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nri%ofi6Hp "blown," literally, "fanned," from park, "fan." Adds here nothing essential to the idea of av^pn^op^vcp. The two participles together explain the comparison. {tiirlfyo is frequently used in secular writers of the action of wind on the sea. See the passages quoted in Heisen, p. 444, and the full discussion in Hort, ad loc. Cf. the fragment in Dio Chrys. Or. 32, p. 368: 21 elpi KVp w 6 iroi&v e \ € 0 9 teal teplpja teal Sucaiooxrvrjv inl 7779 7 7 7 9 , STL iv TovTom T O OekripuL pov \eyei Kvpws, Ps. 3 2 , 2 Cor. n , 81 which means the Jewish law as understood by Christians. In 2 Cor. 6 , Col. i , Eph. 1 " , and perhaps 2 Tim. 2 * it is the gospel of salvation. 7 .
u
10
y
lff
4
y
M
5
f
y
xal BaXdvqQ x<£v6' S^otov ux" dvi^iou £>cxflUrai,
142
JAMES
Philo,
D
e g i g .
a v O p a n r a v ,
o
v
a w u r r d p t v o v , a v h p a
a X X d
hcaoTov,
89
X e i f u b v a ,
x
i n r b
apappiir%€Tcu
a
x l
a
l t e a r
TOP
XXVBOJPI
ip
/ S u u o r d T r j s
r e O a v f i a x e v
t
iv
n Joaw y d p TIS r Kara r a l Q v r \ x a l
x v f j u u v o w r r y ;
ip
b v x
c
* P
o u c t a s , r a l s <jx)pa<;
a
K
a
^
T&P x
O a X d a a r j s
e
i r d X e t < ;
f i & X X o p
i f r v x a l s
e l x o r w ,
owejp)
e l p t ) v n
< >
lm
&
x
a
a X e x r o p a r a iv
/ 3 t o v
ps&pop
l x a f f
x
a
l
iva fiapvp
irpaypATtov
y & p & v i
yaXr\vr\p
i r d X e f i o p
a i r b
e v & t a v x
a
l
SVPOTOI,
a y e i p
and other passages in Wetstein and Mayor. The point of comparison in James is the ordinary instability of the heaving sea, not the unusual violence of a storm. The sentence is made less forcible through the excessive elaboration of the figure. For the figure itself, cf. passages quoted above, s Is. 57*, Ecclus. 33 , 6 inroxpipdfjLepos i p a i r r t p [sc. p d p u p ] ©9 cV x a r a i y & i TTXQIOP, Eph. 4 with Robinson's note and refer ences, Jude, v . . Note also the elaborate metaphor of 4 Mace. 7 - , where the man of steadfast piety is described as a helms man t e n a x p r o p o s i t i ; and see references in Mayor, and Heisen, PP. 4 S i / . 7. y d p . Introduces a second time, in another and more direct form, the reason for v. Cf. Hermas, S i m . 4 T T & o f t p , §T)GIP^ 6 TOLOVTOS h i p a r a l T * alrf]aaa6ai i r a p a TOV x v p C o v x a l X a f i e l v , f i r ) SOVXJ&LKDP T £ x v p U p ; also Jas. 4 and note. o l i a O c D . dlfxat is found in N . T . only here and Jn. 2 1 , Phil, i , S o x i c o having taken its place (cf. Mt. 3* f i f ) S o ' f i j T e ) . It is often used, as here, "with collateral notion of wrong judg ment or conceit" ( L . a n d S . ) . So in Attic; and cf. Job i i , 1 Mace. 5", 2 Mace. 5* . o avdporn-os i x e l v o s , with a suggestion of disapproval, or contempt, as Mk. 14", Mt. 1 2 . TOO x v p l o v i . e . God, cf. v . . In Paul always, or nearly al ways, of Christ, except in quotations. 8. apffp Sfya^o?, either subject of X q f i y f r e r a t , making the sentence a general statement (WH. t e x t , R.V. m g . ) , or else in apposition with the unexpressed subject (WH. m g . R.V.), which it further describes. The latter construction has analogies, 3** 4 , and yields a much more forcible sense. It underlies the punctuation of Cod. B and the rendering of the Peshitto. 1 4
u
1
8
8
8
88
17
8
1
4 5
6
}
8
18
i, 6-8
i43
H o r t argues for R . V . mg. on the ground that fctlvtx; naturally re fers not to the waverer just mentioned, but to the more remote " m a n that lacketh wisdom."
B u t the phrase is highly effective with refer
ence to the person just described elaborately, and on the other hand it is impossible to see why the warning that follows, which is of universal application, should be addressed with such special emphasis only to "the man that lacketh wisdom." The
rendering of A . V . based on the late Vulgate text (not C o d d .
vir duplex . . • inconstans est,
AF),
is still less acceptable.
avrfp gives more emphasis to the idea (notice the emphatic position) than would be given by oY^ri^os alone. The change from avOpearrro^ (v. ) to c\vr\p is probably merely for the sake of variety. Cf. Hennas, Mand. ix, 6 iras yap hl^vyof; avrjp. Btyvx&s, "double-minded," "double-souled," i. e. "with soul divided between faith and the world" (cf. 4*17
T
0
V
€0V
,
>
T h e word is not found in secular literature nor in L X X or N . T . ex cept here and Jas. 4*, but is correctly formed according to the analogy of
tox^ws (Philo, De mere, merelr.
4 , p. 269),tofXwjaix;(ibid.; Ecclus.
5»), Myv
Aser
2, etc.), &forop.o<;, dtoc&tAaroc, etc.
I t is not at all likely to
be the coinage of this writer. In
early Christian writings fctyuxoc and 8t$ux&>> (see Goodspeed,
Index) are frequent, occurring in H e n n a s about forty times, especially in Mand. ix; Clem. R o m . i i * (of persons like Lot's wife), 23* x6ppG> Yev£a6ti> fju&v ^ fpztfi * & t t ) , 8x00 "kiy*t' TaXa(xpo( tlatv ol fctyuxoi, ol Scord^ovrg? -rfjv ^ux^v, ol Xi-rovres* xauTa fpto6aaqxiv x a l Ixl x & v x a i-ipuv ffti&v, x a l ldo& ftY-qpaxai&iv, Lightfoot, ad loc).
x a l oO&fcv •Jjp.Iv t o 6 t u v avv$l$rpuv
(cf.
s
I n 2 Clem. R o m . 1 1 the same quotation is given
as from 6 x p o f t j T t x b s X6yoc, which Lightfoot conjectures to be " E l d a d and M o d a d . " Rom.
Cf. Didache 4*, B a r n . 19« 20
1
(dtxXoxotpdia), 2 Clem.
19 (5i4>ux(av); see M a y o r for some later instances.
A . H . Clough's poem, entitled
Dipsychus,
has brought the word into
English. T h e idea so neatly put b y %fyu%o<; has similar expression in a series of phrases found in classical Greek, such as &(x« GUJAOV Ixovres ( H o m e r ) , l^vovro "be
&(x<*
*l *p*H
JLai
(Herodotus), e t c , all meaning " b e at variance,"
in doubt."
Somewhat closer are the O . T . passages, Ps. 12* ( n » ) iv xapSfa xal *v xapdfa, "with Jictrn, 2"and
14
a double heart," 1 Chron. 1 2 " , Ecclus. 1 "
(where " g o two w a y s , " and "lose &XOIAOV4" are parallel, a
are closely connected with 06 xior«6CT), Hos. i o .
See also Enoch
144
JAMES 91«, M t . 6", and T a n c h u m a on D e u t . 26" (quoted b y Schottgen), ecce
scriptura monet Israelitas et dicit ipsis quo tempore preces coram domino ejfundant ne habeant duo corda, unum ad deum s. b. alterum vero ad aliam rem. I n Test. X I I Patr. Aser $,Bcnj. 6 ; a similar thought is as sociated with the idea of the good and the evil " r o o t " ; see Bousset,
Religion des Judentums*,
p p . 400 / .
Classical references are given b y
Wetstein, M a y o r , Heisen, p . 4 7 5 . Singleness of soul was prized in the Gentile world (Plato, Epictetus), but the connection of single-mindedness and prayer seems characteristic of Jewish or Christian thought. Cf. also the verb 8IOT<4£W (especially in Clem. R o m . 23», above). a K a T c u r r a T o s , "unstable," "unsteady," "fickle," "incon stant," a disparaging predicate applied to o oWpo'cfyxow. 1
T h e word is found in N . T . only here and 3 , in L X X once ( I s . 5 4 " , as parallel to TOCXIIWJ), Sym. three times; dxaraorocata is found twice in L X X , twice in Sym., and five times in N . T . T h e adjective and noun are used to describe character in Polybius, #
vii, 4 (of a youth).
iv TTCUJCUS rak oSols avrov, i. e. his whole conduct is like his attitude toward faith. For the Hebraism "ways" in the sense of "habitual course of conduct," see Ps. 9 1 14s , Prov. 3* (ITCUTCUS 0S045
17
18
1 7
I 7
e
r
I
>
7
1 1
f
The expression dexcrr&srarrot iv xdraic, T
For
sense, cf. Is. 5 4 " , and for o8o( Ps. 9 1 " , R o m . 3 " (where the quotation is taken as relating not to conduct but to experience).
This is the view of
many commentators, ancient and modern, but the sentence seems to call for a characterisation of the m a n rather than a prophecy of his fortunes.
9-11. Poverty no evil and wealth no advantage. The writer returns to the ireipcurpjot of v. *. That these fall heavily on the poor man is not an evil for him but an elevation, of which he should boast as a privilege. Likewise let the rich man boast when brought low by adversity; for riches are transitory things, and he should be only glad to lose them in a way which conduces to his moral welfare, cf. Lk. 6*°-".
I,
145
7-10
9. KavxderOco, " boast," over a privilege or a possession, corre sponding to %apav ffytfaaerde. The word is used in the O. T . of "any proud and exulting joy," and so here (in secular Greek it did not have this development), cf. Ecclus. i o 3 9 , Jer. 9** *• rdSe Xdyet Kvpios' pfj tcavxdcrOa) 6
s
9
t
9
11
8 0
y
2 8
Cf. 12*. 6 a&AxJxfc, cf. v. *, a8e\tfx>( and note. 6 Taireivtk, "humble," "lowly," of outward condition, not (as 4 ) inner spirit. Cf. Ecclus. n 29 , 1 Mace. 1 4 , Ps. 9 (io ), 82 ( 8 1 ) Taireivbv teal 7revnra Prov. 3 0 (24 ), Eccles. io , Is. I I , Dan. 3 " , Job 5 rbv iroiovvra Taireivoift eh {tyros, Lk. 1 " . See Trench, Synonyms, xiii. iv T $ ttyrei. The lowly should find the elevation he so much craves in the moral gain achieved through trials, cf. 1 Cor. 7 . 8
1
18
s
8
14
14
8 8
s7
}
8
4
11
S 8
Others make 5<J/o« refer to the heavenly reward of the pious.
This
is, of course, included in the advantage of the lowly, but it is not said here that the elevation is only future.
The actual moral dangers of wealth in the early church are well illustrated by Hennas, Vis. iii, 6. The exaltation of the humble was the promise of the prophets (e. g. Is. S 4 ) and the hope of Israel, Prov. 3 , Ps. 1 8 " 1 3 8 ; cf. Lk. 1 4 &TL iras 6 infr&v eavrbv Taireivxaff^aerai teal 6 Taireiv&v iavrbv xr^oadrjO'eTai. These are now realised. But note the moralistic turn given to apocalyptic ideas; in 1 Pet, i the eschatological framework of Jewish and Christian thought is far nearer the surface of the writer's consciousness. U f
s 4
8
11
8
10. The whether or (1) It is man is a
1 0
two interpretations of v . divide on the question not aSeX^rf? is to be supplied with b i r X o v a w ; . more natural to supply it. In that case the rich Christian, and taireivwrei refers to the external
146
JAMES 1
humiliation and loss brought him by the Treipacrpal of v . , which from the Christian point of view are a proper ground of boasting. T<£ vyfrei and rrj Taireivoxrei both refer to the same or similar experiences, but are not quite parallel expressions, since {tyro? is used of a moral and spiritual exaltation, raweCp&cm of external and material humiliation. Apart from this lack of parallelism the chief objections to this view, which is that of most commentators (to the names given by Beyschlag, add von Soden, Spitta, Scott, Zahn, Knowling, Hort), are ( 1 ) that else where in the epistle the rich are spoken of ( 2 - 5 - ) as bad men outside the Christian society, and ( 2 ) that irapeXewrerai has to be taken as denoting "lose his wealth," and v . in a corre sponding sense. s
8
1 6
1 1
( 2 ) According to the other interpretation, dSeXxfxk is not to be supplied with 6 7rXowr«w. Then, since the verb to be sup plied is surely tcavxdcrdco (although Alford proposed Kav%aTai, "(Ecumenius" alcr)(yve'a0
1
This involves serious difficulties: ( 1 ) the unnatural refusal to supply aSeXcfxk, ( 2 ) the excess of fierce irony in the use of the understood /cavxdcr0a> (3) the lack of adaptation of the thought in any way to the idea of Trtipcuipxil, which still seems to govern the context. On the other hand, this interpretation would be in accord with 5 , and would in some respects well suit the following context, w . °- . This latter view is held by many older commentators, and by Huther, Alford, Weiss, Beyschlag, but seems on the whole to involve greater difficulties than those of the view first stated. The rich man here contemplated is, therefore, to be understood as a Christian. •777 T a i r e i v d y a e i . The bringing low of the rich through loss of property, standing, etc., cf. Lk. i , Phil. 3 . This might be 1
1
l
n
48
21
I,
147
IO
by reason of his Christian profession, for the rich man was pe culiarly exposed to loss in time of persecution (cf. the result of anti-semi tic persecution at Alexandria, as described by Philo, Leg. ad Gaium, 1 8 ) ; but it might well come about through other causes, and would always be a ireipaafjuk that would put a severe strain on faith in the goodness of God. t o Torxttvcfoet is taken b y some as strictly parallel to t $ B
" L e t the rich man make his humble
spirit, not his wealth, his boast," cf. Ecclus. 3 " 7", Toxefvoxjov o^fcpa v
•rijv <jN^rt rou • • • 8™ fc&txijaiq dot^oGq xup xal ax&Xi}^, and the saying of Hillel,* " M y humility is m y greatness and m y greatness is m y humility."
This is possible, but does not suit the connection
with xeipaqiof quite so well, and one would expect (1 Pet.
Totxi.vofpoffGvr)
s»). 1
On the transitoriness of riches, cf. Job 24** 27*, Ps. 49 ***, Wisd. s Ecclus. n - , Mt. 6 , Lk. 1 2 - i6 - , Philo, De sacrificantibus, 10 (M, ii, 258): 8
1 8 1
19
18
21
18
, !
" G o d alone, it says ( D e u t . i o ) , shall be thy boast greatest glory.
81
(affxwO
and
A n d pride thyself neither on wealth nor on glory nor
high position nor beauty of person nor strength nor the like things over which the empty-minded are wont to be elated; reckoning that in the first place these things have no share in the nature of good, and that secondly they are subject to speedy change, fading (jjiapaivfyuva), as it were, before they have well blossomed (dvOfjoa.)."
For other ref
erences, cf. Spitta, p . 26, note 3.
STI is avOos y6pTov TrapcXewrerai. Through the same in terest in warning against high estimation of riches which ap pears in 2 - *- 5 - , the writer is led on in this clause and v . to describe the certainty of loss to the rich. The passage sets forth the sure fate of the typical rich man. The passage is dependent on Is. 40 '- 7rcura aap% x^P ^ & irdaa So'fa avdporrrov is dv6<s x ^P * i^qpdvdr^ 6 x^P ^ /cal TO avdes i^eireaev (also quoted 1 Pet. i' ). dvBcs x^P is t h L X X rendering of Hebrew rnipn "flower of the field." In Ps. 103 (102) the same Hebrew is T
8
1
8
1 1
8
(
70
rov
70
4
T0V
K0
e
18
* Lev. rabba, c. x; see Bacher, Die Agada der Tannaitcn*, i, p. 6.
148
JAMES
used here not only of grass proper, but of any green herbage (so of lilies, Mt. c^* , of grain, Mt. 13*), and the flower thought of is any flower growing in the field, just as in the Hebrew. The original comparison in Is. 4 0 * r e l a t e s to life in general, for which the spectacle familiar in the Orient of the grass and flowers suddenly withered by heat and drought is a common figure; thus Ps. 9 0 102 ixrel ^ / > T O 9 , 103 , Job 14* &
M
6 r
11
15
s
TrapeXevaercu. The rich man " will pass away," " disappear," i. e. in any case his riches will pass away and he will cease to be a rich man, (This is merely elaborated in w . and .) There fore he should congratulate himself on the opportunity of moral gain described in w . *- and on the Tairtlvwrv; which substi tutes real values for transitory ones. 1 1
lt
4
xapeXeOocrot i n c l u d e s t h e c o n s e q u e n c e s of d e a t h , b u t a l s o t h e w o r k , 0
of m o t h a n d r u s t ( M t . 6 " » ) .
T h i s is b e t t e r t h a n , w i t h s o m e i n t e r
p r e t e r s , t o t a k e xaptXeOorcat a s m e a n i n g " d i e , " for t h e r i c h is n o m o r e sure t o die than t h e poor.
T h e rich needs t o b e reminded n o t of t h e
c e r t a i n t y of d e a t h b u t o f t h e t r a n s i t o r i n e s s of w e a l t h .
1 1 . avdreikev. cf. Is. 40 L X X . § 57, 9, Buttmann ton's translation), 7
1 4
The aorists are gnomic, as in v . ; but See Burton, Moods and Tenses, § 43, Blass, (Thayer's translation), p. 202; Winer (Moulpp. 346 / . ; J. H. Moulton, Prolegomena, p.
135W i n e r ( T h a y e r ' s t r a n s l a t i o n ) , p p . 277/., t a k e s a different v i e w , h o l d i n g t h e a o r i s t s t o b e n a r r a t i v e , a s i n a p a r a b o l i c s t o r y ; cf. M t . 1 3
u
4 0
avv r
21
1
8
1 0
18
3
I,
149
IO-I2
IZAreaev, "faded," "wilted," from Is. 40*, cf. Is. 28'- *, Job i
15"'
J 4
T h e Greek word is used in the sense not only of " fall off," but also of "fail," "come to naught."
T h e specific meaning " f a d e " is contained
in the H e b r e w S^, and so in translation became attached to fcxfxrety.
17 einrp&reui, "comeliness/' "goodly appearance." Only here in N. T., cf. Ecclus. 2 4 (of olive-tree). The word is common in L X X as in classical writers, with a suggestion of fitness to the object and its relations, and so sometimes gains a notion of stateliness or majesty, which /cdXxk, / e a X X o s , do not have. Cf. Ps. 9 3 tcvpios ij3a
1
f
t
f
Under the influence of the extended meanings of the H e b r e w the word xp6owxov proceeded in translation to the sense " surface."
Cf.
!
Job 4 1 » (of stripping off the crocodile's scales) T(<; dxoxaX64>« xpiawxov !v&6ffe<; «6TOO ; 2 Sam. 1 4 "
xp6au>xov TOU £f)purco<; TO6TOU, "thesitua
tion, attitude, appearance, of this affair"; Y^<;.
G e n . 2* zb xptawxov *rij<;
From this to the meaning "outward form and appearance" is
not a long step. 8
iv TOV; iropeCcus avrov is figurative, like O & H ? , V . , and re fers to the experiences and fortunes of the rich, cf. Prov. 2 4 " TA? Sk iropelas aov iv elprjvrj Trpodgei. To take it of literal journeys is wholly inappropriate to the context. 1
Hort's interesting interpretation is probably oversubtle: " T h e com mon interpretation of 'goings' as a mere trope for 'doings' seems too weak here.
T h e force probably lies in the idea that the rich man per
ishes while he is still
on the move, before he has attained
the state of rest
ful enjoyment which is always expected and never arrives.
Without
some such hint of prematurity the parallel with the grass is lost." 8
napavOjo'eTcu, "wither," "waste away." So Wisd 2 , Job 2 4 , but outside the Bible more often of the decay of other things than plants. The reference is to the loss of riches and earthly prosperity, not to eternal destiny. 12, The Reword of Steadfastness. s4
JAMES This verse recurs to the thought of w . *-«.
T h e sub-paragraph should
end after v. » , not before it, as in W H . ' s text.
fuucdpio? avrjp sc. ioTlv. dv/jp] AW
minn read 5v6poro<;, probably an emendation in order not
to exclude women. This form of praising a virtue is very common in the O . T . , especially in Psalms and Ecclesiasticus, for H e b r e w rally preferred to dfvOpuxtx; in most cases.
thnn
ntf*.
dvfo is natu
T h e article is omitted b y
L X X in most of the instances, probably because the statement is thought of as of general application ("blessed is any man w h o , " etc.). i » 84', Prov. 8", Ecclus. 14*.
n
1
26 , Is. 56*, Job 5 "
Cf. P s .
yuamkgio<;todfv6p<.)xo<;
8v $Xe")f£*v 6 xGpioq, 4 M a c e . 7 " &id *rJ}v dpe-r^v xdvrot x6vov 5xo(jive(v
(LGCxdpt6v
loriv, etc., D a n . 1 2 " (Theod.) u 4 r x d p t o c 6 uxo^vwv.
This precise formula is not found elsewhere in the N . T . (except R o m . f
4 , quoted from L X X ) , although beatitudes are abundant, e. g. M t . S»-" n « , L k . 1 " 23", Jn. 20", R o m . 14'*, 1 Pet. 3".
b\ulq Soot
T
ii, 2 itocxdpiot
DxouivtTt
Cf. H e r m a s ,
Vis.
v?)v OXtyiv.
Both in form and substance this verse in James is characteristically Jewish and Biblical.
O n the interesting difference from the abundant
and familiar Greek and Latin congratulatory expressions, see E . N o r -
Agnostos Thcos, 1913, p p . 1 0 0 / . ; G . L . Dirichlet, De veterum macarismis (Religionsgeschichtliche Versuche und Vorarbeiten, xiv), 1914.
den,
inrop&xi, "endureth"; i.e. "shows constancy under"; cf. Zech. 6 L X X 0 8k (rr^aw? larcu T O * ? xmopJvQvcfiv. The word may also be taken as future, vTojjLevit. ireipaafjufv," trial," as in v. *. Inner enticement to evil would have to be resisted, not endured. SJ/a/w yevdfievos, " having shown himself approved," cf. Rom. 5 . This is another way of saying vTrofieixt,, not a further condition of receiving the crown. 14
4
xfcv or^fovov TT}<; ^orfte.
A crown ('"H32,) was worn for ornament b y
the Jews, as b y other peoples of antiquity, being sometimes a wreath 1
of leaves or flowers (e. g. Judith 1 5 " , cf. W i s d . 2 , etc.) worn at feasts 11
( C a n t . 3 , Is. 28**
Ecclus. 32', etc.), weddings, and occasions of joy, l
sometimes a crown of gold (e. g. Ezek. i6 » 23**, Esther 8", E p . Jer. 9, 1 Mace. i o
w
1 3 " , 2 M a c e . 14*; cf. 2 Sam. i 2
M
= 1 Chron. 20% where
the crown of gold was probably on the head of an idol, see H . P . Smith w
on 2 Sam. i 2 ) .
A t least in the case of golden crowns it served as a
badge of dignity and rank
(cf.
Philo,
De somn.
ii, 9), and could be used
as a gift of honour (just as with the Greeks, cf. Epist. Arist. 320).
I, 12 Such a crown (usually of gold) is sometimes spoken of as worn b y a king ( P s . 2i», Sir. 40*, Zech. 6"-
Jer. 1 3 " , Ezek. 2 1 " <»>), but others
also could wear it, and it was not intended as a symbol of dominion. M a n y gold chaplets in the form of leaves have been found in ancient graves and are to be seen in museums.
-rvi»>o(a[uxvx,
(£actXe{a<;
Lucian,
T h e ordinary badge of royalty
Pise.
35;
insigne regium,
29) was not a crown (orifovos) but a fillet ( j & i & w a ,
Tac.
Ann.
xv,
H e b r e w ">ro),
M
Esther 1 " , 1 E s d . 4 , W i s d . 5", Ecclus. n » 47*, Is. 62', 1 M a c e . i » , etc.).
N o t until the time of the later R o m a n emperors did the oblitera
tion of the actual distinction between crown and diadem take place which has determined the meaning of the words in modern usage. F r o m the Greeks the Jews became familiar with the custom of giving a wreath as a prize to victors in games.
This was an important, but
incidental, result of the general employment of chaplets (artffavot) as ornaments and badges of honour. See
EB
HDB and Hastings, Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics, DC A, " C o r o n a t i o n " and " C r o w n " ; Trench, Synonyms, Lightfoot on Phil. 4 ; J . K6chling, De coronarum apud antiquos and
"Crown";
1
xxiii;
vi d usu (Religionsgesch. Versuche und Vorarbeiten, x i v ) , 1914.
vziyxvos
is often figuratively used in the O . T . in the sense of " hon
ourable ornament" or " m a r k of d i g n i t y " ( P r o v . i* o r ^ v o v xapfcwv, 4
f
4
1 2 fuv^ dv$p«(a QT<9avo<; T
ffjpa<;, 17* arfyavos f i p ^ v w v lixva T£XVG>V, Job 19*, Is. 2&* farat x6pto<; oa$a£>6 6 arifaxx; Tij<; iXxfcoi;, L a m . 5", Ecclus. i »
dyaWi6c[urtoq,
6" 15^ or^crvov
&yaXki&\unoq .
. . xarroxXqpo-
vopriptt (the symbol put for the rejoicing which it symbolises), 25• orlfOYtx;
-fep6vTb>v
xoXuxctpfat.
T h e corresponding verb
of favour and honour ( P s . 8" 36£tj xal t i i i j ) iarc?avt4>ca<; afa6v, 1 0 3 tbv ort<pavoGvrcd as iv
studien,
i\Ui,
3 M a c e . 3 " , on which see Deissmann,
BibeU
1
p . 261, H e b . 2 ' •)> just as it is b y late secular writers] ( P o l y b ,
D i o d . Plut. p a p y r i ; see
Deissmann,
I.e.)
in the sense merely of
"reward." For the figurative use of the crown as a prize, see 4 M a c e . 1 7 " - " ; cf. 9«, W i s d . 4*.
Similarly, of victory over pleasure, love of money, etc.,
H e r a c l i t . E ^ . i v ; Philo, Leg. all. ii, 26, iii, 23. For rabbinical references to crowns, see T a y l o r , Test. X I I Patr.
b\ul<;
Benj.
SJF*,
p . 72, note 23.
4* [Imitate the good man's compassion] Tva xal
crc^avouc 86£ij<; foplairre, belongs to the same group as the similar
N . T . passages discussed below. I n the N . T . oii^oxx; is used of the thorn-chaplet put on the head of Jesus ( M t . 27", M k . 1 5 " , Jn. 19*' •)> of wreaths used as prizes (1 C o r . 9"), of golden crowns as badges of dignity
( R e v . 4««
1 0
6* 9* 14**,
1
also 1 2 ) , of a crown of stars, and in the figurative senses of a prize (2 T i m . 4* b Tifc 8txatoa6yr)<; OTI^OYO? 8V axo^Ixni t&ot 6 x6pio<; iv ixe.vQ TQ
I$2
JAMES fftjip?, cf. i C o r . o " ) and of an honourable ornament, or badge of dignity (Phil. 4*,
1 Thess. 2" zlq
ydpfyu*>vi\%\<; f) x « P * $ orifovos
11
xoeux^cdx;, R e v , 3 ) .
This last sense, of a figurative "honourable ornament," seems to be the meaning in 1 Pet. 5* ical (fxipepadevro*; TOV apxytroir fievos tcofueicOe TOP aftapdpripop T779 Sdfrfi crr&fxipop (where lurks an implied contrast with a wreath of leaves), in Rev. 2 SCIXTCD coi TOP trrtyavop T 7 9 faw)?, and in the passage of James under discussion. There is no reason whatever for thinking of a royal crown, and no need of introducing any reference to the use of wreaths as prizes in the Greek games. That metaphor, which implies competition and so exclusion, is not an adequate one as the basis of the N . T . use (cf. 2 Clem. Rom. 7, where this very difficulty is felt), and crowns were in fact acquired in other ways as well as by contending in the games. The idea is rather of a mark of honour to be given by the Great King to his friends. An excellent case of this figurative use is Ep. Arist. 280 /COLOO*? av TOVTO ArtTeXct?, el7re, fidyiare /3a
f
T h e metaphor of the crown for the blessed reward of the pious was evi dently already familiar before the N . T . authors wrote. not only b y Test. X I I Patr.
1
Benj. 4
form of the several N . T . passages.
This is shown
already quoted, but also b y the
N o t e the use of the definite article,
the variation in the added genitive, and the acquaintance with the idea implied in
&« $?0ap«rov, 1 C o r . o".
I t m a y even be that
OT$9OVO<;, like orefovta, had already gained the simple meaning "re ward." 4
TT)? epexegetical genitive, as 1 Pet. 5 , Ep. Arist. 280. The blessed life of eternity constitutes the crown. Cf. Rev. 2 . hrrjyyeCXaTo sc. o 0e&, cf. 1 Jn, 5 , There is no promise of the O. T . or of our Lord in just this form (cf. Deut. 30 - ), and a reference to Rev. 2 Bcoaco
i e
16
10
10
1
10
7
B f l
7
20
1,12-13 E . Zeller, however, argues in
153
Zeit.J. wissensch. Theol.
1863, pp. 93-96,
that R e v . 2" is the promise referred to. imQYfefXaro] B t f A V
minn ff boh.
T h e addition of a subject is
emendation, thus: -j- x6pto<; C min. 1
-j- 6 x6pto<; K L P minn&*" syr** . 4- b 8t6<; minn v g syr****.
rots ayairaxTiv
avr6v.
Note the resemblance to 2 Tim. 4*. Von Soden suggests dependence on some liturgical form, but this is unnecessary. The idea and phrase are strongly characteristic of Deuteronomy. Cf. Ex. 20*, teal trot&v eXeos els xfiadhas rols ayair&alv fie, Deut. 7* rots ayairaxriv avr6v Ps. 5 145*°, Ecclus. 3 1 , Bel v . R o m . 8". See passages from O. T . and other Jewish liter ature mentioned in Spitta, p. 30. Cf. the similar expression in Jas. 2 T779 fHacCketas fjs brriyyeCkaro rols ayawaxrip avr6v. The believer's life is marked by constancy in faith and by love of God, and he may be designated by either attribute. 11
1 9
1
6
13-18. When under temptation, do not excuse yourself by say ing that temptations proceed from God. They come from man's evil passion. God sends only good gifts to us, for we are his chil dren and the first-fruits of his creation. The passage has no doctrinal purpose other than to warn the readers against resorting to a current excuse for sin. The con nection with the preceding is made by the aid of the ambigu ity of the word treipatfiy^vos, which means both " tried" and "tempted." The temptations intended do not appear to be restricted to those involved in "trials." 13. firjSels . . . XeyeTO). Cf. ^ Ecclus. 5 * - 1 5 . 7r€ipa£6f4evos Evidently means (cf. w . ) temptation to sin, not merely external trial. See on ireipaorpms, v. *, and cf. 1 Tim. 6 els ireipaapjov teal irayCBa. The excuse shows that the writer is not thinking of a state of religious persecution, with the consequent temptation to complete renunciation of faith in Christ or in God, but rather of ordinary temptation. In the case supposed the person tempted either has yielded, or is on the point of yielding; he is called 0 ireipatfipjevos, instead of 6 apaprav, by a kind of euphemism. He excuses himself 8
1 A t
m
9
11
154
JAMES
by declaring that the temptation came from God. Paul in i Cor. i o makes a similar exhortation in curiously different form: "Do not excuse yourselves by thinking that your temp tation is greater than man can bear." Warning against this natural and common impulse of frail humanity is found clearly expressed in Ecclus. I 5 * * , M *frr#9 STL ALA K i t p i o p aTriarvv tcrk.; cf. also the references to Philo given below, 18
1 1
Prov. 19* dfpooflvT)
Mobs
0
Xupwcfvrrat T«<; too$s «6TOU, T&V
Ttarat TQ xap8£a ataou, H e n n a s , Sim.
lk
0tbv af-
vi, 3 alTtuvrat xbv xtipiov, and
similar passages, relate to complaints of misfortune, not to excuses for sin.
That the idea was often expressed among Greeks of many periods is seen from the following instances: Homer,
Odyss.
i, 32-34 (Zeus speaks),
& x6xoi, olov J^j vu 8to0<; (ipoxol a . T t t a v r a t . i%
tyMtiv
fdp 9
o^fjaiv araa6aX(7jatv fcxip^opov 5XY«* Ixoustv. / / . xix, 86-87,
8'o6x aTtt6<; e.tit,
dXXa Ze5{ xal (xotpa xal fjepOfpotTtc; ipivGc;. Euripides, Tro t i « , 914-1032, O r « / . 285, P / w w . 1 6 1 2 - 1 4 . iEschines,
Timorch. i,
100,
ydp otea6i, a> 'A(hjvatoi, «rd<; TWV d&xi)-
UtOTtov apx«<; dxb 6uZ>v, dXX* 06% &x* dvdp&icciw aatX-refac 7 ( f vto6ac. Plato,
Respub.
10, p. 617 E , afc(a IXojjivou • 0eb<; avafrios, exactly ex
presses the idea, but seems irrelevant, because in the context the choice referred to is made b y a pre-existent soul of a future condition of life; cf. also p . 619 C . Philo,
Leg. allcg. ii,
19, M a n g . p . 80, " W h e n the mind has sinned and
removed itself far from virtue, it lays the blame on divine causes (ta Osta), attributing to G o d its own change ( T p o x f ) ) " ;
Dc fuga et inv. {De prof.)
t
15, M a n g . pp. 557 / . : " O f no secret, treacherous, and deliberate crime is it proper to say that it was done b y the will of G o d (xcrca 6E6V), but they are done b y our own will (xa6* V a c a6to6<;).
For in ourselves,
as I have said, are the treasuries of evil, but with G o d the treasuries of good things only.
W h o e v e r , therefore, * flees for refuge/ that is,
whoever blames not himself but G o d for his sins, let him be punished. . . .
A blemish almost or quite incurable is the affirmation that the
deity is the cause of evil. . . .
A n d what slander could be worse than
to say that not with us but with G o d lies the origin of e v i l ? " also Philo,
Quod deter, pot. ins id.
32.
Cf.
iS5
I,13-14
Eun. v, 2. 36, quid si hoc quispiam voluit deust Aul. iv, 10. 7,
Terence. Plaut. See L .
The fact that this idea was so familiar helps to account for the attachment of w , to a passage ( w . *•") which deals with another sort of TreipacrfLck. The substance of the passage is not original; the freshness consists in the way in which the thought is worked oijt T h e suggestion of Pfleiderer
(Das Urchristentum*,
ii, p . 546) that this
is polemic against the gnostics has as little foundation as the older ref erences to Essenes, Pharisees, or Simon M a g u s . above prove this.
T h e quotations given
I t would b e easier (and not unnatural) to think of
a Greek popular habit of thought and speech which had affected a Jewish community.
T h e idea of being " tempted," which is the root
of the whole passage, also shows that the self-excusing sinner whom James has in mind is no gnostic.
dird. The preposition cm6 which expresses a " looser and more remote" relation of agency is perhaps used here out of rever ence. Cf. Lex. s. v. p. 5 9 , Lightfoot on Gal. i ; J. H. Moulton, Prolegomena, pp. 102, 237. y
b
4x6]
l
K minn read 6x6, b y an unnecessary emendation to a more
usual phrase.
tvKtipcurroK (class, airetprjro*;, dmlparof;) can mean, when used of a person, (1) "untempted," "untemptable," or (2) "un versed," "having no experience." In favour of the meaning "untemptable" (E.V.) is the sharp verbal contrast then afforded to nrupdfyi oiSeva. KOK&P. On this good literary use of the genitive, see Winer, § 3 0 . 4 ; Blass, § 3 6 . n ; J. H. Moulton, Prolegomena, p. 74 ("the poetical phraseology of the Attic period had come down into the market-place"). 1 4 - 1 5 . The source of temptation is within the man; the process is from passion, through sin, to death. It is highly significant that James's mind naturally turns for the true explanation of temptation not to the Jewish thought of Satan (cf. the explanation of the origin of sin in the Book of
JAMES
156
Enoch 69* *•), or of the "evil root," but to a psychological analysis, strongly influenced by Greek conceptions of human nature. 14. inri TT}? IZlas imBvpuv;. Belongs primarily with ireipdferai, for otherwise the contrast of 0€
8
10
17
1
4
f
Ecclus. 1 8 * - 5*, 4 M a c e . 1 " xpb uiv o5v «rij<; f)8ovfj<; iariv extduiifat* tire* St «ii)v
ifiov^y x«P<*,
4 Mace
» 2»- <• • 3«« »• » 5".
passages the word is used with various shades of meaning.
Quod omn. prob. liber, fj 69' fj3ovifc SiXe^exat.
De concup.
yJkv
*fdp ft t^X^l *P*><; extOunloes <Xa6vtrat
O n the significance of exiOonfoc in Philo's sys
tem, see J. Drummond, especially
22 el
I n these Cf. Philo,
Philo Judceus,
1888, ii, pp. 302-306, and note
1 / . , M . pp. 348-350;
De saccrd. honor.
3, M . p.
235, where exiOutifat is vividly set forth as the source of sin.
The
background of James's use is current popularised conceptions of H e l lenistic philosophy.
T h e Stoic discussion of the word in Stobaeus, ii, 7
(Wachsmuth's ed. pp. 87-91) is instructive in this respect.
See also
1 f
on Jas. 4 - . There seems no sufficient reason for introducing the thought of the
jezer ho-ra
here, although the function is closely similar.
Porter, " T h e Yecer H a r a , " in Y a l e
See F . C .
Biblical and Semitic Studies,
1002,
pp. 9 1 - 1 5 8 .
ifjeXjedftevos Kal BeXea^fieiHs ticed" (by it).
}
"when he is lured and en
These words were applied to the hunter or, especially, the fisherman, who "lures" his prey from its retreat
(i^Xxetv) and "entices" it
(&«Xed£e.v) b y bait (MXiotp) to his trap, hook, or net.
T h e two words
157
I,14-15 thus merely refer to different aspects of the same process.
T h e y are a
natural figure of speech for the solicitation of illicit desire, and the com bination of one or both with ixiOu^fe. or f)8ovf) is repeatedly found in Philo and in Greek writers.
Cf. the sentence from Philo quoted above
and the many illustrative passages given b y M a y o r and H o r t ;
also
2 Pet. 2". T h e language thus has its analogies outside of the O . T . , in Greek writers.
This figure is not necessarily connected with that which is u
worked out in v . ; and there is no evidence that the words i£fXx6(ifvo<; xal Zn\*aX>6[uvo<;
suggested in themselves the practises of the harlot, or
that these are in mind in either verse.
16. Illicit desire leads to sin, and sin causes death. elra introduces, with a change of figure, the practical result of the temptation arising from hriOvpla. When indulged (cf. 4 Mace. 3 - ) desire bears its natural fruit, first sin, then, ulti mately, death. This follows (elra) the enticement of tempta tion. 1
4
For the metaphor (which is purely decorative), cf. P s . 7 " < (ASlvrpsv ovo(i.(ay, cuve'XafJtv x6vov, xal Ircxcv d5tx(av; Philo,
Abel, ei Cain. avWajSovca
3 1 , Justin M a r t y r ,
Dial.
!,)
De sacr.
100, p . 327 C .
rOcrei.
Cf. G e n . 2i« 38', etc. cance in the
figure.
T h e t w o ideas have no independent signifi
T h a t the issue is due to a union with the will
(Beyschlag) is not indicated as in the writer's thought.
Such psy
chological analysis is found in Philo, but is beyond the range of James ; and the idea, when developed carefully, proves inconsistent with this context, see Spitta, p . 37.
There is no reason for thinking of A d a m
and E v e , in spite of Justin M a r t y r , Schneckenburger and S p i t t a ) ;
Dial.
p. 327 (other references in
nor of the devil as father (Spitta).
B u t the quotations from Philo and Test. X H Patr. (e. b y Spitta,
ad loc.
t
g. Benj.
7) given
attest the frequent use of this figure to express similar
ideas.
apapriav. "Sin," collectively and in general; "pravae actiones et cogitationes" Desire for what is forbidden tempts the man, and thus is the source of sin. Cf. Apoc. Mos. 19 hriOvfiia ydp ianv /ce
158
JAMES
oped," " has come to maturity." The word (on which see Hort) is drawn from the figure of the successive generations, and it is not necessary to determine wherein in fact the complete ma turity of sin consists; sin is "complete" when it is able to bring forth its inevitable baneful fruit, death. The "perfect work" (cf. v . ) of sin is death. airoKV€l cf. v . . The verb is frequently used of animals, hence appropriate here; otherwise it is a medical rather than a literary word. 4
u
y
Neither dbcortXctv nor dxoxuclv is a common Biblical word,
dhco-
•nXftv is found elsewhere only i E s d . 5", 2 M a c e 1 5 " , L k . 13**; dxoxuelv w
only 4 M a c e 1 5 " , Jas.
i .
6dvarop. Death as an objective state, brought upon man as the result of sin, and the opposite of blessed life with God (cf. v. " crfyapop £O>T;?, and 5*°) and cf. Rom. 6* 6 " ra ydp oyfnopia TT)? apaprlw; BdvaTos, 8 ; Wisd. i - . Cf. Philo, De plant. Noe 9, M. p. 335. See also Mt. 7 » . 16 -18. God, on the other hand, sends solely and consistently good gifts, as befits the relation of a father to his first-born. 18. pi) TrXapacde. "Do not err," "be not deceived." As in 1 Cor. 6 1 5 " , Gal. 6 , used to introduce a pointed utterance. Cf. Ign. Phil. 3, Eph. 16, which may, however, be dependent on 1 Cor. 6 . On a&X<^o/, which here is used to add to the emphasis, see note on v. *, and cf. 2 3". 17. vracra, "every." 1
8
llfl
ll
9
u
7
9
6
Various commentators
assign to x&act
here the meaning
"nothing b u t " (see note on xSuotv x«P*v» v. >).
"only,"
B u t this is not neces
sary to the sense here, and is rendered almost, if not quite, impossible b y the order of words xawoc 86
lautcr)
with the sense of " o n l y "
should stand next to the adjective to which it logically
belongs, and usually stands directly before it.
"gift," either the act of giving or the thing given. Here the parallelism to i&pvpa makes the latter sense probable. Cf. Ecclus. n 2 6 32 . The word is very common in Ecclesiasticus. 1 7
14
11
I,
159
15-17
ayaQr\. On this word lies strong emphasis, in contrast to the evil ireipaapuk which 1} ISla hnfivpUx and not God brings to man. The omission of the writer to make the implied comple mentary statement, that bad gifts do not come from God, adds to the rhetorical effect. Sd>pt)fjLa "present," "donation," "benefaction"; cf. Rom. 5 . A mainly poetical word. Not quite happily rendered by R.V. "boon." f
16
For the difference between feftotu and topiopat with their cognates, see M a y o r ' s and Hort's notes, together with the huge collection of material in Heisen, p p . 541-592. the idea of
generous
T h e latter series of words often has
giving; but here in James there is no special dis
tinction intended, the repetition being solely for rhetorical effect, and very probably part of a poetical allusion or quotation. 4
rdXeiov, cf. i * " 3*. "Perfect" in this case (note parallel to aya6r\) excludes any element of evil in the gift. Cf. 3* T/\£*09 avr\p Clem. Al. Pad. i, 6, p. 1 1 3 reXew &v TiXeia Xaputlrai SrjirovBev, Philo, De sacr. Abel, et Cain. 14 Oifus Si oiSiv areAi? avrtp yapl^eaOai^ tSoff okd/cXrjpot Kal irapreXek al TOV ayevrfrov cxoptal iracrai. That iraxra So | ak ay a | 6rj Kal | ir&v Sco | prjfia re | Xetov makes an hexameter, the second syllable of &ferfc being length ened under the ictus, may be an accident, although even so it might show a good ear for rhythm on the part of the writer. But the unusual and poetical word Swprjfia and the imperfect antithesis to w . * - make it more likely that we have here a quotation from an unknown source. y
l
ls
17
11
avaOev, i. e. ovpav66€v, cf. 3 " - , Jn. 3 " 1 9 , referring to that which is from God. So Philo, De somn. i, 26 Sia TA? op/Sprjdeuras avoaOev S&fxas hyaObs Kal riXeuy; if* apxf}? iyevero [sc. o laacuc]. 9
T h e thought that G o d is the source only of good, here clearly ex 1
pressed, is found in Greek writers (see quotations in M a y o r , p p . 5 6 / . , and Schneckenburger, p. 30), as well as in Philo,
e. g. De decern orac.
33
8tb$ ^v, t&8&<; Zk x6pto<; &yaQ6<; pdvuv dfoduv
De prof.
15,
De confus. ling.
Schneckenburger).
36 (see other quotations in M a y o r and
i6o
JAMES I t was evidently a familiar commonplace of Jewish thought, cf. T o b . 4 " afcbc 6 x6pto<; S&dxu xdvra xd d*ra6d, also Beresh. r. 5 1 . 5
R. Chanina: non est res mala descendens desuper; Sanhedrin
dixit
59. 2.
Karaftalvov expands av&dev, and so explains why the gifts are "good" and "perfect." For similar phrases lagging after the first statement, cf. v . 3 4 " . This gives better force to each word than to connect itrvlv with KarafSalvov. 1 4
s
Hort (following Thos. Erskine,
The Unconditional Freedom of the Gos
1
pel , 1820, p p . 239 ff.) advocates the translation: " Every giving is good and every gift perfect from above (or from its first source), descending," etc.
This assumes that &6a«; and
idea of a
divine
Z&pwa
contain in themselves the
gift, and in order to make dvuOcv fit the sentence re
quires for it the meaning "from their source," " b y reason of their origin," which it can hardly have.
It produces, however, the sense re
quired b y the context, and if the words were to be regarded as forming a complete sentence, it would be hard to give them any other trans lation than this.
If they are a quotation, the original application would
probably have been in the direction of the Greek proverb 5&pov V 8 xt
tip %i
s
This designation and the developed figure which follows, in which God as the Sun of Righteousness (cf. Mai. 4 ) is con trasted with the physical sun, seem to be suggested by the thought of the good gifts which descend from the heavens, at once the abode of God and the location of the sun. That it was natural to a Jew is shown by the benediction before Shema: "Blessed be the Lord our God who hath formed the lights." Perhaps it hints at the thought of God's nature as light. No astrological allusion is to be found here. For iraTrip in this sense, cf. Job 3 8 " (verov irarqp and the whole verse), and note Philo's constant use of 6 iraTrjp T&V s
161
h 17
SXtop in sense of "the Creator." Cf. Apocalypse of Moses, 3 6 (as read in Ceriani, Monument a sacra et prof ana, v, 1) ipdmiov rov ((KOTOS TCOV &Xa>p rod iraTpbs T&P (fxorwv ; Testament of Abraham (ed. M . R. James, 1892), Recension B , c. 7, iraT^p T o v ^ f t m f e ; Ephraem Syr. Opera, v, col. 489 (see above, p. 96). f
Philo's lofty thought of G o d as "archetypal Splendor" is mainly in teresting here as showing the total absence from the mind of James of such metaphysical speculation, although he sees the ideal and poetical aspects of light.
See Philo,
De cherub.
28 ( M . i, p . 156),
De somn.
i, 13
( M . i, p . 632), quoted b y H o r t .
trap For irapd c. dot. used in the mention of an attribute, cf. Job 1 2 " , Eph. 6 , Rom. 9 , etc. Cf. also irapa T$ Octp, Mk. io» , Mt. 19* , Lk. 18* , Rom. 2", Eph. 6 ; so Gen. 1 8 " (Cod. A). Perhaps the indirectness of statement is due to a certain "instinct of reverence" (Hort), cf. airo, v . " . 9
7
8
14
7
9
The affirmation is that to send good gifts belongs to God's unvarying nature. In this he is unlike the sun, which sends now the full light of noon, now the dimness of twilight, and which at night sends no light at all. God's light ever shines; from him proceeds no turning shadow. So 1 Jn. i 6 Bebs
l f
Closely similar are Is. 6 o ' * xal o$x larai aot £ct 6 J.Xto<; e.<; 96s fgjipac* o6&i avaroXfJ c*Xfjvr}<;
06 ydp &6arrat b fjXt6? aot, xal t atXfjvrj aot f
o6x ixXttyet" larat ^dp x6pt6<; 001 9&S aCciviov, W i s d . 7 " - 9urt auvxpt-
vo\Uvr]
e&p.axrcat xporepa"
TOUTO
>
(iiv ^dp &tao e*xeTat v65,
aoy{a<; lk oOx
dvrtax^et xax.a. For the contrast between G o d and the heavens, the moon, and the stars, cf. Job 1 5 " 2 5 * S e e also Enoch 41 •, " F o r the sun changes oft for a blessing or a curse"; Ecclus. 1 7 " tt •COOTO
txXe.xtt.
Cf.
Epictetus,
Diss, i,
furetvorepov f)Xfou; xal
10
1 4 , where the limitation of
the sun, which is not able to illuminate the space where the shadow of the earth falls, is contrasted with the power of G o d (6 xal TOV JJXtov aS-rov TExoiYjxilx; xal xepcdywy). T h e comparison of G o d with the sun is a natural one under any monotheistic conception.
See Mayor's or Schneckenburger's references
to Philo and Plato, also 1 Jn. i » with Westcott's note. For the idea of the immutability of G o d , 1
cf.
