This shouldn’t be so, because a spring doesn’t “gush forth from the same opening both pure and brackish water” and because a fig tree doesn’t produce two types of olives. 9 With it, we bless the Lord and Father, and with it, we curse human beings who are made in the likeness of God. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. The tongue, James says, is both as small and as powerful as a ship’s rudder: though merely an insignificant part of the body, it steers the whole body in one direction or another:ħ For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. You need to be like Abraham, completing and justifying your faith through your works, even if this means offering your son upon the altar. Now, James goes back to the theme of doing the word as well as hearing it, clothing it in a more relatable manner: faith and works go hand in hand.Įven the demons believe in God, he warns, making a person who merely believes and does nothing about it as empty as a body without a spirit. “For the judgment is merciless to one who has not shown mercy mercy triumphs over judgment. So speak and so act as people who will be judged by the law of freedom,” James concludes. Partiality is a sin, warns James, since everyone who differentiates between those with gold rings and fine clothes on the one side, and the poor people in shabby clothes on the other, are actually playing gods and judges.Īnd that is a big no-no – because they will be judged too. He then compares the hearers to people looking at their own faces in the mirror before going off their own ways forgetting how they look like. In one of the earliest occurrences of the “talk the talk, walk the walk” phrase, James writes to the twelve tribes (in a bit more eloquent manner, of course): “Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deluding yourselves.” This part forms the bulk of the letter of James, containing many instructions and cautions related to, once again, various topics. III EXHORTATIONS AND WARNINGS (1:19-5:12) Then, he asks for perfect perseverance, or, if we are allowed to paraphrase him: “Don’t be a doubting Thomas no matter what happens to you”!Īfter pointing out that money means nothing, he goes back to talking about perseverance yet again, blessing the ones who endure the trials and temptations of this world, since all of them – he explains – come from above and are a test. He starts by telling the receivers of his letter: “Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trial, for you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” In this part, the author speaks of many topics, but mostly of faith and wisdom (1:2-8), poverty and riches (1:9-11), and trial and temptations (1:12-18). II THE VALUE OF TRIALS AND TEMPTATION (1:2-18) This part consists of merely one verse, the salutation of the author: “James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes in the dispersion, greetings.” However, some authors have tried structuring it in one way or another. It is a fairly short letter of eclectic nature, which mostly reads as a collection of proverbs and moral exhortations. In fact, this is the only one of the 21 epistles which makes no mention of the death and resurrection of Christ, let alone of his status as the Son of God. Now, these twelve tribes are most probably Jewish Christians, because, as is often stated, if not for two generic references to Christ (“the Lord Jesus Christ” and “our glorious Lord Jesus Christ”), the Epistle of James would fit rather nicely in the Old Testament. The Epistle of James – also known as the Book of James or, simply, James – is (usually) the 15 th of the 21 epistles (letters) found in the New Testament, presumably written by James the Just (the brother of Jesus and the leader of the Jerusalem Church) to “the twelve tribes in the dispersion.” Most probably, he looked nothing like it. If so, that is a Byzantine icon of him on the left. Traditionally, the Epistle is attributed to James, the brother of Jesus, also known as James the Just. However, there are six different people who are named James in the Bible, and this guy may even be a seventh, unknown one. Just like many other books in the Bible, not many things are known about the actual author of the Epistle of James, regardless of the fact that he uncovers his identity at the very beginning of the letter. So, if you can spare half an hour, do read it in its entirety.Įspecially if you’re Christian. “The Epistle of James” is the first of the seven catholic epistles – which doesn’t mean that Catholics like it more than the rest, but simply that it’s one of the most general or universal epistles in the Bible. Who Should Read “The Epistle of James”? And Why? If so, the brief “ Epistle of James” may be your only chance to.Īnd we have its summary. Interested in reading a letter written by the brother of Jesus?
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |