Acts 18:20

Act 18:20. Ἐρωτώντων, when they desired him) It is not always that there is a Divine call present under the plausible invitation of men.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Act 18:20 . ἐπένευσεν : only here in N.T., but cf. 2Ma 4:10 ; 2Ma 11:15 ; 2Ma 14:20 , frequent in classical Greek. St. Paul must have had some very pressing reason for refusing such an invitation from his own countrymen.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The Apostles were carried about not by the will of man, but by the leading of the holy Ghost.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

when they desired him to tarry--The Jews seldom rose against the Gospel till the successful preaching of it stirred them up, and there was no time for that here.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

(20) When they desired him to tarry longer time with them.—This was, obviously, a hopeful sign, the earnest of the fruitful labours that followed. Nowhere, among the churches that he founded, does St. Paul seem to have found so great a receptivity for spiritual truth. While he looked on the Corinthians as being children requiring to be fed with milk (1Co_3:2), he saw in the Ephesians those to whom he did not shun to declare “the whole counsel of God” (Act_20:27), to whom he could, at a later date, appeal as able to measure his knowledge of the mystery of the gospel (Eph_3:4).

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

20. And when they desired (asked) him to tarry a longer time with them] The oldest texts omit the last two words. The verb is one most frequently rendered “to ask.” We need not suppose that more impression had been produced on this occasion than made the Jews willing to give him a patient hearing.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And when he had landed at Caesarea,.... This was Caesarea Stratonis, formerly called Strato's tower: it would have been nearest for the apostle to have landed at Joppa, in order to go to Jerusalem, but that haven was a dangerous one; this was the safest, and which therefore Herod had repaired at a vast expense, and in honour of Caesar had called it by this name: of the port at Caesarea, and what a convenient and commodious one, as it was made by Herod, Josephus (i) gives a particular account, and who often calls this place Caesarea, "Caesarea by the sea" (k); and in other Jewish (l) writings mention is made of this place as a sea port, and of , "the shore of the sea of Caesarea": Josephus (m) sometimes calls it the port Sebastus, or Augustus, it being, as before observed, made by Herod, and so called in honour of Augustus Caesar; and in another place (n), Sebastus the port of Caesarea: according to Jerom (o), or a writer under his name, this was neither Caesarea Philippi, which indeed it could not be, that being an inland town; nor Caesarea formerly called Strato's tower, but a third Caesarea, the metropolis of Cappadocia: in which he must be mistaken, seeing that was no sea port, and the apostle could not be said to land there; nor did it lie in the way to Jerusalem from Ephesus; but this city was in Phenice, and lay between Joppa and Dora; which cities were maritime ones, but very disagreeable havens, because of the vehement strong winds from Africa: which rolling up the sand out of the sea upon the shore, would not admit of a quiet station (p); wherefore the apostle chose to land here, and not at either of the said ports;

and gone up; not to Caesarea, but to Jerusalem, from thence, which lay higher; and going to and from these places, is signified by a going up and down, Act 9:30. Moreover, the apostle had told the Ephesians, that he must go and keep the feast in Jerusalem, as he undoubtedly did: and yet if this does not refer to his going up thither, it will not be easy to observe that he went thither at all before his return to Ephesus; and besides, to suppose him to go from Caesarea to Antioch, was all one as to go back to Ephesus; and so to go, as one observes, by the same place to Jerusalem, into which he promised, in his return from Jerusalem, to come again, if God would:

and saluted the church; at Jerusalem, the mother church:

he went down to Antioch; in Syria, from whence he first set out.

(i) Antiqu. l. 15. c. 9. sect. 6. & de Bello Jud. l. 1. c. 21. sect. 5, 6, 7. (k) Ib. de Bello l. 1. c. 3. sect. 5. & l. 3. c. 8. sect. 1. & l. 7. c. 1. sect. 3. c. 2. sect. 1. (l) Midrash Kohelet, fol. 71. 4. & 82. 2. (m) Antiqu. l. 17. c. 5. sect. 1. (n) De Bello Jud. l. 1. c. 31. sect. 3. (o) De locis Hebraicis, fol. 96. A. (p) Joseph. Antiqu. l. 15. c. 9. sect. 6.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

20 When they desired him to tarry longer time with them, he consented not;

Ver. 20. He consented not] Though lovingly invited, and otherwise easy to be entreated. There was therefore something in it more than ordinary. Θεω επου, follow God whithersoever he leadeth thee, was a maxim among heathens. (Boeth. Consol.) Magnus est animus qui se Deo tradidit, saith Seneca (Epist. cvii.); that is a brave spirit that hath given up itself to God; and that is a base degenerate spirit which stands off; et Deum mavult emendare, quam se, and had rather find fault with God than with himself.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

They desired; that is, Aquila and Priscilla, whom Paul would not yield unto.

He consented not; by God’s wonderful providence, which overrules all our inclinations; Paul having greater things to do and suffer for the glory of God elsewhere.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

20. Desired him to tarry—The vessel, though stopping at Ephesus, seems bound for Cesarea. Paul’s first preaching at Ephesus, as at Corinth, seems to have won the Jews. In both places the brief peace was succeeded by violent war. As cultivators of the ground for a future Church, however, Paul left Aquila and Priscilla there, (Act_18:19.)

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And when they asked for when they desired, A.V.; abide a for tarry, A.V.; time for time with them, A.V. He consented not; oujk ejpeneusen, only here in the New Testament, but found in Pro_26:20; RAPC 2Macc 4:10, etc., and frequently in medical writers; literally, to bend the head forward by the proper muscles (Hobart).

Zeal without knowledge.

And he began to speak, etc. The true knowledge is not learning, not even knowledge of the Scriptures as a written Word, but knowledge of the way of God. Priscilla and Aquila may know more, in this sense of knowledge, than Apollos. Spiritual things are spiritually discerned.

I THOSE WHO PREACH AND TEACH SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR IT.

1. Much harm is done by zeal without true knowledge.

2. Progress cannot be rapid where knowledge is imperfect.

3. No amount of fervor in the spirit should be allowed to supersede a careful knowledge of the truth.

II THE WAY OF GOD IS NOT THE WAY OF JON THE BAPTIST, BUT THE WAY OF CHRIST.

1. Many things about Jesus may be known, and still the saving truth of spiritual life in him may be unknown.

2. Repentance preparatory to faith, not instead of it.

3. The way of God in Christ is not a reformed Judaism, but an entirely new method of religion; spiritual, not formal; by the law of love, not by the law of works. New wine in new bottles. Defective views of the gospel still prevalent. Morality substituted for faith, ritualism for spiritual religion. The way of God is the way of a new creation. R.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

20. He must expedite and see the churches in different countries again,

William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

See notes on verse 19

J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

General Information:

Here the words "they" and "them" refer to the Jews in Ephesus.

taking his leave of them

"saying good-bye to them"

translationWords

Paul

will of God

Ephesus

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

20. παρ’ αὐτοῖς omitted with אAB. Not represented in Vulg.

20. ἐρωτώντων δὲ αὐτῶν ἐπὶ πλείονα χρόνον μεῖναι, and when they asked him to tarry a longer time. We need not from this suppose that more impression had been produced on this occasion than made the Jews willing to give him a patient hearing.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.