Acts 18
18
1 After these things, having departed from Athens, he arrived at Corinth.
2 And upon finding a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, who had recently arrived from Italy with Priscilla his wife, (because Claudius had ordered all Jews to depart from Rome,) he met with them.
3 And because he was of the same trade, he lodged with them and was working. (Now they were tentmakers by trade.)
4 And he was arguing in the synagogue on every Sabbath, introducing the name of the Lord Jesus. And he was persuading Jews and Greeks.
5 And when Silas and Timothy had arrived from Macedonia, Paul stood firm in the Word, testifying to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ.
6 But since they were contradicting him and blaspheming, he shook out his garments and said to them: "Your blood is on your own heads. I am clean. From now on, I will go to the Gentiles."
7 And moving from that place, he entered into the house of a certain man, named Titus the Just, a worshiper of God, whose house was adjoined to the synagogue.
8 Now Crispus, a leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, with his entire house. And many of the Corinthians, upon hearing, believed and were baptized.
9 Then the Lord said to Paul, through a vision in the night: "Do not be afraid. Instead, speak out and do not be silent.
10 For I am with you. And no one will take hold of you, so as to do you harm. For many of the people in this city are with me."
11 Then he settled there for a year and six months, teaching the Word of God among them.
12 But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews rose up with one accord against Paul. And they brought him to the tribunal,
13 saying, "He persuades men to worship God contrary to the law."
14 Then, when Paul was beginning to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews: "If this were some matter of injustice, or a wicked deed, O noble Jews, I would support you, as is proper.
15 Yet if truly these are questions about a word and names and your law, you should see to it yourselves. I will not be the judge of such things."
16 And he ordered them from the tribunal.
17 But they, apprehending Sosthenes, a leader of the synagogue, beat him in front of the tribunal. And Gallio showed no concern for these things.
18 Yet truly, Paul, after he had remained for many more days, having said goodbye to the brothers, sailed into Syria, and with him were Priscilla and Aquila. Now he had shaved his head in Cenchreae, for he had made a vow.
19 And he arrived at Ephesus, and he left them behind there. Yet truly, he himself, entering into the synagogue, was disputing with the Jews.
20 Then, although they were asking him to remain for a longer time, he would not agree.
21 Instead, saying goodbye and telling them, "I will return to you again, God willing," he set out from Ephesus.
22 And after going down to Caesarea, he went up to Jerusalem, and he greeted the Church there, and then he descended to Antioch.
23 And having spent some length of time there, he set out, and he walked in order through the region of Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples.
24 Now a certain Jew named Apollo, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man who was powerful with the Scriptures, arrived at Ephesus.
25 He was learned in the Way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching the things that are of Jesus, but knowing only the baptism of John.
26 And so, he began to act faithfully in the synagogue. And when Priscilla and Aquila had heard him, they took him aside and expounded the Way of the Lord to him more thoroughly.
27 Then, since he wanted to go to Achaia, the brothers wrote an exhortation to the disciples, so that they might accept him. And when he had arrived, he held many discussions with those who had believed.
28 For he was vehemently and publicly reproving the Jews, by revealing through the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ.
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Acts 18
18
Corinth
1-4After Athens, Paul went to Corinth. That is where he discovered Aquila, a Jew born in Pontus, and his wife, Priscilla. They had just arrived from Italy, part of the general expulsion of Jews from Rome ordered by Claudius. Paul moved in with them, and they worked together at their common trade of tentmaking. But every Sabbath he was at the meeting place, doing his best to convince both Jews and Greeks about Jesus.
5-6When Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul was able to give all his time to preaching and teaching, doing everything he could to persuade the Jews that Jesus was in fact God’s Messiah. But no such luck. All they did was argue contentiously and contradict him at every turn. Totally exasperated, Paul had finally had it with them and gave it up as a bad job. “Have it your way, then,” he said. “You’ve made your bed; now lie in it. From now on I’m spending my time with the other nations.”
7-8a He walked out and went to the home of Titius Justus, a God-fearing man who lived right next to the Jews’ meeting place. But Paul’s efforts with the Jews weren’t a total loss, for Crispus, the meeting-place president, put his trust in the Master. His entire family believed with him.
8b-11 In the course of listening to Paul, a great many Corinthians believed and were baptized. One night the Master spoke to Paul in a dream: “Keep it up, and don’t let anyone intimidate or silence you. No matter what happens, I’m with you and no one is going to be able to hurt you. You have no idea how many people I have on my side in this city.” That was all he needed to stick it out. He stayed another year and a half, faithfully teaching the Word of God to the Corinthians.
12-13But when Gallio was governor of Achaia province, the Jews got up a campaign against Paul, hauled him into court, and filed charges: “This man is seducing people into acts of worship that are illegal.”
14-16Just as Paul was about to defend himself, Gallio interrupted and said to the Jews, “If this was a matter of criminal conduct, I would gladly hear you out. But it sounds to me like one more Jewish squabble, another of your endless hairsplitting quarrels over religion. Take care of it on your own time. I can’t be bothered with this nonsense,” and he cleared them out of the courtroom.
17Now the street rabble turned on Sosthenes, the new meeting-place president, and beat him up in plain sight of the court. Gallio didn’t raise a finger. He could not have cared less.
Ephesus
18Paul stayed a while longer in Corinth, but then it was time to take leave of his friends. Saying his good-byes, he sailed for Syria, Priscilla and Aquila with him. Before boarding the ship in the harbor town of Cenchrea, he had his head shaved as part of a vow he had taken.
19-21a They landed in Ephesus, where Priscilla and Aquila got off and stayed. Paul left the ship briefly to go to the meeting place and preach to the Jews. They wanted him to stay longer, but he said he couldn’t. But after saying good-bye, he promised, “I’ll be back, God willing.”
21b-22 From Ephesus he sailed to Caesarea. He greeted the church there, and then went on to Antioch, completing the journey.
23After spending a considerable time with the Antioch Christians, Paul set off again for Galatia and Phrygia, retracing his old tracks, one town after another, putting fresh heart into the disciples.
24-26A man named Apollos came to Ephesus. He was a Jew, born in Alexandria, Egypt, and a terrific speaker, eloquent and powerful in his preaching of the Scriptures. He was well-educated in the way of the Master and fiery in his enthusiasm. Apollos was accurate in everything he taught about Jesus up to a point, but he only went as far as the baptism of John. He preached with power in the meeting place. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and told him the rest of the story.
27-28When Apollos decided to go on to Achaia province, his Ephesian friends gave their blessing and wrote a letter of recommendation for him, urging the disciples there to welcome him with open arms. The welcome paid off: Apollos turned out to be a great help to those who had become believers through God’s immense generosity. He was particularly effective in public debate with the Jews as he brought out proof after convincing proof from the Scriptures that Jesus was in fact God’s Messiah.
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.