Attributed commentary excerpt
John Gill's Exposition on James 1:15
A historical reference excerpt for this verse. Read it alongside the biblical text and other available sources.
Exposition of the Old and New Testament
John Gill (1697–1771) · 18th-century historical commentary
Source: BibleWord.ai's local reference edition of this named work.
Then when lust hath conceived, etc.] A proposal of pleasure or profit being made, agreeable to lust, or the principle of corrupt nature, sinful man is pleased with it; and instead of resisting and rejecting the motion made, he admits of it, and receives it, and cherishes it in his mind; he dallies and plays with it; he dwells upon it in his thoughts, and hides it under his tongue, and in his heart, as a sweet morsel, and forsakes it not, but contrives ways and means how to bring it about; and this is lust's conceiving. The figure is used in (<190714>Psalm 7:14) on which Kimchi, a Jewish commentator, has this note; “he (the psalmist) compares the thoughts of the heart ˆwyrhl, “to a conception”, and when they go out in word, this is “travail”, and in work or act, this is “bringing forth”.” And so it follows here, it bringeth forth sin; into act, not only by consenting to it, but by performing it: and sin, when it is finished: being solicited, is agreed to, and actually committed: bringeth forth death; as the first sin of man brought death into the world, brought a spiritual death, or moral death upon man, subjected him to a corporeal death, and made him liable to an eternal one; so every sin is deserving of death, death is the just wages of it; yea, even the motions of sin work in men to bring forth fruit unto death. Something like these several gradual steps, in which sin proceeds, is observed by the Jews, and expressed in much the like language, in allegorizing the case of Lot, and his two daughters f9 ; “the concupiscent soul (or “lust”) stirs up the evil figment, and imagines by it, and it cleaves to every evil imagination, trb[tmç, “until it conceives a little”, and produces in the heart of man the evil thought, and cleaves to it; and as yet it is in his heart, and is not “finished” to do it, until this desire or lust stirs up the strength of the body, first to cleave to the evil figment, and then h[rh µwlçt, “sin is finished”; as it is said, (<011936>Genesis 19:36).”
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