Mistaken identity of "James" in The First Apocalypse of James

[gryan]

"In 1ApocJas, the scene of interrogation plays more as a comedy of errors than as the
climax of a drama. James is not arrested for the crime of being a Christian, but apparently by
mistake. The text reads, “James was arrested instead of another man”
...A lacuna and uncertain antecedents make parsing the following passage difficult, but it may not even be James who is then brought before the authorities. “It was another person named James who came out from the prison, and they arrested this one [for] him, and they brought him to the judges” (30.4–7). This man is then released. “The majority of the judges saw that he had no sin, and they [released him]” (30.8–10). Debates between the judges and the people follow, but no interrogation scene takes place. After another lacuna James is stoned to death."
https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/hand ... sequence=3

This text/translation appears to be different than the standard one by William R. Schoedel:
http://www.gnosis.org/naghamm/1ja.html

Am I correct that this is different, or am I missing something obvious?


On the ancient recognition of the confusing multiplicity of Jameses, I'm reminded of Hegesippus's mention of more than one James.

"He has been universally called the Just, from the days of the Lord down to the present time. For many bore the name of James; but this one was holy from his mother's womb."

[gryan]

"In 1ApocJas, the scene of interrogation plays more as a comedy of errors than as the
climax of a drama. James is not arrested for the crime of being a Christian, but apparently by
mistake. The text reads, “James was arrested instead of another man”
...A lacuna and uncertain antecedents make parsing the following passage difficult, but it may not even be James who is then brought before the authorities. “It was another person named James who came out from the prison, and they arrested this one [for] him, and they brought him to the judges” (30.4–7). This man is then released. “The majority of the judges saw that he had no sin, and they [released him]” (30.8–10). Debates between the judges and the people follow, but no interrogation scene takes place. After another lacuna James is stoned to death."
https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/hand ... sequence=3

On further inspection, this text/translation quoted by Haxby is indeed different than the standard one by William R. Schoedel:
http://www.gnosis.org/naghamm/1ja.html

Karen King (Haxby's main dissertation advisor) in an article which features a similar discussion of this multiple Jameses identity confusion, cites the following combination of sources:
1)Schoedel, “The (First) Apocalypse of James”;
2)Kasser et al., Gospel of Judas, 120–76;
3)Brankaer and Bethge, Codex Tchacos, 88–129.
And then she adds:
"Citations refer to the codex, line and page numbers from these editions,
Nag Hammadi Codex V,3 (NHC) and
Tchacos Codex (TC).
Modern scholars dub the work “first” apocalypse because a second Apocalypse of James follows
in NHC V,4"

https://brill.com/view/book/edcoll/9789 ... 000013.xml

[davidmartin]

i have a NHL book somewhere that has the Tchacos codex preliminary translation in the footnotes. it fills in a lot of lacuna
could take a look
also there's that Greek fragment they found not long ago and not been translated yet?
still waiting for someone to combine all these together

[gryan]

I'd like to know why the part about James' mistaken identity is absent from the standard version translated by Schoedel.

[davidmartin]

This is Funks NHL translation but the Tchacos might be someone else

The NHL text ends with "Then he went at once and admonished the 12 and he instilled in them contentment about the way of knowledge
...lacuna of 13 lines ..
Most of the judges when they saw that there was no case [against him left] him alone. But the other ones [and the people resisted. Rising up they] said "Let [us take] this person away from the earth for he is not worthy of life" The first ones were afraid and they rose up and said "We have no part in this man's blood for a just man will perish unjustly". James left in order to
...lacuna of 13 lines ..

In the Tchacos codex:
It happened [a while] later that they arrested James instead of another man, against whom they brought charges, for he had fled from..
.. prison, but it was another man named James who got out of the prison. They arrested this person [instead] of him and they brought him before the judges. Most of the judges saw that he was innocent and they let [him go]. But the others and all the people resisted and said "Take him away from the earth he is not worthy of life" But those were afraid [rose up] and said "We have no [part in] ...

So Tchacos has the part in the 1st lacuna. Maybe i've misunderstood your post and you know all these already and are just querying the Tchacos translation, if so apologies

Is there's a connection to the oddness of Acts 12?
Here first of all James, the brother of John is killed by sword
Then Peter is arrested and escapes prison
On his return he commands this event be told to James

Maybe there was a version where James the brother escapes prison but Acts prefers that it be Peter who does and insists the true James is still alive at the end of this (and if anyone objects it handles that - there was a James who was killed but it wasn't the brother James, the leader)

Perhaps the circumcision group or Ebionites told it having their James escape not Peter
Acts acknowledges that a James did perish just like the 1st apoc does - but it says the survivor is the leader whereas the 1st apoc has it the other way round if there were a connection here