James 4

¹From whence are wars and contentions among you? Are they not hereof: of your concupiscences which war in your members?

²You covet, & have not. You kill, and envy; and cannot obtain. You contend and war: and you have not, because you ask not.

³You ask, and receive not: because you ask amiss: that you may consume it on your concupiscences.

⁴Adulterers, know you not that the friendship of this world, is the enemy of God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of this world, is made an enemy of God.

⁵Or do you think that the Scripture saith in vain: To envy doth the spirit covet which dwelleth in you?

⁶And giveth greater grace. For the which cause it saith, God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.

⁷Be subject therefore to God, but resist the devil, and he will fly from you.

⁸Approach to God, & he will approach to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners: and purify your hearts, ye double of mind.

⁹Be miserable, and mourn, & weep: let your laughter be turned into mourning; and joy, into sorrow.

¹⁰Be humbled in the sight of our Lord, and he will exalt you.

¹¹Detract not one from another, my brethren. He that detracteth from his brother, or he that judgeth his brother, detracteth from the Law, and judgeth the Law. But if thou judge the Law, thou art not a doer of the Law, but a Judge.

¹²For there is one Lawmaker, and Judge that can destroy and deliver.

¹³But thou, what art thou that judgest thy neighbour? Behold now you that say, Today or tomorrow we will go into that city, and there certes will spend a year, and will traffic, and make our gain

¹⁴(who are ignorant what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is a vapour appearing for a little while, and afterward it shall vanish away)

¹⁵for that you should say, If our Lord will: and, if we shall live, we will do this or that.

¹⁶But now you rejoice in your arrogancies. All such rejoicing is wicked.

¹⁷To one therefore knowing to do good, and not doing it: to him it is sin.