Josep Rius-Camps - Jenny Read-Heimerdinger, «The Variant Readings of the Western Text of the Acts of the Apostles (XXIV) (Acts 17:1–18:23).» filologia-neotestamentaria, Vol. 25 (2012) 119-160 page 152

Vol 25 (2012)

Josep Rius-Camps - Jenny Read-Heimerdinger, «The Variant Readings of the Western Text of the Acts of the Apostles (XXIV) (Acts 17:1–18:23).», Vol. 25 (2012) 119-160

In these final sequences of Part III of the Book of Acts, the second phase of Paul’s missionary journey continues through Macedonia before moving on to Greece where he spends a brief time in Athens before a more extended stay in Corinth. Despite the divine intervention in Philippi in the previous sequence, which focused attention on the evangelisation of the Gentiles, Paul fails to follow this up but reverts to his earlier practice of devoting his energy first and foremost to the Jews in the synagogues. In Athens, his wellknown attempt to speak to the Gentiles meets with little favour; it is only in Corinth, after fierce opposition from the synagogue, that Luke records more successful efforts to include the Gentiles as well as the Jews in his preaching activity.

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152 Josep Rius-Camps and Jenny Read-Heimerdinger (ἐπίστευσεν) τῷ κυρίῳ B P74 a rell || εἰϛ τὸν κύριον D, in domino d h vgO. The B03 construction with the dative is found at 8:12; 16:34; 26:27; that with εἰϛ + accusative, at 14:23. These are the only places in Acts where a preposition is used with the verb πιστεύω. Here, where the subject is a Jew, it is not a question of putting his trust in the Lord or of believing in his existence, but rather of believing that Jesus was the Lord whom he already knew as YHWH, the God of Israel. (ἐπίστευον) καὶ ἐβαπτίζοντο B P74 a rell lat (syp) sa bo aeth || κ. ἐβαπτ. πιστεύοντεϛ τῷ θεῷ διὰ τοῦ ὀνόματοϛ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ D, et baptizabantur credentes in deo per nomen domini nostri Iesu Christi d (h) | (ἐπίστευσαν) διὰ τοῦ ὀν. τ. κυ. (+ ἡμῶν 2147) Ἰ. Χρ. κ. ἐβαπτίζοντο 614. 1799. 2147. 2412 syh**. The account in D05 of the conversion of people from Corinth has God as the object of their belief, in line with the consistent practice of this text (Read-Heimerdinger, The Bezan Text, p. 286). The association of the full title of Jesus with baptism and belief is typical of formal speech acts in D05 (The Bezan Text, p. 271). Cf. 20:21 D05, where Paul declares that he has given testimony to faith, διὰ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ. The repetition of the verb πιστεύω with the paronomastic present participle is not redundant; Delebecque (Les deux Actes, p. 187) describes it as good Greek style (cf. the same phenomenon at 13:45). 18:9 ὁ (κύριοϛ) B P74 a rell || om. D. When κύριοϛ introduces the speaker of divine speech, the article is regularly omitted in D05 (cf. 2:17 D05.34; 7:49; 15:17; see Read- Heimerdinger, The Bezan Text, p. 295). Omitting the article before the name is a way of drawing attention to the speaker when the speech is of particular importance. The same pattern of omitting the article before κύριοϛ as speaker can also be observed in the lxx – though to conclude that inarticular κύριοϛ in the New Testament is always a reference to YHWH is unwarranted (cf. J.D.G. Dunn, ‘κυριοσ in Acts’, in Christ and the Spirit. I. Christology, pp. 241—253; G.D. Kilpatrick, The Principles and Practice of New Testament Textual Criticism, pp. 216—222; C.K. Rowe, Early NarrativeChristology: The Lord in the Gospel of Luke, Ap- pendix 2). Here, the speaker is to be understood as Jesus in view of the two references to him as κύριοϛ in the previous verse (18:8a.8b); prefac- ing his speech with a phrase that is evocative of the Jewish Scriptures is part of the process of identifying him with YHWH. ἐν νυκτὶ δι’ ὁράματοϛ τῷ Παύλῳ B P74 a 33. 69. 945. 1175. 1739. 1837. 1891. 2344 | δι’ ὁρ. ἐν νυκ. τ. Π. (A) E L (τῆϛ νυκτόϛ H) P Ψ 049. 056.