HolyStudy
Bible IndexRead BibleNotesChurchesMissionPrivacyTermsContact
© 2026 HolyStudy
HomeRead BibleBible NotesChurchesSign in
HolyStudy
HomeRead BibleBible NotesChurches
Sign in

James 4

1

From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?

1
1
2

Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.

1
2
3

Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

1
4

Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

5

Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?

1
6

But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

1
7

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

1
1
8

Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

1
9

Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.

10

Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

1
11

Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.

12

There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?

13

Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain:

1
14

Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.

15

For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.

16

But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.

17

Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

1
1
← Previous ChapterNext Chapter →

James 4:2

“Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.”

Study Summary

You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God — the causal chain is stark: unmet desire leads to violence, envy, conflict, and ultimately to prayerlessness. The progression from murder to quarreling to prayerlessness shows that the absence of communion with God enables vice. The diagnosis is direct: the root problem is not lack of resources but lack of petition before God.

Community Reflections

1
David Chen (test user)7h ago
Hope in suffering — James 4

Following God is costly, but the reward is eternal.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. This connects directly to the promise made to Abraham. The Hebrew word used here carries a richness that English can't fully capture. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. I love how this passage doesn't shy away from the difficulty of obedience. Following God is costly, but the reward is eternal.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. I think this is a call to trust beyond what we can see. The Hebrew word used here carries a richness that English can't fully capture. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. The early church would have heard this very differently than we do today. God meets us exactly where we are — broken, uncertain, yet chosen. It implies covenant loyalty, steadfast love that never wavers.. The…

Read the note →

James 4:2

“Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.”

Study Summary

You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God — the causal chain is stark: unmet desire leads to violence, envy, conflict, and ultimately to prayerlessness. The progression from murder to quarreling to prayerlessness shows that the absence of communion with God enables vice. The diagnosis is direct: the root problem is not lack of resources but lack of petition before God.

Community Reflections

1
David Chen (test user)7h ago
Hope in suffering — James 4

Following God is costly, but the reward is eternal.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. This connects directly to the promise made to Abraham. The Hebrew word used here carries a richness that English can't fully capture. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. I love how this passage doesn't shy away from the difficulty of obedience. Following God is costly, but the reward is eternal.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. I think this is a call to trust beyond what we can see. The Hebrew word used here carries a richness that English can't fully capture. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. The early church would have heard this very differently than we do today. God meets us exactly where we are — broken, uncertain, yet chosen. It implies covenant loyalty, steadfast love that never wavers.. The…

Read the note →

James 4:2

You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God — the causal chain is stark: unmet desire leads to violence, envy, conflict, and ultimately to prayerlessness. The progression from murder to quarreling to prayerlessness shows that the absence of communion with God enables vice. The diagnosis is direct: the root problem is not lack of resources but lack of petition before God.