great heap of accumulated guilt before the tribunal of so great a Judge and does not find the mercy they did not show. Instead, by forgiving and giving, they may merit to have their debts forgiven and the promises returned to them.
[James 2:15-16] -- But if a brother or sister is naked and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them: Go in peace, be warmed and filled, but you do not give them the things that are necessary for the body, what does it profit? So too faith, if it does not have works, is dead in itself, etc. It is clear that just as mere words of piety do not refresh the naked or hungry, unless food and clothing are also offered, so faith kept only in words does not save. For it is dead in itself without works of charity, by which it might be revived and animated. Nor is this contrary to what the Lord said: He who believes and is baptized will be saved (Mark XVI). For it must be understood that he truly believes who exercises what he believes by doing. And since faith and charity cannot be separated, as Paul attests, who says: There is faith which works through love (Gal. V), John the Apostle aptly gives such a judgment on charity as James gives on faith, saying: Whoever has the world's goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him (I John III)?
[James 2:19] -- You believe that there is one God, you do well, and the demons also believe and tremble. Do not think that you are doing something great by believing that there is one God. For the demons also do this, and not only do they believe in God the Father, but also in the Son. Hence Luke says: "And demons also were coming out of many, shouting and saying, 'You are the Son of God.'" And rebuking them, He did not allow them to speak, because they knew Him to be the Christ (Luke 4). Not only do they believe, but they also tremble. Hence the legion that was possessing the man cries out to Him with a suppliant voice: "What have I to do with you, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me" (Mark 5). Therefore, those who do not believe that God exists, or do not fear Him when believed, are certainly to be considered more sluggish and defiant than demons. But it is not great to believe in God and to tremble, if one does not also believe in Him, that is, if the love of Him is not held in the heart. For it is one thing to believe Him, another to believe in Him, another to believe into Him. To believe Him is to believe that what He says is true. To believe in Him is to believe that He is God. To believe into Him is to love Him. For many, even the wicked, can believe that what He says is true. They indeed believe it to be true, but they do not want to do it, because they are lazy in action. But to believe that He is God, even demons were able to do this. But to believe into God is known only by those who love God, who are not Christians in name only, but also in deeds and life. Because faith without love is empty. With love, it is the faith of a Christian; without love, it is the faith of a demon. Therefore, he who does not want to believe in Christ does not even imitate the demons. And if he already believes in Christ but hates Christ, he has a confession of faith in fear of punishment, not in love of the crown. For they too feared punishment. Finally, when the blessed Peter confessedly said to the Lord: "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16), he seems to utter almost the same words that the demons also spoke, but the confession of the demons, because it was spoken with hatred, was rightly condemned by Christ, and Peter’s confession, because it proceeded from internal love, was rewarded with eternal blessedness.
[James 2:20] -- Do you want to know, O empty man, that faith without works is idle? Because the Apostle Paul, preaching that a man is justified by faith without works, was not well understood by those who took it to mean that once they believed in Christ, even if they acted badly and lived wickedly and wickedly, they would be saved by faith: this passage of this epistle explains how the same sense of the Apostle Paul should be understood. Therefore, he uses the example of Abraham more, showing that faith is empty if it does not work well, because Paul also used the example of Abraham to prove that a man can be justified without works. For when he recalls the good works of Abraham, which accompanied his faith, he sufficiently shows that the Apostle Paul did not teach that a man is justified by faith without works in such a way that if anyone has believed, it does not matter for him to do good works, but rather to ensure that no one thinks he has achieved the gift of justification, which is by faith, through the merits of previous good works. In this, the Jews wanted to prefer themselves over the Gentiles believing in Christ, because they said they had achieved evangelical grace through the merits of good works which are in the law. And therefore, many who believed from them were scandalized because the grace of Christ was given to the uncircumcised Gentiles. Whence the Apostle Paul says that a man can be justified by faith without works, that is, preceding works. For being justified by faith, how can he not act justly? Therefore when James says:
