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The Book of James

Rachel Moen
November 17, 2010
History/Literature
of the New Testament
MWF 12:10-1:00
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The book of James is believed to be the oldest book in the New Testament, other

than Galatians. There is little dispute on which James is the author of the book; most are in

agreement that it is James the brother of Jesus. There is not a specific group of people that

James rights too, instead he is more general and rights to the “ . . . twelve tribes scattered

among the nations . . .” (James 1:1). James wrote this letter to encourage the people to

patient endurance, despite their rich oppressors; it includes messages about Christians

taking joy in trials and faith in relationship with deeds.

In the book of James, verse one makes it clear that the author is, in fact James for he

states, “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ . . .” Although we know that the

author’s name is James, there is still controversy as to what James in the Bible is the author

since there are four different James’ in the New Testament . The four James’ are James the

son of Zebedee and brother of John, James the half brother of Jesus, James the son of

Alphaeus, and the James of Luke 6:16. According to Blackman in The Epistle of James

though, “James 1:1 is probably to be understood as James the brother of the Lord . . .” (24).

When reading the other books on the book of James, all authors are in agreement with

Blackman. In the Concordia Study Bible it explains that James, the son of Alphaeus, and the

James of Luke 6:16 had neither the stature nor the influence that the writer of the book of

James appears to have.

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The two James that remain and that appear to have the stature and influence as the

writer are James the half brother of Jesus and James the disciple . In Studies in the Epistle of

James, Robertson states, “it is hardly conceivable that James the brother of John could have

written the epistle,” (1). The reasons Robertson presents are because James, the brother of

John, was martyred in A.D. 44 by Harold Agrippa (1); although it is believed that the book of

James was written before A.D. 50, it was written later than A.D. 44 and therefore, there is

no way that James the brother of John could have written the book of James (Blackwood

31). Another reason Robertson gives against James, the brother of John, being the author of

the book of James is because matters that were presented in the epistle were, “hardly acute

in the Jewish Christian world by that date, and there is no evidence that this James had

attained a special position of leadership that justified a general appeal to Jewish Christian,”

(1). Due to this evidence, the only James left who could have been the author is James, the

half brother of Jesus.

James, the half brother of Jesus, was not initially a believer . Once Jesus appeared to

James after his resurrection, he believed and rose to be the leader of the early church in

Jerusalem. In A.D. 62 James was martyred (Middendorf 123). Paul had also called James a

pillar of the church (Galatians 2:9) and had seem him on his first visit to Jerusalem once he

was converted (Galatians 1:19) and on his last visit (Acts 21:18).

Even though Called by the Gospel, The Concordia Study Bible, and Studies in the

Epistle of James all state that James, the half brother of Jesus, is the author of the book of
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James, The Epistle of James presents facts to the contrary. “The epistle’s late attestation and

the opposition to its reception in the New Testament Canon, the conception of the Law may

be summarized that of a moral Law – doubtful whether James . . . would have accepted such

a conception . . . and the excellence of the Greek of the epistle,” (25-26). According to

Blackman, these three details on their own do not mean anything, but when put together

they create a “strong presumption against authorship” by James, Jesus’ half brother (26) .

Although Blackman presents this evidence, he is the only one who questions the authorship

of James being Jesus’ half brother; therefore, one must assume that the James who wrote

the book is Jesus’ half brother.

James did not write this letter to a specific city or church, instead it is addressed to, “ .

. . the twelve tribes scattered among the nations . . .” James 1:1. This refers to the Jews who

are scattered in the Gentile world outside of Palestine; the term twelve tribes merely mean

the Jews as a whole in the dispersion (Robertson 28). St. Peter had confined himself to the

Diaspora in Asia Minor so it is assumed that he singled them out because St. James did not

address them in his letter. If one assumes this, then it is also probable that the Diaspora that

James is referring to is the original Eastern Diaspora that is settled in Babylon and

Mesopotamia and extending as far as Palestine (Mayor 137).

It is agreed upon that James was written before A.D. 50. Blackman states that it was

probably written before the Council of Jerusalem which gives the book the time frame of
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A.D. 48-49 (31). The reasons, presented by the Concordia Self-Study Bible are: the

distinctively Jewish nature suggests that the book was composed when the church was still

predominately Jewish, the letter reflects a simple church order with the officers of the

church being addressed as “elders” (James 5:14) and “teachers” (James 3:1), the synagogue

is used to allocate a meeting or a meeting place, and finally there is no mention of the

controversy of Gentile Christians following all of the Jewish laws (1896) .

