Context at a Glance
Author:Traditional Attribution
Topic:acts Chapter 28 Study
This chapter provides a foundational look at the theological themes of acts, analyzed across multiple historic translations for maximum scholarly depth.
Acts 28
New Revised Standard Version
1After we had reached safety, we then learned that the island was called Malta.
2The natives showed us unusual kindness. Since it had begun to rain and was cold, they kindled a fire and welcomed all of us around it.
3Paul had gathered a bundle of brushwood and was putting it on the fire, when a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand.
4When the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, "This man must be a murderer; though he has escaped from the sea, justice has not allowed him to live."
5He, however, shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm.
6They were expecting him to swell up or drop dead, but after they had waited a long time and saw that nothing unusual had happened to him, they changed their minds and began to say that he was a god.
7Now in the neighborhood of that place were lands belonging to the leading man of the island, named Publius, who received us and entertained us hospitably for three days.
8It so happened that the father of Publius lay sick in bed with fever and dysentery. Paul visited him and cured him by praying and putting his hands on him.
9After this happened, the rest of the people on the island who had diseases also came and were cured.
10They bestowed many honors on us, and when we were about to sail, they put on board all the provisions we needed. The journey to Rome
11Three months later we set sail on a ship that had wintered at the island, an Alexandrian ship with the Twin Brothers as its figurehead.
12We put in at Syracuse and stayed there for three days;
13then we weighed anchor and came to Rhegium. After one day there a south wind sprang up, and on the second day we came to Puteoli.
14There we found believers and were invited to stay with them for seven days. And so we came to Rome.
15The believers from there, when they heard of us, came as far as the Forum of Appius and Three Taverns to meet us. On seeing them, Paul thanked God and took courage.
16When we came into Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself, with the soldier who was guarding him. Paul and the Jews of Rome
17Three days later he called together the local leaders of the Jews. When they had assembled, he said to them, "Brothers, though I had done nothing against our people or the customs of our ancestors, yet I was arrested in Jerusalem and handed over to the Romans.
18When they had examined me, the Romans wanted to release me, because there was no reason for the death penalty in my case.
19But when the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to the emperor — even though I had no charge to bring against my nation.
20For this reason therefore I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is for the sake of the hope of Israel that I am bound with this chain."
21They replied, "We have received no letters from Judea about you, and none of the brothers coming here has reported or spoken anything evil about you.
22But we would like to hear from you what you think, for with regard to this sect we know that everywhere it is spoken against."
23After they had set a day to meet with him, they came to him at his lodgings in great numbers. From morning until evening he explained the matter to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the law of Moses and from the prophets.
24Some were convinced by what he had said, while others refused to believe.
25So they disagreed with each other; and as they were leaving, Paul made one further statement: "The Holy Spirit was right in saying to your ancestors through the prophet Isaiah,
26'Go to this people and say, You will indeed listen, but never understand, and you will indeed look, but never perceive.
27For this people's heart has grown dull, and their ears are hard of hearing, and they have shut their eyes; so that they might not look with their eyes, and listen with their ears, and understand with their heart and turn — and I would heal them.'
