FootnoteThere were three key men in the New Testament with the name James: i.e. James the brother of John and son of Zebedee (Matthew 10:2), James the son of Alphaeus (Matthew 10:3), who were both amongst the original 12 disciples of Jesus, and finally James a brother of Our Lord Jesus (Matthew 13:55); it is believed that the last James, the Lord's brother, wrote this letter. Jesus had appeared to him after His resurrection (1 Cor 15:7) and scripture also indicates that he was present in the upper room on the day of Pentecost (Acts 1:14). He became a key leader amongst the Jerusalem believers in Christ (Acts 12:17, Gal 1:18-19). Church tradition has it that he spent so much time praying on his knees that they became as callous as the knees of camels, and he had a high influence in the decisions of the early church (see Acts 15:13, 19; Acts 21:18-26, Galatians 2:9,10). His ministry was to the Jewish believers (Galatians 2:9) and his letter targets them.