Charles Ellicott Commentary Acts 12:2

"And he killed James the brother of John with the sword." — Acts 12:2 (ASV)

He killed James the brother of John with the sword.—Had the Apostle been tried by the Sanhedrin on a charge of blasphemy and heresy, the sentence would have been death by stoning. Decapitation showed, as in the case of John the Baptist, that the sentence was pronounced by a civil ruler, adopting Roman modes of punishment, and striking terror by them in proportion as they were hateful to the Jews.

The death of James reminds us of his Lord’s prediction that he, too, should drink of His cup, and be baptized with His baptism (Matthew 20:23).

The fulfillment of that prophecy was found for one brother in his being the proto-martyr of the apostolic company, as it was found for the other in his being the last survivor of it. What led to his being selected as the first victim we can only conjecture; but the prominent position which he occupies in the Gospels, in company with Peter and John, probably continued, and the natural vehemence indicated in the name Son of Thunder may have marked him out as among the foremost teachers of the Church.

The brevity of St. Luke’s record presents a marked contrast to the fullness of later martyrologies. A tradition preserved by Eusebius (Ecclesiastical History, Book 2, Chapter 9) as coming from Clement of Alexandria, records that his accuser was converted by witnessing his faith and patience, confessed his new faith, and was led to execution in company with the Apostle, who bestowed on him the parting benediction of “Peace be with you.”