THE BOOK OF JAMES

The word "Apostle" signifies "one sent", while the word "disciple" means only "a learner." The twelve Apostles were sent into the world for a definite purpose, with explicit instructions from the Lord.

JAMES -- Apostle -- the Lord's brother -- Addressed to Jewish converts, Practical religion by good works contrasted by Faith, written about 50 A. D.

James - The Letter of True Religion: This letter (probably written by James, the Lord’s brother) is filled with various distinctions between true religion and false profession.

General Information

The Epistle of James, the first of the general letters (Catholic epistles) of the New Testament of the Bible, is an exhortation to Christian patience and obedience. The book, more a sermon than a letter, uses 54 imperatives in 108 verses to call its readers to responsible living that accords with what they profess. The basis of this exhortation is that we are all sinners and therefore worthy of death (1:14-15), but that God of his own will has given us a hope of salvation (1:18, 21), and that the end is near, ‘behold the judge standeth before the doors’ (5:9).

Traditionally, James, "the Lord's brother," has been accepted as the author, which would date the book between AD 45 and 50 and would account for its primitive Christology. Some scholars, however, claim that it comes much later from the hand of another and date the book from late 1st century to early 2d century. Yet if James, the brother of Jesus, is accepted as the author of the epistle, it becomes our best witness to the beliefs of the earliest Jerusalem church/ one of the ways in which the earliest Christians passed on their faith.

Although accepted by the church from the 2d century, James was reluctantly admitted into the Protestant New Testament canon. Martin Luther rejected the book as "a right strawy epistle," because he thought that James contradicted Saint Paul's view of justification by faith alone. Paul, however, was emphasizing the inappropriateness of works for salvation whereas James spoke of works that issue from faith. For both, the essentials are the same, and both were probably dealing independently with a traditional topic of Jewish belief.

The epistle is a general one destined for Christians outside Palestine, who at this time would be for the most part Jews, or Gentiles who had come under the influence of Judaism.

Brief Outline

The principal divisions of the Letter of James are the following:
  1. Address (James 1:1)
  2. The Value of Trials and Temptation (James 1:2-18)
  3. Exhortations and Warnings (James 1:19-5:12)
  4. The Power of Prayer (James 5:13-20)
/
  1. Comfort (1)
  2. Warnings against specific sins of which they are guilty, such as pride, favoring the rich, misuse of the tongue, believing in Faith without Works (2-4)
  3. Exhortation to patience in suffering and prayer. (5)

Authorship of The Epistle

The writer of this epistle names himself ‘James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ’ (1:1 ), and tradition has generally identified him with the brother of Jesus, who appears from Gal.2:9 and Acts 15 to have been the leader of the Jerusalem church.

The traditional view has been challenged on a number of grounds, of which the most important are the language of the epistle, which is in good Greek, the absence of references to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, and the slowness with which the epistle was received as canonical.

The argument from the language of the epistle is a weak one. Whether James could speak and write Greek or not, the epistle is addressed to ‘the twelve tribes’ which are of the Dispersion (i.e. outside Palestine), and Greek would be the language which they would most easily understand, especially if, as appears likely, the term is meant to include not only Jewish Christians but Gentile converts as well. There were in Jerusalem Christians fully capable of translating James’ words into fluent Greek, as can be seen from the procedure followed in composing a letter to the Gentile Christians of Syria and Cilicia after the Council of Jerusalem in A.D. 49 (Acts 15).

The lack of any appeal to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, whose name is mentioned only twice in the epistle (1:1, 2:1), is at first sight hard to reconcile with the authorship of James, the Lord’s brother, and has led to speculation as to the possibility of the first verse being a later addition based on an erroneous conjecture as to its authorship. (Streeter, The Primitive Church, p. 191. 164) On the other hand the very absence of theological interpretation of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus tells against any theory that the epistle is the work of a later anonymous Christian, and it is better to take the silence of James, like that of Jude, as an indication of the way in which the brethren of Jesus proclaimed their faith.

