James Chapter 2 — Commentary on Verse 13

    Becausejudgmentwithoutmercywillbeshowntoanyonewhohasnotbeenmerciful.Mercy triumphs over judgment!

    James applies the previous directive to the matter: Speakandact as those who would not come under the rigor of the covenant of works; for if you allow yourselves to sin or do anything against the royal law, you can expect nothing but judgment without mercy.

    Becausejudgmentwithoutmercy. This expression shows the effect of the covenant of works, which is judgment without any mercy.

    Anyonewhohasnotbeenmerciful. It is as if he had said, mercy is not only for those who honor rich men, but for those who are full of compassion for the poor; by anyonewhohasnot been merciful he either means showing no compassion for the needs of the poor or treating them reproachfully. They were so far from giving due respect that they were guilty of undue disrespect. Such a practice certainly will leave us ashamed on the day of judgment.

    Mercytriumphsoverjudgment! The word triumphs means “boasts,” “lifts up the head,” as a person does when anything is accomplished with glory and success. Some take mercy here for God’s mercy, others for human mercy. Those who apply it to God expound it, “They have a severe judgment; and if it is not so with everyone, it is the mercy of God that has triumphed over his justice.” But this is too forced. Others, such as Gregory, say, with more probability, “Though unmerciful men are severely dealt with, yet for others mercy triumphs over judgment.” I would agree with this, except that the apostle speaks here of that mercy that man shows to man, for there seems to be a thesis and an antithesis in the verse. The apostle asserts that the unmerciful will find no mercy. He also says that mercy finds the judgment not only tempered but overcome; that is, he who shows mercy is not in danger of damnation, for God will not condemn those who imitate his own goodness, and therefore that man may rejoice like a person who has escaped.

    Now the orthodox, who apply this to human mercy, do not make this a cause of our acceptance with God but an evidence. Mercy shown to people is a pledge of that mercy that we shall obtain with God. I confess all this is rational; but look at the phrase in the text, and you will find that this interpretation does not fit, for it would be harsh to say that our mercy should rejoice against God’s judgment. It is the mercy of God that rejoices over his justice, and it is mercy in man that makes us rejoice in the mercy of God. Mercy in God is expressed as triumph, and mercy in man is understood as the evidence of it. The sum is: the merciful man may glory as one who has received mercy, for the mercy of God rejoices over the justice of God on his behalf; he may rejoice over Satan, sin, death, hell, and his own conscience. In the court of heaven the mercy of God rejoices; in the court of conscience, the mercy of man. The one indicates a victory over the divine justice, the other a victory over our own fears.

    Notes on Verse 13

    Note1. Man’s condition under the covenant of works is very miserable. We meet with justice without being tempered by mercy. The Word speaks no comfort to such persons. Either exact duty or extreme misery are the terms of that covenant. “Do and live” and “do and die” is the only voice you will hear while you hold this view. God asked Adam, “What have you done?”—not, “Have you repented?” In the words of the prophet, “The soul who sins is the one who will die” (Ezekiel 18:20). The least breach is fatal. To fallen man the duty of that covenant is impossible, its penalty intolerable. Former sins cannot be expiated by subsequent duties. Paying new debts does not deal with the old score. Do you hope in God’s mercy? One attribute is not exercised to the prejudice of another. In that covenant God intended to glorify justice, and you are accountable to a righteous law, and both law and justice must have satisfaction. As the Word speaks no comfort, so providence gives none.

    All God’s dispensations are judicial. The covenant of works was made with Adam and his seed, who were all natural men. The covenant of grace is with Christ and his seed, who are believers: see Isaiah 53:10. God has no interest in those who claim through Adam. Abraham’s descendants came through Isaac, not through Ishmael; so God’s children are in Christ. Others, who have only an average interest, cherish a vain hope: “their Maker has no compassion on them” (Isaiah 27:11).

