Romans 16:4

Rom 16:4. Οἵτινες, who) They are individually distinguished by their own respective graces, or duties; but Scripture never praises any one so as to give him any ground for extolling himself, but for praising God and rejoicing in Him.—ὑπέθηκαν) The force of the verb is not unsuitably explained by the noun ὑποθήκη, a stake laid down.—αἱ ἐκκλησίαι, the churches) even the Church at Rome, for the preservation of Paul, and we still are bound in some measure to give thanks to Aquila and Priscilla, or we shall do so hereafter.

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

Rom_16:4

Who have for my life laid down their own necks, i.e. they exposed themselves to imminent peril to save me. On what occasion this was done, is not recorded. Unto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches the Gentiles. Their courageous and disinterested conduct must have been generally known, and called forth the grateful acknowledgments of all the churches interested in the preservation of a life so precious as that of the apostle.

Charles Hodge — Commentary on Romans (1835), First Corinthians (1857), and Ephesians (1856) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

who have for my life laid down--"who did for my life lay down"

their own necks--that is, risked their lives; either at Corinth (Act 18:6, Act 18:9-10), or more probably at Ephesus (Act 19:30-31; and compare Co1 15:32). They must have returned from Ephesus (where we last find them in the history of the Acts) to Rome, whence the edict of Claudius had banished them (Act 18:2); and doubtless, if not the principal members of that Christian community, they were at least the most endeared to our apostle.

unto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles--whose special apostle this dear couple had rescued from imminent danger.

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 4. Who have for my life laid down their own necks] What transaction this refers to we know not; but it appears that these persons had, on some occasion, hazarded their own lives to save that of the apostle; and that the fact was known to all the Churches of God in that quarter, who felt themselves under the highest obligations to these pious persons, for the important service which they had thus rendered.

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

4. To whom not only I, etc. As Prisca and Aquila had not spared their life for preserving the life of Paul, he testifies that he himself was individually thankful to them: he however adds, that thanks were given them by all the Churches of Christ; and he added this that he might, by such an example, influence the Romans. And deservedly dear and precious to all the Gentiles was the life of such a man, as it was an incomparable treasure: it was therefore no wonder that all the Churches of the Gentiles thought themselves to be under obligations to his preservers.

What he adds respecting the Church in their house is worthy of being observed; for he could not have more splendidly adorned their household than by giving it the title of a Church. The word congregation, which Erasmus has adopted, I do not approve; for it is plainly evident, that Paul, by way of honor, had used the sacred name of Church.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

(4) Laid down their own necks.—Whether this expression is to be taken literally or figuratively we do not know, neither can we do more than guess at the event to which it refers. It may have something to do with the tumult at Ephesus, and with that “fighting with beasts” mentioned in 1Co_15:32.

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

4. who have for my life, &c.] Lit., and better, who did for my life lay down their own neck, (not necks). An entirely unknown occasion, on which Aquila and his wife had risked their lives for St Paul’s.—“Laid down:”—the figure is of presenting the neck, or throat, to the executioner. Whether the word is only figurative here, we cannot determine.

all the churches of the Gentiles] To whom they had, by their self-devotion, preserved their Apostle.

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.

Who for my life laid down their necks,.... That is, exposed themselves to great danger to save the apostle's life: the allusion is to the manner of executions by beheading, and to one person's laying down his head, and offering his neck to the executioner the room of another: this we are not to suppose was literally done; but the design of the expression is, that in some shape or another they risked their own lives for the apostle's; which might be done either at the insurrection in Corinth against Paul, when the Jews dragged him to the judgment seat of Gallio, and beat Sosthenes the ruler of the synagogue before him; or the uproar in Ephesus by Demetrius and the craftsmen, when Paul and his companions were in great danger; at both which times and places these two persons were, and being very zealous, were no doubt active to preserve the apostle, and which he acknowledges with thankfulness:

unto whom not only I give thanks, but all the churches of the Gentiles; both for the care they took of him, and the danger they exposed themselves to on his account; which the apostle expresses his sense of gratitude for, and which all the Gentile churches were under obligations to do likewise, since they had a common share in his labours and usefulness, he was the apostle of them all; and also for their help and assistance in carrying on the work of the Lord in all the churches of the Gentiles.

