Surprised by God: Praise Responses in the Narrative of Luke-Acts

This dissertation investigates twenty-eight instances of praise of God in Luke-Acts by combining a close, intrinsic reading with extrinsic, comparative study. Part one overviews praise of God in selected early Jewish literature and Greek texts and analyzes it as a narrative motif in Tobit and Joseph and Aseneth. Part two focuses on Luke-Acts, in comparison with the findings of part one. The analysis concludes that praise of the divine is a distinct, identifiable phenomenon regardless of form. In ancient discourse, praise is a mark of human righteousness and humility; acknowledges divine providence; responds to spiritual renewal; and narrates the action of deity. Ancient discourse on praise corresponds with how praise appears in the three narratives, which have numerous points of contacts among them. In Tobit, praise responds to divine activity related to healing and revelation; in Joseph and Aseneth, to conversion and revelation; and in Luke-Acts, to healing, conversion, and revelation. In all three narratives, praise responses by characters introduce and resolve narrative tensions; mark climactic moments in the plots; show recognition of divine beneficence; interpret characters' experiences as paradigmatic for their communities; and to varying degrees, link these experiences with expectations about Israel's eschatological restoration. In Luke-Acts, characters' praise responses acknowledge four key moments in the divine visitation as it unfolds in the plot in surprising but purposeful ways. Such responses also fulfill prophetic expectations that joyous praise would greet eschatological salvation. Vigorous praise responds first to angelic revelation, builds in response to healing miracles, and reaches a climax as Jesus approaches Jerusalem. But the moment Jesus enters the city, praise responses fall silent, creating a central narrative tension. But praise resumes immediately upon Jesus' death, building momentum again in response to revelation about Jesus' resurrection and to a representative healing early in Acts. The context for praise then shifts to scenes of Gentile conversions, which are narrated in the same pattern as healing miracles. Finally, praise is heard on the outskirts of Rome, marking the movement of the divine visitation from Jerusalem outward to the ends of the earth.