M a i . 3« &I6TI i-yd)
*&oioq
b 8tb<; 5yuov xal o6x VJXXOCUXMK, H e b . 7 *-", Philo, Leg. all. ii, 9 ; ii, 2 2
162
JAMES x d v r a T4 &XXa T p l x r c o t , u,6vo<; 51 a&ro<; in Mayor*, p. 61.
C / . Clem. A l .
Strom,
oTpixr6<;
fart, and passages
i, 24, p . 418 TO iarbs x a l (i6vt(uv
TOU 6eou xal TO 5rptxrov OCUTOU yCx; x a l daxtK&aTtorov. oux ivt] fc
familiar
OUX l o T t V . ,,
irapaXXayq," variation. This does not seem to be an astro nomical terminus technicus, although in general senses (e. g. of the " variation" in the length of the day and in the daily course of the sun through the heavens; cf. references in Mayor*, p. 60, and Gebser, Brief des Jacobus, p. 83) it is used by astronomers, and its resemblance to the term wapaKhal;t?, "parallax," gives it a quasi-astronomical sound. The contrast intended is mainly with the sun and moon, as being the most important and most changeable
{yet modicum obumbrationis) boh (nor a form of a shadow which passed). A Tpoxifa axoffxtowpta] K ° A C K L P minn vg (vicissitudinis obumbratio) Jer (adv. Jov. i, 39 conversionis obumbraculum) Aug (momenti obumbratio). f) TpoTfj dbcorctaoyLOToc] 6x4 1108 ff
i) Tpoxrj i) Tpoxrfc &TO
and recently (1914) confirmed b y the discovery of the papyrus
fragment
(fourth century) published in
The Oxyrhynchus Papyri,
x,
no. 1229.
T h e y have, therefore, been driven to adopt the reading of
fct°ACKLP
minn.
H o r t discusses the passage in " Introduction," p p .
2 1 7 / . , as follows: " T h e only quite trustworthy evidence from internal character
for
163
1,17
derivation from a common proximate original consists in the presence of such erroneous identical readings as are evidently due to mere care lessness or caprice of individual scribes, and could not easily have escaped correction in passing through two or three transcriptions . . . K and B have in common but one such reading" [viz. the one in Jas. i
, T
here
under discussion]. In order to account for the origin of this reading of K B , which he as sumed to be obviously false, H o r t made the following ingenious sugges tions:
(1) that dbrooxfaaywi was incorporated with a following «0T6<;
(actually found in one minuscule); or (2) that it was assimilated to the preceding genitive T p o x i j c ; ; or (3) that dxo- became mentally separated from -oxtaoyux, and that the supposed solecism was then corrected; or (4) that both the competing readings represent corruptions of an original dhcoaxtaapi6<; not found in any M s . (see " Introduction," p . 2x8, and
M a y o r , textual apparatus to the passage).
Wordsworth,
SB, i,
in epistolam Jacobi,
momenti
Commentarius modicum of ff and the
p . 138, in part following Est, 1631, thinks
that
the
of Augustine imply froxf}, fcoxfjc, " turn of the scale," and that
one or the other of these represents the original Greek.
B u t neither
Joxfl nor Joxi}<; makes good sense, and although (cf. Is. 40") a " little thing" may
cause
tionis
modicum is modicum obumbra-
a "turn of the scale," the Latin word
not a natural translation for the Greek £oid).
Hence
is probably only a loose and general translation of Tpox-J) i x o -
oxidaijurcoc, in which the specific meaning of Tporf} is neglected. other hand,
momenti
O n the
would indeed be an exact rendering of £oidj<;, but,
in the sense of" movement," it is equally apt as a translation of Tpoxfj<;.* Accordingly, the Latin versions merely show that Jerome and Augus tine had the reading of K ' A C , while ff represents a different
text,
identical with that of 614 1108 boh. The
genitive axoaxtaqjurroc in 614 u o 8 f f boh gives important partial
support to the text of Bfc<* p a p , and makes it unlikely that the read ing of these latter is due to an accidental error in a proximate com mon ancestor. I n fact, the reading of Bfc<* p a p r\ T p o x r j s dhrooxtaauaros makes ex cellent sense, if only t j is taken as the article on which Tpoxijs depends, the meaning being that given above
pitch. Sprache*,
ii, § 464.3).
{cf.
Klihner-Gerth,
Grammatik d.
T h e resulting phrase is apt and not with
out beauty, but the accumulation of long words makes it heavy, and it was broken up b y taking t j as meaning " o r " and dropping the geni tive termination from one or the other of the two nouns, f 'Possibly modicum has been substituted for an original translation, momentum, "move ment." This latter word may well have been misunderstood in the sense of "a little," "a particle"; and in that case modicum would be a correct and unambiguous synonym. t A similar misreading is found in the repeated quotation by Augustine of Rom. 7 " ajiapr**Afe n a ^ a p r i a in the translation out poccatum; so t. %. Ep. 82, f 20 (Vienna ed. vol. xxx'vf, p. 37a. 5), Contra duos gpistuUu Pdagianorum, i, 14. See C. H. Turner in JTS, xii, p. 275-
164
JAMES I t thus appears that the textual facts here d o not indicate any close relation between B and N , but only that in this instance both are free from a process of emendation which, in one or the other direction, has affected all other witnesses except the papyrus.
T h e reading of
e
tf AC
and that of 614 1108 are two independent corrections of the original as found in Bfr<* p a p . Both 614 and 1108 belong to von Soden's group 1°. group seems to belong also 876 reads xapccXXaqp?)
T o the same
which, according to Scrivener,
Tpo-r?) fl T p o x f f c dhcorafacvux.
This is a conflation
due to an unsuccessful attempt at conformation of one type of text to another; it is also found in 1518. 876. 1 5 1 8 , 1 7 6 5 , and 2138 have at the close of the verse a gloss o&& Itlxpt 6xovo(a<; Ttvbc 6xo£oX9) droaxidouirroc," not even the least suspicion of a shadow."
V o n Soden's hypothesis ( p . 1862) that the reading of
B K * was a trace of this gloss was unlikely in itself and is now seen to be unnecessary.
T h e gloss itself has arisen from the comment of " (Ec-
umenius": TO lk " T p o x i f c dxoaxtaayujc," dhrcl TOU, oblk
uixpt<; uxovo(a<;
T t v b ? &xo£oX^.
tpoirf\ "turning," "change," is another semi-astronomical word It is used technically for the solstice (hence English, "tropic"), so Deut. 3 3 r)\Cov rpoir&v, Wisd. 7 TDOTT&V aXkayds, see Sophocles, Greek Lex. s. v. for many examples; but it is also applied to other movements of the heavenly bodies, so perhaps Job 3 8 " hrhrraacu hk rpoirds oipavov, cf. references in L. and S. s. v., especially Plato, Tim. n , p. 3 9 D. y
1 4
1 8
The word is also used in the sense of change in general, and with reference to human fickleness and frailty; see Philo, Leg. all. ii, 9 ; De sacr. Abel, et Cain. 3 7 , and references given at length by Mayor , p. 6 1 . These various meanings make pos sible the figurative use here, in which there is allusion to both senses. To exclude altogether the astronomical allusion, as some do, unduly weakens the passage and overlooks the sug gestions of 6 TraTrjp T&V (fxbraw, 7rapa\\ayf} and inroaiclaapLa, but it is impossible to fix the meaning as a direct reference to any particular celestial phenomena, and there is nowhere any indication of contact with astrological language. The heavenly bodies are all, to popular notion, subject to change which affects their property of casting light on the earth. 8
f
Spitta thinks that T p o x ^ refers to the return of the sun (and other luminaries) b y w a y of the north to their place of rising in the east,
1,17-18 after they have set in the west, and adduces Enoch 41* and
72"'
T h e general sense need not exclude these movements of the sun and other heavenly bodies, but there is no evidence of a technical use of Tpoxf; which would permit it to be understood in this sense without explanatory context.
T h e same is true in even greater measure of
Spitta's interpretation of xapaXXa-ffj as the regular seasonal variation to north and south in the rising and setting of the sun and other bodies.
airoaKuurfjLa, "shadow." T h e word is found only here and in Christian writers,
dhcooxdtfy*
means to "cast a s h a d o w / ' dxooxtoopa therefore (like oxtoopa, D i o d . Plut.) is either the "shadow cast" or the "act of casting a shadow." Beyschiag, following Huther, wrongly insists that dbcoaxfocyux means "the state of being overshadowed"
("das BeschaUctwerden"),
interprets it of a shadow cast on G o d . see Lightfoot,
Colossians,
and so
For discussion of nouns in -pa,
p p . 255 Jf.; J . A . Robinson,
Ephesians,
pp.
255/. There is no thought here of a sun-dial.
T h e word for shadow on a
dial is dhcooxtaop6<;, and even that word requires a context to define it in that meaning. T h e explanation (of the ordinary text) given b y late Greek commen tators and lexicographers, "not a trace of turning," "not a shadow of fickleness"
( " (Ecumenius," Hesychius, Suidas, see the citations in
Gebser, p . 86), and A . V . "neither shadow of turning," is unlikely, even if the text were sound, because in that sense oxide, and not the heavy and
explicit compound ixooxtaapa, would be expected.
T h e differ
ence m a y be imperfectly suggested in English b y comparing the words " s h a d o w " and "shadowing."
Moreover, in a comparison with the
sun, ixooxiaapux can hardly have been used without some thought of its proper meaning.
18. In contrast with the mistaken idea that God sends temp* tation is his actual treatment of us, making us sons, and giving us the highest place among his creatures. He is more to us than a consistent benefactor; he is a devoted father, and as such cannot tempt us to evil. ftovXrjffefc, "deliberately," and thus showing his real atti tude and set purpose. On the specific meaning of ftovXofuu ("volition guided by choice and purpose") in contrast to OeXco, see Hort on this verse, and Lex. $. v. OdXa>, with references. Bede, Calvin, Grotius, etc. take this as marking a contrast to human merit; but this is as fax as possible from the context.
i66
JAMES
airefcvrjcrev t)fuv; tians.
y
refers either to mankind or to the Chris
A specific reference to the Jews is sometimes found here, and can be supported b y Jer. 2«, b y Philo,
De const, princ. 6 (ii, p . 3 6 6 ) , where v. I. X6-rou<;)
Israel is called dxapxt, and b y X6-rov (but
1
description of the L a w in Test. X I I P a i r . Gad 3 .
But nothing in the
context suggests this reference, and for the idea of G o d as becoming the father of Israel b y means of the L a w no parallel is adduced.
The reference to Christians is entirely possible and makes a better connection with v . . In that case hiracvnatv refers to the new birth; aknQsiax is the Gospel (cf. Odes of Sol omon 8 ) ; and KTiapdroov refers to all creation, but with par ticular thought of men. The associations of avcvy&nrqcrvi with Greek religious ideas do not seem to be implied here. l f
9
If fju£<; is taken to refer to Christians, it must be understood of be lievers in general, not of the first generation only ( H u t h e r ) or of Jewish Christians (Beyschlag).
The objections brought against this view are (1) that the context ( w . ) has discussed the subject from general points of view, with no reference to Christians as distinct from others; (2) that for the Gospel 0 rrp aXvOeia*;, with the article, would be expected (cf. Eph. i , Col. 1*, 2 Tim. 2 *; note, in a different sense, Xofyx? aXnOelas, Ps. i i 9 ' , 2 Cor. 6 ) ; (3) that instead of /cruTfidTwv some word expressly denoting "men" would have been expected. These objections do not seem conclusive. U 1 7
18
1
4
7
The other view, urged by Spitta and especially Hort, takes ij/*a$ of mankind, begotten by God's word to be supreme among created things, cf. Ecclus. 1 5 . The objection which seems de cisive against this is that the figure of begetting was not used for creation (Gen. 1 * does not cover this), whereas it came early into use with reference to the Christians, who deemed them selves "sons of God." 14
T h e idea of a divine begetting and of the entrance into Christian life as a new birth has its roots in Greek not in Jewish thought. Alex.
Strom,
So Clem.
v , 2 ( p . 6 5 3 Potter) xal xapd TOI<; {Japfidpots ^XOOO^OK; T6
167 xamjrfjaal t i xal
qwlaai
ovary tvvrjaai
Xiftxan.
See W . Bauer's note
3« in Lietzmann, Handbuch sum Neuen Testament; A . Dieterich, Eine Mitkras4iturgie*, 1910, p p . 134-1 SS» I57JT- On the verb dxcx6T)ocv (no parallel in N . T . ) , see R . Reitzenstein, Die heUenistischen on Jn.
8
M
T
Mysterienreligionen, 1910, p. 114. Cf. Jn. 1" 3»- , 1 Jn. 2 3» 4 « • 5 » . « , 1 Pet. i « - «»(cf. Hort's note on 1 Pet. i » ) , T i t . 3*.
Xdy
5
1
There is no connection between this verse and Philo's figure, often repeated in one and another form, of the generative word of G o d (cf.
Leg. alleg.
iii,
51, 6 cxtpjiartxo<; x a l YEwryctxb<;
TWV xaXuv
\6fo<;
6p66c,
and references in Spitta, p p . 45 / . ) ; the idea is utterly different.
airapxqv rtva, "a kind of first-fruits"; rtva indicates a fig urative expression, cf. Winer-Schm. § 26. 1. a. T h e "first-fruits," both of the body and of the field, were sacred, and were often offered to G o d . Schttrer, GJV,
See EB, " Firstborn," HDB,
" First-fruits,"
§ 24, I I . fVT
JU
The figure is found with reference to Israel in Jer. 2* (&pxh Y ft *
Tti>v
a&rou), Philo, De const, princ. 6 (5.6TC TOO <J6HXOVTO<; dvQp&xuv -jivou^ dxsvqi^dr} old TIC dbcapx^ Tip xottjrji xal xarpO, and to the Chris 4
tians in 2 Thess. 2" ( C o d d . B F G , etc.) and R e v . 14 . does not seem very common in Jewish thought.
B u t the figure
W i t h Greek writers
the word is more frequent in a figurative sense, see L. and S. and the Scholiast on E u r . "was
Or. 96
quoted in
Lex. s. v.,
which says that
dxap^rt
used not merely of that which was first in order but of that which
was first in honor." 4
cf. i Tim. 4 (Rev. 5 8 ) ; not used elsewhere in N. T . , cf. Wisd. 1 3 . In O. T. found only in Wisdom, Ecclesiasticus, 3 Maccabees; not used in this sense in secular writers, and to be associated with the Jewish use of tcrOfr and its de rivatives. K T U T f j u i T c o v ,
1 8
9
5
Von
Soden, misled b y his failure to see any adequate connection of
thought for v . » wished to take x T t a t i d T w v of God's new creation (cf. 2 Cor. 5" x a i v ^ x T f o t c , G a l . 6",
Eph. 2
10
4"). within which these par
ticular Christians addressed are distinguished b y reason of their sub-
168
JAMES jection to fiery trials.
B u t ( i ) this does not suit oxtxfaptv, which
must at least refer to all Christians; (2) it would require some clearer indication of the restriction, since the idea is not a common one; and (3) while suited to w .
it is inappropriate at this point in the
chapter.
19-27. Let your aim be not speech, but attentive hearing; not hearing only, but doing; not empty worship, but good deeds. The thought here turns to the need of reality and sincerity in religious instruction and public worship ( i - 2 * ) . 19-21. To hear is better than to speak; listen to the Word. 19
e
1
19. Tort] B t f A C minn ff v g boh syr "* - « . Tow]
tf*.
Tort U] A b o h — , 1
fieri] K L P minn* * syr*** om] minn. l o w l i ] B S C P * minn ff v g boh. xal Iaru>] A 33. 1
IffTw] K L P * m i n n P * s y n * * The
Antiochian reading (&rrt . . . IOTU) is a characteristic emen
dation.
tore, "know this." The address aSeX^o/ pjov shows that this belongs in the paragraph with the following. The sense alone would perhaps suggest that tore is probably indicative (so R.V.), not imperative (A.V.); but the analogy of opdre, fte'fivncro, and similar rhetorical appeals in the Greek diatribes (Bultmann, Stil der paulin. Predigt, p. 32) leads to the opposite conclusion. For this view it m a y also be urged that Jas. 4* has oToon as the in dicative.
Tort is the sole form of the imperative, and the more literary
form of the indicative.
N o t e Toaot in Acts 2 6 * ;
H e b . 12" has T
(probably indicative), 10* OTSOJMV; E p h . 5* T
avOpanros, not limited to teachers, but cf. 3 . rayy* TO dtcovcai. In view of the reference to the Word in w . (note Sio*), it is likely that raj^v? et? TO iucovaai relates primarily to the hearing of the Word, and not merely to social intercourse gen1 1
«7ra
n
n
169
I, 18-20
erally. The same phrase is found in Pirke Aboth, v, 18, of the trait of the good pupil, who is "quick to hear and slow to for get" Cf. Gal. « ek TO*. This can be justified in Greek as a development of the meaning "with reference to," cf. Lk. 12* , Rom. 16", Dio Chrys. Or. 32, p. 361 A iy<*> & fidWov av ipas hrpvovv fipaSi) pkv
1
m
f
f
1 1
Ecclus. 5 ylvov ra^ds iv axpodaei aov teal iv fuucpoOvfiCa
s
1
1
50
9
18
10
n
T h e interpretation of hoyii given dcum nec sinistre de deo), followed
b y Bengel
(ut nil loquatur contra
b y Gebser, Calvin, Spitta, who
take the anger as impatience against G o d , has little to commend it. On the other hand, Beyschlag's interpretation of op*rt as "passionate disposition
(leidenschafUiche Gemiithsverfassung)"
of every kind, show
ing itself in murmunrigs against G o d and in fanaticism, as well as in quarrels, goes too far.
T h e writer is thinking of what men ordinarily
know as anger, against whomsoever directed.
Its opposite is good
temper and self-restraint.
20. ipydZerai, more naturally taken to mean "do," "practise," than in the rarer sense, "effect," "produce," "bring about," which properly belongs to KaTepyd^ofiai (cf. v. *). Hence Sueaioavvvv is to be taken as equivalent to T O Zkcaiov, "right eous action" (cf. 2 dfiaprtav ipyd&ade). Cf. Acts 10", Heb. I I , Ps. 15* ipyatypevos Sitcaioawnv, and the common 0. T . phrase iroielv rt)v Sucaioavvqv, e. g. Gen. i8 *. The opposite of ipyd&aOai, hucaiocwnv is ipyd^eadai apxtprlav^ 2*. 8ucatr oawqv deov then means "righteousness which God approves" %
m
l
170
JAMES 10
(cf. M t 6", 4 Mace, io ), and the phrase is here due to the contrast with bpyff avhpfc. The whole sentence means: "Wrath doeth not righteous ness," i. e. "Out of wrath righteous action does not spring." It is doubtless intended as a warning against wrong use of the doctrine that anger is sometimes valuable as an engine of righteousness. Another interpretation, however, gives to Ipfd^rrare the rarer sense "effect," "produce" (cf. 2 C o r . 7"). and refers the phrase "produce righteousness" to the effect of the teacher's anger on a pupil, cf. Zahn,
Einleitung,
i, § 4 , note 2.
oux ipy&^rcai]
B t f A C « minn. 1
06 xarrtpYaCrratJ C K L P minn* *. External attestation, possibility of conformation to 1*, and transcrip tional tendency to strengthen the verb decide for ip-fa^ra..
xortp-
fd^rca. may have been intended to have the sense "produce."
21. oW, "acting on this principle." An exhortation to a meek and receptive spirit. The emphatic word is irpavrnn. cmoOipsvoi, "stripping off." For the same collocation, Bib airodipevoi used to introduce an exhortation, see Eph. 4". Cf. also 1 Pet. 2 cwoOiiievoi, with Hort's note, Rom. 13 , Eph. 4" Col. 3* Clem. Rom. 13, Ps.-Clem. Epistle to James, n . 1
11
T h e w o r d b used of clothes, but also of the removal of dirt from the b o d y (cf.
1 Pet. 3 " aapxb<; dx68tai<; £6xou), and very commonly in
Greek writers of the rejection of a mental or moral quality.
For
1
quotations from early Christian writers, see M a y o r , p . 6 6 .
fnrrrap(av "filthiness" (cf. 2'), probably carrying out the figure of clothes. Evil habits and propensities in general seem to be meant. fnmapCav is complete in itself and does not need to be con nected with /COKCO,?. The force of irc\aav however, probably continues to vrepicrcreCap, which would otherwise have the article. }
y
For O . T . use of the figure of dirty clothes, cf. Zech. 3*.
Derivatives
of p6xo<; are used in Philo (e. g. De mid. nom. 21) and in Greek writers to denote moral defilement (see references in M a y o r ) .
I,
171
20-2I
irtpuroeCav KOKUV;, "excrescent wickedness," "superfluity of naughtiness" (A.V.), cf. Rom. 5 T ^ I > TREPUROETAV 777? x o p t T o * . KAXUVI is genitive of apposition, and the phrase calls attention to the fact that wickedness is in reality an excrescence on char acter, not a normal part of it. Cf. Philo, De somn. ii, 9, where he uses the figure of pruning off sprouts, Kaddirep yap roU BivSpexnv em
f
t
This is more forcible than to take the phrase to mean merely " a b u n dance of evil," i. e. "the abounding evil," "the great amount of evil," 41
which we find in our hearts, cf 2 Cor. 8*, L k . 6 .
Still less natural is
the interpretation of some who make xtptaotte equivalent to xtpfootupa, "remainder" (cf. M k . 8*), *. e. from the past life.*
F o r other
unacceptable interpretations, see M a y o r and Beyschlag. T h e fact that the Aramaic m o seems to be used to mean both " b e foul" and " b e abundant," as well as "sin," is probably of merely curi ous interest.
See Buxtorf,
Lexicon, cols. 1549-1550. M o r e significant
Is the use of fruxotpta in the sense of sordid meanness b y Teles (ed. Hense*, pp.
33, 37) and Plutarch, De adul. et amico, 19.
KOKlas, "naughtiness" (A.V.), "wickedness" (R.V.). This more general meaning (cf. frvrraplav) is better here than the special sense of "malice," which is not rendered appropriate to the context even by o/yy*$, and is not the natural opposite of irpa&n)?; cf. Acts 8 . See, however, Lightfoot on Col. 3*, Trench, Synonyms, § xi. A
IV 7rpa&N)TI, "meekness," "docility." The contrast is with opytf rather than KaKlas. Cf. 3 . Calvin: significat modestiam el facilitatem mentis ad discendum compositae. This is the centre of the whole disposition recommended in w . * . Cf. Ecclus. 3 4* 10* 4 5 (IV irpairrr)TI in each case). 1 8
19
1 7
11
4
Cf. Lightfoot on Col. 3", Trench, Synonyms, § xlii; Heisen, Novae hypotheses, p. 637, gives some good Greek definitions of meekness. * The emendator whose hand appears to often in A 33 seems to have substituted vcpcWcvju. in bis text (so A 33 44a).
JAMES 1
M
Bi^aade, Jer. o», Prov. i» 2 4 , Ecclus. 5 1 " . This seems to refer (like Bi^aaOai ek rr)v tcapBlav GOV in Deut. 30 ), not to the mere initial acceptance of the gospel, preached and heard, but (cf. i^vrov) to attention to the knowl edge of God's will, cf. Mt. n , 1 Cor. 2 . The Christian's ideal should not be much talking (which leads to angry strife) but meek and docile listening to the voice of God. There lies the way to salvation. rbv lfjuf>vTov \6yov. lfjuf>vros from ifufaveiv, "implant," may mean "implanted" (R.V.), "innate" (Wisd. 12 ), "intrinsic," "deep-rooted." 1
1 4
14
y
10
1^9UTO<; o f t e n m e a n s t h e " n a t u r a l " — i n c o n t r a s t t o t h e " t a u g h t " (Plato,
Eryx,
398 C 5toaxTov
iprrij i) I ^ U T O V ) , t o t h e " e x t r a n e o u s "
( H e r o d , i x , 94 IH^UTOV jiovrtx^v elx«, i. e. " a s a p o w e r a r i s i n g w i t h i n h i m s e l f " ) , or t o the " a c q u i r e d " (Justin M a r t y r ,
Apol.
fyupuxov xovrt -yfvte dvdp&jcuv oxepiwt TOU \ 6 f o u ) ;
it also means the
i i , 8 Jta TO
" d e e p - r o o t e d , " i n c o n t r a s t t o t h e " s u p e r f i c i a l " ( P o l y b . i i , 45 5«x «rfy i419utov dtetxiav xal xXtovc^farv fOovfyrcrvrts).
B u t , since the " implanted "
o r " i n h e r e n t " i s n o t n e c e s s a r i l y i n n a t e , fyupuxcx; c a n b e u s e d o f t h a t w h i c h h a s been in fact b e s t o w e d , p r o v i d e d it b t h o u g h t of a s
rooted
deeply
within the man.
O n the other hand, the rendering " e n g r a f t e d " ( A . V . ) , which has been r e c o m m e n d e d t o m a n y b y t h e c o n n e c t i o n w i t h di&xofa, is u n s u i t a b l e b e c a u s e it d i r e c t l y e x p r e s s e s t h e i d e a o f " f o r e i g n , " " a p p l i e d f r o m w i t h out,"
" n o t a n a t u r a l g r o w t h , " a m e a n i n g for w h i c h a d e r i v a t i v e of
I^uTt6etv, " e n g r a f t , " w o u l d b e r e q u i r e d .
In the present context the sense "innate" is made inappro priate by Bi^aaOe, by TOV Bwdfievov * r \ . , and by the absence of any special indication of this meaning, i^vros seems to be used here to describe the "word" as one which has entered into union with the nature and heart of man, " the word deeply rooted within you." The attribute adds a certain solemnity and intensity to the appeal. Cf. Ep. Barnab. 1* OVTCOS efjxfyvrov TT)$ Scoped? wvevfUiTUcffi ydpiv etXrj^are, "I rejoice . . . at your blessed and glorious spirits; so deeply rooted within is the grace of the spiritual gift that ye have received," o olBev 6 rt)v efuf>vrov Bwpedv TT}
173 lp*f>vrov T O irepl deov irapd Xpurrov
\a/36vre;
Kpir-qpiov
ayvoiav Karairhrropev. The lfMf>vro^ Xofyo? itself is called in v. " v6p&; rd\eus and in w . ' is described as something to be done. It seems to mean the sum of present knowledge of God's will. It is in wrought into a man's nature and speaks from within, but this does not exclude that it should also exist for man's use in written or traditional form, whether in the law of Moses or in the pre cepts of Jesus. In v. * , as was natural for a Jew, the writer seems to have turned in his thought to the external expression in the law. Cf. 4 Ezra 9 " , " For, behold, I sow my law in you, and it shall bring forth fruit in you, and ye shall be glorified in it for ever"; 4 Ezra 8 , Deut. 30 - ( v . , " But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it"). f
n
8
e
11
14
14
There is probably no allusion to the parable of the sower; yet cf. M k . 4". L k . 8". T h e interpretation here given is substantially the one most common in modern commentaries.
Similarly "(Ecumenius" takes the whole
phrase as referring to conscience, lyupuTov X6?ov xaXc I TOV StaxptTtxbv TOU £CXT(OVO<; xal TOU xelpovo?, xa6' 8 xal Xoytxol i q i i v xal xaXo6(u8a. Hort's note gives valuable material, and Heisen,
Novae hypotheses,
pp. 640-699, has collected a great number of more or less apposite quo tations, and fully presented the older history of the exegesis.
Calvin,
De W e t t e , and others take IU^UTOV as proleptic, "Receive the word and let it become firmly planted " ( C a l v i n : ktr);
ila suscipite ut vere insera-
but the attributive position seems hardly to admit this.
T h e ancient versions translate as follows: Bohairic, "newly implanted." Syriac, Peshitto, "received in our nature." Latin, Cod. C o r b . (ff)
Cod. Bob. (s) Vulgate
gentium. insitum. insitum.
insitus means "implanted" or "engrafted" or "innate"; see the instructive examples from Cicero and other writers in Harpers' Latin Dictionary. T h e Latin
T h e history of the English translation has been as follows: Wiclif, 1380, "insent or j o y n e d " ; 1388, "that is planted." Tyndale, 1526, "that is grafted in you."
174
JAMES Great Bible. 1539, "that is graffed in y o u . " Geneva, 1557, "that is graffed in you."j Rheims, 1582, "engrafted." A . V . 1 6 1 1 , "engrafted." R . V . 1881, "implanted," mg. "inborn." 14
1 1
11
cr&crcu. Cf. 2 4 5*, Rom. i oi yap hraiayyvopm TO €vayyi>aov, Suva pis yap 0eov icrrlv e*vs crarrwptap, Acts 20". TA? vpxav. Cf. 5 , 1 Pet. i cromjplav yl/vytav, Heb. io' et9 irepmolncnv Ep. Barnab. 1 9 pL€\er&v efc TO 50
9
9
1 0
v
aaxrai \f/vxv
T
Evidently, when this was written, not merely the idea of salvation but the phrase "salvation of the soul" was fully current.
22-25. But hearing only, without doing, is valueless. Cf. 2 " , "Faith without works is valueless"; 3 *, "Wisdom which does not issue in peace is of the earth." 22. yivecrOe. y(v€cr0cu serves in many cases as a kind of aorist of ehcu. Hence the imperative yivecrOe is used like an aorist imperative to convey a "pungent" exhortation to "be," not merely to "become." ecrre as imperative is not found in the N. T . Cf. Jas. 3 , Mt. 6 24**, 1 Cor. 1 4 * Eph. 5*. There is no need of the elaborate translation "show yourselves" or "prove yourselves" (cf. Lex. s.v. yivopai, 5. a), nor of any other of the subtleties which the commentators offer. See Blass-Debrunner, §§ 3 3 5 - 3 3 7 . 1 4
1
1
1 6
T h a t hearing the commands of a law, or a teacher, must be followed by doing them is an obvious precept of ethics, often overlooked in practise in all ages.
Cf. Ezek. 3 3 " , M t . 7 " xa<; o5v Sorts axo6et u-ou
rous X6fou<; TO6TOU$ xal xotcT ao*co6<;, ojioi(i)6f)arrai avSpl
M
L k . 8" 1 1 " i2<». T h e antithesis of hearing and doing is frequently found in the T a l mud.
Cf. Pirke A b o t h , i, 1 6 ; i, 18, R . Simeon b . Gamaliel I . : " A l l
m y days I have grown up amongst the wise, and have not found aught good for a man but silence; not learning but doing is the groundwork; and whoso multiplies words occasions sin," iii, 14, R . Chananiah b . D o s a : "Whosesoever works are in excess of his widsom, his wisdom stands; and whosesoever wisdom is in excess of his works, his wisdom stands not," iii, 27, v, 20; also Sifre on Deut. n**, quoted in Taylor,
SJF*, p . 50, note 23; T . B . Shabbath 88 a, quoted in M a y o r , p . 69,
1,21-23 note 1.
Cf. also
Philo,
De pram, et pamis,
14 T&C fata? «apatvfot«;
. . . (i^ xcvd<; xal ipf)iiou<; dxoXtxelv TWV otxetav xod^cuv, dXXa TXTJP&OCU
grot. 9, and passages given Religionsanschauungcn der Pharisaer, 1004, p p . 41 / . Cf. Seneca, Ep. 108. 35 sic ista ediscamus ui quae fuerint verba sint opera.
TOU<; X6YOU<; Ipfocc; faaivrrol?, Z?« <wigr. erui.
b y Elbogen,
iroiTjral \070v, "doers of the word." This sense, " carry out what is commanded," for xottlv and its deriva tives To.trrtfc and vofoptCi is a Hebraism Biblical Greek. TOO v6(u>u.
See Lex.
(cf.
ntrj?) and peculiar
to
T
s. v. xoteTv, and cf. 1 M a c e a* TO6<; Toiiytd?
I n classical. Greek TOU)T?)<; TOU vfyiou means vo(&oO*faQ<;.
ajcpoaraC. Found three times in James **• **); elsewhere in N. T. only Rom. 2 " , oi yap oi axpoaral v&pav Sbcaioi irapa r
ff.
T h a t a few minuscules omit (i6vov is
not significant.
irapaKoy^6pL€voi kawov\ "deceiving yourselves" by the notion that hearing is sufficient. Cf. v. *, Gal. 6*, Mt. 7* "", Rom. 2 - " . iavrofc for fyicfc airovs, cf. J. H. Moulton, Prolegomena, p. 87. 23. Sri, "because," introduces, as a kind of argument, a brief illustrative parable. oi is the appropriate negative, because oi woirjTr}?, as a single idea, is opposed to cucpoarqs. ofrros, cf. w . " » (TOVTOV), 3*. Zoucev. Only here and 1 in O. T. or N. T . av8p{ cf. v. . tcaravoovvri, "look at," with no thought of a hasty or any other special kind of glance; so /carevorjaev, v. *. y
1
1 7
28
8
8
}
176
JAMES
TO* irp6crwrrrov TT)9 yev&reax avrov, "the face that nature gave him," seen in a mirror, is here used as a comparison for the ideal face, or character, which a man sees set forth in the law. As one may forget the former and have no lasting benefit from seeing it, so the mere axpoaTif: has no profit from the latter. T779 yevfoea*; is emphatic, to mark the distinction of the two kinds of "faces." TtTtVea*, gen. of attribute, or perhaps of source. yevecis is here used, as in 3 , in the sense of "Nature," much as in modern usage, to mean the created world (including man) as distinguished from God, and with a suggestion of its character as seen and temporal. So Plato, Resp. viii, p. 525 B; Plut. De gen. Socr. 24, p. 593 D ; Philolaus ap. Stob. Eel. i, c. 22 (ed. Wachsmuth, p. 197); and especially Philo in many passages, e. g. De post. Cain. 9 Oeov fikv t&ov rjpefiCa xal
y
M o r e congenial to the Jewish point of view, and hence more com mon in the 0 . T . , is x T f e t s , "creation," which is often used collectively in the later books (e. g. P s . 104", Judith i6»«, W i s d . 1 6 " , Ecclus. 49", T
3 M a c e . 2 « - ) , in much the same sense as f tvtot<; in Philo. Beyschlag states strongly certain difficulties of the usual interpreta tion of TO xpoowxov T?j<; Y « v i W x ; , b u t fails to discover an acceptable substitute for the meaning given above. T h e meaning " b i r t h " (cf. e. g. Gen. 32* it's -rijjv ffjv Tifc ytveaulx; aou) is hardly adequate, since a man sees in the glass not merely the gift of birth but also the acquisitions of experience.
icr(hnp
De vita contempt. rational soul
Philo,
10, compares the law (f) vo^oBcafoc) to a mirror for the
Xoytx^ t>xt)i in a manner which recalls James's figure.
24. KaT€vit)
Probably gnomic aorist, which
is intrinsically a form of popular expression, not a literary
177
h 23-25 11
nicety. Cf. Buttmann (transl. Thayer), p. 201, and see i and note. For iwekadero, cf. Hermas, Vis. iii, 1 3 . ANEKRFKVOTP, perfect, because of reference to a lasting state ("is off," "is gone"), not merely, like the other verbs, to a momentary act. See J. H. Moulton, Prolegomena, p. 144. 1
For similar alternation of gnomic perfect and aorist, see Plato, 328 B .
Protag.
B u t cf. Buttmann (transl. T h a y e r ) , p . 197, where any "subtile
distinction" is denied.
25. 7rapa/CV\[/a<: " look in." This compound has lost all trace of any sense of "sideways" (7rapo-), or of stooping (KV7TT(O) to look, cf. Jn. 2o « , 1 Pet. Ecclus. 1 4 * 2 1 " . The figure is of looking ("peeping," "glancing") into a mirror, and is here brought over in a metaphor from the simile of v. **. See F. Field, Otium norvicense, in , p. 80 (on Lk. 24"), pp. 235 / . (on Jas. i ); cf. ttyci/TTTO), Clem. Rom. 40 , with Lightfoot's note. f
6
u
1
K
1
The word often implies " a rapid, hasty, and cursory glance," see the good examples quoted b y H o r t ; but that shade of meaning seems here excluded b y the latter half of the verse.
v6fiop riKeiov TOP Trfc itevOcpias, be the same as TOP Ipsfyvrop Xiyop Oeplas.
shown by the context to of v. * ; cf. 2 vipav i\evli
%
M
The omission of the article is frequent with vdptt (cf. i * , and see Sanday's note on Rom. 2 " ) ; but this explanation is here unnecessary, since the term is further denned by an attrib utive expression with the article, cf. Gal. 3 ; see Blass-Debrunner, § 270; Winer, § 20. 4; J. H. Moulton, Prolegomena, p. 7 4 ; L. Radermacher, Neutestamentliche Grammalik, 1 9 1 1 , pp. 19, 89. T4\£IOP, cf. i , Rom. 12* T O Oikypa TOV Oeov, TO ayadbp KOX evdpeorop teal riXjeiop. The epithet is not in distinction from some other, imperfect, law, but means simply (Spitta) such a law that a better one is inconceivable (cf. Pss. 19 and 119), "the ideal perfection which is the goal of life" (Sanday). Philo, De vita Mos. ii, 3, M. p. 136 ol v6px>i KOKKJUTTQI Kal & 9 a\rj0&9 deloi firjBkp &P TrapaXiir6prei. The perfection of the law in question is made plain by the further description of it as " the law of freedom." n
1 7
i 8
JAMES
7
rbv rrp ikevOeptas, " the law characterised by freedom." This expression means "the law in the observance of which a man feels himself free." It could have been used of the Mosaic law by a devout and enthusiastic Jew; cf. Deut. 28 , Ps. i* 1 9 40 S4« 1 1 9 " ' ». Cf. Pirke Aboth, iii, 8, R. Nechonyiah b. ha-Kanah (c. 80 A . D . ) : "Whoso receives upon him the yoke of Torah, they re move from him the yoke of royalty and the yoke of worldly care"; vi, 2, R. Jehoshua b. Levi (c. 240 A.D.) : "Thou wilt find no freeman but him who is occupied in learning of Torah," with Taylor's notes on both passages; see the glorification of the law of Moses in contrast to other laws which were imposed, is OVK iXevOe'pois aXXd BovXois, in Philo, De vita Mos. ii, 9. These references show that there is no ground for the common affirmation that this phrase implies a sublimated, spiritualised view of the Jewish law, which, it is said, would have been im possible for a faithful Jew, cf. Jiilicher, Einleitung * , p. 190. It is also evident that the words riketov and T779 (kevdeplas are not introduced in order thereby to mark the law which James has in mind as distinguished from, and superior to, the Jewish law. 47
8
7 1 1
7
1
8
In the passages of Irensus where lex libcrtotis and similar phrases occur (cf. I r e n . j v , 1 3 ' 34«• * 3 7 39') there is emphasis on the original divine gift of human freedom, with which the law stands in no conflict, but which it rather confirms. I t is not possible to apply these passages directly to the interpretation of James. 1
To a Christian "the perfect law of liberty" would include both the O. T . (parts of it perhaps being spiritually interpreted, cf Mt. 5 - , 1 Cor. 9» Rom. 3 8', Ep. Barnab. 10) and the precepts and truths of the Gospel; cf. 2 * , where the ten com mandments and the commandment of love are all explicitly said to be a part of the law. The use of the phrase by a Chris tian implies that he conceived Christianity as a law, including and fulfilling (Mt. 5 ) the old one. This is not inconsistent with an early date, for even Paul cannot avoid sometimes (1 Cor. 9 , Rom. 3 , Gal. 6*) referring to the new system as a law. Cf. Jn. 1 3 , 1 Jn. 2 -, 1 Tim. i diXovre; elvcu popoSiSda/ccikoi 17
48
s 7
81
17
11
2 7
s 4
7 f
7
179 (used of persons who present themselves as Christian teachers). See Introduction, supra, pp. 3 7 / . The use of the term "law" in this inclusive sense is plainly of Jewish origin and illustrates the direct Jewish lineage of Christianity. But the tendency to conceive Christianity as essentially a system of morals (a "new law") was not specifi cally Jewish. It seems to have been present from primitive times in the common Gentile Christianity. "The Pauline con ception of the Law never came to prevail, and Christendom at large did not know how, nor dare, to apply criticism to the O. T . religion, which is Law. (Without criticising the form they spir itualized the contents.) Consequently the formula that Chris tianity consists of Promise plus Spiritual Law is to be regarded as of extreme antiquity (uralt)" (Harnack, Lehrbuch der Dogmengeschichte, i*, p. 250; i , p. 3 1 7 ) . 4
Being the product of a permanent trait of human nature, to be seen in all ages, this moralism was not confined to any lim ited locality or single line of tradition in early Christianity. The doctrine of Christianity as law is emphasised in the Shep herd of Hermas, cf. Vis. i, 3 , Sim. v, s 6 , viii, 3* with Harnack's note. See also Barn. 2 (o tcaivb? v6fi&; rod fcvplov r)ficjv 'Inaov X/MOToO, avev f u y o O avdy/crj? &v), with Harnack's note and the references contained in it. In Justin Martyr (e.g. Apol. 43) and the other apologists the idea is of frequent oc currence, and it was probably a part of the primitive theology of Asia Minor in which the more developed system of Irenaeus had its roots. With Irenaeus and his contemporaries the "new law" took an important place. See Ritschl, Die Entstehung der aUkatholischen Kirche*, 1850, pp. 312-335 (with abundant citations), Harnack, Lehrbuch der Dogmengeschichte , i, pp. 3 1 6 / . note 1, pp. 548 / . § 3 ; Loofs, Leitfaden zum Studium der Dogmengeschichte , § 21. 4. 4
8
s
8
4
4
T h e familiar Stoic idea expressed in the maxims &ct (&6vo< b oof&c
x&q d&ppwv SouXoc, deo parere libertas est (Seneca, De vit. beat. 15) is expanded in Philo's tract about slavery and freedom, Quod omnis probus liber, for instance, 7 xap* of<; yJkv <2v 6 p ^ f) ixi^la % IXi6dtpo<; xal
Tt dfXXo xo6o<; Q xal faf^ouXoc xaxCa 8uyaart6ct, xdvTax; ctal fcouXot,
i8o
JAMES ooot &t turd. vVou JUtav, <Xt68tpot. T h e combination of these ideas with the Jewish enthusiasm for the law is to be seen in 4 M a c e . e. §. 5 " - " 1 4 ' & fkzotXi&K XcrtoyLol (kxaiXtx&rtpot xal £Xcu8£pv iXtuOtp&ctpot. A tacit claim that the Greek philosopher's ideal of freedom charac terises the Jewish and Christian law may possibly underlie the lan guage of James, whether or not such is to be traced in the rabbinical sayings quoted above. Other interpretations given for the phrase a r e : (1) " N a t u r a l law in the soul," "the light of nature." suggests this.
B u t nothing
(2) T h a t law which b y the new covenant has become implanted in the souls of men, written in their hearts (Jer. 31 "••*)> so that the fulfil ment of it springs from inner spontaneous impulse, not from enforced conformity to externally imposed precepts; in a word, the gospel on that side on which it is a rule of conduct (so Beyschlag). The chief difference of this view from the one adopted above is that the latter takes the " l a w of liberty" in the sense of Christianity con ceived as law, while Beyschlag takes it of that clement in Christianity which is law. T h e real difference is not great. Beyschlag's main in terest here is to show that the phrase does not imply the legalistic con ception of Christianity of the O l d Catholic period, and in this he is probably right. (3) T h e Christian law in distinction from the Jewish, because it consists of positive and not of negative precepts. O n this, see supra.
Philo enforces the same thought with a different figure, De sacr. Abel, et Cain. 25, "After having touched knowledge, not to abide in it (ft)) hripelvai) is like tasting meat and drink and then being prevented from satisfying one's hunger." Ipyov, the addition of fyyov to iroLnrrfi gives a certain em phasis, "a doer who does." paKapm, cf. v. See Jn. 1 3 , Lk. 1 2 " , Seneca, Ep. 75, 7 non est beatus qui scit ilia sed qui facit. TT} iroiqcreL atrrov probably means collectively the man's whole conduct (Hebrew nffrj??), cf. Dan, 9 (Th.), but not without allusion to the preceding iroinTrp; "he will be worthy of con gratulation in these deeds of his." 17
1 4
Haxaptos does not mean "prosperous" (Huther, Beyschlag, and oth ers), but is the opposite of "blameworthy."
26-27. Carefid attention to worship is no substitute restraint, purity of life, and good works.
for self-
I, 25-26
181
The connection with the preceding is here made in two ways: (1) by the advance from the more general precept of reality, "not hearing but doing," to the more specific, "not mere wor ship but doing good"; (2) by the reference in v . to the sin of uncontrolled speech (cf. v . ) . 26. Sotcel, "thinketh," i. e. "seemeth to himself." Cf. v. " firfSeU *Xey€T
l f
9
6pr}(TK(k.
This adjective is not found elsewhere excepting in lexicons, but derivatives are common, notably ffprjo/cela ( w . * » ), which means "religious worship, especially, but not exclusively, external, that which consists in ceremonies" (Lex.). Oprjaicfc means " given to religious observances." The Greek words have somewhat the same considerable range of meaning as the Eng lish word "worship," with reference to the inner and the external aspects of religious worship. Mayor quotes a useful series of passages from Christian writers; see Trench, Synonyms, § xlviii; E. Hatch, Essays in Biblical Greek, pp. 55-57; and Lex. In the present verse Oprfc/cds doubtless refers to attendance on the exercises of public worship, but also to other observances of re ligion, such as almsgiving, prayer, fasting (cf. Mt. 6 - , 2 Clem. Rom. 1 6 ) . The passage implies that a large and recognised field of religious observance was naturally and obviously open to the persons whom James has in mind. 8
1
,7
18
4
For both thought and language,
cf.
Philo,
Quod det. pot. insid.
7:
" N o r if anyone in his abundant wealth builds a temple with splendid contributions and expenditures, or offers hecatombs and never ceases sacrificing oxen, or adorns the temple with costly offerings, bringing timber without stint and workmanship more precious than any silver and gold, shall he be reckoned with the pious (n*V e&otftov dvcxYtypdfOw); for he also has erred from the path of piety, accounting worship a sub stitute for sanctity (OptjcxeCov dvrt O
, T
,
for Opipxefcz, 6p7)o%6c, are to be understood in the external sense of "worship," "religious rite," etc., in which formerly they were more used than at present
Cf. M i l t o n : " W i t h gay religions full of pomps
(Paradise Lost, i, i. e. religieux," belonging to a
and g o l d "
3 7 2 ) ; Shakespeare: " O l d religious m a n , " religious order"
(As You Like It, v,
4,166).
182
JAMES A s used at the present day,"religion" conveys the meaning of Sptjcxttat well enough in v.
but is inadequate in v.
means specifically "worship."
See HDB, 1 9
where the Greek word
"Religion." 1 1 8
firj %a)uvaya>y&v y\Sxr
1
There is no good reason for limiting either the unbridled speech here referred to or the opyr) of w . • to extravagant and intemperate utterance in preaching and teaching (cf. 3 ' ) ; the precepts are of general applicability. dtrar&v itapBiav iavrov. Cf. Test. X I I Patr. Nephth. 3 M OVP cnrovBd^ere . . . iv \dyois Kevois cvrrardv TA? \f/\rxc\$ vpuov &TI cnarrr&pres (v. I. crKoirSivres:) ev KadapdrrjTt /capBias awtf acre T O dikrjpa rov deov xpareip^ and on the use of icapBla, cf. s , Acts 1 4 . par aw from pdrrjp, "in vain," "failing of its essential pur pose." His very Op^a/ceta, in itself good, becomes useless, be cause spoiled by this fault of character. Cf. v. and P€xpd 2 » The fact that paroio? in the O. T . is specially used of idols and idol-worship (e. g. Jer. 2* io*, cf. Acts 14 *, 1 Pet. i ) adds point to this sentence. Cf. Spitta, p. 57, notes 2 and 3. 27. Bpr^cTKela. This is not a definition of religion, but a statement (by an oxymoron) of what is better than external acts of worship. James had no idea of reducing religion to a negative purity of conduct supplemented by charity-visiting. Cf. Coleridge, Aids to Reflection, Introductory Aphorisms X X I I I (and Note [8]): "Morality itself is the service and cere monial (cultus exterior, dprjertceia) of the Christian religion." 1 9 f
6
17
}
f
17
1
18
§
1
T h e thought is the same as that of the prophets, cf. M i c . 6 -*, Is. x *-", w
58*, Zech. 7«- , Prov. 14'.
Cf.
Clem. A l .
Strom,
vi, § 77, p . 778 P , o5
(vis. he who keeps the commandments) I' fori TO 6pipx<6t.v TO Octov &id
I, 26-27
183
Ti)<; SvTbK 8txatoa6yT2t, Ip*fG>v T t xal Yva«iK,"and among Greek writers. Isocrates.
Ad Nicocl.
p.
i8»*
E , ^ftou
Oujxa TOUTO xaXXiorov elvat xal
depart lav ^ ^ { a T T j v av ox; {UXT.OTOV xal &.xai6Tarov aauxbv xap^rxTK*
1°
the higher forms of heathen Hellenistic religious thought " a spiritual idea of G o d is contrasted with anthropomorphic conceptions and naive worship of idols, while purity of heart, as the best sacrifice, and a d hesion to the will of G o d , as the true prayer, are contrasted with foolish prayers and v o w s " ; see P . W e n d l a n d ,
Hcllenistisch-r'&mischc Kuliur*,
19x2, p . 87, and note 8 (references).
xaOapd teal afiiavros, synonyms giving the positive and nega tive side, cf. i * etc. 4
T h e two words are often found in Greek writers in an ethical sense
A.R. viii, 43'; De animal, sacrif. idon. 13;
Pericl.$g; also Philo, Mand. ii, 7, Sim. v,
and together, Dion. H a l .
Plut.