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

4 Who have for my life laid down their own necks: unto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles.

Ver. 4. Who have for my life] A rare example. Fast friends are in this age for the most part gone on pilgrimage (said one once), and their return is uncertain.

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.

Who have for my life - In order to save my life.

Laid down their own necks - To “lay down the neck” is to lay the head on a block to be cut off with the axe; or to bow down the head as when the neck was exposed to be cut off by the sword of the executioner. The meaning is, that they had hazarded their lives, had exposed themselves to imminent danger, to save the life of Paul. On what occasion this was done, is not known, as it is not referred to in the New Testament elsewhere. As Paul, however, lived with them Act 18:3, and as he was often persecuted by the Jews, it is probable that he refers to some such period when he was persecuted, when Aquila and Priscilla took him into their house at the imminent hazard of their lives.

All the churches of the Gentiles - All the churches that had been founded by the apostles. They “felt” their deep obligation to them for having saved the life of him who had been their founder, and who was their spiritual father.

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

It is not exactly known to what the apostle here refers. Origen thinks that they delivered the apostle from the snares of the Jews. Others, that they exposed themselves from him in the sedition raised at Corinth, or in that at Ephesus, when he was in such danger, on account of the outcry of the silversmiths. The obligations of the Churches of the Gentiles towards them must be understood of the hospitality, which these faithful servants of Christ exercised to all. (Calmet) --- Greek: Ton eauton trachelon upethekan, a proverbial expression, as in Latin, præbere cervices, caput objicere periculis, to support any thing, or person, that is in a sinking way, or in great danger.

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Who have for my life laid down their own necks; i.e. they hazarded their own lives to save mine. The Scripture speaks of this as the duty of Christians, 1Jo 3:16. He refers (it may be) to that uproar that was at Corinth, of which see Act 18:12; or that in Asia, of which see Act 19:23.

Unto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles; because he was the apostle of the Gentiles, and his preservation redounded to the benefit of them all.

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

4. Laid down their necks—A strong figure, as if they had laid their necks upon the block to be beheaded in the apostle’s place; the meaning being that they had imminently risked their lives for his. It was probably in the fray at Ephesus.

All… Gentiles—For rescuing the apostle of the Gentiles. The fact of their self-devotion would of course be better known in the eastern Churches than at Rome.

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

Who have for my life, as it were, laid down their own necks - That is, exposed themselves to the utmost danger. But likewise all the churches of the gentiles - Even that at Rome, for preserving so valuable a life.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

who for my life laid down their own necks [As Paul's chief danger lay in Ephesus ( 1Co_15:32 ), it was evidently there that Aquila and Priscilla risked their lives for him, though no specific account is given us of any such service, or of other dangers than the great riot-- Act_19:23-41 ]; unto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles [being grateful to the pair for aiding in saving so precious a life as that of their apostle, their light in gospel truth, the bulwark guarding their liberties against Jewish aggression]:

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.

4. Who have for my life laid down, etc. It is evident that at some time they had endured great peril for Paul's sake. We know from 2 Cor. 11:23–27, that only a small part of his perils have been recorded. Also all the churches of the Gentiles. Are under a debt of gratitude to Priscilla and Aquila.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

4. οἵτινες. ‘For they,’ ‘seeing that they,’ a ground for this prominent greeting.

ὑπὲρ τῆς ψ. κ.τ.λ. We have no further information about this. It may have been either at Corinth or at Ephesus.

ὑπέθηκαν. In this sense only here in N.T. = ‘they pledged’ risked, cf. Plat. Protag. 313 A (L. and S.); for the form cf. Thackeray, 23 § 10.

εὐχαριστῶ. The only place in the N.T. where the verb or subst. is used with a human object (cf. and c[318] Act 24:3).

[318] ct contrast

π. αἱ ἐκκλ. τῶν ἐθνῶν. A unique combination and very significant. It emphasises their share in carrying the Gospel to the Gentiles, and shows the purpose of this elaborate reference to them, πᾶσαι. We know of P. and A. at Rome, Corinth and Ephesus only. But Corinth and Ephesus mean Achaia and Asia: and their influence, direct and indirect, may well have gone further. The occasion for gratitude should not be limited to this special service rendered to S. Paul.

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.

