James 4:1 (KJV)

Passage

From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?

Nearby Context

James 4:1 From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?

James 4:2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.

James 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "whence", "come", "wars", "fightings", "even", and "lusts". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "whence" and "come", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The next verse adds "Ye lust and have not ye kill...", so "whence" and "come" should be read forward into that movement. In James context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

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