James 5:4

"Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth"."Behold" -(see, consider, take notice of)."the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you" -mowing. field is. general term for reaping. "The laborers were, therefore, farm workers who toiled in the fields for the rich " (Woods p. 263). "Withheld by you"-The Law of Moses had condemned those who retained the wages of hired workmen even for one night (Leviticus 19:13), see also Jeremiah 2:13; Deuteronomy 24:14; Job 2:1; Job 2:10; Job 2:38; Malachi 3:5. One of Jesus' parables reflected the proper practice of paying workers daily (Matthew 20:1). One cannot say that the Bible presents. morality which is only affordable or practical for the rich or middle class, for the Bible is filled with legislation designed to protect the poor. God is extremely concerned with how we treat the less fortunate or the vulnerable."cries out against you" -Like the blood of Abel (Genesis 4:10), this stolen money cries out for justice. Which should make us think, does any of our money or possessions cry out to God for justice? Have we been dishonest with others, have we failed to pay our debtors or have we failed to give to God as we should?"and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord" -God hears the cries of people who are being oppressed and taken advantage of by others. "The ears of the Lord is simply. vivid……way of saying God listens and responds to his people" (Adamson p. 186).

Points To Note:

1. The righteous can take comfort in these words, for eventually someone will try to rip us off. Our car or house might be broken into or vandalized, we might run into. dishonest merchant, mechanic, or salesperson. But people don't get away with their misdeeds, and eventually God will judge! 2. Here is tremendous incentive as why we shouldn't envy those who are slick and sly, whatever money they do get from us----isn't worth the price of their soul. We haven't be ripped off-they have, by the devil himself. If someone intentionally sells me. lemon,. might lose. couple thousand, but the underhanded individual has lost much more. 3. In the end, every misdeed will be repaid (2 Corinthians 5:10), and nobody will have gotten away with anything (Galatians 6:7 ff). "the Lord of Sabaoth" -"Sabaoth"-"is the transliteration of. Hebrew word which denotes hosts or armies (note: it is not the same as the word Sabbath)….came to designate Him as the One who is supreme over all the innumerable hosts of spiritual agencies, or of what are described as the 'armies of heaven'" (Vine p. 311). That is, "The Lord Of Hosts". "the most majestic title you can find for God in the Old Testament. It speaks of the Almighty God and his sovereign omnipotence. It is. word that applies to the King, the Leader of the armies of heaven….You might think their cries have gone unheeded and that they have no champion on earth. But their champion is none other than the Lord God Almighty" (Draper p. 146). And if the Almighty hears such cries then you can be sure that something will be done! "The original idea was that of God fighting on the side of Israel to vindicate their cause and give them victory in battle (1 Samuel 2:2; Isaiah 2:12; 2 Samuel 2:10; Psalms 59:5). But the idea was extended to include the hosts of angels which God might send forth to carry out His will (Joshua 2:14; 2 Kings 2:14)…..The reference here then means that the same omnipotent God who fought with Israel and whose word even the hosts of angels carried out in heaven has listened and heard the cries of injustice" (Roberts p. 187). The same God who destroyed the armies of Egypt, rooted out the Canaanites----is the God who hears such injustices.

Point To Note:

Before we lump ourselves automatically in the category of these oppressed workers, we need to seriously ask ourselves if we are or have cheated anyone. Have we ran out on our bills, have we left creditors holding the bag, have we borrowed from relatives and friends without ever repaying them? Are we up front and honest in our dealings with others? On this point. have always liked the following comment in connection with Romans 13:7. "I have known of those who make large donations to Church treasuries while they leave unforgiven creditors to beg for money the Christian owes them. There is. foolish idea abroad that money given into Church treasuries is more appreciated by God than the paying of honest debts……We're doing God no favors if we drive the unforgiven creditor to believe that God approves of thieves so long as they contribute to some Church budget. Spend your money wisely; live within your means; keep in mind the spreading of the Gospel and the needs of the poor and needy" (Romans, Jim McGuiggan pp. 384-385).