The inclusion of the author’s name in the body of the text may be an interesting piece of information, but it is not a greater guarantee of the author’s identity. That is, the author’s name is usually identified in a title page, the book’s cover, or its jacket – all of which are produced by the publisher, not the author. Since the vast majority of books ever produced do not contain the author’s name in the body of the text, it is misleading for modern critical scholars to describe a biblical text without the author’s name appearing in its body as “formally anonymous.” Therefore, while the information below has some utility, be cautioned that no one should read too much into it.
Note also that in the Gospel according to John and in the second and third letters that bear his name, he is identified by title and not by personal name. That leaves us with 9 texts which do not give a name for the author in the text (3 of them giving a title instead). Conversely, we have 18 texts in which the author’s personal name appears in the body of the text.
- Matthew –
- Mark –
- Luke –
- John – John 21:20-24 – …the disciple whom Jesus loved…This is the disciple who is testifying to these things and wrote these things…
- Acts –
- Romans – Rom 1:1-7 Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God…to…
- 1 Corinthians – 1 Cor 1:1-2 Paul, called as an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother, To…
- 2 Corinthians – 2 Cor 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To…
- Galatians – Gal 1:1-2 Paul, an apostle…and all the brethren who are with me, To…
- Ephesians – Eph 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To…
- Philippians – Phil 1:1 Paul and Timothy, bond-servants of Christ Jesus, To…
- Colossians – Col 1:1-2 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To…
- 1 Thessalonians – 1 Thess 1:1 Paul and Silvanus and Timothy, To…
- 2 Thessalonians – 2 Thess 1:1 Paul and Silvanus and Timothy, To…
- 1 Timothy – 1 Tim 1:1-2 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus according to the commandment of God our Savior, and of Christ Jesus, who is our hope, To…
- 2 Timothy – 2 Tim 1:1-2 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, according to the promise of life in Christ Jesus, To…
- Titus – Titus 1:1-4 Paul, a bond-servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ…To…
- Philemon – Philem 1:1 Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To…
- Hebrews –
- James – James 1:1 James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To…
- 1 Peter – 1 Pet 1:1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To…
- 2 Peter – 2 Pet 1:1 Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To…
- 1 John –
- 2 John – 2 John 1:1 The elder to…
- 3 John – 3 John 1:1 The elder to…
- Jude – Jude 1:1 Jude, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, To…
- Revelation –
- Rev 1:1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bond-servants, the things which must soon take place; and He sent and communicated it by His angel to His bond-servant John,
- Rev 1:4 John to…
The Duty of a Man 