The Pulpit Commentary — James — Section 76

spedal onths mentioned were those in vogue Vers. 14, 15.-Dfrectio118 in case of sic/,. among thP Jews. and ,iust the very 0110s neM. Let him oAll for the elder■ of the Ohuroh. which our Lord hims0lf had spC'eifi0d Of the ori1,>i.ual orealion of the presbyterate (comp. Lightfoot's 'Horm Hebraicm,' vol. ii. no account is given, but elders appear as p. 127, edit. Gandell). On the need of alrendy existing iu Judma in Aots xi. 80: •ueh telU'bing as tl,is, see Thomson's nud from Acts xiv. 23 we find thnt St. Paul • Land and the Book,' p. 190: "This people and ~t. Barnabas "appointed elders in every are fearfully profane. Everybo,iy curses Chnr~h" which they had founded 011 their nnd swears when in a passion. No people first missionary journey. Nothing, therefore, that I have e\'Pr kr,own can comp11rc with can be concluded with regard to the dnte of thPse Orientals for profaneness in the use of the Epistle from this notice of elders. The tl,e names and attributes of God. The evil eld,,rs were to be summoned for a twofold habit seems inveterate and unirnrsal. "When purpose: (1) thnt they might pray over the PL·ter, therefore, ' began to curse and to sick person (on the accus,1tive br' a~.-&v, see swear' on that dismal night of temptation, Winer, p. 508); nnd (2) that they might we are not to suppose that it was something anoint him with oil iu the N nme of the Lord. foreign to bis former habits. He merely Tho result anticipated is also twofold: (1) relapsed, under high excitement, into whet, "the prayer of fo.ith shall save the sick" as a sailor and n fisherman. he bad been (" save," ,n:,(e,11, here as in other passages, accustomed to all his life. The people now e.g. lllatt. ix. 21, 22, etc., refers to bodily use the very same sort of oaths that are healing); and (2) " if he have committed mentioned and condemned by our Lord. sins, it shall be forgiven him." (From the They s~r by the head, by their life, by manner in which this last clause is intro• heaven, by the temple, or what is in its duced, it may fairly be inferred that the place, the church. The forms of cursing sins in question are presumed to have had e.nd swen.ring, however, are almost infinite, some connection with the sickness, and to and fall on the pained ear all day long." have been its cause. Vulgate, Et Bi in peo- So, too, Aben Ezra speaks of the 'practice of catis sit dimiltenturei.) Anointing him with i;wearing as almost universal in his day, so oil in the Name of the Lord. By the omission that he says, "men swear daily countless of the last words, .-ov Kvplov, B has the times, and then swear that they have uot striking reading, "anointing him with oil in Ewom ! " With regard to the translation of THEN.urn" (compare the use of .-o 6voµa the verse, two renderings are possible: (I) absolutely in Acts v. 41; 3 John 7). A 1hat of theA.V. and of the R.V. (text)," Let similar use is also found in the Epistles of ~-our yea be yea, and your nay, nay." (2) That Ignatius. The Vatican i\lanuscript, how- .,f the R.V. margin, "Let yours be the yea, ever, appears to stand quite alone in this yea,and the nay, nay;" viz. those enjoined by reading here. If the words, .-ov Kvplo11, be our Lord (MatL v. 37), " Let your communi- admitted, they must be taken as referring to cation be Yea, yea; Nay, nay; for whatsoever the Lord Jeans (contrast ver. 10, Iv -rrp is more than these cometh of e\'il." On behalf ov&µa .. , K11pC011). So also in ver. 15 the_ of this latter rendering, may be pleaded (a) Lord (d K6p,os) who shall raise him up is the clearness of the reference to our Lord's clearly the Lord Jesus. Had God the teaching ; and (b) the fact that this is the Father been alluded t.o we should probably interpretation given to the clanse in the two have had the anarthrous Kop,os after the leading versions of antiquity, the Syriac and manner of the LXX. (see note on eh. iv. 10). the Vulgate, both of which have exactly the Unction is mentioned in connection with the same words here and in St. Matthew. Vul- sick also in Mark vi. 13. The apostles gate, Si,t autem senno -vester est est, non non. "anointed with oil many that were sick, and Lest ye :fall into condemnation. Happily the healed them;" and compare the parable of A. V. here follows the text of the Elzevirs, the good Samaritan (Luke x. 34), " pouring vrro Kpicr,v (N, A, B, Latt., Syriac, Coptic), and in wine and oil." "Josephus mentions that so avoids the erroneouti rtading of l:ltephens, among the remedies employed in the case of ,ls vrr&icp,crw (K, L). Herod, he was put into II sort ofoil bath.... Vers. 13-20.-Ezhortation, wiO. resped The medicinal usB of oil is also mentioned in to practical conduct ir, health and sickness. the l\fishna, which thus exhibits the Jewish V tr. I 3.-(1) Is any among yon s!Ufering t practice of that day" (' Dictionary of the let him pray. (2) Is any cheerful t let him Dible,' vol. ii. p. 595; see 111ishna, • Shah• sing praise. Prayer in the narrower sense bath,' xiii. 4: and compare Lightfoot, • Horm of petition is rather for sufferers, who need Hcbraiem,' vol. ii. p. 415). According to to Lave their wants supplied and their 'J'ertullian, "the Christian Proculus, sur- i,orrows removed. Praise, the highest form 1,amerl Torpacion, the steward of Euhod,.. s,' of prayer, is to spring up from the grateful cured with oil Severns, the father of Antonina J,eart of the cheerful. 'YaA./\.<tv (cf. Rom. xv. (i.e. Caracalla), who" in gratitude kl'pt him 1:1; l Cor. xiv. 15; Eph. v.19). in his palo.co till lhc d~y of his death." <JU, V, t .. 20.) THE GENERAL EPISTLE OF JAMES. 71