Lukes gospel is addressed to theophilus, but the book must have been written for a wider audience, including converts and potential converts. Throughout acts he emphasizes to the jew first and then to the gentiles. According to church tradition, luke wrote the book of acts. Introduction to the book of acts study resources blue letter bible.
Acts recounts the story of the early church from the time of jesus ascension to pauls arrival as a prisoner in rome. The purpose of lukeacts may be ecclesiastical or apologetic. Traditionally, luke is proposed as the author of the third gospel. Despite this, we can be fairly confident that it was composed in the early to mid. Acts of the apostles was written for a man named theophilus, telling of the beginning of the church and the spread of the gospel. In the doctrine of addai, which contains the ancient tradition of the church of edessa, the acts of the apostles are declared to be a part of the holy scripture doctrine of. At first glance, it seems that the book of acts was written around the same time of the last events it describes.
In certain sections of acts, the author uses the first person plural in the narrative acts 16. Acts is the second of two books written by luke, so setting a date for acts also serves to establish the latest possible date for the gospel of luke. The book of acts is the second half of a treatise written by luke to a man named theophilus. The tradition from the earliest days of the church has been that luke, a companion of the apostle paul, wrote the books of luke and acts colossians 4. The book of acts the book of acts is known as the birth of the church. For the suggestion that lukeacts was the stimulus for the collection. Were the gospel of luke and the book of acts written by the.
The christian view is that luke wrote the acts of the apostles as a historical record of the early years of christianity. Lukes gospel and acts are both addressed to the same roman official, theophilus. The ending of acts plays an important role in route of determining the books date. The book of luke was written for a man named theophilus luke 1. For most excellent theophilus luke compiled the individual events that took place in his presence as he plainly shows by omitting the martyrdom of peter as well as the departure of paul from the city of rome when he journeyed to spain. For ecclesiastical purpose, it may have been written in order to edify the church, serving as a history. Start studying gospel of luke and the acts of the apostles. Since luke is the author of acts, any date between ad 60 and 100 is reasonable as conzelmann points out. Just prior to acts, his gospel can be considered as a prequel. The story of luke, the author of acts, has to be pieced together like a jigsaw puzzle. Whether written to the christian or pagan, acts was written as an apologeticdefense of christianity. Acts of the apostles was written after the gospel now known as luke s gospel, which in turn is considered by almost all critical scholars to have been based on marks gospel, written approximately 70 ce. Luke is by the same author as the book of acts in the new testament, the book that tells the story of the beginnings of the christian movement and down through the time of pauls career. The authorship of the gospel of luke and the acts of the apostles, collectively known as lukeacts, is an important issue for biblical exegetes who are attempting to produce critical scholarship on the origins of the new testament.
The dating of the book of acts is important because acts was written after luke. Luke recorded three rejections by the jews to peter and the apostles associated with him to the message of repentance and proclamation of the kingdom. For the view that the author of lukeacts did not know pauls letters see h. Acts concerns the very vital period in christian history between the resurrection of jesus and the death of the apostle paul, the time when christian ideas and beliefs were. This ending offers important evidence for believing that acts was written before a. In my former book, theophilus, i wrote about all that jesus began to do and to teach acts 1. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools.
The book of acts ends with paul in house arrest waiting to present his case before caesar. Theophilus may have been a new convert and was financially able to affront the funds and materials necessary to luke. Acts was apparently written in rome, perhaps between ad 70 and 90, though some think a slightly earlier date is also. While both the gospel of luke and the book of acts have applications for all christians, they were probably written to a specific individual whom luke addresses. First, lukes description of pauls ministry stops short of a crucial event that took place in a. Luke is uniformly identified as the author acts by the second century a. The gospel of luke and the book of acts are closely related. Although the author does not name himself, evidence. The book is addressed to theophilus, but the book must have been written.
