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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
- Serie: Blackwell Bible Commentaries
- Sprache: Englisch
Charting the theological and cultural potency of Acts across the timespan of Christian history, this work of profound scholarship reveals the full extent of the New Testament book's religious, artistic, literary, and political influence. * Reveals the influence of Acts at key turning points in the history of the Christian church * Traces the rich and varied artistic and cultural heritage rooted in Acts, from music to literature * Analyzes the political significance of the book as a touchstone in the church's external relations * Provides detailed commentary on the exegesis of Acts down the centuries
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Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2016
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Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
List of Figures
Series Editors’ Preface
Preface
Acknowledgements
List of Abbreviations
Introduction
Acts in its Ancient Literary Context(s)
An Outline of Acts
Acts in the Exegetical Tradition(s) of Commentary and Homily
Acts in the Liturgical Tradition of Calendar, Lectionary and Creeds
Acts in Literature and the Arts
Conclusion
Acts 1
Overview
Reception and Interpretation
Acts 2
Overview
Reception and Interpretation
Acts 3–5
Overview
Reception and Interpretation
Acts 6–8
Overview
Reception and Interpretation
Acts 8
Acts 9
Overview
Reception and Interpretation
Acts 10–12
Overview
Reception and Interpretation
Acts 12
Acts 13–14
Overview
Reception and Interpretation
Acts 15
Overview
Reception and Interpretation
Acts 16–17
Overview
Reception and Interpretation
Acts 18–19
Overview
Reception and Interpretation
Acts 20–23
Overview
Reception and Interpretation
Acts 24–26
Overview
Reception and Interpretation
Acts 27–28
Overview
Reception and Interpretations
Epilogue
Appendix 1
Biographies and Glossary
Bibliography
Author and Artist Index
Index of Scripture References
Subject Index
End User License Agreement
List of Illustrations
Chapter 01
Figure 1
St. Paul
. 5th–6th century. Detail of the vault mosaics. Archbishop's Palace, Ravenna, Italy.
Chapter 02
Figure 2
Ascension and the Three Marys
. 4th century. Ivory plaque. Bayerischers Nationalmuseum, Munich.
Figure 3
Ascension
. Miniature depicted on folio l3v. of the Syriac Evangeliary of Rabbula (Ms. Plut. I 56). 586. Parchment codex. Bibliotcca Laurenziana, Florence, Italy.
Figure 4 El Greco (I541–1614).
Saints Peter and Paul
. 1587–92. Oil. Hermitage, St. Petersburg, Russia.
Figure 5 Fra Angelico (1387–1455).
Ascension of Christ
. From the doors of the Silver Cabinet. 1449–53. Museo di S. Marco, Florence, Italy.
Figure 6
Election of Matthias
. 1269. Manuscript illumination. MS 965 fol. 106v (Rockefeller‐McCormick New Testament).
Chapter 03
Figure 7
The Descent of the Holy Spirit
. 586. Manuscript illumination from the Syriac Evangeliary of Rabbula. Biblioteca Laurenziana, Florence, Italy.
Figure 8 Giotto di Bondone (1266–1336).
Pentecost.
c. 1305. Fresco. Scrovegni, Chapel, Padua, Italy.
Figure 9 Botticelli (1447–1510).
Descent of the Holy Ghost
. 1495–1505. Oil.Birmingham City Museum, Great Britain.
Figure 10
Pentecost
, Donald Jackson. Copyright 2002,
The Saint John’s Bible
, Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota, USA. Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, Catholic Edition, Copyright 1993, 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America.
Chapter 04
Figure 11 Raphael (1483–1520).
The Healing of the Lame Man
. 1515–16. Watercolor on paper mounted onto canvas (tapestry cartoon), 3.4 × 5.4m. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, Great Britain.
Figure 12 Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665).
Saints Peter and John Healing the Lame Man
. 1655. Oil on canvas, 49 1/2 × 65 in. Marquand Fund, 1924 (24.45.2). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, U.S.A.
Figure 13
Life in Community
, Aidan Hart in collaboration with Donald Jackson,
The Saint John’s Bible
, Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota, USA. Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, Catholic Edition, Copyright 1993, 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America.
Figure 14 Tommaso Masaccio (1401–28).
Saint Peter Distributing the Common Goods and Punishment of Ananias
. 1425. Fresco. Brancacci Chapel, Sta Maria del Carmine, Florence.
Figure 15 Raphael (1483–1520).
The Death of Ananias
. 1515–16. Watercolor on paper mounted on canvas (tapestry cartoon), 3.4 × 5.3m. V&A Images/The Royal Collection, on loan from HM The Queen. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, Great Britain.
Figure 16 Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665).
The Death of Sapphira
. c. 1652. Oil. Musée du Louvre, Paris.
Chapter 05
Figure 17
Stoning and Imprisonment of Saint Stephen.
c.1200. Manuscript illumination. French Biblioteca Capitolare, Vercelli.
Figure 18 Fra Angelico (1387–1455).
St. Stephen Led to Torture and Stoned
. 1448–1449. Fresco. Cappella Niccolina, Vatican Palace, Vatican State.
Figure 19 Don Simone Camaldolese (14th–15th century).
Stoning of Saint Stephen
.
Illuminated intial S
. Choral B, L 32 v. Museo di S. Marco, Florence, Italy.
Figure 20
Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch
.
Saul receives letters
. 1200–25. Manuscript illumination. Cod.lat 39 fol 91r. © 2012 Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana.
Chapter 06
Figure 21 Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1573–1610).
The Conversion of Saint Paul
. 1600–01. Oil on canvas. S. Maria del Popolo, Rome, Italy.
Figure 22
Paul Led to Damascus
. 1269. Manuscript illumination. MS 965 fol. 115r (Rockefeller‐McCormick New Testament).
Figure 23
Paul Baptized by Saint Ananias
. 1130–40. Mosaic. Cappella Palatina, Palazzo dei Normanni, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.
Figure 24
St. Paul Disputing in Damascus
. 1130–40. Mosaic. Cappella Palatina, Palazzo dei Normanni, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.
Figure 25 Tommaso Masolino da Panicale (1383–1447).
Curing the Crippled and the Resurrection of Tabitha
. 1425–27. Fresco. Brancacci Chapel, S. Maria del Carmine, Florence, Italy.
Figure 26 Giovanni Francesco Guercino (1591–1666).
Raising of Tabitha
. 1617. Oil. Galleria Palatina, Palazzo Pitti, Florence, Italy.
Chapter 07
Figure 27 Domenico Fetti (1589–1624).
Saint Peter’s Vision of the Unclean Beasts
. 1619. Oil. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, Austria.
Figure 28 Andrea Mantegna (1431–1506).
Martyrdom of St. James
. 1454–57. Destroyed fresco. Chiesa degli Eremitani, Padua, Italy.
Figure 29 Raphael (1483–1520).
The Liberation of St. Peter from Prison
. 1514. Fresco. Stanze d’Eliodoro, Vatican Palace, Vatican State.
Chapter 08
Figure 30 Raphael (1483–1520).
