James 4

1 Now I will tell you why you are fighting among yourselves and quarreling with each other [RHQ]. It is [RHQ] because each of you wants to do evil things [PRS]. You keep on wanting to do things that are not [what God wants you to do].

Wherof ben batelis and cheestis among you? Whether not of youre coueitisis, that fiyten in youre membris?

2 There are things that you [very much] desire to have, but you do not get [those things, so] you [want to] kill [HYP] [those who hinder you from getting them]. You desire what [other people have], but you are unable to get [what you desire, so] you quarrel and fight [with one another] [HYP]. You do not have [what you desire] because you do not ask [God for it].

Ye coueiten, and ye han not; ye sleen, and ye han enuye, and ye moun not gete. Ye chiden, and maken batel; and ye han not, for ye axen not.

3 [And even when] you do ask [him], he does not give you [what you ask for] because you are asking for the wrong reason. [You are asking for things] in order that you may use them just to (enjoy yourselves/make yourselves happy).

Ye axen, and ye resseyuen not; for that ye axen yuele, as ye schewen opynli in youre coueitisis.

4 [Like] a woman who is unfaithful to her husband, you [are being unfaithful to God and not obeying him any more] [MET]. Those who are behaving as evil people do [MTY] (OR, Those who love [the evil pleasures of] this world) are hostile toward God. Perhaps you do not realize that [RHQ]. So those who decide to act as evil people do [MTY] become enemies of God.

Auowtreris, witen not ye, that the frenschip of this world is enemye to God? Therfor who euere wole be frend of this world, is maad the enemye of God.

5 (Surely you remember that [God told us in] the Scriptures that he eagerly desires that his Spirit, who lives in us, will help us to love [God] only!/Do you think that it is for no reason that [God told us in] the Scriptures that he strongly desires that his Spirit, who lives in us, will help us to love [God] only?) [RHQ] God has a reason for desiring that.

Whether ye gessen, that the scripture seith veynli, The spirit that dwellith in you, coueitith to enuye?

6 [It is because] he is kind [to us and he] wants very much to help us. That is why (someone said/[King Solomon] wrote) [in the Scriptures], “God opposes those who are proud, but he helps those who are humble.”

But he yyueth the more grace; for which thing he seith, God withstondith proude men, but to meke men he yyueth grace.

7 So submit yourselves to God. (Resist the devil/Refuse to do what the devil wants), and [as a result] he will run away from you.

Therfor be ye suget to God; but withstonde ye the deuel, and he schal fle fro you.

8 Come near [spiritually] to God, and [as a result] he will come near to you. You who are sinners, stop doing what is wrong, and do only what is good [SYN, MET]. You who cannot decide [whether you will] ([commit yourselves to God/obey God completely]), stop thinking wrong thoughts, and think only pure thoughts [MTY].

Neiye ye to God, and he schal neiye to you. Ye synneris, clense ye hondis, and ye double in soule, purge ye the hertis.

9 Be sorrowful and weep/mourn [DOU] [because of the wrong things that you have done]. Do not laugh [DOU], ([enjoying only what you selfishly/enjoying only what you yourselves]) [desire]. Instead, be sad [because you have done what is wrong].

Be ye wretchis, and weile ye; youre leiyyng be turned in to weping, and ioye in to sorewe of herte.

10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and [as a result] he will honor you.

Be ye mekid in the siyt of the Lord, and he schal enhaunse you.

11 My fellow believers, stop saying evil things about one another, [because] those who say something evil about a fellow believer and [are therefore] condemning [one who is like] a brother [to them] are really speaking against the law [that God gave us to obey]. [In this law, God commanded] [MTY] [us to love others], and those who say evil things about fellow believers, [it is as though] they are saying that we do not have to do what [God] commanded. If you [(sg)] say that you do not have to do what God commanded, you [(sg)] are not obeying God’s law. Instead, you [(sg)] are claiming that you [have the authority] to condemn [others].

My britheren, nyle ye bacbite ech othere. He that bacbitith his brothir, ethir that demeth his brothir, bacbitith the lawe, and demeth the lawe. And if thou demest the lawe, thou art not a doere of the lawe, but a domesman.

12 [But in fact], there is only one who [has the authority to] tell [people] what is right to do and to condemn [them, and that is God]. He alone is able to save [people] or to destroy people. [So], (you [(sg)] certainly have no right to decide how God should punish other people./who are you to decide how God should punish other people?) [RHQ]

But oon is makere of the lawe, and iuge, that may lese, and delyuere.

13 [Some of you] are [arrogantly] saying, “Today or tomorrow we will go to a certain city. We will spend a year there and we will buy and sell things and earn a lot of money.” Now, you listen to me!

And who art thou, that demest thi neiybore? Lo! now ye, that seien, To dai ethir to morewe we schulen go in to thilke citee, and there we schulen dwelle a yeer, and we schulen make marchaundise, and we schulen make wynning;

14 [You should not talk like that, because] you do not know what will happen tomorrow, and you do not know [how long] you will live! Your life [is short] [MET], [like] a mist that appears for a short time and then disappears.

whiche witen not, what is to you in the morewe.

15 Instead of [what you are saying], you should say, “If the Lord wills/desires, we will live and do this or that.”

For what is youre lijf? A smoke apperinge at a litil, and aftirward it schal be wastid. Therfor that ye seie, If the Lord wole, and if we liuen, we schulen do this thing, ether that thing.

16 But what you are doing is boasting about all the things that you arrogantly [plan to do]. Your boasting like that is evil.

And now ye maken ful out ioye in youre pridis; euery siche ioye is wickyd.

17 So if anyone knows the right thing that he should do, [but] he does not do it, he is sinning.

Therfor it is synne to hym, that kan do good, and doith not.