Paul’s Third Missionary Journey (3)

During Paul’s two-year stay in Ephesus, the work of God prospered in that city and impacted the whole of Asia. But Paul’s ministry was not without opposition. Demetrius, a silversmith anxious over the potential loss of profit, incited his fellow tradesmen to start a city-wide uproar. But, fortunately, it was put to rest by the city clerk. After the uproar, Paul left Ephesus to go to Macedonia and Achaia to see the brethren in those regions, before heading toward Jerusalem as he had purposed to do.

1. Break bread (20:7,11): “break bread” (klasai arton) refers to partaking of the Holy Communion, whereas “broke bread and ate” (klasas ton arton kai geusamenos) refers to an ordinary meal. ¹

2. Assos (20:13): “a sea-port town of Proconsular Asia, in the district of Mysia, on the north shore of the Gulf of Adramyttium. Paul came hither on foot along the Roman road from Troas (Acts 20:13,14), a distance of 20 miles. It was about 30 miles distant from Troas by sea.” ²

3. Mitylene (20:14): “the chief city of the island of Lesbos, on its east coast, in the Aegean Sea.” ³

4. Chios (20:15): “an island in the Aegean Sea, about 5 miles distant from the mainland, having a roadstead, in the shelter of which Paul and his companions anchored for a night when on his third missionary return journey. It is now called Scio.” ⁴

5. Samos (20:15): “an island in the AEgean Sea… It is about 27 miles long and 20 broad, and lies about 42 miles south-west of Smyrna.” ⁵

6. Trogyllium (20:15): “is the rocky extremity of the ridge of Mycale, exactly opposite Samos… A little to the east of the extreme point there is an anchorage, which is still called St. Paul’s port.” ⁶

7. Miletus (20:15): “a seaport town and the ancient capital of Ionia, about 36 miles south of Ephesus.” ⁷

8. Cos (21:1): “an island in the Aegean Sea… It was famous for being the birth place of Apelles the painter, and Hippocrates the physician.” ⁸

9. Rhodes (21:1): “an island to the south of the western extremity of Asia Minor, between Cos and Patara, about 46 miles long and 18 miles broad.” ⁹

10. Patara (21:1): “a city on the south-west coast of Lycia” ¹⁰

11. Phoenicia (21:2): “a strip of land of an average breadth of about 20 miles along the shores of the Mediterranean, from the river Eleutherus in the north to the promontory of Carmel in the south, about 120 miles in length.” ¹¹

12. Tyre (21:3): “the chief city of Phoenicia, famous for navigation and commerce: it stood about four furlongs distant from the shore, and was joined to the continent by Alexander the Great” ¹²

13. Ptolemais (21:7) was a maritime city of Galilee.