James 4:11

KJV1611 – Modern English

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.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

Μὴ καταλαλεῖτε ἀλλήλων, ἀδελφοί. Ὁ καταλαλῶν ἀδελφοῦ, καὶ κρίνων τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ, καταλαλεῖ νόμου, καὶ κρίνει νόμον: εἰ δὲ νόμον κρίνεις, οὐκ εἶ ποιητὴς νόμου, ἀλλὰ κριτής.

Transliteration

Not katalaleite one another, adelphoi. The one katalalōn adelphou, and krinōn the adelphon of him, katalalei nomou, and krinei nomon: if de nomon krineis, not you ei poiētēs nomou, but kritēs.

Grammar Details

• *katalaleite*: present active imperative, 2nd plural - speak evil of/slander
• *adelphoi*: vocative, masculine, plural - brothers/brethren
• *katalalōn*: present active participle, nominative, masculine, singular - speaking evil of/slandering
• *adelphou*: genitive, masculine, singular - brother
• *krinōn*: present active participle, nominative, masculine, singular - judging
• *adelphon*: accusative, masculine, singular - brother
• *katalalei*: present active indicative, 3rd singular - speaks evil of/slanders
• *nomou*: genitive, masculine, singular - law
• *krinei*: present active indicative, 3rd singular - judges
• *nomon*: accusative, masculine, singular - law
• *de*: conjunction - but/and/now
• *krineis*: present active indicative, 2nd singular - judge
• *ei*: present active indicative, 2nd singular - are/exist
• *poiētēs*: nominative, masculine, singular - doer/maker
• *kritēs*: nominative, masculine, singular - judge

Word Meanings

• *katalaleite*: speak evil of/slander/criticize
• *adelphoi*: brothers/brethren/siblings
• *katalalōn*: speaking evil of/slandering/criticizing
• *adelphou*: brother/fellow believer
• *krinōn*: judging/criticizing/condemning
• *adelphon*: brother/fellow believer
• *katalalei*: speaks evil of/slanders/criticizes
• *nomou*: law/rule
• *krinei*: judges/criticizes/condemns
• *nomon*: law/rule
• *krineis*: judge/criticize/condemn
• *ei*: are/exist
• *poiētēs*: doer/maker/performer
• *kritēs*: judge/critic

Other Translations

• Linguistic Bible Translation from Source Texts

  Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it.

• King James Version 1769 (Standard Version)

  Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.

• American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

  Speak not one against another, brethren. He that speaketh against a brother, or judgeth his brother, speaketh against the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judgest the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.

• King James Version with Strong's Numbers

  Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.

• Tyndale Bible (1526/1534)

  Backbyte not one another brethren. He that backbyteh hys brother and he that iudgeth his brother backbyteth the lawe and iudgeth the lawe. But and yf thou iudge the lawe thou art not an observer of ye lawe: but a iudge.

• Coverdale Bible (1535)

  Backbyte not one another, brethren. He that backbyteth his brother, and he yt iudgeth his brother, backbyteth the lawe, and iudgeth the lawe. But and yf thou iudge the lawe, thou art not an obseruer of the lawe: but a iudge.

• Geneva Bible (1560)

  Speake not euill one of another, brethren. He that speaketh euill of his brother, or he that condemneth his brother, speaketh euill of ye Law, and condemneth the Lawe: and if thou condemnest the Lawe, thou art not an obseruer of the Lawe, but a iudge.

• Bishops' Bible (1568)

  Backbite not one another brethren. He that backbiteth his brother, and he that iudgeth his brother, backbiteth ye lawe, and iudgeth the lawe: But and yf thou iudge the lawe, thou art not an obseruer of the lawe, but a iudge.

• Authorized King James Version (1611)

  ¶ Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of [his] brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.

• Webster's Bible (1833)

  Don't speak against one another, brothers. He who speaks against a brother and judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law, but a judge.

• Young's Literal Translation (1862/1898)

  Speak not one against another, brethren; he who is speaking against a brother, and is judging his brother, doth speak against law, and doth judge law, and if law thou dost judge, thou art not a doer of law but a judge;

• American Standard Version (1901)

  Speak not one against another, brethren. He that speaketh against a brother, or judgeth his brother, speaketh against the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judgest the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.

• American Standard Version (1901)

  Speak not one against another, brethren. He that speaketh against a brother, or judgeth his brother, speaketh against the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judgest the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.

• Bible in Basic English (1941)

  Do not say evil against one another, my brothers. He who says evil against his brother or makes himself his brother's judge, says evil against the law and is judging the law: and in judging the law you become, not a doer of the law but a judge.

• World English Bible (2000)

  Don't speak against one another, brothers. He who speaks against a brother and judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law, but a judge.

• NET Bible® (New English Translation)

  Do not speak against one another, brothers and sisters. He who speaks against a fellow believer or judges a fellow believer speaks against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but its judge.

Referenced Verses

• 1 Pet 2:1 : 1 Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisies, envies, and all evil speaking,
• Ps 140:11 : 11 Let not an evil speaker be established in the earth; evil shall hunt the violent man to overthrow him.
• Matt 7:1-2 : 1 Do not judge, so that you will not be judged. 2 For with the same judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you again.
• Jas 5:9 : 9 Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned: behold, the judge stands before the door.
• Rom 2:1 : 1 Therefore you are without excuse, O man, whoever you are that judges: for in what you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you who judge do the same things.
• Rom 2:13 : 13 For it is not the hearers of the law who are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.
• Rom 7:7 : 7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not. Indeed, I would not have known sin except through the law: for I would not have known lust unless the law had said, 'You shall not covet.'
• Rom 7:12-13 : 12 Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. 13 Was then that which is good made death unto me? Certainly not. But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good; that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful.
• Rom 14:3-4 : 3 Let not the one who eats despise the one who does not eat, and let not the one who does not eat judge the one who eats; for God has accepted him. 4 Who are you to judge another's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Yes, he will be upheld, for God is able to make him stand.
• Rom 14:10-12 : 10 But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. 11 For it is written, As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. 12 So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.
• 1 Cor 4:5 : 5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts; and then each person will receive praise from God.
• 2 Cor 12:20 : 20 For I fear, lest, when I come, I shall not find you as I wish, and that I shall be found by you such as you wish not; lest there be debates, envyings, wraths, strifes, backbitings, whisperings, swellings, tumults;
• Eph 4:31 : 31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.
• 1 Tim 3:11 : 11 In the same way, their wives must be dignified, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things.
• 2 Tim 3:3 : 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those who are good,
• Luke 6:37 : 37 Judge not, and you shall not be judged: condemn not, and you shall not be condemned: forgive, and you shall be forgiven:
• Titus 2:3 : 3 The older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not addicted to much wine, teachers of good things;
• Jas 1:22-23 : 22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror;
• Jas 1:25 : 25 But whoever looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this man will be blessed in what he does.