Notes for NTG716
Acts & PaulineEpistles
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Robert C. Newman
Biblical Seminary CONTENTS& OUTLINE FOR
NTG716ACTS & PAULINE EPISTLES
I. Mediterranean Geography 6
A.Physical Features 6
1.Bodies of Water (6)
2.Principal Islands (6)
B.Political Features 7
1.Provinces of Roman Empire (7)
2.Cities (8)
3.Roman Road System (8)
II. The Chronology of the New Testament 9
A.Origin of the Christian Era 9
1.Problems of Ancient Chronology (9)
2.Various Ancient Eras (9)
3.The Christian Era (9)
B.Gospel Chronology 10
1.The Roman Emperors (10)
2.Beginning of Jesus' Ministry (10)
3.Length of Jesus' Ministry (11)
4.Birth of Jesus (11)
C.Apostolic Chronology 11
1.Relative Chronology of Acts & Galatians (11)
2.Some Connections with Secular History (13)
3.Suggested Absolute Chronology (13)
III. Introduction to Acts 15
A.Title of Acts 15
B.Text of Acts 15
C.Authorship of Acts 17
1.External Evidence (17)
2.Internal Evidence (19)
D.Destination of Acts 21
E.Date of Acts 22
1.Various Suggestions (22)
2.Positive Evidence (24)
F.Historical Accuracy of Acts 25
1.History of Opinion (25)
2.Testable Data (27)
G.Purpose of Acts 30
H.Sketch Outline of Acts 31
IV. Exegesis of Historical Passages 32
A.Preparation for Exegesis 32
B.Genres in Acts & Epistles 32
C.Historical Passages & the Genre "Narrative" 33
V. Paul's Early Epistles and Eschatology 35
A.The Early Epistles: 1-2 Thess and Gal 35
1.Letters of the Hellenistic Period (35)
2.Thessalonian Epistles (39)
3.Galatians (43)
B.Pauline Eschatology 50
1.Downpayment (50)
2.Nearness of the End (50)
3.Death & Intermediate State (50)
4.Israel (51)
5.Man of Lawlessness (51)
6.Rapture (51)
7.Parousia (52)
8.Resurrection (52)
9.Millennium (52)
10. Judgment (52)
11. EternalState (52)
VI. Exegesis of Theological Passages 53
A.What is a "Theological Passage"? 53
B.Recognizing a Theological Passage 53
C.Exegeting a Theological Passage 53
VII. Mid-Term Test 55
A.How to Study 55
B.What to Study 55
VIII. Gentile Background to the NewTestament 57
A.Hellenism 57
1.The Greek Language (57)
2.Greek Religion (57)
3.Greek Philosophy (58)
4.The Greek City (58)
5.Greek Art, Rhetoric, Literature (59)
6.Greek Athletics (59)
B.The Roman Empire 60
1.The Emperor (60)
2.The Empire (60)
3.The Army (60)
4.Taxes (61)
5.The People (61)
6.Transportation (62)
7.Roman Coinage (62)
IX. Paul's Middle Epistles andSoteriology 64
A.1 & 2 Corinthians 64
1.The City of Corinth (1)
2.The Church in Corinth (2)
3.Background to 1 Corinthians (2)
4.Occasion of 1 Cornithians (2)
5.Sketch Outline of 1 Corinthians (3)
6.Background of 2 Corinthians (4)
7.Sketch Outline of 2 Corinthians (5)
8.Integrity of 2 Corinthians (6)
B.Romans 70
1.Order in the New Testament (70)
2.The City of Rome (71)
3.The Church in Rome (71)
4.Date and Place of Writing (73)
5.Occasion of Romans (73)
6.Sketch Outline of Romans (74)
7.The Integrity of Romans (74)
C.Pauline Soteriology 76
1.Summary (76)
a.Man's State
b.Man's Salvation
2.Pictures of Salvation (77)
a.Salvation
b.Redemption
c.Pardon
d.Justification
e.Cleansing
f.Healing
g.Reconciliation
h.Adoption
i.Regeneration
j.Resurrection
k.Creation
3.Some Additional Words re/ Salvation (79)
a.Donation (Grace)
b.Selection (Election)
c.Propitiation
d.Circumcision
e.Baptism
f.Lord's Supper
X. Exegesis of Controversy Passages 81
A.What is a Controversy Passage? 81
B.Identifying a Controversy Passage 81
C.Exegeting a Controversy Passage 81
XI. Paul's Prison Epistles andChristology 83
A.Prison Epistles 83
1.Introduction (83)
2.Ephesians (87)
3.Colossians (91)
4.Philemon (93)
5.Philippians (95)
B.Pauline Christology 97
XII. Exegesis of Exhortation Passages 99
A.What is an Exhortation Passage 99
B.Recognizing an Exhortation Passage 99
C.Exegeting an Exhortation Passage 99
D.Word Studies 100
XIII. The Pastoral Epistles & LastDays of Paul 102
A.The Pastoral Epistles 102
1.Recipients (102)
2.Authenticity (104)
3.Paul's Activities after Close of Acts (110)
4.Dates for Pastoral Epistles (111)
5.Outlines (112)
B.The Death of Paul and the Other Apostles 112
1.Scriptural Information (112)
2.Extra-Scriptural Information (114)
I.Mediterranean Geography
A.Physical Features
1. Bodies of Water
a. MediterraneanSea
called "Great Sea" in OT, notnamed in NT, called "Mare Internum" by Romans
b. Black Sea
Nof Asia Minor
c. Aegean Sea
betweenGreece and Asia Minor
d. Adriatic Sea
today restricted to area betw Italy andGreece; in NT times, sometimes viewed extending to Central Med (Acts 27:27)
e. Ionian Sea
sometimeslower part of Adriatic is so named
f. Tyrrhenian Sea
triangularsea betw Italian boot, Sicilian football, Corsica and Sardinia
2. PrincipalIslands
a. Cyprus
NE corner of Med; Metal copper named forisland; evangelized by Paul & Barnabas on 1st mj, Acts 13
b. Crete
S of Aegean Sea, below Greece and AsiaMinor; home of ancient Minoan civilization before 1400 BC; Titus put in charge of Xn work here byPaul (Tit 1:5)
c. Sicily
football being kicked by Italian boot
d. Malta
S of Sicily; very small, but famous forPaul's shipwreck, Acts 27
e. Patmos
about 50 mi SW of Ephesus; even smaller,hundreds of islands in Med this big; site of John's banishment when he wroteRevelation
B. Political Features (1st cen AD)
1. Provinces of Roman Empire
a. Syria
Palestine included for miltary purposes
b. Egypt (Aegyptus)
almost a private preserve of Emperor, toguarantee supply of grain for Rome and its dole
topoor
c. Cilicia
Paul'snative province
d. Galatia
central Asia Minor
Paul's1st mj in S part of province
e. Asia
notcontinent, but western Asia Minor
f. Macedonia
N ofGreece
Paulvisited on 2nd mj
g. Achaia
Greeceproper
h. Other Provinces
Brittania, Gallia, Hispania, Mauretania,Africa,
Cyrenaica, Italia, Illyricum, Moesia, Bithynia,
Pontus, Cappadocia
2. Cities of Roman Empire
NOTE: 1,2,3 are largestcities; A,B,C mark famous schools
a. Jerusalem k.Miletus
b. Caesarea l.Ephesus
c. Tyre m. Troas
d. Damascus n.Philippi
e. Antioch(Syria)(3) o. Thessalonica
f. Tarsus (C) p.Athens (A)
g. Pisidian Antioch q. Corinth
h. Iconium r.Rome (1)
i. Lystra s.Alexandria (2,B)
J. Derbe
3. Roman Road System (see Yamauchi, NT World,117)
eventually a 1/4 millionmi system of paved roads!
| 
4 |
a. Via Appia
fromRome E to heel of boot
b. Via Egnatia
across Macedonia, sort of extensionof Via Appia
c. Old Route across
central Asia Minor; used by Paulfrom Antioch to Ephesus
d. Palestinian Roads
many upgraded to Roman quality in 2nd cenAD
II.The Chronology of the New Testament
A.Origin of the Christian Era
1. Problems of Ancient Chronology
Destruction of records
Useof differing calendars
Useof regnal years of various rulers
2. Various Ancient Eras
several attempts tosolve problem of regnal years by using systems spanning centuries
a. Olympic Era (Ol)
by olympiads (units of 4 years), then numbering years w/in olympiad
started approx July 1, 776 BC
used by many Greek & Hellenistic historians
b. Roman Era (AUC)
from year of founding of Rome (ab urbe condita)
somedisagreement on starting year until 1st cen BC
finally settled on starting January 1, 753 BC
used by most Roman historians
c. Seleucid Era (AS - anno Seleucidae)
from year of founding of Seleucid dynasty
started Oct 7, 312 BC (Macedonian calendar)
or Apr 3, 311 BC (Babylonian calendar)
most widely used ancient era: used in 1 & 2 Macc,
Josephus, Eusebius
d. Jewish Eras
(1)Destruction of 2nd Temple
occurred Aug 5, AD 70
used in Palestine & some medieval Heb works
(2)Era of World (AM ‑ anno mundi)
measured from creation of world
using Masoretic Text, no gaps, some guesswork
starts Sept 21, 3761 BC
e. Era of Diocletian
fromaccession of Diocletian as Roman emperor; starts Aug 29, AD 284
3. The Christian Era (AD ‑ anno Domini)
a. Dionysius the Little
monastic scholar who devised AD system
using information avail at his time (525 AD)
identified AD 1 with AUC 754
Xn era uses Roman calendar, year beginning Jan 1
b. Resulting Synchronisms
AD 1 = AUC 754 = Ol 194,4/195,1 = c312 AS
B. Gospel Chronology
1. The RomanEmperors
Inpractice, most inscriptions, coins, etc dated by rule of emperors, etc., ratherthan by AUC
era; w/ thousands of such items, most Roman events can bedated closely
EMPEROR DATE BIBLICALOR OTHER EVENT
Augustus 30 BC ‑ AD14 birth of Christ
Tiberius AD14‑37 death& resurrection of X
Gaius 37‑41 statueto temple
Claudius 41‑54 faminein East, Ac 11:28
expelsJews, Ac 18:2
Nero 54‑68 persecutesXy; death of Peter & Paul
‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑
Galba, Otho, 69:year of the 4
Vitellius 68‑69 emperors
‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑
Vespasian 69‑79 destructionof Jerusalem
Titus 79‑81
Domitian 81‑96 2ndmajor persecution
‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑
Nerva 96‑98
Trajan 98‑117 deathof John
Hadrian 117‑138 Bar-Kochbarevolt
2. Beginning ofJesus' Ministry: AD 26/27 or 28/29
a. In reign of Tiberius (14‑37) and Pilate (26‑36)
b. JohnB's ministry dated by Luke 3:1 as beginnning in 5th yr of Tiberius:
AD 28/29 if from beginning of sole reign
AD 26/27 if from beginning of coregency
c. Jesuscast out moneychangers early in ministry, when temple had been 46 yr inrebuilding:
Josephus, Ant 15.11.1 gives startingdate as 19/18 BC, so 46 yrs later = 26/27
or if measured from completion of naos = 28/29
d. Summary
two choices; most presently favor earlier of two as better fittingaccepted date for Jesus' birth
3. Length of Jesus'Ministry
forus who accept biblical data, choices are 2+ and 3+ years, depending oninterpretation of
John4:35 and John 5:1
results range from AD 29 to 33 for crucifixion & resurrection; commonestview is AD 30
4. Birth of Jesus:about 5 BC (or possibly 2 BC)
a. Reign of Augustus(Luke 2:1), so betw 30 BC and AD 14
b.Herod still alive, so no later than 4 BC by standard view; eclipse of moonmentioned by
Josephus (Ant 17.6.4) calc for 12Mar 4 BC; but Ernest L.Martin argues for a later eclipse
in 1 BC
c.Census of Quirinius (Lk 2:2): a point of much debate, as only recorded censusin AD 6;
prob Lk refers to an earlier("first") census
d.Jesus about 30 years old at beginning of ministry (Lk 3:23): works nicely for birth shortly
before Herod's death: e.g., if bornDec, 5 BC, would have been 30 on Dec, AD 26; need to
rework chron of Herod or take 30 yrsrather loosely to get later dates for Jesus' public
ministry
C. Apostolic Chronology
1. RelativeChronology of Acts and Galatians
a. ChronologicalReferences in Acts
1:3 Jesus appeared todisciples for 40 days
betw resurrection & ascension
11:26 Paul & Barnabas inAntioch for 1 year
before famine visit to Jerusalem
18:2 Prisc & Aquilarecently from Rome because
Claudius forced Jews to leave
18:11 Paul taught in Corinth 1‑1/2years
[2nd miss journey at least 2 years]
19:8 Paul preached inEphesus synagogue 3 mo
19:10 Paul taught in sch ofTyrannus 2 years
20:31 Paul's summary toEphesian elders: 3 yr
20:3 Paul in Achaia 3months
[3rd miss journey at least 3 or 4 years]
24:27 Paul in prison Caesarea2 years
28:11 Paul's groupshipwrecked on Malta 3 mo
28:30 Paul under house arrestin Rome 2 years
[dates dense near end of Acts, rare at beginning]
b. ChronologicalReferences in Galatians
1:18 Paul's 1st visit toJerusalem after
conversion was 3 yr after
2:1 Paul made anothervisit 14 yr later
[ambiguity: 14 yr from when? what visit is this?]
c. Attempting a RelativeChronology from Close of Acts
EVENT RELATIVE YEAR
Close of Acts 0
Paul reaches Rome ‑2
Paul leaves Caesarea ‑3
Paul arrested in Temple ‑5
3rd m.j. ends ‑6
begins ‑9?
2nd m.j. ends ‑10?
begins ‑12?
Jerusalemcouncil ‑13?
d. Attempting a Rel. Chron. from Conversion of Paul
EVENT RELATIVE YEAR
Paul's conversion 0
1st Jerusalem visit +3
Jerusalem council +14 or 17
2. Some Connectionswith Secular History
a. Death of HerodAgrippa I: AD 44
narrated in Acts 12:23 and Josephus, Ant 19.18.1
b. Edict of Claudius: 49
mentionedin Acts 18:2 and Suetonius, Claudius 25
but no date given until Orosius (c415)
c. Gallio, Proconsul ofAchaia: 51‑53
Acts 18:12 and Delphi inscription
d. Accession of Festus:57‑60
Acts 24:27; ref to byJosephus several times, but
date of accesssion not given
of possible range given above, 59‑60 seems more
likely in view of Paul's remark to predecessor
Felix in Acts 24:10
e. Roman Fire: night ofJuly 18/19, AD 64
Nero later blames Xns, persecution begins
f. Fall of Jerusalem:late Aug, 70
g. Domitian persecution:AD 95‑96
probably occasion of John's exile to Patmos
3. SuggestedAbsolute Chronology of NT Events
YEAR BC/AD EVENT
5BC Birthof Jesus
26/27AD Beginning of Jesus' Ministry
30 Resurrectionof Jesus
32‑37 Conversionof Paul
44 Deathof James, son of Zebedee
48‑50 1stMissionary Journey
50 JerusalemCouncil
51‑53 2ndMissionary Journey
54‑58 3rdMissionary Journey
58‑60 Paulimprisoned, Caesarea
61‑63 Paulimprisoned, Rome
63ff Paul'slater travels
64 Romanfire; Xy becomes a crime
64‑68 Deathsof Peter & Paul
70 Fallof Jerusalem to Romans
95‑96 Johnon Patmos
after 98 Deathof John; end of apostolic age
III. Introduction to Acts
A. Title of Acts
‑Titles vary between manuscripts, as in Gospelsalso.
‑The shortest title occurs in Sinaiticus (!):ΠΡΑΞΕIΣ
which means "activities" or "bookof activities".
‑This is probably too short to be original;typically
need another name in genitive to show whose actsnarrated
‑A slightly longer form occurs in thesubscription to !
and also in the title of B, D, Ψ, and a fewothers:
ΠΡΑΞΕIΣΑΠΟΣΤΟΛΩΝ
(like ancient titles for activities of indiv,city)
‑Some longer forms, adding ΤΩΝand/or ΑΓIΩΝ, seem later.
‑The longest is "The Acts of the HolyApostles (by) Luke
the Evangelist."
‑Thus the title may not be original, but canhardly be
later than 150 AD due to the divergence of textfamilies.
B. Text of Acts
‑Manuscripts available about the same as for theGospels,
though some (e.g., p29, E) containActs only (see Metzger,
Textual Commentary on the Greek NT).
‑The main peculiarity is the difference between
the Alexandrian and Western texts:
-The Alexandrian text (p45 p74 !A B C Ψ 33 etc.) is shorter,
lesscolorful, sometimes more obscure;
‑The Western text (p29 p38p48 D syrh* ith Cyprian Augustine)
isalmost 1/10 longer, more picturesque, circumstantial:
Some examples:
[N]= Nestle only lists variant; [U] = UBS also lists:
[N] 11:28 ‑ "WHEN WE WEREGATHERED TOGETHER, one of them said"
‑This extra we‑sectionoccurs with Agabus the prophet in
Antioch and may imply thatLuke was from Antioch.
‑The Alex. and Byz. texts use"they" (3rd person) here.
[N] 12:10 ‑ "they went out ANDDOWN SEVEN STEPS and ..."
‑As Peter is fleeing from thejail. Alex. omits.
‑Western family adds a detail.
[N] 14:2 ‑ "the brethren, BUT THE LORD QUICKLY GAVEPEACE"
‑Alex. text does not explainhow the stirred‑up crowd
was calmed so that v.3 wouldmake sense: "therefore
they spent a long time..."
‑Western addition smooths andadds detail.
[U] 15:20 ‑ substitutes golden rule for "thingsstrangled"
‑This one affects the outcomeof the Jerusalem council.
‑Alex. text has"strangled, blood" which looks more like
the ceremonial law.
‑West. text has golden rule,blood (murder) which looks
more like the moral law.
[U] 19:9 ‑ "from the 5th to the 10th hour" (11 AM to4 PM)
‑Paul's teaching at the nearbyschool is specified to be
during the time of day whenthe regular classes would
not be in session.
‑The Greeks normally took a"siesta" during the hot part
of the day.
‑Note the addition of historical details, smoothing, adding
Luke's presence, and the golden rule substitute.
Theories offered to explain these variations:
(1) Two editions by original author, Alex. later
JeanLeclerc, J.B. Lightfoot, developed by F. Blass
West- original, rough; Alex - refined
(2) Two eds. by original author, West. later
GeorgeSalmon
Lukegave public readings, adding West material to explain, etc.
(3) Western text interpolates
Westcott& Hort, W.H.P. Hatch, F.G. Kenyon, M. Dibelius
Haphazardgrowth of text during 1st & 2nd centuries
(4) Alex. original, West. text a later revision (not byauthor)
J.H.Ropes, R.P.C. Hanson
(5) West. original, Alex. a revision
AlbertC. Clark
Metzger,w/ HŠnchen, think West. text secondary, but both (3) and (4) above involved,plus peculiarities of D alone
UBS,Nestle committees not agreed on which theory correct, so eclectic; generallyfavor Alex., but feel some West. readings are factually accurate.
C. Authorship of Acts
1. External Evidence: unanimous for Luke
a. Muratorian Canon ‑ Italy ‑ 170‑190 AD
"The Acts however of all theApostles are written in one book. Luke puts it shortly to the most excellent Theophilus, thatthe several things were done in his own presence, as he also plainly showsby leaving out the passion of Peter, and also the departure of Paul from townon his journey to Spain."
‑"All the Apostles" appears strange as most are notfollowed
in Acts. This term probably was used to distinguish Acts
from the many heretical Acts of individual Apostles
(Peter, Paul, etc.).
‑The further comments look like a guess for why the book
ends where it does: Luke wrote only what he saw.
‑But Luke does not claim that all things recorded were done
in his presence, only the "we" passages.
‑Better to say Luke did not include the other events as
they had not occurred yet.
b. Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyon ‑ France ‑ c180 AD
"Now, that this Luke wasinseparable from Paul and his fellow‑worker in the Gospel, he himself made clear, not vaunting,but guided by truth itself. Forwhen both Barnabas and John,who was called Mark, had departed from Paul and had sailed to Cyprus, he says: 'We arrived atTroas.' And when Paul had seen aMacedonian man in a dream saying: 'Come over intoMacedonia and help us, Paul,' he says: 'Immediately wesought to proceed into Macedonia, knowing that the Lord had called us to proclaim the Gospel to them.'"
AgainstHeresies 3.14.1
‑Irenaeus student of Polycarp, student of John in Asia Minor.
‑"Not vaunting" means not advertising his own name (doesnot
say"I, Luke" anywhere).
‑Refers to 2 of the we‑sections.
‑In Against Heresieshe cites or mentions Acts over 50 times,
referringto it as Scripture and as by Luke.
c. Clement of Alexandria ‑ Egypt ‑ 150‑203 AD
"... even as Luke, in the Acts ofthe Apostles, makes mention of Paul, who said: 'O men of Athens, in all things I perceive that you arevery religious.'"
Miscellanies 5.82.4
‑Cites Luke as author, names the work, quotes from Acts 17.