[James 2:21] -- Our father Abraham was justified by works, offering Isaac his son upon the altar. Elegantly, the example of good works from the patriarch himself was pointed out to be learned, urging those who believed from among the Jews to follow the deeds of their first and greatest ancestor as good offspring. And since he admonished them not to fail in temptations and to prove their faith through works, he elegantly used the example of the patriarch, by which he could instruct them in both virtues. For what greater temptation, except those pertaining to the wounds of one's own body, can occur than for an old man to be compelled to kill his only beloved son? How then would he delay in giving his tunics or food to the poor for the love of God, who did not delay in giving his son, whom he had received in his old age as an heir, to death at the prompt command of the Lord? Therefore, this statement of blessed James is in harmony with what Paul says: "By faith Abraham offered Isaac his son when he was tested, and he offered his only begotten son whom he had received by promise, to whom it was said, 'In Isaac your seed shall be called,' considering that God is able to raise even the dead" (Heb. 11). Indeed, in the same act, James praised the magnificence of Abraham's works, while Paul lauded the constancy of his faith. Yet Paul did not present a different or contrary opinion to James. For both knew that Abraham was perfect in both faith and works, and therefore each of them praised that virtue in him which they saw as needed more by their own audiences. Because James wrote to those who held faith without works idle, he presented that relevant example where Abraham’s notable faith, which was previously praised by Scripture, appeared, showing that it did not lie dormant idly in his heart but was proven fervent in obedience to divine commands. But Paul demonstrated to those who boasted in their works without the grace of faith that without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11), and by collecting examples from all the patriarchs, clearly taught that all were proven by the testimony of faith. Hence he specifically mentioned Abraham: because by faith he offered Isaac, considering (he says) that God is able to raise the dead (Heb. 11). So he joined the work of faith, who therefore was willing to offer his son at once, because he believed God would immediately raise him. He believed this because he held as true what he had heard: “In Isaac your seed shall be called.” This combination of both virtues blessed James also expounds by saying: "You see that faith was working together with his works, and by works, faith was made perfect, and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness, and he was called the friend of God.'" Paul's firm discussion addressed to the Romans clearly teaches this testimony, showing that the strength of faith is such that once its mysteries are perceived, it can instantly make a righteous man out of an impious one. Because Abraham believed God with such great and fervent faith, that he was ready in spirit to perform whatever God commanded, by God's judgment, his faith was reckoned to him as righteousness. And so that we might also know the faith by which he was justified, God tested him by commanding him to offer his son, and by works, faith was completed, that is, it was proven perfect in his heart by the execution of works. Likewise, in this time, if someone newly comes to faith, receives baptism, and resolves in his heart to follow God's commandments, if he soon departs from this life justified by faith alone, he departs without works, because by God's providence, who foresaw and prepared it, there was no time for him to prove his faith by works. But those who, having received the sacraments of faith, survive a long time and do not care to engage in good works, must be reminded of the example set by blessed James of faith combined with the works of Abraham, and he immediately added, saying:
[James 2:24] -- Do you see that a man is justified by works and not by faith only? What he says by works means by works of faith. Because no one can have perfect works without faith, but many can have faith without works if they do not have the time to act. Of such it is said: He was taken away lest wickedness should change his understanding or deceit beguile his soul (Wis. IV).
[James 2:25] -- In the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way? Lest they excuse themselves as unable to imitate the works of so great a father Abraham, especially since no one now compels them to offer their sons to God to be killed, but rather God Himself forbids this to be done through the Scriptures, he adds also of a sinful woman, a foreign woman, who nevertheless by acts of mercy, by the duty of hospitality, even at the risk of her life, received the servants of God and was deemed worthy to be justified from sins, to be numbered among the citizens of the people of Israel, to be counted in the catalog of their royal lineage, to be inserted in the genealogies of our Lord and Saviour descending from the fountain of the patriarchs, to be rescued from the destruction of her perishing country, whose treachery she abandoned. By the examples of this woman turned to better things, he therefore advises his listeners to avoid entering the perishing homeland, and to remember to separate themselves by fruitful works from the sins they had left by believing, so that they may be united with the assemblies of the saints and may deserve to reach the fellowship of their Redeemer. And so he exhorts them to receive the messengers of Jesus, that is, to gladly hear the preachers of the word of the Gospel. And when they know that these have been rejected by their kinsmen or even sought after to death, as the Acts often show to have happened, they themselves, taking from them counsel for their salvation, should send them back to the Lord Jesus in peace. So the Book of Acts of the Apostles indicates that Gamaliel, the master of the blessed apostle Paul, by the revelation of the relics of the proto-martyr Stephen, effected something once honorable to all the people of the Jews and now more honorable to the whole Church of Christ, when the Jewish council, planning to slay the apostles, himself with wiser counsel thwarted their machinations and sent the apostles, rescued from their snares, back unharmed to evangelize Jesus.