He begins with an introduction which covers the origins and authorship of colossians, philemon and ephesians with particular focus on the geography of asia minor. Thus this section can be read as a good representative of the nonpauline authorship position. This point is established by strong evidence, both internal and external. Ephesians paul 61 ad philippians paul 61 ad colossians paul 61 ad 1 thessalonians paul 50 ad 2 thessalonians paul 52 ad 1 timothy paul 62 ad 2 timothy paul 64 ad titus paul 62 ad philemon paul 62 ad hebrews uncertain, paul. The fact remains, however, that the epistles pauline authorship was not questioned at all it would. Authorship the pauline authorship of ephesians is clearly affirmed in the text 1. Early sources in church history that attribute this letter to paul include. Some general comments about the book of revelation and its uniqueness. I think this is mistaken and i find the arguments in favor of pseudonymity to be seriously unconvincing. A common proposal is that paul wrote the letter to the colossians to deal with. The book of ephesians grace given and grace applied an introduction and outline authorship. Bruces study of the epistles to the colossians, to philemon, and to the ephesians constitute a single volume in the new international commentary on the new testament. The name paul appears in thirteen epistles, but is he the real author. The letter to the ephesians provokes interpretive questions of authorship, audience, date, occasion, and purpose of writing.
If such is truly the case, then paul wrote ephesians around 6163 a. Porter, pauline authorship and the pastoral epistles. Dec, 2008 ephesians is a profound book, and our own dr. In fact, it has been said that 54 of the 155 verses in ephesians are similar to verses found in colossians. Karl barth on the authorship of ephesians and colossians. Pdf the name paul appears in epistles, but is he the real author. It appears more likely that it refers to christs incarnation and cruci. Yet the book is rarely accepted in nonevangelical circles today. For a defense of the pauline authorship of ephesians, see ephesians.
The clear external evidence pointing to paul as the author of ephesians places the burden of proof on contrary hypotheses. Sprouls work, the following are five of the most helpful commentaries on the book of ephesians. Wright gave an overview of ephesians in two addresses. An exegetical commentary by harold hoehner, pp 261. Talbert does not narrow down the date other than to suggest a range. However, the similarities between ephesians and colossians have led most scholars to. Its authorship has traditionally been attributed to paul the apostle but starting in 1792, this has been challenged as deuteropauline, that is, written in pauls name by a later author strongly influenced by pauls thought, probably by a loyal. The argument of vocabulary seems plausible at best. The letter to the ephesian church is regarded as one of the masterworks of the nt, but it is also one of those books that the critics like to say wasnt authored by paul. Colossians, ephesians, philippians and philemon ibiblio. We will investigate pauls audience in two parts, turning first to his primary audience, namely the church in ephesus, and then to his secondary audience, especially the churches of the lycus valley. Ephesians places the burden of proof on contrary hypotheses. The two main positions among scholars are 1 that the apostle paul himself is the author of the letter and 2 that ephesians is pseudonymous, written in pauls.
Some of the arguments against the authorship of ephesians go as follows. A commentary on the epistle to the ephesians pdf ebook. As mentioned previously, paul wrote this letter to the church in colosse during his roman imprisonment around ad 6062. Paul had spent nearly three years in ephesus acts 19. Such years must on average be hoehner then delves into the text of ephesians verse by verse, ephesians hoehner pdf download, offering the greek text, english translation, and detailed commentary. The word biblical commentary delivers the best in biblical scholarship, from the leading scholars of our day who share a commitment to scripture as divine revelation. Brackets are used in this commentary in the bible text to indicate. Ephesians, volume 42 word biblical commentary free books.
Books of the bible, authors and dates of writing bible book. Objections to pauls authorship the first objections to pauls authorship of ephesians arose among scripture scholars in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century on the basis of internal evidence, that is, content that seemed inconsistent with pauls authorship. The traditional view is that paul is the author as is claimed. Prepared by some of the worlds leading scholars, the series provides an exposition of the new testament books that is thorough and scholarly while faithful to the. Click download or read online button to get a commentary on ephesians book now. Having looked at pauls authorship, we should turn our attention to the original audience of the letter to the ephesians. Author the apostle paul, the author of ephesians, is one of the most towering figures in the history of the world. May 22, 2012 the scholarly consensus on the authorship of ephesians is that paul did not write it. Pauline authorship of ephesians was universally accepted until modern times.