‑In these 3 sources from before 200 AD, we find Luke called
the author 3 times, the book's title given 2 times,and 3
quotations or allusions made which identify the textwith
that which we have today.
d. Tertullian ‑ NorthAfrica ‑ (c200 AD)
‑Many quotations as Scripture, says by Luke.
e. Eusebius ‑Caesarea ‑ (c 270‑340AD)
"But since we have reached thispoint, it is reasonable to sum up the said writings of the New Testament. Indeed, the holy quaternion of theGospels must be arranged among the first books which the book of the Acts of theApostles follows... Among the spurious must be placed alsothe book of the Acts of Paul... All these would be among the disputed writings; but nevertheless ofnecessity we have made a catalogue of these also... in order that we should beable to know these same writings and those produced by the heretics indeed inthe name of the Apostles, as if containing the Gospels of Peter and Thomas and Matthias, or beside these, even of someothers, or as if containing the Acts of Andrew and John and of the other Apostles; none of which anyoneof successive generations of churchmen ever deemed worthy of mention in atreatise."
ChurchHistory 3.25
‑Eusebius had access to the largest Christian library in the
world. Was started by Origen, had the Hexapla, etc.
‑Notes there are no writings of early church fathers who
mention as legitimate any Gospels or Acts beyond thecanonical
4 Gospels and Acts.
‑The unanimous testimony of the church at c200 AD is that the
Acts we have today was written by Luke, Paul'scompanion.
There is no external evidence pointing to anyone else.
2. Internal Evidence: also points to Luke
‑Writer does not give his name, but the internalclues
are stronger than for any other NT book whichdoes not
explicitly name its author.
a. The "we" sections
16:10‑17 Writer present with Paul on the journey from
Troas to Philippi (2nd miss. journey, c51 AD).
20:5‑15 Returning with Paul from Greece (end of the 3rd
missionary journey, c57‑58 AD).
[break for Paul's sermon to Ephesian elders].
21:1‑18 Continuing on to Jerusalem. Total trip is from
Philippi to Jerusalem (3rd MJ).
27:1‑28:16 Trip from Caesarea to Rome. (c60 AD).
‑Luke may have spent the timein Palestine researching
and writing the Gospel of Lukeand early Acts.
‑These sections give the impression that thewriter was
present on these 3 trips, but did not want tointrude
himself strongly into the narrative.
‑Liberals who want to avoid Luke as the authorsay some
later editor used a diary.
‑But even if it is the diary of an eyewitness,it records
miracles and early agreements among the Apostlesabout
theology, which liberals don't like.
b. As the writer was with Paul in Rome, we can look at the
prison epistles we assume were written fromthere and
see who was with Paul.
Aristarchus ‑All 4 are mentioned by name inActs,
Mark but in the 3rd person, whereas author
Timothy refers toself in 1st person in
Tychichus prologue to Acts
Demas ‑Laterdeserted Paul so hard for him to
write Acts.
Epaphras ‑Delegates sentfrom Colosse and
Epaphroditus Philippi to Rome. No evidence they
traveled there initially with Paul.
Jesus Justus ‑Hasa mixed Jewish and Latin name,
implying he knew Latin and was probably
a Roman, but otherwise we know nothing
of him. A possibility.
Luke ‑Iscalled a physician in Col. 4:14.
‑Can more or less eliminate all these butthe last two.
c. Linguistic argument
‑see William Kirk Hobart, Medical Language of St.Luke.
‑Finds that Luke‑Acts contains an unusual amountof medical
terminology characteristic of the Hippocratic school of
medicine known from writings of Hippocrates (300 BC) and Galen
(200 AD).
‑The healing incidents show the use of more technicalterms
than the other Gospels.
‑Also see the natural use of medical terms innarratives
which reflect a medical influence (just as scientific terms
["data base," "model," etc.] tend to occur naturallyin
these notes since they were produced by physicists).
Conclusion: Actswas written by a companion of Paul who
had a detailed knowledge of NT-period medical terminology.
As only one companion of Paul is called a physician, the
author was most likely Luke.
D. The Destination (or recipient) of Acts
‑"Theophilus" is cited as the recipient inActs 1:1.
‑Tho Luke probably wrote for a larger audience, hededicated it
to this person who might underwrite/encourage its publication
(common in secular literature; Josephus' Antiquities was
dedicated to Epaphroditus).
‑Since Theophilus means "one who loves God,"some take this
as an allegorical name, like "Everyman" or"Christian"
‑This may seem plausible to us, as few names in ourculture make
sense in English.
‑But in Greek and Hebrew cultures, theophoric (deity‑carrying)
names were common; the Greek ones usually involved obviously
pagan deities (in 3 John: Gaius, Demetrius, Diotrephes).
‑Thus Theophilus is a valid Greek name, and such asmight have
been adopted by a Jew (since deity name not explicitly pagan).
‑Greeks would not expect a name like this to beallegorical.
‑Also the titleκράτιστε (Luke 1:3) would hardly beused
with an "everyman" figure, as it is a title of respect used
for people with higher social status, governmental authority.
‑Luke uses it 3 times when referring to the procuratorsof
Judea (Acts 23:26, 24:3, 26:25).
‑Since Luke does not use this title for Theophilus inActs, some
propose that Theophilus became a Christian between Luke & Acts;
Christians didn't address each other with titles.
‑Can't prove this.
‑καηχέω in Luke 1:4,"so that you might know the exact truth
about the things you have been taught," supports this idea, but
Luke could be writing a further explanation to a non‑Christian.
‑Can reasonably conclude that Theophilus was a realperson
in a governmental or high social position. Luke may have known
him from Antioch (Luke's probable home) or from one of the
places he stayed.
E. Date of Acts
1. Various suggestions
a. 2nd century AD
‑This view was common in radical circles in the19th cent.
under F.C. Baur's influence.
‑Baur applied Hegel's thesis‑antithesis‑synthesistheory
to church history. Saw early conflict between Jewish and
Gentile elements in James and Galatians;but since Acts
has everything blended, it must be late=> middle or end
of the 2nd cent. AD, when the old catholicchurch formed.
‑Such a late 2nd cent. view has been weakened bylater
archaeological findings; still, many liberalswould date
Acts at around 100‑120 AD.
b. 94‑100 AD
‑Proposed by A.S. Peake at Univ. of Manchester.
‑Noted common features in Acts and Josephus' Antiquities,
so suggested that Luke borrowed from Josephus.
‑This would date Acts after the Antiq. (pre‑94AD).
‑Peake's evidence comes from 2 overlapping passages:
1) Antiq. 20.5.1‑2 (20.97-100) and Acts5:36‑37.
‑Gamaliel (Acts) mentions two revolts: byTheudas, and later by Judas of Galilee.
‑Josephus lists them in reversechronological order.
[Fadus, AD 44-46; Tiberius, 46-48]
‑Sufficient details of Judas aregiven in Acts and Antiq.
to identify them as references tothe same event.
‑Peake sees Theudas as a clear errorby Acts.
‑Actually three possible explanations:
a) Liberals say one author must be wrong,so it must be
Luke.
‑Peake says Luke copied fromJosephus sloppily here.
b) But Luke as seen elsewhere is a carefulhistorian, as
was Josephus.
‑Is more reasonable thatJosephus made the mistake, as
Luke is writing closerto the event.
c) There were two rebels named Theudas.
‑Many Jewish rebels werefrom the same families, so
there could be agrandson relationship here.
‑The name"Theudas" was common enough that they could
have been twoindependent men.
‑In any case, no evidence of literarydependence here.
‑Both refer to same names, butdetails are different.
2) Antiq. 19.8.2 (19.343-53) and Acts 12:19‑23
‑Death of Herod Agrippa I (c44 AD).
‑His death contributed to the instability whichcaused the
Roman war in 66 AD.
‑He was a Jewish king (both a Herod and aHasmonean) and
liked by the Romans and most everyone.
‑Acts: Was addressing the people of Tyre and Sidon at
Caesarea, did not give glory to God; was struckby angel
of the Lord, eaten by worms, and died.
‑Antiq.: Was atspectacle at Caesarea, addressing a crowd,
did not rebuke men who called him divine; saw anowl (bad
omen), was overcome with abdominal pains; diedin 5 days.
‑As this event (death of a famous and pivotalJewish leader)
was rather well‑known, there is no needfor literary
dependence, especially due to the uniquefeatures in each.
‑These are very weak parallels to base a literary dependence
theory upon.
c. 70‑80 AD (after the fall of Jerusalem)
‑Many liberals and some "conservatives" hold this view
(e.g., Sanday, Zahn).
‑Date Acts after Luke, but date Luke after the fall of
Jerusalem in order to post‑date the prophecy of its
destruction given in Luke 21:20.
‑Seems completely unnecessary, since God knows future.
d. 62‑64 AD
‑This is the standard conservative position, and is based
on the events narrated in Acts (see below).
2. Positive date evidence from the scopeof the book
a. Earliest date possible, c61 AD
‑The last procurator mentioned is Porcius Festus; Paul then
travels to Rome, stays there c2 years (book ends).
‑The accession of Festus was not likely to have been before
59 AD.
b. Latest date likely
1) Paul's death is not hinted at or mentioned.
‑Very strange if Acts was written after it.
‑Liberals say Luke stopped there becausehis audience knew
the rest of the story.
‑But we don't know much.
‑Tradition from a century later: Paul wasmartyred near
Rome under Nero, who committed suicide in68 AD.
‑Eusebius dated Paul's death atabout 67 AD.
=> Acts was written before 68 AD.
2) Attitude of Roman Empire to Christianity is favorable or
neutral in Acts.
‑Christianity was viewed as a sect of Judaism,so legal.
‑But after July 64 AD, the attitude changeddrastically.
‑Disastrous 12‑day fire in Romeburned much of the city.
‑Nero's men were suspected of starting it.
‑Nero shifted the blame to Christians; putmany to death.
‑Became illegal even to be a Christian(cf. Pliny's letter
to Trajan) for the next 250 years.
‑No hint of this hostile atmosphere in Acts.
‑Luke does not react negatively toofficials or vice versa.
‑Christians had freedom to live in peaceand spread views.
‑How could hostile atmosphere not appearif Acts was
written after these events?
3) Abrupt ending of Acts ‑ suggests was brought up to date.
‑Gives full descriptions until the closingsentence.
‑Could be a summary sentence because he expectedto write
a 3rd volume (of which there is no knownrecord).
‑Not sure what volume would include unlessit was written
much later (c95 AD as some suggest).
‑Zahn argues from Greek in Acts 1:1 that3rd was planned.
¹ρωτov = first ofseveral (in Classical Greek).
¹ρoτερov = firstof two (like "former").
‑This holds for Classical Greek, but inHellenistic Greek,
¹ρωτov can be used foreither meaning.
‑Although Luke uses the most Classicalstyle in the NT, he
is still very Hellenistic in generalusage.
‑Is most reasonable that Luke brings us up to date at the
end of Acts and no time has elapsed between the lastevents
and its writing.
‑Luke knows nothing of the disastrous events which are soon
to befall Christianity at this time.
‑Thus the latest possible date for Acts would be c64 AD.
F. Historical Accuracy of Acts
1. History of Opinion
‑Among Christians until the Enlightenment, Acts was
considered very accurate historically.
‑During Renaissance, some began to cast doubt on all ancient
documents.
‑Continued trend away from Acts' historicity until recently.
‑Reached low point with work of F.C. Baur (c1850)
Christianityand the Christian Church of the First Three
Centuries(1853).
‑Baur thought Acts was a propaganda documentwhich showed
how the early church in the 2nd century liked tothink of
early Christianity: harmony between apostles, allenemies
on the outside. Baur claimed strong division within Xy.
‑But with the rise of archeology in these territories in
the next generation, general opinion has risengreatly.
William M. Ramsay ‑ Scots theologian trained inskeptical view of historicity.
‑Became interested in archeology of AsiaMinor.
‑Studied inscriptions.
‑Realized Baur's view of unreliability ofActs was incorrect.
‑Became more and more conservative withtime.
Some of his books:
The Historical Geography of Asia Minor, 1890.
The Church in the Roman Empire Before A.D.170, 1893.
St. Paul, The Traveller and the Roman Citizen, 1895.
A Historical Commentary on St. Paul'sEpistles to the Galatians,1899.
The Cities of St. Paul, 1907.
The Bearing of Recent Discovery on theTrustworthiness of the New Testament,1915.
Ramsay concluded that "Luke was anhistorian of the first
rank." Not only was he an accurate chronicler (geography,
places, names) but had a true historic sense(picked out
significant events and important points for hispurpose).
‑Ramsay's work has not been overturned.
‑Naturally, those who deny miraculous cannotconcede that
Luke is accurate in his reports of miracles, sothere is
still much suspicionconcerning Acts.
‑Complaints against the history in Actsare not from the
data, but from those who dislike itshistoricity.
‑Recent evangelical treatments:
F.F. Bruce, New Testament Documents: Are TheyReliable?
I.H. Marshall, Luke: The Historian andTheologian.
A.N. Sherwin‑White, Roman Society andRoman Law in the New Testament.
- Sherwin-White comments:
"As soon as Christ enters theRoman orbit at Jerusalem, the confirmation begins. For Acts the confirmation of historicity isoverwhelming. Yet Acts is, insimple terms and judged externally, no less of a propaganda narrative than theGospels, liable to similar distortions. But any attemptto reject its basic historicity even in matters of detail must now appear absurd." (189)
‑Cannot discount historicity just becauseauthor was a
Christian.
2. Testable data regarding historicity
a. Official Titles
‑Roman Empire was a patchwork of governmentsbecause parts were acquired at different times:
‑Egypt: Emperor's private property.
‑Imperial provinces: controlled by emperorif area was in
danger at the present for somereason: revolt, at edge
of the empire, etc.
‑Emperor sent out rulerscalled procurators, propraetors,
or prefects (name depended onthe area).
‑Senatorial provinces: "safe"areas controlled by senate.
‑Senate sent out proconsuls.
‑A province could (and did) switch backand forth
between the two types.
‑Significant to find Acts having the righttitle at the right time, since control sometimes switched.
‑Acts is always right.
1) •vθύ¹ατoς =proconsul (Greek equivalent to Latin term)
= head Roman official of senatorial province.
‑was a common term.
derivation:Greek translation of Latin t.t.
•vθz = previously, formerly (pro).
ˆ¹ατoς = consul.
Acts 13:7,8,12 ‑ Sergius Paulus, proconsul at Cyprus.
‑confirmed by inscriptionfound in 1865 in Cyprus with his
name, called it senatorial province.
Acts 18:12 ‑ "Gallio was proconsul of Achaia"
‑Achaia had switched:senatorial (27 BC ‑ 15 AD)
‑> imperial (15‑44 AD)
‑> senatorial (after 44 AD)
‑Gallio was proconsulc51‑53 (have inscription).
Rest of titles were not so well known from antiquity, asrarer.
‑Some once suspected that Luke invented these names asgeneral
descriptive titles. Nowseen to be technical terms.
2) ¹oλιτάρχης = "cityruler"
Acts 17:6,8 ‑ city authorities at Thessalonica.
‑Now known from 19 inscriptions to be the
proper technical title for leaders in
Macedonian cities.
3) •σιάρχης= "leaders of Asia" (province of Empire)
Acts 19:31 ‑ Asiarchs befriended Paul at Ephesus.
‑Technical term for leading men inAsia, several at
Ephesus, elected by citizens fromwealthiest and most
aristocratic, in expectation theywould personally finance
public games and festivals; later werehigh priests of
imperial religion, but not in 1stcentury (McRay,
Archaelology & the NT, 255); friendship with Paul is
evidence of early date of Acts (Bruce, NTHistory, 319).
4) ¹ρŠτoς = "chief" or"first" man
Acts 28:7 ‑ leading man of the island Malta, Publius.
‑Both Greek and Latin inscriptions show this
was the proper title for the ruler of Malta.
b. Geographical References
‑Numerous and accurate: 32 countries, 54 cities, 9islands in the Mediterranean Sea ‑ all put in the right place.
‑For example: Paul's voyage and shipwreck, Acts 27.
James Smith, The Voyage and Shipwreck of St. Paul, gives a very sophisticated account,including Greek and Latin inscriptions from various locations.
‑Sailed the whole route and was amazed at Luke's accuracy.
‑Shows it was consistent with the weather, theway the wind blows and how ancient ships were handled (to prevent being blowninto North Africa).
‑Felt he could fix the very spot on which thewreck at Malta occurred.
‑Concluded Luke was not a sailor (as he didn't use technical terms),but was an experienced traveller, acquainted with seamanship, and able toconvey details to common people.
‑Is considered one of the most detailed and accurate accounts of asea voyage from antiquity.
c. Problem passages: not claiming we knowanswer to everything.
1) Reconciliation of Luke and Paul concerning Jerusalem Councilin Acts 15 and Gal. 2.
-Events are clearly similar, but differ on some details. E.g.,
privatevs. public meeting,
didn'tadd anything to Paul vs. Jerusalem decision re/ Gentiles to abstain from food
offeredto idols, blood, etc.
‑Evangelicals disagree whether Gal. 2 refers to Jerus Council.
(Newman,et al, think it does; Bruce, et al, don't).
‑Suggest Paul is writing to those who are already familiar with theCouncil and its letter (his
opponentscertainly knew of it) so he doesnot need to go over it again but just deals
withparticular problems, perhaps in answer to their claims.
2) Luke (Acts 12:20-23) and Josephus (Ant. 19:343ff) concerning the death of HerodAgrippa I.
"(343) Now, when Agrippa hadreigned three years over all Judea, he came to the city Caesarea, which wasformerly called Strato's Tower; and there he exhibited shows in honor ofCaesar, upon his being informed that there was a certain festival celebrated tomake vows for his safety. At whichfestival, a great multitude was gotten together of the principal persons, andsuch as were of dignity through his province. (344) On the second day of whichshows he put on a garment made wholly of silver, and of a contexture trulywonderful, and came into the theatre early in the morning; at which time thesilver of his garment being illuminated by the fresh reflection of thesun's rays upon it, shone out after a surprising manner, and was so resplendentas to spread a horror over those that looked intently upon him; (345) andpresently his flatterers cried out, one from one place, and another fromanother (though not for his good), that he was a god; and they added, "Bethou merciful to us; for although we have hitherto reverenced thee only as aman, yet shall we henceforth own thee as superior to mortal nature."(346) Upon this the king did neither rebuke them, nor reject their impiousflattery. But, as he presentlyafterwards looked up, he saw an owl sitting on a certain rope over his head,and immediately understood that this bird was the messenger of ill tidings, asit had once been the messenger of good tidings to him; and fell into thedeepest sorrow. A severe pain also arose in his belly, and began in a mostviolent manner. (347) He therefore looked upon his friends, and said, "Iwhom you call a god, am commanded presently to depart this life; whileProvidence thus reproves the lying words you just now said to me; and I, whowas by you called immortal,am immediately to be hurried away by death. But I ambound to accept of what Providence allots as it pleases God; for we have by nomeans lived ill, but in a splendid and happy manner." (348) When he saidthis, his pain was become violent. Accordingly he was carried into the palace;and the rumor went abroad everywhere, that he would certainly die in a littletime. (349) But the multitude presently sat in sackcloth, with their wives andchildren, after the law of their country, and besought God for the king'srecovery. All places were also full of mourning and lamentation. Now theking rested in a high chamber, and as he saw them below lying prostrate on theground, he could not himself forbear weeping. (350) And when he had been quiteworn out by the pain in his belly for five days, he departed this life, beingin the fifty‑fourth year of his age, and in the seventh year of hisreign."
Josephus,Antiquities of the Jews,19.8.1-2 (343-350)
‑Details vary: angel; owl, etc.; but no indication that Luke is mistakenon any point
G. Purpose of Acts: Why did Luke write it?
‑Key verses in introduction give hints:
1:1 - former work "about all that Jesus began todo and teach".
‑implies a theme of whatJesus continued to do and teach through the Holy Spirit and by
meansof the apostles.
1:8 Outlines the book, describing the progress of the Gospel from Jerusalemto Rome.
‑Empowering by theHoly Spirit is seen as continuing the ministry of Jesus after He was
takenup.
‑By extension from Luke 1:1‑4: so Theophilus might know thecertainty of the history of the
earlyChristian church.
‑i.e., this purpose of Luke is continued intoActs.
H. Sketch Outline of Acts
Scale: "|" =approximately 1 chapter.
‑Structure appears consciously to follow Acts 1:8:
Outline Verse: 1:8 ‑|----------------------------------|
| |
| The Gospel spreads |
| in Jerusalem |
At end of each | |
section are | |
Summary/ 6:7 ‑|‑-------‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
Transition | |
Verses: | Through Palestine |
| |
9:31 ‑|‑-------‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| |
| To Antioch |
| |
12:24 ‑|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-------‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| |
| To Asia (Minor) |
| |
16:5 ‑|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-------‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| |
| |
| To Europe (Greece) |
| |
19:20 ‑|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-------‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| |
| |
| |
| |
| ToRome |
| |
| |
| |
| |
28:31 ‑|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-------‑|
(also a summary at close)
‑Some of these transition versesare quite brief
-The idea common to all references is the increasing growth of the church.
