English · KJV

James 1:9

“Ask for Wisdom in Faith”James 1:5–12

King James Version
Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted:

Bible text: King James Version (1769 Blayney text) · Public domain

KJV (with Strong's)
G1161 Let G2744 the brother G80 of low degree G5011 rejoice G2744 in G1722 that he G846 is exalted G5311:

Bible text: King James Version with Strong's numbers · Public domain

Berean Standard Bible
The brother in humble circumstances should exult in his high position.

Bible text: Berean Standard Bible · Public domain

American Standard Version
But let the brother of low degree glory in his high estate:

Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain

World English Bible Messianic
But let the brother in humble circumstances glory in his high position;

Bible text: World English Bible, Messianic edition · Public domain

Geneva Bible (1599)
Let the brother of lowe degree reioyce in that he is exalted:

Bible text: Geneva Bible (1599) · Public domain

Young's Literal Translation
And let the brother who is low rejoice in his exaltation,

Bible text: Young's Literal Translation · Public domain

King James Version — Interlinear
10 Greek words
  1. καυχάσθωkauchasthōshould boastG2744V-PNM-3SVerb Present Middle Or Passive Deponent Imperative 3rd Singular
  2. δὲdehoweverG1161CONJConjunction
  3. ὁhotheG3588T-NSMDefinite article Nominative Singular Masculine
  4. ἀδελφὸςadelphosbrotherG80N-NSMNoun Nominative Singular Masculine
  5. ὁho[the]G3588T-NSMDefinite article Nominative Singular Masculine
  6. ταπεινὸςtapeinosof low degreeG5011A-NSMAdjective Nominative Singular Masculine
  7. ἐνeninG1722PREPPreposition
  8. τῷtōtheG3588T-DSNDefinite article Dative Singular Neuter
  9. ὕψειhupseiexaltationG5311N-DSNNoun Dative Singular Neuter
  10. αὐτοῦautouof himG846P-GSMPersonal pronoun Genitive Singular Masculine
English is a literal word-by-word gloss of the Greek, not the KJV's wording. Why?

This is the original text the KJV's translators worked from — each Greek word with its own literal English meaning in this verse, prepared by scholars at Tyndale House, Cambridge. The KJV translates whole sentences, not word by word, so its wording differs: one Greek word can become several English words, and the KJV may choose “charity” where the gloss reads “love”. Both are faithful — they answer different questions. For the KJV's own rendering, switch to the KJV text.

Words in [ ] are added by the English.

Translation
Details
In the KJVVerse 30,276 of 31,102 · 97.3%

Study this verse

Written with AI assistance. Always check it against Scripture.

This verse

The believer of low standing in the world is to glory in the high place God has given him as a brother in God’s family.

“Let the brother of low degree”

Adelphós, a brother in God’s family, and tapeinós, lowly or poor in circumstances.

“rejoice”

Kaucháomai, to boast or glory, used here in its good sense, as a command.

“in that he is exalted:”

Hýpsos, height or dignity. His glory is his high standing with God, which he already has.

Passage studyJames 1:5–12

Ask for Wisdom in Faith

5If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. 6But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. 7For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. 8A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. 9Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted: 10But the rich, in that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away. 11For the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the flower thereof falleth, and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth: so also shall the rich man fade away in his ways. 12Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

Summary

James has just told believers to count it all joy when they fall into trials, because the testing of their faith works patience. In these verses he tells them where to find what they need to come through. Anyone who lacks wisdom should ask God, who gives freely to all and never scolds the one who asks, and the wisdom will be given. The asking is to be done in faith and with a whole heart, because a person divided between trusting God and doubting him is like a wave the wind drives across the sea, and he should expect nothing from the Lord. James then speaks to poor and rich. The believer of low degree is to glory in the high place God has given him, and the rich man in his humbling, because his life and his wealth will wither like a flower in the heat. The passage closes with a blessing: the one who endures testing will be proved genuine and will receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who love him.

God gives wisdom to all who ask him

James writes to “the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad” (James 1:1), Jewish believers living away from Jerusalem, likely scattered by the persecution that broke out there (Acts 8:1). They faced poverty, rejection by their neighbours and quarrels among themselves. James has told them that trials met with patience make them “perfect and entire, wanting nothing” (James 1:2–4). Coming through a trial well takes wisdom from God, so he moves straight from the trial to the help God gives for it.

