Verse 17
And they all laid hold on Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment seat. And Gallio cared for none of these things.
Sosthenes ... was likely the successor of Crispus who had accepted the truth; and as the new leader of the synagogue he had determined to take legal action against the Christians. The people who beat him were the Greek population of Corinth who seized upon any pretext to vent their hatred of Jews. Gallio's denial of them even a hearing of their charges, and his turning away indifferently when the populace assaulted Sosthenes, terminated the Jewish efforts to use legal means against the Christians in Corinth.
On the basis of 1 Corinthians 1:1, it is alleged that the Sosthenes who was beaten here later became a Christian; but such speculation is uncertain.
Lange observed that Gallio was right in refusing to hear charges against Paul, but that he was wrong when he turned his back on deeds of violence such as the beating of Sosthenes, indicating that "The indifference of men to religion may lead them to be equally negligent in the administration of justice."[23]
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