KJV: And after he had spent some time there, he departed, and went over all the country of Galatia and Phrygia in order, strengthening all the disciples.
YLT: And having made some stay he went forth, going through in order the region of Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples.
Darby: And having stayed there some time, he went forth, passing in order through the country of Galatia and Phrygia, establishing all the disciples.
ASV: And having spent some time there , he departed, and went through the region of Galatia, and Phrygia, in order, establishing all the disciples.
Luke did not record Paul"s activities in Antioch, but we may safely assume he gave another report to the church as he had done when he returned from his first journey ( Acts 14:27-28). Paul probably remained in Antioch from the spring or summer of52through the spring of A.D53. [1] Leaving Antioch he seems to have followed the same route through the province of Galatia and the district of Phrygia that he had taken when he began his second journey ( Acts 15:41 to Acts 16:6). He stopped to minister to the churches of those areas again, too.
"The third journey is a journey of new mission only in a limited sense. In the first two journeys the emphasis was on the founding of new churches. In Acts 18:23 Paul begins a journey to strengthen established churches." [2]Luke gave considerable information regarding Paul"s significant ministry in Asia Minor to record the advance of the gospel and the church on the eastern Aegean shores. [source][source][source]
Context Summary
Acts 18:18-28 - New Helpers In The Gospel
In unimportant matters Paul was still amenable to Hebrew customs and rites, Acts 18:18. Probably he desired to conciliate his Judaizing opponents so far as he could without surrendering vital principles. He took his new-found friends with him to Ephesus. Though none of them realized it, there was important work awaiting them in that mighty city. The plans of Apostles, and of ordinary travelers as well, must be subordinated to the divine will. See 1 Corinthians 4:19; James 4:15.
Apollos combined the eloquence of the Greek with the religious instinct of the Jew. A student from the great university at Alexandria, a convert to the gospel, deeply conversant with the Old Testament, gifted with marvelous eloquence, he was a strong ally of the Christian forces of his age. But he needed to know of the death, resurrection, and ascended power of Christ, and to experience the Pentecostal gift. Into all these he was led by Aquila and Priscilla. How wonderful is that holy wisdom which the Spirit of God gives to simple and humble believers, so that they can become teachers of men who are intellectually their superiors! [source]
Chapter Summary: Acts 18
1Paul labors with his hands, and preaches at Corinth to the Gentiles 9The Lord encourages him in a vision 12He is accused before Gallio the deputy, but is dismissed 18Afterwards passing from city to city, he strengthens the disciples 24Apollos, being instructed by Aquila and Priscilla, preaches Christ boldly
Greek Commentary for Acts 18:23
Having spent some time [ποιησας χρονον τινα] Literally, having done some time. How long we do not know, probably not long. There are those who place the visit of Peter here to which Paul alludes in Galatians 2:11. and which we have located while Paul was here the last time (Acts 15:35). [source]
He departed [εχηλτεν] Thus simply and alone Paul began the third mission tour without a Barnabas or a Silas. Went through (διερχομενος dierchomenos). Present middle participle, going through. The region of Galatia and Phrygia See note on Acts 16:6 for discussion of this phrase, here in reverse order, passing through the Galatic region and then Phrygia. Does Luke mean Lycaonia (Derbe and Lystra) and Phrygia (Iconium and Pisidian Antioch)? Or does he mean the route west through the old Galatia and the old Phrygia on west into Asia? The same conflict exists here over the South Galatian and the North Galatian theories. Phrygia is apparently distinguished from the Galatic region here. It is apparently a.d. 52 when Paul set out on this tour. In order (kathexēs). In succession as in Acts 11:4, though the names of the cities are not given. Stablishing As he did in the second tour (Acts 15:41, κατεχης epistērizōn compound of this same verb) which see. [source]
