Actschapter 28
31 verses · Luke · about AD 62 · Acts
When we arrived in Rome, Paul was permitted to stay by himself, with a soldier to guard him.
Introduction
Luke, Acts, Acts Overview.
Luke wrote this last chapter as a companion who came with Paul to Rome, and his "we" runs until they reach the city. He writes for Theophilus and for readers who wanted to know how the gospel came to the capital of the world. The chapter moves from an island of strangers to the heart of the empire. Listen for how Paul is received by those outside Israel and by his own people. Listen also for the last word of the book. Read it as an ending that leaves the work of preaching open for the church that follows.
Context
- Who
- Theophilus and Gentile readers, reaching the end of the journey the book announced in its first chapter.
- What
- The winter on Malta, the voyage to Italy, the believers who met Paul on the road, his meetings with the Jewish leaders in Rome, and his two years of preaching under guard.
- Where
- The island of Malta, the ports of Syracuse, Rhegium and Puteoli, the road to Rome through the Forum of Appius and Three Taverns, and Paul's rented house in Rome.
- When
- The winter of AD 59 to 60 on Malta, the arrival in Rome in the spring of AD 60, and the two years that followed.
- Why
- To show that the gospel reached Rome as the Lord had promised, that Paul offered it first to the Jews there, and that the preaching of the kingdom went on unhindered.
Historical context
The islanders are called "barbarians" simply because they spoke neither Greek nor Latin; the native tongue of Malta was Punic, a descendant of Phoenician. Their assumption that a snakebite proved divine justice, then that surviving it proved divinity, is ordinary ancient reasoning about fate.
Show the rest of the historical context, 3 more paragraphs
The ship they leave on has the Twin Brothers as its figurehead, Castor and Pollux, the patron gods of sailors. Luke notices the carving the way a traveller does.
Puteoli was the great port for Rome before Ostia was enlarged, and there were already believers there. The two stopping places on the road north, the Forum of Appius and Three Taverns, were real waystations about forty-three and thirty-three miles from the city; Christians walked out that far to meet him.
Paul's confinement is the lighter Roman form: he rents his own lodging, keeps a soldier with him, and receives whoever comes. It cost money, which means someone was supporting him. Two full years of that is where Luke stops the story, before any verdict, which is one of the strongest reasons for dating Acts to this period.
Significance
The meeting with the Jewish leaders of Rome closes a pattern the whole book has followed: he goes to his own people first, some are convinced and some are not, and he turns to the Gentiles quoting Isaiah's hard words about ears that will not hear.
Show the rest of the significance, 1 more paragraph
The last sentence is the point of the whole book. A prisoner in the empire's capital is preaching the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance. The gospel has reached Rome, and nothing has stopped it.
The heads below are this chapter's scenes. The numbered points under each are its verses.
A Viper on Malta and Healings Across the Island
Acts 28:1-2
the island was called Malta: Once ashore, they learned that the island was called Malta, and James Smith's study of the currents and soundings confirms the landing there. The islanders showed extraordinary kindness, kindling a fire for 276 soaked strangers because it was raining and cold.
Acts 28:1
“They knew - Either from their former acquaintance with the island, or from the information of the inhabitants. Was called Melita - Now called “Malta.” It was celebrated formerly for producing large quantities of honey, and is supposed to have been called Melita from the Greek word signifying honey. It is about 20 miles in length from east to west, and 12 miles in width from north to south, and about 60 miles in circumference. It is about 60 miles from the coast of Sicily.”
1 more voice on this verseWhat preachers and commentators have said about this verse, in their own words.
Acts 28:1
“And though common nature doth wring out of the barbarous Gentiles some affection of mercy in so great necessity; yet undoubtedly it was God which caused the men of Melita to handle these men so courteously, that his promise might be sure and certain, which might seem imperfect if the shipwreck had caused the loss of any man's life.”
John Calvin · Commentaries (1554)reformed
kindled a fire: Adam Clarke notes that Malta was settled by Phoenicians, so the islanders spoke a tongue Greeks and Romans could hardly follow. John Chrysostom observes these strangers, who had seen no miracles, cared for Paul, while people in Judea who had seen many harassed him. The rain made the fire urgent.