The Conversion of the Proconsul
. 1515–16. Watercolor mounted on canvas (tapestry cartoon), 3.4 × 4.4m. V&A Images/The Royal Collection, on loan from HM The Queen. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, Great Britain.
Figure 31
Life of Paul
, Aidan Hart in collaboration with Donald Jackson,
The Saint John’s Bible
, Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota, USA. Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, Catholic Edition, Copyright 1993, 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America.
Figure 32 Raphael (1483–1520).
The Sacrifice at Lystra
. 1515–16. Watercolor on paper mounted on canvas (tapestry cartoon), 3.5 × 5.6m. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, Great Britain.
Figure 33
The Lapidation of Saint Paul
. High relief from a sarcophagus. 6th century. Marble. St. Victor Basilica, Marseille, France.
Figure 34 Jean‐Baptiste de Champaigne (1631–1681).
St. Paul Overthrown and Stoned in the City of Lystra
. 1667. Oil on canvas. 64 × 52.5cm. Photo: René‐Gabriel Ojéda Musée Magnin, Dijon, France.
Chapter 10
Figure 35
Paul and Silas Beaten at Philippi
. 1200–25. Manuscript illumination. Ms lat.39fol.98r. © 2012 Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana.
Figure 36 Raphael (1483–1520).
Paul Preaching at Athens
. 1515–16. Watercolor on paper mounted onto canvas (tapestry cartoon), 3.4 × 4.4m. V&A Images/The Royal Collection, on loan from HM The Queen. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, Great Britain.
Figure 37 William Blake (1757–1827).
St. Paul Preaching in Athens
. 1803. Watercolor with touches of black chalk and scraping on paper. 18 × 12¼ inches.
Chapter 11
Figure 38
Paul led to Gallio
and
Paul in Boat with Priscilla and Aquila
. 1200–25. Manuscript illumination. fol. 137v. Cod. Chigi.A.IV.74. © 2012 Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana.
Document 1 Faith Healer Mailer
Figure 39 Jean Restout (1692–1768).
The Miracle of St. Paul at Ephesus
. c. 1740. Oil. Musée des Beaux‐Arts, Rouen, France.
Chapter 12
Figure 40 Domenico Tiepolo (1727–1804).
St. Paul Stands Before the Body of Eutychus
. c. 1785. Pen and brown ink, brown wash, on beige paper, 48.7 × 38cm.
Figure 41 Louis Chéron (1660–1715).
The Prophet Agabus Predicting Saint Paul’s Suffering at Jerusalem.
c. 1700. Musée des Beaux‐Arts, Caen, France.
Chapter 14
Figure 42 Maarten de Vos (1532–1603).
Saint Paul Bitten by a Viper
. 1566–68. Wood. 124 × 199 cm. Louvre, Paris, France.
Figure 43
Paul and Viper, Healing of Publius’ Father
. c. 400. Marble. Carrand Diptych, Museo del Bargello, Florence.
Guide
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Wiley Blackwell Bible Commentaries
Series Editors: John Sawyer, Christopher Rowland, Judith Kovacs, David M. Gunn
John Through the CenturiesMark Edwards
Revelation Through the CenturiesJudith Kovacs & Christopher Rowland
Judges Through the CenturiesDavid M. Gunn
Exodus Through the CenturiesScott M. Langston
Ecclesiastes Through the CenturiesEric S. Christianson
Esther Through the CenturiesJo Carruthers
Psalms Through the Centuries: Volume ISusan Gillingham
Galatians Through the CenturiesJohn Riches
Pastoral Epistles Through the CenturiesJay Twomey
1 & 2 Thessalonians Through the CenturiesAnthony C. Thiselton
Six Minor Prophets Through the CenturiesBy Richard Coggins and Jin H. Han
Lamentations Through the CenturiesPaul M. Joyce and Diana Lipton
James Through the CenturiesDavid Gowler
The Acts of the Apostles Through the CenturiesHeidi J. Hornik and Mikeal C. Parsons
The Acts of the Apostles Through the Centuries
Heidi J. HornikandMikeal C. Parsons
This edition first published 2017© 2017 Heidi J. Hornik and Mikeal C. Parsons
Registered OfficeJohn Wiley & Sons, Ltd, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, UK
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Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and authors have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. It is sold on the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering professional services and neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom. If professional advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.
Library of Congress Cataloging‐in‐Publication Data
Names: Hornik, Heidi J., 1962– author. | Parsons, Mikeal Carl, 1957– author.Title: The Acts of the Apostles through the centuries / Heidi J. Hornik and Mikeal C. Parsons.Description: Chichester, West Sussex ; Malden, MA : John Wiley & Sons Inc., 2016. | Includes bibliographical references and index.Identifiers: LCCN 2016024933| ISBN 9781405176354 (cloth) | ISBN 9781118597897 (epub)Subjects: LCSH: Bible. Acts–Criticism, interpretation, etc.–History.Classification: LCC BS2625.52 .H66 2016 | DDC 226.6/0609–dc23LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016024933
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Cover image: St Michael fighting the dragon (Revelation 12:7‐9), woodcut by Albrecht Dürer, 1498, from The Revelation of St John
Cover design: Cyan design
List of Figures
Figure 1
St. Paul. 5th–6th century. Detail of the vault mosaics. Archbishop’s Palace, Ravenna, Italy. Photo: Scala/Art Resource, NY
Figure 2
Ascension and the Three Marys. 4th century. Ivory plaque. Bayerischers Nationalmuseum, Munich. Photo: Bayerischers Nationalmuseum, Munich. Inv.‐No. MA 157, Photo No. D27841
Figure 3
Ascension. Miniature depicted on folio l3v. of the Syriac Evangeliary of Rabbula (Ms. Plut. I 56). 586. Parchment codex. Bibliotcca Laurenziana, Florence, Italy. Photo: Alinari/Art Resource, NY
Figure 4
El Greco (I541–1614). Saints Peter and Paul. 1587–92. Oil. Hermitage, St. Petersburg, Russia. Photo: Scala/Art Resource, NY
Figure 5
Fra Angelico (1387–1455). Ascension of Christ. From the doors of the Silver Cabinet. 1449–53. Museo di S. Marco, Florence, Italy. Photo: Nicolo Orsi Battaglini/Art Resource, NY
Figure 6
Election of Matthias. 1269. Manuscript illumination. MS 965 fol. 106v (Rockefeller‐McCormick New Testament). Photo: Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library
Figure 7
The Descent of the Holy Spirit. 586. Manuscript illumination from the Syriac Evangeliary of Rabbula. Biblioteca Laurenziana, Florence, Italy. Photo: Alinari/Art Resource, NY
Figure 8
Giotto di Bondone (1266–1336).
