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James 5

James 5:1 KJV (With Strong’s)

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Go to now, ye richb men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.

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Prov. 11:28• ²⁸He that trusteth in his riches shall fall: but the righteous shall flourish as a branch. (Prov. 11:28)

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Luke 6:24• ²⁴But woe unto you that are rich! for ye have received your consolation. (Luke 6:24)

Cross References

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Ministry on This Verse

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1-6: Wicked rich men are to fear God's vengeance.

7-11: We ought to be patient in afflictions, after the example of the prophets, and Job;

12: to forbear swearing;

13: to pray in adversity, to sing in prosperity;

14-18: to acknowledge mutually our several faults, to pray one for another;

19-20: and to reduce a straying brother to the truth.

Go.

James 4:13• ¹³Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: (James 4:13)

ye.

James 1:11• 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. (James 1:11)

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James 2:6• ⁶But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats? (James 2:6)

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Deut. 8:12‑14• ¹²Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein;
¹³And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied;
¹⁴Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the Lord thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage; (Deut. 8:12‑14)

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Deut. 32:15• ¹⁵But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked: thou art waxen fat, thou art grown thick, thou art covered with fatness; then he forsook God which made him, and lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation. (Deut. 32:15)

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Neh. 9:25‑26• ²⁵And they took strong cities, and a fat land, and possessed houses full of all goods, wells digged, vineyards, and oliveyards, and fruit trees in abundance: so they did eat, and were filled, and became fat, and delighted themselves in thy great goodness.
²⁶Nevertheless they were disobedient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy law behind their backs, and slew thy prophets which testified against them to turn them to thee, and they wrought great provocations. (Neh. 9:25‑26)

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Job 20:15‑29• ¹⁵He hath swallowed down riches, and he shall vomit them up again: God shall cast them out of his belly.
¹⁶He shall suck the poison of asps: the viper's tongue shall slay him.
¹⁷He shall not see the rivers, the floods, the brooks of honey and butter.
¹⁸That which he labored for shall he restore, and shall not swallow it down: according to his substance shall the restitution be, and he shall not rejoice therein.
¹⁹Because he hath oppressed and hath forsaken the poor; because he hath violently taken away an house which he builded not;
²⁰Surely he shall not feel quietness in his belly, he shall not save of that which he desired.
²¹There shall none of his meat be left; therefore shall no man look for his goods.
²²In the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits: every hand of the wicked shall come upon him.
²³When he is about to fill his belly, God shall cast the fury of his wrath upon him, and shall rain it upon him while he is eating.
²⁴He shall flee from the iron weapon, and the bow of steel shall strike him through.
²⁵It is drawn, and cometh out of the body; yea, the glittering sword cometh out of his gall: terrors are upon him.
²⁶All darkness shall be hid in his secret places: a fire not blown shall consume him; it shall go ill with him that is left in his tabernacle.
²⁷The heaven shall reveal his iniquity; and the earth shall rise up against him.
²⁸The increase of his house shall depart, and his goods shall flow away in the day of his wrath.
²⁹This is the portion of a wicked man from God, and the heritage appointed unto him by God. (Job 20:15‑29)

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Psa. 17:14• ¹⁴From men which are thy hand, O Lord, from men of the world, which have their portion in this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes. (Psa. 17:14)

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Psa. 49:6‑20• ⁶They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches;
⁷None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him:
⁸(For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever:)
⁹That he should still live for ever, and not see corruption.
¹⁰For he seeth that wise men die, likewise the fool and the brutish person perish, and leave their wealth to others.
¹¹Their inward thought is, that their houses shall continue for ever, and their dwelling places to all generations; they call their lands after their own names.
¹²Nevertheless man being in honor abideth not: he is like the beasts that perish.
¹³This their way is their folly: yet their posterity approve their sayings. Selah.
¹⁴Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed on them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; and their beauty shall consume in the grave from their dwelling.
¹⁵But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me. Selah.
¹⁶Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased;
¹⁷For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him.
¹⁸Though while he lived he blessed his soul: and men will praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself.
¹⁹He shall go to the generation of his fathers; they shall never see light.
²⁰Man that is in honor, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish. (Psa. 49:6‑20)

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Psa. 73:3‑9,18‑20• ³For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
⁴For there are no bands in their death: but their strength is firm.
⁵They are not in trouble as other men; neither are they plagued like other men.
⁶Therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain; violence covereth them as a garment.
⁷Their eyes stand out with fatness: they have more than heart could wish.
⁸They are corrupt, and speak wickedly concerning oppression: they speak loftily.
⁹They set their mouth against the heavens, and their tongue walketh through the earth.
¹⁸Surely thou didst set them in slippery places: thou castedst them down into destruction.
¹⁹How are they brought into desolation, as in a moment! they are utterly consumed with terrors.
²⁰As a dream when one awaketh; so, O Lord, when thou awakest, thou shalt despise their image. (Psa. 73:3‑9,18‑20)

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Prov. 11:4,28• ⁴Riches profit not in the day of wrath: but righteousness delivereth from death.
²⁸He that trusteth in his riches shall fall: but the righteous shall flourish as a branch. (Prov. 11:4,28)

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Eccl. 5:13‑14• ¹³There is a sore evil which I have seen under the sun, namely, riches kept for the owners thereof to their hurt.
¹⁴But those riches perish by evil travail: and he begetteth a son, and there is nothing in his hand. (Eccl. 5:13‑14)

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Jer. 9:23• ²³Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: (Jer. 9:23)

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Mic. 6:12• ¹²For the rich men thereof are full of violence, and the inhabitants thereof have spoken lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth. (Mic. 6:12)

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Zeph. 1:18• ¹⁸Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord's wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land. (Zeph. 1:18)

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Matt. 19:23‑24• ²³Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.
²⁴And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. (Matt. 19:23‑24)

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Luke 6:24• ²⁴But woe unto you that are rich! for ye have received your consolation. (Luke 6:24)

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Luke 12:16‑21• ¹⁶And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully:
¹⁷And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits?
¹⁸And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.
¹⁹And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
²⁰But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?
²¹So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God. (Luke 12:16‑21)

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Luke 16:19‑25• ¹⁹There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
²⁰And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,
²¹And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
²²And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;
²³And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
²⁴And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
²⁵But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. (Luke 16:19‑25)

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1 Tim. 6:9‑10• ⁹But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
¹⁰For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. (1 Tim. 6:9‑10)

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Rev. 6:15‑17• ¹⁵And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
¹⁶And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
¹⁷For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand? (Rev. 6:15‑17)

weep.

James 4:9• ⁹Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. (James 4:9)

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Isa. 13:6• ⁶Howl ye; for the day of the Lord is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty. (Isa. 13:6)

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Isa. 22:12‑13• ¹²And in that day did the Lord God of hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth:
¹³And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink; for to morrow we shall die. (Isa. 22:12‑13)

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Jer. 4:8• ⁸For this gird you with sackcloth, lament and howl: for the fierce anger of the Lord is not turned back from us. (Jer. 4:8)

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Ezek. 19:2• ²And say, What is thy mother? A lioness: she lay down among lions, she nourished her whelps among young lions. (Ezek. 19:2)

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Joel 1:5,11,13• ⁵Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the new wine; for it is cut off from your mouth.
¹¹Be ye ashamed, O ye husbandmen; howl, O ye vinedressers, for the wheat and for the barley; because the harvest of the field is perished.
¹³Gird yourselves, and lament, ye priests: howl, ye ministers of the altar: come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God: for the meat offering and the drink offering is withholden from the house of your God. (Joel 1:5,11,13)

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Amos 6:6‑7• ⁶That drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief ointments: but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.
⁷Therefore now shall they go captive with the first that go captive, and the banquet of them that stretched themselves shall be removed. (Amos 6:6‑7)

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Zech. 11:2‑3• ²Howl, fir tree; for the cedar is fallen; because the mighty are spoiled: howl, O ye oaks of Bashan; for the forest of the vintage is come down.
³There is a voice of the howling of the shepherds; for their glory is spoiled: a voice of the roaring of young lions; for the pride of Jordan is spoiled. (Zech. 11:2‑3)

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Luke 6:25• ²⁵Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger. Woe unto you that laugh now! for ye shall mourn and weep. (Luke 6:25)

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Luke 23:28‑29• ²⁸But Jesus turning unto them said, Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children.
²⁹For, behold, the days are coming, in the which they shall say, Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the paps which never gave suck. (Luke 23:28‑29)

• The two classes in Israel are distinctly marked here {James 5} in contrast with one another, with the addition of the walk which the Christian ought to pursue when chastised by the Lord. (“James 5” by J.N. Darby)

• Thus the rich in this world are warned that judgment is coming (verse 1); riches are failing (verse 2); men are being destroyed, body and soul; and time is passing (verse 3). (“The Coming of the Lord: James 5” by H. Smith)

• In the opening of the fifth chapter his thoughts turn to the rich Jews, and these, as we have before mentioned, were almost to a man found amongst the unbelieving majority. In the first six verses he has some severe and even scorching things to say about them, and to them. (“James 5” by F.B. Hole)

J. N. Darby Translation

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Go to now, ye rich, weep, howling over your miseries that are coming upon you.

W. Kelly Translation

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Come then, ye rich, weep, howling over your miseries that are coming ona.

WK Translation Notes

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a

The Revisers, by too close adherence to the KJV, lost some of the graphic force. "Weep, howling over your miseries that are coming on." It is the aorist with the present participle, so as to combine instant weeping with habitual howling, because of their sins and the Lord’s speedy judgment. But nobody is blamed for what is so hard to express suitably.