Passage

James 1.25

Book: James · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV

23. For if any one is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a mirror: 24. for he beholdeth himself, and goeth away, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.

25. But he that looketh into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and so continueth, being not a hearer that forgetteth but a doer that worketh, this man shall be blessed in his doing.

If any man thinketh himself to be religious, while he bridleth not his tongue but deceiveth his heart, this man's religion is vain. 27. Pure religion and undefiled before our God and Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world. (James 1:23-27, ASV)

WEB

23. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man looking at his natural face in a mirror; 24. for he sees himself, and goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.

25. But he who looks into the perfect law of freedom, and continues, not being a hearer who forgets, but a doer of the work, this man will be blessed in what he does.

If anyone among you thinks himself to be religious while he doesn’t bridle his tongue, but deceives his heart, this man’s religion is worthless. 27. Pure religion and undefiled before our God and Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained by the world. (James 1:23-27, WEB)

KJV

23. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 24. For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.

25. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. ^{deed: or, doing}

If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. 27. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. (James 1:23-27, KJV)

YLT

23. because, if any one is a hearer of the word and not a doer, this one hath been like to a man viewing his natural face in a mirror, 24. for he did view himself, and hath gone away, and immediately he did forget of what kind he was;

25. and he who did look into the perfect law, that of liberty, and did continue there, this one, not a forgetful hearer becoming, but a doer of work, this one shall be happy in his doing.

If any one doth think to be religious among you, not bridling his tongue, but deceiving his heart, of this one vain [is] the religion; 27. religion pure and undefiled with the God and Father is this, to look after orphans and widows in their tribulation, unspotted to keep himself from the world. (James 1:23-27, YLT)

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Setting

Speaker: James (Iakōbos), identified by the great majority of interpreters as the brother of Jesus (Galatians 1:19; Mark 6:3), leader of the Jerusalem church (Acts 15:13; Acts 21:18). He introduces himself simply as "a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ" (James 1:1), never as a relative.
Audience: Jewish believers outside Palestine, addressed as "the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad" (James 1:1). The congregations meet in a synagōgē (James 2:2) and include both poor members and wealthy visitors.
Location: Jerusalem, from which James led the mother church.
Time period: Date disputed. An early date (c. AD 44-49) would make this the earliest surviving Christian writing; a later one places it before James's death, which Josephus dates to AD 62 (Antiquities 20.200). The letter shows no awareness of the Gentile-circumcision controversy settled in Acts 15, which many take as evidence for the early date.

Theological reading

"But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does."

The image is the mirror. Verses 23-24 have described a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror, goes away, and immediately forgets what he looked like. Parakypsas, to stoop down and look closely, is the contrast: the same verb describes John and Peter stooping to look into the empty tomb (John 20:5; Luke 24:12). Not a glance, a careful examination.

"The perfect law, the law of liberty." The phrase is striking in a letter to Jewish believers, and James uses it again at James 2:12. He does not treat law and freedom as opposites; the law rightly related to is what frees. Compare Psalm 19:7, the law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul, and Psalm 119:45, "I will walk at liberty, for I seek Your precepts."

"Effectual doer." Poiētēs ergou, a doer of work, against akroatēs epilēsmonēs, a forgetful hearer. Akroatēs is the word for someone attending a lecture, and the contrast with poiētēs is the letter's central concern in one phrase: hearing without doing is the failure James is writing against, in speech (verse 26), in mercy (James 2:15-16), and in faith (James 2:17).

"Blessed in what he does." En tē poiēsei autou, in his doing, not merely after it. The blessing attaches to the activity rather than being a reward that follows it.

Key words

Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word; see Lexicon Roadmap.

G5046 - teleios, teleios, Strong's G5046
G3551 - nomos, nomos, Strong's G3551
G1096 - ginomai, ginomai, Strong's G1096

Quoted in

Lexicon:

Passages:

James 1.22

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.