Went through [διερχομενος] Present middle participle, going through. [source]
The region of Galatia and Phrygia [τεν Γαλατικην χωραν και Πρψγιαν] See note on Acts 16:6 for discussion of this phrase, here in reverse order, passing through the Galatic region and then Phrygia. Does Luke mean Lycaonia (Derbe and Lystra) and Phrygia (Iconium and Pisidian Antioch)? Or does he mean the route west through the old Galatia and the old Phrygia on west into Asia? The same conflict exists here over the South Galatian and the North Galatian theories. Phrygia is apparently distinguished from the Galatic region here. It is apparently a.d. 52 when Paul set out on this tour. In order (kathexēs). In succession as in Acts 11:4, though the names of the cities are not given. Stablishing As he did in the second tour (Acts 15:41, κατεχης epistērizōn compound of this same verb) which see. [source]
In order [kathexēs)] In succession as in Acts 11:4, though the names of the cities are not given. [source]
Stablishing [stērizōn)] As he did in the second tour (Acts 15:41, κατεχης epistērizōn compound of this same verb) which see. [source]
Acts 11:4Expounded [εχετιτετο] Imperfect middle of εκτιτημι ektithēmi to set forth, old verb, but in the N.T. only in Acts (Acts 7:21; Acts 11:4; Acts 18:26; Acts 28:23), a deliberate and detailed narrative “in order” Old word for in succession. In the N.T. only in Luke 1:2; Luke 8:1; Acts 3:24; Acts 11:14; Acts 18:23. Luke evidently considered this defence of Peter important and he preserves the marks of authenticity. It came originally from Peter himself (Acts 11:5,Acts 11:6,Acts 11:15,Acts 11:16). “The case of Cornelius was a test case of primary importance” (Page), “the first great difficulty of the early Church.” Part of the story Luke gives three times (Acts 10:3-6,Acts 10:30-32; Acts 11:13.). See the discussion chapter 10 for details given here. [source]
Acts 16:6The region of Phrygia and Galatia [την Πρυγιαν και Γαλατικην χωραν] This is probably the correct text with one article and apparently describes one “Region” or District in The Province of Galatia which was also Phrygian (the old-ethnographic name with which compare the use of Lycaonia in Acts 14:6). Strictly speaking Derbe and Lystra, though in the Province of Galatia, were not Phrygian, and so Luke would here be not resumptive of the record in Acts 14:1-5; but a reference to the country around Iconium and Antioch in Pisidia in North Galatia is not included. This verse is hotly disputed at every point by the advocates of the North Galatian theory as represented by Chase and the South Galatian theory by Ramsay. Whatever is true in regard to the language of Luke here and in Acts 18:23, it is still possible for Paul in Galatians 1:2 to use the term Galatia of the whole province of that name which could, in fact, apply to either South or North Galatia or to both. He could, of course, use it also in the ethnographic sense of the real Gauls or Celts who dwelt in North Galatia. Certainly the first tour of Paul and Barnabas was in the Province of Galatia though touching only the Regions of Pisidia, Phrygia, and Lycaonia, which province included besides the Gauls to the north. In this second tour Lycaonia has been already touched (Derbe and Lystra) and now Phrygia. The question arises why Luke here and in Acts 18:23 adds the term “of Galatia” Does Luke mean to use “of Galatia” in the same ethnographic sense as “of Phrygia” or does he here add the province (Galatia) to the name of the Region (Phrygia)? In itself either view is possible and it really matters very little except that the question is raised whether Paul went into the North Galatian Region on this occasion or later (Acts 18:23). He could have done so and the Epistle be addressed to the churches of South Galatia, North Galatia, or the province as a whole. But the Greek participle κωλυτεντες kōluthentes (“having been forbidden”) plays a part in the argument that cannot be overlooked whether Luke means to say that Paul went north or not. This aorist passive participle of κωλυω kōluō to hinder, can only express simultaneous or antecedent action, not subsequent action as Ramsay argues. No example of the so-called subsequent use of the aorist participle has ever been found in Greek as all Greek grammarians agree (Robertson, Grammar, pp. 860-63, 1112-14). The only natural meaning of κωλυτεντες kōluthentes is that Paul with Silas and Timothy “passed through the region of Phrygia and Galatia” because they were hindered by the Holy Spirit from speaking the word in Asia (the Province of Asia of which Ephesus was the chief city and west of Derbe and Lystra). This construction implies that the country called “the region of Phrygia and Galatia” is not in the direct line west toward Ephesus. What follows in Acts 16:7 throws further light on the point. [source]
