"If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, 'Love your neighbor as yourself,' you are doing right."
— James 2:8 (NIV)
James 2:8 calls "love your neighbor as yourself" the royal law, and James says it in the middle of a warning about playing favorites in church. This page gives the verse, what the key Greek words mean, where it sits in James 2, and a plain reading. For more on the theme, see Bible verses about loving your neighbor and Bible verses about neighbors.
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The verse
The King James reads: "If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well."
"Royal" is basilikos (G937), belonging to a king. "Law" is nomos (G3551). "Fulfil" or "really keep" is teleō (G5055), to carry something through to the end. "Love" is agapaō (G25), "neighbor" is plēsion (G4139), the one near you, and "you are doing right" ("ye do well") is kalōs (G2573).
The quote itself comes from Leviticus 19:18, the same line Jesus paired with loving God as the two greatest commandments (Mark 12).
Where it sits in James 2
James opens the chapter with a charge: "My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism" (James 2:1). He pictures a rich man in fine clothes given a good seat while a poor man in shabby clothes is told to stand or sit on the floor (James 2:2-4).
Verse 8 is the standard he measures that by. Verse 9 is the other side: "But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers." A few verses later he adds, "Mercy triumphs over judgment" (James 2:13), and the chapter moves on to faith that shows itself in action (James 2:17).
What the verse is saying
James is not saying neighbor love is one nice rule among many. He calls it royal, the law that rules over the rest, the way Paul says "the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command" (Galatians 5:14) and "love is the fulfillment of the law" (Romans 13:10).
The test he picks is ordinary: who gets the good seat. Loving your neighbor as yourself means the poor visitor gets the same welcome you would want, and the person who can do nothing for you counts as much as the person who can.
Questions people ask
What does James 2:8 say?
In the NIV it says, "If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, 'Love your neighbor as yourself,' you are doing right." The KJV says, "If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well."
What is the royal law in James 2:8?
It is the command "Love your neighbor as yourself," first given in Leviticus 19:18. James calls it royal because it is the king's law, the one that rules over the others and sums them up.
Why does James talk about favoritism right after the royal law?
Because favoritism breaks it. James 2:1-4 describes treating a rich visitor better than a poor one, and verse 9 says that showing favoritism is sin. You cannot love your neighbor as yourself and rank people by what they have.
Where is "love your neighbor as yourself" in the Old Testament?
Leviticus 19:18: "Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord." Jesus, Paul, and James all quote it.
What verses go with James 2:8?
Leviticus 19:18 (the original command), Galatians 5:14 (the whole law fulfilled in one command), and Romans 13:10 (love does no harm to a neighbor) are close companions.
