KJV: And from thence to Philippi, which is the chief city of that part of Macedonia, and a colony: and we were in that city abiding certain days.
YLT: thence also to Philippi, which is a principal city of the part of Macedonia -- a colony. And we were in this city abiding certain days,
Darby: and thence to Philippi, which is the first city of that part of Macedonia, a colony. And we were staying in that city certain days.
ASV: and from thence to Philippi, which is a city of Macedonia, the first of the district, a Roman colony: and we were in this city tarrying certain days.
| κἀκεῖθεν | and from there |
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Parse: Conjunction Root: κἀκεῖθεν Sense: of place. |
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| Φιλίππους | Philippi |
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Parse: Noun, Accusative Masculine Plural Root: Φίλιπποι Sense: a city of Macedonia located on or near the northern coast of the Aegean Sea, between the rivers Strymon and Nestus, and the cities Neapolis and Amphipolis. |
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| πρώτη | [the] leading |
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Parse: Adjective, Genitive Feminine Singular Root: πρῶτος Sense: first in time or place. |
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| τῆς | of the |
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Parse: Article, Genitive Feminine Singular Root: ὁ Sense: this, that, these, etc. |
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| μερίδος | district |
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Parse: Noun, Genitive Feminine Singular Root: μερίς Sense: a part as distinct from the whole. |
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| Μακεδονίας | of Macedonia |
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Parse: Noun, Genitive Feminine Singular Root: Μακεδονία Sense: a country bounded on the south by Thessaly and Epirus, on the east by Thrace and the Aegean Sea, on the west by Illyria, and on the North by Dardania and Moesia. |
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| πόλις | city |
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Parse: Noun, Nominative Feminine Singular Root: πόλις Sense: a city. |
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| κολωνία | a colony |
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Parse: Noun, Nominative Feminine Singular Root: κολωνία Sense: a colony. |
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| Ἦμεν | We were |
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Parse: Verb, Imperfect Indicative Active, 1st Person Plural Root: εἰμί Sense: to be, to exist, to happen, to be present. |
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| δὲ | now |
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Parse: Conjunction Root: δέ Sense: but, moreover, and, etc. |
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| ταύτῃ | this |
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Parse: Demonstrative Pronoun, Dative Feminine Singular Root: οὗτος Sense: this. |
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| τῇ | - |
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Parse: Article, Dative Feminine Singular Root: ὁ Sense: this, that, these, etc. |
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| πόλει | city |
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Parse: Noun, Dative Feminine Singular Root: πόλις Sense: a city. |
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| διατρίβοντες | staying |
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Parse: Verb, Present Participle Active, Nominative Masculine Plural Root: διατρίβω Sense: to rub between, rub hard. |
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| ἡμέρας | days |
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Parse: Noun, Accusative Feminine Plural Root: ἡμέρα Sense: the day, used of the natural day, or the interval between sunrise and sunset, as distinguished from and contrasted with the night. |
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| τινάς | some |
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Parse: Interrogative / Indefinite Pronoun, Accusative Feminine Plural Root: τὶς Sense: a certain, a certain one. |
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Greek Commentary for Acts 16:12
The plural like Ατηναι Athēnai (Athens) is probably due to separate sections of the city united (Winer-Moulton, Grammar, p. 220). The city (ancient name Krenides or Wells) was renamed after himself by Philip, the father of Alexander the Great. It was situated about a mile east of the small stream Gangites which flows into the river Strymon some thirty miles away. In this valley the Battle of Philippi was fought b.c. 42 between the Second Triumvirate (Octavius, Antonius, Lepidus) and Brutus and Cassius. In memory of the victory Octavius made it a colony (κολωνια kolōnia) with all the privileges of Roman citizenship, such as freedom from scourging, freedom from arrest save in extreme cases, and the right of appeal to the emperor. This Latin word occurs here alone in the N.T. Octavius planted here a colony of Roman veterans with farms attached, a military outpost and a miniature of Rome itself. The language was Latin. Here Paul is face to face with the Roman power and empire in a new sense. He was a new Alexander, come from Asia to conquer Europe for Christ, a new Caesar to build the Kingdom of Christ on the work of Alexander and Caesar. One need not think that Paul was conscious of all that was involved in destiny for the world. Philippi was on the Egnatian Way, one of the great Roman roads, that ran from here to Dyrrachium on the shores of the Adriatic, a road that linked the east with the west. [source]
