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As the discourse brings the description of the episode to a close, it seems to insinuate that the referees in the dispersion have been allowing partiality between rich and poor to occur during the tests without counting this partiality against the contestants. As it says: "have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?" (1.4). In 2.5-26, it explains in detail why this partiality is unacceptable. After reciting rules that have developed in the history of the game (2.8-13), it recounts the exemplary way in which Abraham remained a friend of God as he successfully met his most difficult test (2.21-24). Then the discourse cites Rahab the prostitute as one who met the test faithfully by doing the work of God when messengers came from the Israelites (2.25). In Joshua 2.1-21 Rahab's deeds had already become an exhibition of her faith, and in rabbinic tradition Rahab is honored as a proselyte and a model of hospitality. The epistles of James and Hebrews (11.31) in the New Testament perpetuate this tradition, and 1 Clement 10 and 12 perpetuate it outside the canon. In these contexts, early Christians place special emphasis on the righteous deeds that Rahab performed as a result of her faith (Johnson 1995: 245). In 3.1-18, the discourse turns to the responsibilities of those who teach the rules of the game. The teachers are judged by even a greater strictness than the referees and the players (3.1). Everyone makes mistakes, but a person who makes no mistakes in what he says is a perfect man who has learned to bridle and guide his entire body like a ship that is directed skillfully and safely through strong winds (3.2-4). James 3.5-12 follows with an exposition on the tongue, which has the potential both for dispensing the wisdom of God and for generating evil. The concern, finally, is whether wisdom "comes down from above or is earthly, unspiritual, and devilish" (3.15). Wisdom from above is pure, peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, without uncertainty or insincerity (3.17). Those who teach the game have a responsibility to teach it accurately and resist the temptation to enter into talk that creates bad feelings among those who compete with one another on a regular basis. In 4.1-17, the discourse discusses wars and battles, implicating the twelve tribes explicitly in such conflicts. It asserts that their public fighting is a result of passions at war among their members (4.1). It accuses them of killing as well as coveting (4.2)! Their goal, in other words, is to eliminate people (Johnson 1995: 277) in the context of the venture of faith. Suddenly the discourse attacks its addressees as "adulteresses" in 4.4 (Johnson 1995: 278). Then it exhorts them to "submit themselves to God" (4.7-8), to "humble themselves before the Lord" by becoming wretched, by mourning, and by weeping (4.9-10), and by not speaking evil against one another (4.11-12). It specifically maligns those who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go into a certain city and spend a year there and do business and make a gain" (4:13: Johnson 1995: 295). In other words, the specific attack of this discourse is on people whose primary interest is in becoming wealthy. In 5.1 the discourse directly attacks the representatives of the twelve tribes as "rich people" and in 5.2-6 it moves into a tirade against riches. As the discourse continues, it asserts that rich people among them have fraudulently withheld the wages of the workers who have mowed their fields, and that the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts (5.4). Every game creates a potential environment of fighting on the field, bragging about one's accomplishments, and seeking advantage without concern for others. The epistle of James exhorts its readers to refrain from such activities by humbling oneself and dealing justly especially with those who work at the hard labor that creates comfort and riches for others. In 5.7, the discourse abruptly changes its address from the wealthy person to the farmer, and it exhorts the listener to be patient. A dialectical feature of Messianite speech appears in the discourse as there is reference to "the coming of the Lord" (5.7: tes parousias tou |