INTROD U CTIO N TO

THE LETTERS
TO ALL CHRISTIANS
There are seven New Testament letters which a re not Pa uline and which, in
spite of having no other obvious connection, were very soon grouped toge ther .
Three of these lett ers are attributed to John, two to Peter and the ot her two to
James and Jude. T hey were already given the title 'universal' or 'catholic' by
the end of the 2nd century ; it is not certain why , possibly beca use most are
ad dressed to the who le Christian Church and not to particular comm unities
or individuals.
The letter of James was generally accepted as canonical in the Ch urch from
the 2nd cent ury onwards. Its author is usually identified with the James, ' brother
of the Lord', M t 13:55p ; cf. 12:46+ , who played an important part in the
earl iest Christian community in Jerusalem , Ac 12:17+ ; 15:1 3-21; 21:18-26;
I Co 15:7; Ga 1:19; 2:9, 12, and who was put to death by Jews about the yea r 62
(Josephus, Heges ipp us). He is obviously not the apostle James. son of Zebedee,
Mt IO:2p, ma rtyred by Herod in 44, Ac 12:2, though he could theoretically be
identified with the apostle James, son of Alphaeus, Mt IO:3p; even early writers,
however, were dou btful and most critics nowadays reject it. Paul's turn of
phrase in Ga I:19 is ambiguous . But even without being one of the Twe lve,
Ja mes, as ' the bro ther of the Lord', was sufficiently pro minent for the apostolic
author ity of his lette r to be accep ted from the beginning.
T he traditional attribut ion of the lett er to Ja mes, ' the brother of th e Lord',
leader of the Ju daeo-Ch ristian co mmunity in Jerusalem, is supp orted by
internal evidence. T he a uthor was familiar with the Old Testament a nd with
th e teach ings of Jesus, yet his lett er, though it is full of He braisms and mak es
use o f pa rallelism, a nd is in a dida ctic style that is characteristically semitic, ~
II was obv iously written in G reek. It is written, moreo ver, with such elegance,
such a rich vocabulary and with such a skilful use of the 'diat ribe' , that many
critics have found it ha rd to believe the author was a G alilean . N o accurat e ~,
estima te, however , can be made as to how co mpetent first-century Palestinians
II were in writ ing G reek, a nd Ja mes may have been helped by a disciple familiar
with the hellenistic world and its cult ure .
MZ
~ ...,
T he lett er is ad dressed to the ' twelve tribes of the Dispersion ' , 1:1, i.e. to
II the Jew ish C hristians scattered all over the Graeco-Roma n world but co nce n-
trated in countri es near Palestine like Syria and Egypt. Th e whole tone of the
letter shows that it was intended for Jewish co nver ts a nd pre sume s tha t the :::J
-s
readers are familiar with t he Old Test ament since, unlike Pa ul and the a ut hor
of the Hebrews, Ja mes hard ly ever makes use of direc t quo tations but a rgues
from the imprec ise and rather general allusions that unde rlie the whole text.
·>
w
a:
 INTRODU CTION 39 2 393 TH E L E TTERS TO ALL CHRISTIANS
H is two chi ef sou rces are th e Old Testament wisdom literature, on which he and the Assumption of Moses in v. 9, had prompt ed certain hesitations; but to
bases his moral lessons, and the teaching found in the gospel s. Some critics quote co nte mporary Jewish writings is hardly equivalent to recognising their
have thou ght of the lette r as a n exclusively Jewi sh product, but , on th e contra ry, inspiration.
ideas a nd even cha ract eristic expressio ns of Jesus can be detected all thro ugh it, Jude's purpose in writing this letter is to denounce the false teachers who are
not so much by explicit qu ot ati on s fro m written texts, as by reference to a living, a danger to Christian faith . He threatens them wit h the divine punishments
ora l trad ition. Ja mes is a J udaeo-Christian sage who has retho ught t he maxims famil iar from Jewish tr ad ition, vv. 5-7, and also seems to base his description
of the Jewish Wisdom tradi tio n in the light of his Master's teac hings, a nd is ab le of their false teaching on the same traditions, v. II. He nowhere states precisely
to re-present them in an orig inal way. what the se doctrines were, so they cannot be identified with second-century
Mo re a sermon than a letter, it probably reflects th e reg ula r teac hing of G no sticism. He accuses them of irreligi on and immorality, in particular of
Judaeo-Christian assembl ies and co nsists of a series of moral exho rta tions blasphemies against th e Lo rd Christ and the angels, vv. 4,8-10. These may have
linked either by a common theme or som etimes by nothing more than verb al been part of the syncretistic tendencies denounced in Colossians , the Pastoral
assona nces. The sort of subjects dea lt with are: how to behave in time of tri al, Letters and Revelation.
I: 1-12; 5:7-11 ; the origin of temptati on, I:13-18; how to control th e tongue, The letter must be dated fairly late in the Ist century: the apostles are quoted
1:26 ; 3:1-18 ; goo d relations and sympathy with one 's neighbou r, 2:8,13; as belonging to the past, vv. 17f; the faith is now something fixed and 'handed
3:13-4:2; 4:llf; the power of prayer, 1:5-8; 4:2f; 5:13-18 etc. In 5:14f is the on once for all', v. 3; and the a uthor appears to be acquainted with Paul's
locus classicus on the sacra menta l (cf. Co uncil of Trent) ano intin g of the sick. letters. It is true that 2 Peter borrows from Jude and is therefore later, but the
T here ar e two main themes. The first praises the poor and threat en s the rich, 'Second Letter of Peter' could have been written afte r Peter's death (cf. infra).
1:9-11 ; 1:27-2:9 ; 4:13- 5:6, sho wing a concern for the lowly, Go d 's favoured The limits seem to be between 70 and 80.
ones, th at follows on e Old Testament tradition but particularly the Beatitudes,
Mt 5:3+ . T he second insists that Christia ns must do good and not be content Two of these 'universal' letters are attributed to Peter. I Peter introduces the
with a faith that prod uces nothing, 1:22-27; 2:I0-26 ; th is leads on to a section, name of t he apos tle in the opening verse, I: I, an d has never been doubted in
2: 14-26, that ridicules t he preaching of faith co mplete ly unre lat ed to good any pa rt of the Church. Clement of Rome seems to have used it; Po lycarp
wo rks, and some ha ve seen th is as aimed aga inst Paul. Jam es and G a latians- certa inly did, and since the time of Irenaeus it has been express ly attri buted
Romans have many significa nt po ints of contact, pa rticu larly noti ceable in the to Pete r. T he apostle wr ites from Ro me (Baby lon, 5:13), and ca lls Mark, who
different ways they interpret O ld Testament texts on Abra ham. Jame s may be is with him, his 's on'. Very little is known abo ut Peter's last years ; according
opposing Paul himself or , more probably, ce rtain C hristians who d rew per- to traditi on he went to Rome and was martyred th ere under Nero (in 64 or
nicio us co nclusions from Paul's teaching. Two poi nts are worth remembering: possi bly 67). His letter is addre ssed to the Chr istia ns 'of the Dispersion', and
first, that benea th th e clash between thei r different posit ions, Paul and James names five provinces, I: I, which represent practically the whole of Asia Minor.
agree on essent ials, cf. 2:14+ ; secondly, that the pro blem of relating faith to Fro m wha t he says, I: 14, J 8; 2:9f; 4:3, it seems tha t most of th em were co nver ted
works is inherent in the data of Jewish religion and may have been a trad itional pag a ns, th ou gh there may ha ve been so me J uda eo-Christians amo ng th em.
top ic th at Ja mes and Pa ul dealt with independently of each ot her. He was obviously ob liged to send them a lett er in Greek- Jam es had do ne the
The dating of the letter de pends on how th e pro blem ju st mentioned is solved . same with less reas on- a nd th ou gh Peter's Greek is un sophi sticat ed it is too
If James is t hinki ng of wha t Paul ta ught in Galatia ns-Roma ns, it must be da ted acc ura te a nd unforced for a fishe rma n from Galilee. U nlike the lett er fro m
after 57/58; if not, it co uld be dated befo re t he juda ising crisis (a bo ut 49), which Ja mes, the na me of a disciple a nd secretary is mentioned who may have helped :
wo uld acco unt for its primitive Christology. In either case it must be dated before th is is Silva nus, 5:12, usually ide ntified with the Silvanus who had been a ~
the F irst Letter of Peter which is indebted to James. companion of Paul, Ac 15:22+ . .
II The purpose of t he letter is to help its readers' faith in a time of trial. Some
Jude who calls himse lf ' brother of James', v. I, is a lso, it appears, one of the cr itics think this may refer to a persecution under D om itian or Trajan, which 0-
~
'brothers of the Lord' , Mt 13:55p. There is no reason to identify him wit h the wo uld date the letter m uch later tha n Peter ; b ut the allusions in the lett er are
apostle of the same name, Lk 6:16; Ac 1:13; cf. Jn 14:22, espec ially as he refer s not strong enough to make thi s co nclus ion inevitabl e, since it seems that this
II to himself as being o utside the apos tolic body, v. 17. Nor is it likely that an 't ime of tria l' cou ld refer rather to the personal ma lice and spiteful ca lumnies
ano nymous author wo uld have adopted the name. since Jude was not su fficiently ca used by the stri ctly moral life led by converts among those whose sins they '7z
"I""
prom inent to lend a ut ho rity to a letter. O ur hypoth esis is that a fter his brother no lon ger shared, 2:12 ; 3:16; 4:4,12-16.
Ja mes had been executed in 62 A.D ., Jude followed his exa mple and warned Anot her arg ument against Petr ine au thorship is based on the liberal use
II t he Jewish C hristians again st new threats to their faith. If th is is so, his the lett er mak es of John, Ro mans a nd Ep hesia ns, and on the surprisingly little
a nonymo us readers are tho se for whom James wrote , a nd his Greek , which is dir ect use it mak es of the gospe l. T here are, however, many remi niscences of ...,
:::l

