{"id":136,"date":"2007-08-14T03:01:42","date_gmt":"2007-08-14T03:01:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/markdroberts\/2007\/08\/ephesus-in-the-new-testament.html"},"modified":"2007-08-14T03:01:42","modified_gmt":"2007-08-14T03:01:42","slug":"ephesus-in-the-new-testament","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2007\/08\/ephesus-in-the-new-testament.html","title":{"rendered":"Ephesus in the New Testament"},"content":{"rendered":"

Part 5 of series: Ancient Ephesus and the New Testament <\/em>
\n<\/em>Permalink for this post<\/a> \/ Permalink for this series<\/a>
\nEarly Christianity was significantly an urban movement. This might sound surprising if you’re used to thinking of Christians continuing the mode of Jesus, whose ministry happened largely (but not only) in rural Galilee. Yet when we pay close attention to the facts of Christianity in the first-century A.D., we see the prominence of cities, including Jerusalem, Antioch (in Syria), Corinth, Rome, and Ephesus.
\nArguably, Ephesus was the most important city for Christians at the end of the first century. Jerusalem had pride of place at first. Rome was growing in influence in the early second century. But, not only was Ephesus situated rather in the center of an area in which Christianity was thriving, but also it was an important city in its own right, and a place associated with several prominent Christians, including Paul, Timothy, John, and perhaps even the Virgin Mary. (People who live near Ephesus, along with many Roman Catholics throughout the world, believe that Mary lived just outside of Ephesus during her last days on earth. The photo to the right shows the center of Ephesus today, Curetes Street with the Library of Celsus in the distance.)
\nThe fact that Christianity was primarily an urban movement helps to explain its rapid spread throughout the Roman world. Cities were the hubs of travel, trade, and culture. If one influenced a major city in a region, then one would also be able to influence the whole region.
\nWhen we think of Ephesus and the New Testament, most of us would at first remember the letter of Paul called “The Letter to the Ephesians” or, simply, “Ephesians.” But it turns out that the connection between this letter and Ephesus is rather uncertain. Some of the earliest manuscripts of the letter do not contain the words “in Ephesus” (en Epheso<\/em>). For example, Papyrus 46, one of the oldest and most reliable manuscripts of Paul’s letters, does not mention Ephesus. (The picture to the right shows part of this manuscript.) Many scholars believe that the so-called Letter to the Ephesians was originally a circular letter intended for several churches, including the church in Ephesus. This many also explain why the letter has so little in it that is identifiably Ephesian.
\nThe oldest references to Ephesus in the New Testament are found in Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. There he writes:<\/p>\n

If with merely human hopes I fought with wild animals at Ephesus, what would I have gained by it? (1 Cor 15:32)
\nI do not want to see you now just in passing, for I hope to spend some time with you, if the Lord permits. But I will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost, for a wide door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many adversaries. (1 Cor 16:7-9)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Unfortunately, we don’t know exactly what Paul means by fighting wild animals at Ephesus. The Ephesians were enthusiastic for games in which African animals fought against animals or people. But it seems most likely that Paul is speaking metaphorically, referring to some conflict that he had in Ephesus. Nevertheless, it does seem obvious that Paul was writing the letter we know as 1 Corinthians from Ephesus, where he was engaged in missionary work for an extended period of time. It was during this time that he must have “fought with wild animals.” Perhaps Paul was referring to the conflict we read about in Acts 19. I’ll turn to this in my next post.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Part 5 of series: Ancient Ephesus and the New Testament Permalink for this post \/ Permalink for this series Early Christianity was significantly an urban movement. This might sound surprising if you’re used to thinking of Christians continuing the mode of Jesus, whose ministry happened largely (but not only) in rural Galilee. Yet when we…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":214,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-136","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-archeology-and-the-bible"],"yoast_head":"\nEphesus in the New Testament - Mark D. Roberts<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2007\/08\/ephesus-in-the-new-testament.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Ephesus in the New Testament - Mark D. Roberts\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Part 5 of series: Ancient Ephesus and the New Testament Permalink for this post \/ Permalink for this series Early Christianity was significantly an urban movement. This might sound surprising if you’re used to thinking of Christians continuing the mode of Jesus, whose ministry happened largely (but not only) in rural Galilee. 