Philippi was not the first city of Macedonia nor does Luke say so. That honour belonged to Thessalonica and even Amphipolis was larger than Philippi. It is not clear whether by μερις meris Luke means a formal division of the province, though the Koiné has examples of this geographical sense (papyri). There is no article with πρωτη prōtē and Luke may not mean to stress unduly the position of Philippi in comparison with Amphipolis. But it was certainly a leading city of this district of Macedonia. We were tarrying (ημεν διατριβοντες ēmen diatribontes). Periphrastic imperfect active. [source]
Periphrastic imperfect active. [source]
Some explain, the first city to which they came in Macedonia. [source]
Roman towns were of two classes: municipia, or free towns, and colonies. The distinction, however, was not sharply maintained, so that, in some cases, we find the same town bearing both names. The two names involved no difference of right or of privilege. The historical difference between a colony and a free town is, that the free towns were taken into the state from without, while the colonies were offshoots from within. “The municipal cities insensibly equalled the rank and splendor of the colonies; and in the reign of Hadrian it was disputed which was the preferable condition, of those societies which had issued from, or those which had been received into, the bosom of Rome” (Gibbon, “Decline and Fall”). The colony was used for three different purposes in the course of Roman history: as a fortified outpost in a conquered country; as a means of providing for the poor of Rome; and as a settlement for veterans who had served their time. It is with the third class, established by Augustus, that we have to do here. The Romans divided mankind into citizens and strangers. An inhabitant of Italy was a citizen; an inhabitant of any other part of the empire was a peregrinusor stranger. The colonial policy abolished this distinction so far as privileges were concerned. The idea of a colony was, that it was another Rome transferred to the soil of another country. In his establishment of colonies, Augustus, in some instances, expelled the existing inhabitants and founded entirely new towns with his colonists; in others, he merely added his settlers to the existing population of the town then receiving the rank and title of a colony. In some instances a place received these without receiving any new citizens at all. Both classes of citizens were in possession of the same privileges, the principal of which were, exemption from scourging, freedom from arrest, except in extreme cases, and, in all cases, the right of appeal from the magistrate to the emperor. The names of the colonists were still enrolled in one of the Roman tribes. The traveller heard the Latin language and was amenable to the Roman law. The coinage of the city had Latin inscriptions. The affairs of the colony were regulated by their own magistrates, named Duumviri, who took pride in calling themselves by the Roman title of praetors (see on Acts 16:20). -DIVIDER- -DIVIDER- [source]
Reverse Greek Commentary Search for Acts 16:12
This adjective “daily” It clearly comes from επι epi and ιων iōn But the adjective επιουσιος epiousios is rare and Origen said it was made by the Evangelists Matthew and Luke to reproduce the idea of an Aramaic original. Moulton and Milligan, Vocabulary say: “The papyri have as yet shed no clear light upon this difficult word (Matthew 6:11; Luke 11:3), which was in all probability a new coinage by the author of the Greek Q to render his Aramaic Original” (this in 1919). Deissmann claims that only about fifty purely New Testament or “Christian” words can be admitted out of the more than 5,000 used. “But when a word is not recognizable at sight as a Jewish or Christian new formation, we must consider it as an ordinary Greek word until the contrary is proved. Επιουσιος Epiousios has all the appearance of a word that originated in trade and traffic of the everyday life of the people (cf. my hints in Neutestamentliche Studien Georg Heinrici dargebracht, Leipzig, 1914, pp. 118f.). The opinion here expressed has been confirmed by A. Debrunner‘s discovery (Theol. Lit. Ztg. 1925, Colossians. 119) of επιουσιος epiousios in an ancient housekeeping book” (Light from the Ancient East, New ed. 1927, p. 78 and note 1). So then it is not a word coined by the Evangelist or by Q to express an Aramaic original. The word occurs also in three late MSS. after 2 Maccabees 1:8, τους επιουσιους tous epiousious after τους αρτους tous artous The meaning, in view of the kindred participle (επιουσηι epiousēi) in Acts 16:12, seems to be “for the coming day,” a daily prayer for the needs of the next day as every housekeeper understands like the housekeeping book discovered by Debrunner. [source]
Another illustration of Luke's accuracy. Note that the magistrates are called by a different name from those at Philippi. Thessalonica was not a colony, but a free city (see on colony, Acts 16:12), and was governed by its own rulers, whose titles accordingly did not follow those of Roman magistrates. The word occurs only here and Acts 17:8, and has been found in an inscription on an arch at Thessalonica, where the names of the seven politarchs are mentioned. The arch is thought by antiquarians to have been standing in Paul's time. [source]
