James 1: 1 Commentary

James here , is the James named of the three disciples closest to the Christ - ‘Peter , James , and John’ - the ones who were strongest in faith , the three merited by Jesus the Christ throughout the Gospels . In the order in The New Testament books , you have James , Peter , and John ; representatives of the Godhead , consubstantially delineated . Peter for the Father , James for the Holy Spirit , and John for the Christ . Note how the main reservoir of sentiment within each of their editions comes from each of their delineations .

James , as one of the merited of The Lord , is therefore read ‘James’ without the necessity of adding son of Zebedee to his name . Hence the continuity of ‘James’ as a name throughout The Gospels and Acts .

Acts 12:2 applies legitimately to James son of Alphaeus , also known as James the Less .

Observe the references in the General Epistle of James , into how some of these are of a seafaring fishermen’s knowledge ; yet James son of Alphaeus was brought up with Jesus Christ within a carpenter’s family , - Matt 13:55 - and hence he was known as a son of Mary , and so he is a brother of John the son of Zebedee , who was a son of this Mary also , - John 19:27 .

With the knowledge of this perspective in discerning the interpretation of Acts 12:2 , and in applying Acts 12:2 to James son of Alphaeus ; continuity in Scripture shows that James , son of Zebedee wrote The General Epistle of James .

By MungaCH2 (wrote 5 Bible Commentaries - permalink to this Commentary)
Posted on: 1/1/2012 07:02 am

1)James,1&2 Peter,1,2&3 John and Jude are grouped under the title of “General Epistles”.James is a practical letter about the Christian life.
2)There are at least 4 persons by the name “James” in the N.T.
(i)James, the son of Zebedee and brother of John.Matt.4:21.He was one of the 12 Apostles.Matt.10:2;Mark 3:17;Luke 6:14& Acts 1:13.
(ii)James,the son of Alphaeus.He was also one of the 12 Apostles.Matt.10:3;
Mark 3:18;Luke 6:15;Acts 1:13.
(iii)”Judas,the brother of James.” Luke 6:16;Acts 1:13.James should be the father of Judas.
(iv)James,the half brother of our Lord.Gal.1:19.
3)It is most likely that James,the half brother of Jesus, had written the Epistle of James.During the earthly ministry of Jesus,James and his other brothers did not believe Jesus.John 7:5.The resurrected Lord appeared to him.1 Cor.15:7.James was among the group of people who prayed in the upper room after the ascension of Jesus Christ.Acts 1:14.He became the leader of the Church at Jerusalem.Acts 15;21:18.He was considered to be one of the pillars of the Church. Gal.2:9.He was traditionally called as the James,the just.
4)In this epistle,James does not mention about his relationship with Jesus Christ.He identifies himself as “a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ”.James 1:1.This shows the humility of the author.
5)The readers were the Jewish Christians who lived outside Palestine..James addressed his readers as “brethren” about 19 times.
6)There is similarity between the Epistle of James and the Sermon on the Mount (Matt.5-7).This Epistle reminds us about the Book of Proverbs.
7)There are about 54 commands in the 108 verses of this Epistle.

By Alex (wrote 499 Bible Commentaries - permalink to this Commentary)
Posted on: 4/11/2009 15:24 pm

The twelve tribes here are not only the Jews (ancestors of Judah) but all the tribes of Israel (Hebrews). They are listed in Revelation 7: Judah, Reuben, Gad, Asher, Naphthali, Manasseh, Simeon, Levi, Issachar, Zebulon, Joseph and Benjamin. Joseph means Ephraim, as the other son of Joseph, Manasseh, is mentioned. Dan, for some reason, is left out. God knows where the lost tribes are, and maybe James had an idea about it in the Holy Spirit even if the Northern Tribes (often called ”Ephraim”) was exiled by the king of Assyria already around 722 bC. In the end times, the areas of Israel will be devided again amongst these tribes, who at that time will be all Messianic Israelites.

By Jacob (wrote 1 Bible Commentary - permalink to this Commentary)
Posted on: 4/1/2009 09:31 am