James 2

My brothers, do not hold the faith of our glorious Lord 'Isa al-Masih with partiality. ²For if a man with a gold ring, in fine clothing, comes into your meeting, and a poor man in filthy clothing also comes in; ³and you pay special attention to him who wears the fine clothing, and say, "Sit here in a good place;" and you tell the poor man, "Stand there," or "Sit by my footstool;" ⁴haven't you shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? ⁵Listen, my beloved brothers. Didn't Allah choose those who are poor in this world to be rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he promised to those who love him? ⁶But you have dishonoured the poor man. Don't the rich oppress you, and personally drag you before the courts? ⁷Don't they blaspheme the honourable name by which you are called? ⁸However, if you fulfill the royal shariah found in Al-Kitab, "You shall love your neighbour as yourself,"[1] you do well. ⁹But if you show partiality, you commit sin, being convicted by the Taurat's shariah as law-breakers. ¹⁰For whoever shall observe the whole shariah, and yet stumble in one point, he has become guilty of breaking it all. ¹¹For he who said, "Do not commit adultery," said also, "Do not commit murder."[2] Now if you do not commit adultery, but murder, you have become a law-breaker . ¹²So speak, and so do, as men who are to be judged by a "shariah" that gives freedom. ¹³For judgment will be without mercy to him who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

¹⁴What good is it, my brothers, if a man says he has faith, but has no works? Can that faith save him? ¹⁵And if a brother or sister is naked and in lack of daily food, ¹⁶and one of you tells them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled;" and yet you don't give them the things the body needs, what good is it? ¹⁷Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead in itself. ¹⁸Yes, a man will say, "You have faith, and I have works." Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.

¹⁹You believe that Allah is one. You do well. The demons also believe, and shudder. ²⁰But do you want to know, vain man, that faith apart from works is dead? ²¹Wasn't Ibrahim our father justified by works, in that he offered up Ishaq his son on the altar? ²²You see that faith worked with his works, and by works faith was completed; ²³and Al-Kitab was fulfilled where it says, Ibrahim "believed Allah, and it was credited to him as righteousness;"[3] and he was called the friend of Allah. ²⁴You see then that by works, a man is justified, and not only by faith. ²⁵In like manner wasn't Rahab the prostitute also justified by works, in that she received the messengers, and sent them out another way? ²⁶For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, even so faith apart from works is dead.