Exégèse biblique — Nouveau Testament

The Acts of the Apostles

The second volume of the Lucan work — a programmatic account of the Christian expansion from Jerusalem to Rome (c. 30–62), composed around 80–90 by Luke the evangelist.

28chapters

80–90dating

Acts 1:8programme

Lucauthor

Critical introductions to the books of the New Testament

Each book in the module is presented here from four angles: its intended readership and context, its date of composition with arguments and alternatives, its literary structure, and the principal theological dispute it gave rise to — set out in several confessional voices, with the erudite and kindly commentary of Professor Tryphon Goldberg, the fictional rabbi and pedagogical companion of the comparative pathway.

Ac The Acts of the Apostles

📜 Intended readership and setting

Target community

The same addressee as Luke — Theophilus (Acts 1:1 echoes Luke 1:3) — hence the same mixed Christian community, predominantly gentile and of cultivated Greek culture. But Acts adds two dimensions to the Lucan readership: (1) a political-apologetic dimension — demonstrating the legitimacy of Christianity before the Roman authorities by multiplying the episodes in which Paul is cleared by magistrates (Gallio in Acts 18:12-17; the tribune Lysias in 23:29; Festus in 25:18-19; Herod Agrippa II in 26:31-32); (2) an internal ecumenical dimension — persuading Christians of Jewish and of pagan origin that they form a single Church, unity being built in stages (the Council of Jerusalem in Acts 15, the Peter–Paul conflict of Gal 2 recast by Luke into harmony, the Pauline mission to the nations).

Geographical setting

Identical to Luke: Achaia (the anti-Marcionite Prologue), Antioch (Eusebius), Asia Minor (Marshall), Rome (a minority hypothesis). The appearance of the “we” from Acts 16:10 onwards (the first-person-plural sections: 16:10-17; 20:5-15; 21:1-18; 27:1 – 28:16) suggests that the author was a companion of Paul, most likely from Troas (16:10). If Luke is the author and the Antiochene physician, the “we” episodes correspond to his actual periods of travel with Paul.

Internal indications

A volume comparable to Luke (Acts: 1,006 verses — the longest book of the NT after Luke itself). A refined literary style. Technical vocabulary: politarchēs (17:6 — a very rare word confirmed epigraphically at Thessalonica), asiarchēs (19:31), strategos in the Roman sense (16:20, 22). Seven great apostolic discourses (Peter at Pentecost, Acts 2; Stephen, 7; Peter and Cornelius, Acts 10; Paul at Pisidian Antioch, Acts 13; Paul at the Areopagus, Acts 17; Paul's farewell at Ephesus, Acts 20; Paul at Jerusalem, Acts 22) which, according to Dibelius (1949), summarise the apostolic preaching. The “we” sections amount to 97 verses. Twenty-four episodes of prayer (more than any other NT book). Twenty-six explicit mentions of the Holy Spirit (the “book of the acts of the Holy Spirit”, in a patristic phrase).

📅 Date of composition

Majority range

AD 80–90

Principal arguments

In continuity with Luke, the same majority range holds. (1) Lucan dependence and post-Marcan chronology. Like Luke, Acts probably depends on Mark (65–72) and on distinct sources (Petrine material, Antiochene sources, a Pauline source). (2) Knowledge of the fall of the Temple (70). Though never mentioned explicitly, the fall of the Temple structures Luke's theology of history — Stephen prophesies against the Temple (Acts 7:48-50) and the narrative gives value to a missionary diaspora freed from the Jerusalem cultic framework. (3) A coherent patristic tradition. Irenaeus (Adv. Haer. III.1.1) places Luke–Acts after Matthew and Mark but before John. The Muratorian Canon (late second century) lists Acts as “the acts of all the apostles in a single book, written by Luke”. (4) Silence on the martyrdom of Paul. Acts ends at 61–63 with Paul in Rome teaching freely for two years (Acts 28:30-31). There is no mention of the Neronian martyrdom (64–67), the fire of Rome (64), or the persecution. This “omission” is traditionally read as a narrative choice (“the Gospel has reached Rome; the narrative ends”) rather than as an indication of a pre-67 date.

Alternatives and debates

61–63 (early dating) — A position defended by J. A. T. Robinson (1976), F. F. Bruce, Carson–Moo–Morris and Bock. The main argument: had Acts been written after Paul's martyrdom (c. 64–67), Luke would have mentioned it — as he mentions the martyrdom of Stephen (Acts 7) and of James son of Zebedee (Acts 12:2). The silence on Paul, on the fall of the Temple (70) and on the Neronian persecution (64) suggests composition before those events. The abrupt ending of Acts (“Paul lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him…”) would then be contemporary with the situation it describes. A position favoured in conservative evangelicalism.
Proponents: Robinson 1976, Bruce 1983, Carson–Moo–Morris 1992, Bock 1994, Witherington 1998. A minority but serious position.
100–130 (late dating) — The theory of dependence on Flavius Josephus (Jewish Antiquities, published 93–94). Steve Mason (Josephus and the NT, 1992) and Richard Pervo (Dating Acts, 2006) have noted precise parallels: (a) the Theudas episode in Acts 5:36 inverts the chronological sequence of Antiquities XX.97 (in Josephus, Theudas comes after Judas the Galilean, whom Acts places after Theudas); (b) the death of Herod Agrippa I in Acts 12:20-23 mirrors the account of Ant. XIX.343-352 down to the vocabulary. If Luke depends on Josephus, Acts is later than 94. Joseph Tyson (Marcion and Luke-Acts, 2006) goes further: Luke–Acts would have been written in reaction to Marcion's gospel (c. 140), dating Acts to around 120–130.
Proponents: Pervo, Dating Acts, 2006; Mason 1992; Tyson 2006. A minority but debated position, especially in North American scholarship.
The question of the Luke–Acts unity — The literary and theological unity of Luke–Acts (Cadbury 1927; Conzelmann 1953) is today contested by Mikeal Parsons and Richard Pervo (Rethinking the Unity of Luke and Acts, 1993), who note the generic differences (gospel versus Hellenistic historical novel) and those of early canonical reception (Luke with the gospels, Acts apart). The debate bears on the dating: if Luke and Acts are by the same author but several years apart, the chronology may be stretched.
Proponents: Parsons and Pervo 1993, against Bovon (Luke–Acts as a unity).

📐 Literary structure

Principal model

The programmatic structure of Acts 1:8: “You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” — three widening geographical zones that structure the whole. More broadly, Acts falls into two great books hinged on the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15): the Book of Peter and the Jerusalem Church (Acts 1–12) and the Book of Paul and the mission to the nations (Acts 13–28). The transition is not abrupt but gradual: Peter disappears after Acts 15 (save for a final mention in certain manuscripts); Paul becomes the sole protagonist.

Divisions

Ref.	Title	Verses	Principal themes
Prologue	Ascension and Pentecost	`1,1 – 2,47`	Renewal of the commission (1:8 — the geographical programme), the ascension (1:9-11), the election of Matthias to replace Judas (1:15-26), Pentecost (2:1-13), Peter's discourse (2:14-36), the conversion of 3,000 (2:41), the idyllic communal life (2:42-47).
I	The Jerusalem Church	`3,1 – 5,42`	The healing of the lame man, Peter's discourse in the Portico, appearances before the Sanhedrin, the community of goods (the summaries), Ananias and Sapphira (5:1-11), Gamaliel (5:34-39).
II	First expansion: the Seven and Stephen	`6,1 – 8,40`	The Hellenist–Hebrew conflict, the election of the Seven (6:1-7), the arrest and discourse of Stephen (the long historical retrospect, 7:1-53), Stephen's martyrdom (7:54-60), persecution, dispersion and mission. Philip's mission in Samaria. The conversion of the Ethiopian eunuch (8:26-40).
III	The conversion of Saul and the reception of the Gentiles	`9,1 – 12,25`	The conversion of Saul on the Damascus road (9:1-19a), the first testimony at Damascus and Jerusalem. Peter's ministry: Aeneas (9:32-35), Tabitha (9:36-43), Cornelius the centurion (10:1–11:18 — the first baptism of a Gentile, Peter's vision at Joppa). Antioch, where they were first called Christians (11:19-26). Famine and collection. The persecution of Herod Agrippa I, the martyrdom of James son of Zebedee (12:1-2), Peter's arrest and miraculous deliverance (12:3-19), the death of Herod (12:20-23).
IV	Paul's first missionary journey and the Council of Jerusalem	`13,1 – 15,35`	The sending from Antioch (13:1-3), Cyprus (Sergius Paulus, Elymas), Pisidian Antioch (the first great Pauline discourse, 13:16-41), Iconium, Lystra, Derbe. The return. The Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15) — the decision on ritual obligations for Gentile converts: circumcision not required, but four prescriptions (food offered to idols, blood, strangled meat, sexual immorality). The apostolic letter.
V	Second missionary journey	`15,36 – 18,22`	The Paul–Barnabas dispute over Mark. Paul with Silas. Timothy joins them. The Macedonian vision (16:9-10 — the beginning of the “we”). The mission in Europe: Philippi (Lydia, the exorcism, the prison), Thessalonica, Beroea, Athens (the Areopagus discourse, 17:16-34), Corinth (Aquila and Priscilla, Gallio, 18:12-17). The return.
VI	Third missionary journey	`18,23 – 21,16`	Galatia, Phrygia. Apollos at Ephesus. Paul at Ephesus for three years (Tyrannus, miracles, the disciples of John the Baptist, the silversmiths' riot over Artemis, 19:23-41). Macedonia, Achaia. The return towards Jerusalem with the collection. The Ephesian farewell at Miletus (20:17-38). The coastal stages. Agabus's prophecy at Caesarea.
VII	Arrest, trials, and the voyage to Rome	`21,17 – 28,31`	Arrival at Jerusalem. The riot in the Temple. The arrest. The defence discourse to the crowd (Acts 22). Appearances before the Sanhedrin, Felix, Festus, and Herod Agrippa II. The appeal to Caesar. The voyage to Rome: the storm and shipwreck at Malta (Acts 27 — a technical nautical narrative, a reference document for the history of ancient seafaring). Arrival at Rome. Paul preaches to the local Jews, who are divided. The conclusion (28:30-31): “he lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.”

Alternative models

A six-panel model articulated by the growth summaries (Acts 6:7; 9:31; 12:24; 16:5; 19:20; 28:30-31) — proposed by Goulder. A biographical model centred on Peter and then Paul — Haenchen 1956. An alternating discourse–narrative model: Dibelius (1949) identifies seven great apostolic discourses as the theological framework. More recently, a literary-genre model: the Hellenistic historical novel (Pervo, Profit with Delight, 1987), the Greek historical monograph (Aune 1987), serious historiography in the manner of Polybius (Hemer 1989).

⚔️ Theological dispute

Theological dispute: Acts 15 and Gal 2 — the historical reliability of Acts against the Pauline epistles

Pivotal text

Acts 15:1-29 (the Council of Jerusalem) against Gal 2:1-14 (the private meeting and the Antioch conflict). Is the apostolic decree of Acts 15:28-29 (“it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us”) compatible with the conflictual Pauline account of a Paul who publicly withstands Peter at Antioch (Gal 2:11)?

