the Fourth Week after Easter
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THE MESSAGE
James 3:18
Bible Study Resources
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And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who cultivate peace.
And the fruit of righteousnesse is sowen in peace, of them that make peace.
And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.
And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
People who work for peace in a peaceful way plant a good crop of right-living.
And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
Peacemakers who sow in peace reap the fruit of righteousness.
When peacemakers plant seeds of peace, they will harvest justice.
And peacemakers who sow seed in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.
But [the] fruit of righteousness in peace is sown for them that make peace.
People who work for peace in a peaceful way get the blessings that come from right living.
And the fruite of righteousnesse is sowen in peace, of them that make peace.
And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by the peacemakers.
And goodness is the harvest that is produced from the seeds the peacemakers plant in peace.
And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace among those who make peace.
And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace for the ones making peace.
And the seed whose fruit is righteousness (spiritual maturity) is sown in peace by those who make peace [by actively encouraging goodwill between individuals].
And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace for them that make peace.
And the fruit of righteousness is planted in peace for those who make peace.
Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in shalom by those who make shalom.
And a harvest of righteousness is grown from the seed of peaceis grown in peace">[fn] planted by peacemakers.Proverbs 11:18; Hosea 10:12; Matthew 5:9; Philippians 1:11; Hebrews 12:11;">[xr]
But the fruits of righteousness in quietness are sown by them who make peace.
And the fruits of righteousness are sown in stillness, by them who make peace.
Yea, and the fruite of ryghteousnes is sowen in peace, of the that make peace.
And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace for them that make peace.
Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
without partiality and without dissimulation, And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace for them that make peace.
And peace, for those who strive for peace, is the seed of which the harvest is righteousness.
And the fruyt of riytwisnesse is sowun in pees, to men that maken pees.
And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace for those that make peace.
And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by them that make peace.
And the fruit that consists of righteousness is planted in peace among those who make peace.
Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness.
Those who plant seeds of peace will gather what is right and good.
And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace.
And, in harvest of righteousness, with peace, is sown by them that make peace.
And the fruit of justice is sown in peace, to them that make peace.
And the harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
yee and the frute of rightewesnes is sowen in peace of them that mayntene peace.
and the fruit of the righteousness in peace is sown to those making peace.
yee, and the frute of rightewesnes is sowen in peace, of the that mayntene peace.
they who cultivate peace, enjoy the reward of their virtue.
These peacemakers will plant seeds of goodness and get a bumper crop of right living.
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
the fruit: James 1:20, Proverbs 11:18, Proverbs 11:28, Proverbs 11:30, Isaiah 32:16, Isaiah 32:17, Hosea 10:12, Matthew 5:9, John 4:36, Philippians 1:11, Hebrews 12:11
make: Matthew 5:9
Reciprocal: Genesis 13:8 - Let 1 Kings 6:7 - neither hammer Ezra 7:25 - the wisdom Psalms 18:35 - gentleness Psalms 34:14 - seek Psalms 119:73 - that I may Psalms 122:7 - Peace Proverbs 6:19 - that soweth Proverbs 14:29 - slow Proverbs 17:27 - an excellent spirit Ecclesiastes 9:17 - General Isaiah 11:2 - the spirit of wisdom Isaiah 32:20 - Blessed Zechariah 8:12 - prosperous Matthew 7:17 - every Mark 4:26 - as Luke 10:6 - the Son John 15:16 - bring Acts 6:3 - full Romans 1:14 - both to 1 Corinthians 7:15 - but 1 Corinthians 14:33 - but 2 Corinthians 13:11 - live Galatians 5:22 - love Galatians 6:8 - soweth to his Ephesians 1:17 - the spirit Ephesians 4:3 - General Philippians 1:27 - in one Philippians 4:2 - that Colossians 3:12 - mercies 1 Thessalonians 5:13 - and be Hebrews 12:14 - Follow 1 Peter 3:11 - seek
Cross-References
God told the serpent: "Because you've done this, you're cursed, cursed beyond all cattle and wild animals, Cursed to slink on your belly and eat dirt all your life. I'm declaring war between you and the Woman, between your offspring and hers. He'll wound your head, you'll wound his heel."
Naked I came from my mother's womb, naked I'll return to the womb of the earth. God gives, God takes. God's name be ever blessed.
