New International Reader s Version - NIrV - 1996
Acts 18
1
After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth.
Reference
📍 Corinth
Parallel theme
1 Corinthians 1:2
2 Timothy 4:20
2 Corinthians 1:23
References Paul
Acts 19:1
Acts 17:15
2 Corinthians 1:1
2
There he met a Jew named Aquila, who was a native of Pontus. Aquila had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla. The emperor Claudius had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see Aquila and Priscilla.
Reference
📍 Italy
People
4
Every Sabbath day he went to the synagogue. He was trying to get both Jews and Greeks to believe in the Lord.
Reference
5
Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia. Then Paul spent all his time preaching. He gave witness to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ.
Reference
Parallel theme
Jeremiah 6:11
Jeremiah 20:9
References Christ
2 Corinthians 5:14
Acts 9:22
Philippians 1:23
References Jesus
Acts 20:21
Acts 17:3
Acts 18:28
Acts 2:36
Spirit
Ezekiel 3:14
6
But the Jews opposed Paul. They treated him badly. He didn't like this. So he shook out his clothes. Then he said to them, "Anything that happens to you will be your own fault! Don't blame me for it! From now on I will go to people who are not Jews."
Reference
Blood
Ezekiel 33:4
2 Samuel 1:16
Ezekiel 18:13
Matthew 27:25
Parallel theme
Nehemiah 5:13
Acts 13:51
Luke 9:5
1 Peter 4:4
1 Peter 4:14
2 Timothy 2:25
7
Then Paul left the synagogue. He went next door to the house of Titius Justus, a man who worshiped God.
Reference
People
Parallel theme
Acts 13:42
Acts 17:4
References God
Acts 10:2
Righteousness
Colossians 4:11
Acts 10:22
Worship
Acts 16:14
8
Crispus was the synagogue ruler. He and his whole family came to believe in the Lord. Many others who lived in Corinth heard Paul. They too believed and were baptized.
Reference
People
9
One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision. "Don't be afraid," he said. "Keep on speaking. Don't be silent.
Reference
Parallel theme
Jeremiah 1:17
1 Thessalonians 2:2
References Lord
Acts 23:11
Micah 3:8
References Paul
Acts 16:9
11
So Paul stayed there for a year and a half. He taught them God's word.
12
At that time Gallio was governor of Achaia. The Jews got together and attacked Paul. They brought him into court.
Reference
📍 Achaia
People
Judgment
Matthew 27:19
Parallel theme
Acts 18:27
Romans 15:26
1 Corinthians 16:15
2 Corinthians 11:10
2 Corinthians 9:2
References Paul
Acts 13:7
Acts 13:50
2 Corinthians 1:1
13
"This man," they charged, "is trying to talk people into worshiping God in ways that are against the law."
Reference
Word
Acts 25:8
14
Paul was about to speak up for himself. But just then Gallio spoke to the Jews. "You Jews are not claiming that Paul has committed a crime, whether large or small," he said. "If you were, it would make sense for me to listen to you.
15
But this is about your own law. It is a question of words and names. Settle the matter yourselves. I will not be a judge of such things."
Reference
16
So he had them thrown out of the court.
17
Then all the Jews turned against Sosthenes. He was the synagogue ruler. They beat him up in front of the court. But Gallio didn't care at all.
Reference
Parallel theme
1 Corinthians 1:1
18
Paul stayed in Corinth for some time. Then he left the believers and sailed for Syria. Priscilla and Aquila went with him. Before he sailed, he had his hair cut off at Cenchrea. He did this because he had made a promise to God.
Reference
📍 Cenchreae
Parallel theme
Acts 21:24
Numbers 6:18
Acts 18:2
Romans 16:1
1 Corinthians 9:20
Acts 15:23
Numbers 6:2
19
They arrived at Ephesus. There Paul said good-by to Priscilla and Aquila. He himself went into the synagogue and talked with the Jews.
Reference
📍 Ephesus
20
The Jews asked him to spend more time with them. But he said no.
