If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right.
The word translated as “royal” comes from the Greek word, “basilikos.” A quick look at Strong’s Concordance reveals that the word, basilikos, can also mean “of or belonging to a king.” So why wouldn’t James refer to this law from God as the “King’s law?” After all, Scripture tells us Jesus is “King of Kings” (Revelation 19:6).
While there is at least one translation of the Bible* that uses “king’s law” instead of “royal law,” it is not commonly done. The reason we shy away from the use of “king” in this case is that the reader might be prone to confuse the meaning.
The Jews of Jesus’ day had a similar problem. When Jesus began his ministry, the Messiah they were looking for was an earthly king. Jesus’ kingdom is different from the one the Pharisees envisioned. They saw themselves in positions of power in a kingdom free from foreign rule. They thought the “true” Messiah would know this. He would recognize their “devotion” and would honor them as faithful servants of God. Except they weren’t faithful servants. They were corrupt and greedy and Jesus wasn’t interested in earthly power. His power is vastly greater than any human can imagine.
Application: Jesus is our true King, the King of Kings. Honor him and obey him as the King of Kings deserves.
Food for Thought: When James says following the law of “Love your neighbor as yourself” is “doing right,” is he serious? Is that all there is to “doing right?”
*Wycliff Bible
Thank you for the post brother. I see this law as something you set a great example of in your own life. I believe James is serious in what he is saying. To clarify, however, when I read, “If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well”, I don’t see this as him saying this is “all there is”, but rather that you are on the right path. To say “you do well” is not the same to say this is all there is to doing well.
I see it as a litmus test to the spirit and frame of mind of which we are walking. I believe James goes on to clarify such in showing how none of us can fulfill the law because to be guilty in one area marks us guilty in all. So this cannot be viewed as all there is in terms of all there is to “doing right” but rather as a heart position that allows us to do do good by God’s grace.
The final aim of our instruction is geared towards the heart but manifests in our actions, “So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.” We all fall under grace if we are born again, and live by a new law in our hearts. The ultimate manifestation of this law can be shown via loving our neighbors.
The Scriptures, however, still affords a great volume of text going into specifics involving numerous applications as to how this is fleshed out because we all need guidance, teaching, training, encouragement, and to understand those doctrines that will help us to walk rightly before God and not fall short of this grace.
NMOP3PISdn
Thank you for the thoughtful clarification. I appreciate the words you offer and the distinctions you draw from the text.
If we love our neighbor as ourselves, we are going to be doing everything the law intended. We will simply be doing it through a better motive and more sincerely than if we were hollowly trying to obey a checklist. James certainly has the words of Jesus in mind here (Matt 22:37-40)
Rich,
Great point! Using a “checklist” might work on some behaviors, but it really doesn’t apply to the heart of the matter that you and NMOP3PISdn are pointing us to.
I appreciate the thoughtfulness of the comments of all three of you. I see the following verses as tied together and providing clarity on the simplicity of the symptom of loving our neighbor: Ecclesiastes 12:13; Micah 6:8; 1 John 4:16-21. (Note the difference (KJV) between a fear (reverence) of God versus a worldly fear ( of man).
I just checked back in. Great stuff here! Thank you all for your comments.
👍