James 2:1

Amplified Bible

My fellow believers, do not practice your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of partiality [toward people—show no favoritism, no prejudice, no snobbery].

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
My brothers and sisters, do not show favoritism as you hold on to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.

King James Version (1611)
My brethren, haue not the faith of our Lord Iesus Christ the Lord of glorie, with respect of persons.

King James Version
My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.

English Standard Version
My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.

New American Standard Bible
My brothers and sisters, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism.

New Century Version
My dear brothers and sisters, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, never think some people are more important than others.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism.

Berean Standard Bible
My brothers, as you hold out your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, do not show favoritism.

Contemporary English Version
My friends, if you have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, you won't treat some people better than others.

Complete Jewish Bible
My brothers, practice the faith of our Lord Yeshua, the glorious Messiah, without showing favoritism.

Darby Translation
My brethren, do not have the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, [Lord] of glory, with respect of persons:

Easy-to-Read Version
My dear brothers and sisters, you are believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. So don't treat some people better than others.

Geneva Bible (1587)
My brethren, haue not the faith of our glorious Lorde Iesus Christ in respect of persons.

George Lamsa Translation
MY brethren, do not, with hypocrisy, uphold the glorious faith of our LORD Jesus Christ.

Good News Translation
My friends, as believers in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, you must never treat people in different ways according to their outward appearance.

Lexham English Bible
My brothers, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with partiality.

Literal Translation
My brothers, do not with partiality have the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.

American Standard Version
My brethren, hold not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.

Bible in Basic English
My brothers, if you have the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ of glory, do not take a man's position into account.

Hebrew Names Version
My brothers, don't hold the faith of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah, [the Lord] of glory, with respect of persons.

International Standard Version
My brothers, do not practice your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ by showing partiality.Leviticus 19:15; Deuteronomy 1:17; 16:19; Proverbs 24:23; 28:21; Matthew 22:16; 1 Corinthians 2:8; James 2:9; Jude 1:16;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
My brethren, do not hold with acceptance of faces the faith of the glory of our Lord Jeshu Meshiha.

Murdock Translation
My brethren, hold ye not the faith of the glory of our Lord Jesus the Messiah, with a respect to persons.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
My brethren, haue not the fayth of our Lorde Iesus Christe, the Lord of glorie, with respect of persons.

English Revised Version
My brethren, hold not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.

World English Bible
My brothers, don't hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, [the Lord] of glory, with respect of persons.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. For if there come into your assembly a man with a gold ring,

Weymouth's New Testament
My brethren, you must not make distinctions between one man and another while you are striving to maintain faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, who is our glory.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Mi britheren, nyle ye haue the feith of oure Lord Jhesu Crist of glorie, in accepcioun of persoones.

Update Bible Version
My brothers, don't hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, [the Lord] of glory, with respect of persons.

Webster's Bible Translation
My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, [the Lord] of glory, with respect of persons.

New English Translation
My brothers and sisters, do not show prejudice if you possess faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.

New King James Version
My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality.

New Living Translation
My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people over others?

New Life Bible
My Christian brothers, our Lord Jesus Christ is the Lord of shining-greatness. Since your trust is in Him, do not look on one person as more important than another.

New Revised Standard
My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favoritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ?

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
My brethren, do not, with respect for persons, be holding the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.

Douay-Rheims Bible
My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ of glory, with respect of persons.

Revised Standard Version
My brethren, show no partiality as you hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
Brethren have not the fayth of oure lorde Iesus Christ the lorde of glory in respecte of persons.

Young's Literal Translation
My brethren, hold not, in respect of persons, the faith of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ,

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Brethren, haue not the faith of oure LORDE Iesus Christ ye LORDE of glory in respecte of persons.

Mace New Testament (1729)
My brethren, let not your christian profession be accompanied with partiality.

THE MESSAGE
My dear friends, don't let public opinion influence how you live out our glorious, Christ-originated faith. If a man enters your church wearing an expensive suit, and a street person wearing rags comes in right after him, and you say to the man in the suit, "Sit here, sir; this is the best seat in the house!" and either ignore the street person or say, "Better sit here in the back row," haven't you segregated God's children and proved that you are judges who can't be trusted?

Simplified Cowboy Version
If you're ridin' for the Lord, don't go to shunnin' some folks and favorin' others.

Contextual Overview

¹My fellow believers, do not practice your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of partiality [toward people—show no favoritism, no prejudice, no snobbery].²For if a man comes into your meeting place wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in dirty clothes also comes in, ³and you pay special attention to the one who wears the fine clothes, and say to him, "You sit here in this good seat," and you tell the poor man, "You stand over there, or sit down [on the floor] by my footstool," ⁴have you not discriminated among yourselves, and become judges with wrong motives? ⁵Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters: has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and [as believers to be] heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? ⁶But you [in contrast] have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress and exploit you, and personally drag you into the courts of law? ⁷Do they not blaspheme the precious name [of Christ] by which you are called?

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the faith: Acts 20:21, Acts 24:24, Colossians 1:4, 1 Timothy 1:19, Titus 1:1, 2 Peter 1:1, Revelation 14:12

the Lord: Psalms 24:7-10, 1 Corinthians 2:8, Titus 2:13, Hebrews 1:3

with: James 2:3, James 2:9, James 3:17, Leviticus 19:15, Deuteronomy 1:17, Deuteronomy 16:19, 2 Chronicles 19:7, Proverbs 24:23, Proverbs 28:21, Matthew 22:16, Romans 1:11, 1 Timothy 5:21, Jude 1:16

Reciprocal: 2 Chronicles 26:18 - neither shall it be Psalms 15:4 - a vile Psalms 49:2 - General Haggai 2:9 - glory Matthew 23:6 - General Luke 14:12 - when John 4:1 - the Lord John 5:44 - and John 7:24 - General John 21:7 - It is 2 Corinthians 5:16 - know we no Ephesians 1:17 - the Father

Cross-References

Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God (Elohim) created [by forming from nothing] the heavens and the earth.

