21st Century Progressivism

Series: The Epistle of James

This commentary by James B. Adamson presents the Epistle of James from the point of view of Jewish Christians. Adamson argues that James was indeed the brother of Jesus and points out key phrases and literary patterns to back up this view. However, his commentary doesn’t dwell on that point. In Adamson’s hands, the Epistle of James lovingly traces the Christian perfect law of liberty.

  • The Sincere Sovereign: Why James B. Adamson’s Commentary Explodes the Corporate Narrative

    The Sincere Sovereign: Why James B. Adamson’s Commentary Explodes the Corporate Narrative

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    This first article in the series will introduce James B. Adamson and explain why the sincere sovereign is a fitting description; his commentary explodes the corporate narrative. At the time of publication, James B. Adamson, M.A., Ph.D. was a Presbyterian minister in Santa Rosa, CA.

    The Sayings of Jesus, the Tradition of Elijah and Moses, and the Style of the Psalms and the Prophets

    James B. Adamson was 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.

    … Read the rest
  • The Diaspora Remnant: The Scattered Twelve Tribes and the Un-Enclosed Frontier

    The Diaspora Remnant: The Scattered Twelve Tribes and the Un-Enclosed Frontier

    Reading Time: 4 minutes

    James, the Brother of Jesus

    James B. Adamson begins his commentary with the assumption that James is the brother of Jesus. He argues this point in detail in his introduction. I have chosen not to include that detail because I prefer to start right away with the text of the Epistle and Adamson’s related commentary. However, if anyone is interested in the arguments presented in the introduction, please let me know and I will write about them.… Read the rest

  • The Crucible of Patience: Peirasmos and the Defiance of Joy

    Reading Time: 4 minutes

    James’s Capacity for Joy Even in the Trials of Life

    It is fitting to call this verse the crucible of patience. But joy is an important part of it. In Adamson’s view, when James exhorts his audience to see joy even in the trials of life, he is in tune with the capacity for joy found in Greek art and literature. This article will explain the meaning of peirasmos and the defiance of joy in the Christian context.… Read the rest

  • The Scholastic Examination: Approbation and the Two-Fold Law of Testing

    Reading Time: 4 minutes

    It is necessary to discuss some terms before we begin Adamson’s commentary on James 1:3-4. As in any scholastic examination, the terms matter. In this article James B. Adamson discusses the importance of approbation and the two-fold law of testing.

    Approbation

    Approbation is a formal noun meaning approval or praise. Adamson compares approbation in Christianity to a scholastic examination course. It requires endurance under trial and temptation.

    Peirasmos

    According to an online source: “The matter of significance about peirazo (the verb form) is that it is used in both a good sense and a bad sense.… Read the rest

  • The Law of the Baseline: Single-Minded Wisdom and the Free Gift

    Reading Time: 7 minutes

    James 1:5-8 as translated by James B. Adamson, p. 55:

    But if any of you is lacking knowledge (of God’s way and will), let him ask of God, who gives it to all as a simple (unconditional) gift and chides not (the petitioner for previous ignorance).

    But let him ask in faith, with no halting between two opinions: for the man who halts between two opinions is like a sea of waves, the way it is blown and beaten under the winds. 

    … Read the rest

  • The Great Flat Inversion: The Humble Exalted and the Rich Made Low

    Reading Time: 8 minutes

    By ‘the flower of the field’ the prophet doubtless meant the blaze of gorgeous blossoms which accompanies the first shooting of the grass in spring, alike in the Holy Land and on the Babylonian plain (Hort p. 15).

    According to Adamson, in the Mediterranean region the spring is brilliant but very brief. The flowers only live for a short time every year. H. B. Tristram is quoted:

    The downs of Bethlehem in February are one spangled carpet of brilliant flowers…In May all traces of verdure are gone.

    … Read the rest

  • The Crown of the Baseline: Approved Constancy and the Promised Life

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

     

    Site Icon

    The last section of Adamson’s commentary on James Chapter 1 covers James 1:12 to James 1:27. However, he takes a break after James 1:12. He labels the next section 13-27 and briefly discusses verse 13 in particular. Due to this organization, I decided to limit this article to James 1:12. Adamson’s translation is as follows:

    Happy is the man who with constancy endures trying assaults of evil; for when (upon trial) he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

    … Read the rest

  • The Epistle of James Chapter 3

    Reading Time: 4 minutes

    In the Epistle of James, Chapter 3, James continues his teachings on wisdom. The first half of the Epistle instructs the Christian on the duty to guard his tongue. Adamson refers to James 1:26 for example.

    If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, his religion is vain. (Bible quotations are taken from the Catholic Bible NABRE unless otherwise stated).

    James B. Adamson tells us that this is not just a lament over the constant weakness of man.… Read the rest

  • James 1:14

    Reading Time: 3 minutes 
    James 1:14
    But each man is tried by assault of evil by his own lust, as he feels the pull of its distraction and the enticement of its bait.

    Possible Meanings of the Word ‘Desire‘ in the New Testament

    This section is basically a discussion of the meaning of the word desire in the New Testament. Desire is not necessarily evil. James B. Adamson illustrates this point by citing Luke 22:15. He explains that is why the adjective, evil, must be added in Colossians 3:5.… Read the rest

  • James 1:15

    Reading Time: 2 minutes 
    James 1:15

    Then his lust having conceived gives birth to sin: and when sin is full grown it brings forth death.

    James 1:15 reminds Adamson of Thomas à Kempis’s analysis of temptation (the phrase, à Kempis, indicates his home town of Kempen, Germany. His name is Thomas Hemerken ). Adamson believes James 1:15 and the other verses in this section inspired Hemerken’s analysis.

    At first it is a mere thought confronting the mind; then imagination paints it in stronger colours; only after that do we take pleasure in it, and the will makes a false move, and we give our assent..

    … Read the rest