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This verse is speaking of the utter uselessness of the depending on anything in life other than the Word
of God. For the rich to depend on wealth is absurd. When the circumstances of life come, no exception is
made for social standing and financial power. The same scorching sun and dry land will wither grass,
flower, and weeds alike. Nothing is immune. Often the flower is the first to go because of its frailty. This
is a type of the rich. Often they become weak in their ability to stand because of their long dependence
on finances. When trouble comes and finances are in short supply, they cannot stand the pressure and
leap from buildings or give up on life altogether. No one is exempt from trouble. Neither is anyone exempt
from the blessing of God because He sends the rain and the sun on the just and unjust alike (Matthew
6:45).

The four verbs in this verse— risen, withers, falls, and fade away— show a series of events in life that
come to the weak believer. The scorching sun is a type of the afflictions of life (Mark 4:6, 16‐17). Because
the flowers or grass have no water to draw from, they wither and die. Only a plant that has an unlimited
supply of water will survive. A tree or plant beside a river will continue to grow and remain green when
everything around is dying. This is a type of the believer who is founded in the Word of God (Psalm 1:1‐3,
Jeremiah 17:5‐8). A person who has put trust in their money or position in life will face a day when the
water dries up. A person whose strength comes from the Word of God will never face that day. The same
afflictions come to us all, but those who trust in the Lord and His Word will remain.

. . . so also (in the same way) shall the rich man fade away in his ways (pursuits).
Rich and poor suffer alike and die alike, but the rich man is more obvious in both. Since he is more of a
spectacle, he is like the flower when it fades in comparison to the grass. Both die but one is more missed
or regretted in the eyes of men. The focus of this chapter is not the attitude or eyes of men but of God.
The divine view of life is the subject here. All believers need to see the divine view of life and quit living
our lives to please men. God sees and rewards according to a different scale of values. Permanence is not
found in the pursuit of the material or natural but in the pursuit of spiritual.

The Crown of Life

Jas 1:12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive
the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

Blessed (makarios) is the man (rich or poor) who endureth (through faith which is available to all)
temptation (testing) . . .

This man is blessed, happy and needs to count (esteem) it all joy. Once again, this means seeing problems
and testings through the eyes of the Lord and counting things in life as the Lord does. His will is to be done
on earth as it is in heaven. This is the pattern Abraham used when he called those things that be not as
though they were (Romans 4:17). This joy and happiness does not come from external conditions of life
such as pleasant circumstances or material wealth, but from the knowledge and stability of the Word of
God.

Temptation is endured (upomeno: to remain under), not existed. When a person stands up under the
pressures of life and does it with joy, it makes life a pleasure despite the bad circumstances. God has not
given us eternal life just to exist until death or the rapture, but so we can have life more abundantly.