So don't return us to mud, saying, "Back to where you came from!" Patience! You've got all the time in the world—whether a thousand years or a day, it's all the same to you. Are we no more to you than a wispy dream, no more than a blade of grass That springs up gloriously with the rising sun and is cut down without a second thought? Your anger is far and away too much for us; we're at the end of our rope. You keep track of all our sins; every misdeed since we were children is entered in your books. All we can remember is that frown on your face. Is that all we're ever going to get? We live for seventy years or so (with luck we might make it to eighty), And what do we have to show for it? Trouble. Toil and trouble and a marker in the graveyard. Who can make sense of such rage, such anger against the very ones who fear you?
The perverse travel a dangerous road, potholed and mud-slick; if you know what's good for you, stay clear of it.
But that's not the end of it. This country that used to be covered with fine vineyards—thousands of them, worth millions!—will revert to a weed patch. Weeds and thornbushes everywhere! Good for nothing except, perhaps, hunting rabbits. Cattle and sheep will forage as best they can in the fields of weeds—but there won't be a trace of all those fertile and well-tended gardens and fields.
Here's another Message from God to the people of Judah and Jerusalem: "Plow your unplowed fields, but then don't plant weeds in the soil! Yes, circumcise your lives for God's sake. Plow your unplowed hearts, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem. Prevent fire—the fire of my anger— for once it starts it can't be put out. Your wicked ways are fuel for the fire.
A Harvest Story At about that same time Jesus left the house and sat on the beach. In no time at all a crowd gathered along the shoreline, forcing him to get into a boat. Using the boat as a pulpit, he addressed his congregation, telling stories. "What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed. As he scattered the seed, some of it fell on the road, and birds ate it. Some fell in the gravel; it sprouted quickly but didn't put down roots, so when the sun came up it withered just as quickly. Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it was strangled by the weeds. Some fell on good earth, and produced a harvest beyond his wildest dreams. "Are you listening to this? Really listening?" The disciples came up and asked, "Why do you tell stories?" He replied, "You've been given insight into God's kingdom. You know how it works. Not everybody has this gift, this insight; it hasn't been given to them. Whenever someone has a ready heart for this, the insights and understandings flow freely. But if there is no readiness, any trace of receptivity soon disappears. That's why I tell stories: to create readiness, to nudge the people toward receptive insight. In their present state they can stare till doomsday and not see it, listen till they're blue in the face and not get it. I don't want Isaiah's forecast repeated all over again: Your ears are open but you don't hear a thing. Your eyes are awake but you don't see a thing. The people are blockheads! They stick their fingers in their ears so they won't have to listen; They screw their eyes shut so they won't have to look, so they won't have to deal with me face-to-face and let me heal them. "But you have God-blessed eyes—eyes that see! And God-blessed ears—ears that hear! A lot of people, prophets and humble believers among them, would have given anything to see what you are seeing, to hear what you are hearing, but never had the chance. "Study this story of the farmer planting seed. When anyone hears news of the kingdom and doesn't take it in, it just remains on the surface, and so the Evil One comes along and plucks it right out of that person's heart. This is the seed the farmer scatters on the road. "The seed cast in the gravel—this is the person who hears and instantly responds with enthusiasm. But there is no soil of character, and so when the emotions wear off and some difficulty arrives, there is nothing to show for it. "The seed cast in the weeds is the person who hears the kingdom news, but weeds of worry and illusions about getting more and wanting everything under the sun strangle what was heard, and nothing comes of it. "The seed cast on good earth is the person who hears and takes in the News, and then produces a harvest beyond his wildest dreams." He told another story. "God's kingdom is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. That night, while his hired men were asleep, his enemy sowed thistles all through the wheat and slipped away before dawn. When the first green shoots appeared and the grain began to form, the thistles showed up, too. "The farmhands came to the farmer and said, ‘Master, that was clean seed you planted, wasn't it? Where did these thistles come from?' "He answered, ‘Some enemy did this.' "The farmhands asked, ‘Should we weed out the thistles?' "He said, ‘No, if you weed the thistles, you'll pull up the wheat, too. Let them grow together until harvest time. Then I'll instruct the harvesters to pull up the thistles and tie them in bundles for the fire, then gather the wheat and put it in the barn.'" Another story. "God's kingdom is like a pine nut that a farmer plants. It is quite small as seeds