CHAPTER 18
Verse 1. After these things. After what occurred at Athens, as recorded
in the previous chapter.
Came to Corinth. Corinth was the capital of Achaia, called anciently
Ephyra, and was seated on the isthmus which divides the Peloponnesus from
Attica. The city itself stood on a little island; it had two ports,
Lechaeum on the west, and Cenchrea on the east. It was one of the most
populous and wealthy cities of Greece; and, at the same time, one of the
most luxurious, effeminate, proud, ostentatious, and dissolute.
Laciviousness here was not only practised and allowed, but was consecrated
by the worship of Venus; and no small part of the wealth and splendour
of the city arose from the offerings made by licentious passion in the
very temples of this goddess. No city of ancient times was more
profligate. It was the Paris of antiquity; the seat of splendour, and
show, and corruption. Yet even here, notwithstanding all the
disadvantages of splendour, gaiety, and dissoluteness, Paul entered on
the work of rearing a church; and here he was eminently successful. The
two epistles which he afterwards wrote to this church show the extent of
his success; and the well-known character and propensities of the people
will account for the general drift of the admonitions and arguments in
those epistles. Corinth was destroyed by the Romans, 146 years before
Christ; and during the conflagration, several metals in a fused state,
running together, produced the composition known as Corinthian brass. It
was afterwards restored by Julius Caesar, who planted in it a Roman
colony. It soon regained its ancient splendour, and soon relapsed into
its former dissipation and licentiousness. Paul arrived there A.D.
52 or 53.
Verse 2. And found a certain Jew. Aquila is elsewhere mentioned as
the friend of Paul, Romans 16:3; 2 Timothy 4:19; 1 Corinthians 16:19. Though a Jew by
birth, yet it is evident that he became a convert to the Christian faith.
Born in Pontus. See Barnes "Acts 2:9".
Lately come from Italy. Though the command of Claudius extended only
to Rome, yet it was probably deemed not safe to remain, or it might have
been difficult to procure occupation in any part of Italy.
Because that Claudius. Claudius was the Roman emperor. He commenced
his reign A.D. 41, and was poisoned A.D. 64. At what time in his reign
this command was issued is not certainly known.
Had commanded, etc. This command is not mentioned by Josephus; but
it is recorded by Suetonius, a Roman historian, (Life of Claudius, chap.
26,) who says, that "he expelled the Jews from Rome, who were constantly
exciting tumults under their leader, Chrestus." Who this Chrestus
was, is not known. It might have been a foreign Jew, who raised
tumults on some occasion, of which we have no knowledge--as the Jews in
all heathen cities were greatly prone to excitements and insurrections.
Or it may be that Suetonius, little acquainted with Jewish affairs,
mistook this for the name Christ, and supposed that he was the leader
of the Jews. This explanation has much plausibility; for,
(1.) Suetonius could scarcely be supposed to be intimately acquainted
with the affairs of the Jews.
(2.) There is every reason to believe that, before this, the Christian
religion was preached at Rome.
(3.) It would produce there, as everywhere else, great tumult and
contention among the Jews.
(4.) Claudius, the emperor, might suppose that such tumults endangered
the peace of the city, and resolve to remove the cause at once by the
dispersion of all the Jews.
(5.) A Roman historian might easily mistake the true state of the case;
and while they were contending about Christ, he might suppose that it was
under him, as a leader, that these tumults were excited. All that
is material however, here, is the fact, in which Luke and Suetonius
agree, that the Jews were expelled from Rome during his reign.
{c} "Aquila" Romans 16:3
Verse 3. The same craft. Of the same trade, or occupation.
And wrought. And worked at that occupation. Why he did it, the
historian does not affirm; but it seems pretty evident that it was
because he had no other means of maintenance. He also laboured
for his own support in Ephesus, Acts 20:34 and also at
Thessalonica, 2 Thessalonians 3:9,10. The apostle was not ashamed of honest
industry for a livelihood; nor did he deem it any disparagement
that a minister of the gospel should labour with his own hands.