This is the most formative hermeneutical dispute in modern New Testament scholarship. Since Ferdinand Christian Baur and the Tübingen School (1830–1860), Acts has been suspected of tendentiously harmonising the history of Christian origins by smoothing over the conflicts that appear raw in the Pauline epistles. The dispute sets the theologies of historical reliability (traditional Catholics, conservative evangelicals) against redaction criticism (Baur, Bultmann, the German Protestant school) and against intermediate positions (Brown, Bauckham, the North American “moderate consensus”).

traditional Catholic

The Pontifical Biblical Commission, decrees of 1907 and 1912 on the historicity of the Gospels and Acts; Sancta Mater Ecclesia 1964; CCC § 124-127.

Acts is an authentic, inspired historical narrative, perfectly compatible with the Pauline epistles. The traditional Catholic position: Luke, a physician and companion of Paul (Col 4:14; 2 Tim 4:11; Phlm 24), has access to direct sources — he was an eyewitness of the “we” sections, met the other apostles during his stays in Jerusalem (Acts 21:17-18), and obtained from Paul himself information on the events prior to his own association with him. The council of Acts 15 and the private meeting of Gal 2:1-10 are compatible if one accepts that they are two distinct events: Gal 2 recounts an earlier visit (“after fourteen years”) to Jerusalem where Paul meets Peter, James and John privately to set out his gospel; Acts 15 recounts the public council that follows the first missionary journey. This “two-visit theory” is defended by traditional Catholic commentators (Lagrange, Spicq) and by some evangelicals (Bruce). The Antioch incident (Gal 2:11-14) is passed over by Luke because it does not affect institutional unity: Peter, rebuked, comes into line. The decree of Acts 15:28-29 (“it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us”) is the Church's first conciliar exercise of the magisterium — a fundamental ecclesiological model.

Protestant historical-critical

Ferdinand Christian Baur (the Tübingen School, 1831-1860); Ernst Haenchen, Die Apostelgeschichte, 1956; Hans Conzelmann, Die Apostelgeschichte, 1963.

Acts is a late theological narrative (early second century) which tendentiously harmonises the primitive conflict between Paulinism and Petrine Jewish Christianity. Baur (Paulus, der Apostel Jesu Christi, 1845) showed that the authentic Pauline epistles (Rom, 1–2 Cor, Gal) present a sharp conflict between Paul and “those who were apostles before me” (Gal 1:17) — the Antioch incident, the dispute over Jewish rituals, the opposition to “apostles” at Corinth (2 Cor 11). Acts smooths this antagonism by seven devices: (a) a Peter–Paul parallelism (each works the same miracles and delivers the same discourses); (b) Peter delivers a pro-Gentile discourse before Paul (Acts 10, Cornelius) — a historical implausibility; (c) the council of Acts 15 attributes to James (a Jewish Christian) a conciliatory word towards the Gentiles, contradicting his hostility in Gal 2:12 (“certain people came from James”); (d) the apostolic decree lays down four ritual prohibitions (Acts 15:29) absent from the Pauline epistles — Paul would have observed these four had they existed (cf. 1 Cor 8, where he treats food offered to idols freely); (e) total silence on the Antioch incident (Gal 2:11-14); (f) Paul repeatedly observes the Jewish law (the Cenchreae vow, Acts 18:18; the Temple vow, Acts 21:23-26), incompatible with his “free from the Law” discourse in the epistles; (g) Paul at Rome teaches the Jews and cites Isaiah to them (Acts 28:17-28) — a post-Pauline image. Conclusion: Acts is a project of late narrative unification serving to establish the unified catholica of the second century, against the Marcionite wing (radical Paulinism) and the Ebionite wing (strict Jewish Christianity).

Anglo-Saxon mediating

F. F. Bruce ; I. Howard Marshall ; Martin Hengel ; Richard Bauckham ; Ben Witherington III.

A middle position: Acts is broadly reliable historically, despite a manifest theological aim that selects and stylises. Hengel (Acts and the History of Earliest Christianity, 1979) partly overturned the Tübingen critique by showing that: (a) the topographical, prosopographical and political details of Acts are of a rare precision — confirmed by epigraphy (politarchs at Thessalonica, asiarchs at Ephesus, the proconsuls of Cyprus and Achaia), by archaeology (synagogues, harbours, roads), and by external sources (Suetonius, Claudius 25.4, on the expulsion of the Jews from Rome in 49, mentioned in Acts 18:2); (b) the “we” sections imply an eyewitness; (c) the apostolic discourses contain archaic elements (the christology of Acts 2 and 3 is more primitive than that of the Pauline epistles — cf. Dunn, Christology in the Making, 1980). But Bruce and Marshall grant that Luke selects and stylises: the silence on the Antioch incident, the rhetorical Peter–Paul parallelism, and so on. The mediating conclusion: Acts is a theologically oriented historical narrative, neither pure novel nor neutral reportage. The council of Acts 15 is probably the same event as Gal 2:1-10 (the identity theory), seen from two complementary angles — Paul in Galatians recounts the private phase, Luke the public one. The majority position in Anglo-Saxon scholarship.

conservative evangelical

Carson, Moo, Morris; Robinson, Redating the NT, 1976; Bock, Acts, 2007; Schreiner.

The complete historical reliability of Acts; no contradiction with the Pauline epistles. The evangelical position: Acts is an inspired historical narrative, written by Luke the companion of Paul, reliable in all its details, since Luke asserts a diligent enquiry (Luke 1:3). The apparent divergences with Gal 2 are explained by: (a) the two-visit theory (Gal 2 = the Jerusalem famine visit of Acts 11:30 and 12:25; Acts 15 = a later visit for the council), defended by Bruce; or (b) the differing perspectives (Galatians = Paul's epistolary polemic justifying his apostleship; Acts = a historical narrative of the ecclesial decisions). Reliability is secured by: (1) scriptural inspiration (2 Tim 3:16) — all Scripture is inspired and profitable; (2) Lucan precision (Hemer 1989 catalogued 84 verifiable historical details in Acts, all confirmed); (3) access to eyewitnesses (Luke 1:2). A position defended with methodological rigour by Hemer (who is not an evangelical but a classicist), and taken up by the evangelical commentaries.

postcolonial and feminist

Beverly Roberts Gaventa; Mary Rose D'Angelo; Justin Marc Smith; Latin American and African contextual readings.

Acts privileges certain voices (male apostles, urban elites) and renders others invisible (slaves, women, prophetesses). Postcolonial and feminist criticism does not deny the reliability of Acts but denounces its restrictive perspective. Three examples: (1) Women apostles and prophetesses — Junia (Rom 16:7) is an apostle according to Paul, yet Acts does not mention her. Phoebe, Priscilla and Philip's four prophesying daughters (Acts 21:9) appear in the background with no reported speech. Sapphira (Acts 5) is judged more harshly than her husband in the narrative. (2) The slave girl at Philippi (Acts 16:16-24) — the enslaved girl possessed by a pythonic spirit genuinely proclaims the gospel (“These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation”, 16:17); but Paul, annoyed, exorcises her — not out of compassion but out of impatience. The girl vanishes from the narrative, her owners reckon their losses, and the story stops there. The feminist reading (Gaventa, D'Angelo) asks: who really speaks in the name of the Spirit? (3) The role of the Roman Empire — Acts presents Rome as Paul's protector (Gallio, Festus, Lysias). A postcolonial reading: this is Christian apologetic to normalise the gospel within the Empire, at the price of rendering imperial violence invisible. Conclusion: Acts is one theological narrative, selective, to be read with a “hermeneutic of suspicion” (Schüssler Fiorenza).

⛵

General presentation

The book of the Acts of the Apostles is the only properly “historical” book of the New Testament after the gospels. It forms the second panel of a diptych (Luke + Acts), conceived by a single author and addressed to a single recipient.

General presentation

The book of the Acts of the Apostles (Praxeis Apostolōn, Actus Apostolorum) is the only properly “historical” book of the New Testament after the gospels. It forms the second panel of a diptych (Luke + Acts), conceived by a single author and addressed to a single recipient (“most excellent Theophilus”, Luke 1:3; Acts 1:1).

Author, dating, recipient

Author: traditionally Luke, the physician and companion of Paul (Col 4:14; 2 Tim 4:11; Phlm 24). The presence of the “we passages” (Wir-Stücke, Acts 16:10-17; 20:5-15; 21:1-18; 27:1–28:16) argues for the author's direct participation in certain stages of the Pauline journey. The identification is confirmed by Irenaeus (Adv. Haer. III.1.1, c. 180) and the Muratorian Canon.
Dating: most commonly placed between 80 and 90 AD. Some arguments favour an early date (before 64, the date of Paul's martyrdom, since Acts ends at the Roman captivity without mentioning his death); but the majority favour a late date (80–90), given the probable use of Mark and the post-70 perspective (Luke 21:20-24 on Jerusalem).
Recipient: Theophilus (theophilos, “friend of God”). A historical figure (a senior Roman official?) or a symbolic addressee standing for every instructed Christian reader.
Place of composition: undetermined. Hypotheses: Antioch, Rome, Achaia.

The programmatic geographical structure

The book is organised according to the programme stated in Acts 1:8 (“You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth”):

Section	Chapters	Geography	Theme
I	1–7	Jerusalem	The primitive Church, Peter and the Twelve
II	8–12	Judea and Samaria	Regional expansion, the conversion of Saul
III	13–28	The Empire (as far as Rome)	The universal Pauline mission

The Lucan theology of Acts

The Holy Spirit as protagonist

Acts has sometimes been called the “gospel of the Holy Spirit” (Adolf von Harnack). The Spirit drives the expansion: the descent at Pentecost (Acts 2), the appointment of the Seven (Acts 6), evangelisation by Philip (Acts 8), the conversion of Cornelius (Acts 10), the sending of Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13:2), the Jerusalem assembly (Acts 15:28), and the guidance of the mission (Acts 16:6-10).

Continuity with the Gospel of Luke

Several structural parallels bring Acts close to Luke:

A dedicatory prologue (Luke 1:1-4 ↔ Acts 1:1-5)
The gift of the Spirit (Luke 4:18 / Acts 2)
A first programmatic discourse (Luke 4:16-30 / Acts 2:14-36)
Healings accompanying the preaching
Suffering and martyrdom as fulfilment (Luke 23 / Acts 7; Acts 21–28)

Pierre et Paul : symétrie narrative

Luke composes a deliberate parallelism between the two major apostles:

Act	Peter	Paul
Programmatic discourse	Pentecost (Acts 2)	Pisidian Antioch (Acts 13)
Healing of a lame man	Acts 3:1-10	Acts 14:8-10
Raising of the dead	Tabitha (Acts 9:36-43)	Eutychus (Acts 20:9-12)
Miraculous deliverance	Prison (Acts 12)	Philippi (Acts 16:25-34)
Inaugural mission to the Gentiles	Cornelius (Acts 10)	Galatia and Macedonia

Realised eschatology and expectation

Hans Conzelmann (Die Mitte der Zeit, 1954) set out the Lucan conception of time in three ages: (1) the time of Israel; (2) the time of Christ; (3) the time of the Church, extending indefinitely into the world. This conception accounts for the softening of eschatological urgency (a perspective of historical duration for the mission).

Major sections of the book

Pentecost (Acts 2)

The foundational account of the Church's birth: the descent of the Holy Spirit in the form of tongues of fire, speaking in tongues understood by pilgrims of every nation, and the kerygmatic discourse of Peter (Acts 2:14-36) culminating in the confession “Let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified” (Acts 2:36). Three thousand are converted (Acts 2:41).

The Jerusalem community (Acts 2:42–5:42)

An idealised description of the first Christians: apostolic didachē, koinōnia, the breaking of bread, the prayers (Acts 2:42). Community of goods: “they had all things in common” (Acts 2:44; 4:32-35). Internal conflicts: Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5).

