JAMES, the name of several persons mentioned in the New Testament.
1. JAMES, the son of Zebedee and Salome, was the brother of John the Evangelist. His occupation was that of a fisherman, probably of Bethsaida. Along with John and Peter he was chosen to witness the transfiguration, the restoration of Jairus' daughter to life, and to be with Jesus in Gethsemane on the night of his agony. From their bold, warm, and impetuous temperament, he and his brother were called Boanerges, sons of thunder. He was the first of the apostles to suffer martyrdom, having been executed A.D. 42 or 44 in Jerusalem, by order of Herod Agrippa. When led to execution, his firmness was so impressive, that the officer in attendance became a Christian, and suffered death along with him in the same cause.1
2. JAMES, the son of Alphaeus and Mary, was one of the twelve. He is called the Less, either from being younger than the previous James, or on account of his little stature. In the Gospels there is mention made of James, the brother of Jesus; and Neander pronounces it one of the most difficult questions in apostolic history, to determine whether he was the same as the son of Alphaeus.