Pentecost
. c. 1305. Fresco. Scrovegni, Chapel, Padua, Italy. Photo: Alfredo Dagli Orti/Art Resource, NY
Figure 9
Botticelli (1447–1510). Descent of the Holy Ghost. 1495–1505. Oil. Birmingham City Museum, Great Britain. Photo: Birmingham Museums Picture Library
Figure 10
Pentecost
, Donald Jackson. Copyright 2002,
The Saint John’s Bible
, Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota, USA. Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, Catholic Edition, Copyright 1993, 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Figure 11
Raphael (1483–1520). The Healing of the Lame Man. 1515–16. Watercolor on paper mounted onto canvas (tapestry cartoon), 3.4 × 5.4m. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, Great Britain. Photo: V&A Images, London/Art Resource, NY
Figure 12
Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665). Saints Peter and John Healing the Lame Man. 1655. Oil on canvas, 49 1/2 × 65 in. Marquand Fund, 1924 (24.45.2). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, U.S.A. Image copyright © The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Image source: Art Resource, NY
Figure 13
Life in Community, Aidan Hart in collaboration with Donald Jackson, The Saint John’s Bible, Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota, USA. Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, Catholic Edition, Copyright 1993, 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Figure 14
Tommaso Masaccio (1401–28). Saint Peter Distributing the Common Goods and Punishment of Ananias. 1425. Fresco. Brancacci Chapel, Sta Maria del Carmine, Florence. Photo: Alfredo Dagli Orti/The Art Archive at Art Resource, NY
Figure 15
Raphael (1483–1520). The Death of Ananias. 1515–16. Watercolor on paper mounted on canvas (tapestry cartoon), 3.4 × 5.3m. V&A Images/The Royal Collection, on loan from HM The Queen. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, Great Britain. Photo: V&A Images, London/Art Resource, NY
Figure 16
Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665). The Death of Sapphira. c. 1652. Oil. Musée du Louvre, Paris. Photo: Gianni Dagli Orti/The Art Archive at Art Resource, NY
Figure 17
Stoning and Imprisonment of Saint Stephen. c.1200. Manuscript illumination. French Biblioteca Capitolare, Vercelli. Photo: Gianni Dagli Orti/The Art Archive at Art Resource, NY
Figure 18
Fra Angelico (1387–1455). St. Stephen Led to Torture and Stoned. 1448–1449. Fresco. Cappella Niccolina, Vatican Palace, Vatican State. Photo: Scala. Art Resource, NY
Figure 19
Don Simone Camaldolese (14th–15th century). Stoning of Saint Stephen. Illuminated intial. S. Choral B, L 32 v. Museo di S. Marco, Florence, Italy. Photo: Nicolo Orsi Battaglini/Art Resource, NY
Figure 20
Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch. Saul receives letters. 1200–25. Manuscript illumination. Cod.lat 39 fol 91r. © 2012 Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana. Photo: By permission of Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, all rights reserved.
Figure 21
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1573–1610). The Conversion of Saint Paul. 1600–01. Oil on canvas. S. Maria del Popolo, Rome, Italy. Photo: Scala/Art Resource, NY
Figure 22
Paul Led to Damascus. 1269. Manuscript illumination. MS 965 fol. 115r (Rockefeller‐McCormick New Testament). Photo: Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library
Figure 23
Paul Baptized by Saint Ananias. 1130–40. Mosaic. Cappella Palatina, Palazzo dei Normanni, Palermo, Sicily, Italy. Photo: Erich Lessing/Art Resource, NY
Figure 24
St. Paul Disputing in Damascus. 1130–40. Mosaic. Cappella Palatina, Palazzo dei Normanni, Palermo, Sicily, Italy. Photo: Alinari/Art Resource, NY
Figure 25
Tommaso Masolino da Panicale (1383–1447). Curing the Crippled and the Resurrection of Tabitha. 1425–27. Fresco. Brancacci Chapel, S. Maria del Carmine, Florence, Italy. Photo: Scala/Art Resource, NY
Figure 26
Giovanni Francesco Guercino (1591–1666). Raising of Tabitha. 1617. Oil. Galleria Palatina, Palazzo Pitti, Florence, Italy. Photo: Scala/Art Resource, NY
Figure 27
Domenico Fetti (1589–1624). Saint Peter’s Vision of the Unclean Beasts. 1619. Oil. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, Austria. Photo: Erich Lessing/Art Resource, NY
Figure 28
Andrea Mantegna (1431–1506). Martyrdom of St. James. 1454–57. Destroyed fresco. Chiesa degli Eremitani, Padua, Italy. Photo: Alinari/Art Resource, NY
Figure 29
Raphael (1483–1520). The Liberation of St. Peter from Prison. 1514. Fresco. Stanze d’Eliodoro, Vatican Palace, Vatican State. Photo: Scala/Art Resource, NY
Figure 30
Raphael (1483–1520). The Conversion of the Proconsul. 1515–16. Watercolor mounted on canvas (tapestry cartoon), 3.4 × 4.4m. V&A Images/The Royal Collection, on loan from HM The Queen. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, Great Britain. Photo: V&A Images, London/Art Resource, NY
Figure 31
Life of Paul, Aidan Hart in collaboration with Donald Jackson, The Saint John’s Bible, Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota, USA. Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, Catholic Edition, Copyright 1993, 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Figure 32
Raphael (1483–1520). The Sacrifice at Lystra. 1515–16. Watercolor on paper mounted on canvas (tapestry cartoon), 3.5 × 5.6m. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, Great Britain. Photo: V&A lmages, London/Art Resource, NY
Figure 33
The Lapidation of Saint Paul. High relief from a sarcophagus. 6th century. Marble. St. Victor Basilica, Marseille, France. Photo: Erich Lessing/Art Resource, NY
Figure 34
Jean‐Baptiste de Champaigne (1631–1681). St. Paul Overthrown and Stoned in the City of Lystra. 1667. Oil on canvas. 64 × 52.5cm. Photo: René‐Gabriel Ojéda Musée Magnin, Dijon, France. Photo: Réunion de Musées Nationaux/Art Resource, NY
Figure 35
Paul and Silas Beaten at Philippi. 1200–25. Manuscript illumination. Ms lat.39fol.98r. © 2012 Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana. Photo: By permission of Biblioteca Vaticana, all rights reserved.
Figure 36
Raphael (1483–1520). Paul Preaching at Athens. 1515–16. Watercolor on paper mounted onto canvas (tapestry cartoon), 3.4 × 4.4m. V&A Images/The Royal Collection, on loan from HM The Queen. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, Great Britain. Photo: V&A Images, London/Art Resource, NY
Figure 37
William Blake (1757–1827). St. Paul Preaching in Athens. 1803. Watercolor with touches of black chalk and scraping on paper. 18 × 12¼ inches. Photo: Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence. Gift of the Estate of Mrs. Gustav Radeke 31.280
Figure 38
Paul led to Gallio and Paul in Boat with Priscilla and Aquila. 1200–25. Manuscript illumination. fol. 137v. Cod. Chigi.A.IV.74. © 2012 Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana. Photo: By permission of Biblioteca Vaticana, all rights reserved.
Figure 39
Jean Restout (1692–1768). The Miracle of St. Paul at Ephesus. c. 1740. Oil. Musée des Beaux‐Arts, Rouen, France. Photo: Bridgeman‐Giraudon/Art Resource, NY
Figure 40
Domenico Tiepolo (1727–1804). St. Paul Stands Before the Body of Eutychus. c. 1785. Pen and brown ink, brown wash, on beige paper, 48.7 × 38cm. Photo: Jean‐Gilles Berizzi. Louvre, Paris, France. Photo Credit: Réunion des Musées Nationaux/Art Resource, NY
Figure 41
Louis Chéron (1660–1715).
