The Pauline Letters
Twenty-one of the 27 books of the New Testament are in the form of letters, with letters also appearing in Acts 15:23-29 and Rev. 1:4-3:22. The 21 separate epistolary writings have traditionally been divided into two major groups: (1) 13 Pauline letters, which were early recognized by the church as a distinctive body of writings, and (2) eight other sermons, tractates, and letters, all of which are generally set out in epistolary form, claim in seven instances to represent the teachings of various early Jewish Christian leaders, and evidently circulated at first mainly within Jewish Christian circles - only becoming generally known and accepted within the Gentile church of the western Roman Empire in the 3rd and 4th centuries A.D.
The Pauline Letters
The Pauline letters are pastoral instructions, rebukes, and encouragements to churches or groups of churches within the orbit of Paul's mission to Gentiles in the Greco-Roman world and to certain individuals associated in some manner with the apostle in his ministry. Most of the addressees were evangelized by Paul himself or one of his converts - the letter to Christians at Rome being the notable exception.
External Evidence Surprisingly, Luke's second volume, the Acts of the Apostles, reflects no knowledge of Paul's letters. This may be interpreted as evidence for Luke's chronological distance from the events he narrated, either later or before Paul wrote.
2 Peter 3:15b-16, however, indicates an early collection of Paul's letters that were being widely read and considered on the same level as "the other Scriptures" But 2 Peter says nothing about the extent of the Pauline collection, and there is debate about the authorship and date of 2 Peter itself. 1 Clement (ca. 96) and the seven letters of Ignatius (ca. no) refer to Paul's letters and so testify to the early collection, circulation, and authority of Paul's writings. But neither Clement nor Ignatius evidences any awareness of 2 Corinthians.
Marcion, a prominent (though heretical) Christian teacher of northern Asia Minor and later Rome, argued ca. 140 for a canon of io letters of Paul (minus 1-2 Timothy and Titus) and the Gospel of Luke, all of which he purged or altered to suit his own understanding of the gospel. It is uncertain whether Marcion did not know about the Pastoral Epistles or deliberately rejected them because they spoke in opposition to his thesis. The Muratorian Canon or "Fragment" (ca. 180-200) lists the full complement of the 13 Pauline letters as accepted by the church of its day. Church fathers such as Irenaeus of Asia Minor and Gaul (France), the most prominent Christian theologian of the latter and century, and Tertullian of North Africa, the most prolific Latin Christian of the early 3rd century, not only knew of Paul's 13 letters but also used them extensively in their writings.
Contents Galatians may be the first of Paul's extant letters, although many date it between 2 Corinthians and Romans. It was probably written ca. 49, just after the first missionary journey (Acts 13-14) and before the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15). It is a "rebuke and request" letter in which Paul confronts the teaching of some Jewish Christians that Gentile believers in Jesus must keep the Mosaic law in order to be both justified by God and live a truly Christian lifestyle. With impassioned eloquence, Paul defends the legitimacy of his own apostolic authority and message, proclaims that righteousness is by faith alone, sets out the true function of the Mosaic law, and argues for the pivotal importance of the Spirit and love in the Christian life.
1-2 Thessalonians were written in the early 50s, probably from Corinth shortly after Paul's proclamation of the gospel at Thessalonica on his second missionary journey and the establishment of a group of new believers there (Acts 17:1-9). In the first letter Paul commends his addressees for their reception of the gospel and their growth, zeal, and fidelity; encourages them in the face of persecution; defends his motives and conduct and those of his companions; teaches regarding holiness of life; instructs regarding the coming of the Lord; and exhorts steadfastness and patience. The second letter clarifies his converts' misunderstanding about the coming day of the Lord, insisting that they must remain steadfast and persistent.
i Corinthians was written in the mid-5os during Paul's extended ministry at Ephesus on his third missionary journey (cf. Acts 19:1-1o). In this letter of "response and instruction" Paul addresses a number of concerns and issues within the Corinthian church - divisions and problems within the Corinthian community (chs. i-6) and questions that believers there had asked in a previous letter (chs. 7-14). In addition, he gives instructions regarding the resurrection of believers in Jesus, which his converts at Corinth seem to have regarded as somewhat inconsequential (ch. 15), and their lethargic response to the collection from the Gentile churches for Jewish believers at Jerusalem (16:1-4). Paul concludes with statements about his own travel plans and those of Timothy and Apollos, further instructions and greetings, and a typical closing.
