Some scholars have difficulty seeing any connection between this verse and the previous verse. However, there are some indications that the two verses are related. For one thing there is the thought about the coming of judgment. For another the call to refrain from complaining against each other (verse 9) can be taken as one aspect of the call to be patient (verse 7). The saying in verse 9, then, may be taken as a second plea for patience.

Do not grumble, brethren, against one another: the urgency of the appeal is seen in repeating the direct address brethren. Here again this is best rendered as “brothers and sisters,” “fellow believers,” “fellow Christians,” or just “friends” (Good News Translation). The primary meaning of the verb “to grumble” is “to groan.” This causes some problem in that, to some people, groaning seems to be out of place here. The problem is in the exact meaning of the verb in the present context. The verb is usually used absolutely without an object in the New Testament. It is used to refer to intensive feelings of groaning accompanying a prayer (Mark 7.34) and of the groaning of the whole creation, including human beings, waiting to be set free (Rom 8.23). But here in this context it is used with an object, against one another. Conditioned by the object the verb means more “to complain,” “to grumble,” or even “to blame.” We may therefore render the imperative as “Do not complain against one another” (Good News Translation) or “do not blame your troubles on one another” (Revised English Bible). The imperative is in the present tense, meaning that it may be referring to a habitual action, and so it may be rendered as “Do not keep complaining….”

The reason for not complaining is that you may not be judged. Complaining against others may be considered passing judgment on others. This is something forbidden by Christ in Matt 7.1. And in this passage we find the same expression used there, that you may not be judged. The subject of judgment is clearly God, and so we can render the clause as “so that God will not judge you” (Good News Translation). See 2.4; 4.11, for comments on the translation of judge.

Behold, the Judge is standing at the doors: to reinforce his prohibition James adds that God’s judgment is near. Here he uses the demonstrative particle behold to call the readers’ attention to his warning, and this may be rendered as “see” (New Revised Standard Version) or “look.” See 5.4 for a comment on the translation of behold. The identity of the Judge is debated. Because of the parallel thought with “the coming of the Lord” in verses 7-8, where the Lord is identified as Christ, some scholars suggest that the Judge refers to Christ. However, the reference is most likely to be to God. In the previous sentence the subject of judgment is already identified as God. Then in 4.12 there is a strong affirmation that there is one judge alone, and there the reference is to the coming judgment of God. This being the case, in some languages it will be more meaningful to translate the phrase the Judge as “God, the Judge,” or simply to use a pronoun, since the previous sentence identifies God as the Judge: for example, “… so that God will not judge you. He [God] is….” The expression at the doors is literally “before the doors” (American Standard Version). It is sometimes taken to refer to a place, namely the city gate, where judgment takes place. But it is more likely that it conveys a sense of nearness, giving a vivid picture that the Judge is about to arrive, indeed his foot is already on the doorstep. In cultures where standing at the doors will not be a meaningful metaphor, we may translate, for example, “He [God] is near, ready to appear” (compare Good News Translation).

Quoted with permission from Loh, I-Jin and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Letter from James. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .