Logion 12
| 12. The disciples said to Jesus, "We know that Thou wilt leave us. Who is it that will become great over us?" Jesus said unto them, "Whithersoever ye are come, ye will go to James the Righteous. It is for the righteous' sake that heaven and earth were created." | Cf. Mk 13:20: "…but for the elect's sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days." |
In logion 12 the disciples are concerned about their future leadership. Did they anticipate Jesus’ premature death, or was this saying augmented after that event? The present version of Thomas says that the creation was for the benefit of James the Righteous and that disciples wherever they may come to dwell are to appeal to him. I do not believe we should accept this as it stands. I have instead made Jesus say that it was for all those who are righteous. This is similar to Mark’s making the time of the end shortened for the elect’s sake (13:20). The context seems to reinforce the idea that Jesus was saying that their leaders should always be the righteous, not specifically James the Righteous, and that someone has corrupted the text by adding “James” in one or two places. James was the leader of the Church in Jerusalem, so we may have here some indication of the origin of this version.