Rich oppressors will be judged

1Come now, you rich, howl as you weep over your distresses that are coming upon you!

2Your wealth has decayed and your clothes have become moth-eaten.

3Your gold and silver are corroded, ⁷¹and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire—you stored it up for the last days. ⁷²

4Look, the wages of the workers who cut your fields, that were unjustly held back by you, cry out, and the loud cries of the reapers have entered the ears of the Lord of Hosts.

5You have lived on the earth in self-indulgence and luxury, you fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter. ⁷³

6You condemned, you murdered the righteous—he offers you no resistance. ⁷⁴

Patience and perseverance

7Therefore, brothers, be patient until the coming of the Lord. Consider, the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient over it until it receives the early and late rain.

8You also be patient. Keep your hearts firm, because the coming of the Lord has approached.

9Do not groan against one another, brothers, lest you be judged. Look, the Judge is standing at your doors!

10Brothers, take as an example the patient bearing of hardship and the steadfastness of the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. ⁷⁵

11Indeed we count as blessed those who endure—you have heard of the perseverance of Job and have seen the final outcome given by the Lord, that He is very compassionate and merciful. ⁷⁶

12But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or any other oath. Let your “Yes” be “Yes”, and your “No”, “No”, lest you fall into pretense. ⁷⁷

Righteous prayer is powerful

13Is anyone among you suffering hardship? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise.

14Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the congregation, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.

15And the prayer of faith will deliver the one who is sick, ⁷⁸and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sin, it will be forgiven him. ⁷⁹

16Confess your transgressions to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. ⁸⁰The prayer of a righteous one, being operative, is very powerful. ⁸¹

17Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly for it not to rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.

18And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain and the earth produced its fruit.

Help the wanderer

19Brothers, if anyone among you should wander away from the truth, and someone should turn him back,

20let him know that the one who turns a sinner back from the error of his way will deliver a soul from death ⁸²and will remove from sight a multitude of sins. ⁸³