From the rich, James turned to the restless. For these, he again used the friendly address, “brethren.” The tone turns from stark condemnation to sensitive consolation. James rebuked the rich but encouraged the receptive. He appealed to his brethren to be patient. The Old Testament prophets and Job also exemplified patience in suffering. The prophets suffered because they spoke in the name of God. In suffering, they demonstrated an incredible capacity for devotion without complaint. He defined the essence of patience, gave some examples of patience, and indicated evidence of patience.
Section summary: Christ’s imminent return encourages us to bear sufferings patiently (v. 8). Nor should we let hard times cause us to grumble or be bitter toward our Christian brethren (v. 9). The farmer (v. 7), the prophets (v. 10), and job (v. 11) are models for us of this patient endurance.
7 Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains. 8 You too be patient; strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near. 9 Do not complain, brethren, against one another, so that you yourselves may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing right at the door. 10 As an example, brethren, of suffering and patience, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 We count those blessed who endured. You have heard of the endurance of Job and have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful. 12 But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath; but your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you may not fall under judgment. (NASB)
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- Through persecution, trials, and suffering, Christians are to be patient, endure, and persevere. God will help us do so.
- Our belief in the return of Christ can provide us courage to face difficulty
- “The Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.” Satan will tempt you to think otherwise, but focus on this truth and the truth of who your eternal Father is
CLOSER LOOK
Verse 7: “Therefore be patient,” said James as a direct corollary to the coming judgment on the wicked rich. “Be patient” (makrothymēsate)[1] comes from a compound of “long” (makros) and “temper” (thymos).[2] The idea is to set the timer of one’s temper for a long run. Think long. Focus on the final lap in the race of life. Have a long fuse. James urges believers to maintain an attitude of patience while suffering injustices. Though every effort should be made to improve conditions and achieve justice, believers must keep a spirit of patient endurance, even in the midst of cruel treatment. During this time of suffering and difficulties, look ahead to “the coming of the Lord.” The early church lived in the expectation of the imminent “coming of the Lord.”[3] Their hope was that at that time justice would be handed both to the oppressor and the oppressed. At Christ’s coming, wrongs will be righted and believers will be rewarded for their faithfulness to Christ (Prov 14:14; Matt 5:12).
The essence of patience is furthermore seen in “the farmer” who waits patiently for the needed rains (early refers to autumn rains which softened the ground for planting; and late rains are the spring rains the matured the crops to harvest) and the ultimate precious (or valuable) crop.
The hard-working farmer shows us an example of patience. The farmer can prepare the soil, plant the seed, and keep the field weeded. However, the farmer must expect God to supply the conditions of rain and sunshine which encourage growth. For this he needs patience. The fact that the farmer had to wait for these rains showed his stamina or patience. The farmer had learned to trust in the reliability of God to supply the needs for his crops. James called his readers to the same demonstration of trust as they faced persecution.
Verse 8: The application is clear. Just like the farmer, every believer should be patient and stand firm, because the coming of the Lord is near.
Be patient demands an attitude which shows long-suffering in the presence of affliction and injustice. Believers should show this stamina without complaining, giving up, or retaliating. Obviously, we are not to complain during our suffering and trials. But our natural human tendency is to complain and grumble at the first sign of difficulties. Being able to find strength in God and remember His perfect will helps us to stave off of those attitudes. This is where it is important to focus of God instead of the problems. They should be ready to endure affliction without complaint and to remain committed in their obedience to God.
Verse 8 urges us to show patience and courage because of the nearness of Jesus’ return. We should show a firm purpose and depend constantly on God’s grace. We can find the strength to stand firm (“strengthen our hearts”)because the return of the Lord will bring eternal life and spiritual health.
The blessed hope of the Christian is the personal, bodily return of Jesus Christ (see Titus 2:12–13). We must not allow events to dull our hope in Jesus’ return. We must not reduce our hope for Jesus’ return to something like the transformation of society by Christian values. Jesus will come personally!
The Lord’s return (translated here as coming; Greek is parousia[4]) should stimulate every believer to patience and persistence.The hope of Jesus’ return gave the early Christians hope as they faced hardship (Heb. 9:28). We must look at time from the viewpoint of the God for whom a thousand years is only a day (2 Pet. 3:8; 2 Cor. 4:16–18). Though centuries have passed since Jesus promised to return, we serve a God for whom the length of time does not imply a failed promise. Our hope of Christ’s return is an encouragement for us to obey him.
Our belief in the return of Christ can provide us courage to face difficulty. It can give us stamina to endure persecution, suffering, and difficulties.
Verse 9: James called for the believers to stop groaning lest they be judged, because Jesus “the Judge is standing right (or before) at the door!” Expressions like this and the one in verse 8 (“the coming of the Lord is near (or at hand)”), indicate that the Lord could return at any moment.
In view of the hope of Christ’s soon return, believers should cease the petty conflicts to which James alluded in chapter 4. As children in a school classroom look out for their teacher’s soon return, God’s children should be on guard for Christ’s return. In so doing, good behavior and mutual harmony are essential.
Verse 10: In verses 10-11, James provides examples of patience. James reminded his Jewish brethren of “the prophets” who endured much suffering with patience as they spoke out “in the name of the Lord.”
