Acts 20:21

Paul's description of his ministry at Ephesus as 'testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ' captures the two-part structure of the Pauline gospel: turning (repentance) and trusting (faith). The pairing of repentance and faith as the comprehensive summary of saving response appears also in Hebrews 6:1 ('repentance from dead works, and faith toward God') and Mark 1:15 ('repent and believe'), suggesting it was an established catechetical formula in early Christianity. The dual audience — Jews and Greeks — reflects Paul's synagogue-first missional strategy (Romans 1:16: 'to the Jew first, and also to the Greek') and confirms the universal scope of the gospel without ethnic distinction. Acts 26:20's summary of Paul's preaching ('that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance') provides a further expanded formulation.