So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.
Speak and act as those who will be judged by the law of liberty, which is God's moral law of Ten Commandments spoken to Moses and written by His finger on tables of stone. That law is a transcript of His character and the perfect standard by which every thought, word, deed and motive will be tried in the judgment to condemn the guilty and justify the obedient. Judgment will show mercy to those who have shown mercy, but those who show no mercy will face judgment without mercy. True faith is proved by works of mercy that meet real bodily need, for professing faith while sending away the naked and hungry with empty words profits nothing and faith without works is dead. Liberty does not set aside the law or excuse disobedience, but is exercised in obedience with life reformed to agree with its mirror, revealing sin and leading to repentance toward God and faith in Jesus who alone can pardon and cleanse.
Law of Liberty Defined
The law of liberty is God's moral law, the Ten Commandments, the ten holy precepts spoken to Moses during forty days in the mount, engraved by the finger of God without flaw, kept in the ark, emanating from the mind of Jehovah, written on tables of stone and made known in Exodus 20 and Exodus 31:12-18. It remains in force as the standard by which all will be judged, requiring holiness and calling people to examine their thoughts and words. Speech and action, including every business transaction, must be performed in high, holy, sanctified rectitude in accordance with that law, with no oppression or selfishness and no unrighteousness in judgment. Before acting, especially one in responsible position, the inquiry must be whether he will be ashamed to have it appear in the day when the law in the ark is brought forth and deeds are compared with it, for every deed is recorded and weighed in unerring scales and all unjust transactions will be clearly defined in its light, and no lawyer's interpretation of civil law excuses discarding Jehovah's law.
That law is a transcript of God's character, pointing out His justice and benevolence, attributes those in His service must sacredly cherish. It is the royal law that governs the mind when a person is converted, receives Christ into the soul-temple, and becomes a son or daughter of God. Submission to Christ and the Word of God received and appropriated into the life prepares for eternal life, frees from sin's control and from Satan's teachings and slavery, restores true manhood and dignity, enlightens perceptions with unclouded mind to choose light rather than darkness, and becoming subject to God's law restores people to their true selves while sin enslaves and destroys the soul's freedom. Through Christ's provision at infinite cost for success in the Christian warfare, the Holy Spirit brings power that enables a person to overcome, subdues the rule of Satan, convinces of sin and with the person's consent expels sin from the heart, and the mind is then brought under the royal law of liberty as the new law governing it when sin is removed.
The law acts as a divine moral mirror and sin detector that shows people what they are like, reveals shortcomings, exposes transgression in its light, shows the sinner separated from God by sins and iniquities and sin-sick in need of a physician, and its requirements must be met through practical faith in Jesus as the sin-pardoning Saviour whose precious blood alone cleanses every spot and stain of sin. Its precepts are often hated and trampled on by sinners, yet believers are to show its glory to others through lives and words that honor God. Liberty under it does not excuse disobedience or set aside its authority, for those who look into it must continue in it and do its work rather than merely hear and forget. Liberty is exercised in obedience, with conduct and speech remaining under God's authority wherever people go and in every circumstance, and setting the law aside removes the standard of right and wrong and leaves people exposed to lawlessness and evil, with the guilty condemned and the obedient justified.
The moral law of ten commandments remains in force after Christ's crucifixion and must be recognized and obeyed as the standard of character approved of God by which all will be judged in the last great day of reckoning; only the ceremonial law ceased when Christ fulfilled its types. The law reveals sin and calls people to examine their thoughts and actions, leading them to repentance toward God and faith in Jesus Christ, but it cannot itself pardon them. It is the law of Jehovah, the law of the kingdom of God that rules the sinless inhabitants of heaven and the standard by which all created beings shall be judged. Its principles are to lie at the foundation of earthly governments, the laws of nations should be in harmony with it, and no person should be forced to act in obedience to a human law in direct opposition to the law God has given.
