who wrote the gospel of luke and acts?. outline: thesis: the gospel of luke was written by paul’s...

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Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?

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Page 1: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?

Page 2: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Outline:

Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke.External EvidenceInternal EvidenceConclusion

Page 3: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

External Evidence

Page 4: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Manuscripts (Copies) of Luke

Page 5: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Manuscripts of Luke

All copies of Luke attribute the Gospel to Luke.

There are no copies bearing the names of any other apostle, or associate of the apostles.

Page 6: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Colossians 4:14:

“Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas greet you.”

Page 7: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Church Fathers’ Testimonies

Page 8: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Irenaeus (2nd Century C.E.):

“Luke also, the companion of Paul, recorded in a book the Gospel preached by him.”—Against Heresies Book 3, Chapter 1, Section 1

Page 9: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

The Muratorian Fragment (2nd Century C.E.):

“The third book of the Gospel is that according to Luke. Luke, the well-known physician, after the ascension of Christ, when Paul had taken him with him as one zealous for the law, composed it in his own name, according to [the general] belief.”—In Bruce M. Metzger, The Canon of the New Testament (New York: Oxford University Press, 1997), 305-306.

Page 10: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Tertullian (2nd and 3rd Centuries C.E.):

“For even Luke's form of the Gospel men usually ascribe to Paul.”—Against Marcion Book 4, Chapter 5

Page 11: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Eusebius (4th Century C.E.):

“But as for Luke, in the beginning of his Gospel, he states himself the reasons which led him to write it. He states that since many others had more rashly undertaken to compose a narrative of the events of which he had acquired perfect knowledge, he himself, feeling the necessity….

Page 12: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Eusebius Continues:

…of freeing us from their uncertain opinions, delivered in his own Gospel an accurate account of those events in regard to which he had learned the full truth, being aided by his intimacy and his stay with Paul and by his acquaintance with the rest of the apostles.”—Church History, Book 3, Chapter 24, Section 15

Page 13: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Internal Evidence

Page 14: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Luke’s Two Volumes:

The same author wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts.

Page 15: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Luke 1:3-4:

“I too decided, after investigating everything carefully from the very first,* to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed.”

Page 16: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Acts 1:1:

“In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning...”

Page 17: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Luke’s Second Volume

The first-person “we” passages.

The contents of Acts correspond with many contents in Paul’s letters, which virtually all skeptical scholars consider to be early sources.

Page 18: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Some of the “We” Passages

Page 19: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Acts 16:10-13:

“When he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to cross over to Macedonia, being convinced that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them. We set sail from Troas and took a straight course to Samothrace, the following day to Neapolis,…

Page 20: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Acts 16:10-13 Continued:

…and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city for some days. On the sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where we supposed there was a place of prayer; and we sat down and spoke to the women who had gathered there.”

Page 21: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Acts 20:5-8:“They went ahead and were waiting for us in Troas; but we sailed from Philippi after the days of Unleavened Bread, and in five days we joined them in Troas, where we stayed for seven days….

Page 22: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Acts 20:5-8 Continued…

…On the first day of the week, when we met to break bread, Paul was holding a discussion with them; since he intended to leave the next day, he continued speaking until midnight. There were many lamps in the room upstairs where we were meeting.”

Page 23: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Acts 27:1-3:

“When it was decided that we were to sail for Italy, they transferred Paul and some other prisoners to a centurion of the Augustan Cohort, named Julius. Embarking on a ship of Adramyttium that was about to set sail to the ports along the coast of Asia,…

Page 24: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Acts 27:1-3:

…we put to sea, accompanied by Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica. The next day we put in at Sidon; and Julius treated Paul kindly, and allowed him to go to his friends to be cared for.”

Page 25: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Parallels With Paul’s Letters:

Christian communities were also in existence outside Jerusalem, especially in Judea, at a very early date (Acts 9:31; 1 Thess 2:14; Gal. 1:22).

Paul fled secretly from Damascus after escaping over the wall (Acts 9:23-25; 2 Cor 11:32-33).

Page 26: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Parallels With Paul’s Letters:

The resurrection of Jesus was at the core of Christian proclamation (Acts 1:22; 2:32; 3:15; 5:30; 1 Cor 15:14, 17).

Paul and other apostles reportedly performed miracles (Acts 3:1-10; 5:12; 20:9-11; Rom. 15:19; 2 Cor. 12:12).