For by their occupation. By their trade; that is, they had been
brought up to this business. Paul had been designed originally for
a lawyer, and had been brought up at the feet of Gamaliel. But it
was a regular custom among the Jews to train up their sons to some
useful employment, that they might have the means of an honest
livelihood. Even though they were trained up to the liberal sciences,
yet they deemed a handicraft trade, or some honourable occupation,
an indispensable part of education. Thus Maimonides (in the Tract
Talmud. Tors, c. i. & 9) says, that "the wise generally practise some
of the arts, lest they should be dependent on the charity of others."
See Grotius. The wisdom of this is obvious; and it is equally plain
that a custom of this kind now might preserve the health and lives
of many professional men, and save from ignoble dependence or vice,
in future years, many who are trained up in the lap of indulgence
and wealth.
They were tentmakers. \~skhnopoioi\~. There have been various opinions
about the meaning of this word. Many have supposed that it denotes a
weaver of tapestry. Luther thus translated it. But it is probable that
it denotes, as in our translation, a manufacturer of tents, made of skin
or cloth. In eastern countries, where there was much travel, where there
were no inns, and where many were shepherds, such a business might be
useful, and a profitable source of living. It was an honourable
occupation, and Paul was not ashamed to be employed in it.
{&} "craft" "occupation"
{d} "wrought" \\Ac 20:34\\
{|} "wrought" "worked"
Verse 4. And he reasoned. See Barnes "Acts 17:2".
{*) "reasoned" "discoursed"
{a} "synagogue" Acts 17:2
Verse 5. And when Silas and Timotheus, etc. They came to Paul
according to his request, which he had sent by the brethren who
accompanied him from Thessalonica, Acts 17:16.
Paul was pressed. Was urged; was borne away by an unusual impulse. It
was deeply impressed on him as his duty.
In spirit. In his mind, in his feelings. His love to Christ was so
great, and his conviction of the truth so strong, that he laboured to
make known to them the truth that Jesus was the Messiah.
That Jesus was Christ. That Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah.
Comp. Acts 17:16. The presence of Silas and Timothy animated him; and
the certainty of aid in his work urged him to zeal in making known
the Saviour.
{1} "was Christ" "is the Christ"
Verse 6. And when they opposed themselves. To him and his message.
And blasphemed. See Barnes "Acts 13:4".
He shook his raiment. As an expressive act of shaking off the guilt
of their condemnation. Comp. Acts 13:45. He shook his raiment to show
that he was resolved henceforward to have nothing to do with them;
perhaps, also, to express the fact that God would soon shake them off, or
reject them. (Doddridge.)
Your blood, etc. The guilt of your destruction is your own. You only
are the cause of the destruction that is coming upon you.
See Barnes "Matthew 27:25".
I am clean. I am not to blame for your destruction. I have done my
duty. The gospel had been fairly offered, and deliberately rejected;
and Paul was not to blame for their ruin, which he saw was coming
upon them.
I will go, etc. See Acts 13:46.
{c} "opposed themselves" 2 Timothy 2:25
{d} "shook his raiment" Nehemiah 5:13
{e} "Your blood be" Ezekiel 28:4
Verse 7. A certain man's house. Probably he had become a convert
to the Christian faith.
Joined hard. Was near to the synagogue.
Verse 8. And Crispus. He is mentioned, in 1 Corinthians 1:14, as having
been one of the few whom Paul baptized with his own hands. The
conversion of such a man must have tended greatly to exasperate the
other Jews, and to further the progress of the Christian faith among
the Corinthians.
With all his house. With all his family, Acts 10:2.
And many of the Corinthians. Many even in this voluptuous and wicked
city. Perhaps the power of the gospel was never more signal than in
converting sinners in Corinth, and rearing a Christian church in a place
so dissolute and abandoned. If it was adapted to such a place as
Corinth --if a church, under the power of Christian truth, could be
organized there--it is adapted to any city; and there is none so corrupt
that the gospel cannot change and purify it.
{f} "Crispus" 1 Corinthians 1:14
{+} "with all his house" "with his hold household"
Verse 9. By a vision. See Barnes "Acts 9:10",
See Barnes "Acts 16:9".
