[00:00:01] The Acts of the Apostles for further reading by Bart Ehrman now that I've devoted two posts to the major sine qua non of the Book of Acts, one that lays out its major themes and emphases the other that deals with who wrote it, when and why, I can provide some suggestions for further reading important works written by scholars for non scholars. I've given brief annotations for each book to give you a sense of what it's about and so help you to decide which, if any, might be worth your while.
[00:00:30] I've divided this list into three sections. Firstly, there are books that provide important discussion on Luke in general or with respect to a particularly key topic.
[00:00:41] Next, there's commentaries that give lengthy introductions to all matters of importance about the Book of Acts and then go passage by passage to provide more detailed interpretation. That's where you can dig more deeply into what what does this particular word actually mean? Or what's the real point of this passage?
[00:00:59] Or how does this passage relate to what Luke says elsewhere in his two volume work? Or to what we can find in other parts of the New Testament? Or where do we find similar ideas expressed in other writings in the Greek and Roman worlds, whether pagan or Jewish? And so on. And then there's online resources. This is a good, reliable one if you turn to other materials online. Caveat Emptor and since online there is no mtoring you, you need to caveat with particular diligence.
[00:01:28] I've taken the first two categories from my chapter on Acts in Bart Ehrman and Hugo Mendez, the New A Historical Introduction to Early Christian Writings that was published in New York by Oxford University Press in 2024 and it's on page 336.
[00:01:44] That chapter might be a good place for you to start if you want an overview much more extensive than I provided in these couple of posts. If you have an older edition of my book, it will work just as well since we have not changed it much for this edition.
[00:01:58] So booked on Acts or Luke Acts Cadbury the Making of Luke Acts 2nd Edition was published by SPCK in 1968. This is a classic study that shows how the author of Luke and Acts used the traditions and sources at his disposal to produce a unified narrative. It's for advanced students.
[00:02:19] Philip F. Esler wrote Community and Gospel in the Social and Political Motivations of Luke and Theology that was published by Cambridge University Press in 1987. It's a study of Luke Acts from the perspective of the social sciences that shows the relationship between the theological perspectives of these books and the sociopolitical context of the author and his community. Again, it's for advanced students.
[00:02:45] Martin Hengel wrote Acts and the History of Earliest Christianity, and it was translated by J. Bowden, who was published in 1980 by Fortress Press. It's a detailed study for advanced students that argues, in contrast to this chapter, that the Book of Acts for the most part presents a historically reliable account.
[00:03:07] Donald Jewell wrote Luke Act's The Promise of History that was published in 1983 by John Knox.
[00:03:14] A clearly written discussion of the background of Luke Acts and its overarching themes, it's ideal for beginning students.
[00:03:23] R. Maddox wrote the Purpose of Luke Acts, and this was published in 1982 by T. & T. Clarke. It's an intelligent and incisive discussion of the prominent themes and the major emphases of Luke and Acts.
[00:03:37] Leander E. Keck and J. Louis Martin edited Studies in Luke Acts, which was published by Abingdon in 1966.
[00:03:46] It's a superb collection of significant essays on Luke and Acts. Especially important is P. Felhauer, who wrote Paulinism in acts. That's pages 35 to 50, a classic study that mounts convincing arguments that the portrayal of Paul in Acts does not coincide with Paul's portrayal of himself.
[00:04:07] Mikhail Carl Parsons and Richard I. Purvo wrote Rethinking the Unity of Luke and Acts. This was published in 1993 by Fortress, and it's an interesting study by two prominent New Testament literary critics who reopened the question of whether Luke Acts should be read as a single work.
[00:04:26] Richard Purvo also wrote the Mystery of Acts Unraveling Its Story. This is published by Paul bridge Press in 2008. It's a lively and an interesting book for beginning students that covers most of the important critical issues related to Acts and that advances a skeptical view of its historical reliability.
[00:04:46] M.A. powell wrote what are they saying about Acts? This was published by Paulist in 1991. It's an overview of modern scholarship on the Book of Acts, and it's for beginning students.
[00:04:59] Finally, BP Reardon edited Collected Ancient Greek Novels. The second edition was published by the University of California Press in 2008. It's a very nice collection of all the ancient Greek novels, and it's useful for comparison with the Book of Acts for those who think that it contains novelistic features.
[00:05:20] Among commentaries, there's Joseph A. Fitzmayer's the Acts of the Apostles, a new translation with an introduction and commentary published by Anchor Yale Biblical Commentaries, Yale University Press in 2007. It's a standard academic commentary on Acts and then Mikhail C. Parsons wrote the Acts of the Apostles and this is published by Baker academic press in 2008 and it's an excellent and accessible commentary for students and among online resources. Unsurprisingly, there is by Bart Ehrman the Genius of the Book of Acts. This is an eight lecture course delivered before a live audience with two extended question and answer sessions and additional reading materials covering the major aspects of the Book of Acts from perspectives both literary, discussing its themes and emphases, and historical considering its historical reliability, especially in relation to Paul, you can access it as part of a membership in the Biblical Studies Academy or as a standalone
[email protected] there's also Hugo Mendez course the New Testament Exploring the Christian Bible. This is a 13 week course. It's 2750 minute lectures each with a question and answer session by Hugo Mendez, who's an Associate professor of New Testament and early Christianity at Uncle and a co author of the 8th edition of my textbook on the New Testament.
[00:06:48] Hugo is one of the leading scholars on the Gospel of John in the world today.
[00:06:53] His course, of course, deals with all four of our Gospels. You can access it as part of a membership in the Biblical Studies Academy or as a standalone course.