The Prophet Agabus Predicting Saint Paul’s Suffering at Jerusalem
. c. 1700. Musée des Beaux‐Arts, Caen, France. Photo: Bridgeman‐Giraudon/Art Resource, NY
Figure 42
Maarten de Vos (1532–1603). Saint Paul Bitten by a Viper. 1566–68. Wood. 124 × 199 cm. Louvre, Paris, France. Photo: Erich Lessing/Art Resource, NY
Figure 43
Paul and Viper, Healing of Publius’ Father. c. 400. Marble. Carrand Diptych, Museo del Bargello, Florence. Photo: With permission from the Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali di Firenze
Figure 44
Saint Paul Being Led Toward Martyrdom. Detail of relief from the lower panel of the sarcophagus of Junius Bassus. 4th century. Marble. Museum of the Treasury, St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican State Photo: Erich Lessing/Art Resource, NY
Series Editors’ Preface
The Wiley Blackwell Bible Commentaries series, the first to be devoted primarily to the reception history of the Bible, is based on the premise that how people have interpreted, and been influenced by, a sacred text like the Bible is often as interesting and historically important as what it originally meant. The series emphasizes the influence of the Bible on literature, art, music, and film, its role in the evolution of religious beliefs and practices, and its impact on social and political developments. Drawing on work in a variety of disciplines, it is designed to provide a convenient and scholarly means of access to material until now hard to find, and a much needed resource for all those interested in the influence of the Bible on Western culture.
Until quite recently this whole dimension was for the most part neglected by biblical scholars. The goal of a commentary was primarily if not exclusively to get behind the centuries of accumulated Christian and Jewish tradition to one single meaning, normally identified with the author’s original intention.
The most important and distinctive feature of the Wiley Blackwell Commentaries is that they will present readers with many different interpretations of each text, in such a way as to heighten their awareness of what a text, especially a sacred text, can mean and what it can do, what it has meant and what it has done, in the many contexts in which it operates.
The Wiley Blackwell Bible Commentaries will consider patristic, rabbinic (where relevant), and medieval exegesis as well as insights from various types of modern criticism, acquainting readers with a wide variety of interpretative techniques. As part of the history of interpretation, questions of source, date, authorship, and other historical critical and archaeological issues will be discussed, but since these are covered extensively in existing commentaries, such references will be brief, serving to point readers in the direction of readily accessible literature where they can be followed up.
Original to this series is the consideration of the reception history of specific biblical books arranged in commentary format. The chapter by chapter arrangement ensures that the biblical text is always central to the discussion. Given the wide influence of the Bible and the richly varied appropriation of each biblical book, it is a difficult question which interpretations to include. While each volume will have its own distinctive point of view, the guiding principle for the series as a whole is that readers should be given a representative sampling of material from different ages, with emphasis on interpretations that have been especially influential or historically significant. Though commentators will have their preferences among the different interpretations, the material will be presented in such a way that readers can make up their own minds on the value, morality, and validity of particular interpretations.
The series encourages readers to consider how the biblical text has been interpreted down the ages and seeks to open their eyes to different uses of the Bible in contemporary culture. The aim is to write a series of scholarly commentaries that draw on all the insights of modern research to illustrate the rich interpretative potential of each biblical book.
John SawyerChristopher RowlandJudith KovacsDavid M. Gunn
Preface
Acts Through the Centuries is the fourth book we have coauthored together. The first three comprised the trilogy Illuminating Luke, which considered Renaissance and Baroque depictions of scenes unique to the Gospel of Luke as examples of “visual exegesis”. In some important ways, those books prepared us for this assignment; in some other ways, however, they did not. As part of the context for the paintings, we researched the reception history of the selected passage in the exegetical tradition. This exercise proved extremely useful since it introduced us to a variety of ancient and early modern authors to whom we return for this project. But the Illuminating Luke trilogy was very focused and limited: one major painting from a circumscribed historical period (Italian Renaissance/Baroque) that portrayed a specific Lukan scene.
With Acts through the Centuries we were charged with covering the entire interpretive history from the composition of the document in the late first/early second century to the twentieth/twenty first century. That was a daunting task that proved, predictably, an impossible undertaking. We have done the best we could to choose verbal and visual interpretations that are either representative of the interpretive traditions or that, in some respect, represent interpretations that depart from the conventional wisdom in distinct and interesting ways. We did not know when we began the project whether we would encounter an embarrassment of exegetical riches or just an embarrassment. We found both!
There are many persons to thank for a project such as this. The University Research Leave Committee at Baylor University granted each of us, at different times, a semester release from our normal duties to undertake this assignment. Our department chairs, Mark Anderson (Art) and Bill Bellinger (Religion) have been unrelenting in their support of our work on this and other projects. Lee Nordt, Dean of the College of Arts and Science and Divisonal Dean for Humanities and Social Sciences Robyn Driskell have supported us in various ways over the course of the project. Allbritton Grants for Faculty Scholarship in the Department of Art provided the resources for research travel as well as for copyright permissions and color illustrations. Mikeal’s research assistants over the years, particularly in the final stages, Greg Barnhill, John Duncan, Michael Barnard, and Ryan Harker have rendered enormous help with good cheer. New Testament Series Editors, Judith Kovacs and Christopher Rowlands, gave remarkably detailed and perceptive feedback on various drafts of the manuscript, expanding its scope and enriching its quality. Remaining flaws, of course, are ours.
Over the decade during which we have worked, off and on, on this book, our sons, Mikeal Joseph and Matthew Quincy, have grown from pre adolescent children to young men, both are now in college. They continue to amaze and humble us with their accomplishments! We have learned so much from this project. We hope you too, dear reader, benefit from this catalogue of what others have thought and understood about the Acts of the Apostles through the centuries.
Heidi J. HornikMikeal C. ParsonsBaylor University
Acknowledgements
The following materials were used with permission.
Heidi J. Hornik and Mikeal C. Parsons. “Philological and Performative Perspectives on Pentecost.” Pp. 137–153 in
Reading Acts Today
. Steve Walton, Scott Spencer, Tom Phillips, and Barry Matlock, editors. New York: T & T Clark, 2011. By kind permission of Continuum International Publishing Group.
Mikeal C. Parsons and Peter Reynolds. “Early Pentecostals on Pentecost.”
Perspectives in Religious Studies
42 (2015): 205–15. Used by Permission of the editors.
Citations from the following materials were gathered from online databases and websites.
Early modern interpreters were taken from Early English Books Online (writings are indicated in Bibliography).
Martin Luther, Thomas Aquinas, and G. K. Chesterton were taken from the Past Masters Online.
John Chrysostom’s
Homilies on Acts
, John Wesley’s
Notes on the New Testament
, and John Calvin’s
Commentary on Acts
were taken from the online Christian Classics Ethereal Library, with permission.