Be not afraid. Perhaps Paul might have been intimidated by the
learning, refinement, and splendour of Corinth; perhaps embarrassed
in view of his duty of addressing the rich, the polite, and the great. To
this he may allude in 1 Corinthians 2:3: "And I was with you in weakness, and
in fear, and in much trembling." In such circumstances it pleased God to
meet him, and disarm his fears. This he did by assuring him of success.
The fact that God had much people in that city, Acts 18:10, was
employed to remove his apprehensions. The prospect of success in the
ministry, and the certainty of the presence of God, will take away the
fear of the rich, the learned, and the great.
{&} "Hold not thy peace" "Be not silent"
Verse 10. For I am with thee. I will attend, bless, and protect you.
See Barnes "Matthew 28:20".
No man shall set on thee. No one who shall rise up against thee
shall be able to hurt thee. His life was in God's hands, and he would
preserve him, in order that his people might be collected into the
church.
For I have. Greek, There is to me; i.e., I possess, or there belongs
to me.
Much people. Many who should be regarded as his true friends, and who
should be saved.
In this city. In that very city that was so voluptuous, so rich, so
effeminate, and where there had been already so decided opposition shown
to the gospel. This passage evidently means that God had a design or
purpose to save many of that people; for it was given to Paul as all
encouragement to him to labour there, evidently meaning that God
would grant him success in his work. It cannot mean that the Lord
meant to say that the great mass of the people, or that the moral and
virtuous part, if there were any such, was then regarded as his people;
but that he intended to convert many of those guilty and profligate
Corinthians to himself, and to gather a people for his own service there.
We may learn from this,
(1.) that God has a purpose in regard to the salvation of sinners.
(2.) That that purpose is so fixed in the mind of God, that he can
say that those in relation to whom it is formed are his. There is no
chance; no hap-hazard; no doubt in regard to his gathering them to
himself.
(3.) This is the ground of encouragement to the ministers of the gospel.
Had God no purpose to save sinners, they could have no hope in their
work.
(4.) This plan may have reference to the most gay, and guilty,
and abandoned population; and ministers should not be deterred by the
amount or the degree of wickedness from attempting to save them.
(5.) There may be more hope of success among a dissolute and profligate
population, than among proud, and cold, and skeptical philosophers.
Paul had little success in philosophic Athens; he had great success in
dissolute Corinth. There is often more hope of converting a man openly
dissolute and abandoned, than one who prides himself on his philosophy,
and is confident in his own wisdom.
{g} "I am with thee" Matthew 28:20.
{%} "set on thee" "Lay hands on"
{|} "much people in this city" "many"
Verse 11. And he continued. etc. Paul was not accustomed to remain
long in a place. At Ephesus, indeed, he remained three years,
Acts 20:31; and his stay at Corinth was caused by his success, and
by the necessity of placing a church, collected out of such corrupt and
dissolute materials, on a firm foundation.
{2} "he continued there" "sat there"
Verse 12. And when Gallio. After the Romans had conquered Greece,
they reduced it to two provinces, Macedonia and Achaia, which were
each governed by a proconsul. Gallio was the brother of the
celebrated philosopher Seneca, and was made proconsul of Achaia, A.D.
53. His proper name was Marcus Annaeus Novatus; but having
been adopted into the family of Gallio, a rhetorician, he took his
name. He is described by ancient writers as having been of a
remarkably mild and amiable disposition. His brother Seneca (Pref.
Quest. Natu. 4) describes him as being of the most lovely temper:
"No mortal," says he, "was ever so mild to any one, as he was to
all; and in him there was such a natural power of goodness, that
there was no semblance of art or dissimulation."
Was the deputy. See this word explained in Acts 13:7. It means,
here, proconsul.
Of Achaia. This word, in its largest sense, comprehended the
whole of Greece. Achaia Proper, however, was a province of which
Corinth was the capital. It embraced that part of Greece lying
between Thessaly and the southern part of the Peloponnesus.
The Jews made insurrection. Excited a tumult, as they had in
Philippi, Antioch, etc.