The epistle of James is primarily one of teaching on conduct, and the teaching is often couched in words so reminiscent of the words of Jesus, yet in a form which tells against use of the later gospels, that the simplest explanation remains authorship by one whose knowledge of the Lord’s teaching was first-hand.

The Teaching of The Epistle and the Circumstances of its Writing

The message of the epistle is a practical one of encouragement in the face of temptations, and of moral exhortation.

So far James goes with Paul, but he interprets the means of salvation in terms of keeping ‘the perfect law, the law of liberty’ (1:25), and his conception of faith is radically different from Paul’s. For James faith can exist without works (2:18-24), and can indicate only a belief in God insufficient to change a man’s actions (2:19 ‘the devils also believe, and shudder’), although at times he uses the word in a much deeper sense (1:6, 5:15).

It has been thought by some scholars that James, in part of his epistle (2:14-26), is attacking the Pauline doctrine of ‘justification by faith’, or a perverted interpretation of Paul’s teaching, but it is far more likely that his target is not a theological doctrine, but the reluctance of Christians in general to live up to their responsibilities. The emphasis is throughout on Christian conduct, as involving both action (e.g. 1:27, 3:13, 4:17) and abstinence from sin (e.g. 2: 9-11, 4:11, 5:12), and the references even to prayer are practical ones (5:14-18).

The absence of theological interest is in striking contrast to the other epistles, with the significant exception of Jude. There are two references to Jesus as ‘the Lord Jesus Christ’ (1:1) and ‘our Lord Jesus Christ of glory’ (2:1), with a possible allusion to his death at the hands of the rich (5:6), but James says nothing of his redeeming power or of his relationship to the Father.

On the other hand the language of the epistle reminds us continually of the teaching of Jesus as it is recorded in Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount especially, but also in Luke and John. Among the most striking examples are the contrast between living and doing (1:22-23 cf. Mt.7:21, Lk.6:46), the command against judging (4:11 cf. Mt.7:1), and that against swearing (5:12 cf. Mt. 5:34 ff.), but it has been estimated that nearly half the verses in James find a parallel of sorts in the gospels. The form of the resemblances is such as to suggest not a literary relationship, but that James was well acquainted with the teaching of Jesus as it was remembered in the earliest days of the church.

The date of the epistle and the readers to whom it was addressed are much disputed. On the whole it seems best to accept an early date, c. A.D. 45, and to assume that the epistle is a general one destined for Christians outside Palestine, who at this time would be for the most part Jews, or Gentiles who had come under the influence of Judaism (cf. the reference to ‘your synagogue’ 2:2). This would account for the absence of any reference to the controversies connected with the admission of Gentiles into the church, which seem to have come to a head a few years later, and seems to suit the ‘non-theological’ teaching of the epistle better than the assumption that it dates from a much later period.

The Importance of The Epistle

The authorship and early date of the epistle are matters of probability and not of certainty. Yet if James, the brother of Jesus, is accepted as the author of the epistle, it becomes our best witness to the beliefs of the earliest Jerusalem church. While it is unwise to build too much on the negative evidence of one short letter, there are striking differences between the presentation of the Christian gospel here and in the other great epistles. Some of these differences may well be attributed to James’ personality; there are some striking affinities between the epistle and Luke’s account of James’ speech at the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15: 13-21). Yet we cannot ignore the fact that James was apparently the unchallenged leader of the early Jerusalem church, and no theory of the teaching of the ‘apostolic’ church can fail to take into account James’ interpretation of the gospel as being at least one of the ways in which the earliest Christians passed on their faith.

James:
Introduction, Outline, and Argument

by
Daniel B. Wallace, Ph.D.

I. Introduction

A. The Author

The question of authorship of this epistle is somewhat complex. The relatively weak external evidence, the difficulty of determining which James is in view, as well as the possibility of pseudonymity and redactional stages, render any discussion of authorship a bit untidy. Our approach will be to discuss the internal evidence (including evidence from the rest of the New Testament), the external evidence, more recent critical discussions, and finally, alternative theories of authorship.

