Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible: Acts

By John T. Squires

This extract from the Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible provides Squires’ introduction to and concise commentary on Acts. The Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible presents, in nontechnical language, the best of modern scholarship on each book of the Bible, including the Apocrypha. Reader-friendly commentary complements succinct summaries of each section of the text and will be valuable to scholars, students, and general readers
 
Rather than attempt a verse-by-verse analysis, these volumes work from larger sense units, highlighting the place of each passage within the overarching biblical story. Commentators focus on the genre of each text—parable, prophetic oracle, legal code, and so on—interpreting within the historical and literary context.
 
The volumes also address major issues within each biblical book—including the range of possible interpretations—and refer readers to the best resources for further discussions.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Eerdmans
• Release date: Apr 13, 2021
• ISBN: 9781467454353

Book preview

Acts

John T. Squires

INTRODUCTION

Acts is half of what was originally a two-volume work of literary and theological unity (given the name Luke-Acts in modern scholarship), written by an unknown author (given the name Luke in early ecclesiastical tradition) sometime in the latter decades of the first century. The first volume (Luke’s Gospel) tells the story of Jesus from his conception to his ascension into heaven about three decades later. The second volume (Acts) traces the development of the messianic Jewish movement which was begun by Jesus from his ascension to Paul’s arrival in Rome about three decades later. Both volumes are written in the style of history of that time (see the Introduction to the Gospel of Luke above, 1104; Sterling 1992: 311–21, 331–39).

No clear evidence exists regarding the sources available to the author in writing this second volume of his work. It is possible that Luke knew and used sources which told of the beginnings of the movement in Jerusalem (Acts 1–7), the spread of this movement into Samaria (Acts 8), and the missionary activity of Paul (Acts 9, 13–20). Some sections of Acts include the author as one traveling in Paul’s group (Acts 16:10–17; 20:5–15; 21:1–18; 27:1–28:16) and may reflect a basic record of the group’s itinerary. A significant proportion of Acts is devoted to speeches made by leading characters (e.g., Peter, Stephen, and Paul). As was the custom in the history writing of the time, such speeches were not necessarily verbatim reports but creations of the author, reflecting what was appropriate to the occasion (Sterling 1992: 372–74).

Acts is known in two main textual versions; the Western text (Codex D) is 10 percent longer than the Alexandrian text (p45, Codex B) since it has numerous stylistic and theological additions. Most scholars favor the Alexandrian text as more likely to be the original text.

Geography is important in Acts. The opening scene is in Jerusalem, the focal point of the Jewish faith. The final scene is in Rome, the center of the Roman Empire. The story which unfolds between these two scenes reveals the gradual expansion of this messianic movement as it progresses from Jerusalem to Rome. The first section (1:1–8:3) deals with the earliest community of believers; it is set wholly within Jerusalem. The second section (8:4–12:25) prepares for the turn to the Gentiles through a sequence of steps which initially proceed away from Jerusalem—although the final scenes in this section return to Jerusalem. The third major section (13:1–21:16) recounts the activity of Paul and some of his co-workers in establishing new communities of faith in the northeast part of the Mediterranean basin. This section begins in Antioch and moves through a series of episodes to Caesarea before ending in Jerusalem once more. The arrest of Paul precipitates the fourth major section of Acts (21:17–28:15), focusing on the trials of Paul. The geographic focus is again first on Jerusalem, but this section of the story moves relentlessly toward Rome, where it ends.

The book is traditionally known as The Acts of the Apostles. It tells of the deeds of the apostles. Luke appears to have a concern to demonstrate that the apostles represent the unbroken continuation of the ministry of Jesus in decades immediately after his public preaching and healing. There are numerous resonances between what takes place in Acts and what has already been narrated in Luke’s Gospel. The appointment of a twelfth apostle, Matthias, to replace Judas Iscariot is narrated early in the book (1:15–26). This seems to signal that the group of twelve, now reconstituted, retains its leadership in the movement begun by Jesus. This is but the first of many indications that Acts may be read as a confirmation of the Gospel (Maddox 1982: 22–23, 180–87).