4. οἵτινες … τὸν ἑαυτῶν τράχηλον κ.τ.λ. probably refers to some great danger which they had run on his behalf. It may have been the great tumult at Ephesus, although this was somewhat recent. If so the danger then incurred may have been the reason that they had left that city and returned for a time to Rome. The special reference to the Churches of the Gentiles perhaps arises from the fact that, owing to their somewhat nomadic life, they were well known to many Christian Churches.

Aquila and Priscilla

The movements of Aquila and Priscilla have been considered to be so complicated as to throw doubts on the authenticity of this section of the Epistle, or to suggest that it was addressed not to the Church at Rome, but to the Church of Ephesus.

From Act 18:1, Act 18:2 we learn that Aquila was a Jew of Pontus. He and his wife Prisca had been compelled to leave Rome in 52 a.d. by the decree of Claudius. They retired to Corinth, where they first became acquainted with St. Paul. With him they went to Ephesus, where they remained some time; they were there when the first Epistle to the Corinthians was written, and had a church in their house (ἀσπάζεται ὑμᾶς ἐν Κυρίῳ πολλὰ Ἀκύλας καὶ Πρίσκα σὺν τῇ κατʼ οἶκον αὐτῶν ἐκκλησίᾳ 1Co 16:19). This Epistle was written probably about twelve months before the Epistle to the Romans. In 2Ti 4:19, written in all probability at least eight years later, they appear again at Ephesus.

Now, is not the life ascribed to them too nomadic? And is not the coincidence of the church in their house remarkable? The answer is that a nomadic life was the characteristic of Jews at that day, and was certainly a characteristic of Aquila and Priscilla (Lightfoot, Biblical Essays, p. 299, and Renan, Les Apôtres, pp. 96, 97, Zahn, Skizzen, p. 169). We know that although Aquila was a Jew of Pontus, yet he and his wife lived, within the space of a few years, at Rome, at Corinth, and at Ephesus. Is it then extremely improbable that they should travel in after years, probably for the sake of their business? And if it were so, would they not be likely to make their house, wherever they were, a place in which Christians could meet together?

On á priori grounds we cannot argue against the possibility of these changes. Are there any positive arguments for connecting them with the Roman Church? De Rossi, in the course of his archaeological investigations, has suggested two traces of their influence, both of which deserve investigation.

(i) Amongst the older churches of Rome is one on the Aventine bearing the name of St. Prisca, which gives a title to one of the Roman Cardinals. Now there is considerable evidence for connecting this with the names of Aquila and Priscilla. In the Liber Pontificalis, in the life of Leo III (795-816), it is described as the ‘titulus Aquilae et Priscae’ (Duchesne, Lib. Pont. II. p. 20); in the legendary Acts of St. Prisca (which apparently date from the tenth century) it is stated that the body of St. Prisca was translated from the place on the Ostian road where she had been buried, and transferred to the church of St. Aquila and Prisca on the Aventine (Acta Sanctorum, Jan. Tom. ii. p. 187 et deduxerunt ipsam ad urbem Romam cum hymnis et canticis spiritualibus, iuxta Arcum Romanum in ecclesia sanctorum Martyrum Aquilae et Priscae), and the tradition is put very clearly in an inscription apparently of the tenth century which formerly stood over the door of the church (C. Ins. Christ. ii. p. 443):

Haec domus est Aquilae seu Priscae Virginis Almae

Quos lupe Paule tuo ore vehis domino

Hic Petre divini Tribuebas fercula verbi

Sepius hocce loco sacrificans domino.

Many later testimonies are referred to by De Rossi, but they need not here be cited.

For the theory that this church is on the site of the house of Prisca and Aquila, De Rossi finds additional support in a bronze diploma found in 1776 in the garden of the church bearing the name of G. Marius Pudens Cornelianus: for in the legendary Acts of Pudens, Pudenziana, and Praxedis, Priscilla is stated to have been the mother of Pudens (Acta Sanct. Mai. Tom. iv. p. 297), and this implies some connexion between the names of Aquila and Priscilla and the family of Pudens.

The theory is a plausible one, but will hardly at present stand examination. In the first place the name of Aquila and Priscilla (or Prisca) is not the oldest borne by the church; from the fourth to the eighth century it seems always to have been the titulus S. Priscae (see Liber Pontificalis, ed. Duchesne, 1:501, 51745), and although the origin of this name is itself doubtful, it is hardly likely that if the locality had borne the name of Aquila and Priscilla, that name would first have been lost and then revived. It is much more probable that the later name is an attempt to connect the biblical account with this spot and to explain the origin of the name of Prisca.

