Warning***Yawner Alert***When I start a new series, I always include these Introductory Posts that may be a little dry. But I promise it will get better….
Lookahead: In addition, in James 1:1, the author implied that he was a servant to all twelve tribes (in the dispersion). Some commentators believe that James was writing to Jewish converts who fled (north) due to the persecution that began with Stephen’s death…Suppose James was trying to reach the 3000+ who had been converted during Pentecost? Represented people groups included: Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs. Acts 2:9-11. These converted Jews all went back home after the holiday was over.
Today we go to the Word for clues about who the author of the Book of James was. To begin with, who does James say he was? And the answer is…James of God and of the LORD, Jesus Christ, a servant to the twelve tribes in the dispersion, Greetings. James 1:1
James identified himself as a servant (Greek means indentured servant or bond-slave) to the “dispersion.” Most of the 49 translations on Bible Hub (save one!) use the term, dispersion; it refers to Jews—from all twelve tribes—who had been exiled to the gentile nations during the Northern and Southern kingdom military conflicts. The Greek word is diaspora—and it’s a Greek term, not a transliteration from the Hebrew. “The term diaspora finds its roots in the Greek language and is based on a translation of the Hebrew word, Galut. Based on speiro (to sow) and the preposition dia (over), in the Ancient Greece, the word referred to migration and colonisation. In Hebrew, the term initially referred to the setting of colonies of Jews outside Palestine after the Babylonian exile…”1
The Greek word, diaspora, only appears three times in the entire Bible; but it seems to be a term that was in use by religious Jews during Jesus’ earthwalk: Then said the Jews among themselves, Whither will He go, that we shall not find Him? will He go unto the dispersed (diaspora) among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles? John 7:35 This verbal exchange by the Pharisees was dripping with sarcasm, yet it referred to a particular subclass of people—Jewish people who were living in gentile nations at the time. Were they hoping that Jesus would depart for far-off lands…to work within the Diaspora in an evangelistic thrust to the gentiles? 😊 Though it is Greek, Jewish people adapted the diaspora term and it’s still in use in their writings today: https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-diaspora.
In an example of particular note, in 1986, Rabbi Menachem Schneerson, an Ultra-Orthodox global leader (whom many Jewish people considered to be the Messiah), wrote a letter which has since been published/entitled, “Why Remain in the Diaspora?” It basically said that Jewish people who were living in the Diaspora in present times did not necessarily have to relocate to Israel, but instead had an obligation to evangelize, where they were.2
In addition, in James 1:1, the author implied that he was a servant to all twelve tribes. Some commentators believe that James was writing to Jewish converts who fled Jerusalem due to the persecution that began with Stephen’s death—going into Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch according to Acts 11:19. However, the Jews who were living in Jerusalem at the time of this persecution would have predominantly been from the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, and Levi. (Even today, the remaining Northern Kingdom tribes are referred to as the Lost Tribes—so those tribes had not returned to establish residence in Israel in James’ day.) Other tribes living out-of-country might have made pilgrimages to Jerusalem for the holidays back then. But they primarily resided in their new colonies in gentile lands.
Therefore, I believe that the James who wrote the book was a missionary/evangelist type. He was concerned with serving and reaching converted Jews everywhere. However, there is also another potential explanation for James’ greeting. Suppose James was trying to reach the 3000+ who had been converted during Pentecost? These people had come to Jerusalem from many diverse places to celebrate First Fruits and the Feast of Weeks, and they had been converted by the Holy Spirit—and baptized. Represented people groups included: Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs. Acts 2:9-11 These converted Jews all went back home after the holiday was over. Maybe James’ letter was for them. 😊
Bottom line, I believe that James was invested in these converts. And I believe that he would have been the type to hit the road and minister beyond the four walls of the church. On the other hand, James the Just (if there were such a person, and “Less and Just” weren’t an amalgamation, as some imply), was focused on growing the church in Jerusalem—and leading the emerging “Ecclesia” as he helped to establish a doctrinal and hierarchical framework.
So if we rule out James the Just, this means that the author was one of Jesus’ apostles—either James the Greater (Son of Zebedee and brother of John), or James the Less (Son of Alphaeus, possible brother of Matthew). This theory is additionally reinforced by the fact that the author appears to be someone who was taught firsthand by Rabbi Jesus. The respectful references to God the Father, and the LORD (with the name, “Jesus,” used only twice) in the Book of James would have mirrored Jesus’ teaching style. Also, there is strong corroboration with Jesus’ teaching topics and emphasis—everything from the love of money, to protecting the disenfranchised, to ixnay on judging others, and even to the use of the Hebrew loan word gihenna (which only Jesus used). So I believe the Book of James was written by an apostle.
Did you just call me Baby James? There is only one reference in the entire Bible to the moniker, James the Less, in the Book of Mark (15:40). As Mark’s primary source of info was the Apostle Peter, this title may have come from him. (We do know that Jesus had nicknames for a few of the apostles, but he normally assigned them “with ceremony;” plus His nicknames had a prophetic component and positive connotations.) The term, James the Greater, does not appear anywhere in the Bible. Perhaps “James the Less” was a “Peter-ism” to minimize confusion. But to keep things simple, why not just tack the surnames on? James of Zebedee or James of Alphaeus is just as easy to write/say as, “James the Greater” or “James the Less/er” and it avoids emotional fallout. BTW, after a long search, I was not able to determine exactly when the term, “James the Great or Greater” came into use. However, it appears to be something that began with early church historian types, and not with Jesus or the apostles.
In terms of modern-day views, a 20th Century author wrote of the Less label, “a term having no reference to bulk or eminence, only to age. The exact sense of the terms is probably junior and senior.” 3 And a 21st Century blogger wrote: The descriptions of the two men do not mean that the second James was not as great as the first one—the description was merely used to distinguish the two James with the second one as the younger or smaller between them. He was also titled the Lesser because he was called much later by Jesus than James the Greater as an apostle.4
Nice timeline theory! And along the same lines…he may have spent less time with Jesus, but James the Less probably spent more time in the field later on. The author writes to converted Jews who are in various countries—and who appear to be struggling with “New Believer Syndrome.” There are some unhealthy symptoms in their church bodies, including burnout, greed, nepotism, gossip, a lack of understanding about the spiritual gifts, etc. Also, by the time the letter was written, that “Ecclesia Framework” was further defined. So this implies that the letter was written later, rather than sooner—which points us toward James the Less v. James the Great. Also, the thought occurred to me—how did Jerusalem get word back reliably that there were church probs in, say, Egypt or Libya? James might have known about some of these problems firsthand, if he were out in the field. To lend credence to the theory that the author was more of a missionary than a church builder, legend has it that James the Less was martyred in Egypt, whereas we know that James the Greater found his way into Herod Agrippa’s crosshairs; therefore, there is a good chance that the Greater was a real presence/fixture in Jerusalem prior to his arrest.
So currently I’m going with James the Less/er as author of James. But I won’t know for sure if I’m correct ‘til I get to heaven. In the meantime, I’ll reiterate what I said in the first post on the subject: could we not cut through all these glorious debates—and to the chase—by saying that the Blessed Holy Spirit is the ultimate author of the Book of James, and every other book in the Bible?
++++++++++++
1https://journals.openedition.org/bcrfj/257?lang=en
Cross-Denominational Bible Study 