James, son of Zebedee James, son of Zebedee James, son of Zebedee (Hebrew: , "Yaʿqob"; Greek: Ἰάκωβος; ; died 44 AD) was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus, traditionally considered the first apostle to be martyred. The son of Zebedee and Salome is James, styled "the Greater", to distinguish him from the Apostle James "the Less", with greater meaning older or taller, rather than more important. He was the brother of John the beloved disciple. James is described as one of the first disciples to join Jesus. The Synoptic Gospels state that James and John were with their father by the seashore when
Apostles Gospel of Luke differs from Matthew and Mark at two points. It lists "Judas the son of James" instead of "Thaddeus". (For more information, see Jude the Apostle.) Unlike the Synoptic Gospels, the Gospel of John does not offer a formal list of apostles. Although it refers to "the Twelve" (), the gospel does not present any elaboration of who these twelve actually were, and the author of the Gospel of John does not mention them all by name. There is also no separation of the terms "apostles" and "disciples" in John. In Luke (10:38–42), Mary, sister of Lazarus, is