May 16
________________________________________
A MESSAGE TO THE RICH
Come now, you rich people, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you. 2 Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and your silver have corroded, and their corrosion will serve as a testimony against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have stored up your treasure! 4 Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of armies. 5 You have lived for pleasure on the earth and lived luxuriously; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and put to death the righteous person; he offers you no resistance.
– James 5:1-6
________________________________________
In this letter, James strongly warns the wealthy people. In verse 1, he tells them of the misery that they are about to face. In verse 2, James describes what happens to the things they cherish most, their wealth and garments. In verse 3, their gold and silver are of no more value because of the corrosion that will take place after a while that they have owned them. James likens their prized possessions to a fire that will consume their whole being. James must be referring to hell in this line.
In verse 4, James confronts the corruption that these rich people have committed against their laborers whom they have mistreated and not fairly treated by depriving them of their pay for their hard-earned labor. He cautions them that the cries of the people who were mistreated by these rich people is heard by the Lord. They should watch out how God is going to vindicate the poor.
In verses 5-6, James illustrates more the lifestyle of the rich. They live to pleasure themselves with all the amenities and luxuries of life. The phrase “you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter” is disturbingly scary. It is almost giving them a glimpse of what they are about to receive from feeding their own cravings: slaughter. Just like a cow being fattened to be killed. In verse 6, another exercise of the rich is to discriminate and hamper the righteous to do the right thing. Because of their oppression towards these righteous people, they will suffer in the end. What ending does the greedy and lovers of wealth come down to! Why would one want to be rich after all these warning given by James?
________________________________________
REFLECTION
• Why do you think James addresses the wealthy people in this letter?