    But you will say, how can we know what we can claim? I answer:

    (1)      It is a reasonable deduction that you are under the old slavery if you cannot discern how your position has changed. The heirs of promise are described as those who “have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us” (Hebrews 6:18). God’s children flee to Christ after considering the misery of their standing in Adam. The apostle cries out that he yearns to “gain Christ and be found in him” (Philippians 3:8-9).

    (2)      You may learn much from your heart’s unsuitableness to the state of grace. For example:

    a.      If you live under the rule of any sin. James says that he who is guilty of one is guilty of all (see 2:10). Then the devil has an interest in you, not Christ. Habitual dispositions, good or bad, show who your father is. Note that “sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace” (Romans 6:14). An interest in grace cannot coexist with a known sin.

    b.      If you abuse grace, you make grace an enemy, and then justice will take up the case of abused mercy. Usually people please themselves if they are right in doctrine but take no notice of that stain that is imperceptibly brought into their behavior. Beware when you use the Gospel as an excuse for neglecting your duty. There are Antinomians in life as well as doctrine.

    Note 2. Unmerciful people find no mercy.

    (1)      This is a sin most unsuitable to grace. Kindness makes us pity misery: “You are to love those who are aliens, for you yourselves were aliens” (Deuteronomy 10:19). The man who was forgiven and grabbed his fellow-servant by the throat lost his pardon (Matthew 18:21-35). We pray, “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors” (Matthew 6:12). God’s love to us melts the soul and affects us not only with contrition toward God but compassion to our brothers. At Zurich, when the Gospel was first preached, they freed their prisoners, out of a sense of gratitude for their own deliverance by Christ.

    (2)      This attitude is unlike God; he gives and forgives. How will you look God in the face if you should be so opposed to him? Being unmerciful is twofold—when we neither give nor forgive. It shows:

    a.      A defect in giving. They ask, and your hearts are like flint. We are as much at fault when we do not do what we should do as when we do what we should not do. Covetousness and violence both weigh heavy in God’s balance; and you may be as cruel in neglect as in injury.

    b.      Denying pardon to those who have wronged us. They have done you hurt, but you must be like your Heavenly Father. No one can do you as much harm as you have done to God.

    Note3. God usually retaliates and deals with people according to their wickedness. Asa, who put the prophet in the stocks, had diseased feet. Well, then, when it is so, know the sin by the judgment, and silence your complaining. Adoni-bezek, a heathen, observed, “God has paid me back for what I did to them” (Judges 1:7). So pray that God will not deal with you according to your iniquities.

    Note4. God acts mercifully with delight; his mercy triumphs over justice (see Micah 7:18; Jeremiah 32:41). God is infinitely just as well as merciful; this should encourage you as you approach God. Mercy is as acceptable to God as it is to you. Although the devil accuses the brothers, yet because mercy has triumphed over judgment, therefore we may triumph over Satan and go to heaven singing.

    Note5. Showing mercy is a sign of our interest in God’s mercy: “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy” (Matthew 5:7). “They will be shown”: God will deal kindly with them, but it is mercy they receive, not a just reward. “A generous man will prosper” (Proverbs 11:25). I will show you what this mercy is. It is manifested:

    (1)      In showing compassion. Jesus had compassion on the multitude (Matthew 15:32); so should we. It is not mercy unless it springs from compassion. Heart and hand must go together. Generosity starts with compassion.

    (2)      In contributing to needy people. It is not enough to say, “Keep warm” (2:16).

    (3)      In forgiving offenses “seventy-seven times” (Matthew 18:22). Cicero said of Caesar, “He forgot nothing but injuries”; so should you.

    Secondly, I shall show you when an act shows itself to be mercy:

    (1)      When it is done out of duty and the way God requires: “Do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased” (Hebrews 13:16). Money must be given sacrificially, and given to people for God’s sake.

    (2)      It must spring from good motives. The right motive is a sense of God’s mercy; it is a thank-offering, not a sin-offering.