accurate, with semit ic turns of phrase, may be acco unted for as in the case of the gospe l but these are so imp licit as to constitute an argument against the
II James. T he letter was accepted as ca no nical by many o f the churches as earl y as idea tha t the a uthor me rely wanted to p rete nd the apostle had written it. There
200, tho ugh its use of two apocryp hal so urces, the -Book of Enoc h in vv. 6, 14f, is a ten dency per haps to exaggerate the number of points of co ntact with James
·>
w
0::
 I NTRODUCTION 394 395 THE L ETTERS TO ALL CHRISTIANS
an d Paul. Spec ifically Pa uline the mes, e.g . the a bolition of the Je wish Law, a group of Peter's d iscip les, per ha ps he filled out one of Peter's writings with
the Body of C hrist, etc ., do not ap pear at all, and though so me themes appear ideas from the letter of Jude. T his is wha t we sho uld call forgery but what in
that are best known from Paul's letters, yet these are the mes com mon to all those days literary convention fo und admissible.
early Christian theology, e.g. the redemptive nature of the death of Jesus; faith The letter has been definitely accepted by the Church as canonical, and
and baptism, etc . Certain formulae used in primitive preaching and certain Christians accept it as an authoritative document from the apostolic age .
items in anthologies of Old T esta ment quotations are bein g increasingly The doctrine it teaches supports this: note especially the vocation of all
identified by critics, and a ny early wri tings could well have drawn on these Christians to the 'share in the divine nature', 1:4; the way scriptural inspiration
independently. Even the remaining cases where I Peter is dependent on is defined, I:20f; the assurance that event ually the parousia will come though
Romans or Ephesians need not militate against Petrine authorship, since Peter, no one can know when; the prediction of a new world free of all injustice after
feeling his lack of theologica l gifts, may well have had recourse to Paul's the old world has been destroyed by fire, 3:3- 13.
writin gs, especially as he was wr iting to people who had felt Paul's influence.
It is also worth reme mbering tha t Silvan us was a disc iple of both apost les and For the three letters of John cf. the Introduction to the Gospel and Letters
t hat some scholars detect affi nities not o nly between I Pet er a nd Pa ul but also of Sa int John.
betwee n I Peter and two gro ups of writ ings whose climate is Petrine: i.e. Ma rk
and th e disco urses of Peter in Acts.
If the su bsta nce of the letter were in existence before Peter's death in 64 o r 67,
Silvanus co uld sti ll ha ve given it its presen t form ma ny yea rs lat er. This
hypothes is would be more like ly if it cou ld be proved that th e letter was ma de
up of fragm ents. lt is sug gested tha t, fo r example, a baptismal homil y, I : 13-4: I I,
is one such frag ment, but these identificatio ns rema in very tent ative.
Though a very pr actical lett er, it is als o a valuable summary of apostolic
theol ogy. T he do m inating theme is fo rtit ude in tria l, fo r which C hr ist him self
is the mod el, 2:21-25; 3: 18 ; 4: I. C hrist ia ns mu st suffer patiently like him when
th eir tri al s ar e d ue to their fai th an d to their sain tly lives, 2:19f ; 3:14; 4:12-19 ;
5:9, i.e . if, in return for evil , th ey offer: cha rity, obed ience to CIvil authori ty,
2: 13- 17, and gent leness to a ll, 3:8- 17; 4:7- 11,19. T he re is on e obscure passage,
3: 19f, cf. 4:6; th e ' preaching' of C h rist ca n be ta ken as an announ cement eit her
of sa lvation or of punis hment; the 'spirits in pri so n' ca n be taken eithe r as th e
wicked who were d ro wned in th e Flood or as th e fallen ang els of biblical an d
apocalyptic tradition. O n either view , th is passage refers the 'preaching' to th e
moment Jesus d ied and is the chief source for the doctrine of th e D escent into
H ell.
The Seco nd Le tt er of Peter cla ims to have been written by th e apostle himself.
He is nam ed in th e op ening address, I: I, the p redic tion of Pete r' s death is mad e
by Jesus to the autho r himsel f, I: 14, wh o al so claims to hav e witnessed th e ~
tran sfig urat ion , I: 16-18, and wh o alludes to a forme r letter that is obviously
mean t to be I Peter.
T he purpose of the letter is two fo ld : to wa rn against false teach ers, ch. 2,
and to allay anxiety du e to the de lay of th e parousia, ch . 3. It is pos sibl e that
.,.
Q.