IV.Exegesis of Historical Passages
A.Preparation for Exegesis:
Somefeatures we need to continually build
1.English (native language) Bible Knowledge
OThas 929 chapters, NT has 260, total 1189
Needto read several chapters/day
Oncethru per year: 3.26 chs/day
4chs/day: thru OT once, NT twice
2.Biblical Language Competency
Keepup via regular translation, vocab review,
grammar(Pastor Al Jackson: thru Metzger yearly)
TVTrecommends verse/day from each testament
3.Bible Background
Specialstudy for specific passages
commentaries,encyclopedias
berealistic: don't overkill & then give up
Widereading:
haveread over 50 books/yr since 1968
over100 for six of these
usuallyover 50 in religion
4.Spiritual Insight
Gainedthru experience w/ own problems, plus learning
viahelping others with theirs
Crucialto have a close communion, love for Lord
B.Genres in Acts & Epistles
Genre:a type of literature
maybe as broad as distinction between prose/poetry
maybe as narrow as limerick, parable
Genrescovered in class exegesis:
1.Narrative:
Acts15:22-29 combines both (1) and (2)
TP:Acts 10:34-46 combines (1) and Sermon
Frequentin Acts
2.Letter:
seeabove
somesubgenres below in next major section
3.Diatribe:
1Cor 15:12-28 (eschatological)
TP:Rom 4:1-11 (soteriological)
Jamesuses this genre
4.Controversy/Polemic:
Col2:8-23 (Christological/soteriological)
TP:Gal 3:6-14 (soteriological)
5.Exhortation:
1Tim 6:11-21
Genresnot covered in class:
6.Miracle Account:
Frequentin Acts: covered in Synoptics
7.Hymn, Poem:
TP:Col 1:15-20 may be such (Christological)
8.Sermon:
evangelisticin Acts
somethink 1 John and Hebrews belong here
9.Discourse:
TP:Col 1:15-20 (Christological)
TP:2 Thess 2:1-12 (eschatological)
10.Doxology:
Frequentat end of epistles
e.g.,Rom 16:25-27
11.Thanksgiving:
Frequentat beginning of epistles
e.g.,1 Cor 1:4-9
12.Prayer (Report):
Frequentnear beginning of epistle
e.g.,Eph 1:15-23
C.Historical Passages and the Genre "Narrative"
Not allhistorical passages are in the narrative genre, and not all narratives need behistorical. Due to inspiration ofScripture, non-historical narratives would only be found in parables, etc. But a historical passage might be aletter (as in Acts 15, above), or part of a hymn (Pss 105-06), or such.
1. Usethe standard newpaper reporter's questions to sketch out what ishappening: who? what? when? where?why? how? etc.
2. Be onthe lookout for major terms, especially ones which are puzzling orambiguous. Here we must look forthe ambiguity of the word in the Greek, as translators into English or whatevercan hardly be expected to preserve the ambiguities of the originallanguage. Do each of the variouspossible meanings of the Greek word make any sense in this passage? If so, does it make any difference?
3. Howdoes the event fit into the overall flow of salvation history? How does it fit into the immediatecontext that the author has given it? Does this help us to understand what is going on?
4. Checkover some commentaries to see if the historical background sheds any light onthe passage. If some particularactivity, custom, etc., seems to be important in the passage, see if youcan find out more about this in a Bible encyclopedia or such.
5. Whatfeatures of the narrative does the author seem to be emphasizing? Look for repetition, positioning, etc.
6.Historical narratives are generally the easiest parts of the Bible tounderstand (with some definite exceptions!) but they are often the hardestto use for preaching and teaching. Some directions in which to investigate:
Exemplary(1 Cor 10:6): Are we to imitate oravoid imitating particular persons, actions, attitudes?
SalvationHistorical (Acts 1:1): What doesthe narrative tell us about what God, Jesus, Holy Spirit, apostles,are doing in God's redemptive program?
Theological(Rom 1:21-2:16): What does thenarrative show us about human nature, about wickedness, righteousness, and whatsorts of things can happen in a fallen world which is yet in the process ofbeing redeemed?
Typological(Heb 2:13-14): For OT narratives,how do they prefigure major themes in redemption, particularly the work ofChrist?
V. Paul's Early Epistles and HisEschatology
A. The Early Epistles: 1-2 Thessalonians,Galatians
‑About 1/2 of the NT is in the form (genre) of letters (includingRevelation)
-1 John and Hebrews may be sermonic form, though sent as letters.
1. Letters of the Hellenistic Period and Paul's Letters
a. Normal format of an ancient letter
1) Sender(s) ‑‑ nominative case. Like modern letterhead.
2) Recipient(s) ‑‑ dative case. To so-and-so.
3) Greeting ‑‑ infinitive (usuallyχαίρειv)
‑Meaning: Rejoice!
‑Usually translated as "Greetings."
‑‑ may involve comments about health of either sender orrecipient
4) Text of letter.
5) Closing ‑‑ takes various forms.
‑In abusiness letter, may be omitted, or be
"Farewell ¤ρρωσo- 2s perf. m/p impv.
(be healthy)" ¤ρρωσθε- 2p fromρώvvυμαι
‑An informalletter may include greetings from
friends, etc. ‑ •σ¹άζoμαι.
Biblical Examples:
‑In the NT, we have 2 letters besides NT books themselves:
(1) Acts 23:26ff Letter sent with Paul from the Tribune to the governor atCaesarea.
Sender ‑‑ "Claudius Lysias"
Recipient ‑‑ "To the most excellentgovernor Felix"
(Note: same title as Theophilus has)
Greeting ‑‑"Greetings" (χαίρειv)
Text
Closing ‑‑ "Farewell" (in some manuscripts).
(2) Acts 15:23ff Letter sent by the Jerusalem Council.
Sender ‑‑ "The Apostles and brotherswho are elders"
Recipient ‑‑ "To the brethren inAntioch and Syria ..."
Greeting ‑‑"Greetings" (χαίρειv)
Text
Closing ‑‑ "Farewell" (¤ρρωσθε).
‑Note this is also a business letterformat.
Extra-biblical examples:
Loeb CL, Selected Papyri,3 vol. set of secular materials:
v.1 Private ‑ agreements, receipts, wills,letters, prayers.
v.2 Public documents.
v.3 Literary papyri.
We are interested in vol. 1. (#266 in LCL series)
‑Same format in these letters, but sometimes give date also.
‑Recipient's name was on the outside of the scroll.
‑Remarks about health are common here (not so much in Paul):
e.g.,1:91, 93, 96, 104
‑Letter no. 1:107 has personal closing salutations,
asdo 1:110, 111, 112, 113.
-¤ρρωσo/θεoccurs in 1:89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 96.
b. Paul's modifications of standardletter format
1) Longer letters; all sections tend to be longer.
‑Philemon is the exception, and is typical ofthe length of
letters in Loeb.
‑Example: Romans:
sender 6 vv.
recipient lengthenedslightly
greetings lengthenedslightly
text 15 chapters
closing 27 vv.with greetings
2) Greetings and closing were characteristically Christian.
‑χαίρειv isneutral term and is sometimes used by Xians (cf. the Jerusalem Council).
‑But Paul used χάρις(grace) and ε®ρήvη (peace, from Shalom)
andsometimes he added "mercy".
‑Closing frequently has a benediction (a prayerfor them or praise to God)
insteadof "be in good health."
‑cf. Romans 16:25‑27.
3) Text is often divided into didactic and hortatory sections.
‑Could be a result of having a long letter.
‑Is used as an argument against Paulineauthorship of Hebrews where doctrine and exhortation
alternate.
‑Hebrews follows more of a sermon format,so this could explain the difference.
c. Dictation of Letters
‑Rom. 16:22 "I, Tertius, who wrote thisepistle" indicates that Paul dictated some of his letters
toa "secretary."
‑Some think this was because of an eyesight problem,but it was a common practice in this
period.
‑Non-biblical letter papyri (being autographs) showthat most letters were written by
professionalscribes: handwriting of the main part is very nice (=> professional writer)
butshifts to less neat hand at the end when the actual author wrote a note orsigned his
namehimself.
‑See R.N. Longenecker, "Ancient Amanuenses and thePauline Epistles" in Longenecker and
Tenney,New Dimensions in NT Study(1974) ‑ a Festschrift celebrating ETS's 25th year.
‑We know Paul often added a few words in his own hand,
1 Cor. 16:21 "The greeting is in my own hand CPaul."
2 Thess. 3:17 ‑ Paul says this is his regularpractice, even if he does not always explicitly
mentionit.
‑Possibly done to guard against forgeries:
2 Thess. 2:2 ‑ Don't be shaken by "letteras if from us."
‑Presumably also indicates Paul had proofread hisletter.
d. Suggested Chronology of Paul's Letters
1) 2nd Journey, 50‑53
1 and 2 Thessalonians (written at Corinth,c52)
‑if any before this, notchosen to survive.
2) Between 2nd and 3rd Journeys
Galatians (Antioch, c53)
3) 3rd Journey, 54‑58
1 Corinthians (Ephesus, c55)
2 Corinthians (Macedonia, 57)
Romans (Corinth, winter 57‑58)
4) 1st Imprisonment at Rome, 61‑63
Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians,Philemon
5) Between Imprisonments, locations unknown, after 63
1 Timothy, Titus [Hebrews]
6) 2nd Imprisonment at Rome, 64‑68, (date of deathuncertain)
2 Timothy
e. Classification of Paul's Letters byContent
1) Eschatological: 1‑2 Thessalonians
2) Soteriological: Galatians, 1‑2 Corinthians, Romans
3) Christological (or Prison): Ephesians, Philippians,Colossians, Philemon
4) Ecclesiological (or Pastoral): Titus, 1‑2 Timothy
‑Same as chronological order, but mainly a memory device
-Some letters don't fit well into these categories:
Soteriologyis poor classification for 1‑2 Cor.
Christologyis poor classification for Philemon.
2. Thessalonian Epistles
a. Background
1) City of Thessalonica was renamed at the time of Alexander for hisstep‑sister.
‑Hellenizers often 1) founded a new cityin a good location (like Alexandria) or
2)renamed an existing city.
‑When Rome took over Macedonia in 146 BC,they made Thessalonica the capital.
‑It was strategically located on ViaEgnatia, the major east‑west road from Rome to
AsiaMinor (w/ sea-links);
seemap of Roman Road system on p 8.
‑Romans really improved road qualityso travel much easier ‑ nothing better till 20th century.
2) First visited by Paul on 2nd miss. journey, Acts 17:1‑9.
‑Although only 3 synagogue services (=>2+ weeks) are mentioned (17:2),
Paul'sletters suggest his total stay was longer than this:
1 Thess. 2:9 "worked night andday" to set an example.
‑ sounds longer than 2 weeks.
Phil. 4:15‑16 ‑ they sent agift to Paul more than once
while he was in Thessalonica.
=> at least 2 months.
3) Also fits with converts, Acts 17:4, which included:
‑Jews
‑devout Greeks (ones who had contactwith the synagogue but were not proselytes)
‑prominent women (probably Romanwomen, since Jews and Greeks had already been
mentioned,but can't say for sure).
1 Thess. 1:9 ‑ Apparently the majority ofconverts were pagans who came after Paul had
preachedin the synagogue, mostly former idolators.
1 Thess. 4:1‑5 ‑ Still had problemswith fornication.
‑Nucleus of church: Jews and Greeks fromsynagogue, some prominent women
andmany pagans.
‑Eventually unbelieving Jews raise a moband Paul is forced to leave city.
b. Place from which Paul Wrote
‑Paul was probably in the same place for both letters.
‑Corinth is most likely, although some late (400‑500 AD)manuscripts (as in KJV)
havea subscription saying "from Athens by Timothy [i.e. carrier]."
‑Other texts say Corinth or Rome (?) instead ofAthens.
‑Have similar problem in Titus, where internalevidence disagrees with late subscription.
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‑Paul went from Thessalonica toBerea (both in Macedonia), but was soon forced to leave there also (Acts 17:10‑15). Paul is taken to Athens (v.15), leavingTimothy and Silas behind. Paul requests them to comequickly while he waits in Athens.
‑Berea to Athens: 1 Thess. 3:1implies Timothy came to Paul in Athens but was sent back to Thessalonica before1 Thess. was written. (Silasprobably came also, but may have been sent to another church, probably Berea orPhilippi).
‑Athens to Corinth: In Acts 18:1,after little success in Athens, Paul goes to Corinth and meets Silas andTimothy from Macedonia (18:5).
‑1 Thess. 3:6 (with 3:1)implies Timothy has come from Thess. twice at the time 1 Thess. was written.
‑Since 2 Thess. deals withsimilar problems, it was probably written soon after 1 Thess. As Paul was in Corinth for 18 months,probably 2 Thess. was written from there also, perhaps after Timothy and Silasreturned from delivering 1st letter.
c. Occasion of 1 Thessalonians
‑Paul had been run out of Thessalonica by the mob.
‑Jason was captured and forced to put up a bond (probably a peacebond, which he would forfeit
iffurther violence over this matter occurred in the city).
‑On account of this bond on Jason, Paul probably feels he cannotreturn (cf. 1 Thess. 2:18).
‑Timothy (3:6) and Silas (infer from 1:1 and 3:1) came from Thess. (perhaps with a delegation)
withnews of doctrinal confusion and persecution in the months‑old church.
‑Opponents apparently charging that Paul is an opportunist who has"abandoned ship" when
thingsgot rough.
‑Since Paul cannot go and deal with the problems in person, hesends a letter to the church.
d. Contents of 1 Thessalonians:
‑Huddleston, Acrostic Bible: -NIVStudy Bible (Leon Morris)
F = Faith of Thess. church Thanksgivingfor Thess (ch 1)
A = Apostolic labors in Thess. Defenseof Apos actions (2-3)
I = Investig. of ch's welfare Exhortationto Thess (4:1-5:22)
T = True love betw Christians ConcludingPrayer, Greetings,
H = Hope in Christ's return Benediction (5:23-28)
‑The themes in 1 Thess. are scattered throughout the book, so thisis a listing rather than
anoutline:
1) Persecution: Paul awareof their severe trials, exhorts them to remain steadfast, and is
pleasedwith their endurance: 1:6, 2:14‑16,3:3‑8.
2) Holiness: As many hadcome out of a pagan background, he encourages them against falling
backinto the pagan sins of immorality, fraud, laziness, etc.: 3:12‑4:12, 5:14‑23.
3) Slander: Paul defendsself against charges raised by his enemies (the Jews?):
a)That he sponged off his converts: 2:1‑12
(workedday and night to support himself, unlike the traveling philosopher‑teachers).
b)That he abandoned them when things got hot: 2:14‑3:7
(sayshe does not want to be away and sent Timothy instead).
4) Confusionregarding the 2nd Coming:
‑2nd coming mentioned in everychapter: 1:10, 2:19, 3:13, 5:23.
‑Paul deals with specific problem of thosewho die before the 2nd Coming in 4:13‑18.
‑The early church did not know when the2nd Coming would occur, whether in their lifetimes
ornot (nor do we!).
e. Occasion of 2 Thessalonians
‑Less information on the motivation for the letter, but isprobably due to continued confusion
regardingthe 2nd Coming.
‑The source of the confusion seems to be a forged letter claimingto be from Paul, which
producedanxiety and perhaps idleness, since it claimed the 2nd Coming had already
occurred:
‑Note 2 Thess. 2:2:"spirit" ‑ revelation
or "message" ‑ verbal report
or"letter" ‑ writtennote "as if from us."
‑In 3:17 Paul saysthat he always writes the closing greeting himself, thus his
handwritingserves as a distinguishing feature in all genuine letters from him.
f. Contents of 2 Thessalonians (Huddleston; NIV):
D = Descrip. of Thess. faith Introduction(1)
A = Apostasy in last days Instruction(2)
Y = Yield fruit through work Injunctions(3)
‑The themes are quite similar to 1 Thess.
1) Principally on the 2nd Coming.
‑1:6‑10is related to the present persecution.
‑2:1‑12 Some say the Day alreadyoccurred.
‑InRabbinic literature, persecutions were to be the "birth pangs of the[coming] Messiah."
‑But other events which must occurfirst: apostasy and the appearanceof "the man of
lawlessness."
2) Comfort to those who are troubled by:
‑Persecution: 1:4‑7, 3:3.
‑Confusion: 2:1‑3, 13‑17; 3:3, 16, 18.
3) Rebuke to the lazy and disorderly: 3:6‑15.
‑It may be due to sinful habits, orto waiting for the Lord's return (quitting job, etc.).
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5 |
3. Galatians
a. Recipients.
Two major views:
North Galatian Theory
South Galatian Theory
1) North Galatian theory: Paul's letter was sent to the northern, "ethnic,"
regionof the province.
a) This region in North Central Asia Minor was invadedby
Gauls from Europe in 278 BC.
‑Only "cities" in thisarea were: Ankyra, Pessinus, and Tavium. These were not Hellenistic
cities,but were more like fortified camps.
‑This region was little influencedby Hellenistic culture since Gauls entered the area after
Alexanderthe Great had gone through planting Greek cities/culture.
‑Were being "Romanized"through influence of Empire.
b) Paul mayhave visited here for the first time on the 2nd Missionary Journey(Acts 16:6 "and
hepassed through the Galatian region ...") and again on the 3rd journey(Acts 18:23 "he
passedthrough the Galatian and Phrygian regions"), but this is uncertain.
‑Note we have no accounts thatindicate that he did any work there. His earliest possible visit
wouldhave been on the 2nd MJ.
c) Proponents: The Northern theory has been the traditional view back to the 4‑5thcentury
commentators(but by this time the provincial boundaries had been changed) up till
thelate 19th cent. Lightfoot andReicke are 2 moderns who hold this view.
2) South Galatian theory: Paul's letter was sent to the southern part of theRoman province,
whichwas not ethnically Galatian.
a) When the Romans broke up Asia Minor into provinces,they included the southern cities of
PisidianAntioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe as well as the northern ethnic group in the
provincenamed Galatia.
b) Paul visited these southern cities once or twice(counting his return over same route) on the
1stMJ. He visited them a third timeat the beginning of his 2nd MJ.
‑These cities were allHellenistic, having been under Greek culture and language for about 4
centuries.
c) Proponents: Since Ramsay (the first to do archaeology in Asia Minor) put forward his
strongarguments, this view has been generally held. It does not divide liberals and
conservatives. F.F. Bruce is a typical modernproponent.
3) Northern Arguments (Lightfoot):
a) The style of Galatians is similar to Romans.
‑Paulis dealing with the same Jewish‑works problem, but is more polemic inGal.
‑Thismay imply the two were written at about the same time on the same MJ (Ephesians
andColossians are an example of a pair written closely together, dealing with the
samesubject, where one is polemic and the other irenic).
b) The title "Galatians" was more popular as an ethnic term thanas a provincial term.
‑We would not call Scots"English."
c) The Hellenistic natives of Pis. Antioch, Iconium, etc. would beoffended to be called
"Galatians"since the ethnic group was considered barbaric.
d) Several comments in the epistle fit the known character of theancient ethnic Galatians.
‑According to other ancientauthors, they were:
drunken (Gal. 5:21, but in a long list of other sins),
greedy (6:6‑8),
unstable (1:6‑7),
ritualistic (4:9‑10).
4) Southern Arguments:
a) There were many more Jews in the southern region who would be nearerto and concerned
(Acts16:1‑4) or influenced by Judaizing tendencies (the Seleucid kingsimported them as
stablecitizens for founding new cities).
b) Paul uses provincial names elsewhere when he writes (Macedonia,Judea, etc.) to label
peoplein those places.
‑Lukeapparently does not. (answerto 3b above)
c) Ramsay notes that people of Antioch, etc., who were not Romancitizens derived their
Romanbenefits from inhabiting the Roman province, hence the title"Galatians"
wouldnot be an insult to them. (answerto 3c above)
d) Note that Paul is not trying to be polite in addressing the Galatians: he omits the
thanksgivingand calls them "fools" later. If the title "Galatians" had bad
connotations,Paul might have used it anyway. (answerto 3c above)
e) The cultural allusions in Gal. fit the Hellenized cities of the southbetter. (answer to 3d
above)
‑TheGauls had only a tribal organization at this point.
‑Paul'scomments regarding adoption laws, etc. presume a Hellenistic background.
f) The Gauls were by now only a minority, even in northern areas, so thetemperament evidence
isnot that significant (nor unique).
g) The churches of Galatia were to be involved in the collection for theJerusalem saints
(1Cor. 16:1).
‑Inthe list of people from local churches who went with Paul to Jerusalem, we find2
fromsouthern Galatia "Gaius of Derbe and Timothy [from Lystra]" in Acts20:4,
andnone mentioned from northern Galatia.
‑Couldargue that the list is not complete or the N. Gal. group joined them later,though.
h) Barnabas is mentioned in Gal. 2:13 as if the Gal. churches werefamiliar with him.
‑"EvenBarnabas was carried away" would draw surprise from a group who had been
evangelizedby Barnabas.
‑YetBarnabas had only been on the 1st MJ in S. Gal.
i) The "you" reference in Gal. 2:5 most naturally refers to theGalatians: "so that the truth of the
Gospelmight remain with you."
‑Thisreading presumes Gal. 2 is discussing the Jerusalem Council and implies thatthe
Gal.were believers before it occurred (c50 AD). Thus the Gal. were saved during
the1st MJ and before the 2nd.
‑But"you" could have a more general reference to "Gentiles" ratherthan to the Gal. in
particular.
‑Also,if Gal. 2 refers to the famine visit which preceded the 1st MJ, then the"you" would
alsobe general.
5) Conclusion on Recipients
The evidence is hardly overwhelming, but the southerntheory looks somewhat stronger.
b. Date of Galatians.
‑This, of course, depends on who the recipients were.
