Introduction
In the earlier sections of the book of James, James spoke to
believers. In this section, he spoke directly to unbelievers and indirectly to
believers. Just as the last section of James 4:13-17 speaks about businessmen,
so James 5:1-6 speaks about businessmen. The difference between these two
passages is the James 4 passage speaks about Christian businessmen and the
James 5 passages speaks about unbelieving businessmen. To the Christian
businessmen, James taught them to consult with God before they made plans
because God is the One who knows what will happen in the future. He taught them
not to be arrogant and boast of their plans and their wealth because they do
not know what tomorrow will bring. In the James 5 passage, James told the unbelieving
businessmen what would occur because of their oppression of the poor, their
store of treasures and garments, and their luxurious living. Both passages
speak of wealth and what a person does or plans to do with it. They each remind
businessmen they are mortal, will die, and cannot take their riches with them.
Even though similarities exist in these two passages, we
must wonder why James spoke directly to unbelievers for the first and only time
in his epistle. Is there significance for James speaking to unbelievers here?
What was James trying to teach believers since he directed this whole epistle toward
the twelve dispersed tribes (James 1:1)? We will answer these questions as we
study this passage of James 5:1-6.
The Judgment
Verses one through three express judgment on rich
unbelievers. This judgment was not new. Many other Bible writers expressed it,
too. Jesus taught about judgment on the rich in Luke 6:24. Paul spoke about it
in 1 Timothy 6:9. Isaiah taught to the rich destruction would come from the
Almighty in Isaiah 13:6. Each of these speakers taught the same thing; the rich
who hoard their wealth and oppress the poor received their comfort and wealth
on earth. What would come in the future at the time of judgment would be punishment,
and their weeping and howling.
With this in mind, let us consider what James taught in
verses one through three. In verse 1, James said, “Come now, you rich, weep and
howl for your miseries, which are coming upon you.” First, we must note the
word “rich” comes once again from the Greek word
plousios. This word is the same word James used in James 1:9 and
2:6 to refer to rich unbelievers. Jesus used
plousios, too, in Luke 6:24. Paul used the same root word in 1
Timothy 6:9. Each of these men recognized most Christians at the time were poor
and oppressed. So when they referred to the rich, the spoke of unbelievers. James
spoke to catch their attention in this passage when he used the word, “Come
now.” He told them to “weep and howl.” “Recognize now what your eternity holds
and weep,” James meant. He offered no comforting words to the rich. Forgiveness
would come to them if they repented, but James did not expect this to happen as
we note in this verse since he did not tell them to repent. He said they would
weep and howl for their miseries. The English word “weep” comes from the Greek
word
klaio meaning to weep, mourn,
and lament for pain and grief
[i]. “Howl”
comes from the Greek word
ololuzo and
means to wail and lament loudly for grief
[ii]. The
miseries to which James referred in this verse are the Day of Judgment after
Jesus Christ returns and their lives spent separated from God eternally. On the
Day of Judgment, everyone will receive his or her judgment from God according
to his or her life while on earth. For those who are not Christians, their judgment
penalty will not be waived because they did not accept Jesus Christ as their Savior
and, thereby, have their sins washed away to receive the inheritance of being
children of God. Though the rich lived in wealth and luxury on earth, their
eternal home of permanent separation from God would make them weep and howl loudly
for eternity. James expressly and poignantly told them their lifestyle on earth
would bring eternal judgment of misery.
James added at the end of verse one these miseries “are
coming.” This word, “coming” derives from the Greek word eperchomai and means to come to arrive and to be at hand. James expressed
these miseries were upon them imminently. The Christians of the first century
believed Jesus Christ would return soon for them. They waited expectantly for
Him. For this reason, James felt he had to encourage them to endure no matter
how long it was before Jesus’ return. He taught them they could ask for God’s
wisdom by which to endure in chapter 1. Just as the Christians waited for Jesus’
imminent return, their suffering to end, and their eternal inheritance to
begin, James told the rich unbelievers Jesus’ imminent return would bring eternal
judgment and this judgment would not be long in coming. It was at hand –
imminent.