bot h t hese d ifficulties existed befor e Peter ' s dea th, but othe r co nsiderations ma ke
Pet rine aut hors hip d ou bt fu l an d sug ges t a later da te. T he vocabul a ry is notably
di fferent from I Pete r; th e wh ole of ch . 2 is obvi ousl y a free repetitio n of Jud e ; '7z
'"I'
an acce pted Pa uline corp us seems to be a lready in existence, 3: ISf ; the a posto lic
body is referred to, wit h the prophets, as a thi ng of the past and as if th e auth o r
d id not belo ng to it. These di fficulties caused early writers to hesitate, a nd there
is no sure evidence t hat th e lett er was accept ed at all befo re the 3rd ce ntury, ,::>
a nd some, according to Origen, E usebius a nd Jero me, exp licitly refused to
accept it. Most critics no wa days also reject the Petrine a ut horship, tho ug h th e
writer may have had some claim to rep resent Peter: perhaps he belo nged to
·>
w
a:
 397 JAME S 2: I I

and submit to the word which has been planted in you a nd can save your souls . In 3: 11-j-

22 But you must do what the word tells you, and 110t just listen to it and deceive M '1:24-21p
Lk 8:21
23 yourselves.' To listen to the word and not obey is like look ing at your own features Rm 2:13
1Jn3:17f
24 in a mirror and then, -after a qu ick look , going off and immediately forgettin g
25 what you looked like. • But the man who looks steadily at the perfect law of ~tll11
freedom!" and makes that his habi t-not listening and then forgetting, but actively 1r~~:ri; 6 :
putting it into practice-will be ha ppy in all that he does . 15+; 8:2
26 Nobody must imagine that he is religiou s while he still goes on deceivin g
himself and not keeping control over his ton gue ; anyone who does this has the 3:2f

THE LETTER OF 21 wrong idea of religion . •Pure, unspoilt religion , in the eyes of God ou r Father'
is thi s: comi ng to the help of orphans and widows when they need it, and keeping Ex 22:21 +

oneself uncontaminated by the world.

JAM ES Respect for the poor
My brothers, do not try to combine fait h in Jesus Ch rist, our glorified Lord,
Address and greetings
2 with the making of distinctions between classes of peop le. •Now suppose a ma n
co mes into your synagogue, bea utifully dressed and with a gold ring on, a nd at
b
a

