YAC 2:14 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed for doing comparisons of different translations. Click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible. Please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance=normal (All still tentative.)

OET (OET-RV) My fellow believers, what would I gain if I said that someone had faith but it didn’t alter how they live their life? Faith like that wouldn’t be able to save them.

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, magenta:vocative.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT What would be the profit, my brothers, if someone would say he has faith, but he does not have works? That faith is not able to save him, is it?

UST My fellow believers, some people say, “I believe in the Lord Jesus the Messiah,” but they do not do loving things. What they say will do them no good. If they only believe with words, God will certainly not save them.

BSB § What good is it, my brothers, if someone claims to have faith, but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?

BLB What is the profit, my brothers, if anyone says to have faith, but has no works? Is the faith able to save him?

AICNT What [is the][fn] benefit, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?

2:14, is the: Absent from some manuscripts. B(03) C(04) SBLGNT

OEB My friends, what good is it if someone claims that they have faith, but they do not prove it by actions? Can such faith save them?

CSB What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can such faith save him?

NLT What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone?

NIV What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them?

CEV My friends, what good is it to say you have faith, when you don't do anything to show you really do have faith? Can this kind of faith save you?

ESV What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?

NASB What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him?

LSB What use is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him?

WEBBE What good is it, my brothers, if a man says he has faith, but has no works? Can faith save him?

WMBB (Same as above)

MSG Faith in Action
(14-17) Dear friends, do you think you’ll get anywhere in this if you learn all the right words but never do anything? Does merely talking about faith indicate that a person really has it? For instance, you come upon an old friend dressed in rags and half-starved and say, “Good morning, friend! Be clothed in Christ! Be filled with the Holy Spirit!” and walk off without providing so much as a coat or a cup of soup—where does that get you? Isn’t it obvious that God-talk without God-acts is outrageous nonsense?

NET What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can this kind of faith save him?

LSV What [is] the profit, my brothers, if anyone may speak of having faith, but he may not have works? Is that faith able to save him?

FBV My friends, what's the good of someone saying they trust in God when they don't do what's good and right? Can such “trust” save them?

TCNT What is the benefit, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?

T4T My fellow believers, there are some people who say, “I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ,” but they do not do good things for other people. ◄Their saying that will certainly not do them any good!/What good will their saying that do for them?► [RHQ] God will certainly not save people like that who say that they believe, but do not do good things! [RHQ]

LEB What is the benefit, my brothers, if someone says that he has faith but does not have works? That faith is not able to save him, is it?[fn]

2:14 *The negative construction in Greek anticipates a negative answer here

NRSV What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you?

NKJV What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?

NAB What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?

BBE What use is it, my brothers, for a man to say that he has faith, if he does nothing? will such a faith give him salvation?

Moff No Moff YAC (JAM) book available

Wymth What good is it, my brethren, if a man professes to have faith, and yet his actions do not correspond? Can such faith save him?

ASV What doth it profit, my brethren, if a man say he hath faith, but have not works? can that faith save him?

DRA What shall it profit, my brethren, if a man say he hath faith, but hath not works? Shall faith be able to save him?

YLT What [is] the profit, my brethren, if faith, any one may speak of having, and works he may not have? is that faith able to save him?

Drby What [is] the profit, my brethren, if any one say he have faith, but have not works? can faith save him?

RV What doth it profit, my brethren, if a man say he hath faith, but have not works? can that faith save him?

Wbstr What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man sayeth he hath faith, and hath not works? can faith save him?

KJB-1769 What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?
(What doth it profit, my brethren/brothers, though a man say he hath/has faith, and have not works? can faith save him? )

KJB-1611 What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say hee hath faith, and haue not workes? can faith saue him?
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above)

Bshps What profiteth it my brethren, though a man say he hath fayth, and hath not deedes? Can fayth saue hym?
(What profiteth it my brethren/brothers, though a man say he hath/has faith, and hath/has not deades? Can faith save him?)

Gnva What auaileth it, my brethren, though a man saith he hath faith, when he hath no workes? can that faith saue him?
(What auaileth it, my brethren/brothers, though a man saith/says he hath/has faith, when he hath/has no works? can that faith save him? )

Cvdl What a vayleth it my brethre, though a man saye he hath faith, when he hath no dedes? Can faith saue him?
(What a veilth it my brethre, though a man say he hath/has faith, when he hath/has no dedes? Can faith save him?)

TNT What a vayleth it my brethren though a man saye he hath fayth when he hath no dedes? Can fayth save him?
(What a veilth it my brethren/brothers though a man say he hath/has faith when he hath/has no dedes? Can faith save him? )

Wycl Mi britheren, what schal it profite, if ony man seie that he hath feith, but he hath not the werkis? whether feith schal mowe saue hym?
(Mi brethren/brothers, what shall it profite, if any man say that he hath/has faith, but he hath/has not the works? whether faith shall more save him?)

Luth Was hilft‘s, liebe Brüder, so jemand sagt, er habe den Glauben, und hat doch die Werke nicht? Kann auch der Glaube ihn selig machen?
(What hilft‘s, liebe brothers, so someone says, he have the faith, and has though/but the Werke nicht? Kann also the/of_the Glaube him/it selig machen?)

