# Acts 18 đź“–: Paul in Corinth
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> [!info] Table of Contents
> [[#đź“ś Scripture Text (NET)]]
> [[#đź“– Verse-by-Verse Commentary]]
> [[#🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights]]
> [[#🧠Chapter Summary]]
> [[#✝️ Christ in This Chapter]]
> [[#🔎 Key Observations / 🛟 Life Application]]
> [[#đź’¬ Discussion Questions]]
> [[#✍️ Key Verses to Remember]]
> [[#đź”— Related Passages]]
> [[#🙏 Devotional Reflection]]
> [[#đź“„ Outline]]
> [[#đź“‚ Internal Notes]]
## đź“ś Scripture Text (NET)
(The NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, 2005)
#### Paul at Corinth
**Principle**: The Gospel may bring chaos.
[[#Verse 01.]] After this Paul departed from Athens and went to Corinth.Â
[[#Verse 02.]] There he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had ordered all the Jews to depart from Rome. Paul approached them,Â
[[#Verse 03.]] and because he worked at the same trade, he stayed with them and worked with them (for they were tentmakers by trade).Â
[[#Verse 04.]] He addressed both Jews and Greeks in the synagogue every Sabbath, attempting to persuade them.
[[#Verse 05.]] Now when Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul became wholly absorbed with proclaiming the word, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ.
[[#Verse 06.]] When they opposed him and reviled him, he protested by shaking out his clothes and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads! I am guiltless! From now on I will go to the Gentiles!”Â
[[#Verse 07.]] Then Paul left the synagogue and went to the house of a person named Titius Justus, a Gentile who worshiped God, whose house was next door to the synagogue.Â
[[#Verse 08.]] Crispus, the president of the synagogue, believed in the Lord together with his entire household, and many of the Corinthians who heard about it believed and were baptized.Â
[[#Verse 09.]] The Lord said to Paul by a vision in the night,“Do not be afraid, but speak and do not be silent,Â
[[#Verse 10.]] because I am with you, and no one will assault you to harm you, because I have many people in this city.”Â
[[#Verse 11.]] So he stayed there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.
[[#Verse 12.]] Now while Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews attacked Paul together and brought him before the judgment seat,Â
[[#Verse 13.]] saying, “This man is persuading people to worship God in a way contrary to the law!”Â
[[#Verse 14.]] But just as Paul was about to speak, Gallio said to the Jews, “If it were a matter of some crime or serious piece of villainy, I would have been justified in accepting the complaint of you Jews,Â
[[#Verse 15.]] but since it concerns points of disagreement about words and names and your own law, settle it yourselves. I will not be a judge of these things!”Â
[[#Verse 16.]]Â Then he had them forced away from the judgment seat.Â
[[#Verse 17.]] So they all seized Sosthenes, the president of the synagogue, and began to beat him in front of the judgment seat. Yet none of these things were of any concern to Gallio.
### Paul Returns to Antioch in Syria
**Principle**: God directs us.
[[#Verse 18.]] Paul, after staying many more days in Corinth, said farewell to the brothers and sailed away to Syria accompanied by Priscilla and Aquila. He had his hair cut off at Cenchrea because he had made a vow.Â
[[#Verse 19.]] When they reached Ephesus, Paul left Priscilla and Aquila behind there, but he himself went into the synagogue and addressed the Jews.Â
[[#Verse 20.]]Â When they asked him to stay longer, he would not consent,
[[#Verse 21.]] but said farewell to them and added, “I will come back to you again if God wills.”Then he set sail from Ephesus,Â
[[#Verse 22.]] and when he arrived at Caesarea, he went up and greeted the church at Jerusalem and then went down to Antioch.Â
[[#Verse 23.]] After he spent some time there, Paul left and went through the region of Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples.
### Apollos Begins His Ministry
**Principle**: Being teachable opens doors.
[[#Verse 24.]] Now a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, arrived in Ephesus. He was an eloquent speaker, well-versed in the scriptures.Â
[[#Verse 25.]] He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and with great enthusiasm he spoke and taught accurately the facts about Jesus, although he knew only the baptism of John.
[[#Verse 26.]] He began to speak out fearlessly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained the way of God to him more accurately.
[[#Verse 27.]] When Apollos wanted to cross over to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him. When he arrived, he assisted greatly those who had believed by grace,Â
[[#Verse 28.]] for he refuted the Jews vigorously in public debate, demonstrating from the scriptures that the Christ was Jesus.
