The Pulpit Commentary — James — Section 50

(H, A, B, 0, Coptic, Syriao, ft", and some his life " (Dr. Farrar, who aptly quotes mann~cripts of the Vulgate) for e,&v (Re- Tennyson's line, "Knowledge comes, but ooptns, ,vith K. L, end Vul.~te). Made IDiBdom lingers"). Ont ot a good oonversa- after the lrimilitude of God; better, likeMBB tion (l,c .-ijs 11a71.i\s clva<trpoq,ijs); bettor, o.s (dµo/..,,m). The words, which arc taken R.V., by hill good life. "OonvcrB&tion" is from Gen. i. 26 (,cal .7,,..,, 6 0ells ,ro1-l,<to,µ•v unfortunate, because of ite modern meaning. lfvep-•v lrllT' ,1,c&va 71µ,n!pav Kai 11118' dµot• 11:eekneBB (1rpul)T17s); cf. eh. i. 21. ,:,",.), are added to show the grel\tness of Ver. 14.-Bitter envying. Zij71.os in itself the sin. Thoologic0,1ly they are important, may be either good or bad, and therefore as showing that the "likeness of God" in ,r1,cpo11 ie added to characterize it. Bishop mo.n (in whatever it mo.y consist) was not Lightfoot ( on Gal. v. 20) points out that entirely obliterated by the Fall. St. James's "as it is the tendency of Christicm tellohing words would be meaningless if only Adam to exalt the gentler qualities and to depress had been created in the image and likeness their opposites, f,j71.os falls in the scale of of God. So St. Paul speaks of fallen man Christian ethics (see Clem. Rom., §§ 4-6), as still "the image (,l,cwv) and glory of while T11,ruvoT17s, for instance, rises." It may, God " (l Oor. ri 7; and cf. Gen. ix. 6). perho.ps, be an incidental mo.rk of early date Yers. 11, 12.-lllustratiom showing the thnt St. Jamee finds it necessary to charac- absurdity of the conduct reprobated. From terize (ij71.os e.e .,.,,cpov. Where St. Paul joins one principle opposite things cannot be it with ip18ela1 and (p1s, there is no quali- produced. Nothing can bring forth that fying adjective (Rom. xiii. 13; 1 Oor. which is not corresponding to it.s nature. iii. 3; 2 Cor. xii. 20 ; Gal. v. 20). (On (1) The same fountain cannot give both the distinction between (ij71.os and q,9ovos, sweet a.nd bitter wet.er. (2) A fig tree both of which a.re used by St. James, cannot yield olives, nor a vine figs. (3) Salt see Archbishop Trench on • Synonyms,' water cannot yield sweet. How, then, ce.n § xxvi.). Strife (ip,8,lav); better, party the ton=e yield both blessing and cursing? Bpirit, or faction (cf. Rom. ii. 8; 2 Cor. It will be seen that the thought in (2) is xii. 20 ; Gal. v. 20 ; Phil. i. 17; ii. 3). The different from that in Matt. vii. 16, to which A.V. "strife'' comes from a wrong deriva- it bears a superficial resemblance. There tion, as if lp,9,/a were connected with rp,s, the thought is that a good tree cannot yield whereas it really comes from lp,9os, a hired bad fruit, Here it is that a tree must yield labourer, and eo signifies (I) working for that which corresponds to its nature; a fig hire; (2) the canvassing of hired partisans; tree must yield figs and not olives, etc. So and (3) factiousness in general (see Light• can no founte.in both yield salt water and foot on Gal. v. 20). Glory not ; i.e. glory fresh. The Received Text, which the A.V. not of your wisdom, a boast to which your follows, is wrong here. Read, o~r• a.71.u11011 whole conduct thus gives the lie. -yl\.u,cv 1ro,ij<ta.t v~o,p (A, B, C, and H, except Vera. 15-18.-Contrast between the earthly that it reads ou'/i ,'), and transla.t.e, neither can and the heavenly willdom : (1) the earthly Balt water yiel,d au,eet ; V uJ gate, sic neque (vers. 15, 16); (2) the heavenly (vers. 17, aal.Ba dulcem potut facere aquam; Syriac, 18). "Thus also s1Llt waters cannot be me.de Ver. 15.-" This wisdom [of which you sweet." The construction. it will be seen, boast] is not a wisdom which cometh down is enddenly changed in the middle of the from above." Vulge.te, non e8t enim ista verse, and St. James ends as if the previous sapientia desursum de.scenden.8. But is earthly, claUlle had been ofrr• '6611a.Ta.t av,cij 171..a.las, seDBllal, devilish. Dr. Farrar well ea.ye that ....... 71.. (cf. Winer, p. 619,Grimm's 'Lexicon this wisdom is "earthly because it avari- of N. T. Greek,' p. 324). ciously cares for the goods of earth (Phil. Ven. 13-18.-WARNING AGAINST JEAL· iii. 19); animal, because it is under the OUBY AND FACTION. Ver. 13 contains the sway of animal lusts (1 Cor. ii. H); demon• poBitit1e exhortation to meekness ; ver. 14 like, because full of pride, egotism, ma- the negatit1e warning against jealousy and lignity, and ambition, which are the works party spirit ; and then the following verses of the devil (1 Tim. iv. l)." Sensual place ■ide by side the portraits of the earthly (,j,ux111f,); Vulgate, animalis; R.V. margin, and the htavenly wisdom. natural or animal. The position of the Ver. 13.-Who is a wise man and endued word is remarkable, O<'t.mrring between with knowledge among you t ( ...ts <toq,lis 1tal ,1r[-y,ws and '6111µ011ufia11s. lt is never found ,,,.,<t,,.f,~11 ,,, ;,,,.,,,;); better, who i, wise and in the LXX., nor (apparently) in the tmderstanding among you f 'E1r1<TTf/µo,11 is apostolic Fathers. In the New 'l'eete.ment found here only in the New Testament. In it occurs six times-three times of the the LXX. it is joined with uo,plis (as here) "natural" body, which is contrasted with in Deut. i. 13; iv. 6. "The <11"1<T'M/JJ."'" is the <twµa. ,r11Eup.an1<011 (I Cor. xv. 44 (twice), ou" who =derstands and kno:ws: the uo,pos 46) ; and three times with a moral emphasis iii out'; who carries out his knowledge into resting upon it, "and in every inet1mco 11 OH, IU, 1-18,] THE GENERAL EPISTLE OF JAMES. 45