The Later New Testament Writers and Scripture

Steve Moyise

• Publisher: SPCK Publishing
• Year: 2012
• ISBN:
  9780281067534
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Criticism & Interpretation

This book meets the need for an accessible introduction to the various ways that Scripture is used in the later writings of the New Testament: Acts, Hebrews, James, 1 & 2 Peter, 1, 2 & 3 John, Jude and Revelation. It is the only brief guide available to understanding the role of Old Testament Scripture in the later writings of the New Testament. It contains helpful summaries of main scholarly argument, and is accessibly written for undergraduates and ordinands. This is a companion volume to Paul and Scripture (2010) and Jesus and Scripture (2010), both published by SPCK.

1

Acts and Scripture

Introduction

There are around 40 explicit quotations of Scripture in Acts (see Appendix), most of which occur in the long speech of Stephen in Acts 7 (15), the various speeches of Peter in Acts 1—4 (14) and Paul’s speeches in Acts 13, 23 and 28 (9). In addition, there is a quotation from James in the so-called Jerusalem council of Acts 15 and an editorial comment in Acts 8 that the Ethiopian eunuch was reading from Isaiah 53.7–8 when Philip joined him in his chariot. The quotations are drawn from the Pentateuch (19), Historical books (1), Prophets (9) and Psalms (11), although the distribution is uneven, since 13 of the quotations from the Pentateuch occur in Stephen’s long summary of Israel’s history. Peter’s speeches are dominated by the Psalms (2, 16, 69, 109, 110, 118, 132), with only one quotation from the Prophets (Joel). Paul’s speeches show an equal interest in Psalms (2, 16, 89) and Prophets (Isa. 6, 49, 55; Hab. 1), with one quotation from the Pentateuch (Exod. 22.28) and one from the Historical books (1 Sam. 13.14). After Stephen’s long summary of Israel’s history, he makes his point about sacrifices and the temple by quoting from Amos 5.25–27 and Isaiah 66.1–2, while James argues for the inclusion of the Gentiles from Amos 9.11–12.

The majority of scholars believe that Acts is the sequel to Luke’s Gospel (cf. Acts 1.1 and Luke 1.1–4) and this raises an important question about our enquiry. Should the material in Luke’s Gospel inform our study of ‘Acts and Scripture’ or should we study the book in its own right? Our decision is a pragmatic one, since much of the material in Luke’s Gospel has already been discussed in Jesus and Scripture, and so our primary focus will be on Acts alone. However, it should be noted that some scholars believe that the material in Luke’s Gospel significantly changes how the material in Acts should be viewed and we will consider such views towards the end of this chapter.

The other major question for our study is the relationship between the speeches and the narratives of Acts. Since all but one of the quotations occurs in the speeches, a study that confines itself to the quotations is a study that confines itself to the speeches. These are clearly important to Luke and one of the main vehicles for conveying his theological convictions, but we should remember that they do only constitute one third of the material. There are many allusions and echoes to Scripture in other parts of Acts, as well as important summaries of scriptural material. Space does not permit a full study of these but in our final section on ‘Major interpretations of Acts and Scripture’, we will see how some of them have been significant in shaping particular theories of Luke’s use of Scripture.

There would be considerable merit in now working through the scriptural material in order but it would result in a very long study and also be very easy to miss the wood for the trees. We will therefore begin with a thematic study, looking at how the quotations are used to support the following themes: salvation for Jews and Gentiles; Christ’s death, resurrection and exaltation; christological titles and functions; judgement; and historical summary. We will then consider some key texts in the narrative portions of Acts before looking at a number of scholarly proposals for understanding ‘Acts and Scripture’, including those that include Luke’s Gospel. We begin with a theme that is crucial for Luke and his readers, namely, that salvation is for Jews and Gentiles.1