Leg. all. i,
15,
Hermas,
T e s t Xn
Patr. Jos. 4 , etc.
#
For o y i f a v T o ? , cf. H e b . 7", 1 P e t i « ; in the O . T . only found in W i s dom and 2 Maccabees.
The words are naturally used with Oprja/ceta, because ritual purity and spotlessness was required in all ancient worship, Jewish and heathen, and was never more insisted on among the Jews than by the Pharisees in the first Christian century (cf. Mk. 7 Mt. 23 *). There is no special contrast meant (as Spitta thinks) to heathen worship. irapa TO} 0e$ "in God's judgment," "such as God approves," cf. Lk. i » 1 Pet. 2 * *>, Rom. 2 , 2 Thess. i , Prov. 1 4 " , Wisd. 9 1 2 , etc. This is a good Greek use of irapd (see Winer, § 48, d. 6,; L. and S. s. v.), which, with other expressions (Lk. 2 4 havrlov, Lk. i ivdrmov, etc.), is the equivalent of the Hebrew 8
s
}
4
1 0
18
fl
7
19
15
deo} teal iraTpl. 8e$ xal x a r p n
tfC'KL
minn.
Tq> Oev xal xarpO B C * P minn. T $ 0e<j> xal T $ xarp(] A . T 6«j> xarpQ minn. T h e usage in the N . T . is to write either 0€&<; xordjp (e. g. R o m . 1% G a l . i", and often) or 4
added, G a l . i , e t c ) .
b 8efc<; xal
icarfjp
(e. g.
1 Cor. 1 5 " and, with
iy&v
T h e only instance of 8eb<; xal xarfjp, excepting
the present one, is the easily explicable case E p h . 4*; the only cases of
7,
184
JAMES 6 8eb<; xcrrlfa are Col. i » ( t i p 8C$ xarcp( in C o d d . B C * and versions; T $ 6«
Hence probably
the article is a conformatory emendation and the formula here unique in the N . T .
The phrases 6 0eb^ xal irarrip and deb* irar^p are found at the opening and elsewhere in Paul's epistles and other N. T . writings, but nowhere in the Gospels,* Acts, 1 John, or Hebrews. They evidently belong to the common semi-liturgical religious language which at once grew up among the early Christians, but not at all to the tradition of Jesus' sayings. This designa tion of God is possibly used here because it is the care for God's fatherless ones (cf. Ps. 68 ) which is enjoined. 1
n
4I
bruTK&rreaOcu, used of visiting the sick, in Mt. 2$ > , Ecclus. 7", and also in secular Greek, e. g. Xen. Cyr. v, 4 ; Plut. De san. prcec. 15, p. 129 C. 10
op
l
y
1
aoirihop,"
unstained." For the same phrase, rrjpelp
acrrrikop,
cf. 1 Tim. 6". aird, see Buttmann, § 132, 5. TOV xdofiov. Cf. 4 ^
* In Mt. 6* the reading 4 4 war^p v/imr of Codd. **B and sah. vers, is probably an emendation for & varnp vpmr of all other authorities, while Jn. 6" 8" are different.
1,27-n, I James, 2 Peter, and the Gospel and First Epistle of John. In the writings of John this sense is pushed to an extreme of sharp opposition. The usage, which is evidently wholly familiar to James and his readers, must have its origin in Jewish modes of thought (cf. the use of thty and NOty in later Jewish literature for «oV/i09, not merely for ald>v), but the history of the ethical sense of the word has not been worked out. See HDB,zit. "World"; PRE, art. "Welt"; Dalman, Die Worte Jesu, i, 1898, pp. 132-146 (Eng. transl. pp. 162-179).
CHAPTER H . 1-7. To court the rich and neglect the poor in the house of wor ship reverses real values. In 2 - the thought of the supreme importance of conduct, stated in i*-* , is further illustrated by an instance from a situa tion of common occurrence. With this instance the writer con nects his reply to two excuses or pretexts ( w . - » - " ) , which are perversions of true religion, and in so doing he is led to enter upon broader discussions. Ch. 2 is more original and less a repetition of current Jewish ideas than any other part of the epistle. 1. aSekfol (wv, marking transition to a new topic, cf. 1 * 2 3 5 , and see note on i . iv 7rpoGwro\7jfi\f/Cai? "with acts of partiality." 7rpoaomoXniiypCa (found also Rom. 2 , Eph. 6 , Col. 3", Polyc. Phil. 6), together with the cognate words Trpoo-mroXrffiTrreiv (Jas. 2 ), wpocomo\ritvirn)
7
7
t
l,
14
1
U
1
7
f
11
9
9
84
1 7
t
1§
}
4 1
This group of expressions has had a history not unlike that of English "favour," "favouritism," etc., and, having often had
JAMES
originally an innocent sense, came in the O. T. to mean "respect of persons" in the sense of improper partiality. The early uses related chiefly to partiality on the part of a judge. In later use any kind of improper partiality might be meant, whether judicial favouritism or, as here, selfish truckling to the powerful. For the meaning of the Hebrew expression, see Gesenius, The saurus, 5 . v. Kktt, p. 9 1 6 ; cf. Lightfoot on Gal. 2 , and, for some similar O. T . expressions, Mayor on Jas. 2 . 8
1
The plural denotes the several manifestations of favouritism; cf. Winer, § 2 7 , 3 ; Hadley-Allen, § 636; cf. 2 Cor. 1 2 , Gal. 5*, 1 Pet. 4 . iv denotes the state, or condition, in which the act is done; here the acts with which the action of the main verb is accom panied. Cf. 2 Pet. 3 irrrapxeiv iv ewre/Se&u?, Col. 3** vTraxovere . . . uf) iv offlaXfjLoSovkhu*;, Jas. i iv irpairqri. Warnings against contempt of the poor are common in the O. T., cf. Lev. 1 9 , Prov. 22", Ecclus. 10", etc. fi)f ex€T€. Not interrogative (R.V. mg., WH.), but impera tive (A.V., R.V. text), as is better suited to the gnomic style of the epistle (cf. i*« 3 4 , etc.), and to the following context s 0
8
11
n
16
n
1
11
T h e question " D o ye, in accepting persons, hold the faith of our L o r d ? " would express doubt whether a faith accompanied b y this fault is true faith in Jesus Christ at all. B u t this makes a weak and unnatural opening to the paragraph, is too subtle and indirect for so straightforward a writer, and does not suit so well the transition to the following sentence with yap. writer (e. g. in w . *• than in exhortation.
7
This
) uses the question-form rather in argument
N o t e , too, the directness with which his other 1
T
paragraphs open, e. g. i"» • 3 s .
Moreover, such a surprisingly drastic
denial that the readers were Christian believers would require a clearer form of statement.
€^€T€ r^v 8
irlcrnv.
U
Cf. 2 -
9
1 8
1 4
3 , Mt. 1 7 * 2 1 * , Mk. I I * 19
Lk. 1 7 , Acts 1 4 , Rom. 1 4 * 1 Tim. i , Philem. 5. e^a> is used in its natural sense, with reference to "having" an inner qual ity. This is a Greek usage, see L. and S. s. v. fyo) A. I. 8. Cf. njpelv r))v tricmv 2 Tim. 4 , Rev. 14". For the whole phrase, cf. Herm. Mand. v, 2* TSW TTJV TTCCTTLV iydvr&v ohj&icknpov. 7
}
i*7 T^J/ wloriv. The "subjective" faith, not the later idea of a body of doctrine to be believed; so throughout this epistle, i « • *. i 4 - * (jis Faith in Jesus Christ is the distinctive act which makes a man a Christian. See A. Schlatter, Der Glaube im Neuen Testament*, 1896. rov fcvplov. Objective genitive, cf. Mk. n , Gal. 2 ; Her mas, Sim. vi, i , etc 8
2
#
M
1 8
1
T h e view of Haussleiter,
Glaube,
Der Glaube Jesu Ckristi und der ckrisUiche Epistle to the Galatians, 1893, p .
1801, and James D r u m m o n d ,
91, that these genitives after x(<m<; are subjective, not objective, unnatural, and seems disproved b y both M k . 1 1 " and G a l . 2". Sanday on R o m . 3 " . Him
is See
H o r t paraphrases: the faith "which comes from
and depends on H i m , " but this is unnecessary.
rip; SJfi^. "Glory" is the majesty and brightness of light in which God dwells, and which belongs also to the Messiah; see Sanday on Rom. 3 * , G. B. Gray, art "Glory," in HDB; A. von Gall, Die Herrlichkeit Gottes, 1900. The interpretation now most commonly given for this diffi cult expression is probably right, TTJ? iVf 179 is genitive of char acteristic (cf. Lk. 1 6 1 8 , Heb. 9 Xepov&elv 0V.J179), limiting the whole preceding phrase TOV tcvplov f)p&v TncoO Xotorou, i. e. "our glorious Lord Jesus Christ." The expression is a not altogether happy expansion of 0 /cvpios rrp 6o'f 179 (1 Cor, 2 ), cf. 6 0€O9 TJ79 Srffi?9, Ps. 29 , Acts 7 , 6 iraT^ip rf)9 86£rp Eph. i . By its solemnity the writer may intend to emphasise the in consistency between the great privilege of Christian faith and this petty discrimination between rich and poor. 8
8
s
8
17
8
s
t
N o convincing objection can be made to this interpretation, although there is no complete parallel to it.
A m o n g the other interpretations
the following deserve mention: (1) TOCT<; xpoociMcoXixi^tati; ii}<; &6£n<;, "partiality
arising
from your
own opinion," or "partiality arising from external g l o r y "
hominum secundum externum splendorem,
Michaelis).
(admiratio
B u t the separa
tion of the words is too great, and the meaning " g l o r y " for 86£
faith in the g l o r y " (i.e.
the glory which
i88
JAMES U
we are to receive, R o m . 8 ) , or " the glorious faith in Christ."
B u t the
last two of these are forced, and the first involves too strange an order of words to be acceptable, in spite of such partial analogies as Acts 4'*, 1 Thess. 2".
Cf. Buttmann, § 151, I I I ; Winer, § 6 1 , 4; for many illus
trations of hyperbaton from L X X and secular authors, see Heisen,
Novae
hypotheses, pp. 768 jf. (3) Various interpretations separate off some part of the phrase TOU xupfou V & v 'ITJCOU XptoToG, which is then connected with rrj<; W f o s , and the two together taken as in apposition with the rest of the phrase. T h e least objectionable of these is perhaps that of E w a l d , "our L o r d , Jesus Christ of g l o r y " ; but this division is unnecessary, and it seems impossible that the writer should not have meant to keep together the whole of the familiar designation. (4) A . V . and R . V . supply TOU xupfou, and translate "the faith of our L o r d Jesus Christ,
the Lord of
Glory."
There are abundant parallels
for this latter phrase, but none for such a singular omission. (5) Bengel, M a y o r , Hort, W H . mg. and others take Tijs W&QS as in t
apposition to the preceding and as referring to Christ (perhaps as the Shekinah) under the title of " the Glory."
B u t the evidence that this
is a possible use of ^ S6frx (see the full note of Mayor*, p p . 79Jf., cf. L k . 2 " , E p h . 1 " , T i t . 2", H e b . i » ) is inadequate. (6) Spitta and Massebieau think the words 4{JUJV 'ITJOOU Xpiorou an interpolation b y the Christian editor.
This would leave the expression
"the L o r d of glory," referring, as in Enoch, to G o d .
Beyschlag's an
swer to this, that an interpolator would not have broken the phrase TOU xupfou 1 % &6£i)c, is not quite satisfactory, since the natural words to follow TOU xupfou are "fyi&v 'Ivjaou Xptorou.
B u t the interpolation is
not sufficiently obvious to justify itself apart from the general theory to which it belongs.
See the long note in M a y o r .
2. yap explains the warning by pointing out that respect of persons is easily recognisable as sin. yap introduces oi SeeKptdrjrc KT\., V. . €UT4\6 cf. 1 Cor. i » - « avpaycoyi]v means "meeting," and it is not necessary here to distinguish between the "meeting" as an occasion and as an assembled body of persons. It is the proper word for a Jewish religious meeting, but is occasionally used, chiefly by writers having some Jewish or Syrian connection, for a Christian meet ing ; cf. Herm. Mand. xi, 9 6rav oiv l\dy 6 avOporrro? 6 fytav T O irvevpa TO* Oelov €t? ovvaycoytfv avhp5*v hucalaiv; Ign. Polyc. 4 ; Iren. Har. iv, 3i » *; Epiph. Ear. xxx, 18 avpayooyijv & 4
Vj
J
4
l
189
n, 1-2
otnoi [the Ebionites] KaXovtri rijv iavr&v i/cx\rjcr(av teal ov%l i/c/cXnaCav. The Christian Palestinian Aramaic dialect used a single word [fctnt7*23] as well for "synagogue" as for "church." In view of this wide-spread occasional use, no trustworthy in ference as to the place of writing of the epistle, still less any conclusion as to its Jewish-Christian authorship, or as to the nationality of the persons addressed, can be drawn from the occurrence of this word here. The material is fully collected and well discussed by Zahn, Einleitung, i, § 4, note 1 ; Harnack in his long note on Hennas, Mand. xi, 9 ; Schtlrer, GJV, ii, § 27, notes n and 12. }
T h e meaning "place of meeting," "meeting-house," natural if this were a Jewish synagogue, is wholly unlikely for a Christian writing. The
only parallel to be adduced would be the
inscription (from a
locality not far from Damascus) Suvarywrt Mapxuimor&v, x&t&0,0 A i {&£ki>v TOO x(up(o)u xal a(um})p(o<;) 'lrj(aou) Xprjarou, xpovo(a IIa6Xou T p « a £ ( u r f p o u ) , TOU
X%'fcou?,L e
lot. iii, no. 2558.
T h e date is A . D . 3 1 8 - 3 1 9 .
Bas-Waddington,
s1
18
Inscript. grecqucs et 15
4 S
XpvtroSaKTvTuos, cf. Lk. 1 5 , also Gen. 3 8 « 4 1 , Is. 3**; and see note in Mayor*, p. 83, and "Ring," in EB, HDB, and Dictt. Antt. for details of the custom of wearing rings. For similar description of a rich gentleman, cf. Epictet. i, 22* fjt;ei TO ye'pwv iroXios xfwerois Sa/crvXious e^v iroXXovs, Sen eca, Nat. quasi, vii, 31 exornamus anidis digitos, in omni articulo gemmam disponimus. Xpuffo&oxTflXtos is found only here, but is correctly formed, Xpwoxctp in the same sense, xpuaoorifavoc, xpuaoxdtXtvoc, e t c 11
cf.
iv iaOrtri Xapmpa, cf. Lk. 23 . The term Xapnrpds seems here to refer to elegant and luxuri ous, "fine," clothes (cf. Rev. 18 ), but it can also be used of freshness or cleanness (Rev. 15*) without reference to costliness, and sometimes (Acts io*°) appears to mean "shining." Its nat ural opposite in all these senses is pvirapds, "dirty," "shabby," as below, cf. Philo, De Joseph. 20, ami /Wckri;? Xapnrpdv icrdrjra avriSdvre;. Mayor gives other instructive references. See also Lex. s. w. Xauirpds and pvirapds. For the same construction as w . » *, cf. w . * . 14
a
lft
xa
190
JAMES
3. hn/3\^l/rfT€ "look," i.e. with favour, "have regard." brifiXeireiv has this sense also in Lk. i 9", apparently through the influence of the L X X usage; cf. 1 Sam. i 9 , Ps. 2 5 " 69 , J°b 3*; Judith 1 3 , etc. The development of this sense in an appropriate context is a natural one; but in classical usage only Aristotle, Eth. Nic. iv, 2, p. n 20, is cited. f
4 8
1 1
1 8
16
4
etirnrc. Doubtless the speaker is one of the dignitaries of the congregation, cf. T6 xnroirdhuiv fwv. KCWOV. This form of the imperative (for the more literary tcddnad), found uniformly in O. T . and N. T . , was doubtless in ordinary colloquial use, as is attested by its occurrence in comic writers of the fifth and fourth centuries B.C. and in postclassical usage. See Lex. s. v. and Winer-Schmiedel, § 14, 3 , note 3. KOXOS. Usually explained as meaning "in a good seat," "comfortably." But the usage does not fully justify this (see Mayor's citations), and some polite idiom in the sense of "please," "pray," is to be suspected. In various Greek liturgies the minister's direction to the worshipping congregation, ar&ptv tcaXas, presents the same difficulty and suggests the same explanation. See F. E . Brightman, Liturgies, Eastern and Western, vol. i, Oxford, 1896, pp. 43, 49, 383, 4 7 1 . The Syrian liturgies sometimes merely carry this over, "Sidmen kalds," but also render by, "Stand we all fairly," ibid. pp. 72, 74, 104. On the Jewish custom of distinguished places in the synagogue, cf. Mt. 2 3 , Mk. 1 2 , Lk. n 20 , and see "Syna gogue," in EB and HDB. e
8 9
4 8
4e
A noteworthy commentary on these verses is offered b y a passage found in various ancient books of church order. perhaps that in the Ethiopic
Its oldest form is
Statutes of the Apostles
(ed. Horner, 1004,
r
PP- 9 5 / • ) • " A n d if any other man or woman comes in lay dress [«. e. in fine clothes], either a man of the district or from other districts, being brethren, thou, presbyter, while thou speakest the word which is concerning G o d , or while thou nearest or readest, thou shalt not respect persons, nor leave thy ministering to command places for them, but remain quiet, for the brethren shall receive them, and if they have no place (for them) the lover of brothers or of sisters, having risen, will leave place for them.
191
n, 3-4
" . . . A n d if a poor man or woman either of the district or of the (other) districts should come in and there is no place for them, thou, presbyter, make place for such with all thy heart, even if thou wilt sit on the ground, that there should not b e respecting the person of man b u t of G o d . " See also the Syriac
Didascalia apostolorum,
12;
Apostolic Constitutions,
ii, 5 8 ; E . v. d. Goltz, "Unbekannte Fragmente altchristlicher Gemeindeordnungen," in 141-157.
Sitzungsberichte der kgl. preuss. Akademie,
1006, p p .
There is no sufficient indication that the passage is dependent
on James.
(rrrj0i
f
in contrast to /cddov.
orfjOt fee! 9i xdeOoul A 3 3 minn C y r v g Jer A u g syr** .
orijOt Ixtl % xaOou &o«] KOKLP minn boh syr****. {rrfjGt exit xal xaOou] C * . The reading of B ff makes the rough words an invitation to stand or to take a poor seat.
So the Sahidic, which thus on the whole supports
B ff. T h e readings of A al and 8 al seem to be different emendations, both due to the wish to make
B u t since the indefinite feci does not in itself imply any
disrespect to the visitor, the effect is to lessen rather than intensify the rudeness of orijOt, and the product is a weaker text than that of B ff (sah).
T h e text of B ff is thus on both external (see p . 8 5 ) and
internal grounds to be preferred.
fj /cdOov i/cei inrb rb irrroTrd&ulv /IOU, *. e. in a humble place. This is a sorry alternative to standing. Cf. Deut. 33* VTT6
M.
T h e repetition of — O Y O Y might
suggest either the insertion or the omission of the word in transcrip-
192
JAMES
tion.
T h e attestation and the greater intrinsic vigour of
the sense
speak for the omission. K L P minn read xal 06, the x a ( being added to indicate the apodosb.
8t£Kpt0rjT€. "Ye have wavered," "doubted," i. e. "practi cally, by your unsuitable conduct, departed from and denied the faith of v . , and thus fallen under the condemnation pro nounced in i " against the oY^t^o?." Cf. i* and note, 3 aSiaxpiTos; and, for the mode of argument, i oY^fXW, 4 dpapTco\o{ hfyxrypi. l
6
8
1T
8
8
}
Of the various meanings proposed for 8w%pflri)T« this one, which is common in the N . T . although not attested in secular Greek, yields in the present context the best sense, being especially recommended b y the allusion to the " waverer " of iK Jas.
#
i,
Cf. M t 21", M k . n » , R o m . 14",
and the kindred sense " hesitate " in Acts
9
io* , R o m .
4*.
Other interpretations which have been given are classified as fol lows b y Huther, whose elaborate note, as reproduced with additions b y Beyschlag, p p . 103 / . , should be consulted for the history of the exegesis.
separate; (2) discrimen facere; (3) judicare; (4) dubUare ("hesitate").
&taxp(vwGat « • (1)
U n d e r each of these senses several interpretations are possible accord ing as the verb is taken as an affirmation or a question, and under sev eral of them a choice between an active and passive meaning is possible. M o s t of the interpretations are too remote from the natural suggestion of the context, or any natural meaning of the verb, to be worth consid ering, and none suits on the whole so well as the interpretation given above. T h e renderings of A . V . , " A r e ye not then partial?" and R . V . mg., " D o ye not make distinctions?" are based on (2), the verb being given an active sense.
This corresponds to the view of Grotius and others,
and is perhaps not impossible, even with the passive aorist, but at best it would be unusual, it runs counter to all N . T . usage, and it gives an inherently weak and tautologous sense.
To R.V.
text,
" A r e ye not
divided?" no objection from the ordinary meaning of the verb can be brought, but it is less idiomatic and pointed than the rendering "waver."
KpnaL means "judges"; it cannot mean "approvers" (as Wetstein takes it).
n, 4-5
i93
/epiral SiaXoyio-fi&v irovrjp&v, "judges with evil thoughts," gen. of quality. Evidently, like BuKpidnre, this describes in language already familiar an admittedly wrong attitude. There is a play on words in BuKpiOrjTe, Kpnal, which cannot be imi tated in English, and which goes far to account for the intro duction of Kpiralmto a context to which the idea of "judging" in any proper sense is foreign. That irpoaoyiroXrip^la is the characteristic sin of the bad judge may also have had its influ ence. The sentence must be taken to mean: "You have passed judgments (i. e. on rich or poor) prompted by unworthy mo tives." For fctaXoYwWih' xovrjp&v, cf. M t . i s " , M k . 7", and Ps. 56*.
yio\k6
fctaXo-
(like natfno) is in Biblical usage a general word which includes
purpose as well Essays, p. 8.
as
deliberation.
See Lightfoot on Phil. 2 " ; Hatch,
f>-7. The poor are the elect heirs of God, whereas the rich are your persecutors. These verses are intended to reinforce the exhortation of v . by pointing out how peculiarly heinous in the readers' case is partiality in favour of the rich. 5. axowrare, as in diatribes, cf. Bultmann, Stil der paulinischen Predigt, p. 32, with foot-notes. a8eX
1 8
87
9
4
l 7 r
Others (Weiss, etc.) take T $ x6ayup as naming the possession which the poor lack.
B u t the poor lack not "the w o r l d " b u t the world's
goods. The election of the poor to privileges is not here said to be due to any merit of their poverty, but, in fact, poverty and election coincide. This does not deny that an occasional rich
194
JAMES
man may have become a Christian, nor affirm that all the poor have been chosen, cf. i Cor. i - * , Mt. 19"- . 18
1 8
t $ x6ow>] B t f A C . Iv T<j> x6ovup] minn. 1
Iv TO6T(|> TCJ> X6OU/|>] min .
TOU x6qi.ou] A * C » K L P minn. TOU xdojjwu TO6TOU] minn****. 1
om min . T h e reading of the older uncials easily accounts for all the others.
TrXovciovs iv irUrret, "rich in the sphere of faith," "in the domain where faith is the chief good"; i. e. rich when judged by God's standards. Cf. Lk. 12*, 1 Cor. i , 1 Tim. 1* 6 , Eph. 2 ; and rabbinical "rich in the law" (i.e. learned), Wajjikra r. 33 on Prov. 29" (Wetstein), Tanchuma 34, 3 (Schottgen on 1 Tim. 6 ). The contrast of poor and rich in different spheres is a natural one. See quotations in Mayor*, p. 86, and Spitta, p. 63; cf. Rev. 2», Test. X I I Patr. Gad 7*. 6
18
4
17
Other modes of analysis of the meaning of Iv xCsrei do not affect the general sense of the phrase, b u t they seem less adapted to the con text
Thus:
( 1 ) "rich b y reason of faith"; 4
1
(2) "rich in having an abundance of faith," cf. E p h . 2 , 1 C o r . i , U
1 Tim. 6 .
fc\r)pov6ftov$
This unduly limits the range of the " riches."
TT)9 fHacrCkeCa*;. s4
9
10
80
This expression corresponds to Mt. 25 , 1 Cor. 6 - 1 5 (K\rjpovofi€iv ftaaiXeiav), Gal. S , as well as to Kkrjpovoptlv ^coffv auoviov in Mt. 1 9 " 25 , Mk. io , Lk. 10" 18 (cf. Dalman, Worte Jesu, i, pp. 102-104; E. Tr. pp. 125-127. "Heirs" are persons who are appointed to receive the in heritance. The kingdom is here thought of as still future (as is shown by hnjyyeCXuTo). The kingdom is not further de scribed, nor does James use the term again, and it is possible to say of the term here only that it denotes the great blessing which God offers to his chosen, being thus practically equivalent to salvation. Cf. Mt. 5 * , Lk. i 2 n
s4
s
10
17
n
18
n , 5-6
i95
1J
See Westcott's note on Heb. 6 for the history of the use of the term KXypowipwi. (JcKjiXt.at*;] A C read
imfyt\[t](a^.
$9 hrqyyetXaro T0I9 ayairSxriv avrdv. On the expression, cf. 2 Tim. 4 , Ep. ad Diogn. 10. Cf. 1 " , rbv arfyavov 7779 fawfc * T \ . , with note. Life and the kingdom are practically identical. hrnyytCXaro does not refer to any one specific occasion, and hence is better translated "has promised." Cf. Burton, Syn tax of the Moods and Tenses of N. T. Greek, §§ 46, 52. The "promise" was implicit in the very conception of the kingdom. 6. fiTifidaare, "dishonoured," i. e. by your truckling to the rich. On aripAtpw, cf. Prov. 1 4 o arifid&v Trivr\ra? apaprdr vei 22", Ecclus. i o , Acts s . 18
11
a
41
f
A . V . "despised" is a possible translation (cf. Field, Notes on the Trans lation of the New Testament (Olium norv. iii*), 1899, p . 236, for good examples), but the context ( v . >) makes the R . V . "dishonoured" pref erable. M
rbv rrroyyiv^ generic. Mayor well recalls 1 Cor. n for an other case of dishonour to the poor in early Christian life. KaraSvvaorevovaiv, "oppress," cf Wisd. 2 , Amos 8 , Jer. 7«, Ezek. 1 8 " . For examples of such oppression, cf. Jas. 5 » , and references in Spitta, p. 64, notes 9, 10, and 1 1 ; also Lucian, Nec. 20. *H«I>IZMA. 'EflretSr) 7roXXd teal irapdvopa ol irXovaioi Spaxrt, xapa rbv P i o v apTrd£ovT€$ xal fiiatyptvoi teal irdvra rponrov roiv irevqrcov fcara
4
4
8
7
19
8
i
196
JAMES
of the rich, but to other oppression, with legal action, arising from the ordinary working of social forces in an oriental com munity and having to do with wages, debts, rents, and the like. M a n y think, indeed, of religious persecution (as Acts 6").
B u t this
is not naturally suggested b y xaraSuvawrtGouatv (instead of which we , e
should in that case expect SIWXOUJIV, cf. M t . s , L k . 2 1 " , Acts 7", G a l . 1").
N o r is it made necessary b y pXaoyrxioufjiv, which seems to refer
to a different act of hostility and is properly so punctuated b y W H .
€& Kpirrjpia, "before judgment-seats," "into courts," cf. Sus. 49. On established courts throughout Palestine, see EB, "Government," §§ 30, 3 1 ; Schilrer, GJV, § 23, II. 7. fiXcurfapovcriv. Blasphemy is injurious speech, especially irreverent allusion to God and sacred things. For blasphemy from the Christian point of view, i. e. against Christ, cf. Acts 1 3 " i 8 « 26 , 1 Tim. i", 1 Cor. 12*, Justin, Dial. § 1 1 7 (XpiOTov) Svopa fiefirjXtodijvai Kara ircurav TTJV yrjv /cat /3\aa
1
4
I t is not natural to take this of " those who profess to know G o d b u t u
b y their works deny h i m " ( M a y o r ) , cf. Tit. i ; Rom.
Hermas, Sim. viii, 6*.
4
2* ( I s . 52*) TO y i p Kvo^ia TOU OtoG oV b[L&
Wveatv, and the cognate passages, 2 Pet. 2 \ 1 T i m . 6 , Clem. R o m . l
i , 2 Clem. R o m . 13, etc., are all of a different tenor, although the language is similar; the verb is there in the passive, and the blasphemy comes from the discredit which is thrown upon the Christian religion b y the faults of those who profess it.
TO tcaXbv ovofia TO brucknOev
i
Tliis means the name of Christ, to whom his followers belong, cf. 1 Pet. 4 - . Cf. 2 Sam. 1 2 * , Amos 9", Is. 4 , 2 Mace. 8 Ivexa TT}
18
8
1
1 1
4
n, 6-8
197
naturally transferred to the Christians, with a reference in their case to the name of Christ. Cf. Hermas, Sim. viii, 6 , T O opofia Kvpiov TO hrucKrjdev hr avroxs, and other cases of the use of Svofia in Hermas, Sim. viii, ix, and xi, given in Heitmilller, Im Namen Jesu, 1903, p. 92. The phrase does not necessarily refer to baptism, nor to any definite name (e. g. XpurrtavoC) by which Christians were known. See Harnack's note on Hermas, Sim. viii, 6 . 4
4
6-7. It is very evident that "the rich" here are not Chris tians. Those who maintain the opposite are driven to give to fi\aa-
ff
1 7
7
1
9
A settled and quiet state of things is indicated, in which the normal relations of the different classes of society prevail. The sense of missionary duty is not prominent. The situation is thus that of a sect of some sort living in a community whose more powerful members, though worshipping the same God as the sect, do not belong to it. 8-11. The law of Love is no excuse for respect of persons. The cancelling of one precept by another is not permissible, for the whole law must be kept. The royal law is therefore not a license to violate other parts of the law. These verses are a reply to a supposed excuse, viz. that the Christian is required by the law of love to one's neighbour to attend to the rich man. This excuse by the pretext of "love" is parallel to the excuse by the pretext of "faith," w . * . Cf. also i Like Mt. 5 -, this passage is opposing a wrong and self-indulgent use of the principle that the law of love cov ers the whole law. 14
13,
1 7 ff
M
198
JAMES
8. el fiArroi, "if now," "if indeed." The particle /ueVnu, besides its common adversative force, "but," "nevertheless" (so Prov. 5 i6 > " 22> 26", Jn. 4 " 7 " 1 2 " 20* 2 1 , 2 Tim. 2"), has a "confirmative" meaning, as a strengthened hardly to be translated. In such cases it indicates an implied contrast, which appears in the present instance in the correlative 84 of v. Cf. Jude 8, and see Kuhner-Gerth, Grammalik der griech. Sprocket § 503, 3, g. 4
tt
4
v6fwv fiaaiXucdp, "the royal law." wfyw means the Law of God, as known to the readers through the Christian interpreta tion of the O. T . The article is probably omitted because W / w is treated as a quasi-proper noun, as in 2 » 4 ; cf. Xrfyo?, Jas. j a, si U
1 1
1 1
a
Most take the "royal law" to be identical with the 7/00^17 (legum regina) quoted immediately. But vdfios is not used in the sense of cvroXq (cf. Mt. 2 2 " irola ivroXr) fieydXr) iv ra vdiup), and it is therefore better to take ftaaiXucdv as a deco rative epithet describing the law as a whole, of which the fol lowing precept is a part. The expression Kara rfjv ypwfyqv KTX. implies, indeed, that the perfect observance of this pre cept covers the observance of the whole law, as in Mk. 1 2 ' , Rom. 1 3 , Gal. 5 , cf. Lev. 1 9 , Jn. 1 5 " . 1
8
14
18
I t is thus not necessary to make an unnatural distinction between v6u.o<; here and in v . » .
^aaikiK6v i. e. "supreme." Cf. Philo, De justttia, 4 ftaaiXiKT)V 8k elcoOev bvoy£%eiv Mwvcrrp 686v rrjv fi4ar)V De congress, erud. grat. 1 0 ; 4 Mace. 1 4 . The term either goes back to the tradition that kings are supreme sovereigns, or else is drawn from the use of fiaaChtvs to mean the Roman emperor. i
F
2
At the same time there may be here an allusion to the Stoic conception of the wise as "kings," parallel to the lurking allu sion in 1 to the conception of the wise as alone "free." The Law of Christians is alone fit for " kings." Cf. the similar appli cation of the word fiao-ikucck in Clem. Al. Strom, vi, 18, p. 825; vii, 12, p. 876, and the other passages quoted by Mayor , p. 90; also 1 Pet. 2 . See Knowling's good note, p. 49, Zahn, Einleis 6
8
9
n,
199
8-10
tung i, § 6, note i, and for the Stoic paradox the references in Zeller, Philosophic der Griechen , III, i, p. 256, note 5. As in i , so here, the attribute of the law is decorative and suggestive only; it is not meant specifically to distinguish the true law from some other inferior one. f
4
15
The
interpretation of p<x
Christ) has nothing to recommend it.
E q u a l l y little has Calvin's in
genious reference to "the king's h i g h w a y / '
"plana scilicet, recta, et
cequabilis." TTJV ypcufrfp, f. e. "passage of Scripture" (Lev. 1 9 " ) ; cf. Mk. 1 2 , Jn. 1 9 " , Lightfoot on Gal. 3 " . rbv TrKqcCov. Properly "neighbour," in L X X for Hebrew JH,"friend," "fellow countryman," or "other person" generally, and so, under the influence of the teaching of Jesus (Lk. io *-* ), equivalent to 0 ft-e/w (cf. especially Rom. 1 3 ' 15*). 10
k
2
s
7
1 0
K
9 . afiaprlav ipyd&trde, cf. i and note. Such conduct is sin, directly forbidden by the law, and hence cannot be excused as a fulfilment of the royal law. X ikey)(6fiepoi irrrb rod v6pov. Cf. Lev. 1 9 ov XTJ/A^J; Trp6a<*TTOP irrtoypv ovSk davftdaei? wpScomov hwdxrrov, iv hucatoaivy KpiPeis rbv TrXqciov GOV, Deut. i i6 . 10. &rrt? . . . rqpriar}, with av omitted. Cf. Burton, Moods and Tenses, 307, Blass-Debrunner, § 380. 1 6
17
T^pW
B X C minn
)
ff
19
^
1
T T j p ^ j t t ] K L P minnp " J xX^p&rt t] A minn. xXi)p**j«<; TTjpTjott] 33. ftXfffti] minn, cf. v. T h e future is probably an emendation called out b y the absence of dfv. 1
T h e same thing has happened to xra(
T h e synonyms, and the conflation in 33, are interesting. 1 1
irrauTT), in sense of "sin," Rom. n", Jas. 3', cf. Deut. 7 . See M . Aur. Anton, vii, 22 Xhiov avOpovirov faXeiv peal rois irraSjovrw;, Maximus Tyr. Diss. 26 rk avi)p ayadbs a>9 SteXOciv fitov cnrra&TTGX; iv ep( "in one point," neuter, since vdfws is not used of single precepts. }
JAMES
200
irdvrwv evoyos. iravr&v is neuter, and the genitive, as in classical Greek, denotes the crime. This is a rhetorical way of saying that he is a transgressor of "the law as a whole" (irapa^drr^ vdfwv, v. ) , not of all the precepts in it. u
For similar emphasis on the several individual precepts which make up the law,
cf.
M t . 5", and especially Test. X I I Patr.
Aser
2*-»
(Charles's translation): "Another stealeth, doeth unjustly, piundereth, defraudeth, and withal pitieth the poor: this too hath a twofold aspect, but the whole is evil.
H e who defraudeth his neighbour provoketh
G o d , and sweareth falsely against the M o s t H i g h , and yet pitieth the poor: the Lord who commandeth the law he setteth at nought and provoketh, and yet he refresheth the poor.
H e defiieth the soul and
maketh gay the b o d y ; he killeth many, and pitieth a f e w : this too hath a twofold aspect, but the whole is evil.
Another
committeth
adultery and fornication, and abstaineth from meats, and when he fatteth he doeth evil, and b y the power of his wealth overwhelmeth m a n y ; and notwithstanding his excessive wickedness he doeth commandments: evil.
the
this, too, hath a twofold aspect, but the whole is
Such men are hares; for they are half clean, but in very deed
are unclean.
For G o d in the tables of the commandments hath thus
declared." T h e roots of this verse evidently b'e in rabbinical modes of empha sising the importance of certain special precepts and of every precept. T h u s Shemoth rabba 25 fin., " T h e Sabbath weighs against all the precepts"; Shabbath, 70, 2, " I f he do all, but omit one, he is guilty for all severally."
SchSttgen and Wetstein give many sayings of sim
ilar tenor from rabbinical writings of various dates. Augustine,
Ep.
167
ad Hier.,
draws a comparison with the Stoic doc
trine of the solidarity of virtues and vices.
T h e Stoic doctrine is that
virtue is an indivisible whole, a man is either virtuous or vicious.
The
wise (or virtuous) is free from fault, the foolish (or vicious) does no right act; hence Taot T «
&\uxprinurcot
x a l T& xaTopfkopurca.
T h e character of
every act depends on the controlling inner purpose and disposition. See Zeller,
Philosophic dor Gricchen*,
dant references.
i n , i, p p . 251-263, with abun
This doctrine has plainly nothing to do with that of
James. ,8
,5
11, f i t } l i D i x e v t r r f ; . . . f i r }
n
7
n, 10-13 1
201
1
C rmnnpwK* syr* " arm have conformed the text to the usual order b y putting murder
first.
I n the following sentence this is done b y
minnp*q«« arm.
ob ftoixeveis. oi follows the regular N. T. usage in present simple conditions. Cf. Buttmann, § 148; Burton, § 469; J. H. Moulton, Prolegomena, pp. 1 7 0 / . ; Winer, § 55, 2, c (where it is said that el oi makes the negative emphatic). Here, since the negative belongs only to a part of the protasis (paixeveft) and not to the rest (faveveis), oi is in any case necessary. 12-13. General exhortation to remember the Judgment, which is the sanction of the law; together with special inculcation of the precept of mercy, violated by their respect of persons. 12. X a X e t T e , 7roieire cf i > , a section which seems to be in mind in this summarising exhortation. The collocation is very common, e. g. Test. X I I Patr. Gad 6 , cf. Acts i 7 iv Xrfyo# xal Ipyoi? avrov (and commentaries), 1 Jn. 3 , and Lex. s. v. epyov, 3. Bid vdpov eXjevOepCas, "under the law of liberty." Cf. i » ; Sid here indicates the "state or condition in which one does or suffers something"; see Lex. s. v. Bid, A. I. 2; cf. e. g. Rom. 2" Bid vdpov KpiOricovrai. 13. ydp introduces the reason why the sin of respect of persons will be punished with special severity. It involves a breach of the law of mercy, and that has as its consequence unmerciful punishment. dveXeos. Found only here for the usual avriXer)?, a v e X ^ , but regularly formed from the noun !\tf>?; see Moulton and Milligan, Vocabulary of the Greek Testament. 19
u
f
1
1
a
1 8
L minnp
wmtt
read faCku*;. 1
On the thought, cf. Mt. 5* 6" 7 i8"-», Ps. 18"' Ecclus. 28* -, Test. X I I Patr. Zab. 5 and 8. Jer. Baba q. viii, 10, "Every time that thou art merciful, God will be merciful to thee; and if thou art not merciful, God will not show mercy to thee," Rosh hash. 17 a, "To whom is sin pardoned? to him who forgives injury." Karaxavxarai IXeos Kpfoeay;, " mercy boasts over (or against) ff
202
JAMES
judgment." 2Xeo9 is human mercy shown in practise, tepurew is God's condemnatory judgment, cf. Jas. 5", Jn. 5*. This gives the converse of the previous sentence. As the unmerciful will meet with no mercy, so a record of mercy will prevent con demnation. Cf. 5 » and Ecclus. 3 * 40 , Tob. 4*-". The doc trine (and need) of God's forgiving mercy is here assumed in regular Jewish fashion. 17
On the great importance ascribed to mercy as a virtue in Jewish thought, see Bousset,
Religion des Judentums',
p p . 162 / .
T h e contrast of God's opposing attributes of mercy and justice does not seem to be in mind here.
T h e contrast of lX*o<; and xplot<; is a
natural one, and is found in both Greek and Jewish sources, cf. D i o g . Laert. ii, 3% references to Bereshith r. in Wetstein, and the references in Spitta, p. 70, note 6. 1 4
xtrroxaux&rat is found elsewhere only in Jas. 3 , R o m . n io",
Jer.
50(27]".
5o[27]" x a T t x a u x & a O t
&iatpxa£ovT*s
I t does not occur in secular writers.
1 1
, Zech.
*ri)v xXrjpovoyibv
jiou,
1 Cor. 1 5 " well illus
trates the meaning of this word. 1
xarraxatuxarai] B (—rt) tfKL minn? ** ff m v g A u g boh. xoraxauxooHto] A 33 minn**™. h
xarcacxauxaaGt] C* s y r ^ . x a r a x a u x & a f a is insufficiently error,
attested and is probably due to an
x o r r o x a u x & a f o is the harder reading, b u t the group A 33 points
to an emendation. !Xto<; xpfotdx;] C K L minn read IXtov xpfotuc.
Since
the
accusa
tive yields no sense, this must have been understood as t o I X c o v , attested b y Ps.-Herodian,
Epimerismoi,
ed. Boissonade, 1810, p . 235,
and not found elsewhere.
14-26. Neither does the possession of Faith give any license to dispense with good works. This touches another case of substitution of a sham for the reality; cf. *• 2* '•. As an excuse, faith is worth no more than love. The fundamental idea of a warning against sham is common enough to all moralists. The special interest here is that James makes his contrast not between, e. g., sayings and doings, but between two terms important in Christian thought, viz., faith 1 8
n, 13-14 and works, and that in the course of his argument he uses other theological terms and reveals an acquaintance with many diverse theological conceptions and modes of thought. 14* Faith, if it does not lead to good works, is impotent to save. T( bfxXos, cf. v . , 1 Cor. 1 5 " , and (rk ixfxXta) Ecclus. 20* 4 1 , Job 2 1 . 6
14
16
oftXos] B C * 102; cf. v. »• (sine *6, B C * ) , 1 Cor. 15'* (sine-cl, TO fytXos] tfAOKL mfnnfw* o«a probably emendation.
DFG).
>
1
afckfot pov. Marks a new paragraph, cf. 2 , etc. irCortv, Introduced without the article as a new idea; cf. rj irlans, v . , and i » » . 1 5
a
e
1
6
8
lA
11
4
15
16
1
Cf. i » 2 * » ' s . Faith (cf. especially 2 ) is here assumed to be the fundamental attitude of the Christian adherent, which makes him a Christian. No ground exists for thinking that this assumption was, or could be, doubted by any one. All Christians (cf. TTUTTOI, "believers," Acts 1 6 , 2 Cor. 6 , 1 Tim, 5") have faith, and James uses the term, without any attempt at the formation of an exact psychological concept of the con tents of faith, merely as the ordinary term familiar to all for a well-known inner state. The cases of the demons, Abraham, and Rahab all present an analogy to Christian faith which, while inadequate, is yet valuable for argument—the more so that Abraham and Rahab were recognised on all hands to have been "justified." 1
16
Xefyp, "say," in presenting his claim to be approved of men and of God. So 1 " pnSeU Xeyerco, cf. 2 . This word is not to be too much emphasised, as if it meant "pretend," and as if doubt were seriously thrown on the man's actual possession of faith. The inadequate and empty "faith" which produces no 8
204
JAMES
works may be hardly worthy of the name, but it is not necessa rily a deliberate hypocrisy. The contrast is not between saying Q^yrf) and doing (Ipya kxo)y as it was in i between hearing and doing; it is rather between mere adherence to Christianity and conduct, or between church-membership and life (irCcmv exew, epya e^co*). e>ya, cf. i". n
2py(L seems here a recognised term for "good deeds." Cf. Mt. S 23 , Rom. 2 , Jn. 3 * Tit. i , etc, etc., where ra Ipya means "conduct," which is made up of an infinite number of separate 2py&. For the use of the word in moral relations, cf. Prov. 24" £9 cnroh&Qxnv hccump Kara rd k*pya avrov, Ps. 62", Apoc. Bar. 5 1 "saved by their works," 4 Ezra 7 " , Pirke Aboth, iii, 1 4 ; iv, 15, and many other passages referred to by Spitta, pp. 16
s
e
16
7
72-76. 7 7
On the expression Ipya hx^iv, irUmv hxetv, cf. 4 Ezra 7 g i 2 j ^ j i "even such as have works and faith toward the Al mighty," Apoc. Bar. 1 4 " (the righteous) "have with them a store of works preserved in treasuries." The Zpya. here do not appear as specifically Ipya. v6pov\ the word merely denotes conduct as contrasted with faith. This contrast cannot be original with this writer (cf. 4 Ezra g 13 '). The contrast of faith and works will appear wherever faith is held to be the fundamental characteristic of the true members of the religious community, while at the same time a body of laws regulating conduct is set forth as binding. It is inevitable that by some, whether in practise or in theory, the essential underlying unity of the two absolute requirements will be over looked and one or the other regarded as sufficient. This will always call out protests like that of James, who represents the sound and sensible view that not one only but both of these requirements must be maintained. 7
s
In the discussions of the Apostle Paul the contrast is the same in terms, but its real meaning is different and peculiar. Paul's lofty repudiation of "works" has nothing but the name in com mon with the attitude of those who shelter their deficiencies of conduct under the excuse of having faith. Paul's contrast was
n, 14
205
a novel one, viz. between the works of an old and abandoned system and the faith of a newly adopted one. His teaching was really intended to convey a doctrine of forgiveness. Our author, on the other hand, with nothing either of Paul's subtlety or of his mystical insight into the act of faith and glorification of faith's contents, is led to draw the more usual contrast between the faith and works which are both deemed necessary under the same system. Hence, while faith is the same thing with both—an objective fact of the Christian life, the works of which they speak are different—in one case the con duct required by the Jewish law, in the other that demanded by Christian ethics. That the two in part coincided does not make them the same. One was an old and abandoned fail ure, impotent to secure the salvation which it was believed to promise, the other was the system of conduct springing from and accompanying a new life. But this distinction, while it makes plain that James is not controverting what Paul meant, yet does not insure the full agreement of James and Paul, for Paul, although he would have heartily admitted the inadequacy of a faith which does not show itself in works, would never have admitted that justifica tion comes if; epyw. James has simply not learned to use Paul's theology, and betrays not the slightest comprehension of the thought of Paul about faith and the works of the Law. The contrast between reliance on membership in the religious community and on conduct is as old as Amos and the Hebrew prophets, and comes out in the words of John the Baptist, and of Jesus in the Synoptics and John. All that James adds to these is the term "faith," to denote the essential element in the membership, and then an elaborate discussion in which the terms and instances of later Jewish theology are freely employed. The use (see below) of the same formula which Paul seems to have created indicates that Paul had preceded James, but it is plain that James had made no study of Paul's epistles, and these formulas may have come to his knowledge without his having read Paul's writings, which, we must remember, the Book of Acts does not even mention. See Introduction, supra, pp. 3 5 / .
206
S
JAKES
p)) SvvaraL ij irlons
n
1
(and note) 4 *
This question is presented as if it admitted of but one an swer, and that a self-evident one. 1 6 - 1 7 . Illustration from the emptiness of words of charity as a substitute for deeds. This is not, like the closely similar verses, 2* -, a concrete in stance of James's contention, but a little parable; for another parable to the same purport, cf. 2". The illustration is ab ruptly introduced, as in 3"* The comparison has itself a moral significance, and the same thought is found in other literature, e.g. Plautus, Epid. 1 1 6 / . nam quid le igitur rettulit beneficum esse otatione si ad rem auxilium emortuomst? f
15. &v] BX 33 6 9 minn ff m. tev li] A C K L minn**** v g syr*-*-
&v -rip] sah.
yvfjafoC, "naked," in the sense of "insufficiently clad"; cf. Job 22* "stripped the naked of their clothing," Is. 20 ** 58*, Jn. 2 1 (without the brevSvTr)?), Mt. 2 5 " Acts 1 9 ; see ref erences in L. and S. The plural after singular subjects connected by v is in ac cord with the occasional usage of good Greek writers. See Hadley-Allen, § 608; Blass-Debrunner, § 135. Buttmann and Blass ascribe the plural here to the fact that the two nouns are of different genders, but this is not the case in all the examples from secular Greek. £
7
1 8
207
n, 14-17
pApov Tp<xfnfc. Other extracts may be found in Mayor*, p. 97, and Field, Notes on the Translation of the New Testament, 1899, pp. 2 3 6 / . 16. irrrdr/erc iv clpyvn, "good bye," a Jewish expression; cf. Acts i 6 " , Mk. 5", Lk. 7*, Judg. i8«, 1 Sam. i 20", 2 Sam. 5 * > f- J- Friedmann, Der geseUschafUiche Verkehr und die Umgangsformeln in talmudischer Zeit, Berlin, 1914, p. 34. depfuitveade teal j(pprd^€O'0€, The context requires that these be taken as passive; and, indeed, in order to say "warm and feed yourselves" it would be necessary in the late usage of the N. T. to use the active with a reflexive pronoun, vpds avrov?, lavrov?; cf. e. g. i irapaXoyityptvoi iaxnoxs. Cf, Blass-Debrunner, § 310. 17
x
c
M
T h a t dcpfiafveiv was commonly used of the effect of warm clothes i s shown b y Job 3 1 * , H a g . i « , b u t also b y Plut.
