James 3
1 Not many of you should become teachers, my friends, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly than others.
Nolite plures magistri fieri fratres mei, scientes quoniam maius iudicium sumitis.
2 We often make mistakes, every one of us. Anyone who does not make mistakes when speaking is indeed a perfect person, able to bridle their whole body as well.
In multis enim offendimus omnes. Si quis in verbo non offendit: hic perfectus est vir. potest etiam freno circumducere totum corpus.
3 When we put bits into horses’ mouths to make them obey us, we change their course the rest of their bodies.
Si autem equis frena in ora mittimus ad consentiendum nobis, et omne corpus illorum circumferimus.
4 Again, think of ships. Large as they are, and even when driven by fierce winds, they are guided by a very small rudder and steered in whatever direction the man at the helm may determine.
Et ecce naves, cum magnae sint, et a ventis validis minentur: circumferuntur autem a modico gubernaculo ubi impetus dirigentis voluerit.
5 So is it with the tongue. Small as it is, it is a great boaster. Think how a tiny spark may set the largest forest ablaze!
Ita et lingua modicum quidem membrum est, et magna exaltat. Ecce quantus ignis quam magnam silvam incendit!
6 And the tongue is like a spark. It is a world of unrighteousness among the parts of our body. It contaminates the whole body; it sets the whole course of our existence on fire, and is itself set on fire by the flames of Gehenna. (Geenna g1067)
Et lingua ignis est, universitas iniquitatis. Lingua constituitur in membris nostris, quae maculat totum corpus, et inflammat rotam nativitatis nostrae inflammata a gehenna. (Geenna g1067)
7 For while all kinds of animals, birds and reptiles and sea creatures can be tamed and have been tamed by humans,
Omnis enim natura bestiarum, et volucrum, et serpentium, et ceterorum domantur, et domita sunt a natura humana:
8 no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless plague! It is charged with deadly poison!
linguam autem nullus hominum domare potest: inquietum malum, plena veneno mortifero.
9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made ‘in God’s likeness.’
In ipsa benedicimus Deum et Patrem: et in ipsa maledicimus homines, qui ad imaginem, et similitudinem Dei facti sunt.
10 From the very same mouth come blessings and curses! My friends, it is not right that this should be so.
Ex ipso ore procedit benedictio, et maledictio. Non oportet, fratres mei, haec ita fieri.
11 Does a spring give both good and bad water from the same source?
Numquid fons de eodem foramine emanat dulcem, et amaram aquam?
12 Can a fig tree, my friends, bear olives? Or a vine bear figs? No, nor can a brackish well give good water.
Numquid potest, fratres mei, ficus uvas facere, aut vitis ficus? Sic neque salsa dulcem potest facere aquam.
13 Who among you claims to be wise and intelligent? They should show that their actions are the outcome of a good life lived in the humility of true wisdom.
Quis sapiens, et disciplinatus inter vos? Ostendat ex bona conversatione operationem suam in mansuetudine sapientiae.
14 But if you harbor bitter envy and a spirit of rivalry in your hearts, do not boast or deny the truth.
Quod si zelum amarum habetis, et contentiones sint in cordibus vestris: nolite gloriari, et mendaces esse adversus veritatem.
15 That is not the wisdom which comes from above; no, it is earthly, animalistic, demonic.
non est enim ista sapientia desursum descendens: sed terrena, animalis, diabolica.
16 For where envy and rivalry exist, there you will also find disorder and all kinds of bad, worthless actions.
Ubi enim zelus et contentio: ibi inconstantia, et omne opus pravum.
17 But the wisdom from above is, before everything else, pure; then peace-loving, gentle, open to conviction, rich in compassion and good deeds, and free from partiality and insincerity.
Quae autem desursum est sapientia, primum quidem pudica est, deinde pacifica, modesta, suadibilis, bonus consentiens, plena misericordia, et fructibus bonis, iudicans sine simulatione.
18 Justice is the harvest peacemakers will reap from seeds sown in a spirit of peace.
Fructus autem iustitiae, in pace seminatur, facientibus pacem.
