Dating the New Testament
Introduction
This study was first produced as a series of two Bible Class talks which were given in a small number of towns in the Northwest of Britain in 2003/04. The first version of these was long and detailed and supported by overhead projector slides; the series was then improved by removing some extraneous material and some of the detail, and by upgrading the graphics for a data-projector. While this improved the delivery there were some who found the detail overwhelming for two hours of talks and preferred to read the study in their own time. I therefore typed out the text, inserted some graphics (partly from the OHP version and partly from the data projector version) and tidied the result up a little. The result is what you see.
My intention is to augment the current version by adding a further section dating the Johannine writings and the Synoptic Gospels. This, however, involves slight departure in methodology from the dating of the Pauline and Petrine epistles. The Pauline and Petrine epistles can essentially be dated from Acts. The Gospels are much more difficult to date from references in Acts, and an approach which includes Sitz im Leben arguments alongside other information is required. The dating of these books is also much more controversial than the dating of the various epistles.
Anyway, here is the study, such as it is. Please remember that it was originally two addresses, and that the style is therefore a little different from what one would expect from a paper intended to be read from the page rather than delivered verbally to a congregation.
Section 1 is an examination of the dates of Paul’s journeys recorded in Acts and the associated epistles.
Section 2 is an investigation of the travels of Paul after the end of the Acts narrative and a consequent dating of the Captivity Epistles and the Pastoral Epistles. Hebrews can also be fitted into this dating framework.
Section 3 is a study of the movements of the Apostle Peter and adds the dates of the Petrine Epistles. Jude is associated with 2 Peter, so this is dated here as well.