Qwest, conviv.
vi, 6,
p . 691 D , and a curious passage (quoted b y Wetstein) in which Galen
(De vir. medic, simpl. ii)
criticises the common neglect of writers to
observe the distinction between that which merely
warms
and that which
keeps off the cold.
SSrre, plural after T19, which is treated as a kind of collective. See Hadley-AUen, § 609 a; Kriiger, § 58, 4, A. 5. rd Artr^&eta, " the necessaries of life." Not elsewhere in the N. T . ; occasionally in L X X , but with no corresponding Hebrew word. «9tXo<;l
sine
T6 B C * ;
cf.
v.»«.
17, ovrw, making the application of the parable, cf. Lk. 1 5
10
10
17 .
idv fit) fyy %py&, cf. w . ^ " ij irlarv; x&pk [r&v] Ipytov. Faith is said to "have" works, perhaps in the sense of "at tendance or companionship" (Lex. s. v. e#o> I, 2, c). vexpd, cf. v. * . The two things which are opposed are not faith and works (as with Paul) but a living faith and a dead faith. The dead faith is also called apyrj (v."°); cf. i pAraws. It is not denied that faith can exist without works, but it is the wrong kind of faith. On the figurative use of ve/cpfa for "inactive and useless," 8
M
208
JAMES 1X
X
14
Rom. 6 7«, Heb. 6 9 , cf. Epict. Diss, iii, 23" xal firjv av ^ ravra (sc. a conviction of sin) ip7roij} 6 TOV qhXocotyov V€Kp6$ ion xal avTo<; /cal 6 X^yaw. ica0' iavrtfv, "in itself" (R.V.), strengthens ve/cpd, "inwardly dead"; not merely hindered from activity, but defective in its own power to act; see 2 Mace. i 3 , Acts 28 , Rom. 1 4 , and secular references in Lex. s. v. Kara, II, 1, e, cf. Gen. 3 0 43". u
16
1 1
40
Of the various renderings proposed the only other one deserving mention is that of Grotius and others, who give it this meaning of " b y itself," "alone" (ff being alone."
sola),
but interpret, "faith without works is dead,
This involves a tautology, and in strictness
would
require the addition of the participle o5<wt.
18. A possible rejoinder in behalf of the censured persons, and its refutation. Supposed bringer of excuses: "One has pre-eminently faith, another has pre-eminently works." James: " A live faith and works do not exist sepa rately." dXX' ipet rt?. An objection or defense suggested, as in i 2 - . For the half-dialogue form, cf. Rom. 9 n , 1 Cor. 1 5 " aWd ipel Tt?, 4 Mace. 2 , Ep. Barn. 9*, and innumerable pas sages in the Greek moralists. See Introduction, supra, p. 12. i a
8
11
19
1 9
14
dicat), Grec du N. T.,
T h e future here "denotes a merely supposable case" ( L a t . Winer, § 40, b , p. 280; Buttmann, § 139, 1 8 ; Viteau,
Le vcrbe, § 43. Cf. H e b . 1 1 " . In reply to the censure upon those who rely on faith and neglect conduct, it is here suggested that one person has faith (cf. 1 Cor. 1 2 erepo? irUrrvi iv T
The objector's words are contained in one sentence;
then
n, 17-18
209
James replies with Selfiv pjoi tcr\. This sentence is evidently from the point of view of w . , and is intended flatly and comprehensively to deny that faith and works are separate gifts, like, for instance, prophecy and healing.
f
ad cannot be made to refer to James (1) because James is contend ing not for faith but for works, and (2) because James's personality has u p to this point been so little prominent (the first person has been only used in the conventional address
iltk^oi
JJLOU), that some clear indi
cation of such a direct contrast between him and the objector would be expected, at least ipet rt<;
ipol
instead of Ipel TI<;.
For a similar usage cf. the quotation from Bion in a fragment of the 1
Cynic Teles (ed. Hense , p p . 5 / . , from Stobaeus,
Anihol.
iii, 1, 98 [Mein.
v , 6 7 ] ) , jif) o3v (JoGXou 5iuxepoX6yo<;
jxiv apx«tS xaXdi?,
fci
apxonat, firjal (sc. b
B(d)v), xal a& ytlv xoXXwv, iyw &i iv6<; TOUTOUI xaioaYwyoc yevoiievos, x a l aO tiiv *8xopo<; YSV6^L«VO<; SQut; iXeuBepfrtK, lyu xapd aoG o&x UTOT(TT(I>V o65i d-]few{fyi>v
8& Xau.f&vci> e&Oapau?
(xe(&^t(jiotpO)V.
Teles (c. 230 B . C . ) , quoting his predecessor Bion, is urging that every man must play the part that Fortune assigns him, and says: "If, then, you are a second-class actor, don't envy the role of the first-class player. If you do, you will commit blunders.
Y o u are a ruler, I am a subject
(says [Bion]); you have many under you, I , as a tutor, but this o n e ; and you grow prosperous and give generously, while I cheerfully receive from you without fawning or degrading myself or complaining." I t is to be noted that in the first sentence from Teles 06 is the man with the inferior actor's part, while in the rest of the passage 06 is the more prosperous man, in contrast to the speaker, who modestly pre sents himself as the representative of lesser worldly fortune.
This is
not unlike the w a y in which James (see below) fails to preserve strictly the roles of his fragmentary dialogue. O n the "ideal" second person in Greek (equivalent to TN;), see Gildersleeve,
Syntax of Classical Greek,
i, 1900, p. 4 1 , with many examples.
e^€w. To be taken as an affirmation not a question, and e^e* are manifestly parallel.
fyw
2IO
JAMES
ITUTTVP means rrUrrvv gapi? r&p Ipytop, or, at least, with a minimum of *py . Ipya is Ipya with a minimum of trior vs. octroy, "show," "prove," "demonstrate," cf. Jas. 3". Here begins the reply addressed to the objector. James replies, first, by a challenge to the objector to produce a case of faith stand ing by itself without accompanying works. This challenge rests on the assumption that such a "dead" faith is really no faith at all. James, however, does not pursue that aspect of the mat ter, but proceeds, secondly (/cayd> aoi &^a>), with the converse of the first challenge, in the form of an offer to show that any case of works supposed to stand by themselves without under lying faith is merely deceptive and really implies a co-existent faith. On the form of expression, by challenge and offer, cf. Theoph. Ad A idol, i, 2 Seifjdp pjoi TOP avOpanrov ovv tcayw 001 Se^co TOP Oeop poVj Epictet. i, 6 iy
TT
xwpfc] BfctACP minn ff vg boh sah syr***10
1 u
ix] K L minn *** P .
arm.
A n unfortunate conformation to the follow
ing clause, which spoils the sense. I t is interesting that in the English A . V . the influence of the Vulgate
(sine)
led to the rendering "without," which is not a correct translation
of the Received Greek Text, which reads
ix.
1
%u>pk T6V ipYov] C K L minn* " add sou, doubtless part of the same emendation which produced ix.
icayd) cot Sel^co. "From the very existence of righteous con duct the fact of faith can be demonstrated, for without faith I could not do the works." Note the elegant construction of this sentence in which the chiastic order rrtcmv—lpytop Ipyuv -—rrloriv well corresponds to the natural emphasis. f
x&fti
cot St^w] Btf minn.
xiyd) 5e^o> aot] A C K L
minn vg.
A weakening
conformation
to
order of preceding 8et£6v u.oi.
ix T&V Ipiftov jiou] ff vg syr*» text of the preceding clause.
o1
omit t « u , b y a conformation to their
211 «{
h
xlartv iwu] A K L P minnp ^ vg boh sah syr**** « * .
Conformation to
TJJV X.OTIY SOU.
T h e interpretations of this difficult verse are very numerous and for the most part highly subtle and unsatisfactory.
T h e interpretation
Novum Testomentum*, 1816, and b y H . Bouman, Commentarius perpetuus in Jacobi epistolam Utrecht, 1865, differs from others in taking ad and iy& in presented above, which was given b y Pott in Koppe's
t
the defense as referring merely to two representatives of different types of religion, not to the writer of the epistle and the objector himself. Thereby one of the chief difficulties of the exegesis is overcome, namely, the difficulty that ad and if & in the objection ( v . » * ) do not suit well the corresponding
ly.o(, pwu, and cou, 001,
> b
in the retort of James ( v . » ) .
W i t h any other mode of interpretation it seems impossible to gain a satisfactory sense from the passage. T h e interpretations are divided into two main groups, according as dXV
igtl
(1) as interposing a reply in defense of the ten
TI<; is taken l
dency censured in w . * -
1 7
, or (2) as introducing the reinforcement of
an ally who adds his word in the same contention as that of James. L
TIC as an objector.
This interpretation (which I adopt) finds its support chiefly in the argument used above, that this is the only natural meaning of the phrase &Xk' £pel TIC in such a context.
Under this view the words introduced
b y iptl will not extend beyond Ix&>, v . » » » , for ott£ov XTX. is evidently spoken in the interest of James's main contention.
A s to how the
words ( " ») can express an objection, and what that objection is, opin ions have been various.
T h e first and most obvious difficulty in this
view has always been that the objector seems to declare that James has faith, while the objector himself has works.
T h a t would reverse
their respective parts, and the difficulty has been met in three ways. 1. Since the objection is quoted b y James, ad is taken as if from James's point of view and £fd> as if referring to James: " B u t someone will say, ' T h o u (i. e. the representative of the class just censured) hast faith, while I (James) have w o r k s . ' "
This is taken either ( a ) as a de
fense of the class censured, on the ground that several types of religion are alike admissible, or (b) as an attack upon James, who is declared to have only works (which are inferior to faith), whereas the person attacked has faith, the superior quality (so Weiss).
T o this, under
either form, ( a ) or ( 6 ) , James replies that faith cannot exist alone. Both these explanations are exposed to the fatal difficulty that the objection of the defender is given in direct discourse (as, e. g. in 2«) so t
that if <*> cannot possibly refer to James; the interpretation of Weiss is exposed to the further, equally fatal, objection that it is impos sible to suppose that James could have introduced, in the mouth of a
JAMES
212
supposititious defender, such an insulting personal attack on himself. T h e rhetorical device of the objector's defense is very characteristic of Greek popular moral exhortation of this period, and is always adopted solely in order to state vividly a possible point of view, in itself not wholly unreasonable, but liable to the crushing rejoinder with which the author follows it.
I t must be assumed as intended to aid, not to
hinder, the development of the main contention.
T o withdraw the
reader's mind from the main subject b y raising the question of the author's own character and principles would be a strangely inept turn. Moreover, for Weiss's view the precise bearing of the attack (through the supposed inferiority of works to faith) would have to be more clearly expressed.
James nowhere lays himself open to the accusation that he
thinks works can exist without faith. 2 . A second w a y of meeting the difficulty is that of von Soden, W H .
mg.,
and others, who take
txjttq
as a question, b y which doubt is ex
pressed of James's possession of faith; thus:
James: "Faith without works is dead." Opponent: "Hast thou any faith?" James: " I have works. Show me thy faith
without works, and I
will prove that I have faith." Apart from the fact that this interpretation gives the passage too much the character of personal debate, with an
argument urn ad hominem,
to suit the style proper to general hortatory moral writing, this theory fails because it does violence to the Greek.
For ( a ) , in order to call in
question James's faith, the opponent would have had to say ^ c
*X«K'» ( f-
v
£• «
weak and unnatural, of <j0 §x«<;> *4r&
o-d T f c m v
T h e present form of the question would be wholly
*x<»>,
(b) T h e theory neglects the obvious parallelism in which the presence of xoc( and the lack of any
sufficient introduction to the second part make it impossible to assume that we have a question and answer. 3.
(a) I n
Urckristentum, (Journal ofBibl. Literature, Katholieke Brieven, 1904, p . 42, have
despair of any other solution, Pfleiderer,
*i887, p. 874; »ioo2, ii, p. 547; E . Y . Hincks xviii, 1809, PP- 190-201), Baljon,
declared the text corrupt, and propose to read against all M s s . (except the Latin Codex Corbeiensis [ff], the reading of which is admittedly a l
secondary correction) 06 lpY« lx« S * 4 y & *(
I n the text as re
constructed each gift will be assigned to the right person, faith to the opponent, works to James. But (1) this reconstruction of the text is too violent a procedure to be acceptable so long as any other explanation can be found, and (2) the resulting text is unsatisfactory.
For James's own character and
principles have not been in question, and to represent the defender as
213 here drawing a sharp contrast specifically between James and himself is to make the words amount to an attack on James.
T h u s this solu
tion is exposed to the same objections as that of Weiss already discussed. ( b ) Of the same violent sort is the suggestion of Spitta, followed b y Hollmann, that the objection originally introduced b y deXX' [ i p t l
xi$
has fallen out, so that originally a& xfortv &X8«; constituted the first words of James's rejoinder. B u t such a rejoinder, in which the writer declares that he possesses these highly prized works, would be very unnatural, to say nothing of the fact that James would not have admitted voluntarily and gratu itously that his own faith required proof.
A n d Spitta's attempt
to
reconstruct the objection introduced b y fpel Tt<; is weak ( " A u s dem Fehlen gewisser W e r k e k6nne nicht geschlossen werden, der Glaube sei nicht lebendig, und die Werke, auf welche Jakobus poche, kdnnten den Mangel der xfcm<; nicht ersetzen," p . 79). Hollmann's attempt is equally unconvincing: " Allein d a wird jemand sagen: [ W a s ntitzen W e r k e ohne Glauben? D u hast Glauben und ich habe W e r k e ? (in J. Weiss,
Schriftcn des N. T.
Ich aber habe Glauben!]
Zeige mir deinen G l a u b e n "
ii, 1908, p. 10).
4. T h e interpretation defended above is not open to any of these objections. I L Ttq as an ally. T h e unsatisfactoriness of the more usual of the interpretations above described has led a second group of interpreters to take the sentence introduced b y iXX' IpeT ««<; as coming not from an opponent but from a third party, who is an ally of James.
T h e sentence 06 xfortv fx«<;
xdqrd) Ipya l ^ w is then taken to be merely the introduction, establish ing a basis for argument, while &el£6v (i.ot xxX. contains the real gist of the utterance of TI<;: " N a y , someone will say, ' T h o u (the person censured b y James) hast, or art supposed to have, faith, while I (the ally of James now speaking) really have works; in fact thy faith (since it cannot be demonstrated b y works) is not only dead but practically non-existent, while m y recognized works prove that I have faith as weUV " W h e r e the quotation from the imaginary ally stops is less easy to determine, and that is not very important, since in most forms of this theory the point of view of the ally and of James are identical. r
m a k e it stop with v. end of v. " .
Some
others carry the interjected remarks on to the
This latter view has the great disadvantage of separating
the example of A b r a h a m from the parallel instance of R a h a b . 1. Under the more common form of this view ( D e W e t t e , Beyschlag, M a y o r ) the interrupting TI<; is thought of as another Christian; dXXd is taken as like
immo veto (ef. Jn.
f
1 6 , Phil. x", L k . 12* 1 6 " ) ;
<x& xfortv
is given the meaning " thou pretendest to have faith," a pretense which is shown to be false in the sentence &cl£6v pot XTX.
2 I
JAMES
4
B u t the natural sense of dXX' Ipct
is too clear to permit here this
meaning of dXXd; and it is not justifiable to make Exetc equivalent to W T « S *X«w.
Further, the introduction of an ally, representing
the
same point of view, is wholly uncalled for, and cannot be accounted for on the ground either of "modesty" ( M a y o r ) or of "dramatic vivid ness" (Beyschlag). context.
I t would have to be made more obvious b y the
James cannot thus boast of works, nor has he occasion to
defend himself against any charge of lack of faith.
This interpretation,
although widely held, cannot be accepted. 2 . A more plausible form of this theory, or rather an important a d vance upon it, is the interpretation of Zahn
(Einleitung,
based upon the view of Hofmann and Stier.
Zahn accepts the view that
i, § 4, note 4),
t w is a kind of ally, but finds that the only ally that would suit the conditions is an unbelieving Jew, whose supposed words run through v. * » : " N a y , if you maintain your practices, some Jew will say, "Thou, as a Christian, hast thy faith, and I , as a Jew, m y works; but thy con duct gives the lie to thy professions of faith, whereas my conduct shows that I have all the faith a man needs. than that of the demons.' " most other interpretations.
T h y vaunted faith is no more
This is concrete and has advantages over B u t the difficulty remains that dXX' iptl T t c
is more naturally taken as introducing not a reinforcement of James's position, but an objection or defense of those censured.
Further, in
the general style of this epistle (which is not a true letter addressed to a definite body of readers) such a reference to Jewish Christian argu ment would have to be made more explicit and clear.
A n d , finally,
there is no evidence that faith and works were ever the accepted party cries of Jews and Christians.
O n the contrary, faith characterised the
Jew, and not Ipya b u t v6jio<; and xtptTou^ were what he claimed as his distinction, cf. R o m . o > •, Phil. 3*. indicated in v .
1 V
A n d the content of faith, as
, is a monotheism which Jew and Christian shared.
If faith, as such, were here thought of as that which
distinguishes
Christian from Jew, v.*• could not possibly have been written. Similar is the view of £ . H a u p t
(Studien und Kritiken, vol.
lvi, 1883,
p . 187), who substitutes a non-christian moralist for the Pharisaic Jew. This is open to the same objections as Zahn's view, and to the additional one that, especially in Palestine, the defender of "mere morality" seems less appropriate in such a tract than the polemical Jew. For criticism of various views, besides the commentaries see Holtzmann,
Lehrb. d. neutest. Theologie*,
1 9 1 1 , ii, p . 374, note 2.
19-26. Argument from the instances of the demons and of Abraham and Rahab. (a) v . . Faith by itself can be exerted by demons. (b) w . * - . In Abraham's case, faith had to be com pleted by works in order to secure justification. 1 9
>
14
n, 18-19
"5
, s
(c) v . . Likewise Rahab was justified by works. (d) v . . Thus faith without works is dead. 19. Faith (even the supreme faith in One God) can be ex erted by demons, who are not thereby saved. James, after refuting the excuse of the objector, proceeds with his main argument. The point made in v . is in support of the original proposition of w . » , that faith without works is dead; v . is thus an argument parallel to that of w . - . 7r«rrev€i?. Perhaps better taken as affirmation than (Tdf. WH.) as question. bri eU t9cos lartv. This, the existence and unity of God, is doubtless thought of as the chief element in faith, but it is going too far to represent it as including the whole of James's conception of faith. Cf. the emphasis on monotheism (with reference to Christ added) in 1 Cor. 8 » Eph. 4*, 1 Thess. i . M
1 9
14
11
1 9
1§
4
1§
8
T h e emphasis on monotheism as the prime article of the Jewish creed is to b e seen in the Shema ( D e u t . 6 « ) , " H e a r , O Israel, the L o r d our G o d is one L o r d " (cf. M k . 1 2 " ) , and may be illustrated from Philo,
De opif. mundi, 6 1 ; De nobUUate, Religion des Judentums, ch. 15.
5;
Leg. ad Gaium,
16.
See Bousset,
That a strong perception of the fundamental and distinctive significance of monotheism passed over into the early church may be illustrated from Hermas, Mand. i, trpSrrov Trdrrw ITUTrevaov &ri eh iartv 6 Beds; it was not peculiar to Jewish Christians. Cf. Harnack, Mission und AusbreUung des Christenhints, Buch ii, Kap. 9. fret
tU &tfc<;
lortvl B C
(b 6t6<;)
minn* ff PriscilL
1
8TI •!<; iortv 6 8e6<;] fctA min vg. 8TI
&
0tb<; tU loriv] K L
Ur
minn»» .
Some other minor variations in a few minuscules are due to the omission of the article before 9c6<;.
T h e Latin versions a r e :
ff quia unus deus; Priscillian quia unus deus est; vg quoniam unus est deus. T h e text of K L has probably put b 8c6< first in order to give it a more emphatic position.
A s between the other two readings, that of B is
less conventional (see M a y o r ' s note, p. 100), hence more likely to be original.
T h e parallel 4 " probably exhibits the same tendency, for
2J.6
JAMES
there also the reading of B (with P , which is here lacking) is probably right as against an emender who inserted the article. 8
KOXW 7TOiets, cf. v . , xaKas TTOUZTC. "This is good as far
as it goes," perhaps said with a slight touch of irony, as in Mk. yK rd Saifufput. The evil spirits whose presence and power is so often referred to in the Gospels; cf. 3". This is better than to think of the gods of the heathen, whom nothing here suggests. u
iruTTevowrw. For illustration of this, cf. Mt. 8", Mk. i . QplaaoxxTtv, "shudder in terror." This word properly means "bristle up," cf. Latin horreo, horresco. T h e "shuddering a w e " of demons and others before the majesty of G o d was a current idea, Martyr,
Dial.
cf. D a n .
1
7 *, Or. M a n . 4, Jos.
49, Xpt
B.J.v, 10*; Justin (cf. Dial. 30 and
121), Test. A b r a h . , Rec. A , 1 6 ; X e n . Cyr. iv, 2 " ; the Orphic fragment (nos. 238, 239) found in Clem. Alex.
Strom,
v, 14, p . 724 P . 8a£(iovt<; ov
9pfosouat; and passages quoted b y H o r t , ad loc.
Here the thought is of a fear which stands in contrast to the peace of salvation. A faith which brings forth only this result is barren. Cf. Deissmann, Bibelstudien, pp. 42 / . , E. Tr. p. 288. 20-24. The argument from reason of v . is followed by an argument from Scripture. In the great case of Abraham faith and works co-operated to secure justification. 20, 0eXe& & yp&vai. Introducing this new argument: "Do you desire a proof?" Like the similar Rom. 13* (see Lietzmann, ad loc. in Handbuch zum Neuen Testament, 1906), this can be taken as an affirmative sentence with little difference of meaning. & avOparrre tcepi. This address to a single person corresponds with v . , v . , and v. . In v . the writer falls out of the singular into the more natural but less forcible and pungent plural, perhaps because he is there giving a summary statement in conclusion. Direct address in the singular, and in harsh tone, is characteristic of the diatribe, so & TaXahroapt, raXas, cavvUov pup**, irovr)p4 infelix, miser, sttdte; cf. Bultmann, p. 14. K€t>
l 4
y
18
n
1
2 4
n,
19-21
217
like "fool"; cf. the Aramaic H J ? n pa/cd, Mt. 5 " also Paul's a
8
T h e view of Hilgenfeld and others, that the Apostle P a u l
is meant
as the dbOpuxoc %tv6<; hardly needs to b e referred to.
apyj, "ineffective," "barren" (R.V.), "unprofitable," "un productive of salvation," cf. Mt. 1 2 " , 2 Pet. i , Wisd. 1 4 (with Grimm's note); this sense is common in classical Greek, where a/*ycfc is connected with such words as X&P** 7CRV" para, B6pv ypdvos, Siarpi^. Cf. vetcpfc, vv. « in much the same sense. 8
5
17
)
There is possibly a little play on words here, between xwplc T6V Ip^wv and ip*rt (from i-tp-pis). AP-rtl BC*~minn ff sah. vtxpd] tfAC'KLP minn* " boh syr*~ 1
h
h o 1
.
Conformation to v . » • . 1
2 1 . 'Aftpadfi 6 iraTr)p r)p.mv. Cf. Mt. 3*, Rom. 4 , 4 Mace. 1 6 1 7 * (Codd. KV, and better reading), Pirke Aboth, v, 4*, etc. On Abraham as the supreme example of faith, see EB and JE, art. "Abraham," Lightfoot, Golatians, pp. 154-164. 2 0
T h e use of this phrase suggests that the writer was a Jew, b u t is not wholly conclusive, for the Christians held themselves to be the spiritual children of A b r a h a m (cf. G a l . 3% R o m . 4 " ' • ) .
Cf. 1 Cor. io», Clem.
1
R o m . 3 1 , which were addressed to readers not of Jewish extraction.
iSucaubdn. Used here as a familiar and current term sub stantially equivalent to ff&aai, v . . BucatoOv means "pronounce righteous," "acquit" (e. g. Ex. 23 ), and hence is used of God with reference to the great assize on the day of judgment. Like coifap, however (cf. Acts 2 , 1 Cor. i ) the word was used by anticipation, as it is here in James, to refer to the present establishment of a claim to (or 1 4
7
4 7
11
2l8
JAMES 14
acceptance of the gift of) such acquittal (e. g. Lk. 1 8 , Rom. 8 ). The meaning of the word Bucaiovv in Paul's use does not differ from that which he found already current, although his theological doctrine of justification, which he set forth with the aid of the word, was highly original. Nor does the meaning in the present verse depart at all from the ordinary. The justi fication here referred to is not anything said by God in Genesis, but is the fulfilment of the promises there recorded. See Lex. s.v. Sucauka; HDB, "Justification"; Sanday, Romans, pp. 10
28-31. For an account of many attempts to give a different meaning to i&txai&fa), see Beyschlag, p p . 1 3 2 / .
if
Ipytop. %
Cf. Rom. 4 , especially v. , el yap 'Afipaap, t£ Zpy&p iBucauMn, ex
1
N o t e how in R o m . 4 , as here, the case of A b r a h a m is brought in as the great test case to which the readers' minds are likely spontaneously to turn and to which the opponent will appeal.
I n each case the
writer has to argue against the established idea of his readers, Paul against the Jew, James against the Christian who is using the justifica tion of A b r a h a m as a cloak for iniquity.
Hence the abruptness of the
opening in both cases.
aveveytcas
#tr\.,
Gen. 22** •.
This was an Zpyop, and is here presented as the ground of Abraham's justification. See note on hrhrrevcTev, v. That Abraham was justified and saved was of course recog nised by all; that his justification depended not merely on the initial act of faith, but also on his confirmatory manifestation of this faith under trial is the contention of James. This, he thinks, becomes clear so soon as reference is made to the great incident of the sacrifice of Isaac, whereby (Gen. 22 ) the vital reality of Abraham's faith was tested, and on which followed (Gen. 22 *- ) a renewal of the promise. Abraham's failure to 1
1
18
n, 21-22
219
sustain this test would have shown his faith weak and doubt less have prevented his justification; thus the inference from the great representative case of Abraham to the situation of the readers themselves was unavoidable. At the same time James's real contention in w . *•* is not so much of the necessity of works as of the inseparability of vital faith and works. Not merely are works needed in order to perfect faith, but faith likewise aids works. This is all said in reply to the suggestion in v . that faith and works are sep arable functions of the Christian life. In this connection note the singular, /SXeW?, v. * and con trast, v. * , opart. The article with Ovcnaorrjpiov has reference to the well-known altar of the story (cf. Gen. 22'). 1 8
4
dvatftfpctv, in the sense of "offer" (as a religious act), appears to be foreign to secular Greek (which uses xpoo^cptiv), and due to the L X X , where it is common, mainly as a translation for ^ J g , less often for i ^ n .
I n the L X X xpoo^pttv is mainly used for anpn.
See W e s t -
cott's note on H e b . 7". 6u<jta
Epistle to the Hebrews,
p p . 453-461. M
22. &ri. The force of &Vi probably runs through w . and . 17 IT Caris. The existence and efficiency of Abraham's faith (which has not previously been mentioned) is assumed, but alone it is declared not to have been adequate to secure justi fication. ovprjpyei rot? Ipyot? avrov. M
ouv^pYei] tf*A ff read ouvcpytl.
T h e weight of ff is here cUminished
b y the fact that it also renders frtXtuMh, (for which there is no Greek variant) b y the present tense
confirmatur.
"Faith helped works, and works completed faith," sc. toward the end of justification, as v. " indicates. In this general state ment the mutual relation of faith and works is made plain— the two are inseparable in a properly conducted life (cf v . ). It is thus hardly true to say that the whole emphasis here rests on rot? Ipyots. Bengel: duo cotnmata quorum in priore si 1 8 b
JAMES
220
illud, fides, in altera operibus cum accentu pronunciaveris, sententia liquido percipietur, qua exprimitur, quid utravis pars alteri confer at. The change of tense (owrjpyei, ereXeuoOn) is due to the dif fering nature of the two words ("linear" and "punctiliar," cf. J. H. Moulton, Prolegomena, pp. 108 / . ) . rot? ipyovi, dat. of advantage. crwepyeiv is a common enough Greek word, but is found in the L X X only in i Esd. 7 and 1 Mace. 1 2 , and in the N. T . only Mk. 16™, Rom. 8 , 1 Cor. 1 6 , 2 Cor. 6 . It means "co operate with," "assist," "help." The E.V. "wrought with" is misleading, because it tends to put too much emphasis on "wrought" and not enough on "with." 1
18
1
16
1
Grimm (Lex. s. v. <juvtpffo>) interprets: " Faith (was not inactive, but b y coworking) caused A b r a h a m to produce works," and this view is held b y many.
V.
1
1
does, indeed, suggest that James had reached
this conception of the relation of faith and works as source and product, but it is not expressed in v.
nor is it directly implied there.
The
persistent attempts to find it in v. " are ultimately due to Protestant commentators' interest in the doctrine of the supremacy of faith. the power of vital faith to produce works, b u t the
Not
inseparability of
and works is James's contention throughout this passage.
faith
T h e argu
ment is directed against those who would excuse lack of works b y appealing to their faith; faith alone, it is declared, is ineffective for securing salvation. T h a t ouWjpfei is used in conscious contrast to dpy^ (4-cpY*.) is com monly affirmed, but this interpretation spoils the sense.
James does
not mean that Abraham's faith, being accompanied b y (ouv-) works, e
was effective (-^PY 0j b u t that faith and works co-operated.
ereXeuoOtj, "was perfected," not as if previously, before the works, it had been an imperfect kind of faith, but meaning that it "was completed" (almost "supplemented"), and so enabled to do its proper work. If, when the test came, the faith had not been matched by works, then it would have been proved to be an incomplete faith. The works showed that the faith had always been of the right kind, and so "completed" it. Schneckenburger and many others take the opposite view, 1
theoretica imperfecta est donee accedal praxis* ;
"fides
b u t these plain people's
n, 22-23
221
faith was no such theologian's theory.
Huther and Beyschlag think
of faith as "perfected," in the sense of growing
strong
works, but this is not exactly the writer's thought here.
b y exercise in Calvin and
others try to give to *rtXetci>0T] the unlikely sense " w a s shown to b e perfect."
Others urge that the process was the complete development
of what faith really was.
T h e difficulties which the commentators find
are due partly to dogmatic prepossession, partly to their error in sup posing that James was a subtle theologian who did not write his practical maxims and swift popular arguments until he had thought out the exact definitions, psychological distinctions, and profound and elusive relations involved in the subject.
28. teal €w\T}pa>0T). Kal
xal introduces the result of trvvrjpyei
€T€\€ta)07], fl
17 ypa
Paul's quotation in R o m . 4' has M , but so do Philo, De mut.
nom.
33; Clem. R o m . i o ; Justin M a r t y r , Dial. 92, so that the agreement #
need not be significant for the relation of James to Paul.
Essays,
See Hatch,
p. 156, where the evidence is given in full. fl
The passage Gen. i 5 (iXoylaOrj xr\.) is taken as a prophecy. As such, it was really fulfilled by Abraham's conduct set forth in Gen. 22. "And so, by the addition of conduct (whereby his faith was manifested) his faith was perfected, the Scripture promise that he should be justified was fulfilled, and he was called God's friend." The same passage of Genesis is also used by Paul (Rom. 4*, Gal. 3*) as proof of his doctrine of justifica tion by faith; James, as if in reply, points out that what he has been saying in v . shows that works had to come in and perfect this faith in order to bring about the desired end of justification. 1 1
hrloTevcrev.
In Gen. 15^ the object of Abraham's faith is that God will fulfil the promise just given and grant him an heir. In 1 Mace. 2", Af3paafi ovx iv irupacpxp evpSt] irurrtk, xal iXoytadrj air$ Bixatoavvt) (Codd. KV ct? Bucaioavvrjv), Gen. 1 5 is al luded to, and the signal exhibition of this faith in the sacri fice of Isaac (Gen. 22, note 22 ) appears to be in mind. So here in James the sacrifice of Abraham is the act which manifests J
6
1
JAMES
222 18
18
the faith, cf. Gen. 22 - ; and this seems to follow the ordinary Jewish understanding of the matter. In other passages of the N. T. the case is various. Rom. 4 - refers to the belief of God's promise of a son; Heb. n *• to the faith shown by Abra ham's departure for an unknown country; Heb. n to his residence in Canaan; Heb. n - to the sacrifice of Isaac. Clem. Rom. 31 connects the sacrifice of Isaac with Abraham's righteousness and faith; Gen, 1 5 is quoted, but the precise nature of Abraham's faith is not indicated. iXjoylaOv avrcp Sucatoownv. From Gen. 1 5 . The same expression is found (of Phinehas) in Ps. I 0 6 * ; cf. Gen. 1 5 (with Skinner's note), Deut. 24 , "it shall be right eousness unto thee before the Lord, thy God," Deut. 6 *, Prov. 27 . It means that God accounted the act (here an act of faith) to be righteous, i. e. righteous in special and distinguished meas ure. The developed use of Bucaioavvv to denote the possession of God's approval on the whole, and not merely with reference to a single act, necessarily enlarged the meaning of the expres sion, which in the N. T. is treated as equivalent to iSucauoBrj. 1 7 ff
8
8
1 7
ff
8
s
8 0
8
8 1
18
s
14
T h e name of G o d is avoided in the L X X translation b y recasting the sentence and using the passive voice 4X07(0613 for the active verb of the Hebrew (see Dalman, Wortc Jesu, i, p p . 183 Jf., E n g . transL, p p . 224-226). Similarly in Ps. 106* 1 M a c e . 2* . f
teal
8
1 7
8
7
1 4
80
n, 23-24
223
Philo, De Abrahamo, 19 ( 0 e o ^ i \ i f c ) , and Abraham's love to God is emphasised in Pirke Aboth, v, 4. Among modern Arabs the common designation of Abraham is "the friend of God," el khalil Allah, or el khalil (cf. Koran, sura iv, 124), and the name is even given to Hebron, his burial-place; cf. Hughes, Dictionary of Islam, 1885, p. 269. In view of this evidence it can only be said that Clem. Rom. io (Afipadp., 6
s
I t seems more likely that James writes here with the title already commonly applied to A b r a h a m in mind than that he uses <j>fXo<; as merely equivalent to &ixa.c.>8t(<;, as many (e. g. Spitta, p p . 82 / . ) hold.
Yet
the repeated use in the Book of Jubilees (chs. 19, 30) of the expression " written down as a friend of G o d , " in the sense of " having been granted 1
salvation,' and the connection in one instance (ch. 30) of this expression with the phrase, "it became righteousness to them," gives some plausi bility to such a view.
I n any case 9(Xo<; 0tou
ixktfiri
and
ilixatufa)
relate to the same act of G o d , whether the former is a mere equivalent of the latter or has a larger meaning. B u t to assume that James was thinking of the "heavenly tablets" when he wrote lxXf)(h) is gratuitous.
Jewish thought knew of other
ways b y which G o d could give a name besides inscribing it in a book.
24. opdre, direct address in plural, as everywhere in the epistle except w . - " , cf. 4 Mace 1 2 , Clem. Rom. 1 2 . 1 8
1
K L minnp ** add
4
8
TO(VUV.
ix TrCaTews pdvop, i. e. without the aid and co-operation (cf. v . ) of works. This is a formal and conclusive reply to the question of v . . n
14
I t is not to be inferred that James held to a justification b y works without faith.
Such a misunderstanding is so abhorrent to his doctrine
of the inseparability of faith and works that it does not occur to him
JAMES
224
to guard himself against it.
A n d the idea itself would have been
foreign to Jewish as well as to Christian thought.
T h e fate of the
heathen does not come into the question.
25. An additional argument from Scripture: Rahab's jus tification came from works. 'Yaafi f) wJpvt), so Josh. 6 > cf. Josh. 2 - " 6 » Heb. n " , Mt. i , Clem. Rom. 1 2 . 17
1
17
&
Older writers tried to soften the reference b y taking x ^ p v t j in some unnatural sense, as cook, landlady (here following Jewish guidance), or idolater; but the literal sense is the only possible one; see Lightfoot's note on Clem. R o m . 12.
In Jewish mid rash of various ages Rahab was the subject of much interest. She was believed to have become a sincere proselyte, to have married Joshua, and to have been the ances tress of many priests and prophets, including Jeremiah and Ezekiel. Her faith as implied in Josh. 2 was deemed notably complete, and was said to have evoked the express recognition of God himself; and she, with certain other proselyte women, was called "the pious." See JE, "Rahab." This evidence of special Jewish attention to Rahab, although the actual rabbin ical passages are some of them late, fully justifies the assump tion that the references to Rahab in Hebrews and Clement of Rome are independent of this verse in James; cf. Introduction, pp. 22, 8 7 . It is noteworthy that none of the words used to describe Rahab's conduct are the same in Hebrews and in James. Clement of Rome may, of course, here as elsewhere, be dependent on Hebrews. 1 1
i% Zpytav. The works consisted in the friendly reception (uTrohe^apAvrf) and aid in escaping (iKfJaXovtra) given to the spies, as described in Josh. 2. The faith to which an opponent might have pointed (cf. Heb. n " , Clem. Rom. 12) is displayed in Rahab's words, Josh. 2 * , especially v . 6rt Kvpio? 6 Oeb: vfi&v deb? (so Cod. A) iv ovpavip ch>co teal iirl rrp 7779 Kara. The choice of Abraham and Rahab as examples here is prob ably to be explained by observing that the one was the accepted and natural representative of faith and justification, while the 11
1 1
n, 24-26
225
other is an extreme case, where, if anywhere, James's argument might seem to fail. Notice and a certain emphasis on 17 Tc6pvr\, " even though a harlot." These two instances thus cover the whole wide range of possibilities. This is better than the view, long ago suggested, that the mention of Rahab, a prose lyte from the Gentiles, shows that the epistle was addressed to Christian communities containing Gentiles as well as Jews (Zahn, Einleitung, § 4 , Eng. transl. i, p. 9 1 ) . d - n & o u c ] C K ^ L minn ff boh s y n
m h
-
h o 1
read
wrwwx6xou<;,
cf.
Heb. 11".
i/cpaXjovo-a, "sent out," with no thought of any violence of action, cf. Mt. 9 " 1 2 " , Lk. 6" 10". 26. Concluding statement. fccnrep. The deadness of faith without works is illustrated from a dead body. With works absent, faith is no more alive than is a body without the irvevfia. T h e comparison is sometimes said to halt, because, whereas the death of the b o d y is caused b y the departure of the spirit, the deadness of faith is not caused, but only recognised, b y its failure to produce w o r k s ; and it is suggested that faith, as the source of activity, could better be compared with the spirit, and works with the body.
B u t to the mind
of James faith and works co-operate to secure justification, and b y works faith is kept alive.
So the b o d y and the spirit co-operate to
secure continued life, and b y the spirit the body is kept alive.
When
v . " is given its true meaning, the parallel is seen to be better than is often thought. fdtp] B syr*""* arm omit, ff renders
autem.
TvtvfiaTos. This is most naturally taken of "the vital prin ciple by which the body is animated." A less probable interpretation takes xvcupuz as meaning " b r e a t h , " which the body is thought of as producing.
This makes a more com
plete parallel to the relation of faith and the works which it ought to produce, but is forced.
Cf. Ps. 104*% T o b . 3*; Q . Curtius Rufus, x,
19 illud scire debctis mUUarem sine duct turbam corpus esse sine spiritu.
226
JAMES
IL
ON T H E TEACHER'S CALLING CHAPTER
(3*-").
ni.
Ch. 3 relates to the Teacher and Wise Man. That the two are treated as substantially identical is significant. It is inter esting to compare the directions for leaders of the Christian community given in the Pastoral Epistles or in the Didache. The main thought in w . is the greater responsibility of teachers and the extremely dangerous character of the instru ment which they have to use. In w . the noble possibili ties of the tongue are presented as a motive for checking its U l t
lower propensities.
This passage naturally connects itself with
jit f. le 1 8
1 8
In w . * the discussion springs from the same abhorrence of sham which gives rise to so much of ch. 1 ( w . *-» * ). and controls the thought throughout ch. 2. 1-3. Against overeagerness to be teachers ; in view of the great responsibility involved, and of the difficulty of controlling the tongue. 1, pff TTOWJOI SiSdcr/caXoi ylveaOe, "Do not many of you become teachers." T o W o / i s to be regarded either as subject or as in apposition with the proper subject (in that case vfiei<}); BtSdofcaXoi is predicate; cf. Heb. 7 . 8
M
87
88
xoXXoQ L b y a not unusual corruption reads
xoXkd.
This does not
point to a reading xoX6, and has no relation to the mistranslation o f 7
m nolitc multiloqui esse (cf. M t . 6 ) . s
48
8 8
18
1 0
SiSdcr/caXos means rabbi (cf. Mt. 2 3 , Lk. 2 , Jn. i 2 0 3 ; see references in Lex. s. w. St&dcrtcaXo*; and /Jaj3j8/), and the teachers here referred to, if in Jewish Christian churches, would naturally have occupied a place not unlike that of rabbis in the synagogues. This would apply both to the dignity of the po sition and to a part of the duties of the rabbis. Among Chris tians the term was used both for a teacher resident in a church (Acts 1 3 , Antioch) and for a travelling missionary (Didache n 13* 1 5 ) . Nothing in the text indicates whether James's reference was limited to one or the other of these classes. The 1
1
s
m, i
227
position of teacher was the function of a specially gifted person, not a standing office, and it was plainly possible for a man who believed himself competent for the work to put himself forward and take up the activities of a teacher. James is himself a teacher (Kr}fi\f/6pLeda v. ), and points out the moral dangers of the teacher's life, with special insistence on the liability to opin ionated disputatiousness (w. *- ). A good concrete impres sion of the nature of the meetings at which they spoke may be gathered from 1 Cor. 14. The Epistle of James itself will give an idea of one of the types of early Christian "teaching." Teachers were important from the earliest times (Acts 1 3 , 1 Cor. 1 2 " , Eph. 4 ) and were found in the Christian churches of many lands. The references of this epistle would seem applicable in any part of the world and during any part of the period which is open for the date of the epistle. l
}
l
18
1
11
An interesting expansion of this exhortation of James found in the first pseudo-clementine Epistle to Virgins, i, 1 1 , is prob ably from Palestine or Syria in the third century, and vividly illustrates the same situation even at that late time (text in Funk, Paires opostolici, vol. ii; Eng. transl. in Ante-Nicene Fathers, Buffalo, 1886, vol. viii). On teachers in the early church, see articles in DD.BB., and especially Harnack, Mission und Ausbreitung des Christenlums, i 9 o 6 , pp. 279-308; Eng. transl. *i9o8, i, pp. 333-366, where a great amount of interesting material is collected and discussed. dhtkfyot fwv, introducing a new section, cf. i*» 2 * 5 » elSdre;, "for you know," presenting a motive. fiei£ov/cplna, "greater condemnation"; cf. Mk. 1 2 (Lk. 20 ) otrroi \r\ptyovrai Tepuraorepov xpCfxa, Rom. 1 3 . The teacher's condemnation (or, as we should say, his responsibility) is greater than that of others because having, or professing to have, clear and full knowledge of duty, he is the more bound to obey it, cf. Lk. 1 2 -. l
lf
1
1 4
7
4 0
47
s
4 7f
\rip,\l/6p€0a i. e. at the last day. himself as a SiSaovcaXos. 1
T h e Vulgate
(sumitis)
the second person.
Notice that James includes
and the Bohairic version have altered this to
228
JAMES
T o this warning no good earlier or Jewish parallel has been produced. The sayings about the dangers of speech apply, in deed, to the teacher, but they are in most cases of an entirely general cast. 2-12.
T h e Hellenistic associations of the following passage, w .
are shown in the references in the notes.
T h e more striking parallels
have been effectively put together b y J. Geffcken, wandUSy 1909, p p . 45-53.
Kynika und Ver-
Geffcken thinks that James here betrays de
pendence on a written tract on calumny, or some such subject, which he has adapted and expanded.
This is not impossible, but the infelicities
in the sequence of James's thought in the passage, on which Geffcken's theory rests, are not quite sufficient to prove anything more than de pendence on ideas which had been worked out for a different purpose b y others, and were familiar commonplaces of popular moral preaching.
2. T O X X A ydp TrraCopuev dwavre;. This gives the reason (yap) for the warning of v . . All men stumble, and of all faults those of the tongue are the hardest to avoid. Hence the pro fession of teacher is the most difficult mode of life conceivable. On the universality of sin, cf. Rom. 3 , 1 Jn. i , Eccles. 7 * , Ecclus. 19 , 2 Esd. 8", and the similar observations of Greek and Latin writers collected by Wetstein, Schneckenburger, and Mayor, c. g. Seneca, De clem, i, 6 peccavimus omncs, alii graviora alii leviora. The besetting danger of sins of speech and of the misuse of the tongue was clearly seen and often mentioned by ancient moralists. Noteworthy O. T . passages (among many others) 1 are Prov. is '*' » Ecclus. 5 - 6 2 2 " 28"-". el oi see note on 2 . l
9 U
8
16
7
1L
X
11
f
0 & T 0 9 , cf.
1". 4
r A e w avqp, cf. i and note. Used of moral perfection, "blameless," cf. Mt. 5 " 19", Col. 1 " 4 " , Wisd. 9*, Gen. 6», Ecclus. 4 4 . The same Hebrew word B*?^, used in the same sense, is translated in Gen. 6 by re^Xew, in Gen. 1 7 by apjefiirro?. Swards fcr\. Expands the idea of riXeios. XaTuvaywyrjvai, "hold in check," cf. i* and note. SXJOV rb a&fJLa, i. e. the whole man. The contrast of the tongue and the body, as of a part and the whole, has led here to 17
f
1
6
ni, 1 - 3
229
a mode of expression which seems to imply that sin does not exist apart from the body. But the writer shows himself to be fully aware that sin resides in the inner man, although on the whole its more conspicuous manifestations are prominently con nected with the body. The body is thought of as providing the man with his organs of expression and action. It is a natu ral and popular, not a philosophical or theological, mode of ex pression. Cf. v . iv rots fAeXeaiv, 4 , Rom. 8 . 6
1
U
3. It is with men as with horses: control their mouth and you are master of all their action. 4 7 4 *oV, "behold," introduces an illustration, cf. iBov w . - *, s « . On £oY, l$ov, see Moulton's Winer, pp. 318 / . note 5 ; J. H. Moulton, Prolegomena, p. 1 1 , note. CM] C P m.nnphtf «• sah s y r (806] m i n n tttt
h a I
arm.
ul
y
tl M ] B A K L m i n n " ff v g boh Of these readings I806 {cf. 3*-
1
(if). 7
$*> ) and the addition of y&p m a y b e
at once rejected as emendations; the latter, however, is significant because it implies that elM was understood as equivalent to ( M .
As
between CM and et M , the external evidence is strong for the latter, although P when it departs from K L is an excellent witness.
B u t in
this instance the variant reading is likely to be due to a misspelling and not to deliberate emendation, whereas the excellence of B's text de pends solely on its freedom from emendation, not in any accuracy of spelling.
I n such a case "intrinsic evidence" from the sense is the
only guide; and this speaks strongly for CM, which is therefore to be accepted.
T&V 7TTO)V. Depends on rov? ^aXtvou?, but is put first be cause it contains the new and emphatic idea. Xd\a>
JAMES
230
If tt & is read (with W H . ) , xal has to b e taken as introducing the apodosis, as often in H e b r e w .
lierdyofxp, "guide," "direct" (E.V. "turn about"). Cf. Philo, De opif. mundi, (29) 88 (the charioteers)fc<8v iOIXwnv aMt T£>V f)viu»v ivuXrmUvoi; Aristippus in Stobacus, Anthol. ( e d . Hense), iii, ch. 1 7 , 1 7 xacrnl ^8ovfJ<; o&x b dxcx6u4vo{ £XX' & xp
d^ouat uiv
xpufiroc
dXX' 6 iMtdfuv 8x01 {Jo6XrttK.
The comparison turns on the importance which the tongue has because control over the whole creature can be exercised through it, as through the horse's mouth. The smallness of the member hardly comes into consideration here. 4 - 1 2 . The dangers of the tongue. 4-6. The tongue, though small, is as powerful as a little rudder on a great ship, and as dangerous as a little fire in a great forest. 4. KOX ra xXota, "ships also," like horses. The article is generic. The parallel of ship and horse is emphasised by the repetition of pjerdrftw, a repetition characteristic of James, Cf,
T
U f.
2
1 4 . 16
2
* i .
15
#
cK\r)pS>v, "harsh," "stiff"; hence hereof winds, "strong"; the adjective heightens the contrast with the little rudder. For the phrase, cf. Dio. Chrys. De regno, iii, p. 44 tcXuSwo? aypbv Kal ^a\e7rou virb dvipuuv oKkqp&v peraffaWjofievov, Prov. 2 7 OK\TJP&; avepos (where the difference from the He brew is instructive), and other references in Wetstein, Mayor, and Schneckenburger. bppri, "impulse," "desire." Used in N. T . only here and Acts 14 , and not in this sense in O. T., but common in classical Greek writers. See Trench, § lxxxvii, and see L. and S. for full references, e. g. Xen. Anab. iii, 2* / u ? °PW\ Plato, Phil. 35 D , where bpyJ\ is parallel to iwi0vp.la. 16
6
Others take this of the pressure of the steersman on the helm, b u t without any sufficient reason.
TOV evOvvovTos, "the one who directs it." Cf. Philo, De vu
il)P
conf. ling. 23 ^tXct ydp ioTu> ire x^P^ V hC
T
€
Ka
^
iW
*
m, (JepvrjT&p o re
TTXOC?
3-4
231
teal 6 Spdpos evOweaOcu;
also Prov.
