Open Bible Data Home About News OET Key
OET OET-RV OET-LV ULT UST BSB MSB BLB AICNT OEB WEBBE WMBB NET LSV FBV TCNT T4T LEB BBE Moff JPS Wymth ASV DRA YLT Drby RV SLT Wbstr KJB-1769 KJB-1611 Bshps Gnva Cvdl TNT Wycl SR-GNT UHB BrLXX BrTr Related Topics Parallel Interlinear Reference Dictionary Search
ParallelVerse GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOB JOS JDG RUTH 1 SAM 2 SAM PSA AMOS HOS 1 KI 2 KI 1 CHR 2 CHR PROV ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA (JNA) NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL LAO GES LES ESG DNG 2 PS TOB JDT WIS SIR BAR LJE PAZ SUS BEL MAN 1 MAC 2 MAC 3 MAC 4 MAC YHN (JHN) MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC GAL 1 TH 2 TH 1 COR 2 COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1 TIM TIT 1 PET 2 PET 2 TIM HEB YUD (JUD) 1 YHN (1 JHN) 2 YHN (2 JHN) 3 YHN (3 JHN) REV
Yacob/(James) Intro C1 C2 C3 C4 C5
Yac 2 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V14 V15 V16 V18 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23 V24 V25 V26
Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). 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 to us=normal (All still tentative.)
OET (OET-RV) In other words, faith without the corresponding lifestyle is just dead.![]()
OET-LV Thus also the faith, if not it_may_be_having works, dead it_is by itself.
![]()
SR-GNT Οὕτως καὶ ἡ πίστις, ἐὰν μὴ ἔχῃ ἔργα, νεκρά ἐστιν καθʼ ἑαυτήν. ‡
(Houtōs kai haʸ pistis, ean maʸ eⱪaʸ erga, nekra estin kathʼ heautaʸn.)
Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).
ULT Thus also the faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
UST Similarly, if you just say that you believe in Jesus but you do not do anything that demonstrates that, you do not really believe in Jesus.
BSB So too, faith by itself, if it does not result in action,[fn] is dead.
2:17 Literally if it does not have works
MSB So too, faith by itself, if it does not result in action,[fn] is dead.
2:17 Literally if it does not have works
BLB So also, faith by itself if it has not works, is dead.
AICNT In the same way, faith also, if it does not have works, is dead by itself.
OEB In just the same way faith, if not followed by actions, is, by itself, a lifeless thing.
WEBBE Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead in itself.
WMBB (Same as above)
MSG (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 So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself.
LSV So also faith, if it may not have works, is dead by itself.
FBV By itself even your trust-based faith in God is dead and worthless if you don't actually do what's good and right.
TCNT In the same way faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
T4T Similarly, those who do not do good things to help others, what they have said about their believing in Christ is as useless [MET] as a dead person is useless. They do not really believe in Christ.
LEB Thus also faith, if it does not have works, is dead by itself.
BBE Even so faith without works is dead.
Moff So faith, unless it has deeds, is dead in itself.
Wymth So also faith, if it is unaccompanied by obedience, has no life in it—so long as it stands alone.
ASV Even so faith, if it have not works, is dead in itself.
DRA So faith also, if it have not works, is dead in itself.
YLT so also the faith, if it may not have works, is dead by itself.
Drby So also faith, if it have not works, is dead by itself.
RV Even so faith, if it have not works, is dead in itself.
SLT So also faith, if it have not works, is dead by itself.
Wbstr Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.
KJB-1769 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.
(Even so faith, if it hath/has not works, is dead, being alone. )
KJB-1611 Euen so faith, if it hath not works, is dead being [fn]alone.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation and footnotes)
2:17 Gr. by it selfe.
Bshps Euen so, fayth, yf it haue not deedes, is dead in it selfe:
(Even so, faith, if it have not deeds, is dead in itself:)
Gnva Euen so the faith, if it haue no woorkes, is dead in it selfe.
(Even so the faith, if it have no works, is dead in itself. )
Cvdl Euen so faith, yf it haue no dedes, is deed in it selfe.
(Even so faith, if it have no deeds, is deed in itself.)
TNT Even so fayth yf it have no dedes is deed in it selfe.
(Even so faith if it have no deeds is deed in itself. )
Wycl So also feith, if it hath not werkis, is deed in it silf.
(So also faith, if it hath/has not works, is deed in itself.)
Luth Also auch der Glaube, wenn er nicht Werke hat, ist er tot an ihm selber.
(So also the/of_the faith, when he not work has, is he dead at/to him himself.)
ClVg Sic et fides, si non habeat opera, mortua est in semetipsa.
(So and faith, when/but_if not/no have works, dead it_is in/into/on semetipsa. )
UGNT οὕτως καὶ ἡ πίστις, ἐὰν μὴ ἔχῃ ἔργα, νεκρά ἐστιν καθ’ ἑαυτήν.
