ONE OF THE TWELVE

James son of Alphaeus

“James the son of Alphaeus”

Also called James of Alphaeus

VERSES THAT NAME HIM

RECORDS WITH JESUS

NAMED BESIDE HIM

13

SOURCES OUTSIDE SCRIPTURE on how it ends

HIS LIFE IN FOUR PARTS

How much does Scripture tell?

Named in every list of the Twelve, and nowhere else for certain. Scripture gives no years for his life, so the ring is divided by how much is recorded: 5 records of what he did or what was said to him, one bead each. The last part is tradition and is drawn dashed. Choose a part to read it.

III · ACTS AND THE LETTERS

The church in Acts

  • In the upper room Acts 1:13
  • Never named again Acts 1:13
  • Another James leads at Jerusalem Acts 12:17

CHAPTER BY CHAPTER

Where is he named?

One square for each chapter of the books that name James: 8 verses in 8 chapters. The darker the square, the more verses in it name him. Choose a chapter to read what happens there.

THE GOSPELS AND ACTS

MATTHEW 10

1 verse name him

Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;

WHAT HAPPENS HERE

  • Son of Alphaeus
  • “The son” is supplied
  • Sent out with the Twelve

No verse in John names him.

CHAPTER I · BEFORE THE CALL

A name, and a father

Home, trade and family · 2 records

SCRIPTURE · MATTHEW 10:3

Son of Alphaeus

Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;

All four lists name his father, Alphaeus.

NAMED WITH HIM

Peter, Andrew, James son of Zebedee, John son of Zebedee, Philip, Bartholomew and 5 more

WHERE

Jerusalem

TOLD IN 4 BOOKS

Matthew 10:3·Mark 3:18·Luke 6:15·Acts 1:13

CHAPTER II · WITH JESUS

Ninth in every list

The Gospels, in the harmony’s order · 2 records

SCRIPTURE · MARK 3:13–19

Chosen as one of the Twelve

And Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Canaanite,

NAMED WITH HIM

Peter, Andrew, James son of Zebedee, John son of Zebedee, Philip, Bartholomew and 7 more

IN THE HARMONY

§53 · After a night of prayer Jesus selects Twelve apostles

TOLD IN 2 BOOKS

Mark 3:13–19·Luke 6:12–16

SCRIPTURE · MATTHEW 10:1–5

Sent out with the Twelve

Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;

NAMED WITH HIM

Peter, Andrew, James son of Zebedee, John son of Zebedee, Philip, Bartholomew and 7 more

IN THE HARMONY

§70 · The third tour of Galilee after instructing the Twelve and sending them forth by twos

PASSAGE

Matthew 10:1–5

CHAPTER III · THE CHURCH IN ACTS

One verse in Acts

Acts and the letters · 3 records

SCRIPTURE · ACTS 1:13

In the upper room

And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James.

He is named with the other apostles in the upper room after the ascension.

NAMED WITH HIM

Peter, Andrew, James son of Zebedee, John son of Zebedee, Philip, Bartholomew and 5 more

WHERE

Jerusalem

PASSAGE

Acts 1:13

FROM THE TEXT · ACTS 12:17

Another James leads at Jerusalem

But he, beckoning unto them with the hand to hold their peace, declared unto them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, Go shew these things unto James, and to the brethren. And he departed, and went into another place.

A James later leads the church in Jerusalem (Acts 12:17; 15:13; 21:18), and Paul speaks of “James the Lord's brother” (Galatians 1:19). Whether that James is this apostle is disputed; see below.

TOLD IN 2 BOOKS

Acts 12:17·Acts 15:13·Acts 21:18·Galatians 1:19

CHAPTER IV · AFTER SCRIPTURE

After Scripture

Tradition, by who said it and when · 2 sources

SCRIPTURE FIRST

What Scripture says of his end

Scripture does not mention him after Acts 1:13 and records nothing of his death.

From the text Acts 1:13

THEN TRADITION · 2 SOURCES, EARLIEST FIRST

  • 4th c. The Contendings of the Apostles (Ethiopic), trans. Budge, pp. 264-266 Later tradition
  • c. 170 Hegesippus, quoted by Eusebius, Church History 2.23 Early church

Each is labelled with who said it and when; none is blended into Scripture.

THE PEOPLE AROUND HIM

Who was with him?

Every record of James in Scripture, in story order (the Gospels in the order of Robertson's harmony, then Acts and the letters). A person counts as "with him" only where a verse of that record names them both. 13 people in all.

named in the passage from first to last mention Point at a column to see what happens; click it to keep it (click again to let go); choose a name to follow that person.

I · BEFORE THE CALL

Son of Alphaeus

Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;

NAMED WITH HIM HERE

  • Peter Acts 1:13
  • Andrew Mark 3:18
  • James son of Zebedee Acts 1:13
  • John son of Zebedee Acts 1:13
  • Philip Matthew 10:3
  • Bartholomew Matthew 10:3
  • Thomas Matthew 10:3
  • Matthew Matthew 10:3
  • Thaddaeus Matthew 10:3
  • Simon the Zealot Mark 3:18
  • Alphaeus Matthew 10:3

SIDE BY SIDE

One moment, several accounts

2 moments of his story told by more than one book, each in its own words in the King James Version. His names are marked; switch on "only here" to underline the words that just one account has.

NINTH

Matthew

Matthew 10:2–4

10:2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother;

10:3 Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;

10:4 Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.

NINTH

Mark

Mark 3:16–19

3:16 And Simon he surnamed Peter;

3:17 And James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he surnamed them Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder:

3:18 And Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Canaanite,

3:19 And Judas Iscariot, which also betrayed him: and they went into an house.

NINTH

Luke

Luke 6:14–16

6:14 Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew,

6:15 Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphæus, and Simon called Zelotes,

6:16 And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor.

NINTH

Acts

Acts 1:13

1:13 And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James.

NEAR AND FAR

Where was he?

2 places named in his story, with what happened there and how far each lies from Jerusalem. Tradition's places are dashed, with who placed him there and when. Choose a card or a pin.

Scroll to zoom · drag to move · the map stays on his places Land outline: the Atlas (Natural Earth)

OPEN QUESTIONS

What readers still ask

8 questions the reviewed sources leave open for James, with the answers given and who gives them, and 3 things Scripture does not say, in italic. Choose one.

VIEWS, WITH WHO HOLDS THEM · THIS PAGE

Is James son of Alphaeus the same man as “James the Lord's brother”? (In the order the views arose.)

Two different men

Helvidius (about AD 380), who took the Lord's brothers as later sons of Joseph and Mary; the older view, first found in the apocryphal Gospel of James (its stories go back to the 2nd century), that they were Joseph's sons by an earlier marriage; A. C. McGiffert (1890); Philip Schaff (1890)

John says the Lord's brothers did not believe in him after the Twelve had been chosen, and Acts names the apostles and then, separately, “his brethren”.

Scholars John 7:5·Acts 1:13–14 A. C. McGiffert, 1890·Philip Schaff, 1890·Alexander Walker (trans.), 1886

The same man

Jerome, Against Helvidius 15 (about AD 383); Easton (1897)

Paul counts “James the Lord's brother” among the apostles he saw, and there were only two apostles named James; so Jerome took the Lord's brothers to be cousins, sons of the Mary who was the wife of Clopas.

Early church Galatians 1:19·John 19:25 Jerome (trans. W. H. Fremantle, 1893·M. G. Easton, 1897

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