Part III

The Mission from Antioch and the Jerusalem Council

(13–15)

As Luke turns his attention fully to Paul his task simplifies. He has done the hard work of securing the beginnings of the new movement in Jerusalem (chs 1–5) and in ensuring that the precedent(s) for mission to the Gentiles were clearly established (chs 10–11). The objective now can be relatively more straightforward: to narrate how, through the missionary work of Paul, the word spread throughout the north-eastern quadrant of the Mediterranean and was finally brought to Rome.

The initial task of this second half was to show how Saul emerged as the leading figure and became the prominent spokesman in the first mission from Antioch, and how this first major thrust into Gentile territory further afield ‘opened the door of faith for the Gentiles’ (14.27; alluding back to 13.8, 12, 48; 14.1, 9, 22–23), confronted the falsities of other religious practices (13.6–11; 14.11–18), and provoked Jewish opposition (13.6–8, 50; 14.2, 4–5, 19). The pattern of Paul’s missionary work is thus established, marked by his custom of going first to the synagogue (13.5, 14; 14.1), to reach both fellow Jews and Gentile proselytes and adherents (God-fearers). If the inclusion of speeches highlights important phases and aspects of Paul’s mission, then we should note how Luke focusses first on mission to Jews (Ch. 13) and then mission to Gentiles (Ch. 14). In accord with the commission of 9.15, Paul is presented as missionary to both Jew and Gentile (see further Introduction §5(4)).

The second objective was evidently to show how the tensions which arose in the wake of this further outreach to Gentiles were resolved amicably and decisively for the future by a meeting in Jerusalem under the united agreement of the acknowledged leaders (Ch. 15).

These events were presumably closer to home for Luke than those in the first half of his book. He probably had more first-hand reports to draw on, though, as before, he continued to reshape his traditions, to tell his story in his own language and to make his own points.

Fig. 2. Paul’s First Missionary Journey