The story of luke, the author of acts, has to be pieced together like a jigsaw puzzle mon 22 dec 2008 04. Luke, himself, would have been a man of great means, as well. Because the book of acts is the sequel to luke, it should be considered when trying to define the author. Just as his gospel opens with a dedication to theophilus, so also does acts. Acts and the gospel of luke make up a twopart work, lukeacts, by the same anonymous author, usually dated to around 80. The book of acts, which continues the narrative that luke began in his gospel, is especially important because it was the first written history of the christian church. Acts of the apostles was written after the gospel now known as lukes gospel, which in turn is considered by almost all critical scholars to have been based on. The first part, the gospel of luke, tells how god fulfilled his plan for the worlds salvation through the life, death, and. Were the gospel of luke and the book of acts written by. When looking at the evidence for lukan authorship of the book of acts it is important to understand that the author of luke also wrote the book of acts. Traditionally, the text is believed to have been written by luke the companion of paul named in colossians 4.
Therefore, acts had to be written a few years before 6566, luke before that. Acts and the gospel of luke make up a twopart work, lukeacts, by the same anonymous author, usually dated to around 8090 ad. However, from the context of luke and acts, it seems clear that luke is writing to a specific individual, even though his message is also intended for all christians in all centuries. Feb 29, 2008 the dating of the book of acts is important because acts was written after luke. The book of acts closes with paul under house arrest in rome, boldly proclaiming the christian gospel. Lukeacts, theology of bakers evangelical dictionary of. This post is adapted from darrell bocks theology of luke and acts online course to determine when acts was written, we need to evaluate the evidence from both luke and acts, because the two books were written together, with luke appearing slightly before acts at first glance, it seems that the book of acts was written around the same time of the last events it describes. As it is expected, the book of acts has a similar literary style as the gospel of luke because it is the second volume of luke s account.
As far as dating the gospel goes, luke was written before the book of acts and acts does not mention neros persecution of the christians in a. Apostles were both written anonymously and attributed in the. The gospel according to saint luke and acts of the. To determine when acts was written, we need to evaluate the evidence from both luke and acts, because the two books were written together, with luke appearing slightly before acts. Lucas was a doctor who accompanied paul on some of his travels. We have reunited the two volumes of lukeacts and placed them first because they provide an overview of the new testament period. This evidence supports that luke finished writing the book of acts in rome about 62 ce. Written by the same author and for the same purpose, both were addressed to a christian named theophilus and were designed for the purpose of presenting to him a complete and well authenticated narrative of. Since solid evidence supports that the book of acts was written in 62 ce, the gospel of luke would have been written. Luke may also have been writing in general to all those who loved god. Understanding when the book of acts was written allows us to determine when many other new testament books were composed. Acts was apparently written in rome, perhaps between ad 70 and 90. Introduction to the gospel of luke study resources. Historians are not sure who this theophilus mentioned in luke 1.
Three times in the book of acts, the writer switches to using the pronoun we when talking about travelling with paul. They are addressed to the same individual, theophilus, and the second volume refers to the first. The papyrus bodmer xiv, which is the oldest known manuscript containing the ending of the gospel dating to around 200 ad, uses the subscription the gospel according to luke. He was an educated man, and we learn in colossians 4. The view that luke acts was written by the physician luke was virtually unanimous in the early christian church. This blog argues that the early date of acts is the most defensible and reasonable conclusion with respect to when it was written. He was a greek and the only gentile christian writer of the new testament. The story of the storytellers the gospel of luke from. The initial verses of both the gospel of luke and the book of acts indicate they were written to an otherwise unknown person named theophilus. Acts is written to theophilus, meaning the one who loves god. However, if luke was written using information from mark, known as a markean priority, then luke had to be written after mark which was written mid 50s.
There are different ways to divide the book of acts. The gospel of luke is closely related to the other synoptic gospels, matthew and mark, and will influence our view on their dates as well. Since we know that the gospel of luke was written before the book of acts, we can then date the gospel of luke sometime around a. Dec 22, 2008 the story of luke, the author of acts, has to be pieced together like a jigsaw puzzle mon 22 dec 2008 04. This gospel is a companion volume to the book of acts, and the language and structure of these two books indicate that both were written by the same person. Many people believe the former book referenced in acts is the book of luke. Saint luke, the traditional author of the gospel according to luke and the acts of the apostles. The authors name does not appear in the book, but much unmistakable evidence points to luke. In the latter portion of acts, luke recorded three rejections of the jews to pauls overtures of salvation. Sep 03, 2019 neither paul nor luke really wrote acts of the apostles. Authorship of acts luke is the author of the book acts. As it is expected, the book of acts has a similar literary style as the gospel of luke because it is the second volume of lukes account. Jun 24, 2019 to determine when acts was written, we need to evaluate the evidence from both luke and acts, because the two books were written together, with luke appearing slightly before acts. If you accept its own testimony then luke was written.
