James

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NASB	James 1:1 James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, ¶ To the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
AMPLIFIED 2015	James 1:1 James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve [Hebrew] tribes [scattered abroad among the Gentiles] in the dispersion: Greetings (rejoice)!

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Bible Question: ...

Bible Answer: That “James” need not further specify which James he is in James 1:1 suggests that he is the most prominent and well-known James of the early church, James the Lord’s brother (Acts 12:17; Acts 15:13-21; Acts 21:17-26; 1 Cor. 15:7; Galatians 2:9, 12), as in church tradition. (James was a common name, and when one spoke of a less commonly recognized individual with a common name, one usually added a qualifying title, e.g., “Plato the comic poet,” “James the lesser” in the apostolic list and many people in ancient business documents.)

The main objection to this proposal is the polished style of the Greek language of the letter, but this objection does not take account of several factors:

(1) the widespread use of rhetoric and more than sufficient time for James, the main spokesperson for the Jerusalem church, to have acquired facility in it;

(2) that as the son of a carpenter he had probably had a better education than Galilean peasants;

(3) the spread of Greek language and culture in Palestine (e.g., Josephus, Justin);

(4) excavations showing that most of Galilee was not as backward as was once thought;

(5) the widespread use of amanuenses (scribes) who might, like Josephus’s editorial scribes, help a writer’s Greek.

— Bible Background Commentary