Acts 28:2
“For lighting a fire, they revived us all. In Greek it is written: They received us all. Which we also think was first so translated into Latin, but changed through the negligence of scribes.”
Bede · written before 735 · Retractions on Actspatristic
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 28:2
“The barbarous people - We have already seen that this island was peopled by the Phoenicians, or Carthaginians, as Bochart has proved, Phaleg. chap. xxvi.; and their ancient language was no doubt in use among them at that time, though mingled with some Greek and Latin terms; and this language must have been unintelligible to the Romans and the Greeks. With these, as well as with other nations, it was customary to call those βαρβαροι, barbarians, whose language they did not understand.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 28:2
“In this these "barbarians" contrast favorably with many since bearing the Christian name. The lifelike style of the narrative here and in the following verses gives it a great charm.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Acts 28:3-6
gathered a bundle of sticks: When Paul gathered sticks, a viper fastened itself to his hand, and the islanders reasoned that this man is a murderer. When he suffered no ill effects, they swung round and said he was a god, a title Paul never claims.
Acts 28:3
“Had gathered a bundle of sticks - For the purpose of making a fire. There came a viper - A poisonous serpent. See the notes on Mat 3:7. The viper was doubtless in the bundle of sticks or limbs of trees which Paul had gathered, but was concealed, and was torpid. But when the bundle was laid on the fire, the viper became warmed by the heat, and came out and fastened on the hand of Paul. And fastened on his hand - καθῆψεν kathēpsen. This word properly means to join oneself to; to touch; to adhere to.”
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 28:3
“Beasts bear witness to the faith. Hast thou confidence in the Lord? "Thou shalt walk upon the asp and the basilisk and thou shalt trample under feet the lion and the dragon." With faith thou hast the power to walk upon serpents and scorpions. Do you not see that the viper which attached itself to the hand of Paul, whilst he gathered sticks, did not injure him, because it found the saint full of faith? If you have not faith, do not fear beasts so much as your faithlessness, which renders you susceptible of all corruption.”
Basil of Caesarea · written before 379 · Homilies on the Hexaemeron 9.6patristic
Acts 28:3
“As there is a snake under the green grass, so there is often under the dry leaves. See how many perils human life is exposed to, and what danger we are in from the inferior creatures, which have many of them become enemies to men, since men became rebels to God; and what a mercy it is that we are preserved from them as we are.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
John Calvin calls this the common judgment, that people who suffer heavily must have sinned heavily. John Wesley honors their belief in providence and names their error, reading every calamity as a judgment, as Jesus warned in Luke 13:1-5. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown suggest his chains strengthened the impression.
Acts 28:4
“The venomous beast - Το θηριον, The venomous animal; for θηρια is a general name among the Greek writers for serpents, vipers, scorpions, wasps, and such like creatures. Though the viper fastened on Paul’s hand, it does not appear that it really bit him; but the Maltese supposed that it had, because they saw it fasten on his hand. Vengeance suffereth not to live - These heathens had a general knowledge of retributive justice; and they thought that the stinging of the serpent was a proof that Paul was a murderer. There is a passage in Bamidbar Rabba, fol.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 28:4
“So soon as the barbarians saw. This judgment was common in all ages, that those who were grievously punished had grievously offended. Neither was this persuasion conceived of nothing; but it came rather from a true feeling of godliness.”
John Calvin · Commentaries (1554)reformed
Acts 28:4
“It is with pleasure that we trace among these barbarians the force of conscience, and the belief of a particular providence: which some people of more learning have stupidly thought it philosophy to despise. But they erred in imagining, that calamities must always be interpreted as judgments.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
shook the creature off into the fire: Matthew Henry sees in Paul's calm shaking off of the viper the believer throwing off the temptations of Satan. John Wesley records a historian's report that no venomous serpent bred on Malta in his own day. The islanders of Paul's time expected this one to kill.
