The Jesus Tradition and the Letter of James

Abstract

This article examines the relationship between the Jesus tradition and the letter of James. It first argues that the author of James did not know the gospels, but was familiar with a source for Matthew and Luke, otherwise known as “Q.” In particular, James indicates awareness of a form of Q used within the Matthean community (QMatt). The article then explores how James adapts the Jesus tradition to suit the letter's overall purposes, and illustrates how James builds from pre-existent literary models found in the wisdom tradition and in Greco-Roman literature. James shapes the Jesus tradition in order to strengthen his arguments and in so doing, he reveals that his wisdom is consistent with that of Jesus, which in turn, enhances the character of James as a speaker. The article focuses especially on a parallel between QMatt 5:3 and Jas 2:5. James integrates and expands the beatitude about the blessedness of the poor into this part of his letter in order to buttress his attempts to dissuade his readership from showing partiality to the rich. Despite the many correspondences between James and the Jesus tradition, it is difficult to discern a Christology in James, other than to assume that James must have viewed Jesus as a great wisdom teacher, for the references to “the Lord,” (e.g., Jas 5:7) the “Judge” (Jas 5:9) and the “holy name” (Jas 2:7) are all ambiguous. Despite this lack of Christology, the letter of James is remarkably consistent with many of the memories of Jesus, especially in its stress on care for the poor, criticism of the rich, integrity between word and deed and the necessity of total reliance upon God.