Cornelius a Lapide

But other of the apostles saw I none save James the Lords brother. I.e., a cousin or relation of Christ’s, for the Hebrews call cousins brothers. S. Jerome adds that S. James was called the Lord’s brother before all the Apostles, even those related to Christ, on account of his lofty character, his incomparable faith and wisdom, which made him seem like a brother to Christ For the same reason he was surnamed the Just Secondly, S. Jerome says that Christ, when going to His Father, commended to James, as to a brother, the eldest children of His mother, i.e., those in Judaea who believed on Him; for this James, the son of Alphaeus, the son of Mary, wife of Cleophas, one of the twelve Apostles, was the first Bishop of Jerusalem. This is why, in the First Council of Jerusalem, he was the first after Peter to pronounce judgment (Acts xv. 13). A Canonical Epistle of his is extant. S. Jerome hints both here and in his book on Ecclesiastical Writers, when writing of James, that this James was not of the twelve Apostles, but was called an Apostle, only because he had seen Christ and preached Him. In this case we have three of the name of James — the brother of John, slain by Herod ; the son of Alphaeus, both of whom were Apostles ; and this brother of the Lord. But since this brother of the Lord is called an Apostle, A 234 THE EPISTLE TO THE and there is no cogent reason for distinguishing him from James the Apostle and son of Alphaeus, when, indeed, there are many reasons why we should identify them, the first opinion seems the better one. Ver. 2a — Befort God I lie not. Vatablus paraphrases this verse : “What I write unto you, behold I write before God — I lie not; 9 * and Theophylact agrees with him. But Ambrose and Augustine think that before God is a formal oath — I call God to witness. The Apostle asserts that he had not seen the other Apostles so strenuously that no one might be able to say that he had visited them in secret, and had not been taught by God (Jerome)