Acts 20:15

Act 20:15. Τρωγυλλίῳ) The name of a place, as in Wirtemberg, a village is called Korb (a basket) with the same signification.—ἤλθομεν, we came) with rapid course.

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

Act 20:15 . κἀκεῖθεν , see on Act 16:12 , Act 14:26 . κατηντήσαμεν , cf. Act 16:1 , Act 18:19 ; Act 18:24 , “we reached a point on the mainland ,” Ramsay, ἀντικρὺ Χ . over against, i.e. , opposite Chios; often in Greek writers, only here in N.T., but W.H [334] , Weiss, ἄντικρυς , 3Ma 5:16 (Neh 12:8 , see Hatch and Redpath). On καταντᾶν εἰς , and καταντᾶν ἄντ . as here, see on Act 16:1 , Act 18:19 ; Klostermann, Vindiciæ Lucanæ , p. 49. Χίου : The island Chios ( Scio ) in the Ægean was separated from the Asian coast by a channel which at its narrowest was only five miles across. The ship carrying St. Paul would pass through this picturesque channel on its way south from Mitylene. An interesting comparison with the voyage of St. Paul may be found in Herod’s voyage by Rhodes, Cos, Chios and Mitylene, towards the Black Sea (Jos., Ant. , xvi., 2, 2). Amongst the seven rivals for the honour of being the birthplace of Homer, the claims of Chios are most strongly supported by tradition. On the legendary and historic connections of the places named in this voyage see Plumptre, in loco , and “Chios” (Ramsay), Hastings’ B.D. τῇ δὲ ἑτέρᾳ : (see critical note). Wetstein calls attention to the variety of phrases, τῇ ἑτ ., τῇ ἐπιούσῃ , τῇ ἐχομ . The phrase before us is found in Act 27:3 , so that it only occurs in the “We”, sections and nowhere else in Acts, but the expression “the next day” occurs so much more frequently in the “We” sections than in any other passages of the same length that we might expect a larger variety of phrases to express it, Hawkins, Horæ Synop. , pp. 153, 154; and Klostermann, Vindiciæ Lucanæ , p. 50. παρεβάλομεν εἰς Σ .: “we struck across to Samos,” Ramsay, cf. Thuc., iii., 32, where the verb means “to cross over to Ionia” (see Mr. Page’s note, and the passage quoted also in Wetstein, and L. and .). On the frequency of this and other nautical terms in Acts cf. Klostermann, u. s. , p. 49. καὶ μείν . ἐν Τρω ., see critical note. Μίλητον : practically the port of Ephesus. The latter city had long gained the pre-eminence once enjoyed by Miletus, the former capital of Ionia, Pliny, N. H. , v., 31; cf. Herod., Act 20:28-36 , for the revolt of Miletus against Persia and its disastrous consequences. Miletus had been the mother of some eighty colonies. Here Thales and Anaximander were born. The silting up of the Menander had altered its position even in St. Paul’s day, and now it is several miles from the sea; Lewin, St. Paul , ii., 90; Renan, Saint Paul , p. 501; Ramsay, Church in the Roman Empire , p. 480.

[334] Westcott and Hort’s The New Testament in Greek: Critical Text and Notes.

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

came the next day over against Chios--now Scio: one of the most beautiful of those islands between which and the coast the sail is so charming. They appear not to have touched at it.

next day we arrived--"touched" or "put in."

at Samos--another island coming quite close to the mainland, and about as far south of Chios as it is south of Lesbos.

tarried--for the night.

at Trogyllium--an anchorage on the projecting mainland, not more than a mile from the southern extremity of the island of Samos.

next day we came to Miletus--on the mainland; the ancient capital of Ionia, near the mouth of the Meander.

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

Verse 15. Over against Chios] This was a very celebrated island between Lesbos and Samos, famous in antiquity for its extraordinary wines. At this island the apostle did not touch.

Arrived at Samos] This was another island of the AEgean Sea, or Archipelago. It does not appear that they landed at Samos: they passed close by it, and anchored at Trogyllium. This was a promontory of Ionia, which gave name to some small islands in the vicinity of Samos: Της δε Τρωγιλιου προκειται νησιον ὁμωνυμον: before Trogyllium is situated an island of the same name. Strabo, lib. xiv. p. 635. Pliny also mentions this place, Hist. Nat. lib. v. cap. 31. Near this place was the mouth of the famous river Maeander.

Came to Miletus.] A celebrated city in the province of Caria, about twelve or fifteen leagues from Ephesus, according to Calmet. Miletus is famous for being the birthplace of Thales, one of the seven wise men of Greece, and founder of the Ionic sect of philosophers. Anaximander was also born here, and several other eminent men. The Turks, who lately possessed it, call it Melas.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(15) We sailed thence . . .—After the usual manner of the Mediterranean navigation of the time, the ship put into harbour, where it was possible, every evening. Each of the stations named—Lesbos, Chios, Samos—has legendary and historical associations of its own, full of interest for the classical student; but these, we may well believe—the revolt of Mitylene in the Peloponnesian War (Thuc. Book iii.), the brilliant tyranny of Polycrates at Samos (Herod. iii. 39-56), even “the blind old man of Scio’s rocky isle”—were nothing to the Apostle and his companions. Trogyllium, the last station named before Miletus, was a promontory on the mainland, forming the extremity of the ridge of Mycale, and separated from Samos by a narrow channel of about a mile in width. Miletus, famous for its dyes and woollen manufactures, memorable in its earlier history for the disastrous issue of its revolt against Persia (Herod. v. 28-36), was practically the port of Ephesus, the harbour of which had been gradually choked by the accumulation of silted-up sand.

