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Jubilees says that Abraham's name is written on the heavenly tablets as the friend of God, a title he earns by passing his tests. James also calls Abraham God’s friend but connects this to his faith, proven when he offered Isaac.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Jubilees 19:9
Pseudepigrapha
8 This was the tenth test by which Abraham was tried, and he was found to be faithful and patient in spirit. 9 He said nothing about the promise of the land which said that the Lord would give it to him and his descendants after him. He pleaded for a place there to bury his dead because he was found to be faithful and was recorded on the heavenly tablets as the friend of the Lord. 10 In its fourth year [2027] he took a wife for his son Isaac. Her name was Rebecca, the daughter of Bethuel (the son of Abraham's brother Nahor), the sister of Laban — Bethuel was their father — the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah who was the wife of Abraham's brother Nahor.
James 2:23
New Testament
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.
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Notes and References
... The Book of Jubilees, where the theme of Abraham as the friend or lover of God, faithful and longsuffering in trial, occurs in a highly developed form (see Jubilees 17:15-19:9), is frequently cited as an early parallel for James. It is to be noted, however, that there is no reference in Jubilees to the notion that Abraham was designated a friend of God specifically on account of the Akedah. Even before this event Abraham was regarded as a faithful lover of God in heavenly circles, according to the author of Jubilees (17:15), who stresses that God already acknowledged Abraham to be ‘faithful and a lover of the Lord’ on account of his preceding trials (17:17-18), the purpose of the Akedah being primarily to refute the allegations of Mastema (compare Sanhedrin 89b, cited by Rashi on Genesis 22:1) ...
Jacobs, Irving
The Midrashic Background for James II. 21-3
(pp. 457-459) Cambridge University Press, 1976
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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