James 1:9-11

Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.

James 1:9-11

The "lowly brother" is to "boast in his exaltation".  Who is the "lowly brother"?  Well, it is a "brother", which means a brother in Christ.  However, why is he "lowly"?  Well, lowly is referring to the fact that he is poor, as NLT translates.  This is also in contrast to "the rich" in verse 10.

What is the "exaltation" that the "lowly brother" is to boast in?  NLT explains the reason as "for God has honored them" and AMP describes this as "his high position [as a born-again believer, called to the true riches and to be an heir of God]".  Though this "lowly brother" is poor, he can boast in his salvation and right standing before God becuase of what God has done for him.  His "high position" is that he's a "born-again believer" and his calling to "true riches and to be an heir of God".  As followers of Jesus, we all have much to boast about.  However, in contrast to their lowly position in this world, the poor should be reminded (perhaps even moreso) about what they can boast about in God.

In contrast to the "lowly brother", verse 10 moves on to speak about "the rich man".  He is to boast "in his humiliation".  NLT and AMP describe this as being humbled by God.  Sure, followers of Jesus who are both rich and poor face many trials.  I'm sure that even the poor will be humbled by God.  However, this is probably more apparent for the rich, who have more worldly things to boast in compared to the poor.  The rich must be reminded (perhaps even moreso than the poor) about boasting in humiliation.

So, why is it a good thing for the rich to boast in his own humiliation?  The reason is because "like a flower of the grass he will pass away".  Flowers come and go.  The sun withers the grass and kills it.  Though it may have once been beautiful, it's beauty fades away as it dies.  Like the grass, the rich man will also fade away.  This will happen while he is persuing this or that.  So, because the rich man will pass away like the grass, he should boast in his humiliation.  Perhaps this is a reality check.  It could serve to remind him not to put all his hope on earthly wealth.  Like the poor man, his hope and trust should be in true riches from God.