Acts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28
Acts 18:1
Μετὰ ταῦτα χωρισθεὶς ἐκ τῶν Ἀθηνῶν ἦλθεν εἰς Κόρινθον.
After these things, departing from Athens, he came to Corinth.
Paraphrase: While Paul was at Athens, Timothy finally caught up with him. (Acts 17:15) The situation in Thessalonica, however, had become so serious that Paul felt Timothy was more needed there than in Athens. As a result, Paul sent him back to Macedonia so that Timothy could encourage the Thessalonian believers in their distress and further establish them in the truths of the faith. (1 Thessalonians 3:1-5) After Timothy had gone, Paul finally felt like his ministry was at an end in Athens, and he left the city and made his way to Corinth.
Comments:
Acts 18:2
καὶ εὑρών τινα Ἰουδαῖον ὀνόματι Ἀκύλαν, Ποντικὸν τῷ γένει, προσφάτως ἐληλυθότα ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰταλίας καὶ Πρίσκιλλαν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ διὰ τὸ διατεταχέναι Κλαύδιον χωρίζεσθαι πάντας τοὺς Ἰουδαίους ἀπὸ τῆς Ῥώμης, προσῆλθεν αὐτοῖς,
and finding a certain Jew named Aquilla, born in Pontus, recently having come from Italy and Priscilla, his wife, because Claudius ordered all the Jews to depart from Rome. He came to them.
Paraphrase: In Corinth, Paul was delighted to discover a certain Jewish man named Aquilla and his wife, Priscilla. Aquilla had been born in Pontus but had come to live in Corinth because the emperor Claudius had banned all the Jews from Rome. At this time, the Christians and Jews were largely lumped together as one group in the popular mind. With this couple, Paul came to stay.
Comments:
For διὰ τὸ διατεταχέναι see BBG 32.15.
For πάντας τοὺς Ἰουδαίους, see principle 23
For Claudius’ expulsion of the Jews see here. Before the reign of Nero, Christians would have been viewed as a part of Judaism. source Claudius died in 54AD, and Nero succeeded him as emperor.
Acts 18:3
καὶ διὰ τὸ ὁμότεχνον εἶναι ἔμενεν παρ’ αὐτοῖς καὶ ἠργάζετο, ἦσαν γὰρ σκηνοποιοὶ τῇ τέχνῃ.
and because he was of the same trade, he remained with them and worked, for they were tent-makers by trade.
Paraphrase: Paul was happy to have made their acquaintance because he was determined to make his own living in Corinth; he did not want to accept any payment for his teaching. (1 Corinthians 9) Therefore, he joined Aquilla and Priscilla in their trade and labored alongside them in the making of tents, a skill which he had learned from his early days in Cilicia.
Comments:
For the different opinions on Paul’s trade, see Gloag.
Acts 18:4
διελέγετο δὲ ἐν τῇ συναγωγῇ κατὰ πᾶν σάββατον, ἔπειθέν τε Ἰουδαίους καὶ Ἕλληνας.
but in the synagogue, each Sabbath, he was reasoning and persuading both Jews and Greeks.
Paraphrase: During the week, then, Paul worked hard at tent-making. On the weekends, however, he left his trade and found a place in the synagogues where he could engage the Jews in theological discussion. Neither did he turn down opportunities to speak with people from a Greek or Roman background. To the Jews, he argued that Jesus was the Messiah. To the Greeks, he argued that Jesus was Lord.
Comments:
Acts 18:5
Ὡς δὲ κατῆλθον ἀπὸ τῆς Μακεδονίας ὅ τε Σιλᾶς καὶ ὁ Τιμόθεος, συνείχετο τῷ λόγῳ ὁ Παῦλος, διαμαρτυρόμενος τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις εἶναι τὸν χριστὸν Ἰησοῦν.
When Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia, Paul limited himself to the word, urgently testifying to the Jews Jesus to be the Messiah.
Paraphrase: Eventually, Silas and Timothy both found their way to Corinth and reunited with Paul. Paul was glad to have them back. Timothy had returned from Thessalonica where Paul had sent him from Athens. (1 Thessalonians 3:1) Silas had returned with a gift from the Philippian church (Philippians 4:15; 2 Corinthians 11:9) which meant that Paul no longer needed the income he earned from tent making. Now he was able to devote himself full time to his evangelistic work. Paul spent a lot of time in the synagogues trying to persuade the Jews that Jesus really was the Messiah for whom they were waiting and expecting.
Comments:
RWP sees συνείχετο here as middle voice, not passive giving the meaning of he constrained or limited himself to the word. The NASB also translates it as an ingressive.
