On the Historicity of Acts: Comparing Acts 9.23–5 with 2 Corinthians 11.32–3

1993 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 518-538 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Harding
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Archaeological Evidence ◽  
2 Corinthians ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Book Of Acts

The death of Colin Hemer in 1987 has deprived the fellowship of New Testament scholars of one who, like his late mentor F. F. Bruce, was able to bring to bear on the study of the text of the New Testament the insights and discipline of one trained in the Classics. Hemer's posthumously published The Book of Acts in the Setting of Hellenistic History is an attempt on a large scale to argue the case for the historicity of Acts with respect to attention to matters of detail, and, as a consequence, the trustworthiness of its author. Luke the historian, contends Hemer, deserves to be judged according to the historiographical conventions of his day, the conventions of a venerable historiographical heritage whose great exemplar in the Hellenistic era was Polybius. Hemer's bringing of a vast collection of epigraphical and archaeological evidence to bear on the question of Lukan historicity should shake the presuppositions and conclusions of the sceptical and help NT scholars to appreciate both Lukan accuracy and Acts' ‘topicality’.

The Spirit in the DtrH/Former Prophets

Pneuma ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 43 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 350-357
Author(s):  
Brian Neil Peterson
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Deuteronomistic History ◽  
Modus Operandi ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Former Prophets ◽  
Book Of Acts

Abstract While the Spirit in the Deuteronomistic History (DtrH) may not have the same explicit role as he does in the New Testament book of Acts, the Spirit is nonetheless ever-present in the lives of both Israel and Judah’s leaders and prophets. To be sure, the Spirit moves in a variety of ways and with a very similar modus operandi in the DtrH to that in the NT as he empowers, strengthens for service, and inspires the prophets. We also find that in the DtrH the Spirit convicts of sin, effects miracles through the man or woman of God, and renders discernment to those he has called. Put simply, the Spirit’s role in the DtrH, as in the NT, is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Crete

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clyde E. Fant ◽  
Mitchell G. Reddish
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Roman Period ◽  
National Museum ◽  
Apostle Paul ◽  
Accurate Representation ◽  
The Bible ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Ancient Site ◽  
Book Of Acts ◽  
Nearby City

Crete is the largest and most southerly of all the Greek islands. It is also one of the most visited, due to both its beauty and its famous ancient sites. By far the best-known of these attractions is the spectacular Palace of Knossos, reconstructed over a period of thirty-five years by its discoverer, Sir Arthur Evans, who put more than a million dollars of his own money into the work. Scholars have criticized his reconstruction as a fanciful and not altogether accurate representation of the original, but millions of tourists delight in being able to see more at an ancient site than foundations, scattered stones, and a few columns. But Knossos is not the only dramatic ruin of antiquity on the island. Gortyna and Phaistos should not be missed, and for Christians the harbor of Kaloi Limenes (called Fair Havens in the New Testament) is a place of importance in the life of the Apostle Paul. Likewise, the Basilica of St. Titus at Gortyna commemorates the ministry of Titus, a Greek convert who was a disciple of Paul (Gal 2:3), as described in the New Testament book of Titus. Furthermore, Iraklion possesses an archaeological museum second only to the National Museum in Athens. The only site on Crete mentioned in the Bible, though Crete itself was said to be the place of the ministry of Titus (Titus 1:5), is the harbor of Kaloi Limenes (Good Harbor), referred to in the Book of Acts as Fair Havens (Acts 27: 8). After two thousand years, the site is known by the same name today. Even in New Testament times the place was distinguished only as the harbor for the nearby city of Lasea, a flourishing commercial city in the Roman period. Today the tranquil bay in its remote location harbors nothing more than sunbathers who visit its beaches to enjoy the beautiful waters of the Mediterranean. The site can be reached best by automobile, or by taking a bus from Iraklion to Moires/Mires.