More specifically, the recipients of the letter were most likely Jewish Christian . One

can assume this by the Jewish nature of the letter. Throughout the letter James uses the

Hebrew title for God throughout, which is Lord Almighty, it is also suggested that the

believers James is writing to are from the early Jerusalem church who have scattered after

St. Stephen’s death. This is suggested through James’ references to their trials and

oppression and also this fact would account for his intimate knowledge of readers and his

authoritative nature (Hoerber 1897).

It is made clear that the recipients are Christian as well from verses 2:1 and 5:1-8

(Hoerber 1897). James 2:1, “My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t

show favoritism.” Here it states that those he is writing to clearly believe in Jesus too. In

James 5:1-8, James 5:7-8 talks about the Lord’s second coming which makes it clear that

James is writing to a Christian audience. The Jews did not believe in Jesus and therefore

would not recognize the Lord’s second coming if they did not believe that there was even a
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first coming. Therefore, when putting these pieces together, one can see that James was

speaking to the converted Jewish Christians.

While it is possible, from the indications seen throughout the letter, that James was

speaking to Jewish Christians. Although Moffat states, “racial divisions of Jewish and Gentile

Christians do not exist for this writer . . . his horizon is ecumenical Christendom,” (465). So,

even though James uses the Hebrew title for God, it does not necessarily make the letter

specifically to Jewish Christians. Also, Christians in general were dealing with trial and

oppression, so the fact that James refers to the people’s trials and oppression does not

necessarily make the recipients Jewish Christians. Blackman recognizes that James is most

likely writing to Jewish Christians, but it is not “too rigidly insisted on, for . . . there is nothing

in the epistle which necessarily involved the Jewish Christian character of the readers,” (29) .

While most sources agree that James has most likely written to the Jewish Christians, there

is still a possibility that he was writing to Christians in general .

James writes the letter to the twelve tribes because they are being oppressed by the

rich. The trials that they are being faced with are as much their fault as their oppressors

though; their faith was very weak, they murmured and complained about people and God,

and they did not show their faith in their actions were a few things that they did (Mayor

138). As seen in the city of Corinth, when one does not follow the Law then God punishes

them so one can assume that is what happened to the Christians that James is writing to as
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well. This can also be assumed because it is noticed that James does not preach the Gospel

in his letter, rather he spoke of the Law (Blackman 31). Therefore, as well as preaching

patience to the recipients of his letter, James had also written it to teach them the Law in

hopes that they would follow it.

The most infamous message, and the one that the book is known for, is that of faith

and deeds. James presents the questions, “What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to

have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?” (2:14). As he goes on he answers his

own question and the answer is no. “Faith without works is dead or worthless,” (Middendorf

126). James believes that faith on its own is not enough; Christians need to supplement their

faith with good works unto others. One who merely possess faith yet does not do good

works merely possess head knowledge and even demons possess that James declares

(Middendorf 126). The point that James is making that if someone only says that they are a

Christian and they believe in Jesus, but then they have no action to back up their words then

they are no better than demons, which also know about Jesus yet do no works to show his

love to others.

James uses an analogy to help people understand how faith and works are

interrelated; “As if body without spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead,” James 2:26 .

When James says spirit what he is referring to is simply the breath of life, which, without it,

one would die. According to Hort, “False faith is virtually a corpse,” (181) . According to
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James, false faith is one who does not do good works. Although, with the term “corpse” it

implies that faith was once alive yet with the lack of good deeds it has died . This is because

every Christian’s faith is alive once they are baptized and the life of their faith depends on

their actions throughout their life (Blackman 89). “There should be an indissoluble marriage

of faith and works . . .” (Robertson 102). Faith and works are so closely related that they are

like husband and wife and they are not to be divorced, as it was in the time James wrote this

letter.

In the letter James never states to what extent he means when he talks about one’s

faith. Therefore, we are “left to assume that he means the general acknowledgement of

Christ as Lord and profession of loyalty to him which every Christian made at his baptism

. . .” (Blackman 90). However, James does go on and he uses the story of Abraham as an

example to support that faith without deeds is useless. James says, “You see that his faith

and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did,”

James 2:22. In this statement James is saying that if Abraham were never to sacrifice his son

and prove his loyalty and faith in God then his faith would not have been supported, or

“made complete” as James put it.

