James chapter 2 part 1

Afte reading chapter 2:

*Chapter 2 begins "my brothers" - remember the greeting in chapter 1.  James is writing an open letter to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations- Jews in the diaspora, if we take it literally. Next, set off by commas, is the phrase "as believers in our glorious lord Jesus Christ." Reading through the rest of the chapter, I'm personally leaning toward a conviction that the phrases mentioning Jesus may have been added to this letter after it was circulating, by Jews who became christians or possibly christians trying to influence Jews. This is my own idea, I have not read that anywhere else, though others may have considered it.

*Next, we have the theme of the first section, "Don't show favoritism, " specifically favoritism to the rich. So, favoritism must have been a problem. Where was this favoritism taking place? Well, if you are reading this passage in English, it will say "in your assembly" or "in your meeting." The literal translation from the greek is "in your synagogue." In fact this phrase is translated synagogue  in other books of the New Testament, but not in James. Very interesting.

*Getting back to favoritism, it seems the rich jews were being given special privileges and treated better than the poor. James says this is insulting to the poor. Why? Because they are human beings worthy of the respect that all humans should accord each other just by virtue of having humanity in common? Nope. Because God has "chosen" the poor to be "rich in faith." Why are they rich in faith? Probably because they've got nothing to lose. By exploiting the poor, the rich are slandering the noble name of him to whom the readers (Jews in the diaspora) belong. The noble name of whom? It is generally assumed to be christ, but it could just as well be Yahweh, the god of the Jews.

*James then says if they keep the royal law, "love your neighbor as yourself" (lev. 19:18), they are doing right. Favoritism is a sin, presumably because the poor Jews are their neighbors just as much as the rich. If they show favoritism among themselves, they are breaking the law. What law? The law of Moses, of course. James goes on to say that breaking the law in one area makes you a lawbreaker, even if you keep the rest of the law well. Their actions need to be governed by the "law that gives freedom." Again, there no reason to believe he is talking about anything other than the law of moses.
What freedom, you may ask. Well, many people find freedom in knowing exactly what they are supposed to do, without having to think about it. A clearly defined path can reduce stress, especially when the world around you is in turmoil.

*The last verse of this chapter is one of the many paradoxes found in the bible. The readers are told to speak and act as though they will be judged because "Judgement without mercy will be shown to anyone who is not merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgement." Huh? The only sense I can make of it is that people are required to be merciful but God is not. (?)