Part I: Observation Report
Author
James is the author of the epistle of James; He was not the brother of John and the Zebedee’s son, who was one of Jesus’ disciples. That James was martyred too young age to have composed this book according to Acts 12:2. It is evident that the half-brother of Jesus (from the same mother, though Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit) was the one who wrote the epistle of James. He was also referred to as the Just James. This book seems like a miracle within itself. It implies that this book’s author grew up as Jesus’ little brother.
Together with Jesus’ other brothers, James had rejected Jesus while he was alive (John 7:5). James remained a non believer until the resurrection, as indicated in Corinthians 15:7 and Galatians 1:19. He then became the head of the church of Jerusalem together with Peter, and is first mentioned as a pillar of the church in Galatians 2:9. The fact that James came to acknowledge Jesus as Lord and Savior is evidence that Jesus resurrected (Palmer, 2004)
The Audience of the Epistle of James
The audience for the epistle of James was the oppressed church between 40-49 AD. The book of James was addressed to the general church comprised of Jewish believers in Jesus Christ. If one thinks that it was written for everyone, the writing then could be taken out of context. For instance, Jehovah Witnesses share the view that everyone ought to share their faith and do good works to be saved. However, this is in contrast to the teachings of the Bible.
Ephesians 2:8-9 clearly states that it is only by grace that we have been saved, through faith, and this is not from ourselves, but a gift of God. It is not by works and therefore no one can ever boast. However, the same religious factions use James 2:26 totally out of context and end up arguing their point by stating that faith without works is dead. Nonetheless, since we are aware that James wrote to individuals who already have faith and are already saved, we are sure that by good works that we will be saved. He in simple terms saying that our faith and our Christ’s love should lead us toward doing what is good.
Historical Context of the Book
To determine the historical context for the Bible writing is essential as it reveals some of the presuppositions that are shared between the original intended readers and the writer. A systematic argument and evidence presentation is impossible in this study’s framework. However the summary of the main points will indicate the basis for the main conclusion.
First the scarce reference to the epistle of James by the fathers in the early church is explained best by an early dating of the letter, prior to the church becoming more primarily Gentile and before the writings of Paul overshadowed the usage of the letters by James in the church. Second the limited introduction of the identity of James in the letter hints that James the Just, Jesus’ brother, as the author. Only one James was sufficiently well-known after the death of James, John’s brother to have written the letter to the scattered Christians, without requiring extra identification. Third despite the fact that the letter puts meticulous emphasis on the law (the law that gives freedom and the royal law) it lacks reference to controversies concerning ceremonial law, circumcision, and Gentiles. None of these was yet an issue preceding the events of Acts 15, which signifies that the letter was written before this time.
Fourth the approach to deeds and faith in these letters has been observed by some individuals as response to writings by the Paul. This assumed context makes the teachings by James troubling and confusing to many. Nonetheless, James makes use of the terms “righteous and deeds” in chapter 2:14-26, with a different purpose than that of Paul. James writes about the way one is portrayed as righteous while Paul writes about how someone can be declared righteous. The teaching of James on the matter is far less confusing and more consistent, even in the rest of his own letter when it is perceived to be not against Paul but for Paul. The conclusion is that the epistle of James was written by Just James the Jesus’ brother, between 40 and 50 AD (Varner, 2011).
Genre of James
The general genre is wisdom literature as known from the Old Testament. The specific format of the wisdom literature is the Proverbs collection. This implies that the usual rules should be applied continuously to interpret the individual proverbs. In addition, James’s book belongs to the ancient Greek satire type referred to as diatribe, which has the traits of imaginary dialogues, including question and answer constructions; apostrophe, meaning addressing absent people directly or things as if present and able to hear; metaphors from nature and daily life; allusions to famous people of the past; addressing readers harshly; and sharp contrasts. For the conventional label in an epistle, the clear letter feature is the opening salutation, though there is repeated direct address to the audience who are called brothers by the author in letters and sermons (Motyer, 1985).
Objectives of the Literature Used
There was a clear purpose for the literary genre used. The book of James was specifically meant to attain various literary objectives. These included firing out literary responses with a host of literary techniques; making us discontent with the level of spiritual attainment and also prompting us to take a holy reform in our lives; winning our assent through an aphoristic style; raising our consciousness concerning the need for behaving correctly in various areas of life; moving the readers into demonstrating their faith by their actions; and rousing the readers from their spiritual and moral weariness.