Acts 20:3When he had spent three months there [ποιησας μηνας τρεις] Literally, “having done three months,” the same idiom in Acts 15:33; Acts 18:23; James 4:13. During this period Paul may have written Galatians as Lightfoot argued and certainly did Romans. We do not have to say that Luke was ignorant of Paul‘s work during this period, only that he did not choose to enlarge upon it. [source]
2 Corinthians 11:25Have I been in the deep [ἐν τῷ βυθῷ πεποίηκα] Lit., I have made (spent) a night and a day in the deep. For a similar use of ποιέω tomake, see Acts 15:33; Acts 18:23; Acts 20:3; James 4:13. βυθός bottomor depth occurs only here. Of the event itself there is no record. [source]
James 4:13Continue there a year [ποιήσομεν ἐκεῖ ἐνιαυτὸν] Lit., we will make a year. See, for the same form of expression, Acts 15:33; Acts 18:23; 2 Corinthians 11:25. Better, as Rev., spend a year there. (Compare the A. V., Acts 18:23, rightly retained by Rev.) The word ποιήσομεν implies more than mere continuance; rather, a doing something with the year. [source]
What do the individual words in Acts 18:23 mean?
Andhaving stayedtimesomehe went forthpassing throughsuccessivelytheGalatianregionPhrygiastrengtheningallthedisciples
Parse: Noun, Accusative Feminine Singular
Root: Φρυγία
Sense: a region in Asia Minor bounded by Bithynia, Galatia, Lycaonia, Pisidia, Lydia, Mysia and it contained the cities of Laodicea, Hierapolis, and Colosse.
Greek Commentary for Acts 18:23
Literally, having done some time. How long we do not know, probably not long. There are those who place the visit of Peter here to which Paul alludes in Galatians 2:11. and which we have located while Paul was here the last time (Acts 15:35). [source]
Thus simply and alone Paul began the third mission tour without a Barnabas or a Silas. Went through (διερχομενος dierchomenos). Present middle participle, going through. The region of Galatia and Phrygia See note on Acts 16:6 for discussion of this phrase, here in reverse order, passing through the Galatic region and then Phrygia. Does Luke mean Lycaonia (Derbe and Lystra) and Phrygia (Iconium and Pisidian Antioch)? Or does he mean the route west through the old Galatia and the old Phrygia on west into Asia? The same conflict exists here over the South Galatian and the North Galatian theories. Phrygia is apparently distinguished from the Galatic region here. It is apparently a.d. 52 when Paul set out on this tour. In order (kathexēs). In succession as in Acts 11:4, though the names of the cities are not given. Stablishing As he did in the second tour (Acts 15:41, κατεχης epistērizōn compound of this same verb) which see. [source]
Present middle participle, going through. [source]
See note on Acts 16:6 for discussion of this phrase, here in reverse order, passing through the Galatic region and then Phrygia. Does Luke mean Lycaonia (Derbe and Lystra) and Phrygia (Iconium and Pisidian Antioch)? Or does he mean the route west through the old Galatia and the old Phrygia on west into Asia? The same conflict exists here over the South Galatian and the North Galatian theories. Phrygia is apparently distinguished from the Galatic region here. It is apparently a.d. 52 when Paul set out on this tour. In order (kathexēs). In succession as in Acts 11:4, though the names of the cities are not given. Stablishing As he did in the second tour (Acts 15:41, κατεχης epistērizōn compound of this same verb) which see. [source]
In succession as in Acts 11:4, though the names of the cities are not given. [source]
As he did in the second tour (Acts 15:41, κατεχης epistērizōn compound of this same verb) which see. [source]
Reverse Greek Commentary Search for Acts 18:23
Rather, were strengthened. Another word is used for established. See Acts 14:22; Acts 15:32, Acts 15:41; Acts 18:23. There is a difference, moreover, between being strengthened and established. See 1 Peter 5:10. [source]
