“I Have Fought with Wild Beasts … But I Will Stay until Pentecost”

Abstract

Abstract Paul only mentions Ephesus twice explicitly, in 1 Cor 15:32 and 16:8. The latter reference leads most to place the writing of 1 Corinthians in Ephesus, while the former causes much hand-wringing over Paul’s bout with wild beasts. If indeed Paul has written to the Corinthians from Ephesus, we may be able to infer—albeit speculatively—aspects of Christian life in the city. Theißen and Hartwig’s concept of the Nebenadressat, which they apply to the Corinthians as secondary addressees of Romans, may be applied to the Ephesians as secondary addressees of the letter to Corinth. We can see from Paul’s guidelines for the Christians in Corinth how Christians in Ephesus would have lived.