James 5:1 "... weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. "

James 5:7 "... the coming of the Lord. ..."

The outspokenness of James concerning the oppressors, and the encouragement of the oppressed is connected with the sure coming again of the Lord Jesus Christ. All will be affected by His return. Believers need to live as those prepared for His coming. There is no implication by James that a man is evil because he is rich and therefore damned, nor that because a man is poor that he is good. Both rich and poor need to receive Christ as Saviour and Lord, and whether they do or not decides their eternal destiny.

Mark 16:16 "He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned."

James did not shy away from warning the sinning rich, nor was he intimidated by their wealth. He was focussed on the coming judge and sure judgment. The reality of the miseries coming on the unrepentant wicked should grip their attention, and cause them to "weep and howl". They will positively do so in the hour of judgment. The Lord's coming is a prominent theme in both Testaments. From the time of Enoch, the seventh from Adam, to the Revelation.

Jude 14,15 "And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, ¹⁵ To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him."

Revelation 22:20 "He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus."

The Old Testament reveals a first coming of Christ in which He would suffer and die for us as Saviour and the sinner's substitute (Psalm 22; Isaiah 53 ), and that He would return to reign forever (Isaiah 11:1-12 ).

Daniel 2:44 "And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: ..."

What was prophesied was not always understood by the prophets themselves.

1 Peter 1:10-11 "Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: ¹¹ Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow."

Now the two comings of Christ are in the New Testament, declared and understood.

Hebrews 9:28 "So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation."

The fact of Christ's promised return is the basis for the straight speaking of James. Get ready sinners - get ready saints - the Lord is coming.

James is not saying "weep and howl" (James 5:1 ) because you are rich. His condemnation is spoken to a certain kind of unrepentant wealthy person. He, in a striking way describes these oppressors who have by evil means made themselves wealthy.

James 5:4 "Indeed the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth."

The Scriptures forbid defrauding by not paying wages at the proper time.

Leviticus 19:13 "You shall not cheat your neighbor, nor rob him. The wages of him who is hired shall not remain with you all night until morning."

Labourers were paid daily and was not equal payment in the sense of the work done - it was survival money. To hold back wages for one night would cause much hardship (Deuteronomy 24:15 ). James cites anything by which the payment is withheld, or a legitimate claim is evaded, as fraudulent evasion of the requirements of the law, or by delaying action in the court of law, keeping another from what is rightly theirs - all of which is really robbing or defrauding another. James wants defrauders to know that they may deceive themselves that they have got away with it, but the cries of the defrauded are heard by the Lord of Hosts. They will not be able to avoid standing before Him, nor the sure punishment He will mete out. The Lord of Hosts, the Almighty Ruler hears the cry of the defrauded and in keeping with His character becomes Judge and Vindicator.

Luke 18:7 "And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?"

Those who greedily and persistently oppress and defraud with ultimately "weep and howl" when God avenges.

James 5:5 "You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury; you have fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter."

The reason for defrauding was to use the wealth to selfishly indulge themselves. The use of evil means to acquire wealth to lavish it on "pleasure and luxury" indicated that God was deliberately left out and His principles ignored. All success was attributed to a self made business ability.

Deuteronomy 8:17 "then you say in your heart, 'My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth.'"

When in fact the ill-gotten fattening substance is a preparation for slaughter. Pleasure and luxury will seem short lived as the judgment day arrives, with the startling realisation that God is not mocked. The godly know that God alone gives to His people the ability to get wealth for His covenant purposes.

Deuteronomy 8:18 "And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day."

It is God alone who can give the intelligence, health, capacity and endurance to obtain wealth. In the Old Testament wealth is placed within the context of Israel's covenant relationship with God and was a blessing that attended fearing, reverencing, loving and serving the Lord. The Psalmist rejoices in the man who fears the Lord because that is the kind of man who knows

Psalm 112:1,3 "... Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments. ³ Wealth and riches shall be in his house: and his righteousness endureth for ever."

Jesus ratified by His death on the cross, a new covenant termed "a better covenant" (Hebrews 7:22 ). Under this covenant God writes His law in our hearts (Jeremiah 31:33 ), which promised action in our hearts, as the redeemed, suggests a new level of obedience and knowledge of the Lord. We are assured of given grace, sufficiency, and the giving of ability for prosperity of all kinds, establishing His covenant in our lives before a watching world. We are ever reminded that all we are and all we have is ultimately His gift to be used in relationship with Him. Those without relationship with God, pursuing rich pleasures and self-indulgences paid for by robbing their labourers and other kinds of fraud. Unrepentant, they are the fattened calves upon whom the unrelenting slaughter knife of God will fall.