List of Abbreviations
1 Apol.
Justin,
First Apology
ACCS
Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture
Acts Paul
Acts of Paul and Thecla
Adv. Jud.
Tertullian,
Adversus Judaeos
ANF
Ante‐Nicene Fathers
Ant.
Josephus,
Jewish Antiquities
Apol. Rel.
Aquinas,
An Apology for the Religious Orders
Bapt.
Tertullian,
De baptismo
Barn.
Barnabas
BW
Bonhoeffer,
Dietrich Bonhoeffers Works
. 17 volumes. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1996–2014.
CCEL
Christian Classics Ethereal Library
(www.ccel.org)
CCF
Creeds and Confessions of Faith in the Christian Tradition.
Edited by Jaroslav Pelikan and Valerie Hotchkiss. 3 volumes. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2003.
CCSL
Corpus Christianorum: Series Latina
CD
Karl Barth,
Church Dogmatics
Cels.
Origen,
Contra Celsum
CGPNT
J. A. Cramer, ed. Catenae Graecorum partum in Novum Testamentum. 8 vols. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1840.
Civ.
Augustine,
De civitate Dei
Clem. Rec.
Recognitions of Clement
Coll.
Cassian,
Collationes
Coll. Max. Ar.
Augustine,
Collatio cum Maximino Arianorum episcopo
Comm. Acta
Cornelius á Lapide,
Commentaria in Acta Apostolorum
Comm. Acts
Bede,
Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles: Translated, with an Introduction and Notes
. Translated by Lawrence T. Martin. Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications, 1989.
Comm. Dan.
Hippolytus,
Commentarium in Danielem
Comm. Gal.
Aquinas,
Commentary on St. Pauls Epistle to the Galatians
Comm. Jo.
Origen,
Commentarii in evangelium Joannis
Comm. Rom.
Aquinas,
Commentary on the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
Comm. Rom.
Origen,
Commentarii in Romanos
Conf.
Augustine,
Confessions
c. Symm.
Prudentius,
Liber contra Symmachum
Cyp.
Epist.
Cyprian,
Epistulae
Cyp.
Pat.
Cyprian,
De bono patientiae
Dem. ev.
Eusebius,
Demonstratio evangelica
De or.
Cicero,
De oratore
Dial.
Justin,
Dialogue with Trypho
Dom. or.
Cyprian,
De dominica oratione
Ecc. Hist.
Socrates Scholiasticus,
Ecclesiastical History
Eleem.
Cyprian,
De opera et eleemosynis
ENNT
John Wesley,
Explanatory Notes on the New Testament
Etym.
Isidore of Seville,
Etymologies
Faust.
Augustine,
Contra Faustum Manichaeum
Fid.
Ambrose,
De fide
GARBC
General Association of Regular Baptist Churches
Gen. litt.
Augustine,
De Genesi ad litteram
Geogr.
Strabo,
Geographica
Gos. Bir. Mary
Gospel of the Birth of Mary
Haer.
Irenaeus,
Adversus haeresus
Hist. eccl.
Eusebius,
Historia ecclesiastica
Hom. 1 Cor.
Chrysostom,
Homiliae in epistulam i ad Corinthios
Hom. Act.
Chrysostom,
Homiliae in Acta apostolorum
Hom. Lev.
Origen,
Homiliae in Leviticum
In Matt.
Theophylact,
Explanation of the Gospel of Matthew
Inf.
Dante,
Inferno
Inf. Gos. Thom.
Infancy Gospel of Thomas
In Joann.
Augustine,
In Evangelium Iohannis tractatus
In Ps.
Augustine,
Ennarationes in Psalmos
Inst.
Quintilian,
Institutio oratoria
Instit.
Calvin,
Institutes of the Christian Religion
Jer.
Epist.
Jerome,
Epistulae
Jov.
Jerome,
Adversus Jovinianum libri II
JP
Søren Kierkegaards Journals and Papers.
7 volumes. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1967–1978.
J.W.
Josephus,
Jewish War
KJN
Kierkegaards Journals and Papers.
11 volumes. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2007.
KW
Kierkegaards Writings.
Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1978–2000.
LB
Erasmus,
Opera omnia
, ed. J. Clericus. Lugduno Batauorum 1703–1706, 10 vols.
LCL
Loeb Classical Library
LXX
Septuagint
LW
Luther,
Luthers Works.
55 volumes. Philadelphia: Fortress Press; Saint Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1955–1986.
Marc.
Tertullian,
Adversus Marcionem
m. Hag.
m. Hagiga
NIV
New International Version
NPNF
Nicene and Post‐Nicene Fathers
NRSV
New Revised Standard Version
OAA
Arator’s On the Acts of the Apostles.
Edited and translated by Richard J. Schrader. Translated by Joseph L. Roberts III and John F. Makowski. The American Academy of Religion Classics in Religious Studies 6. Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1987.
Or.
Origen,
De oratione (Peri proseuches)
Or. Bas.
Gregory of Nazianzus,
Oratio im laudem Basilii
Per.
Plutarch,
Pericles
PL
Patrologia Latina [= Patrologiae Cursus Completus: Series Latina]. Edited by JacquesPaul Migne. 217 volumes. Paris, 1844–1864.
Pud.
Tertullian,
De pudicitia
Pol.
Phil.
Polycarp,
To the Philippians
Prax.
Tertullian,
Adversus Praxean
Prog.
Theon,
Progymnasmata
Ps.Mt.
Gospel of Pseudo‐Matthew
Purg.
Dante,
Purgatorio
RCS
Reformation Commentary on Scripture
Reg.
Augustine,
Regula ad servos Dei
Res.
Tertullian,
De resurrectione carnis
Rhet. Her.
Rhetorica ad Herennium
SBC‐Lifeway
Southern Baptist Convention – Lifeway Publishing
Scorp.
Tertullian,
Scorpiace
SKS
Søren Kierkegaards Skrifter.
55 volumes. Copenhagen: Gad, 1997.
ST
Aquinas,
Summa Theologiae
Tert.
Pat.
Tertullian,
De patientia
Trin.
Augustine,
De Trinitate
UCSB
University of California, Santa Barbara
Unit. eccl.
Cyprian,
De catholicae ecclesiae unitate
Virg.
Tertullian,
De virginibus velandis
Vit. Ant.
Athanasius,
Vita Antonii
WA
Augustine,
The Works of Saint Augustine.
Edited by Boniface Ramsey. 50 volumes. Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 1990.
Introduction
Orienting the Reading
References to Sabbath observance are relatively infrequent in the Scriptures of Israel (cf. e.g., Exod 20:8, 31:14; Lev 23:3; Deut 5:12), and yet the interpretations of Sabbath observance that developed in later Judaism are myriad. The rabbis of old observed this phenomenon and concluded that the many “laws of Shabbat are like mountains hanging from a strand” (m. Hagiga 1:8). The image is arresting: mounds of interpretation hanging from a few strands of Scripture!
The New Testament has generated an equally massive amount of interpretation. The interpretation of the New Testament has been described as a discipline that is “an inch wide but a mile deep” (Epp 1989, xxi). For others, “the New Testament appears like a tiny treasure buried under a mountain of scholarly debris” (Baird 1992, xiii).