Ac 12:11 ·/-
Ac 26:7
1 P 1: 1
J1l 7:35 1 F rom James, serva nt of God a nd of the Lo rd Jes us Christ. G reetings" to the
twelve tribes o f t he Dispersion."
I the same time a poor man comes in, in shabby clot hes, -and you take not ice of the
well-dressed ma n, a nd say, 'Co me this way to the best seats'; then you tell the
4 poor man, 'Stan d over there' or ' You can sit on the floor by my foot -rest ' . -Can't
Trials a privilege you see th at you have used two different sta ndards in your mind, and tu rned
M '5: 11+
I P 4: 13- 14 My bro thers, you will always have your trials bu t, when they come, try to treat 2 yo urselves int o ju dges, a nd co rru pt ju dges at that?
/lf'1I 12:Jl 1 Co 1:26-29
1 P 1:6-7 them as a ha ppy pri vilege ; - yo u un derstan d that yo ur faith is on ly put to the Listen, my dear brothers: it was those who are poo r accor di ng to the worl d Z p 2:3 ...L
R ill 5:3~5 R v 2:9
test to make yo u pa tient, • but pat ience too is to have its practical results' so that 4 tha t God chose, to be rich in faith' a nd to be the heirs to the kingdom which he /: /2
M1 5:4 8 M t4:11 +
yo u will become fully-developed , co mplete, with noth ing missing. 6 promised to those who love him. ·In spite of this, you have no respect for any bod y Ga 3:29
1 K 3:1 f
Pr 2:6 1- If there is a nyo ne of yo u who needs wisdom , he must ask God, who who is poor. Isn' t it always the rich who are aga inst you? Isn't it always their
W s H:2 1f Is 52:5
M I7:7; gives to all freely" a nd ungr ud gingly ; it will be given to him. • But he must ask " 1 do ing when yo u are dragged befor e the co urt ? -A ren't they the o nes who insult
2 1:2 1p Rm 13:8-10
Is 51 :20 with faith , a nd no trac e of do ubt, becau se a person who has doub ts is like the 8 the ho nourable nam e to which .you have been dedica ted?" •Well, the rig ht th ing
Lv 19: 18
waves thro wn up in the sea when the wind d rives. -T ha t sort of perso n, in two to do is to keep the supreme law of scripture: yo u must love your neighbour as Mt 22:39p
yo urself; • but as soo n as yo u mak e distinctions between classes of peop le, yo u are Pr 24:23 j- .
minds, wave ring between go ing d ifferent ways, must not expect tha t the Lord 9
will give him anything. co mmitting sin, an d und er con demn ation for break ing the Law . Dt 1: 11
Jr 9:22-23 Dt 21:26
It is rig ht for the poo r bro ther to be pro ud of his high rank ,' -and the rich ?o 10 You see, if a man keeps the whole of the Law, except for one sma ll point M t5 :19
G a 3: 10 ;
o ne to be thankful that he has been humb led, becau se rich es last no lon ger tha n II at which he fails, he is still guilty of breaking it all. • It was the sam e person who 5:3
Is 40:6-1 Ex 20: 13- / 4
the flowers in the grass; -the sco rching sun com es up ,! a nd the grass withers, the II said, . You must not comm it adultery' and' You must not k ill' . N ow if you commit D t 5: 11- 18
flower fa lls; wha t look ed so beaut iful now disappears. It is the same with th e rich murder, you do not have to commit adultery as well to become a breake r of the
man: his business goes on ; he himself perishes.
Dn 12:12
Rm 8:28 Happy the man who stands fir m when trials com e. He has pro ved himself, 12 J a. Lit. 'Be jo yfu l' or ' Rejo ice', a nor m al G reek I. Lit. ' He delib e rate ly tee med u s for th by a wo rd of
Ws 5: 15· 16 a nd will win the pri ze of life, the crown that the Lord" has prom ised to th ose who gr ee ting . ' Ha ppy priv ilege' v , 2 (li t . ' all joy d ee m it') trut h ' . T his 'word of tr u th' is ev ery thi ng Go d has
I Co 9:25 + is in G ree k a p un o n th e gr ee ti ng fo rm ul a . revea led 10 the h uma n race. it is a lso ca lled th e la w of
love him. b . In O .'!'. d ays the ' D ispe rs ion ' (d i aspora) was used freed om or the s upr em e Law. cr, 1:21-25: 2:8.
to descr ibe th e Je ws wh o had em igra ted fro m th eir . ~
-,
Te mpta tion co u ntry, cf. Ps 147:2 : J dt 5:19 ; cf. J n 7:35 . He re the
refe rence is to t he j e wish C h r ist ia ns li vin g in the k. T hi s reflect s the Jewish co ncept of human
Pr 19:3
S i 15: 11-20 Never, when yo u have been tempted , say, 'G od sen t the temp tati on ' ; God 13 G raeco- Rc m a n wo rld , cf. A c 2:5- 11. free do m as flow ing from o bedi en ce to the La w; Paul,
1 Co 10: 13 c. J ames , in t he tradit io n o f th e Jews, be lie ves the however, had a d iffere nt co ncep t o f C hr istia n freedo m
ca nno t be tempted to do a nything wro ng, a nd he docs not tempt a nybody. esse nce o f refixion is its pr act ical va lue in actio ns, as so me th ing Ilo wtn g from the C h rist ian 's release
Rm 1:8- 10. 0..
23 Everyo ne who is tem pted is attrac ted an d sed uced by his own wro ng desire. 14 d .2: 14 + . from obe d ience to th e Law, cf. Rm 6: 15+ : 7:1 + .
~
Rm 5:/ 2 ; d . Lit. ' u nc o m no u nded lv ' i.e . s imp ly, or unre- I. c r. M t 6:9 ; I Co 15:24 ; Eo 5:20. T he O .T. uses
6:23 T hen the desire conceives a nd gives birth to sin, a nd when sin is fully grown, it to o 15 se r ved ly, the p hra se in D t 32:6 ; cf. Is 63: 16 ; S i 23: 1.4 ; W s 2: 16.
Hcb6: 1+
has a child, a nd the child is deat h. e. It is a t heme o f th e O .'T. tha t th e poo r, 2 a. Lit. 'our Lo rd Jesus C h r is t o f gtorv' , cr. 1 Co 2:
M t7: 11 d. Z n 2:3 t-, will be rew a rde d, t S 2:7-8 : Ps 72 :4, 12, etc.. 8+ .
I n 3:3.27 Ma ke no mista ke a bo ut th is, my dear bro thers: - it is all that is good , : ~ a nd thi s th em e is d eveloped in th e gos pe ls, cf. L k 1:52. b, Ja mes is wri ti ng to Jew is h C hr isti an s : it is

