James Chapter 1 — Commentary on Verse 8

    He is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

    James goes on to consider the unhappiness of unbelievers, and he says two things about them—that they are double-minded and unstable.

    Heisadouble-mindedman. The word signifies a person who has two souls, and so it may imply:

    (1)      A hypocrite, since the same word is used with that meaning in 4:8: “Purify your hearts, you double-minded.” As he speaks to open sinners to cleanse their hands, so he speaks to secret hypocrites (whom he calls double-minded since they pretend one thing but mean another) to purify their hearts—that is, to grow more inwardly sincere. This word is similar to the Hebrew word for “deceive.” “Their flattering lips speak with deception” (Psalm 12:2); in the Hebrew this is “with a heart and a heart,” which is their way of expressing something that is double or deceitful (deceitful weights are “a weight and a weight” in the Hebrew of Proverbs 20:23). As Theophrastus says of the partridges of Paphlagonia that they had two hearts, so every hypocrite has two hearts or two souls.

    (2)      It implies a person who is distracted and divided in his thoughts, floating between two different opinions, as if he had two minds or two souls. In the apostle’s time there were some Judaizing brethren who sometimes sided with the Jews, sometimes with the Christians. They were not settled in the truth. See also 2 Kings 17:33, “They worshiped the LORD, but they also served their own gods”; they were divided between God and idols. The prophet says this shows a double or divided heart: “Their heart is deceitful, and now they must bear their guilt” (Hosea 10:2). Thus Athanasius applied this description to the Eusebians, who sometimes held one thing and then another.

    (3)      In the context of James this may refer to those whose minds were tossed to and fro with various ideas: now lifted up with a wave of presumption, then cast down in a gulf of despair, being torn between hopes and fears concerning their acceptance with God. I prefer this latter sense, as it conveys the apostle’s purpose best.

    Unstable. An unstable man has no constancy of soul. He is sometimes ready to depart from God and sometimes to be close to him; he is not settled in his religious profession.

    Inallhedoes. Some apply this chiefly to prayer because those who are doubtful about its success often practice it intermittently; but I think it is a general maxim, and that prayer is only intended as a consequence, for the apostle says inallhedoes. Note the Hebraism (inallhisways, KJV), standing for any counsel, action, thought, or purpose.

    Notes on Verse 8

    Note 1. Unbelieving hypocrites have a double mind. They lack the Spirit and are led by their own affections and therefore cannot be settled; fear, love for the world, and ungodly hopes draw them here and there, for they have no certain guide and rule. It is said of the godly man that “He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD” (Psalm 112:7). Such people walk by a sure rule and look to sure promises; and therefore, though their circumstances change, their hearts do not change, for the ground of their hopes is still the same. Ungodly men’s hearts rise and fall with their news; and when affairs are doubtful, their hopes are uncertain, for they are fixed on uncertain objects.

    (1)      In their hopes they are distracted between expectation and jealousy, doubts and fears. One moment they are full of confidence in their prayers, and then later have nothing but sorrow and despair. Possibly this may be one reason why the psalmist compares the wicked to chaff (Psalm 1:4), because they are driven here and there, leading their lives by guesswork rather than any sure aim.

    (2)      In their opinions hypocrites usually waver, being distracted between conscience and ungodly desires. Their desires lead them to Baal, their consciences to God. As the prophet Elijah says about such people, “How long will you waver between two opinions?” (1 Kings 18:21). They are usually guilty of a promiscuous compliance that, though used by them in ungodly policy, yet often tends to their hurt; for this indifference is hateful to God and men. God hates this: “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm … I am about to spit you out of my mouth” (Revelation 3:15-16). Lukewarmness causes vomiting; so lukewarm Christians are spat out of God’s mouth. His ways are not honored except by zealous earnestness.

    Note2. A doubting mind causes uncertainty in our lives and conversations. Their minds are double, and therefore their ways are unstable. A definite expectation of the hopes of the Gospel produces obedience, and a definite belief in the doctrines of the Gospel produces perseverance.

    (1)      Nobody walks so closely with God as those who are assured of the love of God. Faith is the mother of obedience. When people are apart from Christ, they are slack over their duties. We do not cheerfully engage in anything we have doubts over; therefore, when we do not know whether God will accept us or not, we serve God in fits and starts. It is the slander of the world to think assurance is an unimportant doctrine. Never is the soul so quickened as it is by “the joy of the Lord” (Nehemiah 8:10). Faith, filling the heart with spiritual joy, gives a strength for all our duties and labors.

    (2)      No one is so constant in any truth as he who is convinced of its grounds. When we are only half convinced, we are usually unstable: see 2 Peter 3:17. Every believer should have some solid, rational grounds to support him. Believers are told to give “the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15)—that is, those inner motives that make them assent to the truth. See also 1 Thessalonians 5:21. So, work to understand the grounds of your religion. If you love a truth in ignorance, you cannot love it constantly.