1. Internal Evidence

In 1:1 the author identifies himself as “James, the servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.” No other identification is given. The NT mentions four men bearing the name of James.1 It is probable, though not certain, that the writer of this epistle is to be identified with one of them.2 The four who are called James in the NT are listed here, as candidates for author of this epistle, in ascending order of probability.

a. James the father of Judas (Luke 6:16; Acts 1:13), “possibly otherwise identified with Thaddaeus or Lebbaeus, to distinguish him from Judas Iscariot (Mark 3:18; Matt. 10:3).”3 Apart from the fact that he is the father of an obscure apostle, nothing else is known about this James, rendering him a rather unlikely candidate as the author of a work to “the twelve tribes” in which his simple self-description is assumed to be understood by all.

b. James the son of Alphaeus (Matt. 10:3; Mark 3:18; 15:40 [here called James the Younger]; Luke 6:15; Acts 1:13) is an unlikely candidate for similar reasons: he is an obscure apostle, mentioned only in lists of apostles and disciples.

c. James the son of Zebedee and brother of John (Matt. 4:21; 10:2; 17:1; Mark 1:19, 29; 3:17; 10:35; 13:3; Luke 9:28; Acts 1:13; 12:2) is an important figure in the Gospels,4 less so in Acts due to his early death as a martyr under Herod Agrippa I no later than the spring of 44 CE (Acts 12:2). It is precisely this early martyrdom which argues against identification of this James with the author of our letter. Although it must be admitted that he could possibly be the author of the letter, he “probably died too early to leave any literary remains . . . ”5 Further, there is a good possibility that Herod’s persecution of Christians, which began with James’ execution, is in the background of, and provides part of the occasion for, this epistle; given such a presupposition, James the brother of John cannot have been the author. Finally, there is nothing compelling on behalf of this James: prominent though he was in the Gospels, he is mentioned only twice in Acts (the second mention records his death; Acts 12:2). Thus in contrast to the fourth James, this James does not seem to have had sufficient recognition in the early church to have written an encyclical letter with an unqualified self-designation.6

d. James the Lord’s brother (Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3; Gal. 1:19; called simply James in Acts: 12:17; 15:13; 21:18; and in 1 Cor. 15:7), mentioned only twice by name in the Gospels (Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3), he rises to prominence after Pentecost. Arguably, James became the de facto leader of the Jerusalem church sometime before A.D. 44,7 and was one of two leaders Paul met with in Jerusalem three years after Paul’s conversion (Gal. 1:19). The assignment of this James (also known in later church traditions, starting with Hegesippus, as “James the Just”) as author of the letter has been the traditional view. Guthrie8 summarizes six reasons as to why this James is the most likely candidate:

1) The author’s self-identification points to this James, “for it is evident that a well-known James must have been intended, and as far as the biblical record is concerned, the Lord’s brother is the only James who appears to have played a sufficiently prominent part in early Christian history.”9

2) The author’s Jewish background, both in terms of his use of the OT (including a few quotations, numerous allusions, and several illustrations), and in other, more subtle ways (e.g., traces of Hebrew idioms behind his otherwise polished Greek; Hebrew prophetic style, etc.).

3) Similarities between James and Acts: James’ speech in Acts 15 contains many striking parallels in language with the epistle of James. For example, caivrw is found in Jas. 1:1 and Acts 15:23 (and elsewhere in Acts only in 23:16); Acts 15:17 and Jas. 2:7 invoke God’s name in a special way; the exhortation for the brothers (ajdelfoi) to hear is found both in Jas. 2:5 and Acts 15:13. Further, not-so-common individual words are found in both: ejpiskevptesqe (Jas. 1:27; Acts 15:14); ejpistrevfein (Jas. 5:19 and Acts 15:19); threi'n (or diathrei'n) eJautovn (Jas. 1:27; Acts 15:29); ajgaphtov" (Jas. 1:16, 19; 2:5; Acts 15:25). Though short of conclusive proof, this is nevertheless significant corroborative evidence.

