The Acts of the Apostles and the Early Church
Expository (verse by verse) Study of Acts
This is one of the most extensive online collections of literature related to the study of Acts and the Early Church. All of these publications are in the public domain and can be viewed or downloaded without charge. This is a thorough verse-by-verse study of the 28 chapters of Acts. It includes more than 200 categorical studies that provide depth of insight into doctrinal issues, historical events, characters, and places described in Acts.
Acts 100 - chapters 1 to 7
Acts 200 - chapters 8 to 14
Acts 300 - chapters 15 to 21
Acts 400 - chapters 22 to 28
Acts Outline – outline of the book of Acts.
Acts - a Historical Background
Acts, Importance of
Acts, Introduction to
Acts - Survey
Acts - Table of Contents
History of the Christian Church by Philip Schaff
Volume 1 - First Period, Apostolic Christianity, AD 1 to 100
Works of Alfred Edersheim - Edersheim’s scholarly work gives us a very good picture of the life of Jews in apostolic times.
Sketches of Jewish Social Life
Life of Jesus the Messiah
The Temple: Its Ministry and Services as they were at the Time of Christ
History of the Jewish Nation after the Destruction of Jerusalem under Titus
The Talmud - The oral tradition of the Torah was the focus of Paul’s education from the time he came to Jerusalem to study with Gamaliel until he became a believer in Christ on the road to Damascus. It was three of four centuries later that the Jewish rabbis were able to formulate all of the oral teaching and bring it into written form as the Talmud.
Gamaliel’s School - When Paul defended himself before the crowd in Jerusalem, he anchored his credibility in a single, carefully chosen credential: "I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, educated according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as all of you are this day"
Shammai, the Other Voice in Paul’s World - Hillel's teaching had a constant counterpart and, at times, a fierce opponent: Shammai, whose name is paired with Hillel's in the Mishnah and Talmud far more often than either man appears alone.
Paul the Apostle - a set of files relating to much of Paul’s life and ministry.
Courses: The Life and Epistles of St. Paul, Conybeare and Howson. Paul 100 | Paul 200 | Paul 300
Paul: Chronological Table - A time table of Paul's life, with matching contemporary events.
Paul’s Childhood at Tarsus – His infancy; the Tribe of Benjamin; Social Position of Paul’s Family; Paul’s Boyhood
Paul’s Education– His journey to Jerusalem; his education at the school of Gamaliel
Paul – First Letter to Corinth – narrative surrounding Paul’s writing from Ephesus his first epistle to the Corinthians, by Conybeare and Howson, along with their translation of the letter.
Paul – Letter to the Galatians - narrative surrounding Paul’s writing from Macedonia his epistle to the Galatians; by Conybeare and Howson, along with their translation of the letter.
Paul – Letter to the Romans - narrative surrounding Paul’s writing from Corinth, prior to his departure for Judea, his epistle to the Romans; by Conybeare and Howson, along with their translation of the letter.
Paul – Second Letter to Corinth – narrative surrounding Paul’s writing from Macedonia his second epistle to the Corinthians, by Conybeare and Howson, along with their translation of the letter.
Paul to the Thessalonians – an account of the events surrounding Paul’s writing the two Thessalonian epistles, along with translations by Conybeare and Howson.
Paul’s Letter to the Thessalonians – narrative surrounding Paul’s writing from Corinth to the Thessalonians, by Conybeare and Howson, along with their translation of the letters.
Paul and Silas in the Philippian Jail
Paul in Athens – an account from Conybeare and Howson, The Life and Epistles of St. Paul
Paul in Corinth – an account of the apostle Paul’s ministry in Corinth.
Paul in Ephesus - an account from Conybeare and Howson, The Life and Epistles of St. Paul
Paul’s Missionary Labors - The public life of Paul, from the third year after his conversion to his martyrdom, A.D. 40–64, embraces a quarter of a century, three great missionary campaigns with minor expeditions, five visits to Jerusalem, and at least four years of captivity in Caesarea and Rome.
Categorical Studies
Here are some of the topics related to the study of Acts and the Early Church. There describe places visited by the Apostles and contain bios of people named in Acts. Library Index (PDF)
Antioch - where followers of Christ were first called Christians, is located some three hundred miles north of Jerusalem, on the west bank of the Orontes River.
Early Church, The - Details of the organization and activities of the Church, from Pentecost to the beginning of Paul's ministry.
Gamaliel - Paul’s teacher in Jerusalem in his early years.
Herod Agrippa II - Herod Agrippa II (born AD 27/28), officially named Marcus Julius Agrippa and sometimes just called Agrippa, was the seventh and last king of the family of Herod the Great, the Herodians.
Herod Family - The Herod mentioned in Matthew 2 and in Luke 1, is known to history as Herod the Great. His family was Jewish, by race, but the were actually Idumeans (Edomites).
Roman Army - from Vegetius, Epitome of Military Science.
Roman Commerce - Great development had been given to commerce by the consolidation of the Roman Empire.
Roman Law - The source of Roman law is the family or gens. The proprietary rights of the pater familias as head of this primitive unit of organization are fundamental in private law, and the scope of the criminal jurisdiction of the state was limited by the power of life and death exercised by the head of the family over those under his authority.
Roman Persecution - an extended account of the persecution of Christians by the Romans, and details of the siege and destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD.
Roman Provincial System - from the time when Augustus united the world under his own power, the provinces were divided into two different classes.
Rome - what was the city of Rome like in the times of the early church?
Sadducees - The Sadducees accepted only the written law and prophets as binding. They rejected the entire traditional interpretations and the further developments of the Scribes.
Sanhedrin - The first mention of the Sanhedrin is in the time of Antiochus the Great (223-187 B.C.) It was evidently an aristocratic body, with the high priest acting as president.
Sects and Parties of the Jews - a description of the various Jewish parties in the time of Christ, including Pharisees, Sadducees, Hellenists, Arameans.
Stephen - an excellent study of the life and ministry of the first martyr.
Synagogues - from Alfred Edersheim, Sketches of Jewish Social Life, Chapters 16 and 17; also from Conybeare and Howson, The Life and Epistles of St. Paul.
Commentaries Used in the Development of These Studies
Barnes, A., Barnes Notes on the Bible, Volume 13, Acts-Romans
Calvin, John, Commentary Upon the Acts of the Apostles. Acts 1-12 | Acts 13-28
Clarke, Adam, Clarke’s Commentary NT, Volume 5B, John-Acts
Conybeare, W.J., and Howson, J.S., The Life and Epistles of St. Paul
Furneaux, William M., Acts of the Apostles, a Commentary for English Readers
Gill, John, Exposition of the Old and New Testaments, ACTS
Gloag, Paton J., Commentary on Acts of the Apostles
Robertson, A. T., Word Pictures in the New Testament, Volume 3, ACTS