General Description of the Message of James
The audience in James’ epistle was individuals of Jewish upbringing with a relatively new Christian faith and those who faced severe harassment at the hands of the ruthless Judaic leaders. They lamented profoundly the death of a loved one along with Stephen the respected leader (Acts 7). Mostly, all the Christians, apart from apostles like James, had been forced out of their Jerusalem homes and scattered to other areas. This implies that relatively all of them had probably lost belongings or homes as well as their basic means of income. They were separated from their relatives as well as friends. There were many circumstances to make them confused, frightened, lonely, sorrowful, angered, poor, and hard-living and trials of many forms as acknowledged in James 1:2. James’ purpose in this context is confirmed in letter as encouraging Christians who were suffering when faced with adversity and strengthening them for faithful Christian living (MacArthur, 2006).
Connections in the Book of James
The book of James is the definitive description of the relationship between works and faith. This is so embedded in Mosaic law and its system of operations were the Jewish Christians where James stated that he had spent a significant time as he explained the hard truth that none is vindicated by the Law as indicated in Galatians 2:16. He declared that even if they tried to their very best to keep all the diverse rituals and laws, this is not possible and it transgresses the smallest part of law, which made them culpable (James 2:10) since the law is a single entity and breaking part of it means breaking all of it (Moore, 2011).
Key Words, Phrases, and Statements, and Major Themes of the Book
James emphasized faith that is productive when faced with trials. This can be succinctly put as a belief that behaves. James opens the letter with greetings after which he no longer shows concern to the niceties, no giving of thanks to the saints and no final benediction or greetings. The letter is comprised of three major parts including faith, James 2:17 states that even so much faith, if it has no works, is dead being alone, guarding the tongue (James 3: 5-12). Authentic wisdom comes from God not man, (James 2:1-3:12).
The different sections start with a summary, then specific details that to some extent retrace the summary points in a chiastic fashion. Nonetheless the chiastic fashion is not perfect. Just like any other good preacher, he is more concerned with getting his message across and then allows an artificial structure to get in the way.
Questions Based on Chapter 3
- There is heavenly wisdom and earthly wisdom. How do they differ or resemble each other?
- James makes several interesting observations concerning our tongues. Why should we control our tongues?
- Why are teachers vital, and why should they be cautious?
Conclusion
From the text in the book of James I expected to understand the facts in the Bible concerning how to behave or react in times of trouble. In this context, I was able to understand the best ways to act when faced with trials which to a human being is the hardest time in life. I was able to understand the teachings of James, and putting all this into practice helps increase understanding and to be able to help friends in similar situations. I have studied the Bible before but this study of the five letters of James gave me more insight. It is eye opener because I have never studied the Bible this way. This is a very encouraging piece of work with plenty of teachings. This gives me more knowledge on how to approach, books of the Bible and how to apply what is learned from the books
Part II: Interpretation Report
Three Key Words or Phrases
Enduring Trials
With this phrase James starts with a summary statement whose main theme is on testing the faith of an individual. The fact is that in enduring trials one should look upward and not outward. In this statement, the author emphasizes four points: trusting in the sovereignty of God when faced with trials; trials usually bring about perseverance which in turn produces maturity; God offers understanding and all superior things to those who believe; and lastly genuine faith ought to remove doubt.
The author states clearly that those who doubt will not receive anything from the Lord and will remain unstable. James also notes that God is the giver of all things and if he has not given a certain believer wealth, then he has given him something else: good character. Whoever perseveres in faith despite the conditions will be rewarded and blessed with the crown of life and a believer should never blame God when tempted or tried, rather they should thank God for his enduring kindness and superior care (Varner, 2011).
Controlling of Speech
Two ideas are linked together implicitly: faith and words and faith and works, failure to which the audience will think that an obedient faith is obedient only in all what it does. James goes on to state that faith is also obedient in whatever it says. He starts in the usual Jewish fashion with an argument of ad major ad minor (from the larger to the smaller). Even those teaching ought to control what they say. As such one whose tongue is checked is a mature man. It is ironic that despite human beings having tamed all the animals of the earth, they are not able to tame their tongues. It is also not logical for the tongue to claim to be praising God while on the other hand cursing men just like salty and fresh water cannot come from the same spring or for the same tree to give forth different types of fruits. James here emphasizes the essence of being strict in God’s word and avoiding lukewarm tendencies (Motyer, 1985).
Pertinent Literary Devices and What they Mean for the Interpretation of the Text
After the epistolary salutation the first chapter has various proverbs on different subjects. The format does not use the logical flow of an essay, with a constant line argument. The material can, however, be divided in this way which is among the accurate and plausible ways: the advantages of testing the life of a believer; the way of asking God to for wisdom and how not to do this; the fleetingness of the life and riches in the earth; the blessings which come after one endures a trial and the unsuitability of blaming God when we have self-generated trials.