21
As he left, he made them a promise. "If God wants me to," he said, "I will come back." Then he sailed from Ephesus.
Reference
📍 Ephesus
Parallel theme
1 Corinthians 4:19
James 4:15
References God
Hebrews 6:3
Romans 15:32
Romans 1:10
References Jerusalem
Acts 20:16
22
When he landed at Caesarea, he went up to Jerusalem. There he greeted the church. He then went down to Antioch.
Reference
Parallel theme
Acts 8:40
23
Paul spent some time in Antioch. Then he left and traveled all over Galatia and Phrygia. He gave strength to all the believers there.
Reference
24
At that time a Jew named Apollos came to Ephesus. He was an educated man from Alexandria. He knew the Scriptures very well.
Reference
📍 Locations
People
25
Apollos had been taught the way of the Lord. He spoke with great power. He taught the truth about Jesus. But he only knew about John's baptism.
Reference
Baptism
Acts 19:3
Parallel theme
Acts 9:2
Acts 19:23
Acts 19:9
Mark 12:14
References Lord
Hosea 14:9
Spirit
Romans 12:11
26
He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. Priscilla and Aquila heard him. So they invited him to their home. There they gave him a better understanding of the way of God.
Reference
27
Apollos wanted to go to Achaia. The brothers agreed with him. They wrote to the believers there. They asked them to welcome him. When he arrived, he was a great help to those who had become believers by God's grace.
📍 Achaia
Chapter Summary
Acts 18 describes Paul's extended ministry in Corinth, his relationship with Aquila and Priscilla, his appearance before the Roman governor Gallio, and the beginning of the ministry of Apollos, showing how the Christian movement continues to grow through preaching, teaching, friendship, and careful instruction.
After leaving Athens, Paul travels to Corinth, a wealthy and strategically important Roman city where he meets Aquila and Priscilla, Jewish believers who had recently left Rome because Emperor Claudius had ordered Jews to leave the city.
Because Paul shares their trade of tentmaking, he stays and works with them while continuing to preach in the synagogue every Sabbath.
Paul initially reasons with both Jews and Greeks, explaining that Jesus is the Messiah, and when Silas and Timothy arrive from Macedonia, Paul is able to devote even more of his time to preaching.
Some Jews strongly oppose him, so Paul turns more openly toward the Gentiles and begins teaching in the house of Titius Justus, which is located next to the synagogue.
The ministry becomes fruitful because Crispus, the synagogue leader, believes in the Lord with his household, and many other Corinthians also believe and are baptized.
During this difficult period, the Lord encourages Paul through a vision and tells him not to be afraid but to keep speaking, promising that He is with him and that many people in Corinth belong to Him.
Paul therefore remains in Corinth for approximately eighteen months, teaching the word of God and establishing the church.
The historical importance of this period becomes especially clear when Gallio becomes governor of Achaia, because Jewish leaders bring Paul before him and accuse him of persuading people to worship God in a way that violates Jewish law.
Gallio refuses to judge the case because he sees it as a disagreement about Jewish religious teaching rather than a serious Roman crime, and this decision allows Paul to continue his ministry without being punished by the Roman government.
After the case ends, Paul remains in Corinth for some time before leaving with Priscilla and Aquila, eventually reaching Ephesus and then returning through Caesarea and Jerusalem to Antioch.
Paul later begins another missionary journey, traveling through Galatia and Phrygia to strengthen the believers he had previously reached.
The chapter then introduces Apollos, an educated and powerful speaker from Alexandria who knows the Scriptures well and is enthusiastic about teaching about Jesus, although his understanding is not yet complete because he knows only the baptism of John.
Priscilla and Aquila listen to Apollos and privately explain the way of God to him more accurately, showing that Christian teaching involves not only public preaching but also humble personal instruction.
Apollos then travels to Achaia, where he becomes a strong defender of the Christian message and uses the Scriptures to show publicly that Jesus is the Messiah.
The central message of Acts 18 is that God can use many different kinds of people to spread the Gospel, including working people like Paul, married ministry partners like Priscilla and Aquila, gifted teachers like Apollos, and ordinary believers who welcome and support missionaries.
