Acts 18:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And he stayed a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.

NIV: So Paul stayed in Corinth for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God.

NASB: And he settled there for a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.

CSB: He stayed there a year and a half, teaching the word of God among them.

NLT: So Paul stayed there for the next year and a half, teaching the word of God.

KJV: And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.

NKJV: And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.

This is the longest Paul has stayed in one place, besides his home church of Syrian Antioch, in quite some time. He is in Corinth, building a new church with the help of many friends.

When he first reached Corinth, he met Priscilla and Aquila, two Jewish tentmakers who had been expelled from their home in Rome (Acts 18:2). Silas and Timothy then joined them from Macedonia (Acts 18:5). When the synagogue decisively rejected Paul's message that Jesus of Nazareth is the Jewish Messiah, a Gentile God-worshiper named Titius Justus and the ruler of the synagogue, Crispus, followed Paul (Acts 18:6–8). Now, they, as well as the family of Stephanus (1 Corinthians 16:15), serve as the base for the new church.

Despite Paul's extended stay, the church continues to have problems after he leaves. The temple prostitutes of Aphrodite mark a particular sexual looseness among the inhabitants that creeps into the church (1 Corinthians 5:1; 6:12–20). Members of the church split into divisions, claiming to follow individual teachers (1 Corinthians 1:10–13). They believe baseless accusations that Paul merely wants their money (1 Corinthians 9). Paul becomes so hurt at news about the church he even cancels a trip to see them because he doesn't think he can control his anger (2 Corinthians 1:23).

"Word" is from the Greek root word logos. We think of the "Word of God" as the Bible, but before the books spread throughout the church, it meant the message God wanted the church to have, mainly that Jesus' death and resurrection offers forgiveness of sins and reconciliation with God. In fact, Jesus is the logos of John 1:1. Considering the difficult time the church in Corinth has with fighting their sin, God's forgiveness is an important concept for them to learn.

Acts 18:5–11 describes Paul in Corinth, making tents with Priscilla and Aquila. He is waiting for Silas and Timothy to arrive from Macedonia (Acts 18:1–3). Once they come, Paul can spend more time teaching about Jesus. As usual, the synagogue eventually rejects him, and he moves to the home of a Gentile God-fearer to continue his work. Despite the harassment of the unbelieving Jews, Jesus gives Paul a message that he is to stay in Corinth, which he does for eighteen months. Even when the Jews bring him to court, the proconsul will reject their charges as irrelevant religious squabbles (Acts 18:12–17).

Acts 18 recounts the end of Paul's second missionary journey. He leaves Athens for Corinth, in southern Greece, and works with Priscilla and Aquila as a tentmaker until Silas and Timothy rejoin him. The team stays eighteen months with no significant pressure. Eventually, Paul, Priscilla, and Aquila sail east to Ephesus. Paul leaves a short time later for Judea and Syrian Antioch before returning to Galatia for his third missionary journey. Meanwhile, Priscilla and Aquilla host the church in Ephesus and train a talented speaker named Apollos to be a minister of Christ.

Acts 18 covers the last half of Paul's second missionary journey and the first part of the third. He and his team have traveled down the east coast of Macedonia and Greece to Corinth (Acts 17) where they will spend eighteen months. Paul will stop briefly in Ephesus on their way back to Judea before visiting Jerusalem and Syrian Antioch. From there, Paul will return to Galatia in modern-day Asia Minor before returning to Ephesus for an extended stay (Acts 19). He will revisit the churches in Macedonia and Greece before facing arrest in Jerusalem (Acts 21).

The summary of the book of Acts is provided in Jesus' words in Acts 1:8: ''But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'' In Acts 2:1–13, the Christ-followers receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:14—7:60 describes the rapid growth of the church in Jerusalem. Chapters 8—12 find Jewish persecution inadvertently spreading the gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. And in chapters 13—28, Paul and his companions spread the good news throughout the Roman Empire.