What do the scriptures of Paul mean?

Answer 1

A:

The scriptures of Paul are simply letters that he wrote. Thirteen have been attributed to him, but most New Testament scholars now say that he really only wrote seven of these, and that the remainder were written using his name after he had died. This means that the real meaning of the pseudo-Pauline epistles, Ephesians, Colossians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy and Titus, is hidden from us unless we read them from the point of view of the real authors.

One of the genuine epistles, Philemon, was written largely to assist an escaped slave whom Paul was sending back to his owner. The other epistles regarded as genuine are Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Philemon, Galatians, Philippiansand 1 Thessalonians. These were all written to church communities and share some common themes. Apart from Romans, we find Paul frequently defending his teachings and his authority against those he called false apostles and super-apostles. Another common theme is the collection Paul was making to assist the poor in Jerusalem in their time of need (for example: 2 Corinthians 8:13-14). In each epistle, Paul provides encouragement and advice. As Paul had never been to Rome, the Epistle to the Romans served partly to introduce Paul and to explain his travel plans.