What was an epistle that was possibly written by Paul but which differs in structure and pattern from his others?

Answer 1

This is probably the letter to the Hebrews.

The authorship of Hebrews has been in controversy from the earliest times. The book is anonymous, but the reference in 2Peter 3:15 indicates that Paul was possibly the Writer. See also Hebrews 13:23. Most commentators agree that, whether by Paul or another, the point of view is Pauline.

Answer 2

First, I must identify the epistles that were "possibly" written by Paul. This rules out Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Philemon, Galatians, Philippians and 1 Thessalonians,because nearly all scholars accept all of these as genuine, and so it would be unreasonable to call any of them "possibly" written by Paul. It is true that Philemon differs in structure and pattern from the others, but there is no real doubt about its authenticity.

It also rules out Hebrews, which was once attributed to Paul, but is no longer accepted by scholars and all but the most conservative theologians as from Paul. We should also rule out the Pastoral epistles, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy and Titus, as these are known as pseudo-Pauline epistles. It is true that these epistles differ in structure and pattern from Paul's genuine epistles, but they are no longer seen as possibly written by Paul.

By this method, we could say that 2 Thessalonians, Ephesians and Colossians were possibly written by Paul, even if the weight of scholarly opinion is that they were not. The Epistle to the Ephesians differs from every other epistle, genuine or otherwise, because it is the only one that has no obvious purpose. Although Paul usually writes in short, pointed sentences, Ephesians 2:1-9 form a single, continuous sentence in the Greek language (some English translations break this into shorter, more readable sentences). In the oldest and best manuscripts, the epistle is simply addressed to the 'saints', without mentioning Ephesus so the reference to Ephesus is considered likely to be a later interpolation. Second Thessalonians and Colossians also differ in structure and pattern from the undisputed letters, but no doubt Ephesians is the best example of this.