The chapter also shows that Christian ministry often develops through relationships, because Paul's work with Aquila and Priscilla strengthens all three of them, while Priscilla and Aquila later help Apollos become a more complete and effective teacher.
Historically, Acts 18 is particularly important because Paul's stay in Corinth can be connected with the period when Gallio was governor of Achaia, giving historians an important chronological marker for Paul's missionary activity.
Corinth itself was especially valuable as a place for missionary work because it was a busy Roman commercial center positioned between two major seas, meaning that people, goods, ideas, and religions passed through the city constantly.
The chapter therefore shows Christianity becoming established in another major urban center of the Roman Empire, while Paul's ministry demonstrates that faith can grow even in a difficult environment when believers continue teaching, working, encouraging one another, and trusting God through opposition.
After leaving Athens, Paul travels to Corinth, a wealthy and strategically important Roman city where he meets Aquila and Priscilla, Jewish believers who had recently left Rome because Emperor Claudius had ordered Jews to leave the city.
Because Paul shares their trade of tentmaking, he stays and works with them while continuing to preach in the synagogue every Sabbath.
Paul initially reasons with both Jews and Greeks, explaining that Jesus is the Messiah, and when Silas and Timothy arrive from Macedonia, Paul is able to devote even more of his time to preaching.
Some Jews strongly oppose him, so Paul turns more openly toward the Gentiles and begins teaching in the house of Titius Justus, which is located next to the synagogue.
The ministry becomes fruitful because Crispus, the synagogue leader, believes in the Lord with his household, and many other Corinthians also believe and are baptized.
During this difficult period, the Lord encourages Paul through a vision and tells him not to be afraid but to keep speaking, promising that He is with him and that many people in Corinth belong to Him.
Paul therefore remains in Corinth for approximately eighteen months, teaching the word of God and establishing the church.
The historical importance of this period becomes especially clear when Gallio becomes governor of Achaia, because Jewish leaders bring Paul before him and accuse him of persuading people to worship God in a way that violates Jewish law.
Gallio refuses to judge the case because he sees it as a disagreement about Jewish religious teaching rather than a serious Roman crime, and this decision allows Paul to continue his ministry without being punished by the Roman government.
After the case ends, Paul remains in Corinth for some time before leaving with Priscilla and Aquila, eventually reaching Ephesus and then returning through Caesarea and Jerusalem to Antioch.
Paul later begins another missionary journey, traveling through Galatia and Phrygia to strengthen the believers he had previously reached.
The chapter then introduces Apollos, an educated and powerful speaker from Alexandria who knows the Scriptures well and is enthusiastic about teaching about Jesus, although his understanding is not yet complete because he knows only the baptism of John.
Priscilla and Aquila listen to Apollos and privately explain the way of God to him more accurately, showing that Christian teaching involves not only public preaching but also humble personal instruction.
Apollos then travels to Achaia, where he becomes a strong defender of the Christian message and uses the Scriptures to show publicly that Jesus is the Messiah.
The central message of Acts 18 is that God can use many different kinds of people to spread the Gospel, including working people like Paul, married ministry partners like Priscilla and Aquila, gifted teachers like Apollos, and ordinary believers who welcome and support missionaries.
The chapter also shows that Christian ministry often develops through relationships, because Paul's work with Aquila and Priscilla strengthens all three of them, while Priscilla and Aquila later help Apollos become a more complete and effective teacher.
Historically, Acts 18 is particularly important because Paul's stay in Corinth can be connected with the period when Gallio was governor of Achaia, giving historians an important chronological marker for Paul's missionary activity.
Corinth itself was especially valuable as a place for missionary work because it was a busy Roman commercial center positioned between two major seas, meaning that people, goods, ideas, and religions passed through the city constantly.
The chapter therefore shows Christianity becoming established in another major urban center of the Roman Empire, while Paul's ministry demonstrates that faith can grow even in a difficult environment when believers continue teaching, working, encouraging one another, and trusting God through opposition.