Synoptica
The Acts of the Apostles

The City of Damascus

The opening lines of the book of Acts identify it as the second volume of the Gospel of Luke. This claim does not survive close examination. Neither the opening nor the ending of Luke looks forward to Acts as we have it. The claim of relationship is better judged by recognizing that both texts have been subject to expansion during their formative periods. The earlier opening of Luke is at Lk 3:1 and that of Acts is at Ac 3:16. There is considerable commonality of style between Luke and Acts, but this would not have been beyond the power of a second author. There are also some signs that Acts is a later composition, and reflects a more evolved tradition than the one found in Luke, or at any rate in the first stage of Luke.

Acts is often regarded as a primary source for the life of Paul. For example, it seems to incorporate, without editorial smoothing, a document in the first person (the "we" document) which looks like a travel diary kept by a companion of Paul. This companion is often thought to be Luke himself. But there are serious divergences in Acts from the chronology of Paul that is implied in the probably genuine letters of Paul. The travel diary portion of Acts is also close to the Greek literary romances of the period. One such romance featured a shipwreck and dangerous island sojourn, much like the one in Acts. Modern opinion is inclined to accept the Pauline letters as the better authority for Paul, which means that the Acts differences need to be accounted for as something other than simple reporting of contemporary events.

Our chief concern with Acts is in placing it as an element in the Synoptic Problem, and also in locating it within the overall chronology of the New Testament.

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25 Sept 2005 / Contact The Project / Exit to Synoptica Page