Style, genre, and authorship in acts, the Septuagint, and Hellenistic historians

Abstract

Some claim Acts is stylistically influenced by older Greek biblical texts (the Septuagint; LXX), others that Acts is, or is not, closer to literary Hellenistic Greek. This is tested here with samples from the LXX and Hellenistic historians. Multivariate tests are run on thirty-two function words on 1,000-word samples classified by author and genre. In Acts earlier and later narrative and speech are separated, as are the 'we' sections. Using correspondence analysis, Acts is plotted between the LXX and Dionysius, near Genesis on one side and very near Dionysius on the other. Acts is closer to the historians in use of genitive participles, alla, and de (but). It is a little closer to the LXX in lower use of men, ek, and an, but still near Dionysius. It is between the two on kai (and), gar (for), en (in), kata, and peri.

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