go, but in the course of years it grows into a huge pine tree, and eagles build nests in it." Another story. "God's kingdom is like yeast that a woman works into the dough for dozens of loaves of barley bread—and waits while the dough rises." All Jesus did that day was tell stories—a long storytelling afternoon. His storytelling fulfilled the prophecy: I will open my mouth and tell stories; I will bring out into the open things hidden since the world's first day. Jesus dismissed the congregation and went into the house. His disciples came in and said, "Explain to us that story of the thistles in the field." So he explained. "The farmer who sows the pure seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, the pure seeds are subjects of the kingdom, the thistles are subjects of the Devil, and the enemy who sows them is the Devil. The harvest is the end of the age, the curtain of history. The harvest hands are angels. "The picture of thistles pulled up and burned is a scene from the final act. The Son of Man will send his angels, weed out the thistles from his kingdom, pitch them in the trash, and be done with them. They are going to complain to high heaven, but nobody is going to listen. At the same time, ripe, holy lives will mature and adorn the kingdom of their Father. "Are you listening to this? Really listening? "God's kingdom is like a treasure hidden in a field for years and then accidentally found by a trespasser. The finder is ecstatic—what a find!—and proceeds to sell everything he owns to raise money and buy that field. "Or, God's kingdom is like a jewel merchant on the hunt for excellent pearls. Finding one that is flawless, he immediately sells everything and buys it. "Or, God's kingdom is like a fishnet cast into the sea, catching all kinds of fish. When it is full, it is hauled onto the beach. The good fish are picked out and put in a tub; those unfit to eat are thrown away. That's how it will be when the curtain comes down on history. The angels will come and cull the bad fish and throw them in the garbage. There will be a lot of desperate complaining, but it won't do any good." Jesus asked, "Are you starting to get a handle on all this?" They answered, "Yes." He said, "Then you see how every student well-trained in God's kingdom is like the owner of a general store who can put his hands on anything you need, old or new, exactly when you need it." When Jesus finished telling these stories, he left there, returned to his hometown, and gave a lecture in the meetinghouse. He made a real hit, impressing everyone. "We had no idea he was this good!" they said. "How did he get so wise, get such ability?" But in the next breath they were cutting him down: "We've known him since he was a kid; he's the carpenter's son. We know his mother, Mary. We know his brothers James and Joseph, Simon and Judas. All his sisters live here. Who does he think he is?" They got their noses all out of joint. But Jesus said, "A prophet is taken for granted in his hometown and his family." He didn't do many miracles there because of their hostile indifference.
For instance, a person who has been around for a while might well be convinced that he can eat anything on the table, while another, with a different background, might assume he should only be a vegetarian and eat accordingly. But since both are guests at Christ's table, wouldn't it be terribly rude if they fell to criticizing what the other ate or didn't eat? God, after all, invited them both to the table. Do you have any business crossing people off the guest list or interfering with God's welcome? If there are corrections to be made or manners to be learned, God can handle that without your help.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
And the fruit of righteousness,.... Which is either eternal life, which is the fruit of Christ's righteousness, and shall be enjoyed by all those who are justified by it; and who, in consequence of it, through the grace of God, live soberly, righteously, and godly; see Romans 6:22 or else what is enjoyed in this life, as the fruit and effect of a righteous and holy conversation, which is peace of conscience; and may be truly called the peaceable fruit of righteousness; see Isaiah 32:17
is sown in peace of them that make peace; that is, either such as are possessed of that wisdom which is peaceable, and makes them so; that peace which they make, pursue after, exercise, and maintain, is a seed, which, being sown by them, will, in the issue, be followed with eternal happiness and felicity; see Matthew 5:9 or such who live a godly life and conversation, and are filled with the fruits of righteousness, and, among the rest, with this of making and preserving peace among men, shall enjoy, as what will spring up from such good seed sown, much conscience peace and spiritual pleasure of mind: righteousness and peace promise a large and comfortable harvest both here and hereafter.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
And the fruit of righteousness - That which the righteousness here referred to produces, or that which is the effect of true religion. The meaning is, that righteousness or true religion produces certain results on the life like the effects of seed sown in good ground. Righteousness or true religion as certainly produces such effects, as seed that is sown produces a harvest.
