New Testament · History · book 44 of 66 · 2 min read
The book of Acts
The second volume of Luke, tracking a Jewish renewal movement becoming a Gentile church, and ending mid-sentence with Paul under house arrest.
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. You will be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth.”
At a glance
- Chapters
- 28
- Author
- The author of Luke
- Written
- Probably 80s AD
- Written for
- Theophilus again, and a church working out what it is
- Themes
- the Spirit, expansion, inclusion, witness
What it is about
Acts follows the church from Jerusalem outward, and its structure follows the programme stated in its first chapter: Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth. The first half belongs to Peter, the second to Paul.
The central conflict is not persecution but inclusion. Chapter 10, with Peter and Cornelius, and chapter 15, the council in Jerusalem, are the hinges: can non-Jews belong without becoming Jews first? The answer transforms the movement.
It ends without an ending. Paul is under house arrest in Rome, preaching without hindrance, and the book stops. Whether that is a literary choice or the point at which the author was writing has been argued for centuries.
Where to start
Chapter 2 for Pentecost, then chapter 15 for the council that decided what the church would be.
The chapters worth knowing
- Acts 2 — Pentecost, and the sermon that quotes Joel to explain what is happening.
- Acts 10 — Peter and Cornelius, where the question of Gentile inclusion is forced by a vision.
- Acts 15 — The Jerusalem council, which decides what the church will be.
What people get wrong about it
That it is a book about miracles and preaching. Its main argument is about membership — whether Gentiles could belong without becoming Jews — and that question drives most of its plot.
Questions
What is the book of Acts about?
The first decades of the church, from Pentecost to Paul in Rome, organised around the spread from Jerusalem outward and the question of whether Gentiles could belong without converting to Judaism first.
Why does Acts end so suddenly?
Paul is under house arrest and the narrative simply stops. Explanations range from the author writing at that moment to a deliberate ending on an unfinished mission; the text gives no signal either way.