God's Acts for Israel, Gentiles, and Christians: A Theology of the Acts of the Apostles

by Joshua W. Jipp

Overview

The book of Acts is often read as a narrative. Here's how to read it as theology.
 
In this landmark essay collection, Joshua Jipp explains how the Acts of the Apostles and its companion volume, Luke's Gospel, illuminate what God has done for Israel, for Gentiles, and for Christians. The collection—which brings together new essays with previously published works—provides close readings of specific passages while also setting forth a comprehensive vision of the character, purpose, and activity of God. Among other topics, Jipp explores intertextual readings of Israel's sacred writings, the suffering Messiah, ethnic reasoning, conversion, mental illness, economics, and hospitality. The result is a significant contribution to the theology of Acts and, by extension, the theology of the New Testament. Expansive in scope and evangelical in spirit, this is a must-read volume for New Testament scholars and theologians alike.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781467467575
Publisher:	Eerdmans, William B. Publishing Company
Publication date:	09/02/2025
Sold by:	Bookwire
Format:	eBook
Pages:	336
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Joshua W. Jipp is professor of New Testament and director of the Carl F. H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Illinois. He also serves as associate editor of the Bulletin for Biblical Research. His books include Saved by Faith and Hospitality and The Messianic Theology of the New Testament.
Joshua W. Jipp is professor of New Testament and director of the Carl F. H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Illinois. He also serves as associate editor of the Bulletin for Biblical Research. His books include Saved by Faith and Hospitality, The Messianic Theology of the New Testament, and God’s Acts for Israel, Gentiles, and Christians: A Theology of the Acts of the Apostles.
 

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

List of Abbreviations 
Part One: God's Acts for Israel
1. The Paul of Acts 
          Proclaimer of the Hope of Israel or Teacher of Apostasy from Moses?
2. Paul as Prophet of God's Resurrected Messiah 
          Prophecy and Messianism in the Lukan Depiction of Paul
3. Luke's Scriptural Suffering Messiah 
          A Search for Precedent, a Search for Identity
4. Abraham in the Synoptic Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles 
5. "For David Did Not Ascend into Heaven . . ." (Acts 2:34a) 
          Reprogramming Royal Psalms to Proclaim the Enthroned-in-Heaven King
Part Two: God's Acts for Gentiles
6. Does Paul Translate the Gospel in Acts 17:22–31? 
          A Critical Engagement with C. Kavin Rowe's One True Life
7. "Hospitable Barbarians" 
          Luke's Ethnic Reasoning in Acts 28:1–10
8. Paul's Areopagus Speech of Acts 17:16–34 
          as Both Critique and Propaganda 
9. Why Did Gentiles Convert to Christianity? 
          Storytelling and the Rise of Christianity
Part Three: God's Acts for Christians
10. The Beginnings of a Theology of Luke-Acts 
          Divine Activity and Human Response
11. The Migrant Messiah and the Boundary-Crossing Messianic Community in Luke-Acts 
12. Jesus, the Church, and Mental Illness 
13. Philanthropy, Hospitality, and Friendship
14. The Economics of Jesus in the Context of the Roman Empire and Israel's "Sacred Economy" 
Acknowledgments 
Bibliography 
Index of Authors 
Index of Subjects 
Index of Scripture 
Index of Other Ancient Sources

Editorial Reviews

With the publication of God’s Acts for Israel, Gentiles, and Christians, Joshua Jipp puts on full display what we have come to expect of him: exemplary skills as a reader of Scripture and masterful attention to both historical and theological concerns. Jipp’s well-established reputation as a trusted voice for grappling with the message of Acts is only advanced with this collection of essays that, together, illuminate Luke’s portrait of God’s faithfulness. Students, pastors, and scholars alike will benefit from reading this compelling contribution to our understanding of the Acts of the Apostles.” 
—Joel B. Green, Fuller Theological Seminary

“Since the publication of his 2013 monograph Divine Visitations, Joshua Jipp has emerged as one of the leading interpreters of the Lukan writings. God’s Acts for Israel, Gentiles, and Christians conveniently combines unpublished and previously published (and occasionally expanded) essays into one collection. The result is a veritable feast that explores theological themes of Luke and Acts in both their ancient and contemporary contexts. Highly recommended for students and scholars alike!”
—Mikeal C. Parsons, Baylor University

“Jipp’s collection of essays is a rich tapestry of learning, insight, and interest across a variety of issues within, and arising from, the book of Acts. Anyone seeking a deeper appreciation of that book would do well to study this one with care.”
—Constantine Campbell, Australian University College of Divinity

“Joshua Jipp has distinguished himself as a trusted expert on the book of Acts. In this academically rigorous and wide-ranging set of studies, the connecting theological thread is Jipp’s view of Acts as a narrative of the living God revealed in Jesus Christ and the Spirit-gifted church. In Jipp’s telling, Luke invites readers to discern and respond to divine activity—activity that is evident in Acts and also in readers’ everyday lives. Jipp has offered a weighty book on a weighty topic. Highly recommended.”
—Nijay K. Gupta, Northern Seminary

“Joshua Jipp offers a collection of cutting-edge studies on Israel, Gentiles, and Christians in Luke-Acts that will benefit a wide audience. It is full of learned insights and new perspectives on contested topics. Jipp’s volume is necessary reading for anyone interested in Luke-Acts scholarship and in how Luke’s story of Jesus and the early church can speak to our own world today.”
—Michael F. Bird, Ridley College

“Joshua Jipp has placed students, pastors and scholars in his debt by this excellent collection of essays on Luke-Acts. Jipp’s consistent theme of God being active for the salvation of people in and through the work of Jesus and the power of the Spirit is lucidly expressed, engaging, and persuasive. Readers will find him a sure-footed guide to Luke and Acts, and a strong encourager and help in living out the message of those books today.”
—Steve Walton, Trinity College, Bristol

“The industrious Joshua Jipp is at it again, producing yet another volume with original, judicious insights that exhibit his fine command of scholarship and the primary sources. Most refreshing are the Jewish facets of the theology of Acts, which Jipp is able to explicate with great effectiveness and which attest to a pivotal moment in the field of Luke and Acts studies. I have learned much from Jipp’s scholarship and highly recommend this book.” 
—Isaac W. Oliver, Bradley University 

From the Publisher