The martyrdom of Stephen and the dispersion (Acts 6–7)

The choice of the Seven (probably “deacons”, though the term does not appear in the text). Stephen's discourse (Acts 7), one of the longest in Acts, rereads the whole history of Israel as a history of rejecting God's messengers. The first general persecution and the dispersion of the Christians (Acts 8:1).

The conversion of Saul (Acts 9; 22; 26)

An account told three times — unique in the NT — in the third person (Acts 9), then twice in the first person in Paul's defences (Acts 22 before the Jerusalem crowd; Acts 26 before Agrippa II and Festus). This threefold narration underlines the theological importance of the Pauline conversion.

The Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15)

A decisive turning point c. 49 AD: the question of circumcising Gentile converts. Discourses by Peter, Barnabas and Paul, and finally a decision presided over by James the Just: the Gentiles are not subject to the Torah, but must observe four prohibitions (Acts 15:28-29: meat offered to idols, blood, strangled meat, sexual immorality). Cf. Galatians 2 for the Pauline perspective on the same event.

The three missionary journeys of Paul

Journey	Reference	Dating	Principal itinerary
First	Acts 13–14	c. 46–48	Antioch → Cyprus → Asia Minor → return
Second	Acts 15:36–18:22	c. 49–52	Antioch → Asia Minor → Macedonia → Achaia (Corinth, 18 months) → return
Third	Acts 18:23–21:16	c. 53–58	Antioch → Ephesus (3 years) → Macedonia → Achaia → return to Jerusalem
Captivity	Acts 21:17–28:31	c. 58–62	Arrest at Jerusalem → Caesarea → voyage to Rome → Roman captivity

The voyage to Rome (Acts 27–28)

A detailed account of the Mediterranean crossing, the shipwreck at Malta, and the arrival at Rome where Paul, a prisoner, preaches for two years before the narrative ends abruptly (Acts 28:30-31). The absence of any mention of Paul's death (traditionally martyrdom under Nero, c. 64–67) remains an exegetical puzzle.

The eight major discourses

Acts consists of roughly 30 per cent direct discourse — a distinctive rhetorical feature. Eight principal discourses give the book its structure:

Pentecost (Peter) — Acts 2:14-36 — the inaugural kerygma on Jesus crucified and risen.
Solomon's Portico (Peter) — Acts 3:12-26 — a call for the conversion of Israel.
The Sanhedrin (Peter) — Acts 4:8-12 — the first exclusive christocentric formula.
The Sanhedrin (Stephen) — Acts 7:2-53 — a rereading of the whole history of Israel.
Pisidian Antioch (Paul) — Acts 13:16-41 — the Pauline kerygma to a synagogue.
The Areopagus at Athens (Paul) — Acts 17:22-31 — apologetics addressed to philosophers.
To the Ephesian elders (Paul) — Acts 20:18-35 — a pastoral testament.
Before Agrippa (Paul) — Acts 26:2-29 — a conversion narrative and defence.

Thematic studies in depth

Three themes structure an academic understanding of Acts beyond the narrative reading: Lucan pneumatology, the Council of Jerusalem as the matrix of Christian synodality, and the missionary cartography of the Pauline journeys. These are the three places where Acts most deeply marked the later history of the Church — and where contemporary exegetical stakes remain sharpest.

The theology of the Holy Spirit in Luke–Acts

In contemporary scholarship Acts is sometimes called the fifth gospel — not a gospel of Christ, but a gospel of the Holy Spirit. Daniel Marguerat, in his CNT Vb commentary (Les Actes des apôtres, Labor et Fides, 2015), puts it thus: if the gospels recount what Jesus began to do and to teach, Acts recounts what the Spirit continues to do and to teach through the Church. The formulation takes up Acts 1:1: “ὁ μὲν πρῶτος λόγος ἐποιησάμην περὶ πάντων… ὧν ἤρξατο ὁ Ἰησοῦς ποιεῖν τε καὶ διδάσκειν” — “the first account I composed concerning all that Jesus began to do and to teach”. The “began” of the first book implies a sequel, which is precisely the narrative of the second.

The Spirit is a genuine protagonist: he decides (“it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us”, Acts 15:28), he sends (“the Holy Spirit said: set apart for me Barnabas and Saul”, Acts 13:2), he forbids (“Paul was prevented by the Holy Spirit from speaking the word in Asia”, Acts 16:6), he compels (“constrained by the Spirit”, Acts 20:22), he warns (“the Holy Spirit testifies that chains and afflictions await me”, Acts 20:23). This narrative personalisation of the Spirit has no equivalent in the New Testament. Hans Conzelmann, in Die Mitte der Zeit (1954), argued that Luke replaces the imminent Pauline eschatology with a “time of the Church” now indwelt by the Spirit — the classic thesis of “Lucan realised eschatology”, much criticised but formative.

Pentecost (Acts 2:1-13) is the matrix moment. On a historical-critical reading, Luke reworks an earlier tradition into an “inverted replica” of Babel (Gen 11) — no longer the confusion of tongues that divides, but the miraculous understanding that unites. The explicit citation of Joel 3:1-5 (LXX 3:1-5; MT 3:1-5) at Acts 2:17-21 has programmatic force. Three aspects deserve attention.

First, Luke's modification of the text of Joel. Luke cites Joel 3:1 while replacing “after this” with “in the last days” (ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις) — a decisive shift that inscribes Pentecost within a realised eschatology. What in Joel was the ultimate horizon of time becomes in Luke the present time of the Church.

Next, the universalist dimension. Joel announced the Spirit poured out on “all flesh” (πᾶσαν σάρκα). Luke actualises this universality no longer as promise but as verifiable event: the list of nations in Acts 2:9-11 (Parthians, Medes, Elamites, residents of Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, Libya, Rome, Cretans, Arabs) symbolically covers the Mediterranean oikoumenē. This is the anti-Babel.

Finally, the democratised prophetic dimension. The gift of the Spirit is no longer reserved to exceptional figures (kings, priests, prophets) but extended to “your sons and your daughters, your young men and your old men, my male and female servants”. The later theology of the universal priesthood of the baptised (Luther, An den christlichen Adel, 1520; De captivitate babylonica, 1520) will find in this Pentecostal democratisation a major exegetical support.

Three “little Pentecosts” follow the principal one, and they are not doublets: they inscribe universality geographically within the history of the primitive Church. The Samaritan Pentecost (Acts 8:14-17) incorporates the first ethno-religious margin — the Samaritans, traditional enemies of the Jews. The Pentecost of the centurion Cornelius (Acts 10:44-48) incorporates uncircumcised Gentiles, and it is the event that scandalises the Jerusalem community (Acts 11:1-18). The Pentecost of the Ephesian disciples (Acts 19:1-7) incorporates the disciples of John the Baptist, that is, the heirs of a messianic pre-christology. Each of the three extensions is marked by the gift of the Spirit with glossolalia or prophecy — Luke builds a narrative logic in concentric spirals from the Jewish centre to the Gentile margins.

The doctrinal posterity of this pneumatology is immense. In the East, Byzantine theology developed a sustained reflection on the procession of the Holy Spirit which became the heart of the filioque controversy. The Council of Toledo (589) introduced the Latin addition “Filioque” into the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed (“qui ex Patre Filioque procedit”). Photius of Constantinople, in the controversy of 867, gave theological form to the Eastern refusal of this addition: for the Greek Fathers the Spirit proceeds “from the Father alone” (ἐκ τοῦ Πατρὸς μόνου), in accordance with John 15:26. The schism of 1054 crystallised this pneumatological divergence into ecclesial rupture. The contemporary Catholic–Orthodox dialogue (Faith and Order, WCC, Bossey) has not resolved the debate; in 1995 the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity published The Greek and Latin Traditions regarding the Procession of the Holy Spirit, a document which recognises the parallel legitimacy of the two formulations without imposing the filioque.

On the Protestant side, Calvin sets out his pneumatology in the Institutes, Book III, as the doctrine of the application of salvation: the Spirit is the agent who makes Christ and his benefits effectual in a person. Karl Barth, in Church Dogmatics I/1 (1932), treats the Spirit as “the acting Lord”. John Zizioulas, the contemporary Orthodox theologian (Being as Communion, 1981), articulates pneumatology and eucharistic ecclesiology in a way that engages Protestantism while remaining faithful to the Cappadocian tradition.

The Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15) — matrix of synodality

The narrative of Acts 15 recounts what later tradition would regard as the first council in Christian history. The question debated is crucial: must Gentiles converted to Christianity be circumcised and observe the Mosaic Law in order to be full members of the people of God? What is at stake is not merely disciplinary — it is the very identity of the Church. If the answer is yes, Christianity remains a Jewish sect; if the answer is no, it becomes a world religion.

The context is tense. At Antioch certain men “who came down from Judea” teach that “unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved” (Acts 15:1). Paul and Barnabas sharply oppose this position. The Antiochene community sends a delegation to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders. The council was probably held around 49–50, midway between the first missionary journey (Acts 13–14) and the second (Acts 15:36–18:22).

Four interventions structure the discussion. Peter speaks first (Acts 15:7-11), recalling the episode of Cornelius (Acts 10) where God himself gave the Spirit to uncircumcised Gentiles. His conclusion is firm: “why are you putting God to the test by placing on the neck of the disciples a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear? On the contrary, we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will” (Acts 15:10-11). This Pauline formulation in Peter's mouth is one of the signs that Luke smooths the historical tensions between the two apostles. Barnabas and Paul then testify to the “signs and wonders” God had worked through them among the Gentiles (Acts 15:12). Then James, the brother of the Lord and the authority of the Jerusalem community, proposes the solution: not to impose the Mosaic Law on the Gentiles, but to ask them to abstain from four things (Acts 15:19-20).

The four prescriptions of the apostolic decree (Acts 15:20, 29) have been interpreted in countless ways. They enjoin abstention from: (1) meat sacrificed to idols (τῶν ἀλισγημάτων τῶν εἰδώλων); (2) sexual immorality (πορνείας); (3) strangled animals (τοῦ πνικτοῦ); (4) blood (τοῦ αἵματος). The analogy with the Noahide commandments of rabbinic Judaism (Talmud, Sanhedrin 56a-60a) is striking: Jewish tradition recognises seven universal laws applicable to all humanity since the covenant with Noah. The Jerusalem decree takes up the four laws that bear directly on the ritual breach between Jews and Gentiles in everyday table fellowship. A convergent rabbinic reading: without imposing the whole Torah, Gentile Christians are asked for the minimum that makes table fellowship between Jews and Gentiles possible in the primitive Church — a remarkable pragmatic compromise.

The confrontation of Acts 15 with Gal 2 remains one of the most discussed exegetical problems. Paul, in Gal 2:1-10, recounts a visit to Jerusalem where he meets the “pillars” (Peter, James, John), receives recognition of his apostolate to the Gentiles, and is asked only to “remember the poor”. There is no mention of the four Noahide prescriptions. Three harmonising hypotheses:

First hypothesis — the identity of the two accounts: Acts 15 and Gal 2 recount the same event, but Paul (defending his independence) minimises the concessions while Luke (valuing ecclesial unity) magnifies the agreement. The majority position in Catholic scholarship (Joachim Jeremias). Second hypothesis — non-identity: Gal 2 is earlier (the famine visit of Acts 11:29-30) and Acts 15 later. A position defended notably by Stephen Porter and some Anglo-Saxon exegetes. Third hypothesis — Lucan composition: Acts 15 is a late theological reconstruction (c. 80–90) projecting into the apostolic past a solution actually reached after several decades of debate. The dominant position in German scholarship (Ernst Haenchen, Die Apostelgeschichte, 1956; Gerd Lüdemann). Daniel Marguerat, in CNT Vb (2015), proposes a middle way: Luke composes from pre-Lucan materials which he reorganises in order to ground the legitimacy of Pauline Christianity in the apostolic authority of Jerusalem.