v everything th at is perfect, which is given us f r om a bove ; it co mes down " fro m the L k 6:20 , et c., to sho w their re war d in terms of th e po ss ibl e t hey may even ha ve sli ll bee n attend ing
In S: 12 ·1 kingdo m of heav en , Thi s pri vile ge of th e poor is '?Z
j ew is h sy nagogues. o r it m ay be hi s wo rd fo r the "1-'
I I n 1: 5 Father of all light ;' with him there is no such t hing as alteration, no shad ow of a recogn ised in th e ear ly C hu rc h ; it is barr ed to the C h ristia n 'assembly' for litur gic al ser vices.
In/ :/2-lJ
1 P 1:23 I cha nge. • By his ow n c hoice he made us his ch ildre n by the message of the tru th! 18 r ich unl ess th ey red uce th em selves to th e sa me hum ble c . l.e . poor in m on ey, ric h in fa ith , cf . 1:9 + ;
Rv 14:4 s ta te , cf. Mt 5:3 -i-. th is letter is n ot co ncern ed to adv ocate socia l ref o r m
so tha t we sho uld be a sor t of first- fru its of all tha t he had created. f. O r 'As soo n as th e sun , w it h a sco rch in g wind' . since it em p hasises t hat the poor a lre ady have the
g . O m . 't he Lo rd ' , Yulg , reads 'G od' . tru es t wea lt h.
True religion h , Om . (Vet. Lat.) 'f rom a b ove', d. Lit. ' b lasp hem ing the Roo d nam e in voked ove r :J
-,
i. Li t . ' the F a the r o f the li ght s' . i.e . the ma ke r of you (o r: t hat yo u bea r)' . In th e a.T. the name of
Pr 10:19 :
14: 11 Re member th is, my dea r brot hers : be quick to listen but slow to speak a nd' 19 the s ta rs, G n 1:14-1 8, an d so ur ce o f sp ir itua l light , Ya hw eh pro no u nced ov er so meo ne d ed ica ted h im to
Si 5: 11 cr. I P 2:9 ; I Jn [Link]The imagery folJo wing thi s p hr as e th e d ivine p ro tec tio n, A m 9: 12: Is 43:7 : J r 14:9 . In t he'
M , 5:2 2 slo w to ro use yo ur temper ; -God' s righteousness is never served by man 's a nger ; 20 is s ug ges ted by as tr onomy . Var . 'no such thi n g as N ,T . th e o nly m eans of sa lva tio n is the nam e of Je su s
I P 2: 1-2
GJ 5:/9 + so do a way with all the imp ur ities a nd bad habi ts that are still left in yo u- accep t : 1 a lte ra tio n d ue to the movement of a sha dow". invoke d , e.a . at baptism , Ac 2:2 1-+ .

->
w
~
 2 :12 J AM E S 39 8 399 JA MES 4:12
Law. -Talk and behave like people who are going to be judged by the law of 12 16 devilish. -Wherever you find jealousy an d ambition, you find disharm ony, and
M t 6:14-15: freedo m, -because there will be judg emen t without mercy for those who have 1:5 +
18:35 13 17 wicked things of every kind being don e; -whereas the wisdom that comes do wn Ws 7:22
L k 6:36f not been merciful themse lves ;' but the merciful need ha ve no fear of judgement. from ab ove is essent ially something pure ; it also makes for peace, and is kindly I Co 13:4-7
R m 6:15 +
I J n 4:18 and co nsiderate;v it is full of compassion and shows itself by doing good; nor is
Fai th and good works! 18 there an y trace of partiality or hypocris y in it. -P eacernakers, when they wor k for M . 5:9
P h 1:11
2:24 Ta ke the case, my bro thers, of someo ne who has never do ne a single good Heb 12:11
Rm4: \
14 peace, sow the seeds which will bear frui t in holiness.
Ga 5:6
Mt 25:41-45
act but claims that he has faith. Will that fa ith save him? • If one of the brothers 15
1 Co 13:3 or one of the sisters is in need of clothes and has not eno ugh food to live on, Disunity among Christians
1 Jn 3:17
M tl:21 and one of you says to them , 'I wish you well ; keep yourself warm and Where do the se wars and battles between yourselves first start? Isn' t it precisely
eat plenty', without giving them these bare necessities of life, then what good is
that? -Faith is like that: if good works do not go with it, it is quite dead.v
16

17
4 in the desires fighting inside your own selves? -Y ou wan t something and you
haven't got it; so you a re prepared to kill. You have an ambition that you cann ot
Rm 7:23
Ga 5:17
I P2:11

This is the way to tal k to peop le of that kind:' 'You say you have faith and I 18 sat isfy; so you fight to get your way by force." Why you don't have what you
ha ve good deeds; I will pro ve to yo u that I have faith by sho wing you my good Ps 66:18
want is because you don 't pray for it; -when you do pray and do n't get it, it M '6:5-13. 33
deeds-now you prove to me tha t you have faith without any good deeds to show . Rm 8:26
is because you have not prayed properly, you have prayed for someth ing to indulge
MI8:29+ You believe in the one God-that is cred itab le en oug h, but the demons have t he 19 you r own desires.
same belief, an d they tremble with fear. - Do realise, you senseless man, that faith 20 4 Yo u are as unfaithful as ad ulterous wives;" don't you realise that ma king
Rm 4: 1+ without good deeds is useless.' -You surely know that Abraham our fat her was Mt 6:24p
21 the world your friend is ma king God your enemy ? Anyone who chooses the world l Jn 2:15- 17
G n 22:9 just ified by his deed, because he offered his son Isaac on the a/tar? - There you see Rm8:26
Heb l l :11 22 for his friend turn s himself into God's enemy . -Sure ly you don 't think script ure
it: faith and deeds were working togeth er ; his faith became perfect by what he did .' is wro ng when it says: the spirit which he sent to live in us want s us for himself Gn 2:7
G n 15:6 I P 5:5-9
Rm 4:3 This is what scripture really means when it says: Abraham put his faith in God, 23 alone'?' - But he has been even more generous to us, as scriptu re says: God opposes Pr 3:34
Ga3:6 and this was counted as making him justified ; and that is why he was called 'the 7 the proud but he gives generously to the humble. -Give in to Go d, then ; resist the LX X
En 6:11
friend of God'. Z,1 :3
8 devil, and he will run away from you. -The nearer you go to God, the nearer he M13 :7
2:14 + You see now tha t it is by doing something good , and not only by believing, 24 will co me to you . Clea n you r hand s, you sinners, and clear your minds, you 1:8