Imperfect middle of εκτιτημι ektithēmi to set forth, old verb, but in the N.T. only in Acts (Acts 7:21; Acts 11:4; Acts 18:26; Acts 28:23), a deliberate and detailed narrative “in order” Old word for in succession. In the N.T. only in Luke 1:2; Luke 8:1; Acts 3:24; Acts 11:14; Acts 18:23. Luke evidently considered this defence of Peter important and he preserves the marks of authenticity. It came originally from Peter himself (Acts 11:5, Acts 11:6, Acts 11:15, Acts 11:16). “The case of Cornelius was a test case of primary importance” (Page), “the first great difficulty of the early Church.” Part of the story Luke gives three times (Acts 10:3-6, Acts 10:30-32; Acts 11:13.). See the discussion chapter 10 for details given here. [source]
This is probably the correct text with one article and apparently describes one “Region” or District in The Province of Galatia which was also Phrygian (the old-ethnographic name with which compare the use of Lycaonia in Acts 14:6). Strictly speaking Derbe and Lystra, though in the Province of Galatia, were not Phrygian, and so Luke would here be not resumptive of the record in Acts 14:1-5; but a reference to the country around Iconium and Antioch in Pisidia in North Galatia is not included. This verse is hotly disputed at every point by the advocates of the North Galatian theory as represented by Chase and the South Galatian theory by Ramsay. Whatever is true in regard to the language of Luke here and in Acts 18:23, it is still possible for Paul in Galatians 1:2 to use the term Galatia of the whole province of that name which could, in fact, apply to either South or North Galatia or to both. He could, of course, use it also in the ethnographic sense of the real Gauls or Celts who dwelt in North Galatia. Certainly the first tour of Paul and Barnabas was in the Province of Galatia though touching only the Regions of Pisidia, Phrygia, and Lycaonia, which province included besides the Gauls to the north. In this second tour Lycaonia has been already touched (Derbe and Lystra) and now Phrygia. The question arises why Luke here and in Acts 18:23 adds the term “of Galatia” Does Luke mean to use “of Galatia” in the same ethnographic sense as “of Phrygia” or does he here add the province (Galatia) to the name of the Region (Phrygia)? In itself either view is possible and it really matters very little except that the question is raised whether Paul went into the North Galatian Region on this occasion or later (Acts 18:23). He could have done so and the Epistle be addressed to the churches of South Galatia, North Galatia, or the province as a whole. But the Greek participle κωλυτεντες kōluthentes (“having been forbidden”) plays a part in the argument that cannot be overlooked whether Luke means to say that Paul went north or not. This aorist passive participle of κωλυω kōluō to hinder, can only express simultaneous or antecedent action, not subsequent action as Ramsay argues. No example of the so-called subsequent use of the aorist participle has ever been found in Greek as all Greek grammarians agree (Robertson, Grammar, pp. 860-63, 1112-14). The only natural meaning of κωλυτεντες kōluthentes is that Paul with Silas and Timothy “passed through the region of Phrygia and Galatia” because they were hindered by the Holy Spirit from speaking the word in Asia (the Province of Asia of which Ephesus was the chief city and west of Derbe and Lystra). This construction implies that the country called “the region of Phrygia and Galatia” is not in the direct line west toward Ephesus. What follows in Acts 16:7 throws further light on the point. [source]
Literally, “having done three months,” the same idiom in Acts 15:33; Acts 18:23; James 4:13. During this period Paul may have written Galatians as Lightfoot argued and certainly did Romans. We do not have to say that Luke was ignorant of Paul‘s work during this period, only that he did not choose to enlarge upon it. [source]
Lit., I have made (spent) a night and a day in the deep. For a similar use of ποιέω tomake, see Acts 15:33; Acts 18:23; Acts 20:3; James 4:13. βυθός bottomor depth occurs only here. Of the event itself there is no record. [source]
Lit., we will make a year. See, for the same form of expression, Acts 15:33; Acts 18:23; 2 Corinthians 11:25. Better, as Rev., spend a year there. (Compare the A. V., Acts 18:23, rightly retained by Rev.) The word ποιήσομεν implies more than mere continuance; rather, a doing something with the year. [source]