28Let it be known to you then that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen." Conclusion
30He lived there two whole years at his own expense and welcomed all who came to him,
31proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance. INTRO TO THE NEW TESTAMENT EPISTLES
306INTRODUCTION TO THE LETTERS/EPISTLES OF THE NEW TESTAMENT Classification and Authorship of the New Testament Letters Letters are the earliest documents in the New Testament, and its most common literary form: Some scholars date
1Thessalonians before
50CE, twenty years before Mark's gospel, and there are twenty-one separate letters in the New Testament. Thirteen of these are from Paul or his missionary associates: Romans,
1and
2Corinthians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Galatians,
1and
2Thessalonians,
1and
2Timothy, Titus, and Philemon. When Hebrews was attributed to Paul, the number of Pauline letters in ancient manuscripts and lists came to be fourteen. Another seven letters, which appears pseudonymously attributed to other apostles, round out the group;
1and
2Peter, 1, 2, and
3John, James, and Jude. The Greek word "epistole," "letter," originally referred to an oral communication sent by messenger (Herodotus, Histories 4.10.1). Even in the New Testament period, the letter-carrier might be entrusted with crucial information about a letter's content. Paul often makes a point of including missionary associates in the greeting of his letters (1 Cor 1.1;
2Cor 1.1; Phil 1.1; Col 1.1;
1Thess 1.1; Philem 1). He omits them in Galatians, where he has no future plans to visit the region, and in Romans, addressed to a church he did not found. Ephesians lacks a specific destination in the best manuscripts and may be a circular exhortation by a later disciple of Paul. Several other Pauline epistles also differ in language and theological emphasis from the major Pauline letters. The so-called Pastorals (1 and
2Timothy and Titus), addressed to his key assistants, treat them as youthful bishops of local churches. They look to a future in which INTRO TO THE NEW TESTAMENT EPISTLES
307Christians are established in the larger society. While both
1and
2Thessalonians have as their principal theme the return of the Lord Jesus in the end time, the second letter stresses living in the present, and this, as well as its warning against pseudo-Pauline writings, has led some scholars to the conclusions that it too was written by a later disciple of Paul. Since Paul had a number of close associates in his missionary activities, it would hardly be surprising if they used a familiar medium, the apostolic letter, to continue dealing with concrete issues in the churches of the Pauline mission. Although many of the letters unquestionably by Paul are considerably longer than ordinary private letters, they address concrete situations in the churches. Ephesians, however, lacks not only an address but also references to specific individuals or problems. Among the non-Pauline letters, Hebrews and James also appear to be tractates or general exhortations, rather than letters to specific communities. Jude addresses a sharp apocalyptic warning to Christians in general. First John speaks to concrete problems in its church circles, but lacks the form of a letter;
2and
3John are both personal letters, though addressed to different problems. First Peter used the letter form as exhortation for suffering Christians in Asia Minor. Finally,
2Peter appears to be the latest epistle in the New Testament. It contains a possible allusion to the Gospel account of the Transfiguration (1.16-18; cf. Mk 9.2-8) and to Christians who misinterpret Paul's letters (3.15-16). Like
2Timothy,
2Peter is presented as the last testament of an apostle. It affirms the unity of apostolic teaching concerning the Day of the Lord against some who used Paul's authority to deny that God would end the world. Writing and Sending Letters in Antiquity Letters from antiquity include imperial decrees addressed to subjects in a particular area, such as that by the emperor Claudius to "the city of Alexandria" in
41CE concerning Jewish agitation for citizen rights; collections of philosophical letters by prominent figures like Cicero, Pliny, and Seneca; and hundreds of papyri from Egypt documenting the concerns of ordinary people. Royal diplomatic correspondence has its INTRO TO THE NEW TESTAMENT EPISTLES
