James 2 · Verse 6

James 2:6

But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats?
James 2:6, King James Version

James 2:6 in other translations

BSBBut you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you and drag you into court?
WEBBut you have dishonored the poor man. Don’t the rich oppress you and personally drag you before the courts?
ASVBut ye have dishonored the poor man. Do not the rich oppress you, and themselves drag you before the judgment-seats?
YLTand ye did dishonour the poor one; do not the rich oppress you and themselves draw you to judgment-seats;
DARBYBut ye have despised the poor man. Do not the rich oppress you, and do not they drag you before the tribunals?
BBEBut you have put the poor man to shame. Are not the men of wealth rulers over you? do they not take you by force before their judges?
WebsterBut ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment-seats?

What does James 2:6 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
6. The world's judgment of the poor contrasted with God's. ye--Christians, from whom better things might have been expected; there is no marvel that men of the world do so. despised--literally, "dishonored." To dishonor the poor is to dishonor those whom God honors, and so to invert the order of God [Calvin]. rich--as a class. oppress--literally, "abuse their power against" you. draw you--Translate, "is it not they (those very persons whom ye partially prefer, Jas 2:1-4) that drag you (namely, with violence)" [Alford]. before ... judgment seats--instituting persecutions for religion, as well as oppressive lawsuits, against you.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Barnes' Notes
Verse 6. But ye have despised the poor. Koppe reads this as an interrogation: "Do ye despise the poor?" Perhaps it might be understood somewhat ironically: "You despise the poor, do you, and are disposed to honour the rich! Look then, and see how the rich treat you, and see whether you have so much occasion to regard them with any peculiar respect." The object of the apostle is to fix the attention on the impropriety of that partiality which many were disposed to show to the rich, by reminding them that the rich had never evinced towards them any such treatment as to lay the foundation of a claim to the honour which they were disposed to render them.

Do not rich men oppress you? Referring probably to something in their conduct which existed particularly then. The meaning is not that they oppressed the poor as such, but that they oppressed those whom James addressed. It is probable that then, as since, a considerable portion of those who were Christians were in fact poor, and that this would have all the force of a personal appeal; but still the particular thought is, that it was a characteristic of the rich and the great, whom they were disposed peculiarly to honour, to oppress and crush the poor. The Greek here is very expressive: "Do they not imperiously lord it over you?" The statement here will apply with too much force to the rich in every age.

And draw you before the judgment-seats. That is, they are your persecutors rather than your friends. It was undoubtedly the case that many of the rich were engaged in persecuting Christians, and that on various pretenses they dragged them before the judicial tribunals.

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 6 Do not rich men oppress you - The administration of justice was at this time in a miserable state of corruption among the Jews; but a Christian was one who was to expect no justice any where but from his God. The words καταδυναστευουσιν, exceedingly oppress, and ἑλκουσιν εις κριτηρια, drag you to courts of justice, show how grievously oppressed and maltreated the Christians were by their countrymen the Jews, who made law a pretext to afflict their bodies, and spoil them of their property.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on James 2:1-13

Chapter Outline All professions of faith are vain, if not producing love and justice to others. (1-13) The necessity of good works to prove the sincerity of faith, which otherwise will be of no more advantage than the faith of devils. (14-26) Verses 1-13 Those who profess faith in Christ as the Lord of glory, must not respect persons on account of mere outward circumstances and appearances, in a manner not agreeing…

Read the full comment on James 2:1-13 →

James 2:6 in the original Greek

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

ὑμεῖςhumeisYou yourselvesG4771
δὲdehoweverG1161
ἠτιμάσατεētimasatedishonoredG818
τὸνtontheG3588
πτωχόν.ptōchonpoor.G4434
οὐχouchSurelyG3756
οἱhoitheG3588
πλούσιοιplousioirichG4145
καταδυναστεύουσινkatadunasteuousinare oppressingG2616
ὑμῶνhumōnyouG4771
καὶkaiandG2532
αὐτοὶautoithey themselvesG846
ἕλκουσινhelkousindraggingG1670
ὑμᾶςhumasyouG4771
εἰςeisintoG1519
κριτήρια;kritēriacourt?G2922

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for James 2:6

  • Proverbs 17:5

    Whoso mocketh the poor reproacheth his Maker: and he that is glad at calamities shall not be unpunished.

  • Proverbs 14:31

    He that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker: but he that honoureth him hath mercy on the poor.

  • 1 Corinthians 11:22

    What? have ye not houses to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God, and shame them that have not? What shall I say to you? shall I praise you in this? I praise you not.

  • Psalms 14:6

    Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor, because the Lord is his refuge.

  • James 5:4

    Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.

  • Isaiah 3:14-15

    The Lord will enter into judgment with the ancients of his people, and the princes thereof: for ye have eaten up the vineyard; the spoil of the poor is in your houses. What mean ye that ye beat my people to pieces, and grind the faces of the poor? saith the Lord God of hosts.

  • Amos 5:11

    Forasmuch therefore as your treading is upon the poor, and ye take from him burdens of wheat: ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drink wine of them.

  • Psalms 12:5

    For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the Lord; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.

  • Proverbs 22:16

    He that oppresseth the poor to increase his riches, and he that giveth to the rich, shall surely come to want.

  • Micah 6:11-12

    Shall I count them pure with the wicked balances, and with the bag of deceitful weights? For the rich men thereof are full of violence, and the inhabitants thereof have spoken lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.

  • Acts 16:19-20

    And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers, And brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city,

  • Acts 8:3

    As for Saul, he made havock of the church, entering into every house, and haling men and women committed them to prison.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
ye.
3; Ps 14:6; Pr 14:31; 17:5; Ec 9:15,16; Isa 53:3; Joh 8:49; 1Co 11:22
Do.
5:4; Job 20:19; Ps 10:2,8,10,14; 12:5; Pr 22:16; Ec 5:8; Isa 3:14,15
Am 2:6,7; 4:1; 5:11; 8:4-6; Mic 6:11,12; Hab 3:14; Zec 7:10
and.
5:6; 1Ki 21:11-13; Ac 4:1-3,26-28; 5:17,18,26,27; 13:50; 16:19,20
Ac 17:6; 18:12

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • James 2:5

    Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?

  • James 2:6

    But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats?

  • James 2:7

    Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called?

Read all of James 2

James 2:6 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Mas vosotros habéis afrentado al pobre. ¿No os oprimen los ricos, y no son ellos los mismos que os arrastran á los juzgados?
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Mais vous, vous avez méprisé le pauvre. Les riches ne vous oppriment-ils pas, et ne sont-ce pas eux qui vous tirent devant les tribunaux?
German
Elberfelder 1871		Ihr aber habt den Armen verachtet. Unterdrücken euch nicht die Reichen, und ziehen nicht sie euch vor die Gerichte?
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		vos autem exhonorastis pauperem. Nonne divites per potentiam opprimunt vos, et ipsi trahunt vos ad judicia?