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Paul at Corinth

¹ After this Paul left ^(C1)Athens and went to ^(C2)Corinth.² There he met a Jew named ^(C1)Aquila, a native of ^(C2)Pontus, who had recently come from ^(C3)Italy with his wife, ^(C1)Priscilla, because the Roman Emperor ^(C4)Claudius had issued an edict that all the ^(F1)Jews were to leave Rome. Paul went to see them,³ and because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them; and ^(C1)they worked together for they were tent-makers.⁴ And he reasoned and debated ^(C1)in the synagogue every ^(C2)Sabbath, trying to persuade ^(C3)Jews and Greeks;

⁵ but when ^(C1)Silas and Timothy ^(C2)came down from ^(C3)Macedonia (northern Greece), Paul began devoting himself completely to preaching the word, and solemnly ^(C4)testifying to the Jews that ^(C5)Jesus is the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed).⁶ But since the Jews kept resisting and opposing him, and blaspheming God, he ^(F1)(C1)shook out his robe and said to them, "Your ^(C2)blood (damnation) be on your own heads! I am innocent of it. From now on I will go ^(C3)to the Gentiles." ^(VR1)7 Then he moved on from there and went to the house of a man named ^(F1)Titius Justus, ^(C1)who worshiped God and whose house was next door to the synagogue.^8 (C1)Crispus, ^(C2)the leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord together ^(C3)with his entire household joyfully acknowledging Him as Messiah and Savior; and many of the ^(C4)Corinthians who heard Paul's message were believing and being baptized.⁹ One night the Lord said to Paul in ^(C1)a vision, "Do not be afraid anymore, but go on speaking and do not be silent;¹⁰ for I am with you, and no one will attack you in order to hurt you, because I have many people in this city." ^(VR1)11 So he settled there for a year and six months, teaching them the word of God concerning eternal salvation through faith in Christ.

¹² But when ^(F1)Gallio was ^(C1)proconsul of ^(C2)Achaia (southern Greece), ^(C3)the Jews made a united attack on Paul and brought him before ^(F2)(C4)the judgment seat,¹³ declaring, "This man is persuading people to worship God in violation of ^(C1)the law of Moses."¹⁴ But when Paul was about ^(C1)to reply, Gallio said to the Jews, "If it were a matter of some misdemeanor or serious crime, O Jews, I would have reason to put up with you;¹⁵ but since it is merely a ^(C1)question of doctrine within your religion about words and names and your own law, see to it yourselves; I am ^(F1)unwilling to judge these matters."¹⁶ And he drove them away from ^(C1)the judgment seat.¹⁷ Then the Greeks all seized ^(F1)(C1)Sosthenes, ^(C2)the leader of the synagogue, and began beating him right in front of ^(C3)the judgment seat; but Gallio paid no attention to any of this. ^(VR1)

¹⁸ Paul stayed for a while longer, and then ^(C1)told ^(C2)the ^(F1)brothers and sisters goodbye and sailed for ^(C3)Syria; and he was accompanied by ^(C4)Priscilla and ^(C4)Aquila. At ^(C5)Cenchrea the southeastern port of Corinth he ^(C6)had his hair cut, because he was keeping a Nazirite vow of abstention.¹⁹ Then they arrived in ^(C1)Ephesus, and he left the others there; but he entered ^(C2)the synagogue and reasoned and debated with the Jews.²⁰ When they asked him to stay for a longer time, he refused;²¹ but ^(C1)after telling them goodbye and saying, "I will return again ^(C2)if God is willing," he set sail from ^(C3)Ephesus.

²² When he had landed at ^(C1)Caesarea, he went up and ^(F1)greeted the church at Jerusalem, and then went down to ^(C2)Antioch.

Paul's Third Missionary Journey

²⁴ Now a Jew named ^(C1)Apollos, a native of ^(C2)Alexandria, came to ^(C3)Ephesus. He was an eloquent and cultured man, and well versed in the Hebrew Scriptures.²⁵ This man had been instructed in ^(C1)the way of the Lord, and being spiritually impassioned, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things about Jesus, though he knew only ^(C2)the baptism of John;²⁶ and he began to speak boldly and fearlessly in the synagogue. But when ^(C1)Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained more accurately to him ^(C2)the way of God and the full story of the life of Christ.²⁷ And when Apollos wanted to go across to ^(C1)Achaia (southern Greece), ^(C2)the brothers encouraged him and wrote to ^(C3)the disciples, urging them to welcome him gladly. When he arrived, he was a great help to those who, through grace, had believed and had followed Jesus as Lord and Savior,²⁸ for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public discussions, proving ^(C1)by the Scriptures that ^(C2)Jesus is the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed).