James 3:1-5 meaning

In James 3:1-5, James turns his attention from actions to speech. In Chapter 2, James dealt with the sin of inaction, the hypocrisy of saying good things but doing nothing (which is a sin in and of itself--James 4:17). Here he will address how we can sin and cause damage with what we say. Primarily, James is concerned with false teachers. He issues a warning:

Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment (v 1).

James's letter is full of wisdom and advice to Jewish believers spread throughout the Roman empire (James 1:1). When he writes Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren (v 1), he is writing to a context of believers in Christ, by calling them my brethren. His warning is that among you, the communities of believers, they should not allow many of the believers to become teachers.

Again, James brings judgment to his readers' attention. Chapter 2 largely dealt with hypocrites in the church communities to whom James was writing, those who were giving preferential treatment to the rich (James 2:3), or were not applying good works to their faith by helping others who needed it (James 2:14-16). In that chapter, James refers to the judgment all believers will face when we stand before the throne of our king Jesus:

"So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment."
(James 2:12-13)

It is a sobering reminder that Jesus will evaluate all that we have said and done (2 Corinthians 5:9-11). Early on in his letter, James reminds his readers of the "crown of life" which Jesus has promised to those who love Him and live a life of faith and obedience (James 1:12).

The "crown of life" seems to represent a victor's wreath that is given at the Bema, the Judgment Seat of Christ (1 Corinthians 5:10). The Greek word translated "crown" is "stephanos," which is the same word used in 1 Corinthians 9:25, where Paul puts forth the example of an Olympic athlete receiving a crown or laurel wreath for winning a contest. See photo for the Roman engraving on the Obelisk of Theodosius, where the emperor is holding a victor's wreath ("stephanos") to give to the winner of a chariot race.

Paul desires to endure in faith (and inspire his readers to do likewise), training his body in order to qualify and be approved to receive a crown rewarded to him by God (1 Corinthians 9:24-27). Similarly, in James 1:12, James describes this victor's wreath being awarded to the man who perseveres under trial and finds approval from the judge.

James began his letter by describing the pattern by which believers can endure trials and reach maturity, to the point at which his readers will lack nothing, because their endurance has reached its intended result (James 1:4). James is writing about life on earth as an issue of spiritual and practical wisdom. He asserts that his process of joyfully enduring trials while remaining faithful to follow God's commands is the means to acquire all that can be gained from living life on this earth (James 1:2-4).

But at the end of our life, it is Jesus who will assess how we lived. He is the judge, and the standard. The immense benefit we have as believers is that He loves us and desires for us to succeed (Hebrews 2:10). It will be the motives and efforts we have relative to what we were given to steward that He will judge (Hebrews 4:11-13, Matthew 25:20-23).

1 Corinthians 3:13-15 also describes Jesus as the judge, examining "each man's work…revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work. If any man's work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man's work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire."

The judgment fire of Jesus is to sort out the works we did for which He will reward us, and the works we did which were useless or sinful and do not belong in His kingdom, rendering no positive reward, only loss. But the fire does not consume the believer ("but he himself will be saved"). The judgment is for what we do and what we say, not for our eternal destiny (2 Timothy 2:13).

With that eventual judgment in mind, James warns that there should not be too many teachers in the church communities. The reason why is simple. The teachers of God's word will incur a stricter judgment (v 1). Jesus will deal more strictly and with more scrutiny toward those who teach others about what God has said. This is a very compelling motivation to not misquote God, nor to misrepresent His ways and will. If you are going to teach about God's word, you need to strive to be as accurate to the truth as possible. It is not something to be taken lightly. It is not a position that everyone should aspire to. Jesus will evaluate teachers for how well they taught the truth.

Paul, writing to Timothy, describes one kind of bad teacher of God’s word,

"wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions."
(1 Timothy 1:7)

This gives the picture of a person who is not in touch with their natural gifting or abilities, but puts their desire to be a teacher above this. They are probably motivated by what James will address in a few verses--selfish ambition and bitter jealousy--by the desire to be important and looked up to, even if nothing they say is true or useful. They say false things that are out of step with God’s word because they don’t know what they’re talking about. But they speak confidently. This will lead their audience in the wrong direction.

The listeners to these teachers are receiving bad teaching that is taught confidently as if true. It is obvious how wide and devastating the impact of false teaching can be. If you teach ten people that humans can fly by stepping off a cliff, and if only even three of those people trust you, that’s three lives you're leading to certain death. Because of what you said, what you taught them.

