Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary James 2:9

"but if ye have respect of persons, ye commit sin, being convicted by the law as transgressors." — James 2:9 (ASV)

Whereas v.8 depicts the positive example of one who fully keeps the law, v.9 sets forth the negative example of one who breaks it. To “show favoritism” is not merely to be guilty of an insignificant fault or social impropriety; it is “sin.” Such a conclusion is based on solid legal ground rather than general human opinion. Those engaging in partiality “are convicted by the law as lawbreakers.” Having just cited the “royal law” in v.8, James says that anyone who shows favoritism breaks the supreme law of love for one’s neighbor, the law that comprehends all laws governing one’s relationships to one’s fellow human beings.