Acts 20:37 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And there was much weeping on the part of all; they embraced Paul and kissed him,

NIV: They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him.

NASB: And they all began to weep aloud and embraced Paul, and repeatedly kissed him,

CSB: There were many tears shed by everyone. They embraced Paul and kissed him,

NLT: They all cried as they embraced and kissed him good-bye.

KJV: And they all wept sore, and fell on Paul's neck, and kissed him,

NKJV: Then they all wept freely, and fell on Paul’s neck and kissed him,

Paul and the elders of the church of Ephesus are saying their final farewells. Paul spent three years in Ephesus, teaching, admonishing, building up, reasoning, healing, and rescuing people from demonic possession. Of all the cities he visited, he possibly made the largest impact in Ephesus. He walked into a city filled with demons, witchcraft, and idol worship. By the time he left, the craftsmen who made shrines feared for their livelihoods (Acts 19; 20:31).

Modern readers tend to see Paul as a stern theologian—possibly because in 1 Corinthians he spends most of the time attempting to straighten out the Corinthians' theology and railing against sin in all its forms. We miss his follow-up letter where he admits he was pained to send that letter and rejoices in the Corinthians' repentance (2 Corinthians 7:5–9). He tells the Thessalonians how dear they are to him (1 Thessalonians 2:8) and tells the Philippians that they are in his heart (Philippians 1:7). Even in 1 Corinthians Paul gives thanks for the church (1 Corinthians 1:4–9), refers to his readers as "brothers" (e.g., 1 Corinthians 10:1; 11:33; 12:1; 14:6, 20) and "my beloved" (1 Corinthians 10:11). He ends his letter with, "My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen" (1 Corinthians 16:24). Sometimes love requires that we call out sin and speak painful truths. Paul's letters demonstrate his dedication to the truth of God as well as his passion for others to know and follow God.

Paul's letter to the Ephesians can seem like more dry theology, at first. In reality, he is fighting for the family of the church, that they may love each other and identify and reject false, demonic thinking. He gives the same instructions to the elders, here, reminding them to sacrifice for their congregation and protect it from false teachers.

Paul has told them he will not see them again; when he reaches Jerusalem, he will be imprisoned. The elders respond with heartfelt sorrow. Later, when they read Paul's letter, they won't hear a stiff professor or a dour preacher. They'll hear their friend whom they love and miss.

Acts 20:36–38 records the end of Paul's missionary journeys as recorded in the book of Acts. He is already on his way to Judea but stopped at Miletus to speak with the elders of the church in Ephesus. He has told them he will soon be imprisoned and that they will not see him again (Acts 20:22–25). Shortly after he reaches Jerusalem, Paul will be wrongly arrested and held in custody for two years before taking a dangerous sea voyage and spending another two years under house arrest in Rome, with likely another year traveling in between.

Acts 20 finishes Paul's third missionary journey. He leaves Ephesus after three years and travels to Macedonia and Corinth. Threats from the Corinthian Jews send him and his team back to Macedonia and Troas. In Troas, Paul gives a very long sermon and raises Eutychus from the dead after he falls—both asleep and out a window. In Miletus, Paul meets with the Ephesian elders. He reminds them to beware of false teachers and tells them he is going to be imprisoned and will not see them again. After a tearful farewell, he boards a ship for Judea.

Acts 20 records the last stages of Paul's third missionary journey. He started by visiting the churches he and Barnabas had planted in central modern-day Turkey (Acts 18:23). From there, he traveled southwest to the province of Asia, where he established a church in Ephesus (Acts 19). In Acts 20, he visits the churches in Macedonia and Greece before returning to Judea. When he lands, he meets briefly with Philip the Evangelist in Caesarea Maritima before going to Jerusalem and getting arrested. He will stay in house arrest for the next two years before embarking on a dangerous sea voyage to Rome (Acts 21—28).

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.