Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you.
James 5:1-6
The message of James 5:1-6 can hardly be ignored. The pointed criticism from James comes as a climax to the correction he provides throughout the rest of the letter.* Leading up to this point, James has called for social equality, humility, and joy through difficulty within the Church. He now turns to outside oppressors.*
The oppressors to which James turns his gaze are not simply the wealthy in the community, but they are the wealthy in the community who have placed their trust in money and wealth (which does not last the test of time) instead of God and have used it to oppress others.*
In the time of James, day laborers depended upon their daily wages to survive.* To not make money one day meant to not eat that day.* The most wealthy in the community, unlike today, were often agriculturists who owned land and employed day laborers (who were the poorest of the poor) or slaves.* James cries out against them because they have denied the laborers their wages, which could equate to the murder of those whom the wealthy took advantage of.*
In the time of James, the poor would have no hope in court against the wealthy, no matter how unjust the situation.* James lets them know that God sees all and is just.*
The expectation for the rich in the context of Christian community is that the rich would help the poor, not just hoard more and more for themselves.* This is especially relevant in our current, American culture where gaining more and more items while saving more and more money for retirement is emphasized. While wealth, investment, and saving are not bad, they are a slippery slope that may lead to (without caution and submission to Christ) the behavior that James calls out in 5:1-6.* They may lead to ignoring God, ignoring our brothers and sisters in need, and welcoming the justice of God.*
These words are sharp. They cut. They may save us.
Today, take a step.
Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to allow Him to help you to see the poor around you and act. Perhaps God wants you to repent for a self-focus that ignores the will of God and the need of others. Perhaps today God wants you to know that He is just and will fight for you when you have been taken advantage of.
Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.
Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus.
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*Blomberg, C. L., & Kamell, M. J. (2008). James (Vol. 16, pp. 219–226). Zondervan.
Guthrie, G. H. (2006). James. In T. Longman III & D. E. Garland (Eds.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Hebrews–Revelation (Revised Edition) (Vol. 13, pp. 261–264). Zondervan.
Stulac, G. M. (1993). James (Jas 5:1–6). IVP Academic.
Moo, D. J. (2021). The Letter of James (D. A. Carson, Ed.; Second Edition, pp. 264–278). William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
Nystrom, D. P. (1997). James (pp. 269–283). Zondervan Publishing House.
Martin, R. P. (1988). James (Vol. 48, pp. 175–184). Word, Incorporated.