Acts 18:13

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Acts 18:12-17

We have here an account of some disturbance given to Paul and his friends at Corinth, but no great harm done, nor much hindrance given to the work of Christ there. I. Paul is accused by the Jews before the Roman governor, Acts 18:12, 13. The governor was Gallio, deputy of Achaia, that is, proconsul; for Achaia was a consular province of the empire. This Gallio was elder brother to the famous Seneca; in his youth he was called Novatus, but took the name of Gallio upon his being adopted into the... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Acts 18:12-17

18:12-17 When Gallio was proconsul of Asia, the Jews got together to make an attack on Paul. They brought him to the judgment seat and said, "This man seduces men to worship God contrary to the Law." When Paul was going to speak, Gallio said to the Jews, "You Jews, if this were a matter of crime or of wicked misbehaviour I would of course listen with patience to you; but if this is a question of talk and words and a law observed by you, see to it yourselves. I have no wish to be judge of... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Acts 18:13

Saying, this fellow persuadeth men to worship God contrary to the law. Meaning either to the law of the Romans, which forbad the bringing in of any new gods, without the leave of the senate; See Gill on Acts 16:21 ; or rather to the law of Moses: the Arabic version reads, "our law"; though this was false, for Moses in his law wrote of Christ, and ordered the children of Israel to hearken to him. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Acts 18:13

Persuaded men to worship God contrary to the law - This accusation was very insidious. The Jews had permission by the Romans to worship their own God in their own way: this the laws allowed. The Roman worship was also established by the law. The Jews probably intended to accuse Paul of acting contrary to both laws. "He is not a Jew, for he does not admit of circumcision; he is not a Gentile, for he preaches against the worship of the gods. He is setting up a worship of his own, in opposition... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 18:1-17

Paul at Corinth. I. HIS WORK AT CORINTH . 1. Its humble and self-denying beginning . ( Acts 18:1-4 .). 2. Courageous progress. ( Acts 18:5-8 .) When Timothy and Silas came, Paul, instead of throwing the work upon their shoulders, only redoubles his activity. How useful and how happy "the tie that binds" men's hearts in Christian love and work ( Philippians 2:22 )! tie continues to witness to the Jews that Jesus is the Messiah. The previous work in the synagogue... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 18:4-17

The testimony. The kernel of the gospel is the truth that Jesus was the Christ. He was the Person spoken of by all the prophets as to come. Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Mary, born in the reign of Augustus Caesar, and crucified in that of Tiberius; known to his contemporaries in Judaea and Galilee as a Teacher and a Prophet, known to later ages by the Gospels which record his life and death and resurrection from the dead; is God's Christ. He came into the world, in accordance with the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 18:12-17

Fanaticism, pride, calmness, short-sightedness. I. JEWISH FANATICISM . ( Acts 18:12 , Acts 18:13 .) The Jews could not or would not understand that Paul was not against the Law, but only against their interpretation of it; that Christianity was not so much the abrogation as the fulfillment of the Law, its reinstitution in another and a better form, the one and only thing which could perpetuate and immortalize it. They regarded the apostle as a renegade, as an iconoclast, as a... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 18:12-17

Contrasts in the attitude of men towards the gospel. I. LEGALISM . The whole idea of the opponents of Paul was his inconsistency with the Law. 1. It was not reverence for God's Law, but for men's traditions. 2. It was a form of self-worship. "He followeth not with us." 3. It was moral pedantry, a common sin; questions about words, names, and law, hiding realities. II. SECULARITY . Gallio an amiable and wise man, but doubtless influenced by the prevailing Roman spirit,... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 18:12-17

A novel instance of retribution. The common sense of the unlearned has much more mercy than the refinement of the theologian, and the straightforwardness of a heathen will show to more advantage than the crookedness and narrowness of a man better known for professing than for practicing religion. We have here a noteworthy instance of some who, would-be punishers of another, succeed in letting themselves only in for punishment. And this just consummation in this case was due exclusively to... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 18:12-17

Gallio's indifference. It is a singular thing that altogether unworthy ideas should have been associated in Christian minds with this man Gallio. He is known to have been the brother of Seneca, and a man of singular amiability of character. "Seneca dedicated to him two treatises on Anger and the Blessed Life; and the kindliness of his nature made him a general favorite. He was everybody's 'Dulcis Gallio,' was praised by his brother for his disinterestedness and calmness of temper, as one... read more

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