The word for lack, leípō, means to fall short or be wanting, and it describes a real need the person knows he has. Admitting that need is where receiving begins, so the verse calls for humility before it gives its promise. The word for wisdom, sophía, covers wisdom of every kind, higher or lower, worldly or spiritual, and the New Testament uses it of human wisdom as well as the wisdom of God. James means the wisdom that comes from God, the practical ability to see a situation as God sees it, to judge soundly and to live rightly in the middle of hardship. Later in the letter he sets this wisdom from above against a wisdom that is “earthly, sensual, devilish” (James 3:13–18).

Israel’s wisdom books already pointed to God as its source: “For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding” (Proverbs 2:6). When Solomon asked for an understanding heart to judge God’s people, God gave him a wise heart (1 Kings 3:9–12). The command “let him ask of God” is also an invitation, and it sends the one who lacks wisdom to God himself. It carries the same promise as the words of Jesus, “Ask, and it shall be given you” (Matthew 7:7–8).

How God gives

James describes God as the one “that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not”. The word for liberally, haplōs, means simply and freely, giving with an open hand and with no hidden motive. This is the God from whom comes “every good gift and every perfect gift” (James 1:17). To upbraid, oneidízō, is to reproach, chide or taunt, to cast something in a person’s teeth. A human benefactor may leave the one who asks feeling small or in his debt. God gives without scolding us for our ignorance, our need or our request. The verse ends with a plain promise, “and it shall be given him”, so a real request for wisdom, made to God, is answered.

Does God give this wisdom to everyone?

God’s kindness reaches all people, for he sends his rain on the just and on the unjust (Matthew 5:45). This promise, though, is made to “any of you”, the believers James is writing to, and the next verse says the asking must be done in faith. God is generous to all, and the promise of wisdom belongs to those who come to him trusting him.

Ask in faith, with nothing wavering

Verse 6 gives the manner of the asking. The little word “But”, dé, joins the condition to the promise and sets faith against every other way of asking. The verb ask, aitéō, is used of a request made to someone greater, which suits our asking of God. To ask “in faith” (en, with pístis, faith) is to ask resting on God’s character, his truthfulness and his willingness to act.

“Nothing wavering” rules out every trace of doubt, because mēdeís means “nothing” or “not even one”. The verb for wavering, diakrínō, means to separate thoroughly, to oppose or to discriminate, and also to hesitate. Here it describes a person at odds with himself, half sure and half unsure whether God will or can answer, or torn between leaning on God and leaning on himself or something else. Faith in this verse is wholehearted reliance on God.

“For”, gár, gives the reason. The one who wavers is like (eíkō, to resemble) “a wave of the sea”. The word for wave, klýdōn, is a surge or billow of the sea, and thálassa is the ordinary word for sea, used also of an inland lake such as the Sea of Galilee. “Driven with the wind”, anemízō, and “tossed”, rhipízō, finish the picture. A wave has no course of its own, and the wind lifts it, flings it and keeps it moving. The doubter is pushed about in the same way, by his own uncertainty from within and by pressures from outside, and he cannot hold a steady course or receive from God.

Jesus taught the same thing about prayer: “And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive” (Matthew 21:22), and “What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them” (Mark 11:24). Hebrews gives the reason behind it: “he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Hebrews 11:6).

Why the wavering man should expect nothing

Verse 7 states the result plainly. “That man” points back to “he that wavereth”, and the word James uses, ánthrōpos, means a human being, so the warning applies to anyone, man or woman. To “think”, oíomai, is to suppose or be of the opinion, and James warns against an expectation the wavering man holds inside himself. The verb receive, lambánō, can mean to take hold of or obtain, and also to receive where the initiative rests with the giver, which is how it reads here, since the Lord is the one who gives. “Any thing”, tis, means anything at all, even the smallest answer. “Of the Lord” names the giver, kýrios, the one who has supreme authority as Master.

Why does wavering keep a person from receiving?