Its authorship, origin and purpose, published in 1951, in which he basically agreed with goodspeeds hypothesis. The authorship and destination of ephesians citeseerx. I recommend this volume to anyone who is not familiar with the basic themes of this epistle. Ephesians 1 1paul, an apostle of christ jesus by the will of god, to the saints who are in ephesus, and are faithfula in christ jesus. This volume in the pillar new testament commentary series provides a rich exposition of ephesians, one of the most significant documents ever written. Ephesians is written by the same author who seems not to be paul. Today a number of scholars claim that it was written in pauls name by an unknown follower or imitator of paul, and they give two. It is the most detailed english commentary on the greek text of ephesians. The epistles to the colossians, to philemon, and to the. However, to balance the approach here one should consult another volume for arguments in favor of authenticity such as harold w. Nov 27, 2009 when it comes to the authorship of ephesians, my stance at this point is that it is in fact written by paul as is stated in ephesians 1. If you compare for instance the number of hapax legomenon, words found only once in paul, there are a great many more in ephesians than you would find in romans or 1 and 2 corinthians. It makes perfect sense that some of his letters differ in style and vocabulary usage.
The essence of goodspeeds theory is that toward the end of the first century pauls letters were collected, and ephesians was written by. The book of ephesians grace given and grace applied an. Constables notes on ephesians 2020 edition for some interpreters, the reference in 2 timothy 4. This series emphasizes a thorough analysis of textual, linguistic, structural, and theological evidence. In fact, pauline authorship was not questioned until the late 18 th century. Acts 19, but may have been intended as a circular letter to be read by neighboring churches. Ephesians our blessings in christ importance this epistle was evidently addressed to the church in ephesus cf. The letter has the most to say about the universal church and lacks the sort of specific problems which form the occasion for each of the previous letter of paul. The vision which opens the book and the verse that organizes it.
If the variant reading proton, first descended, is rejected, a case can be made for the descent to follow the ascent, i. Letters romans, 1 and 2 corinthians, galatians, ephesians, philippians, colossians, 1 and. The arguments which have been made against it since that time, as identified in obriens commentary, are as follows. The church has long accepted that paul was the author of the letter to the ephesians. Pdf authorship of pauline epistles revisited researchgate. Sproul has himself written a very helpful introductory level commentary on it titled the purpose of god. He also discusses the jewish community and the theological issues brought out in these books. Since march 5 is a month too early to be nisan 1, if we still want to explore bc as a possible starting date for the 69 weeks, we need to try starting. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want.
Vocabulary and stylealmost 100 words and phrases in ephesians are not found elsewhere in paul. The indication is that the epistles to the colossians, philemon and the ephesians were carried to their destination by tychicus and onesimus cf. Implications for canon, bulletin for biblical research 5 1995. Obrien from a foremost authority on the new testament comes a major new commentary on ephesians a letter of truth, love, and unity to our superficial world. It isnt easy, however, to find sane discussions of this issue. The epistle to the ephesians introduction author the apostle paul 1. We should rejoice and take comfort and also thank god, who has called such a glorious.
Unlike other books like romans or 1 and 2 corinthians which are undisputedly pauline, it has been debated whether ephesians and colossians along with 2 thes. Irenaeus explicitly identifies paul as the author of ephesians, as does marcion. Biblical scholars are divided over the authorship of ephesians and colossians. Ephesians towers over pauls thirteen known epistles in its exaltation of the glory of god and his grace toward the church. Interacting critically with this intense debate, lynn cohick provides an exegetically astute analysis of the six chapters of ephesians. Therefore, prior to carefully exegeting ephesians, it is important to gain an understanding of the epistles authorship, its recipients, its historical background, and its themes and central message. The ephesian letter doctrinally considered by lewis sperry chafer 1935 contents dedication preface section one ephesians 1. This would further seem to suggest, as i have believed, that not only did paul write the book of colossians, but that he wrote colossians before writing the book. Answering bible contradictions, misunderstandings, and misinterpretations. Biblical interpretation is a rational and spiritual process that attempts to understand an ancient. The implications for the question of the authorship on pauls theology are extensively explored. Download fulltext pdf authorship of pauline epistles revisited article pdf available in journal of the association for information science and technology january 2019 with 551 reads. Martin luther called him the wisest man after christ10 and thanked god for sending him as an apostle to the gentiles. Goodspeeds epochmaking book, the meaning of ephesians.
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