what are the epistles

The epistles are formal letters, especially the instructional letters found in the New Testament of the Bible, as well as any literary work written in the style of a letter to a person or group.

What “epistle” means

• In basic terms, an epistle is a carefully composed, often formal letter addressed to a person or community.

• In literature, it can be prose or poetry written as a letter, used to explore ideas, emotions, or arguments in a direct, personal voice.

• The word comes from Greek via Latin and simply means “letter” or “message.”

Epistles in the Bible

When people ask “what are the epistles?” they often mean the letters in the New Testament.

• The New Testament contains 21 such letters, commonly called epistles.

• They are written by early Christian leaders (for example, those traditionally linked to Paul are called the Pauline epistles).

• These letters follow a recognizable pattern: greeting, main teaching or argument, then closing remarks and blessing.

• Their purpose is mainly didactic (to teach, encourage, correct, or guide Christian communities in belief and behavior).

Epistles as a literary form

Outside the Bible, “epistle” is also a literary term.

• A literary epistle is a poem or other work written as if it were a letter to a specific person or group.

• This form goes back to classical writers like Horace and Ovid, who used verse-letters to discuss philosophy, ethics, love, and personal concerns.

• In English literature, epistles became especially popular in the 18th century; for example, Alexander Pope wrote notable verse epistles such as “Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot.”

• Epistles may be intimate and emotional (like elevated love letters) or moral and philosophical in tone.

Mini table: Biblical vs literary epistles

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Aspect	Biblical epistles	Literary epistles
Basic form	Prose letters in the New Testament addressed to churches or individuals.	Poems or prose works written as letters.
Main purpose	Teach, correct, encourage, and guide Christian communities.	Explore ideas, feelings, philosophy, love, or social themes.
Typical tone	Formal, instructive, pastoral.	Can be intimate, reflective, moral, or rhetorical.
Historical roots	Early Christian communities of the first century.	Ancient Greco-Roman letter-writing and poetic traditions.

Quick storytelling-style example

Imagine a well-known teacher writing to a distant community that is arguing about how to live out their beliefs.
They send a long, structured letter: first greeting them, then explaining key beliefs, answering problems, and finishing with personal notes and a blessing.
That kind of carefully crafted, teaching-focused letter is exactly what early Christian epistles are, and the same idea—turning a letter into a deliberate, literary work—is what drives epistles in poetry and prose today.

TL;DR:
Epistles are formal, often didactic letters—most famously, the 21 New Testament letters to early Christian communities, and more broadly any literary work (poetry or prose) written in the form of a letter to explore ideas, feelings, or teachings.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.