Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

When the uproar had ended, Paul sent for the disciples and, after encouraging them, said goodbye and set out for Macedonia. He traveled through that area, speaking many words of encouragement to the people, and finally arrived in Greece, where he stayed three months. Because some Jews had plotted against him just as he was about to sail for Syria, he decided to go back through Macedonia. He was accompanied by Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, Gaius from Derbe, Timothy also, and Tychicus and Trophimus from the province of Asia.  These men went on ahead and waited for us at Troas. But we sailed from Philippi after the Festival of Unleavened Bread, and five days later joined the others at Troas, where we stayed seven days.
On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting. Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “He’s alive!” Then he went upstairs again and broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left. The people took the young man home alive and were greatly comforted.
We went on ahead to the ship and sailed for Assos, where we were going to take Paul aboard. He had made this arrangement because he was going there on foot. When he met us at Assos, we took him aboard and went on to Mitylene. The next day we set sail from there and arrived off Chios. The day after that we crossed over to Samos, and on the following day arrived at Miletus. Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus to avoid spending time in the province of Asia, for he was in a hurry to reach Jerusalem, if possible, by the day of Pentecost.
From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church. When they arrived, he said to them: “You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia. I served the Lord with great humility and with tears and in the midst of severe testing by the plots of my Jewish opponents. You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.
“And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.
“Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.
“Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing. You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”
When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him. What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship.

• Acts 20:1-38

Noted Biblical Scholars, Teachers, and Preachers Comments

Acts 20 ‘Overview’: “Alongside continual trial and vindication, the journey is the other great theme that Luke is tapping into as he tells his story, particularly his story of Paul. Few people today spend most of their lives on the move. We nevertheless feel the power and pull of a story which enables us to reflect on the journey through time which we are all making. The journey of our lives has many twists and turns. We carry memories of ‘where we’ve been’ in the sense of what has happened to us. We carry hopes and fears for ‘where we might go next’ in the sense of what may yet happen to us. Even if we live on the same street all our life long, we are on a journey whether we like it or not; and we greatly value stories that help us to see that.”

• N. T. Wright, Acts (from the For Everyone Bible Study Series)

Acts 20:1-4 ‘large group of helpers’: “Two of Paul’s most powerful letters emerge from this period. He was writing 2 Corinthians, it seems, while on the way around northern Greece (20:1-2) before ending up in Corinth. Then, while at Corinth, he wrote his masterpiece, the letter to Rome. Perhaps part of the reason for the enlarged company representing so many churches (20:4) is that Paul was collecting money from the Greek churches to give to the poor Christians in Jerusalem (which he discusses at length in 2 Corinthians 8-9 and which he mentions specifically in 24:17-18). He may have wanted the safety of a larger group of traveling companions when carrying a substantial amount of money and the clear accounting of several who could witness that the money had safely reached its destination.”

• N. T. Wright, Acts (from the For Everyone Bible Study Series)

Acts 20:3 ‘three months’: “Most or all of it were likely spent in Corinth. Jews plotted against him. See 9:20, 23; 13:45; 14:2, 19; 17:5-9, 13; 18:6, 12, 13; 19:9; 21:27-36; 23:12-15. Tragically, most of the opposition to Paul’s ministry stemmed from his fellow countrymen (cf. 2 Cor. 11:26). The Jewish community of Corinth hated Paul because of its humiliating debacle before Gallio (18:12—17), and the stunning conversions of two of its most prominent leaders, Crispus (18:8), and Sosthenes (18:17; 1 Cor. 1:1). Luke does not record the details of the Jews’ plot, but it undoubtedly involved murdering Paul during the voyage to Palestine. The apostle would have been an easy target on a small ship packed with Jewish pilgrims. Because of that danger, Paul canceled his plans to sail from Greece to Syria. Instead, he decided to go north into Macedonia, cross the Aegean Sea to Asia Minor, and catch another ship from there. That delay cost Paul his opportunity to reach Palestine in time for Passover; but he hurried to be there in time for Pentecost (v. 16).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Acts 20:4 ‘Sopater of Berea … Trophimus of Asia’: “Paul’s traveling companions came from the various provinces in which he had ministered. These men were likely the official representatives of their churches, chosen to accompany Paul as he took the offering to Jerusalem (see … 19:21; cf. 1 Cor. 16:3, 4).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics

Acts 20:5 ‘for us’: “The first person plural pronoun reveals that Luke rejoined Paul in Philippi (v. 6). Being a Gentile, he was able to remain there to minister after Paul and Silas were forced to leave (16:20, 39, 40). This verse begins the second of the three ‘we passages’ in which Luke accompanied Paul on his travels.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Acts 20:6 ‘from Philippi’: “Paul, along with Luke, and possibly Titus, crossed the Aegean Sea from Philippi to Troas. That crossing, due to unfavorable winds, took five days; Paul’s earlier crossing from Troas to Neapolis (Philippi’s port) had taken only two days (16:11). In Troas, they were reunited with the rest of their party. Days of Unleavened Bread. i.e., Passover (Ex. 12:17).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Acts 20:7 ‘first day of the week’: “Sunday, the day the church gathered for worship, because it was the day of Christ’s Resurrection. Cf. Matthew 28:1; Mark 16:2, 9; Luke 24:1; John 20:1, 19; 1 Corinthians 16:2. The writings of the early church Fathers confirm that the church continued to meet on Sunday after the close of the NT period. Scripture does not require Christians to observe the Saturday Sabbath: (1) the Sabbath was the sign of the Mosaic covenant (Ex. 31:16, 17; Neh. 9:14; Ezek. 20:12), whereas Christians are under the New Covenant (2 Cor. 3; Heb. 8); (2) there is no NT command to keep the Sabbath; (3) the first command to keep the Sabbath was not until the time of Moses (Ex. 20:8); (4) the Jerusalem Council (ch. 15) did not order Gentile believers to keep the Sabbath; (5) Paul never cautioned Christians about breaking the Sabbath; and 6) the NT explicitly teaches that Sabbath-keeping was not a requirement (see … Rom. 14:5; Gal. 4:10, 11; Col. 2:16, 17). to break bread. The common meal associated with the communion service (1 Cor. 11:20-22).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Acts 20:9 ‘young man’: “The Greek word suggests he was between seven and fourteen years old. His youth, the fumes from the lamps, and the lateness of the hour (v. 7) gradually overcame his resistance. He dozed off, fell out of the open window, and was killed.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Acts 20:13 ‘Assos’: “Located twenty miles south of Troas, across the neck of a small peninsula. on foot. Because the ship had to sail around the peninsula, Paul could have arrived in Assos not long after it did. Paul presumably chose to walk to Assos so he could continue to teach the believers from Troas who accompanied him.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Acts 20:15 ‘Chios’: “An island off the coast of Asia Minor, south of Lesbos. Chios was the birthplace of the Greek poet Homer. Samos. An island off the coast near Ephesus. The famed mathematician Pythagoras was born on Samos. Trogyllium. A promontory jutting into the Aegean Sea between Samos and Miletus. Whether the ship actually stopped there is unclear, since many Greek manuscripts do not mention Trogyllium. Miletus. A city in Asia Minor, about thirty miles south of Ephesus.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Acts 20:17-32 ‘Warning to the Ephesian Elders’: “The Apostle Paul prophesied to the Ephesian elders that from among their own ranks some ‘will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them’ (verse 30). Therefore they were instructed by Paul to ‘be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of three years I did not cease to admonish each one with tears’ (verse 31).
“Paul knew his days were short, and that is why he summoned the elders of the church to meet him at Miletus (verse 17). However he was mistaken about his death, living some ten or more years before he was martyred in Rome between A.D. 65 and 67. He rehearsed with the Ephesian elders his ministry since the day he set foot in Asia (verse 18). During this ministry Paul testified ‘to both jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ’ (verse 21). It was prophesied to Paul by the Holy Spirit that persecution awaited him as ‘bonds and afflictions’ (verse 23). These things came about as predicted.
“Paul had taught the Ephesians about the kingdom and the future millennial reign of Christ, which all the believers at that time were still eagerly waiting for (verse 25). The kingdom has been presently postponed while people worldwide are being added to the body of Christ during this dispensation known as the church age. In his teaching, Paul also declared to the Ephesians ‘the whole purpose of God’ (verse 27). The word ‘purpose’ is the Greek word boulee, which means ‘will’ or ‘council.’ Paul was teaching the full spectrum of important doctrine that ranges from the Old Testament all the way to the New Testament.”

