II — To the Twelve Tribes Which Are of the Dispersion
Simple Address
The writer is wonderfully simple and direct in his greeting as compared with Paul in Romans 1:1-7, for instance. There is no principal verb, and the nominative absolute occurs with the infinitive, as is so common in the letters found in the papyri. Originally a word like “sends” may have been used also. But this short address is in perfect keeping with the business-like character of James and the pointed, pungent tone of the epistle.