The Book of Acts in Its Palestinian Setting

by Richard Bauckham

Overview

The Book of Acts in Its Palestinian Setting is devoted to a series of studies of those parts of the narrative of Acts that are specifically set in Palestine. The geographical, political, cultural, social, and religious aspects of first-century Jewish Palestine are all explored in order to throw light on Luke's account of the Palestinian origins of early Christianity . There are fresh assessments of the historical significance of key features, persons, and events in Luke's narrative.
 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780802847898
Publisher:	Eerdmans, William B. Publishing Company
Publication date:	12/19/1995
Series:	Book of Acts in Its First Century Setting Series , #4
Pages:	544
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Richard Bauckham is professor emeritus at the University of St. Andrews and senior scholar at Ridley Hall, Cambridge. He is a fellow of the British Academy and of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

Table of Contents

	List of Contributors	ix
	Preface	xiii
1	The Location of Cultures in Second Temple Palestine: The Evidence of Josephus	1
I.	Jew versus Greek	3
II.	The Cultures of Palestine	5
III.	Constructed Identities	7
IV.	Ethnic Identities in Josephus	9
V.	Jews in Josephus	10
VI.	Jews and Gentiles in Josephus	10
VII.	Greeks in Josephus	11
VIII.	Greeks and Syrians in Josephus	12
2	Acts and Roman Policy in Judaea	15
I.	The Incorporation of Judaea	16
II.	Judaea Under Agrippa	19
III.	Judaea Returned to Roman Control	19
IV.	Felix	21
V.	Porcius Festus	25
VI.	Conclusion	25
Appendix I	Prefects of Judaea (AD 6 - 41)	26
Appendix II	Procurators of Judaea (AD 44 - 66)	26
3	The Geography of Palestine in Acts	27
I.	The Problem	28
II.	The Temple in Jerusalem	35
III.	Jerusalem and the Hill Country of Judah	45
IV.	The Cities of the Coastal Plain	51
V.	Peter's Journey (9:32-11:18): Lydda, Joppa and Caesarea	59
VI.	Antipatris and the Road from Jerusalem to Caesarea	64
VII.	Samaria in the Acts of the Apostles	67
4	Palestinian Jewish Personal Names in Acts	79
I.	Palestinian Jews in Acts in English Alphabetical Order	81
II.	First Names	84
III.	Second Names	101
IV.	General Character of the Palestinian Jewish Onomastikon	106
Appendix	Palestinian Jews in Acts--the Doubtful Cases	110
	Abbreviations	113
5	Chief Priests, Sadducees, Pharisees and Sanhedrin in Acts	115
I.	The State of the Question	119
II.	Luke-Acts: An Interpretation of the Story	127
III.	Chief Priests, Sadducees, Pharisees and Sanhedrin in Luke-Acts	133
IV.	In Josephus	158
V.	General Conclusions	174
6	Synagogues in Jerusalem	179
I.	The Pre-70 Synagogue	180
II.	Pre-70 Synagogues in Jerusalem: Literary Sources	187
III.	Pre-70 Synagogues in Jerusalem: Archaeological Evidence	192
IV.	Palestinian Synagogues in Luke-Acts	202
V.	Conclusion	209
	Addendum	209
7	The Composition of the Jerusalem Church	213
I.	The Social Groups in Jerusalem	215
II.	The Socio-Economic Composition of the Jerusalem Church	226
III.	The Cultural Groups Among Jerusalem's Jews	230
IV.	Cultural Diversity in the Jerusalem Church	234
8	The Population Size of Jerusalem and the Numerical Growth of the Jerusalem Church	237
I.	Questioning the Figures' Reliability	238
II.	The Size of the Population of Jerusalem in the Time of the Earliest Church	240
III.	The Number of Pilgrims in Jerusalem at the Great Feasts, Especially Pentecost	259
IV.	Conclusion	263
9	Jewish Prayer Literature and the Jerusalem Church in Acts	267
I.	Introduction	268
II.	Lukan Evidence for Jewish and Christian Worship	269
III.	Pre-70 Jewish Worship from Other Sources	277
IV.	Acts and the Jewish Heritage of Pre-70 Christian Worship	298
10	The Cenacle -- Topographical Setting for Acts 2:44-45	303
I.	A 2nd-Century Church on Mount Zion	305
II.	The Christian Community of Aelia Capitolina	310
III.	The Camp of the Tenth Legion	313
IV.	Flight from Jerusalem?	316
V.	The Quality of Life in 1st-Century Mount Zion	318
11	The Palestinian Cultural Context of Earliest Christian Community of Goods	323
I.	Introduction	324
II.	Community of Goods as a Feature of Palestinian Culture	327
III.	The 'Summary' Statements of Acts 2:44-45 and 4:32, 34	335
IV.	Barnabas, Ananias, and Sapphira: Acts 4:36-5:11	337
V.	Influence from an 'Essene Quarter' on Mount Zion?	341
VI.	The 'Daily Ministry' of Acts 6:1-6	350
VII.	Conclusions	355
12	Jewish Activity Against Christians in Palestine According to Acts	357
13	Paul's Pre-Christian Career According to Acts	365
I.	Born in Tarsus, Citizen of Tarsus and Rome	366
II.	Paul in Jerusalem	373
III.	The Persecutor	379
IV.	Conclusion	390
14	Peter and Ben Stada in Lydda	391
I.	Peter in Lydda	392
II.	Ben Stada in Lod	394
III.	Identifying Ben Stada	397
IV.	The Mesit of the Rabbis	400
V.	Peter as Mesit and Mesit as Healer	403
VI.	Peter and Ben Stada	412
15	James and the Jerusalem Church	415
I.	Introduction	416
II.	Jerusalem at the Centre	417
III.	The Leadership of the Jerusalem Church	427
IV.	The Jerusalem Church and the Gentiles	450
	Index of Modern Authors	481
	Index of Ancient Sources	491
	Index of Biblical References	505
	Index of Places, Names and Subjects	517

Editorial Reviews

William Horbury
"This fine collectivework interprets Acts in the setting of ancient Judaea, Samaria, and Galilee. Its chapters range from studies of archaeology, inscriptions, geography, and culture to reviews of historical questions concerning the Jerusalem church and its organization and worship, and the relation of Christians to the Roman administration and the Jewish community. Ancient historians and specialists in Jewish studies collaborate with New Testament scholars to offer a wealth of information and many fresh approaches and insights. Their contributions form a handbook of high quality and interest that will be valued for a long time."

Abraham J. Malherbe
"Expect from this series an avoidance of oversimplification, engagement with current scholarship, independence of judgment, and superb knowledge of the world of ancient Christianity."

From the Publisher