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BOOK REVIEWS
Comrgenda

42 (2000),
J.K. Elliott, 'The Petrine Epistles in the Editio CriticaMaior',NVovT
and the
KDpicp
p. 333, 1. 22: at 2 Peter 2:11 the first column should read 0tcap&
second column rcapaKUpiou. The Editio CriticaMaior makes the same error in IV,
part 1, Installment 2, pp. 21* and 23*. On p. 334, 11.6, 20, 21 read 2 Peter. On
p. 337, 1. 9 add 3:22.
STEVE WALTON, Leadershipand Lifestyle. The Portraitof Paul in the AIiletus Speech

and 1 Thessalonians
(Society for New Testament Studies Monograph Series
108; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000), pp. xiv + 256. ISBN
0-521-78006-3.

In this revision of a 1997 doctoral dissertationcompleted at the University of

Sheffield, Steve Walton examines the Miletus speech of Paul (Acts 20:18b-35) and
how the major themes in this speech pertaining to leadership and lifestyle parallel both Jesus' speeches in Luke (thereby showing how Lukan the Miletus speech
is) and 1 Thessalonians (therebyshowing how Pauline this speech is). Walton views
the Miletus speech as a significanttest case in determiningthe relationshipbetween
the Paul of Acts and the Paul of the letters.
The opening two chapters set the stage for the investigation. Chapter One
reviews the history of scholarshipon the Miletus speech and justifies the need for
yet another study of this key text. Although others have analyzed the Miletus
speech in light of the entire Pauline corpus, no one has compared this speech as
a whole with a single Pauline letter as a whole. 1 Thessalonianswas chosen because
of its undisputed authenticity as a Pauline letter as well as its parallels with the
themes in the Miletus speech. Chapter Two outlines the method by which parallels are to be recognized. Walton acknowledgesthe inevitable subjectiveelement
in finding parallels, but seeks a measure of objectivity by using a hierarchical
approach, beginning with lexical parallels before considering synonyms, conceptual parallels, and parallel styles of argumentation.
The subsequent three chapters form the heart of the argument, focusing first
on understanding the Miletus speech as Luke presents it and then turning to 1
Thessalonians for parallels to the speech. Chapter Three considers such issues as
the speech's immediate context, genre, structure, and key themes. Walton finds
that the Miletus speech has much in common with ancient "farewell speeches,"
though care needs to be taken in too quickly attributing everything in this text
to the testamentarygenre. The speech exhibits a well-organizedstructure,though
the lack of any scholarly consensus on its sub-divisions suggests that it is better
to view the speech as a tapestry, where the major themes are like threads interwoven with each other. There are four of these interweaving themes or threads:
leadership, suffering, attitudes to wealth and work, and the death of Jesus.
Chapter Four considers possible parallels between the Miletus speech and the
speeches of Jesus in Luke's gospel. The clearest match is found in the Last Supper
discourse (Luke 22:14-38), which not only involves a "farewell"scene but also
echoes the four major themes of the Miletus speech in both structureand sequence.
Walton believes that Luke gives two similarly structuredfarewell discourseswhich
? KoninklijkeBrill NV, Leiden, 2001

Novum TestamentumXLIII, 3

BOOK REVIEWS

301

mirror each other: the departingJesus passes on to his disciples a model of life
and leadership in his community which the departing Paul later passes on to the
elders of one of his key churches. Other parallels with the Miletus speech are
found in Jesus' discourse on discipleship (Luke 12:1-53), the Lukan Apocalypse
(Luke 21:5-36), and four briefer passages (Luke 7:38, 44; 9:2; 10:3; 13:32). These
Lukan parallels lead Walton to the following two conclusions. First, there is a
strong probability that the final form of Paul's speech owes much to Luke's shaping and editing, since the same themes in the Miletus speech are found elsewhere
in Luke's gospel. Second, there is a clear concept of leadershipbeing promulgated
in Luke's writings-a concept that focuses on the manner of leadership (i.e., imitating Jesus and Paul) rather than on considerationsof "office."
Chapter Five shifts the attention somewhat away from the writer Luke to that
of Paul and his first letter to the Thessalonians. All four major themes of the
Miletus speech appear in 1 Thessalonians, often with the same or similar vocabulary. Walton finds that the parallels dealing with the theme of leadership are
especially clear, but they are also present with respect to suffering, attitudes to
money and work, and the death ofJesus. In addition to these four themes, other
ideas and vocabulary in the letter are paralleled in the Miletus speech. Walton
thus concludes that the Paul of 1 Thessaloniansand the Paul of the Miletus speech
sound very similar and that the similaritiesextend to vocabulary and to manner
and style of teaching.
The final two chapters wrap up the investigation.Chapter Six briefly compares
the Miletus speech with Ephesians and 2 Timoth--two letters often claimed to
contain significant parallels with Paul's farewell address to the Ephesian elders.
The evidence, however, shows that these claimed parallels exist primarily at the
level of ideas and only rarely in the vocabulary expressing those ideas. By contrast, 1 Thessalonians parallels the Miletus speech in both words and ideas.
Therefore, the oft-claimed closeness of the later Pauline letters with the Miletus
speech is mistaken, and the speech is far closer to an undisputed Pauline (and
early Pauline, at that) letter. Chapter Seven summarizesthe findings of the study
and discusses the implications of the results for future studies of not only the
Miletus speech but also the Paul of Acts/Paul of the Letters debate.
This is a fine piece of scholarship:it is logically presented, well written, amply
documented, and contains virtually no typographic errors (but see the Greek text
on p. 82, line 20). More importantly,it suggests that the common claim that Luke
neither knows nor representsauthentic Pauline material and thinking in Acts may
well be false.
Whether Walton wins any converts to his conclusion, however, remains to be
seen. For parallels, like beauty, exist in the eye of beholder. Some will therefore
question the various parallels cited by Walton between the Miletus speech and 1
Thessalonians. For example, Walton makes much under the theme of leadership
of the parallel with verbs of knowing (pp. 157-9; 173). The verbs used for the
audience's knowledge in the Miletus speech (20:18b, hziotaoe?; 20:34,YIvoK?TeE?)
are not, however, identical with that used in 1 Thessalonians(1:5; 2:1,2,5,11; 3:3,4;
4:2, o'ioate). Furthermore,these and other repeated appeals in 1 Thess 2:1-12 to
the first-hand knowledge that the Thessalonians have about Paul's conduct during his mission-foundingactivity in their city strengthen the case that the apostle
is defending himself in this passage. Walton, however, rejects an apologetic function for 2:1-12 and argues instead that Paul is presenting himself as a model to
be imitated to his readers, similar to what the apostle does before the Ephesian
elders in the Miletus speech. But if Paul is, in fact, defending himself in his letter (see my "Apology for the Apologetic Function of 1 Thessalonians 2:1-12,"