Pauline Chronology

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Reasoner
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Life Story ◽  
1 Corinthians ◽  
Pastoral Epistles ◽  
2 Corinthians ◽  
Relative Chronology ◽  
Paul's Letters ◽  
To Come ◽  
Book Of Acts ◽  
Real Places

Pauline chronology, the chronological framework in which Paul’s life and letters are situated, is a significant prolegomenon for the interpretation of his letters and the book of Acts that prompts study for several reasons. First, readers of Paul’s letters inevitably construct a life story through which to read the letters, since humans learn through narrative. Second, the Christian idea of incarnation drives Scripture readers to connect its narratives with “real” places and dates in our world. Thus, New Testament readers feel compelled to work out an absolute chronology of Paul’s life, which dates his letters in relation to dates and events from the outside world of the 1st century. Third, questions arise from the book of Acts, which in its second half follows Paul exclusively. Did the events in Acts really happen? Did the author of Acts, who sometimes uses “we” pronouns when describing Paul’s travels (16:10–17; 20:5–21:18; 27:1–28:16), really accompany Paul? How is Acts related to the letters of Paul? Fourth, questions arise within Paul’s letters that beg for a chronology. There are enough differences in Paul’s letters to demand that one form at least a relative chronology of Paul’s life to ascertain the sequence of the letters’ composition. Paul sent a letter to the churches in Galatia and collected money from them (Galatians 1:2; 1 Corinthians 16:1), but it is unclear exactly where these churches were located and when Paul founded them. The letters of 1 and 2 Corinthians prompt readers to reconstruct a chronology of Paul’s visits and communication with the church in Corinth. The Pastoral Epistles, 1–2 Timothy and Titus, appear to come from a different voice than Paul’s other letters, but adjustments in Pauline chronology allow some to situate this difference within Paul’s lifetime. In this bibliography, adjectives “Acts-friendly” or “Acts-receptive” mean that the interpreter is relying on Acts as providing valid historiographical data for chronology. “Acts-critical” or “Acts-cautious” mean that the interpreter has heeded the most influential piece in this bibliography, John Knox’s seminal book, Chapters in a Life of Paul, which takes seriously and popularizes the skepticism of F. C. Bauer (1792–1860) toward the historical value of Acts. Knox’s book calls for New Testament readers to reconstruct Pauline chronology primarily from Paul’s letters. Knox thus challenges all New Testament readers to make deliberate arguments for the regard they give to Acts when responding to questions of Pauline chronology.

Rhetoric of the New Testament

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Duane F. Watson
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Tertiary Education ◽  
Church History ◽  
Political Life ◽  
Western World ◽  
Church Fathers ◽  
2 Corinthians ◽  
Greco Roman ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
The 19Th Century

Rhetoric is the art of persuasion. In the Western world, its practice is rooted in Greece and Rome where the ability to speak well was essential to political life and perpetuating the power of the upper class. Rhetoric provided the content of secondary and tertiary education as it prepared the sons of the wealthy to take their places in the judicial and political system. Rhetoric was carefully systematized and influenced both oral and written speech. Its use is evident in the New Testament at every turn, including the Gospel writers’ development of the sayings of Jesus into more elaborate pronouncement stories, Luke’s composition of the speeches in the Acts of the Apostles, Paul’s sophisticated use of argumentation in 2 Corinthians 10–13, and John’s multivalent and emotive use of imagery in Revelation. Rightly, rhetoric has been used intermittently throughout church history to interpret the New Testament. Its use is conspicuous in the writings of the early Church Fathers up to and including Augustine, only to be mentioned sporadically by a handful of scholars during the medieval period. Its use is revived in the Reformation, especially by Philip Melanchthon, and continued to be a vital part of interpretation until the end of the 19th century with a crescendo of works produced in Germany. It plays only a nominal role throughout most of the 20th century, until the mid-1970s when works by Hans Dieter Betz and George A. Kennedy, among others, revived the role of rhetoric in interpretation. In fact, rhetoric is currently one of the more prominent tools used in New Testament interpretation, both as a historical enterprise using Greco-Roman rhetoric and in broader studies using modern rhetoric to understand the functions of rhetoric.