The ecclesiological reception of the Council of Jerusalem is immense. For the Orthodox Church, Acts 15 is the model of conciliar synodality: it is the apostles gathered in assembly who decide, unity being reached by consensus in the Spirit (ἔδοξεν τῷ ἁγίῳ πνεύματι καὶ ἡμῖν, “it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us”, Acts 15:28). The formula becomes liturgical in the later ecumenical councils (Nicaea 325, Constantinople 381, Ephesus 431, Chalcedon 451). For the Catholic Church, Acts 15 grounds both the authority of the apostolic college (collegiality) and the Petrine primacy (Peter speaks first and sets the doctrinal tone). Vatican II (1962–1965) rediscovered this tension between collegiality and primacy; Lumen Gentium 22 articulates the two poles explicitly. For the Churches of the Reformation, Acts 15 grounds the synod as a decision-making body (the Synod of Dort 1618–1619, the Westminster Assembly 1643–1649, the synods of the contemporary Reformed Churches). The Company of Pastors and Deacons of Geneva (so named since 1 July 1998, heir to the “Vénérable Compagnie” founded by Calvin in 1542) draws from Acts 15 its model of collegial pastoral authority.

Contemporary ecumenical reception is no less significant. The Groupe des Dombes, founded by Abbé Paul Couturier in 1937, applies the model of Acts 15 methodologically: a mixed assembly of Catholic and Protestant theologians seeking consensus through mutual listening. The Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (JDDJ, 1999) between the Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation is an explicit fruit of this Jerusalem method: recognising that the old doctrinal condemnations no longer apply to the partners' present positions, without erasing the residual differences. The document From Conflict to Communion (International Lutheran–Catholic Commission, 2013) extends this logic to the joint commemoration of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in 2017.

The missionary journeys of Paul — cartography and discourses

Acts structures the Pauline mission narratively in four great movements, each marked by precise geographical stages and major discourses. This cartography is not a mere itinerary — it is a theology of mission which inscribes Christian expansion within the Graeco-Roman oikoumenē.

Click the buttons above to select a journey, then “Play” to follow Paul's itinerary stage by stage. You may also click directly on a city to see the event that took place there. The animation speed is adjustable.

The first journey (Acts 13–14, c. 46–48) sets out from Syrian Antioch at the Holy Spirit's explicit sending of Barnabas and Saul (Acts 13:2). Itinerary: Seleucia, Cyprus (Salamis and Paphos, with the episode of the proconsul Sergius Paulus, the first Roman convert of senatorial rank), then Perga in Pamphylia, Pisidian Antioch (where Paul delivers his first great synagogue discourse, Acts 13:16-41), Iconium, Lystra (the dramatic episode in which Paul is stoned and then gets up), Derbe, and back through the same towns to strengthen the communities. This is the journey that reveals the Pauline strategy paradigmatically: go first to the Jewish synagogue, then turn to the Gentiles if rejected (Acts 13:46).

The second journey (Acts 15:36–18:22, c. 49–52) begins with the separation from Barnabas (over John Mark, Acts 15:37-39). Paul takes Silas, and later Timothy at Lystra. Itinerary: Syria, Cilicia, Galatia (where Paul, ill, founds the communities that the Galatians would welcome “like an angel of God”, Gal 4:14), Mysia, Troas (the vision of the Macedonian, Acts 16:9), the crossing into Europe at Philippi (the conversion of Lydia, the exorcism of the pythoness, the prison and the earthquake, the conversion of the jailer), Thessalonica, Beroea, Athens, Corinth (an eighteen-month stay, founding one of the most active communities; the earliest surviving Pauline writing: 1 Thessalonians). The return runs by way of Ephesus, Caesarea and Antioch.

The third journey (Acts 18:23–21:17, c. 53–58) sets out again from Galatia, crosses Phrygia, and culminates in the long stay at Ephesus (Acts 19, some three years). Ephesus is the centre of Pauline Christianity in Asia Minor: daily teaching in the lecture hall of Tyrannus, wonders, controversy with the Jewish exorcists, and conflict with the silversmiths of Artemis. It is probably at Ephesus that Paul writes Galatians, Philippians, Philemon and perhaps 1 Corinthians. The return itinerary: Macedonia (where 2 Corinthians is written), Corinth (where Romans is written, winter 57–58), Philippi, Troas, Miletus (the farewell discourse to the Ephesian elders, Acts 20:17-38), Tyre, Caesarea, Jerusalem.

The voyage to Rome (Acts 21:27–28:31, c. 60–62) is different in kind: it is no longer a mission but a captivity. Arrest at Jerusalem, transfer to Caesarea, two years of captivity under Felix and then Festus, the appeal to Caesar, embarkation, the storm, shipwreck at Malta, and arrival at Rome where Paul remains two years under house arrest. The book ends open-endedly, without mentioning Paul's death. This narrative openness has been variously interpreted — either Luke writes before Paul's death (the early Lucan dating, c. 63), or he ends deliberately on the image of the Gospel running its course “unhindered” (ἀκωλύτως, Acts 28:31), the last word of the book.

The Pauline discourses in Acts form a remarkable rhetorical corpus. Five major discourses structure the narrative. The discourse at Pisidian Antioch (Acts 13:16-41) is a synagogue discourse of Petrine type: a rehearsal of Israel's history from Abraham, a scriptural demonstration that Jesus is the Messiah, and an exhortation to repentance. The discourse at Lystra (Acts 14:15-17) is short but theologically striking: Paul addresses uneducated pagans with no reference at all to the Jewish Scriptures, working from natural theology (the Creator known through the rains and the seasons). It is a sketch of what Paul will develop at Athens.

The Areopagus discourse (Acts 17:22-31) is the most famous. Paul addresses the Athenian philosophical elite using three rhetorical levers. First, the citation of a real Athenian altar “to an unknown god”, which he reframes as a captatio benevolentiae. Second, the explicit quotation of two Greek poets — the Stoic Aratus of Soli (Phaenomena 5: “for we too are his offspring”, τοῦ γὰρ καὶ γένος ἐσμέν), and probably Epimenides of Crete (“in him we live and move and have our being”). Third, the terminological convergence with Stoicism (natural theology, universal providence) before the christological breaking point over the resurrection (Acts 17:32). It is a model of a theology of inculturation. Its historical reception is vast: the apologist Fathers (Justin Martyr), scholasticism (Thomas Aquinas, Summa contra Gentiles), Jesuit missionary theology (Matteo Ricci in China), and the contemporary theology of inculturation (Vatican II, Ad Gentes 22).

The Miletus discourse to the Ephesian elders (Acts 20:17-38) is the only Pauline discourse in Acts addressed to Christians. It recalls the past apostolic ministry, exhorts to ecclesial vigilance (“keep watch over yourselves and over all the flock”), and announces the trials to come and Paul's imminent absence. It is a pastoral testament. The discourse before Agrippa (Acts 26:1-29) at Caesarea is the most complete apologetic discourse: an autobiographical account of the conversion (Acts 9 / 22 / 26 are three versions of the same event), scriptural demonstration, and a missionary conclusion.

The major critical question raised by historical criticism: are the Paul of Acts and the Paul of the epistles compatible? The divergences are numerous. On chronology (the Council of Jerusalem in Acts 15 against Gal 2); on the collection for the poor of Jerusalem (central in Romans 15 and 1–2 Corinthians, barely mentioned in Acts); on theological style (the Paul of Acts practises an Areopagite natural theology foreign to the Paul of the epistles, who is centred on the cross); and on the conception of salvation (the Paul of the epistles: justification by faith apart from works; the Paul of Acts: repentance and conversion). Three classic positions. John Knox, in Chapters in a Life of Paul (1950), holds for the primacy of the epistles and the relative fictionality of Acts. Joachim Jeremias argues for a moderate harmonisation. Daniel Marguerat, in CNT Vb (2015), proposes a reading that acknowledges Luke's theological work without abandoning the historical value of Acts: Luke does not distort Paul, he rereads him in the light of the Church's situation in the 80s, where the Pauline inheritance and the authority of Jerusalem had to be articulated in an ecumenical synthesis.

Complete texts and translations

Acts 2:1-4 — Pentecost

Greek — NA28

Καὶ ἐν τῷ συμπληροῦσθαι τὴν ἡμέραν τῆς πεντηκοστῆς ἦσαν πάντες ὁμοῦ ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτό. καὶ ἐγένετο ἄφνω ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἦχος ὥσπερ φερομένης πνοῆς βιαίας καὶ ἐπλήρωσεν ὅλον τὸν οἶκον οὗ ἦσαν καθήμενοι· καὶ ὤφθησαν αὐτοῖς διαμεριζόμεναι γλῶσσαι ὡσεὶ πυρὸς καὶ ἐκάθισεν ἐφ᾽ ἕνα ἕκαστον αὐτῶν, καὶ ἐπλήσθησαν πάντες πνεύματος ἁγίου καὶ ἤρξαντο λαλεῖν ἑτέραις γλώσσαις καθὼς τὸ πνεῦμα ἐδίδου ἀποφθέγγεσθαι αὐτοῖς.

Latin — Clementine Vulgate

Et cum complerentur dies Pentecostes, erant omnes pariter in eodem loco; et factus est repente de caelo sonus, tamquam advenientis spiritus vehementis, et replevit totam domum ubi erant sedentes. Et apparuerunt illis dispertitae linguae tamquam ignis, seditque supra singulos eorum: et repleti sunt omnes Spiritu Sancto, et coeperunt loqui variis linguis, prout Spiritus Sanctus dabat eloqui illis.

German — Lutherbibel 2017

« Und als der Pfingsttag gekommen war, waren sie alle an einem Ort beieinander. Und es geschah plötzlich ein Brausen vom Himmel wie von einem gewaltigen Wind und erfüllte das ganze Haus, in dem sie saßen. Und es erschienen ihnen Zungen zerteilt wie von Feuer; und er setzte sich auf einen jeden von ihnen, und sie wurden alle erfüllt von dem Heiligen Geist und fingen an zu predigen in andern Sprachen, wie der Geist ihnen gab auszusprechen. »

English — NRSVue

"When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability."

Acts 4:11-12 — the unique name of Christ

Greek — NA28

οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ λίθος ὁ ἐξουθενηθεὶς ὑφ᾽ ὑμῶν τῶν οἰκοδόμων, ὁ γενόμενος εἰς κεφαλὴν γωνίας. καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν ἄλλῳ οὐδενὶ ἡ σωτηρία, οὐδὲ γὰρ ὄνομά ἐστιν ἕτερον ὑπὸ τὸν οὐρανὸν τὸ δεδομένον ἐν ἀνθρώποις ἐν ᾧ δεῖ σωθῆναι ἡμᾶς.

Latin — Vulgate

Hic est lapis qui reprobatus est a vobis aedificantibus, qui factus est in caput anguli; et non est in alio aliquo salus. Nec enim aliud nomen est sub caelo datum hominibus, in quo oporteat nos salvos fieri.

English — NRSVue

"This Jesus is 'the stone that was rejected by you, the builders; it has become the cornerstone.' There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved."