2 Corinthians was evidently written during the last half of the 50s. There is little doubt about its authorship, for it certainly reflects the style and concerns of Paul. There are, however, several places within the letter where the topic, tone, and rhetoric suddenly change, which has raised concerns about whether it is one letter or several letters brought together. Chapters 1-9 are conciliatory and apologetic, while chs. 10-13 are severe and harsh, even sarcastic. Also, several references to events in Paul's life seem to suggest various times for his writing of these materials (cf. 13:1), and some allusions to the reactions of believers at Corinth to his person and ministry seem to suggest various incidents or times in their relationships. Most scholars today conclude that 2 Corinthians is composed from two or three letters - all authored by Paul himself, but at different times and responding to differing circumstances in the church at Corinth.
Romans is a 'letter essay" that sets out in a protreptic rhetorical style a four-part "word or message of exhortation" set in an epistolary frame. Paul wrote to Christians in Rome who were not his own converts but whom he considered to be within the orbit of his Gentile ministry (1:1-15; 15:15-22). It was written at the end of his missionary activities in the eastern Roman Empire, probably in the spring of 57 or 58 - before his final visit to Jerusalem to present the collection from the Gentile churches and further evangelization in the western regions of the empire (15:23-29). Paul's purposes in writing were primarily twofold: to share with Christians at Rome the nature of his preaching among the Gentiles (1:11) and to enlist their support for the furtherance of such a Gentile mission in Spain. He may also have wanted to defend himself against certain criticisms, to counsel the Christians at Rome concerning their responsibilities to the secular authorities, and to speak to existing divisions between the various house churches at Rome.
Romans has often been read as a compendium or comprehensive statement of Paul's teaching - and so the first systematic theology of the early church. Though it is the longest of the apostle's surviving letters, however, it lacks a number of subjects that seem from his other letters to be absolutely essential to his thought and proclamation - most obviously, the omission of any discussion of the resurrection of believers, which has such an important place in his earlier letters (cf. esp. his earlier letters; 1 Thessalonians 4-5; 2 Thessalonians 2;1 Corinthians 15). Throughout the past two centuries, however, Romans has increasingly been seen in the context of a real, historical, and/or polemical situation, and so to reflect the occasional character of a real letter and the dialogical nature of its circumstances.
The Prison Epistles - Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, and Ephesians - are somewhat difficult to place historically. While all indicate that they were written from prison (Phil. 1:12-26; Col. 4:3-15; Phlm. 9-13, 23; Eph. 3:1,13; 4:1; 6:19-20), the question remains: Were they written from imprisonment in Ephesus (perhaps ca. 53-57), Caesarea (ca. 58-59), or Rome (ca. 60-62)? Issues regarding provenance and date usually concern the number and nature of the journeys between Philippi and Rome reflected in the Philippian letter; the tone and temper of these letters compared to Paul's other letters, particularly Galatians and 2 Corinthians; and the theological statements of these letters compared to Paul's other letters, particularly Galatians, 1 Corinthians, and Romans. Whatever is accepted regarding the origins of these letters has a profound effect on how one relates their themes, rhetoric, and language to the other Pauline letters. Nonetheless, Roman provenance for all four still remains most probable. For while Paul in Philippians, for example, is awaiting a judgment that could issue in either life or death - and while he hopes for a judgment in his favor - his words also reflect a realization that he is at a point where no higher appeal can be made (Phil. 1:20-30), which would have been true only at Rome.
Philippians is a letter of `praise, thanksgiving, and instruction" addressed to one of Paul's best churches. It urges its readers to hold fast and reaffirm their Christian commitment in light of apparent opposition, persecution, and internal strife at Philippi. Intertwined throughout the letter are ethical teachings for Christians who find themselves in a hostile environment (1:27-2:18; 3:12-4:9) coupled with statements about Christian teachers there who opposed Paul (1:15-18; 3:2-11). Paul bases his pastoral instructions on the Christ-hymn of 2:6-11. In all of their thinking and actions, they are to follow the pattern set by Christ in his incarnation (2:6-8), which will lead to God's vindication (vv. 9-11) - a pattern expressed by Timothy and Epaphroditus (vv. 19-3o) and accepted by Paul himself (3:4-14, 17).
Colossians and Ephesians are often viewed as pseudepigraphical writings (perhaps by disciples of Paul) because of their distinctive vocabulary and style, absence of some themes found in such earlier Pauline letters as Galatians and Romans, and developments in Christology, ecclesiology, and ethics. See "The Question of Pseudepigraphy" (685-86).
