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Paul's Letters

There is debate over the authenticity of Paul's letters in the New Testament. This page compares linguistic features found in the undisputed Pauline letters with those in the disputed letters. These differences provide ample evidence that some letters attributed to Paul were likely written by other authors.

Undisputed Pauline Letters

  1. Romans
  2. 1 Corinthians
  3. 2 Corinthians
  4. Galatians
  5. Philippians
  6. 1 Thessalonians
  7. Philemon

Disputed Pauline Letters

Of these, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and Titus are most widely considered to be pseudepigraphic.

"There are thirteen New Testament letters that claim to be written by Paul. Scholars are unanimous that seven of these letters are authentic: Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Philippians, 1 Thessalonians, and Philemon. These are sometimes called the undisputed letters of Paul. The other six letters are disputed to varying degrees. They are Ephesians, Colossians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy, and Titus."
Bart D. Ehrman, The New Testament (2016), p. 285.

General Examples

Feature Undisputed Usage Undisputed Examples Disputed Usage Disputed Examples
οὖν (therefore) Used 79 times. Rom. 2:26, 3:1, 3:9, 3:27, 3:31, and more... Used 18 times. Eph. 2:19, 4:1, 4:17, 5:1; Col. 2:6, 2 Thess. 2:15, 1 Tim. 2:8
σωτήρ (savior) Never used for Christ. N/A Used 7 times for Christ. 1 Tim. 1:1, 2:3, 4:10; 2 Tim. 1:10; Tit. 1:4, 2:13, 3:6
πιστὸς ὁ λόγος (the saying is trustworthy) Never used. N/A Used 5 times. 1 Tim. 1:10; 2 Tim. 4:3; Tit. 1:9, 2:1
ἡ ὑγιαίνουσα διδασκαλία (sound doctrine) Never used. N/A Used 4 times. 1 Tim. 1:10; 2 Tim. 4:3; Tit. 1:9, 2:1.
εὐσέβεια (godliness) Never used. N/A Used 10 times. 1 Tim. 2:2, 3:16, 4:7, 4:8, 6:3, 6:5, 6:6, 6:11; 2 Tim. 3:5; Tit. 1:1.

Stylometry & Paul

Stylometry is the statistical analysis of variations in literary style between one writer or genre and another. This analysis is based on statistical probability of vocabulary, words, and phrases. Stylometry does not measure the intention or purpose behind the text, but its results can be useful for classification of authors and genres.

Check out this YouTube video that explains stylometry.

Here is some interesting stylometric data on the authorship of Paul, confirming a disputed authorship for the books mentioned above:

"The phenomenon of pseudepigraphy in the ancient world was widespread and complex. Authors would sometimes attribute their works to famous people of the past not out of a desire to deceive but out of a sense of indebtedness and a desire to continue a particular school of thought. [...] In the case of the disputed Pauline letters, it is possible that later followers of Paul, steeped in his thought and missionary passion, sought to apply his teaching to new situations and in so doing composed letters in his name."
David A. deSilva, An Introduction to the New Testament (2004), p. 555.

So What?

The implications of Paul not being the author of some New Testament letters are significant:

  1. If these letters falsely claim Pauline authorship, Biblical inerrancy is false.
  2. It suggests that later evolutions of Christian theology is foundational to the faith.
  3. It raises questions about the nature and extent of apostolic authority in the Pauline era.
  4. It requires reflection on the criteria for evaluating the authenticity of other New Testament texts.