Doctrinal note: this verse is the biblical foundation of the extra Christum nulla salus protestant, comme du extra ecclesiam nulla salus cyprianique. Sa portée exclusiviste a fait l'objet de relectures pluralistes contemporaines (Knitter, Hick) que les Églises majoritaires rejettent.

Acts 15:28-29 — the apostolic decree

Greek — NA28

ἔδοξεν γὰρ τῷ πνεύματι τῷ ἁγίῳ καὶ ἡμῖν μηδὲν πλέον ἐπιτίθεσθαι ὑμῖν βάρος πλὴν τούτων τῶν ἐπάναγκες, ἀπέχεσθαι εἰδωλοθύτων καὶ αἵματος καὶ πνικτῶν καὶ πορνείας· ἐξ ὧν διατηροῦντες ἑαυτοὺς εὖ πράξετε. Ἔρρωσθε.

Latin — Vulgate

Visum est enim Spiritui Sancto et nobis nihil ultra imponere vobis oneris quam haec necessaria: ut abstineatis vos ab immolatis simulacrorum, et sanguine, et suffocato, et fornicatione; a quibus custodientes vos, bene agetis. Valete.

Critical note: the Western versions (Codex Bezae, Vetus Latina) omit kai pniktōn (« et des animaux étouffés ») et y substituent la règle d'or négative (« ce que vous ne voudriez pas qu'on vous fasse, ne le faites pas non plus aux autres »). Ce témoignage textuel divergent suggère une réinterprétation morale du décret apostolique dans certaines communautés primitives.

Acts 17:22-28 — the Areopagus discourse

Grec — NA28 (extrait : v. 22-25)

Σταθεὶς δὲ ὁ Παῦλος ἐν μέσῳ τοῦ Ἀρείου πάγου ἔφη· Ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, κατὰ πάντα ὡς δεισιδαιμονεστέρους ὑμᾶς θεωρῶ· διερχόμενος γὰρ καὶ ἀναθεωρῶν τὰ σεβάσματα ὑμῶν εὗρον καὶ βωμὸν ἐν ᾧ ἐπεγέγραπτο· Ἀγνώστῳ θεῷ. ὃ οὖν ἀγνοοῦντες εὐσεβεῖτε, τοῦτο ἐγὼ καταγγέλλω ὑμῖν.

Latin — Vulgate

Stans autem Paulus in medio Areopagi, ait: Viri Athenienses, per omnia quasi superstitiosiores vos video. Praeteriens enim, et videns simulacra vestra, inveni et aram in qua scriptum erat: Ignoto Deo. Quod ergo ignorantes colitis, hoc ego annuntio vobis.

Reference: Acts 17:22-23. A celebrated discourse of early Christian apologetics, a model of dialogue with Greek philosophy (Paul quotes the poet Aratus at Acts 17:28: tou gar kai genos esmen). Tertullien (De praescr. 7) raillera plus tard cette tentative ; Justin et Clément d'Alexandrie en feront au contraire un modèle.

Pedagogical synthesis

The book of the Acts of the Apostles is of threefold theological importance:

Historical — the first history of the primitive Church, from the Pentecostal origins to the Pauline mission.
Pneumatological — a narrative exposition of the work of the Holy Spirit in the Church.
Missiological — a programmatic model of Christian expansion (Jerusalem → Rome → the ends of the earth).

For related developments, see the module “Origins of Christianity” (the wider historical framework) and the module “The Pauline Epistles” (the correspondence contemporary with the expansion).

Module completed — record your progress.

🎓 Interactive studio — The Acts of the Apostles

52 cards on the Lucan diptych, Pentecost, the Pauline journeys and the Council of Jerusalem.

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1Genre

Genre of Acts

Hellenistic historiography

Reveal

ancient historiography or ancient novel?

A major debate. The traditional view (Haenchen 1956, Hengel): Hellenistic historiography (close to Polybius, Thucydides, Diodorus Siculus). Pervo (1987, Profit with Delight): an “ancient novel” with storms, shipwreck, miraculous imprisonment, crowds and travel. Marguerat (La première histoire du christianisme, 1999): historiography with dramatic narrative elements. The current majority position: a distinctive Christian historiography, fictionalised in places but anchored in sources and events.

Marguerat (1999); Pervo (1987)

2Structure

The programme of Acts 1:8

the table of contents

Reveal

Jerusalem, Judea–Samaria, the ends of the earth

“ἔσεσθέ μου μάρτυρες ἔν τε Ἰερουσαλὴμ καὶ ἐν πάσῃ τῇ Ἰουδαίᾳ καὶ Σαμαρείᾳ καὶ ἕως ἐσχάτου τῆς γῆς” (Acts 1:8). Three geographical zones structure the book: Acts 1–7 (Jerusalem), Acts 8–12 (Judea–Samaria and the first Gentiles), Acts 13–28 (Paul to the Gentiles as far as Rome). Reference: Marguerat, Les Actes des Apôtres, vol. I (CNT Va, 2007), pp. 53-56.

Acts 1:8

3Theology

Pentecost

the birth of the Church

Reveal

the Spirit given to the universal Church

Acts 2:1-13. Fifty days after Easter. A theophany: sound, tongues of fire, glossolalia understood by pilgrims of every nation (the catalogue of Acts 2:9-11). A symbolic inversion of Babel (Gen 11): unity in diversity. Peter’s kerygmatic discourse (Acts 2:14-36) cites Joel 3:1-5 and Psalms 16 and 110. Response: 3,000 baptised. Reference: Marguerat, Actes, vol. I, pp. 81-115.

Acts 2; Gen 11; Joel 3

4Theology

The Holy Spirit in Luke

protagonist of Acts

Reveal

the Spirit directs the mission

The Holy Spirit appears some 70 times in Acts. He impels evangelisation (Acts 8:29; 13:2), validates the mission to the Gentiles (Acts 10:44-48 at Cornelius’s house = the “Gentile Pentecost”), directs the apostles (Acts 16:6-10), and speaks through the prophets (Acts 11:28; 21:11). Conzelmann: the Spirit characterises “the time of the Church”. Reference: Hans Conzelmann, Die Mitte der Zeit (1954).

Acts 10:44; 13:2; 16:6

5Theology

Universalism

salvation for all nations

Reveal

from Jerusalem to Rome

A programmatic geographical movement (Acts 1:8). The progression: a Jewish Pentecost (Acts 2), Samaritans (Acts 8), the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8:26-40), Cornelius the Roman centurion (Acts 10), the mixed community at Antioch (Acts 11:19-26, where they were first called “Christians”), the mass conversion of Gentiles (Acts 13–14), the Council of Jerusalem officially recognising Jewish–Gentile equality (Acts 15), and the Pauline mission as far as Rome (Acts 28).

Acts 1:8 → 28:30-31

6Church

The primitive community

Acts 2:42 — a fourfold description

Reveal

teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, prayers

“ἦσαν δὲ προσκαρτεροῦντες τῇ διδαχῇ τῶν ἀποστόλων καὶ τῇ κοινωνίᾳ, τῇ κλάσει τοῦ ἄρτου καὶ ταῖς προσευχαῖς.” (Acts 2:42). Four founding elements of the Christian Church: didachē (teaching), koinōnia (fellowship, sharing of goods), klasis tou artou (the breaking of bread, eucharist), proseuchai (prayers). Ecumenically, all the sacraments and the whole of ecclesial life are here in germ.

Acts 2:42

7Church

Community of goods

Acts 2:44-45; 4:32-37

Reveal

“they had everything in common”

“πάντες δὲ οἱ πιστεύσαντες ἦσαν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ καὶ εἶχον ἅπαντα κοινά” (Acts 2:44; 4:32). An idealising Lucan summary. A patristic reference point for monasteries (Augustine, Regula), for the Hutterites, and for liberation theologies. Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11) mark the limits (lying to the Spirit, not refusal to share). Reference: Daniel Marguerat, Actes, vol. I (CNT Va, 2007), pp. 110-115, 152-160.

Acts 2:44-45; 4:32-37

8Christology

Kerygmatic discourses

the eight great discourses

Reveal

the rhetorical structure of Acts

Some 24 discourses occur in Acts (a third of the text), of which eight are major: (1) Peter at Pentecost (Acts 2:14-36); (2) Peter in the Portico (Acts 3:12-26); (3) Peter before the Sanhedrin (Acts 4:8-12); (4) Stephen (Acts 7:1-53); (5) Peter at Cornelius’s house (Acts 10:34-43); (6) Paul at Pisidian Antioch (Acts 13:16-41); (7) Paul at the Areopagus (Acts 17:22-31); (8) Paul at Miletus to the Ephesian elders (Acts 20:18-35). The typical structure: situation, kerygma, OT citations, hortatory conclusion. Reference: Marion Soards, The Speeches in Acts (1994).

Soards (1994)

9Method

Lucan summaries

three major summaries

Reveal

Acts 2:42-47; 4:32-35; 5:12-16

Three major summaries (Sammelberichte) describing the ideal life of the primitive community. A Lucan redactional device identified by Henry J. Cadbury (1933). Their function is to give an overall “picture” between the narrative episodes. Literary and theological idealisation, not reportage. Reference: Marguerat, Actes, vol. I (2007), excursus on the summaries.

Acts 2:42-47; 4:32-35; 5:12-16

10Theology

The “we” passages

the first-person sections

Reveal

was the author a companion of Paul?

Four first-person-plural passages: Acts 16:10-17; 20:5-15; 21:1-18; 27:1–28:16 (the voyage to Rome). Four interpretations: (1) the traditional one (Irenaeus): the author is a companion of Paul; (2) a source used (a travel diary); (3) a literary device (Pervo: a convention of verisimilitude in Hellenistic sea narratives); (4) a theological construction. The debate remains open. Reference: William Sterling Campbell, The “We” Passages (2007).

Acts 16, 20, 21, 27–28

11History

“Christians” at Antioch

Acts 11:26 — the first occurrence

Reveal

the name “Christian” appears at Antioch

“χρηματίσαι τε πρώτως ἐν Ἀντιοχείᾳ τοὺς μαθητὰς Χριστιανούς” (Acts 11:26). The first known historical use of the name “Christian” (Χριστιανός). An external designation (probably Roman administrative) at Syrian Antioch, c. AD 40–45. Taken up ironically by Tacitus (Annals XV.44, AD 116) and Pliny the Younger (Ep. X.96, AD 112).

Acts 11:26; Tacitus; Pliny

12Theology

The Western text of Acts

D (Bezae), 10 per cent longer

Reveal

a distinct textual recension

Codex Bezae (D, 05, fifth century, held at Cambridge) offers a text of Acts about 10 per cent longer than the Alexandrian tradition. Its variants include narrative additions, hardened anti-Jewish touches and topographical precisions. The debate over priority: Boismard and Lamouille (1984) defend the priority of the Western text; the majority (NA28) defends the Alexandrian. A unique case in the NT for the scale of the divergence. Reference: Marguerat, Actes, vol. I (2007), textual introduction.

Codex Bezae (D, 5th cent.)

13Section

Acts 1–7

the Jerusalem Church

Reveal

the Jerusalem community under Peter

The opening section. Pentecost (Acts 2), the first Jewish-Christian Church. Peter and John. Internal tensions: Ananias and Sapphira (5:1-11), the institution of the Seven (6:1-7). External tensions: arrests and appearances before the Sanhedrin. Stephen’s martyrdom (Acts 7) closes the period: the beginning of persecution and dispersion. Reference: Jacob Jervell, The Theology of the Acts (1996), on the positive image of Judaism in Luke–Acts.

