Sirach 44:20
Ben Sira, Ecclesiasticus19 Abraham was the great father of a multitude of nations, and no one has been found like him in glory. 20 He kept the law of the Most High, and entered into a covenant with him; he certified the covenant in his flesh, and when he was tested he proved faithful. 21 Therefore the Lord assured him with an oath that the nations would be blessed through his offspring; that he would make him as numerous as the dust of the earth, and exalt his offspring like the stars, and give them an inheritance from sea to sea and from the Euphrates to the ends of the earth. 22 To Isaac also he gave the same assurance for the sake of his father Abraham. The blessing of all people and the covenant 23 he made to rest on the head of Jacob; he acknowledged him with his blessings, and gave him his inheritance; he divided his portions, and distributed them among twelve tribes. From his descendants the Lord brought forth a godly man, who found favor in the sight of all
James 2:21
19 You believe that God is one; well and good. Even the demons believe that—and tremble with fear. 20 But would you like evidence, you empty fellow, that faith without works is useless? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? 22 You see that his faith was working together with his works and his faith was perfected by works. 23 And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Now Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. 24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.
Notes and References
"... As to the meaning of Genesis 15:6 presupposed in the Epistle, Abraham's faith in trial, modern scholars have noted the parallels for this notion in early sources, which indicate that this interpretation of the verse had been established centuries before the author of James, and was, in all probability, widely accepted in his day. Thus, the author of 1 Maccabees, writing a century before the current era, paraphrased Genesis 15:6, 'Was not Abraham found faithful in trial, and it was accounted unto him for righteousness?' (2:52). Virtually the same phrase, 'and in trial he was found faithful', was employed by Ben Sira in a context worthy of note. In the following passage, Ben Sira links Abraham's faith in trial with a poetic paraphrase of Genesis 22:16-17, God's oath to Abraham following the Akedah, which suggests that he already associated Genesis 15:6 with the sacrificing of Isaac over two centuries before the author of James ..."
Jacobs, Irving The Midrashic background for James II. 21–3 (pp. 457-464) New Testament Studies, 22, 1976