Some actual false teachings which were misleading believers during the first century were doctrines like the worship of angels (Colossians 2:18-19), or that Gentiles should be circumcised and submit to the Mosaic Law to be saved (Galatians 5:2-6, 6:12-15), or a corrupt teaching concerning the resurrection of believers (2 Timothy 2:17-18).

The judge Himself, Jesus, during His earthly ministry, hinted at the stricter judgment which He would exercise upon a teacher who leads a child into sin,

"but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea."
(Matthew 18:6)

Jesus was speaking of literal children in this passage, demonstrating how precious children are in the sight of God, but the principle is plain: someone in authority who leads their learners into sin or error will receive severe consequences.

Most of what James writes about the tongue is negative, so it would seem his primary goal throughout this chapter is to impress upon his readers to take very seriously who teaches them. They need to be on alert toward foolish, inaccurate, badly motivated, and hypocritical teachers. It is clear that it is the duty of listeners to judge teaching and only listen to and follow teachers who are true to God’s word.

James doubles down on his warning, by noting how flawed we humans are, and how rare it is that someone speaks wisely and maturely:

For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well (v 2).

James includes himself, speaking broadly of all believers, that we all stumble in many ways (v 2). To stumble is to sin, to make a mistake, to fail to walk the righteous walk, to walk apart from God's good design. There are many ways we sin: through what we do, what we decide, and what we say.

James notes that a man who speaks well and does not say the wrong thing is a rare individual: If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well (v 2). It is natural for modern readers to bristle against the phrase perfect man as though it were describing an impossibility. A common phrase of our times is, "Nobody's perfect."

This is true, the Bible affirms that no one is without sin (Romans 3:23). James writes in this same letter that we should confess our sins to each other (James 5:16). But James began this section by warning his readers to Let not many of you become teachers, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment (v 2). In other words, "You should only have a few teachers. And you need to choose them wisely. They need to be the best qualified for the job, so that when they're evaluated by Jesus, they'll receive a good assessment, instead of punishment."

Jesus taught that it was possible, it was the desired outcome, for believers to hear "Well done, good and faithful servant" when we stand before Him (Matthew 25:23).

Thus, James is describing a reality, however exceptional, of the perfect man. He wrote of this perfection earlier, as something his readers should strive for. The word translated perfect is "teleios" and means "maturity," "completion of a result," or "fulfillment of an era."

In the opening of this letter, James described the "perfect result" of enduring in faith, so that we ourselves "may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing" (James 1:4). The word "result" is the Greek "ergon" from which we get the unit for work, "erg," in the English word "ergonomic." It is often translated "work." James’s application of faith to finding its "perfect result" is to complete a process of daily effort of becoming sanctified, set apart unto God, fully mature to serve, as we overcome the trials of this life.

It might be translated "completed work." James is not describing an impossibly high standard of perfection. His expectation is for his readers to heed his wisdom so that the process of maturing in their faith will become complete, lacking in nothing.

That would seem to be the perfect man James is describing here. It would be the man who "looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does" (James 1:25). It is one who has acquired wisdom of walking in God's ways.

By highlighting how wildly sinful the tongue is (how much damage we do with what we say, and how weak we are in this area), James is showing what we need to work toward and what kind of teachers we ought to listen to. The men who ought to be teaching and leading need to be spiritually mature. James explains what he means here by he is a perfect man; he is a man who does not stumble in what he says (v 2), he does not speak falsely or lead others to sin.

Having this clarity and control over what he says indicates that he is able to bridle the whole body as well (v 2). A bridle is a piece of riding gear that is put over the head of a horse to submit it to the rider's control. The bit in the horses' mouth and the reins which run from the bridle to the rider’s hands allow the rider to lead the horse, rather than the horse run wild wherever it wants. James will explore this analogy in the following verse.

His point is that most men do not control what they say and are not fit for teaching. The spiritually mature man (the perfect man) speaks wisely and graciously, and since he has mastered what he says, this helps to master the rest of himself. James will further describe the character traits and good behavior of good teachers in the final verses of this chapter, in contrast to men who are only seeking influence and their own gratification.

But James is not finished exploring how destructive the tongue is, and how commonly we allow it to control us to our ruin. He provides a series of analogies that show how one small piece of a mechanism can make all the difference, showing how the tongue (a small piece of our body) has enormous influence over our lives:

Now if we put the bits into the horses' mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well (v 3).