And brought him to the judgment seat. The tribunal of Gallio;
probably intending to arraign him as a disturber of the peace.
{a} "judgment seat" James 2:6
Verse 13. Contrary to the law. Evidently intending contrary to
all law--the laws of the Romans and of the Jews. It was permitted to
the Jews to worship God according to their own views in Greece; but
they could easily pretend that Paul had departed from that mode of
worshipping God. It was easy for them to maintain that he taught
contrary to the laws of the Romans, and their acknowledged religion;
and their design seems to have been, to accuse him of teaching men
to worship God in an unlawful and irregular way, a way unknown
to any of the laws of the empire.
Verse 14. About to open his mouth. In self-defence; ever ready to
vindicate his conduct.
A matter of wrong. Injustice, or crime; such as could be properly
brought before a court of justice.
Or wicked lewdness. Any flagrant and gross offence. The word used
here occurs nowhere else in the New Testament. It denotes, properly, an
act committed by him who is skilled, facile, or an adept in iniquity--an
act of a veteran offender. Such crimes Gallio was willing to take
cognizance of.
Reason would, etc. Greek, "I would bear with you according to
reason." There would be propriety or fitness in my hearing and trying the
ease. That is, it would fall within the sphere of my duty, as appointed
to guard the peace, and to punish crimes.
(*} "wicked lewdness" "injustice or wicked mischief"
{b} "O ye Jews, reason" Romans 13:3
{+} "bear with you"
Verse 15. Of words. A dispute about words; for such he would
regard all their controversies about religion to be.
And names. Probably he had heard something of the nature of the
controversy, and understood it to be a dispute about names; i.e.,
whether Jesus was to be called the Messiah or not. To him this would
appear as a matter pertaining to the Jews alone, and to be ranked with
their other disputes arising from the difference of sect and name.
Of your law. A question respecting the proper interpretation of the
law, or the rites and ceremonies which it commanded. The Jews
had many such disputes, and Gallio did not regard them as coming
under his cognizance as a magistrate.
Look ye to it. Judge this among yourselves; settle the difficulty as
you can. Comp. John 18:31.
For I will be no judge, etc. I do not regard such questions as
pertaining to my office, or deem myself called on to settle them.
{++} "words and names" "Doctrines"
{c} "look ye to it" John 18:31; Acts 23:29; 22:11,19
Verse 16. And he drave them, etc. He refused to hear and decide the
controversy. He commanded them to depart from the court. The word used
here does not denote that there was any violence used by Galio, but
merely that he dismissed them in an authoritative manner.
Verse 17. Then all the Greeks. The Greeks who had witnessed the
persecution of Paul by the Jews, and who had seen the tumult which
they had excited.
Took Sosthenes, etc. As he was the chief ruler of the synagogue, he
had probably been a leader in the opposition to Paul, and in the
prosecution. Indignant at the Jews--at their bringing such questions
before the tribunal--at their bigotry, and rage, and contentious
spirit--they probably fell upon him in a tumultuous and disorderly
manner as he was leaving the tribunal. The Greeks would feel no small
measure of indignation at these disturbers of the public peace, and
they took this opportunity to express their rage.
And beat him. \~etupton\~. This word is not that which is commonly used
to denote a judicial act of scourging. It probably means that they fell
upon him, and beat him with their fists, or with whatever was at hand.
Before the judgment seat. Probably while leaving the tribunal.
Instead of "Greeks" in this verse, some Mss. read "Jews," but the former
is probably the true reading. The Syriac, Arabic, and Coptic read it
"the Gentiles." It is probable that this Sosthenes afterwards became a
convert to the Christian faith, and a preacher of the gospel. See
1 Corinthians 1:1,2: "Paul, and Sosthenes our brother, unto the church of God
which is at Corinth."
And Gallio cared, etc. This has been usually charged on Gallio
as a matter of reproach, as if he were wholly indifferent to religion.