JSAT 68 [1997] 73-99; also T.D. Still, Conflictat Thessalonica.A Pauline Churchand

302

BOOK REVIEWS

itsNeighbours
[JSNTS 183; Sheffield:SheffieldAcademic Press, 1999] 126-49), then
the parallel with the apostle's discourse to the Ephesian elders is weakened.
Another example where some may question the legitimacy of claimed parallels
between the Miletus speech and 1 Thessalonians is found in the theme dealing
with the death of Jesus. Walton finds a notable parallel to the language of Acts
20:28 ("to shepherd the church of God which he obtained [xeptnxotio'aTo]with
the blood of his own one") in 1 Thessalonians 5:9 ("For God has not destined us
for wrath but for the obtaining [?ptnouoirltv] of salvation through our Lord Jesus
Christ"). The parallel, however, is not exact, since the Miletus speech refers to
God's past act of obtaining the church, whereas 1 Thessalonians has in view the
eschatological event of the final judgment and how believers need not fear that
future wrath, as they have been chosen to obtain salvation. Thus Walton himself
concedes that "the verb and the noun are used in slightlydifferentsenses" (p. 173).
But while these and other objections can be raised, it cannot be denied that
Walton in his overall analysispresents a credible case that the Miletus speech contains important similaritieswith 1 Thessalonians. The common charge that the
Paul in Acts and the Paul in the letters are at odds with each other and that the
writer Luke has no knowledge of the authentic Paul's life and theology must be
judged in light of Walton's study to be an over-statement.It now remains to be
seen whether a comparison of other Pauline letters with Acts will similarly show
that the "two Pauls" have more in common with each other than has been traditionally affirmed.
JEFFREY

A. D.

WEIMA

D. MARGUERAT,La premierehistoire du christianisme:Les Actes des Apotres (Paris:

Les Editions du Cerf/Geneva: Labor et Fides, 1999.) ISBN 2-204-06293-6

(Cerf)/2-2309-0956-9 (Labor et Fides). 254 pp. 196FF (LectioDivina 180)

This collection of studies on the Acts of the Apostles is written by an author

who is well-known, and well respected, among French-speakingscholars for the
new approaches he presents for the understanding of the New Testament writings. In the essays of this volume, it is particularlythe tools of historical criticism
and narrative analysis that Daniel Marguerat has applied to the text in order to
tackle a range of the frequently debated issues affecting the study of the Book of
Acts. More often than not, he comes up with a fresh view of the difficulties,
through an appreciation of Luke's narrative purpose as uncovered by his analysis. In this respect, his work is admirably creative and introduces innovative ideas
that open up some of the dead ends, or opposing positions, with which the study
of Acts seems to be burdened.
Much of the material has appeared previously,in its present or an earlier form,
as articles in journals or collections of essays published between 1993 and 1999;
the full list is given at the end of the book. The treatment of topics is, in consequence, not a systematic one although occasional cross-referencesbetween the
chapters have been included. An 'Index des textes' has been provided though not,
unfortunately, any other index (one to authors cited would have been especially
helpful). On the other hand, a uniform lay-out has been applied to the diverse
chapters so as to provide consistency in the presentation.In each case, Marguerat
first of all carefully states the issues he is dealing with and then lists the various
steps that his examination will follow. The result is that the argumentationis clear,
and readers can, if they so wish, go straight to a summary of the main points in
the concluding section of each essay.
? KoninklijkeBrill NV, Leiden, 2001

Novum Testamentum XLIII, 3