James Through the Centuries (eBook)

David B. Gowler is The Dr. Lovick Pierce and Bishop George F. Pierce Chair of Religion at Oxford College, Emory University, and Senior Faculty Fellow, Center for Ethics, Emory University, USA. He has published dozens of books, articles, book chapters, and book reviews, and since 1991 has served as co-editor of Emory Studies in Early Christianity.

List of Plates ix

Series Editors' Preface xii

Preface xiv

Acknowledgements xviii

Introduction 1

James 1:1-11: Trials, Endurance, Wisdom, and the Exalted Poor 63

James 1:12-27: Trials, Endurance, and Doers of the Word 99

James 2:1-13: Deeds of Faith, the Chosen Poor, and the Law of Liberty 143

James 2:14-26: Faith without Works Is Dead 173

James 3:1-12: The Power and Danger of Speech 204

James 3:13-4:12: The Fruits of Wisdom versus Friendship with the World 219

James 4:13-5:6: The Sovereignty of God and God's Judgment upon the Rich 252

James 5:7-11: The Patience of the Faithful and the Compassion of the Lord 278

James 5:12-20: Speech and Actions in the Community of the Faithful 288

Biographies 317

References 323

Index of Names 331

Index of Subjects 335

"...This commentary offers a fascinating read of the multifarious ways in which James has been interpreted and appropriated through the centuries." - Review & Expositor

"Gowler's commentary locates James not only at
various intersections in the history of learned commentary, from
Chrysostom to Kirkegaard, but even more richly in the history of
icons, mediaeval woodcuts and other artistic representations, in
monastic rules, hymnody, literature, political polemics, and much
more. This is a breathtaking survey of the ways, both overt and
subtle, that James has become embedded in multiple aspects of
Western culture."

--John S Kloppenborg, University of Toronto

"In an engaging manner, David Gowler tells the story of
the reception of the letter of James through the centuries. Along
the way we meet an eclectic group of interpreters, some well-known
and others not. The result is that we learn not only about how
James was read in scholarly circles, but also among the more
marginal, outside of the academy. Such a story is indeed a tribute
to the letter of James."

--Alicia Batten, Conrad Grebel University
College at University of Waterloo