Colossians was written to a church founded by Epaphras, one of Paul's converts (1:7; 4:12). It speaks against some type of "deceptive philosophy" advocated by someone within the Colossian congregation (2:8) and counters that teaching, which in effect relegated Christ's work to only some first stage of God's redemptive activity. The letter defuses and "re-baptizes" many of the gnostic expressions used by the false teacher himself and/or the worldview that he espoused (cf. 1a5-20).
Ephesians was probably originally written as a homily or tractate to be sent out widely to churches in western Asia Minor - with the copy delivered to Ephesus preserved in the early Christian canon. Its language is very similar to that of Colossians, and so these two writings must always be related. In Ephesians, however, the language, themes, and theology are directed more to universal teaching - Christ's victory over the evil powers, overcoming the separation between Christians and Jews - rather than simply countering some false teaching.
Philemon is a personal letter of recommendation on behalf of the slave Onesimus, who had become a Christian through Paul's ministry while in prison. It is associated with Colossians by its closing greetings (vv 23-24; Col. 4:10-14). The letter eloquently expresses an important facet of the social dimension of Paul's proclamation of new life and freedom "in Christ" - asking that Philemon receive back his runaway slave Onesimus as both "a person" and "a believer"
The Pastoral Epistles - 1-2 Timothy and Titus - are commonly identified as New Testament pseudepigraphy. Yet assuming the release of Paul from an earlier imprisonment at Rome, his further ministry in the eastern Roman Empire, and his final imprisonment and martyrdom at Rome - and allowing for greater freedom on the part of his secretary - these letters can be credited to Paul and dated somewhere in the mid-6os. 1 Timothy and Titus are probably to be compared to letters from a ruler or senior official to a newly commissioned delegate and the community to which he is dispatched. The instructions regarding worship and exhortations regarding ethics are evidently applications of the gospel message directed against a particular opposition encountered later in the church's history. 2 Timothy is primarily a farewell discourse with epistolary features.
The Jewish Christian Epistles
The remaining New Testament letters are Hebrews and the seven Catholic or General Epistles, so identified first by Eusebius (ca. 325) on the assumption that they were addressed to a more "universal" audience than Paul's letters. While these eight writings are basically epistolary in form, some are probably better understood as sermons or homilies with appended epistolary features, others as tractates or teaching epistles, and in only a few cases as true letters.
It is probably truer to say that Paul's letters, though addressed to specific churches and particular individuals, had a wide circulation within the Western church, which was almost entirely Gentile, whereas Hebrews and the Catholic Epistles circulated primarily within the more limited circles of Jewish Christians - as well as, to some extent, in certain areas of the Eastern church of Gentile Christendom. The latter seven were probably viewed among Jewish Christians as expressing the characteristic teachings of the earliest leaders of the Jerusalem church, similar to the Jewish practice of compiling the teachings of important rabbis. At any rate, they seem to have been largely unknown among Gentile Christians of the Western church during the first two or three centuries.
External Evidence Marcion's canon (140) makes no reference to these epistles - probably no surprise in view of his antagonism to everything Jewish. The Muratorian Canon (ca. 180-200), while mentioning "an epistle of Jude" and "two ascribed to John" as "accepted in the Catholic church," does not mention Hebrews, James, 1-2 Peter, or 3 John. This may be because the Muratorian Canon is fragmentary, defective at both its beginning and end, but it is inconceivable that these books would have been listed before the Gospels. Nor would they have been mentioned after the writings of such heretical teachers as Arsinoes, Valentinus, Metiades, Basilides, and Assianus, with which the fragment ends.
Hebrews was known and attributed to Paul in the Eastern church from at least the late 2nd century. Its Greek style, syntax, and vocabulary, however, were early recognized to be non-Pauline, and so usually treated as "translation Greek" by someone other than Paul. Eusebius accepted Hebrews as canonical, even though he acknowledged that the Roman church denied Pauline authorship. So did the canons of Cyril of Jerusalem (35o), Athanasius (367), and Gregory Nazianzus (400). In the Western church, however, the omission of Hebrews in the Muratorian Canon is continued in the Latin list of canonical writings in Codex Claromontanus (300) and the African canon (360). Hebrews finally won a place in Western Christendom through the efforts of Hilary, Jerome, and Augustine, and so appears in the canonical lists of the councils of Hippo and Carthage in North Africa and was accepted by the Syrian church.