Nor is the second piece of evidence of any greater weight. The acts of Pudens and his daughters, supposed to be narrated by the person called St. Pastor, who was a contemporary of Pius the bishop and addressed his letters to Timothy, are clearly legendary, and little or no stress can be laid on the mention of Priscilla as the mother of Pudens. The object of the Acta is in fact to invent a history for martyrs whose names were known, and who were for some reason grouped together. But why were they thus grouped? The reason probably is given in the statement at the end, that they were buried in the cemetery of Priscilla. These names would probably be found in the fourth century in that cemetery, attached to graves close to one another, and would form the groundwork of the Acta. There may still be some connexion between the names, which may or may not be discovered, but there is not at present any historical evidence for connecting the titulus St. Priscae with the Aquila and Priscilla of the N. T. (see de Rossi, Bull. Arch. Christ. Ser. i. No. 5 (1867), p. 45 ff.)

(ii) A second line of argument seems more fruitful. The explorations of De Rossi in the Coemeterium Priscillae, outside the Porta Salaria, have resulted in the discovery that as the Coemeterium Domitillae starts from a burying-place of Domitilla and her family, so that of Priscilla originates in the burying-place of Acilius Glabrio and other members of the Acilian gens. This seems to corroborate the statement of Dio Cassius (67:14) that the Acilius Glabrio who was consul with Trajan in a.d. 91 was a Christian and died as such, and implies that Christianity had penetrated into this as into other leading Roman families. Now the connexion with the subject immediately before us is as follows. The same researches have shown that a name of the females of the Acilian gens is Priscilla or Prisca. For instance, in one inscription we read:

M’ ACILIUS V. ….

C. V.

PRISCILLA..C

Aquila was a Jew of Pontus: how then does it happen that his wife, if not he himself, bore a Roman name? The answer seems to be suggested by these discoveries. They were freedmen of a member of the Acilian gens, as Clemens the Roman bishop was very probably the freedman of Flavius Clemens. The name Prisca or Priscilla would naturally come to an adherent of the family. The origin of the name Aquila is more doubtful, but it too might be borne by a Roman freedman. If this suggestion be correct, then both the names of these two Roman Christians and the existence of Christianity in a leading Roman family are explained.

Two other inscriptions may be quoted, as perhaps of interest. The first is clearly Christian:

Aauiliae Priscae in Pace.

The second C.I.L. vi.12273 may be so. The term Renata might suggest that it is but also might be Mithraic:

D. M.

AQUILIA ∙ RENATA

QVAE ∙ V ∙ A ∙ N …

SE ∙ VIVA ∙ POSVIT ∙ SIBI

CVRANTE ∙ AQVILIO IVSTO

ALVMNO ∙ ET ∙ AQVILIO

PRISCO ∙ FRATRE

The argument is not demonstrative, but seems to make the return of Aquila and Priscilla to Rome, and their permanent connexion with the Roman Church, probable. See De Rossi, Bull. Arch. Christ. Ser. iv. No. 6 (1888-9), p. 129 Aquila e Prisca et gli Acilii Glabrioni.

Dr. Hort (Rom. and Eph. pp. 12-14), following a suggestion made by Dr. Plumptre (Biblical Studies, p. 417), points out that it is a curious fact that in four out of the six places in which the names occur that of the wife is the first mentioned. He connects the name with the cemetery of St. Prisca, and suggests that Prisca was herself a member of some distinguished Roman family. He points out that only Aquila is called a Jew from Pontus, not his wife. There is nothing inconsistent in this theory with that of the previous argument; and if it be true much is explained. It may however be suggested that for a noble Roman lady to travel about with a Jewish husband engaged in mercantile or even artisan work is hardly probable; and that the theory which sees in them freed members of a great household is perhaps the most probable.

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Who [οιτινες] . The double relative, with an explanatory force : seeing that they.

Laid down their own necks [τον εαυτων τραχηλον υπεθηκαν] . Laid down is, literally, placed under (the axe). Whether the expression is literal or figurative, or if literal, when the incident occurred, cannot be determined.

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