that a man is jus tified. -There is anot her example of the same kind : Ra hab the 25 9 waverers. -Look at your wretched con dition , and weep for it in misery; be
Jo s 2:4f M1 23:12
Heb 11:31 pros titute, justi fied by her deeds because she welcomed the messengers" a nd 10 miserable instead of laughing, gloomy instead of happy." - Humble yourselves
showed them a different way to leave. -A body dies when it is separated from the 26 before the Lord an d he will lift you up.
L v 19:6
spirit , and in the same way faith is dead if it is separated from good deeds . II Brot hers, do not slander OTIC another. Anyone who slanders a brother, or M t 7:1-5
co ndemns him, is speaking aga inst the Law a nd condemning the Law. But if you
Uncontrolled language cond emn the Law, you have stop ped keepin g it and become a judge over it.
MtI 2:36; Dt32:39 +
Only a few of you, my brothers, should be teachers, bearing in mind that There is only one lawgiver ' and he is the only judge and has the po wer to acqui t
23:8
I Co 12:28 +
1:26
3 those of us" who teach can expect a str icter judgement.
After all, everyone of us does something wro ng, over and over aga in; the 2
12
or to sentence. Who are you to give a verdict on your neighbour?!
M t lO:28p
Lk 12:5
Rm 14:4
Pr 10:19 ;
13:3; 18:21 only ma n who could reach perfection would be someone who never said anyt hing
Si 14:1 e. 'J udge me nt' (i.e. 'co ndem na tio n' ) is mer ciless c. Li t. ' the to ng ue . . . is th e ko smos of wicked nes s'
S f 5:9-15: wron g-he would be able to control every part of himself. -O nce- we put a bit 3 to a nyone who do es no t sh o w m er cy. ' the mer cifu l i.e. ' it is t he world of wickednes s' , o r a lte rn a tively
28:13-26
. . . jud gem en t'; lit. ' mercy trium p hs ov er iu d gem en t'. ' it is the orn a m ent o f wic kedness' .
into the horse's mouth, to make it do what we want, we have the whole animal c r. MI 18:35. d . Lit. ' infla m ing th e whee l (var. -eourse ) of na tu re'
under our control. -Or think of ships : no matter how big they are, even if a gale 4 f. T he diffe re nt po ints o f vie w of Ja me s a nd Paul. (I.e. of the world) 'a nd be ing infl am e d by Ge hen na ".'
Rm 3:20 1; Ga 2: 16: 3:2.5 . 1I f : Ph 3:9 . a re not who lly e . ' Lo rd an d F a t he r ' , va r. (Vu lg. ) 'G od a nd
is driving them, the man at the helm can steer them anywhere he likes by 43

ir recon ci la b le. Paul is anxious to rul e o u t th e vie w F a the r ' .

controlling a tiny rudder. -So is the tongue only a tiny part of the body , but it can th at a hum a n be ing ca n ea rn sa lvation witho u t havi ng f. T he a ntit hes is 'b less-cur se' is co mmon in the
fait h in C hr ist . sin ce suc h a reliance on se lf-m a de O.T., G n 12:3 ; 27:29 ; Nb 23: 11; [Link] J os 8:34.
proudly claim that it does great things. Think how small a flame can set fire to a sa nct ity wo uld be co ntr a d ic ted b y the rad ica l sin fu lness
Pr 16:27; huge forest; -the tongue is a flame like that. Amo ng all the parts of the body, the of unredeem ed m an . R m 1: 18-3:20 ; G a 1:22. a nd g. Vul g. adds ' in harmon y with goo d'.
26:18-2 1
Si5:13;28; wo uld m ak e fa ith in C hr ist superfl uo us. Ga 2: 17: 4 a . Alternative tr anslat ion (co rr .) ' Y o u crave th in gs
22 tongue is a whole wicked world in itself:' it infects the whole body ; catching fire d . Rm 1: 16 +. But Pa ul does not d e ny that th e sai nt yo u do n' t have, you a re e nv iou s a nd jea lo us of th in gs
M t 5:22 +: itself from hell,it sets fire to the whole wheel of creation.s- Wild animals and birds, 7 who h as been made hol y by grace mu st sh o w hi s faith yo u ca nno t h a ve . you SQuab b le and ftqht' (lit. 'fight an d
15:18
Go 1:26 + : by a c tua lly lo vin g. Oa 5:6 ; cf. I T h 1:3 : 2 T h I:11: so to war'). 'War ' here is not th e int e rn al sp ir itual
9:2
reptiles and fish can all be tamed by man , and ofte n are; -but nobody can tame the Phm 6. a nd in th is wa y obeying t he Law, R m 8:4 . s tr u ggle of a C hr istia n , cf. Rm [Link] 1 P 2:11 , a nd it
ll.
Ps 140:3 to ngue-it is a pest that will not keep still, full of deadly poison . -We use it to i.e . th e Law o r co m m a nd m e nt of C h ri st a nd h is Spir it, see ms t o be m or e th an ju st a heat ed a r gu me nt between ~
G n 1:27 + Ga 6:2; Rm 8:2. which is th e com ma nd me nt to lo ve. C hr istia ns , it see ms to mea n co m in g to rea l bl o ws .
bless the Lord and Father,' but we also use it to curse men who are made in God's Rm 13:H- IO: G a 5:14 . It is perfectly true , ho wever . th a t b . Lit. ' Yo u adult er esses, don 't you know th a t

II Ep 4:29
image: -the blessing and the curse come out of the same mou th.! My brothers,
th is must be wrong-e--does any water supply give a flow of fresh water and salt
10
11
in or der to tea ch the sa me tr uth as P a u l. J am es in a fr iends hip of the wor ld is enm ity o f God '?' T he im a gery
d iffere nt co ntext a nd u nder d ifferent c ircumst an ces of Isra el th e unfaithful wife of Ya h we h is trad it ional
e xp la ins the cas e of Abra ha m in a co m p le te ly d iffer e nt in the O.T .. H o 1:2 + . cr. Mt 12:39 : Mk 8:38 : 2 Co 11:2.
M t 7:16 MZ
water out of the same pipe? -Can a fig tree give you olives, my brothers, or a 12 way from Pa u l. c. Lie 't he s pir it he has m ad e to dw ell in us yearns ~ ...,

