James 5:3

James 5:3

Rich Oppressors Will Be Judged

1 Come now, you ^arich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you!

2 Your ^ariches are corrupted, and ^byour garments are moth-eaten.

3 Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. ^aYou have heaped up treasure in the last days.

4 Indeed ^athe wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and ^bthe cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of¹ Sabaoth.

5 You have lived on the earth in pleasure and¹ luxury; you have fattened your hearts³ as in a day of slaughter.

6 You have condemned, you have murdered the just; he does not resist you.

Be Patient and Persevering

7 Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain.

Commentaries:

Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown

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is cankered—"rusted through" [ALFORD].

rust . . . witness against you—in the day of judgment; namely, that your riches were of no profit to any, lying unemployed and so contracting rust.

shall eat your flesh—The rust which once ate your riches, shall then gnaw your conscience, accompanied with punishment which shall prey upon your bodies for ever.

as . . . fire—not with the slow process of rusting, but with the swiftness of consuming fire.

for the last days—Ye have heaped together, not treasures as ye suppose (compare Luke 12:19), but wrath against the last days, namely, the coming judgment of the Lord. ALFORD translates more literally, "In these last days (before the coming judgment) ye laid up (worldly) treasure" to no profit, instead of repenting and seeking salvation (see on James 5:5).

**Other Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown entries containing James 5:3:**

Ezekiel 16:49
1 Timothy 6:17
James 5:5
James 5:7
James 5:7

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James 5:4 >>

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