Judged by the Law
So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty, for that law is the standard by which character and life are tested in the judgment. Every person's case is determined by God's perfect, unerring law, so life and conduct must be examined in its light. Speech and conduct are tried by that perfect standard, with thoughts, words and motives revealed. The law identified with the Ten Commandments remains in force and requires holiness, calling believers to speak and act in view of judgment by it.
All are accountable to the sacred truths God has revealed, the law of liberty by which they will be judged. Everyone will meet God's law in the judgment and must now speak and do on correct principles in view of it, for every one is accountable to God for meeting the law found in the Bible with its specifications. People will face the Lawgiver over violation of His law, and those who hope for pardon must turn from transgression to obedience. No man has the right to control another man's judgment, and readiness requires cooperating with God as He cleanses the heart of all evil and coming near to Him in the simple faith of a little child so He will receive and save.
The coming test is whether people obey or disobey God's commandments, and children should be taught these truths as essential for the last days. The guilty are condemned and the disobedient condemned, while the obedient are justified and rewarded. The freedom of the law does not mean freedom from its authority, for setting it aside removes the standard of right and wrong and leaves exposure to lawlessness and evil.
Every person must now compare character with the great moral standard in daily life and speech and action, for the same law will test character in the judgment. If character will not stand comparison with the standard now it will not stand then. Since words and actions are to be in harmony with God's requirements in this life, those not in harmony with them now will not be in harmony with them in the future life.
When judgment sits and the books are opened, the tables of stone written by the finger of God, the transcript of His character and the principles of His government made known in Exodus 20 and Exodus 31:12-18, hidden by God until that day, will be presented before the world as the standard of righteousness. Every person will be judged by them to receive sentence of life or of death. Obedience to that perfect law is the prerequisite of salvation, so none will find excuse for sin.
Every deed is recorded and weighed in unerring scales, and the law in the ark — the ten holy precepts spoken to Moses during forty days in the mount, engraved by the finger of God, without flaw, kept in the ark, emanating from the mind of Jehovah, given by the great Ruler of the universe — will be brought forth for deeds to be compared with it. Speech and action, including every business transaction among church members, must be performed in high, holy, sanctified rectitude with no vestige of oppression or selfishness and no unrighteousness in judgment. Before carrying out a transaction, especially a man in responsible position, must inquire whether he will be ashamed to have it appear in the day of judgment, for a lawyer's interpretation of civil law does not excuse discarding Jehovah's law. In the day when every man's case is tried by God's standard all unjust transactions will be clearly defined in the light of God's law, so the inquiry must be made now.
God measures men by the law which is a transcript of His character, pointing out His justice and benevolence, attributes to be sacredly cherished by those in His service. In the great day of God this law will try every soul. Many now low in man's estimation will then be seen to stand high in the estimation of God, and those who have worked with integrity and diligence will be justly rewarded. Therefore those who decide what each worker for God shall receive in this life must be very careful to meet the mind of God, taking scrupulous care in settling the accounts of the laborers.
People are held accountable for the work entrusted to them and the influence they have had on others. The law remains in force as the rule of conduct and the standard in the future judgment, and its claims cannot be set aside, for faith in Christ and His grace does not excuse disobedience but genuine love for Christ leads to obedience. One who leads others to transgress God's holy law, the standard of righteousness, is accountable for their disobedience as well as his own, and transgressors stand guilty and condemned. Those who teach or encourage others to break God's commandments face condemnation according to their responsibility.
Excuses for disobedience will not stand in the judgment, including neglecting the fourth commandment because of business, family, or social ties. God's law in James 2:8-12 is the great standard of character to which all must conform their characters, but papal leaders refused to conform to it. They erected a standard of their own to suit themselves and determined to compel all to conform to it because Rome willed it. In rejecting God's law they did the work Satan appointed them, showing no mercy, acting from the same spirit that crucified Christ and slew the apostles and that moved Nero against the faithful, to rid the earth of those beloved of God.
