by stocwach 2 Replies latest jw friends
I received this email from a JW friend:
"Another topic we got to talk about is the scripture at James 4:5. I would
love to know your understanding of who the writer was quoting from. Any
response you provide will be entertaining."
Here is the passage from the Revised Standard version:
"Or do you suppose it is in vain that the scripture says, 'He yearns jealousy over the spirit which he has made to dwell in us'?"
Thanks in advance everyone!
According to the WTS book Commentary on James there is no specific scripture that says that. So the excuse is that James was somehow giving the sense of what the Hebrew Scriptures say.
It is odd how the JW posed the question, though.
herbert
Mmmmmmmm a few other translations say.......
After there are a few WTS Quotes.
-- King James
James 4:5 Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?
-- New King James
James 4:5 Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, "The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously''?
-- American Standard
James 4:5 Or think ye that the scripture speaketh in vain? Doth the spirit which he made to dwell in us long unto envying?
-- Living Bible
James 4:5 Or what do you think the Scripture means when it says that the Holy Spirit, whom God has placed within us, watches over us with tender jealousy?
-- Revised Standard
James 4:5 Or do you suppose it is in vain that the scripture says, "He yearns jealously over the spirit which he has made to dwell in us"?
-- Simple English
James 4:5 The Scripture says that there is a spirit living in you that makes you want to do wrong. Do you think the Scripture says this for nothing?
-- Transliterated, Pronounceable
James 4:5 Ee' dokei'te ho'ti kenoo's hee grafee' le'gei,"Pro's ftho'non epipothei' to' pneu'ma ho' katoo'kisen enheemi'n,"
-- Transliterated, Unaccented
James 4:5 E dokeite hoti kenos he grafe legei,"Pros fthonon epipothei to pneuma ho katokisen enhemin,"
-- New American Standard
James 4:5 Or do you think that the Scripture speaks to no purpose: "He jealously desires the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us"?
-- New Jerusalem with Apocrypha
James 4:5 Can you not see the point of the saying in scripture, "The longing of the spirit he sent to dwell in us is a jealous longing."?
-- New American with Apocrypha
James 4:5 Or do you suppose that the scripture speaks without meaning when it says, "The spirit that he has made to dwell in us tends toward jealousy"?
-- New Revised Standard with Apocrypha
James 4:5 Or do you suppose that it is for nothing that the scripture says, "God {Gk [He]} yearns jealously for the spirit that he has made to dwell in us"?
NWT
*** Rbi8 James 4:4-6 ***
4 Adulteresses, do YOU not know that the friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever, therefore, wants to be a friend of the world is constituting himself an enemy of God. 5 Or does it seem to YOU that the scripture says to no purpose: "It is with a tendency to envy that the spirit which has taken up residence within us keeps longing"? 6 However, the undeserved kindness which he gives is greater. Hence it says: "God opposes the haughty ones, but he gives undeserved kindness to the humble ones."
A few WTS literature quotes...I hope these help....
Cross Ref's of James 4:5...
*** Rbi8 Genesis 8:21 ***
21 And Jehovah began to smell a restful odor, and so Jehovah said in his heart: "Never again shall I call down evil upon the ground on man's account, because the inclination of the heart of man is bad from his youth up; and never again shall I deal every living thing a blow just as I have done.
Explaination the Borg give....
*** it-1 1253-4 James, Letter of ***
Some had fallen into the snare of looking to those more prominent and rich and showing favoritism. (Jas 2:1-9) They failed to discern what they really were in God's eyes and were hearers of the word but not doers. (1:22-27) They had begun to use their tongues wrongly, and their cravings for sensual pleasure were causing fights among them. (3:2-12; 4:1-3) Their desire for material things had brought some into the position of being friends of the world and therefore, not chaste virgins, but spiritual "adulteresses," at enmity with God.-4:4-6.
*** w95 9/15 4 What You Should Know About Jealousy ***
True Christians do not take part in this world's wars. (John 17:16) Sadly, though, individual Christians sometimes get embroiled in verbal fights. If other members of the congregation take sides, these fights can turn into harmful verbal wars. "From what source are there wars and from what source are there fights among you?" the Bible writer James asked fellow believers. (James 4:1) He answered that question by exposing their materialistic greed and added, "You go on . . . coveting," or being "jealous." (James 4:2, footnote) Yes, materialism can lead to coveting and being jealous of those who seem to enjoy better circumstances. For this reason, James warned against the human "tendency to envy."-James 4:5.
*** w97 11/15 19-20 Faith Makes Us Patient and Prayerful ***
4 Worldliness, envy, and pride existed among certain early Christians. (James 4:4-6) James calls some "adulteresses" because they were friends of the world and thus guilty of spiritual adultery. (Ezekiel 16:15-19, 25-45) Surely, we do not want to become worldly in attitude, speech, and actions, for that would make us God's enemies. His Word shows us that "a tendency to envy" is part of the bad inclination, or "spirit," in sinful humans. (Genesis 8:21; Numbers 16:1-3; Psalm 106:16, 17; Ecclesiastes 4:4) So if we realize that we need to fight envy, pride, or some other bad inclination, let us seek God's help by holy spirit. That force, supplied by God's undeserved kindness, is greater than "a tendency to envy." And whereas Jehovah opposes the proud, he will give us undeserved kindness if we fight sinful tendencies.
*** w98 9/1 12-13 Keep Safe as Part of God's Organization ***
19 Whom can we blame if we find wrong thinking taking root in our heart? Satan? To a degree, yes. He is "the ruler of the authority of the air" of this world, in which such attitudes are widespread. (Ephesians 2:1, 2; Titus 2:12) Usually, though, the roots of wrong thinking lie in our own imperfect flesh. After warning against friendship with the world, James wrote: "Does it seem to you that the scripture says to no purpose: 'It is with a tendency to envy that the spirit which has taken up residence within us keeps longing'?" (James 4:5)
The above from a JW point of view might help you see what the Dub is trying to get at
qwerty