308own formalities of language which are echoed in the so-called letter that the heavenly Christ addresses to the angels of the churches in Revelation 2-3. Philosophical letters often adopt a rhetorical formalism, which indicates that such letters were intended to be preserved for posterity. They are typically longer than private letters, which are generally described as "documentary" to distinguish them from such literary creations. Authors often retained copies of and existed only for the many purposes of the moment, such as dealing with problems at home, urging an absent husband or son to return, reporting on a military posting, pleading for legal redress, engaging in commerce, describing one's circumstances to family or friends, recommending the bearer of the letter to its recipient, and so on. The existence of so many letters from private individuals does not imply a high right of literacy among craftsmen, traders, or women. A letter could be dictated to a scribe who would be charged with the actual writing. Even those who could write often preferred to employ the services of a scribe (Rom 16.22; Gal 6.11). The letter-carrier or another party might read the letter at its destination and, depending upon the carrier's relationship to the sender, might also interpret the content of the letter. Some documentary letters in Egypt suggest that after the letter has been read in Greek, it will have to be translated into the local dialect so that the women in the sender's audience can understand it. The formal parts of the ancient letter — to be distinguished from other rhetorical patterns authors of literary epistles might use — are straightforward. The opening or prescript identifies sender(s) and recipient(s) and concludes with a greeting or salutation. Epithets, information about geographical locations, and terms of endearment often expand on individuals named. Paul regularly shifts to a Semitic form of salutation, "grace and peace," expanded with reference to God and Christ Jesus (2 Cor 1.2). When his apostolic authority is an issue between himself and the recipients, that note may be attached as a self-designation (2 Cor 1.1; Rom 1.1-5, a community for which Paul is not an apostle founder). Ancient letters may follow the opening with a formal statement of the sender's wish for the health of the recipients. Such formulas may also be employed to close the letter. Another INTRO TO THE NEW TESTAMENT EPISTLES
309common formula expresses the sender's prayer to the gods or thanksgiving on behalf of the recipients. In the Pauline letter type, this conventional way of opening a letter commonly develops into a much longer thanksgiving or blessing section. That section often previews items from the body of the letter that follows. After the opening formalities, the body of the letter states the actual business or request that is the reason for the letter. The sender may either give information about his own future travel plans or request it about others. Paul usually has such travel reports near the end of his letter-body. Various formulas can be used to conclude the letter. Often greetings are conveyed from or to others not mentioned in the letterbody. Once the letter was written, the sender had to find a person to convey the letter to its recipient. Often the presence of someone who is on the way to the desired location provides an opportunity for writing. There was no guaranteed overnight global delivery in antiquity! Even letters entrusted to friends for delivery had an uncertain fate. Under the best of circumstances a response was weeks or months away. The sender would ordinarily have retained a copy, and some scholars have suggested that the first collection of Paul's letters was due to the apostle's own editing of his copies of Romans,
1and
2Corinthians, and Galatians. This hypothesis accounts for the start of the process of collecting and editing Pauline letters, but lacking any specific manuscript evidence, it remains speculative. Copyright ©2001, New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha: New Revised Standard Version. Ed. Michael D. Coogan. 3rd ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ROMANS
310ROMANS Introduction Although, because of its length, it is the first in the letters of the New Testament, Romans was probably the latest of Paul's undisputed letters to be written (see the article, Introduction to the Letters/Epistles in the New Testament). Romans also contains the longest and most complex sustained argument in any of Paul's letters even though it is addressed to Christians he has never met (1.13). For these reasons the letter, especially chs 1-8, has often been read as Paul's theological "last will and testament," a reflection on and a summary of the gospel of salvation in Christ. It was also intended to persuade the Christians of Rome to support Paul's prospective mission to Spain (15.23-24). HT TH Paul wanted more from his readers, however. He meant to proclaim to the Christians of Rome the gospel, "the power of God for salvation" (1.15-16; 15.18-19), and thus to strengthen and encourage them (1.11-12). Romans is, like Paul's other letters, an instrument of moral instruction and exhortation (see 15.14-15). The letter was occasioned in part by circumstances in Rome during the reign of the emperor Nero (54-68 CE). The greetings in ch
16include Prisca and Aquila, known from Acts 18.2 as among the Jews expelled from Rome by the emperor Claudius around