'.) ) vine give figs? No more can sea water give you fresh water. g . Lit. ' it is dead by itse lf' .
h. T he sa me oppone n ts as in vv . 14 an d 16.
i. Va r . ( v u te.) 'dead' , cf. vv, 17 a nd 26.
fo r o ur love' ; or ' he yea r ns intense ly o ve r th e sp ir it
he h as m a de to d well in u s' . T his te xt, no w lo st, seems
(0 ha ve In spired R m 8:26-27 as we ll. It is because G od

II Real wisdom and its opposite i , U n like m ost Je ws, James does not co ns ider h as s ha red hi s Spi r it with us . that we wa n t wh at God
Abraha m's fa ith (t r us t in God) as co ns tit ut ing a 'good wants a nd t ha t G od an sw ers o ur pr ay e rs , cf. M t 18:
Ep4:1 -2 If there are any wise or learn ed men among you , let them show it by their goo d 13 de ed' in itsel f: ho wev er closely he rel at es th e two thin gs. 19-20: In 14:13 + . ..,
:;)

I ."~'1/ lives, with humility an d wisdom in their actions . -But if at hear t you have the 14
Ja m es m a kes a clea r dis tinc ti on be tween ha vin g faith
a nd d o ing so me thing as a resu lt of t ha t fai th .
d . Cf. Is 32:1If : Mi [Link] Jr 4: 13f : ze 11:2f.
c . Var. 'T here is only on e: th e la wgiver .. '
bitte rness of jealousy, or a self-seeking ambition, never make any claims for k , ' messe ngers ": var. 'spies ' , cf . Heb 11:31, f . Lit. 'A nd who are you th e one j u d ~in g your
II 2Co 1:12
yourself or cover up the tru th with lies - -principles of this kind are not 15
3 a, Var. (V ulg.) ' yo u ' . neighbour?' cf. 2:4. To be lieve yo urself Qua lified to
b. Lit. 'Now if (v ar. ' Behold ' as , lit. in v, 4) we put judg e ( = p unish) a neighbou r b reaks the go lden rule,
the wisdom that com es down from ab ove: they are only ear thly, ani mal and bits into h or ses ' mouth s' . 2 :8. o f love. Cf. R m 2: 1.
·>
1 Co 3:3
w
ex:
,

[I 4: 13 J AM ES
40 0

~
A warning for the rich and the self- confident
Pr27:1
M.6:34 Here is the answer for th ose of you who ta lk like th is: 'Today or tomorrow, 13
Lk 12:19-20
we are off to th is or that town ; we are go ing to spend a yea r there, trading, a nd

~
mak e so me mo ney'. - You never k now what will happen tomorrow: you are no 14
Jb 14:2+
more than a mist that is here for a littl e while and th en disappears. •The most 15
Ac 18:21
R m 1: 10 you shou ld ever say is: 'If it is the Lo rd's will, we shall still be a live to do this or
I I n 2:16+
tha t' . -But how proud and sure of yourselves you are now! Pride of this kind is 16
always wicked. - Ever yone who knows wha t is the right thing to do and doesn 't 17
do it com mit s a sin.
Lk6:24
S N ow a n a nswer for the rich. Sta rt cryin g, weep fo r the m iseries that a re I