• Tim LaHaye and Ed Hindson, Exploring Bible Prophecy

Acts 20:19 ‘with many tears’: “Paul wept because of: (1) those who did not know Christ (cf. Rom. 9:2, 3); (2) struggling, immature believers (2 Cor. 2:4); and (3) the threat of false teachers (v. 29, 30). plotting of the Jews. See 2 Corinthians 11:24, 26. Ironically, it was the plot of the Jews at Corinth that allowed the Ephesian elders this opportunity to spend time with Paul (see note on v. 3).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Acts 20:21 ‘true repentance’: “There is a repentance that is fatally faulty because it is not toward God. In some there is a repentance of sin that is produced by a sense of shame. The evildoers are found out, and indignant words are spoken about them. They are ashamed, and they are repentant because they have dishonored themselves. If they had not been found out, in all probability they would have continued comfortably in the sin and even have gone further in it. Their shame is not evangelical repentance, and a person may go to hell with a blush on his face. Some again have a repentance that consists in grief because of the painful consequences of sin. There is no true repentance that only consists of being sorry because one is smarting under the consequences of sin. Others exhibit a repentance that consists entirely of horror at the future punishment of sin. But if such persons could be assured that no punishment would follow, they would continue in sin and not only be content to live in it but be delighted to have it so. If we have no repentance for the sin itself, it is in vain that we should stand and tremble because of a judgment to come.
“Evangelical repentance is ‘repentance toward God.’ It is repentance of sin as sin—not of this sin, or of that, but of the whole mass. We repent of the sin of our nature as well as of the sin of our practice.  We repent of sin as an insult to God. Anything short of this is a mere surface repentance and not a repentance that reaches to the bottom of the problem. Repentance of the evil act and not of the evil heart is like sailors pumping water out of a leaky vessel but forgetting to stop the leak. When we repent of sin toward God, we have laid the axe at the root of the tree and can express ‘faith in our Lord Jesus.’ ”

• Charles H. Spurgeon, from sermon notes

Acts 20:28 ‘take heed to yourselves’: “Paul repeated this call to self—examination to Timothy when his young son in the faith served as pastor of the Ephesian congregation (1 Tim. 4:16; 2 Tim. 2:20, 21). overseers. These are the same as elders and pastors (see note on 1 Tim. 3:1). The word emphasizes the leaders’ responsibility to watch over and protect their congregations—an appropriate usage in the context of a warning against false teachers. Congregation rule, which minimizes the biblical authority of elders in favor of a cultural, democratic process, is foreign to the NT (cf. 1 Thess. 5:12, 13; Heb. 13:17). With His own blood. See note on 1 Peter 1:18. Paul believed so strongly in the unity of God the Father and the Lord Iesus Christ that he could speak of Christ’s death as shedding the blood of God—who has no body (John 4:24; cf. Luke 24:39) and hence no blood.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Acts 20:29-30 ‘a return to orthodoxy’: “Within the circles of evangelical Christianity itself there has arisen in the last few years dangerous and dismaying trends away from true Bible Christianity. A spirit has been introduced which is surely not the Spirit of Christ, methods employed which are wholly carnal, objectives adopted which have not one line of Scripture to support them, a level of conduct accepted which is practically identical with that of the world—and yet scarcely one voice has been raised in opposition. And this in spite of the fact that the Bible-honoring followers of Christ lament among themselves the dangerous, wobbly course things are taking. …
“The times call for a Spirit-baptized and articulate orthodoxy. They whose souls have been illuminated by the Holy Ghost must arise and under God assume leadership. There are those among us whose hearts can discern between the true and the false, whose spiritual sense of smell enables them to detect the spurious afar off, who have the blessed gift of knowing. Let such as these arise and be heard. Who knows but the Lord may yet return and leave a blessing behind Him?”

• A. W. Tozer, The Price of Neglect

Acts 20:35 ‘better to give’: “According to Paul, Jesus said ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ (20:35). The words do not appear in any of the four Gospels. As John says at the end of his Gospel, there were many other things which Jesus did, and presumably which he said, which are not written down (John 21:25). The quote sounds like the sort of thing which might have come in the Sermon on the Mount or a similar address. It makes sense not only as a statement by Jesus of how his followers ought to behave but as a statement about his own manner of life. Paul followed the pattern of Jesus. Nobody would ever be able to say that Paul used his biblical learning, patient study or rhetorical gifts to feather his own nest. He had lived out the message of the gospel as he had understood it, the message of God’s grace, which isn‘t primarily a theory but an image-bearing way of life.”

• N. T. Wright, Acts (from the For Everyone Bible Study Series)

 

My Thoughts

With the riot in Ephesus fresh on their minds, Paul went to Macedonia and then on to Greece to encourage the churches.  He stayed three months in Greece, probably in Corinth.  With him were gathered people from various churches and regions to safeguard the donations that were made for the poor in Jerusalem.

