In the same quarters - In that place, or that part of the island,Possessions - Property. His place of residence.The chief man - Greek: the first man. Probably he was the governor of the island, read more
Acts 28:7-10. In the same quarters In the neighbourhood of the place where the ship was stranded, and the shipwrecked company had met with such kind treatment; were possessions of the chief man of the island The chief in wealth, if not in power also; who received and lodged us three days The first three days of their stay in the island, till they could all be disposed of properly through the island. For such goodness Paul was soon able to make some return. For the father of Publius lay... read more
From Caesarea to Rome (27:1-28:15)Festus arranged for a centurion and a unit of Roman soldiers to take Paul, along with a number of other prisoners, to Rome. Two Christians also went with Paul, his loyal friend Luke and a church leader from Thessalonica named Aristarchus (27:1-2; cf. 19:29; 20:4). They began the journey on a ship that took them as far as Myra in Asia Minor. There they changed to one of the huge grain ships that sailed between Alexandria and Italy. After several days they came... read more
In, &c . = Now in (Greek. en) the parts about (Greek. peri . App-104 .) that place. were . Greek. huparcho . See Luke 9:48 . possessions = lands. Greek. chorion. See Matthew 26:36 . chief man = first. Greek. protos. This title has been found on an inscription. whose name was = by name. received . Greek. anadechomai. Only here and Hebrews 11:17 . lodged . Greek. xenizo. See Acts 10:6 ; Acts 21:16 . courteously . Greek. philophronos. Only here. Compare Acts 27:3 , and 1 Peter... read more
Now in the neighborhood of that place were lands belonging to the chief man of the island, named Publius; who received us, and entertained us three days courteously. And it was so that the father of Publius lay sick of fever and dysentery: unto whom Paul entered in, and prayed, and laying his hands on him healed him. And when this was done, the rest also that had diseases in the island came, and were cured.Publius ... chief man ... "This exact word has been found in two inscriptions as a title... read more
Acts 28:7. Of the chief man of the island,— Grotius has produced an ancient inscription, by which it appears that the title of πρωτος, or chief, was given to the governor of this island; and so it is used here by St. Luke with his accustomed accuracy of expression. read more
7, 8. possessions of the chief man—"the first man." of the island—He would hardly be so styled in the lifetime of his father, if his distinction was that of the family. But it is now ascertained that this was the proper official title of the Maltese representative of the Roman prætor to Sicily, to whose province Malta belonged; two inscriptions having been discovered in the island, one in Greek, the other in Latin, containing the same words which Luke here employs. who received us—of Paul's... read more
4. Ministry on the way to Rome 27:1-28:15For a number of reasons Luke seems to have described this stage of the gospel expansion in detail. He evidently wanted to demonstrate God’s protection of Paul, to illustrate the increasingly Gentile nature of gospel expansion, and to document the sovereign Lord’s building of His church."Ever since the purpose of going to Rome had been planted in Paul’s mind by the Holy Spirit, his plans had been formulated with that goal in view (Acts 19:21). No warnings... read more
God not only healed Paul miraculously, He also enabled him to heal the father of the island’s leading citizen (cf. Acts 3:1-10; Luke 4:38-44). "The leading man of the island" was a title indicating that Publius was the Roman governor of Malta. [Note: Longenecker, "The Acts . . .," pp. 563, 564.] During World War II British General Darby was the governor of Malta. He was an outspoken Christian whom I had the privilege of meeting in England in 1949.This is the only instance in Acts of the... read more
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The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 28:7-10
A type of the beneficent action of Christianity. Christian truth embodied in Christian men had not long been in an island to which it was quite strange before it found its footing, made its mark, and left behind it memories equally lasting and fragrant. Amid the wide group of suggestions offered by these verses, we may especially note the following as particularly worthy of a place in connection with this history:— I. THE WATCHFULNESS OF THE MASTER OVER HIS SERVANTS TO... read more