4) Similarities with the teaching of Jesus: “there are more parallels in this Epistle than in any other New Testament book to the teaching of our Lord in the Gospels.”10 The parallels to the Sermon on the Mount are especially acute:11

1:2 / Joy in the midst of trials / Matt. 5:10-12
1:4 / Exhortation to perfection / Matt. 5:48
1:5 / Asking for good gifts / Matt. 7:7ff.
1:20 / Against anger / Matt. 5:22
1:22 / Hearers and doers of the Word / Matt. 7:24ff.
2:10 / The whole law to be kept / Matt. 5:19
2:13 / Blessings of mercifulness / Matt. 5:7
3:18 / Blessings of peacemakers / Matt. 5:9
4:4 / Friendship of the world as enmity against God / Matt. 6:24
4:11-12 / Against judging others / Matt. 7:1-5
5:2ff. / Moth and rust spoiling riches / Matt. 6:19
5:10 / The prophets as examples / Matt. 5:12
5:12 / Against oaths / Matt. 5:33-37

The point Guthrie attempts to draw from this is that the author probably heard the Lord himself.12 However, this would not prove that James, the Lord’s brother, was responsible for the epistle (for the son of Zebedee would be just as likely a candidate). Further, the earliest stratum of the Jesus traditions is, in some ways, impenetrable. That is to say, we have no easy and infallible test for determining whether an author was an eyewitness and heard Jesus himself or whether he was merely a recorder of primitive oral tradition. Nevertheless, to be fair to Guthrie, it seems that he is affirming the veracity of the traditional authorship against a late (ca. 90s) non-Jacobean authorship. In this regard, his point is indeed well taken, for the oral tradition of the dominical sayings which James uses shows no dependence on any of the written Gospels.13

5) Agreements with the NT account of James: Not only is he seen as leader of the Jerusalem church in Acts 15, but he is also seen as a champion of the continued validity of the law, in some sense at least. “His outlook was correspondingly limited. The full freedom of the gospel had not yet reached him. He lived in an age of transition.”14 This portrait of James by Luke corresponds well with James’ statements about the law in the epistle (cf., e.g., 1:22-25; 2:8-13), as well as with the obvious authority with which he writes his letter.

6) The conditions within the community: “The community appears to belong to the period before the fall of Jerusalem. The oppressors are wealthy landowners, who, after the siege of Jerusalem, virtually ceased to exist in Judaea . . .”15

In sum, the internal evidence is relatively strong—especially when considered cumulatively—for James, the Lord’s brother, as the author of this epistle. And in light of the rather weak claims of the other candidates, the relative strength of this James moves him beyond a reasonable doubt.

2. External Evidence

The epistle of James is first mentioned by name by Origen, who apparently regards it as scripture. Eusebius and Jerome also cite it as scripture, and apparently accept it as from the hand of James, the Lord’s brother. Eusebius, however, classes it among the antilegomena and Jerome seems to imply that another wrote in James’ name or later edited the work. Before Origen, however, there does seem to be a definite strain of allusions to James in early Christian writers, especially Clement and Hermas.16 Whether these writers allude to James or whether all three borrow from a common pool of wisdom motifs cannot be demonstrated either way.17 But the generally negligible attestation for James may well be due to a cause other than inauthenticity: “While the evidence certainly allows for theories which entail late, nonapostolic authorship, a theory of limited interest in and circulation of the epistle would also explain the evidence.”18

Its limited circulation would be due no doubt to the fact that it was sent to Jewish Christians of the East Dispersion.19 And its limited interest would be due to several factors: (1) it does not claim to be apostolic; (2) it is not controversial—i.e., it is not the kind of document which could be used in the second century battle against the gnostics; (3) it lacks the dynamics, passion, and persuasiveness of the Pauline letters; (4) it is neither christological nor theological in its thrust, but merely ethical; and (5) in the one place where it does appear to be theologically oriented (2:14-26), it seems to contradict the theology of the Pauline Hauptbriefe.