The author of acts was, at times, a companion of paul on his missionary journeys. This would make luke the only gentile to pen any books of scripture. Whats the picture of jesus that emerges from lukes writing. A major disagreement concerns the year that luke finish writing and publicize the book of acts. Lukeacts is written for an influential man named theophilus from whom luke may have received funding for this writing endeavor. Acts was written in greek, presumably by the evangelist luke, whose gospel concludes where acts begins, namely, with christs ascension into heaven. Theophilus may have supplied the resources for luke and acts to have been written. Acts was written sometime in the mid90s of the first century. The purpose of the book of acts is governed by the jews response to peter and paul.
The acts of the apostles, often referred to simply as acts, or formally the book of acts, is the fifth book of the new testament. What we can infer from the evidence of the book of acts and the third gospel is that the author. This is clear because luke not his real name uses stories and characters from josephus antiquities to formulate the histories of the acts, such as the stories of cornelius and pet. Much of the material about paul that is contained in acts is quite inconsistent with what paul wrote about in his own epistles, which rules out authorship by paul but also rules out authorsh. But the acts of all the apostles are written in one book, which for the excellent theophilus luke wrote, because he was an eyewitness of all. Luke acts makes up 28% of the new testamentmore than that written by either paul or john. Mar 15, 2018 acts was written sometime in the mid90s of the first century. Neither paul nor luke really wrote acts of the apostles. At the beginning of acts, the author mentions theophilus and references a former writing that appears to describe the book of luke. Lukeacts is a religiopolitical history of the founder of the church and his successors, in both deeds and words. First, luke s description of pauls ministry stops short of a crucial event that took place in a. Who was theophilus at the beginning of luke and acts. Jan 14, 2014 whether written to the christian or pagan, acts was written as an apologeticdefense of christianity.
Before the acts of the apostles and by the same author as the writer of acts compare acts 1. Even though we cannot be 100% certain, it is also believed that the gospel of mark predates that of luke, giving us an even earlier written account about the life of christ. He was also the author of its companion work, the gospel of luke. The story of the storytellers the gospel of luke from jesus to. Acts was written by the author of lukes gospel, luke. So, for example, the book of acts had to be written after the life of jesus and after the missionary work of paul. The book of acts was likely written between ad 61 and 64. We have established that luke was written prior to acts, and can put this gospel even closer to the actual events. Luke wrote two works, the third gospel, an account of the life and teachings of jesus, and the book of acts, which is an account of the growth and expansion of. Luke wrote this twovolume history to serve several important purposes. The destruction of jerusalem and its temple by roman armies in 70 ce is not mentioned in acts but is probably alluded to in luke 21.
If he did, the book is a sequel to the gospel of luke. The acts of the apostles, abbreviation acts, fifth book of the new testament, a valuable history of the early christian church. Unfortunately, biblical writings do not always contain clear chronological markers, and there is a range of opinion on when acts was written. For this reason, many people place acts in the early 60s, because this coincides with the date of pauls imprisonment in rome. Thus the gospel of luke was written early in that twoyear period of time and acts of the apostles was written in the latter part of those two years. The author describes his book as a narrative diegesis, rather than as a gospel, and implicitly criticises his predecessors for not giving their readers the speeches of jesus and the apostles, as such speeches were the mark of a full report, the vehicle through which. May 02, 2020 the tradition from the earliest days of the church has been that luke, a physician and a close companion of the apostle paul, wrote both luke and acts colossians 4. Traditionally called, the acts of the apostles, all evidence points to luke as being the author of the book of acts a fascinating account of life for those at the epicenter of one of the most pivotal times in history. Moreover, the acts of all the apostles were written in one book. Written by the same author and for the same purpose, both were addressed to a christian named theophilus and were designed for the purpose of presenting to him a complete and well authenticated narrative of the early history of the christian movement.