Page 27: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Amazing Accuracy in Acts

Page 28: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Amazing Accuracy in Acts:

On pages 107-158 of his book titled The Book of Acts in the Setting of Hellenistic History, the classical historian Colin Hemer catalogs more than 150 examples of Luke’s accuracy in Acts.

Page 29: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Amazing Accuracy in Acts:13:4-5 A natural crossing between correctly named ports is indicated. Mt. Casius, which is south of Seleucia, is within sight of Cyprus.

13:7 correctly shows Cyprus as a proconsular (senatorial) province at this time, with the proconsul resident at Paphos.

16:11 Samothrace was a conspicuous sailor’s landmark, dominated by a 5,000 foot mountain.

Page 30: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Amazing Accuracy in Acts:

16:12 Philippi is correctly described as a Roman colony, as abundantly attested in Latin inscriptions, with the explicit titles and magistracies of a colony, the grant having been made by Octavian after the battle in 42 B.C.

Page 31: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Amazing Accuracy in Acts:16:11 Philipi’s seaport is correctly named Neapolis.

19:9 The name ‘Tyrannus’ is attested from Ephesus in first century inscriptions. 27:8 The locations of ‘Fair Havens’ (a port) and the neighboring site of Lasea are well attested, though obscure places unlikely to be known to any who had not made such a voyage.

Page 32: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Luke’s Knowledge of Local Weather Patterns:

28:2 The note of the persistent storm wind ending in cold rain was common on the island called Malta.

All of this data is what one would expect from someone who traveled frequently, such as a traveling companion of Paul on Paul’s journeys (Remember the “we” passages).

Page 33: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Archaeology Supports Luke

Page 34: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

The Testimony of theThe Testimony of the StonesStones The Testimony of theThe Testimony of the StonesStones No archaeological No archaeological evidence has ever evidence has ever refuted the Bible.refuted the Bible.

Thousands of Thousands of archaeological finds archaeological finds

support the Bible.support the Bible.

No archaeological No archaeological evidence has ever evidence has ever refuted the Bible.refuted the Bible.

Thousands of Thousands of archaeological finds archaeological finds

support the Bible.support the Bible.

Page 35: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Some Archaeological Some Archaeological Evidence Relating to Evidence Relating to JesusJesus

Some Archaeological Some Archaeological Evidence Relating to Evidence Relating to JesusJesus

Jesus’s Home TownJesus’s Home Town--Excavation at Nazareth--Excavation at Nazareth Pilate InscriptionPilate Inscription--Pontius Pilate’s name in stone (1st --Pontius Pilate’s name in stone (1st cent.).cent.).Caiaphas InscriptionCaiaphas Inscription--High Priest of Jesus’ time (1st --High Priest of Jesus’ time (1st cent.). cent.). YohananYohanan--a Crucifixion Victim from c. A.D. 70 (found --a Crucifixion Victim from c. A.D. 70 (found 1968).1968).

Jesus’s Home TownJesus’s Home Town--Excavation at Nazareth--Excavation at Nazareth Pilate InscriptionPilate Inscription--Pontius Pilate’s name in stone (1st --Pontius Pilate’s name in stone (1st cent.).cent.).Caiaphas InscriptionCaiaphas Inscription--High Priest of Jesus’ time (1st --High Priest of Jesus’ time (1st cent.). cent.). YohananYohanan--a Crucifixion Victim from c. A.D. 70 (found --a Crucifixion Victim from c. A.D. 70 (found 1968).1968).

Page 36: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Jesus’s Hometown: Nazareth

Page 37: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

“Pontius Pilate Prefect of Judea” 26-37 A.D. (Discovered 1961)

Page 38: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Ossuary of Joseph Caiaphas: High Priest 18-36 A.D.

(Discovered 1990)

Page 39: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Crucifixion Victim 1st Century A.D. (Discovered in Jerusalem)

Page 40: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Site of an Empty Tomb like Jesus’s Tomb

Page 41: Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts?. Outline: Thesis: The Gospel of Luke was written by Paul’s companion, Luke. External Evidence Internal Evidence

Conclusion:Luke is not anonymous.

External and internal evidence both indicate that Paul’s traveling companion, Luke, authored Luke and Acts.

If Acts was written by Luke, the companion of the apostle Paul, it brings us right to the apostolic circle—those who participated in the events reported.