That, however, is not the only message that James presents to the people; James also

talks about having joy in trials. In this period of the New Testament Christians were

constantly oppressed and in need of encouragement to face the difficulties . James

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encourages them to look at their trials as productive and with joy instead of looking down

upon their trials (Blackman 42). Everyone goes through trials and tribulations, and instead of

looking at it in a negative light, James encourages Christians too accept it and look on it

positively. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,

because you know that testing of your faith develops perseverance,” James 2:1-3 . It makes a

person stronger to look upon their trials with joy and it gives them tools for the next trial

that they will face. “James is a victorious Christian who has learned the lesson that thankful

joy is easier and wiser than mere dull resignation,” (Robertson 35). If one looks upon their

troubles with joy instead of resignation, then it will be easier for them and it is smarter in the

long run.

To find joy in hardships does not mean to overcome some of the ills of life such as

ignorance, poverty, disease and crime. It simply means to accept it, deal with it, and don’t

get angry when faced with it. Some things cannot be changed in life and it is best to

recognize it, but face it with patience and cheerfulness (Robertson 37) . Robertson explains

that this does not mean to deny sin life; it merely means to conquer the bitter results

presented by this evil with the joy in Christ that drives away despair (37) . “The finest product

in God’s garden is the soul of a man, ripe with the long years of toil and sorrow,” (Robertson

38). God presents everyone with problems. It is how they are dealt with that makes people

grow.
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In relation to joy in trials, James also talks about patience and perseverance .

“Brothers, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in

the name of the Lord. As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered,” James

5:10-11. In this passage, James shows that in order to have happiness during the tough

times in their life, they need to have patience as well. “Some of [the recipients] no longer

had a taste or the slow work of plowing, sowing, and reaping, forgetting what Jesus had said

of the gradual growth of the kingdom of God from seed to harvest” (Robertson 178) . James

is trying to teach the people that patience is needed, especially to wait for the second

coming of the Lord. Not everything comes once it is wanted or needed; sometimes there is a

waiting time.

James, similar to what he when he spoke of faith and deeds, talks about Job and his

trials that he went through. James explains that Job did not give up and get angry at God

when he put him through all of those trials, instead he was patient with Him and he was

happy to be put to the test. James states that everyone needs to have this same attitude and

if the prophets were patient in their work, then everyone else could be too .

The messages that James presents are still relevant in life today . Everyone is still

faced with trials and with these trials some get angry with God or doubt the presence of God

in their life. I have many friends who see the problems that our world today goes through

and they question, “With everything that happens, how can there be a god? Wouldn’t he

save us from this?” When I am asked this I refer to the book of James because he answers
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this question directly when he says, “Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because

when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those

who love him,” James 1:12. Everyone goes through tough times, it is how we gain

compassion and stronger, but people in the world still need to learn to greet their troubles

with cheerfulness.

Just as the message of perseverance goes hand in hand with James’ teaching of joy in

trials, it is also a message that goes hand in hand in our world today . Today, when some

people face hard times they choose to take their own life instead of persevering and seeing

what else God has planned for their life. This is not the way these people should go, if they

read the book of James and read about perseverance then they may be able to carry on with

their life and see what else God has planned for them.

The final message that is prominent in our society today is James’ message of faith

and deeds. There are many “holiday Christians” as they have been dubbed by our society.

These people simply go attend church on Christmas and Easter and do not practice the

Lord’s teaching. While this message in itself is controversial, it is still important today

because people need to practice good deeds around them and practice their faith other than

just on Sundays or on holidays. In order to make their faith complete, they need to show it in

their actions and not just by going to church, being baptized, or saying that they believe .
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Bibliography

1. Blackman, Edwin Cyril. The Epistle of James; Introduction and Commentary. London:

SCM, 1957. Print.

2. Hoerber, Robert G. Concordia Self-study Bible: New International Version. St. Louis:

Concordia Pub. House, 1984. Print.

3. Hort, F.J.A. The Epistle of St. James 1:1 to 4:7. New York: Macmillan, 1909. Print.

4. Mayor, Joseph B. The Epistle of St. James: the Greek Text with Introduction, Notes

and Comments. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1978. Print.

5. Middendorf, Michael Paul, Mark Schuler, and Rhoda Schuler. "James and Galatians."

Called by the Gospel: an Introduction to the New Testament. Eugene, Or.: Wipf &

Stock, 2007. Print.

6. Moffatt, James. An Introduction to the Literature of the New Testament. 3rd ed.

Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1918. Print.

7. Robertson, A. T. Studies in the Epistle o f James. Nashville: Broadman, 1959. Print.