The first Jewish-Christian letters to receive general acceptance within the entire church were 1 John and 1 Peter. Both seem to have been known by Papias in the early 2nd century. Jude appears in the Muratorian Canon as the first of three Catholic Epistles accepted by the church at the end of the 3rd century, together with two letters of John. James was known by Origen's time, but we do not know when it was first considered canonical. Irenaeus cites 2 John, and the Muratorian Canon evidently refers to 1 and 2 John. But there is no evidence for the early circulation of 3 John. While 2 Peter is acknowledged as extant by Origen's time, Origen himself is quoted by Eusebius as saying that Peter left "one acknowledged epistle and possibly two, although this is doubtful"
The situation in the early church was similar to that within Second Temple Judaism in determining the canon of the Jewish Scriptures. Whereas the Law and the Prophets had early fixed status, the closing of the canon with respect to the Writings continued to be debated throughout the ist century A.D. Likewise, whereas the Gospels and Pauline corpus early took their place as authoritative, Hebrews, the Catholic Epistles, and the Johannine Apocalypse (Revelation) continued to be disputed in many quarters of Christendom until the 4th century. The uncertainty was finally settled in the Eastern church only by Athanasius's 39th Easter Festal Letter (367), which presented a firmly delineated New Testament canon that included these books - with that canon then accepted within the Western church through the efforts of such leading Latin church fathers of the late 4th and early 5th centuries as Hilary, Jerome, and Augustine.
Contents Other than a standard epistolary subscription or closing (13:22-25), Hebrews is in form a homily or sermon. It argues that Jewish believers in Jesus are to recognize the superiority of Jesus over angelic mediation, the Mosaic law, the land of Palestine, the Aaronic priesthood, the Melchizedekian priesthood, the tabernacle in the wilderness (and so the Jerusalem temple), the Old Testament sacrificial system, and even God's covenant with his people - now fulfilled in Jesus' relations with God's people. Believers in Jesus are to be people of faith prepared to suffer persecution, not just to hold on to past traditions and seek freedom from opposition. They must focus on Jesus and "the city to come" and be ready to move forward with God, rearranging their commitments in terms of the superiority of Jesus and leaving, if need be, their former situations of security. Obviously the writer felt at home in the Scriptures, particularly the Pentateuch and Psalms. From the Pentateuch he drew the basic structure of his thought regarding redemptive history, while from the Psalms he derived primary support for his Christology.
James consists of various pastoral admonitions, mainly ethical in nature. These seem to be grouped into longer and then shorter sets, interspersed at times with individual sayings. The writing begins with a salutation but does not include any other features typical of ancient letters. Rather, it appears to be a compendium of sermonic material or an ethical tractate, taken to be representative of James, the leader of the Jerusalem church - and so sent out to Jewish believers in Jesus scattered throughout the Jewish Diaspora but considered an extension of the ministry of the Jerusalem church.
1 Peter is a homily in letter form. It speaks of suffering as a possibility (1:3-4:11) and a present condition (4:12-5:11). Probably the first section should be seen as a compilation of Petrine sermonic and catechetical material, to which has been added a salutation (1:1-2), exhortations regarding the present suffering (4:12-5:11), and a closing personal subscription (5:12-14). In the form sent out to believers in the five provinces of northern Asia Minor and preserved in the New Testament, the work is genuinely a letter. But in that it incorporates earlier material representative of Peter's preaching and teaching - perhaps even an early baptismal hymn (3:18-22), it also has the character of a sermon or tractate.
1 John is not in the form of a letter but instead appears to be a tractate. 2 and 3 John, however, exhibit the usual features of an ancient letter. Probably 1 John should be viewed as a compendium of Johannine teaching, with 2 and 3 John serving as letters addressing two specific situations.
Both 2 Peter and Jude exhibit features associated with ancient letters. 2 Peter is a farewell discourse with epistolary features. Its theological warnings and literary style evidence decided differences from what appears in 1 Peter. Many of those differences may be explained by the fact of Silas's having aided in the composition of 1 Peter (cf. 5:12), while 2 Peter makes no such suggestion and may only indicate how Peter himself wrote without secretarial help. Jude, "a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James," was also a leader in the Jerusalem church, so there would have been a desire among Jewish Christians to have also a collection of his preaching and teaching. His concerns are very much like those of 2 Peter, with both letters evidencing a great deal of nonconformist Jewish thinking that had been taken into the writers' new Christian commitments.