But the charge is unjustly made; and his name is often most improperly
used to represent the indifferent, the worldly, the careless, and the
skeptical. But by the testimony of ancient writers, he was a most mild
and amiable man; and an upright and just judge. Nor is there the least
evidence that he was indifferent to the religion of his country, or that
he was of a thoughtless and skeptical turn of mind. All that this passage
implies is,
(1.) that he did not deem it to be his duty, or a part of his office, to
settle questions of a theological nature that were started among the Jews.
(2.) That he was unwilling to make this subject a matter of legal
discussion and investigation.
(3.) That he would not interfere, either on one side or the other, in
the question about making proselytes either to or from Judaism. So far
certainly his conduct was exemplary and proper.
(4.) That he did not choose to interpose, and rescue Sosthenes from
the hands of the mob. From some cause he was willing that he
should feel the effects of the public indignation. Perhaps it was not
easy to quell the riot; perhaps he was not unwilling that he who
had joined in a furious and unprovoked persecution should feel the
effect of it in the excited passions of the people. At all events, he
was but following the common practice among the Romans, which
was to regard the Jews with contempt, and to care little how much
they were exposed to popular fury and rage. In this he was wrong;
and it is certain also that he was indifferent to the disputes between
Jews and Christians; but there is no propriety in defaming his name,
and making him the type and representative of all the thoughtless
and indifferent men on the subject of religion in subsequent times.
Nor is there propriety in using this passage as a text applicable to
this class of men.
{d} "Sosthenes" 1 Corinthians 1:1
Verse 18. And sailed thence into Syria. Or set sail for Syria. His
design was to go to Jerusalem to the festival which was soon to occur,
Acts 18:21.
Having shorn his head. Many interpreters have supposed that this
refers to Aquila, and not to Paul. But the connexion evidently requires
us to understand it of Paul, though the Greek construction does not
with certainty determine to which it refers. The Vulgate refers it to
Aquila, the Syriac to Paul.
In Cenchrea. Cenchrea was the eastern port of Corinth. A church was
formed in that place, Romans 16:1.
For he had a vow. A vow is a solemn promise made to God respecting
anything. The use of vows is observable throughout the Scripture.
Jacob, going into Mesopotamia, vowed the tenth of his estate, and
promised to offer it at Bethel to the honour of God, Genesis 28:22.
Moses made many regulations in regard to vows. A man might devote
himself or his children to the Lord. He might devote any part of his
time or property to his service. The vow they were required sacredly to
observe, (Deuteronomy 23:21,22) except in certain specified cases they
were permitted to redeem that which had been thus devoted. The most
remarkable vow among the Jews was that of the Nazarite; by which a man
made a solemn promise to God to abstain from wine and all intoxicating
liquors, to let the hair grow, and not to enter any house polluted by
having a dead body in it, or to attend any funeral. This vow generally
lasted eight days, sometimes a month, sometimes during a definite
period fixed by themselves, and sometimes during their whole lives.
When the vow expired, the priest made an offering of a he-lamb for a
burnt-offering, a she-lamb for an expiatory sacrifice, and a ram for a
peace-offering. The priest then, or some other person, shaved the head
of the Nazarite at the door of the tabernacle, and burnt the hair on
the fire of the altar. Those who made the vow out of Palestine, and
who could not come to the temple when the vow was expired, contented
themselves with observing the abstinence required by the law, and
cutting off the hair where they were. This I suppose to have been the
case with Paul. His hair he cut off at the expiration of the vow at
Cenchrea, though he delayed to perfect the vow by the proper ceremonies
until he reached Jerusalem, Acts 21:23,24. Why Paul made this vow, or
on what occasion, the sacred historian has not informed us, and
conjecture perhaps is useless. We may observe, however,
(1,) that it was common for the Jews to make such vows to God, as an
expression of gratitude or of devotedness to his service, when they had
been raised up from sickness, or delivered from danger or calamity. See
Josephus, b. i. 2, 15. Vows of this nature were also made by the Gentiles
on occasions of deliverance from any signal calamity. Juvenal Sat. 12, 81.