Faith is the stance of a heart that takes God at his word, and “without faith it is impossible to please him” (Hebrews 11:6). To doubt in this way is to question God’s faithfulness, his power or his willingness to give, and that dishonours him. God’s willingness stays the same, and the fault lies with the divided heart, which has put itself where it cannot receive. Scripture gives us the right confidence for asking: “if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us” (1 John 5:14–15). In our weakness the Holy Spirit helps us pray and intercedes for us according to the will of God (Romans 8:26–27), so the steady trust James asks for is something God himself helps us to have.

A double minded man is unstable in all his ways

Verse 8 sums up the wavering man in one word. Dípsychos, “double minded”, is formed from dis (twice) and psychē (soul), so it means “two-souled”. It describes a person whose purpose and loyalty are split, who tries to hold on to God and the world together, or who swings between faith and doubt. The word for man here is anēr, an individual man, though what is said applies to anyone.

Such a man is “unstable”, akatástatos, unsettled, inconstant and restless, a word built from a negative and a verb meaning to set down or establish. His instability reaches “all his ways”. The word hodós means a road or path, and figuratively the whole course of a person’s conduct, so his decisions, his dealings with others and his walk with God all share the same unsteadiness. The wave of verse 6 has become the picture of a whole life.

Scripture calls for a single heart again and again. Elijah asked Israel, “How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him” (1 Kings 18:21). Jesus said, “No man can serve two masters” (Matthew 6:24). James himself returns to the word later, with a remedy: “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded” (James 4:8). A single heart shows itself in a faith that acts, which is the theme of James 2:14–26. Paul uses the same sea picture when he tells believers they are to be “no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine” (Ephesians 4:14).

The brother of low degree glories in his high place

In verse 9 James turns to poor and rich, and he applies the joy of James 1:2–4 to the circumstances of each. He calls the poor believer a “brother”, adelphós, a member of God’s family with a common Father, whatever his place in society. “Low degree”, tapeinós, means lowly, humble or poor in circumstances, someone of little account in the eyes of the world. Many of the first believers were poor, among them slaves and labourers, in a society that prized wealth, family, honour and public standing and passed over those who lacked them.

James tells this brother to “rejoice”, kaucháomai, a verb meaning to boast or glory, which can be used in a bad sense or a good one. Here it is the good sense of exulting in something that is truly his. He is to glory “in that he is exalted”, and the word hýpsos is a noun meaning height, elevation or dignity, so the phrase is literally “in his height”. The one the world looks down on stands high in God’s sight.

This is how God has always worked. Hannah sang, “The LORD maketh poor, and maketh rich: he bringeth low, and lifteth up. He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes” (1 Samuel 2:7–8), and a psalm says the same (Psalm 113:7–8). Mary praised God because “He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree” (Luke 1:52–53). Proverbs says that “honour shall uphold the humble in spirit” (Proverbs 29:23). James goes on in chapter 2 to rebuke a church that gives the best seat to the rich man and makes the poor man stand (James 2:1–7).

Is this a promise of earthly prosperity?

The exaltation James speaks of is the believer’s standing before God in Christ. He has been adopted as a son (Galatians 4:4–7), he is an heir of God and a joint-heir with Christ (Romans 8:17), and God has seated him with Christ in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6). This high place is his already, and it lasts, whatever happens to his income or his rank in this life.

The rich man brought low, like the flower of the grass

Verse 10 sets the rich against the poor with “But”, and the verb “rejoice” carries over from verse 9: the rich man is to glory “in that he is made low”. The word ploúsios means rich or wealthy, and figuratively abounding in something. Among Jews as well as Greeks and Romans, wealth brought honour, power and influence, and many took riches as a mark of God’s blessing and poverty as a sign of his displeasure. The word for “made low”, tapeínōsis, is the noun matching tapeinós in verse 9, meaning humiliation or low estate. The rich man’s humbling comes in learning that he is mortal like everyone else and that his wealth gives him no standing with God, and he can glory in that, because it puts his hope where it belongs.

The reason follows: “as the flower of the grass he shall pass away.” The verb parérchomai here has its sense of passing, of going by and being gone. The flower of the grass is one of Scripture’s pictures for the shortness of life. “As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone” (Psalm 103:15–16). Grass flourishes in the morning and is cut down and withered by evening (Psalm 90:5–6). Isaiah wrote, “All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: The grass withereth, the flower fadeth... but the word of our God shall stand for ever” (Isaiah 40:6–8), and Peter quotes those words to show that the word of the Lord endures (1 Peter 1:24–25).