Anti-Imperial Rhetoric in the New Testament

2011 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judy Diehl
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
New Testament ◽  
First Century ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
Biblical Scholarship ◽  
Interpretive Methods ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
The Common ◽  
Book Of Acts ◽  
Common Era

The first of a series of three articles, this essay introduces current scholarship concerned with the use of anti-imperial rhetoric in the New Testament Gospels and the book of Acts. In the first century of the Common Era, if the powerful Roman Emperor was considered a god, what did that mean for the earliest Christians who committed loyalty to ‘another’ God? Was it necessary for the NT authors to employ subversive language, words and symbols, to conceal their true meanings from the imperial authorities in their communications to the first Christian communities? The answers to such key questions can give us a clearer picture of the culture, society and setting in which the NT was written. The purpose of this complex study is to observe how current biblical scholarship views anti-imperial rhetoric and anti-emperor implications found in the NT, assuming such rhetoric exists at all. This initial article reviews recent scholarship with respect to the background of the Roman Empire, current interpretive methods and research concerning anti-imperial rhetoric found in the NT Gospels and Acts.

The Development of the Christian Biblical Canon

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edmon L. Gallagher ◽  
John D. Meade
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Old Testament ◽  
Ancient Judaism ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Catholic Epistles ◽  
Book Of Acts

In order to provide context for the presentation of the canon lists, here we introduce the major stages in canon history, the data relevant to each stage, and the prominent scholarly theories regarding the development of the biblical canon. Our goal is not to advocate for one particular view, but to help readers understand the significance of the canon lists. We begin by looking at the Old Testament, investigatng how the books came to be accepted as authoritative and whether there might have been a diversity of biblical canons in ancient Judaism. Turning to the New Testament, we examine the evidence for the reception of each section of the New Testament, starting with the Gospels, then the Pauline letters, the Catholic Epistles, the book of Acts, and finally Revelation.

scholarly journals The comforted comforter: The meaning of παρακαλέω or παράκλησις terminology in 2 Corinthians

2011 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Reimund Bieringer
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Corinthians 1 ◽  
2 Corinthians ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Way

In the Pauline homologoumena, παρακαλέω or παράκλησις terminology is used almost two and a half times (in 2 Corinthians even six and a half times) as frequently as in the remainder of the New Testament. In the first part of this article, a survey of the use of παρακαλέω or παράκλησις in the undisputed letters and its three major meanings was given: to request strongly, to exhort and to encourage or comfort. In the second part of the article, the LXX background of the unprecedented use of παρακαλέω or παράκλησις in 2 Corinthians 1:3–7 and 7:4.5–13, where God is the subject, was discussed. The conclusion was that when writing 2 Corinthians 1:3–7 and 7:4.5–13 Paul made use of the prophet Isaiah’s Book of Comfort and in his use of παρακαλέω or παράκλησις allows himself to be influenced by the way the LXX translator uses παρακαλέω to translate נחם.

The Position of Hebrews in the Canon of the New Testament

1936 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 133-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
William H. P. Hatch
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Apostle Paul ◽  
2 Corinthians ◽  
Epistle To The Hebrews ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Church

In the manuscripts and versions of the New Testament, in lists of books accepted as canonical, and in the works of ecclesiastical writers the Epistle to the Hebrews occupies three different positions: (I) Among the epistles addressed to churches, i.e. after Romans, after 2 Corinthians, and very rarely after Galatians, Ephesians, Colossians, and Titus. (II) After 2 Thessalonians, i.e. after the epistles written to churches. (III) After Philemon, i.e. at the end of the Pauline canon. Each of these positions represents the usage of some particular section, or sections, of the Church; and each is significant for the history of the canon of the New Testament. No other epistle ascribed to the Apostle Paul has been so variously placed in the canon as Hebrews.

