Yakobus 2:18

2:18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” ¹  Show me your faith without works and I will show you faith by ²  my works.

Yakobus 3:6

3:6 And the tongue is a fire! The tongue represents ³  the world of wrongdoing among the parts of our bodies. It ⁴  pollutes the entire body and sets fire to the course of human existence – and is set on fire by hell. ⁵ 

[2:18]  ¹ tn There is considerable doubt about where the words of the “someone” end and where James’ reply begins. Some see the quotation running to the end of v. 18; others to the end of v. 19. But most punctuate as shown above. The “someone” is then an objector, and the sense of his words is something like, “Some have faith; others have works; don’t expect everyone to have both.” James’ reply is that faith cannot exist or be seen without works.

[2:18]  ² tn Or “from.”

[3:6]  ³ tn Grk “makes itself,” “is made.”

[3:6]  ⁴ tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[3:6]  ⁵ sn The word translated hell is “Gehenna” (γέεννα, geenna), a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew words ge hinnom (“Valley of Hinnom”). This was the valley along the south side of Jerusalem. In OT times it was used for human sacrifices to the pagan god Molech (cf. Jer 7:31; 19:5-6; 32:35), and it came to be used as a place where human excrement and rubbish were disposed of and burned. In the intertestamental period, it came to be used symbolically as the place of divine punishment (cf. 1 En. 27:2, 90:26; 4 Ezra 7:36).