What is true of Shabbat regulations or the New Testament generally is no less true of the history of interpretation of the Acts of the Apostles. One need only consider the recently‐published, four‐volume, 4,500+ page commentary on Acts by Craig Keener (Keener 2012–15); it is a mountain of interpretation by itself! But Acts has not always drawn that kind of attention. In one of his Easter homilies on Acts delivered in 401 C.E., John Chrysostom, Bishop of Constantinople, called Acts a “strange and new dish” and complained that “there are many to whom this book is not even known, and many again think it so plain that they slight it. Thus to some their ignorance, to others their knowledge is the cause of the neglect” (Hom. Act. 1). By the twentieth century, however, W.C. van Unnik could famously refer to the Lukan writings as “a storm center in contemporary scholarship” (van Unnik 1980, 15–32). This attention has not come without a price. The theology of Acts has often been labeled as “early Catholic” by modern critical scholarship and, in comparison with Paul’s theological vision, found lacking (Vielhauer 1980, 33–50). This reception history commentary on Acts aims to chart the reception of the book of Acts from its relative obscurity in the early church to its recent focus of attention.
The Acts of the Apostles Through the Centuries attempts to fill in the gap created by critical biblical scholarship, which has sought to explicate what Acts “meant” in its original context, and what it now “means” in contemporary terms (cf. Stendahl 1962, 1:418–32). Unfortunately, this construal has operated from the assumption that we need only understand the context of the first century in which most NT texts were produced and the twenty‐first century in which these texts are read. In this view, the intervening period (of nearly two thousand years!) is mostly an obstacle to be avoided. Between the original communication, “what it meant,” and the contemporary interpretive context, “what it means,” however, lies a largely neglected element, “what it has meant” at critical moments in its interpretive history. The Blackwell Bible Commentary on Acts joins other efforts in this series, along with scholars such as Brevard Childs (1977), David Steinmetz (1986), Ulrich Luz (2001–2008), and François Bovon (2001–2013), inter alia, who have written of the importance of patristic, medieval and reformation hermeneutics. The intent is to scour the “scholarly debris” of interpretation of Acts. After all, one person’s trash is another person’s treasure!
In this commentary, we examine not only the formal exegetical tradition, but also the influence of Acts on art, literature, music, liturgy, theology, Christian creeds, and film, as part of the Nachleben, the afterlife of these stories as they are reconfigured for a different place and time. Sources were chosen because they typify the most common rendering of the text OR, conversely, because they represent some kind of innovation in the tradition. In short, we propose to adopt a “Noah’s Ark Principle,” in which we include as many species of interpretations from as wide a chronological span, geographical distribution, and theological spectrum as possible (Pelikan and Hotchkiss 2003, henceforth CCF).
Certain passages in Acts have drawn more attention than others. For example (with some notable exceptions), the first half of Acts (chapters 1–12)—with the colorful and compelling stories of the Ascension, Pentecost, the Stoning of Stephen, the “Conversion” of Paul, and the liberation of Peter from prison—has generally been the object of more sustained attention than the second half (chapters 13–28), which focuses more on the movements of Paul. And even within each chapter, certain verses have proven to be “magnet texts” for interpreters—especially patristic through early modern—who were interested in finding in Acts scriptural warrant for particular practices or doctrines.
Our textual excavation has revealed that not every verse of Acts has interpretive traditions that run a mile deep. Because of the particular contours of Acts’ reception, we have adopted a “sail and dip” method in which we have focused on those magnet texts that either for a particular period or across the span of reception have proven irresistible to subsequent interpreters. This has sometimes resulted in lingering (perhaps overly long) over the interpretive history of a particular text, or even word. Sometimes the focus has resulted in longish quotations from sources that might be unfamiliar to the modern reader. With the visual interpretations, especially, we have labored to provide a sense of how the artwork under consideration fits within the oeuvre of the artist, the theological and cultural context of the artist (and/or patron), as well as the interplay between the style and iconography of the art and interpretation of the text. Our assumption is that the visual tradition, and how to understand it, may be less familiar to readers of Wiley Blackwell’s Commentary Series.
Conversely, this focus on the “purple passages” of reception history has resulted in the relative neglect of other passages; readers may be disappointed to find brief or no treatment of certain favorite passages. Our hope is that this disappointment is at least partially compensated for by the rich theological and cultural fare that the commentary does provide. Given our strict word limit and the fact that Acts is the longest document in the New Testament, this is the best we could do!
The plot to the interpretive history of Acts, if there is one to be recovered, has been moved along by a series of conflicts in interpretation, whether between “Petrine” and “Pauline” forms of Christianity (Bauer and the Tübingen School), or between an apocryphal (e.g., Apocryphal Acts) or canonical reception (e.g., Eusebius) of its historiography/hagiography, or between the tension in reading “history in Acts” (William Ramsay 1897; Gerd Lüdemann 1987/1989) or “Acts in history” (Henry Cadbury 1955). One might be tempted to construe the plot of Acts’ interpretation to emulate the Tübingen School’s Hegelian reading of Acts (indeed of all early Christian history) as thesis/antithesis/synthesis. We have resisted that construal because (1) the history of interpretation of Acts is not evolutionary (in the sense of making “progress” in a straight line), and (2) the conflict has not frequently resolved in any kind of synthesis. Nonetheless, we will attempt to tell a coherent story of Acts interpretation, while at the same time embracing as much of its interpretive reception as possible. In this regard, we are more interested in the history of reception and “on the ways in which readings have developed, interacted, become embodied in the lives of communities, opened up perspectives on, that is, the history of the meanings which the text has generated” than in reception exegesis, that is, the “focus on the text itself and the authors’ engagement with it” (Riches 2014, 383–87, esp. 386). Below we briefly sketch the resources available for such an enterprise.
Acts in its Ancient Literary Context(s)
The material in this commentary has been organized into rhetorical units that reflect the relevant attention given to it in the history of interpretation. In some cases, several chapters have been grouped together in units of roughly the same length (see outline below). Acts 2, however, which is the focus of so much attention across the centuries, has been given a double portion. A brief description of the contents of each unit, “Overview,” highlights the specific texts that have received the most attention in subsequent reception. This section is followed by “Reception and Interpretation” which deals with sub‐units of the text or important themes as they appear sequentially in the text. The interpretations are arranged more or less in chronological order. This chronicle of interpretations constitutes the bulk of the commentary. At times, however, chronology gives way to a thematic grouping of interpretations that, even though from different time periods, address similar issues. By occasionally placing ideas from disparate time periods in conversation with each other, distinct and contrasting interpretations of the text are placed in bolder relief. While we attempt to show the limits and contours of the various receptions, for the most part we refrain from judging their efficacy in reflecting the intentio operis or intention of the work.
