Eusebius’ Church History 3
Study Guide Questions for Ch. 1.9-1.13
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Virtues/Vices/Great Ideas: (Find them in the Text)
Prudence, Justice, Faith, Mercy, Humility
Grammar Questions: (The Information of the Text)
What, according to Eusebius, proves that the document known as Acts of Pilate is a false (inaccurate) document?
What had been the case about the length of a High Priest’s tenure prior to the Romans taking control of Judea?
According to Eusebius, how long was Jesus Christ’s teaching ministry?
What did Jesus do in advance of his coming to various towns to preach the gospel?
What happened to Herod Antipas as a result of his murdering John the Baptist?
What claim did Eusebius report from Clement about the Cephas whom Paul “opposed” in the book of Galatians.
What are the names of three of the men whom Eusebius says may have been numbered with the 70 disciples Jesus sent out?
In the letter from King Abgar to Jesus, what did he request of Jesus and what did he offer?
In the letter which Eusebius attributed to Jesus, what promise did Jesus make to King Abgrar?
According to Eusebius, which Apostle fulfilled the promise Jesus made?
Logic Questions: (Interpreting, Comparing/Contrasting, Reasoning)
Why would someone forge a document like Acts of Pilate? What is there to gain from making false historical claims?
Eusebius uses the phrase “Holy Scripture” to denote certain texts from others. What is the significance of using this phraseology to distinguish some text from others?
Why would Jesus have sent teams of two ahead of him into each town where he planned to preach?
Why is it important that a Jewish historian like Josephus, who was not evidently a Christian, wrote about Jesus in the way that he did?
What did Thaddus mean by saying that Jesus’ “humility made light of his divinity”?
Rhetoric Questions: (The Analysis of Ideas in the Text)
Read Appendix 1 concerning Eusebius’ quoting of Josephus about the life of Jesus. Consider the three possibilities laid out by Paul L. Maier (namely that the passage from Josephus is either 1. Completely authentic, 2. A complete forgery, or 3. Includes some interpolation. After reading the whole of Maier’s appendix entry do you agree with his conclusion? Why or why not.
Eusebius includes a letter which was allegedly written by Jesus to King Abgar. Do you think this letter is genuine or not? How might one be able to decide such a thing?
In light of the previous question, what should be the basis for considering any particular document as worthy of being considered part of Scripture? Why is the letter of Jesus recorded by Eusebius not in the New Testament? Should it be? Defend your answer with good reasoning and argument,
Theological Analysis: (Sola Scriptura)
Read Luke 7:1-10. What potential bearing does this passage have on the matter of the alleged correspondence between Jesus and King Abgar?
Read John 4:1-3. What relevance does this passage have upon a possible reason why the New Testament doesn’t contain any letters written by Jesus himself?
Read Number 21:4-9 and 2 Kings 18:1-5. How do these passages demonstrate how easy it is to take a good thing from the Lord and turn it into an idol? How might this relate to the notion of the existence of a letter written by Jesus himself?