Acts 28:5
“And he shook off ... - In this was remarkably fulfilled the promise of the Saviour Mar 16:18; “They shall take up serpents,” etc.”
said he was a god: John Wesley sets this beside Lystra in Acts 14, where the crowd offered sacrifice and then stoned Paul, and notes how fast human opinion swings. John Chrysostom observes that the islanders watched a long time, which ruled out any trick. Albert Barnes notes the verb can mean to be inflamed.
Acts 28:6
“They changed their minds, and said he was a God - Such is the stability of human reason! A little before he was a murderer; and presently he is a God: (just as the people of Lystra; one hour sacrificing, and the next stoning:) nay, but there is a medium.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 28:6
“When he should have swollen - Πιμπρασθαι, When he should have been inflamed: by means of an acrid poison introduced into the blood, it is soon coagulated; and, in consequence, the extremities of the vessels become obstructed, strong inflammation takes place, and all the parts become most painfully swollen. Lucan, ix. v.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 28:7-8
the chief official of the island: Luke calls Publius the chief official of the island, a title an inscription found on Malta confirms as its own Roman rank. Paul healed Publius's father of fever and dysentery, and the physician Luke names both with a clinician's exactness.
Acts 28:7
“Publius was a hospitable man, because he received them knowing nothing about them, but only out of compassion for their plight, and gave rest to two hundred and eighty people, seeing in this a benefit for himself.”
Theophylact of Ohrid · written before 1107 · Commentary on Actspatristic
fever and dysentery: Bede asks why Paul heals this father by prayer, when he advised medicine for Timothy and left Trophimus sick (1 Timothy 5:23; 2 Timothy 4:20). Albert Barnes sees here a fit return for hospitality. Theophylact of Ohrid adds that the cure of so stubborn a disease turned many to Christ.
Acts 28:8
“The father of Publius lay sick - Πυρετοις και δυσεντεριᾳ; Of a fever and dysentery; perhaps a cholera morbus. Paul - prayed - That God would exert his power; and laid his hands on him, as the means which God ordinarily used to convey the energy of the Holy Spirit, and healed him; God having conveyed the healing power by this means.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 28:8
“The miraculous cure of an old gentleman that was ill of a fever, and of others that were otherwise diseased, by Paul. And, with these confirmations of the doctrine of Christ, no doubt there was a faithful publication of it.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Acts 28:9-10
the rest of the sick: After this, the rest of the sick on the island came and were cured as well. One act of mercy to a host's father opened into a general work that echoes 5:15 and 19:12.
Acts 28:9
“Others - which had diseases - Luke was a physician; yet we do not find him engaging in these cures. As a medical man, he might have been of use to the father of Publius; but he is not even consulted on the occasion. Paul enters in to him, prays for him, lays his hands on him, and he is healed. The other diseased persons who are mentioned in this verse were doubtless healed in the same way.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 28:9
“Dysentery is a difficult disease to cure. He, who received healing from Paul, led many to faith. Therefore miracles are mostly performed among and for unbelievers.”
Ammonius of Alexandria · written before 300 · Catena on the Acts of the Apostles 28.9patristic
supplied our needs: John Gill reads the many honors as marks of respect and gratitude, gifts and presents among them. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown accept the tradition that the church on Malta began with this visit. The stay lasted three months, as verse 11 records.
Acts 28:10
“Honoured us with many honors - The word τιμη, as Bishop Pearce has remarked, is often used to signify a pecuniary recompense, or present. The Greek word seems to be thus used in 1Ti 5:17. Let the elders which rule well be accounted worthy of double Honor, τιμης, which St. Chrysostom, on the place, explains thus: την των αναγκαιων χορηγιαν· a supplying them with all necessary things. Diodorus Siculus, and Xenophon, used the word in the same way.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 28:10
“But though little dependence is to be placed upon the tradition that Publius became bishop of Malta and afterwards of Athens, we may well believe the accredited tradition that the beginnings of the Christian Church at Malta sprang out of this memorable visit.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
To Rome at Last: Brethren Meet Him on the Road
Acts 28:11-13
an Alexandrian ship that had wintered: After three months they sailed in an Alexandrian ship that had wintered in the island, with the Twin Brothers as a figurehead. These were Castor and Pollux, the twin gods sailors invoked for safe passage, and Luke records it without comment.
