James chapter 5 part 1

After reading chapter 5:

*Verses 1-6 are a warning to the rich. They will be sorry. Horrible things have happened to their wealth and possessions. The destruction  will be a testimony against them, because they oppressed the poor and didn't pay the wages of those they hired. They lived in luxury and self indulgence. They condemned innocent people who were not opposing them.  Sounds like Donald Trump. This passage says the cries of the oppressed have reached the ears of the lord. I'm guessing rich oppressors don't actually believe that or they wouldn't do what they do. Very rarely do they have to pay for the full extent of their crimes in this life, and never afterward. Job recognized that. Threats of eternal destruction slip off them like water off a duck's back. I'm not saying every rich person is an oppressor, but when the shoe fits...

*After the rant of the last few verses, James changes his tone. In fact, reading back over the text, the apocalyptic style rant seems out of place, and the continuity of the text would not be broken if it was removed. It would actually make more sense. Now James tells his fellow Jews to be patient until the lord's coming. Christians believe he is talking about the return of Jesus, but he very well could be talking about the Jewish expectation of the appearance of a messiah. James tells them to wait without grumbling against each other or judging each other. They are to take the example of the prophets' patience and Job's perserverence. Look what Job got after he persevered, everything that he had lost and more. That would certainly speak to displaced Jews.

*Verse 12 is another piece that feels out of place in the text. It is about taking oaths, swearing  by heaven, earth, or anything else. They will be condemned if they do. This is one passage that gets ignored by many christians. Some, like the Quakers,  have made a point of  following it. One thing that makes this passage strange is that there was plenty of swearing in the Old Testament that was not condemned. Another thing is the phrase "above all." Surely James did not think this was the most important thing in his letter!"