James 1:21 (DRB)

Passage

Wherefore, casting away all uncleanness and abundance of naughtiness, with meekness receive the ingrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

Nearby Context

James 1:19 You know, my dearest brethren. And let every man be swift to hear, but slow to speak and slow to anger.

James 1:20 For the anger of man worketh not the justice of God.

James 1:21 Wherefore, casting away all uncleanness and abundance of naughtiness, with meekness receive the ingrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

James 1:22 But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

James 1:23 For if a man be a hearer of the word and not a doer, he shall be compared to a man beholding his own countenance in a glass.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "wherefore", "casting", "away", "uncleanness", "abundance", "naughtiness", "meekness", and "receive". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "wherefore" and "casting", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "For the anger of man worketh not..." into verse 22's "But be ye doers of the word...", so "wherefore" and "casting" 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 "wherefore" and "casting" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.