James the Just, Ya’akov Hatzaddik, Presents Applications of Torah (A Messianic Commentary)

Top Highlights

“An outstanding rabbi in the first century was the son of Paul’s teacher, Gamliel. His name was Shimon, and he taught: ‘… the most important matter is not study (of the Torah), but its practice’ (Pirke Avot 1.17, author’s translation).” (Page 4)

“In reading James, we should view the term ‘works’ as the performance of the biblical commandments. This is how the first century Jewish world defined this concept of ‘works’. All first century Jews, including Messianic Jews, saw the performance of the biblical commandments as stemming from one’s faith in God, never in opposition to it. Secondly, in Jewish thought, the purpose of fulfilling the biblical commandments never was to earn entrance into the world to come. That is a huge misconception of students of the New Testament.” (Page 4)

“‘Yalkut’: a collection of highlighted teachings by a rabbi, often collected by his students.” (Page 1)

“Ya’akov’s writings were a commentary on the book of Leviticus, specifically chapters 19:1 to the middle of chapter 20 (Parshat Kedoshim).” (Page xvi)

“Professors Walter Kaiser and Luke Johnson were modern pioneers in research on the book of James.” (Page 15)