Interpretation of James 4:5 - Doug Moo - "The Letter of James"

Two Major Interpretations

The Letter of James V. A Summons to Spiritual Wholeness (4:4–10)

1. James is referring to God’s jealousy for his people: “God yearns jealously for the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”

The Letter of James V. A Summons to Spiritual Wholeness (4:4–10)

2. James is referring to the human tendency to be envious: the spirit he caused to live in us envies intensely

3 Key Interpretative Challenges

The Letter of James (V. A Summons to Spiritual Wholeness (4:4–10))

1. The Greek word for “spirit,” being neuter, can function either as the subject of the verb epipothei or as its object. So, in the second alternative, “spirit” is taken as the subject and interpreted to mean the natural spirit of every human being. In the first alternative, however, “spirit” is made the object of the verb and understood as the spirit that God breathed into man to make him a living creature (Gen. 2:7), or, alternatively, to the Holy Spirit that God has implanted in believers But if “spirit” is the object of the verb, then we must supply a subject for the verb; and advocates of the first alternative naturally supply “God” as the most likely identification of the one who caused the spirit to dwell in us.

Douglas J. Moo, The Letter of James, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: Eerdmans; Apollos, 2000), 189.

The Letter of James V. A Summons to Spiritual Wholeness (4:4–10)

2. But this last decision brings us to the second major issue creating such ambiguity in the Greek text: the meaning of the word phthonos. And this issue undoubtedly favors the “human envy” interpretation. For phthonos always has a negative connotation in biblical Greek and is naturally never used with reference to God. Moreover, as we have seen, phthonos is a key word in the tradition that James has used in 3:13–4:3, and in this tradition the word always describes a sinful human attitude.

The Letter of James V. A Summons to Spiritual Wholeness (4:4–10)

3. Closely related to our decision about the meaning of phthonos is the third key issue: the meaning of the verb epipothei, in combination with the preposition pros. If James is referring here to human envy, the combination will have to mean something like “tend toward.” “Toward” is a perfectly acceptable rendering of pros, but “tend” is not the most natural translation of the verb. The “divine jealousy” interpretation suffers from almost exactly the opposite problem. It can give the verb its normal meaning of “desire,” “yearn,” but must interpret the preposition in a somewhat unusual way, as an adverbial construction: “in a jealous manner.” Similarly indecisive is the evidence for the general use of the verb epipotheō. It is never used with reference to God in biblical Greek; and this obviously favors the “human envy” view. But it also always has a positive meaning in the NT; and this pattern, of course, favors the “divine jealousy” view.

The Letter of James V. A Summons to Spiritual Wholeness (4:4–10)

Since, therefore, in our view the exegetical data of the verse are not conclusive, context becomes a key deciding factor. A reference to human envy can, of course, fit into this general context, for James has warned them about this sin three times (3:14, 16; 4:2). And it could be argued that a statement about human sin in v. 5 provides a more natural contrast with the “greater grace” of God in v. 6. But the immediate context provides strong, and, in our opinion, decisive, support for the “divine jealousy” interpretation.