However, the work as a whole does not continue this focus on the apostles as a unified group. Most of them do not figure at all in the rest of the story, for it immediately narrows to a focus on Peter (accompanied silently by John). Neither those individuals who have some prominence in the ensuing narrative (Stephen, Philip, Barnabas, Silas, Timothy, etc.) nor the figure who comes to dominate the account (Paul) are to be numbered among the twelve apostles at all.

A conclusion which some interpreters have drawn from the prominence of Paul is that Acts ought really to be called The Acts of Paul—since his conversion (or, better, his commissioning) is reported no fewer than three times during the work (9:1–18; 22:1–21; 26:1–32) and since more than half of the work is devoted to the activity of Paul (9:19–31; 13:1–28:31). This claim has some merit, but it still fails to explain both how the first half of the book relates to this concern and why the book ends without reporting the ultimate fate of Paul, the alleged main character.

Others have suggested that Acts has as its focus the Spirit rather than the apostles or Paul; they believe that the work should be regarded as The Acts of the Holy Spirit. While the first major incident reported at length—the day of Pentecost (2:1–41)—does focus on the Spirit, and while the Spirit plays a significant role in parts of Acts, this suggestion still has a sense of incompleteness about it. There are long sections of the work from which the Spirit is absent; indeed, there is neither explicit mention of, nor indirect allusion to, the Spirit from the moment that Paul has determined that he will go to Jerusalem (21:11–14) until the glancing reference to the Spirit in the final scene (28:25).

Another option is to regard the book as The Acts of Jesus Christ, explaining how Jesus has been at work in the deeds of Paul, the apostles, and others throughout the book. The singular claim advanced by Peter, that there is salvation by no one else, for there is no other name … by which you must be saved (4:12), focuses attention on coming to faith in Christ as the key to the work. That Acts is an explicitly missionary work, recounting the early Christian mission and advocating missionary activity, is undoubted. However, the long account of Paul’s arrest and trials (Acts 21–28) seems to be a peculiarly disappointing anticlimax if the missionary orientation is indeed the central focus.

The present approach to Acts will be to focus on the role which God plays in the narrative. As we note the scope of language about God throughout the book, we will explore the contribution that this makes to Luke’s purposes. Seen in this way, the book may well be understood as The Acts of God. In Acts, Luke reveals how he understands the purposes of God are being worked out through the various people who make up the messianic Jewish movement which was begun by Jesus of Nazareth. He shapes his narrative so that it constantly unveils the workings of the divine in ordinary human events.

Such an interest in how God is at work in the events of human history is not unique to Luke. Both the historical narratives of the Hebrew Bible and the historical works of various Gentile authors provide interpretations of events in this vein. The appearances of divine beings and the occurrence of miraculous incidents through divine intervention are found often in the Pentateuch and ensuing historical writings. The Deuteronomist regularly notes how events fulfill words spoken by God (1 Kgs 2:27; 8:15–16; 8:23–24; 8:56; 12:24; 14:18; 15:29; 16:12; 16:34; 17:5; 17:16; 22:38; 2 Kgs 1:17; 4:44; 5:14; 7:16; 9:36; 10:17; 14:25; 15:12; 17:22–23; 23:16; 24:2; 24:13). The character of Yahweh dominates the scriptural narratives—and history is implicitly understood in the way articulated by Yahweh through Isaiah: As I have designed, so shall it be; and as I have planned, so shall it come to pass (Isa 14:24; a refrain repeated at 46:11b; see also 37:26; 55:11; Sterling 1992: 352–63; Rosner in Winter and Clarke 1993: 78–80).

Such an understanding of history is also to be found in the Greek tradition. In the works of Hellenistic historians, particular deities are understood to be the forces which guide and shape history: Pronoia in Herodotus, Fortuna in Polybius, Fate in Posidonius, Pronoia in Diodorus Siculus, and Tyche in Dionysius of Halicarnassus. Indeed, the first-century-BC Sicilian historian Diodorus describes historians as being ministers of divine providence (Pronoia) whose task is to demonstrate how the unifying effect of providence is made manifest in the histories which are narrated (Hist. 1.1.3). Similarly, in his twenty-volume history of Rome, Dionysius of Halicarnassus demonstrates that the goddess Fortune (Tyche) had bestowed upon Rome a supremacy so great and already of so long continuance (Rom. Ant. 1.5.2). Luke’s contemporary, Flavius Josephus, writes his twenty-volume history of the Jews with similar intent, demonstrating that men who conform to the will of God … prosper in all things beyond belief, and for their reward are offered by God felicity (Ant. 1 §46). His history is permeated with references to divine providence at work among the Jews. Luke writes within the same conventions of history writing, showing that the events recounted take place within God’s providential plan. He shapes his narrative so that his readers/listeners are constantly reminded of this theme (Squires 1993: 15–36; Sterling 1992: 363–69).

The story of Jesus, as retold in the speeches of Acts, is understood within the parameters of the things that God did through him (2:22); the most succinct summation of his life is that God was with him (10:38). Likewise, as the history of Israel is retold in speeches, it is always presented in the light of the claim that God shaped its history: the God of glory appeared to our ancestor Abraham (7:2), the God of this people Israel chose our ancestors and made the people great (13:17). It is God who is at the center of Luke’s theological understanding (Jervell 1996: 18–25). The narrative concerning the growth and development of the messianic movement makes similar reference to God’s role. To the community in Jerusalem, the Lord added those being saved daily (2:47). When Peter encounters Gentiles in Caesarea, he asserts, God gave the same gift to them [Gentiles] as also to us [Jewish] believers (11:17). The missionary endeavors of Paul and others are summarized thus: they announced what God did with them, and how he opened a door of faith to the Gentiles (14:27), and God has called us to preach the good news to them [in Macedonia] (16:10). God guides all that takes place; Paul sums up this perspective when he comments, may the Lord’s will be done (21:14), to this day I have had the help which is from God (26:22), and finally, this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles (28:28). As Luke presents his story, it is clear that everything takes place under the guidance of God (Squires in Marshall and Peterson 1998: 19–39).

Luke-Acts is written to Theophilus (Luke 1:3; Acts 1:1), who represents people who know full well the customs and practices of Hellenistic society and yet have been introduced to the distinctive beliefs and practices of the messianic movement begun by Jesus, as it was found in the various communities in the eastern Mediterranean. Such people were caught in a set of tensions between established societal expectations, on the one hand, and the developing customs of the messianic movement, on the other. By addressing his work to this audience, Luke is writing in a manner best described as apologetic.

The function of apologetic literature was to reinterpret these distinctive community customs and beliefs in such a way that they would make sense in the context of the wider Hellenized society. Sterling calls the result of this process an apologetic history, that is, an extended prose narrative written by a member of the group who follows the group’s own traditions but Hellenizes them in an effort to establish the identity of the group within the setting of the larger world (Sterling 1992: 17, 378–89; see also Squires 1993: 52–55). This is an apt description of Luke’s labors; he writes so that Theophilus, and others who are part of his faith community, may be strengthened in their self-understanding within the wider society.

Luke writes apologetically in order to provide certainty or reassurance (asphaleian) about the faith already known to his readers/listeners (Luke 1:1–4). Even as he recounts events from the past, Luke’s writing is constantly oriented toward his contemporary audience. The continual references to God within the story have particular relevance to this apologetic process; they provide an important means of legitimating (or validating) the distinctive self-identity of this community within the wider context of Hellenized society. For Luke, since God has made the messianic communities to be just as he depicts them in his narrative, the story of Acts provides his readers/listeners with models of being a faith community and of exercising leadership within such a community, and it encourages such readers/listeners to follow these models (Maddox 1982: 180–87; Peterson in Marshall and Peterson 1998: 532–44). Such a purpose remains entirely relevant in the twenty-first century.