Ifnorthern view, then we can't date the letter before Paul was in No. Galatia atleast once
andprobably twice (Gal 4:13).
Ifsouthern view, then we have the following possibilities:
1) Before the Jerusalem Council (49‑50AD).
‑Paulwrote from Antioch in c49 AD.
‑This view is held by F.F. Bruce. His logic:
‑Paul returns from 1st MJto Antioch to find trouble there (Acts 14).
Peteris there and Gal. 2 incident occurs.
‑Paul learns that theJudaizers have also been up in the Gal. region.
‑Paul writes this letterbefore he leaves for Jerusalem.
(F.F. Bruce is trying toharmonize Gal. 2 and Acts 15 by seeing them as
2independent events. This is quitepossible).
2) Written on the 2nd MJ.
‑Paul wrote from Corinth inc51 AD.
‑This view is held by H.Ridderbos. His logic:
‑Paul is spending 18months in Corinth, after Jerus. C.
‑He has founded Gal.church, given them Jerus. decree.
‑Gets word thatJudaizers are still making gains in Gal.
‑Writes letter as heis too tied up to go personally.
‑Ridderbos sees Gal. 2 andActs 15 as different events at the Jerus.
Council. Acts 15 shows the formal proceedings,while Gal. 2
showssome behind-the-scenes discussions.
3) Written between the 2nd and 3rd MJs.
‑Paul wrote from Antioch inc53‑54 AD.
‑This view is held byRamsay. His logic:
‑Paul has justreturned from the 2nd MJ, hears of the problem but is not
ableto go immediately, so writes.
‑Also sees Gal. 2 andActs 15 as both Jerus. Council.
‑All3 of these views date Galatians before Paul could have visited the northern
regionstwice (if we take the Acts passages to imply a northern visit at all).
‑Gal. 4:13 ‑‑"the first time I visited you" is strong evidence that Paul had
visitedthe recipients more than once.
‑This is not possible (if we limitourselves to Acts data for N. Galatia)
untilthe 3rd MJ for northern view.
4) Written on the 3rd MJ.
‑Earliest plausible date for No.view, but also possible for So. view.
‑Lightfoot places Paul in Greece,writing in c57 AD.
‑Most others place Paul inEphesus, writing c55‑57 AD.
Note: Views 2) through 4) all say Galatians 2is describing same event as Acts 15.
Paul
saved
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|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑X‑|‑‑‑X‑‑‑‑‑‑X‑‑‑‑‑‑X‑‑‑‑|
30 40 [______] 50 [______] [______] 60
<‑c14 years ‑> ^ 1 MJ ^ 2 MJ 3 MJ
| |
Famine visit Jerus. Council
‑Note that if Gal. 2 is the famine visit (44‑46AD), then Paul is saved "too quickly" after the
resurrection(30 AD).
This weakens Bruce's model (see time-line in the appendix of LaSor'scommentary Church
Alive).
‑Newman feels that Ramsay's view is best, especially inlight of the Gal. 1:1‑2 greeting:
‑The sender section says"Paul and all the brothers with me."
‑In Paul's other letters, the co‑sendershave a connection with the recipient group in
somedirect way.
‑The members of another missionchurch (Corinth or Ephesus) would not have this tie;
butAntioch C the "mother" church which sentPaul out and which witnessed the
Gal.2 incident and the Jerusalem Council C would have this relationship.
‑Since Bruce's date is too early, the only other time Paul was inAntioch was between the 2nd
and3rd MJs.
5) Summary of Factors Involved in determining a date forGalatian letter:
a)Relation of Acts 15 and Gal. 2 - same or different?
b)Relation of Romans and Galatians ‑ similar style.
c)Identity of co‑senders in Gal. 1:2 - Antioch?
d)"You" in Gal. 2:5 - Galatians or Gentiles in general?
e)2 visits? ‑ Gal. 4:13.
c. Occasion of Galatians
‑The Galatians had been strongly influenced by"Christian" teachers of a Jewish background
whowere demanding conformity to the OT ritual laws (2:12ff; 3:2‑5; 4:9‑11,17;5:1‑6).
‑These Judaizers apparently also attacked Paul as notbeing a "real" Apostle (Paul answers this
chargein 1:1,12,15‑16; 4:12‑17; 6:17).
‑Note that "apostle" meant "someone sent on acommission" in Greek and was not a special
Christianterm as yet.
‑At the time of Paul's writing, the Galatians havebegun to keep Jewish holidays and festivals
(4:10), but most have not yet beencircumcised (5:2).
‑Since circumcision was such a big step (this made onea "Jew" in both Jewish and pagan eyes),
perhapsthe Gal. sent to Paul for his opinion before taking it.
d. Contents of Galatians
Introduction (1:1‑10)
‑See the standard sender, recipient, greeting,but no thanksgiving(this is PaulÕs only church
letterwithout one).
‑This probably indicates the seriousness of thedanger in Paul's mind: the Gal.may fall for a
differentreligion.
Historical Arguments (1:11‑2:14)
‑Apostleship (1:11-24): Paul is a true apostle by direct andindependent appointment by Christ
(keyverse 1:12).
‑Agreement (2:1-14): Paul's gospel agrees with other Apostles' gospel (keyverses: 2:6‑9,
1:8‑9;also seen at the Jerusalem Council). The Judaizers' "gospel" doesn't.
Doctrinal Arguments (2:15‑4:11)
‑Justification (2:15-3:18) is by grace ratherthan by works (key verse 3:11).
‑Purpose of the Law (3:19-4:11) is todemonstrate man's predicament (key 3:21‑22).
TheLaw should make men aware of sin and despair of their own efforts to keep it.
Exhortation (4:12‑6:18)
-Sarah/Hagar illustration (4:21-31): based on Isa54:1ff in addition to Gen 16-21.
‑Final charge (5:1‑4): if you become circumcised, you are askingGod to judge you by works.
Youwill be condemned.
‑Motives of the Judaizers (6:12‑13):
‑Fear persecution(making converts to be Jewish prosyletes would avoid such).
‑Desire to have alarge following (to boast).
‑Final sting: Those who are circumcised don't even keep the Lawthemselves, because they are
unableto (6:13).
B. Pauline Eschatology
-The doctrines concerning death, secondcoming, eternal state, etc.; i.e., doctrines
relatingto "last things."
-See Bruce, Paul: Apostle of theHeart Set Free, chap 27
and Ridderbos, Paul: An Outlineof His Theology, chap II
-Consider various topics of eschatologyas sketched below:
1.Downpayment/Earnest ‑Holy Spirit within believer as "already" of glorified state
2 Cor 5:5: HS asdeposit, guaranteeing what is to come
Rom 8:23: HS asfirstfruits; waiting redemption of bodies
2 Cor 3:18: beingtransformed into His likeness w/ ever‑increasing glory
2. Nearness of End ‑ difficult to understand
On one hand: Soon
Php 4:5: Lord is at hand
1 Cor 7:29: time is short
Rom 16:20: God will soon crushSatan
On other hand: Time Unknown
1 Th 5:1‑2: will comelike thief
Rom 11:12,25: when full numbersaved
Yet: Signs and Specific Events Precede
2 Th 2:2‑3: rebellion& man of lawlessness
1 Th 5:3‑4: shouldn'tsurprise believers
Thisparadoxical presentation is often used by liberals to argue various strata in theNT, but it is present in both Gospels and epistles.
3. Death & Intermediate State
Death as Sleep
1 Cor 11:30: believersmisusing Lord's Supper
1 Cor 15:6,18,20: believerswho have died (but note context of v 18)
Depart to Be w/ Christ
Php 1:20‑26
At Home w/ the Lord
2 Cor 5:1‑10
body as building,tent, garment (1‑4)
intermediate stateas unclothed? (3)
Jesus Will Bring Dead Believers w/ Him
1 Th 4:13‑15
4. Israel (Rom 11)
At present only small remnant believes(5,17)
Provides opportunity for salvation ofGentiles (11‑12,15)
God able to restore Israel (23‑24)and will do so when full number of Gentiles saved
(12,15,25‑26,29,31)
5. Man of Lawlessness (2 Thess 2)
[Ridderbos makes considerable use of"apocalyptic imagery" to explain away detailed
features]
He arises before Day of Lord (3)
Held back until proper time (6‑8),the apostasy? (3)
Individual human (3) empowered by Satan(9)
Misleads unbelievers (10) thru miraculouspower & deception (9‑10)
Opposes & exalts self above all Gods(4)
Sets himself up in God's temple (4)
Destined for destruction (3) at Jesus'coming (8)
[Close parallels w/ Dan 11:36‑12:3 (esp 36‑37);7:21‑27; Matt 24:15‑31 (esp 15);
Rev13:11‑17]
6. Rapture ‑ gathering of believers to bewith Lord
1 Cor 15:51‑52: at last trump, deadrise, living changed
1 Th 4:13‑18: at coming of Lord
[close parallels w/ Matt 24:26‑35;see Waterman, JETS 18(1975): 105‑113]
7. Parousia ‑ 2nd coming of Christ
Freq referred to as: parousia (coming),epiphany (appearance), revelation, or "the day"
1 Th 4:15‑18: Jesus comes from heaven,loud command, voice of archangel, trumpet of God,
resurrection & gathering ofbelievers to meet Lord, be w/ Him forever
2 Th 1:6‑10: punishment ofpersecutors & relief for persecuted when Jesus revealed from
heavenin blazing fire w/ angels; unbelievers punished w/ everlasting destruction;Jesus
glorifiedin & marvelled at by His people
2 Th 2:8‑9: Jesus will destroy manof lawlessness by breath of mouth and glory of coming
8. Resurrection/Transformation
Of believers at Jesus' coming (1 Th 4:14‑17;1 Cor 15:51‑52); not all die, but all changed (51)
Resurrection body (1 Cor 15:35‑49)glorious, spiritual (vs natural, not vs material)
9. Millennium ‑ 1,000 yr reign of Christ; notexplicit in Paul
Strongest passage is 1 Cor 15:22‑28,which appears to picture 3 resurrections:
[1]Christ's (23)
[2]believers at His coming (23)
[3]end‑resurrection when death destroyed (24,26).
[Fits most common Jewish eschatology at NTperiod; app based on Zech 14, Dan 7 and
naturalexegesis of Rev 19‑20]
10. Judgment
Universal: Rom 14:10; 2 Cor 5:10; 2 Tim4:1
Impartial: Rom 2:1‑16
Of Works: Rom 2:6‑10; 2 Cor 5:10
Believers vindicated: 1 Th 1:10; 5:9; Rom5:9
11. Eternal State
Creation liberated from bondage: Rom 8:19‑22
Death destroyed: 1 Cor 15:25‑26
God all in all: 1 Cor 15:24‑28
Unbelievers
perish (Rom 2:12)
everlasting destruction (2 Th1:9)
shut out from God's presence(2 Th 1:9)
Believers
forever with the Lord: 1 Th4:17; 1 Cor 13:12
share His image: 1 Cor 15:49;2 Cor 3:18
VI.Exegesis of Theological Passages
A.What is a "Theological Passage"?
1.Not really a genre, "theological passage" is a description ofthe content ofthe passage.
2.The genre might be a speech in Acts (or the Gospels), describing theperson and work of Christ; or a letter like Romans, with a systematic argumentrunning many chapters; or a poetic passage like Col 1:15-20; or a controversypassage, as we will study in our next genre (Col 2:8-23); or even an exhortationpassage like 1 Cor 13, where love is described.
3.A theological passage is one in which the main emphasis is to describe forus one of the following: what Godis like (theology proper), what humans are like (anthropology), whatChrist has done (soteriology), what the church should be (ecclesiology),what will happen when we die or at the end of the age (eschatology), etc. Obviously combinations of theseare theological passages also.
B.Recognizing a Theological Passage
1.In a typical NT letter, the letter genre is composed of several subunits(Ryken, Words of Life,92):
Opening(sender, adressee, greeting)
Thanksgiving
Body
Exhortation
Closing(final greetings, benediction)
2.A theological passage is most likely to be located in the body of a letter, though Paul sometimes getsin some theological material even in the "sender" subunit! (Rom1:2-6)
3.Paul, especially, tends to organize his letters with a more theologicalemphasis in the body, separating the practical material out into theexhortation section.
C.Exegeting a Theological Passage
seeFee, NT Exegesis,25-50
1.Items shared with any NT genre
a.Read the context.
bestto read the entire document in one sitting if possible
b.Try to figure out where the passage begins and ends.
c.Make an initial translation, noting ambiguities in key words, and variantreadings in the Greek text.
d.How do the sentences fit together?
seethe discussion in Fee, NT Exegesis,60-77
e.Analyze the grammar and significant words.
f.Research the historical-cultural background.
2.Items more specific to letters
a.Sender, receiver(s)
b.What part of letter is passage in?
c.What particular situation in view?
(1)letter as a whole?
(2)passage in particular?
d.What do the details and key words and phrases in our passage tell us about whatthe author is saying?
e.What seems to be the main point the author is making?
f.What is the logical flow of the author's argument? How is he going about making his mainand secondary points?
3.Back to more general items
a.How does all this fit into the broader biblical and theological context?
b.What do other commentators have to say about this passage?
c.Now that you've done all this, how does this amend your original translation?
d.What applications do you see for us today in this passage?
e.Pull all this together for your sermon, Bible study,
VII.Mid-Term Exam
No, this is not the exam. But we will try to give you someinformation on what to study and how. This material is especially designed for the mid-term, but should behelpful for the final exam as well (with suitable modifications), and moregenerally for studying other courses.
A. How to Study
The following is a list of items which,if you do them, will surely improve your grade in this or any course. They are taken from the October 1994issue of The Teaching Professor. Even if (dueto other responsibilities) you don't have time to do all of these, there aresome that take no extra time (## 3-7) and will pay real dividends.
1.I read the assigned reading before we cover that material in class.
2.I allow enough time for reading the assigned material so that I can read itslowly and thoughtfully.
3.I read to understand, because I really want to know the subject we arestudying.
4.I attend class regularly and am rarely or never late.
5.I sit near the front of class, so that I feel like a participant, notmerely an observer.
6.I take notes on virtually everything said or discussed in class.
7.I ask questions in class until the subject being covered is clear in mymind.
8.I get together with several others in the course to review readings and lecturenotes 2 or 3 days prior to the exam.
9.I get a good night's sleep (7 or 8 hours) prior to the day of the exam.
B. What to Study
1.Study the "Contents & Outline" pages in the front of the printednotes (pp 2-5). They wereespecially designed to give you an overview of the course.
2.Study the headings in the notebook below the level of those in the"Contents & Outline" above. They will help to fill in some detail on the framework provided by theoutline.
3.Read over the notebook (sections I through VI) at least a couple of times,using a highlighter to mark what appear to besignificant points. Don't markeverything; that just wastes time!
4.About two-thirds of the exam points will be multiple-choice, short-answer, ormatching, the other third will be essay. Try to see what sorts of material would make a good essay, and what ismore likely to be short-answer or such. Here working with some other students in the class can be very profitable.
5.Regarding memorization, I don't think that is the best strategy forseminary-level courses. Try tounderstand what is being talked about in each section of the notes. Try to visualize the history, thearguments, etc. But don't assumejust having a general idea of what the course is about will identify dates orpersons for you!
VIII. Gentile Background to the New Testament
A.Hellenism
1.The Greek Language
Traceable back to before 1400 BC, theGreek language was spread all over the Middle East by the conquests ofAlexander the Great, 333-323 BC, and by the subsequent colonizationstarted by him and continued by his successors, the Seleucids (Syriaand Asia Minor) and the Ptolemies (Egypt). Greek quickly became the language of international trade,and the language of the upwardly mobile, since it was the Greekcity-states in this area that had the wealth, power, and influence.
With the Greek language came Greekculture, as sketched below. Sincethe Greek word for Greece is "Hellas," the Greek verb for "tolive like a Greek" was "Hellenizein." "Hellenism" is the name forthe Greek culture as it is appropriated by non-Greeks, and"Hellenist" is apparently the term used to designate non-Greeks whohad adopted Greek culture to a significant extent.
2.Greek Religion
The Greeks believed in and worshippedmany gods and goddesses, of whom the best known are probably Zeus, Apollo,Athena, Aphrodite, Artemis and Poseidon. The deities were viewed as immortal but not having always existed;as powerful, but not omnipotent. The gods knew everything about what humans were doing, but were capableof tricking and deceiving one another. Though they expected good behavior on the part ofhumans, they were also sometimes cruel and brutal.
Each god or goddess had certainrealms in which they were especially powerful. Zeus was god of weather, Poseidon ofthe sea, Athena of wisdom and craftsmanship, etc. A human who has going to be involved inone of these realms had better be sure he was on the good side of the god orgoddess who ruled it. Sacrificewas the way to get a god on your side; as one Greek proverb said, "Giftspersuade the gods." Thevarious Greek city-states typically viewed one of the gods or goddesses astheir own particular protector. Athena (naturally) was so viewed by Athens, Poseidon by Corinth,Artemis by Ephesus.
Morality was not typically a strong pointwith the Greek deities, and this came to be viewed as something of a scandal bysome of the Greek philosophers. Given the sexual escapades reported of Zeus in Greek mythology, itis no wonder that the Greco-Roman world had such low standards of sexualbehavior. Most worshippers of theGreek gods and goddesses seem to have viewed them as forces to be placated inorder to get on with one's own life, rather than as models for behavior andbeings worthy of dedication of one's whole being.
Syncretism, the mixing of elementsbetween religions, is common among polytheistic religions, and those of Greeceand Rome were no exception. Thechief Greek god Zeus came to be identified with the Roman Jupiter (and theSyrian Baal), Aprodite with Venus, Artemis with Diana, etc. Other deities were being imported fromEgypt and the East even during the first century AD.
The mode of worship in Greece (and Rome)seems to be quite ancient, sharing some features with OT worship, and soprobably going back to the Flood at least. The temple is viewed as the god's or goddess' house; sacrificeis food offered to the deity; a special priesthood is necessary to take care ofthe temple and to see that rituals are performed properly.
3.Greek Philosophy
One of the unique features of Greekculture was their interest in philosophy, literally "love ofwisdom." In actual usage theterm meant an attempt to understand ultimate reality without recourse toreligion. This activity may havehad its roots in near eastern wisdom traditions, but the earliest knownpractitioners were the pre-Socratic philosophers in the Greek cities of AsiaMinor (6th cen BC): Thales, Anaximander,Anaximenes and Anaxagoras.
The best-known Greek philosophers areSocrates, his disciple Plato, and his disciple Aristotle (400s-300s BC). Plato founded the Platonic school ofphilosophy and Aristotle the Peripatetic, but by NT times these had beeneclipsed by two other schools, the Stoics and the Epicureans, mentioned in Acts17:18.
The Stoics inclined toward belief in a single God,who filled the universe with purpose. A spark of the divine existed in every person, so that all shared acommon brotherhood, including barbarians, women and slaves. The Stoic ideal was to live a life ofvirtue no matter what misfortune should come one's way. Stoicism caught on at Rome, and becamethe dominant view among philosophically-inclined Romans.
The Epicureans were considered atheists by many of theancients (though so were the Christians!). They believed that matter was the ultimate reality; that thesoul dies with the body; that the gods exist, but are made of a special sort ofmatter, and have no interest in the affairs of humanity. The chief goal of Epicureans was tolife a life untroubled by pain or worry, and they sought to achieve this byavoiding any desires that they could not satisfy.
4.The Greek City
Unlike most ancient societies, the basicpolitical unit of the ancient Greeks was the city, each functioning as aseparate state until the conquest of Greece by Philip and Alexander theGreat. This was apparently due toGreece having no large agricultural areas or unifying features like amajor river and their having rejected kingship early in their history. The upshot was that rule was local,sometimes by an aristocracy, later by democracies or a small clique.
The population of a city consisted of fullcitizens (whose adult males had a voice in local affairs), other residents(whether local or foreign), and slaves. The idea of citizenship rights and responsibilities, and of local pride,became strong in such a context. Many cities, as their population became too large to be supported by thesurrounding croplands, sent out colonists to start new cities elsewhere,and the home city became the metropolis (mother city).
The idea of the Greek city was spreadinto the East with the conquests of Alexander. The Seleucids, especially, founded cities as controlpoints to unify their empire, and these quickly became the dominant commercialsites. With the Greek cities camenumerous Hellenizing influences.
5.Greek Art, Rhetoric, Literature
The Greek "golden age" iscommonly associated with Athens in the period 450-400 BC. Under the direction of the gifted rulerPericles and with significant funds coming in from the Athenian-dominatedDelian League, the arts reached a height in Athens almost unprecedented inworld history. Gifted sculptorsand painters abounded; the marvelous architecture of the Acropolis was built;historians, poets, and dramatists wrote; orators developed their skills to ahigh level. There work came to beconsidered classic by the Greeks in the following centuries, and had greatinfluence among the Romans at NT times, and among Europeans even to this day.
6.Greek Athletics
Greek athletics is somewhat familiar tomost of us today as a result of the revival of the Olympic games at the end ofthe 19th century. Though most societieshave used athletics as a way to train and maintain physical strength forwarfare, the Greeks developed athletic contests to a high level.
By NT times, there were four maincompetitive meets which had been in existence for several centuries, two ofwhich met every four years (Olympic and Pythian games) and two every two years(Isthmian and Nemean games). Besides these, most major cities held games every year or so, and therewere many professional athletes who competed in them.
