First Apocalypse of James

Before the Passion, the Lord takes James the brother apart, and prepares him for what is to come — concerning the Father, the Pleroma, and the powers that detain the soul.

1It is the Lord that spake with me: Behold now the consummation of My redemption. I have given thee a sign of these things, James, my brother. Not without reason have I called thee my brother, although thou art not my brother materially. Now I am not ignorant concerning thee — that I have given thee a sign of these things. Know thou therefore that I am called by another name.

2I am the One; and the second to me is He whom thou hast known. James, my brother, hearken. The Lord said: I shall depart this day. Be not troubled; the things which are about to happen, I have not been ignorant of from the beginning. Even as it is necessary that I depart, so it is necessary that I should suffer.

3James said: Rabbi, if it is necessary that Thou shouldest suffer — what is the suffering of thee?

4And the Lord said: It is the suffering of the body. Now this body which I have put on is not mine own; it is a sign which I bear, that I might be discovered. The unutterable Father hath sent me. The seven powers shall come upon me, and shall lay hold upon me. They shall scourge me; they shall crucify me. But I shall not in truth suffer; for I am not in this body.

5James said: Lord, when shall I receive Thee? When shall they cast me down? When shall I be at peace?

6The Lord said: James, after all these things, after that thou hast suffered as I, thou shalt come unto Him that is, the Pre-existent. They will lay hold upon thee; they shall judge thee. Thou shalt utter what they shall say unto thee. Yet I tell thee, James, do not despise the suffering. The fortifications of darkness fall down before thee through the strength which thou shalt receive.

7Behold, I shall reveal unto thee thy redemption. When thou shalt be detained, and shalt come unto these sufferings, the powers — they shall come up against thee, that they may lay hold upon thee. And in particular, three of them shall lay hold upon thee — they that sit there as toll collectors. Not only do they demand toll; they take souls also by theft.

8Now when thou shalt come into their power, one of them, who is their guardian, shall say unto thee: Who art thou? Whence comest thou? Thou shalt say unto him: I am a son. I am from the Father. The Pre-existent Father is mine. I am a son among the sons of the Pre-existent Father.

9He shall say unto thee: What sort of a son art thou? And of what father art thou? Thou shalt say unto him: I am from the Pre-existent Father. I am a son in the Pre-existent One.

10He shall say unto thee: Why hast thou come down? Thou shalt say unto him: I am come from the Pre-existent One that I might behold the things which are mine, and which are not mine.

11He shall say unto thee: Whither shalt thou go? Thou shalt say unto him: Unto the place from which I came forth — even thither shall I return.

12And if thou shalt say these things, thou shalt escape their attacks. But when thou shalt come unto these three guards — them that take away souls by theft, in that place — thou must, in passing them, say: I am a vessel more precious than the female that hath fashioned you. Your mother knoweth not the source from which she came; rather, she gave herself the name. But I myself know me. I am from the Pre-existent One.

13And they shall say unto thee: Pass through. Thou shalt go up unto the place where thou art. Thou shalt remain. James, behold; I have revealed unto thee thy redemption. Take heed of thyself; do not blunder.

After the resurrection, the Lord appears to James and reveals the deeper mysteries — the names of the seven women disciples, the work of the seventy-two heavens, and the commission of James as bishop in Jerusalem.

1James was sitting upon a hill, brooding by himself, when there came down unto him One in shining apparel — even the Lord — and stood before him. And James said: Rabbi, hath it come to pass that I am at peace?

2The Lord said: James, peace be unto thee from peace. Love from love. Grace from grace. Faith from faith. Life from holy life.

3And James said: Rabbi, in what way did the Pre-existent send Thee? In what way wast Thou received? In what way wast Thou born? In what way didst Thou come forth?

4And the Lord said: James, the Pre-existent sent Me forth. He sent Me through the Mother — that is, Sophia. She gave Me forth, that I might be made manifest in the flesh, that I might endure for the salvation of the All. The Pre-existent and the Mother and Myself — we are one. The Father is in Me; I am in the Father; and the Mother is in both of us.

5James said: Rabbi, are there indeed three Pleromas, and not just one?

6The Lord said: There is the Pleroma of the Father; there is the Pleroma of the Mother; there is the Pleroma of the Son. And these three are one Pleroma. He that hath received the Father hath received the Mother and the Son also; he that hath received the Mother hath received the Father and the Son also; he that hath received the Son hath received the Father and the Mother also.

7James said: Rabbi, who are the seven women that have been Thy disciples? Behold, all the women bless Thee. I, even I — I marvel how it is that powerless vessels have become strong by perception which is in them.

8The Lord said: Thou hast spoken well. The Spirit of perception, the Spirit of knowledge, the Spirit of counsel, the Spirit of patience, the Spirit of remembrance, the Spirit of fear, and the Spirit of love — these have given themselves unto the women. Therefore are they made strong, even though they be esteemed weak.

9James said: Rabbi, when shall the saints be received? When shall the kingdom come?

10The Lord said: James, in the day when the seventy-two firmaments shall be unveiled, and the names of the seventy-two angels which preside over them shall be made known unto the children of light — then shall the saints be gathered. The angels of the firmaments shall give them passage; the powers shall not detain them; the toll-collectors shall not take them captive.

11Now thou, James — go thou unto Jerusalem. Stand thou as bishop and overseer of the brethren. Confirm them in the faith. Be a witness unto my name. They shall hate thee for my sake; but the Father shall vindicate thee. Even when they cast thee down from the temple, thou shalt rise up; and thou shalt come unto Me.

12And James bowed himself, and worshipped the Lord. And the Lord blessed him; and He went up. And James returned unto Jerusalem, that he might fulfil the work which had been given him.

13Glory be unto the Father, and unto the Mother, and unto the Son. Glory be unto the Pleroma of the three. Forever and ever. Amen.