Mercy Faith and Works
To speak and to do as those to be judged by the law of liberty means to live under a judgment that shows mercy to the merciful. The one who has shown no mercy will receive judgment without mercy. In that judgment mercy rejoices against judgment. Shaping speech and action by the coming judgment by the perfect law therefore requires practical, merciful care.
Living faith is proved by works of mercy that meet bodily need. Professed faith that withholds needed help is empty and useless and profits nothing. Merely speaking words of concern to a naked, hungry, or poorly clothed brother or sister, such as bidding them depart in peace to be warmed and filled without giving the things needed for the body, does not help and cannot save. Faith without works in this sense is dead, being alone.
Obedience in Daily Life
So speak and so do means reforming speech and action without delay to agree with the law, looking at oneself in the divine mirror and not going away and forgetting what manner of person one is. The law remains the standard for those who believe in Jesus, showing people what they are like and calling them to obey and not merely hear, for its liberty does not excuse disobedience. Those who look into it must continue in it and do its work.
That reform specifically required putting away enmity against brethren, acting the part of critics, discouraging and tearing down the appointed work of God in the South at Nashville, and holding back the means that ought to go to that hard field. Holding back such means is counted by God as robbery and brings His displeasure. The same judgment by the law of liberty calls God's people to seek unity by putting away everything hindering coming together, making right every wrong between brethren, and leaving no sins unconfessed. Differing ideas are to be compared teachably, and strenuous efforts made to share the unity of the faith rather than walk alone.
Believers are to show the glory of God's law to others through lives and words that honor God, even though its precepts reveal human shortcomings and are often hated and trampled on by sinners. Christ's character is revealed in true disciples as they bring His life into daily conduct, recognizing that eternal interests are at stake and that all are tested by the unchanging standard of God's holy law. The law's requirements must be read and obeyed, taken home from the Bible with its specifications, with humility and a life ordered by it, while God examines how much of it people have followed. Everyone will meet God's law in the judgment and must now speak and do on correct principles in view of it, with each one accountable to God for meeting it.
Readiness requires cooperating with God as He cleanses the heart of all evil and coming near to Him in the simple faith of a little child so He will receive and save, while no man has the right to control another man's judgment. Genuine love for Christ leads to obedience, and faith in Christ and His grace does not excuse disobedience or set aside the law's claims as the rule of conduct and the standard in the future judgment. Those who teach or encourage others to break God's commandments face condemnation according to their responsibility. Speech and action, including every business transaction among church members, must be performed in high, holy, sanctified rectitude, with no vestige of oppression or selfishness and no unrighteousness in judgment.
Before carrying out a transaction, especially a man in responsible position, must inquire whether he will be ashamed to have it appear in the day of judgment when the law in the ark is brought forth and deeds are compared with it, for a lawyer's interpretation of civil law does not excuse discarding Jehovah's law. Every deed is recorded and weighed in unerring scales, and when each case is tried by God's standard all unjust transactions will be clearly defined in the light of God's law, so the inquiry must be made now. Those who decide what each worker for God shall receive in this life must therefore be very careful to meet the mind of God, taking scrupulous care in settling the accounts of the laborers, since God measures every person by this law that points out His justice and benevolence. In the great day of God every soul will be tried by it, reversing human estimates so that many now low in human estimation will stand high in God's estimation and those who have worked with integrity and diligence will be justly rewarded.
Children should be taught obedience to God's commandments as essential truth for the last days, since people will be judged by God's law and the coming test is whether they obey or disobey. The coming judgment over God's broken law makes it urgent to warn those who have not heard the truth, shaping speech and conduct by the law of liberty. The verse also presents health principles as God's great remedy for diseases of body and soul and His health reform prescription, practical teaching to be brought into daily life and character building and heeded day by day. Received with Christ's grace in large measure, this brings prosperity, brings heaven near, gives happiness of spirit, shows God's salvation, opens the heart to righteousness, makes a tower of strength, and leads to triumph at last with the overcomers.