The illustration is simple. A horse is an animal much larger than humans. It is tall, powerful, and fast. Yet humans domesticate horses and put them to work, performing tasks to lessen our own labor. Horses carry us or pull carts which carry whatever we need them too.

Before the relatively recent invention of the car and train, horses were a convenient mode of transport. And the way humans exert control over such a large, strong animal is by a small piece of metal which we put into their mouths. It is through putting the bits into the horses' mouths that we can lead and control the horse. The bit is a small metal bar attached to the bridle. The bridle functions somewhat like a collar on a dog; the bridle is fixed over the horse's skull and face like a collar, to which the reins are attached, giving the rider the ability to move the horse's head.

But what truly makes the horse move is the bit in its mouth, which rests on its gums. Every time the rider pulls the reins, the bit pulls at the horse into the direction the rider is indicating. With something as small as a bit, we direct the entire body of the horse as well. In that way, we control the horse; they will obey us because of one little thing in their mouths.

James paints a similar picture with sailing ships:

Look at the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires (v 4).

He draws his readers' attention to this second analogy, Look at ships also (v 4). One small part of the machine can direct the entire apparatus. A tiny metal bit can direct a thousand-pound animal. Likewise, ships, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are also affected by one small piece of equipment, a very small rudder (v 4). Even thought the rudder is a very small part of the ship, it is what determines the ship's direction. So it is with the tongue.

We still use cargo ships in the modern day, in addition to airplanes and cargo trucks, but in the first century ships were a primary mode of transport, whether of passengers or goods. The Mediterranean Sea was the highway connecting the West to the Middle East, from Spain to Judea. Ships were built to be so great in size and strength so that they could haul grain, goods, and armies.

James adds a second layer of strength to his analogy: ships, which are huge and strong, are driven by strong winds (v 4). A strong object which is fueled only by the strength of the sea winds. And yet the only reason navigating the ocean in such a mighty craft is possible is because of a very small piece of equipment on the ship--the rudder. Ships are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires (v 4).

The pilot is the crew-member who steers the ship. If he turns the rudder one way, the ship moves accordingly. Whatever the inclination of the pilot, whatever direction he decides, the ship will be directed by the way the very small rudder turns.

After two analogies showing how a small thing can create impact far bigger than itself, James makes his point:

So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things (v 5).

The tongue is indeed a small part of the body (v 5). On average, it is just three inches long and two-and-a-half inches wide. But just like the bit in the horse’s mouth and the rudder of a sailing ship, this small part can cause enormous effects. The tongue, as James writes, is small, and yet it boasts of great things (v 5). Boasting is a symptom of pride, often done at the expense of others. The scripture warns against pride many times,

"I said to the boastful,'Do not boast,'
And to the wicked,'Do not lift up the horn;
Do not lift up your horn on high,
Do not speak with insolent pride.'"
(Psalm 75:4-5)

God opposes the proud and the boastful (James 4:6, 1 Samuel 2:3, Proverbs 27:2, Psalm 75:6-7, Jeremiah 9:23-24, Matthew 23:11-12). Habakkuk 2:4 presents pride as the contrast to faith. Pride is faith in self (I know best) while faith is faith that God's ways are for our best.

The tongue, this tiny part of us, can boast of great things, elevating us in our own sight and diminishing our fellow believers. This leads to a failure to love one another, and encourages selfish ambition and jealousy, which James addresses directly in the final verses of this passage. The only things we are encouraged to boast in are God Himself and the cross of Jesus Christ (Jeremiah 9:24, 1 Corinthians 1:31, Galatians 6:14).

James offers a third analogy to tie directly to the tongue here in verse 5 and into the next section:

See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire! (v 5).

He directs his audience to See how great a forest, the biggest forest one can imagine, can be devastated, set aflame, by only a spark (such a small fire.) So it is with the tongue.

Any forest, no matter how expansive, no matter the impressive age and towering heights of the trees, can be set aflame and burn to the ground because of one unattended campfire. Fire spreads and multiplies as long as it has fuel and oxygen. It can become basically unstoppable until it burns itself out by consuming all the available fuel. Thus a great forest can be brought to ruin. So it is with human endeavors--they can be brought to ruin through careless or untrue words.

A spark can burn a forest. Little actions lead to big results. The tongue is small, but it is a crucial part of our body and of life on this earth. By our tongue, we communicate. And what we communicate has enormous consequences. In the following passage, James will continue to explain how seriously we should consider how we speak, because the tongue, like a small fire, can burn everything down.