Acts 18

¹ After these [things], having left from Athens, he came to Corinth. ² And having found [a] certain Jew by name Akylla, [born in] Ponticus, and Priskilla his wife, being recently come from Italy, because of Claudius having commanded all the Jews to be departing from Rome, he came to them, ³ and because of practicing the same trade, he abided with them and he was working, for they were tent makers by trade. ⁴ Now he was speaking in the synagogue every Sabbath, and he was persuading both Jews and Greeks. ⁵ Now as Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia, Paul was preoccupied with the word, witnessing to the Jews [that] the Christ is Jesus. ⁶ But when they were opposing [themselves] and slandering [God], [Paul] having shaken out [his] garments said to them: Your blood [is] upon your [own] head. I, clean from it, will now go to the nations¹. ⁷ And having gone from there, he came to the house of a certain Titus Justus by name, of [those] worshipping God, whose house was next door to the synagogue. ⁸ Now Krispus, the chief of the synagogue, believed in the Lord with his whole house, and many of the Corinthians, having heard, were believing and were being baptized. ⁹ Now the Lord said to Paul in [the] night during [a] vision: Be not fearing, but be speaking and be not silent. ¹⁰ For I am with you, and no one will lay hold [of you] to do you evil, for many people are to me in this city. ¹¹ So he sat [a] year and six months teaching among them the word of God. ¹² Now Gallios being proconsul of Achaia, the Jews rose up with one purpose against Paul and brought him to the judgment seat, ¹³ saying that: This [one] persuades men to worship God contrary to the law. ¹⁴ But while Paul was [about] to be opening his mouth, Gallios said to the Jews: If on the one there is some injustice or wicked² villainy, O Jews, I would endure according to your law. ¹⁵ But if on the other hand [the] issues are concerning word and names and law according to you, you will see [to it], for I do want to be judge of these [things]? ¹⁶ And he drove them away from the judgment seat. ¹⁷ But all having taken Sosthenes, the chief of the synagogue, they were beating him before the judgment seat; and none of this was [a] concern to Gallius. ¹⁸ Now Paul yet abiding several days, having taken leave of the brothers, he sailed to Syria, and with him Priskilla and Akilla, shearing his head in Kegchrea— for he had [a] vow. ¹⁹ So they attained to Ephesus, and he left them there, but he having entered into the synagogue was speaking to the Jews. ²⁰ But while they were asking³ [him] to remain [a] longer time, he did not consent, ²¹ but having taken leave and having said: Again will we return to you while God wishes [it], he was brought from Ephesus. ²² And arrived in Caesarea, having gone up and having greeted the assembly⁴ , he went down to Antioch. ²³ And having spent some time [there] he went out, going through one after another the Galatik region and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples.

²⁴ Now a certain Jew, Apollo by name, born in Alexandria, [a] learned man, arrived in Ephesus, being able in the scriptures. ²⁵ This [one] was instructing the way of the Lord, and boiling⁵ in the spirit, he was speaking and teaching carefully concerning Jesus, having known only the baptism of John. ²⁶ And this [one] was beginning to be speaking openly in the synagogue. So having heard him, Priskilla and Akylla took him aside, and more carefully⁶ explained the way of God. ²⁷ Now while he was wanting to go through to Achaia, having been impelled, the brothers wrote to the disciples to receive him; who having arrived, he assisted much to those having believed through grace. ²⁸ For he was vigorously refuting the Jews publicly, having demonstrated through the scriptures [that] Jesus is the Christ.

¹i.e. the Gentiles

²PONEROS (πoνηρoς ) here. The Greek word KAKOS (κακoς ) is always translated `evil', PONEROS is usually translated as `wicked' although occasionally as `bad'; it can also mean 'diseased', 'sickly' and is thus translated where appropriate. Like KAKOS, PONEROS also means `evil', but the harm that evil does is more in view, where KAKOS is more `evil as evil'.

³EROTAO (ερωταω) "Ask", but more polite, not demanding/begging as is AITEO. Both AITEO and EROTAO occur in John.16:26.

⁴EKKLESIA (εκκλησια) from "called out". Appears 114 times in the N.T., but only thrice in the Gospels ( Matt.16:18 (twice) and Matt.18:17). It's worth noting that when Jesus uses the term EKKLESIA, Christian community as we know it didn't yet exist—there were only the disciples. EKKLESIA is apparently different from 'synagogue' (SYNAGOGE (συναγωγη) which occurs 56 times in the N.T.) EKKLESIA is used in secular Greek literature of a popular assembly 'called to assemble', and also of those 'called' to a cult. EKKLESIA is used frequently in the N.T. outside of the Gospels to refer to Christian communities, but in Acts.7:38 it is used of the people of Israel led through the desert by Moses, and in Acts.19:32 ff. of a secular assembly. Thus, all told, the common translation of EKKLESIA as 'church' doesn't really reflect 1st century usage—it seems to mean more like 'a group of people assembled for some specific purpose'.

⁵or "throbbing", "seething"

⁶or "accurately" version 3.85.
On 08 Sep 2009, 19:29.