تحية
1 مِنْ يَعقوبَ عَبدِ اللهِ والرّبّ يَسوعَ المَسيحِ إلى المُؤمنينَ المُشَتّتينَ مِنْ عَشائِرِ بَني إِسرائيلَ الاثنَتَي عَشرَةَ. سَلامٌ.
الإيمان والحكمة
2 إفرَحوا كُلّ الفَرَحِ، يا إخوَتي، حينَما تَقَعونَ في مُختَلفِ أنواعِ المِحَنِ. 3 فأنتُم تَعرِفونَ أنّ اَمتِحانَ إيمانِكُم فيها يَلِدُ الصّبرَ. 4 فليكُنِ الصّبرُ حافِزًا لكُم على العَمَلِ الكامِلِ حتى تَصيروا كامِلينَ مِنْ جميعِ الوُجوهِ، غَيرَ ناقِصينَ في شيءٍ. 5 وإذا كانَ أحَدٌ مِنكُم تَنقُصُهُ الحِكمَةُ، فليَطلُبْها مِنَ اللهِ ينَلْها، لأنّ اللهَ يُعطي بِسخاءٍ ولا يَلُومُ. 6 ولْيَطلُبْها بإيمانٍ لا اَرتيابَ فيهِ، لأنّ الذي يَرتابُ يُشبِهُ مَوجَ البحرِ إذا لَعِبَت بِه الرّيحُ فهَيّجَتْهُ. 7 ولا يَظُنّ أحَدٌ كهذا أنّهُ يَنالُ مِنَ الرّبّ شيئًا، 8 لأنّهُ إنسانٌ مُنقَسِمُ الرَأْيِ مُتَرَدّدٌ في جميعِ طُرُقِهِ.
الفقير والغني
9 ليَفتَخِرِ الأخُ المِسكينُ بِرِفعَتِهِ، 10 والغَنِـيّ بِمَذَلّتِهِ، لأنّ الغَنِـيّ كزَهرِ العُشبِ يَزولُ. 11 تُشرِقُ الشّمسُ بِحَرارتِها فتُيَبّسُ العُشبَ، فيَتَساقَطُ زَهرُهُ ويَفنى جَمالُه. كذلِكَ يَذبُلُ الغَنِـيّ وهوَ مُنهَمِكٌ في أعمالِه.
المحنة والتجربة
12 هنيئًا لِمَنْ يَصبِرُ على المِحنَةِ، لأنّهُ إذا اَمتُحِنَ يَنالُ إكليلَ الحَياةِ الذي وعَدَ الرّبّ بِه مَنْ يُحبّونَه. 13 وإذا وقَعَ أحدٌ في مِحنَةٍ، فلا يَقُل: «هذِهِ مِحنَةٌ مِنَ اللهِ!» لأنّ اللهَ لا يَمتَحِنُه الشّرّ ولا يَمتَحِنُ أحدًا بِالشّرّ، 14 بَلِ الشّهوَةُ تَمتَحِنُ الإنسانَ حينَ تُغويهِ وتُغريهِ. 15 والشّهوَةُ إذا حَبِلَتْ ولَدَتِ الخَطيئَةَ، والخَطيئَةُ إذا نَضِجَتْ ولَدَتِ الموتَ.
In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.
Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
16 لا تَضلّوا، يا إخوَتي الأحِبّاءُ، 17 فكُلّ عَطِيّةٍ صالِحَةٍ وكُلّ هِبَةٍ كامِلَةٍ تَنزِلُ مِنْ فوقُ، مِنْ عِندِ أبـي الأنوارِ. وهوَ الذي لا يَتَغيّرُ ولا يَدورُ فيَرمي ظِلاّ، 18 شاءَ فوَلَدنا بِكلِمَةِ الحَقّ لِنكونَ باكورَةً لِخَلائِقِه.