Is sown in peace - Is scattered over the world in a peaceful manner. That is, it is not done amidst contentions, and brawls, and strifes. The farmer sows his seed in peace. The fields are not sown amidst the tumults of a mob, or the excitements of a battle or a camp. Nothing is more calm, peaceful, quiet, and composed, than the farmer, as he walks with measured tread over his fields, scattering his seed. So it is in sowing the “seed of the kingdom,” in preparing for the great harvest of righteousness in the world. It is done by men of peace; it is done in peaceful scenes, and with a peaceful spirit; it is not in the tumult of war, or amidst the hoarse brawling of a mob. In a pure and holy life; in the peaceful scenes of the sanctuary and the Sabbath; by noiseless and unobtrusive laborers, the seed is scattered over the world, and the result is seen in an abundant harvest in producing peace and order.
Of them that make peace - By those who desire to produce peace, or who are of a peaceful temper and disposition. They are engaged everywhere in scattering these blessed seeds of peace, contentment, and order; and the result shall be a glorious harvest for themselves and for mankind - a harvest rich and abundant on earth and in heaven. The whole effect, therefore, of religion, is to produce peace. It is all peace - peace in its origin and in its results; in the heart of the individual, and in society; on earth, and in heaven. The idea with which the apostle commenced this chapter seems to have been that such persons only should be admitted to the office of public teachers. From that, the mind naturally turned to the effect of religion in general; and he states that in the ministry and out of it; in the heart of the individual and on society at large; here and hereafter, the effect of religion is to produce peace. Its nature is peaceful as it exists in the heart, and as it is developed in the world: and wherever and however it is manifested, it is like seed sown, not amid the storms of war and the contentions of battle, but in the fields of quiet husbandry, producing in rich abundance a harvest of peace. In its origin, and in all its results, it is productive only of contentment, sincerity, goodness, and peace. Happy he who has this religion in his heart; happy he who with liberal hand scatters its blessings broadcast over the world!
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse James 3:18. And the fruit of righteousness is sown — The whole is the principle of righteousness in the soul, and all the above virtues are the fruits of that righteousness.
Is sown in peace — When the peace of God rules the heart, all these virtues and graces grow and flourish abundantly.
Of them that make peace. — The peace-makers are continually recommending this wisdom to others, and their own conduct is represented as a sowing of heavenly seed, which brings forth Divine fruit. Perhaps sowing in peace signifies sowing prosperously-being very successful. This is not only the proper disposition for every teacher of the Gospel, but for every professed follower of the Lord Jesus.
Some render this verse, which is confessedly obscure, thus: And the peaceable fruits of righteousness are sown for the practisers of peace. He who labours to live peaceably shall have peace for his reward.
1. ALMOST the whole of the preceding chapter is founded on maxims highly accredited in the rabbinical writings, and without a reference to those writings it would have been impossible, in some cases, to have understood St. James' meaning. There is one phrase, the rabbinical meaning and use of which I have reserved for this place, viz.. The wisdom that is from above. This is greatly celebrated among them by the terms חכמה עליונה chocmah elyonah, the supernal wisdom. This they seem to understand to be a peculiar inspiration of the Almighty, or a teaching communicated immediately by the angels of God. In Sohar, Yalcut Rubeni, fol. 19, Rabbi Chiya said: "The wisdom from above was in Adam more than in the supreme angels, and he knew all things."
In Sohar Chadash, fol. 35, it is said concerning Enoch, "That the angels were sent from heaven, and taught him the wisdom that is from above." Ibid. fol. 42, 4: "Solomon came, and he was perfect in all things, and strongly set forth the praises of the wisdom that is from above." See more in Schoettgen. St. James gives us the properties of this wisdom, which are not to be found in such detail in any of the rabbinical writers. It is another word for the life of God in the soul of man, or true religion; it is the teaching of God in the human heart, and he who has this not is not a child of God; for it is written, All thy children shall be taught of the Lord.
2. To enjoy the peace of God in the conscience, and to live to promote peace among men, is to answer the end of our creation, and to enjoy as much happiness ourselves as the present state of things can afford. They who are in continual broils live a wretched life; and they who love the life of the salamander must share no small portion of the demoniacal nature. In domestic society such persons are an evil disease; therefore a canker in the Church, and a pest in the state.
