Verse 9
‘Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.’
Included within the way of cleansing is true repentance in tears. They are, as it were, to have their own Day of Atonement. The word for ‘affliction’ indicates ‘experiencing hardship’ (as a good soldier of Christ - 2 Timothy 2:3), thus connecting up with the purifying effects of the trials in James 1:1-12. Note that the verb indicates that it is something done to them to which they are now to respond. And in response to that affliction (James 1:10) they are to mourn and weep over their sin and failure. All the pleasures and joys that so long they had sought for are to be mourned over and seen for what they are. He is not recommending a life lived like this continually, but an initial genuine repentance so as to clear the sin that has been besetting them out of their lives.
It will especially be noted that James makes no reference to the use of ritual. In spite of his being himself very much involved in Jewish ritual, he made no attempt to enforce it on others, especially the ex-Gentiles.
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