Πόθεν πόλεμοι καὶ πόθεν μάχαι ἐν ὑμῖν; οὐκ ἐντεῦθεν, ἐκ τῶν ἡδονῶν ὑμῶν τῶν στρατευομένων ἐν τοῖς μέλεσιν ὑμῶν;
Where do wars and fights come from among you? Is it not from your pleasures that wage war in your members?
The Koine Bible
The Scriptures in Greek with direct English translation.
SBL Greek New Testament
James 4
Greek text followed verse by verse by a direct English translation.
Text size:
ἐπιθυμεῖτε, καὶ οὐκ ἔχετε· φονεύετε καὶ ζηλοῦτε, καὶ οὐ δύνασθε ἐπιτυχεῖν· μάχεσθε καὶ πολεμεῖτε. οὐκ ἔχετε διὰ τὸ μὴ αἰτεῖσθαι ὑμᾶς·
You desire, but you do not have; you murder and envy, but you cannot obtain; you fight and wage war. You do not have because you do not ask.
You ask and do not receive because you ask wrongly, in order to spend it on your pleasures.
μοιχαλίδες, οὐκ οἴδατε ὅτι ἡ φιλία τοῦ κόσμου ἔχθρα τοῦ θεοῦ ἐστιν; ὃς ἐὰν οὖν βουληθῇ φίλος εἶναι τοῦ κόσμου, ἐχθρὸς τοῦ θεοῦ καθίσταται.
Adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore, whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, The spirit that dwells in us desires envy?
But he gives greater grace; therefore he says, God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners, and purify your hearts, double-minded.
ταλαιπωρήσατε καὶ πενθήσατε καὶ κλαύσατε· ὁ γέλως ὑμῶν εἰς πένθος μετατραπήτω καὶ ἡ χαρὰ εἰς κατήφειαν·
Be afflicted and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy into gloom.
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
Μὴ καταλαλεῖτε ἀλλήλων, ἀδελφοί· ὁ καταλαλῶν ἀδελφοῦ ἢ κρίνων τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ καταλαλεῖ νόμου καὶ κρίνει νόμον· εἰ δὲ νόμον κρίνεις, οὐκ εἶ ποιητὴς νόμου ἀλλὰ κριτής.
Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks evil against a brother or judges his brother speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge.
There is one lawgiver and judge, the one able to save and to destroy; but who are you to judge your neighbor?
Ἄγε νῦν οἱ λέγοντες· Σήμερον ἢ αὔριον πορευσόμεθα εἰς τήνδε τὴν πόλιν καὶ ποιήσομεν ἐκεῖ ἐνιαυτὸν καὶ ἐμπορευσόμεθα καὶ κερδήσομεν·
Come now, you who say, Today or tomorrow we will go to this city and there we will spend a year and trade and make a profit.
οἵτινες οὐκ ἐπίστασθε τὸ τῆς αὔριον ποία ἡ ζωὴ ὑμῶν· ἀτμὶς γάρ ἐστε ἡ πρὸς ὀλίγον φαινομένη, ἔπειτα καὶ ἀφανιζομένη·
You do not know what your life will be tomorrow. For you are a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes.
Instead of saying, If the Lord wills, and we will live, we will do this or that.
But now you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil.
Therefore, if anyone knows what is good to do and does not do it, it is sin for him.