20",
Ecclus. 3 7 " . The twin figures of the control of horse and of ship are fre quently found together in later Greek writers, as the following passages show. In some of the instances the point of the com parison is the smallness of the instrument which controls so great a body. James is evidently acquainted with the forms of current Greek popular thought. I n the following the figures of ship and horse are characteristically combined: Plutarch,
De aud. poctis,
12, p . 33 F "Tp6xo<; io0'
b
xtrttav TOU Xiyov-
TOS, 06 X6-fo<;'" xal Tp6xo<; uiv o5v xal Xo-roc* f) T p 6 x o t o"id X6you, x a Bdxtp lxx»u<; 8id xaXtvou xal o"id TTj&aXfou xuptpvfjTrjs. Plutarch,
De genio Socratis, 20, Stobaeus, Anihol.
Aristippus, in
p . 588 E . iii
(ed. H e n s e ) , 1 7 , 1 7
(quoted
supra). Philo,
De opificio mundi,
29 i i d p T u p * ; o"f)v(oxoi xal xu^pvfjrat • ol iiiv
Ydp &OTtp(£ovrt<; TG>V uxo^uyfov xal xaroxtv auTwv i?rra£6ii£vot J dv iOiXt*atv ated dfouat TWV ^vi&v iveiXTj^jivot xal TOTI uiv i ^ l v r c t xpb<; 6£uv 8p6jxov Tort S'dvaxatTniovTt?, cl 900$ TOU WOVTOC xXffovt 8ioi • ol &' a3 xugepvfjrat xpbq TO TT.<; vtclx; laxarov x<«>pfov xp6|ivav xapeX86vce<; xdvrwv ix; Ixo<; threw tfatv dptarot T&V iy.xXe6vTG>v, dr« T?)<; vwix; xal TG>V iv aurf) TJJV cwn}p(av iv %tpal Tal<; a&Twv fxovre<;. Philo,
Leg. aUeg.
iii, 7 9 ;
De agrkult.
15;
De confus. ling.
23;
In
Flacc. 5. For the figure of the ship's rudder, cf. Lucretius, De rer. not.
iv,
863-868 quippe etenim ventus subtili corpore tenuis trudit agens magnam magno molimine navem, et manus una regit quanto vis impete euntem atque gubernaclum contorquet quolibet unum, multaque, per trocleas et tympana, pondere magno commovet atque levi sustollit machina nisu. T h e often-quoted passage from Ps.-Aristotle,
Meckanica,
5 , is not
apt, since there the rudder is mentioned not as a literary figure, b u t as one example of the principle of the lever. For the figure of the horse,
cf. Sophocles, Anlig.
477 / .
a\Lixoi# %aXtvq> 8* ol&a TOUC Ou^ou^jivou^ Txxou<; xarapTu0ivTa<;.
232
JAMES
5. pcydka axrxti is equivalent to / ^ a X a t ^ e t , " be haughty," which has here been separated into its component parts in order to make a good parallel to fwcpbv pfkos iariv. The phrase is here used in the sense not of an empty boast, but of a justified, though haughty, sense of importance; cf. Moulton and Milligan, Vocabulary of the Greek Testament, p. 94. T h e usual associations, however, of [uyctkavxtlv
are b a d , as here.
A boasting compatible with proper humility would probably be ex pressed b y xoux&afon.
Cf. Zeph. 3 " , Ezek. i 6 » , Eccles. 48", 2 M a c e
1 5 " , 4 Mace. 2 " .
Perhaps the alliteration iwcp6v /iAov, fieydXa is intentional, }
7
cf. v . . HrraXa B A C * P ff v g b o h . lUYorXouxc!] K C ' K L minn. This seems to b e emendation to a more familiar word. b
5 -6. 28"'
The tongue is as dangerous as a fire. Cf. Ecclus.
»
rfKitcav, "how small," ^Xcxov] B « A « C P v g . 00
6Xfyov] A * C » K L m i n n "
ff
m syr»*» boh sah.
Emendation. s 4
rjkbcnv, "how much." For the double question, cf. Mk. 1 5 , Lk. 1 9 , and see Winer, § 66. 5. 3v\r)P. The abundant references in andent literature to for est fires, sometimes with direct reference to the smallness of the spark which leads to vast destruction, and the repeated use of this comparison in ethical discussions make it likely that v\rjv here means "forest" rather than "fuel." 11
I n Homer, II. ii, 455 fj&rt xup dt&ijXov I x f f X i f t . oVxtrov CXijv the comparison is to describe the glitter of the armour of a great host; in the similar verse, / / . xi, 1 5 5 , it is the rout of a fleeing army. Pindar,
Pytk.
iii, 3 6 - 3 7 xoXX&v T* Spct xup
axi^umq
ivOopbv dtoruxjtv CXav.
lvb<;
m,
s-6
233
Euripides, I no, fragm. 4 1 1 (uxpoG f o p tx Xaqixr^pOi; 'I&atov Xixas T p t o t t t v dv Tt<;.
Poema admonilorium, 144 bXlfou oxtydijpot 06^090x0^ aTOrrat BXTJ.
Ps.-Phocylides,
Philo, 2 k
32, M . p . 208 [txtOuuia] ola 9X6$ i v BXfl vtVrrat 5 a -
cavOaa xavrat xal fOtfpouoa. T h e above quotations refer to a forest fire. T h e following are "sig nificant in using with similar purpose the figure of a great conflagration in a city or in general.
b 0PCTX6TOTO<; IVTUTjuTuptffi, (aydX^v Ityncni xupdv. Seneca, Controversiarum excerpta, v, 5 , nesciebas quanta sit potentia ignium . .. quemadmodum totas absumat urbes, quant levibus initiis oriontur incendia. Philo,
De migr. Abr.
12, M . p . 455 oxivfHjp ? d p xal
f 6(irvo<;, 8xav xaraxvtua6cl<;
Diogenes of Oinoanda (Epicurean philosopher, second century after Christ), fragm. raviii, 3 (ed. William, Leipzig, 1907, p . 46) xal axivOfjpt (Utxpcp xdvu TI}Xtx6v8c ixt&FRRCTTAT Tup, ^Xfxov xaro$X
! i
l
i o » , Ps. 83" use the figure of a forest
fire; and Ecclus. 1 1 " uses the figure of the small spark which kindles " a heap of many coals."
T h e tongue is compared with a fire in Ps.
f
i2o» -, and in Midrash, Leviticus rabba, 16: R . Eleasar in the name of R . Jose b . Z i m r a : " W h a t fires it [the tongue] kindles 1" (see SchOttgen,
Eorae hebroicae,
p p . 1021 / . ) .
B u t the specific parallels make it seem
plain that this comparison is drawn from a standing simile of current Greek popular philosophy.
6. Kal 1} yXSxraa wvp sc. i
1
^ yX&aoa 2 ] P minn* ** syr** otto*;-
* prefix ottax; x a ( ; L min prefix
Conformation to v.
o KtSafw? rf)<s aoWas. As the text stands, no satisfactory interpretation is possible for this phrase in this context. For the expression taken by itself "the iniquitous world" is the most probable sense. aZuctas is then genitive of quality, cf. i « ' " 2", Lk. i 6 - • i8», Enoch 48% "this world of iniquity." 8
7
4
7
On JCOV/W, cf. Jas. i * 2» 4 , and see note on i * . Other meanings have been suggested; on the history of the exegesis, see Huther's and Mayor's notes.
Thus V g translates "the whole of
*34
JAMES evil,"
universUas iniquiiaiis.
B u t the sense "the w h o l e " for &x6opo<;
is attested only Prov. 17^ 5Xo<; b x6au.o<; xcav xPW^rnov; and, moreover, the meaning does not suit our passage well. Another interpretation is " the ornament of iniquity."
This is ca
pable in itself of an intelligible sense, as referring to the use of rhetorical arts b y designing speakers (Wetstein:
malas actiones et suadet et excusat),
but that seems foreign to the circle of thought in which the writer is here moving. interpreters.
This sense was, however, a favourite one with Greek From Isidore of Pelusium,
Epist. iv,
10, who gives it as
one possible meaning, it is taken into Cramer's Catena, p. 21, and it is also found in "(Ecumenius," on w . *-«, and in Matthai's scholia ( i x i A s the text stands, x6qio<; cannot easily be connected with what pre cedes, whether as appositive of xup or as a second predicate, parallel to xup and after icmv understood, for neither of these constructions yields a recognisable sense.
If connected with what follows, a colon
being put after xup instead of a comma, we get the best sense of which the passage seems capable, viz.:
" T h e tongue stands as ( » . e. represents)
the unrighteous world among our members; it denies the whole b o d y , itself having direct connection with hell" (so E . V . ) . taken as predicate after xa8(
& x6ou.o<; is then
So the free Latin version in the
Speculum: ita et lingua ignis est: et mundus iniquiiaiis per linguam constat in membris nostris quae maculat totam corpus. E v e n this interpretation, however, is awkward and unsatisfactory, and it is probable that the text is corrupt.
T h e context calls for some
word in place of b x6ou-o<; which should yield the meaning "produc tive of," or "the tool of," or "representative o f " wickedness.
The
phrase would then aptly explain in what w a y the tongue is in fact a fire. T h e Peshitto inserts CXtj after i8tx(a<; and thus makes of b x6ou.o<; «rij<; dc5<x(a<; an independent sentence parallel to f) YXUXTOOC xup; " the wicked world is a forest."
This is a possible conjecture; it seems to
rest on no Greek evidence.
A simpler and better conjecture, often
made, is to exclude b x6ou.oc TYJ<; d5ix(a<; from the text altogether as a gloss. Spitta, following others, conjectures that f) 1 % 48ix(a<; is all a gloss.
fXibaact
xup
b
x6au.o<;
H e holds that the words were written as
li
the title of 3*~4 (which form the Euthalian chapter), and then wrongly introduced from the margin into the text, while, as a result of this in terpolation the words f) axtXoOoa 8Xov
xb atiyjx were also added.
These
T
are appropriate to the idea of b X6<JPLO<; (cf. i » ) , but not to that of a fire;
and are not very naturally suggested b y the idea of the tongue,
breaking the forcible simplicity of the original context which Spitta thus reconstructs. cating experience.
Exegesis b y leaving out hard phrases is an intoxi
23s
m, 6 4
*a0&rar
1
f) oxtXouoa] H boh read ( b y emendation) xal axtXouaa.
SKov TO o&fia, cf. v. *, which is here in mind. (frXoyftovaa, "setting on fire," "kindling"; cf. v. avdirrei. This returns to the figure of fire and completes the interrupted application of that comparison. 1
oxtXoov and fXo-r^eiv are each used a very few times in the Bible, and are not common (
TOP
r p o y p p
TT}?
y e p f o e M ,
" the wheel of nature."
tffc YtWoiioq] H minn vg syr**** add ffluiv; probably emendation. T h e grammarians distinguish between Tp6%oc, "course," and
xgo%6
t
"wheel," but in view of the derived senses of the latter word the dis tinction is unimportant. u
is here to be taken (cf. i and note) as substantially equivalent to t r i a l s , "creation." As a spark can set a great forest fire, so the tongue kindles the whole world into flame. The description of nature as a "wheel" is made comprehensible by some of the parallels given below under 2 ( a ) . Here it is used to suggest the continuousness, and so the far-reaching vastness, of the damage done, but the whole phrase is native to other contexts, and the writer's idea is not to be too precisely defined. Of course, what is actually enkindled by the tongue is mankind and human society, in which the evil results of wrong speech are manifest and universal; the actual phrase is more inclusive, but in such a rhetorical expression the exaggeration is pardonable. y e v e o i s
For full accounts of the various commentators' guesses at the exact meaning, see Heisen, Novae hypotheses, pp. 810-880 (with great collections of illustrative material, mostly not apt); D . J. Pott, Novum Test, grcece, editio Koppiana, Gottingen, 1810,
236
JAMES
vol. ix, pp. 3 1 7 - 3 2 9 ; Huther, ad loc. Much material is given in Mayor*, ad loc. pp. 1 1 4 - 1 1 6 ; Windisch, ad loc; and Hort, 5/. James, pp. 72-74, 106 / . The only critical discussion of the evidence is that of Hort, whose own interpretation, however, is impossible to accept, being based on Ezek. i ~ . lh
The translations are as follows: syr the successions of our generations, boh the wheel of the birth. ff rotam nativitatis. vg rotam nativitatis nostrae. m rotam geniturae.
n
which run like
wheels.
Cf. Priscillian, ed. Schepss, p . 26 (deus) sciens demutationem firmamenti et distruens rotam geniturae reparatione baptismatis diem nostrae nativitatis evicit. T h e phrase rota geniturae is here used in the sense of astrological fatalism, and is equivalent to 6 *pox^s
avd-fxij^.
The
relation of m to Priscillian's text of James makes it probable that in this version of James and
hence
geniturae
rota geniturae
was intended to have that sense,
substituted for an earlier
nativitatis.
The interest of the phrase lies not so much in the determina tion of its exact meaning as in the fact that it cannot be ac counted for from Jewish modes of expression and implies con tact with (though not understanding of) Greek thought. It does not, however, betray knowledge of any particular system of thought (Orphic or other), or any closer contact with Hellen ism on the part of the writer of the epistle than can be inferred from other ideas and expressions which he uses. This is true in spite of the occurrence in Greek writers of the exact phrase o TpoypG r^? yeviaeus and its equivalent o *v*Xo? 7*179 7«-
The two characteristics of the wheel which mainly attracted the at tention of the ancients were (1) its constant change of position and (2) its circular figure and motion.
I n tracing the meanings it should be
noticed that "wheel" (xpox6?) and "circle" (x6xXos) are frequently used with little or no distinction. 1. T h a t any revolving motion is full of change caused the wheel to be a symbol of the changeableness of human fortune, now up, now d o w n . T h u s ?pox&€
dvSp&xtva* tyroi tdyusxd^oXx was a proverb (Leutsch
237 Corpus paroemiographorum, ii, Gdttingen, 1851, p . 87, with many references, cf. also ii, p . 223 (Macarius Chrysoc. cent, viii, and SchneSdewin. 58);
and from Cicero's time the wheel became a regular attribute of
Fortune. So Anacreon, iv, 7 Tpoxos oppwrroc; yap ola {MOTOC; Tptxct xuXiatitft. Oroc. «6yi7. ii, 87 (Ps.-Phocyl. 27) xoivdk xodij xovruv * {MOTOC, Tp©x6s* <2OTOCTO<£ 5X(ta{. Herodotus, i, 207
xuxXoc T6V dvOpttx^tuv tori xprj-yixircwv xtpt-
fcp6(itvo<; 8c oux t$ ocUl TOUC, OUTOUC; t&ruxtciv. F o r other illustrations, see Gataker's notes on M a r c u s Aurelius, ix, 28; Mayor', pp.
116-118; H o r t , 5/. James, p . 107. B u t nothing in James
(not even 1" 4") indicates that the writer had in mind here this aspect of the "wheel of nature." 2 . Another aspect of the turning of a wheel is that it goes round and round on its own axis, making no real progress and finding no given termination of its motion; or, to state the same thing from a differ ent point of view, that its figure is circular, and so continuous, returning on itself, without beginning and without end.
Hence arose various
derived senses for both " w h e e l " and "circle."
T h u s the rhetoricians
and grammarians speak of the "circle of the period," much as w e might say the "rounded period," and of the closed "circle" of an argu ment;
a verse beginning and ending with the same word was called a
"circle," and so was a continuous series of myths (especially the "epic cycle").* F o r instance, Ocellus Lucanus (neo-pythagorean),
natura,
i,
LibeUus de universi
15 (Mullach, Fragmenta philosophorum grcccorum, i, p . 394),
fl TC -r&p TOU oxfjua-roc (oia xuxXot * O5TO£ oi xdvroOtv Taos xal 8u.oio<;. 2i6xsp dEvapxoc xal drttXtOTTJTOC,. I n physiology the continual cycle of breathing in and out is described b y Plato (Tim.
79 B ) as olov Tpoxou xtpioyouivou (cf. also Galen, De
placitis Hippocratis et Platonis,
p.
711).
M o r e important to be con
sidered here are the following uses: (a) I n general, " w h e e l " and "circle" are used of the round of human life, the cycle of successive generations which endlessly are born and disappear; and the same mode of thought was applied to the whole universe, all parts of which are subject to endless succession of forma tion and decay.f T h u s Euripides, Ino, fragm. 415, fragm. 419, ed. N a u c k (in Plutarch,
Consol. ad ApdUonium, 6, p. 104 B ) : x6xXo<; yap OCUTOC, xocpx{u.o(? Tt r ^ < ; T&V fit ?6(vtt Tt xal OtpfcTat xdXtv. * See Stephanas, Tkssourus, or LiddeQ and Scott, s. 9. «v*Aot. f Of a different order is the mechanical conception of the revolving universe, used with great ingenuity by Plato,t. §. Polit. 12-14, pp. 260-272; Leg. x, 8, p. 808.
238
JAMES A good statement of the same idea ( b u t without the word xGxXos) is
(Consol. ad ApoUonium,
that of Plutarch
i o , p. 106 E ) in a neighbouring
context to that in which he dtes the above fragment ( p . 104 B ) .
He
refers to the doctrines of Heraclitus, and compares the progress of the generations—our grandparents, our parents, ourselves—to
the
con
tinuous flow of a river (6 xifc ftvlatfax; x o T a p b c O5TO<; IvotXexft? £»k>v OSXOTI oifjoriat), while in the opposite direction flows the correspond ing river of death (xal xdXtv
ftrnju;
the contrast of
ivavrfas aurq» 6 TYJ<; f6opds).
and 9600a shows that
yiytmq
B u t here
has its proper
sense of "coming into being," not the meaning which we have to as sume for it in James. Simplicius
(c. 500
A.D.)
Comm. in Epkleti enchiridion,
ed. D i d o t ,
ch. 8, p . 42, uses the phrase " the endless circle of becoming" (c&^Xttios . . . T<j> dhcepavT<|> TTJ<; *rcv4at
Si. James,
p . 73).*
These passages well illustrate that conception of the circle itself which is probably the basis of James's use of Tpox6s, but in them
ftytau;
means not "nature," in the sense of f) xT(ot<;, but "becoming," "origi nation," as the context shows.
T h u s the close similarity of expression
to that of James turns out to be mainly accidental, and the passages are not directly available for the interpretation of the phrase in the epistle. In accordance with this general method of thought'Isidore of Pelusium ( f c. 440),
Ep. ii, 158, interprets the phrase in James (which he
misquotes TOV T p o x b v TT)<; £WVK) to mean " t i m e " and says ort TOV TOOXbv TOV xpovov ixdXcac 8id xb Tpoxosi8t<; xal xuxXtxbv OXTJIMT, t!<; &auTbv Ydp dvtX(TT«rat.t
His general interpretation is on the right track, b u t
the phrase in the epistle does not mean " time." (b) I n connection with the Orphic and Pythagorean doctrine of the transmigration of souls to new bodies after death, the term " w h e e l , " or "circle," was naturally used to describe the unending round of death and rebirth.
Metempsychosis, which in its primitive Thracian form
had been a means of gaining after death a full life, such as was incon ceivable apart from a body, became for Greek religious thought a form of purifying punishment, from whose dismal cycle salvation
could
come only from the god and to those alone who had pursued the ascetic practises of the " Orphic life." J
T o " cease from the Wheel and breathe
again from ill" (x6xXou T' d v Xf)£ai xal dvaxvtuaat x a x o T r r t o c ,
Orph. fragm.
226, Proclus, In Plat. Tim. comm. v, p . 330 B ) was the goal of the relig* See also, for similar phrases, the index to Proclus Diadochus, In Plahmis Timet mm comm. ed. Diehl, 1006, s. v. «VKAOC.
f This has gone into Cramer's Catena, pp. 20/. t See E. Rohde, Psyckt*, 1903, ii, pp. 121-131, 133-136, 165, note 2, 2 x 7 - 2 1 9 / . ; Jane E. Harrison, Prolegomena (as cited below); Lobeck, Aglaophamus, 1820, ii, pp. 795-806.
239 ious life of the Orphic initiate, and in the ritual a wheel seems to have played a part.
" T h e first article in the creed or confession of the
Orphic soul is x6xXou S'^ixracv (fcapuxiv8io<; dpYaXioto, ' I have flown out of the sorrowful weary wheel.' " * This Orphic round of birth, death, reincarnation, over and over again repeated, is described as "the wheel of fate and birth" (& TTJS tli&apuivrjc T I xal -fcvfotox; Tpo%6<;)t and "the circle of b i r t h " (6 x6xXo<; -rite ytv*att»x;)4
T h e phrase "compulsory circle" (x6xXos dvd-pc7}<;) is also
found in a statement of the kindred transmigration doctrine attrib uted to Pythagoras. §
B u t the phrases, although almost identical
with that of Jas. 3*, do not throw any light upon it. of
T o think
the tongue as enfiaming the " w h e e l " of metempsychosis is non
sense; and, on the other side, nothing could be more opposed to James's robust doctrine of moral responsibility than the idea of a fatalistic circle. It is therefore impossible to draw the inference that the author of the epistle had direct contact with Orphic mysteries and ideas.
The
resemblance of language may well be a mere accident, and even if we suppose that he had picked up and misused a chance phrase, that would be fully accounted for b y acquaintance with Cynic popular preachers, or Stoic-cynic writers of diatribes, who must have given currency to such catch-words incidentally to their satirical attacks on the ideas which the phrases conveyed.!! (c) Similar expressions are used of fatalistic necessity.
De somn.
So Philo,
ii, 6, p . 6 6 4 , x6xXov xal xpoxbv dvdfXYjc drtXtuTfjTou.
I n the
magic literature are found such expressions as x 6 x X a r?j<; dvd-puQc; see O . Gruppe,
Griech. Mythologie und Religionsgesckichte, 1006,
p . 1086,
note 1. In
this connection it m a y be observed that ffvcots in later philo
sophical use means "necessity" (for instances, see
tions,
viii, 2, 4 , 6, 7, etc.).
Clementine Recogni
B u t this whole field of fatalistic thought is
diametrically opposed to everything that James held dear. •The verse is from the Compagno tablet, Kaibel, Inscr. Ital. et Sicil. 641, p. 158. See Jane E. Harrison, Prolegomena to the Study of Greek Religion, Cambridge, 1003, pp. 586, 580-504, 668-671; and note the similar use of
240
JAMES
inrb TT)S ytivvrfi. Gehenna, a term elsewhere used in the N. T . only in the Synoptic Gospels, here means the place of punishment of the wicked. It was naturally associated with fire, cf. M t s» i8 , Mk. 9", and see HDB, "Gehenna." Observe the sudden intrusion of a purely Jewish idea into a notably Greek context. 7 - 1 2 . The tongue is untamable; Us use in blessing God gives no security against its abuse later for cursing men; this is wrong and contrary to nature. 7. ydp, explains how the extreme statement of v. • is justi fied. The dreadful character of the tongue comes from its untamableness. OrjpCoop re KOX T€T€w&v ipTCT&p T€ KOX ivd\fc>v "beasts and birds, reptiles and fishes." Cf. Deut. 4 " * , 1 Kings 4 " , Acts 10" n which all, like the present passage, have more or less direct reference to Gen. i * » tVaX&w, « . e. fishes. This word is not found elsewhere in the Bible, but is common in secular Greek, both poetry and late prose. BapA^erai teal hebapjao-rai, "is from time to time, and has actually been, tamed." Cf. Schmid, Atticismus, ii, p. 276.
f
1 8
f
f
10
,4
4
This is not meant to be, as Augustine
(De not. et grot. ch.
15) and others
since have thought, in contrast with the divine power which can do all things, but is a popular w a y of saying that complete control of the tongue is not to be expected; cf. v.* ffXtios ov^p.
m,
241
6-9
T h e Pelagian interpretation, which took this as a question, in order to avoid a proof-text for universal sinfulness, is unacceptable because opposed to the context.
axarcurraTOP tca/cdv, "a restless, forthputting, evil"; best taken (because of fieorr]) as nominative absolute; cf. Mk. 1 2 " . iucaTcurraTos is the opposite of SeSafiacfievo?; see on i , and cf. 3 cucaTaoTaaia. Cf. Hermas, Mand. ii, 3 rornpd 4) *araXaXta aKardxnarov haipcviov ioriv. 8
1 8
>
1
dxardararcovl C K L minn* ** m s y r
, t r
C y r read dburcddxtrov; more
commonplace, hence probably a n emendation.
lov 6avaTn
1 8
8
This twofold use of the tongue is frequently mentioned.
dual.
Philo, De
19, p . 196 06 ydp Soiov, oV o5 OTOHOTOS T6 UP&TOTOV Cvoyia xpo0
01
flprraf TI<;, did TO6TOU fBeYY* ^ '
De garrulUate,
Plutarch,
AlyuTxUtiv
T l
T
v
* * aloxp&v.
8, p . 506 C 58iv 6 IltTTaxos o& xaxOc, TOO
f&aatXtax; xipi^avTOf; Uptlov O6T<J>, xal xtXt&aavrog TO xdXXtarov
xal TO xtfpiarov c^cXelv xplac, ixt^.^cv t £tX£>v T^V YX&TTOV, dx; opyavov uiv dYo6a>v, opYavov 8c T&V xax&v TWV ( U Y f o T t i w oSaav.
Substantially the
same story is told in Levit. rabba, 33 pr. on Prov. 1 8 " (Schttttgen,
Horae heb.
i, p. 1024) of R . Simeon b . Gamaliel, who sent his servant
to market to b u y first good and then b a d food, and found himself both times supplied with tongues. Windisch, and Ecclus.
$*>
cf.
See other references in M a y o r and
the passages in which
" 6» 28",
Orac. Sib.
Zl^Xu>cao^ occurs,
Prov. I I " ,
iii, 37.!
evkoyovpev. Doubtless with reference both to the Jewish custom of adding "Blessed be He," whenever the name of God
JAMES
242
8I
was mentioned (cf. Rom. i " 9*, 2 Cor. II )> and to other litur gical ascriptions of praise. For the latter, cf. 2 Cor. i», Eph. i* 1 Pet. i , Ps. i45 , and the Shemone Esre (Schiirer, GJV, § 27, Anhang). rbv icvpiov xal raripa. Both words refer to God. See on 2 ; cf. i . The expression has no complete parallel; cf. 1 Chron. 29 , Is. 63", Mt. n " , Ecclus. 23 * . KarapwptOa, cf. Job 31*, Ps. io 62* 109", Lk. 6 , Rom. 12". Test. X I I Patr. Benj. 6 1$ dyaO^ Sub/out ob/c fyet, Bvo yXcEWro~a? evhoyta? teal *arapa9. TOV? icaff opotuxTW 0€ov yeyovdras. Cf. Gen. i 9', Ecclus. 17*, Wisd. 2". Cf. Bereshith r. 24 (Wetstein), quoted by Hort. f
1
11
1
,T
10
1
4
7
18
u
10. oi XPV- Used only here in N. T . 1 1 - 1 2 . The contrary example of springs and trees. What takes place with the tongue would be impossible in nature. For the same thought, cf. Enoch 2-5*. 1 1 . $ *yyy. vr\yr\ has the article as the representative of its class; see Winer, § 18. 1. (Jpvei, "gush." "Send forth" (E.V.) is an exact, but prosaic, rendering of this mainly poetical word, which is not used else where in O. T . or N. T . It means "teem," "be full to burst ing," and is ordinarily used intransitively, with dative or geni tive, of the swelling buds of plants and so, figuratively, of vari ous kinds of fulness. Here the context shows that the thought is of the gushing forth of the water, T O y\v/cv teal TO irucpov. Cognate accusatives, . . . %&v v8a>p f}pvovai)$. in some of which, as yKv/cv means "fresh," Cf. Ex. 1 5 - (Tucp6p s8
16
}
as in Justin Martyr, Dial. 114 ireVpa? Mayor gives many other references, here, the cognate accusative occurs. Tucpov (cf. v . " aXweoV), "brackish." eyKvicdvOt)) Jer. 23 . 15
}
This occurrence is prophesied as a portent in 4 Ezra 5*
aquis salsac invenientur.
in dulcibus
" O n l y in the times of the E n d , in the days
of the sinners, when all nature reverses its order and shows itself ripe for destruction, does such a phenomenon appear" (Spitta, p . 104).
ni, 9-13
243
12. aZekfot pov. Here inserted to add emphasis, not, as more often, to mark a transition; so i 2*. ov/cfj iXaias, a/iircXo9. The fig, the olive, and the vine are the three characteristic natural products of warm countries about the Mediterranean. For the figure, cf. Mt. 7 1 2 " ; Plutarch, De tranquill. anim. p. 472 F rfjp afiweXov avtca fepew obtc aj-iovfw ovBk T^P iXatap jSoVpi*; similarly, Seneca, Ep. 87 , De ira ii, i o ; Epict. Diss. ii, 20 . ovre seems to be an error for ovoV, but the constant inter change of these words in the Mss. by textual corruption makes it hard to be sure that good ancient writing did not exercise more freedom in the use of them than the grammarians would sanction; see Radermacher, Neutestamentliche Grammatik, p. 172. OKVK6P, sc. iJowp, "salt water"; i.e. a salt spring. There were salt springs or brine-pits on the shore of the Dead Sea, and the hot springs of Tiberias are described as bitter and salt; see Robinson, Biblical Researches in Palestine, 1856, ii, p. 384. yXv/cif Toiriaai t/oa>p, sc. Bvvarai (as is shown by the parallel first half of the verse). No application of these illustrations is made, and James turns abruptly to another aspect of the matter. The passage well illustrates his vividness and fertility of illustration, as well as his method of popular suggestiveness, rather than systematic development of the thought. u
t
1 6
s6
6
18
OUTI aXuxov 7X0x6] B A C minn. oStti)<; O5TI [ou$i
N
minn] dXuxov «rXux6]
h
NC* minnffvg syr** boh
Cyr. OBTCIX; ouo'euia (syrhoi tit
O
M
1
aXuxov xal 7X0x6] K L P (O5TI) minn* ** s y r
b c l
••*
OSTOXJ).
1 3 - 1 8 . The true Wise Man's wisdom must be meek and peace able; such wisdom alone comes from above, and only peaceable righteousness receives the divine reward. 13. The Wise Man must by a good life illustrate the meek ness which belongs to true wisdom.
244
JAMES
rk. For similar rhetorical questions, see Ps. 3 3 " 107", Is. 50 , Ecclus. 6* , etc. These short interrogative sentences (fre quent in Paul) are characteristic of the diatribe; Bultmann, pp. 1 4 / . 10
4
I t is not necessary here, although it would be possible, to take xiq in the sense of 5ort<;.
See Buttmann, § 139 (Thayer's translation, p .
252); Blass, § 50. 5 ; J. H . Moulton,
Prolegomena, p . 9 3 ;
Winer, $ 2 5 . 1 . 1
ov
#
u
t
The relation of the parts of the sentence must be interpreted by the aid of 2 , &€$o) be r&v Zpywv ptov rqv fcfortv. The wise Man is here called on to prove not (as many commentators suppose) his wisdom (which would require &€i£dr
9
I t is better to take Iv Tpafl-njrt aoffo? in this w a y than as if it were used in deprecation of ("Let
the possible ostentation implied in &et£drcw
him point to his good works, b u t let him do so with due meek
ness such as bents w i s d o m " ) .
This would have to be indicated more
clearly, as b y inserting dXXa before Iv. The reason for rejecting the (at first sight simpler) interpretation, "Let
him prove his wisdom b y his good life" (Clem. R o m . 38* 6 00905
ivSctxvOoOu T?)V aofCov CCOTOU
iv X6foi<; 4XX' Iv Ipyoit d-]fa6ol{), which
m, 13-14
24s
many commentators have adopted, has been indicated above.
I t does
not do justice to the text of v. *« and does not give to "meekness" the emphasis that is needed in order to prepare for v.
iv rpaihirri, cf. 1 " (of the hearer, as here of the teacher). "Meekness" is the opposite of arrogance and of the qualities referred to in v . ; see Trench, Synonyms, § brii. Pirke Aboth, iv, 1 1 , "He that is arrogant in decision is foolish, wicked, and puffed up in spirit," is a maxim which refers to this besetting danger of rabbis; see Taylor's Sayings of the Fathers , p. 6 9 , notes 13 and 14, with quotation from R. Jonah, and cf. Pirke Aboth, iv, 12, 14. 1 4
1
14. And if your heart enkindle with fierce, obstinate, and divisive zeal for your own views, do not let such passion come to expression. oV, "and," in continuation of v . n o t in contrast. W H . ' s period before c { 5t* is too strong a punctuation; a colon is sufficient.
£f}\op wucpJp, "harsh zeal." Because of ipiOlav this mean ing for £rj/\ov is better than the meaning "jealousy" (in the ordinary sense of personal jealousy), and corresponds well to the general thought. The idea is of a fierce desire to pro mote one's own opinion to the exclusion of those of others. This sense of "fanatical zeal" (as distinguished from "emulation" and "jealousy") is not wholly foreign to Greek usage, but has been made specially common b y the influence of the L X X , where ^Xo<; stands in all cases for nKj/j, "jealous devotion to a cause," "fanatical ardour," as t^Xouv does in nearly all cases for the verb w
I t is the virtue of the religious "zealot," cf. 1 Kings i o « 48* ( E l i j a h ) , 1 M a c e , 2". 14
G a l . i , Acts 2i*°.
Ecclus.
4 M a c e . 1 8 " (Phinehas), Phil. 3* ( P a u l ) ,
B u t it also becomes the vice of the fanatic; and
hence its special danger for the religious teacher. I n secular use r,fjXo<; generally means "heat," as expressed in "emula tion," "rivalry"—whether good or b a d ; see below, note on 4«. T h e Biblical sense brings it near to the Hellenic CTOU&T], which, starting from another side ("haste," "exertion"), acquired a wide range of meanings including " z e a l " and " See Trench, connection of
rivalry."
Synonyms, § xxvi, Lightfoot on tftXos and ixartaurzaata in v.
Clem. R o m . 3. and
cf.
N o t e the s
G e m . Rom. 3 .
246
JAMES
ipi${av "selfish ambition." The word denotes the inclina tion to use unworthy and divisive means for promoting one's own views or interests, cf. Rom. 2 , 2 Cor. 1 2 * , Gal. 5 * (and Lightfoot's note), and references in Mayor, together with Hort's valuable note, ad loc. pp. 81-83; "tyrt^ really means the vice of a leader of a party created for his own pride: it is partly ambition, partly rivalry" (Hort). }
8
1
iv TTJ Kaphia vp&v has a certain emphasis, in contrast with tcaTatcavxacrde. The meaning is: "If you have these qualities in your heart, do not let them come to expression." p,)) KaraKavxacrffe (sc. T&V aWav) teal \pevBecde Kara rr^ aXrjOeia*;. "Do not boast and be arrogant, and thus prove false to the Truth." That would be the natural fruit of the spirit of f17X09 and ipedia in the heart; and it must be sup pressed. KaraKavyatrQe (cf. note on 2") seems here to relate to the browbeating on the part of the Wise Man who haugh tily forces his own views on others. Others connect u.^ »rr<xxaux<S
fktfltlaq, T h e sense
then would be: " D o not boast over, and lie against, the truth."
But
the idea of "boasting over (or against) the truth" is out of place in the context, and is itself unnatural.
xorroxaux&jOat xord Ttvo<; is a con-
struction which nowhere occurs.
/cal \pev&€cr0€ tear a T779 aKnffetas. "And thus play false against the truth," *. e. by your conduct (icaraicavxa^Oai) prove false to, and belie, the truth which you as a Wise Man profess to have and utter. Cf. 4
Mace.
5" 0$tytbaoyuxloe,
xottStotd
v6u*,
1
I 3 * ; see
L. and S.
s. v. for examples of ^eu&opLat with accusative, meaning " prove false t o " an oath, a treaty, a marriage, an alliance, a threat, a promise.
GnK, i, p. 792, note, and J. Weiss, Der erste Korinthcr354, note, for examples of xaratj>t6&to0QK, "speak falsely to
See also Zahn,
brief,
p.
the injury of someone."
rij? aXvOeto.
18
Cf. i Xoycp aknOeks, 5 " T\avrj0p airb T T / 9 aKnOelas. This means the Christian truth which the Wise Man knows—truth of both practical morals and religion. See
m , 14-15
247
1 9
the fuller discussion in the note on 5 . The conduct here cen sured is contrary to and forbidden by this truth; hence, if the Wise Man is guilty of that conduct, he is false to the truth of which he is the representative. If the phrase <>c6dto6f xord
drcOtYt «rj} aXt)8t(a, Test. X I I Patr. Gad 5* XaX&v x a r i
•rij<; dXtjOtfac), but that would be alien to the context here, and it is in itself not wholly acceptable since it makes xord rr)<; dXij6c.a<; a mere redundancy. 1
p4 xaroxouxdaftc xal
15. avri) i) av
8
For the divine origin of true wisdom, cf. e. g. Prov. 2* 8 o«.
iirlyetos,
J
ff
1 M l
1 7
, Wisd. 7* x%
Ecclus. i -« 24» «, Enoch 42, Philo, as above, 1 C o r . i -2*. 1
"earthly," cf. Phil. 3", Col. 3 , 1 Cor. 15", Jn. 3"
8".
iirlyeios seems to mean here "derived from the frail and finite world of human life and affairs." Cf. Philo's contrast of ovpdvios andyjytw, Leg. all. i, 12, and the far-reaching dualism on which it rests. ypvxucrj, "natural" (Latin animalis, E.V. "sensual"), i.e. pertaining to the natural life ( f v x v ) which men and animals alike have; 1 Cor. 2 i 5 ' , Jude 19. 14
44
4e
Cf. Rev. 8 OJmxt of animals). See Philo, Leg. all. ii, 7 and 13, Quis rer. div. her. 1 1 , and E . Hatch, Essays, p . 124, cf. p p . 1 1 5 - 1 2 0 . f
248
JAMES
The word was intelligible and familiar in this sense to Paul's readers, and does not imply later gnostic usage; see J. Weiss, Der erste Korintherbrief, 1910, pp. 69 / . , 371-373; R. Reitzenstein, Die hellenistischen Mysterienreligionen, 1910, pp. 42-47, 109, 112, 1 5 1 / . T h e curious resemblance to the gnostic designation of the two lower grades of men as xotxof and ^uxtxo( is probably not significant. see Pfleiderer,
Urckristentum*,
Yet
ii, p . 5 4 6 . Useful references will b e
found in M a y o r .
BaifiopuoSt)^, "resembling," or "pertaining to" ("proceeding from"), an evil spirit, cf. 2 , 1 Tim. 4 . This word has been pointed out elsewhere only Sym., Ps. 9 i , and Schol. on Aris tophanes, Ran. 293,
1
f
These three words, "earthly, sensual, devilish," describe the so-called wisdom, which is not of divine origin, in an advancing series—as pertaining to the earth, not to the world above; to mere nature, not to the Spirit; and to the hostile spirits of evil, instead of to God. Hermas, Mand. ix, n , xi, 8, show a variety of resemblances to this passage of James, but there is no evi dence of literary dependence. T h e church speedily and permanently used this conception of Satanic origin to account for the gnostic " wisdom " ;
cf. t. g. Justin, Apol. i, 58.
I n James, however, it is not the substance, but the temper, of the " w i s d o m " that makes it false. false teaching.
See Weinel,
James is not attacking systems of
Wirkungen des Geistes und der Geiste,
pp.
13/., 16-18, 20 ff. 1 5
16. yap. Introduces proof that v . is true. "For such a temper, even on the part of one who claims to be a Wise Man, leads to every evil." Sirov . . . itcei. For this rhetorical turn, cf. 1 Cor. 3* and Epict. Diss, iii, 22 (Mayor). a*arao-ra
8
The word seems to have something of the bad associations of our word "anarchy," and has to bear much weight in this sen tence. Cf. Prov. 26", 1 Cor. 14", 2 Cor. 12*° f*?Xo9, epidiai,
m, 15-17
249
KaraaraaCai; and the similar list of evils, Gal. 5*°, which has r^Aw, ipiOlcu, hixotrraclai) Lk. 2 1 , Clem. Rom. i \ See Hatch, Essays, p. 4 : "The political circumstances of Greece and the East after the death of Alexander had developed the idea of political instability, and with it the word atcaTaorao-ta, Polyb. 1. 70. i."
17. Cf. Wisd. 7 « - » . TTP&TOV ph ayvtf, "first pure," i. e. "undefiled," free from any faults such as the J"»)Xo9 and IpiBla. above mentioned. Nothing which shows itself as half-good, half-bad, can be accounted wisdom, Wisd. 7 " . See Trench, § lxxxviii and references in Lex. s. v. ayios. Cf. Phil. 4 , 1 Pet. 3'. In the L X X aypfc is found eleven times, of which four instances are in Proverbs and four in 4 Maccabees. See Moulton and Milligan, Vocabulary of the Greek Testament, 8
p. Siweira introduces the following adjectives, which, thus grouped, stand over against ayv, the quality from which they all proceed. elprjpuci], "peaceable," cf. Mt. 5*. irieucrft, "reasonable," "considerate," "moderate," "gentle" (E.V.). See Trench, Synonyms, § xliii: "We have no words in English which are full equivalents of the Greek." See Light foot on Phil. 4 , and Mayor's note, p. 131. 1
This is a distinctively Greek virtue; the word JTtetx'fc and its deriva tives are found but a few times in L X X , e. g. Ps. 86*, 2 M a c e . 9".
In
the N . T . 2 Cor. i o » , Phil. 4*, 1 T i m . 3 ' , T i t 3 ' , 1 Pet. 2", Acts 24*.
evTeiffifc, "obedient," "ready to obey"; here perhaps "will ing to yield," the opposite of "obstinate" (Philo, De fortitud. 3). Only here in the N . T .
I n O . T . only 4 Maccabees, and in strict
sense of "obedient." 14
14
f*eoTT) cf. Rom. 1 " 1 5 , 2 Pet. 2 . in L X X . y
The word is not common
JAMES
i\4ov$, "mercy," a compassion which leads to practical help, not the mere emotion of pity, cf. 2 . See Trench, Synonyms, § xlvii; and Lex. s. v. Ikeeiv. xapic&p ayad&v, i. e. good works, cf. Mt. 2 1 * , Gal. 5 " , E p h . S\ Phil. i». aSubcpiTos, "undivided," *. e. unwavering, whole-hearted with reference to the evil situation described in w . * . U
4
9
Cf. i
8
& 8taxpiv6iJLtvo<;, 2* 8ttxp(8rrri.
w
Only here in N . T . ; in O . T .
cf. Prov. 25* (45taxptTot), and there the sense is doubtful.
Trail, i &ii*xiov Stdvotov xal dStdxpi-rov Rom. inscr., Pkilad. inscr., Magn. 1 5 ; 1
See I g n .
iv uxoiiovfj Ifvuv fyia<; ixovrcc,
Pad.
ii, 3, p . 190
Cod. Corb.
dijudi
Clem. Alex.
d8tarxpfa|> xdrrti.
judicons;
The Latin translations ( V g .
cation*)
seem to have missed the meaning of this word, as have m a n y
interpreters.
Thus Luther translates
" unpartciisch";
so.A.V., R . V .
mg. "without partiality."
awwo/cpiTos, "without hypocrisy." In 0 . T . only W i s d . 5 " 1 8 " ; in N . T . R o m . 12*, 2 Cor. 6«, 1 T i m . i«, 2 T i m . 1 *, 1 Pet. 1 " , in sense of "sincere." (dvuxoxpfaiK), t.g.
Elsewhere only as a d v e r b
2 Clem. R o m . 12*.
These characteristics of true wisdom are selected in pointed opposition to the self-assertive, quarrelsome spirit characteristic of the other sort. Apart from the fundamental cVfvq they fall into three groups: Apnvucr), iirieucfc, eviceidrp • pear)} e\eW? xal tcapir£>i> ayaO&p • aSuucpiros, avvtcoKpiTO^. 18. icapTo? Zuccujoervvqs, " the fruit of righteousness," i. c. the reward which righteous conduct brings, cf. Heb. 1 2 icapicbv elprjvucbp Sucauoervpr]?, Phil, i TexXvpup^POi xapirbp Succua11
11
crvvrfi. T h a t the expression "fruit of righteousness" has the sense "product of righteousness " is shown b y those O . T . passages which seem to have given it its currency, and in which it is used with a variety of applica tions. Cf. Prov. $* ( L X X ) , u Xjuriq, i. e. "righteousness brings M
i x xapxou 5txatoff6vi)<
tp&atxan
Slv&pov
long life," 13» ( L X X ) , Amos 6".
In
m , 17-18 all these cases 8.xato<j6yi)c indicates the source of the "fruit." Similarly Is. 32": " A n d the work of righteousness ( T « IpY« TIFT 8IX«IO<J6VTJ<;) shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and confidence forever."
For the figure of sowing, cf. P r o v . n « ( L X X ) , b Zk oxttpuv
8ixatoc6vtjv X ^ T T C U jxia06v, H o s .
10",
1
Job 4 , Test, X I I Patr.
Levi,
e
13*1 t c .
eV elprjvy avelperat, "sown in peace," and in peace only; i. e. a righteousness capable of gaining its due reward must be peaceable; cf. i . The sower is, of course, the righteous man. K
For the slightly inaccurate expression "sow the fruit, or c r o p " (in 1
stead of the seed), cf. Apoc. B a r . 32 , " S o w the fruits of the l a w , " Plutarch,
De vitando cere alieno,
4 AXTLPOVTT<; oux %i*pov xapxov, Antiph-
anes, Fab. inc. iv, 4 oxclpttv xopxov xapito<;.
rot? Totovciv
eipqvrjv. 16
w
To "do peace" (cf. Eph. 2 , Col. i elprjvoTouk*; Mt. 5* elprjvoirouk) means not merely to conciliate opponents, but to act peaceably. It is the complete opposite of f 17X0? and ipidta. T h e interpretation of v. »• here given may be paraphrased, with a change of figure, thus: " T h e foundation which righteousness lays for eternal life can be laid only in peace and b y those who practise peace." This is equivalent to saying that righteousness includes peaceableness. Another common interpretation takes xapxbg atxatoaGviK as mean ing "the fruit which consists in righteousness."
T h e source will then
be the true wisdom, of which righteousness is the product.
T h e evi
dence for this would be H e b . 12", where righteousness seems to be itself the fruit, and the parallelism of Jas. 3*% where the product of £ijXo<; and Ipi0(a is said to be
fajanaaxaala
and xftv ?aOXov %p&y\ux.
Phil, 1", to
which appeal is often made, is ambiguous, and cannot be taken as meaning that righteousness is the fruit except b y giving to Stxaioatjvr] its peculiar Pauline sense. B u t the O . T . passages referred to above create a strong presumption against this interpretation; the simple meaning of the phrase speaks against it;
and, further, righteousness is more naturally thought of
(apart from Pauline theology) as the condition of receiving divine re ward, not as the reward itself.
T h e general drift of the verse would be
the same under either interpretation.
JAMES
m.
WORLDLINESS
A N D T H E CHRISTIAN
D U C T OF L I F E C O N T R A S T E D
CON
l
(4 ~5»).
CHAPTER IV. 1 - 1 2 . The cause of the crying evils of life is the pursuit of pleas ure, an aim which is in direct rivalry with God and abhorrent to him. 1-2*. Quarrels and conflicts are due to the struggle for pleasure and for the means of pleasure. The paragraph is written not so much to censure the quarrels as to set forth the evil results of aiming at pleasure; in nowise is it introduced in order merely to give an abstract analysis (ic60ev) of the ultimate source of the quarrelling. Some have taken 4
1
of difficulties between the teachers (cf.
1
i *-"
3"), but this is not indicated in the text, and is an unnatural limita tion.
We have here, doubtless, a glimpse of the particular com munities with which the writer was acquainted, but the exhor tation assumes that all communities show substantially the same characteristics. The addition of iv vfi > v . , recalls the thought from the ideal pictures in the preceding verse to the actual situation in the world—and even in the Christian church. Cf. Philo, De gig. 1 1 : "For consider the continual war which prevails among men even in time of peace (TOP hr tlpjvrj erwejpf irfikepjop apBp&iruv), and which exists not merely between na tions and countries and cities, but also between private houses, or, I might rather say, is present with every individual man; observe the unspeakable raging storm in men's souls that is excited by the violent rush of the affairs of life; and you may well wonder whether any one can enjoy tranquillity in such a storm, and maintain calm amid the surge of this bellow ing sea." v
l
T h e opening of this paragraph and of the two following, 4 " - " lacks the usual d&eX$o( tiou.
U9
s
9
IV,
I
253
xdXe/ioi, "feuds," "quarrels"; /"fyo*, "conflicts," "conten tions." The two words cover the chronic and the acute hos tilities in the community. \ukx*i
x6X«tu><; and
are so frequently combined in H o m e r as to elicit
comment from Eustathius more than once. on / / . i, 177.
See especially Eustathius
I n later writers they became a standing combination; see
references in Wetstein,
e. g. Epict. Diss,
iii, 13*.
Hence the combined
phrase is naturally used here with no great distinction between the two terms. For x6Xev.o$ used of private quarrel, cf. Test. X n S»,
Sim. 4*, Ps.
Rom.
46*.
Sol. i2«, Jos.
Antiq.
Patr. Cad 5, Dan
xvii, 2«, Ps.-Diog.
Ep.
28, Clem.
For UJ*XT} referring to private strife, cf. N e h . 1 3 " , P r o v .
i7», Ecclus. 6* 27", 2 T i m . 2". »«, 2 Cor. 7», P l a t . Tim. iv X6*roi<; xouioflat, Epict.