In Defense of Erasmus’ Critics

2019 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 147-183
Author(s):  
John Monfasani
Keyword(s):  
Sixteenth Century ◽  
Fifteenth Century ◽  
New Testament ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Culture War ◽  
Religious Doctrine ◽  
The World ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Large Scale Culture ◽  
Significant Measure

Abstract The article confirms Andrew J. Brown’s thesis that despite carrying colophons with dates in the first decade of the sixteenth century, the four sumptuous manuscripts of Erasmus’ translation of the New Testament produced by the scribe Pieter Meghen could not have been finished until the 1520s and in fact preserve a version of Erasmus’ translation not available until the 1520s. Nonetheless, the article goes on to prove that Erasmus was working on a translation of the New Testament already at the time of the colophons in the Meghen manuscripts. Erasmus’ translation was part of his large-scale culture war against medieval scholasticism that he embarked upon at the end of the fifteenth century and continued until his death in 1536. The world around Erasmus changed radically, however, in those four decades, in significant measure because of his own scholarship and writings, but Erasmus himself changed amazingly little in his basic attitudes. The result was that by the end his critics from the Protestant as much as from the Catholic side were rightly frustrated by his incoherent reaction to the changed situation. Emblematic of his inability to face up to the transformed reality is his annotation to I Timothy1:6, which became an unconscious parody of his incoherent stance on religious doctrine and which is translated in an appendix to the article.

scholarly journals Symbolika krwi a bezkrwawa dieta w Starym i Nowym Testamencie i jej wpływ na styl życia. Aspekty prawne

Ekonomia ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 25-37
Author(s):  
Sławomir Stasiak
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Old Testament ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Blood Substitute ◽  
Special Role ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Comprehensive Information ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Sexual Immorality

The symbolism of blood and a bloodless diet in the Old and New Testament and its impact on lifestyle: Legal aspectsThe Old Testament prohibition of consuming blood Lev. 17:10–14 was dictated by the observation of the phenomenon of blood loss as a cause of death of a human being. Therefore, blood was considered to have life-giving power, the power of God Himself. Blood flowing in the veins of every creature was considered to be God’s property and was not allowed to be consumed, but it had to be poured out on the ground. In New Testament times, this prohibition was relativized, recommending only its preservation Acts 15:28–29. Since there are also religious groups today that demand that we refrain from the consumption of blood, we decided to study the issue based on the texts of the Old and New Testament, which contain information about blood and its symbolism, as well as the prohibition of its consumption. The methods of contextual analysis and historical-critical analysis were applied. As a result of these studies, it turned out that blood, especially in the Old Testament texts, has very extensive symbolism, which is why one can speak of the firstborn’s blood, substitute blood, blood of the Covenant. Blood also played a special role in the worship of Israel, especially in sacrificial offerings. This meaning is also found in the New Testament: “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins” Heb. 9:22. In the Old Testament, there are a number of texts in which the prohibition of consumption of blood has been imposed see Gen. 9:4; Lev. 3:17; 7:26–27; Deut. 12:23, although refraining from eating meat in which blood would still be found is not always explicitlly mentioned. The most comprehensive information on this subject, along with the justification of the prohibition, is included in Leviticus 17:10–14. Such prohibitions resulted in a specific lifestyle, and even slaughtering of animals, which was the subject of a large-scale social discussion. We ask ourselves the question: Does this prohibition apply to today’s Hebrews, Christians, or other social groups for whom the Bible is a peculiar norm of conduct? While the positive answer undoubtedly concerns the followers of Judaism, the issue of Christians is not so obvious. This is indicated by the so-called Jerusalem Council: “you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell” Acts 15:28–29. Three facts are of crucial importance here. First, these clauses were disciplinary and not doctrinal. Second, they had limited territorial coverage see Acts 15:23. Third, one sentence is of particular significance in this context: “If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well” Acts 15:29, which indicates this was not a warrant for salvation, but a recommendation to facilitate the faithful’s life in mutual consent in a church made up of Christians of Jewish and pagan origin.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document