James 4:4 (ASV)

Passage

Ye adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore would be a friend of the world maketh himself an enemy of God.

Nearby Context

James 4:2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and covet, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war; ye have not, because ye ask not.

James 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may spend [it] in your pleasures.

James 4:4 Ye adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore would be a friend of the world maketh himself an enemy of God.

James 4:5 Or think ye that the scripture speaketh in vain? Doth the spirit which he made to dwell in us long unto envying?

James 4:6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore [the scripture] saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "world", "adulteresses", "friendship", "enmity", "whosoever", and "therefore". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "world" and "adulteresses", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "Ye ask and receive not because ye..." into verse 5's "Or think ye that the scripture speaketh...", so "world" and "adulteresses" 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 "world" and "adulteresses" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.