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

15. And we sailed thence, and came the next day over against Chios] As the word for “next” here is not the same as that so rendered in the following clause, the Rev. Ver. gives (with more closeness to the Greek) And sailing from thence we came the following day, &c. The island of Chios is about five miles distant from the mainland. It was in the shelter of the roadstead that the Apostle and his companions passed the night in their vessel.

and the next day we arrived [touched] at Samos] The verb is a technical seafaring word, which the Rev. Ver. has thus represented. The island of Samos lies off that part of the coast of Asia Minor where the ancient Ionia joined on to Caria. It has been famous both in ancient Greek and modern European history (see Dict. of Greek and Roman Geogr. s.v.). On the mainland opposite, at the termination of the ridge of Mycale, lay Trogyllium, for which the Apostle’s vessel made without stopping in Samos.

and tarried at Trogyllium] The oldest MSS. omit these words. How they came into the text, if they be an addition, is not easy to explain. As the previous verb only implies the “touching” at Samos, some early marginal annotator knowing the country may have thus suggested the night’s halting-place, which the historian did not mention.

and the next day we came to Miletus] Here is yet another Greek phrase for “next day.” The A.V., which often gives a varied English for the same Greek, has here for varying Greek given the same English three times over. The Rev. Ver. has “the day after,” and thus marks the variation in the original. Miletus had been a most famous sea-port in the earlier Greek history, but in the days of St Paul its fame was eclipsed by Ephesus. It lay on the coast of Caria, some 20 or 30 miles distant by land southward from the city of Ephesus, and one day’s sail from Trogyllium. The site of the town is now some distance from the sea, and was not close to it in the Apostle’s time, as we shall see below (Act_20:38).

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.

For Paul had determined to sail by Ephesus,.... That is, to sail by it, without calling at it, as he did, for it lay by the shore before he came to Miletus; but he chose not to stop there, fearing he should be detained by the brethren there:

because he would not spend the time in Asia; of which Ephesus was the metropolis:

for he hasted, if it were possible, for him to be at Jerusalem the day of Pentecost: which was near at hand; for it was but fifty days from the second day of the passover, which feast was over when he sailed from Philippi; and at Troas he stayed seven days, and he had been several days sailing already; see Act 20:6. And his great desire to be at the feast of Pentecost was not in order to keep that feast, according to the usage of the Jews; but that he might have an opportunity of preaching the Gospel to a great number of Jews, out of all countries, whom he knew would come to that feast.

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

Over against Chios - Opposite to. Into the neighborhood of; or near to it. Chios, called also Coos, is an island in the Archipelago, between Lesbos and Samos. It is on the coast of Asia Minor, and is now called Scio. It will long be remembered as the seat of a dreadful massacre of almost all its inhabitants by the Turks in 1823.

At Samos - This was also an island of the Archipelago, lying off the coast of Lydia, from which it is separated by a narrow strait. These islands were celebrated among the ancients for their extraordinary wines.

Trogyllium - This was the name of a town and promontory of Ionia in Asia Minor, between Ephesus and the mouth of the river Meander, opposite to Samos. The promontory is a spur of Mount Mycale.

Miletus - Called also Mileturn. It was a city and seaport, and the ancient capital of Ionia. It was originally composed of a colony of Cretans. It became extremely powerful, and sent out colonies to a great number of cities on the Euxine Sea. It was distinguished for a magnificent temple dedicated to Apollo. It is now called by the Turks Melas. It was the birthplace of Thales, one of the seven wise men of Greece. It was about 40 or 50 miles from Ephesus.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Chios; a noted island betwixt Lesbos and Samos in the Aegean Sea.

Samos; in Ionia; for there are several other islands of this name.

Trogyllium; a promontory not far from Samos.

Miletus; a sea town upon the continent or firm land of Ionia.

