Studies in the Acts of the Apostles

This collection of essays is indicative of the years of research that the author has devoted to the Acts of the Apostles. In a very easy style, some of the intriguing episodes in Acts are understood through the lens of ancient literature and the worldview that is reflected in it. The intention is to try and read them as an early Christian might have heard them even if, from a modern perspective, that reading appears quite strange. It is hoped that the modern reader might be intrigued and even inspired to read Acts again and so to explore its strange events and people even more deeply. More broadly, such an exploration might lead to an appreciation that all writings that many Christians now hold as "inspired and authoritative" are deeply embedded in an ancient cultural context.

Rick Strelan is retired associate professor in New Testament and early Christianity at the University of Queensland. He has published Paul, Artemis and the Jews in Ephesus (1996) and is the author of Strange Acts: Studies in the Cultural World of the Acts of the Apostles (2004), Luke the Priest (2008), and Crossing the Boundaries: A Commentary on Mark (2019). He has also published articles in a variety of academic journals.