With verses 2 and 3, James gave the rich unbelievers everyday
examples of their judgment. He told them, “Your riches have rotted and your
garments have become moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have rusted and their
rust will be a witness against you and will consume your flesh like fire.” The
wealthier businessmen of the time traded in dyed cloth, stored corn and other
grains, and hoarded their gold and silver from their sales. James named two of the
main classes of wealth in verse two – cloth, and gold and silver. He said the
businessmen’s stored cloth would rot and become moth-eaten. They would not be
able to rely upon that for their wealth. The rich person’s wealth would dwindle
away. James expressed with a mental picture that upon which the businessmen
relied for their wealth would end and fail them, then they would have nothing
on earth or for eternity. Job, Isaiah, and Jesus understood a person should not
store up for the future and rely upon earthly wealth. They each expressed moths
would eat garments. (Job 13:28, Isaiah 50:9, and Matthew 6:19). Besides the
wealth of garment merchants, James said the wealth of gold and silver was
fleeting, too. He told them their gold and silver would rust. The rich
businessmen stored it for the future and neither they nor the poor people
received help from it. The fact it laid around and tarnished showed the rich
person did not need it. Yet its tarnish would be evidence of its misuse, its hoarding
and not helping.
James added in verse three that the moth-eaten cloth and the
rusted gold and silver would be a witness - a testimony - against the rich. It would
be proof the rich did not use their wealth and excess to help the poor, needy
and oppressed. The judgment to come would not be baseless because their hoarded
wealth would testify of that. If they had followed Jesus’ teaching, their cloth
could have clothed the naked and their wealth could have fed and housed the
poor (Matthew 25:34- 46). This was not a new lesson to New Testament era people.
God told the Israelites to take care of the widows, orphans, poor, and
foreigners throughout the Old Testament (Exodus 22:22, Exodus 23:6, Exodus
23:11, Leviticus 19:10 & 15, Leviticus 25:25, 35, 39, & 47-48,
Deuteronomy 10:18, Deuteronomy 14:28-29, Deuteronomy 15:4, 7, 9, & 11, Deuteronomy
24:14, 17, & 19-21, Deuteronomy 27:19, et. al)
James continued verse three by saying these things would
consume the flesh of the rich person like a fire. These unbelieving Jews followed
God's commands and knew to slaughter animals for their sins regularly. They saw
the animals' bodies consumed on the altar. The rich understood sin required a
sacrifice. James meant here their sins of hording would require the personal
sacrifice of their bodies in eternal separation from Yahweh. In the end, the
ox, lamb, or other animal would not be sufficient to cover their sins. Their
punishment/judgment from God would be their eternal death. This metaphor reminded
Jewish unbelievers the judgment God would make on them on the judgment day. The
fire that devoured their flesh brought a visual remembrance of watching fires
consume the flesh of their animal sacrifices. Fire consumes things much faster than
rust. The judgment on the rich would be fast. Jesus was returning soon and God’s
judgment was swift, just as Malachi 3:5-6 says. James, in the last sentence of
verse three, reminded these rich, hoarding, and oppressing businessmen the days
they lived were their last days. Their judgment was imminent. He meant, too,
what they stored up for the last days was judgment. The “last days” comes from
the word
eschatos meaning the time of
the eschaton - when Christ returns
[iii]. The
treasure the rich stored on earth stored judgment for them at Christ’s return. With
the Roman siege of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple in 70AD, the
unbelievers received a taste of the wrath to come and their fall. God’s
vengeance for His people against those who oppressed them would occur.
Just as James was warning the rich businessmen of their
eternal reward and judgment for hoarding and oppressing, he reminded the
Christians of their eternal reward. Since the unbelievers received this, know
Christians will receive a better reward. Even though the rich have plenty on
earth, their eternal judgment make them the poorest. They will not inherit the
kingdom of God as co-heirs with Christ as the Christians will. James’
encouragement to endure and be patient comes with the promise of Jesus to His
followers. Christians can hold on to that hope while they are poor here on
earth. Even though James explicitly addressed rich unbelievers in these six
verses, he implied a lesson of encouragement for Christians as he did
throughout the rest of this epistle.
The Acts
In verses 4 through 6, James listed actions of the rich (unbelievers)
against the poor (Christians). He said in verse 4, “Behold, the pay of the
laborers who mowed your fields and, which has been withheld by you, cries out
against you, and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the
ears of the Lord of Sabaoth.” Notice James spoke twice about the farm workers –
the reapers of the crop. In each instance, he stated the result of the rich
person’s hard heart, oppression, and tight-fistedness – non-payment of daily wages.