The sun and the burning heat

Verse 11 draws the picture out. “The sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat” uses kaúsōn, scorching heat, the word used of the hot wind off the desert that could dry up green fields within hours or days. The grass withers, the flower falls, “and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth”. Grace here is euprépeia, comeliness or gracefulness, and fashion is prósōpon, face or outward appearance. The flower loses its life, and with it its colour, its shape and everything that made it lovely.

“So also shall the rich man fade away in his ways.” The verb maraínō means to wither or die away, and it is used of a fire going out. “His ways” is hodós again, the same word as in verse 8, here meaning his pursuits, his business and the whole course of his life. The rich man fades along with everything he built his life upon. Jesus told of the rich man who planned bigger barns and heard God say, “Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee” (Luke 12:16–21), and he told his disciples to lay up treasure in heaven, where moth and rust do not corrupt (Matthew 6:19–21). Paul says the same: “we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out” (1 Timothy 6:7–10).

Does James condemn being rich?

James’s warning is aimed at the pride, the trust and the false security that riches breed, and at the man who finds his identity and hope in them. Paul gives the right way for the rich to live: “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy” (1 Timothy 6:17–19), and he goes on to tell them to be rich in good works and ready to give.

The crown of life for the one who endures

Verse 12 gathers up the whole chapter so far. “Blessed”, makários, means blessed or happy, and the New Testament uses the same word of God himself, “the blessed God” (1 Timothy 1:11). The verse is a beatitude, like those of the Psalms and of Jesus in Matthew 5:3–12, and it declares God’s favour on a man (anēr) in the middle of hardship. To endure, hypoménō, is formed from hypo (under) and menō (to remain), so it means to stay under a load and bear up, with patient and courageous steadfastness that rests on faith and hope.

The word translated “temptation”, peirasmós, means a trial or test, and the same word can mean an enticement to sin. “When he is tried” renders dókimos, “approved”, the word for someone or something proved genuine after testing. Peter compares the trial of faith to gold tried in the fire (1 Peter 1:6–7). Trials prove that faith is real, and the one who comes through them approved will “receive” (lambánō again) the crown.

The crown, stéphanos, is a victor’s wreath, the garland given to the winner of the athletic games, such as the Isthmian Games near Corinth, and also given to civic heroes. A king’s crown was a different word, diadēma. The “crown of life” is the crown that consists in life, eternal life in the presence of God. The risen Christ promises it to the church at Smyrna: “be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life” (Revelation 2:10). Paul looked forward to “a crown of righteousness” (2 Timothy 4:7–8), and Peter promises faithful shepherds “a crown of glory that fadeth not away” (1 Peter 5:4), a crown that never withers like the rich man’s flower.

The Lord has “promised” this crown, so it comes as his gracious gift, and he has promised it “to them that love him”. The word for love is agapáō, a deep and committed love. Endurance grows out of love for God, which is the first commandment, to “love the Lord thy God with all thy heart” (Mark 12:30).

Is James speaking of temptation or of trial?

In verse 12 peirasmós means a trial, a hard circumstance God allows in order to test and strengthen faith, and the word dókimos in the same verse shows it. In the very next verses James takes up the other sense, the inner pull toward sin, and he makes clear where it comes from: “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man” (James 1:13–15).

Christ, our wisdom and our crown

Paul says that Christ “of God is made unto us wisdom” (1 Corinthians 1:30), so all the wisdom James tells us to ask for is found in him. Through Christ we have access by one Spirit to the Father (Ephesians 2:18), and we can “come boldly unto the throne of grace” (Hebrews 4:16). The God who gives liberally and upbraids no one is seen in Jesus, who said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28), and who welcomed the weak who came to him.

Jesus also lived the undivided heart James asks for. He said, “I do always those things that please him” (John 8:29), and in Gethsemane he prayed, “nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42). In him all God’s promises are yea and amen (2 Corinthians 1:20), so faith has firm ground to stand on. We have been reconciled to God by the death of his Son (Romans 5:10), Christ lives in us and we live by faith in him (Galatians 2:20), and united with him in his death and resurrection we walk in newness of life (Romans 6:3–5).