Si 29:10 - 12
coming to you. • Your wealt h is all ro tt ing, your clothes ar e all eat en u p by
M.6:19-21 mo ths. ·AlI yo ur gold a nd yo ur silver ar e corroding away, a nd the sa me co rrosion
Pr 16:27
Pr J /: 4.28 will be yo u r own sente nce, and ea t into you r bo dy. It was a burn ing fire that yo u
1 PETER
Lv 19:13 stored up as yo ur treasure for th e last days ." • La bo u rers mo wed yo ur fields, a nd 4
Dt24:14-15
Ex 22:22
you chea ted them-listen to th e wages tha t yo u kept back, ca lling ou t ; rea lise THE FIRST LETTER OF PETER
that the cries o f the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. • On ear th 5
you have had a life of comfo rt a nd luxury; in the ti me of slaug hter" yo u wen t
Ws 2:10-20
o n eating to yo ur heart's content. -It was you who con de mned th e innocen t a nd Address. Greetings
k illed the m; they o ffered yo u no resista nce .
A fina l exhortation
1 1Peter, apostle of Jesus C hri st, sends greet ings to all those living among
foreigners" in th e D ispersio n of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and In 7:35
2 Co 5:6
leo 15:23+ 2 Bithynia , who have been chos en, •by the provide nt purpose of God the Father, Jm1:1 +
I P2:19 + N ow be pa tient , brot her s, un til the Lo rd 's co ming. T hink of a far mer: how 7 Rm8:29
Dt JJ: 14
to be made holy by the Sp irit, obedient to Jesus Christ an d sprinkled with his Ep 1:4
Mt 24:33p pat ient ly he waits fo r the prec ious fruit of the gro und until it has had the autu mn 2Th 2:13
Ex 24:8
R m 2:6 + ra insr a nd the spring rain s ! -Yo u too hav e to be pa tient ; do no t lo se hea rt, blo od . b Grace and peace be with you mo re a nd more. Mt26:28 +
2 Co 6:2 +
Rv 1:3 becau se the Lord's com ing w ill be soo n. • Do not ma ke co mp la ints aga inst o ne 9
Introduction. The salvation of Christians
a no the r, brothers, so as not to be brou ght to ju dge ment yo urse lves; the J udge is
Blessed be G od the Fa ther of our Lord Jesus Ch rist, who in his great me rcy 1:23
Mt 5:1 1-12p ready to be seen wa iting a t the gat es. • For yo ur exa mp le, bro the rs, in sub -
al 10
mitting with pat ience, ta ke the prophet s who spo ke in the nam e of the Lord ; has given us a new birth as his sons, by raising Je sus Christ from the dead, so that {1~:i:29 : 3:9
1:2-3.12
re me m ber it is those wh o had end ura nce th at we say a re the blessed o nes . Yo u II 4 we have a sure hope -and the promise of an inhe ritance that can never be spoilt Mt6:19-200
Jb42:10-17
or soiled and [Link] fade away, beca use it is being kept fo r you in the heavens. ~~ n.t2;
Ps103:ij hav e hea rd of the pa tien ce of Job, an d understood the Lo rd's purpose, rea lising
that the Lord is k ind and compassionate. T hrough your faith, God's power will guard you until the salvation wh ich has E.3?j~!
SI5: 1O;
23:9 A bo ve a ll, my brothers, do not swea r by hea ven o r by the ea rth, or use a ny 12 bee n prepared is revea led at the end of time. C • This is a cause of great jo y fo r you, }~~no
M'5 :34-37 even thou gh yo u may fo. a short time ha ve to bear being plagued by all so rts of k~ni~l1
oa ths at all. If you mean 'yes', you must say 'yes' ; if yo u mean ' no ' , say 'n o' .
Otherwi se you make yo urse lves liabl e to j udge ment. 7 tr ials ; 'so that, when Jes us Christ is revealed, yo ur fa ith will hav e been tested and
If a ny one of yo u is in tro uble, he sho uld pray ; if a nyo ne is feeling ha ppy, he 13 proved like go ld- o nly it is more preci ou s than gold, which is corruptible even r~~1?3
T t 1:5+
sho uld sing a psalm. • If one of you is ill, he should send for the elders 14 th oug h it bear s testin g by fire-and then you will have praise and glo ry a nd Rm 2:7
Mk 6:13 8 honour. •You did no t see him , yet you lo ve him ; and still without seeing h im , 1In 4:20
of the church, a nd they must ano int hi m with oi l in the na me o f the Lo rd" a nd
Ac 3:16 +
pray ove r him. -T he pr ayer of fa ith will sa ve the sick m an and the Lord will ra ise 15 you a re a lready filled with a joy so glor io us that it ca nnot be desc ribed, because
Gn 18:16 9 you believe; -and you arc sure of the end to which yo ur faith looks forward, that
Ps32 h im up aga in; a nd if he has co m mitted an y sins, he will be forgi ven, -So co nfess 16
Pr28:13 + is, th e salv at ion of your souls. Heb 10:39
S14:26 you r sins to one a not her , and pray for one an other, an d this will cure you;' the
1In 1:8-10
Ex J2:JJ+ heartfelt ! pra yer of a good ma n wo rks very pow er fu lly. •Elija h was a hu man 17
I K 17:1;
18:1.42 being like ourselves-he prayed hard fo r it not to rain, a nd no rain fell for T he hope of the prophe ts
Lk 4:25 10 It was this salvation that the prophets were looking and sea rchi ng so hard for; Ac 11:27+
Rv11:6 thr ee-a nd-a-ha lt vea-s ; -t he n he prayed again and the sky gave ra in an d the earth 18 Heb 11:39 0..
gave crops. II their prophecies were about the gra ce which was to co me to you . -The Spirit of 2P 1:20 ~
Is 52:J].
Mt 18:1 5 C hr ist which was in them " fo retold the sufferings of Ch rist and the glori es th at 53:12
G06:1 My brothers , if one of you strays away from the truth , a nd a no ther br ings 19 Lk18:31+
would co me after them, and they tried to find out at what time and in Ac 1:7+ ;
hi m back to [Link] may be sure" that anyone who can bri ng back a sinn er fr om 20 2:23 +
Pr10:12
1P4:8 the wro ng way that he ha s taken will be sa ving a soul from death and covering 12 what circ um stances all th is was to be expected . • It was revealed to them that th e
up a great number 0/ sins. news they brought of all th e th ings which ha ve now been announced to you, by Mt13:16-I7p '?Z
Rm16:25+ "1-'
5 a. Es cha toloa lcat lv th e mi sfo r tune s of the rich
tho se wh o preach ed to you the G ood News through th e Holy Spirit sent fro m
Lord , and for the p ur pose o f help in g the s ick a nd Ep 3:10+
will be apparen t o n ly a t the Judgement . 5:7-9 . We ro rs tvt na thei r s ins . are th e orig in o f the C h u rc h' s heaven , was fo r you and not for themselves. Even the angel s lon g to catch a
however a re alr ea dy liv ing in t he last d a ys, cf . 2 Co 6:
2+. 'sacra ment o f the s ick' (o r Hol y Un ctio n), was en d or sed glimp se of th ese things.
by th e C o u ncil o f Trent.
b. N ot a re ference to Judgeme n t d ay . b u t to th e c. T his mu tua l co n fess io n a nd p rayer for each
ext reme violence 10 wh ich . on ce, th e i nno cent had other . ins tea d of bein g o n ly recommendations t o th e 1 a . T hey ar e in an alien en vironment th at d oes n ot hea venl y pr o m ised land, He b 3:1-4:11.
..,
::>
been s u biec ted . v. 6. wh ile the ric h were livin g a t eas e . s ick, v, IS, a re here urged o n all C hris tia ns . N o th ing ma ke th e pract ice of reli gion easy. T h is is also true of b. T ri nita r ia n form u la, cr. 2 Co 13:13 + .
v. 5.
s pecia l ho wever may be dedu ced ab o u t sac ra men ta l C hr ist ia ns in gene ra l. T he C hrl st ta n' s city is heaven , c. Lit . 'at t he last time' , cr. 1:20 .
c. 'r ai ns' , va r. ' fr u its' . co nfess io n . P h 3:20 ; Co I 3: J-4 : He b 13:14 ; he is a n exile o n ear th, d. By saying the prophets are ins p ired by th e pre-
d . O m , 'o f the Lo rd ', T he tr ad iti on that these e. Var. (Vul g.) ' assid uo us ' . 2 Co 5:6 ; J P 1:17 : he is a foreigner her e, Ps 39:12 : exist in g C h r ist , cr. 1 Co 10:4,9. th e a u tho r makes clear
p rayers a nd thi s a no in ting with o il in th e name of th e g , Var . .'vo u can be s ure' , 119:19 ; H e b 11:13 ; 1 P 1:1 ; 2:11, o n a n exo d us to the the uni ty of the O.T. and th e N.T.
·>
w
a: