James 2:17-18,22
James 2:14-18 The Message (MSG)
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? I can already hear one of you agreeing by saying, “Sounds good. You take care of the faith department, I’ll handle the works department.” Not so fast. You can no more show me your works apart from your faith than I can show you my faith apart from my works. Faith and works, works and faith, fit together hand in glove.
James 2:21-24 The Message (MSG)
Wasn’t our ancestor Abraham “made right with God by works” when he placed his son Isaac on the sacrificial altar? Isn’t it obvious that faith and works are yoked partners, that faith expresses itself in works? That the works are “works of faith”? The full meaning of “believe” in the Scripture sentence, “Abraham believed God and was set right with God,” includes his action. It’s that weave of believing and acting that got Abraham named “God’s friend.” Is it not evident that a person is made right with God not by a barren faith but by faith fruitful in works?
James 2:17-18 King James Version (KJV)
Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.
James 2:22 King James Version (KJV)
Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?
James 2:17-18 New American Standard Bible - NASB 1995 (NASB1995)
Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. But someone may well say, “You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.”
James 2:22 New American Standard Bible - NASB 1995 (NASB1995)
You see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected
James 2:17-18 New Century Version (NCV)
In the same way, faith by itself—that does nothing—is dead. Someone might say, “You have faith, but I have deeds.” Show me your faith without doing anything, and I will show you my faith by what I do.
James 2:22 New Century Version (NCV)
So you see that Abraham’s faith and the things he did worked together. His faith was made perfect by what he did.
James 2:17-18 American Standard Version (ASV)
Even so faith, if it have not works, is dead in itself. Yea, a man will say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith apart from thy works, and I by my works will show thee my faith.
James 2:22 American Standard Version (ASV)
Thou seest that faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect
James 2:17-18 New International Version (NIV)
In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.
James 2:22 New International Version (NIV)
You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did.
James 2:17-18 New King James Version (NKJV)
Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.
James 2:22 New King James Version (NKJV)
Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?
James 2:17-18 Amplified Bible (AMP)
So too, faith, if it does not have works [to back it up], is by itself dead [inoperative and ineffective]. But someone may say, “You [claim to] have faith and I have [good] works; show me your [alleged] faith without the works [if you can], and I will show you my faith by my works [that is, by what I do].”
James 2:22 Amplified Bible (AMP)
You see that [his] faith was working together with his works, and as a result of the works, his faith was completed [reaching its maturity when he expressed his faith through obedience].
James 2:17-18 New Living Translation (NLT)
So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless. Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”
James 2:22 New Living Translation (NLT)
You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete.
James 2:17-18 The Passion Translation (TPT)
So then faith that doesn’t involve action is phony. But someone might object and say, “One person has faith and another person has works.” Go ahead then and prove to me that you have faith without works and I will show you faith by my works as proof that I believe.
James (Jacob) 2:22 The Passion Translation (TPT)
Can’t you see how his action cooperated with his faith and by his action faith found its full expression?