(houtōs kai haʸ pistis, ean maʸ eⱪaʸ erga, nekra estin kath’ heautaʸn.)
SBL-GNT οὕτως καὶ ἡ πίστις, ἐὰν μὴ ⸂ἔχῃ ἔργα⸃, νεκρά ἐστιν καθʼ ἑαυτήν.
(houtōs kai haʸ pistis, ean maʸ ⸂eⱪaʸ erga⸃, nekra estin kathʼ heautaʸn.)
RP-GNT Οὕτως καὶ ἡ πίστις, ἐὰν μὴ ἔργα ἔχῃ, νεκρά ἐστιν καθ' ἑαυτήν.
(Houtōs kai haʸ pistis, ean maʸ erga eⱪaʸ, nekra estin kath' heautaʸn.)
TC-GNT Οὕτω καὶ ἡ πίστις, ἐὰν μὴ [fn]ἔργα ἔχῃ, νεκρά ἐστι καθ᾽ ἑαυτήν.
(Houtō kai haʸ pistis, ean maʸ erga eⱪaʸ, nekra esti kath heautaʸn. )
2:17 εργα εχη ¦ εχη εργα CT
Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs, red:words differ (from our SR-GNT base).
2:14-26 James explains why Christians need to be concerned about the judgment of their actions (2:12-13): Real faith must be accompanied by good deeds (see 1:22-25).
In this section, James emphasized that true faith in Jesus is a matter of both believing and doing good deeds. There is no such thing as faith without good deeds to go with it. It is the good deeds that demonstrate that there is true faith. Faith without good deeds is not true faith at all.
James used examples from the lives of Rahab and Abraham to show that faith and good deeds always go together.
Some other possible headings for this section are:
Faith and good deeds
If you really believe/trust you will also do good deeds
Real faith is proved by good deeds.
In this paragraph, James used three rhetorical questions to emphasize that faith without good deeds is useless.
In 2:17, James stated the lesson he was trying to teach in the illustration in 2:15–16.
So too, faith by itself,
It is the same with faith/believing. If a person just believes,
Likewise, if you(sing) only say that you believe/trust in Jesus Christ,
So too: The phrase So too introduces the general principle that 2:16 illustrates. Words of greeting are of no help to a cold and hungry man unless we also give him what he needs. So also, our faith is of no value unless we also do good deeds for God.
Some other ways to translate this phrase are:
So also (NET)
Even so (KJV)
So it is with faith (GNT)
Likewise
faith by itself: The word faith in this context refers to the act of trusting in or relying on Jesus Christ (as in 2:14b). The phrase by itself means “when faith is alone.” This indicates that a person only believes, but he has no deeds to accompany his belief.
Some other ways to translate this phrase are:
faith alone
only/just trusting
In some languages, it is more natural to use a verb instead of the noun faith. For example:
a person just trusts
you only believe in Jesus
See believe, meaning 2, in the Glossary.
if it does not result in action,
and he does not also do good deeds,
but you(sing) do not also do good deeds which show it,
if it does not result in action: This phrase means that the person does not also do good deeds that show that he believes in Jesus. Instead, he behaves the same way as people who do not believe in Jesus.
Some other ways to translate this phrase are:
if that faith does not cause him to do any good deeds
if he does not also do things which show that his faith/trust is genuine
if he fails to show that he believes by what he does
is dead.
his faith/believing is a dead thing.
your(sing) kind of believing/trusting is useless.
is dead: The phrase is dead is a metaphor. James meant that the person’s faith had no power to do anything and so was of no use. (Compare 2:14.) There are several ways to translate this phrase:
Keep the metaphor. For example:
is dead (NET)
has no life in it
Use a simile. For example:
is as if dead
is like a dead thing
Use a simile with a word that explains the metaphor. For example:
is powerless as if dead
is as useless as a dead thing
Use a word or phrase that explains the metaphor. For example:
is powerless
is useless
is unable to do anything
he does not truly trust in God
In some languages, it may be natural to change the order of the clauses in 2:17. For example:
17aIn the same way, faith by itself 17cis dead 17bif it doesn’t cause you to do any good things. (GW)
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / personification
ἡ πίστις, ἐὰν μὴ ἔχῃ ἔργα, νεκρά ἐστιν καθ’ ἑαυτήν
¬the faith (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὕτως καί ἡ πίστις ἐάν μή ἔχῃ ἔργα νεκρά ἐστίν καθʼ ἑαυτήν)
James is speaking of faith as if it would be a living thing if it had works but not be alive if it did not have them. Alternate translation: [a person’s faith is not genuine by itself; he must express it through works]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns
ἡ πίστις, ἐὰν μὴ ἔχῃ ἔργα, νεκρά ἐστιν καθ’ ἑαυτήν
¬the faith (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὕτως καί ἡ πίστις ἐάν μή ἔχῃ ἔργα νεκρά ἐστίν καθʼ ἑαυτήν)
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 a person says he believes in God but he does not do what God wants him to do, then he does not really believe in God]