Acts And Letters Of The Apostles

by Richmond Lattimore (translator)

The Acts of the Apostles, which Richmond Lattimore call "the earliest consecutive story of early Christianity that we have," and the three groups of Letters of the Apostles - those of Saint Paul, the letters to the Hebrews, and the General Letters - are now made available to complete the New Testament in his translation. His aim has been to provide a simple, literal rendering in which the syntax and order of the Greek dictate the character of the English style.

284 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1982

About the author

Richmond Lattimore graduated from Dartmouth in 1926 and received an A.B. from Oxford, where he was a Rhodes Scholar at Christ Church in 1932. He took his Ph.D. from the University of Illinois in 1934.

He was an American poet and classicist known for his translations of the Greek classics, especially his versions of the Iliad and Odyssey, which are generally considered as among the best English translations available

Reviews

[Joseph Carrabis · Rating 2 out of 5]

One person translations of anything fascinate me. They reveal as much about the translator as they do the material translated. Why choose this meaning over that one?
I'm reading lots of biblical material while researching some works-in-progress. One discovery is most christians aren't very christian. The different groups/cults/sects pull (often) a single verse and nail it to their own cross, making one element more important than the entire work itself.
Strange.
I'm also reading it with some forty-plus years of anthro, psych, and neuro studies behind me. All that training provides a lens into motivations and actions which force one (me, at least) into an eye-of-the-needle situation.
But is Acts and Letters of the Apostles a worthwhile read? As research and one source of many, sure, it's fine. As a study, probably also good. As a reason for conversion?
Well, such wasn't my goal, and good, because it provides more evidence against than for.
As a general read? Dance 3, Rhythm 3, Music 1. I'm sure there are better sources out there.

[Benjamin · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent translation by a renowned classicist. Definitely recommended.

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Acts of the Apostles – This is a rather episodic telling of the lives of Peter (aka Simon, aka Shimon Kefa) and Paul (aka Saul, aka Shaul) after Jesus’s death. Neither story is complete, with the focus transitioning to Paul halfway through, and Paul’s life story abruptly ending when he arrives in Rome. These apostles/messengers travel throughout the Roman world preaching, performing miracles and making miraculous escapes from imprisonment.

References to Jewish people change from “us” to “them” as the story proceeds. The true seeds of anti-Semitism are planted in this book which continually talks about Jews not understanding the Good News, actively resisting the message and messengers, and trying to kill the apostles. As noted in Wikipedia, this book attempts “to answer a theological problem, namely how the Messiah promised to the Jews came to have an overwhelmingly non-Jewish church; the answer it provides, and its central theme, is that the message of Christ was sent to the Gentiles because the Jews rejected it.” The book also effectively moves the story of Christianity from Jerusalem to Rome.

Other than saying Jesus is the Messiah and performing miracles, there’s little doctrine mentioned. Achieving Eternal life is referenced, but otherwise there is no discussion of a moral code or theological foundation (other than Judaism). I’m not clear on what else they really preached.

Letters of the Apostles -- You can see my review of Barnstone's translations of selected letter/epistles here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Lattimore's translation is clear and crisp. However, the dearth of notes make interpretation and understanding more difficult. Context within the Roman world and Christian history/theology is almost completely dependent on the reader. I recommend Willis Barnstone's translation to get a more thorough background: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6....

This book is for people interested in the history of the early Church. Otherwise, there’s not a lot of interest artistically or philosophically.