What is the meaning of "cleanse your hands, you sinners" in James 4:8?

Fourthly, the Apostle says, “Cleanse your hands.” If we are to draw nigh to God, we must judge every act unsuited to His holy presence, not putting our hands to anything that defiles.

Fifthly, the exhortation is, “Purify your hearts, ye double-minded.” It is not enough to cleanse the hands; we must also judge the evil of our hearts. The Pharisees could make much show of outward purification by washing the hands, but the Lord has to say, “Their heart is far from Me” (Mark 7:3, 6). The one who ascends the hill of the Lord and stands in His holy place must have “clean hands, and a pure heart” (Ps. 24:4). The heart is the seat of the Christian's affections. These need to be purged of every object not compatible with God's will.

Immediately we think of drawing near to God the question of our moral fitness is raised. How can we draw near except as cleansed and purified. Hence, what we find in the latter part of verse 8 and in verses 9 and 10. James speaks very strongly as to the state of those to whom he wrote, accusing them of sin and double-mindedness and a good deal of indifference to their real condition, so that they were filled with laughter and jollification in spite of their sorry state. What they needed was to purify themselves not only externally — the "hands" — but internally — the "hearts," and also to repent, humbling themselves before God.

Are we sometimes conscious that our hearts are far from God? Do we sometimes feel as though it were impossible for us to draw near to Him? These verses then will explain matters for us and show us the way. The only road into the Divine presence that is available for us is that of purification, within as well as without, of repentance and of freshly humbling ourselves before God. Then it is that He will lift us up, and we shall be in the full enjoyment of the light of His countenance.

If this is so, the hindrance will be removed as regards our drawing near to God; and here is where the preciousness of spiritual joy and strength is found. For God Himself will draw near to us. But this also immediately calls for the cleansing of our hands, if they have been in any way engaged in sin; and the purifying of our hearts, if there has been duplicity rather than single-mindedness.

But to do this, the hands must be cleansed, and the heart purified, that in nothing we may be double-minded. God is light, He will have purity and integrity in the inner man. Full of goodness and condescension, He is swift to help the weak, but He closes His ears to all who are double in heart. He looks for a pure walk and a sincere heart in those who seek to draw near Him. It cannot be otherwise; He holds Himself aloof from those whose hearts are not open in His presence; He sees everything, but for Him to hearken, the heart must be sincere.

Exhortations to a godly, holy walk follow. Submit yourselves, therefore to God; be subject unto Him, have no friendship with the world, but be His friend. There is one who would drag the believer back into the world, as Pharaoh tried to get Israel back to Egypt. Guard against it by resisting the devil and he will flee from you. This is a blessed promise which all His faithful people have tested at all times. We are not to flee from the devil, but to resist him as we do so in the name of our Lord, the enemy will be helpless and flee from us. Another blessed exhortation follows. "Draw nigh to God and He will draw nigh to you." Next James addresses again those who had not yet fully turned to the Lord. It is a call to repentance. "Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double-minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep; let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He shall exalt you."

But the thought in the next words seems an example of the peculiarity of an Epistle addressed to the twelve tribes of the Dispersion. "Sinners" and "double-minded" persons are appealed to as such. Such appeals are nowhere found in the Epistles addressed to the saints in the N.T. Here the scope is so wide as to include souls not yet converted, though we have also seen a great deal in the Epistle which supposes the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ. But there is more here and to come in accordance with its being written to the ancient people of God as a whole, in whatever degree each believer may draw profit from all. The difficulty of the exhortation is thus accounted for, and the authority of the word maintained, without yielding to any strained interpretation. Nevertheless it is a call to faith in all these verses, and not to the slow process of human effort; for cleansing of hands and purifying of hearts, no less than for submission to God and drawing nigh to Him before, or for sorrowings that follow. The verbs are all in what is called the aorist, and therefore imply that God calls for each and all of these calls to be done once for all as a settled thing for the soul. This grace alone could effect. Man otherwise must labour in vain. God gives to faith what He demands.

He leads us now more into the sanctuary, to estimate things in the presence of God. Where God is, He must rule; and if we will be the arbiters of our own portion, we must, of necessity, be away from God. "Be subject, therefore, to God; resist the devil," — for he is always near if God be far away, — "and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you." A place before Him, even a place in Christ, is one thing; the desire for what that place implies is another. Thus, it can be said to those who in one sense are nigh, "Draw nigh to God;" and there is still this condition to be fulfilled in order that He may draw nigh to us. We are "no more strangers and foreigners." He expects from us the affections of children, of those that desire intimacy; but this can only be ours in a way conformable to His own nature. Thus, the word follows, "Cleanse your hands, ye sinners, and purify your hearts, ye double-minded." The pleasures that men seek away from God need to be turned — as they will surely yet turn — into affliction for them. Let the soul anticipate this, and instead of rejoicing in such a condition, "be afflicted, and mourn, and weep; let the laughter be turned to mourning, and the joy to heaviness." No way for us but to anticipate the judgment of Him who judges not harshly, but according to truth. Let us humble, in His presence, the pride of heart which would dictate to Him, and account our own wills better than His will for us. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He shall exalt you. If we exalt ourselves, He will surely abase us. He that humbleth himself shall as surely find exaltation, but it will be in His own manner.

If we are marked by humility we shall have no difficulty in submitting to God, and as we submit to God we shall be enabled to resist the devil. All too often things work the other way round with us. We start by submitting to the devil, which leads to our developing the pride that marks him, and consequently resisting God; and as a result of that God resists us and a fall becomes inevitable, with its consequent humiliation. If only we were humble we should escape much humiliation.

The order then is clear. First, humility. Then, submission to God, which entails resistance as regards the devil. Third, drawing near to God. No one of course can draw near to God except as happily submitting to Him. Drawing near to Him He will draw near to us. This is the way of His government. If we sow the seed of a diligent seeking of His face, we shall reap a harvest of light and blessing from a realized sense of His nearness to us.

James calls things by their right names. It is a great deliverance when we can practically call things by their true names, and see how the word of God would cut off everything that is unholy and contrary to His will in our path. How pungent, how faithful James is! He does not spare the rich or the mighty, no matter how exalted they may be. He speaks most plainly. If there is any question of the saint's honesty, he says, "Cleanse your hearts ye double-minded." He tells us that a double-minded man is unstable in all his ways. Let not that man think that he shall get anything of the Lord in prayer. Why is it that our prayers are not answered? James gives us two reasons. One is double-mindedness that is, the mind half on one thing and half on another. If my mind is half on the world and half on Christ, I may pray every day of my life and get no answer to my prayers. Oh! when I seek the Lord, let it be as it is beautifully put in the book of Chronicles, "They sought Him with all their heart and with all their desire." That kind of prayer will be answered.

I press, then, that the word "sinners" here clearly to my mind shows that the Spirit of God in this epistle takes in a larger range than most allow. Also it is no mean confirmation of what has been already advanced as to James. "Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up. Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother" is really speaking evil of God's own law and judging it.