Ancient Rhetoric and Paul’s Apology

Second Corinthians is Paul’s apology to the Corinthians for failing to visit them, using rhetorical persuasion in his letters, and appearing unapproved for the collection. The scholarly consensus maintains that 2 Corinthians is a conglomeration of letters due to its literary and logistical inconsistencies. Consequently, most interpretations of 2 Corinthians treat only parts of it. However, a new consensus is emerging. Fredrick Long situates the text within Classical literary and rhetorical conventions and argues for its unity based upon numerous parallels with ancient apology in the tradition of Andocides, Socrates, Isocrates and Demosthenes. He provides a comprehensive survey and rigorous genre analysis of ancient forensic discourse in support of his claims, and shows how the unified message of Paul’s letter can be recovered. His study will be of relevance to Classicists and New Testament scholars alike.

• Includes a rigorous and comprehensive genre analysis of ancient forensic discourse, including the apologetic letter, that will be of interest to Classicists as well as Biblical scholars • Shows how awareness of the Classical literary context can illuminate the study of the New Testament • Recovers Paul’s unified message from a letter thought hitherto to be a compilation

1. An apology for the unity of 2 Corinthians; Part I. A Survey of Ancient Forensic Discourse: 2. The anatomy of a genre: sources, nature and features of forensic rhetoric; 3. Forensic exigency; 4. Forensic invention; 5. Forensic disposition; 6. Apologetic letters; Part II. A Rhetorical Analysis of 2 Corinthians as Ancient Apology: 7. The rhetorical exigency of 2 Corinthians; 8. The rhetorical disposition of 2 Corinthians; 9. The rhetorical invention of 2 Corinthians; 10. The rhetoric of 2 Corinthians and the nature of Paul’s theology.