The lowly and the rich meet in Christ too. Though he was rich, he became poor for our sakes, that we through his poverty might be rich (2 Corinthians 8:9). He humbled himself to death on the cross, and God highly exalted him and gave him the name above every name (Philippians 2:6–10). Believers share his exaltation and have an inheritance that “fadeth not away” (1 Peter 1:3–4). He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29), the resurrection and the life (John 11:25), “the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever” (Hebrews 13:8), and his people receive “a kingdom which cannot be moved” (Hebrews 12:28).

Jesus endured every test, from his temptation in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1–11) to the cross. Hebrews says that we see him, made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, “crowned with glory and honour” (Hebrews 2:9). The crown of life we are promised comes to us through him.

Wisdom and steadiness in the day of trial

When a trial leaves you unsure what to do, you can bring that lack straight to God. He will give you wisdom freely and without making you feel small for asking. Ask him with a whole heart, settled on the truth that he is good and keeps his word, and let that trust steady you when circumstances push you one way and then another.

Your standing before God is also the measure of your worth. If you have little in this world, you have a high place in his family and an inheritance that will last. If you have much, you can hold it loosely and glory in being humbled, because all of it will fade like a flower in the sun. For all of us, the hard things God allows are where faith is proved, and the Lord has promised the crown of life to those who love him and hold on.

Last revised

Public-domain commentary

Matthew Henry

From his Commentary on the Whole Bible. Henry wrote on whole passages, and this entry covers James 1:2–12. He set out his notes in a three-level outline, kept here as he numbered it.

1662–1714 · 11 verses
Passage under commentJames 1:2–12
I. II. Main points1. 2. Sub-points(1.) (2.) Details

We now come to consider the matter of this epistle. In this paragraph we have the following things to be observed: -

I.The suffering state of Christians in this world is represented, and that in a very instructive manner, if we attend to what is plainly and necessarily implied, together with what is fully expressed.

1.It is implied that troubles and afflictions may be the lot of the best Christians, even of those who have the most reason to think and hope well of themselves. Such as have a title to the greatest joy may yet endure very grievous afflictions. As good people are liable to be scattered, they must not think it strange if they meet with troubles.

2.These outward afflictions and troubles are temptations to them. The devil endeavours by sufferings and crosses to draw men to sin and to deter them from duty, or unfit them for it; but, as our afflictions are in God's hand, they are intended for the trial and improvement of our graces. The gold is put into the furnace, that it may be purified.

3.These temptations may be numerous and various: Divers temptations, as the apostle speaks. Our trials may be of many and different kinds, and therefore we have need to put on the whole armour of God. We must be armed on every side, because temptations lie on all sides.

4.The trials of a good man are such as he does not create to himself, nor sinfully pull upon himself; but they are such as he is said to fall into. And for this reason they are the better borne by him.

II.The graces and duties of a state of trial and affliction are here pointed out to us.

Could we attend to these things, and grow in them as we should do, how good would it be for us to be afflicted!

1.One Christian grace to be exercised is joy: Count it all joy, James 1:2. We must not sink into a sad and disconsolate frame of mind, which would make us faint under our trials; but must endeavour to keep our spirits dilated and enlarged, the better to take in a true sense of our case, and with greater advantage to set ourselves to make the best of it. Philosophy may instruct men to be calm under their troubles; but Christianity teaches them to be joyful, because such exercises proceed from love and not fury in God. In them we are conformable to Christ our head, and they become marks of our adoption. By suffering in the ways of righteousness, we are serving the interests of our Lord's kingdom among men, and edifying the body of Christ; and our trials will brighten our graces now and our crown at last. Therefore there is reason to count it all joy when trials and difficulties become our lot in the way of our duty. And this is not purely a New Testament paradox, but even in Job's time it was said, Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth. There is the more reason for joy in afflictions if we consider the other graces that are promoted by them.

