There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?There is one lawgiver that is able — To execute the sentence he denounces.But who art thou — A poor, weak, dying worm. read more
III. OUTSIDE THE CHRISTIAN SYNAGOGUE PUBLIC TURBULENCE AND WARS, IRREVERENCE, AND OPPRESSIVE WEALTH, James 4:1 to James 5:11. 1. Wars and public commotions Whence come they? What the remedy? James 4:1-10. 1. Whence… wars Passing beyond the synagogue, Christian or Jewish, our apostle extends his address to the people of the twelve tribes. The great body of modern commentators, such as Stier, Bengel, De Wette, Huther, and Alford have interpreted these wars as strifes in Churches, or... read more
2. Ye lust Ye desire, crave. The objects of most of the verbs in the passage are to be supplied, the apostle leaving our minds to conceive how varied they are. Have not In spite of your craving and violent efforts to obtain. They desired wealth, but poverty was the order of the day. They desired domination, but were enslaved by the Romans. They desired emancipation, but every bloody effort led to a bloodier destruction. Kill In predatory assaults and political insurrections. Desire to... read more
3. Ask amiss A sort of correction of his phrase ask not in last verse. The amiss consists in the sensual nature of their prayers. The asking for the gratification of our unholy natures is a prayer which is not a prayer. Consume Or expend it, not upon, but in, your lusts. In your lusts expresses the moral condition in which they offered their prayerless prayers. A Greek brigand at the present day can unite robbery and murder with the most devout adoration of the virgin. Thus far... read more
4. Adulterers is probably a spurious reading prefixed to adulteresses, which is alone genuine. We also prefer Tischendorf’s punctuation, which would read, “that you may expend it in your lusts, ye adulteresses.” Israel is often termed in the Old Testament the spouse of Jehovah, and apostate Israel is pronounced an adulteress. Said Isaiah, (Isaiah 54:5,) “Thy Maker is thine husband:” and Jeremiah, (Jeremiah 2:2,) “I remember… the love of thine espousals.” Said Ezekiel, (Ezekiel 16:32,)... read more
5. This second question suggests that (in accordance with all Scripture) the proud human spirit burns with envy, while God in his grace is on the side of the humble. Saith Quotation of no particular passage, but a sentiment everywhere assumed or expressed by Scripture. The spirit that dwelleth in us The unholy temper. But a reading preferred by good scholars is, The spirit that he (God) hath caused to dwell in us. Alford adopts this reading, and by it makes the spirit to be the... read more
6. More grace Literally, But a greater grace he bestows; namely, as the next sentence shows, the grace of God to the humble. Greater than what is this grace? It is given greater to the humble (next verse) than it otherwise would be given in view of the antithesis of the humble against the proud, that is, the high spirit of envy. The question then amounts to this: Say not rightly the Scriptures that man’s proud yet God-bestowed spirit tends to envy, and to overcome... read more
7. The same antithesis as that mentioned in James 4:4 is carried through the paragraph. It is between the proud and the humble, between God, to be submitted and approached, and the devil, to be resisted; between cleanse and sinners, between purify and doubleminded, between laughter and mourning, and, finally, between penitent humiliation and a divine exaltation. Therefore In view of the fact that the proud spirit is resisted by Jehovah. But while there is One to whom we... read more
8. Draw nigh The reverse of resist. The former should be done to God, the latter to the devil the two sides of the great battle for possession of the human soul. The drawing nigh to God was ritually symbolized by the approach of the people, and especially the priests, to Jehovah in the holy of holies. But under the new dispensation, the holy of holies is wherever God’s omnipresence is, and the penitent heart is its own priest, able to offer an acceptable incense. Cleanse… hands… sinners... read more
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes - James 4:11
Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.Speak not evil one of another — This is a grand hinderance of peace. O who is sufficiently aware of it! He that speaketh evil of another does in effect speak evil of the law, which so strongly prohibits it.Thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge — Of it; thou settest... read more