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Acts 20:15

in Acts 20

Sailing on from there, we arrived the next day opposite Chios. The day after that we arrived at Samos, and on the following day we came to Miletus.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV

ASV

And sailing from thence, we came the following day over against Chios; and the next day we touched at Samos; and the day after we came to Miletus.

KJV

And we sailed thence, and came the next day over against Chios; and the next day we arrived at Samos, and tarried at Trogyllium; and the next day we came to Miletus.

This verse in Acts 20

Commentary

7 notes on this verse
And we sailed thence,.... From Mitylene: and came the next day over against Chios; which, according to R. Benjamin Tudelensis (b), was three days' sail from Mitylene; according to Pliny (c) it was sixty five miles from it, and is an island in the Icarian or Aegean sea, and lies between Lesbos and Samos, next mentioned; and has its name from the nymph Chione, so called from the exceeding whiteness of her skin, as snow: it was famous for marble; from hence came the best mastic, and good figs, and the wine called malmsey wine (d).

This site's exposition

over against Chios

on Acts 20:15-16

Island by island, over against Chios, then Samos, Trogyllium, and Miletus, the ship made its way down the coast, and Paul had determined to sail by Ephesus rather than land there, unwilling to spend the time in Asia that a stop in his own beloved church would surely cost. He hasted, if it were possible, to be at Jerusalem for the day of Pentecost, the feast that had opened this book’s story and now draws its central figure back toward the city where his own sufferings wait. The choice cost him a face to face farewell with the Ephesian elders, so he sends for them instead, which opens the next scene.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers2 voices

A commentator

John Chrysostom

Homily on Acts 43 · Written in the 5th century.

proposed

We often find Paul parting from the disciples. For behold again, he himself goes afoot: giving them the easier way, and himself choosing the more painful. He went afoot, both that he might arrange many matters, and by way of training them to bear a parting from him. "And when he had joined us at Thasos, having taken him on board, we came to Mytilene; and having sailed thence on the morrow, we come over against Chios"-then they pass the island-"and on the next day we touched at Samos, and having stopped at Trogylium, on the following day we came to Miletus."

A commentator

John Chrysostom

Homily on Acts 43 · Written in the 5th century.

proposed

Wherefore does the writer say where they came, and where they went to? To show in the first place that he was making the voyage more leisurely-and this upon human grounds-and sailing past (some): also (for the same reason he tells) where he made a stay, and what parts he sailed past...

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

), touched at Samos (these are places of note among the Greek writers, both poets and historians); they tarried awhile at Trogyllium, the sea-port next to Samos; and the next day they came to Miletus, the sea-port that lay next to Ephesus; for (

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

Over against Chios - Opposite to. Into the neighborhood of; or near to it. Chios, called also Coos, is an island in the Archipelago, between Lesbos and Samos. It is on the coast of Asia Minor, and is now called Scio. It will long be remembered as the seat of a dreadful massacre of almost all its inhabitants by the Turks in 1823. At Samos - This was also an island of the Archipelago, lying off the coast of Lydia, from which it is separated by a narrow strait. These islands were celebrated among the ancients for their extraordinary wines.

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

Over against Chios - This was a very celebrated island between Lesbos and Samos, famous in antiquity for its extraordinary wines. At this island the apostle did not touch. Arrived at Samos - This was another island of the Aegean Sea, or Archipelago. It does not appear that they landed at Samos: they passed close by it, and anchored at Trogyllium. This was a promontory of Ionia, which gave name to some small islands in the vicinity of Samos: Της δε Τρωγιλιου προκειται νησιον ὁμωνυμον: before Trogyllium is situated an island of the same name. Strabo, lib. xiv. p. 635. Pliny also mentions this place, Hist. Nat. lib. v. cap. 31. Near this place was the mouth of the famous river Maeander. Came to Miletus - A celebrated city in the province of Caria, about twelve or fifteen leagues from Ephesus, according to Calmet. Miletus is famous for being the birthplace of Thales, one of the seven wise men of Greece, and founder of the Ionic sect of philosophers. Anaximander was also born here, and several other eminent men. The Turks, who lately possessed it, call it Melas.

The words behind it

19 Greek words

Every Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    Acts 20:17

    From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church.

    it leads to

    • Titus 1:5

      The reason I left you in Crete was that you would set in order what was unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you.

    • 1 Timothy 5:17

      Elders who lead effectively are worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching.

    • Acts 11:30

      This they did, sending their gifts to the elders with Barnabas and Saul.

    • James 5:14

      Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord.

  • Through

    2 Timothy 4:20

    Erastus has remained at Corinth, and Trophimus I left sick in Miletus.

    it leads to

    • Acts 20:4

      Paul was accompanied by Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, Gaius from Derbe, Timothy, and Tychicus and Trophimus from the province of Asia.

    • Acts 19:22

      He sent two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, to Macedonia, while he stayed for a time in the province of Asia.

    • Philippians 2:26–27

      For he has been longing for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill.

    • Acts 21:29

      For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, and they assumed that Paul had brought him into the temple.

Where this verse is studied

About Acts

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); John Calvin, Commentary upon the Acts of the Apostles; John Chrysostom, Homily on Acts 43; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.