< James 2 >
1 My brothers, do not hold to faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with favoritism toward certain people.
我的朋友们,作为一名信徒,相信我们荣耀的主耶稣基督,就不应该以貌取人。
2 Suppose that someone enters your meeting wearing gold rings and fine clothes, and there also enters a poor man in dirty clothes.
如果某人手戴金戒指、身穿华服走进你们的会堂;然后一个衣衫褴褛的穷人也走进去了。
3 If you look at the person wearing fine clothes and say, “You sit here in a good place,” but you say to the poor man, “You stand over there” or “Sit at my feet,”
如果你特别关注华服之人,说:“请坐上座。”然后对穷人说:“你站在那里。”或说:“坐在我的脚下方的地上。”
4 are you not judging among yourselves? Have you not become judges with evil thoughts?
你不是再用恶意歧视和判断别人吗?
5 Listen, my beloved brothers, did not God choose the poor of the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who love him?
我亲爱的朋友们,听我说:上帝不是选择了那些在世上被视为贫穷的人吗继承上帝承诺赐给爱他之人的天国?
6 But you have dishonored the poor! Is it not the rich who oppress you? Are they not the ones who drag you to court?
但你们却侮辱穷人。那些欺压你们、拉你们上法庭的难道不是富人吗?
7 Do they not insult the good name by which you have been called?
难道不是他们亵渎那个人的荣耀名字吗?是那个人向你们发出召唤,你们也属于他。
8 If, however, you fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well.
如果你们遵守经书的尊贵法律:“要爱邻如己”,你们就做对了。
9 But if you favor certain people, you are committing sin, and you are convicted by the law as lawbreakers.
如果你们显示出偏向之心,那就是犯罪,律法就会裁定你们犯法。
10 For whoever obeys the whole law, except that he stumbles in just a single way, has become guilty of breaking the whole law.
如果一个人遵守了律法的所有要求,但却违背了其中一条,就等于违反所有律法。
11 For the one who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery, but if you do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.
上帝告诉你们不可奸淫,也告诉你们不可杀人;如果你不奸淫但却杀人,那就还是犯法。
12 So speak and act as those who will be judged by means of the law of freedom.
你们的语言和行为,应该像那些受自由律法审判之人。
13 For judgment comes without mercy to those who have shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
任何人如果没有怜悯之心,审判他的时候也就不会有怜悯;但怜悯胜过审判。
14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith, but he has no works? Can that faith save him?
我的朋友们,如果一个人说他有信心,却没有行动,有什么益处呢?这“信心”能救他吗?
15 Suppose that a brother or sister is badly clothed and lacks food for the day.
如果你的兄弟姐妹缺衣少食,
16 Suppose that one of you says to them, “Go in peace, stay warm and be filled.” If you do not give them the things necessary for the body, what good is that?
你对他们说:“祝福你们!愿你们吃得饱穿得暖!”,但却不给他们活下去所需要的,那有什么用处呢?
17 In the same way faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
如果你事实上没有做良善正确的事情,你对上帝信的本身也是死的,毫无价值的。。
18 Yet someone may say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without works, and I will show you my faith by my works.
有人会驳斥:“你有对上帝的信心,我做我的善行。”那么,请显示你对上帝有信心却没有善行,我会借着我的善行,将我的信心显示给你看。
19 You believe that there is one God; you do well. But even the demons believe that, and they tremble.
你相信只有一个上帝?非常好,但魔鬼也相信上帝,但他们却害怕上帝。
20 Do you want to know, foolish man, that faith without works is useless?
愚昧的人哪!你难道不知道,相信上帝却不做正义良善之事,并没有什么用处吗?
21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar?
我们的祖先亚伯拉罕将其子以撒献在祭坛上,不是因其行为而被视为正确吗?
22 You see that faith worked with his works, and that by works his faith was fully developed.
你看,他对上帝的信心与他的行为一致,他的信心因其行为而变得完整。
23 The scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness,” and he was called a friend of God.
正如经文所说:“亚伯拉罕相信上帝,这被视为他做出正义良善之事。”他也被称为上帝的朋友。
24 You see that it is by works that a man is justified, and not only by faith.
因此一个人被称为正直良善,是因其行为,而非单纯因为对上帝的信。
25 In the same way also, was not Rahab the prostitute justified by works, when she welcomed the messengers and sent them away by another road?
同样,妓女喇合照顾信使,从另一条路把他们送走,她难道不会因这一行为而被称为正义良善吗?
26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, even so faith apart from works is dead.
身体没有灵即死;同样,信心没有行为也为死。