James
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James

Craig L. Blomberg, Mariam J. Kovalishyn, Clinton E. Arnold

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eBook - ePub

James

Craig L. Blomberg, Mariam J. Kovalishyn, Clinton E. Arnold

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About This Book

Concentrate on the biblical author's message as it unfolds.

Designed to assist the pastor and Bible teacher in conveying the significance of God's Word, the Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament series treats the literary context and structure of every passage of the New Testament book in the original Greek.

With a unique layout designed to help you comprehend the form and flow of each passage, the ZECNT unpacks:

  • The key message.
  • The author's original translation.
  • An exegetical outline.
  • Verse-by-verse commentary.
  • Theology in application.

While primarily designed for those with a basic knowledge of biblical Greek, all who strive to understand and teach the New Testament will benefit from the depth, format, and scholarship of these volumes.

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Information

Publisher
Zondervan Academic
Year
2009
ISBN
9780310590712
Topic
Theology & Religion
Subtopic
Biblical Criticism & Interpretation
Commentary on James
Chapter 1. James 1:1–11
Chapter 2. James 1:12–18
Chapter 3. James 1:19–27
Chapter 4. James 2:1–13
Chapter 5. James 2:14–26
Chapter 6. James 3:1–12
Chapter 7. James 3:13–18
Chapter 8. James 4:1–12
Chapter 9. James 4:13–17
Chapter 10. James 5:1–12
Chapter 11. James 5:13–20


Chapter 1

James 1:1–11

Literary Context

The first verse of James’s epistle contains all of the expected elements in a first-century Greco-Roman letter: the sender, the recipients, and a greeting. The rest of the document, however, does not resemble conventional epistolary format nearly as much. James pens no thanksgiving, no standard letter body (comprising information and exhortation, in that order), and no discernible letter closing. Instead, he immediately launches into the three key themes of his correspondence. First, he introduces them briefly in 1:2–11, and then he repeats them with some variation in 1:12–27. The letter body can be seen as beginning in 2:1, even though exhortation permeates everything he writes. James 1:2–4 introduce the topic of “trials” or “temptations” (πειρασμοί), vv. 5–8 emphasize the need for “wisdom” (σοφία), while vv. 9–11 turn to issues of riches and poverty.
James 1:12–18 begins the second cycle with a slightly expanded treatment of “trials or temptations,” but whereas James focused on the positive potential of these tests as character-building experiences in his first cycle, here he treats them primarily as seductions to sin. James 1:19–26 focuses more on speech than on wisdom, but the two concepts are intertwined throughout 3:1–4:12; James apparently views them as closely linked. James 1:19–26 also stresses the need for obedience to God’s Word. Finally, 1:27 highlights the widow and orphan, paradigms of the dispossessed, in keeping with the theme of riches and poverty, while simultaneously forming the thesis statement of the letter, thus keeping personal piety and social action closely linked.
James 1:12 forms a hinge between 1:2–11 and 1:13–18. The “trial” (πειρασμός) here remains the positive kind—a test to be passed—as in vv. 2–4. But conceptually, this text introduces vv. 13–18, which go on to speak of the proper Christian response to temptation (using forms of the cognate verb “test” or “tempt” [πειράζω]), whereas vv. 5–11 at best indirectly treat trials or tests. Nevertheless, despite the three discrete topics detectable in vv. 2–11, a thread seems to run through all three subsections. It is the trials discussed in vv. 2–4 that form the most immediate need to pray for wisdom (vv. 5–8). These trials, likely involving the economic exploitation by rich non-Christian landlords of largely impoverished Jewish-Christian peasants, likewise lead naturally to James’s comments about rich and poor in vv. 9–11.1
  1. I. Greetings (1:1)
  2. II. Statement of Three Key Themes (1:2–11)
    1. A. Trials in the Christian Life (1:2–4)
    2. B. Wisdom (1:5–8)
    3. C. Riches and Poverty (1:9–11)
  3. III. Restatement of the Three Themes (1:12–27)
    1. A. Trials/Temptations in Relation to God (1:12–18)
    2. B. Wisdom in the Areas of Speech and Obedience (1:19–26)
    3. C. The “Have-Nots” and the Responsibility of the “Haves”: The Thesis of the Letter (1:27)

Main Idea

Christians should respond to trials by rejoicing at the maturity they can foster, by asking God for wisdom, and by viewing them as leveling experiences that often invert the roles of rich and poor.

