Epistles Before And

After Acts 28

By David Tavender

It is our contention that at Acts 28, the nation of Israel was set aside as God's chosen nation because of their continued rejection of the Messiah.

Now, some of the New Testament letters were written before Acts 28, and some were written after. Wouldn't you think, then, that the writings before Acts 28 should reflect the fact that Israel was still the chosen nation? Conversely, shouldn't the writings after Acts 28 reflect that Israel was no longer the chosen nation? The answer is "yes" to both questions, and this is exactly what we find in Scripture.

Letters written during the Acts Period. Approx. 45-62 AD	Letters written after the Acts Period. Approx. 62-68 AD
Romans	Ephesians
1 & 2 Corinthians	Philippians
Galatians	Colossians
1 & 2 Thessalonians	1 & 2 Timothy
Hebrews	Titus
James	Philemon
1 & 2 Peter
1, 2 & 3 John
Jude
Revelation

The letters written after the end of the period covered by the book of Acts speak of a new revelation in God's plans for mankind which only came to light after the rejection of the Israelite nation. Ephesians was written after Acts 28, and in it Paul writes; "...by revelation he made known unto me the mystery ... which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; that the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel." (Ephesians, 3:3-6).

This wasn't the only thing revealed, though. The letters written after the Acts period speak of many different circumstances which concern today's body of believers - Gentile or Jewish. Refer to the table on this page.

Things Differing

Space in this article does not permit us to list all of the circumstances differing before and after Acts 28, but here are some indications to consider. Firstly, concerning N.T. quotations from the O.T. Before Acts 28, quotations from the O.T. and references to O.T. people, places and events abound. Because Israel as a nation still featured in God's plans at the time these epistles were written, there are many references to the O.T which feature Israel. However, after Acts 28, in the later epistles, there are .very few quotations from the OT, and of this number, not one can be said to teach the mystery revealed to Paul. (Eph 4:8; 5:14,3 1; 6:2; 1 Tim 5:18).

Another interesting comparison is the occurrence of certain words and phrases. Before Acts 28, some words associated with "Israel" and its part in God's plans are very common, include: Jew, Israel, Israelite, Abraham, Moses, the Lord's Supper, miracles, tongues, interpret (ation), heal(ing), prophecy, prophesying, circumcision (ise), and others. Yet, in the epistles written after Acts 28, these terms are virtually nonexistent. The few times they do occur, they emphasise the fact that there is now no difference between Jewish & Gentile believers. (Col 3: 11; Eph 2:11,12; Phil 3:3 -9; Titus 1: 14; 2Tim. 3:8).

For a more comprehensive look at the different conditions before and after Acts 28 go to article: "Different Conditions Before and After Acts 28"

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