Customer Reviews

The Acts of the Apostles (Sacra Pagina Series, Vol. 5)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Gospel of Luke and The Acts of the Apostles, jointly called Luke-Acts, have long been recognized as the single work in two volumes of an author with a distinctive understanding of the origins of Christianity. This commentary on Acts by Timothy Luke Johnson follows his commentary on the Gospel, published a year earlier in the same series, and must be read with it to fully appreciate his effort.

My review of Johnson's commentary on the Gospel (Sacra Pagina Volume 3) applies to both volumes. There is no need in repeat in detail here what you will find there. Briefly, Johnson has treated the two NT books as one literary unit and has used narrative analysis in his study in preference to historical investigation. He demonstrates that the overarching theme controlling both books is God's fidelity to his promises and his people, and that a prophetic structure dominates the narrative from beginning to end. Acts 1-7 is critical to his interpretation of the whole, both the Gospel story and its continuation in Acts. "The critical questions are posed and answered in these chapters. However lengthy, detailed, or fascinating the remainder of the Acts narrative may be, in dramatic terms it must be considered strictly denouement." (p. 14.)

The commentary format is the same as that of the Gospel. An additional feature of the notes is the inclusion of citations from the so-called "Western Text" of Acts, considered by Johnson to be (most likely) "an unusually sustained scribal redaction." At times it is useful in showing how Acts was understood at an early date.

Neither this summary nor the longer review of the Gospel commentary can possibly do justice to Johnson's attention to detail in the notes, his presentation of known Lukan themes, and his well thought-out interpretations. When the two commentaries are taken together, as they should be, they add up to more than the 4-star rating of each might suggest.

Luke Timothy Johnson is an outstanding Catholic biblical scholar with an acknowledged expertise on the writings of Luke-Acts. I was introduced to this series when I took a graduate level course in the New Testament. The professor recommended this series as excellent New Testament reference books. I lead a weekly bible discussion group and I have found this series to be of immense help. I am able to review Luke line by line and receive the benefit of knowledgeable Catholic bible experts. I may not share the same views as the author on every passage but I can review his analysis and he also points me to other sources. If you needed one book as a guide to Luke-Acts this is it.

We used Johnson's Acts of the Apostles for reference in teaching a parish bible study class. His scholarship is outstanding and his writing skills turned a reference book into a veritable page turner. We found information here that isn't to be found in any other book on Acts that we have used, and he skillfully includes salient information from countless other bible scholars along with his own conclusions allowing the reader to widen his view of current exegesis.