Acts 20

Acts 20:1

20:1 From verse 1 it would appear that the apostle traveled directly from Ephesus to Macedonia. However, from 2 Corinthians we learn that he first went to TROAS. There he found an open door to preach the gospel but was anxious to see Titus and to learn from him how the Corinthians had received his First Epistle. When he did not find Titus in Troas, he crossed over the northeastern corner of the Aegean Sea to MACEDONIA. Undoubtedly he landed at NEAPOLIS, then traveled inland to PHILIPPI. While in Macedonia, probably at Philippi, he met Titus and was greatly encouraged by the news from Corinth. It was probably at this time that he wrote 2 Corinthians (a.d. 56?). (See 2Co_1:8-9; 2Co_2:12-14; 2Co_7:5-7.) 20:2, 3a After ministering for some time in Macedonia, he journeyed south to GREECE or ACHAIA. Most of the three months there were undoubtedly spent in CORINTH, and it was during this period that he wrote Romans. Some also believe that Galatians was written at this time. 20:3b Originally, Paul had planned to travel straight from Corinth across the Aegean to Syria. However, when he learned that the Jews were plotting to destroy him somewhere along that route, he changed his plans and went northward again through MACEDONIA. 20:4 At this time we are introduced to some of Paul’s traveling companions. It is stated that they accompanied him as far as Asia, but we know that certain of them even went with him to Rome: Sopater of Berea was possibly the same as Sosipater, a relative of Paul mentioned in Rom_16:21. Aristarchus of Thessalonica nearly lost his life in the riot at Ephesus (Act_19:29). We later read of him as being a fellow prisoner with Paul in Rome (Phm_1:24; Col_4:10). Secundus, also a native of Thessalonica, accompanied Paul as far as Asia, probably Troas or Miletus. Gaius of Derbe is not to be confused with the Macedonian who was seized by the mob at Ephesus (Act_19:29). Another Gaius is mentioned as being an inhabitant of Corinth and Paul’s host while there (Rom_16:23). John’s Third Epistle is addressed to a man named Gaius, probably living in some city near Ephesus. Gaius was a very common name. Timothy not only accompanied Paul to Asia but was with him in Rome during his first imprisonment. Subsequently he traveled with Paul through proconsular Asia. In his Second Letter to Timothy, Paul expressed the desire to see him again, but we do not know whether this wish was ever fulfilled. Tychicus, a native of Asia Minor, probably journeyed as far as Miletus with the apostle. Later he rejoined Paul in Rome and is mentioned as laboring with him up to and during the time of his second imprisonment. Trophimus was apparently a Gentile whose home was in Ephesus, in Asia Minor. He went with Paul to Jerusalem and unwittingly was the cause of the apostle’s arrest. He is also mentioned in 2Ti_4:20. 20:5, 6 It appears that the above seven brethren traveled on ahead to Troas, while Paul and Luke visited PHILIPPI. (We believe that Luke was with the apostle because of the use of the first person pronoun, us in verse 5, we in verse 6, etc.) After the Days of Unleavened Bread, or the Passover, Paul and Luke sailed from Macedonia to TROAS. The journey would not ordinarily have taken five days. No explanation is given here for the delay. 20:7-9 Comparing verses 6 and 7, it appears that the apostle purposely waited in Troas for seven days so he could be there for the breaking of bread on the Lord’s Day. It is certainly clear from verse 7 that it was the practice of the early Christians to gather together on the first day of the week in order to observe the Lord’s Supper. That Paul should have spoken until midnight should cause us no shocked surprise. When the spiritual temperature of a church is high, the Spirit of God is free to work without being fettered by the bondage of timepieces. As the night wore on, it became hot and stuffy in the upper room. Perhaps the many lamps contributed to this, as well as the number of people present. A certain young man named Eutychus, sitting in an open window, fell asleep and plummeted to the ground below. It was a fall of three stories, and he was killed by it. 20:10 But Paul went down and stretched himself over the body of the young man, as the prophets did of old. He then announced to the people that they should not make any more fuss about the matter since Eutychus was now alive. It might seem from Paul’s words that their concern was unnecessary because the young man had not died; his life was still in him. But it is clear from verse 9 that he was actually dead. Acting with the power of an apostle, Paul had miraculously restored him to life. 20:11, 12 When Paul returned upstairs, they broke bread (v. 11), i.e., they observed the Lord’s Supper, for which they had come together (v. 7). Then they ate a common meal, perhaps the agape or love feast. This fellowship meal was held in conjunction with the Lord’s Supper in the early days of the church, but abuses crept in (1Co_11:20-22), and it was gradually discontinued. After an all-night meeting, never to be forgotten, the apostle bade farewell to the believers in Troas. 20:13-15 Paul left Troas on foot, and walked twenty miles across the neck of a promontory of land to ASSOS. His traveling companions went by ship around the promontory, then picked him up on the southern side. Perhaps he wanted time to be alone and to meditate on the word of God. Sailing south along the western coast of Asia Minor, they first came to MITYLENE (pronounced mit-i-le’-ne), the chief city of the island of LESBOS. The following night they apparently anchored off the island of CHIOS (pronounced key’-os). Another day’s journey brought them to the island of SAMOS, and they stayed at TROGYLLIUM. Finally the travelers put in at MILETUS, a port on the southwest coast of Asia Minor, thirty-six miles south of Ephesus. 20:16 Paul intentionally bypassed Ephesus, because he feared that a visit there would occupy too much time, and he was hurrying to get to Jerusalem for the Day of Pentecost.20:17 Upon landing at Miletus, Paul sent word to the elders in Ephesus, asking them to come for a meeting. Undoubtedly it took considerable time for the message to reach them, and for them to make the journey south. However, they were well rewarded by the magnificent message they heard from the lips of the great apostle. In it we have a valuable portrait of an ideal servant of the Lord Jesus Christ. We see a man who was fanatically devoted to the Savior. He labored in season, out of season.

