Divine visitations and hospitality to strangers in Luke-Acts
Book Description
This scholarly exploration delves into the profound spiritual significance of hospitality within the biblical narrative of Luke-Acts, revealing how divine encounters unfold through acts of welcome and care for strangers. Joshua W. Jipp presents a compelling interpretation of the Malta episode in Acts, demonstrating how this seemingly simple story actually represents a theoxeny—a sacred encounter where mortals unknowingly offer hospitality to the divine.
The author examines how Luke crafts his narrative to show that genuine hospitality becomes a pathway to spiritual connection and divine blessing. Through careful analysis of the Maltese people's response to Paul and his companions, Jipp illuminates how their generous welcome creates what he terms a "fictive kinship relationship" between these Gentile hosts and Paul's God.
This study reveals the deeper spiritual principles at work when we open our hearts and homes to strangers. In the ancient Mediterranean context, hospitality was intimately connected to reverence for the divine, and Luke uses this cultural understanding to demonstrate how authentic welcome can become a form of worship and spiritual practice.
The book offers readers insight into how acts of kindness and generosity toward others—especially those who seem foreign or different—can become transformative spiritual encounters. By contrasting the Maltese hospitality with other responses in the narrative, this work provides a framework for understanding how our treatment of strangers reflects our spiritual condition and openness to divine presence.
Who Is This For?
📖 Reading Level: Medium (200-400 pages) (~9 hours)
📄 Length: 335 pages
What You'll Discover
- ✓ Explore I Bibeln
- ✓ Explore Zeithintergrund
- ✓ Study Bible from spiritual perspective
- ✓ Explore Gästfrihet
- ✓ Explore Entertaining
- ✓ Explore Criticism, interpretation
- ✓ Explore Hospitality in literature
- ✓ Explore Gastfreundschaft