The main events were various types offootraces, ranging from a dash the length of the stadium (c200 yd) to arace of about 3 miles. [Themarathon was not an ancient event.] Besides racing, there was the discus throw, the javelin, the broad jump,boxing (no gloves, more like brass knuckles!), (Greco-Roman) wrestling, thepankration (wrestling with hitting), and the pentathlon (fr, bj, d, j,w). Paul on occasion makes use offigures drawn from athletics.
Rome developed the chariot race (see BenHur) and human combats(gladiators) as even more exciting spectator sports.
B. The Roman Empire
1.The Emperor
The office of emperor as the chiefexecutive officer of the Roman empire was developed by Augustus during his longreign (31 BC-AD 14). It was aposition of absolute authority, though nominally much of the rule wasconducted with the approval of the Senate (the old ruling council of elders forthe city).
The Latin word "imperator"means one who has power of life and death, but the emperor could also delegatethis power to his governors in the provinces.
Augustus was also called"Caesar," which at first meant nothing more than (adopted) son ofJulius Caesar, but came to be one of the distinct titles of the emperor.
"Augustus" was also atitle (his original name was Octavian) meaning "reveredone." This came close tobeing a divine title, and the emperor was worshipped as a god in many of theprovinces.
TheRoman emperor was by far the wealthiest person in the empire.
2.The Empire
The empire consisted of Rome (the capitalcity), Italy (a rather privileged region), client states (that had alliedthemselves with Rome and were ruled by native rulers), and the provinces(literally, regions previously conquered). The provinces were ruled by governors sent out fromRome either by the emperor (if they were border regions or in danger of revolt)or by the Senate (if they were safe, interior provinces). Egypt was virtually the privateproperty of the emperor because a safe supply of grain was necessary to feedthe poorer classes in Rome.
3.The Army
The Roman army had originally been acitizen army, called up in emergencies to defend Rome. By NT times it was a full-timeprofessional army made up mostly of non-Romans. But a veteran of 20 years' service was retired as a fullRoman citizen, with a bonus of more than 10 years' pay and a plot of land. His descendants would thereafterbe Romans.
In AD 23, the Roman army consisted of 25legions (4800 infantry and 120 cavalry each), for a total army of less than125,000 men (plus auxiliary units), rather small for the size of the empirethey controlled. The discipline,training and organization of the army was superb and there were no armies thatcould match them during the first three centuries of the empire.
4.Taxes
The Roman tax system consisted of bothdirect and indirect taxes. Theindirect taxes C e.g., sales, harbor and inheritancetaxes C were paid by (virtually) all inhabitantsof the empire. Roman citizens,however, were exempt from the direct taxes, which were paid bynon-citizens who lived in the provinces. These consisted of a land tax for those who owned land and ahead tax for those who didn't. Censuses established the population of a province and thus the amount oftax that the governor must collect. In NT times the tax rates were not excessive (by modern standards),though they got worse and worse to the end of the empire. During the 1st century ADthe privilege of collecting taxes was sold to the highest bidders, whowere given a rather free hand, leading to considerable corruption and astrong hatred for tax collectors.
5.The People
Outside of Rome, Roman citizenship was ahigh privilege, as we see in the exchange between Paul and the militarycommander in Acts 22:22-29. Itconferred exemption from certain taxes and the right of appeal toCaesar. Otherwise, non-citizensretained whatever class structure existed in each particular region, withlarge disparities in wealth and influence between upper and lower classes, anda large underclass of slaves.
In Rome, many very poor people might yetbe Roman citizens, as they had been born into the lower classes of thecity. Yet as citizens, they wereexempt from direct taxes, eligible for the public dole of food given out by theemperor, and were entertained by the various public shows provided ("breadand circuses"). In principlethey were far above the resident foreigners and slaves, though in practicethis was not necessarily so, as the dole and entertainment tended toundercut any incentive to labor.
The upper classes of Rome consisted ofthe emperor and his family on top, the Senatorial order next, and theEquestrian order (also called Knights) below them. The Knights often became very wealthybecause they were permitted to engage in business but the Senators were not.
Slavery was widespread Cperhaps 1/3 of the population of Rome was in slavery Cand the slaves had virtually no civil rights. In practice, some slaves were treated well, and the slavesof a wealthy family might easily have far more privilege and power than poorercitizens. It was not uncommon forslaves to be freed, either at the death of their master, or by purchasing theirfreedom in one way or another.
6.Transportation
The empire made the Mediterranean and itsconnecting seas safe from piracy. Transport by sea was far more convenient than land transport, but thetechnology of shipbuilding in the ancient world was such that sea travel wasnot safe during the winter months.
The Romans by the end of the 1st cen ADhad built some ¼ millionmiles of paved roads, forming a network converging on Rome. The roads were laid as straight aspossible, cutting into hills and bridging over valleys. The roads had curbs, with excellent paving3-5 feet thick, using stone and concrete. They were narrow by our standards, with four"lanes" each about 8 feet wide.
Roman bridges were one of important usesof the arch, an architectural device developed by the Romans.
7.Roman Coinage
usuallydated by consulate of reigning emperor
obverse(front) usually ruling emperor
reverseusually a deity or personification
coininscriptions rather standard, e.g.:
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TI CAESAR DIVI AUG F AUGUSTUS / PONTIFMAXIM
TiberiusCaesar, Son of Divine Augustus, Augustus /
Pontifex Maximus (chief priest of Romanreligion)
IMP CAES VESPASIAN AUG PM TRPPP COS III / IUDAIA CAPTA
EmperorCaesar Vespasian Augustus, Pontifex Maximus,
Tribunican Power, Father of theFatherland, 3rd Consulate / Judaea taken captive
coinsamples:
denariusof Tiberius (obv: Tiberius; rev: Livia? Vestal Virgin?) (above); prob this is thetribute money of Matt 22:19
sestertiusof Vespasian (obv: Vespasian; rev: Judaea, soldier?) (below)
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IX. Paul's Middle Epistles and His Soteriology
A. 1 & 2 Corinthians
1. The city of Corinth
‑Until c100 years ago, sailing technology didnot enable
boats to sail more than 5‑10 degrees intothe wind.
‑Since the prevailing winds on the Mediterraneanare from
the west, it was quite difficult to sail west,especially
near land (where tacking was dangerous).
‑Thus from pre‑classical times (c600 BC),ship traffic west
often took the shortcut across the isthmus atCorinth,
instead of sailing around the peninsula.
‑Hence Corinth was a natural spot for a portcity.
‑Corinth itself was at the center of the isthmuswith
satellite port cities on each side: East ‑‑> Cenchraea
(Acts 18:18; Rom 16:1); West ‑‑>Lechaeum.
‑Due to rebellion by Corinth, the Romanscompletely
destroyed Corinth when they came through in 146BC
(making the city an example, like Carthage).
‑The city was rebuilt in 46 BC by the Romans andbecame
a major prosperous city for eastern trade.
‑The present ruins show almost exclusivelyRoman
inscriptions and architecture; only thetemple of
Apollo is left from before 146 BC.
‑Corinth became the capital of the province ofAchaia.
‑Due to the mixing of cultures and its transientpopulation,
Corinthians saw differences in rules andconcluded that
none were absolute. Corinth thus became famous for its
immorality and loose living in a not very moralempire.
‑The temple to Aphrodite had"legalized" prostitution.
2. The church in Corinth
‑Was founded by Paul on his 2nd MJ, after hecame down from Athens (Acts 18:1‑18).
‑He began preaching in the synagogue (standardmethod).
‑When resistance reached a certain level(nonbelievers began blaspheming Jesus),
Paulmoved to the house of Justus next door (!).
‑God encourages him (18:9‑10). Paul was probably worried about beingrun out of town as
hadhappened often before.
‑Perhaps Paul at this time made a vowasking for God's protection (18:18).
‑The attempt of the Jews to have Paul punishedby Gallio fails (18:12‑16).
‑Paul remains in Corinth 18 months, working andliving with Aquila and Priscilla part of
thetime.
‑When Paul leaves to head for Jerusalem andAntioch, A & P accompany him to Ephesus;
thefollow up work at Corinth is continued by Apollos (18:24‑28).
3. Background to 1 Corinthians
‑From Corinth, Paul goes to Ephesus ‑>Jerusalem ‑> Antioch, which ends the 2nd MJ.
‑After some time, begins 3rd MJ: revisitschurches of 1st MJ (?) (i.e. Galatia, Phrygia),
thento Ephesus for 3 years.
‑At Ephesus, Paul had contact with Corinth bysea travel, letters, delegations
(apparentlymade a quick trip himself).
‑Paul apparently wrote a letter to Corinthbefore 1 Cor.: 1 Cor. 5:9 "Iwrote you in my letter ..."
‑Appears to point back to an earlier letter (on Christians livingimmorally)
whichwe do not have. Looks like theymisunderstood this earlier reference.
4. Occasion of 1 Corinthians
‑Paul has received a letter from Corinth, isanswering it.
Starting in ch. 7, he turns from things he hasheard about them (via delegations or messengers)
totheir letter:
7:1 "Now concerning the things about which you wrote, it is good for aman not to touch a
woman."
‑The subsequent "now concerning"(¹ερί δ´) markers which follow this one probablyalso
relateto written questions:
7:25 Theyasked about virgins in relationship to marriage.
8:1 Probablyasked about relation to idols.
12:1 Dealswith spiritual gifts.
‑Paul probably quotes their remarks inplaces and corrects them: "'All things are lawful' .. but
alldo not edify."
‑Besides letter, Paul had received some peoplefrom Corinth.
1:11 Chloe's people (slaves/employees fromher household).
‑1Cor. 1‑5 app responds to their report.
16:17 "the coming ofStephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus"
‑Mayor may not be the same as "Chloe's people".
‑Probablyan official delegation since 16:15‑16 imply they are leaders
inthe church.
‑"Supplied" => gift,news, fellowship?
‑Paul had been in Ephesus for a while,Corinthians had problems so had sent a letter and at
leastone delegation to Paul, which he responded to.
5. Sketch Outline of 1 Corinthians (scale: "|" = 1 chapter)
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| |
| |
Problems re/ | Divisions | 1‑4
| |
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| Incest | 5
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| Lawsuits | 6
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| Marriage | 7
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| |
|Food offered to idols | 8‑10
| |
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
Misuses of | Lord'sSupper | 11
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| |
| Spiritual Gifts |12‑14
| |
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
Heresy re/ | Resurrection | 15
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
Closing |Collect for Jerusalem | 16
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
In both chapters 8‑10 and 12‑14,it looks like the middle chapters, 9 and 13, are discussing
differenttopics, but they are actually making very relevant points regarding the main
topicin view.
‑In ch 9, Paul gave up what was legally his in order notto offend anyone. The Corinthians
shoulddo the same thing with respect to foods offered to idols and other matters.
‑In 13, love is the key spiritual gift, not tongues.
6. Background of 2 Corinthians
Paul had intended to send Timothy to Corinth (1 Cor.16:10f).
‑Timothy was probably to check on things in Corinth,but Paul feared that Timothy was not up
toit (timid, youthful).
‑We do not know if he got there or how he made out, butprobably did not go well if he went.
‑In 2 Cor., Titus (not mentioned in Acts or 1 Cor., butapparently an older, more mature
believer)is the liason and there are still troubles.
Some difficulty has arisen in the church regarding an offender(2 Cor. 2:6‑7).
‑Possibly the same person in 1 Cor.5 concerning incest.
‑Perhaps the ringleader of an opposition group(Judaizers?) as in 2 Cor. 10‑13. Don't know for
sure.
Paul, to try to deal with problem, had sent a severe letter.
‑Then he sent Titus who does not come back whenexpected.
‑Then, being very concerned and restless, Paul goes to Macedoniato meet Titus halfway.
‑Titus has a favorable report, mentioned in 2 Cor. 2and 7.
2:5‑11 shows that problems have been basically clearedup by the time Paul wrote 2 Cor.
‑After writing 2 Cor., Paul goes down to Corinth,winters there (AD 57‑58) and writes Romans.
‑Paul having time to write, and the calm character of Romanssuggests that the Corinthian
situationhad stablized.
Summary of Paul's letters (L) and visits(V) to Corinth.
51‑53 V 1 Founds church, spends 1.5 years there (Acts 18)
L 1 Lost "separation"letter (1 Cor. 5:9)
L 2 1 Corinthians
V 2 Painful visit (largely unknown)
‑Appears to be personal visit to solve problem of offender, butwithout desired result.
2 Cor. 2:1 "I would not come to you in sorrow again."
2 Cor. 13:1‑2 "This is the third time I am coming to you."
L 3 Letter of Many Tears
2 Cor. 2:3‑4,9; 7:8 ‑ Paul wondered if he had been toostrong, but was happy with
Titus'report.
‑Some think this is 1Cor., but it is not "many tears" (cf. 2 Cor. 2:1) or as"strong"
as2 Cor.
‑So this letteris probably lost.
57 L 4 2 Corinthians, written in Macedonia.
57‑58 V 3 Winter visit, 3 months, 2 Cor.13:1‑2, Acts 20:2‑3 writesRomans.
Alternative arrangement identifying 1Cor. as Letter of Tears:
V 1 ‑ same
L 1 ‑ same (lost)
V 2 ‑ same
L 2 ‑ 1 Cor.
L 3 ‑ 2 Cor.
V 3 ‑ same
7. Sketch Outline of 2 Corinthians (scale: "|" = 1 chapter)
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-|
| |
| |
| Paul's defense of |
| his ministry | 1‑6
| |
| |
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-|
| Joy at their repentence | 7 also in ch. 1 and 2
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-|
| |
| Collect for Jerusalem | 8‑9
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-‑‑‑|
| |
| Judaizers Answered | 10‑12 (note11:22ff)
| |
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-|
| Coming Visit | 13
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-‑|
Reason for collection: Apparently theJerusalem Council had asked Paul not to forget the Jews
whenhe ministered to the Gentiles. Heagreed to help the poor people in Jerusalem.
Possiblythey were poor due to economic persecution.
8. Integrity of 2 Corinthians
This is not a question of authorship, but a matter of whetherthe form we have is the original
formof the letter.
‑Few deny that 2 Cor. is by Paul (it is the mostpersonal of his church letters).
‑But many liberals feel some sections are parts of thelost letters L1 and L3.
a. 6:14‑7:1 is viewed as part of L1 mentioned in 1 Cor.5:9.
‑Deals with separation, matching description in1 Cor. 5:9.
‑Looks as if it interrupts the context of 6:11‑13and 7:2 which refers to opening their hearts.
‑It must have been accidentally inserted.
Problems with this view:
1) No textual support: all texts have this passage inthis place.
2) No statements from antiquity (Jerome, Origen) thatthis passage was not in some
manuscripts.
3) Must assume that this got in so early that nochurch father outside of Corinth knew about it.
4) Must assume some copyist was dumb enough toaccidently insert a page/paragraph at this
point.
‑Why the material would beplaced here is not obvious.
5) What we have of the content of the real separationletter does not fit with this passage.
‑1 Cor. 5:9 says not toassociate with people who claim to be Christians, but their lives don't
showit.
‑2 Cor. 6:14f says not to havereligious associations with unbelievers who are involved in
idolatry(false worship).
‑So these are not the sametopic; thus only speculation that they refer to the same letter.
‑There are other Pauline digressions which canbe omitted and a smooth, coherent discussion
remains: 1 Cor. 12‑14 has a longdigression about love (ch. 13).
b. 2 Corinthians 10‑13
‑Paul here is speaking against his opponents (probably Judaizers).
‑The shift in tone between 1‑9 and 10‑13 is fairlysharp:
1‑9expresses relief and thanksgiving, 10‑13 is stern.
‑Thus some see 10‑13 as (part of) the "letter of manytears" (L3) mentioned in 2 Cor. 2:4,
whichwas very severe.
‑However, Paul is a man of many moods; such tone changes can bedetected elsewhere. Since
theletter is long, it probably was not dictated all at one sitting.
‑Perhaps Paul, reflecting over 1‑9, or receiving some fresh newsfrom Corinth, may have
realizedthat a stronger note was necessary as there were still problems to deal with.
‑There is no manuscript evidence or ancient witnesses which show that2 Cor. 10‑13 was
missingor added on later.
‑Have only the internal evidence of a tone change.
‑To propose that some dumb scribe dropped assorted pages and confusedtheir order => neither
henor anyone else knew the correct order.
‑Also, scrolls app were used until c100 AD, so the original and earlycopies would not likely
havepage problems.
B. Romans
1. Order in the New Testament: first of the letters
‑The order of NT books is broadly chronological:
Gospels,Acts, Epistles (writings of Apostles), Revelation
‑The order within these subheadings is more elusive:
Gospels:most to least like the OT, Jewish ideas.
Matt.:genealogies, Messiah; John:implications for Xians
Epistles: Pauline to non‑Pauline, whereHebrews (disputed authorship regarding Paul)
isplaced at boundary.
-Within Pauline Epistles order is not chronological, perhaps topical:
a. Are roughly ordered by length, tho letters tothe same recipients kept together
(Corinthians,Timothy).
‑p46 (Chester Beatty)has Hebrews within the Paul group in order of length:
Rom,Heb, Cor, Gal, ....
b. Romans may be first as it gives the mostsystematic presentation of the Gospel,
openingup the whole revelation.
c. Romans is probably most important book ofgroup, influencing:
Luther(Reformation),
Wesley(Great Awakening),
Barth(partial restoration of gospel in liberalism).
2. The City of Rome
‑Was the capital of the "world" (Roman Empire).
‑Its population of 1 million was about the most possible withoutbetter technology
(sanitation,mass transit, water, etc.).
‑Empire had an excellent road system.
‑Capital was a parasite city. In the previous century it had local farmland, but by NTtimes it
hadovergrown this and now relied on imports.
‑About half the population were slaves; thepoorer citizens were on welfare
(theemperor provided grain from Egypt and entertainment, "bread andcircuses").
3. The Church in Rome
a. Origin
‑We don't know how or when the church wasfounded. Various suggestions:
1) by Jewish Christians returning from Pentecost (Acts2:10‑11).
2) by travelers before 50 AD (Suetonius re/"Chrestus"; Priscilla and Aquila from Rome,
withno indication that they were converted by Paul, Acts 18:2).
3) by Peter, who went to Rome in 42‑43 AD.
‑This is the RC view,supported by Eusebius, Jerome (citing Acts 12:17);
Irenaeuscomments "Peter and Paul were in Rome founding the church ..."
‑In antiquity,"founding" could mean to reorganize, as well as to start from scratch
(Alexander& successors founded many Greek cities in the East).
‑Clearly the church existed before Paul gotthere (cf. Romans), but we are not sure
whenPeter came.
‑Peter probably was at Rome, but not for 20years as Bishop before Paul arrived.
Notefollowing:
‑Paul does not greetPeter in Romans.
‑The nonchristianJews in Rome have barely heard of Christianity, which is strange if
Peterhas been there (cf. Acts 28:21‑22).
Newman's view: Christians (from Pentecost and/orothers who traveled there) started the
churchbefore 50 AD. It was disruptedwhen Jews expelled (Acts 18:2),
thoGentile Xns may have remained. Itwas apparently weak and spotty until Paul
andPeter arrived. Irenaeus' remarkwould refer to Peter and Paul getting the church
organizedagain with officers, etc.
b. Character of the church
‑Not much information.
‑Evidence from the catacombs shows there were many Jewish peoplein Rome, so the church
couldhave any ratio of Jew and Gentile.
‑We estimate from letter to Romans that the church was mainlyGentile, but had a strong
minorityof influential Jewish Xians:
1:13 "among the rest of the Gentiles" => mainly Gentile.
11:13‑24 has many references to Gentiles.
‑Fits the usual procedure of branching out fromsynagogues.
but
2:17‑25 aims at the Jews in or in contact with the church.
‑TheJews had been forced out of Rome in 49 AD, but probably started to return
after54 AD (when Claudius, who expelled them, died).
‑Several named in the greetings (ch16) are Jewish:
Priscilla,Aquila (v.3); Andronicus and Junias (v.7) and Herodion (v.11)
arecalled Paul's kinsmen.
-R.A. Peterson suggests weak/strong distinction of Rom 14 is Jew/Gentiledistinction
re/non-kosher meat.
4. Date and Place of Writing Romans
a. Place: From Corinth
‑Paul sketches his future plans in Rom 15:14ff.
‑Has finished work in the East (from Palestine to Greece and Macedonia)and is getting ready
tohead to Jerusalem with the collection at the end of the 3rd MJ.
‑Paul is aware of possible dangers in Judea.
‑Towards end of 3rd MJ, Paul was mainly in Ephesus, then went upand around to Corinth.
‑Concluding that Paul wrote from Corinth comes from names of 3 membersof the Corinthian
churchin the greetings, Rom 15‑16:
Phoebe (16:1), deaconessfrom Cenchrea, east port of Cor.;
Gaius (16:23), mentioned in1 Cor. 1:14;
Erastus (16:23), the citytreasurer (have evidence of pavementin Corinth laid by
Erastusthe aedile).
‑Have greetings to Priscilla and Aquila (16:3), who were known atCorinth.
b. Date
-During the winter months before taking the offering to Jerusalem.
‑Note references to a collection in Rom. 15:25‑26, 1 Cor 16and 2 Cor 9.
‑This period is probably referred to in Acts 20:2‑3.
‑Probably written during the winter of 57‑58 AD.
5. Occasion of Romans
a. Future visit. Paul planned to pass through Rome on the way to Spain (15:22ff). These plans
werealtered by his imprisonment, tho he finally reaches Rome in Acts 28.
b. Phoebe is going. A recommendation for her and a good opportunity to send a letter.
c. Clarify Gospel. Paul takes the opportunity to outline the fundamental doctrines of
Christianity,perhaps in view of the possibility that he may not reach Rome (15:30‑32;
cp.Acts 20:22‑24, 21:11‑14) due to the dangers in Jerusalem.
6. Sketch Outline of Romans (scale: "|" = 1 chapter)
adaptedfrom Walter Wessel, NIV Study Bible:
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| Intro & Theme | 1:1‑17
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| |
| Unrighteousness of | 1:18‑3:20
| All Mankind |
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| |
| God's Righteousness | 3:21‑5:21
| Imputed: Justificatn |
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| |
| God's Righteousness | chs 6-8
|Imparted: Sanctificatn |
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| God's Righteousness |
| Vindicated: Prob of | 9‑11
| Israel's Rejection |
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| |
| God's Righteousness | 12‑15:13
| Practiced by Believrs |
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
| Conclusion | 15:14-33
|---------------------------|
| Greetings | ch 16
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑|
7. The Integrity of Romans
a. Omission of chs. 15‑16
Origen says Marcion modified his NT so that it did nothave Romans 15‑16.
‑We have no extant manuscripts without these chapters.
‑Not much attention would be given this exceptfor:
b. Variant locations of doxology, 16:25‑27
1) Some mss omit doxology.
2) Some include at end of ch. 14 (Byzantine lectionaries).
3) p46 has it at end of ch. 15.
‑See Metzger's Textual Commentary at 14:23 for discussion.
c. Theories of a Shorter Original
1) Only chs. 1‑14 are original.
‑Not widely held, even by liberals,because the break between 14 and 15 is strange:
thefirst half of ch. 15 is strongly tied to ch. 14.
‑There are some things in ch. 15that Marcion would not like, so he might have removed both
chapters.15 and 16.
‑Most who support this view claimthat Paul made 2 eds., adding chs. 15‑16 himself.
2) Ch. 16 was originally part of an Ephesian letter.
‑Baur held that a version of Romanswas sent to Ephesus and ch. 16 is a letter of
commendationof Phoebe added to the Ephesus copy.
‑Baur argued that orthodox view hadPaul knowing too many people in Rome (c25 by name)
ifhe had never been there.
‑But given the importance ofRome and ease of travel, Paul could have known 25 people
fromhis churches who had moved there.
‑Baur: Priscilla and Aquila wereleft in Ephesus in Acts and are also there in Timothy
(2Tim 4:19). Why should we thinkthey went to Rome in between?
d. Suggested Solution
1) Textual problem of doxology may reflectlectionary‑type practices.
‑Most lectionaries include thedoxology at end of ch. 14.
‑Was Jewish and Christian practiceto read scripture as part of the service. Was important
becausepeople did not have their own copies.
‑Jewish practice: have passage endon positive note.
e.g. For end of Malachi, went backand read a blessing from earlier in the book.
‑Perhaps there was a similarpractice in Christian circles.
Greetings and travel plans wereomitted since they did not particularly edify those who did
notknow the people.
2) Did Romans end at ch. 14?
‑Possibly a shorter version wascirculating early, but more likely that Marcion shortened it
(Origen)like he edited Luke's gospel.
‑No extant manuscripts lack chs. 15‑16.
3) Paul's greetings to 25 people.
‑Paul's practice here is like thatin Colossians where he greets those he knew.
‑This would be impractical ina church where he had ministered and knew nearly everyone.
‑Paul knew lots of people;many could have traveled or moved to Rome, just as many today
moveto NYC.
‑Priscilla and Aquila could have hadbusiness in Rome so they would have gone back and
forthfrom Ephesus.
C. Pauline Soteriology
-Thedoctrines concerning salvation
-Helpfulto see terminology (actually figures) under which Paul develops these matters
1. Summary
a. Man's State:
Child ofAdam/Satan ‑ not explicit in Paul, but see 1 Cor 15:22; 2 Cor 11:14
Criminal ‑Rom 5:16
Darkened ‑Eph 5:8
Dead ‑Eph 2:1
Debtor ‑rare in Paul, Col 2:14
Diseased ‑not in Paul, but elsewhere in OT, NT
Enemy of God‑ Rom 5:10
Endangered ‑Rom 1:18; 9:22
Filthy ‑1 Cor 6:11
Slave of sin‑ Rom 7:14
Unfit ‑ Tit1:16
b. Man's Salvation: pictured as remedies to above problems:
Salvation,Redemption, Pardon, Justification, Cleansing, Healing, Reconciliation,Adoption, Regeneration, Resurrection, Creation.
2. Pictures of Salvation
a.Salvation:deliverance from danger
deliveredfrom enemies: Eph 5:23; Col 1:13
deliveredfrom wrath: Rom 1:16‑18; 5:9; 1 Th 1:10
Christ takesGod's wrath due us: Rom 4:25; 2 Cor 5:21
b.Redemption: purchasefrom slavery
spiritualslavery: 1 Cor 6:20; 7:23
Christ asransom price: Eph 1:7; 1 Tim 2:6
c.Pardon: forgivenessof debt
two debtors:Luke 7:41‑43
unmercifulservant: Matt 18:21‑25
cancellingdebt: Col 2:14
d.Justification:declared innocent in court
by law: Rom2:1‑16, esp vv 2,11,13
by grace:Rom 3:19‑31, esp vv 20,24,26
e.Cleansing: washingoff dirt
from guiltof sins: 1 Cor 6:9‑11
as bride preparedfor Christ: Eph 5:26‑27
by washingof regeneration: Titus 3:5
f.Healing: from disease
sin asdisease: Ps 38:1‑8; Isa 1:1‑6; Jer 30:12‑15
healing fromsin: 2 Chron 7:14; Ps 41:4; Jer 30:15‑17
Christ thehealer: Isa 53:5; 1 Pet 2:24
g.Reconciliation:ceasing to be enemies
sinners asenemies of God:
Ps 2, esp vv 2‑3, 8‑9,10,12: they hate Him, Rom 8:7‑8
Ps 11:5: He hates them
reconciledby Christ: Rom 5:8‑11; 2 Cor 5:18‑20; Eph 2:12‑22; Col 1:20‑22
h.Adoption: of childinto family
sinners assomeone else's children: Hos 1; Jn 8:31‑47; Eph 2:2‑3; 1 Jn 3:8‑10
adopted byGod: Gal 4:5‑7; Rom 8:14‑19,21,29
i.Regeneration: asecond birth
unfit bynature: Ps 14:1‑3; Jer 13:23; Rom 3:10‑18
born again:Jer 31:33‑34; Ezk 11:19‑20; Jn 3:3‑8; Tit 3:5‑6
j.Resurrection: fromdeath
sin asdeath: Prov 2:18; 9:18; Lk 1:79; Rom 8:6; Eph 4:18
raised fromdead: Eph 2:1‑7; Col 2:8‑15
k.Creation: a newcreature
unfit bynature: see "Regeneration" above
a newcreation: Ps 51:10; see Jer 31 and Ezk 11 under ÒRegenerationÓ;
2Cor 5:17; Gal 6:15; Eph 2:10; 4:24; Col 3:9‑10
KEYBIBLICAL WORDS OF SALVATION
|
KEY WORD | SIGNIFI-CANCE | PROBLEM | CHRIST: PERSON, WORK | RELATED: GOD | BELIEVER | XN LIFE |
| SALVA-TION | Delivered from danger | Enemies; coming wrath | Deliverer, rescuer | Deliverer, Ruler | Saved, subject | Safety |
| REDEMP-TION | Purchased from slavery | Slavery to sin & Satan | Purchase price | Buyer, Master | Freedman, slave | Freedom |
| PARDON | Forgiven a debt | Unpayable debt to God | Payment | Creditor | Debtor | Freedom from debt |
| JUSTIFI-CATION | Acquitted in court | Charged with crimes | Takes our punishment | Judge | Accused | Freedom fr punishment |
| CLEANS-ING | Washed from dirt | Filthy from sin | His blood cleanses | Launderer | Garment? | Restored to cleanliness |
| HEALING | Healed from disease | Diseased with sin | Physician, remedy | Physician | Patient | Restored to health |
| RECONCIL-IATION | Made friends from enemies | Enmity with God | Mediator | Agrieved | Enemy | Restored to fellowship |
| ADOPTION | Made son and heir | Child of Adam, Satan | Adoptive brother | Adoptive father | Adopted child | New status, new family |
| REGENE-RATION | Born a second time | By nature unfit | Second Adam | Father | Child | New life (eternal) |
| RESUR-RECTION | Made alive tho dead | Dead in sin | Raised with Christ | Makes alive | Made alive | New life (restored) |
| CREATION | Created anew | By nature unfit | Second Adam | Creator | Creature | New existencee |
SOMEADDITIONAL WORDS RE/ SALVATION
|
KEY WORD | SIGNIFI-CANCE | PROBLEM | CHRIST: PERSON, WORK | RELATED: GOD | BELIEVER | XN LIFE |
| DONATION (GRACE) | Given what not earned | Sins earns death | Earner, gift | Giver | Receiver | Life as gift |
| SELECTION (ELEC-TION) | Chosen not on merit | Merit condemnation | Merited Choice | Chooser | Chosen | Life as privilege |
| PROPITIATION | Accepted by sacrifice | Separation from God | Sacrifice | God | Sacrificer | Restored to fellowship |
| CIRCUM-CISION | Sinful flesh removed | Inherit sin thru flesh | Seed cut off | God | Circumcised | Circumcised heart |
| BAPTISM | Washed from sin | Sin as filth | Jesus' baptism, death | God | Baptized | Baptized w/ Holy Spirit |
| LORD'S SUPPER | Fellowship meal | Enmity with God | Reconciler, food of meal | God, Host | Partaker, guest | Fellowship continued |
X.Exgesis of Controversy Passages
A.What is a Controversy Passage?
1.Obviously, a passage in which some controversy is the major feature. That is, some dispute is being arguedfor the benefit of the reader.
2.In the Acts or Gospels, this might be a narrative, or a dialogue, or aspeech. In the Epistles, it willonly rarely be narrative (e.g., Gal 2:11ff) because the NT letters have solittle narrative material. It maybe an imaginary dialogue, where the writer is stating and responding topossible (or real) objections from opponents (e.g., Rom 6:1ff; 1 Cor 15:35ff;Jas 4:13ff). Most commonly,though, in a letter, it will be an exposition or monologue responding to someerror or threat from which the writer is concerned to protect his hearers.
B.Identifying a Controversy Passage
1.Controversy passages are commonly a subclass of theological passages. They differ from other theologicalpassages in having a sharper, more polemical tone.
2.They deal with subjects that we already know to have been controversial inthe early church, either within (e.g., the judaistic controversy, gifts)or with opponents with whom the early church had extensive contact (Jews,pagans).
C.Exegeting a Controversy Passage
1.The considerations listed for "Theological Passages" all apply.
2.In addition, we should particularly consider these:
a.Try to figure out, as best you can, where the opponents are coming fromtheologically or practically. Testout your ideas on the passage in view (and, with less certainty, to otherpassages that appear to be dealing with the same opponents).
b.How does the author of our passage respond to the opponents? What sort of items does he bringup? What kinds of appeals (tologic, authority, history) does he make?
c.How can we properly apply the teaching of this passage to our situationtoday? Do we know of some group orgroups that share some of the errors that are being refuted here? If the overlap is only partial (as it usuallywill be), what parts of the author's argument are applicable are what parts arenot?
d.Can we learn anything from the passage about how we should argue withopponents, or perhaps how we should help Christians to see the errors ofparticular opponents (since the author is not here arguing directly with theopponent)?
XI. Paul's Prison Epistles and HisChristology
A. The Prison Epistles
1. Introduction
a. Name of Group
Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, andPhilemon are called "prison epistles" because they all
seemto be written from imprisonment, probably the same one.
Each letter gives definite indications ofhaving been written from prison:
Eph. 3:1 "Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus"
4:1 "I, the prisoner of the Lord"
6:20 "I am anambassador in chains"
Phil. 1:7 They shared "in my imprisonment"
1:13‑14"my imprisonment in Christ has become well‑ known throughout thewhole
praetorianguard"
Col. 4:3 "for which I have also been imprisoned"
4:10 "Aristarchus, myfellow prisoner"
4:18 "Remember myimprisonment."
Phlm. 1 "Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus"
9 "now also a prisonerof Christ Jesus"
10 "I have begotten inmy imprisonment, Onesimus"
13 "minister to me inmy imprisonment"
23 "Epaphras, myfellow‑prisoner in Christ Jesus"
‑"Prisoner of Christ Jesus" could beunderstood as "Paul was so overwhelmed by Jesus" that he
isnow a captive of Jesus rather than a captive of sin. But enough of the verses convey the
ideaof a physical imprisonment to indicate that the phrase means "prisonerbecause of
Christ."
b. Where were these epistles written from?
‑No explicit statement in them, but threesuggestions have been offered:
1) Rome, the traditional view.
Phil. 1:13, 4:22 strongly suggest, but do notprove, Rome.
‑1:13 The Praetorian guard functioned as a bodyguard for Caesar. Most were in Rome,
butsome were elsewhere.
‑But Praetorion could also be a designation for the governor'spalace.
‑4:22 "Caesar's household" probably refers to his slaves.
Most were inRome, some were at his other residences or scattered around the empire as
spieson governors.
Church tradition, however, places all fourletters during Paul's Acts 28 imprisonment at Rome.
‑This was mild enough to allow visitors tocome and go from Paul's rented house where was
guardedbut probably had access to such things as writing equipment.
One exception is the Marcionite prologues, whichgive places other than Rome.
‑But we don't know if Marcion guessed orhad valid data.
2) Caesarean imprisonment.
A rather rare view. Held by Lohmeyer. Paul's imprisonment in Caesarea (mentioned in Acts)
lasted about 2 years.
Problems with view:
a) Was this imprisonment open enough for Paul towrite letters and send them with visitors?
‑Because of the plot toassassinate Paul, they would have been careful about visitors.
‑Eph. 6:19‑20 andCol. 4:3‑4 refer to preaching, which seems to fit a looser imprisonment
likein Rome.
b) Paul's plans in Caesarea do not fit withstatements in the letters.
Phil. 2:24 Paul plans to get out and go toPhilippi.
Phlm. 22 Paul hopes for an early releaseand then he would go to Colossae.
But in Acts 23:11,before the Caesarean imprisonment, Paul knows that he will testify in
Rome.
c) Onesimus, a runaway slave from Asia Minor,met Paul who was in prison and was converted.
‑Hardly likelythat he would go to Caesarea.
‑Ephesus and Romewere big cities in which one could "get lost" easily. Rome was the
biggestcity in the world; Ephesus was the capital of the province.
3) Ephesus ‑ for (at least) all but Ephesians.
Popular in liberal circles, but notlimited to liberals.
Held by Adolf Deissmann, also GeorgeDuncan., St. Paul's Ephesian Ministry.
No explicit statement that Paul was everin prison in Ephesus, but these assume an imprisonmentduring 3rd MJ.
a) Evidence from NT for an Ephesianimprisonment.
2 Cor. 11:23 In dealing with the Judaizers, Paul boasts that he has been"in far more
imprisonments"than his opponents. But at thispoint in the narrative in Acts, only one
imprisonment(Philippi) has been mentioned.
=> Acts did not record all of Paul's imprisonments.
1 Cor. 15:32 "I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus."
If taken literally, thenPaul would have been in prison before he went into the arena.
2 Cor. 1:8‑10 Trouble in Asia, God delivers fromdeath.
Figurative of severeproblem or literal?
Supernaturaldeliverance?
Rom. 16:3‑4 Priscilla and Aquila risk their necksfor his life.
They were with Paul inEphesus.
3rd century tradition: Paul was thrown toa lion in the arena at Ephesus, but the lion licked
Paul'sfeet. (But this doesn't sound like "fighting" wild beasts.)
Building still in Ephesus is called"Paul's prison."
Marcionite prologue to Colossians (2ndcent., perhaps from Marcion) says "apostle when
boundwrote from Ephesus."
b) Objections to Ephesus as place of writing.
(1) If all these spectacular things happened inEphesus, why does Luke ignore them for a
"mere"riot?
(2) An Ephesian imprisonment may have occurred, butthat is still not evidence for Ephesus
beingthe place of writing of theseletters.
‑In fact, it raisesproblems for the letter to Ephesians.
(3) Letters to Colossians and Ephesians are closely connected=> written at same time.
Seebelow.
c. Date and order of writing
1) As a group, the dating depends on the imprisonment (place ofwriting):
Rome, 61‑63 AD [best].
Caesarea, 58‑60 AD.
Ephesus, 54‑57 AD [during 3rd MJ].
2) Within the group of prison epistles, relative dates difficult todetermine.
‑3 of the 4 are closely associated,probably written within a few days and sent via the same
messenger.
a) Colossians and Philemon are closelyassociated.
‑Onesimus is mentioned in andaccompanies both letters.
Col.4:9, Phlm 10 [whole epistle is about Onesimus].
‑Both note that Archippus(apparently a church leader) is in some sense a recipient
ofeach letter:
Col. 4:17 ‑‑an indirect recipient: "tell Archippus"
Phlm. 2 ‑‑ is one of 3 namedin the address.
‑Were probably delivered at the sametime, so order of writing is immaterial.
b) Colossians and Ephesians are also closelyassociated.
‑Contents are very similar (seelater) in being strongly Christological.
‑Col. is polemic, Eph. isrelaxed. Cp. relation of Gal(polemic), Rom (relaxed) on
soteriology.
‑Both refer to Tychicus as if hewere the messenger
(Col.4:7‑8; Eph. 6:21 both very similar phrasing) who also had some authorityto fill in
furtherdetails.
‑Thus it appears that Tychicuscarried Eph/Col/Phlm on the same trip and was accompanied
byOnesimus.
c) Philippians is separate from the others.
‑Appears to be written on adifferent occasion, but can't tell if this was earlier or later than the
others.
‑Both Phil. 2:24 and Phlm 22 referto Paul's hope to be released soon, implying a date near the
endof his imprisonment.
‑Phil. 2:23-24 mentionsimprisonment, but it appears Paul has not had a trial yet, or is waiting
tohear the results of a hearing.
‑If the hearing resulted in hisrelease, then Phil. is probably later than the others
(soWm. Park Armstrong).
‑Lightfoot, however, puts Phil.before the others.
‑Newman doesn't think we reallyknow.
2. Ephesians
a. City of Ephesus
‑Had been founded by early Greeks who settled on the coast, perhapsas early as c1000 BC
(Myceneanperiod).
‑The major trade city of Asia in the last few cent. BC.
‑In NT times, the city was well past its prime but still important;
mainproblem was silting of harbor because the city was at the mouth of a river.
‑The site was finally abandoned partly due to this problem. It is several miles inland today.
‑Had the Temple of Artemis (Roman name, Diana) which was rebuiltin Alexander's time and
wasconsidered one of the 7 wonders of the world (with Hanging Gardens of Babylon,
Lighthouseat Alexandria, Pyramids, Statue bridging harbor at Rhodes).
‑This made Ephesus a major tourist city at NT times (seen in themerchant riot in Acts over
businessbeing hurt).
‑Paul spent 3 years here on the 3rd MJ, was briefly here at end ofthe 2nd MJ.
b. Destination of Ephesian letter
1) Textual variant in 1:1 ‑ presence or absence of ¦vzΕφέσŒ
‑Have an important textual variant, omitting "inEphesus" in manuscripts p46 (oldest extant
PaulineMSS), !, B, and 2 others.
‑Phrase is added in 1:1 to !and B by later scribes.
‑The phrase seems to be unknown to the earliest church fathers.
‑However, no manuscripts give another city as recipient.
2) Content is peculiar.
‑Although Paul had worked in Ephesus 3 years, the letter does notsay anything very personal.
‑Eph. 1:15 "I heard of your faith" suggests Paul has notyet been there, yet Paul started the
churchin Ephesus.
3) Marcion identified this letter with the one "to the Laodiceans."
‑Col. 4:16 does mention a letter sent to the Laodiceans at aboutthe same time as Col.
‑Don't know if Eph. is really Laod. or if Marcion guessed.
4) Must account for the widespread occurrence of"in Ephesus" in all but 5 manuscripts.
5) Three possible solutions:
a) Was originally sent to Ephesus, but the namewas lost in an important early copy.
‑This solves the textualproblem 1) and Marcion 3) if we assume he had one of the defective
copiesand was guessing from Col. 4:16
‑Does not handle the contentproblem 2).
b) Was sent to some other single church.
‑Even less satisfactory, as wemust assume a complete loss (incl forgetting) of original
destinationand replacement by another location.
c) Was a circular (encyclical) letter, of whichEphesus was the most important recipient
church.
‑Copies sent out toneighboring churches from Ephesus would naturally have "Ephesus"
omittedor substituted.
‑This solves 1) through 4) ifwe assume the letter also went to churches Paul had not visited.
‑Do wonder why all otheraddresses were lost.
‑Perhaps the Laodicean letterwas a copy of Ephesians.
‑In favor of this suggestion,note that Paul took the letter from the Jerusalem Council around
tomore than its addressed churches, and also instructed Colosse and Laodicea totrade
letters.
c. Authorship of Ephesians
‑authorship most disputed of any Pauline epistles outside thePastorals, especially due to E.J.