2.Faith is a grace that one expression supposes and another expressly requires: Knowing this, that the trial of your faith, James 1:3; and then in James 1:6, Let him ask in faith. There must be a sound believing of the great truths of Christianity, and a resolute cleaving to them, in times of trial. That faith which is spoken of here as tried by afflictions consists in a belief of the power, and word, and promise of God, and in fidelity and constancy to the Lord Jesus.

3.There must be patience: The trial of faith worketh patience. The trying of one grace produces another; and the more the suffering graces of a Christian are exercised the stronger they grow. Tribulation worketh patience, Romans 5:3. Now, to exercise Christian patience aright, we must,

(1.)Let it work. It is not a stupid, but an active thing. Stoical apathy and Christian patience are very different: by the one men become, in some measure, insensible of their afflictions; but by the other they become triumphant in and over them. Let us take care, in times of trial, that patience and not passion, be set at work in us; whatever is said or done, let patience have the saying and doing of it: let us not allow the indulging of our passions to hinder the operation and noble effects of patience; let us give it leave to work, and it will work wonders in a time of trouble.

(2.)We must let it have its perfect work. Do nothing to limit it nor to weaken it; but let it have its full scope: if one affliction come upon the heels of another, and a train of them are drawn upon us, yet let patience go on till its work is perfected. When we bear all that God appoints, and as long as he appoints, and with a humble obedient eye to him, and when we not only bear troubles, but rejoice in them, then patience hath its perfect work.

(3.)When the work of patience is complete, then the Christian is entire, and nothing will be wanting: it will furnish us with all that is necessary for our Christian race and warfare, and will enable us to persevere to the end, and then its work will be ended, and crowned with glory. After we have abounded in other graces, we have need of patience, Hebrews 10:36. But let patience have its perfect work, and we shall be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

4.Prayer is a duty recommended also to suffering Christians; and here the apostle shows,

(1.)What we ought more especially to pray for - wisdom: If any lack wisdom, let him ask of God. We should not pray so much for the removal of an affliction as for wisdom to make a right use of it. And who is there that does not want wisdom under any great trials or exercises to guide him in his judging of things, in the government of his own spirit and temper, and in the management of his affairs? To be wise in trying times is a special gift of God, and to him we must seek for it.

(2.)In what way this is to be obtained - upon our petitioning or asking for it. Let the foolish become beggars at the throne of grace, and they are in a fair way to be wise. It is not said, "Let such ask of man," no, not of any man, but, "Let him ask of God," who made him, and gave him his understanding and reasonable powers at first, of him in whom are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Let us confess our want of wisdom to God and daily ask it of him.

(3.)We have the greatest encouragement to do this: he giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not. Yea, it is expressly promised that it shall be given, James 1:5. Here is something in answer to every discouraging turn of the mind, when we go to God, under a sense of our own weakness and folly, to ask for wisdom. He to whom we are sent, we are sure, has it to give: and he is of a giving disposition, inclined to bestow this upon those who ask. Nor is there any fear of his favours being limited to some in this case, so as to exclude others, or any humble petitioning soul; for he gives to all men. If you should say you want a great deal of wisdom, a small portion will not serve your turn, the apostle affirms, he gives liberally; and lest you should be afraid of going to him unseasonably, or being put to shame for your folly, it is added, he upbraideth not. Ask when you will, and as often as you will, you will meet with no upbraidings. And if, after all, any should say, "This may be the case with some, but I fear I shall not succeed so well in my seeking for wisdom as some others may," let such consider how particular and express the promise is: It shall be given him. Justly then must fools perish in their foolishness, if wisdom may be had for asking, and they will not pray to God for it. But,

(4.)There is one thing necessary to be observed in our asking, namely, that we do it with a believing, steady mind: Let him ask in faith, nothing wavering, James 1:6. The promise above is very sure, taking this proviso along with us; wisdom shall be given to those who ask it of God, provided they believe that God is able to make the simple wise, and is faithful to make good his word to those who apply to him. This was the condition Christ insisted on, in treating with those who came to him for healing: Believest thou that I am able to do this? There must be no wavering, no staggering at the promise of God through unbelief, or through a sense of any disadvantages that lie on our own part. Here therefore we see,