## đź“– Verse-by-Verse Commentary
###### Overall.
###### Verse 01.
###### Verse 02.
###### Verse 03.
###### Verse 04.
###### Verse 05.
###### Verse 06.
###### Verse 07.
###### Verse 08.
###### Verse 09.
###### Verse 10.
###### Verse 11.
###### Verse 12.
###### Verse 13.
###### Verse 14.
###### Verse 15.
###### Verse 16.
###### Verse 17.
###### Verse 18.
###### Verse 19.
###### Verse 20.
###### Verse 21.
###### Verse 22.
###### Verse 23.
###### Verse 24.
###### Verse 25.
###### Verse 26.
###### Verse 27.
###### Verse 28.
## 🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights
1. Corinth (18:1) was a wealthy port city with two harbors on a narrow strip of land between mainland Greece and the Peloponnese.
2. Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome (18:2) around AD 49. The Roman historian Suetonius mentions this expulsion.
3. Paul supported himself by making tents (18:3), likely working with leather or woven goat-hair cloth.
4. Priscilla is often named before her husband Aquila (18:18, 26), which may suggest she was especially prominent in ministry.
5. Crispus, the synagogue ruler, believed with his whole household (18:8). Paul mentions baptizing him in 1 Corinthians 1:14.
6. Paul stayed in Corinth a year and a half (18:11), one of his longest stays anywhere.
7. An inscription found at Delphi dates Gallio's time as proconsul of Achaia (18:12) to about AD 51 or 52, one of the most important anchors for dating Paul's life.
8. The *bema* or judgment seat (18:12) where Paul stood before Gallio has been identified in the ruins of ancient Corinth.
9. Paul cut his hair at Cenchrea because of a vow (18:18), likely similar to a Nazirite vow (Numbers 6).
10. Apollos was from Alexandria in Egypt (18:24), a great center of learning with a large Jewish community.
## 🧠Chapter Summary
> [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way.
## ✝️ Christ in This Chapter
Christ is the Lord who stands with His servants, saying "Do not be afraid... I am with you" (18:9-10; Matthew 28:20). The Scriptures show that Jesus is the Christ (18:28).
## 🔎 Key Observations / 🛟 Life Application
> [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way.
## đź’¬ Discussion Questions
1. Paul worked as a tentmaker with Priscilla and Aquila while he ministered (18:3). How can your daily work be part of your ministry?
2. The Lord told Paul not to be afraid, because He had many people in that city (18:9-10). How does that promise encourage you where you live?
3. Priscilla and Aquila took Apollos aside and explained the way of God more accurately (18:26). How can we help others grow gently and privately?
## ✍️ Key Verses to Remember
- đź“– verse 3: Paul stays and works with Aquila and Priscilla, because they are tentmakers by trade.
- đź“– verses 9-10: The Lord tells Paul not to be afraid but to keep speaking, for He is with him.
- đź“– verse 26: Priscilla and Aquila explain the way of God more accurately to Apollos.
- đź“– verse 28: Apollos shows from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ.
## đź”— Related Passages
- đź”— [[Romans 16#Verse 03.|Romans 16:3-4]] - Priscilla and Aquila, Paul's co-workers.
- đź”— [[1 Corinthians 02#Verse 03.|1 Corinthians 2:3]] - Paul came to Corinth in weakness and fear.
- đź”— [[Joshua 01#Verse 09.|Joshua 1:9]] - Do not be afraid, for the Lord is with you.
- đź”— [[1 Corinthians 03#Verse 06.|1 Corinthians 3:6]] - Paul planted, Apollos watered.
- đź”— [[1 Peter 03#Verse 15.|1 Peter 3:15]] - Always be ready to give an answer.
## 🙏 Devotional Reflection
đź“ť SOAP: [[Acts 18 - SOAP|Able to Teach, Able to Learn]]
## đź“„ Outline
(Acts 18:1–28) Paul’s ministry in Corinth, the role of Aquila and Priscilla, opposition from the Jews, encouragement from the Lord, and the introduction of Apollos.
Big Idea: God provides all we need to keep going.
1. God Provides Partnerships (vv. 1–4, 18–19)
- Paul meets Aquila and Priscilla, faithful coworkers who become key allies in the gospel mission.
- Ministry is not meant to be done alone.
2. God Provides Encouragement (vv. 9–11)
- In a moment of weariness, the Lord speaks directly to Paul: “Do not be afraid… I am with you.”
- God reassures His servants that His presence guarantees their mission will succeed in His time.
3. God Provides Continuity (vv. 24–28)
- Apollos rises up as a new leader, bold in preaching Jesus, even as Paul moves on.
- The gospel doesn’t depend on one person—it advances through God raising up faithful men and women.
## đź“‚ Internal Notes
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