Texts in Conversation
James 5 uses the image of silver rusting, similar to Sirach 29, to condemn the hoarding of wealth. Both urge people not to misuse money, urging people to use their resources to help others instead of keeping them for themselves.
Share:
2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Sirach 29:10
Ben Sira, Ecclesiasticus
Deuterocanon
7 Many on account of fraud have turned away. They are afraid of being defrauded for nothing. 8 However be patient with a man in poor estate. Don’t keep him waiting for your alms. 9 Help a poor man for the commandment’s sake. According to his need don’t send him empty away. 10 Lose your money for a brother and a friend. Don’t let it rust under a stone and be lost. 11 Allocate your treasure according to the commandments of the Most High and it will profit you more than gold. 12 Store up almsgiving in your store-chambers and it will deliver you out of all affliction. 13 It will fight for you against your enemy better than a mighty shield and a ponderous spear.
Date: 195–180 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
James 5:3
New Testament
1 Come now, you rich! Weep and cry aloud over the miseries that are coming on you. 2 Your riches have rotted and your clothing has become moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver have rusted and their rust will be a witness against you. It will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have hoarded treasure! 4 Look, the pay you have held back from the workers who mowed your fields cries out against you, and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. 5 You have lived indulgently and luxuriously on the earth. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.
Date: 80–90 CE (based on scholarly estimates)
Search:
Notes and References
"... Much evidence suggests that James is adapting his language from a specific Jewish tradition (Sirach 12:10–11; 29:8–12) that similarly condemns the static hoarding of wealth. The high likelihood that James is interacting with Sirach is based on the following evidence: (1) the verb “to corrode” occurs in the Greek Bible only in Sirach 12:10–11 and James 5:3. (2) The noun “rust” is rare, occurring in only two other contexts in the Greek Bible: Epistle of Jeremiah 1:10, 23 and Ezekiel 24:6–12. The verbal form “to rust” occurs only in Sirach 12:10; 29:10. Thus, the rare word group occurs in only five contexts total in the Greek Bible, with three being James 5:3, Sirach 12:10, and Sirach 29:10. (3) Like James 5, Sirach 12 and 29 teach about the use of wealth. (4) The terms silver, gold, and treasure all occur in James 5:2–3 and Sirach 29:10–11. This linguistic and thematic evidence suggests that James is interacting with Sirach’s teaching on wealth and poverty ..."
Todd Scacewater, “The Dynamic and Righteous Use of Wealth in James 5:1–6,” Journal of Markets & Morality 20.2 (2017): 227–242.
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
Your Feedback:
Leave a Comment
Anonymous comments are welcome. All comments are subject to moderation.
User Comments
,