Acts 28:11
“And all the remaining [details] of his course with Paul he recounts, indicating with all diligence both places, and cities, and number of days, until they went up to Jerusalem; and what befell Paul there, how he was sent to Rome in bonds; the name of the centurion who took him in charge; and the signs of the ships, and how they made shipwreck; and the island upon which they escaped, and how they received kindness there, Paul healing the chief man of that island; and how they sailed from thence to Puteoli, and from that arrived at Rome; and…”
Irenaeus · written before 202 · Against Heresies Book IIIpatristic
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 28:11
“Even stormy winds fulfil God's counsel, and an ill wind indeed it is that blows nobody any good; this ill wind blew good to the island of Melita; for it gave them Paul's company for three months, who was a blessing to every place he came to.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Acts 28:11
“Such figureheads were anciently as common as now. was Castor and Pollux--the tutelar gods of mariners, to whom all their good fortune was ascribed. St. Anthony is substituted for them in the modern superstitions of Mediterranean (Romanist) sailors.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Putting in at Syracuse: Albert Barnes places Syracuse on Sicily's eastern coast, the island's capital and a stop on the direct course from Malta to Rome. Adam Clarke describes the route along that coast to the strait at Rhegium and on into the Tyrrhenian Sea. Syracuse was among the most famous cities of antiquity.
Acts 28:12
“Landing at Syracuse - In order to go to Rome from Malta, their readiest course was to keep pretty close to the eastern coast of Sicily, in order to pass through the straits of Rhegium and get into the Tyrrhenian Sea. Syracuse is one of the most famous cities of antiquity: it is the capital of the island of Sicily, and was built about 730 years before the Christian era. It lies 72 miles S. by E. of Messina, and about 112 of Palermo. Long. 15°. 30’. W., lat. 37°. 17’. N.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
a south wind came up: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, following James Smith, take the Greek here to mean the ship worked its way round, tacking against an unfavorable wind. Rhegium, the modern Reggio, faced Messina across the strait, as Albert Barnes notes. The south wind then carried them north to Puteoli.
Acts 28:13
“We fetched a compass - We coasted about; or we sailed along the eastern side of Sicily. And came to Rhegium - This was a city of Italy, in the kingdom of Naples, on the coast near the southwest extremity of Italy. It was nearly opposite to Messina, in Sicily. It is now called “Reggio.” The south wind - A wind favorable for their voyage. To Puteoli - The wells. This place was celebrated for its warm baths, and from these and its springs it is supposed to have derived its name of The Wells.”
Acts 28:14-15
we found some brothers: At Puteoli they found some brothers, a Christian community before any apostle Luke names had arrived. Believers from Rome came as far as the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns, stations forty and thirty miles down the Appian Way.
Acts 28:14
“Where we found brethren,.... Christians; which is not to be wondered at, since it was a port much frequented, and where many came and went, of different countries and nations; particularly there were many Jews here, to whom the Gospel was first preached, and to some of them it was the power of God unto salvation in many places, and doubtless was so here: Josephus (c) speaks of Jews in this place, who were deceived by a false Alexander, who pretended to be the son of Herod, a prince of their nation.”
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 28:14
“Where we found brethren - That is, Christians; for there had been many in Italy converted to the faith of Christ, some considerable time before this, as appears from St. Paul’s epistle to the Romans, written some years before this voyage. We went toward Rome - One of the most celebrated cities in the universe, the capital of Italy, and once of the whole world; situated on the river Tiber, 410 miles SSE. of Vienna; 600 SE. of Paris; 730 E. by N. of Madrid; 760 W. of Constantinople; and 780 SE. of London. Long. 12°. 55’. E., lat. 41°.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 28:14
“At Puteoli they found brethren, Christians. Who brought the knowledge of Christ hither we are not told, but here it was, so wonderfully did the leaven of the gospel diffuse itself. God has many that serve and worship him in places where we little think he has.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns: John Wesley suggests that visitors converted at Pentecost carried the gospel home to Rome, as Acts 2:10 allows. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown recall Paul's long purpose to see Rome from Acts 19:21. His letter had voiced that wish in Romans 1:9-11.