A person undergoing trying circumstances may be comforted to learn that others have endured worse situations. The word “example” (hypodeigma)[5] is positioned first in Greek to receive emphasis.[6] A person’s outspoken testimony for the Lord not only attributes a positive stand for the gospel; it frequently occasions harsh opposition from its enemies. “Of suffering and patience” both have definite articles in the original, which signifies “an example of the suffering affliction and the patience” that James has been discussing.[7] “The prophets” stood loyal to their Lord, suffered for it, and now their experience encourages us.
An example of a prophet enduring suffering is In Jeremiah 38, King Zedekiah wrongly imprisoned the prophet Jeremiah in a muddy dungeon and left him to die. Jeremiah voiced no complaint toward God or his captors. When Zedekiah summoned him and asked for his advice in a matter, Jeremiah told him, “you shall not be given to them. Obey now the voice of the Lord in what I say to you, and it shall be well with you, and your life shall be spared” (Jer. 38:20, ESV). Jeremiah spoke in the name of the Lord and showed obedience despite intense suffering. He showed steadfastness in that he neither complained nor found fault with God’s treatment. We are to imitate behavior like that.
Verse 11: James counted or considered those who endured and persevered as blessed (lit. “happy or fortunate”; makarizomen). “We count those blessed” holds somewhat of a paradox, although it may not have been intended. Objectively as we observe suffering in others, we urge them to endure, because victory will eventually arrive. Yet when we ourselves fall into various trials (1:2), our immediate human response often is negative.
James then presented another well-known and highly revered example of patience, Job. The Lord honored Job’s endurance and perseverance with multiplied blessings (cf. Job 42:12). Interestingly, James did not say that Job had “patience,” (makrothymia) but that he had steadfastness, endurance, or perseverance (hypomonēn, cf. James 1:3; Col. 1:11). Patience in this verse is related to the word for patient in verses 7–8 and refers to an attitude of long-suffering which does not complain or find fault under trial. Job endured and he was steadfast, though he was impatient with God! Job, who endured loss of property, family, and health, stands out as a specimen of enduring faith. His case not only asserts his patience but demonstrates the purpose of character of his Lord. Our Lord permits suffering, because it leads to His excellent purposes (Rom 8:28; Phil 1:6). Moreover, while critics blaspheme God because of human suffering, Job’s record shows the Lord to be compassionate and merciful. Suffering, then, must be attributed either to the means for God’s ultimate purposes or (more often) man’s own doing through corrupt leaders or personal sin.
James summed it up: “The Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.” “Full of compassion” is a compound adjective (polysplanchnos, from polys, “much,” and splanchna, “innermost parts” or “seat of affections”)[8], used only here in the New Testament.[9] “Merciful,” also rare (oiktirmōn, from the verb oikteirō, “to pity”)[10] is found only here and in Luke 6:36.
Verse 12: Here the appeal is for us to avoid using God’s name disrespectfully. “Above all” does not suggest that this sin is more serious than other sins such as murder, immorality, or robbery. It is simply a common way of bringing a letter to a close, perhaps indicating that what follows in some way summarizes what has gone before. “But above all, my brethren,” concluded James, “do not swear” or take an empty oath. For those who truly demonstrate the persistence and patience prescribed for believers, there is no need to invoke an oath, whether “by heaven or by earth,” that their word is certain. “Swear” does not refer to profanity but to taking an oath.[11] The testimony should be such that when one says “yes,” it means yes, and when one says “no,” that is just what they mean (cf. Matt. 5:37). This is a warning against the use of a hasty, irreverent oath involving God’s name during a time of suffering or hardship. The soon return of the Lord, the Judge who stands at the door (James 5:9), is motivation enough for this kind of honesty and trustworthiness, in case one “fall under judgment” (i.e. condemned).
Furthermore, James is not forbidding a believer from taking an oath in court. Instead he is prohibiting the ancient practice of appealing to a variety of different objects to confirm the veracity of one’s statement. This practice was extremely close to idolatry, for it implied that such objects contained spirits. The warning in this verse can serve as a reminder to us to watch what we say. We should not use God’s name in a reckless manner; and we should be careful to speak the truth.
[1] μακροθυμέω (makrothymeō), Strong’s 3114. DBL – “be patient, exhibit internal and external control in difficult circumstance, long-suffering.”
[2] J. Ronald Blue, “James,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, eds. John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton: Victor Books, 1985), 833.
[3] Earl D. Radmacher, Ronald B. Allen, H. Wayne House, eds., Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary (Nashville: Nelson, 1999), 1671.
[4] Strong’s 3952. BDAG – “arrival as the first stage in presence, coming, advent…. in a special technical sense… of Christ (and the Antichrist)…. of Christ, and nearly always of his Messianic Advent in glory to judge the world at the end of this age.”
[5] Strong’s 5262. BDAG – “an example of behavior used for purposes of moral instruction, example, model, pattern.”
[6] Earl D. Radmacher, Ronald B. Allen, H. Wayne House, eds., Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary (Nashville: Nelson, 1999), 1671.
[7] Earl D. Radmacher, Ronald B. Allen, H. Wayne House, eds., Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary (Nashville: Nelson, 1999), 1671.
[8] BDAG – “pertaining to a very high degree of affection and compassion for someone, sympathetic, compassionate, merciful.”
[9] J. Ronald Blue, “James,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, eds. John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton: Victor Books, 1985), 833.
[10] BDAG – “pertaing to being concerned about another’s unfortunate state or misery, merciful, compassionate of God.”
[11] J. Ronald Blue, “James,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, eds. John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton: Victor Books, 1985), 834.