It is possible that Paul may have made such a vow in consequence of
signal deliverance from some of the numerous perils to which he
was exposed. But,
(2.) there is reason to think that it was mainly with a design to
convince the Jews that he did not despise their law, and was not its
enemy. See Acts 21:22-24. In accordance with the custom of the nation,
and in compliance with the law which was not wrong in itself, he might
have made this vow, not for a time-serving purpose, but in order to
conciliate them, and to mitigate their anger against the gospel. But
where nothing is recorded, conjecture is useless. Those who wish to see
the subject discussed, may consult Grotius and Kuin”el in loco, and
Spencer de Legibus Hebrae. p. 862, and Calmet's Dic. art. Nazarite.
{&} "tarried" "remained"
{e} "having shorn his head" Numbers 6:18; Acts 21:24
{f} "for he had a vow" Romans 16:1
Verse 19. And he came to Ephesus. This was a celebrated city in
Ionia, in Asia Minor, about forty miles south of Smyrna. It was chiefly
famous for the temple of Diana, usually reckoned one of the seven
wonders of the world. Pliny styles this city the ornament of Asia.
In the times of the Romans it was the metropolis of Asia. This
city is now under the dominion of the Turks, and is almost in a state
of ruin. Dr. Chandler, in his travels in Asia Minor, says--"The
inhabitants are a few Greek peasants, living in extreme wretchedness,
dependence, and insensibility; the representatives of an illustrious
people, and inhabiting the wreck of their greatness; some in
the substructions of the glorious edifices which they raised; some
beneath the vaults of the stadium, once the crowded scene of
their diversions; and some in the sepulchres which received their
ashes."--Travels, p. 131, Oxford, 1775. The Jews, according to
Josephus, were very numerous in Ephesus, and had obtained the
privilege of citizenship.
Left them there. That is, Aquila and Priscilla, Acts 18:24-26.
Reasoned with the Jews. See Barnes "Acts 17:2".
{*} "reasoned" "Discoursed"
{a} "reasoned with the Jews" Acts 17:2
Verse 20. No Barnes text on this verse.
{+} "tarry" "Abide"
Verse 21. Keep this feast. Probably the passover is here referred to.
Why he was so anxious to celebrate that feast at Jerusalem, the
historian has not informed us. It is probable, however, that he
wished to meet as many of his countrymen as possible, and to remove, if
practicable, the prejudices which had everywhere been raised against him,
Acts 21:20,21. Perhaps, also, he supposed that there would be many
Christian converts present, whom he might meet also.
But I will return, etc. This he did, Acts 19:1, and remained
there three years, Acts 20:31.
{b} "Jerusalem" Acts 19:21; 20:16
{c} "if God will" 1 Corinthians 4:19; James 4:15
Verse 22. Caesarea. See Barnes "Acts 8:40".
And gone up. From the ship.
And saluted the church. Having expressed for them his tender regard
and affection.
To Antioch. In Syria. See Barnes "Acts 11:19".
Verse 23. The country of Galatia and Phrygia. He had been over
these regions before, preaching the gospel, Acts 16:6
Strengthening. Establishing then by exhortation and counsel.
See Barnes "1 Corinthians 1:12".
{d} "Galatia" Galatians 1:2
{e} "strengthening" Acts 14:22; 15:32,41
Verse 24. And a certain Jew named Apollos. Apollos afterwards became
a distinguished and successful preacher of the gospel, 1 Corinthians 1:12;
1 Corinthians 3:5,6; 4:6; Titus 3:13. Nothing more is known of him than
is stated in these passages.
Born at Alexandria. Alexandria was a celebrated city in Egypt,
founded by Alexander the Great. There were large numbers of Jews resident
there. See Barnes "Acts 6:9".
An eloquent man. Alexandria was famous for its schools; and it
is probable that Apollos, in addition to his natural endowments, had
enjoyed the benefit of these schools.
Mighty in the Scriptures. Well instructed, or able in the Old
Testament. The foundation was thus laid for future usefulness in the
Christian church. See Barnes "Luke 24:19".
{f} "named Apollos" 1 Corinthians 1:12; 3:5,6; Titus 3:13
Verse 25. This man was instructed. Greek, was catechised. He was
instructed, in some degree, into the knowledge of the Christian religion.
By whom this was done, we have no information. See Barnes "Acts 2:9-11".