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

Sailing from for we sailed, A.V.; we came for and came, A.V; following for next, A.V.; touched for arrived, A.V.; and the day after for and tarried at Trogyllium ; and the next day, A.V. and T.R. Over against Chios. Their course would lie through the narrow strait between Chios on the west and the mainland on the east. Samos. The large island opposite Ephesus. There they touched, or put in (parebalomen). If the clause in the T.R. is genuine, they did not pass the night at Samos, but "made a short run from thence in the evening to Trogyllium (Alford), "the rocky extremity of the ridge of Mycale, on the Ionian coast, between which and the southern extremity of Samos the channel is barely a mile wide" ("Speaker"s Commentary"). We came to Miletus. Anciently the chief city of Ionia, and a most powerful maritime and commercial place, about twenty-eight miles south of Ephesus; though in the time of Homer it was a Carian city. In St. Paul"s time it was situated on the south-west coast of the Latmian gulf, just opposite the mouth of the Meander on the east. But since his time the whole gulf of Latmos has been filled up with soil brought down by the river, so that Miletus is no longer on the seacoast, and the new mouth of the Meander is to the west instead of to the east of Miletus, which lies about eight miles inland (Lewin, vol. it. p. 90; Smith"s "Dict. of Geog."). Miletus was the scat of a bishopric in after times. As regards this visit to Miletus, some identify it with that mentioned in 2Ti_4:20. And it is certainly remarkable that so many of the same persons in connection with the same places are mentioned in both passages and in the pastoral Epistles generally. The identical persons are Paul, Timothy, Luke, Trophimus, Tychicus, and Apollos; (Act_20:4, Act_20:5, compared with 2Ti_4:11, 2Ti_4:12, 2Ti_4:20) and the identical places are Corinth, Thessalonica, Troas, Ephesus, Miletus, and Crete. But the other circumstances do not agree well with the events of this journey, but seem to belong to a later period of St. Paul"s life (see below, ver. 25, note).

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

See notes on verse 14

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 word "we" refers to Paul, the writer, and those traveling with them, but not to the reader. (See: Exclusive and Inclusive "We")

opposite the island

"near the island" or "across from the island"

the island of Chios

Chios is an island off the coast of modern day Turkey in the Aegean Sea. (See: How to Translate Names)

we touched at the island of Samos

"we arrived at the island of Samos"

island of Samos

Samos is an island south of Chios in the Aegean Sea off the coast of modern day Turkey. (See: How to Translate Names)

the city of Miletus

Miletus was a port city in western Asia Minor near the mouth of the Meander River. (See: How to Translate Names)

For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus

Paul sailed south past the port city of Ephesus, further south in order to land at Miletus. (See: How to Translate Names)

so that he would not spend any time

This speaks about "time" as if it were a commodity that a person could spend or use up. AT: "so that he would not have to remain for a time" or "so that he would not have a delay" (See: Metaphor)

translationWords

Paul

Ephesus

Asia

Jerusalem

Pentecost

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

15. καὶ μείναντες ἐν Τρωγυλλίῳ omitted with אABCE. Not represented in Vulg.

15. τῇ ἐπιούσῃ κατηντήσαμεν ἄντικρυς Χίου, on the following day we came over against Chios. The island of Chios is about five miles distant from the mainland. It was in the shelter of the roadstead that the Apostle and his companions passed the night in their vessel.

τῇ δὲ ἑτέρᾳ παρεβάλομεν εἰς Σάμον, and the next day we touched at Samos. For παραβάλλειν in this technical sense cf. Joseph. Ant. XVIII. 6. 4 Ἀγρίππας δὲ εἰς Ποτιόλους παραβαλών.

The island of Samos lies off that part of the coast of Asia Minor where the ancient Ionia joined on to Caria. It has been famous both in ancient Greek and modern European history. See Dict. of Greek and Rom. Geog. s. v.

In the Text. recept. we find here καὶ μείναντες ἐν Τρωγυλλίῳ. But in the oldest MSS. there is no trace of these words. How they came to be inserted it is not easy to say. Trogyllium lay on the mainland opposite Samos, at the termination of the ridge of Mycale. It may be that some annotator noticed that the previous verb παραβάλλειν only implied the touching at Samos. If he knew the locality it is possible that on his margin he suggested Trogyllium as the night’s halting-place, of which the historian had made no mention. But it is more difficult still to understand how if they had formed part of the original text they should be wanting in the earliest of all our authorities.

τῇ δὲ ἐχομένῃ κ.τ.λ., and on the day after we came to Miletus. Miletus had been a most famous sea-port in the earlier Greek history, but in the days of St Paul its fame was eclipsed by Ephesus. It lay on the coast of Caria, some 20 or 30 miles distant by land southward from the city of Ephesus, and one day’s sail from Trogyllium. The site of the town is now some distance from the sea, and was not close to it in the Apostle’s time, as we shall see below (Act 20:38).

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.

15. παρεβάλ] we put in: so Charon, in the Frogs, to his boatman, ὠόπ, παραβαλοῦ, 180; and 271, παραβαλοῦ τῷ κωπίῳ: see many examples in Wetst. Then they made a short run in the evening to Trogylium, a cape and town on the Ionian coast, only forty stadia distant, where they spent the night. He had passed in front of the bay of Ephesus, and was now but a short distance from it.

Μίλητον] The ancient capital of Ionia (Herod, i. 142). See 2Ti 4:20, and note.

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Arrived [παρεβαλομεν] . Only here and Mr 4:30, where it is used more nearly according to its original sense, to throw beside; to bring one thing beside another in comparison. Here, of bringing the vessel alongside the island. The narrative implies that they only touched (Rev.) there, but not necessarily the word.

Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament (1887–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.