5.That oneness, and sincerity of intention, and a steadiness of mind, constitute another duty required under affliction: He that wavereth is like a wave of the sea, driven with the wind, and tossed. To be sometimes lifted up by faith, and then thrown down again by distrust - to mount sometimes towards the heavens, with an intention to secure glory, and honour, and immortality, and then to sink again in seeking the ease of the body, or the enjoyments of this world - this is very fitly and elegantly compared to a wave of the sea, that rises and falls, swells and sinks, just as the wind tosses it higher or lower, that way or this. A mind that has but one single and prevailing regard to its spiritual and eternal interest, and that keeps steady in its purposes for God, will grow wise by afflictions, will continue fervent in its devotions, and will be superior to all trials and oppositions. Now, for the cure of a wavering spirit and a weak faith, the apostle shows the ill effects of these,

(1.)In that the success of prayer is spoiled hereby: Let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord, James 1:7. Such a distrustful, shifting, unsettled person is not likely to value a favour from God as he should do, and therefore cannot expect to receive it. In asking for divine and heavenly wisdom we are never likely to prevail if we have not a heart to prize it above rubies, and the greatest things in this world.

(2.)A wavering faith and spirit has a bad influence upon our conversations. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways, James 1:8. When our faith and spirits rise and fall with second causes, there will be great unsteadiness in all our conversation and actions. This may sometimes expose men to contempt in the world; but it is certain that such ways cannot please God nor procure any good for us in the end. While we have but one God to trust to, we have but one God to be governed by, and this should keep us even and steady. He that is unstable as water shall not excel. Hereupon,

III.The holy humble temper of a Christian, both in advancement and debasement, is described:

and both poor and rich are directed on what grounds to build their joy and comfort, James 1:9-11. Here we may observe,

1.Those of low degree are to be looked upon as brethren: Let the brother of low degree, etc. Poverty does not destroy the relation among Christians.

2.Good Christians may be rich in the world, James 1:10. Grace and wealth are not wholly inconsistent. Abraham, the father of the faithful, was rich in silver and gold.

3.Both these are allowed to rejoice. No condition of lie puts us out of a capacity of rejoicing in God. If we do not rejoice in him always, it is our own fault. Those of low degree may rejoice, if they are exalted to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom of God (as Dr. Whitby explains this place); and the rich may rejoice in humbling providences, as they produce a lowly and humble disposition of mind, which is highly valuable in the sight of God. Where any are made poor for righteousness' sake, their very poverty is their exaltation. It is an honour to be dishonoured for the sake of Christ. To you it is given to suffer, Philippians 1:29. All who are brought low, and made lowly by grace, may rejoice in the prospect of their exaltation at the last in heaven.

4.Observe what reason rich people have, notwithstanding their riches, to be humble and low in their own eyes, because both they and their riches are passing away: As the flower of the grass he shall pass away. He, and his wealth with him, James 1:11. For the sun has no sooner risen with a burning heat than it withereth the grass. Note hence, Worldly wealth is a withering thing. Riches are too uncertain (says Mr. Baxter on this place), too inconsiderable things to make any great or just alteration in our minds. As a flower fades before the heat of the scorching sun, so shall the rich man fade away in his ways. His projects, counsels, and managements for this world, are called his ways; in these he shall fade away. For this reason let him that is rich rejoice, not so much in the providence of God, that makes him rich, as in the grace of God, that makes and keeps him humble; and in those trials and exercises that teach him to seek his felicity in and from God, and not from these perishing enjoyments.

IV.A blessing is pronounced on those who endure their exercises and trials, as here directed: Blessed is the man that endureth temptation, James 1:12. Observe,

1.It is not the man who suffers only that is blessed, but he who endures, who with patience and constancy goes through all difficulties in the way of his duty.

2.Afflictions cannot make us miserable, if it be not our own fault. A blessing may arise from them, and we may be blessed in them. They are so far from taking away a good man's felicity that they really increase it.

3.Sufferings and temptations are the way to eternal blessedness: When he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, dokimos genomenos - when he is approved, when his graces are found to be true and of the highest worth (so metals are tried as to their excellency by the fire), and when his integrity is manifested, and all is approved of the great Judge. Note hence, To be approved of God is the great aim of a Christian in all his trials; and it will be his blessedness at last, when he shall receive the crown of life. The tried Christian shall be a crowned one: and the crown he shall wear will be a crown of life. It will be life and bliss to him, and will last for ever. We only bear the cross for a while, but we shall wear the crown to eternity.

