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JamesAid to Bible Understanding
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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.
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James, Letter ofAid to Bible Understanding
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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 living beyond Palestine. (Jas. 1:2; 2:1, 7; 5:7) James bases much of his argument on the Hebrew Scriptures, but this does not prove that his letter was only for Jewish Christians, even as one’s acquaintance with the Hebrew Scriptures in modern times does not prove that one is of Jewish descent. His reference to Abraham as “our father” (Jas. 2:21) is in harmony with Paul’s words at Galatians 3:28, 29, where he shows that one’s being of the true seed of Abraham is not determined by whether one is a Jew or a Greek. Therefore, the “twelve tribes” addressed must be the spiritual “Israel of God.”—Gal. 6:15, 16.
PURPOSE
James’ purpose in writing seems to have been twofold: (1) to exhort his fellow believers to display faith and endurance amid their trials, and (2) to warn them against sins resulting in divine disapproval.
Some had fallen into the snare of looking to those more prominent and rich and showing favoritism. (2:1-9) They failed to discern what they really were in God’s eyes, and were hearers of the word but not doers. (1:22-27) They had begun to use their tongues wrongly, and their cravings for sensual pleasure were causing fights among them. (3:2-12; 4:1-3) Their desire for material things had brought some into the position of being friends of the world and therefore, not chaste virgins, but spiritual “adulteresses,” at enmity with God.—4:4-6.
James corrected them on the matter of being doers as well as hearers by showing from Scriptural examples that a man having real faith would manifest it by works in harmony with his faith. For example, one having true faith would not say to a brother naked and lacking food, “Go in peace, keep warm and well fed,” and not give him the necessities. (2:14-26) Here James was not contradicting Paul by saying that one could earn salvation by works. Rather, he accepts faith as the basis for salvation, but points out that there cannot be genuine faith that does not produce good works. This is in harmony with Paul’s description of the fruitage of the spirit, at Galatians 5:22-24, and his counsel to put on the new personality, at Ephesians 4:22-24 and Colossians 3:5-10, as well as his admonition to do good and share with others, at Hebrews 13:16.
STYLE
James’ letter has a strong prophetic tone and contains many figures and similes, giving it a certain resemblance to Jesus Christ’s discourses, such as the Sermon on the Mount. Like Jesus, James drew on physical things—the sea, vegetation, animals, boats, a farmer, the earth—to give colorful backing to his arguments on faith, control of the tongue, patience, and so forth. (Jas. 1:6, 9-11; 3:3-12; 5:7) This, together with the use of pointed questions and more than fifty imperatives in this relatively short letter, made James’ letter dynamic.
RELATIONSHIP TO EARLIER INSPIRED SCRIPTURE
James quoted or referred to the Hebrew Scriptures with regard to man’s creation (Jas. 3:9; Gen. 1:26); Abraham and Rahab (Jas. 2:21-26; Gen. 15:6; 22:9-12; Josh. chap. 2; Isa. 41:8); Job (Jas. 5:11; Job 1:13-22; 2:7-10; 42:10-17); the Law (Jas. 2:8, 11; Ex. 20:13, 14; Lev. 19:18; Deut. 5:17, 18) and Elijah. (Jas. 5:17, 18; 1 Ki. 17:1; 18:1) There are many pointed examples of direct harmony with statements of Jesus Christ. To name a few: concerning persecution (Jas. 1:2; Matt. 5:10-12); asking for and receiving things from God (Jas. 1:5, 17; Luke 11:9-13); being both hearers and doers (Jas. 1:22; Matt. 7:21-27); separateness from the world (Jas. 4:4; John 17:14); not judging others (Jas. 4:12: Luke 6:37); reliability of one’s word.—Jas. 5:12; Matt. 5:33-37.
James 4:5 has presented a problem because there is uncertainty about the verse(s) James quoted (or perhaps only referred to). This text reads: “Or does it seem to you that the Scripture says to no purpose: ‘It is with a tendency to envy that the spirit which has taken up residence within us keeps longing’?” It has been suggested that these words were drawn by James under divine inspiration from the general thought of such texts as Genesis 6:5; 8:21; Proverbs 21:10 and Galations 5:17.
