​Who Did James Write To? (James 1:1b)

​Who Did James Write To?

James provides this answer to this question at the end of verse 1, where we read, ". . . to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting." (James 1:1b). James wrote to Jews who lived outside of Palestine. The phrase "twelve tribes" can only refer to the Jewish nation, the people of Israel (Acts 26:7). The fact that many Jews lived outside their Promised Land shows that the nation was losing its spiritual strength. God had to spread them out (Deut. 4:25ff.).

Peter spoke to a large group of Jews at Pentecost, and they were from many different countries (Acts 2:9–11). James wrote a letter to Christian Jews. He called them "brethren" at least nineteen times. These terms meant "brothers in the flesh" (other Jews) and "brothers in the Lord." James made it obvious what the new birth meant (James 1:18). James sometimes discussed evil people who weren't in the church (like the rich in James 5:1–6), but he did this to teach and encourage the saved Jews who got the letter.

The word "scattered" in James 1:1 is intriguing. It means "in the dispersion." People used the word "the dispersion" to talk about Jews who lived outside of Palestine. But the Greek word means "scattering seed." When the first wave of persecution scattered the Jewish believers (Acts 8:1, 4), it was like planting seeds in many places, and many of those seeds grew (Acts 11:19ff.).

Christian Jews living all over the Roman Empire would have their needs and issues. The Gentiles would reject them for being Jews, and their people would reject them for being Christian Jews. This letter shows that most believers were poor, and some were mistreated by the rich.