In the right way of the Lord. The word way often refers to
doctrine, Matthew 21:32. It means here that he had been correctly taught
in regard to the Messiah; yet his knowledge was imperfect, Acts 18:26.
The amount of his knowledge seems to have been:
(1.) He had correct views of the Messiah to come--views which he had
derived from the study of the Old Testament. He was expecting a Saviour
that should be humble, obscure, and a sacrifice, in opposition to the
prevailing notions of the Jews.
(2.) He had heard of John; had embraced his doctrine; and probably
had been baptized with reference to him that was to come. Comp.
Matthew 3:2; Acts 19:4. But it is clear that he had not heard that
Jesus was the Messiah. With his correct views in regard to the
coming of the Messiah, he was endeavouring to instruct and reform
his countrymen. He was just in the state of mind to welcome the
announcement that the Messiah had come, and to embrace Jesus of
Nazareth as the hope of the nation.
Being fervent in the spirit. Being zealous and ardent.
See Barnes "Romans 12:11".
Taught diligently. Defended with zeal and earnestness his views of
the Messiah.
The things of the Lord. The doctrines pertaining to the Messiah, as
far as he understood them.
Knowing only the baptism of John. Whether he had heard John, and been
baptized by him, has been made a question, and cannot now be decided. It
is not necessary, however, to suppose this, as it seems that the
knowledge of John s preaching and baptism had been propagated extensively
into other nations besides Judea, Acts 19:1-3. The Messiah was
expected about that time. The foreign Jews would be waiting for him; and
the news of John's ministry, doctrine, and success, would be rapidly
propagated from synagogue to synagogue into the surrounding nations.
John preached repentance, and baptized with reference to him that was to
come after him, Acts 19:4; and this doctrine Apollos seems to have
embraced.
{g} "fervent" Romans 12:11; James 5:16
{h} "knowing" Acts 19:3
Verse 26. And expounded. Explained.
The way of God. Gave him full and ample instructions respecting
the Messiah as having already come, and respecting the nature of his
work.
{i} "more perfectly" Hebrews 6:1
Verse 27. Into Achaia. See Barnes "Acts 18:12".
The brethren wrote. The brethren at Ephesus. Why he went, the
historian does not inform us. But he had heard of the success of Paul
there; of the church which he had established; of the opposition of the
Jews; and it was doubtless with a desire to establish that church, and
with a wish to convince his unbelieving countrymen that their views of
the Messiah were erroneous, and that Jesus of Nazareth corresponded
with the predictions of the prophets. Many of the Greeks at Corinth
were greatly captivated with his winning eloquence,
1 Corinthians 1:12; 3:4,5 and his going there was the occasion of some unhappy
divisions that sprung up in the church. But in all this, he retained the
confidence and love of Paul, 1 Corinthians 1 1 Corinthians 3. It was thus shown
that Paul was superior to envy, and that great success by one minister
need not excite the envy, or alienate the confidence and good-will of
another.
Helped them much. Strengthened them, and aided them in their
controversies with the unbelieving Jews.
Which had believed through grace. The words "through grace" may
refer either to Apollos, or to the Christians who had believed.
If to him, it means that he was enable by grace to strengthen the
brethren there; if to them, it means that they had been led to
believe by the grace or favour of God. Either interpretation makes good
sense. Our translation has adopted that which is most natural and
obvious.
{a} "helped" 1 Corinthians 3:6
{b} "believed" Ephesians 2:8
Verse 28. For he mightily convinced the Jews. He did it by strong
arguments; he bore down all opposition, and effectually silenced them.
And that publicly. In his public preaching in the synagogue and
elsewhere.
Showing by the Scriptures. Proving from the Old Testament. Showing
that Jesus of Nazareth corresponded with the account of the Messiah
given by the prophets. See Barnes "John 5:39".
That Jesus was Christ. See the margin. That Jesus of Nazareth was
the Messiah.
{*} "convinced" "earnestly confuted"
{c} "by the Scriptures" John 5:39
{1} "Jesus was Christ" "is the Christ" Acts 18:5
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