James now shifts the discussion to the marks of true and genuine religion, as a general conclusion of the chapter. In spite of some abruptness in the shift, we still can detect some thread of connection between verses 26-27 and the earlier paragraphs. First, there is an advance from the general principle of “not mere hearing but also doing” to a particular application, “not mere religion but doing good” (Ropes). Secondly, there is again a warning of the need to control our speech (linking back to verses 19-21).
If any one thinks he is religious: the use of a hypothetical introductory formula beginning with If … is the sign of a change in theme. This has already been used in 1.5. The Greek clause may be rendered “If any man … seem to be religious” (King James Version). In this case the meaning is “If anyone seems to others to be religious.” Most scholars, however, take the Greek to mean “If anyone thinks himself to be religious.” The adjective religious that occurs only here in the New Testament refers to an outward expression of pious and careful observance of ritual or liturgical practices. Since the “if” sentence here is not a real condition, Good News Translation has rendered it as a question: “Do any of you think that you are…?” Other ways to render this clause are “If you think you are being religious” or “Do you think that you are a religious person? Then….” In many languages the idea of religious must be expressed more precisely; for example, “worship [or, pray to] God correctly.” But taking into consideration the intent of the previous verses, the meaning of religious here is probably “Do you think that you follow [or, serve] God properly?”—in other words, “… do the correct things.”
This religious person has a problem if he does not bridle his tongue. The verb bridle, which James uses again in 3.2, does not appear elsewhere in the New Testament. It is used here metaphorically; the tongue is like a horse or wild animal, that can be controlled only by putting headgear on it. Most translators, apparently sensing that the word is not in general use, have expressed the meaning without using a metaphor by rendering it as “control.” Tongue stands for speech. In some languages bridle his tongue will be expressed as “control what he says.”
But deceives his heart: this is what happens to the person who does not know how to control his tongue. This phrase is a bit awkward in two respects. First, the author uses an adversative but, where we would normally expect “and” to be more natural. Two things can be done here. We may take it in the sense of “only”; thus, for example, “The one who does not control his tongue is only deceiving himself.” Or we may reverse the order of this phrase and the next phrase, as Good News Translation has done, separating the two and thus, in effect, providing emphasis. Secondly, “deceiving one’s heart” is somewhat unnatural as an English expression. In the Bible the heart is considered not only the seat of emotions, but also of will and thoughts. In many cases it can stand for the whole person. Here it is probably best to take it as equivalent to the pronoun “himself”; for example, “he is only deceiving himself.”
By hearing the word without putting it into practice, this man’s religion is vain. This man in Greek is a relative pronoun that can be rendered inclusively as “this person.” The true test of religion or piety is practice, without which it is “worthless” (Good News Translation, New Revised Standard Version), “futile” (Barclay, New English Bible), or “useless” (Phillips).
Alternative translation models for this verse are:
• If you think you serve God correctly, but you can’t control what you say, you are deceiving [or, fooling] yourself, and everything you do is useless.
• Do you think that you really serve God properly? If you don’t control your tongue, you are deceiving yourself, and everything you are doing is worthless.
Quoted with permission from Loh, I-Jin and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Letter from James. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .