Discerning the Literary Structure in the Epistle of James

While the literary structure of James is notoriously difficult, after appreciatively tracing the historical trajectory of interpretation, this paper articulates an under- standing of the structural indicators present in the text. Distinguishing the Wisdom Paraenesis genre helps anticipate the letter’s aphoristic style. Identifying the introductory role chapter one plays assists in making connection between it and each of the subsequent sections. Noting the frequency of telo" (telos, “goal/outcome”) assists in discerning a centering theme that coherently ties the work together.