The Jews had laws that addressed this issue (Leviticus 19:13 & Deuteronomy
24:15). We can read of this lesson in Job 24:10, Jeremiah 22:13, and Malachi
3:5, too. Many people were poor and relied upon daily wages to be able to feed
their families each night and the next morning. By not paying them at the end
of the workday, the rich person kept the worker and his family from eating each
day. The rich person stored up his money until he sold his grain. This enabled
the him or her to keep hold of his own money until he knew he could replace it with
a profit at market.
From verse four, we must notice two things. James said two
things happened when the rich did not pay the day laborers. The laborers cried
out and the Lord of Sabaoth heard their cries. The poor had almost no voice in
society. They were given little and were heard little by the rulers because
they had no champion to stand up for them. Riches brought power and luxury,
both of which the poor did not have. Yet, though the poor did not have a champion
who on lived on earth, they had a heavenly Father who stood up for them and for
all His children. Moses taught this in Deuteronomy 32:35-36,
Vengeance is Mine and retribution; in due time their foot will
slip. For the day of their calamity is near and the impending things are
hastening upon them. For the LORD will vindicate His people and will have
compassion on His servants when He sees that their strength is gone and there
is none remaining, bond or free. [NASB]
This
point is the second thing we must notice from verse four. The LORD God would
have vengeance on the people who oppressed His children. He would pay their
oppressors back what they earned by doing evil on the earth – hoarding wealth
and not helping their laborers or the poor. The rich may have earned wealth on
earth but they earned judgment for eternity from God. Their wealth could not go
with them, but their eternal reward of punishment would not go away…unless they
repented and believed in Jesus Christ for their salvation. That is what James
meant when he said the cries of the poor reached the ears of the Lord of the
Sabaoth. The “Lord of the Sabaoth” means the Lord of the armies of Israel.
Israel is under the leadership and protection of Jehovah. The enemies of His
people are His enemies. The enemies of God’s children (those adopted in by
faith), in this case the rich, will meet their protector, the Lord, and receive
their judgment from Him for oppressing His children. We see repeatedly the Lord
intervening for His children in the Bible. Look at Exodus 2:23, Deuteronomy
24:15, Job 31:38, Romans 9:29, and Isaiah 5:9. The people cried out because
they were powerless and their Lord heard their cries and promised vengeance and
retribution on the people who oppressed them.
Besides
hoarding their money and not paying their day laborers, the “rich lived luxuriously
and led a life of wanton pleasure,” verse five states. The rich used their
wealth for themselves even though they faced the desperate poverty of their
workers and other poor people each day. Their luxurious living was so gross it
led to wanton pleasure. “Wanton pleasure” comes from the Greek word
spatalao and means to live luxuriously,
to lead a voluptuous life to give one’s self pleasure
[iv]. With James’
use of the term “wanton pleasure,” we recognize the rich used their wealth for
more than having the softest bed or the best prime steak. It included
gratifying physical promiscuous pleasures, too. Ezekiel spoke of this in
Ezekiel 16:49 as did Paul in 1 Timothy 5:6. The exceeding wealth the rich
hoarded led them to seek pleasures that defiled themselves before God. It
corrupted their thinking and obedience to God’s laws. Luxury leads to
wantonness. This wanton lifestyle left the poor hungrier and the rich farther
from a relationship with God.
James
continued his thoughts. He said in verse five, “You have fattened your hearts
in a day of slaughter.” The English word “slaughter” in this verse comes from the
Greek word sphage, which means
slaughter of sheep and day of destruction. Jews call the “day of
slaughter/feasting” as the day when they will sacrifice their lamb, ox, or ram.
Just as Jews fattened a sheep or ox for its slaughter on the sacrificial altar
to God, these rich people fattened their pockets with more wealth and increased
the testimony/witness against them for the day of God’s judgment. God’s judgment
of these rich will be their day of destruction.