Goodspeed'stheory. [least disputed: Rom, Gal, 1 & 2 Cor]
[mostdisputed: Pastorals, Eph.,(Heb.)]
1) Arguments against Pauline authorship.
a) The features mentioned above which don't fitEphesus.
‑Goodspeed uses the argumentsabove against Ephesus destination as against Paul as author.
b) Thinks the style is unlike Paul: structure of letter, very longsentences, unique words
comparedwith Romans.
Goodspeed's proposed solution (positivereconstruction):
‑Argues that Paul was forgotten during the Romanpersecutions (from Paul's death to c90 AD).
‑A friend, perhaps Onesimus (bishop by that namecould be same person as slave), writes Eph.
asan introduction to the collection he has gathered from various churches.
Most liberals follow Goodspeed's anti‑Paulinearguments but do not like his reconstruction.
2) Arguments for Pauline authorship.
a) Uniform church tradition says the letter is byPaul.
‑Not excluded in any canon, even Marcion's.
‑Evidence for its early, continuous and wide‑spreaduse by the church as good as for any
Paulineepistle: e.g.
IgnatiusÕletter to Polycarp 5 (Eph 5:25,29)
Polycarp1:3 (Eph 2:5,8,9); 12:1 (Eph 4:26)
Barnabas6:11 (Eph 2:10, 4:22-24).
b) The author claims to be Paul (1:1, 3:1).
‑Hard on any "friend" theory; must bea forgery.
‑Liberals try to avoid the ethics problem thisraises by saying this was common practice, etc.
‑But evidence from early church is that theywere very angry with people who messed with the
Scriptures(deposed the elder who wrote "Paul and Thecla"; cf. 2 Thes. 2:2, 3:17).
c) The style is similar to Paul's: close toColossians.
d) Ref. to Tychicus in 6:21 very similar to Col. 4:17.
e) Goodspeed's "positive" suggestion is veryspeculative.
Hardto see how Eph. functions as an introduction.
‑Eph is neverplaced first in any MSS of the Pauline eps.
‑Romans has farbetter introductory content.
‑Style is largely influenced by(1) subject matter, (2) vocabulary, (3) mood,
(4)random variation, (5) use of an amanuensis or co-author.
d. Contents of Ephesians.
1) A general presentation of Christian truth, with emphasis on theperson of Christ.
‑Parallel to Colossians, but notpolemic.
‑Col/Eph forms pair like Gal/Rom: 1polemic, 1 systematic
2) Called the "epistle of the heavenlies" due to frequent useof term ¦¹oυράvιoς
(1:3,20;2:6; 3:10; 6:12). Most of theother NT occurrences are in 1 Cor. 15 and Heb.
3) Sketch Outline of Ephesians.
Adapted from Liefeld, NIV StudyBible. Scale: "|" = 10 vv
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----| }
| Glory/Headship ofX | 1:1-14 }
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----|---- }
| Prayer for Growth | 1:15‑23 } BASICALLY
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----|---- }
| Salvation by Grace | 2:1‑10 }
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----| } DOCTRINE
| Jew/Gentile 1 in X | 2:11‑22 }
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----| }
| God's Wisd in Ch | 3:1‑13 }
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑------| }
| Prayer for Depth |3:14‑21 }
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----|
| Be United & Mature | 4:1‑16 ]
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----‑| ]
| | ]
| Liveas | 4:17‑5:20 ] BASICALLY
| Children of Light | ]
| | ] EXHORTATION
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----‑| ]
| Proper Authority |5:21‑6:9 ]
| Relationships | ]
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----‑| ]
| Stand in Conflict |6:10‑23 ]
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----‑|
3. Colossians
a. The City of Colosse
1) Importance of City
‑Unusual among epistles as onlymoderate-sized city (contrast Rome, Corinth, Thessalonica,
Ephesus).
-Paul apparently started churches in majorcenters to facilitate spread of Gospel.
‑Located about 100 miles East of Ephesuson the main road through Asia Minor.
‑Colosse is in the same valley with twocities Hierapolis and Laodicea, both larger than it is.
` Laodiceais most important of the three.
2) Diversity of Population
‑Was originally Phrygian.
-When the Seleucids took over the area c200 BC,Antiochus 3 brought in some Jews from
Babylonia,along with Greeks, to be loyalcitizens.
‑Had been Roman colony since Rome enteredAsia Minor.
3) The Church
‑Apparently founded by Epaphras (1:7),probably one of Paul's converts and/or an associate.
‑We know from inscriptions thatEpaphras is short for "Epaphroditus," but the one mentioned
inNT (Php 2:25; 4:18) is probably a different person.
‑Paul has apparently not visited thischurch at the time Colossians was written (1:4 C has only heard of their faith; 2:1 refers to those who have notseen his face).
‑Was probably founded during Paul'sactivity in Ephesus for 2 years on his 3rd MJ (Acts 19:10
C"all who lived in Asia heard the word").
‑Philemon was apparently one of Paul'sconverts (Phlm 19) during this time. Some think he
Wasfrom Colosse, but Laodicea also a possibility.
b. Occasion of the Letter
‑Epaphras had come to Rome (4:12) to inform Paul of the situationin Colosse.
‑Things are apparently going well in the church (see the positivenotes in 1:3ff, 2:5).
‑But as the letter goes on, there appears to be an external dangerof heretical doctrines,
perhapsbeginning to have an influence on church.
‑Not sure if Epaphras came on a special trip for advice on thesituation or if he had completed
hisassignment at Colosse and come back for another one.
‑Note that in Galatians the danger is more internal and Paul writeswith a sterner tone than here.
‑Various commentators think the heresy involved some type of Esseneor pre‑Gnostic teaching
(Gnosticismitself peaked in the 2nd century) or some combination of pagan and Jewish
elements.
‑The features given in Colossians fit Essene interests best:
1) Jewish ceremonial rites and calendars (2:11?,2:16).
2) Asceticism (2:20‑23).
3) Worship of angels (2:18).
-Ifgenitive taken as objective (heretics worship angels), no known groups fitthis.
‑Ifgenitive subjective (heretics interested in how angels worship), fits Essenesvery well.
4) Visions (2:18).
5) Some lesser place for the Messiah (2:19).
c. Sketch Outline of Colossians (scale: "|" = 10 verses)
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑---‑‑|
| Introduction | 1:1‑14 }
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑---| }
| Person, Work of X | 1:15‑23 } MOSTLY
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑----| }
| Paul's Labor for Ch| 1:24-2:7 } DOCTRINAL
|-------------------------| }
| Response to Heresy| 2:8-23 }
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑---‑|
| | ]
| BeHoly | 3:1‑4:6 ] MOSTLY
| | ]
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑---‑| ] EXHORTATION
| Personal Matters | 4:7‑18 ]
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑---|
4. Philemon
‑This is the shortest letter we have from Paul.
a. Background
‑Connected with Colossians by the mention ofOnesimus and Archippus.
‑Philemon is a slave owner and possibly a memberof the church in Colosse (Col. 4:9 calls
Onesimus"one of your number"); although he could be in the Laodicean church.
‑Archippus seems to be the leader in Laodicea(Col. 4:17).
‑Philemon's slave Onesimus ran away to the placewhere Paul is (probably Rome, where it was
easyto get lost in the crowd).
‑Perhaps Onesimus was found accidentally byTychicus or Epaphras (Christians from home
whofeel obligated to return him) and they take him to Paul. Or possibly Onesimus
soughtout Paul for help.
‑Onesimus comes into contact withPaul at a crisis situation in his life (the punishment for
runawayslaves was not a big home‑coming party) and he is converted by Paul
(Phlm.10).
‑Paul would have liked to have kept Onesimus inRome, but instead sends him back to Phlm.
witha letter.
b. Contents
‑Paul is very courteous, but he makes a bigrequest.
‑Since Onesimus is now a Christian, Paulrequests that Philemon treat him as a brother like
Paul(15‑17).
‑As Xian masters were to treat Xian slaves asbrothers, Paul is probably asking for something
moreC at least mercy to runaway, prob thatPhlm free Onesimus (v 21).
‑Paul notes that Phlm owes Paul his eternal lifein a indirect, human sense (v.19).
‑Offers to repay any expense which Onesimusincurred (stealing money to escape, etc.), but
doesnot condone his sin (v.18‑19).
‑Here we see the great change which Christianitybrought to the ancient world regarding
slavery.
‑Only a few Stoics believed in the equality ofall men, and that only theoretically.
‑See that slaves and masters have an equalstanding in the church and before God (some
bishopseven were slaves).
‑Slavery was mitigated by the early Christianemperors from Constantine to Justinian.
‑Christianity is distinctive in that it dealswith social problems from the inside out (setting an
example,changing people's hearts), rather than by agitating for change, revolution, or
litigation.
Outline of Philemon:
Huddleston,Acrostic Bible Werner,NIV Study Bible
L Love ofPhilemon praised (1‑7) Greetings(1-3)
O Onesimus becomes a Xian (8‑14) Thanks& Prayer (4-7)
V Vindic.of Paul's request (15‑20) Paul'sPlea (8-21)
E Expected visit by Paul (21‑25) Request& Closing (22-25)
5. Philippians
a. City of Philippi
‑Was a chief city of Macedonia, but not capital of Roman provinceof Macedonia (which was
Thessalonica)nor of region.
‑Ranks second from the bottom in size, importance among cities Paulwrote letters to (just
aboveColosse).
‑Was the site of the battle where Augustus and Mark Antony defeatedassassins of Julius Caesar
(Brutus,Cassius, etc.; recall Shakespeare's play) about 100 years earlier.
‑Had been made a Roman colony by decree of Augustus, so that itscitizens were considered
"Italians."
‑Italian citizenship was 2nd only to Romancitizenship.
‑The Philippians were clearly proud of this status, as seen in Acts16:21‑23 (charging Paul's
teachingas un-Roman).
‑The beating Paul received here was the typicalRoman type (lictors, rods, etc.).
‑Paul seems to make use of this pride in the Philippian letter:
1:27 ‑‑ "conduct yourselves" is¹oλιτεύεσθε.
Literally means"live as citizens" => citizens typically had better behavior thanthe non-
citizenresidents.
3:20 ‑‑ "our citizenship(¹oλίτευμα) is in heaven," not merelyRome.
‑Ramsay thinks Luke was a native of Philippi who came into contactwith Paul at Troas and
broughthim to Philippi.
‑Thinks Luke was student at the famous medicalschool there.
-Tradition, however, has Luke a native of Antioch.
‑The "we‑passages" in Acts hint that Luke stayedbehind in Philippi on the 2nd MJ, perhaps to
takecharge of the work.
‑Apparently there was no synagogue in Philippi since, according toLuke's narration, Paul went
toa "place of prayer" (¹ρoσευχή) ratherthan a synagogue (συvαγωγή).
‑The term here is applied to a Jewish meetingplace (tho can refer to a pagan shrine).
‑However, term is sometimes used for synagogue; but Luke uses "synagogue"elsewhere in
Acts.
‑Some think the Jewish population there was not big enough to forma full synagogue
(minimumof 10 men necessary).
b. Church of Philippi
1) Acts mentions 3 converts:
Lydia ‑ saved ‑Jew
Jailer ‑ saved ‑Gentile
Slave girl ‑ notexplicitly said she was saved, but it is usually assumed that she was.
‑Probably there were only a few Jews inthe congregation.
2) Occasion for the letter related to church there.
Philippians have sent Paul a gift while he wasin jail.
This letter serves as a thank‑you note,but is more.
Phil. 1:5 "your participation in thegospel" is Paul's common expression for financial help.
Phil. 4:10‑18 shows their generosity:"share in my affliction"; "you sent (a gift) more than once
formy needs."
c. Sketch Outline of Philippians (scale: | = 10 verses)
Most noted theme: Christ's example of humility and hissubsequent exaltation (ch. 2).
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----------|
| Introduction (Thanksgiving) | 1:1‑11
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----------|
| Paul's Imprisonment |
| Advances Gospel | 1:12‑26
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----------|
| Exhortations, |
| especially to humility | 1:27‑2:18
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----------|
| Timothy, Epaphroditus Coming | 2:19‑30
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----------|
| Warnings Judaizers 3:1‑14 |
| against ‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑----------|3:1‑4:1
| Heresy Libertines 3:15‑4:1 |
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----------|
| Final Exhortations |4:2‑9
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-----------|
| Thanks for Gift, Closing | 4:10‑20
|‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-‑----------|
B. Pauline Christology
-Doctrines regarding the person & work ofChrist
-See Robert A. Peterson, Calvin's Doctrine of theAtonement
andHerman Ridderbos, Paul: An Outline of his Theology, ch 2
1. Person of Christ
Christ ‑ usual term in Paul, almost usedas name
Acts 9:22 ‑ Paul provingJesus is Christ
Acts 17:2 ‑ Christ mustsuffer & Jesus is Christ
Rom 1:1‑3 ‑prophecies re/ Jesus, son of David
Lord ‑ also standard title in Paul
(hisusual Trinitarian formula is God, Lord, Spirit)
Rom 1:4 ‑ Jesus Christour Lord
Php 2:11 ‑ confess thatJesus is Lord
Col 3:22‑24 ‑Jesus as Lord analogy in master‑slave relation
Son of God (or God as Jesus' Father)
Rom 1:4 ‑ declared Sonof God by resurrection
Gal 4:4 ‑ sent forth hisSon
Col 1:13 ‑ God's belovedSon
1 Th 1:10 ‑ to wait forhis Son from heaven
Image of God ‑ related to second Adam theme?
2 Cor 4:4; Col 1:15
Firstborn ‑ prob related to heir,inheritance (Rom 8:17)
Rom 8:29 ‑ firstbornamong many brothers
Col 1:15 ‑ firstbord ofevery creature
Col 1:18 ‑ firstbornfrom among dead
Head - prob authority term, from analogy ofbody
1 Cor 11:3 ‑ of everyman
Eph 5:23; Col 1:18 ‑ ofchurch
God ‑ term usually reserved for Father
Rom 9:5 ‑ God over all
Php 2:6 ‑ in very natureGod
Tit 2:13 ‑ great God& Savior Jesus Christ
Creator ‑ activity distinguished fromFather's
1 Cor 8:6 ‑ by whom all things
Col 1:16‑17 ‑ allthings created by& for him
Judge
Rom 2:16 ‑ God willjudge by Jesus Christ
1 Cor 4:4‑5 ‑ whenhe comes
2 Tim 4:1, 8 ‑ willjudge living & dead
Rom 14:10; 2 Cor 5:10 ‑all will appear before judgment seat of Christ
Some Significant Christological Terms notin Paul:
Prophet
Priest
King ‑ shows upindirectly in ref to kingdom, ruling
Shepherd
2. Work of Christ ‑ here mainly his atoning work
Savior ‑ very commonly used; examinedunder Soteriology
Acts 13:23 ‑ God broughtto Israel a Savior
Eph 5:23 ‑ Savior of hisbody, the church
Php 3:20‑21 ‑ weawait a Savior from heaven
Sacrifice - using picture of sacrificial system
1 Cor 5:7 ‑ Christ ourpassover
Eph 5:2 ‑ gave himselfup as a sacrifice
Legal Substitute - using picture of justification
Rom 3:21‑26 ‑justified by his righteousness
Gal 3:10‑14 ‑became a curse for us
Victor - using warfare analogy
1 Cor 15:51‑58 ‑over death
Col 2:15 ‑ over Satanicpowers
Obedient Second Adam - using new creation analogy
Rom 5:12‑21 ‑ hisobedience makes many righteous
1 Cor 15:21‑22 ‑made alive in him, cancelling death from Adam
1 Cor 15:45‑49 ‑founds new race like Adam did
Example ‑ his life a guide for ours (elderbrother, teacher?)
Rom 15:1‑3 ‑pleasing others
2 Cor 8:9 ‑ gracious
Eph 5:2, 25 ‑ love
Php 2:2‑11 ‑selflessness, humility, obedience
XII. Exegesis of Exhortation Passage
A.What is an Exhortation Passage?
1.Obviously, a passage in which the major feature is exhortation.
2.Exhortation is an abstract noun for the act of urging people to take someparticular action, to think some specific way, to have certain attitudes,or to be some definite sort of person.
3.Since the Scripture is urging us to become better, more godly people, theexhortations will be toward positive behavior and attitudes.
B.Recognizing an Exhortation Passage
1.Since the writer is urging his readers to take certain sorts of action,these passages are characterized by an unusually large number of exhortationforms. These consist of imperatives("Do this!" Chapman-Shogren, Greek NT Insert, 39-40), prohibitions ("Don't dothis!" C-S, 40-41), hortatory subjunctives ("Let us dothis!" C-S, 23), and volitive futures ("You shall/shall not dothis" C-S, 27).
2.In the typical letter format used in the NT, Paul often has his exhortationsgrouped after the body of the letter (or as the second part of the body,according to some commentators). The writer of Hebrews, by contrast, intersperses his exhortationsin short sections at the end of each teaching section, though he also hasan exhortation section after he has finished the teaching. James and Peter intersperse theirexhortations with their teaching.
C.Exegeting an Exhortation Passage
1.In general, the same principles apply as sketched in our section on"Exegeting Theological Passages" above.
2.In addition, some items to look for especially in exhortation passages:
a.What specific actions, thoughts, attitudes, or personal attributes is theauthor urging his readers to have?
b.What means or techniques is the author using to move his readers in thisdirection? Promises? Threats? Illustrations? Examples?
c.How do our circumstances resemble or differ from those of the author's originalreaders? How might these affectthe question of whether or not these exhortations apply to us?
d. What can we learn from the author'stechniques of exhortation that will make us better exhorters?
D.Word Studies
1.Goals of a Word Study
a.Find the basic meaning(s) of the word and its range of meaning.
b.Want to catch distinctions author is making in a particular passage; don'twant to be making distinctions he wasn't!
2.Method of a Word Study
a.Ideal: Talk to Paul himself, or atleast an educated Greek of Paul's time!
b.Necessary Substitutes:
(1)Etymology (derivation of word's meaning from its original meaning or meaning ofits component parts): OK as firstapproximation or as last resort, but may be misleading (e.g., railroad,manufacture).
(2)Modern Greek Speaker: May be very helpful or may be misleading (cp. problemswith consulting a modern English speaker for the meaning of the KJV words:leasing, prevent).
(3)Usage of word in NT: This is thebest source, but for rare words it may be insufficient.
(4)Usage in other ancient Greek works: Gives best idea of meaning of word in society at that time (if sampleschosen properly).
c.Some Pitfalls to Avoid
(1)Don't confuse the meaning of a word with its use (e.g., "Hellenist"in Acts 6:1; 9:29; 11:20). Consider how you use "brother" in your family and outside.
(2)Don't carry the connotations of a word or even its whole range of meaning intoevery use. Technical term for thiserror is "illegitimate totality transfer." A common problem withmodern commentators for allos/heteros and agapao/phileo.
(3)Don't read the teaching of the NT on a particular concept into the meaning ofthe Greek word. Agapao is a good example here.
XIII.The Pastoral Epistles and the Last Days of Paul
A.The Pastoral Epistles
So named because these areletters to individual pastors.
‑Philemon is the only other Pauline epistle written to an individualrather than a church, and
thatincludes three recipients in address, one of whom may be their pastor.
1. Recipients
a. Timothy
Mentioned by name 24times in NT, more than most of the apostles (some only in apostle
lists,4 times).
1) His family
Acts 16:1 Paul "came to Derbe andLystra" and met "Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman
whowas a believer, but his father was a Greek."
2 Tim. 1:5 "the sincere faith within you,which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois, and your
motherEunice"
‑Paulspeaks here as if he knew Timothy's mother and grandmother personally.
Timothy is apparentlyfrom Lystra (Acts 16:1-2), of mixed parentage, with a Christian mother
andgrandmother, but probably his father was not a Christian.
2) His connection with Paul
‑Converted byhim? 1 Tim. 1:2 "my truechild in faith."
‑Ordained by a bodyof elders (presumably at Lystra) which Paul had established on 1st MJ
(Acts14:21‑23).
1 Tim. 4:14, 2Tim. 1:6 ‑ "laying on of hands."
‑Probablywhen Tim was commissioned to go with Paul on 2nd MJ (Acts 16:2-3).
‑Circumcised by Paulbecause of Jews in area of work.
Acts 16:3 The Jews knew Timothy had a Greekfather.
‑Thisappears to be the earliest reference to the Talmudic provision that if a childhas a
Jewishmother, then he is considered Jewish.
‑In rabbinic law, he would be considered apostate if he was notcircumcised.
‑Don'tknow how NT views these points, but Paul probably circumcised him so that he
wouldnot be considered apostate by Jews. (Paul will not circumcise Titus, a full
Gentile).
‑Accompanied Paul on2nd and 3rd MJ.
‑With Paul at sometime during 1st Roman imprisonment
("co‑author"of Philippians, Colossians).
‑Put in charge ofchurch at Ephesus.
1 Tim. 1:3 --"remain on at Ephesus".
‑A largecity and church, a major responsibility.
‑Don'tknow Timothy's exact age, but pictured as young.
‑1Tim. was written in 63 or later, after 1st imprisonment.
‑Thiswas c13‑14 years after Tim first went out with Paul on 2nd MJ. Was no younger than
lateteens on 2nd MJ, so is probably in his 30's when at Ephesus.