Acts 28:15
“And from thence - From Puteoli. When the brethren heard of us - The Christians who wore at Rome. As far as the Appii Forum - This was a city about 56 miles from Rome. The remains of an ancient city are still seen there. It is on the borders of the Pontine Marshes. The city was built on the celebrated Appian Way, or the road from Rome to Capua. The road was made by Appius Claudius, and probably the city was founded by him also.”
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 28:15
“The brethren -- that is, the Christians, came out thence to meet us - It is remarkable that there is no certain account by whom Christianity was planted at Rome. Probably some inhabitants of that city were at Jerusalem on the day of pentecost, chap. ii, 10; and being then converted themselves, carried the Gospel thither at their return.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Acts 28:15
“How sensitive he was to such Christian affection all his Epistles show (Ro 1:9, &c.). and took courage--his long-cherished purpose to "see Rome" (Ac 19:21), there to proclaim the unsearchable riches of Christ, and the divine pledge that in this he should be gratified (Ac 23:11), being now about to be auspiciously realized.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
permitted to stay by himself: When they arrived in Rome, Paul was permitted to stay by himself, with a soldier to guard him. This was the light custody of an appellant awaiting Caesar's own hearing, a lighter hold than the confinement of a condemned man.
Acts 28:16
“The captain of the guard - Στρατοπεδαρχῃ. This word properly means the commander of a camp; but it signifies the prefect, or commander of the pretorian cohorts, or emperor’s guards.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 28:16
“This privilege was allowed in the case of the better class of prisoners, not accused of any flagrant offense, on finding security--which in Paul's case would not be difficult among the Christians.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Preaching the Kingdom Unhindered in His Own Hired House
Acts 28:17-20
done nothing against our people: Three days later Paul called together the leaders of the Jews, the synagogue first even in chains. He said his appeal to Caesar carried no charge against his nation, and he is bound because of the hope of Israel.
Acts 28:17
“And after three days - Given to rest and prayer, Paul called the chief of the Jews together - He always sought the Jews first; but being now bound, he could not so conveniently go round to them.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 28:17
“Paul called the chief of the Jews - He probably had two objects in this: one was to vindicate himself from the suspicion of crime, or to convince them that the charges alleged against him were false; and the other, to explain to them the gospel of Christ. In accordance with his custom everywhere, he seized the earliest opportunity of making the gospel known to his own countrymen; and he naturally supposed that charges highly unfavorable to his character had been sent forward against him to the Jews at Rome by those in Judea.”
Acts 28:17
“We have seen that long before this a flourishing Christian Church existed at Rome, to which Paul wrote his Epistle (see on Ac 20:3), and the first members of which were probably Jewish converts and proselytes. (See Introduction to Romans.) yet was I delivered prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans--the Roman authorities, Felix and Festus.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
no basis for a death sentence: Albert Barnes traces the hearings Paul means through Acts 24 to 26, ending with the verdict of Agrippa and Festus in 26:31-32. John Chrysostom notes how gently Paul speaks, taking care to clear himself while laying no charge on the Jews of Rome. Roman judges had found him innocent.
Acts 28:18
“Who when they had examined me,.... About the things laid to his charge, had heard what his accusers had to object to him, and the defence he made for himself: would have let me go; released him from his bonds, and set him at liberty to go where he pleased: because there was no cause of death in me; no crime proved upon him, which was worthy of death; and this was the sense of Lysias the chief captain, and of Felix and Festus the Roman governors, and of King Agrippa.”
I was compelled to appeal to Caesar: Matthew Henry explains the appeal as self-defense, and he calls it an invidious thing to accuse a whole nation. John Chrysostom hears a forgiving tone in the whole speech and notes the warmth with which Paul speaks of his own people. The appeal itself is recorded in Acts 25:11.