Diss,
1 4
88 A u4x«<; 1
i, n " , ii, 1 2 , iii, 1 2 " , iv. 5 .
h T&P T/SOP&P, "because you make pleasures your aim," Sovkevopre? iiri0vfi(ai<; KOX qSowu? iroucfkais (Tit. 3*). Over against pleasure as the great end stands submission to God (v.'). T&P oTpaTevofie'pup ip rot? fieXeaip, "which are at war with one another, having their seat in your bodily members," and which so bring about conflicts among you. The war is between pleasures which have their seat in the bodies of several persons, not between conflicting pleasures throwing an individual into a state of internal strife and confusion. Since the pleasures clash, the persons who take them as their supreme aim are nec essarily brought into conflict.
B u t it is entirely fit
ting, and makes much better sense, to understand it, as above, with ref erence to the natural activity of pleasures—necessarily conflicting with one another, and so leading to the outbreak of conflict.
T h e point of
James's attack is pleasure as such, not lower physical pleasure as dis tinguished from higher forms of enjoyment. PhadOtp.
T h e passage from Plato,
66, often cited, and given below ( p . 258), is therefore not an
apt illustration here. Pleasure is not ixtOupfo, "desire."
here equivalent to, nor used b y metonymy for, B u t the two are of course closely related;
e.g.
254
JAMES
De pram, et pan. 3 xorcoxt9p6vi]Xffv ^Jov&v xal <xi8uyu6v, 4 M a c e tfiovfft iorlv ixtOuyifa, 5 " ; Stobaeus, ii, 7, 10 ( e d .
Philo, 1"
« p b tUv o5v Tfj«
Wachsmuth, p. 88) -fySov^v \ikv [iTtjffveaOai] STOV TUY%OVOI^L«V UV i x « 6u(AoG^tv {) <x76f(ti(uv d i9o^o6(M6a.
T h e underlying conception is
the
same as in Jas. 1 " , although no explicit reference to ^fcovfj is t h e r e made.
On iv rot? pfkecip, cf. 3 * . James thinks of pleasure as pri marily pertaining to the body. Cf. the frequent use of "mem bers" for "body," Rom. 6 " - 7'- » , Col. 3', Apoc. Bar. 83*. 1 9
T h e resemblance to 1 Pet. 2 « is probably accidental; nor is t h e r e probably any direct allusion to R o m .
7".
1
2, V . explains in detail the connection between ffSoval and TtSKe/joi Kal f u l x * Ungratified desire leads to <£oVos; zeal for pleasure unable to reach its end, to f ^ X V ajid xrfXe/w. 1
o6x
fxret Bid] B A K L minn v g ' ° .
xal o6x ixret 8td] K P minn ff v g * » boh syr**. o6x
Ixt^t &l Sid] minn.
So Textus Receptus.
T h e short reading is probably original. U n d e r the reading adopted, the last clause, oSx ixret &td r b oclttloOat tyuSs, belongs with v . » ( s o W H . ) . R . Stephen's verse-divi sion, which connects v . » • with the preceding instead of the
following,
and the punctuation of the A . V . are due to the Textus Receptus.
iTiOvpetre, Kal OVK e^ere*
}
17
f
u
l
l
IV,
255
1-2
and none is here necessary, for James is not describing the con dition of any special community, but is analysing the result of choosing pleasure instead of God. The final issue of the false choice is flagrant crime. rjSopq implies iTidvfifa; iwiOvfita is often unsatisfied; in such a case its outcome, if unrestrained, is to cause the murder of the man who stands in its way. iTiffvueire, e^ere, fovevere are practically equivalent to a conditional sentence, in which imdvfjLeire Kal OVK kyere forms the protasis, fovevere the apodosis; cf. 3" s - Bult mann, pp. 1 4 / . In the use of the second person plural the writer is taking the readers as representative of the world of men in general. w,
f
O n the "universal," or "gnomic," present, see Gildersleeve,
Classical Greek,
Syntax of
i, § 1 0 0 ; W i n e r , § 40. 2. a ; on asyndetic sentences of
the nature of a condition, cf. Buttmann, § 139. 28; W i n e r , § 60. 4. c. The
same idea that murder is the horrible outcome to be expected
from actually existing conditions,
unless their natural tendency 1
somehow checked, is found in Didache 3 ^ 4 6pT^ xpb<; TOV
96VOV* pifik t^Xtur^c
Tfdp TO6TWV OTOVTUV 96vot ytvvomai; below, Test. X I I Patr. Sim. TOV fOovoOtuvov.
is
ylvou bgyCkoq' b^ytl r*P iptortxoc
6u(j.tx6c* Ix 7
cf. also Clem. R o m . 4 »
quoted
3* TOVTOT* [o 966vo<;l 5xo^aXX« 4viX*Iv
I t must not be forgotten that to cause a death in
directly is often called murder, and that even downright murders have not been unknown in otherwise respectable communities. 20
% 23"
Jas. s
#
Cf. Acts 9 "
tVovsGoor*, 1 Pet. 4 " <pove6<;, Ecclus. 34".
Kal f lyXoure, Kal OXJ Bvpaade fieiTe.
imTt^etv
• /la^eo-fle Kal xoXe-
Having established the connection between and <£oVo?, the writer presents another chain, still hypothetical and general, but showing that the origin of the prevailing state of irdkefwi Kal fidx
James, writing to no one community, but to the whole Chris tian world, is speaking of general tendencies, not of the sins of any particular local group. Hence his strong language has no personal sting. f
T h e underlying principle is not the same as that of M t . 5 " « , although there is obvious resemblance.
There, as in M t . 5 " , the point is that
JAMES it is the inner passion of the heart which G o d considers, not merely t h e carrying out of an angry thought in murder.
Here in James the w i c k e d
ness and dangerousness of the end sought, viz. pleasure, is exposed b y showing to what an awful issue, if uninhibited, it surely leads. i Jn. 3 " xa<; 6 (j.tod>v tbv dfoXfbv a&Tou drv6po>xoxT6voc iotfv c o m e s nearer, but is still different. T o the mistaken idea that James is here giving a description of t h e particular communities which he addressed is due the conjecture 960vttxB for fovcurct, which was printed in the second edition of E r a s m u s T
w a
(i5 9)> and
s
supported b y Calvin, translated b y Luther
(ihr kasset),
has been adopted b y many other commentators, both older a n d
more recent.
Various other instances of the textual corruption, ?6vo<;
for 986VOS, can, indeed, be adduced (see Mayor*, p . 1 3 6 ) ; but there is no manuscript evidence for the reading here. unnecessary, and it obliterates the
T h e conjecture is
careful parallelism of the
two
series. Interpreters who have been unwilling to emend the text, and y e t have felt bound to see in fovt6rct an actual description of the Chris tian community addressed, have been driven to various expedients. The
more usual methods have been either to reduce the meaning o l
fove6rct to "hate," or else to assume an hendiadys, b y which " m u r d e r and e n v y " becomes "murderously e n v y " (Schneckenburger:
usque invidetis).
ad necem
Both methods are linguistically impossible.
xal f^Xoure. KOLI connects the two series. £r)\ovTe "hotly desire to possess," "covet," cf. Ecclus. 51™, Wisd. i , 1 Cor. 1 2 " 14 . Gal. 4 '•, Demosth. Ol. ii, 15 6 ph> &6£TJ<; iiridvfiel xal TOVTO i£r)\wK€, The meaning is different from that of f*jXos in 3 " . f
15
1
17
^ijXoc and £TJX6<.> start with the fundamental meaning of " hot e m o tion."
F o r the peculiar Hebraistic and Biblical meaning "zeal," see
note on Jas. 3".
I n secular use the meanings are developed on t w o
surpass
sides, desire to ("envy," etc.).
("emulation," " r i v a l r y " ) and desire to
possess
I n either sense the words may refer, according to cir
cumstances, to either a good or an evil desire.
See Trench,
Synonyms,
§xxvi. In our verse ixtTu%tiv shows that the desire is for possession; b u t STJXOOT* may then mean either " e n v y " (the possessor) or "covet" (his possessions).
" C o v e t " (so R . V . ; A . V . "desire to h a v e " ) , as being
the more general idea and a better parallel to
jalousie,
Latin
zelus,
but in most of its meanings "jealousy" corre-
IV,
2
*57
sponds rather to fO&vos, the " begrudging" to another, indicating pri marily not the desire to possess, but the unwillingness
that another
should have.
fidxeaOe Kal ToXefielre, i. e. against those who possess what you wish to take from them. The connection of either barren envy or ungratified covetousness with strife is so natural that it hardly needs to be illustrated; but cf. Clem. Rom. 3-6 (where the Biblical and secular meanings are not distinguished), with Lightfoot's note on 3*, Philo, De deed. 2 8 ; Iren. iv, 18*. This passage is made more intelligible by passages from Greek and Roman writers, which show that not only the connection of pleasure and desire, but that of desire, conflict, and war, was a commonplace of popular moralising in the Hellenistic age. See Zeller, Die Philosophie der Griechen*, iii, 1, pp. 221-225. T h u s Philo,
De deed. 28,
M . pp. 204 / . :
" L a s t of all he forbids desire
(*xt8uiA*lv), knowing desire (xty fxtOutxfov) to be productive of revolu tion and addicted to plots.
For all the passions of the soul ( r d <J>uxfj<;
xdfh)) are bad, exciting it and agitating it unnaturally, and destroying its health, but worst of all is desire. . . .
T h e evils of which the love
of money or of a woman or of glory or of any other of those things that produce pleasure is the cause—are they small and ordinary?
Is
it not because of this passion that relationships are broken, and thus natural good-will changed into desperate enmity? that great and pop ulous countries are desolated b y domestic dissensions? and land and sea filled with novel disasters b y naval battles and land campaigns? For
the wars famous in tragedy, which Greeks and barbarians have
fought with one another and among themselves, have all flowed from one source:
desire (<xi8up.(a) either for money or glory or pleasure.
Over these things the human race goes mad."
Ibid.
32, M . p. 208 x*ffixrov &fc [*.
e.
the fifth commandment of
the
second table] rb dvtfpYov «rijv r&v d3tXTx*dra>v XTJY^V, Ixi8utj..av, 09* ij<; }iou<7tv al xapavo(JUi>rara. xpd£ett, T3iai xal xotval, (itxpal xal i&c?dXa., lepal xal $l$i}Xot, xep( re auHJurca xal <J>uxd? xal rd Xty V*va Ixr6s ' 8taf c 6 Y « yap o6Mv,fa;xal xpdrtpov
iXtx^V)
y
t f ) 4xt6u(j.(av, dXX* ola ?Xb£
to
QX-Q viiJirrat fcaxavwaa xdvra xal fOclpouaa.
De Josepho, zx, M . p. 50; De posterilate Cain, De migratione Abr. 1 2 ; Lucian, Cynic. 1 5 , xdvra
Philo, 247/.;
i, 34, M . pp. ^dp rd xaxd
•col? dv8pa>xot<; ix TTJS ro6rwv ixtOujiCa^ fGovrai, xal ardaits xal x6Xtnoi xal IxtgouXal xal Qyayal. raurl xdvra XTJY^V § x « *rijv ixtOu(j.facv rou xXtfovo
t
*58
JAMES
exigua sunt net possunt ad alterum nisi alteri erepta transfcrri, eadcm ajjcctantibus pugnam et jurgia excitant. Cf. Plato, Phado, p . 6 6 C nod fdp xoXliLouc xal araaitt xal (&axa< o68iv dFXXo xaptfxtt ^ *b atyia xal ad TO6TOU ixtOuyUat. u
See note on i , and (a) as able to control pleasure and desire; but T e s t X I I Patr. Benj. 6 shows true Jewish character in the sharp contrast which it draws: " [The good man] delighteth not in pleasure . . . for the Lord is his portion." This section of the Testament of Benjamin is full of parallels to James. c
2 -3. By aiming at pleasure men cut themselves off from the only sure source of true satisfaction. OVK e^ere returns to the matter of the unsatisfied desire (iwidvpeiTe KOI OVK c^ere) in order to point out another as pect of the futility of pleasure as a supreme end. So long as men allow their lives to be governed by iirtOvfila r&v ^Sov&v their desire is sure to be unsatisfied. The only sure source from which men can always receive is God. By choosing pleas ure as their aim, men cut themselves off from this source, for they do not ask God for gratifications such as these, or, if they do, only find that their prayers, aiming at their own pleasures and not at his service, are unacceptable, and that they ought not to have offered them. f
James's principle is: Make the service of God your supreme end, and then your desires will be such as God can fulfil in an swer to your prayer (cf. Mt. 6* - ). Then there will be none of the present strife. Pleasures war, and cause war. Desire for pleasure, when made the controlling end, leads to violence, for longings then arise which can only be satisfied by the use of violence, since God, from whom alone come good things (i )> will not satisfy them. 1
83
l7
IV,
259
2-3
It should b e needless to point out that ofix fxrrt is not thought of as the
result
of (toxcoOe xal voXctulTt.
Bui TO fi)) alTeiadai bfias. The v/ia? is unnecessary, but not emphatic. Cf. i 4 . alretadat here means prayers to God. 18
16
4f
3. atretre, cf. Jas. i - , Mt. f 7
14" is -
18
1 4
2 1 " , Mk. n , Lk. n», Jn.
1 6 " 1 Jn. 3 " s"
Here, as often in secular Greek (cf. L. and S.) no difference in meaning is perceptible between the active and middle of aiTelv. Cf. 1 Jn. 5 - alTd>fie0a yrq/cafiev, air^o-et, Mk. 6 " » aiTwo-ov, aiTqawfiai, and other examples quoted by Mayor. f
16
18
2 4
y
T h a t there was once a distinction in use is likely, b u t even the state ments quoted b y Stephanus, ask
Thesaur. s. v.,
that akiTo6at means
to
11*?' lx*da<; or ixrra xapaxX^acdx; do not make the matter intelli
gible.
See
itor, Sth
J.
H . Moulton,
Prolegomena, p. 160; J. B . M a y o r , ad loc.
in
Expos
series, vol. iii, 1912, p p . 5 2 2 - 5 2 7 ; H o r t , s9
17
KatcS*, "wrongly," cf. Wisd. 1 4 ' » 4 Mace. 6 . The fol lowing clause explains this to mean: "with the selfish purpose of securing pleasure, not of serving God," cf. Mt. 6". For rab binical ideas of bad prayers, see Schottgen on Jas. 4*. The promises are that the prayers of the righteous and the penitent will be heard; cf. Ps. 3 4 1 4 5 , Prov. io* , Ps. Sol. 6«, Lk. 1 8 , Jas. i -, 1 Jn. 5 , Hermas, Sim. iv, 6. JVa iv rats ^BovaU vfi&v Bairav^arrre. "iv marking the realm in rather than the object on" (Lex. s. v. Bairavdo)). The distinction is thus not in the things prayed for, but in the pur pose with which they are to be used, and for which they are desired—i. e. whether pleasure or the service of God. Hence probably the unusual, though not unexampled, preposition. 1 6 1 7
9 1 4
8ff
18
4
14
Bairavqo"nT€, "spend"; not necessarily "waste," nor "squan der"; cf. Acts 2 i , 2 Cor. 1 2 , 1 Mace. 1 4 " . The object of BaTravy&rrre is the means of securing enjoyment for which they pray; throughout the passage money is especially in mind. 1 4
18
&tirav4
oaxovfjaeri] B . xaraSarxav^cxfTe] X * . B and 8 have both fallen into error.
260
JAMES
4. /io*xaX/S€9, "adulteresses," i.e. "renegades to your vows." God is the husband to whom the Christian is joined as wife. The figure arose with reference to Israel as the wife of Jahveh; cf. Is. 54', Jer. 3*°, Ezek. 16, 23, Hos. 9 , Wisd. 3 " , Mt. 1 2 " 1 6 , Mk. 8 " ; and see Heb. Lex. s. v. HJT. 1
4
To this corresponds the position of the church as the bride of Christ (2 Cor. n»« *, Eph. 5 " - " , Rev. 1 9 21'). The term is often, as here, applied to individual members of the people of God; cf. Ex. 34 , Num. 1 5 " , Ps. 7 3 " ravra TOV Tcopvevaavra awb crov, Hos. 4". The feminine /xot^aXA is alone appropriate in this sense, since God is always thought of as the husband. The harsh word comes in abruptly; it anticipates and sum marises the thought expressed in the verse itself. For the sever ity, and the direct address, cf. i 4 " 5 . 7
15
1
1
T h e word is fully explained b y the figurative sense: to take it liter ally (Winer, Spitta, Hort, and others) is to violate the context and to introduce a wholly foreign and uncalled-for idea.
Moreover the femi
nine used alone is then inexplicable. potxaXfttc] B K * A 33 ff
(fornicatores)
vg
(adulteri)
boh
(adulterers)
syrt^. jtotxol xal noixaXfces] tf*KLP minn syr*»«*.
Plainly emendation.
OVK othare. The idea which follows is at any rate familiar to the readers, whether or not these words (as Spitta thinks) introduce a quotation.
17
8
1 8 f
1
26l
iv, 4-5 4
Cf. 2 Tim. 3 ^XIJOOPOT paKkov fj
T h e precise sense of f) f i k l a TOU x6ay.ou is much discussed in the commentaries.
F o r summary of views, see Beyschlag, w h o himself
takes it in the active sense of "love," as given above.
1x8pa TOV 0eov "enmity as regards God." The accentuation fyOpa, not £y0pa, is required in order to preserve the sharp ness of the contrast. Cf. Rom. 8 i%0pa efe 0e6v, Rom. 5 n , Col. i , in which passages, however, rather more of mutual re lation is implied. }
7
10
J 8
11
It is to be observed that a state of enmity between men and G o d differs from a state of enmity in ordinary human relations in that the permanent attitude of love on God's part is not thereby interrupted.
89 icb> for 89 av is characteristic of vernacular Greek, and is shown by the papyri to have been "specially common" in the first and second centuries after Christ. See J. H. Moulton, Prolegomena, pp. 42-44, 234, where references to other discus sions will be found; also Winer, § 42 fin., Blass, § 26. 4, and the references in Mayor's note, pp. 139 / . o5v] om L 33 minn boh. T h e weakness of attestation here counter balances the presumption in favour of the shorter reading. Possibly OYN fell out b y accident after E A N .
<£/X09 TOV Kd&pOV. Cf. 2 "
M
lf
8
KaOloraTai, "stands," cf. 3*, Rom. s , 2 Pet. i . The word suggests a lasting state. But see J. de Zwaan, in Theol. Stu died, 1913, pp. 85-94. 5-6. Remember the Scripture which declares that God is a jealous lover and suffers no rival for the loyalty of the human spirit; and observe that God gives grace to fulfil his require ments, and that this grace is bestowed on the humble, not on those proud of their worldly success. 5. y, introducing "a question designed to prove the same thing in another way" (Lex.); cf. Mt. 1 2 , 1 Cor. 6 , etc. Kevfc, "emptily," i.e. "without meaning all that it says." Cf. Deut. 3 2 STI OVXJL Xo'70? Kotos 0&709 vplv KTX. 19
47
16
262
JAMES a(
V yP MSee 2 " and note. The term must refer to "Holy Scripture." The quotation which follows is not found in the O. T., and either the writer has quoted (perhaps by mistake) from some other writing or a paraphrase, or else the Greek 0. T . in some one of its forms had a sentence like this. The sentence seems to be a poetical rendering of the idea of Ex. 20 . Aefyei. The formula is frequent; cf. Rom. 4* 9 io n . 6
1 7
11
1
Various unsuccessful attempts are made to explain this sentence a s not meant to be a quotation. (1) T h e usual method is to take the two sentences icpoc; $66vov ixtxoOct tb xveuiia 8 xompxtocv Iv
(le^ova lk
parenthesis (Hofmann, B . Weiss, and others).
%aptv, as a
Against such an idea
speaks the technical introductory formula, which here prepares for the quotation with unusual elaboration.
Such a formula is generally
1
(cf. v . ) followed at once b y the quotation ( R o m . tion to this rule).
is no excep
Moreover, if what follows is not quoted, Xi-rtt
would have to be given the somewhat unusual meaning "speaks" ( a s in Acts 24'°).
Such a parenthesis would introduce confusion into the
thought of an otherwise well-ordered and forcible passage and make the lib of v. • unaccountable. (2) Equally futile is the theory that James is merely summarising the thought of the O . T . without intending to refer to any specific pas sage, e. g. (Knowiing) Gen. 6»-*, Deut. 32" «• Zech. i
14
1
8.
« , Is. 63*-", Ezek. 36",
T h e following sentence would then become merely the
utterance of the writer, and against this speaks conclusively the formula of citation ft YP<*9^ "Mfu)* (3) Neither can the sentence be accounted for as an inexact citation of such passages as E x . 20* lyb
?ap ttyu x6pto<; 6 8«6<; 00u, 0tb<; ^ X ^ ? ,
although the sense is akin. (4) T h e attempt to make Xiyet refer vaguely to the substance of v.
4
is also vain.
(5) Unacceptable are also the textual conjectures b y which various scholars have tried to eliminate a supposed gloss: thus Erasmus and Grotius would excise lib X * y « . . . x«ptv (cf. 1 Pet. 5 * ) ; Hottinger and Reiche, iw^ova lk a&oxjtv xiptv * lib Xlftt (with the insertion of U before 8e6<;). Trpov
xp6s with accusative is a regular periphrasis for the a d v e r b ; so xpoc; v
pfotacv for {kattux;, xp&S £p*rt i "angrily," xpbc, iGTtXtiav, "cheaply," * The objection, however, that this interpretation makes it necessary to take if yp*M to mean " the Scriptures" as a whole is not conclusive, cf. Lightfoot on Gal. 3", Hort on 1 Pet. a«.
263
iv, S
xpb<; •fj&ov^v xal xdpiv, "pleasantly and graciously" (Jos. Ant. xii, 10'). See L. and S. s. v. xp6<; C . I I I . 7 ; Lex. s. v. xp6<; I , 3. g.
This idiom is
Atticismus,
not found elsewhere in the N . T . ; see Schmid,
iv, Index.
I n the sense of "jealously," xpb<; JJJXOV would have been more in accord with L X X usage, cf. N u m . 5
1 4
xveuiia IjjX&atdx;, E x . 20*, P r o v .
#
6 " 27*, Cant. 8 , Ecclus. 9*, so 2 C o r . 1 1 * ; b u t this meaning, "ardent desire for complete possession of the object" as in the case of the husband ( H e b r e w nKtf?), seems to be foreign to £ijXo<; in general Greek usage, which denotes that emotion b y fOdvoc, as here,
xpb<; ?66vov is
thus a phrase d r a w n from Hellenic models, not founded on the lan guage of the L X X . 966voc means primarily "ill will," "malice," due to the good fortune of the one against whom it is directed, X6XTJ ix' ( D i o g . Laert. vii, 63. x u ;
Synonyms,
§ xxvi).
dXXoxpfois dyado!*;
see other similar definitions in Trench,
This begrudging spirit may be shown in the re
fusal either to give or to share (so especially the verb 9 6 0 V & 0 ) ;
or in
the jealous ill will of the gods toward overfortunate mortals; or in other ways corresponding to some of the meanings of English " e n v y " and "jealousy," neither of which, however, is in meaning wholly co terminous
with 9d6vo$.
fdoviu, dfdovos, dfdovfa.
See Trench, / .
c.; L. and S. s. vv.
986VOS,
So, like English "jealousy," 906vo<; is used
in a b a d sense of the ill will felt toward another with whom one has to share a prized object, but it does not seem ever to be quite equiva lent to the English term for the lover's, or husband's, "jealousy"; the object of the emotion seems always to have been found in the hated possessor, not (as often in the English word) in the prized object. The
Latin equivalent of 966vo<; is
"envy."
invidia,
from which comes English
B u t the English word is in modern times often used in a
milder sense, with reference only to the desire for equal good fortune with another and with no thought of ill will.
I t thus approaches
more nearly the sense of £TJXO«, just as the English "jealousy" (see on 3 " 4»)> though derived from f^Xoc,,
zelus, has
acquired much of the
peculiar meaning of 98670$.
Tpb?
xp6<; is usually taken in the sense of
"with reference to," or "against" (so Spitta).
B u t there has been no
previous mention of 986VOC in this paragraph to account for the intro duction of such a quotation relating to it.
If the phrase is connected
with Xifct and taken in the sense "enviously," as explaining xevc*;, it lacks the proper, and indispensable, conjunction to connect it with xcv&c (inserted b y " (Ecumenius" in his paraphrase: o5 fdp xev&t fycot (larafaK, i) xpb? 986vov), and the general sense is less satisfactory.
264
JAMES
iTiwoSei, "yearns," "yearns over," of the longing affection of the lover. See Lightfoot on Phil. i . Cf. 2 Cor. 9 , Phil. i», Deut 1 3 3 2 , Jer. 1 3 . In Ezek. 23 * » • (Aq.) it has the lower sense of "dote on." As subject of iiriwoOel we may supply 6 0c(fc, and then take T O Tvevua as object of the verb; or TO Tvevpa may be taken as subject and vnfc supplied as object In the former case TO TveOfia means the human spirit breathed into man by God (cf. Gen. 2 , Is. 42*, Eccles. 1 2 , Num. 1 6 " 27", Zech. 1 2 , Heb. i 2 ) . This has the advantage that iTiiroOel and KaTtpKirev then have the same subject, and seems on the whole better. xaroSKiaev contains a hint of God's rightful ownership through creation. 8
8
11
1 4
7
14
s
7
7
1
f
O n the other hand, TO TVC0U4 as subject would mean the H o l y Spirit, to whom this would be the only reference in the epistle. this is the fact that the conception of the H o l y Spirit as
I n favour of
dwelling in man
is repeatedly found in the N . T . and in early Christian literature. Ezek. 36", Hennas,
Mf
Rom. 8 -,
1 Cor. 3
l f
Cf.
*cb xveuua TOU 0tou Iv Sjilv ofrut,
Sim. v, 6 , Mand. iii, 1, v, 2, De aleatoribus, 3. Wirkungen des Geistes und der Geiste p . 159, T
Weinel,
t
suggests t h a t
IxtxoOct here (like Xuxtlrt, E p h . 4**) refers to the idea of Hermas,
Sim.
7
v, 6 , ix, 32, that G o d has given us as a deposit a pure spirit, which w e are bound to return to him unimpaired. the spirit, pure as he gave it."
" G o d jealously requires b a c k
B u t this interesting interpretation
is
not supported b y any clear indication in the context.
If taken thus as a declarative sentence, the quoted passage means "God is a jealous lover." This obviously suits perfectly the preceding context. B y some the sentence is taken interrogatively.
I t will then m e a n ,
" D o e s the Spirit, set within us b y G o d , desire to the extent of b e c o m ing
jealous?"
and will express the incompatibility
the sin of jealousy.
of the Spirit w i t h
B u t ( 1 ) this would require yd) to introduce
the
question; (2) ^Oovoc; is too weak a word after *6Xcu.ot, (jufcxon, fov«6rc<; and (3) the general meaning of the sentence becomes altogether f a r less suited to the context. Mayor", p p . 1 4 1 - 1 4 5 gives a convenient and full summary of
the
various views held about this verse, relating to (1) the construction of xpb<; 966VOV, (2) the meaning of xpbc, 966VOV, (3) the subject of txixoftcl. A large amount of material is to be found in Heisen,
Novae hypotheses,
iv, 5-6 p p . 881-928, Pott, "Excursus I V , " p p . 329-355, and Gebser, pp. 320346, who gives the views of commentators at length.
Studien und Kriiiken, vol. Studien und Kriiiken, vol. lxxvii, Grimm,
See also W .
xxvii, 1854, pp. 934-956; and Kirn. 1904, p p . 1 2 7 - 1 3 3 , 593-604, where
the conjecture n P O S T O N O N for n P O S 4 » 8 0 N O N
(first proposed
b y Wetstein, 1730) is elaborately, b u t unconvincingly, defended, and 1
T
the quotation explained as a combination of Ps. 42 and Eccles. i 2 . Corssen,
GVUingische gelekrte Anzeigen,
P.
1893, pp. 596 / . , defends the
conjecture ixtxoOelti, and the sense: " I n envy ye desire: b u t the Spirit which G o d hath put within you giveth greater grace; s u b ject yourselves, therefore, to G o d . " xorci^xtocv] B R A minnP«p«. 1
xorwpxtjatvl K L P minn* " fl vg boh s y r
atr
.
T h e weight of external
evidence leads to a (somewhat doubtful) decision for xortfrtotv.
6. iul$ova & x^PW- God makes rigorous require ments of devotion, but gives gracious help in order that men may be able to render the undivided allegiance which he ex acts. The subject of S&Qxrtv is clearly 6 Oefc (cf. tcaTtpcurev). That the phrase is drawn from, and directly prepares for, the quotation from Proverbs which follows makes it unlikely that this sentence is part of the quotation of v . . ful^ova. The comparative is most naturally taken as mean ing "greater grace in view of the greater requirement." 8
Another interpretation is that of B e d e : 1
dot quam amicitia mundi *;
"majorem graiiam dominus
so also many other commentators.
X«Ptf\ The context seems to require that this be under stood of the "gracious gift" of aid to fulfil the requirement of whole-hearted allegiance. Cf. 1 Pet. 3 , Eph. 4 . On the mean ing of X«Ptf, cf. ] . A. Robinson, Ephesians, pp. 221 f. 7
7
Those who take %optv in the sense of "favour," *. e. not the means of complying, but a reward for complying, have difficulty with |xcH^ova, which is then inappropriate; and the idea itself suits the context less well.
Su) Xefye*, sc. f) ypo.
14
7
14
266
JAMES 14
The quotation from Prov. 3 illustrates and confirms the main position of the preceding passage, w . v i z . that G o d will not yield to Pleasure a part of the allegiance of men's hearts, but that by his grace he enables men to render to him undivided allegiance. "So says the Scripture: 'God is opposed to the proud and worldly, it is the humble who receive his gift of grace.' Hence ( w . ) to gain his favour we must humble ourselves before him. The quotation thus has the important function of making the transition from the negative to the posi tive aspects of the subject, cf. the use of it in Clem. Rom. 30*. 7 f f
,,
T h e quotation is taken verbatim from the L X X of P r o v . 3 " , e x c e p t that 6 6c6c is substituted for x6pto<;.
This is also the case in t h e s a m e
quotation in 1 Pet. 5* and Clem. R o m . 30, and is probably d u e to a common form of popular quotation. O n the theory of Oort (1885) and Gratz (1892-94), that t h e o b scure H e b r e w OH in the passage quoted is a corruption of cnStf, w h i c h has been preserved in James, z Peter, and Clem. R o m . , see T o y on Prov. 3 " .
vrep^^a^o^, "haughty persons," here applied to those who, despising the claims of God, devote themselves to worldly pleas ures and position, and insolently look down on others, especially on the humble pious. They are haughty both toward God and toward men, and are here identified with the "friends of the world." Cf. i 2*- s - . On vreprjfavta, cf. Ps. 3 1 " , Ecclus. io » 1*, 2 Mace. 9"Ps. Sol. 2 " (where Pompey is described as setting himself up against God), 4 " , and see Trench, Synonyms, § xxix. 10
7
1 8
7
amTcuroerai, 6 Jas. s .
"opposes," cf. v .
4
e
and Acts i8 , Rom. 13',
rairetj'ol?, "humble persons." Here applied primarily to those who are humble toward God (cf. v . virordyrfTe, v . TaT€ivd)dr}T€ iwwiov Kt/p&t/), but not without thought of the same persons* lowly position in the community, cf. i 2 . 7
1 0
10
s
Spitta ( p p . 1 1 7 - 1 2 3 ) has ingeniously argued that the unidentifiable quotation in v. Num. I I
1 4
-")-
1
is from the apocryphal book " E l d a d and M o d a d " (cf. This work is referred to b y H e n n a s (Vis.
ii, 3*), and
267
iv, 6-7
f
Lightfoot suggests that the quotation given as Ypopfj in Clem. R o m . 23" and as 6 xpogrpixbs
4
X6yo<; in 2 Clem. R o m . 1 1 * - , as well as the one
in Clem. R o m . 1 7 ' . come from it.
Spitta believes that, besides furnish
ing the quotation, it has also influenced the context here in James. T h e basis of his view is an exegesis which translates the passage thus: " T h i n k ye that the Scripture says in vain concerning envy: ' I t (*\ e. envy) longeth to possess the Spirit which H e hath made to dwell in u s ; but H e giveth (because of that envy) greater grace (to u s ) ' ?" This suggests to Spitta, following Surenhusius and Schdttgen, the situ ation of N u m . n " - " , where Eldad and M o d a d are complained of b y the envious Joshua because they have the spirit of prophecy, which no longer rests on him and the others of the Seventy Elders. development (Wtinsche,
Midrasch Bemidbar Rabba,
T h e haggadic p p . 408/.) em
phasised the greater grace granted to Eldad and M o d a d , which is ex plained b y R . Tanchuma (Bemidbar r. 15) as due to their greater humility, since they modestly declined to be included in the number of the Seventy. T h e resemblance is here striking, provided the underlying exegesis of James be once accepted.
B u t that requires the conjecture 96ovelTt
for 9ove6rrt in v . a n d the consequent understanding of the whole passage as dealing primarily with
I t would thus
make necessary a wholly different apprehension of the author's purpose from that presented above. Some of the confirmatory resemblances which Spitta finds between James and passages that may be supposed to have some connection with Eldad and M o d a d are curious.
Thus, Hermas, Vis. ii, 3*, cf. Jas. , f
4»; Clem. R o m . 23 (2 Clem. R o m . 1 1 ) , cf. Jas. 4 8
oarce, 3 " dburc»rrat<j(
5
7 f f
fctyuxot,
- ; Clem. R o m . 17*, cf. Jas. 4
TocXatxup^14
drtifc.
Spitta would also connect with Eldad and M o d a d the unlocated quo tation in Clem. R o m . 46», in which he finds some resemblance to the story of Korah, N u m . 16.
A n d he compares Hermas, Vis. iii, 6
Sim.
viii, 8, which seem to him to allude to this passage. But
the evidence collected is not sufficient to overturn the more
natural interpretation of the general course of thought in the context. Spitta's theory introduces a whole series of incongruous ideas, which have no good connection with what precedes and lead to nothing in what follows; and it must be pronounced fantastic.
7-10. Practical exhortation to the choice of God instead of pleasure as the chief end. These verses are addressed to the whole body of Christians, who are all subject to these moral dangers, and some of whom may be supposed to be liable to the reproach contained in VW€ptf<jXLVOl ajj.apTQ)\o( f
t
Styvxoi.
268
JAMES I t is interesting to notice how James's religious ideal of penitent d e
votion to G o d here diverges from the Stoic ideal of reason as r u l e r over all passion and desire, which is given as the teaching of the J e w i s h law in 4 M a c e . 5 " .
7. ovv "in view of the relation of God and his service to the pursuit of worldly pleasures." Cf. for similar grounding of practical exhortations, Rom. 1 3 " 14", Gal. 5 6 , Eph. 4 " 5 " , Col. 2 " 31. vTOTdyrfre, "submit yourselves" (A.V.; better than R.V. "be subject"), i. e. "become TCLTCIVOI" ( V . ) , cf. raTcwcooVre, v. . On this and the eight following aorist imperatives, the more "pungent" form, see note on i*. t
1
10
6
M
O n the passive aorist with the significance of the middle voice, w h i c h is a common phenomenon of the late language, cf. Buttmann, § 1 1 3 . 4 ( E n g . transl. p . 5 1 ) ; Winer, § 39. 2 ; J. H . Moulton,
Prolegomena,
pp.
152-163, especially p . 1 6 3 ; note iiopovfHjarrai 1", Tacxiivufarct 4**. &xoTdc990(juxt is used elsewhere in the N . T . of voluntary submission to G o d only in H e b . 12% where the analogy of submission to earthly fathers has occasioned the use of the word.
I t is also found in P s , 3 7
T
62** ', H a g . 2", 2 M a c e . 9", in the sense of general submission* of the whole soul to G o d .
Submission is more than obedience, it involves
humility ( C a l v i n ) .
aprCarrjre T9J 8ca(3fkq>. "Take a bold stand in resisting temptations to worldliness sent by 'the prince of this world* (Jn. 14*9, and you will be successful." This idea seems to have been a commonplace of early Christian thought;
cf. 1 Pet. 5*- •, where, as here, the quotation of P r o v . 3**
precedes, but where it is better not to assume literary connection w i t h James.
For the conception of a fight with the devil, cf. E p h . 6"
see Weinel,
Wirkungen des Gestes und der Geiste,
and
p p . 17 / .
T h e following passages may be compared: Hermas, aat
Zl
Mand.
06 Mvarat.
xii, 5
1
&6v
b &id{JoXoc
dvrtxaXataat, xaraxaXal-
iav oSv dvrtaraOtjTe auTcp, vtxtj8«l<; ^eu^rcai £ 9 '
byjSxf
Nephlh. 8« <<*v o5v xort bp*l<; ipy&vrpte TO xaX6v . . . b[dhy Issach. 7 T o u r a xal byjrtq, TIXVOC |iou, *OIx&v icveu(jwt TOU BeXfap $e6£rcai d?' 5n&v, Benj. 5*, Dan 5*.
Test. X I I Patr.
b
5td[JoXos 9c6£rran i ? '
tlte, xal
7
f
I n these passages from Test. X I I Patr., however, the thought is different; good conduct is there the means b y which the devil is driven
iv, 7-8
269
off, and the idea is that right action diminishes the chance of being tempted later on.
James, on the other hand, is-merely saying that
boldness will avail against the tempter.
8. iyykcLTe, as those who wish to be in the closest possible relation to God. It is assumed throughout that the ostensible purpose of the persons addressed is right. They intend to be God's servants, but by yielding to natural inclinations they are in practise verging toward a state of e^#pa TOU deou. To draw near to God is used of the priests in the temple, Ex. 1 9 " , Ezek. 44". It is half figurative in Ex. 24*, Is. 29", and wholly so in such passages as the following: Hos. 1 2 , Wisd. 6 " , Judith 8 , Heb. 7 " (cf. 4 " ) ; cf. Ps. 145 , Deut. 4, and Philo's comment in De migr. Abr. 1 1 , M . p. 445. Test. X I I Patr. Dan 6 iyyiaare r £ deep, is an instructive parallel. iyyfoei corresponds to pel^ova hCSoxrw xapw, v. as well 6
( , 0 )
t7
18
1
7
as to
Cf. Zech. i», on which James is very likely dependent, 2 Chron. 15*, T
M a i . 3 , Ps. 145*.
KadapuraTe ^etpa?, "make your outward conduct pure." From the ritual washing to make fit for religious duties (e. g. Gen. 35*, Ex. 30 - ), which was perfectly familiar in N. T . times (cf. Mk. 7*), sprang a figurative use of language, e. g. Is. i , Job 1 7 22 , 1 Tim. 2 , Clem. Rom. 29 . In Ps. 23* adept; Xepviv Kal KaOapbs TJ) Kap8(a and in Ecclus. 38 the combina tion found in James is already complete. ^elpa?, KapSlas. For the omission of the article, cf. Schmiedel-Winer, § 19. 7, where it is explained under the rule that pairs of nouns often omit the article. apaprw\o(. A sharp term is used to strike the conscience of the reader, and is then partly explained by the parallel S ^ i ^ o t . Half-hearted Christians, such as James desires to stir to better things, are in reality nothing but "world's people"—a reproach meant to startle and sting. 8 / 1 / ^ 0 1 , "doubters," is entirely parallel. 17
16
9
80
11
8
1
10
t
270
JAMES T h e word
&papcv>\6$
is very rare in secular Greek, b u t there, a s i n
the O . T . and N . T . , has the sense of "hardened sinner," " b a d m a n , "
cf.
Plutarch,
De and. poet.
7, p . 25 C , the standing phrase TtX&voa xad
M
tyapruXof, M t . o * , etc., and the application of Vapr«.>X6<; to h e a t h e n , x M a c e . 1 " , G a l . 2", etc. Suidas defines
fyuzpntkol
T
Cf. Enoch 5* 38* 45* 04" 95*- «• 06". *-«. as ol Tapavopta auljjv xpooapotyuevot xal
gfov
SttfOapijivov d<JXAT6(icvot.
ayvfoare KapBias. ayp
Sfyvxpi. It is here implied that involves some de filement from the world, cf. Hermas, Mand. ix, 7 Kaddpioop TTJP KapBlap
, f
iv,
271
8-9
searching of heart and a self-consecration which he believes essential to their eternal salvation. For the same mood, due to a different cause, cf. Eccles. j*-; cf. also Ecclus. 2 1
1 0
27*».
Jer. 4 "
allels, such as Joel
l9t
g-
and some of the other prophetic par
M i c . 2«, Zech. u « , have some resemblance,
but differ in that in those passages the impending punishment is made prominent.
1
T h e y are nearer to Jas. 5 (cf. especially Zech. n « ) . 1
Ta\aiTO)pi]
2 M a c e . 4", 4 M a c e . i 6 , Ps. 12*, M i c . 2«, Ps. 38*, Jer. 1 2 " , R o m . 7 " , Rev. 3", Clem. R o m . 23* TaXa(xu>po( •fetv ol 5(<|/oxot.
Ta\airo)p&) in itself is not limited to mental anguish, nor to repentance. It is here used in order to make a sharp contrast with the pleasures which the persons addressed are seeking. They had better, says James, make wretchedness their aim, and so humble themselves in penitence and obedience before God. T h e paraphrase of Grotius,
poris oxXt)poqfY^ai<;,"
"affligite ipsos vosmet jejuniis et aliis cor
which corresponds to the view of the R o m a n
Catholic commentators
(e. g.
Est:
opera pamalia subite)
goes further
than the text.
TevOqaare
Kal KXavaare, "mourn and lament." Cf. 2 Sam. s4, Mk. 1 6 , Lk. 6", Rev. I 8 - » . TrevOeiit "expresses a self-contained grief, never violent in its manifestations" (Lex.); see Trench, Synonyms, § lxv. But the two words are here used merely to secure a forcible fulness of expression. 19 , Neh. 8», Mt. 1
10
1 1
There is no ground for taking ztvMjortt specifically of an outward garb of mourning. xtv(Wjarrg xal xXatiaarff] tfA omit x a l ; perhaps b y accidental confu sion of K A I with K A A — .
T h e omission would connect xtv^Hjoart with
the preceding, and separate it from xXotiom in a very unnatural w a y .
o yiXos vp&v, pertaining to their present easy ways. sentence makes the preceding words more intelligible.
This
272
JAMES 10
4
f t
4 1
els TevOos, cf. Amos. 8 , Tob. 2 , Prov. 1 4 " , 1 M a c e i 9 . fieTaTpaTrijT(j) a poetical word which "seems not to have been used in Attic" (L. and S.). In the Greek O. T . it is used in 4 Mace. 6', and by Aquila in Ezek. i , Symmachus in Ezek. i o " . J
9
(UTacrparfiTh)] B P minn. 1
lirca
Apparently an emendation,
sub
stituting a more familiar verb.
Karjifxiav, "dejection," "gloominess," from K a n ^ i f c , "of a downcast look." In accordance with its origin the word refers primarily to the outward expression of a heavy heart, cf. the publican in Lk. i 8 . The word (not found in L X X ; nor else where in N. T.) is frequently used of dejection due to shame, and this association may have governed the choice of it here. Cf. Lex., L. and S., Wetstein, for many examples; and see Field, Notes on the Translation of the N. 7 \ , p. 238. 11
10. raT€tvd>dr)T€ "humble yourselves." James here returns to the starting-point of his exhortation (v. • raxetjot?), and sums up in TareuHoffrjTe the several acts directed in w . - . This act implies single-hearted faith, and such a soul has a sure reward from God, cf. i». See references in Lex. s. v. r a x c t w .
#
17
9
1 8
17
7
On the use of the passive aorist, cf. note on vTC0T
7
8
8
}
f
l f
1 1
14
8
w
7
1 P e t 5* bears close resemblance in form, and is noticeable because of the complicated resemblance of the context in Jas. 4 and 1 P e t . 5 . B u t the meaning is different.
Here in James it is a humbling of the
soul before G o d , with repentance, and is in contrast to
bxtpr^orAa.
1 Peter is exhorting to a spirit of submissiveness to G o d (TJJV xparoctav Xtfpa TOG 8tou), even when his providence appears in the hardships of persecution ( v . 1 Pet. 1 " 3 " 4 "
T
x^v uiptjivov &u4v ixiptyavr*<; IT* «6T6V), cf. also
iv,
9-ii
273
1 1 - 1 2 . " Do not talk harshly of one another. He who judges his brother, sets himself above the law of love, and infringes on the prerogative of God, who alone is lawgiver and judge." V v . and come in as a sort of appendix, much as 5 ° is attached as an appendix after the whole epistle has received a fitting conclusion in 5 . The thought of the writer reverts (cf. 1 " 3 ) to those facts of life which had given him the text for his far-reaching discussion and exhortation (4 * ), and be fore passing to other matters he offers an example of how one particular form of M^X*? is at variance with a proper attitude to God. The writer still has fully in mind the great opposition of the world and God, and hence probably arises the somewhat strained form in which the rebuke of w . is couched. 11
1 1
l J l
11
1 1 0
1
10
1 1 1 1
Criticism of others is often occasioned by a supposed moral lapse, and it may well be, as Schneckenburger suggests, that this was what James had here specially in mind. If that were the case these verses would be a very neat turning of the tables, quite in the style of this epistle (cf. 2 " ) , and the peculiar form of the rebuke, and its attachment as an appendix, would also be partly accounted for. To this would correspond the address a&X^ol, v. , to which AUHj£aX#>€9, v . , dpaaroikol^ oY^i^oi, v . , present a marked contrast but no real contradiction. This passage in James would then correspond closely with the mode of thought of Rom. 1 4 , where the KaraXaXid rebuked is occa sioned by laxity and by intolerance, and where, as here, the reader is told that such judgment may safely be left to God the Judge. u
4
8
10
1 1 . KaTaXaXetTe, "talk against," "defame," "speak evil" (A.V.), usually applied to harsh words about the absent. On the present imperative, cf. Winer, § 43, 3, § 56, 1, b ; Buttmann, § 139, 6 ; Gildersleeve, Syntax, § 4 1 5 . Contrast the aorists of w . ° . The present is here appropriate in the sense "desist from." KaraXaXia is habitual and should be stopped. 7 1
T h e word is used in this sense in writers of the Koine ( P o l y b . D i o d . C. / . G. 1 7 7 0 ; see L. and S.) and in the Greek O . T . ; cf. Ps. i o i » , where TOV xaraXaXouvra XaOpa «cbv TcXijafov ateou evidently refers to
274
JAMES a generally recognised type of evil-doer, also P s . 50*. 1
tptdfact, YXCZAKAXIAI,
Cf. 2 C o r . n "
M
4>t6uptayw., 1 Pet. 2 , R o m . i . 1
1
See Clem. Rom, 30** 35*, etc., 2 Clem. Rom. 4 , Hermas, Sim. vi, 5 , viii, 7*, ix, 26 ] Mand. ii, 2 ; Barn. 20; Test. X I I Patr. Gad 3* 5*. §
1
W h a t b meant here is indulgence in unkind talk.
Nothing indicates
that anything more is intended than the harsh criticism c o m m o n in ancient and modern daily life.
I t is not directed especially a g a i n s t 1
the mutual backbiting of the teachers (4 * • • ) •
For such a view a s , e. g.
Pfleiderer's, that this is a polemic against Marcion's attitude of s u p e r i ority to the Jewish law, there is no more reason (note the address iocX?oO than for the idea (Schneckenburger) of a rebuke of those who tore P a u l ' s character to pieces behind his back. 1 9
aSeXc^oi' marks a transition, but here, as in i 2', a minor one. aBehfou, rbv aZiktfrbv avrov, with a certain pathetic emphasis. So in 1 Jn. 2* 4 * . 1
Kpfawv, cf. Mt. 7 , and note that this is interpreted in the parallel Lk. 6* by the substitution of KaracWfeo', "con demn," cf. Rom. 2 . For similar cases of two participles under one article, cf. 1 " , Jn. 5 " . xaraXaXet vopov KOX KPLVEI v6\iov, %. e. in so far as he thereby violates the royal law of love (2®, note the context preceding the precept in Lev. 1 9 ) , and so sets himself up as superior to it. Speaking against the law involves judging the law. 7
1
18
v6pov i. e. the whole code of morals accepted by the readers, as i 2'. p6fw<: without the article does not here differ from 6 vdpos. The particular clause in question is evidently the "second great commandment," cf. the phrase rbv T\voCov v. TovqTifc v6uov cf. i " - (and note), Rom. 2 , 1 Mace. 2 . These are the only cases in the Bible of this phrase, which in secular Greek means "lawgiver," not "doer of the law." KPITRJ^ thus claiming a superiority to the law such as belongs to God alone. The judge is here thought of, not as himself acting under law, but more as the royal judge, the fountain of right, i. e. such a judge as God is—an idea of KPITRP which in cludes vopjoQ4rrp. y
1 6
t
f
}
1
U
eT
iv,
ii-i3
275
xprHjs is not to be expanded into xpiTfc voyiow, "critic of the l a w " (cf. vfyiov xp(vtt<;), as is done b y many commentators, for that idea has already been fully expressed, while in xpt-Hjc we have evidently a new idea and a step forward in the a r g u m e n t 1 1
1
4
V . bears a close relation to the thought of Rom. 2 1 4 , but the resemblance does not imply literary dependence. 12. efe. "One is lawgiver and judge, He, namely, who is able," etc. Cf. Mt. 1 9 cfc iorlv 6 aya0
God, not Christ, appears clearly intended here; o KptTrp in 5* is not decisive against this, and vouoderv*; is far more likely to be used of God, while eU iorlv unequivocally means God. eU is used in order to emphasise the uniqueness, not the unity, of the lawgiver. vopodir^. Elsewhere in the Bible only Ps. 9* See 2 Esd. 7' Cf. vouoOcr&v, 2 Mace 3 , 4 Mace. 5 " , Heb. 7 8 . Very frequent in Philo. 8
1 6
U
6
The word is here added to Kptr^? because the latter does not fully express the idea of complete superiority to the law. voy.o8*n}<;] B P . b vo(j.o8faQ<;] all others. The
reading without the article makes voiu>8fnrc predicate and is
more expressive.