God is taken as a source of all good gifts, Proverbs shows how anger is evil and why we ought to put evil away and embrace God’s word. The Proverbs give us commands of doing the word of God and not hearing it alone and testing of the true religion. To understand the chapter’s wisdom, it is essential to apply the usual rules for reading and interpretation of Proverbs such as identification of the universal rule to our real experiences and observations and also paying attention to a stated or implied virtue that is commanded and that is not allowed by a certain proverb.
This literary device is used for various reasons. It helps to raise the reader’s consciousness concerning the need for behaving correctly in various areas of life, awakening us from our spiritual and moral weaknesses. It makes us discontent with our level of spiritual attainment and prompts us to undertake a holy life reformation. It fires our literary response with a host of literary techniques and wins our assent through aphoristic elegance (Motyer, 1985).
Effect of Historical Context of the Book in Interpretation the Text of James
The approach of faith and the actions of James have been seen by some people as a response to the writings of Paul. This assumed context of James’s writing in response to Paul makes the teachings of James confusing and it troubles many. Nonetheless, James uses the terms “righteous and deeds” in Chapter 2:13-25 with a different aim than Paul. James writes about the way one can be portrayed as righteous while Paul writes about how a person is declared righteous. The teaching of James on the subject becomes less confusing and increasingly consistent with the rest of the letter when it is perceived to be not different from Paul’s but with the original intentions of Paul.
The scarce reference to the epistle of James by the fathers in the early church is explained best by the start of the early church having been more primarily Gentile, and prior to Pauline writings overshadows the use of James’s letters in the church. In addition the very minimal introduction of the identity of James in the letter indicates that James the Just, Jesus’ brother was the author. Only a single James was known well enough to have written this letter to Christians who were scattered without requiring extra identification. Finally, though this puts specific emphasis on the law (law giving freedom and the royal law), there are references to the Gentiles and ceremonial or circumcision law. However, none of these was yet a concern before the events of Acts 15, which implies that the letter was written before the time (Varner, 2011).
Critical Interpretative Difficulties
Many people have been cheated by misunderstanding some passages in the book of James. First some background on James and the book. James’s real name as Jacob and he was stepbrother, brother, or cousin of Jesus. He was a man who was very religious and whose knees were in real sense worn out due to his praying for many hours. He initially never believed that Jesus was the Messiah but turned into a follower after Jesus’ resurrection.
The book of James was probably the first book in the New Testament to be written around 45AD. It may actually have been written as a rejoinder toward the misunderstandings of the teachings of the Paul, which may have come to James through skewed reports that appeared to tie him to the book of Acts. In the opening verses the author makes it clear that the book was specifically meant for Christians of Jewish origin. Therefore it can be said to be a general epistle for entire lot of Christians, but it was written to the 12 tribes who were scattered abroad and because of this, it is not a book that Gentiles can assemble adequate doctrine from without having a critical understanding of the Jewish culture of the first century (Palmer, 2004).
From the book of James 2:14-26 there has been a lot of controversy and many religious groups interpret the scriptures differently. At first glance, the passages seem to suggest that we are not in a real sense saved by just faith alone but that faith works also has a part to play in salvation. Because of misunderstanding what was written, various denominations have based their theology of salvation on these passages and reached different conclusions.
For instance, the Jehovah’s Witnesses have concluded that we are saved by just faith but if we fail to add good works to the faith, we will end up losing our salvation. What will then determine our eventual gaining Heaven will be God’s review of our earthly works at the final judgment and being declared righteous. Together with other denominations, the Mormons have concluded that we were saved by faith in addition to the good works, that is, obedience to the Ten Commandments.
On the other hand the Catholics concluded that we were saved by grace and that grace brings forth faith filled with good works in a believer’s life and these works performed under the direction of the Holy Spirit are counted by God as atonement for our misdeeds.
To solve the confusion we ought to be able to understand something: and this is whether Paul and James’s writings are in agreement with one another or whether they contradict with one another.
Since the true scriptures of the Bible ought to harmonize without any contrast, the idea of James concerning salvation should not contradict that of Paul but they should agree with one another. Both must either agree that we are saved by faith or we are saved by our deeds or we are saved by a combination of our deeds and faith. If they do not agree, then either of the books, Paul or James fails the inerrancy test (Palmer, 2004).
Answers to Questions Identified in Part 2 of the Observation Report
Question 1: There is heavenly wisdom and earthly wisdom. How do they differ or resemble each other?