With
verse 6, James concluded his thoughts on the rich businessmen oppressing the
poor by not paying them their daily wages. He said, “You have condemned and put
to death the righteous man; he does not resist.” James said the rich man
condemned; he judged against the poor person, and put him or her to death by
not paying his or her daily wage at the end of the day. As said before, by not
paying the poor laborer each day, the rich kept food from the mouths of the
laborer and his or her family. By removing the ability to buy food, the rich
person in effect killed the person and his or her family. His actions condemned
the poor person as not worthy to receive food because the rich person found his
or her own wants more important. The rich person made a judgment for him or
herself and against the poor person. Added to this, the poor did not resist,
James said. He or she could not resist because he or she had no power in the community
to receive recognition or restitution. The poor person gradually wasted away
and became depressed because of the oppression by the rich person.
James
meant this when he said the poor person did not resist. The poor person could
not oppose the rich person; no one would be champion for him. Yet we know, as
James said in verse four, God is the Lord of the Sabaoth. He is the Champion of
the poor. The witnesses against the rich will be their moth-eaten garments and
their rusted gold and silver. Those things will testify against them. Because
of this, the believers of the Jerusalem church could have hope. The Lord God would
judge and find guilty the rich who oppressed them. In addition, as Christians
they themselves had the hope of eternal salvation in the kingdom of God. They could
endure in the midst of their current situations - prejudice, poverty, abuse,
slander, or beatings - because they had hope for their future in Jesus Christ.
The believers James spoke to were co-heirs with Christ to God’s kingdom. Beyond
any trouble believers had in this world, James said they could have hope and
endure. James wrote this passage explicitly for non-Christians, the rich
businessmen. He meant it to encourage and uplift the hopes of the Jerusalem
Christians, too.
Recap
Though the rich oppressed the poor, the poor could have
hope. God notices the deeds of the rich. He hears the cries of the oppressed.
God promises judgment for every person – believer and unbeliever. Jesus Christ
paid the penalty of sin for every person who believes in Him. For James, the Christians
were the poor. People not saved by faith in Jesus Christ will pay the penalty
of sin – eternal death, eternal separation from God. For James, these people were
the rich of Jerusalem. Though they lived out their lives in luxurious and
wanton living, God heard the cries of the people. The actions of the
non-Christian will be testimony against them. The wealth they hoard, but do not
use for the poor and oppressed cannot leave this earth nor buy salvation. The judgment
they render against the poor as unworthy by not paying their daily wage or not
helping them, God will render on them. Non-Christians will be poor for eternity.
He or she will have no relationship with God and will have unfulfilled wants.
Relevance and Conclusion
With these few verses, James offered hope and encouragement
to the beleaguered Jerusalem Christians and to every oppressed Christian
throughout time. He gave warning to those people who are not Christians, and
who can give help to the poor. For the rich, by acting wantonly and living
luxuriously, without giving heed to the poor to give them work and daily wages,
effectively the poor person and his or her family would die. Is that what we
meant and want to do? This verse speaks to each of us.
We pass judgment each time we pass a poor person or refuse
to pay a proper daily wage. By doing this, we say they are not worthy,
worthwhile, and we do not care about them. Jesus gave a different and the greatest
commandments to His disciples in Matthew 22:27-39. He said, “‘You shall love the
LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your
mind.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘You
shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” These were not new to the Jews. Moses
taught this commandfrom God in Deuteronomy 4:29 and 6:5, and with the Ten
Commandments in Exodus 20.
We come to the point where each of us needs to consider our
own self. Do we judge when we pass by a poor person and not help them? Are we
considering them unworthy and unlovable? What, instead, would show that person
we do not judge them? Consider, too, when we hire a person, do we pay a suitable
wage so he or she can feed him or herself and his or her family or are we just
giving grudgingly and saying to ourselves, “They are lucky to have a job no
matter what I pay.” By doing this, we judge the other person as unworthy of our
consideration and care. Jesus did not do this. He came to preach the Gospel to
the poor, to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the
blind, and to set free those who are oppressed (Luke 4:18, Isaiah 61). Christ
commands us, as the children of God and as workers for Him, to be His witnesses.
That involves living it out not just speaking. James said that when he told
Christians to be doers of the Word and not just hearers.
Will you live out
Christ’s love even to the poor, hopeless, helpless, and oppressed?
Will you be doers of
God’s Word and not hearers only?
This is what James
asks us today.
