13. Those who have not shown mercy will not receive mercy when they are judged. To show mercy is better than to judge.
14. My brothers and sisters, what good is it if people claim they have faith but don't act like it? Can that kind of faith save them?
15. Suppose a brother or sister has no clothes or food.
16. Suppose one of you says to them, "Go. I hope everything turns out fine for you. Keep warm. Eat well." And you do nothing about what they really need. Then what good have you done?
17. It is the same with faith. If it doesn't cause us to do something, it's dead.
18. But someone will say, "You have faith. I do good works." Show me your faith that doesn't do good works. And I will show you my faith by what I do.
19. You believe there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that. And they tremble!
20. You foolish man! Do you want proof that faith without good works is useless?
21. Our father Abraham offered his son Isaac on the altar. Wasn't he considered to be right with God because of what he did?
22. So you see that what he believed and what he did were working together. What he did made his faith complete.
23. That is what Scripture means where it says, "Abraham believed God. God accepted Abraham because he believed. So his faith made him right with God." (Genesis 15:6) And that's not all. God called Abraham his friend.
24. So you see that a person is made right with God by what he does. It doesn't happen only because of what he believes.