An Outline of Acts
Acts 1
Jesus’ Ascension and the Beginning of the Church
Acts 2
Pentecost
Acts 3–5
Healings and Tensions
Acts 6–8
Stephen and Philip
Acts 9
Paul: Conversion and Call
Acts 10–12
Peter, Cornelius, James, and Herod
Acts 13–14
Paul’s Initial Missionary Campaign
Acts 15
The Jerusalem Council
Acts 16–17
Paul in Macedonia and Achaia
Acts 18–19
Paul in and around Ephesus
Acts 20–23
Paul and Jerusalem
Acts 24–26
Paul before the Authorities
Acts 27–28
Paul’s Voyage to and Time in Rome
The first half of Acts (chs. 1–12) focuses on events (Ascension, Pentecost) and personalities (Peter, Barnabas, Stephen, Philip) in the earliest church; the second half tends to focus on Paul in different places (Macedonia, Achaia, Ephesus, Jerusalem) and in various predicaments (on trial, on a sea voyage). One of the earliest images of the Apostle Paul comes from a mosaic in Ravenna, Italy and dates to the fifth‐sixth century (Figure 1). As in later renditions and in keeping with early literary descriptions (see Acts Paul 2.3), Paul is balding; he is also bearded and depicted wearing Roman garb, indicative of his Roman citizenship.
Figure 1St. Paul. 5th–6th century. Detail of the vault mosaics. Archbishop's Palace, Ravenna, Italy.
Photo: Scala/Art Resource, NY
Acts in the Exegetical Tradition(s) of Commentary and Homily
Paul Steuhrenberg (Stuehrenberg 1987, 100–131, has conveniently compiled a list of 148 pre‐Reformation authors who have written commentaries or homilies or made extended comments on Acts. Many of these remain unpublished and largely inaccessible.
Pre‐modern interpretations of Acts: Patristic through Reformation
Before commenting on individual pre‐modern interpreters of Acts, it is important to note some unusual features of the text of Acts. First, the text of Acts has come to us in two forms, commonly known as the “Western” and “Alexandrian” versions (Metzger 1994, 222). While arguments have been offered that the Western tradition holds priority over, or at least equal footing with, the Alexandrian version (e.g., Blass 1895; Clark 1933; Boismard and Lamouille 1984; Strange 1992; Ruis‐Camps and Read‐Heimerdinger 2004–2009), the general consensus is that the Western tradition, which is roughly 8.5–10% longer, is a later and secondary expansion of the Alexandrian text. As such, it represents an early stage in the reception history of canonical Acts (amongst others, cf. Haenchen 1971; Metzger 1975, 272).
Codex D (Cantabrigiensis), a fifth‐century bilingual Greek and Latin manuscript, is considered the chief (but not sole) witness to the Western text of Acts. Often the variants in the Western tradition of Acts reflect an intentional effort on the part of ancient readers to clarify certain ambiguities in the text. For example, in Acts 16:6, early users added referents to specify whose “word” (logos) was in focus: the word becomes “the word of God” (http://larryhurtado.wordpress.com/2013/10/30/textual‐ambiguity‐and‐textual‐variants‐in‐acts/).
Other variants in Codex D suggest certain kinds of theological tendencies on the part of the scribe(s). These tendencies may include an anti‐Jewish bias (cf. Acts 14:2; Epp 1966, 136–7, 169), or a bias against women (1:14; 17:4, 12; Malick 2007, 171–75), or a proto‐papacy inclination to elevate the role of Peter among the apostles (Acts 1:23; CroweTipton 1999).
Contemporary readers of Acts are most likely to encounter the impact of the Western version on the interpretation and reception of Acts in those four places in which verses are completely omitted from their translation (or in some versions, such as the NRSV, printed in a footnote):
Acts 8:37: And Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he replied, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”
Acts 15:34: But it seemed good to Silas that they remain, and Judas journeyed alone (Codex D; cf. the Majority text, which reads: “But it seemed good to Silas to remain there”).
Acts 24:6b–8a: And we would have judged him according to our law. But the chief captain Lysias came and with great violence took him out of our hands, commanding his accusers to come before you.
Acts 28:29: And when he had said these words, the Jews departed, holding much dispute among themselves.
All four additions are in Western witnesses (though Codex D is not extant in three of those instances). In each case, these additions attempt to expand upon or clarify the immediate context. In all four verses, the Western tradition was taken up into the Byzantine or Majority text, which was the basis for the first editions of the Greek text and also the earliest English translations with versification, including the Authorized King James Version. Once it was determined that the verses in question were not part of the “base” text, the editors and translators of the various Greek editions and English translations, rather than renumbering the verses from that point forward, opted rather to omit the verses and the numbers they had been given altogether (as they did in other places in the NT). These variants illustrate the ways in which early readers inscribed their responses into the text itself.
Another interesting issue regards the relationship of Acts to the Gospel of Luke. Common authorship has been assumed since the second century (with some notable exceptions). The two writings, however, have distinct textual histories; there is no Western version of Luke comparable to the Western version of Acts. Furthermore, Luke and Acts were typically treated as separate documents in the early church (see Gregory 2003), a point underscored by the fact that there is no evidence that the two ever circulated together in any pre‐canonical form, nor did the two texts ever stand side‐by‐side in any canonical arrangement of the New Testament (Parsons and Pervo 1993). This early reception of Acts apart from Luke raises questions regarding the best way to read Acts: as “Luke‐Acts,” that is, as a single, continuous narrative with a single preface (Luke 1:1–4) and intentional parallelisms between the characterization of Jesus in the Gospel and Peter and Paul in Acts? As a sequel to Luke, recognizing certain common literary devices and theological themes, while still respecting differences in emphases and perhaps genre? Or as a sequel to an emerging multi‐fold Gospel (that finds later expression in the Tetraevangelium, the Four‐Fold Gospel), the chief of which is the Gospel of Luke? (on these and other options, see e.g., Gregory and Rowe 2010).
Irenaeus (c. 125–200), Bishop of Lyon, is the first author to draw extensively on Acts. He cites Acts repeatedly in the early part of Book Three of Against Heresies, but also refers to, quotes from or alludes to it in all five books of this work. Tertullian (c. 155–240) also knows and appreciates the book of Acts (see Bapt. 4, 10, 13, 18; Res. 55; Prax. 30; Tert. Pat. 14; esp. Marc. 5). Likewise, Cyprian, in the middle of the third century, repeatedly uses the expression “in the Acts of the Apostles” (Cyp. Epist. 7.3; Unit. eccl. 25; Dom. or. 32; Eleem. 6.25; Cyp. Pat. 16; cf. Bovon 2006). Clement of Alexandria (ca.150– ca. 215) and Origen (c.185–235) also make use of Acts.
A list of fourth‐century sources containing references to Acts is illustrative of the material available: Apollinaris of Laodicea (310–390), Athanasius (295–373), Basil the Great (329–379), Didymus the Blind (ca. 313–98), Eusebius (260–339), Ephrem the Syrian (c. 306–373), “Commentary on Acts”; John Chrysostom (347–407), Homilies on the Acts of the Apostles; among others. Later authors include Arator (sixth century) On the Acts of the Apostles.
The Venerable Bede (672/3–735) was a British monastic leader and author of the first extant British commentary on Acts, Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles; Humanist Erasmus (1466–1536) also wrote a commentary, Paraphrase on Acts. In addition, Augustine (354–430) and Aquinas (1225–1274) made frequent reference to Acts, even though neither produced a commentary per se (on ancient commentary, see Martin 2006).
