My Friend James: Do Not Traduce Your Brother
I learned a new word today, while seeking to dig into and fully understand James 4:11-12. That word is “traduce”. It means “to speak badly of or tell lies about (someone) so as to damage their reputation”.
We find it in this passage:
James 4:11-12 [NKJV] 11 Do not speak evil of one another, brethren. He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 12 There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?
You see, the definition of the Greek word used in this scripture, which the KJV translates as “speak (or speaketh) evil” three times in verse 11 is “to be a traducer; to slander”.
It is a terrible thing to speak evil of your brother and sisters in Christ. We should find that obviously in contrast to Jesus’ explicit instructions in John 15:12 [NKJV] "… love one another as I have loved you.”
In case anyone doesn’t understand how to love one another, I Corinthians 13:4-7 spells out how love looks in action. Among those actionable traits of love, are many that are directly opposed to traducing one another. For example, “love does not behave rudely”. Speaking evil of others is pretty rude. Also, love “thinks no evil.” Not only show we show love by not speaking evil of others; but we must not even think it. Love “does not rejoice in iniquity” – and surely that means we would not spread actual sins, let alone make up any.
What is the danger of slandering, speaking evil of, others? James tells us that when we speak evil of others, we speak evil of the law of God. How is that? Well, James doesn’t expound on the connection, but perhaps Romans 14:4 gives us the key.
Romans 14:4 [NKJV] Who are you to judge another's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.
We are all servants of God, made for His service to do the work or works He specifically outlines for us. When step in to judge another, we are judging God’s work within that person. When we slander someone, we are doing even worse than that as we make God out to be an ineffective master.
Rather, we should understand that God is working in that brother and let His plan unfold with that servant as He wills it.
Let’s face it, we face enough condemnation and slander in this world. Peter both warns us of that and gives the cure. I Peter 2:12 [KJV] Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by [your] good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation. The words “speak evil” are from the same Greek word that James used. We will be slandered and traduced by those of the world. We must have our good works and honest conversation acting as shining a lights and standing in stark contrast to that slander.
Romans 14:4 [NKJV] Who are you to judge another's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.
And no wonder we face slander and accusation in the world. The god of this world, Satan, is called the “accuser of the brethren”. [Revelation 12:10]
Let’s focus on honest conversation and good works and on showing the kind of love that doesn’t even think evil of others, let alone slander or accuse them.
Let’s wrap this up by reading James 4:11 in the New Living Translation, that gives us a plain and direct version of this verse. Don't speak evil against each other, dear brothers and sisters. If you criticize and judge each other, then you are criticizing and judging God's law. But your job is to obey the law, not to judge whether it applies to you.
We have a job, dear sisters, and that is to obey the law. We don’t have time to be traducing each other.
We have just a little more than one chapter to go, but several more important concepts to cover. I hope you will continue to meet with me here and will share your own thoughts on the book of James.
You can write me any time at Nancy@DynamicChristianMinistries.org