James 2:4 (YLT)

Passage

ye did not judge fully in yourselves, and did become ill-reasoning judges.

Nearby Context

James 2:2 for if there may come into your synagogue a man with gold ring, in gay raiment, and there may come in also a poor man in vile raiment,

James 2:3 and ye may look upon him bearing the gay raiment, and may say to him, `Thou--sit thou here well,' and to the poor man may say, `Thou--stand thou there, or, Sit thou here under my footstool,' --

James 2:4 ye did not judge fully in yourselves, and did become ill-reasoning judges.

James 2:5 Hearken, my brethren beloved, did not God choose the poor of this world, rich in faith, and heirs of the reign that He promised to those loving Him?

James 2:6 and ye did dishonour the poor one; do not the rich oppress you and themselves draw you to judgment-seats;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "judge", "fully", "yourselves", "become", "ill-reasoning", and "judges". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "judge" and "fully", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "and ye may look upon him bearing..." into verse 5's "Hearken my brethren beloved did not God...", so "judge" and "fully" 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 "judge" and "fully" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.