3) His later activities
Mentioned in Heb.13:23 as having been in prison.
Tradition: Timothywas in charge of the church at Alexandria in later years.
b. Titus
Mentioned by name 13 timesin NT.
1) Possibly a brother of Luke.
‑Titus was a major figurein Pauline Episles as an associate of Paul, so it is surprising that he is
nevermentioned in Acts.
‑Souter and otherssuggest a parallel situation to that in Gospel of John, where John (author)
andhis brother James are not mentioned by name, perhaps so as not to draw
attentionto themselves.
‑Possible supportfrom 2 verses where the article "the" could be understood as"his" => Titus
hasa brother active in the ministry.
‑Greek often leaves out thepossessive if reference is obvious.
2 Cor. 12:18 "I urged Titus to go,and sent hisbrother with him."
2 Cor. 8:18 "we sent along with him his brother"
‑But note 8:22 "we have sent with them our brother"
=> earlierreference could be just to a spiritual brother.
2) Greek nationality.
Gal. 2:3 Paul refused to have Titus circumcised.
‑word "Greek"here may mean "non‑Jew" rather than strict ethnic Greek.
Tradition: Luke was from Antioch, so Titus(if brother) would be too. Couldbe ethnically
eitherSyrian or Greek.
3) Paul's liason with Corinth.
‑Replaced Timothy. Goes to Corinth after Paul's unpleasantvisit and "letter of many tears" to
findout if Corinthians will repent, reports good news to Paul (2 Cor. 2:13,7:6,13,14,
8:6,16,23,12:18).
4) Later in charge of church on Crete ‑ Titus 1:5
‑Crete served as a bridge betweenGreece, Asia Minor, and North Africa.
2. Authenticity of Pastoral Epistles
a. Viewed as non-Pauline by (most) liberals.
Fourlines of argument:
1) Historical argument
References to activities in the Pastorals do notfit into Acts' framework.
‑e.g. leaving cloak, Timothy beingin charge at Ephesus.
‑Liberals and conservatives agree on this.
‑But rather than concluding that Acts doesnot record all of Paul's movements, liberals
concludethat these events did not occur.
‑They often deny Paul had a 2ndRoman imprisonment.
‑They assume that Acts coverseverything up to the only Roman imprisonment Paul ever had,
duringwhich he died.
2) Ecclesiastical argument
Church polity in 1 Tim. 3 and Titus 1:5ff isallegedly too advanced and refined for Paul's time.
‑Does not fit liberal evolutionary modelto have elders, deacons, qualifications for office, this
early.
‑Liberals think the organization of theearly church was "charismatic": those who had the spirit
ranthe church; no elections were held.
3) Doctrinal argument
The heresy attacked in Timothy (esp. in 1 Tim)is allegedly fully‑developed Gnosticism.
‑2 terms used in 1 Tim. 6:20 are claimedto be distinctively Gnostic:
γvŠσις= knowledge, as a way of salvation.
•vτίθεσις= contradiction, opposing argument.
‑F.C. Baur saw here a veiledreference to Marcion's book Antitheses, written c140 AD, in
whichhe contrasts the God of the OT with the God of the NT.
‑But hardly any liberals give such a latedate to 1 Timothy any more.
‑Most feel Gnosticism developedafter Paul, by 100 or so.
‑Some place development earlier,during his lifetime.
4) Linguistic argument ‑ felt to be strongest
Thestyle of the Pastoral Epistles does not match the style of the "real"Pauline Epistles.
a) Some Proponents
Early: P.N. Harrison, The Problem ofthe PastoralEpistles,1921.
Recent: A.Q. Morton, Christianity inthe Computer Age, 1964.
Paul:the Man and the Myth,1966.
b) Harrison's Lexical Argument
1/ Counted words which occurred in thePastoral Epistles, but not elsewhere in Pauline
writings.
‑Found 36% of Pastorals'vocabulary was not in other 10.
= 306 of the 848word vocabulary.
‑175 of theseoccur only once in whole NT, 131 occur in other non‑Pauline writings inNT.
‑Conversely, many wordsfound in the other 10 Pauline Epistles are not in Pastorals = 1635.
‑582 of these only in 10 letters, 1053 elsewhere in NT.
2/ Many minor parts of speech (particles,prepositions) are clearly Pauline but rarely occur in
Pastorals.
3/ Language of Pastorals is rather closeto that of the Apostolic Fathers and Apologists of the
2nd century.
‑Harrison's arguments convince many liberals (who did not needmuch to convince them)
becausethe Pastorals do not fit the Acts framework, and accepting the traditional viewof
thePastorals hurts their attempts to reconstruct an early ecclesiology differentthan that of
NT.
‑Yet even some liberals were suspicious of his arguments, becausethe subject matter of the
Pastoralsis different from the other 10 Pauline letters (and subject matter can effect
vocabularyrather drastically).
‑Substantial differences in vocabulary could be due to differentaudiences (a church [mainly
laypeople]vs. a mature full-time Christian worker).
‑So others have tried to strengthen Harrison's arguments.
c) Morton's Syntax Argument
1/ Seeks to answer the claim that subjectmatter has influenced style and vocabulary.
‑He agrees, so he usescomputer to analyze the syntax rather than vocabulary.
‑Tests very commonfeatures:
(1) sentencelength,
(2) frequency of 5of the 6 most common Greek words:
καί,δέ, ´v, αóτός,ε®μί
[The def. article is the most common word but Morton did not find it helpful].
2/ As a control, uses ancient writers ofhomogeneous, continuous Greek prose.
-chooses the 5 words above asthose which give results consistent with modern
scholarlyconsensus on authorship for these Classical authors.
‑e.g.,compare works of disputed and known authorship by author like Aristotle to
findstandards.
3/ Finds that the 14 letters ascribed toPaul (including Hebrews) fall into 7 (!) groups:
(1) Romans, 1 & 2Cor., Gal, and (possibly) Phlm. (which is too short for meaningful
statistics).
‑Theseare F.C. Baur's "Hauptbriefe" (chief epistles).
(2) Hebrews
(3) Ephesians
(4) Philippians
(5) Colossians
(6) 1 & 2Thessalonians
(7) 1 & 2 Timothy,and (most likely) Titus.
b. Pastorals accepted as Pauline by conservatives (and a fewliberals).
‑Responding to the above arguments:
1) Historical
‑There is reason to believe that Paul wasreleased from his 1st prisonment in Acts and that the
Pastoralswere written after that time:
a) NT evidence
Acts 28:21 ‑‑ when Paul meets withthe Jewish leaders in Rome (4 months after leaving
Caesarea),they have not received any instructions for pursuing his case.
ð The Jews inJudea probably thought it was a lost cause to press charges before the
Emperorsince Festus and Agrippa thought Paul was innocent. So doubt if they
senta delegation to Rome to charge Paul themselves.
‑The Jews originallythought they could get Paul on the charge of desecrating the
Temple(bringing in a Gentile).
‑When they collectedwitnesses, they found they could not substantiate the claim.
‑Was dangerous tobring flimsy charges before the Emperor as he did not appreciate
peoplewasting court time or harassing Roman citizens; he might well have you
executed.
‑In Roman law, unless plaintiffs showed upto press charges, the state would not act (except
forcases like treason, etc.). Afterallowing time for someone or some letter to show up
(perhapsthe 2 year wait?), Paul would have been released.
Acts 28:30‑31 ‑‑ neither here nor elsewhere in Actsdoes one find the Roman government
hostileto Christianity.
‑There would be no reason for Rome to prosecutePaul as a criminal before the Roman Fire of
64AD.
‑Thus, if Paul's trial came up before the fire,he would have been released.
In the prison epistles, Paul looks forward to getting out soon (seePhil. 2:24; Phlm. 22).
‑Note the contrast with the 2nd imprisonment:
compare Phil. 3:13‑14 with 2Tim. 4:7‑8
b) Church tradition indicates that Paul was released and wentto Spain.
‑This would have to be after his 1stimprisonment.
1 Clem. 5 (Rome, 95 AD): "Paul ... traveled as far as the westernboundary"
‑Spain was the W boundary ofthe Empire and known world.
Muratorian Canon (Italy, 170‑190 AD): "Paul's departure fromthe city as he was proceeding to
Spain."
Eusebius, Eccl History2.22 (325 AD): "then after his defense, there is the report that theapostle
thenset forth to his ministry, and entering the city a 2nd time, he was put todeath."
Jerome, Illustrious Men(c 400): says Paul was dismissed by Nero and he preached Christ's
gospelin the West.
‑The later of these comments could well be guessesbased upon Paul's statements in Romans.
However,Clement is early enough to know what really happened, and he writes from
Rome.
‑If Paul was released and headed West, he likely wentEast first to check out his churches. Thus
thePastorals can easily be Pauline as far as historical argument is concerned.
2) Ecclesiastical Argument
‑The liberals find the leadership structure in thePastorals too elaborate for their models.
‑They start with a totally charismatic organizationwhich was gradually replaced by elected
officials.
But even in Acts 14:23 (at end of 1st MJ, c50 AD) see Paul appointingelders in churches. He
presumablyhad some standards for this. Evenif not, he had 15 years to develop
somestds. before writing the Pastorals.
‑In fact, the church structure seen in the Pastoralsargues againsta late date, as there is no sign
ofthe monarchical episcopate ("kingly bishop," distinction betw bishop& elder, one man
ruleof church in each city).
‑In the Pastorals, the terms "elder" and"bishop" are interchangable, there seems to be more than
onein each church. Paul emphasizestheir qualifications rather than their duties.
‑By 110 AD, the idea of themonarchical episcopate (one "bishop" over several "elders")is
widespread(cf. Ignatius' letters).
‑Some see the "angel" in Rev. 1‑3 as sole leaderof each church, hinting of a monarchical
practice,but this is still a generation after Paul's time.
‑Liberals do not like the idea of the earlyestablishment of an organized set of church leaders,
becausethen it becomes hard to introduce false writings and traditions.
‑If liberal reconstructions of church history arewrong, then they face big problems with their
denialof NT authenticity.
3) Doctrinal argument
‑Warnings about "gnosis," genealogies andsuch look Gnostic, though we need to remember that
"gnosis"is regular Greek word for knowledge and quite common.
‑But these emphases also show up in otherheresies. If this is Gnosticism itis certainly an early
form,not beyond that in Colossians, which is probably some form of Essene Judaism.
4) Linguistic argument (strongest)
‑We must grant that we cannot really check up on whowrote the Pastorals. We weren'tthere.
‑We do not have the same evidence available which theearly church had for determining
authorship.
‑However, from remarks in early writings, the churchestook care to guard against frauds and
wrongteaching.
‑They did not just accept material without knowing whothe author was; tho there were some
peoplethen who were gullible like this, just as there are today.
a) The major problem with anti‑Pauline arguments istheir lack of good standards for judging
Paul's"real" style.
‑We do not know Paul's range of style except by making assumptionsabout authorship.
‑Morton has tried to set some standards (and these have been helpful),but his classical-author
controlsare also based on assumptions regarding authorship.
‑Also not clear that classical authors, writing good prose forliterary people, are a realistic basis
fortesting Paul, writing occasional letters to coworkers (different genre, different
purpose,different kind of audience).
‑Nor is Paul always writing continuous prose either: he quotes fromthe LXX and appears to cite
earlyXn hymns.
b) There are certainly stylistic differences within and betweenthe 13 or 14 epistles, but internal
criteriaare very slippery.
‑Style can change with time.
‑May be influenced by co‑authors.
‑Stylistic analyses have not been very successful where they canbe independently tested. Some
examples:
‑Wilhelm Scherer (1879) analyzed Goethe'sPrologue to Faust andattempted to date it accordingto the mixture of pessimistic and optimistic content (it was known that
Goethewrote Faust over along span of time and that he soured with age).
‑Made a nice division into youthful/elderlysections.
‑However, an early manuscript of Faust was later found (in the attic of a housewhere Goethe
livedwhen young) which showed that the complete prologue was written when Goethe
wasyoung!
‑C.S. Lewis in his essay "OnCriticism" in On Storieslooks back over his career as both author
andliterary critic.
‑Notes that critics typically wrong insaying what his motives were in writing, in deducing his
"true"thoughts and feelings, or even working out date of writing from his works.
Concludesconfidence in such deductions misplaced.
‑Literary criticism often makes indirectdeductions from the text without adequate warrant.
‑Seemingly plausible theories are constructed,but they are only shots in the dark. Too many
factorsare involved to make such guesses likely.
‑The major weakness with liberals here is thatthey refuse to take seriously the NT and early
churchevidence of care in accepting material as genuine or the explicit statements of
authorship.
3. Paul's activities after the close ofActs
‑Once we get beyond Acts, we see how important aframework it provides for organizing the
earlierevents and epistles.
‑Is impossible to reconstruct anything like a connectednarrative for Paul's later life with
certainty.
‑Is reasonably certain that Paul was released fromRoman imprisonment; was free for a while
(duringwhich time he wrote 1 Tim. and Titus); was arrested again, imprisoned (wrote 2
Tim.),and soon thereafter was put to death.
‑Some hints as to his travels between imprisonments:
‑From Paul's intentions in Phil. 2:24, Phlm. 22, he probably firstwent East to Macedonia and
Asia.(but NIV Study Bible has him go West first).
‑Perhaps at this time or on the way back he left Timothy in Ephesus(1 Tim. 1:3) and Titus in
Crete(Titus 1:5).
‑As Paul predicts he would not see the Ephesiansagain in Acts 20, perhaps he appointed
Timothyat a distance, or Paul might have left Timothy in Ephesus at end of 3rd journey.
‑According to tradition, Paul went to Spain.
‑By time of 1 Tim. and Titus, Paul was apparently back in East.
‑1 Tim. 3:14 ("planning to come to youbefore long") implies that Paul is not too far from
Ephesus.
‑In Titus 3:12 Paul says he plans to winter inNicopolis (on W. coast of Greece).
‑Thus 1 Tim. and Titus may have been writtenfrom Macedonia.
‑Perhaps Paul was arrested the second time at Troas, since hiscloak and parchments were left
there(2 Tim 4:13).
4. Dates for Pastoral Epistles
Exact dates are difficult to establish once we leave Acts.
‑Can date 1 Timothy and Titus at about the same time.
‑2 Timothy was written later, during his 2ndimprisonment.
‑We don't know if Paul was caught early or late inNero's persecution (64‑68 AD). Tradition
(Eusebius,Jerome) places his death about 67 AD.
‑Thus these epistles were written sometime after hisrelease from 1st imprisonment (after Acts
ends,63 AD) but before his death in 67 AD.
5. Outlines of Pastoral Epistles
adaptedfrom NIV Study Bible
a. 1 Timothy:
Warning re/ False Teachers ch 1
Instructions on Worship ch 2
Church Officers ch 3
Dealing with False Teaching ch 4
Dealing with Groups in Church 5:1-6:2
Love of Money 6:3-10
Final Charge to Timothy 6:11-21
b. Titus:
Introduction 1:1‑4
Elders and Heretics 1:5‑16
Various Groups in the Church ch 2
Believers in General 3:1-11
Closing Charge 3:12‑15
c. 2 Timothy:
Opening Charge: Be Faithful 1:1‑18
Call for Endurance 2:1‑13
Foolish Controversies 2:14-26
Warning about Last Days ch 3
Final Charge: Preach the Word 4:1‑8
Requests and Greetings 4:9‑22
B. The Death of Paul and the OtherApostles
‑Apostles here to be taken in the broad sense, including Paul, Jamesthe Lord's brother, etc.
1. Scriptural information.
a. Predictions of Jesus.
1) Sons of Zebedee. Matt. 20:20‑23; Mk 10:35‑40 parallels
‑"My cup you shall drink" =>will share in my suffering.
=> martyrdom? but notexplicit.
‑Mark: cup and baptism
2) Peter. John 21:18‑19
‑"Grow old" => not young.
‑"Stretch out hands" => crucifixion [sounderstood by John after the fact].
‑"Someone will gird you" =>be bound or dress him?
‑"do not wish to go" => unpleasant.
‑Note this prediction is obscure to us andwe need John's remark (v.19) to call it to our
attention.
3) John. John 21:20‑23
‑"If he remains until I come, what isthat to you?"
‑At first, some (v.23) took this tomean that John would not die, but John himself counters
this,leaving it ambiguous like Jesus did.
‑Meaning: "None of your business!"
‑Note that none of these predictions is very clear.
b. Narration of Acts.
‑Acts 12:1‑2 describes the death of James of Zebedee.
‑Was beheaded by Herod Agripa I in c44 AD.
‑Apparently martyrdom is the "cup" and "baptism"which
Jesus referred to in James' case.
c. Predictions of Apostles.
1) Paul: 2 Tim. 4:6‑9
‑"Poured out as a drink offering" => short process?
‑Paul is alluding to the Temple offering pouredout on or beside the altar.
‑Is in prison. Sees his career finished and death (probably by judicialprocedure) imminent.
TellsTimothy to come quickly.
2) Peter: 2 Pet. 1:12‑14
‑Refers to John 21 and/or something else theLord said.
2. Extra‑Scriptural Information.
a. James the Lord's brother.
1) Josephus, Antiquities20.9.1.
‑After Festus died, there was a break betweengovernors.
‑Ananus the high priest, who was againstChristianity, had several church leaders (including
James)rounded up, tried by the Sanhedrin, and put to death by stoning (c62 AD).
‑Ananus lost his priesthood as a result of this.
2) Hegesippus (2nd cent.), according to Eusebius Eccl History 2.23.
‑Provides more details, but some are suspicious.
‑May have been thrown off the wing of the temple,then stoned.
‑Talmud says stoning was done by throwing victimoff cliff; if that not adequate, then dropping
aboulder from cliff onto him; if still alive, then stoning him; throwing guy offbuilding
maybe a variant on this [attempted to throw Jesus off cliff at Nazareth].
‑Problems:
‑Jewish leaders put James up in a publicplace to get him to renounce Jesus, then describe
Jamesas a righteous man; makes them sound more stupid than likely. (James was
actuallyhighly regarded by many Jews.)
‑Detail of him having access to the holyplace in the temple also suspicious.
b. Peter and Paul.
1) 1 Clement 5 (c95 AD):
‑Very vague on details: doesn't really tell howeither died.
‑Peter killed as a result of"jealousy."
‑Paul died after he "had given testimonybefore the authorities."
‑Are noted as examples for believers, probablymartyred.
2) Tertullian, Prescription against Heretics 36:
‑Peter "endured a passion like hisLord's" => crucified.
‑Paul "wins his crown in a death likeJohn's [the Baptist]" =>beheaded.
‑Says both were killed at Rome.
3) Acts of Paul 10:5 (c160‑170 AD): Beheaded.
4) Acts of Peter 37 (c200‑220 AD): Crucified upside down.
‑These two contain heretical and legendary stuff,but some details of their deaths are consistent
withother sources.
5) Eusebius Church History2.25
‑Cites Tertullian and Caius (c200 AD).
‑Notes their tombs are at Rome: "Can find their trophies at theVatican [open field near Rome]
andon the Ostian Road [outside of town]."
‑Constantine built the churches of St. Peter andSt. Paul at these sites; the Vatican's main altar
issupposedly over Peter's grave.
‑We can conclude that both were killed underNero near Rome and were buried at least near
wherethe modern churches are.
c. John.
‑Data is puzzling; divergence regarding natural death or martyrdom.
‑Know he was in exile at Patmos; it appears he did not die there.
1) Irenaeus, Against Heresies 3.3
‑This earliest source says John came back toEphesus and lived until the time of Trajan. No
hintof martyrdom.
2) Papias.
‑Papias, according to later sources (CodexBaroccianus 142; Codex Cosilinianus 305 [6th cent.
PaulineEpistles]) says in book 2 of Exposition of the Oracles that John was put to death
bythe Jews.
‑As a student of John, he should know how Johndied, but no one else mentions this.
3) Syriac martyrology [martyr list/calendar] (4th cent.).
‑Says John and James died in Jerusalem on Decemberc27th.
4) Acts of John 115 (c170‑180 AD) pictures a natural death at oldage.
‑This seems to be the picture given byPolycrates (Ephesus c190 AD); Eusebius HE 3.31;
OrigenMatt. 16.6.
‑Thus John probably survived the exile and died a natural death inold age.
d. Other Apostles.
‑Are even less certain of manner of death for the otherApostles.
‑Derive information from heretical acts and laterhistorians.
1) Andrew ‑‑ Crucified at Patrae in Achaia[Greece].
‑Source: Acts ofAndrew (mid 3rd cent.).
2) Thomas ‑‑ speared by soldiers in India.
‑Source: Acts ofThomas 168 (early 3rd cent.).
‑Source for the rest: Apostolic History of Abdias (6th cen +).
3) Bartholomew ‑‑ beheaded in India.
4) Jude and Simon: killed by a mob in Persia.
5) Matthew: speared by soldier in Ethiopia.
6) Philip: diesnaturally in Hierapolis, Asia Minor.
‑Have no idea how reliable these details are.
‑Most recent historians simply bypass this material asit is so shaky.
‑Would be nice to have detailed narratives, but God inHis providence has not provided them.
‑Our emphasis should be on Christ's death, not theApostles'.
‑It does appear that most of the Apostles gave up theirlives in violent circumstances while testifying for Christ.
-May we, too, be faithful until death, and we will receivethe crown of life (Rev. 2:10).