Much of the material in this early period draws on Acts for theological and Christological reflection. For example, presumably the Apostles’ Creed (second century) and later the Nicene Creed (fourth century) both draw on Acts 1 to depict the Ascension as the visible manifestation of Christ’s exaltation. Irenaeus found Acts useful in his debates against certain groups regarding the “bodily resurrection and ascension” of Jesus (cf. Haer. 1.10.1).
Acts continued to draw the attention of medieval and reformation commentators (cf. Chung‐Kim and Hains 2014). John Calvin (1509–64) had a two‐volume commentary on Acts. Neither Thomas Aquinas (c.1225–74) nor Martin Luther (1483–1546) wrote full‐blown commentaries on Acts, but both made numerous references to the work in their writings. Acts was a favorite text also among those engaged in Radical Reformation, since their views of ecclesiology were profoundly shaped by the witness of Acts. Debates of who should hold church offices and what those offices should be were often underpinned by references to the Acts of the Apostles (especially chapters 6 and 13).
The “invention” of Paul’s “three missionary journey”—never referred to by Luke as such—is an example of the use of Acts as scriptural warrant for certain endeavors in the early modern period. The missionary journeys of Paul were part of the propaganda developed by the Society for Promotion of Christian Knowledge (founded 1698) and the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts (founded 1701) to provide a biblical pattern for missionaries going out from a central location to the “ends of the earth” and then returning periodically for spiritual renewal, administrative guidance, and financial support (Townsend 1985/1986, 99–104).
The Interpretation of Acts in the Modern Period
It is during the “modern” period (which we will designate as covering the eighteenth century forward) that the questions typically associated with the historical‐critical study of Acts emerged. Among the pre‐modern assumptions that were critically re‐examined was a cluster of assertions surrounding the identity of the author of (Luke and) Acts: (1) the same person wrote both the Third Gospel and Acts; (2) that person was Luke the Physician; (3) Luke was a companion of Paul; (4) and Luke was a Gentile who wrote for a Gentile audience. What one thinks about the identity of Luke rests in large part on one’s assessment of early traditions. Either those in the early church had independent access to traditions about the identity of the author of Luke and Acts no longer available to us, or someone deduced the author’s identity from the NT evidence and secured a place for Luke very early on. In favor of the first option is the stability of the tradition in identifying Luke as the author. Strictly speaking, Acts, like the other canonical narratives, is an anonymous document making no claims itself about authorship, unlike the disputed Petrine and Pastoral epistles, which, if inauthentic, are pseudonymous, written in the name of someone else. When compared, for example, with the debate that raged in the early church about the authorship of Hebrews, another anonymous document, that all testimony agrees on Luke's identity is no trivial matter. Added to that fact is the relative obscurity of Luke, known only through three passing references in the NT (Philemon 24; Colossians 4:14; 2 Timothy 4:11).
On the other hand, it is possible that someone looking to identify the otherwise anonymous author might have deduced Luke’s identity from the text of the NT itself. Presumably the Prologue (Luke 1:1–4), where the author seems to identify himself as a second‐generation Christian who was relying on other eyewitness testimony, excludes identifying the author as an Apostle (and thus making the choice of a “lesser” figure almost inevitable). The “we‐sections” in Acts (16:10–17; 20:5–15; 21:1–18; 27:1; 28:16) demand someone who was a companion of Paul, and Luke emerges as a likely (though, importantly, not the only) candidate. If, as some now think, the name of Luke was attached to the document shortly after its publication to distinguish it from other Christian Gospels, already known to the general Christian public, then this very early attribution might account for the uniformity of the identification. Many modern interpreters today are agnostic about, or at least less interested in, the issue of authorship, perhaps because of the view that Luke and Acts can be adequately interpreted, despite our limited knowledge about their author. Others, despairing of traditional questions about authorship, have set their eyes on other aspects of the author. Some, using the language of “social location,” have tried to position the author (implied or real) in terms of rank, education, relationship to technology, etc. (e.g., Robbins 1991, 305–332).
Another issue that emerged in full force in the modern period revolved around the historical (un)reliability of Acts. Nineteenth‐century German historian F.C. Baur famously saw Acts as part of a larger Tendenz to reconcile Gentile and Jewish forms of Christianity, represented by Paul and Peter, respectively, and thus questioned the historical reliability of the account (Baur 1887, 1:135; cited in Baird 1992, 1:267). Sir William Ramsey, on the other hand, moved from a skeptic regarding Luke’s historical reliability to the position that Luke was a careful and reliable historian. He pointed, for example, to the use by Luke of the correct local titles for local political authorities (Ramsay 1915, 95–97). In The Book of Acts in History, Henry Cadbury (1955) proposes to turn the focus from history in Acts, that is, questions of historicity, to Acts in history, that is to the Greek, Roman, Jewish, and Christian settings in which the book was produced. Others have persisted in their attempts to defend the historical reliability of Acts (Hengel 1980; Hemer 1989). When it comes to the “life of Paul,” the modern scholarly consensus is that Paul’s letters are to be given priority over Acts in any historical reconstruction (cf. J. Knox 1950; though see also Moessner et al 2014). With the critically acclaimed film, A Polite Bride, by author and director Robert Orlando, the views that Acts is secondary to Paul’s letters as a historical source and that Acts must be carefully sifted and mined for historical information have now made their way into cinematic culture.
Recent feminist studies and post‐colonial studies also have contending views regarding the ideological perspective reflected in the text. These are taken up at relevant points in the commentary (Anderson 2004; Aymer 2012; Gaventa 2004; O’Day 1998).
Conclusion: Key Interpreters
While the voices of a large number of interpreters, spanning many centuries, will be heard in this book, the voices of the following interpreters will be heard especially frequently:
John Chrysostom
(347–407) preached an important collection of sermons on Acts,
Homilies on the Acts of the Apostles.
St. Augustine
(354–430) was Bishop of Hippo and an influential theologian in Western Christianity. His interpretations of Acts frequently reflected past interpretation or shaped subsequent reception.
Arator
(490–550), wrote an influential commentary on Acts in poetic form,
On the Acts of the Apostles
.
Venerable Bede
(673–735) wrote one of the first commentaries on Acts.
Aquinas
(c.1225–74) was a medieval Christian theologian who made many references to Acts in his writings.
Erasmus
(1469–1536) was a renowned Dutch Humanist theologian who wrote a commentary on Acts,
Paraphrases on Acts
.
Martin Luther
(1483–1546) was leader of the Protestant Reformation in Germany. He made many influential references to Acts but did not publish a commentary on it.
John Calvin
(1509–64) was a Magisterial Reformer who wrote an important two‐volume commentary on Acts.
Søren Kierkegaard
(1813–55) was a Danish philosopher and theologian who made significant use of Acts in his writings.
Karl Barth
(1886–1968) was a Swiss Reformed theologian and leader of the “neo‐Orthodox” movement, who made significant use of Acts in his highly influential
Church Dogmatics
.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