FOR FURTHER READING
RICHARD N. LONGENECKER
Ancient Letter Writing
Study of the 21 New Testament letters in the light of the practice of letter writing in the 1st century A.D. enhances our ability to understand the structure and meaning of these texts. One way to categorize 1st-century letters is to distinguish between real, private, personal letters and artificial, public, literary epistles. Real letters were written to specific people in response to specific occasions. Many volumes of Hellenistic papyrus letters provide ample illustrations of real letters in the New Testament era. Ancient handbooks on epistolary theory also provide descriptions of a wide variety of specific types of letters, such as letters of friendship, recommendation, rebuke, request, information, instruction, consolation, thanksgiving, apology, introduction, and invitation. Artificial letters were written as literary essays for the general public. The epistolary forms attached to these essays function merely as external brackets and are not integrally
related to the content of the essays. The literary epistles of Plato, Cicero, and Seneca are examples of philosophical and moral essays with epistolary forms tacked on. Recognizing these two categories of ancient letters, real letters and essay letters, helps us to categorize the New Testament letters along the same lines.
The 13 Pauline letters can be categorized as real letters, since they were written in the context of very personal relationships in response to specific occasions. In some ways, Paul's letters differ from other 1st-century letters: most ancient letters are addressed to another individual and are relatively short; the letters of Paul addressed to churches are more public than private and are extended by autobiographical and theological excursions. Nevertheless, Paul's letters are remarkably similar to different types of ancient letters. Although Paul's letters are not pure models of the letter
types described in the handbooks and illustrated in the papyri, it is enlightening to observe the similarity of 1 Corinthians to a letter of response and instruction; of Galatians to a letter of rebuke and request; of Philippians to a letter of friendship and thanksgiving; and of Philemon to a letter of recommendation.
Rolled and sealed papyrus letter. (bpk, Berlin /Aegyptisches Museum, Berlin /Art Resource, NY)
With significant adaptations and additions, the form of Paul's letters is similar to the conventional form of ancient letters. The basic elements of the standard form and the common Pauline modifications are as follows:
The salutation includes the name of the sender, the name of the recipient, greetings, and usually a good health wish. Paul usually inserted titles for himself (apostle, servant) and for his readers (saints, in Christ, church). Short theological additions telegraph the emphasis of the letter. For example, mention of liberation from the present evil age (Gal. 1:4) points to the theme of freedom in Christ. Paul always combined the usual Greek greeting with a common Jewish greeting in his benediction of "grace and peace."
Ceramic inkwell from Qumran; ca. A.U. 50. (Richard Cleave, Pictorial Archive)
The body of the letter is introduced and structured by the use of standard formulas. Paul altered the typical Greek custom of beginning a letter with a thanksgiving to the gods by expressing his thanksgiving to God the Father of Jesus Christ for his readers. Paul's thanksgiving paragraphs introduce the main themes of the letter. Paul omitted any thanksgiving but used a common expression of rebuke to begin his letter to the Galatians. Some kind of disclosure formula ("I want you to know") usually signals
the transition to the main body of the letter. Other conventional statements found both in ancient letters and Paul's letters include an expression of joy or grief, a request, a notification of a coming visit, a reference to writing, and an expression of reassurance or responsibility. Such statements indicate transitions in the body of the letter. Paul introduced his ethical instruction with a traditional request formula, such as "I beg of you" (Rom. 12:1).
The closing of the letter expresses greetings to individuals other than the addressees, a health wish, a final prayer, or farewell. Often Greek papyrus letters ended with a subscription written in the author's own hand, distinguished from the hand of the amanuensis (secretary), to summarize the main point of the letter. Paul employed this common practice as well (Gal. 6:11).
Besides the Greek letter tradition, Paul's letters include many other literary traditions, such as diatribe, hymns, household codes, creedal confessions, and benedictions. But the basic form of his letters is derived from the form of real, personal ancient letters. In addition to Paul's letters, 2 Peter, 2 and 3 John, and Jude may also be included in the category of real letters.
Hebrews, James, 1 Peter, and
1 John are essays, not real letters. Some features of letters may be found in these books, such as the final greetings in Hebrews and the opening greetings in James and 1 Peter. But these books should be classified as representative samples of the preaching and teaching of the early church. Revelation contains letters, but the book as a whole is an apocalypse, not a real letter.
For Further Reading
Light from Ancient Letters. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1986.
G. WALTER HANSEN