Acts 28:19
“The Jews spake against it - Against my being set at liberty. I was constrained - By a regard to my own safety and character. To appeal unto Caesar - See the notes on Act 25:11. Not that I had aught ... - I did it for my own preservation and safety, not that I wished to accuse my countrymen. Paul had been unjustly accused and injured; yet, with the true spirit of the Christian religion, he here says that he cherished no unkind feelings toward those who had done him wrong.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 28:19
“This was all he aimed at in this appeal; not to accuse his nation, but only to vindicate himself. Every man has a right to plead in his own defence, who yet ought not to find fault with his neighbours. It is an invidious thing to accuse, especially to accuse a nation, such a nation.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
the hope of Israel: John Wesley defines the hope of Israel as the Messiah and the resurrection, and Albert Barnes points back to Acts 23:6. Theophylact of Ohrid adds that preaching Christ as that hope is what put Paul in chains. Barnes supposes the chain bound him to his guard.
Acts 28:20
"For the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain." That is, by the Scriptures one hope has been granted to the Jews—Christ, and it was by preaching Him that Paul found himself in this condition of a prisoner.
Theophylact of Ohrid · written before 1107 · Commentary on Actspatristic
3 more voices on this verse
Acts 28:20
“For the hope of Israel I am bound, etc. - As if he had said: This, and this alone, is the cause of my being delivered into the hands of the Romans; I have proclaimed Jesus as the Messiah; have maintained that though he was crucified by the Jews, yet he rose again from the dead; and, through him, I have preached the general resurrection of mankind: this all Israel professes to hope for; and yet it is on this account that the Jews persecute me.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 28:20
“The hope of Israel - What Israel hopes for, namely, the Messiah and the resurrection.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Acts 28:20
“The distinction made between himself, against whom they heard nothing, and his "sect," as "everywhere spoken against," is a presumption in favor of their sincerity; and there is ground to think that as the case took an unexpected turn by Paul's appealing to Cæsar, so no information on the subject would travel from Jerusalem to Rome in advance of the apostle himself.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Acts 28:21-22
The Jewish leaders in Rome have received no letters about Paul from Judea. Their interest is doctrinal, because people everywhere are speaking against this sect. The word is hairesis, the term the book uses of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Acts 28:21
“We neither received letters ... - Why the Jews in Judea had not forwarded the accusation against Paul to their brethren at Rome, that they might continue the prosecution before the emperor, is not known. It is probable that they regarded their cause as hopeless, and chose to abandon the prosecution. Paul had been acquitted successively by Lysias, Felix, Festus, and Agrippa; and as they had not succeeded in procuring his condemnation before them, they saw no prospect of doing it at Rome, and resolved, therefore, not to press the prosecution any further.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 28:21
“When Saul heard that David had fled to Gath, he sought no more again for him. Thus did Paul by his appeal: he fled to Rome, where he was out of their reach; and they said, "Even let him go." 2.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Jamieson, Fausset and Brown connect the leaders' caution with the disturbances Suetonius records, when Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome, as Acts 18:2 mentions. Adam Clarke cites Justin Martyr, who says Jerusalem sent chosen men to warn Jews everywhere against the Christians. The leaders had heard the rumors.
Acts 28:22
“For as concerning this sect - See the note on Act 24:14. A saying of Justin Martyr casts some light on this saying of the Jews: he asserts that the Jews not only cursed them in their synagogues, but they sent out chosen men from Jerusalem, to acquaint the world, and particularly the Jews everywhere, that the Christians were an atheistical and wicked sect, which should be detested and abhorred by all mankind. Justin Martyr, Dial. p. 234.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 28:22
“They put it into an ill name, and then ran it down. (1.) They looked upon it to be a sect, and this was false. True Christianity establishes that which is of common concern to all mankind, and is not built upon such narrow opinions and private interests as sects commonly owe their original to.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
testifying about the kingdom of God: From morning to evening Paul expounded, testifying about the kingdom of God and persuading them about Jesus from the Law of Moses and the Prophets. It is the book's last picture of the method it has shown since Pentecost.
Acts 28:23
“Appointed him a day - A day when they would hear him. Into his lodging - To the house where he resided, Act 28:30. He expounded - He explained or declared the principles of the Christian religion. And testified the kingdom of God - Bore witness to, or declared the principles and doctrines of the reign of the Messiah. See the notes on Mat 3:2. Persuading them concerning Jesus - Endeavoring to convince them that Jesus was the Messiah.”