Genesis 1:10
God called the dry land earth, and the gathering of the waters He called seas; and God saw that this was good (pleasing, useful) and He affirmed and sustained it.

Genesis 2:3
So God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it [as His own, that is, set it apart as holy from other days], because in it He rested from all His work which He had created and done.

Genesis 2:4
This is the history of [the origin of] the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day [that is, days of creation] that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens—

Genesis 2:5
no shrub or plant of the field was yet in the earth, and no herb of the field had yet sprouted, for the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground,

Genesis 2:8
And the LORD God planted a garden (oasis) in the east, in Eden (delight, land of happiness); and He put the man whom He had formed (created) there.

Genesis 2:11
The first [river] is named Pishon; it flows around the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold.

Genesis 2:13
The name of the second river is Gihon; it flows around the entire land of Cush [in Mesopotamia].

Exodus 20:11
"For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea and everything that is in them, and He rested (ceased) on the seventh day. That is why the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy [that is, set it apart for His purposes].

Exodus 31:17
"It is a sign between Me and the Israelites forever; for in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He ceased and was refreshed."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

My brethren,.... As the apostle is about to dissuade from the evil of having respect to persons, this is a very fit introduction to it, and carries in it an argument why it should not obtain; since the saints are all brethren, they are children of the same Father, belong to the same family, and are all one in Christ Jesus, whether high or low, rich, or poor:

have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, [the] Lord of glory, with respect of persons: that is, such as have, and hold, and profess the faith of Christ, ought not along with it to use respect of persons, or to make such a distinction among the saints, as to prefer the rich, to the contempt of the poor; and in this exhortation many things are contained, which are so many arguments why such a practice should not be encouraged; for faith, whether as a doctrine or as a grace, is alike precious, and common to all; and is the faith of Christ, which, as a doctrine, is delivered by him to all the saints, and as a grace, he is both the author and object of it; and is the faith of their common Lord and Saviour, and who is the Lord of glory, or the glorious Lord; and the poor as well as the rich are espoused by him, as their Lord and husband; and are redeemed by him, and are equally under his government and protection, and members of his body: the Syriac Version reads, "have not the faith of the glory of our Lord Jesus", c. meaning either the glory which Christ is possessed of, whether as the Son of God, in the perfections of his nature, or as man and Mediator, being now crowned with glory and honour, and which is seen and known by faith or else that glory which Christ has in his hands, to bestow upon his people, and to which they are called, and will appear in, when he shall appear, and about which their faith is now employed: and since this glory equally belongs to them all, no difference should be made on account of outward circumstances, so as to treat any believer with neglect and contempt.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

My brethren - Perhaps meaning brethren in two respects - as Jews, and as Christians. In both respects the form of address would be proper.

Have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ - Faith is the distinguishing thing in the Christian religion, for it is this by which man is justified, and hence, it comes to be put for religion itself. Notes, 1 Timothy 3:9. The meaning here is, “do not hold such views of the religion of Christ, as to lead you to manifest partiality to others on account of their difference of rank or outward circumstances.”

The Lord of glory - The glorious Lord; he who is glorious himself, and who is encompassed with glory. See the notes at 1 Corinthians 2:8. The design here seems to be to show that the religion of such a Lord should be in no way dishonored.

With respect of persons - That is, you are not to show respect of persons, or to evince partiality to others on account of their rank, wealth, apparel, etc. Compare Proverbs 24:23; Proverbs 28:21; Leviticus 19:15; Deuteronomy 1:17; Deu 10:17; 2 Chronicles 19:7; Psalms 40:4. See the subject explained in the Acts 10:34 note; Romans 2:11 note.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

CHAPTER II.

We should not prefer the rich to the poor, nor show any

partiality inconsistent with the Gospel of Christ, 1-4.

God has chosen the poor, rich in faith, to be heirs of his

kingdom, even those whom some among their brethren despised

and oppressed, 5, 6.

They should love their neighbour as themselves, and have no

respect of persons, 7-9.

He who breaks one command of God is guilty of the whole,

10, 11.

They should act as those who shall be judged by the law of

liberty; and he shall have judgment without mercy, who shows

no mercy, 12, 13.

Faith without works of charity and mercy is dead; nor can it

exist where there are no good works, 14-20.

Abraham proved his faith by his works, 21-24.

And so did Rahab, 25.

As the body without the soul is dead, so is faith without good

works, 26.

NOTES ON CHAP. II.

Verse James 2:1. My brethren, have not — This verse should be read interrogatively: My brethren, do ye not make profession of the faith or religion of our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with acceptance of persons? That is, preferring the rich to the poor merely because of their riches, and not on account of any moral excellence, personal piety, or public usefulness. πιστις, faith, is put here for religion; and τηςδοξης, of glory, should, according to some critics, be construed with it as the Syriac and Coptic have done. Some connect it with our Lord Jesus Christ-the religion of our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. Others translate thus, the faith of the glory of our Lord Jesus. There are many various readings in the MSS. and versions on this verse: the meaning is clear enough, though the connection be rather obscure.