The next point in the internal evidence to emphasise is the simi- larity to be observed between the letter inspired by St. James, together with his speech, at the council of Jerusalem, and certain sarts of the Epistle which bears his name. The most important of these are as follows :—
(i.) The salutation, χαίρειν, Acts xv. 23, Jas. i. 1; this form is found elsewhere in the New Testament only in Acts xxiii. 26.
(ii.) The words, τὸ καλὸν ὄνομα τὸ ἐπικληθὲν ἐφ᾽ ὑμᾶς, in Jas. il. 7, which can only be paralleled in the New Testament by those in Acts xV.17: ἐφ᾽ οὓς ἐπικέκληται τὸ ὄνομα μου ἐπ᾽ αὐτούς. ‘
(iii.) The occurrence of the word ὄνομα in a specially pregnant sense, Jas. ii. 7, v. 10, 14, and Acts xv. 14, 26; this is not used else- where in the New Testament in quite the same sense.
(iv.) The pointed allusions to the Old Testament, which are characteristic of St. James’ speech, viz., Acts xv. 14, 16-18, 21, also play ar important part in the Epistle, or at least in certain parts of it.
(v.) The affectionate term ἀδελφός, which occurs so often in the Epistle (1.2, 9, 16,19 5 ἢ 5, 155 ai. V5 αν απ ν 7. 9; 10,12, Ae as also found in Acts xv. 13, 23; especially noticeable is the verbal identity between Jas. ii. 5, ἀκούσατε ἀδελφοί µου, and Acts xv. 13, ἄνδρες ἀδελφοὶ ἀκούσατέ μου.
(vi.) Other verbal coincidences are: ἐπισκέπτεσθαι, Jas. i. 27, Acts xv. 14; τηρεῖν and διατηρεῖν, Jas. i. 27, Acts xv. 29; ἐπιστρέφειν, Jas. v. 19, 20, Acts xv. 19; ἀγαπητός, Jas. i. 16, 19, ii. 5, Acts xv. 25. In some of these cases too much stress must not be laid upon the similarities ; but it is certainly striking that in the rather restricted scope which the short passage in Acts offers there should, neverthe- less, be so many points of similarity with portions of the Epistle. The fact almost compels us to recognise the same mind at work in each, though this does not necessarily apply to the whole of the Epistle ascribed to St. James.
Further internal evidence as to authorship is afforded by indica- tions which point to the writer as having been a Jew. And the first point that strikes one here is the copious use of the O.T. which is characteristic of the writer. There are, it is true, only five direct verbal quotations, viz., i. 11 from Isa. xl. 7; ii. 8 from Lev. xix. 18; ii. 11. from Exod. xx. 13.14; ii. 23 from Gen. xv. 6; iv. 6 from Prov. iii. 34; but the atmosphere of the Ο.Τ. is a constituent element of the Epistie; for over and above the Ο.Τ. events which are mentioned, there is an abundance of clear references to it, which shows that the mind of the writer was saturated with the spirit of the ancient