Acts 18:25 - Printer Friendly

ESV: He had been instructed in the way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John.

NIV: He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John.

NASB: This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was accurately speaking and teaching things about Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John;

CSB: He had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately about Jesus, although he knew only John’s baptism.

NLT: He had been taught the way of the Lord, and he taught others about Jesus with an enthusiastic spirit and with accuracy. However, he knew only about John’s baptism.

KJV: This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.

NKJV: This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, though he knew only the baptism of John.

Apollos is a Jew from the city of Alexandria on the Egyptian coast. He is eloquent, competent in the Scriptures, fervent, and a good, accurate teacher (Acts 18:24). He has come to Ephesus with a full understanding of John the Baptist's call to repent (Mark 1:2–8), but only nominal information about Jesus.

It's not clear what Apollos doesn't know. By this time, he must know about the crucifixion and resurrection, but not about being baptized in Jesus' name. That would indicate he's somewhere between the repentance that John preached (Mark 1:4) and the comprehensive forgiveness of sin and reconciliation to God that Jesus provides. He must know Jesus is the Messiah because that's what John preached (John 1:19–34), but he probably doesn't realize how big a break Jesus-followers made from Judaism. He doesn't have the Holy Spirit and seems to share beliefs with others in Ephesus (Acts 19:1–6).

When the synagogue leadership in Ephesus invite him to speak, Priscilla and Aquila are there. The couple are refugees from Rome who learned about Jesus from Paul in Corinth (Acts 18:1–3). When Paul left Corinth, he brought the two and left them to continue the work he'd barely started (Acts 18:18–19). Priscilla and Aquila pull Apollos aside and explain to him what John meant when he said, "I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire" (Luke 3:16). Apollos believes and goes on to build up the church Paul planted in Corinth (Acts 18:27–28).

Acts 18:24–28 records a short interlude featuring Priscilla, Aquila, and Apollos. Priscilla and Aquila became fast friends with Paul in Corinth (Acts 18:1–3). When Paul left Corinth, he brought the couple along and stationed them in Ephesus. Apollos is a Jewish teacher from Alexandria who preaches the baptism of repentance that John the Baptist taught (Mark 1:2–8). Apollos knows some about Jesus, but after Priscilla and Aquila explain how He is the Messiah who offers salvation, Apollos becomes a powerful evangelist and continues Paul's work in Corinth.

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.