James 5: Group Study Handout

How to use: read James 5 aloud together, then take the questions in order. One page is enough for an evening.

Overview

The rich are warned to weep for their miseries because their riches are corrupted and they have oppressed the laborers (vv. 1-6). Believers are called to patience until the Lord's coming, likened to a farmer waiting for crops (vv.

Key verse

“Confess your offenses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The insistent prayer of a righteous person is powerfully effective.”
James 5:16 (WEB)

Outline

James 5:1–6 Warning to the Rich
James 5:7–11 Call for Patience and Endurance
James 5:12 Exhortation on Integrity
James 5:13–18 Encouragement to Pray
James 5:19–20 Restoration of the Wandering

Discussion questions

In v6, why does James say, 'You have condemned, you have murdered the righteous one'?
What does James mean by 'the wages of the laborers' in v4?
James speaks of 'the coming of the Lord' in vv. 7-8: what implications does this have for the audience?
Why does James emphasize 'the prayer of faith' in v15, and what does this mean for the sick?
When has a time of waiting made you feel anxious, like the farmer waiting for rain in v7?

Go deeper

Passages that echo James 5: Galatians 6, 1 Peter 4, James 1.

Before next time: read 1 Peter 1.