In Macedonia. Travellers by sea landed at Neapolis, and then travelled ten miles to Philippi along the Via Egnatia, which traversed Macedonia from east to west. The site was originally occupied by a town called Datus or Datum, and was known as Krenides from its numerous springs. It was called Philippi in honor of Philip of Macedon, who enlarged and fortified it. Its situation was important, commanding the great high road between Europe and Asia. This fact led to its fortification by Philip, and made it, later, the scene of the decisive battle which resulted in the defeat of Brutus and Cassius. Its soil was productive and rich in mineral treasures, which had yielded a large revenue, but which, in Paul's time, had apparently become exhausted. Augustus planted at Philippi a colonia. See on Acts 16:12. A variety of national types assembled there - Greek, Roman, and Asiatic - representing different phases of philosophy, religion, and superstition. It was therefore an appropriate starting-point for the Gospel in Europe, a field in which it could demonstrate its power to deal with all differences of nation, faith, sex, and social standing. [source]
See note on Acts 16:12 for discussion of this name. [source]
In no sense the author, but associated with Paul because with him here in Rome as in Corinth when I and II Thessalonians written and in Ephesus when I Corinthians sent and in Macedonia when II Corinthians written. Timothy was with Paul when the Philippian church was founded (Acts 16:1, Acts 16:13; Acts 17:14). He had been there twice since (Acts 19:22; Acts 20:3.). To all the saints (πασι τοις αγιοις pāsi tois hagiois). The word saint (αγιος hagios) here is used for the professing Christians as in 1 Corinthians 1:2 which see as well as Romans 1:7 for the origin of the word. The word “all” (πασι pāsi) means that all individual believers are included. Paul employs this word frequently in Philippians. In Christ Jesus The centre for all Christian relations and activities for Paul and for us. In Philippi (εν Πιλιπποις en Philippois). See note on Acts 16:12 for discussion of this name. With the bishops “Together with bishops,” thus singled out from “all the saints.” See note on Acts 20:17 and note on Acts 20:28 for the use of this most interesting word as equivalent to presbuteros (elder). It is an old word from συν επισκοποις episkeptomai to look upon or after, to inspect, so the overseer or superintendent. In the second century πρεσβυτερος episcopos (Ignatius) came to mean one superior to elders, but not so in the N.T. The two New Testament church officers are here mentioned (bishops or elders and deacons). The plural is here employed because there was usually one church in a city with several pastors (bishops, elders). And deacons (επισκεπτομαι kai diakonois). Technical sense here of the other church officers as in 1 Timothy 3:8-13, not the general use as in Matthew 22:13. The origin of the office is probably seen in Acts 6:1-6. The term is often applied to preachers (1 Corinthians 3:5; 2 Corinthians 3:6). The etymology (επισχοπος diaκαι διακονοις konis) suggests raising a dust by hastening. [source]
The centre for all Christian relations and activities for Paul and for us. In Philippi (εν Πιλιπποις en Philippois). See note on Acts 16:12 for discussion of this name. With the bishops “Together with bishops,” thus singled out from “all the saints.” See note on Acts 20:17 and note on Acts 20:28 for the use of this most interesting word as equivalent to presbuteros (elder). It is an old word from συν επισκοποις episkeptomai to look upon or after, to inspect, so the overseer or superintendent. In the second century πρεσβυτερος episcopos (Ignatius) came to mean one superior to elders, but not so in the N.T. The two New Testament church officers are here mentioned (bishops or elders and deacons). The plural is here employed because there was usually one church in a city with several pastors (bishops, elders). And deacons (επισκεπτομαι kai diakonois). Technical sense here of the other church officers as in 1 Timothy 3:8-13, not the general use as in Matthew 22:13. The origin of the office is probably seen in Acts 6:1-6. The term is often applied to preachers (1 Corinthians 3:5; 2 Corinthians 3:6). The etymology (επισχοπος diaκαι διακονοις konis) suggests raising a dust by hastening. [source]
“For a share in.” Old word for share or portion (from μερος meros) as in Acts 8:21; Acts 16:12; 2 Corinthians 6:15 (the only other N.T. examples). Of the inheritance (του κληρου tou klērou). “Of the lot,” “for a share of the lot.” Old word. First a pebble or piece of wood used in casting lots (Acts 1:26), then the allotted portion or inheritance as here (Acts 8:21). Cf. Heb 3:7-4:11. In light Taken with μεριδα merida (portion) “situated in the kingdom of light” (Lightfoot). [source]
The elders for the more common the fathers: the saints of the O.T. dispensation, many of whose names are recorded in this chapter. Εμαρτυρηθήσαν , lit. were borne witness to. God bore witness to them in the victory of their faith over all obstacles, and their characters and deeds as men of faith were recorded in Scripture. For this use of ματυρεῖν in the passive, see Acts 6:3; Acts 10:22; Acts 16:12; Romans 3:21; Hebrews 7:8, Hebrews 7:17. Notice that the statement in this verse does not begin the list of examples, which commences with Hebrews 11:4, but is closely attached to the definition in Hebrews 11:1as a comprehensive justification of it. [source]