Sosthenes

Info

• #coworker
• Home:: Corinth (probably)
• Other Locales:: Ephesian Church (with Paul when 1 Corinthians was written)
• References:: Acts 18#18:17, 1 Corinthians 1#1:1

Notes

• Co-sender of 1 Corinthians with Paul: "Paul...and our brother Sosthenes"
• Possibly the same Sosthenes who was synagogue ruler in Corinth and was beaten before Gallio

Summary

Sosthenes appears in two New Testament contexts that, if they refer to the same man, tell a conversion story.

In Acts 18#18:17, after the proconsul Gallio dismissed Jewish charges against Paul in Corinth, the crowd seized "Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue" and beat him before the tribunal. This Sosthenes was the leader of the Corinthian synagogue, the position previously held by Crispus, who had converted to Christianity (Acts 18#18:8). The reason for the beating is debated: some scholars argue the Greek-speaking crowd was venting anti-Jewish sentiment; others suggest Sosthenes may have been sympathetic to Paul, making him a target of Jewish opponents. Luke records that Gallio "paid no attention to any of this."

In 1 Corinthians 1#1:1, Paul opens his letter: "Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes." The designation "our brother" (ho adelphos) identifies Sosthenes as a fellow Christian, and his placement as co-sender gives him prominence, the same role Timothy holds in other Pauline letters.

If these are the same person, Sosthenes was a synagogue ruler who converted to Christianity, a significant defection from the Jewish establishment to the messianic movement. His journey from being beaten in public as a synagogue leader to co-authoring one of the most important letters in Christian history represents a remarkable trajectory. The identification is held by many scholars, though "Sosthenes" was not a rare name and certainty remains elusive.

References

• wrightChallengeActsRediscovering2024 - Wright's study of Acts as theological history, covering Sosthenes's role in Acts 18:17.
• polhillActs1992 - Polhill's Acts commentary covering Sosthenes in Acts 18:17.
• paoActsIsaianicNew2002 - Pao's study of Acts through the lens of Isaiah's new exodus, providing theological context for Sosthenes's narrative in Acts 18:17.
• addisonActsMovementGod2023 - Addison examines the Acts narrative as a movement model, including Sosthenes's contribution in Acts 18:17.
• Who was Sosthenes in the Bible? - GotQuestions.org
• Acts 18:17 Commentaries - BibleHub