| NET Bible | International Standard Version |
| 1My brothers and sisters, do not show prejudice if you possess faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. | 1My brothers, do not let your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus, the Messiah, be tainted by favoritism. |
| 2For if someone comes into your assembly wearing a gold ring and fine clothing, and a poor person enters in filthy clothes, | 2Suppose a man wearing gold rings and fine clothes comes into your assembly, and a poor man in dirty clothes also comes in. |
| 3do you pay attention to the one who is finely dressed and say, "You sit here in a good place," and to the poor person, "You stand over there," or "Sit on the floor"? | 3If you give special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, "Please take this seat," but you say to the poor man, "Stand over there" or "Sit on the floor at my feet," |
| 4If so, have you not made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil motives? | 4then you will have made false distinctions among yourselves and will have judged from evil motives, will you not? |
| 5Listen, my dear brothers and sisters! Did not God choose the poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who love him? | 5Listen, my dear brothers! God has chosen the poor in the world to become rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who keep on loving him, has he not? |
| 6But you have dishonored the poor! Are not the rich oppressing you and dragging you into the courts? | 6But you have humiliated the man who is poor. Are not rich people the ones who oppress you and drag you into court? |
| 7Do they not blaspheme the good name of the one you belong to? | 7Are not they the ones who blaspheme the noble Name by which you have been called? |
| 8But if you fulfill the royal law as expressed in this scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself," you are doing well. | 8Nevertheless, you are doing the right thing if you obey the royal Law in keeping with the Scripture, "You must love your neighbor as yourself." |
| 9But if you show prejudice, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as violators. | 9But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and will be convicted by the Law as violators. |
| 10For the one who obeys the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it. | 10For whoever keeps the whole Law but fails in one point is guilty of breaking all of it. |
| 11For he who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder." Now if you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a violator of the law. | 11For the one who said, "Never commit adultery," also said, "Never murder." Now if you do not commit adultery, but you murder, you become a violator of the Law. |
| 12Speak and act as those who will be judged by a law that gives freedom. | 12You must make it your habit to speak and act like people who are going to be judged by the law of liberty. |
| 13For judgment is merciless for the one who has shown no mercy. But mercy triumphs over judgment. | 13For the one who has shown no mercy will be judged without mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. |
| 14What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can this kind of faith save him? | 14What good does it do, my brothers, if someone claims to have faith but does not prove it with actions? This kind of faith cannot save him, can it? |
| 15If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacks daily food, | 15Suppose a brother or sister does not have any clothes or daily food |
| 16and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, keep warm and eat well," but you do not give them what the body needs, what good is it? | 16and one of you tells them, "Go in peace! Stay warm and eat heartily." If you do not provide for their bodily needs, what good does it do? |
| 17So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself. | 17In the same way, faith by itself, if it does not prove itself with actions, is dead. |
| 18But someone will say, "You have faith and I have works." Show me your faith without works and I will show you faith by my works. | 18But someone may say, "You have faith, and I have actions." Show me your faith without any actions, and I will show you my faith by my actions. |
| 19You believe that God is one; well and good. Even the demons believe that--and tremble with fear. | 19You believe that there is one God. That's fine! Even the demons believe that and tremble with fear. |
| 20But would you like evidence, you empty fellow, that faith without works is useless? | 20Do you want proof, you foolish person, that faith without actions is worthless? |
| 21Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? | 21Our ancestor Abraham was justified by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar, wasn't he? |
| 22You see that his faith was working together with his works and his faith was perfected by works. | 22You see that his faith worked together with what he did, and by his actions his faith was made complete. |
| 23And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Now Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness," and he was called God's friend. | 23And so the Scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness." And so he was called God's friend. |
| 24You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. | 24You observe that a person is justified through actions and not through faith alone. |
| 25And similarly, was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by another way? | 25Likewise, Rahab the prostitute was justified through actions when she welcomed the messengers and sent them away on a different road, wasn't she? |
| 26For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead. | 26For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without actions is also dead. |
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