Lesson 254: James 5:16
The Blueprint — The Verse
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
Memorization Practice
Click words to hide them and test your memory.
Without looking, enter the book, chapter, and verse for this passage.
Rate your recall:
King James Version (KJV) — Public Domain.
The Context — The History
James closes addressing injustice, patience in suffering, and prayer. Community confession and intercession channel God's healing power through righteous prayer.
The Narrative — The Lead-Up
After urging patience until the Lord's coming and warning the rich, James prescribes mutual confession and prayer for healing, noting Elijah-like power of righteous prayer.
The Echo — Follow-on Verses
-
And the prayer of faithFaith is the act of trusting God’s character, promises, and redemptive work even before the outcome is seen. In Scripture, faith is not blind belief but a confident reliance on God’s truth, rooted in His past actions and revealed purpose. It is the foundation of the believer’s relationship with God and the driving force behind obedience, endurance, and hope.... More shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
Read the verse immediately before this lesson () to hear the lead-in to the passage.
-
Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.
Read the verse immediately after this lesson () to continue the passage.
Discussion
-
Who is a safe person for mutual confession and prayer?
-
How does community prayer differ from private prayer?
-
What healing u2014 spiritual or physical u2014 are you seeking?