اسمعوا واعملوا
19 اعلموا هذا، يا إخوتي الأحبّاءُ، ليَكُنْ كُلّ واحدٍ مِنكُم سريعًا إلى الاستِماعِ بَطيئًا عَنِ الكلامِ، بَطيئًا عَنِ الغَضَبِ، 20 لأنّ غضَبَ الإنسانِ لا يَعمَلُ لِلحَقّ عِندَ اللهِ. 21 فاَنبِذوا كُلّ دَنَسٍ وكُلّ بَقيّةٍ مِنْ شَرّ، وتقَبّلوا بِوَداعَةٍ ما يَغرُسُ اللهُ فيكُم مِنَ الكلامِ القادِرِ أنْ يُخَلّصَ نُفوسَكُم.
22 ولكِنْ لا تكتَفوا بِسَماعِ كلامِ اللهِ مِنْ دونِ العمَلِ بِه فتَخدَعوا أنفُسَكم. 23 فمَنْ يَسمَعِ الكلامَ ولا يَعمَل بِه يكُنْ كالناظِرِ في المِرآةِ صورَةَ وَجهِهِ، 24 فهوَ يَنظُرُ نَفسَهُ ويَمضي، ثُمّ يَنسى في الحالِ كيفَ كانَ. 25 وأمّا الذي يَنظُرُ في الشّريعَةِ الكامِلَةِ، شَريعَةِ الحُرّيّةِ، ويُداوِمُ علَيها، لا سامِعًا ناسِيًا، بَل عامِلاً بِها، فهَنيئًا لَه في ما يَعمَلُ.
26 ومَنْ ظَنّ أنّهُ مُتَديّنٌ وهوَ لا يَحفَظُ لِسانَهُ، خدَعَ نَفسَهُ وكانَت دِيانـتُهُ باطِلَةً. 27 فالدِيانَةُ الطّاهِرَةُ النّقيّةُ عِندَ اللهِ أبـينا هِـيَ أنْ يَعتَنيَ الإنسانُ بِالأيتامِ والأراملِ في ضِيقَتِهِم، وأنْ يَصونَ نَفسَهُ مِنْ دَنَسِ العالَمِ.
1 From James, a servant of God and of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Greetings to the twelve tribes scattered all over the world.
Faith and Wisdom
2 My friends, be glad, even if you have a lot of trouble. 3 You know you learn to endure by having your faith tested. 4 But you must learn to endure everything, so you will be completely mature and not lacking in anything.
5 If any of you need wisdom, you should ask God, and it will be given to you. God is generous and won't correct you for asking. 6 But when you ask for something, you must have faith and not doubt. Anyone who doubts is like an ocean wave tossed around in a storm. 7-8 If you are that kind of person, you can't make up your mind, and you surely can't be trusted. So don't expect the Lord to give you anything at all.
Poor People and Rich People
9 Any of God's people who are poor should be glad he thinks so highly of them. 10 But any who are rich should be glad when God makes them humble. Rich people will disappear like wild flowers 11 scorched by the burning heat of the sun. The flowers lose their blossoms, and their beauty is destroyed. This is how the rich will disappear, as they go about their business.
Trials and Temptations
12 God will bless you, if you don't give up when your faith is being tested. He will reward you with a glorious life, just as he rewards everyone who loves him.
13 Don't blame God when you are tempted! God cannot be tempted by evil, and he doesn't use evil to tempt others. 14 We are tempted by our own desires that drag us off and trap us. 15 Our desires make us sin, and when sin is finished with us, it leaves us dead.
16 Don't be fooled, my dear friends. 17 Every good and perfect gift comes down from the Father who created all the lights in the heavens. He is always the same and never makes dark shadows by changing. 18 He wanted us to be his own special people, and so he sent the true message to give us new birth.
Hearing and Obeying
19 My dear friends, you should be quick to listen and slow to speak or to get angry. 20 If you are angry, you cannot do any of the good things God wants done. 21 You must stop doing anything immoral or evil. Instead be humble and accept the message planted in you to save you.
22 Obey God's message! Don't fool yourselves by just listening to it. 23 If you hear the message and don't obey it, you are like people who stare at themselves in a mirror 24 and forget what they look like as soon as they leave. 25 But you must never stop looking at the perfect law that sets you free. God will bless you in everything you do, if you listen and obey, and don't just hear and forget.
26 If you think you are being religious, but can't control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is useless. 27 Religion that pleases God the Father must be pure and spotless. You must help needy orphans and widows and not let this world make you evil.