Slow to Wrath - James the Prophet - James 5:1-6

Wealth and Woe: A Call for Justice - Heed the Cry of the Oppressed

Bible Passage: James 5:1-6

1. Warnings About Wealth - YOU and YOUR

James 5:1–2 “Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you! 2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten.”

This last section on the principle of being “slow to wrath” is a personal warning. The words “you” and “your” are mentioned seventeen times in these six verses. James is about to give some prophetic wisdom to the “me” Christians, who worship the works of their hands.

Some take this to mean all the rich are the oppressors in the world. This has led to Liberation Theology which promotes a class warfare mentality. It mixes Marxism and the gospel. This warning about the rich is to those rich who forget Who owns the cattle on a thousand hills, indeed the world is His and all its fullness. Ps 50:10-12! (perspective)

He says “weep and howl” for the calamities that are about to come. This reminds us of the Old Testament prophets who warned Israel of worldliness and idolatry. Jeremiah 4:8 “For this, clothe yourself with sackcloth, Lament and wail. For the fierce anger of the Lord— Has not turned back from us.”

Riches are certainly not evil and can be used for amazing good, but the riches James is speaking of here is the love of money and it’s system (Babylonian systems religion, politics, economic Re 18). From the love of these corrupted riches comes judgement and loss of reward. 1 Timothy 6:10 “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”

Proverbs 11:28 “He who trusts in his riches will fall, But the righteous will flourish like foliage.” It’s not the riches themselves it’s the trust in that brings men down.

2. Corrosion and Consequences - Testimony of Treasures

James 5:3 “Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days.”

The enjoyment of the rich is temporal. (1 Timothy 6:10 “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”)

Gold and silver can tarnish and lose their luster. The word corrosion here means more. In the Greek it is ιος ios, this means corrosion, venom, or poison. James 3:8 uses this word to describe the tongue, “But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.”

Just as the words of our tongue will stand will stand in witness against us at the Judgement seat of Christ, the love of money and treasure hoarded on earth will testify of a life lived selfishly and not for Christ. Any rewards will be burnt up (1 Cor 3:12-14).

Matthew 6:19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal;”

3. Cries of Compensation

James 5:4 “Indeed the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth.”

The unscrupulous actions of businessmen has been written about in the Torah. Leviticus 19:13 “You shall not cheat your neighbor, nor rob him. The wages of him who is hired shall not remain with you all night until morning.” and Deuteronomy 24:15 “Each day you shall give him his wages, and not let the sun go down on it, for he is poor and has set his heart on it; lest he cry out against you to the Lord, and it be sin to you.”

The wages themselves cry out for justice! Straight to the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. This is from the Greek transliteration of the Hebrew “Lord of Hosts” or the Lord of the army of God. In prophetic terms James is warning that fraudulent practices will be treated seriously at the second coming.

4. Careless Living Condemned -Condemnation of Indulgence

James 5:5 “You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury; you have fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter.”

Jesus told a parable about a rich man and a poor man named Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31. The rich man was clothed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury. The poor man begged at his gates. Jesus is telling the parable to illustrate that success in business is not the same as being righteous by faith. The richest man without Christ is exceedingly poor.

The rich man is nameless in the parable, but the poor righteous man has a name, Lazarus, which means ‘One whom God helps’. Righteousness doesn’t come by poverty or riches, it is a gift to the believer.

1 Timothy 6:9 “But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition.”

James is warning those who live in “luxury” σπαταλάω spatalao in Greek they are like the fattened calves given in offerings. 1 Timothy 5:6 translates spatalao - pleasure. “But she who lives in pleasure is dead while she lives.”

Luke 6:24 “But woe to you who are rich, For you have received your consolation.” like the Epicurean; the eat, drink, and be merry crowd get their rewards now.

5. Righteous Condemnation and Christ's Call

James 5:6 “You have condemned, you have murdered the just; he does not resist you.”

Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Luke 1:52–53 “He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly. 53 He has filled the hungry with good things, And the rich He has sent away empty.”

The rich man described in James chapter 5 has been warned of the consequences of his unjust treatment of his brethren. This last verse on “slow to wrath” is the strictest of prophetic warnings.

James calls out the carnal quest for wealth and the innocent victims of the ungodly rich. They bring men to court, they have stolen reputations, and wages. They condemn others to make themselves appear better. This is called “relative righteousness”

The love of money destroys families, friendships, and our own walk with God.

Jesus told us how to respond to these rich men.

Matthew 5:39–42 “But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. 40 If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. 41 And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. 42 Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.”

All in all this is a very sharp rebuke to those who would turn grace into wrath against the church. What a warning should any start down that path.