James 4:10

James 4:10. Humble yourselves. All the above exhortations are enforcements of humility.

in the sight of the Lord: that is, before the Lord, as in His presence. The Lord is, as is usual in the Epistle of St. James, not Christ, but God.

and he shall lift you up, or rather exalt you, both in this world by His grace, and in the next world to His glory. The true way to exaltation is through humility. Compare the very similar words in St. Peter's Epistle: ‘Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time' (1 Peter 5:6); and the words of our Lord: ‘Whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased, and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted' (Matthew 23:12). Humility is one of the rarest and one of the most lovely of all graces. It is the direct opposite of that contentious, envious, and resentful spirit which St. James here so vehemently condemns; peace and contentment are its inseparable associates. Humility is the true spirit of all obedience; submission is the perfection of virtue; and resignation to the Divine will is just another term for universal holiness.