And he killed James the brother of John with the sword. This was James, the son of Zebedee, whom our Lord told, that he should be baptized with the baptism he was baptized with, Mt 20:22 meaning the baptism of martyrdom; and he was the first martyr among the apostles: the death he was put to was one of the four capital punishments among the Jews, and was reckoned by them the most disgraceful of them all, and was inflicted upon deceivers of the people; and such an one James was thought to be .
Misn. Sanhedrin, c. 7. sect. 1, 3. & 11.