The Meaning of James 5:11 Explained

James 5:11

KJV: Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.

YLT: lo, we call happy those who are enduring; the endurance of Job ye heard of, and the end of the Lord ye have seen, that very compassionate is the Lord, and pitying.

Darby: Behold, we call them blessed who have endured. Ye have heard of the endurance of Job, and seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is full of tender compassion and pitiful.

ASV: Behold, we call them blessed that endured: ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord, how that the Lord is full of pity, and merciful.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Behold,  we count them happy  which endure.  Ye have heard  of the patience  of Job,  and  have seen  the end  of the Lord;  that  the Lord  is  very pitiful,  and  of tender mercy. 

What does James 5:11 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Job was not always patient, but he did determine to endure whatever might befall him as he waited for God to clear up the mystery of his suffering (cf. Job 13:10; Job 13:15; Job 16:19-21; Job 19:25). In James 5:7-10 James pleaded for patience (makrothymia) that restrains itself and does not retaliate. Here he advocated perseverance (hypomone) through difficult circumstances (cf. James 1:3; Hebrews 11:25).
Job reaped a great reward at the end of his trial. We see God"s compassion and mercy especially at the end of Job"s experience, though God manifested these characteristics earlier as well. Job determined to continue to live by faith when he experienced temptation to depart from the will of God (cf. James 1:2-4).
"James has been concerned to help believers to overcome the tendency to react like the world to the injustices heaped on them by the world. The world, by its very nature antagonistic to God and His kingdom, will continue to oppose God"s people. But if these truths grip the hearts of His people, it will enable them to overcome the spirit of worldliness by refraining from a worldly reaction to the world"s injustices." [1]

Context Summary

James 5:1-11 - Patiently Await The Lord's Coming
There are many among the rich who are using money as a sacred trust. Not against these does the Apostle utter his terrible anathemas, but against those who make money by oppression and hoard it for their selfish ends. Riches, which have not been gotten righteously, ever bring a curse with them; and the rust of unused or misused wealth eats not only into the metal but into the miser's flesh. In the light of this passage, it is as great a wrong to hoard up for selfish ends money entrusted as a stewardship, as it is to obtain it unrighteously.
There is a sense in which the Lord is ever at hand and present. But He shall come again at the end of this age. Then all wrongs shall be righted and the oppressed avenged. Everything comes to him who can wait for it; do not judge the Lord by His unfinished work. Be patient till He unveils the perfected pattern in glory. Await the end of the Lord! [source]

Chapter Summary: James 5

1  Rich oppressors are to fear God's vengeance
7  We ought to be patient in afflictions, after the example of the prophets, and Job;
12  to forbear swearing;
13  to pray in adversity, to sing in prosperity;
14  to acknowledge mutually our several faults, to pray one for another;
19  and to correct a straying brother

Greek Commentary for James 5:11

We call blessed [μακαριζομεν]
Old word (present active indicative of μακαριζω — makarizō), from μακαριος — makarios (happy), in N.T. only here and Luke 1:48. “We felicitate.” As in James 1:3, James 1:12; Daniel 12:12. [source]
Ye have heard [ηκουσατε]
First aorist (constative) active indicative of ακουω — akouō As in Matthew 5:21, Matthew 5:27, Matthew 5:33, Matthew 5:38, Matthew 5:43. Ropes suggests in the synagogues.Of Job (Ιωβ — Iōb). Job did complain, but he refused to renounce God (Job 1:21; Job 2:10; Job 13:15; Job 16:19; Job 19:25.). He had become a stock illustration of loyal endurance.Ye have seen Second aorist (constative) active indicative of οραω — horaō In Job‘s case.The end of the Lord (το τελος κυριου — to telos kuriou). The conclusion wrought by the Lord in Job‘s case (Job 42:12).Full of pity Late and rare compound “Very kind.”Merciful (οικτειρω — oiktirmōn). Late and rare adjective (from oikteirō to pity), in N.T. only here and Luke 6:36. [source]
Of Job [Ιωβ]
Job did complain, but he refused to renounce God (Job 1:21; Job 2:10; Job 13:15; Job 16:19; Job 19:25.). He had become a stock illustration of loyal endurance. [source]
Ye have seen [ειδετε]
Second aorist (constative) active indicative of οραω — horaō In Job‘s case.The end of the Lord (το τελος κυριου — to telos kuriou). The conclusion wrought by the Lord in Job‘s case (Job 42:12).Full of pity Late and rare compound “Very kind.”Merciful (οικτειρω — oiktirmōn). Late and rare adjective (from oikteirō to pity), in N.T. only here and Luke 6:36. [source]
The end of the Lord [το τελος κυριου]
The conclusion wrought by the Lord in Job‘s case (Job 42:12). [source]
Full of pity [πολυσπλαγχνος]
Late and rare compound “Very kind.”Merciful (οικτειρω — oiktirmōn). Late and rare adjective (from oikteirō to pity), in N.T. only here and Luke 6:36. [source]
Merciful [οικτειρω]
Late and rare adjective (from oikteirō to pity), in N.T. only here and Luke 6:36. [source]
Endure [ὑπομένοντας]
Present participle. But the later texts read ὑπομείναντας , the aorist participle, which endured; referring to the prophets in the past ages. So Rev. On endured and patience, see on James 5:7. [source]
The end of the Lord [τὸ τέλος κυρίου]
A peculiar expression. The happy conclusion to which God brought Job's trials. [source]
Very pitiful and of tender mercy [πολυσπλαγχνός καὶ οἰκτίρμων]
The former adjective only here in New Testament; the latter here and Luke 6:36. Rev., full of pity and merciful. Πολυσπλαγχνός is from πολύς , much, and σπλάγχνα , the nobler entrails, used like our heart, as the seat of the emotions Hence the term bowels in the A. V. (Philemon 1:8; Colossians 3:12, etc.). Compare εὔσπλαγχνοι , tender-hearted, Ephesians 4:32. The distinction between this and οἰκτίρμων , merciful, seems to be that the former denotes the general quality of compassion, while the latter emphasizes the sympathy called out by special cases, being the feeling which is moved to pain at another's suffering. [source]