49CE. Their presence in Rome at the time Paul writes may reflect Nero's reversal of his predecessor's edict (Suetonius, Life of Claudius 25.3). The recent return of Jews to the imperials capital, including Jewish Christians like Prisca and Aquila, who had been driven out and probably lost property and community ties during their exile, may well have aroused tensions within Christian house groups in which Gentile believers had become predominant. ROMANS
311Paul's appeal to Gentile Christians in Rome not to "boast" over Jews (11.13-36) comes at the end of chs 9.11, the climax of the letter. Paul's argument responds to an incipient anti-Judaism, already rife among the Roman aristocracy and beginning to penetrate the Christian community as well. Given the recent horror of an anti-Jewish pogrom in Alexandria (38-41 CE), and even more recent tax riots that had turned deadly in nearby Puteoli, Paul is concerned to prevent in Rome the sort of civic disturbance in which the city's minority Jewish population might be especially vulnerable. This is at least one explanation for the notorious exhortation to "be subject to the governing authorities" (13.1-7). Sometimes read as Paul's "theology of the state," these verses stand in tension with his view elsewhere of the "rulers of this age" (1 Cor 2.6-8; 15.24-26;
1Thess 5.3-11), and with his own willingness to suffer punishment from civil authorities (2 Cor 11.23, 25-27). This teaching is conventional (Wis 6.1-3;
1Pet 2.13-17; 3.13), and there are other attitudes to civil authorities in the New Testament (Acts 5.29; Rev 13.2,5, 11-18). These verses may have had a very specific application in preventing further violence against Jews. Similarly, Paul's admonitions regarding the "weak in faith," concerned with the observance of diet and special days (14.1-15.13), may address tensions between Jewish Christians, who would have had such observances, and Gentile Christians, who would not. The theme of God's "righteousness" (1.17) or "justice" (3.5) resonates throughout the letter. At stake is God's faithfulness in the face human faithlessness, as the rhetorical questions that punctuate the letter show (2.3-4, 21-23; 3.3, 5, 7, 9, 27, 29; 4.1; 6.1-3, 15-16; 7.7, 13; 9.14, 19, 30; 11.1, 11). God's righteousness is manifest in the uncompromising judgment of all impiety and wickedness, and also in unwavering loyalty to the covenant with Israel. Paul wants the Christians of Rome to respect God's integrity in the salvation offered them through the faithful obedience of Jesus (5.6, 18-19; 3.22, 26). Paul's emphasizes God's integrity and justice, now "revealed" (1.17), not in putting up with sin but in dealing with it decisively through the faith of Jesus Christ or one who has faith in Jesus Christ. ROMANS
312Paul is Christ's apostle, obligated to "bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles," among whom he includes his Roman audience (1.1-6). He declares the gospel of God's salvation to all who believe, Jews and Greeks alike, but "to the Jew first" (1.16). The priority of the Jew in God's plan of salvation is an important theme in the letter (3.1-2; 9.1-4). Paul's mission to Gentiles should provoke his fellow Jews to jealousy (11.13-14), perhaps by convincing them that the last days prophesied by Isaiah were at hand (15.12). At last, Paul declares, "all Israel will be saved" (11.26), and all the nations will join Israel in the worship of the one true God (15.7-13). As he writes, the apostle is about to present to his compatriots in Jerusalem both monetary aid from churches in his mission field (15.2527) and an embassy of converts from paganism (1 Cor 16.3-4; on the eventual catastrophe of this mission, see Acts 21.27-30). Although the Roman Christians have not had the opportunity to contribute to this mission in tangible ways, Paul asks for their prayers (15.30-32). He also writes to safeguard the sanctity of the "offering of the Gentiles" (15.1516) by exhorting the Christians of Rome to holy living (12.1-3; 15.7-9). The underlying structure of Paul's exhortation resembles other letters written to congregations Paul had founded. By virtue of their baptism into Christ, Christians must no longer let sin have dominion over them (6.1-14). They are to live no longer as the pagan world does (1.18-32), but to give "spiritual worship" to God through sobriety of thought and bodily purity (12.1-3). Just so Paul had reminded the Corinthians, Galatians, and Thessalonians that they must no longer live as "the Gentiles who do not know God," having been sanctified by Christ (1 Cor 6.9-11; Gal 5.22-24;
1Thess 4.1-5). Universal accountability before God, Paul's theme throughout the early chapters of the letter, is more specifically applied in chs 12-16. Rather than being a treatise on Christian salvation, Romans is a sustained appeal for holy living, directed to Gentile Christians tempted to look down on their beleaguered Jewish neighbors, within the Christian congregations and without. The apostle's call to realize in common life the justice of God which the Christian congregation celebrates is the letter's enduring legacy. ROMANS 313