He was tireless, indomitable, indefatigable. He was marked by true humility. No cost was too great for him to pay. His ministry was the result of deep exercise of soul. He had a holy boldness and fearlessness. Whether he lived or died was not important; but it was important that the will of God should be carried out and that men should hear the gospel.

He was unselfish in all that he did. He would rather give than receive. He was undaunted by difficulties. He practiced what he preached. 20:18, 19 The apostle reminded the elders of Ephesus of his manner of life when he lived among them. From the first day that he set foot in Asia, and all the time he was there, he served the Lord with true humility and self-denial. In connection with his ministry, there was a constant strain on his emotional system; there were tears of sorrow and trials. Constantly he suffered persecution as a result of the plotting of the Jews. Yet in spite of all the adverse circumstances, his ministry was bold and fearless. 20:20, 21 Paul held back nothing from the Ephesians that would be for their spiritual welfare. He taught them publicly and from house to house, constrained by the love of Christ. To him, it was not a matter of holding meetings at stated intervals, but rather of buying up every opportunity to encourage growth among the believers. Without discrimination as to nationality or religious background, he preached the necessity of repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. These are two fundamental elements of the gospel. In every genuine case of conversion, there are both repentance and faith.

They are the two sides of the gospel coin. Unless a person were duly repentant, saving faith would be impossible. On the other hand, repentance would be of no avail unless it was followed by faith in the Son of God. Repentance is an about-face by which the sinner acknowledges his lost condition and bows to God’s judgment as to his guilt. Faith is commitment of one’s self to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. In many NT passages, faith alone is stated to be the condition of salvation. However, faith presupposes repentance. How could a person truly accept Jesus Christ as Savior unless he realized that he needed a Savior? This realization, brought about by the convicting ministry of the Holy Spirit, is repentance. 20:22, 23 Having reviewed his past conduct among the Ephesians, the apostle now looks ahead to the sufferings that await him. He was constrained in his spirit to go to Jerusalem. It was an inner compulsion, which he was apparently unable to throw off. Although he did not know exactly what the turn of events would be in Jerusalem, he did know that chains and tribulations would be a regular part of his life. The Holy Spirit had been making this fact known to him in every city, perhaps through the ministry of prophets, or perhaps by the mysterious, inner communication of divine intelligence. 20:24 As the apostle weighed this outlook in his mind, he did not think that his own life was the great consideration. His ambition was to obey God and to please Him. If in doing this, he would be called upon to offer up his life, he was willing to do so. No sacrifice he could make would be too great for the One who died for him. All that mattered was that he finish his race and complete the ministry which he received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. No title could better express the good news which Paul preachedthe gospel of the grace of God.