Acts 18:6
ἀντιτασσομένων δὲ αὐτῶν καὶ βλασφημούντων ἐκτιναξάμενος τὰ ἱμάτια εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς· Τὸ αἷμα ὑμῶν ἐπὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν ὑμῶν· καθαρὸς ἐγώ· ἀπὸ τοῦ νῦν εἰς τὰ ἔθνη πορεύσομαι.
but they resisted and insulted. Shaking his cloaks, he said to them, “Your blood on your head; I am clean; from now on, to the Gentiles I go.
Paraphrase: Eventually, however, Paul made little headway among them. Every time he would join them for discussion, it was like he was approaching a hostile army who had set the battle in array against him. Some times, they would interrupt him and not let him speak. At other times, they resorted to name calling and insults. Finally, Paul knew his time with the Corinthian Jews was finished. He had followed His Master’s mandate (Matthew 10:5-6); now it was time to take the gospel elsewhere. “I’ve done all I can with you people,” Paul said, “I will now leave you to yourselves and take the good news about Jesus to the Gentile peoples. You will have to bear the responsibility for your unbelief yourself; I will not be to blame for your damnation. (Ezekiel 3:19) Farewell.” Having said this, he took off his cloak; and in sight of them all, he shook the dust off it. (Matthew 10:14) Then with one final wave, he took his leave of them.
Comments:
ἀντιτασσομένων δὲ αὐτῶν καὶ βλασφημούντων = genitive absolute
ἀπὸ τοῦ νῦν means from this time on; cf Diessmann.
Acts 18:7
καὶ μεταβὰς ἐκεῖθεν εἰσῆλθεν εἰς οἰκίαν τινὸς ὀνόματι Τιτίου Ἰούστου σεβομένου τὸν θεόν, οὗ ἡ οἰκία ἦν συνομοροῦσα τῇ συναγωγῇ.
and withdrawing from there, he entered into the house of a certain man named Titus Justus, who worshipped God, whose house was near to the synagogue.
Paraphrase: At this time, Paul moved out of the house where he was saying with Aquilla and Priscilla and moved in with a godly man named Titus Justus. Interestingly, this man’s house was located right next to the synagogue.
Comments:
σεβομένου is an anarthrous but attributive participle.
Ramsay says that Gaius was a kind of first name for the man mentioned here as Titus Justus; cf 1 Corinthians 1:14.
Acts 18:8
Κρίσπος δὲ ὁ ἀρχισυνάγωγος ἐπίστευσεν τῷ κυρίῳ σὺν ὅλῳ τῷ οἴκῳ αὐτοῦ, καὶ πολλοὶ τῶν Κορινθίων ἀκούοντες ἐπίστευον καὶ ἐβαπτίζοντο.
Now Crispus, the synagogue-leader, believed the Lord with all his house and many of the Corinthians, hearing, were believing and were baptized.
Paraphrase: Paul experienced a great deal of opposition from the Jews, but the news was not all bad. Amazingly, the leader of the synagogue worship himself became a Christian. His name was Crispus; and when he believed the gospel, Paul took him and his entire family and baptized them. When the news of this began to spread, it had a great effect on the other people in Corinth. Many of them came and, for a variety of reasons, heard the apostles preaching. God opened their hearts to receive Paul’s word; and as a result, they put their trust in Jesus and were baptized into His Name. (Acts 19:5)
Comments:
Schurer says that the ἀρχισυνάγωγος had the responsibility of setting up and administering the public worship of the synagogues.
Acts 18:9
εἶπεν δὲ ὁ κύριος ἐν νυκτὶ δι’ ὁράματος τῷ Παύλῳ· Μὴ φοβοῦ, ἀλλὰ λάλει καὶ μὴ σιωπήσῃς,
Then the Lord said at night through a vision to Paul, “Do not fear but speak and do not be silent.”
Paraphrase: While Paul was in Corinth, the Lord Jesus Himself appeared to Paul in a night vision, “Don’t be afraid,” He said, “Keep on speaking! Don’t let their threats intimidate you or silence you.
Comments:
Acts 18:10
διότι ἐγώ εἰμι μετὰ σοῦ καὶ οὐδεὶς ἐπιθήσεταί σοι τοῦ κακῶσαί σε, διότι λαός ἐστί μοι πολὺς ἐν τῇ πόλει ταύτῃ.
Because I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you; because a people is to Me, many, in this city.
Paraphrase: You don’t need to fear them because I am with you. (Genesis 26:24; 28:15; Isaiah 41:10; 43:5; Jeremiah 1:19; 30:11; 46:28; Haggai 1:13; Matthew 28:20) No weapon that is formed against you will succeed, and you will silence every tongue that accuses you in court. This is the heritage of My servants, and their vindication is from Me. (Isaiah 54:17) Furthermore, there are many people in this city whom I have chosen from before the foundation of the world. (Acts 13:48) Now is the time that I will call them out of darkness, and I have appointed you to do this on My behalf. This work will surely go forward; it will not fail. (Isaiah 46:10)
Comments:
Think of μοι as a noun with a lamed showing possession.
