The Pastoral Letters as Composite Documents

A major contribution to the debate about the authorship of the Pastoral letters (I and II Timothy and Titus).

James D. Miller (Author)

9780521560481, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 14 August 1997

228 pages
21.6 x 14 x 1.7 cm, 0.44 kg

"Miller offers an insightfully sustained argument that the Pastorials were not written by Paul or by a talented pseudonymist." Ashland Theological Journal

The authorship of the Pastoral letters has been a matter of intense scholarly debate for almost two hundred years. The letters clearly purport to be written by Paul, but perceived differences in the literary style, vocabulary and theology of the Pastorals when compared with that of the genuine Pauline letters suggests that this was not so. The arguments have centred primarily on the question of whether Paul or a disciple of Paul – a gifted pseudonymist – composed these letters. It is the 'either/or' nature of the debate that is brought into serious question in this book. Dr Miller argues that the Pastorals reflect a compositional history that was commonplace throughout the ancient Near East. He takes the reader on a wide-ranging tour of biblical and extra-biblical sources, examining their literary histories, and arguing that the Pastorals are composite documents, not unlike many Jewish and early Christian works.

1. Introduction
2. Religious writings as collections
3. I Timothy: a compositional analysis
4. II Timothy: a compositional analysis
5. Titus: a compositional analysis
6. Summary and conclusions
Appendix A: The Pastorals: compositions or collections
Appendix B: A formal analysis of the Pastorals
Letters
Bibliography.

Subject Areas: Biblical studies & exegesis [HRCG]