Acts 1–7

14Section

Acts 8–12

expansion into Samaria and among the Gentiles

Reveal

the departure from Jerusalem

A transitional section. Philip in Samaria (Acts 8:4-25) and the Ethiopian eunuch (8:26-40). The conversion of Paul (Acts 9). Peter and Cornelius (Acts 10): the “Gentile Pentecost”; Peter justifies the inclusion before the Jerusalem Church (Acts 11:1-18). The mixed community at Antioch, where the name “Christians” is first used (Acts 11:26). The death of Herod Agrippa I (Acts 12:20-23, c. AD 44).

Acts 8–12

15Section

Acts 13–28

the journeys of Paul

Reveal

the Pauline mission as far as Rome

The major section (16 chapters out of 28). Three missionary journeys from Antioch: the first, Acts 13–14 (Cyprus, southern Asia Minor, c. 46–48); the second, Acts 15:36–18:22 (Macedonia, Greece, c. 49–52); the third, Acts 18:23–21:16 (Ephesus and the return, c. 53–58). Arrest at Jerusalem (Acts 21–22), trials before Festus and Agrippa II (Acts 24–26), the voyage to Rome (Acts 27–28). An abrupt ending (Acts 28:30-31).

Acts 13–28

16Council

The Council of Jerusalem

Acts 15; c. 49

Reveal

the decisive ruling on the Gentiles

A meeting at Jerusalem (c. AD 49) between Paul, Barnabas and the “pillars” (Peter, James, John). The question: must Gentile converts be circumcised and observe the Mosaic Law? The decision: no, but they must observe four prohibitions (Acts 15:28-29: meat sacrificed to idols, blood, strangled meat, πορνεία — the incest prohibited in Lev 18). The “apostolic decree” founding a Christian identity distinct from Judaism. The Pauline counterpart: Gal 2:1-10 (a different account, with no decree). Reference: Marguerat, Actes, vol. II (CNT Vb, 2015), pp. 1-50.

Acts 15:28-29; Gal 2:1-10

17Journey

Paul’s first journey

Acts 13–14; c. 46–48

Reveal

Cyprus and southern Asia Minor

With Barnabas and John Mark. Departure from Syrian Antioch. Cyprus (Salamis, Paphos, the conversion of the proconsul Sergius Paulus). Asia Minor: Perga (where John Mark leaves them), Pisidian Antioch (the key discourse, Acts 13:16-41), Iconium, Lystra (Paul stoned), Derbe. Then the return. The first Pauline missionary model: the synagogue first, then the Gentiles, the founding of local Churches, one to two years per city. Source: Marguerat, Actes, vol. II (2015), pp. 51-100.

Acts 13–14

18Journey

The second journey

Acts 15:36–18:22; c. 49–52

Reveal

the crossing into Europe — Macedonia and Greece

With Silas (after the break with Barnabas) and Timothy (who joins at Lystra). The vision of the Macedonian at Troas (Acts 16:9-10, where the “we” begins). Philippi (Lydia, the exorcism, the prison), Thessalonica, Beroea, Athens (the Areopagus, Acts 17:22-31), Corinth (18 months, the meeting with Aquila and Priscilla, the appearance before Gallio c. AD 51–52, a fixed point for the chronology). The return by Ephesus, Caesarea and Antioch.

Acts 15:36–18:22

19Journey

The third journey

Acts 18:23–21:16; c. 53–58

Reveal

centred on Ephesus

A stay of two to three years at Ephesus (Acts 19), the centre of evangelisation for the province of Asia. The silversmiths’ riot over the cult of Artemis (Acts 19:23-40). The farewell discourse to the Ephesian elders at Miletus (Acts 20:18-35), one of the theological summits of the book. The return towards Jerusalem carrying the collection for the Jerusalem community (cf. 1 Cor 16; 2 Cor 8–9; Rom 15:25-28).

Acts 18:23–21:16

20Journey

The voyage to Rome

Acts 27–28; c. 60

Reveal

the great storm and shipwreck narrative

After two years’ detention at Caesarea Maritima, Paul appeals to Caesar (Acts 25:11). A sea voyage under escort. The storm (Acts 27:13-44), shipwreck at Malta (Acts 28:1-10), the episode of the viper. Arrival at Rome by way of Puteoli and the Appian Way (c. 60). Two years of house arrest in Rome (Acts 28:30-31). An abrupt ending: silence on Paul’s trial and death. One hypothesis: Luke writes before Paul’s death (c. 62–64) — or else the ending is deliberately theological (the gospel having reached Rome fulfils Acts 1:8).

Acts 27–28

21Discourse

The Areopagus at Athens

Acts 17:22-31

Reveal

the apologetic discourse to pagans

Paul before the council of the Areopagus at Athens. A remarkable rhetorical strategy: (1) the captatio (the altar “to an unknown god”, Acts 17:23); (2) a theology of creation (God does not dwell in temples made by hands); (3) quotation of Greek poets (“in him we live”, Epimenides; “we are his offspring”, Aratus); (4) a call to conversion in view of judgement by the one whom God has raised. A mixed reception (the Stoics laugh). The classic Christian apologetic model for dialogue with the Gentiles.

Acts 17:22-31

22Verse

Acts 1:1-2

the Lucan prologue

Reveal

“In the first book, Theophilus…”

“Τὸν μὲν πρῶτον λόγον ἐποιησάμην περὶ πάντων, ὦ Θεόφιλε, ὧν ἤρξατο ὁ Ἰησοῦς ποιεῖν τε καὶ διδάσκειν.” An explicit reference to the first book (the gospel) and to the same addressee (Theophilus, cf. Luke 1:3). It confirms the literary and theological unity of Luke–Acts as a diptych. The word “began” (ἤρξατο) implies that Jesus goes on acting now through the Spirit in the Church.

Acts 1:1-2; Luke 1:3

23Verse

Acts 2:1-4

Pentecost

Reveal

“and all of them were filled with the Holy Spirit”

“καὶ ἐπλήσθησαν πάντες πνεύματος ἁγίου καὶ ἤρξαντο λαλεῖν ἑτέραις γλώσσαις.” A Pentecostal theophany: a sound like a violent wind, tongues as of fire resting on each. A symbolic inversion of Babel (Gen 11:1-9): the diversity of languages is now understood. Fifty days after Easter, in the perspective of the Jewish feast of Shavuot (the giving of the Torah at Sinai). The formative source of all Christian pneumatology.

Acts 2:1-4; Gen 11

24Verse

Acts 4:32

the community summary

Reveal

“of one heart and soul”

“Τοῦ δὲ πλήθους τῶν πιστευσάντων ἦν καρδία καὶ ψυχὴ μία…” A communal ideal derived from the Hellenistic philosophy of friendship (“τὰ τῶν φίλων κοινά”, Aristotle, Nic. Eth. IX.8). A central verse for monasticism, the Moravian Brethren, the Hutterite Mennonites, liberation theologies and various communal projects.

Acts 4:32; Aristotle

25Verse

Acts 9:1-19

the conversion of Paul

Reveal

the road to Damascus

A key narrative repeated three times (Acts 9; 22; 26). The light, the voice (“Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”), blindness, and baptism by Ananias. An exegetical debate: a “conversion” (from Judaism to Christianity) or a prophetic “call” (Krister Stendahl, 1976) to a Paul who remains fully Jewish? The Pauline counterpart: Gal 1:11-17 (Paul himself speaks of a “revelation”). Source: Marguerat, Actes, vol. I (2007), pp. 313-340.

Acts 9; 22; 26; Gal 1:11-17

26Verse

Acts 15:28-29

the apostolic decree

Reveal

“it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us”

“ἔδοξεν γὰρ τῷ πνεύματι τῷ ἁγίῳ καὶ ἡμῖν…” (Acts 15:28). The matrix synodal formula: a joint decision of the Spirit and the Church. The founding text of Christian conciliarity. Four prohibitions for Gentile converts: meat sacrificed to idols, blood, strangled meat, and πορνεία (the incest prohibited in Lev 18). Its reception is a major ecclesiological thread through all the later councils.

Acts 15:28-29

27Verse

Acts 17:28

at the Areopagus

Reveal

“in him we live and move and have our being”

“ἐν αὐτῷ γὰρ ζῶμεν καὶ κινούμεθα καὶ ἐσμέν…” Paul quotes two Greek poets: Epimenides of Crete (seventh century BC, “in him we live”) and Aratus of Soli (Phaenomena, third century BC, “we are his offspring”). The classic model of a Christian apologetic that enlists pagan wisdom to proclaim the Gospel. Its reception: natural theology and interreligious dialogue.

Acts 17:28; Epimenides; Aratus

28Verse

Acts 28:30-31

the open ending

Reveal

Paul preaches at Rome “unhindered”

“κηρύσσων τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ διδάσκων τὰ περὶ τοῦ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μετὰ πάσης παρρησίας ἀκωλύτως.” The last Greek word is ἀκωλύτως (“unhindered”). An abrupt ending: no trial, no death of Paul. Three hypotheses: (1) Luke writes before those events (c. 62); (2) an intentional silence (the parrhēsia of the Gospel at Rome fulfils Acts 1:8); (3) a projected third volume (never written). Reference: Marguerat, Actes, vol. II (2015), conclusion.

Acts 28:30-31

29Apostle

Peter

protagonist of Acts 1–12

Reveal

the first witness and apostolic spokesman

Simon Peter (Πέτρος) dominates the first half of Acts. Four major discourses: Pentecost (Acts 2), the Portico (Acts 3), the Sanhedrin (Acts 4), Cornelius (Acts 10). He receives the vision of the sheet (Acts 10:9-16) which legitimates the mission to the Gentiles. Miraculous deliverance from prison (Acts 12). He disappears from the narrative after Acts 15 (the Council of Jerusalem). Tradition: an episcopate at Rome and martyrdom c. 64 under Nero (Tacitus, Eusebius, Clement of Rome).

Acts 1–12; 15

30Deacon

Stephen

the first martyr — Acts 6–7

Reveal

the proto-martyr

Στέφανος, one of the Seven chosen for the service of tables (Acts 6:1-7). A monumental discourse before the Sanhedrin (Acts 7:1-53): a rereading of Israel’s history (Abraham, Joseph, Moses) culminating in the charge that the people have always resisted the Spirit. His final vision (“I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God”, Acts 7:56). Stoned, with Saul holding the witnesses’ cloaks (Acts 7:58). Died c. AD 34–35. The first Christian martyr.

Acts 6:1–7:60

31Deacon

Philip

the evangelist — Acts 8

Reveal

pioneer of the Samaritan and African mission

One of the Seven (Acts 6:5), distinct from the apostle Philip. Mission in Samaria (Acts 8:4-25). The conversion of the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8:26-40), the first baptism of an African in the Lucan narrative; the verse Acts 8:37 (a trinitarian confession) is a late gloss absent from the best manuscripts. He later resides at Caesarea Maritima (Acts 21:8) with “four unmarried daughters who prophesied”. In tradition, the spiritual father of the Ethiopian mission.

Acts 6:5; 8; 21:8

32Apostle

Paul of Tarsus

protagonist of Acts 13–28

Reveal

the apostle to the Gentiles

Saul of Tarsus (Σαῦλος), a Pharisaic Jew (Acts 22:3: “educated at the feet of Gamaliel”), a Roman citizen (Acts 22:28), a persecutor (Acts 9). Conversion (Acts 9, c. AD 33–34). Three missionary journeys (Acts 13–21). Trials and the voyage to Rome (Acts 22–28). He disappears from the narrative at Rome (Acts 28:30-31). Tradition: release, a second mission (Spain?), martyrdom at Rome c. 64–67 under Nero. Thirteen canonical letters are attributed to him (seven undisputed: Rom, 1–2 Cor, Gal, Phil, 1 Thess, Phlm).