OUTLINE OF CONTENTS
I. Christian endurance under trials brings happiness (1:1-18)
A. Makes the Christian sound and complete (1:1-4)
B. God unvarying in giving good gifts that enable Christians to obtain the crown of life (1:5-18)
1. Wisdom for endurance a gift to those asking in faith (1:5-11)
2. No trials with evil things from God; these caused by one’s own desires; sin and death the result (1:12-15)
3. Will of God that Christians be brought forth by his word of truth to be “certain first fruits” of his creatures (1:16-18)
II. The true form of worship (1:19–2:13)
A. Put away swiftness to anger and all filthiness and immorality (1:19-21)
B. Be a doer of the word, not a hearer only (1:22-25)
C. Look after orphans and widows and keep self without spot from world (1:26, 27)
D. Do not try to hold the faith of Jesus Christ and law of a free people and yet show favoritism (2:1-14)
1. Evidences that favoritism is being shown (2:1-7)
2. Example: In Jewish law, one who broke part of the law offended its entirety (2:8-12)
3. One not practicing mercy will be judged without mercy (2:13)
III. Faith without works is dead (2:14-26)
A. Helping Christian brothers an essential work (2:14-17)
B. Even demons believe there is one God, and shudder (2:18-20)
C. Abraham and Rahab examples of perfecting faith by works; were declared righteous (2:21-26)
IV. Power of the tongue, need to work toward its control (3:1-18)
A. Examples of tongue’s power: horse’s bridle; ship’s rudder; small fire that sets forest aflame; tongue spots up entire body (3:1-6)
B. Tongue untamable by human means; full of poison (3:7, 8)
C. Inconsistently curses men, God’s handiwork, yet blesses God (3:9-12)
D. Only the wisdom from above will overcome jealousy, bragging, lying, contentiousness, disorder and every vile thing (3:13-16)
E. Description of wisdom from above, which brings righteous fruitage under peaceful conditions for peacemakers (3:17, 18)
V. Avoid friendship with world, which is enmity with God (4:1-12)
A. Spirit of envy, cravings for sensual pleasure the cause of fights, wars, murders (4:1-3)
B. Spiritual adultery described (4:4-6)
C. Subject selves to God; oppose Devil (4:7)
D. Serve with cleansed hands and hearts, humility (4:8-10)
E. Quit judging brothers, which is actually judging law (4:11, 12)
VI. Patient endurance with a firm heart brings happiness (4:13–5:12)
A. Avoid self-assuming bragging; rather, say: “If Jehovah wills,” for you are not sure what your life will be tomorrow (4:13-16)
B. Do not sin by failing to do what you know is right (4:17)
C. Trials come for rich ones living sensually and luxuriously, practicing oppression; these men are storing up fire for “last days” (5:1-6)
D. Wait upon Lord to judge (5:7-12)
1. Avoid complaining against one another (5:7-9)
2. Follow example and enjoy outcome of endurance of prophets (5:10, 11)
3. Let your Yes mean Yes, your No, No, thus avoiding judgment (5:12)
VII. Procedure in cases of spiritual sickness (5:13-20)
A. Call mature brothers; confess sins so that proper prayer and counsel may be given for spiritual healing (5:13-15)
B. Such an appeal to God can accomplish much; it can turn a sinner from error and save him from death (5:16-20)
See the book “All Scripture Is Inspired of God and Beneficial,” pp. 246-248.
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JaminAid to Bible Understanding
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JAMIN
(Jaʹmin) [right hand].
1. The second-listed son of Simeon. (Gen. 46:10; Ex. 6:15; 1 Chron. 4:24) He founded the family of the Jaminites.—Num. 26:12.
2. A descendant of Judah through Hezron’s grandson Ram.—1 Chron. 2:9, 25, 27.
3. A postexilic Levite who helped explain the Law to the people assembled in Jerusalem.—Neh. 8:7.
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JaminitesAid to Bible Understanding
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JAMINITES
(Jaʹmin·ites).
Descendants of Jamin of Simeon’s tribe.—Num. 26:12.
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JamlechAid to Bible Understanding
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JAMLECH
(Jamʹlech) [Jah is king].
One of the chieftains of the tribe of Simeon who, in the days of King Hezekiah, extended their territory into the valley of Gedor.—1 Chron. 4:24, 34, 38-41.
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JanaiAid to Bible Understanding
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JANAI
(Jaʹnai) [Jah answers].
A Gadite residing in the territory of Bashan.—1 Chron. 5:11, 12.
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JanimAid to Bible Understanding
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JANIM
(Jaʹnim).
A city in the mountainous region of Judah. (Josh. 15:20, 48, 53) Janim is tentatively identified with Beni Naʽim, about three miles (c. 5 kilometers) E of Hebron.
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JannaiAid to Bible Understanding
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JANNAI
(Janʹna·i).
An ancestor of Jesus’ mother Mary; the fifth generation prior to her.—Luke 3:24.
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JannesAid to Bible Understanding
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JANNES
(Janʹnes) [possibly, he who misleads or seduces].
A resister of Moses with whom Paul compares apostates who resist the truth. (2 Tim. 3:8, 9) Jannes and Jambres, whose ‘madness became plain to all,’ are not identified in the Hebrew Scriptures, but it is generally agreed that they were two of the leading men in Pharaoh’s court, perhaps the magic-practicing priests who resisted Moses and Aaron on their numerous appearances there. (Ex. 7:11, 12, 22; 8:17-19; 9:11) The amount of tradition that agrees with this greatly outweighs what little there is to the contrary. Non-Christian sources, such as Numenius, Pliny the Elder, Lucius Apuleius, a Qumran writing, the Targum of Jonathan, and several apocryphal writings all mention one or both of these men.
