2:17

In 2:17, James stated the lesson he was trying to teach in the illustration in 2:15–16.

2:17a

So too: The phrase So too introduces the general principle that 2:16 illustrates. Words of greeting are of no help to a cold and hungry man unless we also give him what he needs. So also, our faith is of no value unless we also do good deeds for God.

Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

So also (NET Bible)
-or-
Even so (King James Version)
-or-
So it is with faith (Good News Translation)
-or-
Likewise

faith by itself: The word faith in this context refers to the act of trusting in or relying on Jesus Christ (as in 2:14b). The phrase by itself means “when faith is alone.” This indicates that a person only believes, but he has no deeds to accompany his belief.

Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

faith alone
-or-
only/just trusting

In some languages, it is more natural to use a verb instead of the noun faith. For example:

a person just trusts
-or-
you only believe in Jesus

2:17b

if it does not result in action: This phrase means that the person does not also do good deeds that show that he believes in Jesus. Instead, he behaves the same way as people who do not believe in Jesus.

Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

if that faith does not cause him to do any good deeds
-or-
if he does not also do things which show that his faith/trust is genuine
-or-
if he fails to show that he believes by what he does

2:17c

is dead: The phrase is dead is a metaphor. James meant that the person’s faith had no power to do anything and so was of no use. (Compare 2:14.) There are several ways to translate this phrase:

• Keep the metaphor. For example:

is dead (NET Bible)
-or-
has no life in it

• Use a simile. For example:

is as if dead
-or-
is like a dead thing

• Use a simile with a word that explains the metaphor. For example:

is powerless as if dead
-or-
is as useless as a dead thing

• Use a word or phrase that explains the metaphor. For example:

is powerless
-or-
is useless
-or-
is unable to do anything
-or-
he does not truly trust in God

General Comment on 2:17a–c

In some languages, it may be natural to change the order of the clauses in 2:17. For example:

^17aIn the same way, faith by itself ^17cis dead ^17bif it doesn’t cause you to do any good things. (God’s Word)

© 2012 by SIL International®

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible. BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.