James 4:4

Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

Ye adulterers {G3432} and {G2532} adulteresses {G3428}, know ye {G1492} not {G3756} that {G3754} the friendship {G5373} of the world {G2889} is {G2076} enmity {G2189} with God {G2316}? whosoever {G3739}{G302} therefore {G3767} will be {G1511}{G1014} a friend {G5384} of the world {G2889} is {G2525} the enemy {G2190} of God {G2316}.

You unfaithful wives! Don’t you know that loving the world is hating God? Whoever chooses to be the world’s friend makes himself God’s enemy!

You adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever chooses to be a friend of the world renders himself an enemy of God.

Ye adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore would be a friend of the world maketh himself an enemy of God.

James 4:4 delivers a stark and confrontational warning to believers about the danger of divided loyalties, using powerful imagery to underscore the seriousness of spiritual compromise. The Apostle James addresses his readers directly, challenging their allegiances and exposing the root cause of internal strife within the community.

Context

This verse comes immediately after James's scathing critique of the "wars and fightings" (James 4:1) among believers, which he attributes to their unbridled desires and covetousness. He points out that their prayers are often unanswered because they ask with wrong motives, seeking only to indulge their own pleasures (James 4:3). James 4:4 then diagnoses the fundamental spiritual illness: their pursuit of worldly values and friendships, which he equates with spiritual infidelity. This sets the stage for the call to repentance and humility that follows in James 4:7-10.

Key Themes

  • Spiritual Adultery: The use of "adulterers and adulteresses" (KJV) is a strong metaphor, drawing from Old Testament prophetic language where Israel's unfaithfulness to God through idolatry was often depicted as spiritual adultery (e.g., the book of Hosea). It signifies a betrayal of the covenant relationship with God by pursuing other affections or allegiances.
  • The Nature of the "World": The "world" here (Greek: kosmos) does not refer to God's created earth, but rather to the fallen human system, its values, philosophies, and pursuits that are contrary to God's will. It represents the sphere of human existence alienated from divine truth.
  • Enmity with God: James declares unequivocally that "friendship of the world is enmity with God." This means active hostility or opposition. There is no middle ground or neutrality; choosing allegiance to the world's system automatically places one in opposition to God. This echoes Jesus' teaching that "No man can serve two masters".
  • Undivided Loyalty: The verse calls for an exclusive devotion to God, emphasizing that a divided heart cannot truly follow Him. It challenges believers to examine their priorities and where their ultimate allegiance lies. This principle is further explored in 1 John 2:15, which warns against loving the world or the things in the world.

Linguistic Insights

The Greek terms moikhoi (adulterers) and moikhalides (adulteresses) are startlingly direct. While literal adultery was a sin, James employs this term metaphorically to highlight the spiritual unfaithfulness of those who claim to be God's people but pursue worldly desires. This imagery underscores God's passionate and jealous love for His people, seeing any affection for the world as a betrayal of their covenant relationship. The term echthra for "enmity" conveys a deep-seated hostility, not just a casual disagreement.

Practical Application

James 4:4 serves as a timeless warning for Christians. It urges us to:

  • Examine Our Allegiances: Where do our deepest affections lie? What truly influences our decisions, values, and pursuits? Is it God's Word or the prevailing culture?
  • Identify Worldly Influences: Be discerning about media, entertainment, societal trends, and personal ambitions that contradict biblical principles.
  • Seek Undivided Devotion: Recognize that true friendship with God requires a complete surrender and a deliberate rejection of worldly values that oppose Him. This means choosing to live in the world but not of the world.
  • Repent and Realign: If we find ourselves compromising, the verse calls us to repentance, to turn away from worldliness and back to God with a whole heart, seeking to draw near to Him.

Reflection

This verse powerfully reminds us that our spiritual health and peace depend on our undivided devotion to God. The choice between friendship with the world and friendship with God is not merely a preference but a fundamental decision that determines our spiritual standing and relationship with our Creator. It’s a call to holiness and a warning against the subtle, yet destructive, pull of worldliness.

Note: Commentary was generated by an advanced AI, utilizing a prompt that emphasized Biblical fidelity over bias. We've found these insights to be consistently reliable, yet we always encourage prayerful discernment through the Holy Spirit. The Scripture text and cross-references are from verified, non-AI sources.

  • 1 John 2:15

    Love not the world, neither the things [that are] in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

  • 1 John 2:16

    For all that [is] in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

  • Romans 8:7

    Because the carnal mind [is] enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.

  • Galatians 1:10

    ¶ For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.

  • John 15:19

    If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

  • Matthew 6:24

    No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

  • John 17:14

    I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
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