It is the thrilling message of God’s undeserved favor to guilty, ungodly sinners who deserve nothing but everlasting hell. It tells how the Son of God’s love came from heaven’s highest glory to suffer, bleed, and die on Calvary in order that those who believe on Him might receive forgiveness of sins and everlasting life. 20:25-27 Paul was sure he would never see his beloved Ephesian brethren again, but his conscience was clear in leaving them, because he knew he had not held back from declaring to them the whole counsel of God. He had instructed them not only in the fundamentals of the gospel, but in all the truths that were vital for godly living. 20:28 Since he would never again meet them on earth, he delivered a solemn charge to the elders that they should first of all take heed to their own spiritual condition. Unless they were living in fellowship with the Lord, they could not expect to be spiritual guides in the church.Their function as elders was to take heed … to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit had made them overseers. As mentioned previously, overseers in the NT are also called bishops, elders, and presbyters. This verse emphasizes that elders are not appointed or elected by the local assembly. They are made overseers by the Holy Spirit, and should be recognized by the believers among whom they labor. Among other things they were responsible to shepherd the church of God. The importance of such a charge is seen in the words which follow: which He purchased with His own blood. This latter expression has been the cause of considerable discussion and disagreement among Bible scholars. The difficulty is that God is here pictured as shedding His blood, whereas God is Spirit. It was the Lord Jesus who shed His blood, and although Jesus is God, yet nowhere else does the Bible speak of God bleeding or dying. The majority of manuscripts read the church of the Lord and God which He purchased with His own blood, apparently suggesting that Person of the Godhead (the Lord) who actually shed His blood. Perhaps J. N. Darby comes closest to the correct sense of the passage in his New Translation: The assembly of God, which He has purchased with the blood of His own. Here God is the One who purchased the church, but He did it with the blood of His own Son, the blessed Lord Jesus. 20:29, 30 Paul was well aware that after his departure, the church would be attacked from without and from within. False teachers, wolves in sheep’s clothing, would prey upon the flock, showing no mercy. From within the fellowship, men would aspire to places of prominence, speaking perversions of the truth, and trying to draw away the disciples after themselves. 20:31 In view of these imminent perils, the elders should be on their guard, and constantly remember how for three years the apostle had warned them night and day with tears. 20:32 Paul’s great resource now was to commend them to God and to the word of His grace. Notice that he did not commend them to other human leaders, or to supposed successors of the apostles. Rather he entrusted them to God and the Bible. This is an eloquent testimony to the sufficiency of the inspired Scriptures. It is they which are able to build up the believers and to give them an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 20:33-35 In closing his message, the Apostle Paul once again set before the elders the example of his own life and ministry. He could say in all honesty that he had coveted no one’s silver or gold or apparel. It was not the hope of financial gain that motivated him in the work of the Lord. He was essentially a poor man, as far as material things were concerned, but he was rich toward God. Holding out his hands before them, he could remind them that those hands had labored in order to provide for the necessities of life, both for himself and for those who were with him. But he went beyond that also.

He labored as a tentmaker in order that he might have means to help the weakthose physically ill, or weak as far as moral scruples are concerned, or weak in spiritual matters. The elders should remember this, and seek in all things the good of others, remembering the words of the Lord Jesus, … It is more blessed to give than to receive. Interestingly enough, these words of our Lord are not found in any of the Gospels. They do represent the sum of much of His teaching, but here they are given as an inspired addition to His words in the Gospels. 20:36-38 At the conclusion of his message, Paul knelt on the ground and prayed with the elders. For them it was a time of deep sorrow. They showed their affection for the beloved apostle by falling on his neck and kissing him. The thing that particularly grieved them was his statement that they would see his face no more. Heavyhearted, they accompanied him to the ship for the voyage to Jerusalem.