Translation

Structure

V. 1 forms the standard letter introduction. Following that, the three key themes of James appear briefly, in turn, without any additional introductory formalities. While the trials of vv. 2–4 produce the need to ask for wisdom (vv. 5–8) and can involve economic exploitation (vv. 9–11), the three subsections of this text can be treated somewhat separately. Each subsection contains two main commands.
The initial treatment of trials calls believers to view them as opportunities for rejoicing (v. 2a).2 The two subordinate adverbial clauses define the time and basis for this command. Not just in some situations but “whenever” trials beset a person (v. 2b), one must rejoice, because the circumstances can build character—in this case most notably by fostering perseverance (v. 3a). The second imperative follows from this specific ethical observation: believers must allow perseverance to mold them into what God wants (v. 4a). The purpose for this command is stated positively and then restated negatively. As Christians grow, they come closer and closer to maturity or wholeness, that is, to a state in which they no longer remain significantly spiritually deficient (v. 4bc).
The first command in the subsection on wisdom enjoins believers to ask God for it (v. 5b). Subordinate to this imperative are a condition for asking and a description of the nature of the God who is addressed. In response to proper asking, God promises to bestow the wisdom requested. The condition for asking is if someone has a need (v. 5a). The description portrays God as eager to give and as not “criticizing” (HCSB) the petitioner (v. 5cd). The result of asking for wisdom is receiving it (v. 5e).
The second command repeats but also elaborates the first: asking should be done with faith or, phrased negatively, without doubting (vv. 6ab). Three parallel clauses begin explicitly or implicitly with a “for” (γάρ). The second of these supplies the actual basis for the elaborated command to ask with faith and without doubt; otherwise God will not grant the petitioner anything (v. 7). The third offers an expansion of this rationale: such petitioners do not clearly believe that God is the source of all wisdom; thus they waver between dual allegiance to God and some other “god” or “gods” (v. 8ab; cf. 4:4).3 The first clause provides an illustration of the rationale: such wavering resembles the billowing of the waves in a wind-blown sea (v. 6c). The illustration actually precedes the rationale and its expansion, perhaps to help the listeners better understand and/or accept James’s explanations when he presents them.
The third subsection pairs its two commands right at the outset. Materially poor believers are called to rejoice in their lofty spiritual position, with all of the privileges that God promises Christians (v. 9). In striking contrast, rich believers are called to rejoice in their abased spiritual position, acknowledging total dependence on God for everything good (v. 10a). Once again, an illustration precedes the principle being illustrated. Even rich people’s lives are remarkably fragile and transient, like the short-lived wildflowers of the field (v. 10b). This comparison is expanded by the series of descriptions of how these flowers wither so rapidly (v. 11ab). James concludes with the point of the illustration: rich people likewise die all too quickly and even unexpectedly (v. 11c). This undeniable observation from life-experience thus forms the basis for James’s implied exhortation for the rich not to trust in their possessions, a warning that forms the “flip side” of his explicit command for them to humble themselves before God (v. 10a).

Exegetical Outline

  1. I. Greetings (1:1)
  2. II. Statement of Three Key Themes (1:2–11)
    1. A. Christians Should Respond to Trials by Rejoicing at the Maturity They Can Foster (vv. 2–4).
      1. 1. They should count them as grounds for thorough joy (vv. 2–3).
      2. 2. They should allow perseverance to lead them to maturity (v. 4).
    2. B. Christians Should Respond to Trials by Asking God for Wisdom (vv. 5–8).
      1. 1. They must ask, sometimes persistently, and they will receive (v. 5a-d).
      2. 2. The assured result is that God will give wisdom (v. 5e).
      3. 3. The manner of prayer must be with faith that does not doubt that God can give (vv. 6–8).
        1. a. This is because the doubter is unstable, like turbulent sea waves (v. 6).
        2. b. This is because the doubter will receive nothing from the Lord (v. 7).
        3. c. [This is because] the doubter is torn between two allegiances (v. 8).
    3. C. Christians Should Respond to Trials by Viewing Them As Leveling Experiences That Often Invert the Roles of Rich and Poor (vv. 9–11).
      1. 1. Poor Christians must boast in their exalted position (v. 9).
      2. 2. Rich Christians must boast in their humble position (vv. 10–11).

Explanation of Text

James 1:1 James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes in the dispersion, greetings! (Ἰάκωβος θεοῦ καὶ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ δοῦλος ταῖς δώδεκα φυλαῖς ταῖς ἐν τῇ διασπορᾷ χαίρειν). The Greek name for James might easily have come down to English as Jacob. But in Latin the alternate rendering Jacomus developed alongside Jacobus, so that a number of modern European languages now have two male names from the same linguistic root.4 “Slave” preserves the sense of the Greek word here (δοῦλος) bette...

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