Commentaries:
Robertson's Word Pictures (NT)
Did not God choose? (oux o qeov ecelecato). Affirmative answer expected. First aorist middle (indirect, God chose for himself) indicative of eklegw, the very form used by Paul three times of God's choice in I Corinthians 1:27 f.
As to the world (tw kosmw). The ethical dative of interest, as the world looks at it as in Acts 7:20; I Corinthians 1:18; II Corinthians 10:4; James 4:4. By the use of the article (the poor) James does not affirm that God chose all the poor, but only that he did choose poor people (Matthew 10:23-26; I Corinthians 1:26-28).
Rich in faith (plousiouv en pistei). Rich because of their faith. As he has shown in James 1:9 f.
Which he promised (hv epeggeilato). Genitive of the accusative relative hn attracted to the case of the antecedent basileiav (the Messianic kingdom), the same verb and idea already in James 1:12 (ephggeilato). Cf. the beatitude of Jesus in Matthew 5:3 for the poor in spirit.
Other Robertson's Word Pictures (NT) entries containing James 2:5:
James 2:1
James 4:6
Revelation 2:9
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