James 1:21 (WEB)

Passage

Therefore, putting away all filthiness and overflowing of wickedness, receive with humility the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.

Nearby Context

James 1:19 So, then, my beloved brothers, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger;

James 1:20 for the anger of man doesn’t produce the righteousness of God.

James 1:21 Therefore, putting away all filthiness and overflowing of wickedness, receive with humility the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.

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

James 1:23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man looking at his natural face in a mirror;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "therefore", "putting", "away", "filthiness", "overflowing", "wickedness", "receive", and "humility". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "therefore" and "putting", 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 doesn t..." into verse 22's "But be doers of the word and...", so "therefore" and "putting" 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 "therefore" and "putting" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.