The Evil Inclination in the Epistle of James

The influence of the Jewish concept of the Evil Inclination (yētser) on the Epistle of James is investigated. The development of this concept in the OT, Sirach, Qumran literature, Philo and Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs is first outlined. In each body of literature, parallels to statements in the Epistle of James are indicated. A final section considers James as a whole as a description of either an ideal man or his opposite. The former is a person who has overcome his yētser, the latter a person in the power of his yētser.