Salvation for Jews and Gentiles

The book of Acts opens with Jesus instructing his disciples to wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit empowers them to witness ‘in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth’ (Acts 1.8). The treachery of Judas is still in their thoughts and Peter urges them to choose a replacement, quoting snippets from Psalm 69.25 and 109.8 in the form: ‘“Let his homestead become desolate, and let there be no one to live in it”; and “Let another take his position of overseer.”’ The process is interesting (Acts 1.21–26). First, a condition is set: it must be someone who has been with them from the beginning, and two men, Joseph and Matthias, meet the requirements. Second, the disciples pray that God, who knows everyone’s heart (Ps. 44.21), should make it clear which one has been chosen. And third, following ancient biblical practices (Lev. 16.8; Josh. 18.6; Neh. 11.1), they cast lots and the lot falls to Matthias. One might have expected such a momentous decision to have awaited the coming of the Holy Spirit and it is interesting that Matthias is never mentioned again. However, perhaps it was more important that ‘the twelve’ were complete when the day of Pentecost arrived.

When that day came, there was a ‘sound like the rush of a violent wind’ and ‘tongues, as of fire’ settled upon each of them. They were ‘filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages’ (Acts 2.1–4). The crowd were amazed that they were hearing the message in their own language but some sneered and accused them of being drunk. Peter refutes this, stating that they could hardly be drunk at nine in the morning (times have changed!); rather, what they are seeing and hearing are the signs of the ‘last days’ as prophesied by the prophet Joel.2 There follows a long quotation of Joel 2.28–32, which speaks of God pouring out his Spirit upon all people, cosmic signs (sun turned to darkness, moon to blood) and the promise that ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved’ (Acts 2.21). The speech that follows focuses on Jesus’ death and resurrection (discussed below) but it ends with the promise that through repentance and baptism, they too can receive the Holy Spirit and this promise is ‘for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him’ (Acts 2.39).

Despite the universal sounding language (‘everyone who calls’), Joel was referring to those in Judah and Jerusalem, not the Gentiles, who could only look forward to judgement (Joel 3.1–16).3 And this may indeed be Peter’s meaning, for the narrative that follows shows considerable reluctance to preach to non-Jews. The same could be said of Peter’s second recorded speech (Acts 3.12–26), where the promise of Genesis 22.18/26.4 (‘by your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed/gain blessing’4) is quoted. Paul would have no trouble applying such texts to the Gentile mission (Gal. 3.6–9) but two things stand in the way of such an interpretation here. First, Peter refers to his hearers as those who are ‘descendants of the prophets and of the covenant that God gave to your ancestors’ (Acts 3.25), which sounds like a reference to Jews. Second, the form of the quotation in Acts speaks of ‘all families’ rather than ‘all nations’, which could be a deliberate change in order to maintain the application to Jews. On the other hand, the speech says that Jesus ‘must remain in heaven until the time of universal restoration that God announced long ago through his holy prophets’ (Acts 3.21). The phrase ‘universal restoration’ is literally ‘times of restoration of all things’, which sounds like a reference to all people, though it could also mean ‘all God’s plans for Israel’.

Such ambiguity is removed when we get to Paul’s speech in the synagogue at Pisidian Antioch (Acts 13). The speech rehearses Israel’s early history and then jumps to the death and resurrection of Jesus. Many are convinced but some Jews reject the message, prompting the statement: ‘It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken first to you. Since you reject it and judge yourselves to be unworthy of eternal life, we are now turning to the Gentiles’ (Acts 13.46). This action is then supported by a quotation from Isaiah 49.6b: ‘I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.’ The passage is apt in that it speaks of the servant’s mission to Israel, which expands into a mission to the nations, and there may even be a hint that the former is being frustrated (‘I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity’ – Isa. 49.4). However, one would have expected the title ‘light to the nations’ to be applied to Jesus rather than Paul and Barnabas, as indeed it is in Acts 26.23–24, where Paul says to Festus:

To this day I have had help from God, and so I stand here, testifying to both small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would take place: that the Messiah must suffer, and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles.