Paul wanted to return to Jerusalem in haste to be there for the Passover, but he heard of a plot by the Jews against him.  He went instead by land, back through Macedonia and then across to Troas.  The companions left straight to Troas, but Paul lingered in Philippi to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Passover).

While the text does not state where he stayed, Corinth makes sense for the three month stay, and with Lydia being a good hostess, having a church in her home, that might have been the location of the Passover celebration.  Regardless, his goal was to encourage these and other churches.

When he arrived in Troas, they had a meeting in an “upper room.”  With the translation of “young man” readers of today might think older than what Rev. MacArthur claims as being anywhere from seven to fourteen years of age.  Referring to him as a young man is probably the cultural norm of that time.  I have worked in some countries where seven-year-olds worked next to their father, and, if a boy, they got equal pay.  Thus, this range of age makes sense in that culture, but it also makes sense that the “young man” (Eutychus) might fall asleep from a long sermon, especially if Eutychus had worked all day.

Eutychus fell asleep and fell to his death out the third story window.  Paul cradled him in his arms and told the crowd that the boy was alive.  I have read other commentaries that talk about how Luke was with Paul, since the next paragraph mentions “we,” and Luke, being a physician, could determine that the boy was dead prior to Paul praying for Eutychus.

The sermon was not over until near dawn.  Paul walked to Assos and the companions took a boat around the peninsula.  Rev. MacArthur surmises this as being a means to continue the sermon with the believers from Troas that were willing to walk with him.  I have also read commentaries that state that Paul skipped the boat due to not knowing if he had shaken the people who meant him harm.  The companions could confirm if Jews were on that boat.  But both reasons might be valid.

But now, Paul is in a hurry to reach Jerusalem by Pentecost.  He calls for the elders at Ephesus to meet him in Miletus.  He warns them about wolves within their congregation who will spread heresy and lead people astray.  Note: Paul encouraged all the churches, but he had spent over two years in Ephesus and led them with tears.  He charged the elders to commit themselves to God.  Paul spoke of how he had earned his way and the way of his companions with his hands, and doing hard work in order to help the weak is a noble task.

Paul saying that Jesus said that it is better to give than receive is consistent with the message of Jesus, and at this point, the gospels had not been written.  There are a variety of “quotes” made in the New Testament that are not in Scripture, some in other writings of the time, and not all the gospel accounts have another gospel to confirm Jesus said this or that.  There should be no controversy here.

It says at the beginning of Acts 21 that they tore themselves away to board the boat for a port near Jerusalem.  Here at the end of Acts 20, there was much prayer and tears.  Paul had said he would probably not see them again.  The scholars above equivocate that he did see them, while the hardship and imprisonment were accurate in Paul’s prophecy.  But for that set of elders, some may have died or moved in the interim while Paul was imprisoned.  Thus, Paul’s prophecy (inspired by the Holy Spirit) might have been completely accurate.  But knowing this, his friends from Ephesus wanted him to stay, prolonging the good-byes.

Some Serendipitous Reflections

Acts 20:1-12 Through Macedonia and Greece / Eutychus Raised from the Dead at Troas 1. Paul’s companions protect him from anyone accusing him of misusing the funds. How could churches and ‘faith ministries’ today be helped by such accountability? How would this enhance outsiders’ opinion of Christian integrity?
“2. Are you at all related to Eutychus: Do sermons put you to sleep? Or are you wide awake spiritually? How can you keep from falling flat?
Acts 20:13-38 Paul’s Farewell to the Ephesian Elders 1. If someone watched you the past year, what would they assume a Christian lifestyle is like? How would you like to change so they can get a more accurate picture? How would you paraphrase Paul’s summary of the gospel (v.21) to explain the faith to someone?
“2. Who makes up the ‘flock’ for whom you are responsible? In what specific way can you shepherd them?
“3. How would you complete this sentence: ‘The one thing I must accomplish at any cost is ? How does it relate to Paul’s goal in verse 24?
“4. In the race of doing God’s will, are you in the front of the pack, one of the stragglers, or an onlooker? Why?”

• Lyman Coleman, et al, The NIV Serendipity Bible for Study Groups

There are two sets of questions as shown above for Acts 20.

Substitute whatever group for any reference to a small group or ask who could come to your aid.

If you like these Thursday morning Bible studies, but you think you missed a few, you can use this LINK. I have set up a page off the home page for links to these Thursday morning posts. I will continue to modify the page as I add more.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.