1 What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions¹ are at ^twar within you?² 2 You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, ^ubecause you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask ^vwrongly, to spend it on your passions. 4 You ^wadulterous people!^{3 x}Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the ^yspirit that he has made to dwell in us”? 6 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, ^z“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. ^aResist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 ^bDraw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you ^cdouble-minded. 9 ^dBe wretched and mourn and weep. ^eLet your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 ^fHumble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

11 Do not speak evil against one another, brothers.⁴ The one who speaks against a brother or ^gjudges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 12 There is only one ^hlawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. ⁱBut who are you to judge your neighbor?