(Acts 26.22–24)

The solution is probably to be found in the Isaiah passage itself, which oscillates between a corporate reference (‘You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified’ – Isa. 49.3) and an individual reference (‘The LORD called me before I was born’ – Isa. 49.1). In a similar way, Jesus’ role as ‘light to the nations’ carries over to those who proclaim him, since it is that very proclamation that fulfils the commission: ‘By virtue of the church’s relationship to Christ, and because the promises fulfilled in him are also fulfilled in and through his church, when the servant-Messiah received Yahweh’s commission to be light to the nations, so did the church’.5 It is also of note that the phrase ‘spoken first to you’ reminds the reader of the final words of Peter’s speech in Acts 3.26 (‘When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you’). Nothing is said of a Gentile mission in those first two speeches but we now learn that ‘first to you’ carried an implication – then to the nations.

The fourth passage to be considered is attributed to James during the so-called Jerusalem council and seeks to establish that a mission to the Gentiles was endorsed by the whole Church. After much debate (Acts 15.7), Peter describes his experience of preaching to Gentiles, followed by Paul and Barnabas. James then brings things to a conclusion by claiming that this ‘agrees with the words of the prophets’, followed by a quotation from Amos 9.11–12:

After this I will return, and I will rebuild the dwelling of David, which has fallen; I will rebuild its ruins, and I will set it up, that the rest of men may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who are called by my name, says the Lord, who has made these things known from of old.

(Acts 15.16–18 RSV)

As quoted, the text declares that God’s intent has always been to restore Israel (‘rebuild the dwelling of David’) and bring in the Gentiles. As such, it offers an important scriptural warrant for the rest of the narrative, where Paul will take the gospel to Athens, the intellectual capital of the world (Acts 17), and Rome, the political centre (Acts 28). However, a surprise is in store for readers who look up the passage in Amos, for the Hebrew text – which lies behind our English versions – says that God will raise up the dwelling of David ‘in order that they may possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations who are called by my name’ (Amos 9.12). Now it could be that the Greek was translating a different Hebrew text to the one that has come down to us, but most scholars are struck by the fact that the two major differences – the change in verb from ‘possess’ to ‘seek’ and the change in noun from ‘Edom’ to ‘men/humanity’ – only differ by a single letter in Hebrew. Whether by design or mistake, it was then necessary to make the phrase ‘rest of men’ the subject of the verb ‘seek’ instead of the object of the verb ‘possess’. The result is a text which emphasizes the full inclusion of the Gentiles, rather than their subjugation.6

In reading these four episodes, the question naturally arises: Is Luke’s understanding different from that of the characters in the story? With Peter’s speeches in Acts 2 and 3, the issue is not so much about the difference between the Greek and Hebrew texts but the different contexts: Peter is preaching to Jews in Jerusalem and Luke is writing to Gentiles like Theophilus. The latter is likely to have taken phrases like ‘everyone who calls’, ‘all families’ and ‘restores all things’ as references to Gentiles like himself but are we to imagine that Peter’s hearers in Jerusalem would have done so? Similarly, Theophilus would undoubtedly have taken the quotation of Amos 9.11–12 LXX to mean that God has always intended to call Gentiles, but can we imagine James settling a dispute in Jerusalem by citing a Greek text that differs markedly from its Hebrew counterpart? Would not those who were insisting that Gentile Christians should keep the law (Acts 15.1) have pointed out that the Hebrew text of Amos 9.11–12 speaks of the ‘subjugation’ of the Gentiles, surely carrying the implication that they should be instructed to keep Israel’s law?7

The issue is not what Peter or James originally meant for we have no way of knowing whether they said anything like this at all. It is more a debate about what Luke wanted Theophilus to deduce from these speeches. Did he want him to assume that Peter and James would have meant the same thing that he, as a Gentile, would have understood by these texts? Or was he expecting a little more sophistication; that texts that were ambiguous when quoted in Jerusalem have become clear now that the gospel has been preached to the Gentiles? It is not a question we can ans...

Table of contents

• Cover page
• About the author
• Title page
• Imprint
• Table of contents
• Acknowledgements
• Abbreviations
• Introduction
• 1. Acts and Scripture
• 2. 1 Peter and Scripture
• 3. Jude, 2 Peter and James and Scripture
• 4. Hebrews and Scripture
• 5. Revelation and Scripture
• 6. Conclusion
• Appendix: Search items for quotations in the later writings of the New Testament (UBS)
• Notes
• Select bibliography
• Search items for biblical references
• Search items for authors and subjects