Reverse Greek Commentary Search for James 5:11

Luke 6:36 Merciful [οἰκτίρμονες]
See on James 5:11. [source]
Luke 1:78 Tender mercy [σπλάγχνα ἐλέους]
Lit., bowels of mercy. See on 1 Peter 3:8; and James 5:11. Rev. gives heart of mercy in margin. Wyc., frightfully, entrails of mercy. [source]
1 Corinthians 3:19 He taketh [ὁ δρασσόμενος]
Cited from Job 5:13, but not following the Septuagint verbally. The verb occurs only here, meaning to grasp with the hand. Rev., more accurately, gives the force of the participle with the article, he that taketh. This is the only allusion to the book of Job in the New Testament, except James 5:11. [source]
2 Corinthians 6:12 In your own bowels [τοῖς οπλάγχνοις ὑμῶν]
See on 1 Peter 3:8; see on James 5:11. Rev., affections. It is your love that is contracted. [source]
2 Corinthians 6:12 Ye are not straitened in us [ου στενοχωρειστε εν ημιν]
The same figure as in 2 Corinthians 6:11. See note on 2 Corinthians 4:8 for στενοχωρεω — stenochōreō There is no restraint in me (my heart). My adversaries may have caused some of you to tighten up your affections (σπλαγχνα — splagchna for affection as in James 5:11; 1 Peter 3:8). [source]
James 5:7 Be patient therefore [μακροτυμησατε ουν]
A direct corollary First aorist (constative) active imperative of μακροτυμεω — makrothumeō late compound (Plutarch, lxx) from μακροτυμος — makrothumos On the exhortation to patience (υπομενω — hupomonē) see James 1:3., James 1:12 and repeated in James 5:11. They will need both submission (μακροτυμια — hupomenō James 5:11) and steadfastness (εως της παρουσιας — makrothumia James 5:10). [source]

What do the individual words in James 5:11 mean?

Behold we count blessed those having persevered The perseverance of Job you have heard of and the outcome from [the] Lord you have seen that full of compassion is the Lord [is] merciful
ἰδοὺ μακαρίζομεν τοὺς ὑπομείναντας τὴν ὑπομονὴν Ἰὼβ ἠκούσατε καὶ τὸ τέλος Κυρίου εἴδετε ὅτι πολύσπλαγχνός ἐστιν Κύριος οἰκτίρμων

ἰδοὺ  Behold 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Imperative Active, 2nd Person Singular
Root: ἰδού  
Sense: behold, see, lo.
μακαρίζομεν  we  count  blessed 
Parse: Verb, Present Indicative Active, 1st Person Plural
Root: μακαρίζω  
Sense: to pronounce blessed.
τοὺς  those 
Parse: Article, Accusative Masculine Plural
Root:  
Sense: this, that, these, etc.
ὑπομείναντας  having  persevered 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Participle Active, Accusative Masculine Plural
Root: ἀπομένω 
Sense: to remain.
ὑπομονὴν  perseverance 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Feminine Singular
Root: ὑπομονή  
Sense: steadfastness, constancy, endurance.
Ἰὼβ  of  Job 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Singular
Root: Ἰώβ  
Sense: a man known for his piety and, consistency and fortitude in the endurance of trials.
ἠκούσατε  you  have  heard  of 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Indicative Active, 2nd Person Plural
Root: ἀκουστός 
Sense: to be endowed with the faculty of hearing, not deaf.
τέλος  outcome 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Neuter Singular
Root: τέλος  
Sense: end.
Κυρίου  from  [the]  Lord 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Singular
Root: κύριος  
Sense: he to whom a person or thing belongs, about which he has power of deciding; master, lord.
εἴδετε  you  have  seen 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Indicative Active, 2nd Person Plural
Root: εἶδον 
Sense: to see with the eyes.
ὅτι  that 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: ὅτι  
Sense: that, because, since.
πολύσπλαγχνός  full  of  compassion 
Parse: Adjective, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: πολυεύσπλαγχνος 
Sense: full of pity, very kind.
Κύριος  Lord 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: κύριος  
Sense: he to whom a person or thing belongs, about which he has power of deciding; master, lord.
οἰκτίρμων  [is]  merciful 
Parse: Adjective, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: οἰκτίρμων  
Sense: merciful.