# to give us

The word "us" refers to James and his audience. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-exclusive]])

# give us birth

God, who brought us eternal life, is spoken of as if he had given us birth. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metaphor]])

# the word of truth

Possible meanings are 1) "the message about the truth" or 2) "the true message."

# so that we would be a kind of firstfruits

James is using the traditional Hebrew idea of firstfruits as a way to describe the value of the Christian believers to God. He implies that there will be many more believers in the future. Alternate translation: "so that we would be like an offering of firstfruits" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-simile]])