3 more voices on this verse
Acts 28:23
“To whom he expounded, testifying the kingdom of God, and persuading them concerning Jesus - These were his two grand topics, 1. That the kingdom of the Messiah was of a spiritual, not temporal nature: 2. That Jesus of Nazareth was the very person foretold, as the Lord of that kingdom.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Acts 28:23
“WHEREVER Paul is, he has but one errand and whenever Paul preaches, he has but one subject. Once at Athens, when he addressed the Areopagus, he seemed to wander a little from his main point and no special good followed, but this experience bound him all the faster to the Cross, for he afterwards said to the Corinthians, "I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ and Him crucified." The Cross of Christ was his one theme. He henceforth hammered on the head of this one nail.”
Acts 28:23
“There were many got together to Paul. Though he was a prisoner and could not come out to them, yet they were willing to come to him to his lodging. And the confinement he was now under, if duly considered, instead of prejudicing them against his doctrine, ought to confirm it to them; for it was a sign not only that he believed it, but that he thought it worth suffering for.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Acts 28:24-25
Some of them were convinced: Some were convinced and others refused to believe, the division that runs through the book repeated on its last page. As they began to leave, Paul named the Holy Spirit as the ground of his citation of Isaiah the prophet.
Acts 28:24
“THIS is the only proper way to calculate the results of our ministry. We just want the account book ruled with two columns. On one side we must put down the long list of the some that believe not. And on the brighter side we may enter what is, too often, the far less number of the some that believe. This is the only true method, I repeat it, by which we can hold a stock-taking so as to ascertain the net profit of the preaching of the Gospel.”
They disagreed among themselves: Albert Barnes calls this the last warning on record that Paul gave to his countrymen. John Chrysostom notes that Paul credits the words to the Holy Spirit, so their unbelief was aimed at God's word, foreseen from the first. The quotation that follows is Isaiah 6:9-10.
Acts 28:25
“Had spoken one word - One solemn declaration, reminding them that it was the characteristic of the nation to reject the testimony of God, and that it was to be expected. It was the last warning which we know Paul to have delivered to his countrymen the Jews. Well spake - Or he spoke the truth; he justly described the character of the Jewish people. The passage here quoted was as applicable in the time of Paul as of Isaiah. The Holy Ghost - A full proof of the inspiration of Isaiah. By Esaias - By Isaiah, Isa 6:9-10.”
Acts 28:26-27
Paul quotes Isaiah 6:9-10, the passage Jesus applies to the crowds at Matthew 13:14. The words this people’s heart has grown callous name a dullness they brought on themselves, since they have closed their eyes.
Acts 28:26
“Hearing ye shall hear - That is, ye shall most surely hear, and shall not understand - The words manifestly denote a judicial blindness, consequent upon a wilful and obstinate resistance of the truth.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Cross references
Acts 28:26
- QuotingIsaiah 6:9“And He replied: “Go and tell this people, ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’”
'Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand', Paul's closing word in Rome
heart has grown callous: Paul quotes Isaiah 6:10 in the wording of the Greek Old Testament, where the people close their own eyes. Bede reads their earlier conduct as the cause of God's shutting their eyes, so that the blame rests on their choice. Jesus used the same passage in Matthew 13:15.
sent to the Gentiles: Paul declares that God’s salvation has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen, his third such turning after 13:46 and 18:6. Paul went to the synagogue first in every city up to this one, and Romans 9-11 argues for Israel's future.
Acts 28:28
"Be it known then," he says, "unto you, that unto the Gentiles is sent the salvation of God. They," says he, "will hear it too." Then why dost thou discourse to us? Didst thou not know this? Yes, but that ye might be persuaded, and that I might exculpate myself, and give none a handle against me.
John Chrysostom · written before 407 · Homily on Acts 55patristic
Acts 28:29
“And had great reasoning - Great discussion or debates. That is, the part which believed that Jesus was the Messiah Act 28:24 discussed the subject warmly with those who did not believe. This whole verse is missing in the Syriac version, and in some Greek mss., and is supposed by Mill and Griesbach to be spurious.”
