In James 4:13, James addressed those engaged in regional trade with the phrase “come now”. They presumed that their lives were in their hands.
James uses the same phrase (“come now”) in this section of James 5:1-6 when he addresses the rich.
Who are the rich? People don’t think they are rich! We always think that we are middle class. Thus, when we read this text, we may have assumed that this is not us! But this is also for us. We are rich, relative to global and historical peers.
Thus, it will do us well to pay attention to what James says in these verses. James speaks honestly about the spiritual danger being rich means for us, and respond rightly.
(A)Will be regretted, so be warned (v1)
James opens this section with warnings to the rich. He calls the rich to weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon them (Jas 5:1). He is not calling them to hear the truth in order to celebrate and rejoice. Rather, hearing the truth will make them weep — be sad and experience deep regret. Howling is something we associate with wolves and dogs — creatures — so what does it mean for humans to howl? James is saying that they will let out a sound of subhuman regret.
Did you expect to respond with weeping and howling when you encounter God through His word? There is a category for how we engage with God’s word that leads us to see the world more clearly. The clarity with which we see the world leads us to feel regret, convicted that we have messed up.
But what is it that we are supposed to see that will lead to this response?
Weeping and howling are not unfamiliar language as it is also present in the Old Testament. It speaks of weeping and howling on the Day of Judgement as God comes. We tend to think that only God’s enemies are weeping and howling but here, James is talking specifically about the rich? Why should they be weeping and howling on this Day? Why are they going to be miserable?
They are those that have placed all their hope, certainty and security in material gain. On that day, all their investments do not matter. Therefore, this passage is not about how much we make and once we cross the threshhold, we are dead. Rather, it is about where our joy is found and about the state of our heart. It is also a comment about what we will regret on that Day.
How do we know the state of our heart? Consider: Today, if you lost what you had, you will not fear it being lost later. If losing what we have today makes us weep and howl, perhaps we will also behave in the same way on that Day.
This verse also warns us to not be spiritually indifferent to how we to think about our wealth. As Proverbs 11:28 cautions us, “Whoever trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf. “ Similarly, Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount, said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matt 5:3)”
Are you chasing stuff today? Then, this is us. There is a warning here for us, especially if we are unable to part with the wealth that we have right now.
James also warns that miseries will come upon us if we place our confidence in our money (Jas 5:1b).
Today, we are tutored and discipled by social media and various platforms on how we can handle and grow our money. But what does James have to say about all of that? How will you respond?
If we take James 5:1 seriously, we have to admit that if we give our heart to riches, we will find destruction at the end of our path. Let us turn to God in repentance and faith.
(B) Will be exposed, so choose carefully (Jas 5:2-3)
James tells us what will happen on the last day to the riches and garments that the rich store up (Jas 5:2-3). The order of events in the last day are as follows:
They have laid up treasure in the last days (Jas 5:3b)
Their riches have rotted and their garments are moth-eaten (Jas 5:2) (parallelism).
Their goal and silver have corroded and their corrosion will be evidence against them and will eat their flesh like fire (Jas 5:3a).
The storing up of treasure provides a picture of idolatry and idol-making. This treasure will be tested and exposed. What your treasure is will either be used to accuse or vindicate you.
To put it in other words, there are two ways to live. One, the idol we choose is tested, and will turn against us or be used against us. The other way is to choose God, who vindicates Himself and will be for us.
Friends, James is helping us to see that how we relate to our wealth is not purely material. Our relationship to that wealth will be exposed in the final day. James 5:3a should make us think about Jesus’ words in Matthew 6:19-21. James rewords Jesus’ teachings and insert them into his letter. He is challenging us to rethink about whether we really want to place our heart on these treasures.
Pure gold and silver will not corrode! Thus, our idolatry is already a kind of deception. The idol we have chosen is not really what it is. James is helping us to see futility and consequence. The choices we have made will all come home to roost. The things we have chosen to treasure and invest in will show their worth and value.
What are you treasuring? How is it standing the test of your life? What treasures are you currently investing in? How is that working out for you? Our relationship with money is not neutral. Is our wealth helping us move towards God or not?
Friends, we cannot have it all. We cannot serve both God and money. Do not be deceived.
James warns that what awaits the rich is fire eating up flesh — utter destruction. There are many Proverbs that tell us that the love of riches is a snare, but poverty with a clean reputation and godly heart is a blessing (c.f. Prov 11:4,7,18, 20, 24-25, 28). All James is doing is connecting the dots for us between Proverbs and what Jesus says to warn us to watch our heart in light of our wealth. For the last day will expose our hearts.
(C) Will be avenged, so repent now (Jas 5:4-6)
James also sheds light on how the rich attained their wealth — through fraudulent means (Jas 5:4). They have kept the wages from the labourers and harvesters under their employment. The rich have land, labour and possibly some capital, resulting in their ability to generate wealth. But these Christian rich folk have capitalised on their land and did not pay their labourers.
In Leviticus 19:13, we see how oppression of a hired worker is withholding wages overnight and not paying the same day. Now, we might think this is no big deal but remember the circumstances. A day’s labour means a day’s wages. Labourers need that income and the one who withholds it is an oppressor.
Deuteronomy 24:15 is also incredibly practical and also theologically precise. Real justice is not determined just horizontally. There is a vertical dimension too. In our system of ethics, we should therefore not just be thinking horizontally, but also vertically. Are we oppressing the one working with or for us in a way that makes us guilty before God?
The law lays out a system of socio-economic balance that depends on a society living before God in justice. Now, we live in a secular society and we think that as long as we are not directly oppressing someone we are not involved and ti is not really our fault. Christians should be sensitive to matters of social justice and be concerned to ask if we are treating neighbours fairly, or treating workers with dignity and paying them fair wages. See how God is concerned about these things, and therefore we should be!
We should also be concerned about how we can uphold and live these things out. Are you a lawyer? Consider how you can uphold God’s system of justice in your work?
The rich have attained their wealth through unjust means and have oppressed the poor in the church. So friends, do you know who in your church is poor and needy? If you do, what are you doing about it? We have domestic workers in our churches and some of us have employed them in our households. How do we treat them? Are we eager to share what we have with the poor in our church? Do we pursue to the course of justice or do we live with secular indifference?
Though it looks like living on the earth in luxury and self-indulgence, but in reality, they have fattened tier hearts in a day of slaughter (Jas 5:5-6).
In various parts of Proverbs, we learn of how God Himself champions the cause of the poor and needy (C.f. Prov 17:5, 19:17, 22:2). He knows, sees and cares.
Friends, there are poor and needy believers in our churches. They may not be able to get the help they need through the legal system. There are also orphans, migrant workers etc. We may not be directly responsible for their plight but by our indifference, we are not pleasing God.
James goes on to say that they have condemned and murdered the righteous person (Jas 5:6). Now, there could be a specific instance of oppression but James is also calling to our mind the way we have all contributed to the death of one righteous person.
We killed this holy and righteous one (c.f. Acts 3:11-15). We contributed to the sins that hung Him on that tree. What is required of us now is repent and turn to Him. We are to turn away from a life of ease and self-indulgence and recognise that our money and wealth don’t belong to us because we don’t belong to ourselves. Rather, we are to recognise that we belong to HIm, and with that, all that we have. This is how a Christian lives.
The sins of the rich will be regretted, so be warned. These sins will be exposed, so choose carefully. Finally, they will be avenged, so repent now.