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Roberts","og_description":"Part 5 of series: Ancient Ephesus and the New Testament Permalink for this post \/ Permalink for this series Early Christianity was significantly an urban movement. This might sound surprising if you’re used to thinking of Christians continuing the mode of Jesus, whose ministry happened largely (but not only) in rural Galilee. Yet when we…","og_url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2007\/08\/ephesus-in-the-new-testament.html","og_site_name":"Mark D. Roberts","article_published_time":"2007-08-14T03:01:42+00:00","author":"Mark D. Roberts","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2007\/08\/ephesus-in-the-new-testament.html","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2007\/08\/ephesus-in-the-new-testament.html","name":"Ephesus in the New Testament - Mark D. 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Roberts","description":"Mark D. Roberts: Thoughtfully Christian Reflections on Jesus, the Church, and the World","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/1ff094a57b7e41f534434b1723df3d73","name":"Mark D. Roberts","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","caption":"Mark D. Roberts"},"description":"The Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a pastor, author, retreat leader, speaker, and blogger. Since October 2007 he has been the Senior Director and Scholar-in-Residence for Laity Lodge, a multifaceted ministry in the Hill Country of Texas. Before coming to Laity Lodge, he was for sixteen years the Senior Pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church in Irvine, California (a city in Orange County about forty miles south of Los Angeles). Before his time at Irvine Pres, Mark served on the staff of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood as Associate Pastor of Education. (Thanks to Janel Pahl for taking the photo to the right.) Mark studied at Harvard University, receiving a B.A. in Philosophy, an M.A. in the Study of Religion, and a Ph.D. in New Testament and Christian Origins. He has taught classes in New Testament for Fuller Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary. Mark has written several books, including No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer (WaterBrook, 2005), Dare to Be True (WaterBrook, 2003), Jesus Revealed (WaterBrook, 2002), After \"I Believe\" (Baker, 2002), and Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (Word, 1993). His most recent book is Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (Crossway, 2007). He is currently working on a commentary on Ephesians that will be published by Zondervan in 2014. Mark writes a devotional for The High Calling of Our Daily Work, a website associated with Laity Lodge. His \"Daily Reflections\" can be viewed online or sent as a daily email. If you wish to receive this email, just visit TheHighCalling.org and sign up. Mark serves on the editorial board of Worship Leader magazine, where he publishes articles and reviews, including his regular column \"Lyrical Poetry.\" Additionally, he has published dozens of articles in leading magazines and journals. He often speaks for churches and other Christian groups, and has been interviewed on over seventy-five radio programs nationwide. Mark is married to Linda, who is a Marriage and Family Therapist, a Spiritual Director, and a retreat speaker. They have two children, Nathan and Kara.For Publicity Photos and Bio Statements for Mark, please check here. Mark's Dossier Professional History: Senior Director and Scholar-in Residence, Laity Lodge, October 2007 to present. Senior Pastor Irvine Presbyterian Church, June 1991 to September 2007 Adjunct Assistant Professor Fuller Theological Seminary, 1994 to 2007. Courses: New Testament Theology and Exegesis. Adjunct Instructor San Francisco Theological Seminary, 1995 to 2001. Courses: New Testament Greek and Exegesis Associate Pastor of Education First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, 1987-1991 Teaching Fellow Harvard University, 1980-1983 Education: Ph.D. in the Study of Religion. Harvard University, 1992. Area: New Testament and Christian Origins M.A. in the Study of Religion Harvard University, 1984. A.B. magna cum laude in Philosophy Harvard University, 1979. Phi Beta Kappa; Danforth Fellowship Books: Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Crossway, 2007 No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer. WaterBrook, 2005 Dare to Be True: Living in the Freedom of Complete Honesty. WaterBrook, 2003. Jesus Revealed: Know Him Better to Love Him Better. WaterBrook, 2002. After \"I Believe\": Experiencing Authentic Christian Living. Baker, 2002. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther in the Communicator's Commentary Series. Word, 1993. Contacting Mark: You can reach Mark at: E-mail: mark@markdroberts.com mroberts@laitylodge.org Phone: Laity Lodge: (830) 792-1216 Address: Laity Lodge 719 Earl Garrett Kerrville, TX 78028","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/author\/mroberts"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/214"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=136"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=136"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=136"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=136"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}