James 2:17 (ASV)

Passage

Even so faith, if it have not works, is dead in itself.

Nearby Context

James 2:15 If a brother or sister be naked and in lack of daily food,

James 2:16 and one of you say unto them, Go in peace, be ye warmed and filled; and yet ye give them not the things needful to the body; what doth it profit?

James 2:17 Even so faith, if it have not works, is dead in itself.

James 2:18 Yea, a man will say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith apart from [thy] works, and I by my works will show thee [my] faith.

James 2:19 Thou believest that God is one; thou doest well: the demons also believe, and shudder.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "faith", "even", "works", and "dead". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "faith" and "even", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 16's "and one of you say unto them..." into verse 18's "Yea a man will say Thou hast...", so "faith" and "even" belong inside that flow. In James context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "faith" and "even" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.