T h e article was probably inserted to bring an un
usual expression into conformity with the more common type of sen tence. xal xpti-ifc] om E X minn. whole, the authority of the
External evidence here outweighs, on the
lectio brevior.
6 Svvdpevos cixrcu ml awoXioai. Cf. Mt. 1 0 " . God's al mighty power, to which we are wholly subject, gives him the right to judge. Cf. Hermas, Mand. xii, 6* TOV wdvra Swdpevov, o&oai ml a7roXeVcu, Sim. ix, 23* a>? Swdpevos airo\ica.i fj o&oai avrdv, Cf. Ps. 68 , Deut. 3 2 " , 1 Sam. 2«, 2 Kings 5 . This description of God must have been common in Jewish use. 10
4
7
1 7
rk el Cf. Rom. 9 * 1 4 , Acts n , Ex. 3 " 1 3 - 1 7 . The practical neglect of God seen in the trader's sumptuous confidence in himself; and the futility of it.
pre
276
JAMES
After the discussion of the fundamental sin of choosing pleas ure and not God as the chief end of life, two paragraphs follow illustrating by practical examples the neglect of God. Both paragraphs are introduced by the same words, and lack the address, h h e K f o l . The persons in mind in w . * may or may not be Christians. V . implies that these presumptuous persons know better. The type of travelling traders referred to was common among Jews. The ease of travel in ancient times is amply illustrated b y the Book of Acts and the epistles of Paul. Cf. C A. J. S k e d , Travel in the First Century after Christ, 1901; Zahn, "Weltverkehr und Kirche wahrend der drei ersten Jahrhunderte," in Skizzen aus dem Leben der alien Kirche , 1898. u
1 7
1 7
1
1
13. aye VUP "come now," "see here," cf. 5 . dyt like <£^p€, or Latin age, is usually an insistent, here a somewhat brusque, address, vvv increases the insistency. dye is wholly non-biblical in its associations, Judg. 19*, 2 Kings 4 , Is. 43 • being the only instances of the idiom in the O. T . oi \eyovre;, i. e. in their hearts, cf. i 2 . J
f
14
l t
1 4
i) aCpiovJ B N minn fl vg boh syn*** Jerome. xal aOptov] A K L P minn syr*"* C y r { c f L k . 1 3 " »•). A decision is possible only on external grounds. Topcua6tu6a, xoti^aoiitv. ^xopcuoo^tOa, xap&fyrojifv.
T h e future i n
dicative is the consistent reading of B i t (except irot^9t<x>ry) P minn ff vg boh C y r . The
aorist subjunctive (icop€U9ti>i&*8a< etc.) is read in each case b y
K L S y minn. A has %optuawpL«8a, xocfcciXLc v, inxoptu<jV«da, xcpof^aofLev. The context speaks on the whole for the future indicative.
I n such
1
a case external evidence has little weight (cf. R o m . 5 ) .
rr]vh€ rr)v wdXtP, "this city"; not "such a city" (A.V.; Luther: "in die und die Stadt"; Erasmus: in hanc out Mam civitatem). i r o L y c o i x e p , "pass," "spend." See Lex. s. v. TTOI&J II. d, for examples of this meaning, which is said to be confined to later Greek. ijjLTropevao/jLeOa, "traffic," "do business."
IV,
13-14
277
This word is not very common in the Greek O . T . , and is found only a few times in this sense (e. g. Gen. 34" 42").
I n secular Greek it is
used in this sense: cf. T h u c . vii, 13, and other references in L. and S.
KepSqoopev. That travel is for the purpose of gain was ob vious to Greek thought, cf. Anthol. palat. ix, 446 aypos Tipif/w ayu, KepBos ir\6o$. T h e word is used absolutely, as here, "to get gain," in secular writers, e. g. H d t . viii, 5, but is not found in L X X (once in Symmachus).
14. oTrurcs, with full classical meaning, "of such a nature that." For the loose grammatical attachment, cf. i - avijp 7 f
TO Trft avpiov. Cf. Prov. 27 prj Kavy& rd eU aipuov, ov ydp ywdxjKw r/re^crat 17 eVtoOcra, also Ecclus. n - , Lk. 1 2 " -. For a good parallel from Debarim rabba 9 , see Schottgen or Wetstein on Jas. 4 ». Many parallels are to be found in Philo and in Greek and Latin writers (see Wetstein), e.g. Philo, Leg. aUeg. iii, 80, p. 1 3 2 ; Pseudo-Phocylides, 1 1 6 / . : 1
l 8 f
ff
l
ou&fc ytvdxjKH TI per ovpiov tj T( pcO' &pav' avKOTO? ion (3por&v ddvaros, T O /iAXo? aSrfkov, Seneca, Ep. 101, especially §§ 4-6, quam stultum est, cetatem disponere ne crastini quidem dotninum . . . nihil sibi quisquam de futuro debet promiUere, etc., etc. Other passages on the uncertainty of life are collected by Plutarch, Consolatio ad ApoUonium, 1 1 , p. 107, and in Stobaeus, Anthol. iv, cap. 3 1 , "OTI afiepaccx; f) T&V avOpwircov €VTpa£la peraTiwrovorfS frahwk TTJS TVXTJS, where especially the tragedians are drawn on. But in both the N. T. and Philo the commonplace is given a different turn: "let the uncertainty of life remind you of your dependence on God. * y
1
wola, "Of what character?" i. e. "is it secure or precarious?" The answer is: "It is a mere passing mist." aTpfc, " vapour," cf. i . Cf. Clem. Rom. 17* (from "Eldad and Modad"?) iya> (i. e. Abraham) oY dpi a/rph hirh KvOpas ("steam from a pot"). For the comparison of the life of the wicked to smoke and vapour, cf. 4 Ezra 7 , Apoc. Bar. 82*. n
i l
278
JAMES Whether James meant " s m o k e " or " s t e a m " is impossible to deter mine.
s
I n the L X X the word is several times used of smoke, G e n . 19 ',
L e v . i6»», Ecclus. 2 2 " (?) 24", H o s . 13* ( ? ) , although it properly means vapour, in distinction from xoncvos;
cf. Aristotle, Meteor,
T h e very similar passage W i s d . 2* uses &P.(XXT), "mist."
xcncAx; art 'feiipat (&ou, Ps. 37*. Seneca, Troad. 401, compares human life ab ignibus).
ii, 4, p . 359 b. Cf. P s . 102"
4£iXixov &otl
to smoke
(calidis fumus
ydp introduces the answer to vota KTX., and also the reason for the whole rebuke contained in w . fyaiTopivr) eretra KOI d
f
T h e same contrast and play is found in Aristotle, Ps.-Aristotle,
De mundo,
Hist. an.
vi, 7,
vi, 22, and evidently was a turn of expression
common in Greek usage. T h e best text for this verse is the following: oTTtvcc o6x .txtaracoto TO Tffc oflptov • TO (a ^
r^irij 6(&6v; dryktc f a p law
[fj] xpbc 6X(fov 9atvo(iivT), Ixttxa xal i^avi^o^vr). T h e various readings here adopted are attested b y either B or M, or both.
T h e following variants require comment:
TO Tift oCpiovJ tfKL m i n n ^ ff vg sah syr*"*. 1
t d T i f t oOptov] A P 33 minn syr "* boh.
xfiq oflptov] B . T h e external evidence is strongly for TO T*JS aCptov, in view of the ten dency of B to omit articles and the demonstrably emended character 1
of A 33 (cf. Prov. 27 , which m a y have been in the emender's mind). T h e "intrinsic" evidence of fitness also speaks for the retention of T6.
I n the text of B (oix 6xfarao6c TTK aflptov xo(a £c>f) &(j*>v) the
writer would declare that the censured traders do not know what are to be to-morrow the
conditions
health, fair weather or foul.
same verse (aryUs XTX.) and v . of
life itself is
of their life—e.
g.
whether sickness or
I n fact, however, the latter part of this u
ftfjsojttv) show that the uncertainty
what he has in mind.
Hence xo(a cannot be connected
with .ixt
xofe] B H * 1518 syr*"* boh** . 1
xo(a f « p ] H ' A K L P minn* ** vg boh syr***.
quae autem] ff. T h e shorter and better attested reading is to b e accepted.
279
iv, 14-iS ^ Tjurfi B omits f|, doubtless b y error. dry.!? T<*p] A 33 vg boh omit -rap.
Doubtless emendation to avoid
introducing the answer b y f a p . fct omits the whole clause d r ^ U T « p lore. l<m] B minn syr** Jerome. lorat] A K P minn. forty] L minn fl vg boh
(was).
Either lorat or fort m a y well have originated in a n itacistic corrup tion of the other; the evidence for the two together far outweighs that for ,«iv.
A s between tort and lorat, external evidence (K is lacking)
speaks on the whole for fort. •Jj xpb<;' 6Xfyov] B P omit fj. T h e question is difficult to decide and unimportant for the sense.
A n accidental agreement here between B
and P is possible, b u t a little improbable.*
15. avrl TOV \6yw properly belongs with \eyovre;, v. *. lav o Kvput; 6YX77, "deo volente"; cf. Acts 1 8 " , 1 Cor. 4 " 1 6 , Rom. x» Phil. 2 » - H e b . 6». l
7
The
expressions idv 610$ 8IXB, cuv 6t
8tX6vro)v, o r the equivalent, were in common use among the an cient Greeks. F o r references to papyri, see Deissmann, Neue BibeU studien, 1897, p . 80; see also Lietzmann on 1 Cor. 4". Cf. Plato, Alcib. I. p. 135 D , Hipp, major, p. 286 C , Laches, p. 201 C, Leges, pp. 688 E , 799 E , etc., Thcat. p . 151 D , Aristophanes, Plut. 1188, X e n o phon, Hipparckicus, 9,8 ( M a y o r quotes many of the passages). Similar expressions were also in familiar use b y the Romans, from whom the modern deo volente is derived. Cf. Lampridius, Alex. Sever. 45 si dii voluerint, Minucius Felix, Octavius, 18 si deus dedcrit" vulgi isle naturalis sermo est, Sallust, Jug. 1 4 , 1 9 deis volentibus, Ennius ap. Cic. De off. i, 12, 38 volentibu' cum magnis diis, Plautus, Capt. ii, 3, 94 si dis placet, id. Poen. iv, 2, 88 si di volent, L i v . ix, 19, 15, absit invidia verbo. See other references in B . Brisson, De formulis et solennibus populi Romani verbis, rec. Conradi, Halle, 1731, i, 116 (pp. 6 3 / . ) ; i, 133 ( p . 7 1 ) ; viii, 11
61 ( p . 710). The
corresponding formula
inshaUah,
"if G o d will," has been for
m a n y centuries a common colloquial expression of modern Arabic, cf. Lane,
Manners and Customs of the Modern Egyptians,
ch. 1 3 . I t is
not unlikely that the Mohammedans derived it from the Syrians, and that these had it from the Greeks.
T h e Jews do not seem to have com
monly used any such formula either in Biblical or in Talmudic times. •On this whole passage, see Corssen, Gtttingische gdehrte Anieigen, 1803, pp. 578 /.; B. Weiss, ZeitscJkrift fUr vissmsckaftiicke TkeologU, vol. xxxvii, 1804, pp. 434 / . The view taken above is substantially that ol Corssen. The resulting text is the same as that underlying the translation of the English R.V.
28o
JAMES
T h e use of such formulas " w a s introduced to the Jews b y the M o h a m medans" ( L . Ginzberg, JE
t
art. " B e n Sira, Alphabet o f " ) .
T h e statement often found that the practise recommended was a part of Jewish customary piety in N . T . times goes back at least to J. Gregory, whose
Notes and Observations on Some Passages of Scripture, Critici sacri, 1660.
first published in 1646, are reprinted in Latin in vol. ix.
H e quotes from the " A l p h a b e t of Ben S i r a " (written not ear
lier than the eleventh century;
see JE,
I. c.) a Jewish instance of the
formula, and evidently based his statement
("mos erat inter Judeeos")
on this, with, perhaps, some knowledge of the ways of medieval a n d later Jews.
F o r the passage from the " A l p h a b e t , " see
Horae hebr.
p p . 1030 / . ; the earliest use of it to illustrate Jas. 4 * is p r o b
a b l y J. Drusius,
sacri,
Schdttgen, 1
Quctstiones kebraicae
iii, 24, 1599 (reprinted in
f
Critici
vol. viii).
T h e origin of this type of "apotropaic" formula among the Greeks and Romans is to be sought in the notions of divine vengeance for human presumption, to be averted b y thus refraining from a positive assertion about the future.
It thus appears that James is here recommending to Chris tians a Hellenistic pious formula of strictly heathen origin. His own piety finds in it a true expression of Christian submission to divine providence. *aX . . . xaV, "both . . . and." Others take the first x a l as introducing the apodosis.
B u t the m o r e
natural suggestion of the repeated x a l speaks for the view given a b o v e . ^oofitv, Yjotfyjoixtv] B H A P minn 17. 1
tt
P r o b a b l y emendation d u e
to a mistaken notion that these verbs were included under l a y . See Beyschlag for references to older discussion of this variant.
The
two M s s . (181, 328) alleged ( b y Wetstein and later critics) to contain the reading tfpttKitv . . . xocfyjomv both read — u — in both cases.
16. vvv &V, "but actually, in point of fact," in contrast to what they ought to do. Kavj(a(T0€ iv reus a\a£ov(ai$ VJJL&V, "glory in these your acts of presumption." Kavyaode is thrown into strong emphasis by vvv oV. Instead of humility toward God, their attitude is one of boasting. aka£ov(ai<; refers to the attitude described in v . (ol \4yovres), KovyaoBt (which carries the emphasis) signifies an aggra vation of it, viz. the pride which they take in their own over1 1
iv,
28l
I5-I7
weening self-confidence and presumption, iv indicates that aha$ovUi are the ground of the glorying, cf. i . 9
Another view takes xaux&dk of the arrogant talk itself, described in v.
and understands iv as merely giving the presumptuous manner
of it ( M a y o r : "the manner in which glorying was shown, 'in your selfconfident speeches or imaginations' — dXa^oveu6tx*vot"), cf. Clem. R o m . 21 * dvOp&icotc 2Yxaux(jivoi<; iv dXa^ov.a TOU X6fou.
This is possible,
but is repetitious, and gives no such advance in the thought as the emphatic vuv ti seems to call for.
dXafoy/a, "braggart talk," or, more inclusively, "presump tuous assurance," "vainglory" (so i Jn. 2 [R.V.]); much like inr€pn
9
80
8
U
6
u
8
4
n
l
19
18
l ,
There is no distinction drawn in w . «
1 7
between xovrjpd and ayuxprfot.
17. This is a maxim added merely to call attention to the preceding, and with no obvious special application. It is almost like our "verbum sap sat, and means, "You have now been fully warned." For the same characteristic method of capping the discussion with a sententious maxim, cf. i 2" 3 . There is, however, a certain pointedness in v . by reason of its relation to James's fundamental thought. "You Chris tians have in your knowledge of the law a privilege, and you value it (cf. the reliance on faith in 2 ) ; this should spur you to right action." Cf. Rom. 2 - , of the requirement of conduct imposed on the Jews by their superior knowledge. 11
1 8
1 8
1 7
1 4 ff
17
80
oiv, "so then," serving to introduce this summary conclud ing sentence, which is applicable to the whole situation just described; see Lex. s. v. OVP, d; cf. Mt. i 7 , Acts 26". 17
1 4
282
JAMES i a
KaXoV, "good," opposed to Tovrjfxk (cf. v . ) . So nearly always in N. T. (only Lk. 2 1 in sense of "beautiful"), cf. Jas. 2 3 , Mt. 5 * vfi&v rd KaXd Ipya. duapria axncp iorh, sc. TO K<x\6v i. e. the good thing which he does not do. 5
7
1 1
1
t
On at/ro), cf. Clem. Rom. 44*, and the similar expression hrnv iv col afiaprta, which is a standing phrase in D e u t , e. g. 1 5 * 23* i. 24".
C H A P T E R V. 1-6. The practical neglect of God seen in the cruelty and luxury of the rich; and the appalling issue which awaits it. 1. ay€ vvv ol T\ovotot cf. on 4". 04 rkovoioi, cf. i - 2 -*. The chief question here is whether "the rich," who are attacked and warned, were Christians or not. t
w
w
f
1
1
In i • the rich man referred to seems certainly to have been a Christian brother (see note); in 2* the rich visitor is appar ently not a Christian, so "the rich" of 2 . In the passage be fore us the rich as a class are apostrophised, without reference to their religious profession, in order to make clear to the Chris tian readers the folly of admiring or striving after riches. Those who possess riches, runs the argument, do not present an at tractive example, so soon as the real character of their posses sions and prospects is understood. Like pleasure ( 4 ) , so also wealth—which is sought after in order to gain pleasure— is a false aim. The tone is thus not of an appeal to evil-doers to reform (contrast 4 - and even 4 ) , but of a threatening of judgment; and the attitude ascribed to the rich is that of 2 , rather than of i - . Some of the rich may be Christians, but it is not as Christians that they are here addressed. The pur pose of the verses is partly to dissuade the Christians from set ting a high value on wealth, partly to give them a certain grim comfort in the hardships of poverty (cf. 5 " ). s
110
7
10
1 , l T
6 f
10f
7
11
The passage is highly rhetorical and in detail recalls the de nunciations of the O. T . prophets. Many of the ideas are found
iv, i 7 - v , i
283
in Wisd. 2, where the customary arrogance and selfishness of the rich, the transitoriness of their prosperity, and their treatment of the righteous are set forth. Lk. 6 • also forms a close par allel. Cf. Enoch 94 - 96 - 97'- 98*-" 9 9 " - " ioo*-" 103 - . 141
7
11
4
8
10
s
8
T h e only important argument for supposing these " rich " to be Chris tians is that they are in form directly addressed. of the arguments, see Zahn,
Einleitung,
F o r a full statement
i, § 4.
B u t the form is the
same as that of the prophetic denunciations of foreign nations, e. g. Is. 13• ( B a b y l o n ) , 15* ( M o a b ) ;
cf. M t . 23 (the apostrophe against scribes
and Pharisees), and the regular form of Biblical " W o e s . "
K\av
1
17
1S
}
8
f
J
7
1
1
10
1 1
1 4
14
6XoX6t/.> and 4XaX4£u> both mean "cry a l o u d " (onomatopoetic), and both refer in earlier secular Greek to joyful crying, or to a cry raised to the gods in worship, seldom to a mere wail of grief or pain. I n the L X X 6XoX6t/a is the ordinary representative of "howl," especially in distress or from repentance.
and means
I t is used only in
the prophetic books, and nearly always in the imperative. dXaXi&a is the regular representative of H e b r e w £ n , except in Jere miah, where in all the four cases of its use, 4 stands for SS;;
cf.
also
iXaXaf^q,
1
1
29 (47) 30 (49)" 32*, it
Jer. 20", for n^S*.
I t means " c r y "
—with joy, triumph, battle fury, b y w a y of sounding alarm, or the like. T h u s in the Greek O . T . there is a differentiation of meaning between the two words 6X0X6^ and aXotXi^u.
I n the N . T . 6X0X6^ only occurs
once, while dXaXdfco is found b u t twice, M k . 5" (xXafovras xal dXaXd1
r»ovra<;, in the sense of a cry of grief), and 1 Cor. 13 (x,6n#aXov dXaXd^ov). T h e explanation of the facts seems to be that in later Greek usage 6X0X6^ took the special sense of "cry in distress," while iXaK&Xjm retained a wider range of meaning.
284
JAMES
TaXcuTuptais, "miseries," i. c. the sufferings of the damned, cf. w . * Rev. i 8 - 2 i , Ps. 140 , Enoch 6 3 99 103 . For the denunciation of future punishment against oppressors, cf. 2 Mace. 7 ' » , 4 Mace. 9 - " io n». " i2»« » 1 3 " . 7
7f
14
l7
8
10
M
9
10
11
7
11
T h e reference found here b y many older, and some more recent, commentators to the destruction of Jerusalem is wholly uncalled f o r ; it is equally wrong to apply this to the distress preceding the L a s t Judgment; and still worse to think merely of the loss of property b y the rich. 7
irep'xpaivavi, "impending," cf. Eph. 2 , Lk. 2 1 " , Hermas, Vis. iii, 9 ' ; iv, i . 2-3. Your wealth is already, to any eye that can see reali ties, rotten, moth-eaten, and rusted. The rust of it will testify to you in the Day of Judgment how valueless it and your con fidence in it are. And the worthlessness of your wealth will then be your ruin, for you have been storing up for yourselves only the fire of hell. 2. c4o"qTtv, "has rotted," "is rotten," i. e. of no value. The word is here used to apply (literally or figuratively) to every kind of wealth. On the general idea, cf. Mt. 6 . In James it is not the per ishability but the worthlessness of wealth that is referred to. The property—no matter what its earthly value, or even its earthly chance of permanence—is worthless if measured by true standards. This and the following verbs in the perfect tense (yfyovev, KaTlwrat) are picturesque, figurative statements of the real worthlessness of this wealth to the view of one who knows how to estimate permanent, eternal values. The perfect tense is appropriately used of the present state of worthlessness. l
19
Others take the perfect tense in these verbs as describing b y prophetic 1
anticipation (cf. Is. 60 ) what will inevitably happen with the lapse of time.
B u t this is unnecessary, and the change to the future in lorai
makes it unlikely.
1
Notice also that the mention of the "rusting ' of
gold and silver points to a figurative meaning. T h e view taken of these perfects carries the decision for a series of exegetical problems in w . «• • which are discussed in detail in the notes.
28
v, i-3
5
A different view can be made clear b y the following paraphrase, based on Huther's interpretation: " Y o u r wealth will all perish in the D a y of Judgment.
T h e rust of it
will testify to you beforehand of your own coming destruction, and the Judgment, when it has destroyed your possessions, will afterwards fall on you.
Y o u have been amassing treasure in the very days of the
Judgment itself I " The idea that oiarpav
XTX. gives the first specification of the actual
sin of the rich, who show their rapacity b y treasuring up wealth and letting it rot instead of using it to give to the poor or as capital to pro mote useful industries ("(Ecumenius," Calvin, Hornejus, Laurentius, Grotius, Bengel, Theile), is needless and far-fetched.
ra lyLdrta. On garments as a chief form of wealth, cf. M t . 6 , i Mace, n , Acts 20 , also Hor. Ep. i, 6, lines 40-44, Quint. Curt, v, 6*.
8 4
88
T h e word is found elsewhere in the Bible only in Job 1 3 " &<; tu^rrtov orrr6(ipG>Tov.
I n secular Greek it has been observed only Orac. Sib.
ap. Theoph.
Ad Autol.
idol-images).
ii, 36 (fragm. 3, 1. 26),
Cf. Is. 51" 50', M i c . 7« ( L X X ) , Job 3 2 " ( L X X ) .
3. Karforai, "rusted," "corroded." The preposition K a r a has a "perfective" force, almost like "rusted out," or "rusted through," cf. the only other Biblical instance, Ecclus. 1 2 €k r A o 9 Karfaoev. Hence R.V. "utterly rusted." See J. H. Moulton, Prolegomena, pp. 1 1 1 f. The word is found in Epict. Diss, iv, 6 , but is rare. 1 1
14
I n fact, silver does not easily corrode so as to become worthless (cf., f
however, Ecclus. 29" ) , and gold not at all.
O n ancient knowledge of
the freedom of gold from rust, see references in Wetstein.
I n the a p
parent references to the rusting of gold in E p . Jer. x 1 and 24, tarnishing is probably meant. such expressions.
B u t James's bold figure has nothing to do with H e means that even the most permanent earthly
treasure has no lasting value.
" H a v e rusted" is equivalent to "are
worthless," and the writer is thinking of the present, although the pres ent is illuminated b y what he knows about the future.
Cf.
Chaucer,
Prologue to Canterbury Tales:
"And
this figure he addide yit therto,
T h a t if gold ruste, what shulde yren d o o ? "
286
JAMES 4
«l? paprvptov, used in various relations in the N. T\, M t , S (Mk. i", Lk. 5"), io 24", Mk. 6" (Lk. 9 ), 1 3 (Lk. 2 1 " ) , Heb. 3*. It seems to mean "for a visible (or otherwise clear and unmistakable) sign." 18
9
1
I t is derived from an O . T . expression, found in Gen. 2 1 " 3 1 " , D e u t . 3i"'
Josh. 24", in all which cases it represents
or JTJJS, which
means "to be a sign," or "pledge," or "symbol," usually with reference to some material object, a book, a stone, a group of animals.
See also
Job i6» (Job's sickness as iwtpTOptov of his guilt), M i c i « . I n Josh22"'
M
7
, R u t h 4 itapruptov is used in a different grammatical rela
tion but in the same sense.
14
I n 1 Sam. 9", Prov. 29 , H o s . 2", M i c . 7",
tic uaprOptov is found, due to a mistranslation b u t probably intended b y the translator in the same sense.
So here the rust is the visible sign and symbol of the real state of the case—of the perishability of riches and hence of the certain ruin awaiting those who have no other ground of hope. Others take tlq jjuxpr6ptov to mean "for witness of your r a p a c i t y " (see above on Harpcty)
or "of your own coming destruction." T h e
latter view corresponds with that which takes the perfects ctVijxtv XTX. in a future sense as prophetic of the Judgment.
vp.lv, "to you," "giving you proof of the facts." This b better suited to the context than "against you," viz. in the judicial process of the Last D a y .
4
Cf. Enoch 9 6 for parallel to this
latter.
fdrrtToi is used as future of fa8fo> in L X X and N . T .
Philoctetes,
fragm.), the effect of
287 odpnas. The plural is used from Homer down, also by Attic writers and Plato, in a sense not distinguishable from that of the singular. So Lev. 2 6 , 2 Kings 9 , 4 Mace 1 5 , Rev. 1 7 19"- », Lk. 2 4 " (Tischendorf). w TCVD idqaavpfocLTe, "since you have stored up fire," I . e. the fire of Gehenna. There is a play in the word iOrjoavpioaTe (cf. w . *'•), as in Mt. 6 ; cf. a curiously similar play in Ecclus. 29 . Prov. 1 6 " dvrjp d
s 8
15
16
19
11
1 7
t
}
&<; xup would more naturally be connected with the preceding (so W H . mg.)
t
cf. Is. 3 0 " xal ^ 6p«rt TOU OUJIOU £><; xup Brcat.
B u t this
leaves tihpaupfoatrt without an object, which is impossible, unless, indeed, the text is defective and a word has dropped out. conjectures opfftv, cf. R o m . 2». the following sentence.
Windisch
Syr omits dx; and connects xup with
Latin vt and v g connect with the preceding;
but a wide-spread alteration ( C o d . Amiat., not Cod. Fuld.) has relieved the difficulty b y adding
iram after thesaurizastis.
Cf. M t . 6" 1 9 " , M k . 10", L k . 1 8 " , R o m . 2» 6rj<j<xup^tt<; otour^ op-rfv |v IPIW
6PTU<;, Prov. 1 " ( L X X ) , 2*, T o b . 4*
T*P ar*tov
0Tjoaup^tt<; <jeaur
works laid up with the M o s t H i g h , " Apoc. Baruch 24 , and Charles's note, Test. X I I Patr.
Levi 13*, and Charles's note.
iv IOXDRAIS i ^ p a t s , I. e. "which shall be in the last days." The last days are the days of judgment, when punishment will be awarded. Cf. the same phrase in 2 Tim. 3 and (with the article) Acts 2 , Didache 16*. 1
17
For the omission of the article with a superlative, cf. Winer-Schmiedel, § 19. 9.
Other similar phrases are TQ 1<JX&TQ fnxipa (Jn. 6 " !l
iaxdrnq &oa (1 Jn. 2 ) , *v xatp
etc.),
t V 4
(Jude 18, etc.); see Lex. s. v. I<jx
288
JAMES ( 1 ) W i t h the punctuation, as above, b y which &c «up is connected
with the following,
can b e taken in the sense, "as," " a s it were."
But this is less forcible, since the writer who wrote the preceding a n d following denunciation would not b e likely to hold back from the outand-out threat of "fire." (2) £ K xup can b e connected with the preceding sentence, a n d flrrjooupfoorct made to begin a new sentence (so A . V . , R . V . , W H . mg., fol lowing O l d Latin and V g ) .
I n that case we must r e a d : " T h e rust of
them will b e for a witness and will eat your flesh like fire. Y o u h a v e laid u p treasure in the Last D a y s , " etc. context for &>q xup. ttipaupfoarrt
This makes a fairly suitable
B u t the following sentence is left mutilated, for
requires an object; and the sense is weakened.
Under
this interpretation the " L a s t D a y s " have to b e understood as already here.
4. As an example of the way in which the rich have been treasuring up fire for themselves, James specifies injustice to farm labourers, a conspicuous form of oppression from early O. T . times down. Cf. also v . . Hermas, Vis. iii, 9 , has many points of similarity. pLUjO&i, cf. Deut. 2 4 avdwutpbv awocjaxreis TOV uiodbv avrov . . . or 1 . . . Karafiorioerai tcaTa oov rpbs tcvpiov, Lev. 1 9 " , Mai. 3* rot* awoorepovvras purdbv piodorrov, Ecclus. 3 1 (34)**-", Tob. 4 , Ps.-Phocylides, 19 pioObv poxOjoavri SCSov * pi} flXtjSe irivvra. ft
s
11
14
ipyar&v,
"labourers," especially used of farm labourers. 1
In O . T . only W i s d . 1 7 " , Ecclus. 1 9 4 0 " , 1 M a c e . 3*, P s . 9 4 " ( S y m . ) . T h e word has thus almost no L X X associations.
I n the N . T . , beside
this passage in James it is used freely b y M a t t h e w (six times) a n d b y L u k e and Acts (five times), a n d four times in the Pauline and Pastoral epistles. 11
aprjodvTwv, " reap." Only here in N. T . Cf. Lev. 25 , Deut. 24 *, Is. 1 7 37* , Mic. 6". X^pas, "estates," "farms," cf. Lk. 1 2 " 21* , Jn. 4", Amos 3 » « , 2 Mace. 8 . E.V. "fields" suggests too small a plot of ground; %wpa means not a fenced subdivision but the whole estate under one ownership. afoorepr)pivos "kept back," an appropriate word, rare in Biblical Greek. Cf. Neh. 9 * ; used intransitively in Ecclus. 1 4 . 1
8
0
1
f
1 0
l l
6
t
1 4
289
v, 3 - 5
1
dcxtoTtpTj^ivoc;] B ' A P minn* **.
dhroartpixiivo^] K L . T h e rare word found in B*tf has been emended to a more familiar 1
one, cf. M a i . 3*, Ecclus. 4 29* 31(34)".
a
9
b
16
10
f
1
y
7
17
5. Your luxurious life on this earth is nothing in which you can take satisfaction, it is but the preliminary to a day of punishment. Cf. Lk. 1 6 - (Dives and Lazarus), Lk. 6 " - 12 *-* . Cf. Enoch 98 102 . h-pixfyqaaTe, "you have lived in luxury," "lived delicately" (R.V.). Derived from Bpvirr
11
11
f
9
y
4
1
f l
19
1
1
290
JAMES
ixl Trp yrft in contrast to heaven, or the next world; iv ijpipa afyayrp is the day which introduces the next world. Cf. Mt. 6". icTcaTa\q(TaTe " given yourselves to pleasure." R.V. " taken your pleasure" is weaker than the original, and not so good as the antiquated "been wanton" of A.V. Cf. 1 Tim. 5*, Ecclus. y
9
21". qxorcocXgv is a less literary word than tpufau, having worse associa tions in secular use, and suggesting positive lewdness and
riotousness.
This word and its cognates,
1
"alii. * Cf. B a r n . 10*, Varro spatula eviravit omncs Vcncri vaga pucros. H o r t , pp.
each used a few times in L X X , Sym. and
107-109, assembles many instances of the word from the L X X and other sources.
idpe\f/aT€ TAS Kdp&ias vp&v iv fipipa
4
1
7
18
1
f
1
10
M a n y interpreters think that iv V l p a o t p a ^ must refer to the time in which W p t y a n has been going on.
T h e n the sense will b e : " Y o u
v, 5^6
291
have been occupied with pampering yourselves in the very d a y when you will b e finally cut off."
B u t this is unnecessary, and the words
become less pregnant and significant, while it is not natural to speak of the present time as if the D a y of Judgment itself (near though it m a y be) had already come. Iv "foiip?! B t f * P 33 minn ff v g boh.
Ivfyiipaiq]A . IV ftilp?] tf KL c
1
048 minn' " syr»* Cyr.
A's reading is unsupported error. T h e prefixing of dx; changes and weakens the sense because of failure to note the allusion to the D a y of Judgment in fxAlpa &?aff)q. This reading with &q is correctly enough paraphrased b y aeth (ed. Piatt) ui qui saginal bovem in diem mactationis.
6. By your oppression you are guilty of the blood of right eous men; do you not find them your enemies? KareSucdaaTe, "condemned." Cf. Mt. i2 « * , Lk. 6 . The rich are judges^ or at any rate control the courts. i
7
87
11
}
justly takes away the means of life is murder. s
1
Cf. Ecclus. 4
7
3i(34) " : apros iwiSeoueixav fo>^ irroy^&p, 6 airooTtp&v avrijp dvBpoairos aludrtov •
l0
u
11
1
80
1
4
7
6
7
4
I n L k . 2 3 « , Acts 3 " 7 " 22", 1 Jn. 2* (cf. 1 Pet. 3"), b &(xoto<; is used of Christ, cf. Enoch 3 8
s
f
53 .
I t is not, however, likely that Christ
would here be referred to so vaguely, although his death might natu-
292
JAMES rally be included in the writer's mind under ifovcfocrrt.
T h e attack is
upon the rich as a class, and their misdeeds are thought of as character ising their whole history.
M t 2 3 " is an excellent parallel; cf. also the
M
reproaches in Acts 7"* .
OVK avrvrdooerai vpiv; "does not he (sc. 0 Stxcuos) resist you?" avrvrdooerai (cf. Jas. 4*, 1 Pet. 5*, Rom. 13*, Acts 1 8 , Prov. 3") evidently relates to a highly formidable resistance, and probably the witness of the poor at the Day of Judgment is meant Cf. Enoch 9 1 (and Charles's note) 98" 104 . s
1 1
I n Hos. i
1
s
ovmarotafat is contrasted with IXtcfv, to "show m e r c y " ;
in Prov. 3 " with &t&6vat xipiv, " b e favourably inclined."
It
to be used of active opposition or resistance, not of a merely hostile attitude.
So Esther 3*, P r o v . 3", 4 M a c e . 1 6 " ( C o d . tf).
Other interpretations of v. • are to be rejected : (1) If, with many interpreters, o6x d v r i T a a s r r a t is taken as a positive statement instead of a question, it must probably refer to the deliber ate non-resistance of the righteous on principle, as in Is. 53', 1 P e t a " . B u t (a) this sense is wholly unsuited to the context, (b) the asyndeton after Sfxatov then becomes well-nigh impossibly violent, and (c) to e n d this powerful passage of triumphant denunciation with a brief reference to the submissive non-resistance of the righteous would be strange in deed. (2) For this last reason the view that the meaning is, "he offers y o u no effective resistance," is almost equally unacceptable. (3) Hofmann and others take dhrtTdaatrai as impersonal passive, " n o opposition is made," cf. v. »*.
B u t ( M a y o r ) "it is the middle, n o t
the active, which means to resist." (4) Some interpreters would supply 0 8t6<; as the subject of i v m d b crwK, taking the latter interrogatively.
This would be in accord with
the Jewish avoidance of the name of G o d wherever possible, a n d would form an allusion to 4 ' ; but it seems here unnecessary and u n natural. In the interest of this last interpretation Bentley conjectured O K C for O T K ;
like most N . T . conjectures, it is unnecessary.
(5) B y those who take TOY Mxatov to refer to Jesus Christ, oux dvnTdtjarcat is interpreted either interrogatively, as a warning of the D a y of Judgment (cf. M t . 2 5 " ' • ) , or affirmatively, in the light of 1 Pet. 2**.
7 - 1 1 . Encouragement to patience, and constancy, and to mu tual forbearance, in view of the certainly and nearness of the Com-
v, 6-7
293
ing of the Lord, and in view of the great examples of the prophets and Job, and of their reward. With v . begin the Counsels for the Christian Conduct of Life, which occupy the rest of the chapter and are contrasted with the censure of Worldliness in 4 -5*. 7. naKpodvuqoaTe, "be patient." This word has more the meaning of patient and submissive, vTouivtw that of stead fast and constant, endurance. But the two words are nearly synonymous. Cf. i S , Col. i 3 " (with Lightfoot's notes), 1 Cor. i 3 » , 2 Cor. 6 ' Heb. 6 2 Tim. 3". See Trench, Synonyms, § liii. 7
L
,
4
f
l
J
n
7
11
4
uf
{uxxpoOuiAtfv is rare in secular Greek, b u t is common (as verb, noun, and adjective) in the L X X , partly with reference to God's attribute of long suffering (e. g. Ps. 86"), partly in passages commending the virtue to men,
e. g. Prov. 19", Ecclus. 29 , Baruch 4 " xixwx, jwcxpo1
ButLfparrs (suffer patiently) TTJV xocpd TOU 8tou IXCXOOUOTZY 6ii.lv 6pyfjv. l
1
1
8
1
Enoch 9 6 » 9 7 - 103 -* are good parallels, combined, as they are, with the series of Woes to which w . are so closely similar. It is to be noted that the evil and hardship which are to be borne with patience, and which call out groans (v. •), are not necessarily persecution, or unjust oppression, but may well be merely the privations, anxieties, and sufferings incident to the ordinary life of men. Note the reference to the example of Job (whose misfortunes were grievous sickness and the loss of children and property), and the special precepts about conduct in sickness, w . -. Notice also xaKO7ra0€t, v. , a general word for being in trouble. ovv presents the exhortation as a direct corollary from the declaration in w . that judgment awaits the rich; but the paragraph as a whole is related to the main underlying thought 6 7 1 of 4 -sS exclusively to 5 . Cf. 2 Thess. i « . aSek
1 4
n
o
ff
u
t
i e
l
f
r
7
1
19
1
lfl
s
1
1
14
1
4
294
JAMES T h e word xopouakc is found b u t five times in the L X X ( N e h . 2* ( C o d . A ) , Judith i o " 2 M a c e . 8" 1 5 " , 3 M a c e . 3"), and until the N . T .
we do not find it used with reference to the Messiah at all.
N o r does
God's coming to redemption and judgment appear to be referred to in Jewish sources b y this term.
Its natural associations in such use a r e
with the "advent," or visit (xatpouafot), of Greek kings to the cities o f their realm; cf. Deissmann, Licht vom Osten*, p p . 278 ff. Light from the Ancient East, p p . 372 jf., and especially Brooke's full note on 1 Jn. 2 " . %
Test. X I I Patr. Jud.
22*, IGK TTJ<; xapouofoc 6cou rrjs; Btxanoaivijg
b probably a Christian addition; it is not found in the Armenian v e r sion.
I t refers to Christ with the naive patripassianism
of these interpolations.
characteristic
T h e quotations given b y Spitta ( p . 137) from
the Testament of A b r a h a m are of Christian origin, and refer to t h e xapooak of Christ (cf. Schttrer, GJV,
$ 32, V , 6).
ihoif 6 y&tipyds. "The farmer has to wait, and to be patient"; a comparison used as an argument, and introduced abruptly, as in 2 3** *. This comparison does not bear any special relation to the occu pation of the readers. 0 yevpyds refers to the independent farmer, not to the ipydrns. 11
W e are here reminded of the parables of the Gospels, where the con summation of all things b repeatedly compared to a harvest, e. g. M t 1 3 " ; cf. also Ecclus. 6", P s . 126*. •.
F o r the thought, cf. (Wetstein)
Tibullus, ii, 6. 21 / . and the apocryphal fragment quoted in Clem. R o m . 23*-* and 2 Clem. R o m . n » - * .
tov rlpiov kclptSv, "the precious crop" for which he longs. ripios is added in order to make the comparison complete. iw* airy, "over it," "with reference to i t " Cf. the use of M with TcapaKdX&v, "console," in 2 Cor. i , 1 Thess. 3 , and with peravoetv, 2 Cor. 1 2 * ; also the more general use, Jn. I 2 , Rev. 22 . &* \df3y sc. 6 Kapwds. So R.V. A.V. and R.V. mg., with some interpreters, supply "the farmer" as subject. 4
7
1 1
16
00
xpitpLov] B 048 (minn** ) v g sah. 1
6rcfcv Tp6inov] A K ( L P minn* ") s y r * ^ s y r
h o l t
xapxbv xbv xp6tnov] X * ( K ° om T6V) min ff s y r
*».
h e , m
« boh.
T h e shortest reading is to be preferred; the others represent t w o dif ferent methods of completing a supposedly defective text. 1
I t should b e
stated that B » K L minn* ** read xpwtnov, the more usual form of the word.
295 Another possibility would be that the Syrian reading with 5rc6v, which clearly gives the best sense, is original; and either ( i ) that 6tr6v was
accidentally omitted, so as to produce the text of B , and b y a
secondary conjecture (xapxov) that of K , or else (2) that for 6rc6v, not understood outside of Palestine and Syria, xapxov was directly substituted, so that the editor of the text of B , having to choose between two rival readings, cut the knot b y refusing to accept either. B u t against this stands the weight of the external testimony to the omission, together with the argument from the shorter reading.
In
any case the reading xapx6v is secondary.
Tp6i\xQv KQX 8\f/ifu>p sc. veroV, "the early and late rain." On the ellipsis, to which there is no complete parallel, cf. 3 . U
T o nil the ellipsis, xopx6v is sometimes supplied from the preced ing (so many interpreters from Cassiodorius to Spitta), and then the reference will perhaps b e to the succession of barley and wheat, E x . 9 " ' ;
cf.
Stephanus,
Thcsaur. s.
r. xpcattioc;
Geoponica,
i, i 2 " '
distinction of ol xpu>tp.ot xapxot xal ol ftytp.0. . . . ol
with similar
lk \Uaoi;
Xen.
(Ec. 17*. The sentence would then mean, "until he receive it early and late,** and would emphasise the continuance of the farmer's anxiety until all the harvests are
complete.
B u t this does not well suit the comparison
with the Parousia, where it is the event itself, not the completion of a series of processes, that is significant.
Moreover, the O . T . parallels
tell strongly against this interpretation, and there is no evidence that such a distinction had any place in popular usage.
The use of these terms for the two critical periods of rain is found in Deut. n , Jer. 5", Joel 2", Zech. io ( L X X ) ; cf. Jer. 3 , Hos. 6*. The comparison is drawn from a matter of in tense interest, an habitual subject of conversation, in Palestine. The "early rain normally begins in Palestine in late October or early November, and is anxiously awaited because, being necessary for the germination of the seed, it is the signal for sowing. In the spring the maturing of the grain depends on the "late rain," light showers falling in April and May. With out these even heavy winter rains will not prevent failure of the crops. Thus the farmer is anxious, and must exercise uatepodvula until both these necessary gifts of Heaven are assured. 1 4
1
8
,,
y
The special anxiety about these rains seems to be character istic of the climate of Palestine and southern Syria, as distin-
296
JAMES
guished from other portions of the subtropical region of the Mediterranean basin. Elsewhere, although the dry season and rainy season are quite as well marked, the critical fall and spring months are pretty certain to secure a sufficient rainfall, as in Italy, or else there is no hope of rain in them, as in northern Egypt in the spring. But in Syria these rains are usual yet by no means uniform or certain; hence only there do they take so prominent a place in the life and thought of everybody. See J. Harm, Handbuch der Klimatologie , iii, 1 9 1 1 , pp. 90-96, especially the instructive tables, pp. 12 / . , 9 3 ; H. Hilderscheid, "Die Niederahlagsverhaltnisse Palastinas in alter und neuer Zeit," in Zeiischtift des Deutschen Paldstinavereins, xxv, 1902, especially pp. 82-94; E. Huntington, Palestine and Its Trans formation, 1 9 1 1 ; EB, "Rain." 1
I t is instructive to observe that the v. I. 6rc6v belongs to the " S y r i a n " (Antiochian) text, the framers of which were familiar with a similar climate, while in E g y p t xapx6v (8 boh, etc.) or else the shorter reading with no noun at all ( B sah) was prevalent.
T h e reading xapxov (or
the corresponding interpretation) was likewise natural from the point of view of Italy and the western Mediterranean (ff Cassiodorius).
The question arises whether this may be a purely literary allusion, drawn from the O. T. passages and made without any personal knowledge of these rains and their importance. That is made unlikely by the absence of any other relation here (apart from the names of the two rains) to the language or thought of any one of the O. T. passages. The author uses a current phrase as if he were himself familiar with the matter in question. To suppose that to him and his readers this was a mere Biblical allusion to a situation of which they knew only by literary study would give a formal stiffness and unreality to the passage wholly out of keeping with the intensity and sincerity of the writer's appeal. The resemblance here to the O. T . is in fact less close than to the tract Taanith of the Mishna, where the date is discussed at which, if rain have not yet begun, it should be prayed for. The tract shows in many ways how deeply these seasons of rain entered into all the life of the people. See also JE, "Rain."
v, 7 - i o
297
The Apostolic Fathers and the apologists contain no reference to these terms for the rains of Palestine, and the names do not seem in any way to have become part of the early Christian religious vocabulary. 8. *al as often in comparisons. Cf. Jn. 6", Mt. 6 , i Cor. 15", Phil, i * ; ovrws icai, Jas. i 3*. orrjpQ-aTe ras KapStas vp&v, "make your courage and pur pose firm." Cf. 1 Thess. 3", Ps. 1 1 2 , Ecclus. 6 2 2 , Judg. 19*.». <m\p%t\.v is common in N. T., cf. 1 Pet. 5 , 2 Thess. 2 , Lk. 22", Acts 1 8 " , Rom. i , etc. tfyywa/, cf. 1 Pet. 4 , Mk. 1 " , Mt. 3*. 9. prj
y
u
8
,T
16
10
17
u
7
1 7
T h e translation " g r u d g e " ( A . V . ) means " c o m p l a i n " ; cf. P s . 5 9 " ( A . V . ) , Shakespeare. 1.
Henry VI,
iii, 1, 176.
tva pij KpiBrfre. They are themselves in danger of judgment, if they commit the sin of complaining of their brethren. Cf. n f. ^ii jit aisQ yi (but there is here in James nothing of the idea that judging brings Judgment). As in 4 " , so prob ably here, God is the judge, and with the coming of the Lord (i. e. Christ), v . , God's judgment appears; cf. Rom. 2 . The sentence means hardly more than "for that is wrong," cf. v . » . rpb T&V 0vp&v cf. Mk. 1 3 " , Mt. 24". 10. vTr6iwfpa Xa/ferc, "take as an example." Cf. Ecclus. 2
?
7
16
t
298
JAMES
u
44 , 2 Mace 6*' » 4 Mace. 17", Jn. 1 3 " ; 1 P e t 2 ° , vrdypapr pop. Trjs KOLKOTcadlas KOX Trjs paxpoBvplas, "of hardship coupled with patience," *\ e. "of patience in hardship," easily understood as a form of hendiadys. Cf. 4 Mace. 9 StA Trja&e TT/S KaKoraOlas xal incopapfjs, "through this patient endurance of hardship." KOLKOTaBla and KOXOTOB&* are somewhat rare words; they correspond well to English "hardship." Cf. Mai. 1", Jonah 4 , 2 Mace. 2 -, Ep. Arist 49**, also Sym. in Gen. 3 , Ps. 12* 16 127*. s
W
U
f
17
TOVS TcpofyffTa*. Cf. M t 5" 23". » , Acts 7", Heb. 1 Thess. 2 ', Lk. n ° , 2 Chron. 36". 7
4
M
n ,
1
It is noteworthy that the example of Christ's endurance erf suffering is not here referred to, as it is in 1 Pet. 2" ot l\dkr}oap iv r £ ovdpaTi ttvplov. Cf. Dan. 9* (Theod.) ci ikdkovv ip r$ bp6\ko.rl oov Jer. 20 44 . ot ikakvoav XTX. is added in order to point out that even the most eminent ser vants of God have been exposed to suffering and hardship, cf. M t 5". f
1$
t
1
1
Iv T $ ovVrct) B P minn"* * . Iv ovfyuru] K« irX T$ ovfyurct] min. 1
T $ ov6(iarrt] A K L 048 minn* **. Difficult to decide; external authority is here against lectio brewiar.
1 1 . paKapftofiep TOVS vTcoptkapras. Cf. i»» , Dan. i 2 paicdpios o vTopevwv, 4 Mace, i 7**, cl&w Sri TO 8U\ T^P aperijv TC&PT€L TC6POP vTopivew paicdpidp ioTiv, Mt. 24*'. paKaptZonep refers to the prevalent habitual estimate of the worth of constancy. It sounds as if James had in mind some well-known saying like Dan. 12". TOVS vTopetvavTCLs, "those who have proved themselves con stant"—a general class, not specific individuals. lt
, f
10
1
TO&C 6Toju(vavra<;] B t f A P minn ff v g syr***-** . 1
TO&S &xonlvovra<;] K L 048 minn* " sah. External evidence must decide; the meaning differs b y only a s h a d e .
V, T))P
vropopifP
299
IO-II
'Ia>f}.