In verse 13 of Chapter 3, James talks about wisdom. He states that a man who is wise proves his worth via his deeds and his righteous living. In a real sense, this is true. Nonetheless, he indicates that there are two forms of wisdom, heavenly wisdom and earthly wisdom. These two are in stark contrast. According to James earthy wisdom is demonic and unspiritual.
Here James talks about the form of insight that allows some individuals to take advantage of others. The main group is those who will always scheme and cause some scam to have their way. They usually work very hard to play on the heart strings or on the naiveté of the few to line their own pockets or advance their powers.
James goes on to state that where there is selfishness and jealousy, there is disorderliness and various forms of evil; with heavenly wisdom fostering happiness and order. He proceeds to paint a picture of what the heavenly wisdom entails. He notes that heavenly wisdom is wisdom that comes from above and is pure, friendly, gentle and peaceable. It is filled with compassion and gives forth several good things. Heavenly intelligence is not just a good objective for creating excellent results. This can only be undertaken with the help of God (Varner, 2011).
Question 2: Why Should We Control our Tongue?
The first two verses of Chapter 3 fit together very well in the theme of tongue. Just as a leader may lead a community in the wrong direction, a little organ can lead a person astray. James urges us to try very hard into controlling our tongue. The tongue has a significant power over the rest of the body just as the little rudder has over a ship.
James states that the tongue is just a little member of something great. All of us can think of times when our words led us to troubles; a love proclamation, a misplaced jest, a Fruedian slip, a glib remark, a commitment on a contract, a dangerous dare or an impossible promise. These words possess the power to make us to do things that hurt others as well as ourselves. In James 1:19, James cautions us to be swift in hearing but slow in speaking.
We can remember some of the best men who were led astray by the work of their tongues. For instance, Peter in Matthew assures Jesus he will not deny Him. However, after a trial that resulted in His being crucified and before the crowing of the cock, Peter had denied Jesus on three different occasions.
In James 3:8, James says that no man can tame the tongue as it is an unruly poisonous evil. In this verse we are reminded again of the tongue’s power. James does not indicate that we should refrain from using it altogether, but we should regulate it for our own good, as well as that of others.
Question 3: Why are Teachers Vital, and Why Should They be Cautious?
James reminds teachers to be cautious since he is aware that a teacher has the capability to lead many people astray. Since that time, teachers were and still remain very essential in the community to pass along knowledge as well as traditions, morals, principles and beliefs. In a real sense, teaching was highly respected in the early world. Those who Jesus led often referred to him as a teacher. When Socrates, the renowned philosopher, was sentenced to death in Athens the charges against him were that he had corrupted the youth of Athens. The tribunal set for the case stated that as a teacher he had failed in his role (Moore, 2011).
Because of this matter James warns the people to avoid being too eager to become teachers as there are cumbersome responsibilities that goes with the position of a teacher. He as well is aware that teachers can not tell those who they teach to be doing what they say but not follow their actions. Students will naturally wish to be following their teachers. Because of this immense responsibility to set example, individuals who become teachers will be judged more heavily for what they say or do.
Why did the Author write this Book?
In Chapter 3 concerning the tongue James states the evils that crop up because of improper use of the tongue. This causes the apostle to give a general statement of the essence of the tongue as a member of the human body. The tongue despite been a small part has the ability to accomplish great things, and is very capable, when not regulated of doing mischief. And although everything else has been tamed, it has become almost impossible to bring the tongue under the control.. On these reflections the apostle appears to have intended to contain the prevailing desire for leaving other forms of works and turning into public instructors without having the right credentials (MacArthur, 2006).
The Primary Message of Chapter 3 Concerning the Tongue
In this chapter, James tells us that the tongue is like a fire ignited by hell itself. The author tries to convey the point that the tongue is a world and can adversely affect other parts of our bodies. If only we could control the tongue then the rest of the body would be controlled. However, since the tongue is a deadly fire and that which is out of control; it brings about havoc with the other parts of the body. The human body is the community and the tongue sets the entire community ablaze.
However the tongue like a raging fire is not easy to control. Its greater power is for corrupting and destroying. The primary message here is that, when the tongue does not yield to God it is as destructive as a wildfire. We should abstain from the lusts of the world Though we are to be in the world, we should not be of it.
Reference
MacArthur, J. (2006) James (MacArthur Bible Studies) USA: Thomas Nelson Publishers
Moore, B. (2011) James: Mercy triumphs. USA: LifeWay Christian Resources
Motyer, J.A. (1985) The message of James (Bible Speaks Today)
Palmer, E.F. (2004) The book that James wrote, London: Regent College publishing
Varner, W. (2011) The Book of James–A New Perspective: A Linguistic Commentary Applying Discourse Analysis; Kress Biblical Resources
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