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JanoahAid to Bible Understanding
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JANOAH
(Ja·noʹah) [rest, quiet].
1. A boundary location of Ephraim usually identified with Khirbet Yanun, some ten miles (c. 16 kilometers) SE of Samaria.—Josh. 16:5-7.
2. A city in the ten-tribe kingdom taken by Tiglath-pileser during Pekah’s reign (c. 778-758 B.C.E.). Its inhabitants were deported to Assyria. (2 Ki. 15:29) The exact location of Janoah is uncertain. Some identify it with Yanuh, several miles E of Tyre. But geographers who consider this location to be too far W of the other cities listed at 2 Kings 15:29 favor Tell en-Naʽmeh, about six miles (c. 10 kilometers) N of the Huleh Basin.
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JaphethAid to Bible Understanding
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JAPHETH
(Jaʹpheth) [let him make wide].
A son of Noah and brother of Shem and Ham. Although usually listed last, Japheth appears to have been the eldest of the three sons, as the Hebrew text of Genesis 10:21 refers to “Japheth the oldest.” (AV; Da; Yg; Le; NW; AS, ftn.) Some translators, however, understand the Hebrew text here to refer instead to Shem as “the elder brother of Japheth.” (RS; AT; others) Considering Japheth to be Noah’s eldest son would place the time of his birth at approximately 2470 B.C.E.—Gen. 5:32.
Japheth and his wife were among the eight occupants of the ark, thereby surviving the Flood. (Gen. 7:13; 1 Pet. 3:20) Remaining childless until after the Flood, they thereafter produced seven sons: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech and Tiras. (Gen. 10:1, 2; 1 Chron. 1:5) These sons and also some grandsons are the ones from whom “the population of the isles of the nations [coastland peoples, RS] was spread about in their lands, each according to its tongue, according to their families, by their nations.” (Gen. 10:3-5; 1 Chron. 1:6, 7) Historically, Japheth was the progenitor of the Aryan or Indo-European (Indo-Germanic) branch of the human family. The names of his sons and grandsons are found in ancient historical texts as relating to peoples and tribes residing mainly to the N and W of the Fertile Crescent. They appear to have spread from the Caucasus eastward into Central Asia and westward through Asia Minor to the islands and coastlands of Europe and perhaps all the way to Spain. Arabic traditions claim that one of Japheth’s sons was also the progenitor of the Chinese peoples.—See individual names of Japheth’s sons.
As a result of Japheth’s respectful action taken in company with his brother Shem on the occasion of their father’s drunkenness, Japheth was the object of his father’s blessing. (Gen. 9:20-27) In that blessing Noah requested for Japheth that God “grant ample space [Heb., yaʹphet]” to him. This Hebrew expression is evidently derived from the same root word as the name Japheth (Heb., Yeʹpheth) and appears to indicate that the meaning of Japheth’s name would be fulfilled in a literal sense and that his descendants would spread out over a wide area. His ‘residing in the tents of Shem’ is thought by some to indicate a peaceful relationship to exist between the Japhethites and the Shemites. However, since history does not particularly present such a peaceful association, it may, rather, be connected prophetically with God’s later promise to Shem’s descendants Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, that in their “seed” all the families of the earth (including those descended from Japheth) would be blessed. (Gen. 22:15-18; 26:3, 4; 28:10, 13, 14; compare Acts 10:34-36; Galatians 3:28, 29.) Canaan’s ‘becoming a slave’ to the Japhethites finds fulfillment in the domination of the land of Canaan (Palestine) during the rule of the Medo-Persian Empire (a Japhetic power) and in the later conquests by the Greeks and Romans, including the conquests of the Canaanite strongholds of Tyre and Sidon.
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JaphiaAid to Bible Understanding
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JAPHIA
(Ja·phiʹa) [possibly, splendid or bright].
1. The king of Lachish who joined forces with four other Amorite kings to punish Gibeon for making peace with Israel. (Josh. 10:3-5) Gibeon’s call for help brought Joshua’s forces on a rescue mission from Gilgal. During the ensuing battle the Israelites trapped Japhia and his allied kings in a cave at Makkedah. Later he and the others were executed and their dead bodies hung on stakes until sunset, after which they were thrown into the cave where they had sought refuge.—Josh. 10:6-27.
2. A son of David born at Jerusalem.—2 Sam. 5:14, 15; 1 Chron. 3:7; 14:6.
3. A boundary site of Zebulun. (Josh. 19:10, 12) It is usually identified with modern Yafa, less than two miles (3 kilometers) SW of Nazareth.
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