Speak and act as those who will be judged by the law of liberty, which is God's moral law of Ten Commandments spoken to Moses and written by His finger on tables of stone. That law is a transcript of His character and the perfect standard by which every thought, word, deed and motive will be tried in the judgment to condemn the guilty and justify the obedient. Judgment will show mercy to those who have shown mercy, but those who show no mercy will face judgment without mercy. True faith is proved by works of mercy that meet real bodily need, for professing faith while sending away the naked and hungry with empty words profits nothing and faith without works is dead. Liberty does not set aside the law or excuse disobedience, but is exercised in obedience with life reformed to agree with its mirror, revealing sin and leading to repentance toward God and faith in Jesus who alone can pardon and cleanse.
Law of Liberty Defined
The law of liberty is God's moral law, the Ten Commandments, the ten holy precepts spoken to Moses during forty days in the mount, engraved by the finger of God without flaw, kept in the ark, emanating from the mind of Jehovah, written on tables of stone and made known in Exodus 20 and Exodus 31:12-18. It remains in force as the standard by which all will be judged, requiring holiness and calling people to examine their thoughts and words. Speech and action, including every business transaction, must be performed in high, holy, sanctified rectitude in accordance with that law, with no oppression or selfishness and no unrighteousness in judgment. Before acting, especially one in responsible position, the inquiry must be whether he will be ashamed to have it appear in the day when the law in the ark is brought forth and deeds are compared with it, for every deed is recorded and weighed in unerring scales and all unjust transactions will be clearly defined in its light, and no lawyer's interpretation of civil law excuses discarding Jehovah's law.
That law is a transcript of God's character, pointing out His justice and benevolence, attributes those in His service must sacredly cherish. It is the royal law that governs the mind when a person is converted, receives Christ into the soul-temple, and becomes a son or daughter of God. Submission to Christ and the Word of God received and appropriated into the life prepares for eternal life, frees from sin's control and from Satan's teachings and slavery, restores true manhood and dignity, enlightens perceptions with unclouded mind to choose light rather than darkness, and becoming subject to God's law restores people to their true selves while sin enslaves and destroys the soul's freedom. Through Christ's provision at infinite cost for success in the Christian warfare, the Holy Spirit brings power that enables a person to overcome, subdues the rule of Satan, convinces of sin and with the person's consent expels sin from the heart, and the mind is then brought under the royal law of liberty as the new law governing it when sin is removed.
The law acts as a divine moral mirror and sin detector that shows people what they are like, reveals shortcomings, exposes transgression in its light, shows the sinner separated from God by sins and iniquities and sin-sick in need of a physician, and its requirements must be met through practical faith in Jesus as the sin-pardoning Saviour whose precious blood alone cleanses every spot and stain of sin. Its precepts are often hated and trampled on by sinners, yet believers are to show its glory to others through lives and words that honor God. Liberty under it does not excuse disobedience or set aside its authority, for those who look into it must continue in it and do its work rather than merely hear and forget. Liberty is exercised in obedience, with conduct and speech remaining under God's authority wherever people go and in every circumstance, and setting the law aside removes the standard of right and wrong and leaves people exposed to lawlessness and evil, with the guilty condemned and the obedient justified.
The moral law of ten commandments remains in force after Christ's crucifixion and must be recognized and obeyed as the standard of character approved of God by which all will be judged in the last great day of reckoning; only the ceremonial law ceased when Christ fulfilled its types. The law reveals sin and calls people to examine their thoughts and actions, leading them to repentance toward God and faith in Jesus Christ, but it cannot itself pardon them. It is the law of Jehovah, the law of the kingdom of God that rules the sinless inhabitants of heaven and the standard by which all created beings shall be judged. Its principles are to lie at the foundation of earthly governments, the laws of nations should be in harmony with it, and no person should be forced to act in obedience to a human law in direct opposition to the law God has given.
