of being smaller in physical stature or younger in age than the other apostle James, the son of Zebedee.

4. Son of Joseph and Mary, and half brother of Jesus. (Mark 6:3; Gal. 1:19) Although not an apostle, it was evidently this James who was an overseer of the Christian congregation at Jerusalem (Acts 12:17) and who wrote the Bible book bearing his name. (Jas. 1:1) He may have been next to Jesus in age, being the first named of Mary’s four natural-born sons: James, Joseph, Simon and Judas. (Matt. 13:55; see BROTHER.) Paul infers in his letter to the Corinthians, written about the year 55 C.E., that James was married.—1 Cor. 9:5.

It appears that during Jesus’ ministry James was well acquainted with his brother’s activity (Luke 8:19; John 2:12), but, though apparently not opposed, he was not one of the disciples and followers of Christ. (Matt. 12:46-50; John 7:5) He was probably with his nonbelieving brothers when they urged Jesus to go boldly up to the festival of tabernacles, at a time when the rulers of the Jews were seeking to kill him. (John 7:1-10) James also may have been numbered among the relatives that said of Jesus: “He has gone out of his mind.”—Mark 3:21.

However, after the death of Jesus and prior to Pentecost 33 C.E., James was assembled for prayer together with his mother, brothers and the apostles in an upper chamber in Jerusalem. (Acts 1:13, 14) It was evidently to this James that the resurrected Jesus appeared personally, as reported at 1 Corinthians 15:7, so convincing this onetime nonbeliever that he was indeed the Messiah. This reminds us of Jesus’ personal appearance to Paul.—Acts 9:3-5.

Thereafter James became a prominent member and, apparently, an “apostle” of the Jerusalem congregation. (See APOSTLE [Congregational apostleships].) Thus, at Paul’s first visit with the Jerusalem brothers (about 36 C.E.), he says he spent fifteen days with Peter but “saw no one else of the apostles, only James the brother of the Lord.” (Gal. 1:18, 19) Peter, after his miraculous release from prison, instructed the brothers at John Mark’s home, “Report these things to James and the brothers,” thereby indicating James’ prominence. (Acts 12:12, 17) About 49 C.E. the issue of circumcision came before “the apostles and the older men” at Jerusalem. Following personal testimony by Peter, Barnabas and Paul, James spoke, offering a decision that was approved and adopted by the assembly. (Acts 15:6-29; compare 16:4.) Referring to that occasion, Paul says that James, Cephas and John “seemed to be pillars” among those at Jerusalem. (Gal. 2:1-9) At the close of a later missionary tour, Paul, in Jerusalem, reported on his ministry to James and “all the older men,” and these then gave him certain counsel to follow.—Acts 21:15-26; see also Galatians 2:11-14.

That it was this ‘brother of Jesus’ who wrote the book of James, and not one of the apostles by the same name (either the son of Zebedee or the son of Alphaeus), seems to be indicated at the beginning of his letter. There the writer identifies himself as “a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,” rather than as an apostle. In a similar fashion his brother Judas also identified himself as “a slave of Jesus Christ, but a brother of James.” (Jas. 1:1; Jude 1) Both brothers humbly avoided identifying themselves as fleshly brothers of the Lord Jesus Christ.

His being called “James the Just” is based on traditions that say he was so designated because of his way of life. There is no record in the Scriptures of James’ death. The secular historian Josephus, however, says that during the interval between the death of Governor Festus, about 62 C.E., and the arrival of his successor Albinus, the high priest, Ananus (Ananias), “assembled the sanhedrim of judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James, and some others, [or, some of his companions]; and when he had formed an accusation against them as breakers of the law, he delivered them to be stoned.”—Antiquities of the Jews, Book XX, chap. IX, par. 1.

JAMES, LETTER OF

An inspired letter of the Christian Greek Scriptures. It is one of the so-called “general” letters because, like First and Second Peter, First John and Jude (but unlike most of the apostle Paul’s letters), it was not addressed to any specific congregation or person. This letter is addressed to “the twelve tribes that are scattered about.”—Jas. 1:1.

WRITER

The writer calls himself simply “James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Jas. 1:1) Jesus had two apostles named James (Matt. 10:2, 3), but it is unlikely that either of these wrote the letter. One apostle, James the son of Zebedee, was martyred about 44 C.E. As the section on “Date and Place of Composition” shows, this would be very early for him to have been the writer. (Acts 12:1, 2) The other apostle James, the son of Alphaeus, is not prominent in the Scriptural record, and very little is known about him. The outspoken nature of the letter of James would seem to weigh against the writer’s being James the son of Alphaeus, for he would likely have identified himself as one of the twelve apostles, in order to back up his strong words with apostolic authority.

Rather, evidence points to James the half brother of Jesus Christ, to whom the resurrected Christ evidently had made a special appearance, and who was prominent among the disciples. (Matt. 13:55; Acts 21:15-25; 1 Cor. 15:7; Gal. 2:9) The writer of the letter of James identifies himself as “a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,” in much the same way as did Jude, who introduced the letter of Jude by calling himself “a slave of Jesus Christ, but a brother of James.” (Jas. 1:1; Jude 1) Furthermore, the salutation of James’ letter includes the term “Greetings!” (1:1) in the same way as did the letter concerning circumcision that was sent to the congregations. In this latter instance it was apparently Jesus’ half-brother James who spoke prominently in the assembly of “the apostles and the older brothers” at Jerusalem.—Acts 15:13, 22, 23.

CANONICITY

The letter of James is contained in the Vatican Manuscript No. 1209, the Sinaitic and the Alexandrine Manuscripts of the fourth and fifth centuries C.E. The Syriac Peshitta Version includes it, and it is found in at least ten ancient catalogues before the Council of Carthage in 397 C.E. Early religious writers quoted from it, Origen, Cyril of Jerusalem, Jerome and others recognizing the letter as authentic Scripture.

DATE AND PLACE OF COMPOSITION

The letter gives no indication that Jerusalem’s fall to the Romans (in 70 C.E.) had yet taken place. According to the Jewish historian Josephus, a high priest named Ananus, a Sadducee, was responsible for bringing James and others before the Sanhedrin and having them stoned to death. This event, Josephus writes, occurred after the death of the Roman procurator Festus, but before his successor Albinus arrived. (Antiquities of the Jews, Book XX, chap. IX, par. 1) If so, and if the sources placing the death of Festus at about 62 C.E. are correct, then James must have written his letter sometime prior to that date.

Jerusalem was the probable place of composition, for that is where James resided.—Gal. 1:18, 19.

TO WHOM WRITTEN

James wrote to “the twelve tribes that are scattered about,” or “that are in the dispersion.” (Jas. 1:1, NW, 1961 ed.; 1950 ed., ftn. a) He here addresses his spiritual “brothers,” those who hold to “the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ,” primarily those