Acts 18:11
ἐκάθισεν δὲ ἐνιαυτὸν καὶ μῆνας ἓξ διδάσκων ἐν αὐτοῖς τὸν λόγον τοῦ θεοῦ.
Then he settled down a year and six months teaching among them the word of God.
Paraphrase: This greatly encouraged Paul and lifted his spirits; and as a result of this vision, he decided to stay in Corinth and to carry on the Lord’s work for a longer duration than he had previously done. With fresh zeal, he plunged into the work of preaching and teaching again, continuing in this routine for about a year and a half.
Comments:
Acts 18:12
Γαλλίωνος δὲ ἀνθυπάτου ὄντος τῆς Ἀχαΐας κατεπέστησαν ὁμοθυμαδὸν οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι τῷ Παύλῳ καὶ ἤγαγον αὐτὸν ἐπὶ τὸ βῆμα,
Acts 18:13
λέγοντες ὅτι Παρὰ τὸν νόμον ἀναπείθει οὗτος τοὺς ἀνθρώπους σέβεσθαι τὸν θεόν.
Acts 18:14
μέλλοντος δὲ τοῦ Παύλου ἀνοίγειν τὸ στόμα εἶπεν ὁ Γαλλίων πρὸς τοὺς Ἰουδαίους· Εἰ μὲν ἦν ἀδίκημά τι ἢ ῥᾳδιούργημα πονηρόν, ὦ Ἰουδαῖοι, κατὰ λόγον ἂν ἀνεσχόμην ὑμῶν·
Acts 18:15
εἰ δὲ ζητήματά ἐστιν περὶ λόγου καὶ ὀνομάτων καὶ νόμου τοῦ καθ’ ὑμᾶς, ὄψεσθε αὐτοί· κριτὴς ἐγὼ τούτων οὐ βούλομαι εἶναι.
Acts 18:16
καὶ ἀπήλασεν αὐτοὺς ἀπὸ τοῦ βήματος.
Acts 18:17
ἐπιλαβόμενοι δὲ πάντες Σωσθένην τὸν ἀρχισυνάγωγον ἔτυπτον ἔμπροσθεν τοῦ βήματος· καὶ οὐδὲν τούτων τῷ Γαλλίωνι ἔμελεν.
Acts 18:18
Ὁ δὲ Παῦλος ἔτι προσμείνας ἡμέρας ἱκανὰς τοῖς ἀδελφοῖς ἀποταξάμενος ἐξέπλει εἰς τὴν Συρίαν, καὶ σὺν αὐτῷ Πρίσκιλλα καὶ Ἀκύλας, κειράμενος ἐν Κεγχρεαῖς τὴν κεφαλήν, εἶχεν γὰρ εὐχήν.
Acts 18:19
κατήντησαν δὲ εἰς Ἔφεσον, κἀκείνους κατέλιπεν αὐτοῦ, αὐτὸς δὲ εἰσελθὼν εἰς τὴν συναγωγὴν διελέξατο τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις.
Acts 18:20
ἐρωτώντων δὲ αὐτῶν ἐπὶ πλείονα χρόνον μεῖναι οὐκ ἐπένευσεν,
Acts 18:21
ἀλλὰ ἀποταξάμενος καὶ εἰπών· Πάλιν ἀνακάμψω πρὸς ὑμᾶς τοῦ θεοῦ θέλοντος ἀνήχθη ἀπὸ τῆς Ἐφέσου,
Acts 18:22
καὶ κατελθὼν εἰς Καισάρειαν, ἀναβὰς καὶ ἀσπασάμενος τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, κατέβη εἰς Ἀντιόχειαν,
Acts 18:23
καὶ ποιήσας χρόνον τινὰ ἐξῆλθεν, διερχόμενος καθεξῆς τὴν Γαλατικὴν χώραν καὶ Φρυγίαν, στηρίζων πάντας τοὺς μαθητάς.
Acts 18:24
Ἰουδαῖος δέ τις Ἀπολλῶς ὀνόματι, Ἀλεξανδρεὺς τῷ γένει, ἀνὴρ λόγιος, κατήντησεν εἰς Ἔφεσον, δυνατὸς ὢν ἐν ταῖς γραφαῖς.
Now a Jew, named Apollos, an Alexandrian by birth, a learned man, arrived in Ephesus, being powerful in the Scriptures.