Judged by the Law
So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty, for that law is the standard by which character and life are tested in the judgment. Every person's case is determined by God's perfect, unerring law, so life and conduct must be examined in its light. Speech and conduct are tried by that perfect standard, with thoughts, words and motives revealed. The law identified with the Ten Commandments remains in force and requires holiness, calling believers to speak and act in view of judgment by it.
All are accountable to the sacred truths God has revealed, the law of liberty by which they will be judged. Everyone will meet God's law in the judgment and must now speak and do on correct principles in view of it, for every one is accountable to God for meeting the law found in the Bible with its specifications. People will face the Lawgiver over violation of His law, and those who hope for pardon must turn from transgression to obedience. No man has the right to control another man's judgment, and readiness requires cooperating with God as He cleanses the heart of all evil and coming near to Him in the simple faith of a little child so He will receive and save.
The coming test is whether people obey or disobey God's commandments, and children should be taught these truths as essential for the last days. The guilty are condemned and the disobedient condemned, while the obedient are justified and rewarded. The freedom of the law does not mean freedom from its authority, for setting it aside removes the standard of right and wrong and leaves exposure to lawlessness and evil.
Every person must now compare character with the great moral standard in daily life and speech and action, for the same law will test character in the judgment. If character will not stand comparison with the standard now it will not stand then. Since words and actions are to be in harmony with God's requirements in this life, those not in harmony with them now will not be in harmony with them in the future life.
When judgment sits and the books are opened, the tables of stone written by the finger of God, the transcript of His character and the principles of His government made known in Exodus 20 and Exodus 31:12-18, hidden by God until that day, will be presented before the world as the standard of righteousness. Every person will be judged by them to receive sentence of life or of death. Obedience to that perfect law is the prerequisite of salvation, so none will find excuse for sin.
Every deed is recorded and weighed in unerring scales, and the law in the ark — the ten holy precepts spoken to Moses during forty days in the mount, engraved by the finger of God, without flaw, kept in the ark, emanating from the mind of Jehovah, given by the great Ruler of the universe — will be brought forth for deeds to be compared with it. Speech and action, including every business transaction among church members, must be performed in high, holy, sanctified rectitude with no vestige of oppression or selfishness and no unrighteousness in judgment. Before carrying out a transaction, especially a man in responsible position, must inquire whether he will be ashamed to have it appear in the day of judgment, for a lawyer's interpretation of civil law does not excuse discarding Jehovah's law. In the day when every man's case is tried by God's standard all unjust transactions will be clearly defined in the light of God's law, so the inquiry must be made now.
God measures men by the law which is a transcript of His character, pointing out His justice and benevolence, attributes to be sacredly cherished by those in His service. In the great day of God this law will try every soul. Many now low in man's estimation will then be seen to stand high in the estimation of God, and those who have worked with integrity and diligence will be justly rewarded. Therefore those who decide what each worker for God shall receive in this life must be very careful to meet the mind of God, taking scrupulous care in settling the accounts of the laborers.
People are held accountable for the work entrusted to them and the influence they have had on others. The law remains in force as the rule of conduct and the standard in the future judgment, and its claims cannot be set aside, for faith in Christ and His grace does not excuse disobedience but genuine love for Christ leads to obedience. One who leads others to transgress God's holy law, the standard of righteousness, is accountable for their disobedience as well as his own, and transgressors stand guilty and condemned. Those who teach or encourage others to break God's commandments face condemnation according to their responsibility.
Excuses for disobedience will not stand in the judgment, including neglecting the fourth commandment because of business, family, or social ties. God's law in James 2:8-12 is the great standard of character to which all must conform their characters, but papal leaders refused to conform to it. They erected a standard of their own to suit themselves and determined to compel all to conform to it because Rome willed it. In rejecting God's law they did the work Satan appointed them, showing no mercy, acting from the same spirit that crucified Christ and slew the apostles and that moved Nero against the faithful, to rid the earth of those beloved of God.