4.This blessedness, involved in a crown of life, is a promised thing to the righteous sufferer. It is therefore what we may most surely depend upon: for, when heaven and earth shall pass away, this word of God shall not fail of being fulfilled. But withal let us take notice that our future reward comes, not as a debt, but by a gracious promise.

5.Our enduring temptations must be from a principle of love to God and to our Lord Jesus Christ, otherwise we are not interested in this promise: The Lord hath promised to those that love him. Paul supposes that a man may for some point of religion even give his body to be burnt, and yet not be pleasing to God, nor regarded by him, because of his want of charity, or a prevailing sincere love to God and man, 1 Corinthians 13:3.

6.The crown of life is promised not only to great and eminent saints, but to all those who have the love of God reigning in their hearts. Every soul that truly loves God shall have its trials in this world fully recompensed in that world above where love is made perfect.

Historical interpretation

Seven Centuries of Reception

4 surviving comments on this verse. Each one is dated, so this reads as a timeline rather than a list.

4 quotes · AD 449–1107
Post-NiceneEarly MedievalMedieval
50060070080090010001100

Select a marker to jump to its quote. Markers stagger vertically where authors wrote within a few decades of each other.

d. AD 449Hilary of ArlesPost-NiceneSourceINTRODUCTORY TRACTATE ON THE LETTER OF JAMES
This verse applies to Hebrew slaves who were great and proud and high in their own eyes but in their slavery had become the lowest of the low. It is as if he were saying that life was harder for the rich people with whom they were living than it was for them as their servants. The boasting referred to here is not vain glory but joy in times of temptation.
d. AD 735BedeEarly MedievalSourceCommentary on the Catholic Epistles
Let the humble brother boast in his exaltation. Therefore, he says, you must consider it all joy when you fall into various trials, because everyone who humbly endures adversities for the Lord receives lofty rewards of the kingdom from Him.
AD 990Pseudo-OecumeniusEarly MedievalSourceCommentary on James
Let the brother who is humble glory, in his exaltation: But the rich, in that he is made humble: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away. For the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withers the grass, and the flower thereof falls, and the beauty of its appearance perishes: so also shall the rich man fade away in his ways.
Because James likens the wavering, to a wave driven by the wind, who, being inflated, is exalted together with the winds of the sea, but before he is raised, he prostrates himself and gives himself up: but this very thing happens to the wavering one, who, in spite of his pride, does not confirm his petitions in any of the things that are necessary;
therefore, James adds: “Let the brother who is humble glory.” As if he were saying: Whoever wishes to ask for something, let him first ask for what is right, and He will not refuse those who ask. For of these is the kingdom of God and righteousness. (Matt. 6:33) Then let him be tolerant in the petition of such, and let him not depart immediately when he has prayed a little, for that is arrogant; but let him wait until he receives, by enduring with humility.
"Who is humble, in his exaltation." From humility according to God, all good is bestowed upon us. James calls the rich arrogant and proud, whom he also calls humble, because by the very act of being elevated, he is brought low.
"But the rich, in that he is made humble." It would have been more fitting for James to say, "But let the rich man be ashamed in his humility," but avoiding saying it in an offensive manner, he added this instead: “and the beauty of its appearance.” Appearance, that is, face or countenance, He spoke in a critical manner: for this is said of man alone and not of other animals; however, among the quadrupeds, the snout is not called a face. but on birds it is a beak.
“in his ways.” James speaks of ways or paths of the rich, in prosperous success, or business, among which he unexpectedly receives a change to unhappiness and misfortune.
d. AD 1107Theophylact of OhridMedievalSourceCOMMENTARY ON JAMES
Humility is the distributor of all good things, and apart from it there is nothing which is good.
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.

Continue studying James 1:9 across the web’s major study libraries — every link below opens this exact verse, chapter, or book on the destination site.

Read & Compare

Commentaries

Original Language & Research

Sermons, Hymns & Audio

TrulyRandomVerse is not affiliated with these sites and doesn’t control their content. They’re linked because they’re genuinely useful.

Related study articles8