Acts 28:30-31
two full years: Paul stayed two full years in his rented house, and Luke leaves the outcome of his appeal unrecorded. The last verse is the sixth and final summary of the word's growth, as he proclaimed the kingdom of God boldly and freely.
Acts 28:30
“Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house - As a state prisoner, he might have had an apartment in the common prison; but peculiar favor was showed him, and he was permitted to dwell alone, with the soldier that guarded him, Act 28:16. Finding now an opportunity of preaching the Gospel, he hired a house for the purpose, and paid for it, St. Chrysostom observes, by the fruits of his own labor.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 28:30
“And Paul continued two whole years - After which this book was written, long before St. Paul's death, and was undoubtedly published with his approbation by St. Luke, who continued with him to the last, 2 Tim. iv, 11.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Boldly and freely: Eusebius reports the account that Paul made his defense after these two years, preached again, and suffered martyrdom on a second visit to Rome. Bede adds that Nero's rule was still new then, before the crimes the histories report. John Wesley judges that the book ends well.
Acts 28:31
“Preaching the kingdom of God - See the notes on Act 20:25. With all confidence - Openly and boldly, without anyone to hinder him. It is known also that Paul was not unsuccessful even when a prisoner at Rome. Several persons were converted by his preaching, even in the court of the emperor.”
3 more voices on this verse
Acts 28:31
“And Luke, who wrote the Acts of the Apostles, brought his history to a close at this point, after stating that Paul spent two whole years at Rome as a prisoner at large and preached the word of God without restraint. Thus after he had made his defense it is said that the apostle was sent again upon the ministry of preaching and that upon coming to the same city a second time he suffered martyrdom. In this imprisonment [Paul] wrote his second epistle to Timothy, in which he mentions his first defense and his impending death.”
Eusebius of Caesarea · written before 339 · Ecclesiastical History 2.22.1-8patristic
Acts 28:31
“No man forbidding him - Such was the victory of the word of God. While Paul was preaching at Rome, the Gospel shone with its highest lustre. Here therefore the Acts of the Apostles end; and end with great advantage.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Acts 28:31
“Thus closes this most precious monument of the beginnings of the Christian Church in its march from east to west, among the Jews first, whose center was Jerusalem; next among the Gentiles, with Antioch for its headquarters; finally, its banner is seen waving over imperial Rome, foretokening its universal triumphs.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
How this psalm is built
The form: The close of the book, the winter on Malta at 28:1 to 10, the voyage and the road to Rome at 28:11 to 16, the two meetings with the Jewish leaders at 28:17 to 28, and the summary of two years' preaching at 28:30 to 31, as the text of Acts 28, counted classes it.
The patterns in this chapter
| Device | What it does | Where to see it |
|---|---|---|
| The kingdom of God at the first and last | The book opens with the risen Jesus speaking about the kingdom of God for forty days, and it closes with Paul in Rome preaching the kingdom of God. The same subject frames the whole of Acts. The message the Lord began is the message His witness still proclaims at the end.the text of Acts, compared, Acts 1:3 set beside Acts 28:23 and 28:31. | Acts 1:3, Acts 28:23, Acts 28:31 |
The structure
1 more paragraph on the patterns
Chapter 27 left the company ashore on an unknown island. This chapter finishes the voyage and the book. It moves from the island's kindness, to the last stages of the journey, to two meetings with the Jewish leaders of Rome, and to a closing summary of two years. The first meeting is Paul's defence of his conduct, and the second is his teaching from the Law and the Prophets. The book ends with the preaching still going on, and the last word of its Greek text means unhindered.
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Sources for this chapter
The summary
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament and Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary.
The form and classifications
the text of Acts 28, counted, Acts 28:1, 28:11, 28:17 and 28:30, where each part begins.
The exposition
Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes; Bede, Commentary on Acts; Eusebius of Caesarea, ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY 2.22.1-8; J. A. Alexander, The Acts of the Apostles Explained; James Smith, The Voyage and Shipwreck of St. Paul; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Calvin; John Chrysostom; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Theophylact of Ohrid, Commentary on Acts and William Ramsay, St. Paul the Traveller and the Roman Citizen.