This virtue was seen in Job's refusal to renounce God, Job jn r. » 131* i 6 19 * It had evidently already become a standing attribute of Job in the popular mind; in Tanchuma, 29. 4 (Schottgen, H o r a c h c b r a i c a e , pp. 1009/.) Job is given as an example of steadfastness in trial and of the double reward which that receives. Cf. Clem. Rom. 17* 26', 2 Clem. Rom. 6 ; this verse is the only mention of Job in the N. T., and has doubtless given rise to the modern saying, "as patient as Job." RIKOWRART. Perhaps in the synagogue; cf. Mt. $*• » . TO TAos Kvplov, "the conclusion wrought by the Lord to his troubles." Cf. Job 42 - ,. especially v . o & Kvpvos €vX o y r j O t Tit, ioxaTa l f
s
2
8
f7
10
x£ko<;
tb
17
u
1 1
xupfou is taken b y Augustine. Bede, and many later inter
preters to mean the death of Christ.
B u t in that case not the mere
death, but the triumph over death, would have had to b e made promi nent.
T h e suggestion is at variance both with what precedes and with
what follows; and the death of Christ is not likely to be introduced so ambiguously. and
" I f T<XOC is supposed to refer to the Resurrection
Ascension, the main point of the comparison (suffering) is omitted:
if it refers to the Crucifixion, the encouragement is wanting" ( M a y o r ) . TiXo<; sometimes loxorra dtxafov. 4 8 e r e ,
i . e .
Patr. B e n j . 4 ( v . I. *Xeos).
1
means "death," as W i s d . 3 " ,
cf.
1
2*
panuzoKju
B u t it is not necessary to give it that meaning here.
in the story of Job. C f . Heb. 3 " , Test. X I I I B e r € o v p reVva p o v TOV a y a B o v c w S p b s T6 T A O S f
f
loTW 6 KVpVOS KAL OIKTIpptOP Ps. 1 0 3 (note v . owe d s T A O S 6pyur6T)
9
8
C f .
9
8
Z a b .
7
u
8
7
9. xoX6ox>urncvo<; means "very kind."
Apart from far later Chris
tian use ( « . g. Theod. Stud. p. 615, eighth century) it is elsewhere found only in H e n n a s ,
Vis.
Sim.
v,
i, 3«, ii, 2*, iv, 2»,
A
^ , Mand. Mand. ix,
iv, 3.
Cf.
v
xoXuaxXotYX ^» Hennas,
2, Justin M a r t .
Dial.
5 5 ; xoXut6<j-
xXaqfX*K> Hermas, Sim. v, 4 " , xoXotooxXorrxvia, Hermas, Sim. viii, 6*. It seems to b e equivalent to L X X xoXuiXeoq. Like other words from orMrxX**
1
( o ? ^ it must b e of Jewish origin.
This group of words
is rather more strongly represented in the N . T . than in the L X X ,
and
seems to have come into free popular use in the intervening period.
3oo
JAMES
obcrlppw, "merciful." In classical Greek only a poetic term for the more common (kefip&v (Schmidt, Synonymik der griech. Sprache, iii, p. 580). Frequent in the L X X for D^?rjl; nearly always used of God; in the majority of cases combined with fodjpvv. Cf. Lk. 6". 12-18* Do not break out into oaths. Instead, if in distress, fray ; if well off, sing a psalm to God ; if sick, ask for prayer and anointing, and confess your sins. Prayer is a mighty power; remember Elijah*s prayer. The exhortation relating to oaths appears to be parallel with / i ^ oT€pd{cr€. "Do not put the blame for your hardships on your brethren: do not irreverently call upon God in your dis tress." V v . all relate to the religious expression of strong emotion. 12. rpb irdvrwv oV, "but especially," emphasising this as even more important than pff ortvd^ere. For the use of this formula near the end of a letter, cf. 1 Pet. 4 , and see examples from papyri quoted in Robinson, Ephesians, p. 279. p)f opvvere. A reniiniscence of Mt. 5 * (note especially v. and the reference to oipavds and yrj in w . ). rbv oipavdv. The accusative is the ordinary classical con struction after Spwpi; iv with the dative, as found in Mat thew is a Hebraism. fjro>, for &ro>. See references in Lex. and Winer-Schmiedel, § 14. 1, note; also Mayor's note, p. 167, J. H. Moulton, Prolegomena, p. 56. rJTO) Bk vp&v TO vol val "let your yea be yea" (and nothing more). 1 , - 1 8
8
84
8 7
87
8 4
f
t
This is simpler, and in every w a y better, than to translate. " L e t yours be the ' Y e a , y e a / " *. e. the mode of speech commanded b y the L o r d in M t 5 " .
It is not to be supposed that James had in mind any question of the lawfulness of oaths in a law-court in a Jewish or Chris tian country. To any oriental such a saying as this, or M t . s , would at once suggest ordinary swearing, not the rare and 87
V,
30i
11-12
solemn occasions about which modern readers have been so much concerned. T h e commentators are divided on this point.
Huther (Beyschlag)
names many who hold that James meant to forbid all oaths, b u t a still larger number who think that only frivolous swearing was in his mind.
Huther's o w n argument is that if he had meant to forbid se
rious oaths he would have had to mention explicitly the oath b y the name of G o d .
The form here differs from that of the saying in Mt. 5 " eWco Bk 0 \6yos vp&v pal vai, and it is a singular fact that the words of Jesus are quoted substantially in the form found in James by many early writers, including Justin Martyr, Apol. i, 16, Clem. Alex. Strom, v, 14, 99, p. 707, vii, n , 67, p. 872. The form in James is simpler and seems to correspond to a current Jewish mode of describing truthfulness. Similar lan guage is found in Ruth rabba 3 , 18, "With the righteous is their 'yes/ yes, and their 'no/ no," ascribed to R. Huna (f 297 A.D.), quoting his contemporary R. Samuel bar-Isaac, and doubtless independent of the N. T . The fact probably is that at an early date the text of Mt. 5* was in the East either modified or misquoted by the influence of the more familiar current phrase, which also appears in James. In the later quotations, however, direct influence from Jas. 5 " is very likely to have come in. The theory that we have here in James and in these early writers the traces of an oral form of the sayings of Jesus preserved independently of Mat thew's Greek gospel is unlikely, and unnecessary. For a con venient presentation of the facts, see A. Resch, Aussercanonische ParaUeltcxte zu den Evangelien, ii, Matthaeus und Marcus, 1894 (Texte und Unters. x), pp. 96 / . T h e commonness of oaths (often half-serious, half-profane) in daily speech in the ancient world, both Jewish and Gentile, does not need to be illustrated, cf. Eccles. 9*.
T h e censure of the moralists seems to
have proceeded both from the tendency to untruthfulness which made an oath seem needed (and which it intensified), from the dishonest dis tinctions between the valid a n d the invalid oath, and from the irrever ence of profanity (Philo,
Dc dccal. 19 $>6rrat Y<*P
xoXuopxfetc
7
302
JAMES
ftopxla xal
foifaia).
T o these motives should b e added the d r e a d
among the Greeks of an oath which might commit to unexpected o b ligations perhaps tragic in their result From Jewish sources there are consequently many sayings recom mending either complete abstinence from swearing or at least greatest possible restriction of the custom.
De deed.
Philo discusses oaths in
1 7 - 1 9 , and
the 1 4
T h u s Ecclus. 23*-" 2 7 .
De spec. leg. ii, 1-6.
principle is that oaths are to be avoided when possible, that
FEs oaths
should be taken b y lower objects ("the earth, the sun, the stars, the universe") rather than b y "the highest and eldest Cause," and h e praises the man who b y any evasion (cf. English, " O h M y ! " ) avoids the utterance of the sacred words of oaths.
H i s abhorrence of oaths
is due to their profane impiety and unseemliness, b u t he also lays stress on truthfulness and on the wickedness of false swearing and of s w e a r ing to do wrong. Rabbinical teaching was to much the same effect, with varying d e grees of rigour.
N e d a r i m 20 a, "Accustom not thyself to vows, for
sooner or later thou wilt swear false oaths";
Midrash Bemidbar r.
22, " N o t even to confirm the truth is it proper for one to swear, lest he come to trifle with vows and swearing, and deceive his neighbour b y oaths"; Midrash W a j j i k r a r. 6 (cf. Shebuoth 47 a ) , where all swear See A . Wilnsche, Neue Beitr&ge zur ErUtuterung der Evangelien aus Talmud und Midrasch, 1878, pp. 57-60, and E . Bischoff, Jesus und die Rabbinen, 1905, p p . 54-56. ing is forbidden.
I n particular the Essenes refrained from oaths; Josephus, BJ
t
ii, 8*:
" E v e r y statement of theirs is surer than an o a t h ; and with them swear ing is avoided, for they think it worse than perjury.
F o r they say that
he who is untrustworthy except when he appeals to G o d , is already under condemnation,"
cf. Ant. xv,
4
io .
Philo,
Quod omn. prob. liber,
12,
mentions among the doctrines of the Essenes TO dvtijiOTov, TO d<J*uW<;. Similar reasons led to the discouragement of oaths b y Greek moral ists.
Pythagoras himself is said (Diog. Laert,
Vita Pythag.
9 and 28) to have taught
\wV
Pythag.
22, Jamblichus,
0{iv6vat 6co6<;, affxelv -rap
afrrov 5elv a&6xi
See also Diodor. Sic. x, fragm. 9*.
From the Stoic side comes the saying of Epictetus,
Enckir.
33», opxov
xopafrijsat, c( uiv ol6v T t , d$ axav, tl 81 [Li\, ix TWV
Eusebius, in Stobaeus,
Anthol. iii,
27, 13 ol
xoXXol Tof<; dv6p&xotat TO t&6pxooc ilvat au?ot<; xapacviouatv, i f d ) & xal TO ipxf)v prfi'tftxcrldx;
6ptv6vai 5 « o v dxo9a(voujtt.
For other Greek sayings, cf. Chcerilus of Samos (fourth century B.C.), opxov
V
O6T* fiStxov xpt&v 6(j.v6vat o(fct 8(xatov (in Stobaeus,
iii, 27, 1 ) ; Menander,
Sent. sing.
8(XIIK; the statement of Nicolaus Damascenus (Stob. 4>p6-r«<; opxot<; 06 xp&vrat,
Antkol.
441 opxov 5i $*u*rt xal Stxab*; x£-
Anth. iv,
2, 25),
O&T' 6ptv6vTt<;, O5T« 3XXOU<; iSopxouvrw;;
v, 12-13
3°3
Sosiades' maxims of the Seven Sages, in Stobaeus, See R . Hirzel's excellent monograph, Der Eid,
Die Etkik der alien Griechen, 1882, and Wetstein on M t . 5 " ; Stobaeus,
Anthol. iii.
1902;
i,
173
L . Schmidt,
ii, pp. 1 - 1 1 ; references in M a y o r
Anthol.
iii, c,
27
Ilepl opxou.
W i t h early Christian writers the objection to oaths was further in creased b y reason of the necessary association with heathen worship and
formulas.
T h e subject is discussed b y Tertullian, Clement of
Alexandria, Chrysostom, Augustine. St&udlin,
See references in M a y o r , K . F .
Geschichle der VorsteUungen und Lehren vom Eide, 1824,
"Oaths," in DC A.
Zva ii)} wro Kpfow Tcicqre, cf. v. •, with the same meaning. &xb xpfetv] B t f A minn ff vg boh sah syr»*. 1
etc xpfotv] minn . tt<; 6ic6xpt<jiv] K L P 048 minn""*.. T h e reading of K L P is a superficial emendation.
1 3 - 1 5 . The negative precepts for behaviour under the trials of earthly existence (M*)
These short sentences, with question and answer, are characteristic of the diatribe; cf. Teles, e d Hense', p . 10.
See Introduction, p. 12.
tvOvptl rts; "is any in good spirits?" eiOvpelv, tx/Ovpla are not found in L X X , tZOvpos only in 2 Mace. u . In the N. T . they are found elsewhere only in Acts 24 27 » —in both cases in passages of a distinctly Hellenic character. i/^aXXeVo), "let him sing a hymn." Cf. Eph. s", Rom. 15*, 1 Cor. 1 4 ; faKfuk, 1 Cor. 1 4 " , Eph. 5", Col. 3". , e
10
M
11
1 6
Properly " p l a y the h a r p , " hence frequent in O . T . , especially in Psalms (forty times), for no?, "sing Ps. 7" o8«. instrument
to the music of a harp,"
e.g.
B u t the word does not necessarily imply the use of an
JAMES
304
8
14. haQtvti rts; "is any sick?" Cf. M t io , Jn. 4", Acts 9", Phil. 2" ' . roin wpeafivTe'povs Trjs iKKXrjafas, definite officers, not merely the elder men in general, cf. Acts 20". Presbyters as church officers are mentioned in the N . T . in A c t s 1 1 " i *i 4
154.
at. n
20"
2 Jn. 1, 3 Jn. 1.
1
ax *, 1 T i m .
5*. *• » •
Tit. i « , 1 Pet.
Jewish villages also had presbyters.
l
s ^>,
O n the origin
and history of the Christian office of presbyter, see EB, " P r e s b y t e r , " "Bishop," " M i n i s t r y " ; HDB,"
Bishop," " C h u r c h , " " Church G o v e r n
ment," "Presbytery." T h e solemn visit here described gives a vivid picture of the customs of a Jewish town.
James recommends it not as anything new, nor a s
excluding all other therapeutic methods. was enjoined b y the rabbis:
Visiting the sick (cf. M t . 2$**)
N e d a r i m 39, " H e who visits the sick
lengthens his life, and he who refrains shortens i t " ; cf. Sanhedrim 1 0 1 , 1 (Wetstein), where R . Elieser is visited in sickness b y four rabbis; S h a b bath 1 2 7 b ; Sota 14 a. S. Schechter,
See Edersheim,
Studies in Judaism,
Jewish Social Life,
pp. 167 / . ;
second series, Philadelphia, 1908,
pp. 99 / . and note 42, p. 3 1 1 . T h e following interesting passages have been brought to the atten tion of N . T . scholars b y the aid of D r . S. Schechter (see Fulford,
St.
James, p p . 117 / . ) : Samachoth Zutarti (ed. Chaim M . H o r o w i t z , Uralte Tosefta's, M a i n z , 1800, p p . 28-31), " F r o m the time when a m a n takes to his bed, they come to him and say, ' W o r d s neither revive one, nor do they kill.' [After exhorting the sick man to set his worldly affairs 1
in order, as Isaiah did Hezekiah, 2 Kings 20 , if he sees that the sick man is dangerously ill, the visitor says], 'Confess before thou diest, for there are many who have confessed and died not; others who did not confess have died. wilt recover.'
Again perhaps on the merit of thy confession thou
If he can confess with his mouth, he does so.
he confesses in his heart.
I f not,
Both the man who confesses with his mouth
and the man who confesses in his heart are alike, provided that he directs his mind to G o d and his understanding is clear."
T . B . Shab-
bath 13 b , " H e who comes to a sick man says, ' M a y the L o r d h a v e mercy on y o u / "
" H e who comes to p a y a visit to a sick man must
not sit on a bed or on a chair; but let him wrap his mantle round him, and pray the mercy of G o d for the man.
There is a divine presence
at the head of the sick m a n . " Closely like the verse in James is B a b a bathra 1 1 6 a, " L e t him into whose house calamity or sickness has come, go to a wise man (i. e. a rabbi) that he may intercede for him with G o d . "
lKic\ri
1 4
v, 14
3°5
18
aKeiyf/avrts iXatq, cf. Mk. 6 . The aorist participle does not imply that the anointing is to precede the prayer; cf. Burton, Moods and Tenses, §§ 1 3 9 - 1 4 1 ; Blass-Debrunner, § 339; Moulton, Prolegomena, pp. 130-132. T h e Jews, as well as other ancient peoples, used oil as a common remedial a g e n t
I n many cases, doubtless, the application had thera
peutic value; often, however, in the lack of scientific knowledge it must (like many other remedies, ancient and modern) have owed its efficacy wholly to influence on the patient's mind.
Cf. Is. 1% L k . 1 0 " ,
and the evidence collected b y M a y o r ; and see " O i l " and "Anointing," in
EB
f
and
HDB.
Galen,
Med. temp, ii, calls
oil " T h e best of all rem
edies for paralysis («cot<; ifopawiivotc xal a&xpul£iai atiuaaiv)." T a l m . Jems, in Berakoth 3 . 1 , " R . Simeon, the son of Eleazar, per mitted R . M e i r to mingle wine and oil and to anoint the sick on the Sabbath.
A n d he was once sick, and w e sought to do so to him, but
he suffered us not."
T a l m . Jems, in M a a s a r Sheni 5 3 . 3 , " A tradition:
Anointing on the Sabbath is permitted.
If his head ache, or if a scall
comes upon it, he anoints it with oil."
T a l m . B a b . in Joma 77. 2, " I f
he be sick, or scall be upon his head, he anoints according to his m a n ner."
T a l m . Jems, in Shab. 14. 3, " A man that one charmeth, he
putteth oil upon his head and charmeth." W i t h these Jewish ideas m a y b e compared the notion of the ofl which flows from the tree of life in paradise and bestows physical and spiritual blessings (Apoc. M o s . 9, V i t a A d a e et E v a e 36, E v a n g . N i c o d . 19). This use of oil for healing was combined with the appeal to spiritual forces, as we can see in Jas. 5
14
and as is hinted in M k . 6".
T h e refer
ence in James is to an accepted popular custom, and the writer would hardly have been able to distinguish the parts played in the recovery b y the two elements, or perhaps even to give any theory of the function of the oil.
I t is possible, as has often been suggested, that one motive
for James's exhortation is to counteract the habit of seeking aid from superstitious, often heathenish, incantations and charms.
T h e verse is
often quoted to that end b y later Christian writers (see references T h e same therapeutic use of oil
(oleum infirmorum)
infra).
in combination
with religious rites continued in the earlier centuries of the Christian era, and is there, as among the Hebrews, carefully to be distinguished from that anointing
(oleum catechumenorum, chrisma principole, etc.)
which was the symbol of the conveyance of a character or grace. T h e story told b y Tertullian " E v e n Severus himself,
(Ad Scapulam
}
4) is often quoted:
the father of Antoninus, was graciously
mindful of the Christians; for he sought out the Christian Proculus, surnamed Torpacion, the steward of Euhodias, and, in gratitude for his having once cured him b y anointing, he kept him in his palace till the d a y of his death."
JAMES
3o6 Besides this case Puller.
Anointing of the Sick,
has collected a large
number of narratives of cures through the administration of holy oil, written at various dates from the third to the seventh century, a n d at tested b y contemporary or nearly contemporary evidence.
M a n y of
them are cases of paralysis or blindness, and may well have been of an hysterical nature (see P . Janet,
The Major Symptoms of Hysteria,
During this period of church history it does not appear that
1007). the
therapeutic anointing with oil was generally thought of as also hav ing
spiritual
efficacy.
Origen,
Horn, ii in Lcvit.
4, uses the passage in
James to illustrate the remission of sin through penitence, but seems to pay no attention to the reference to anointing. tom,
De sacerd.
Likewise Chrysos-
iii, 6, quotes James to prove the authority of priests
to forgive sins, but seems to take no thought of the anointing.
Other
writers also make it plain that they think of the oil merely as a means of securing bodily health. T h e value in the Christian church of such a popular substitute for pagan magic was felt at this time.
in spir. et ver.
Cyril of Alexandria,
De adorat.
vi, p . 2 1 1 , urges his readers to avoid the charms and 1S
U
incantations of magicians, and fittingly quotes Jas. 5 ~ , and likewise Cassarius of Aries more than once quotes the verses on occasions when he is warning his people against the common recourse to sorcerers and superstitions, instead of which he recommends the consecrated oQ.
Append, serm. S. Augustini, serm. and serm. 279,5, col. 2273; also the Jacob, epist., Migne, vol. xciii, coL
Cf.
265, 3, Migne, vol. xxxix, coL 2238, Venerable Bede,
Exposit. super div.
39.
From the fourth century on there are Greek and other oriental litur gies containing forms for blessing the holy oil, for instance in one of the oldest, the Sacramentary of S t Serapion (fourth century, E g y p t ) , ed. Brightman,
Journal of Theol. Studies,
i, 1890-1000, p p . 108, 2 6 7 / .
T h e Latin forms are to the same effect
During these centuries the
therapeutic use of oil consecrated b y a bishop or a priest or a wonder working saint was permitted to any person without distinction.
The
letter of Pope Innocent I to Decentius (Ep. 25, 8, Migne, vol. xx, cols. 560/.), dated M a r c h 1 9 , 4 1 6 , says that sick believers "have the right to be anointed with the holy oil of chrism, which, being consecrated b y the bishop, it is lawful not for the priests only, b u t for all Christians to use for anointing in case of their own need or that of members of their household." Before the end of the eighth century, however, a change came about in the W e s t , whereby the use of oil was transformed into an anoint ing of those about to die, not as a means to their recovery, b u t with a view to the remission of their sins, and in connection with the giving of the
viaticum.
H o w far the change in the church may have been in
fluenced b y coexisting popular customs and ideas, which now forced themselves
into legitimate usage, is not known.
F o r instance, I r e -
V,
14
3°7
s
naeus, i, 2 1 , says that the gnostic Marcosii anointed the dying with oil and water as a protection of their souls against the hostile powers of the spirit-world. In
any case
this history shows the transformation of a wide
spread popular practise, having religious associations but purely me dicinal aims, into a strictly religious rite, limited to priestly adminis tration and carefully ordered with fixed forms and established rules. T h e withdrawal of the rite from the sphere of popular medicine was doubtless fundamentally due to the advancing control of rational in telligence in the affairs of the church and to a sound progress in re ligious conceptions.
I t was felt that religious observances should have
a spiritual purpose. B u t b y retaining the physical element, and ascrib ing to it spiritual efficacy
ex opere operato,
there was brought about a
different and more far-reaching intrusion of the physical into the sphere of the religious. T h e sacrament of Extreme Unction is first mentioned b y name as one of the seven sacraments of the church in the twelfth century.
It
was fully discussed b y the schoolmen, and received authoritative defini tion in the decree of the Council of Trent, which declares that holy miction of the sick was established as a sacrament b y Christ our L o r d , " implied
(insinuatum)
in M a r k , and commended and promulgated to
the faithful b y James the Apostle and brother of the L o r d " (Sess. xiv,
Doctrina de soar. extr. unci, cap.
1).
Since that time such a view as
that of Cardinal Cajetan, that James does not refer to the sacramental anointing of extreme unction ( " nec ex verbis nec ex ejfectu verba hate loquuntur de sacrameniali unctione extremae unctionis" Comment, in ep. S. Jacobi, dated 1539), has been illegal in the Roman church. I n the Greek church the mystery of anointing (t&x*Xatov) has re tained in part its original purpose as a therapeutic process, and is ad ministered to the sick while there is still hope of recovery.
I n the
Russian use the recovery to health is the chief point, with the Greeks the main emphasis is on the forgiveness of sins. F . Kattenbusch, " O l u n g , " in Herzog-Hauck, PRE,
1904; F , W .
Puller,
The Anointing of the Sick in Scripture and Tradition,
"Oil"
and "Unction," in DC A.
f
i9io;
eV T £ ov6pjari TOV Kvplov, Belongs with a\etyaires, "anoint ing with oil with the use of the name"; see Heitmliller, Im Namen Jesu, 1903, pp. 8 6 / . The use of "the name" made this anointing a partly religious act and not a merely medicinal application. tou xopfoul B omits. This is probably an error, b u t on "the N a m e , " with no genitive, cf. 3 Jn. 7, Acts 5 , L e v . 24 , 2 Clem. R o m . 13 ( a n d Lightfoot's note), I g n . Eph. 3 (and note), Pirke A b o t h , iv, 7, cf. Jas. 2\ 0
11
3o8
JAMES
15. fi *vxn* The prayer is the more important part of the process, but of course is not thought of as exclusively oper ative. Intercessory prayer was a familiar idea to Jews. s6xf) is elsewhere in the N . T . used of a vow.
I n secular Greek, v o w
and prayer are in many cases not easily distinguished; t&x^j has there the meaning " w i s h " also.
I n the L X X it means " v o w " in the vast 8
majority of cases, but in Prov. i s * " has the sense o f " prayer." cOxopai is regularly used for " p r a y " as well as " v o w . "
TTJS TiOT«i)S, cf. I*.
t
Some interpreters, both Protestant scholars (as von Soden) and Catholic (as Trenkle), have given this the meaning "save to eternal life," while others have tried to include both ideas.
B u t the natural
meaning of the word in this context is decisive (so, among Roman Catholics, Belser).
TOP KcifjiPOPTCL, " the sick man," cf. aodtptl,
l 4
v. .
xi^vciv is common in secular Greek in this sense, but is not found in L X X nor elsewhere than here in N . T .
I t is used, e. g. of gout and
of disease of the eyes ( x i ^ v t i v TO&{ bqb*kyAb<£), and there is no reason whatever for taking tbv jdqivovra to mean "the d y i n g " (von Soden).
iytpei. The word means "raise from the bed of sickness to health," and is a virtual repetition of od>oei; cf 2 Kings 4", Ps. 4 1 , Mk. i . 10
M
Ircpcl cannot refer here either to the awakening of the dead to life or to the resurrection.
6 Kvpun. If TOV Kvplov, v. , is genuine, and refers to Christ, 6 Kvptos may have the same meaning. It would be more natural that it should mean "God." K&p "and if," cf. Mk. 1 6 , Lk. 13*, and many other passages quoted in Lex. s. v. K&P. apaprlas, i. e. sins which have occasioned the sickness. Sickness was generally held to be due to sin, cf. Mk. 2 *Jn. 9 - 5 , 1 Cor. n » Deut. 28"' * , Ps. 38, Is. 38", Ecclus. 18 "", Nedarim, fol. 4 1 . 1, "No sick person is cured of his disu
18
y
s
f
, f
19
14
7
v, 15-16
309
ease until all his sins are forgiven him," T e s t X I I Patr. Rub. i , Sim. 2", Zab. $\ Gad $* cufxByoerat,, impersonal passive, cf. Mt. 7*» , Rom. io , BlassDebrnnner, § 130, Gildersleeve, Syntax, § 176. This seems to re fer not to general forgiveness but to the special sins in question. 16. ifcpoXoytioOe, rpooevxeoOe. The confession is by the sick, the prayer by the well for the sick. The value of confession is as an expression of penitence, and as thus furnishing ground for the others' prayers. On con fession in Jewish piety, see S. Schechter, Some Aspects of Rab binic Theology, ch. 18, and on the history of confession, see DC A, "Exomologesis," "Penitence," EB, "Confess." OSP, since this is the method of securing healing (oVws laOfjre). aXXijXow, not necessarily restricted to the presbyters. oirm la0rjT€ refers to bodily healing, as is clearly shown by the context (cf. v . ) . The subject of laBrjre is "you who are prayed for." The sick persons' own prayers for themselves are not in mind. oVncris, "prayer," with especial thought of petition, common in L X X and not infrequent in N. T . , e. g. Phil. 1 " . Cf. Trench, Synonyms, § li, Lightfoot on Phil. 4*, Ellicott on Eph. 6 , commentaries on 1 Tim. 2 . Sua/ov, cf. v . 1 } *vxh TT]S irlor^m, i htpyovpivi), "when it is exercised," "exerted," "put forth." The meaning is: " A righteous man's praying has great effect when he prays." The participle adds but little to the sense; for more significant participles in the same construction, see i . On the verb ipepyeiv, see J. A. Robinson, 5/. Paul's Ep. to the Ephesians, pp. 241-247, Mayor, ad loc. The word is used intransitively to mean "be active," and transitively (as here) in the sense of "effect," "carry out," "do." In certain instances in Paul (notably 1 Thess. 2 , 2 Thess 2 , 2 Cor. 4 , Gal. 5 , Rom. 7 , Eph. 3 , cf. 2 Cor. i , Col. 1") it is used in the passive, and the subject is an agent or power, which is "made active," "set at work," "made to work." This is a step beyond the usual meaning, but such an explanation of these instances is 7
7
10
14
18
1
1 5
8
14
18
6
10
8
7
18
8
3io
JAMES
better than (with Lightfoot) to take them as middle, which neither accords with usage nor follows inner fitness. The Greek commentators on James take the word as passive, in the sense "being made effective." This is thought of as accomplished either by the virtues of the one who prays or by the ensuing good conduct of him for whom the prayer is offered. Maximus Confessor, in Quastiones ad Thalassium, 57 (Migne, vol. xc, cols. 589-592, also Cramers Catena) offers both ex planations. "(Ecumenius" gives only the latter, as does Matthaei's scholiast, who writes ovvcpyovuirn inco rrjs TOV & O IL4VOV [U e. the needy man's] yvd>uns ical ?rpa£«i>s. Modern commentators sometimes interpret: "when actuated by the Spirit," but it is not legitimate here to assume this altogether later use, from which the term energumen, "possessed person," comes. Others take it as meaning "made active," "energised," and so as about equivalent to ivepyfc, "effectual," or €KT&^ "earnest." But the writer would hardly have desired to re strict the power of a righteous man's prayer to exceptional cases where it showed more than ordinary intensity; the sen tence owes its whole force to being an unqualified statement Moreover there is no good evidence that the word was capable of bearing this sense. 9
The Latin ff has frequens, vg assidua, Luther, wcnn es emstlich ist. Of the English versions Wiclif and the Rhemish fol low the Vulgate with "continual"; Tyndale, the Great Bible, the Geneva version, and the Bishops' Bible follow Luther with "fervent." A.V. has the combination "effectual fervent," * while R.V. (under the influence of Lightfoot) takes the parti ciple as middle and translates "in its working." 17. V v . TO\V
1 7 1
• confirm by the example of Elijah the statement
loyyti. 1
l
41
ff
'HXc&s, cf. 1 Kings 1 7 i 8 « -. The importance in Jewish popular thought of Elijah's rela tion to the famine is illustrated by Ecclus. 48*-*, 4 Ezra 7 " . Vv. » are dependent on midrashic tradition in the follow1 7
1 8
* Lightfoot, On a Fresh Revision; x&ox, p. 303, thinks the word "effectual" was introduced by inadvertence from a note in L. Tomaoo's N . T. of 1576.
v, 16-17
3 "
ing respects (cf. the similar dependence on Jewish tradition in Jas. 2 " 5"): (1) Elijah's prayer that it might not rain, i Kings 1 7 speaks only of a prophecy. The idea of a prayer was an in ference from the words, " God, before whom I stand," in 1 Kings 1 7 ; note also the prominence given to Elijah's prayer in his other great miracle, 1 Kings 1 7 " , cf. 4 Ezra 7". This embel lishment followed regular Jewish methods of interpretation; e. g. the Targum to Gen. 1 8 " 1 9 " translates "stood" by "min istered in prayer." That Elijah procured the drought is di rectly stated in Ecclus. 48*. 1
1
17
24
(2) The period of " three years and six months." The same statement is made in Lk. 4 " h"q rpla Kal pfyas , and is found in Jalkut Shimoni, fol. 32, col. 2, on 1 Kings: "In the thirteenth year of Ahab there was a famine in Samaria for three years and a half" (text in Surenhusius, B!f}\os KaraWayrjs, Amsterdam, 1713, p. 681). The O. T. basis for this midrash was 1 Kings 1 8 ("many days," "in the third year"). Various explanations for the precise definition of three years and six months are sug gested by J. Lightfoot, Horae hcbraicae on Lk. 4 , and by Surenhusius, pp. 680-682. For other Jewish estimates of the length of the drought, cf. Ruth rabba 1 , 4 (Wetstein), "fourteen months," and W. Bacher, Die Agada der TannaUen und AmorHer; Bibelstellenregister, on 1 Kings 1 7 1 8 . 1
s5
1
1
I t is possible, b u t not demonstrable, that the apocalyptic number of the half-week, three and one-half, m a y have had influence on the num 7
ber here; cf. D a n . 7 " 1 a , R e v . i x « .
• i2«»
14
i$K
1 8
(3) V . * al wdkiv wpoorjvS-aTO is perhaps justified by 1 Kings i 8 « . ofJOLoiraB^s ij/uf, "suffering the like with us," i. e. "a man like us." This should encourage us to take the example to heart, and is perhaps occasioned by the current tendency to emphasise superhuman traits in Elijah; cf. Ecclus. 48 -" for earlier, and JE, "Elijah," for later developments in that direc tion. irpooevxg irpoorjvZaTo, "prayed a prayer." It was the prayer 1
JAMES
of Elijah, not any magic wrought by a superhuman being, which brought about the noteworthy result. Tpofftuxfi throws into relief the important idea of the sentence, much as in the classical analogies
yaw yrfau»jpu&q
9
Demosth. p. 1002,12, or the
figurative
" m a r r y in true wedlock/'
and frequent 9t6ftiv
Symp. p . 195 thefiguraeiymologica (some of
90fn,
"flee with all speed," Plato,
B , etc.
These and other
examples of
which are also given in the
grammars) are to be found, together with valuable distinctions and classifications, in Lobeck, 523-527.
ParaJipomena grammaticae gracae,
1837, p p .
Speaking of the L X X idiom, which he does not, however,
trace to its source in the Hebrew infinitive absolute, Lobeck says, " haud aliena ilia ah emphasis ratione, sed aliena tamen a Gracorum greecensium consuetudine" that is (J. H . M o u l t o n ) , they are "possible, but unidiomatic" expressions. I n the L X X the idiom is much overworked, having been one of sev eral convenient methods of representing the H e b r e w infinitive absolute; cf. Gen. 2" 6otvd*W|> dhroBarvcla&xt, Gen. 31*° ixtOu^C? ixtdmfattc, (so L k . 11
22 ), e t c , etc. imitative.
Such a case as Jn. 3 " x«p$ xafptt is to be regarded as
Acts 5 "
xaoa-tftXla TaprftytOjx{uv
is probably a transla
tion from A r a m a i c See Blass-Debrunner, § 198, Buttmann, § 133. 22, W i n e r , § 4, § 44, Rem. 3, 5 54- 3* J-
H
- Moulton,
Prolegomena,
p p . 75 / .
I t m a y well be that James's phrase is directly or indirectly affected b y this familiar Biblical idiom, b u t the A . V . " p r a y e d earnestly," R . V . "prayed fervently," although they would be legitimate translations of a corresponding H e b r e w phrase, introduce into this Greek verse what is not properly to be found there. TOV ui) /Spe^at.
The infinitive with TOV, like other expressions of purpose (cf. Phil. i Tpootxrxpuai Zva), is often, as here, reduced to the force of an object clause. Cf. 1 Kings 1 " , Is. 5*, Acts I 5 . See J. H. Moulton, Prolegomena, pp. 216-218, Blass-Debrunner, § 400, Winer, § 44. 4, Buttmann, § 140. 16. M T7)s yfy, "on the earth," cf. Lk. 4 " iirl iraaav T^V yrjv Gen. 7 " (of the flood) M TTJS yrjs, 1 Kings 1 8 iicl rpSowrov f
1 0
f
1
Ttjs
yfy.
18. ml 6 obpavbs verbv ehoiKtv. For verbv cuSoWt, cf. 1 Sam. i 2 , 1 Kings 1 8 , Acts 1 4 , in all which cases the subject is "God." For s i m i l a r instances of the efficacy of prayer in bringing a 1 7
1
17
v, 17-19
3*3 1
severe drought to an end, cf. Jos. Antiq. xiv, 2 , in the case of Onias, SOcavos Kal 0«><£tXi;$, and Epiphanius, Hear, lviii (lxxviii), 14, in a story of James himself. 19, 20. Conclusion. Final saying on the privilege of being in strumental in the restoration of an erring brother to the way of truth. This seems to be a general appeal, equally related to all the preceding discussions of specific tendencies and dangers. As such, it forms a fitting conclusion and gives the motive of the whole tract. W i t h this conclusion Spitta well compares that of Ecclus. 5 1 " .
19. hbWqyol fM0v In the first place in the sentence, as else where in 2 only. In both cases there is an abrupt change of subject. T\ai>r)0r}, "err," "wander." m
1
T h e figurative use of " w a n d e r " and "cause to wander," with refer ence to "erring from truth and righteousness," is common in the O . T . especially in the prophets and Wisdom-literature.
Cf. W i s d . 5
f
<x-
w
XovfjOrj^tv dbcb &5ou iXtjOtkcs, Is. o , Ezek. 34* xb xXavwjitvov ofa dhewTptyorw (v. I. ixtorptycrct), e t c 2",
Also in the N . T . , cf. H e b . 5 ' , 2 P e t
2 T i m . 3", R e v . 1 8 " , and Polyc.
XavrpAva.
Phil.
1
6 ixurrp^ovrtc T<X dbcoxtx-
I n Test. X I I Patr. the evil spirits are called xvtfyjurca TTJC
xXdhnK, and Beliar, their chief, is b £pX<*" Tfc xXdmjs, cf. Charles's 1
note on T e s t X I I Patr. Rub. 2 .
airb rfjs a X ^ e / a s , cf. i
1 8
3
1 4
and notes.
"The truth" is here the whole code of religious knowledge and moral precept accessible to the members of the Christian church. To err from it means any departure from the right path in thought or conduct. Various examples of such erring have occupied the attention of the writer throughout his epis tles; here, however, grave sin (v.*) seems to be chiefly in his mind. T h e use of ^ <*X^0iwc in this comprehensive sense is not founded on the 0 . T . nDM.n^DK, which ordinarily mean "stability," "faithful ness," or else "conformity to fact," while in many cases in the 0 . T " t r u t h " is hardly to be distinguished from practical "righteousness/
9
JAMES e. g. Hos. 41.
Y e t in D a n . 8" o " xal TOU a m t a . h
xdhrn iXijOcfa oou,
and the Apocrypha, ^ dX^dtta is occasionally employed in a sense more like that of Greek writers; so Ecclus. 4", 3 M a c e . 4", 4 M a c e 5".
cf.
For the Greek usage,
De Thuc. jud.
Dion. H a l .
ftfupfacc oxoxos forty V) T^<; 6Xi,6t (at YVWGK;, Plutarch,
3, TTJS 91X006900
GryU.
p . 086 A
xcvbv dforObv xal tT&uXov dvrl vfa dXijfafac 5u*hu*>v. I n the N. T . this sense of " a body of true principles" is found in T
Paul (e. g. 2 Thess. 2", G a l . s , * Cor. 4», E p h . 4"), often in John (e. g. T
l
8 " 1 6 " i8« , 1 Jn. 3 »), and elsewhere.
Y e t even here the influence of
the 0 . T . is to be seen in the strong moral element included in the con ception.
T h e truth is not merely an object of knowledge, as in secular
usage, but a moral and religious ideal, God's revealed will, to which the loyalty of the heart must be given. (Lopfiitttv TT,<; Yvctatfax; xal xijc
&\rfitla<;
Iv
Cf.
R o m . 2 * l^ovra TV
T<J>
vtyup, Jn. 3 " 6 8i xouiv
T^V iXijOtvOv. See Cremer,
Wihlerbuch der neutest. Gr&cU&P,
1002, *.
v.
iX^6cuz,
W e n d t , " D e r Gebrauch der W S r t e r 4X^8ti«, i X t j d ^ und <*Xij6(v6<; im Neuen Testament," in Stanton, " T r u t h , " in
Studien und Kriliken,
1883, p p . 5 1 1 - 5 4 7 ; V . I L
HDB.
iinoTpfyr}, "turn," i. e. from error to the way of truth. T h e norm of departure and return is sufficiently shown b y the con text;
there is here no necessary indication that the word itself had
already acquired the technical religious meaning of the modern verb tt
"convert," although such passages as M t 13** (Is. 6 ) , L k . 1 " 22", 1
Acts 3 " 14 *, 1 Thess. i
1
show that that process had already begun
See M a i . 2«, D a n . i2», Ecclus. i 8 » Ezek. 34* ( C o d . A ) , Polyc.
Phil.
6,
Apost. Const, ii, 6, cf. 1 Pet. 2".
De hist, Zab. 9', Dan 5", Benj.
I t is used in the sense of "turn from an error" b y Lucian,
corner.
5,
cf.
Plut.
Ale.
16.
Cf.
Test
Xn
Patr.
4«; for other passages, see Charles's index. T h e sense "turn
back"
which the word seems to have here, is not
wholly foreign to Greek usage (cf. Hippocr. 135 E , of a fever, " r e c u r " ) , but it is rare, while in the L X X , following common.
that sense is very
Cf. M t i2««.
20. yivaxTKera). If the alternative reading, yw<S>
1
1
7
Ytvc*jx4?fa> foil K A K L P minn v g boh. 1
Ytv&jxrct 5TI] B 69 1518 syr** . om] ff sah. T h e omission b y ff sah is mere freedom of translation.
A s between
v, 19-20 Ytvoxixfrci) and ftvc&axrrf, the latter might have arisen from an attempt to eliminate the hard question, necessarily present with the reading Ytvuoxitcj, as to who (the converter or the converted) was the subject of the verb.
T h e address dScXpof justified the change to the unam
biguous, but colourless, Ytv&jxrrc.
O n the other hand, it is unlikely
that the influence of TIC should have led to the change from the wholly unobjectionable
f ivctaxrct
to
fiwoxixt*.
T h e reading offc
ingly the " h a r d e r " reading, and to be preferred.
This is one of the
rare instances of an emended reading in B . See P . Corssen, GdUingische gelekrie Anzeiger, 1893, p . 585, B . Weiss, ZeUschrift filr wissenschafUiche Thcologic, vol. xxxvii, 1894, p p . 439-440.
€K T\dvi)s oSov CLVTOV, "from the error of his way," cf. 1 Jn. 4* for contrast of akrfltia and ir\dvrj. odxrei. For instances of
1 8
l i
ouxrtt] F o r this reading (supported b y all Greek witnesses, and b y u
vgftinfu A m b r s t Cassiodor) ff with certain Vulgate M s s and O r i g * reads
solved.
Similarly xaX6$ct is translated with the present tense b y v g and 1
Orig ** ( b u t not b y ff).
tyvyftv
avrov,
n
i. e. the erring brother's soul, cf. i
and note.
4»uxV «6TO0] fc
afaoQ
for the
U
fav&cou of nearly all other, witnesses.
In] both cases
the shorter reading is to be preferred.
in Bavdrov. The force of the sentence depends on this word, which expresses the seriousness of the situation when a man wanders from the truth, a seriousness which may easily be over looked and forgotten. This sentence is no platitude, provided Bavdrov receives its proper emphasis. On Bavdrov, cf. i and 3« yt&VTjs. Note how here, as in i , death is the result of sin. KaXwpei Tc\f}6os apaprri&v. Ka\virreu> in connection with sins usually means "cause them to be forgotten," "procure par don," and that is the meaning here. Cf. Ps. $2 - 8 5 (quoted Rom. 4 ) , Neh. 4*, Ep. ad Diogn. 9 . afiapTL&v means the sins of the converter (so Roman Catholic commentators and some others); to refer it to the sins of the 1 5
1 8
li
7
s
JAMES
converted person, as many do, makes a bad anticlimax. See Origen, Horn, in Levit. ii, 5 where converting a sinner is in cluded as one method of securing forgiveness of one's own sins. Cf. Sohar 9 2 . 1 8 , " G r e a t is the reward of him who leads back sinners to the w a y of the L o r d , " 2 Clem. R o m . 15 u,to6b<; Y*P O$X lottv {itxpbc U
V
xXovu>(aivT}v 4* X^
Sophia,
*at dxoXXu^ivrjv dhroorptyat tit
xb
activate,
ch. 104, Pirke A b o t h , v, 26, "Whosoever makes
Pistis
the many
righteous, sin prevails not over him." 8
1 Pet. 4 has a closely similar sentence, dydrn Ka\vTrr& xXiJflos cLjiaprioiv^ introduced as if a familiar aphorism. It is also found in Clem. Rom. 49, 2 Clem. Rom. 16. See Lightfoot's notes on both passages. Both 1 Peter and James are usually held to be dependent on the Hebrew of Prov. io , "Hatred stirs up strife, but Love hides all transgressions" (Toy). There, however, the sense is not exactly "forgive" (as in the above-mentioned passages from the Psalms, etc), but rather "hide," "turn attention away from," other men's sins, as kindly feeling would suggest, cf. 1 Cor, 13*. 11
Similar is the meaning in the rabbinical passages quoted b y W e t stein, where it is a question of keeping quiet about another's sin, of refraining from gossip, not of forgiveness. dteixfyjurroc
Tjqxtl
So Prov. 17*
xpCncn
Moreover, the L X X of Prov. io» (rcon-as rovs fxff <£tXovtucovvras KaKvirrei
INDEX, i H E B R E W S , Epistle to the, 22.
A N D R E A S O P C R E T E , 73.
Gospel according to the, 6 8 / .
Apocalypse, 22, 1 5 2 / ,
Hegesippus, 54, 64-68, 7 1 , 72.
Apocryphal gospels, 6 9 / . Apostolic Fathers, 3 7 / . , 87-00.
Helvidius, 55, 57.
Armenian church, use of epistle, 95.
H e n n a s , 88-90,
Astrology, 164, 236. I R E N E S , 9 0 , 1 7 9 , 223. B E A T I T U D E S , 150.
G f i S A i E A , 49.
JAMES,
Catholic epistles, order of, 1 0 3 / .
N e w Testament
persons
named, 5 3 / . 2
Clement of Alexandria, 54, 5 ° , 7 >
James son of Alphaeus, 4 5 / . , 53. James son of Zebedee, 4 5 / . , 53, 62.
91/. Clement of R o m e , 2 0 , 8 7 / . , 222-224.
James, St., festival of, 7 3 / .
Clementine Recognitions, 7 0 / . , 72.
James the Lord's brother, 44-46, So-52, 53-74.
Commentaries on James, patristic and
James, Epistle of: origin, 1; pur
mediaeval, 1 1 0 - 1 1 3 ; modern,
pose, 2; contents, 2 - 5 ; literary Crowns, 150-152.
type, 6 - 1 8 ; relationship to other writers, 18-24; language, 24-27;
D A N T E , 45.
Deo
vocabulary, 25; relation to
volente, 2 7 9 / .
Diatribe, 3 , 1 7 ;
25/.;
history, 1 0 - 1 2 ; char
27;
acteristics, 1 2 - 1 6 .
LXX,
Aramaic origin, theory of, ideas, Jewish, 28-31; ideas,
Christian, 3 1 - 3 4 ; Spitta's theory, 32-33; relation to Paul,
EecxBsiAsrccus, 1 7 , 1 9 .
34-36;
relation to Gnosticism, 3 6 / . ; re
Eldad a n d M o d a d , 266/.]
lation to Gospels, 3 8 / . ; relation
Ephraem Syrus, 9 6 / .
to Apostolic Fathers, 20,37; rela
Epiphanius, 54, 5 8 / . , 60, 7i~73-
tion to M a t t h e w , 39;
Epistles, 6 - 1 0 , 1 2 7 / .
situation,
39-43; authorship (views on), 4 3 -
Eusebius, 44, 64, 7 1 / . , 9 4 / > i ° 3 -
47;
F A I T H , 3 0 - 3 2 , 3 5 / . , 1 3 5 , 1 4 0 / . , 187,
te
authorship, 4 7 - 5 2 ; < k > 43i
49; pseudonymity, 5 1 ; history in the church, 86-109.
2 0 3 / . , 218 Jf.
Jerome, 44, 52, 56, 5 7 / - , 6 0 / . , 6 8 / . , GNOSTICISM, 36/.,
71, 7 2 / . , 84, 1 0 2 / . , 160.
1 5 5 , 248.
Josephus on James, 64.
Greek church, history of epistle in,
Justification, 3 5 / . , 2 1 7 / . , 222.
92-95.
317
318 LAW,
INDEX 29, 30, 3$, 37, 48, $0/., 167,
173,
198, 274; of liberty, 1 7 7 / - ,
S T E P S OT J A M E S , 7 1 , 7 3 .
Symeon Metaphrastes, 73. Syrian church, history of epistle i n ,
201. Luther on James, 45> 59> i o 5 OATHS,
_ I 0
9-
300/.
96-100.
TEMPTATION, 1 5 3 / .
Oil, anointing with, 3 0 5 / .
Tertullian, 9 1 , 223.
Origen, 1, 5 1 / . , 54, 56,86,92-94.
Testaments of X I I Patriarchs, 2 0 / .
Orphic doctrine, 238/.
Text of epistle, 74-86; Greek M s s . , 7 4 - 7 5 ; Egyptian versions, 76-78;
P A U L , relation to, 34-361 48, 204/., 217, 221.
Ethiopic version, 78; Syriac ver sions, 78-80; Armenian version,
Persecution, not implied in epistle, 4, 40, 43, 133, 1 5 3 , 1 9 5 /
80; Latin versions, 80-84; use of authorities, 84-86. )
Peter, First Epistle of, 2 2 / .
Tobit, 1 7 .
Philo, 20, 24, 3 1 .
Trent, Council of, 4 6 , 1 0 5 , 307.
Polycarp, 88. Protevangelium Jacobi, 55, 69, 73. Protrepticus, 18. Proverbs, B o o k of, 1 6 / . , 19. R E F O R M A T I O N , history of epistle in and
after, 105-109.
Rich, the, in the epistle, 3 1 , 4 0 / . , 43, 145-148, I93-I97, 2 8 2 / . Russian
literature
on James the
Lord's brother, 5 6 / .
V I R G I N S , pseudo-clementine epistles to, 1, 4 2 , 5 1 / . , 94, 227.
W E S T E R N C H U R C H , history of epistle
in, 100-103, 1 0 4 / . Wisdom of Solomon, 1 7 , 1 9 . Wisdom-literature, 1 6 / . , 1 8 / . , 132. W o r d , word of truth, 167, 1 7 2 / . I Works, 3 5 / . , 2 0 4 / .
n N O T E . — A c o m p l e t e l i s t o f t h e G r e e k w o r d s o c c u r r i n g in t h e e p i s t l e 1
b e f o u n d i n M a y o r , p p . 239-258.
319
may
