The silence in Acts regarding Paul’s collection for Jerusalem has been described as “thunderous,” “striking,” and “extremely surprising.” Apart from a single (and contested) reference to the collection in Acts 24:17, Luke seems to have overlooked the project that occupied so much of the Apostle’s time, attention, and theological reflection. Paul’s collection for Jerusalem was a global, multi-cultural, and charitable effort that spanned several years and involved many churches from around the Mediterranean. Luke’s silence in Acts regarding the collection is surprising not only because we know from the epistles that it was one of Paul’s major concerns throughout his ministry, but also because such a donation would seem to represent perfectly many of Luke’s key emphases in the book of Acts: the sharing of possessions, the legitimacy of the Gentile mission, and the unity of the global church. One wonders why something so important to Paul and so suitable to Luke’s aims receives virtually no direct attention in Acts.
Many readers of Acts have felt compelled to offer an explanation for Luke’s silence regarding Paul’s major Jerusalem collection. Reasons given for this omission range from the skeptical (Luke was embarrassed by the failure of the collection), and the scarcely believable (Luke was ignorant of the collection), to the vague (Luke had more pressing concerns) and intriguing (it would have been too dangerous for Luke to mention). The present paper evaluates explanations that have been given to this question and considers their explanatory power. Suggestions are then made regarding the best way to account for Luke’s apparent failure to narrate the story of Paul’s collection for Jerusalem.