James 4:8

‘Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.'

Then they can once more approach God, and He will draw near to them. He will welcome them in friendship. Then they will be able to ask and He will give (contrast James 4:3), because their hearts will be right towards Him. In the same way once Joshua had been cleansed he too was able to draw near to God (Zechariah 3:6). Drawing near to God continually will be the way by which they will be able to continue in their new walk of holiness.

Note the contrast with James 4:7 b. When they resist the Devil by submitting to God he will flee, when they draw near to God He will draw near to them. For the one thing that the Devil cannot stand is God, while those who submit to Him may come to Him without fear, knowing that they will be received. This picture is of a host welcoming his honoured guest. ‘Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you doubleminded.'

And now the way by which they can submit to God and draw near to him is explained. It is first of all by being cleansed. They are to cleanse their hands by letting go of all that has defiled them and walking in the will of the Father (compare Isaiah 1:16; Psalms 26:6), and purify their hearts by fixing them firmly on God (see 1 John 3:3) and obeying the truth (1 Peter 1:22), no longer being doubleminded. For a doubleminded man is unstable in all his ways (James 1:8).

‘Cleanse your hands.' The hands were the means by which men performed their actions. They were thus to make them clean by doing good and eschewing evil (Isaiah 1:16). The cleansing of the hands therefore indicates the cleansing of their personal, practical behaviour.

‘Purify your hearts.' This emphasises the need for them to be cleansed within, in the inner man, which is responsible for men's thoughts (Mark 7:21). The time for ceremonies is past. What is required now is genuineness of action and heart.

Alternately it might be saying, ‘do not just wash your hands, make sure that you wash your hearts as well', but that weakens the statement and does not really fit in with the pattern which is of continual positive action in response to God's commands.