Introduction

The purpose of this chapter is to review the history of research on the Epistle of James and to locate the present study with respect to both past and current scholarly investigations. First, we shall discuss some of the historical, theological, and literary problems surrounding James, and the ways in which scholarship dealt with these issues up to the publication of Martin Dibelius' commentary. Second, because Dibelius' conclusions have dominated Jamesian scholarship for more than seventy years and remain today the most influential assessment of James, we shall focus on his research. We shall concentrate on his use of the so-called “genre,” paraenesis. Finally, we shall build on this previous scholarship as we look at more recent research which suggests rhetorical criticism as a promising method for the investigation and interpretation of James.

The Epistle of James as a problem

The history of research on the Epistle of James reveals that it is not a popular document; it is in fact maligned and neglected (Adamson, 1989, p. x; Davids, 1982, p. 1; L. T. Johnson, 1986, p. 453; Laws, 1980, pp. 1–2; and Popkes, 1986, p. 9). When James is studied, it is seldom read on its own terms (L. T. Johnson, 1985, pp. 166–69, 178–79).