Acts 9; 13–28

33Mission

Barnabas

the “son of encouragement”

Reveal

Paul’s mentor

Joseph “Barnabas” (“son of encouragement”, Acts 4:36), a Levite from Cyprus. He introduces Paul to the apostles at Jerusalem (Acts 9:27). Sent to Antioch, he fetches Paul from Tarsus (Acts 11:22-26). Companion of the first missionary journey (Acts 13–14). Represents Antioch at the council (Acts 15). Disagrees with Paul over John Mark (Acts 15:36-41): Barnabas leaves for Cyprus with John Mark, Paul with Silas. A model of apostolic “encouragement”.

Acts 4:36; 13–15

34Mission

Aquila and Priscilla

the Pauline couple

Reveal

artisan missionaries from Corinth to Ephesus

Jewish Christians and tentmakers (σκηνοποιοί) like Paul. Expelled from Rome by Claudius (c. AD 49, an edict attested by Suetonius, Life of Claudius 25). Met at Corinth (Acts 18:1-3). They travel with Paul to Ephesus and instruct Apollos (Acts 18:18-28). They host a house church (Rom 16:3-5). Priscilla (Prisca) is often named first — evidence of female authority in the primitive Church. They are mentioned five times in the NT.

Acts 18; Rom 16:3-5

35Mission

Lydia

a dealer in purple cloth at Philippi

Reveal

the first convert in Europe

A businesswoman from Thyatira (Asia Minor), a “worshipper of God” (σεβομένη τὸν θεόν), that is, a sympathiser with Judaism without circumcision. Met at Philippi by the river where the women prayed (there being no local synagogue). “The Lord opened her heart.” Baptised with her household. She receives Paul and Silas into her home (Acts 16:14-15, 40). The first Christian convert in Europe according to the Lucan narrative. A model of apostolic hospitality by a woman.

Acts 16:14-15, 40

36Exegete

Daniel Marguerat

CNT, 2007–2015

Reveal

the standard French-language commentator

A Swiss theologian, professor of New Testament at the University of Lausanne (1984–2008). Les Actes des Apôtres, 2 vols (CNT Va-b, Labor et Fides, 2007–2015): vol. I (Acts 1–12, 2007), vol. II (Acts 13–28, 2015). A pragmatic-narrative method. He articulates historical-critical exegesis, narratology and biblical theology. La première histoire du christianisme. Les Actes des Apôtres (1999) laid the methodological groundwork. An indispensable reference in French and internationally.

Marguerat (2007–2015)

37Milestone

c. AD 30

Pentecost

Reveal

the traditional birth of the Church

Fifty days after the Passover of Jesus’ passion (c. 14 or 7 April depending on the dating; 14 Nisan in the Synoptics or 15 Nisan in John). The Jewish Pentecost of Shavuot (the giving of the Torah). The gift of the Spirit to the 120 disciples gathered together (Acts 1:15; 2:1-4). The ecclesiological birth. The traditionally received date: AD 30 or 33, according to the dating of Jesus’ passion. Christian Pentecost is celebrated as one of the three great ecclesial feasts (with Easter and Christmas).

Acts 2; Shavuot

38Milestone

c. 49

The Council of Jerusalem

Reveal

the Jewish–Gentile turning point

A council at Jerusalem (Acts 15) settling the question of observing the Mosaic Law for Gentile converts. Date: c. AD 49. Present: Peter, James (the Lord’s brother, presiding), John, Paul, Barnabas. The decision: no circumcision for Gentiles, but four prohibitions (Acts 15:28-29). The Pauline counterpart: Gal 2:1-10 (with differences). The first “council” in the history of the Church. A major turning point for identity. It inaugurates Christian conciliarity.

Acts 15; Gal 2:1-10

39Milestone

c. 51–52

Gallio at Corinth

Reveal

the one precise external chronological anchor

Paul’s appearance before Gallio, proconsul of Achaia (Acts 18:12-17). The Delphi inscription (discovered 1905, published by Émile Bourguet in 1908) dates Gallio’s proconsulship to AD 51–52. This fixes the end of Paul’s second journey chronologically and, by knock-on effect, the whole Pauline chronology. It is also synchronised with the edict of Claudius expelling the Jews from Rome (Suetonius, Claudius 25), often dated to AD 49.

Acts 18; the Delphi inscription

40Milestone

c. 60–62

Paul at Rome

Reveal

the geographical fulfilment of Acts 1:8

Paul’s arrival at Rome after his appeal to Caesar (Acts 27–28). Two years of house arrest in which he receives visitors and preaches “unhindered” (Acts 28:30-31). Date: c. AD 60–62. The ending of Acts geographically fulfils the programme of Acts 1:8 (“to the ends of the earth”). Tradition: a possible release, a second mission, then martyrdom at Rome c. 64–67 in the Neronian persecution (after the fire of Rome in July 64). Tacitus (Annals XV.44) attests the persecution.

Acts 28:30-31; Tacitus

41Pneumatology

The Holy Spirit as protagonist

Luke–Acts, the “fifth gospel”

Reveal

the structural role of the Spirit in Acts

Marguerat (CNT Vb, 2015): if the gospels recount what Jesus began, Acts recounts what the Spirit continues. The Spirit decides (Acts 15:28), sends (Acts 13:2), forbids (Acts 16:6), compels (Acts 20:22) and warns (Acts 20:23). A narrative personalisation without equivalent in the NT. Conzelmann (Die Mitte der Zeit, 1954): the imminent Pauline eschatology is replaced by a “time of the Church” indwelt by the Spirit.

Acts 1:1; Conzelmann 1954; Marguerat 2015

42Pneumatology

Joel 3 at Pentecost

Acts 2:17-21

Reveal

the programmatic citation, modified

Luke cites Joel 3:1-5 but changes “after this” to “ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις” (“in the last days”). A decisive shift: what in Joel was the ultimate horizon becomes in Luke the present time of the Church. Three dimensions: realised eschatology, universality (the Spirit on “all flesh”), and democratised prophecy (sons and daughters, young and old, male and female servants). The exegetical basis of the universal priesthood in Luther (1520).

Acts 2:17-21; Joel 3:1-5 LXX

43Ecclesiology

The Jacobean clauses

Acts 15:20, 29

Reveal

the four Noahide prescriptions

At the Council of Jerusalem, James proposes that Gentile converts abstain from four things: (1) meat sacrificed to idols (ἀλισγημάτων τῶν εἰδώλων); (2) sexual immorality (πορνείας); (3) strangled animals (πνικτοῦ); (4) blood (αἵματος). An analogy with the seven commandments of Noah in rabbinic Judaism (Talmud, Sanhedrin 56a-60a). A pragmatic compromise enabling Jewish–Gentile table fellowship in the primitive Church.

Acts 15:20, 29; Sanhedrin 56a

44Rhetoric

The Areopagus discourse

Acts 17:22-31

Reveal

the Pauline model of inculturation

Three rhetorical levers: (1) citation of a real Athenian altar “to an unknown god” as a captatio benevolentiae; (2) explicit quotation of two Greek poets — Aratus of Soli (Phaenomena 5: τοῦ γὰρ καὶ γένος ἐσμέν) and probably Epimenides; (3) terminological convergence with Stoicism (natural theology, providence). The christological breaking point: the resurrection (17:32). A model of inculturation for Justin, Aquinas, Matteo Ricci and Vatican II’s Ad Gentes.

Acts 17:22-31; Aratus, Phaen. 5

45Verse

Acts 1:8

the geographical programme of the book

Reveal

“you will be my witnesses… to the ends of the earth”

“καὶ ἔσεσθέ μου μάρτυρες ἔν τε Ἰερουσαλὴμ καὶ ἐν πάσῃ τῇ Ἰουδαίᾳ καὶ Σαμαρείᾳ καὶ ἕως ἐσχάτου τῆς γῆς.” (Acts 1:8). The geographical programme structuring the book: Jerusalem (Acts 1–7), Judea and Samaria (Acts 8–12), the ends of the earth = Rome (Acts 13–28). A narrative structure in concentric circles. The verse also closes the Gospel of Luke (Luke 24:47-49). Reference: Marguerat (CNT Vb, 2015).

Acts 1:8; Luke 24:47-49

46Verse

Acts 2:17-21

Joel at Pentecost

Reveal

“in the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit”

“καὶ ἔσται ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις, λέγει ὁ θεός, ἐκχεῶ ἀπὸ τοῦ πνεύματός μου ἐπὶ πᾶσαν σάρκα.” A citation of Joel 3:1-5 LXX with a decisive modification (“after this” → “in the last days”). It inscribes Pentecost within a realised eschatology. The universality (“all flesh”) is actualised in the list of fifteen nations at Acts 2:9-11 (Parthians, Medes, Elamites… Romans, Cretans, Arabs) — the anti-Babel.

Acts 2:17-21; Gen 11

47Verse

Acts 15:28-29

the apostolic decree

Reveal

“it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us”

“ἔδοξεν γὰρ τῷ ἁγίῳ πνεύματι καὶ ἡμῖν μηδὲν πλέον ἐπιτίθεσθαι ὑμῖν βάρος…” (Acts 15:28). A formula that became liturgical in the later ecumenical councils (Nicaea 325, Constantinople 381, Chalcedon 451). Four Noahide prescriptions imposed on Gentile Christians. The ecclesiological basis of Christian synodality: decision taken in assembly by consensus in the Spirit. The model for Vatican II, the Groupe des Dombes and the JDDJ of 1999.

Acts 15:28-29; Sanhedrin 56a

48Antiquity

Peter and Paul — narrative symmetry

Acts 1–12 / Acts 13–28

Reveal

the binary structure of Acts

Luke constructs an explicit narrative symmetry: Peter is protagonist of the first half (Acts 1–12), Paul of the second (Acts 13–28). The parallels: the healing of a lame man (Acts 3 // Acts 14), confrontation with a magician (Acts 8, Simon Magus // Acts 13, Elymas), raising of the dead (Acts 9, Tabitha // Acts 20, Eutychus), a prison miraculously opened (Acts 12 // Acts 16). This symmetry smooths the historical tensions between Paul and Jerusalem in favour of a theological apostolic unity. Reference: Marguerat 2015; Haenchen 1956.

Acts 1–28; Marguerat 2015

49Modernity

Hans Conzelmann

1915–1989

Reveal

Die Mitte der Zeit (1954)

A German Lutheran theologian. His foundational work: Die Mitte der Zeit (1954; English The Theology of St Luke). His thesis: Luke–Acts operates a “realised eschatology” which replaces the imminent Pauline eschatology with a “time of the Church” indwelt by the Spirit. Three ages of salvation: Israel, Christ, the Church. A position criticised (Marguerat) but formative for all twentieth-century Lucan research.

Conzelmann 1954

50Suisse romande

Daniel Marguerat

born 1943

Reveal

the great francophone exegete of Acts

Emeritus professor at the University of Lausanne, dean of the Faculty of Theology 1990–1994. La première histoire du christianisme : les Actes des apôtres (2003). Les Actes des apôtres, CNT Vb (Labor et Fides, 2015): the standard French-language commentary. Paul de Tarse, un homme aux prises avec Dieu (2000). He articulates historical-critical exegesis with a narratological reading. A direct link with the CNT tradition (Bonnard, Trocmé, Bovon, Zumstein). A specialist in Luke–Acts and in Paul.