ClVg Quid proderit, fratres mei, si fidem quis dicat se habere, opera autem non habeat? numquid poterit fides salvare eum?[fn]
(What proderit, brothers my/mine, when/but_if faith who/any let_him_say se habere, opera however not/no habeat? numquid poterit fides salvare him? )

2.14 Quid proderit, etc. ID. Hic latius disputat de operibus misericordiæ, ut quos præcedente sententia terruerat, consoletur, docendo quibus remediis expientur quotidiana peccata, sine quibus non agitur vita. Ne illi qui non in uno tantum, sed in multis offendunt, in judicio inveniantur rei omnium.

2.14 What proderit, etc. ID. Hic latius disputat about operibus misericordiæ, as which præcedente sententia terruerat, consoletur, docendo to_whom remediis expientur quotidiana peccata, without to_whom not/no agitur vita. Ne illi who not/no in uno tantum, but in multis offendunt, in yudicio inveniantur rei omnium.

UGNT τί τὸ ὄφελος, ἀδελφοί μου, ἐὰν πίστιν λέγῃ τις, ἔχειν ἔργα, δὲ μὴ ἔχῃ? μὴ δύναται ἡ πίστις σῶσαι αὐτόν?
(ti to ofelos, adelfoi mou, ean pistin legaʸ tis, eⱪein erga, de maʸ eⱪaʸ? maʸ dunatai haʸ pistis sōsai auton?)

SBL-GNT ⸀Τί ὄφελος, ἀδελφοί μου, ἐὰν πίστιν λέγῃ τις ἔχειν ἔργα δὲ μὴ ἔχῃ; μὴ δύναται ἡ πίστις σῶσαι αὐτόν;
(⸀Ti ofelos, adelfoi mou, ean pistin legaʸ tis eⱪein erga de maʸ eⱪaʸ; maʸ dunatai haʸ pistis sōsai auton;)

TC-GNT Τί [fn]τὸ ὄφελος, ἀδελφοί μου, ἐὰν πίστιν λέγῃ τις ἔχειν, ἔργα δὲ μὴ [fn]ἔχῃ; Μὴ δύναται ἡ πίστις σῶσαι αὐτόν;
(Ti to ofelos, adelfoi mou, ean pistin legaʸ tis eⱪein, erga de maʸ eⱪaʸ; Maʸ dunatai haʸ pistis sōsai auton; )

2:14 το ¦ — SBL WH

2:14 εχη ¦ εχει PCK

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs, red:words differ (from our SR-GNT base).

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / rquestion

τί τὸ ὄφελος, ἀδελφοί μου, ἐὰν πίστιν λέγῃ τις, ἔχειν ἔργα, δὲ μὴ ἔχῃ?

what_‹is› (Some words not found in SR-GNT: τί ὄφελος ἀδελφοί μου ἐὰν πίστιν λέγῃ τις ἔχειν ἔργα δὲ μὴ ἔχῃ μὴ δύναται ἡ πίστις σῶσαι αὐτόν)

James is using the question form as a teaching tool. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express this question by translating his words as a statement. Alternate translation: [It does no good, my brothers, for someone to say he has faith if he does not have works.]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom

τί τὸ ὄφελος

This is an idiom. Your language may have a comparable expression that you can use here. Alternate translation: [What good would it do]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

ἀδελφοί μου

brothers ˱of˲_me

See how you translated the term brothers in 1:2. Alternate translation: [my fellow believers]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

ἐὰν πίστιν λέγῃ τις, ἔχειν ἔργα, δὲ μὴ ἔχῃ

if faith /may_be/_saying anyone /to_be/_having works but not /may_be/_having

If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the abstract nouns faith and works by stating the ideas behind them with equivalent expressions. Alternate translation: [if someone said he believed in God but he did not do what God wanted him to do]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

μὴ δύναται ἡ πίστις σῶσαι αὐτόν

not not /is/_able the faith /to/_save him

In context, James is clearly asking not about faith in general, but about faith that is not demonstrated in works. If it would be helpful to your readers, you could indicate that explicitly. Alternate translation: [That kind of faith is not able to save him, is it]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / doublenegatives

μὴ δύναται ἡ πίστις σῶσαι αὐτόν

not not /is/_able the faith /to/_save him

The first word of this sentence in Greek is a negative word that can be used to turn a statement into a question that expects a negative answer. ULT shows this by adding “is it?” Your language may have other ways of asking a question that expects a negative answer, for example, by changing the word order of a positive statement. Alternate translation: [Is that kind of faith able to save him]

Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / rquestion

μὴ δύναται ἡ πίστις σῶσαι αὐτόν?

not not /is/_able the faith /to/_save him

James is using the question form as a teaching tool. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express this question by translating his words as a statement or an exclamation. Alternate translation: [That kind of faith is certainly not able to save him!]

Note 8 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

μὴ δύναται ἡ πίστις σῶσαι αὐτόν?

not not /is/_able the faith /to/_save him

If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the abstract noun faith by stating the ideas behind it with a verb such as “believe.” Alternate translation: [Will merely believing in God save him?]

σῶσαι αὐτόν

/to/_save him

Your language may require you to specify what this kind of faith cannot save a person from. Alternate translation: [save him from God’s judgment]

Parallel YAC 2:14