COMMENTARY

Section One: The Community in Jerusalem (1:1–8:3)

The first major section of Acts recounts the life of the community in Jerusalem, where the earliest followers of Jesus establish a pattern of faithful living through their common life, their public witness, and their persistent adherence to their Jewish traditions. The whole section is located entirely within Jerusalem (1:4, 8, 12; 2:5; 4:5; 5:16; 6:7; 8:1). The scene on the day of Pentecost begins as pilgrims gather for the festival (2:1, 5) and concludes with the daily gathering of believers in the temple (2:46). The trials of Peter and John are located on the temple grounds (3:1, 11; 4:1; 5:12, 20, 21, 42), while the trial of Stephen takes place before the temple priests (7:1) and moves to a climactic focus on the (in) validity of the temple (7:47–50).

A major theme running through this section is the relationship of the community of Jesus’ followers to the Jerusalem temple. The temple is the place where God has long been understood to live (Exod 25:17–22; 29:42–46; Deut 12:5–7, 10–12, 17–18; Ps 80:1–2; Isa 6:1–3; Ezek 44:4). The priests, as functionaries of the temple, represent an established understanding of how God wishes Israel to live, through the sacrificial rituals (Ezek 44:15–16, 23–24). The community is persistent in its involvement in this set of rituals; none of its members voluntarily take themselves away from the temple or fail to perform its rituals. Nevertheless, a tension is set up between the temple and the community of Jesus’ followers. Despite their regular involvement in the temple rituals, community members see their leaders being placed under intense scrutiny by the temple leadership. The section ends with a criticism of the temple, articulated by Stephen (7:44–50). However, this is not a rejection of the temple and all that it stands for, as much as a strenuous critique of the ways that the current temple leadership have misunderstood the intentions of the temple and have misinterpreted its role in Israelite life.

Throughout this tense narrative (culminating in a direct conflict), references to God, both explicit and implicit, play a key role in helping the reader to interpret the events reported. Such language about God validates the nature of the common life established in the community, indicates the sovereignty of God in the events that are told, and demonstrates the way to give faithful witness to God’s sovereignty. A key theme in this section is the sovereignty of God (1:3). The involvement of God in the events narrated is expressed by means of explicit narrative comments (2:47; 6:7) and through epiphanies which occur in the story (1:3, 10; 2:4; 5:19; 7:55). In the eight speeches reported in this section, Luke has his characters provide an overarching framework for understanding God’s providential activity. The speeches contain affirmations that God has been at work in the life of Jesus (2:22–32, 36; 3:13–15, 17–18; 4:27–28; 5:30–32) and earlier in the history of Israel (7:2–53), as well as in the events reported in the narrative itself (1:16–22; 2:16–21, 33; 3:12, 16; 4:8–12, 29–30; 5:29, 38–39).

Restoring the Community Leadership (1:1–26)

The narrative of Acts begins with a recapitulatory preface (1:1–5) which summarizes the Gospel of Luke and begins to prepare for the ensuing narrative about the community in Jerusalem. First, Luke explicitly acknowledges that what follows is a sequel to an earlier volume, addressed to the same recipient, Theophilus (1:1). We know this as the Gospel of Luke; here, however, the content of this Gospel is epitomized as simply the things which Jesus began to do and to teach until his ascension (1:1–2). This recapitulation makes valid the claim that the preface to Luke’s Gospel also applies to his second volume, Acts (Marshall in Winter and Clarke 1993: 163–82; on the preface to Acts as a preface to a history, see Alexander in Witherington 1996: 73–103). An early hint at the element of divine guidance in the story is found when the Holy Spirit is identified as the means by which Jesus chose the apostles (v. 2). Then follows a summation of the various manifestations of Jesus throughout the ensuing forty days (v. 3). These appearances are akin to the string of epiphanies whose divine origin has been clearly established in the Gospel (see Luke 1:26;