How to Read Paul's Letters Chronologically

Old Woman Reading a Lectionary (So-called Portrait of Rembrandt's Mother), circa 1630. Credit: Wikimedia Commons.

Back when I was asking Google how the Bible was written, I stumbled across a variety of supposedly “chronological” reading plans for the Bible. Nearly all of them were pious lists that emphasized reading in an order that reinforces a particular theology. They purposefully carry you through the texts in a way that suggests a certain view of Jesus, a view that would change if you simply read the texts in a different order.

Since the word “chronological” in that sense has absolutely nothing to do with when the original texts were written, I thought I’d offer an alternative: a 30-day plan for how to read Paul’s letters chronologically. But first: an explanation.

The late Marcus Borg urged us to read the New Testament in the order in which the books were actually written rather than the order in which they appear in modern Bibles. We should start with the letters of Paul because they are our earliest texts from the Christ movement. Don't read Acts, don't read the gospels. Save those for later. Paul's letters came first.

Although many letters in the New Testament are claimed to have been written by Paul, most scholars who have studied them have reached the conclusion that only seven of the letters were actually written by Paul when he lived in the early 1 century, around 20 to 30 years after the death of Jesus. Where did the other letters come from? They were written by other people in Paul’s name in the late 1 and early 2 centuries. "Beginning with seven of Paul's letters," Borg writes,

illustrates that there were vibrant Christian communities spread throughout the Roman Empire before there were written Gospels. His letters provide a "window" into the life of very early Christian communities.

The seven authentic or “undisputed” letters of Paul, in roughly chronological order, are as follows:

• 1 Thessalonians
• Galatians
• 1 Corinthians
• 2 Corinthians
• Philemon
• Philippians
• Romans

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By far the easiest way I’ve found to read these letters in chronological order is to read The Authentic Letters of Paul (Dewey et al), which not only puts the letters in chronological order but also grapples with places where others may have edited and rearranged the letters, and/or added new material.

Full disclosure: I was involved, albeit only slightly, in the editing process of this book, but I truly have yet to encounter another book that refuses to pull punches on this issue. Why should it be difficult to find Paul’s letters arranged in some sort of chronological order? It shouldn’t be. This sort of resource is the work of good historians, and that’s what I appreciate about it. They took a risk and put an answer out there. I'd have loved to take a New Testament class that gave me a couple attempts like this and asked me to compare the portraits of Paul that emerged.

‍Related Resource: Listen to a free 2-part interview with the authors and translators of The Authentic Letters of Paul with Ron Way on AuthorTalk Radio.

Have you been meaning to read (or re-read) Paul's letters? We'll be hosting a 30-day challenge here on the Westar blog. How to participate.

‍This reading plan should get you through the seven authentic letters of Paul in 30 days based on The Authentic Letters of Paul. That's a pretty intense reading schedule, given that Paul's arguments can be a real pain to follow. You may find that you want to slow the pace down to 60 days instead (which you can accomplish by reading 1 to 2 chapters a day instead of 2 to 3).If you try it, let me know how it worked for you! What sort of Paul did you discover? Did you reach the same conclusions as Bernard Brandon Scott? Do you know of other attempts to arrange Paul's letters chronologically?

‍Day 1: 1 Thessalonians 1–3

‍Day 2: 1 Thessalonians 4–5

‍Day 3: Galatians 1–2

‍Day 4: Galatians 3–4

‍Day 5: Galatians 5–6

‍Day 6: 1 Corinthians 1–2

‍Day 7: 1 Corinthians 3–4There are likely some insertions from other writers mixed in

‍Day 8: 1 Corinthians 5–6

‍Day 9: 1 Corinthians 7–8

‍Day 10: 1 Corinthians 9–10

‍Day 11: 1 Corinthians 11–12There are likely some insertions from other writers mixed in

‍Day 12: 1 Corinthians 13–14There are likely some insertions from other writers mixed in

‍Day 13: 1 Corinthians 15–16

‍Day 14: 2 Corinthians 2:14–3:18 Defense of Paul’s Credibility (part 1)

‍Day 15: 2 Corinthians 4–6:13; 7:2–4 Defense of Paul’s Credibility (part 2)

‍Day 16: 2 Corinthians 10–13 Parody of “A Fool’s Speech”

‍Day 17: 2 Corinthians 1:1–2:13; 7:5–16 Letter of Reconciliation

‍Day 18: 2 Corinthians 8 Collection Appeal to Corinth

‍Day 19: 2 Corinthians 9 Collection Appeal to Achaia

‍Day 20: Philemon

‍Day 21: Philippians 4:10–20 A Thank-you Letter

‍Day 22: Philippians 1:1–3:1a; 4:4–9 Letter from Prison (part 1)

‍Day 23: Philippians 21–23 Letter from Prison (part 2)

‍Day 24: Philippians 3:1b–4:3 Paul’s Testimony and Advice

‍Day 25: Romans 1–3

‍Day 26: Romans 4–6There are likely some insertions from other writers mixed in

‍Day 27: Romans 7–9

‍Day 28: Romans 10–12

‍Day 29: Romans 13–15There are likely some insertions from other writers mixed in

‍Day 30: Romans 16 Letter of Recommendation

‍There are likely some insertions from other writers mixed in6/3/2015 12:00 pm update: A couple gracious readers have reminded me that, of course, Marcus Borg himself published a chronological reading of the New Testament in 2012, a couple years after The Authentic Letters. He uses the NRSV translation, and he places Philemon and Philippians before 2 Corinthians.

Cassandra Farrin joined Westar in 2010 and currently serves as the Marketing & Outreach Director. A US-UK Fulbright Scholar, she has an M.A. in Religious Studies from Lancaster University (England) and a B.A. in Religious Studies from Willamette University. She is passionate about books and projects that in some way address the intersection of ethics and early Christian history.