Paraphrase: Meanwhile, as Paul was making his way through the Galatian and Phrygian churches, a man arrived in Ephesus who you should know about. Recall that Paul had met Aquilla and Priscilla in Corinth when he first arrived there. (Acts 18:2) This couple had become so attached to Paul that they followed him to Ephesus where Paul left them when he set sail for Jerusalem. During the time of Paul’s absence, Aquilla and Priscilla had taken into their home this young man whom I mentioned previously. His name was Apollos, and he was a well educated man having studied at the famous schools of Alexandria, Egypt. In fact, he had been born in this city. As Aquilla and Priscilla got to know him better, they realized that this man had a marvelous grasp of the Old Testament Scriptures and was able to articulate the theology of the Old Testament with wonderful clarity.
Comments:
Acts 18:25
οὗτος ἦν κατηχημένος τὴν ὁδὸν τοῦ κυρίου, καὶ ζέων τῷ πνεύματι ἐλάλει καὶ ἐδίδασκεν ἀκριβῶς τὰ περὶ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ, ἐπιστάμενος μόνον τὸ βάπτισμα Ἰωάννου.
This man was taught the way of the Lord and was boiling in spirit. He was continually speaking and teaching carefully the things concerning Jesus, although understanding only the baptism of John.
Paraphrase: He was very zealous in teaching the things about Jesus. He never lost an opportunity to show the Jews (Acts 18:28) the truth about the coming of Jesus as the Messiah-King. “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” was the constant theme of his teaching and preaching. Unfortunately, Apollos was not yet aware of the further ministry of Jesus. His knowledge of Jesus extended no farther than that of his teacher, John the Baptizer.
Comments:
ἐπιστάμενος = participle of concession; cf Burton §437 or GGBB 634.
Acts 18:26
οὗτός τε ἤρξατο παρρησιάζεσθαι ἐν τῇ συναγωγῇ· ἀκούσαντες δὲ αὐτοῦ Πρίσκιλλα καὶ Ἀκύλας προσελάβοντο αὐτὸν καὶ ἀκριβέστερον αὐτῷ ἐξέθεντο τὴν ὁδὸν τοῦ θεοῦ.
This man began to speak boldly in the synagogue. Now when Priscilla and Aquilla, hearing him, took him in and more fully explained to him the way of God.
Paraphrase: Now as I said previously, Aquilla and Priscilla had heard this man teach and decided to make his acquaintance. They rejoiced at his articulate presentation of the Old Testament prophecies and his bold proclamation that Jesus was the One to whom these prophecies pointed, but still felt that something was missing from his message. Finally, they got the opportunity, and they invited Apollos to their house. Here they listened carefully to him and became aware of the deficiencies in his knowledge. Apollos, upon hearing that there was more to the story, was eager to hear the rest of what Jesus had taught and done. He rejoiced when his hosts explained to him the meaning of the death and resurrection of Jesus. Aquilla and Priscilla agreed to meet regularly with Apollos to discuss these issues further. In keeping with this plan, Apollos met regularly with Priscilla, Aquilla joining them as his time permitted.
Comments:
αὐτοῦ = principle 47
The change in the order of names here is interesting. Harnack suggested that Priscilla was the author of the letter to the Hebrews. Hort quotes Plumptre who suggested that the change in order was because of her higher social rank than her husband. It’s impossible to know for sure.
Acts 18:27
βουλομένου δὲ αὐτοῦ διελθεῖν εἰς τὴν Ἀχαΐαν προτρεψάμενοι οἱ ἀδελφοὶ ἔγραψαν τοῖς μαθηταῖς ἀποδέξασθαι αὐτόν· ὃς παραγενόμενος συνεβάλετο πολὺ τοῖς πεπιστευκόσιν διὰ τῆς χάριτος·
When he determined to depart to Achaia, the brothers, encouraging, wrote to the disciples to receive him who when he was present, he gave great help to the believers through grace.
Paraphrase: After some time, word about Apollos’ ministry began to spread beyond the Ephesian church. One day, some visitors from Corinth heard Apollos preach and brought back word to the elders of the Corinthian church. These elders recognized that Apollos was the kind of person who would be well received in Corinth and also very useful in repelling the attacks of those who did not hold to the truth of Christianity. These elders sent a delegation to Apollos and asked him to come to Corinth and to labor there. Apollos received this message and sensed the call of God to labor in the Corinthian church. He shared his resolve with the church in Ephesus, and they readily acquiesced to his plan. They wrote a letter of introduction to the brothers and sisters in Corinth encouraging them to receive Apollos and to extend to him all the respect due to one who labors in word and doctrine. (1 Timothy 5:17) Apollos’ ministry was wonderfully blessed by God and proved to be an immense help to those who, by God’s grace, had come to believe in Jesus in the city of Corinth.
Comments:
Achaia was the southern part of Greece, of which, Corinth was the chief city.
Acts 18:28
εὐτόνως γὰρ τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις διακατηλέγχετο δημοσίᾳ ἐπιδεικνὺς διὰ τῶν γραφῶν εἶναι τὸν χριστὸν Ἰησοῦν.