The Epistle of James (The New International Commentary on the New Testament | NICNT)

by James Adamson

Publisher:

Eerdmans

, 1976

Overview

The author of the Epistle of James, a letter distinguished for its passionate commitment to Jewish Christianity, has been dubbed “the Amos of the new covenant.” As a guide to Christian behavior, the letter deals with themes of universal importance, among which are the nature of God and man, the evils of lust and pride, the virtues of faith and hope, and the fruits of faith and love.

James B. Adamson, in contrast to many scholars, is convinced that James was a master writer whose knowledge and choice of Greek bestow on his epistle a sustained unity of style and content that bears a close affinity with the Synoptic Gospels and the sayings of Jesus. The substance and authoritative tone of this epistle follow in the tradition of Elijah and Moses, and the style and diction resemble some of the outstanding qualities of the Psalms the prophets.

In this thorough exegesis of his own working translation, Adamson combats some prevalent notions and corrects misunderstandings of the nature of this unique epistle, which, he says, cannot really be understood apart from the whole context of the New Testament.

With Logos, the NICNT will integrate into the Passage Guide. Whenever you enter your passage and click go, results from the NICNT will appear on the text you’re studying. This gives you instant access to exactly what you’re looking for—in far less time than it would take you to walk over to the bookshelf and begin flipping through a print volume, let alone find the information you need.

Key Features

• Verse-by-verse commentary
• In-depth discussion of textual and critical matters
• Introduction to the authorship, date, purpose, structure, and theology of James

Contents

Top Highlights

“Like Paul in his Epistles, James is addressing people who are supposed to know the rudiments of Christianity; and his aim, as in the Sermon on the Mount, is to set forth the theonomic life in its essentials, that is, life lived according to God’s Law. James’s task, like Paul’s in his Epistles, is mainly practical, to help the sincere to live up to their faith, and very often to correct errors, misunderstandings, and backslidings resulting in conduct unworthy of the Christian faith.” (Page 20)

“Christian joy is a man’s pleasure in his (and his brothers’) progress toward Christian salvation; and it is not undiluted pleasure.” (Page 53)

“We hold that James, the Lord’s brother, is here writing as a Jew—not ‘a Jewish Christian’ (Ropes, p. 17), but a Christian Jew—to Jews, and that he was writing with full hope that the Jews as a whole would turn to Christ.” (Page 51)

“But God’s ‘tempting,’ unlike the devil’s, is a test in which he does not desire the candidate to fail but to succeed.” (Page 69)

“But James does not mean to say that we can control our body by controlling our tongue; he means that if we can do the latter we shall be able to do the former, which is easier.” (Page 143)

Praise for the Print Edition

A noteworthy publishing event! If it leads to a rediscovery of the Epistle of James and its message by twentieth-century Christians, it will have performed a noble service. I take pleasure in warmly commending it to all students and preachers of the New Testament and its message.

—W. Ward Gasque, president, Pacific Association for Biblical Studies, Seattle, WA

Product Details

• Title: The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Epistle of James
• Author: James B. Adamson
• Series: The New International Commentary on the New Testament (NICNT)
• Publisher: Eerdmans
• Publication Date: 1976
• Pages: 227

About James Adamson

James B. Adamson was senior pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in Santa Rosa, California. He studied at the University of Edinburgh and in 1954 was awarded a PhD from Cambridge University for a thesis on the Epistle of James.