James 4:17
You see, if you know the right thing to do, but you don’t do it, it is just the same for you as if you did something wrong.
Plain English Version
In The King James Version
Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.
In Context
Cross References
John 9:41Jesus said, “If you knew you were blind, you would let me help you, and then God would say that you are not guilty for the bad things you did. But you say you can see, and you don’t let me help you, so you are still guilty.”
John 15:22I came and talked to them, but they didn’t listen to me. So they are going against God, and he will say they are guilty. And they can’t argue with him. They can’t say they didn’t hear my message.
Romans 1:32A long time ago, God said, “Anyone that does these sorts of things has to die.” That is true, and those people know that God said that, but they don’t take any notice of him. They keep on doing those bad things, and worse still, they push other people to do them.
Romans 7:13So, does that good law kill people? No way. It’s like this. That law shows us the things that God said are wrong, and that law says that we have to die if we do those wrong things. So that law shows us that it is really bad to go wrong, and to do bad things against God.
Matthew Henry on James 4:12-17
Caution against Slander; Caution against Presumption. ( a. d. 61.) 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… Read the whole commentary →