Marguerat 2015; CNT Vb

51Milestone

c. 49–50

The Council of Jerusalem

Reveal

the first ecumenical decision in Christian history

Around 49–50, midway between the first journey (Acts 13–14) and the second (Acts 15:36–18:22). The first “council” in Christian history. Peter, Paul, Barnabas, James. The decision: Gentile Christians are not subject to the Mosaic Law but to the four Noahide clauses. The classic confrontation with Gal 2:1-10 (three harmonising hypotheses). The model of Christian synodality for the later ecumenical councils (Nicaea 325 and so on).

Acts 15; c. 49–50

52Milestone

1995

The papal position on the filioque

Reveal

The Greek and Latin Traditions regarding the Procession of the Holy Spirit

A document of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity (1995). It recognises the parallel legitimacy of the two pneumatological formulations (the Latin filioque and the Greek “ek monou tou Patros”) without imposing the Latin addition. A major step in the Catholic–Orthodox dialogue initiated by Vatican II (Unitatis Redintegratio, 1964). It follows a millennial controversy running from Toledo (589) through Photius (867) to the schism of 1054. It has not healed the sacramental rupture, but it acknowledges that the rupture no longer turns on doctrinal content.

1995; Vatican II UR

📖 Quiz 1 — Structure and theology of Acts

10 questions on the programme of Acts 1:8, the Spirit, the community and the summaries.

Question 1 sur 10

Question 1 / 10

Which verse states the geographical programme of Acts?

Three zones structure the book: Acts 1–7 (Jerusalem), Acts 8–12 (Judea–Samaria and the first Gentiles), Acts 13–28 (Paul to the Gentiles as far as Rome). Reference: Marguerat, Actes, vol. I (2007).

Question 2 / 10

What does Acts 2:42 describe?

The apostles’ teaching, fellowship, the breaking of bread, the prayers. Ecumenically, all the sacraments and the whole of ecclesial life are here in germ. A central verse of Christian ecclesiology.

Question 3 / 10

What is the “Gentile Pentecost”?

The gift of the Spirit to Gentiles (the centurion Cornelius and his household) before baptism, which theologically legitimates the inclusion of Gentiles without circumcision. Peter will justify it before the Jerusalem Church (Acts 11:1-18).

Question 4 / 10

How many major Lucan summaries are there in Acts 1–5?

A Lucan redactional device identified by Henry J. Cadbury (1933). Its function is to give an overall “picture” between the narrative episodes. Literary and theological idealisation. Reference: Marguerat, Actes, vol. I (2007).

Question 5 / 10

Where does the name “Christians” first appear?

The first known historical use of the name Χριστιανός. An external designation (probably Roman administrative). Taken up ironically by Tacitus (Annals XV.44) and Pliny the Younger (Ep. X.96).

Question 6 / 10

What are the “we passages” in Acts?

Four much-debated passages. Interpretations: the author was a companion of Paul; or a travel diary was used; or it is a literary device (Pervo); or a theological construction. The question remains open.

Question 7 / 10

How many major discourses are there in Acts?

Some 24 discourses in all (a third of the text). Eight are major: Pentecost, the Portico, the Sanhedrin, Stephen, Cornelius, Pisidian Antioch, the Areopagus, Miletus. The typical structure: situation, kerygma, OT citations, exhortation.

Question 8 / 10

How does Acts end?

An abrupt ending. The last Greek word is ἀκωλύτως (“unhindered”). Three hypotheses: Luke writes before those events (c. 62); an intentional silence (the parrhēsia fulfils Acts 1:8); or a projected third volume.

Question 9 / 10

How does Luke describe the “community of goods”?

A communal ideal derived from the Hellenistic philosophy of friendship (“τὰ τῶν φίλων κοινά”, Aristotle). A central verse for monasticism, the Moravian Brethren, the Hutterite Mennonites and liberation theologies.

Question 10 / 10

What is the Western text of Acts (D, Codex Bezae)?

Codex Bezae (D, 05, fifth century, Cambridge). Narrative additions, hardened anti-Jewish touches, topographical precisions. Boismard and Lamouille (1984) defend its priority; the majority (NA28) defends the Alexandrian text.

🏆

10 / 10

100%

Magna cum laude !

⚙ Quiz 2 — The Pauline journeys and the council

13 questions on the three journeys, the council and the voyage to Rome.

Question 1 sur 13

Question 1 / 13

Which chapters cover Paul’s first journey?

With Barnabas and John Mark. Cyprus (Salamis, Paphos, Sergius Paulus), Perga (where John Mark leaves them), Pisidian Antioch (the key discourse, Acts 13:16-41), Iconium, Lystra (Paul stoned), Derbe.

Question 2 / 13

When did the Council of Jerusalem take place?

Present: Peter, James (presiding), John, Paul, Barnabas. The question: must circumcision be imposed on Gentile converts? The decision: no, but four prohibitions (Acts 15:28-29). The first “council” in the history of the Church. The Pauline counterpart: Gal 2:1-10.

Question 3 / 13

What are the four prohibitions of the apostolic decree?

Acts 15:28-29. The four prohibitions correspond to the minimal Noahide prohibitions extended to Gentiles according to Lev 17–18 (“aliens residing in Israel”). Πορνεία refers specifically to the unions forbidden by Lev 18 (incest).

Question 4 / 13

Which European city receives the first convert in Europe?

The vision of the Macedonian at Troas (Acts 16:9-10). Philippi (a Roman colony in Macedonia). Lydia of Thyatira, a “worshipper of God”, baptised with her household by the river (there being no local synagogue). A model of apostolic hospitality by a woman.

Question 5 / 13

What is distinctive about Paul’s Areopagus discourse?

The rhetorical strategy: the captatio (the altar “to an unknown god”), a theology of creation, quotations from Greek poets, and a call to conversion in view of judgement by the risen one (Acts 17:22-31). The classic Christian apologetic model for dialogue with the Gentiles.

Question 6 / 13

Which archaeological inscription allows the second journey to be dated?

Discovered in 1905 and published by Émile Bourguet in 1908. It fixes the end of Paul’s second journey chronologically and, by knock-on effect, the whole Pauline chronology. Paul’s appearance before Gallio (Acts 18:12-17).

Question 7 / 13

Which farewell discourse belongs to the third journey?

One of the theological summits of the book. Paul foretells the trials to come, exhorts the elders to keep watch over the flock, and takes stock of his ministry. The “farewell discourse” genre is inherited from the OT (Gen 49, Deut 33, Josh 23–24, 1 Kgs 2).

Question 8 / 13

What happens at Malta (Acts 28)?

The storm (Acts 27:13-44) then shipwreck at Malta (Acts 28:1-10). Paul heals the father of Publius. Three months of wintering. Arrival at Rome by way of Puteoli and the Appian Way (c. 60). The great storm narrative is one of the finest pieces of writing in the NT.

Question 9 / 13

What role does the Holy Spirit play in Acts according to Marguerat?

Marguerat (CNT Vb, 2015): if the gospels recount what Jesus began, Acts recounts what the Spirit continues. The Spirit decides (Acts 15:28), sends (Acts 13:2), forbids (Acts 16:6) and compels (Acts 20:22). A narrative personalisation without equivalent in the NT.

Question 10 / 13

What modification does Luke make to the citation of Joel 3:1 at Acts 2:17?

A decisive shift: what in Joel was the ultimate horizon becomes in Luke the present time of the Church. It inscribes Pentecost within a realised eschatology (Conzelmann 1954). The exegetical basis of the universal priesthood in Luther (1520).

Question 11 / 13

What are the four “Jacobean clauses” of the Council of Jerusalem?

Acts 15:20, 29. An analogy with the seven commandments of Noah in rabbinic Judaism (Sanhedrin 56a-60a). A pragmatic compromise enabling Jewish–Gentile table fellowship in the primitive Church. Not a new Law but a ritual minimum.

Question 12 / 13

Which Greek poets does Paul quote in his Areopagus discourse?

Aratus, Phaenomena 5: “for we too are his offspring” (τοῦ γὰρ καὶ γένος ἐσμέν). Probably also Epimenides of Crete: “in him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). A model of theological inculturation for Justin, Aquinas and Matteo Ricci.

Question 13 / 13

Who wrote the CNT Vb commentary on the Acts of the Apostles (2015)?

Emeritus professor at the University of Lausanne. La première histoire du christianisme (2003); Les Actes des apôtres, CNT Vb (Labor et Fides, 2015). He articulates historical-critical exegesis with a narratological reading. A mediating position on the historicity of Acts.

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8 / 8

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📜 Quiz 3 — Figures in Acts

8 questions on Pierre, Étienne, Philippe, Paul, Barnabé, Aquila-Priscille.

Question 1 sur 8

Question 1 / 8

Who delivers the founding discourse at Pentecost?

Peter, standing with the Eleven. A kerygmatic discourse citing Joel 3:1-5 and Psalms 16 and 110. The response: 3,000 baptised. The first of Peter’s four great discourses in Acts.

Question 2 / 8

Who is the first Christian martyr?

Στέφανος, one of the Seven (Acts 6:5). A long discourse before the Sanhedrin (Acts 7:1-53). His final vision (“the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God”). Stoned, with Saul holding the witnesses’ cloaks. The proto-martyr of Christian tradition.

Question 3 / 8

Who evangelised the Ethiopian eunuch?

One of the Seven (distinct from the apostle Philip). On the Gaza road. The eunuch, an official of Queen Candace, is reading Isa 53. Philip explains the Gospel to him and baptises him. The first baptism of an African in the Lucan narrative. In tradition, the father of the Ethiopian mission.

Question 4 / 8

How many times is Paul’s conversion recounted in Acts?

A key narrative repeated: Acts 9 (the Lucan account), Acts 22 (Paul before the Jews of Jerusalem), Acts 26 (Paul before Festus and Agrippa II). With subtle variations. Stendahl (1976) argues for reading it as a prophetic “call” rather than a “conversion”.

Question 5 / 8

Who was Barnabas?

He introduces Paul to the apostles at Jerusalem (Acts 9:27). Companion of the first missionary journey. He disagrees with Paul over John Mark (Acts 15:36-41): Barnabas leaves for Cyprus with John Mark. A model of apostolic “encouragement”.

Question 6 / 8

What do we know of Aquila and Priscilla?

Expelled from Rome by the edict of Claudius (c. AD 49, attested by Suetonius). Met at Corinth (Acts 18:1-3). They travel with Paul and instruct Apollos (Acts 18:18-28). They host a house church (Rom 16:3-5). Priscilla (Prisca) is often named first.

Question 7 / 8

Who presided over the Council of Jerusalem?

James (Ἰάκωβος), the brother of Jesus and leader of the Jerusalem Church (cf. Gal 1:19; 2:9, 12; Acts 12:17; 15:13; 21:18). The traditional author of the Epistle of James. His proposal (Acts 15:13-21) forms the basis of the apostolic decree. Martyred c. 62 according to Josephus.

Question 8 / 8

Who is the standard French-language commentator on Acts?

A Swiss theologian at the University of Lausanne (1984–2008). Les Actes des Apôtres, 2 vols (CNT Va-b, Labor et Fides). A pragmatic-narrative method. A reference in French and internationally. La première histoire du christianisme (1999) laid the groundwork.

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8 / 8

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