Mercy Faith and Works
To speak and to do as those to be judged by the law of liberty means to live under a judgment that shows mercy to the merciful. The one who has shown no mercy will receive judgment without mercy. In that judgment mercy rejoices against judgment. Shaping speech and action by the coming judgment by the perfect law therefore requires practical, merciful care.
Living faith is proved by works of mercy that meet bodily need. Professed faith that withholds needed help is empty and useless and profits nothing. Merely speaking words of concern to a naked, hungry, or poorly clothed brother or sister, such as bidding them depart in peace to be warmed and filled without giving the things needed for the body, does not help and cannot save. Faith without works in this sense is dead, being alone.
Obedience in Daily Life
So speak and so do means reforming speech and action without delay to agree with the law, looking at oneself in the divine mirror and not going away and forgetting what manner of person one is. The law remains the standard for those who believe in Jesus, showing people what they are like and calling them to obey and not merely hear, for its liberty does not excuse disobedience. Those who look into it must continue in it and do its work.
That reform specifically required putting away enmity against brethren, acting the part of critics, discouraging and tearing down the appointed work of God in the South at Nashville, and holding back the means that ought to go to that hard field. Holding back such means is counted by God as robbery and brings His displeasure. The same judgment by the law of liberty calls God's people to seek unity by putting away everything hindering coming together, making right every wrong between brethren, and leaving no sins unconfessed. Differing ideas are to be compared teachably, and strenuous efforts made to share the unity of the faith rather than walk alone.
Believers are to show the glory of God's law to others through lives and words that honor God, even though its precepts reveal human shortcomings and are often hated and trampled on by sinners. Christ's character is revealed in true disciples as they bring His life into daily conduct, recognizing that eternal interests are at stake and that all are tested by the unchanging standard of God's holy law. The law's requirements must be read and obeyed, taken home from the Bible with its specifications, with humility and a life ordered by it, while God examines how much of it people have followed. Everyone will meet God's law in the judgment and must now speak and do on correct principles in view of it, with each one accountable to God for meeting it.
Readiness requires cooperating with God as He cleanses the heart of all evil and coming near to Him in the simple faith of a little child so He will receive and save, while no man has the right to control another man's judgment. Genuine love for Christ leads to obedience, and faith in Christ and His grace does not excuse disobedience or set aside the law's claims as the rule of conduct and the standard in the future judgment. Those who teach or encourage others to break God's commandments face condemnation according to their responsibility. Speech and action, including every business transaction among church members, must be performed in high, holy, sanctified rectitude, with no vestige of oppression or selfishness and no unrighteousness in judgment.
Before carrying out a transaction, especially a man in responsible position, must inquire whether he will be ashamed to have it appear in the day of judgment when the law in the ark is brought forth and deeds are compared with it, for a lawyer's interpretation of civil law does not excuse discarding Jehovah's law. Every deed is recorded and weighed in unerring scales, and when each case is tried by God's standard all unjust transactions will be clearly defined in the light of God's law, so the inquiry must be made now. Those who decide what each worker for God shall receive in this life must therefore be very careful to meet the mind of God, taking scrupulous care in settling the accounts of the laborers, since God measures every person by this law that points out His justice and benevolence. In the great day of God every soul will be tried by it, reversing human estimates so that many now low in human estimation will stand high in God's estimation and those who have worked with integrity and diligence will be justly rewarded.
Children should be taught obedience to God's commandments as essential truth for the last days, since people will be judged by God's law and the coming test is whether they obey or disobey. The coming judgment over God's broken law makes it urgent to warn those who have not heard the truth, shaping speech and conduct by the law of liberty. The verse also presents health principles as God's great remedy for diseases of body and soul and His health reform prescription, practical teaching to be brought into daily life and character building and heeded day by day. Received with Christ's grace in large measure, this brings prosperity, brings heaven near, gives happiness of spirit, shows God's salvation, opens the heart to righteousness, makes a tower of strength, and leads to triumph at last with the overcomers.