Introductory Section (1:1–11)

A. Salutation (1:1–2)

Form/Structure/Setting

This section follows a set pattern, drawn from the Hellenistic world, that Paul uses as an introduction to all his letters. It has three basic parts to it, and each part always appears in the same order: (1) the sender's name, (2) the name of the person or persons to whom the letter is sent, and (3) the greeting.

Although quite unlike the twenty-first-century style of letter writing, this pattern, nevertheless, conforms closely to that of the letter form of the first century and earlier. It is reminiscent, on the one hand, of ancient Near Eastern letters (cf. Dan 4:1 [RSV]: "King Nebuchadnezzer to all peoples, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you"; Ezra 7:12; 2 Bar. 78:2)—a fact that points to the possibility of Aramaic influence on Pauline epistolography, especially if one considers "seriously the proposal that the Captivity Letters ... were composed in Caesarea Maritima" (Fitzmyer, JBL 93 [1974] 201–25; and idem on the Aramaic origin of Phil 2:6–11 [CBQ50 (1988) 470–83]; see Martin, Hymn of Christ, chap. 2; yet this suggestion of Semitic background to Paul would be true no matter where he wrote). It also recalls, on the other hand, the personal letters of the Greco-Roman period published and discussed by Deissmann (see Light from the Ancient East, 148–217, and note this example: "Asclepiades, the son of Charmagon, to Portis, the son of Peramis, greeting [[TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII.]]" [152–53]; see also Hunt and Edgar, Select Papyri, 2:549–601; cf. Acts 15:23; Jas 1:1). Deissmann's division of written conversations in the Greek world between popular "letters" (Briefe) and the more literary "epistles" (Episteln) has been vigorously challenged in recent times. Its validity has been denied on the ground that Deissmann's dichotomy is too neat; his social analysis of early congregations as proletarian and illiterate is challenged by scholars such as Doty (Letters), and Deissmann failed to note the data from documents such as Seneca's Epistulae and the Cynic epistles. So we should conclude that while Paul retained his Jewish thought forms, Hellenism had an even greater influence on his epistolary habits. And we should not overlook the simple observation that, after all, he was writing in Greek to a Greek-reading audience.

Although Paul may have owed much to both East and West for the basic form of his letters, so that the introductions of his letters, like their models, invariably followed the pattern "A to B, greeting," his own contribution to the history of letter writing should not be denied. He often expanded these conventional formulas and infused them with deep theological or christological meaning (cf. Rom 1:1–7).

It is important to recognize this "literary" form, the letter form, for what it is. When Paul chose to express his ideas in this form, one can only surmise that he did so with a limited audience in mind—friends, for the most part, whom he knew personally and who, he knew, were facing particular problems of faith and life (the exception is the letter to the Colossians; see Col 2:1; 4:16, as well as Rom 1; Rom 16 with its many names is the exception to prove the rule). The content of his letters shows that Paul wrote with a keen awareness of apostolic authority, but the letter form seems to indicate that he had no intention of leaving behind him masterpieces of literature or theological treatises for the world (but see Malherbe, OJRS 5 [1977] 3–77, who notes that rhetorical theorists discussed the letter form). It is also to be recalled that Paul wrote letters to be read aloud in public (cf. Col 4:16), and this fact opens the questions of their rhetorical shape; see the Introduction, Exegesis and Rhetorical Analysis.

Comment

1 [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII], "Paul and Timothy, slaves [or, servants] of Christ Jesus." The unique feature here is not that Paul links Timothy's name with his own, for Timothy was Paul's "son in the faith" (1 Cor 4:17), his close associate in the gospel (2 Cor 1:19), and his trusted emissary (Phil 2:19). Besides, Paul names other co-senders of his letters with him (1 Cor 1:1; 1 Thess 1:1; 2 Thess 1:1). Rather, the singularity lies in the fact that Paul permits the noun [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII], "slaves," to stand in apposition to both his own name and Timothy's, a unique feature in the literary legacy left by Paul. In all other letters he puts a distance between himself and his colleagues by describing only himself as "slave," or "apostle," or "prisoner" of Christ Jesus—never anyone else. If ever he does add a descriptive title to a fellow worker, he does so only with the word [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII], "brother" (1 Cor 1:1; 2 Cor 1:1; Gal 1:2; Col 1:1; Phlm 1). From this observation it is clear that...