Bible Strands
James 1:18
He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we would be a kind of firstfruits of His creation.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — James writes to the twelve tribes in the diaspora, closing his argument on testing by anchoring the believer's origin in the Father's deliberate act before turning to practical exhortation.
The words — βουληθεὶς (boulētheis), "having willed," is an aorist participle marking a single, decisive divine choice rather than a gradual process. ἀπεκdyησεν (apekuēsen), "he brought forth," carries the same root as "birth" and frames the act in terms of bearing offspring.
The thread — 1 Peter 1:23 echoes the mechanism (born through the word of God), while Romans 8:29 picks up the "firstborn" language as a position within a larger family.
Why it lands — The verse removes any claim to self-authorship: the reader's existence is willed, word-mediated, and positioned as a sample of a coming harvest, which makes the practical demands that follow (quick to listen, slow to anger) a consequence of origin, not an arbitrary rule.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
Cross-references
- Romans 8:29 For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers.
- 1 Peter 1:23 For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.
- John 3:3 Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”
- John 1:13 children born not of blood, nor of the desire or will of man, but born of God.
- 1 Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
- 2 Thessalonians 2:13 But we should always thank God for you, brothers who are loved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginning to be saved by the sanctification of the Spirit and by faith in the truth.
- Ephesians 2:4 But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,
- Revelation 14:4 These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they are virgins. They follow the Lamb wherever He goes. They have been redeemed from among men as firstfruits to God and to the Lamb.
- Jeremiah 2:3 Israel was holy to the LORD, the firstfruits of His harvest. All who devoured her were found guilty; disaster came upon them,’” declares the LORD.
- Ephesians 1:12 in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, would be for the praise of His glory.