Acts 21:6

And when we had taken our leave one of another, we took ship; and they returned home again. And when we had taken our leave one of another, we took ship ('embarked'); and they returned home again....

1-7 Providence must be acknowledged when our affairs go on well. Wherever Paul came, he inquired what disciples were there, and found them out. Foreseeing his troubles, from love to him, and concern for the church, they wrongly thought it would be most for the glory of God that he should continue at liberty; but their earnestness to dissuade him from it, renders his pious resolution the more illustrious. He has taught us by example, as well as by rule, to pray always, to pray without ceasing. Their last farewell was sweetened with prayer....

Verse Acts 21:6. _TAKEN - LEAVE_] ασπασαμενοι; _Having given each other the_ _kiss of peace_, as was the constant custom of the Jews and primitive Christians. _THEY RETURNED HOME_] That is, the men, their wives, and their children....

EXPOSITION ACTS 21:1 _When it came to pass float we were parted from them, and had set sail _for _it came to pass, that after we were gotten from them, and had launched, _A.V.; _Cos _for _Coos_, A.V. and T.R.; _next day _for _day following, _A.V. PARTED FROM THEM (ἀποσπασθέντας)_. _"Non sine desiderio magno" (Bengel). "He shows the violence of the parting by saying, ' Having torn ourselves away '" (Chrysostom). The word is properly applied to those who have been unwillingly torn away from their friends (Schleusner and Kuinoel); "denotes the painful separation wrung from them by necessity" (Meyer) In Acts 20:30 it was used in the active voice of false teachers "drawing away" the disciples, _i.e. _Christians

AND WHEN WE HAD TAKEN OUR LEAVE ONE OF ANOTHER,.... The Alexandrian copy reads, "having prayed, we saluted one another"; with a kiss, as in Acts 20:37 and so parted: WE TOOK SHIP; or went aboard the ship, AND THEY RETURNED HOME AGAIN; to their own houses, as the Syriac version renders it; for by "their own", as it is in the Greek text, cannot be meant their families, their wives, and children, for these were along with them, but their habitations; see John 16:32....

CHAPTER 21 _ 1. The journey from Miletus to Tyre and Ptolemais (Acts 21:1)._ 2. In Caesarea (Acts 21:8). 3. The Apostle's Arrival in Jerusalem and his visit to the Temple (Acts 21:15). 4. The Uproar in the Temple. Paul taken prisoner (Acts 21:27). Coos, Rhodes and Patara are mentioned. Then they sailed over to Phenicia and landed in Tyre. Here they found disciples. And the Holy Spirit through these disciples warned the Apostle at once that he should not go to Jerusalem. This, indeed, was very solemn. If these disciples had spoken of themselves, if it said that they were in anxiety over Paul's journey to that

FROM MILETUS TO TYRE. The sailing is by day, with a following wind (_cf. Acts 20:15_). After Patara D adds and Myra, where Paul touched on his journey to Rome (see Acts 27:5). Vessels from the East for Rome made for Myra and coasted from there. The vessel from Assos in which Paul was, whether or not chartered for the party, probably went no further than Patara or Myra; he had to tranship, and the rest of his voyage was on the open sea, past the SW. corner of Cyprus, which was sighted. At Tyre there was an enforced delay for the discharge of cargo (_cf._ accomplished the days, Acts 21:5). The Christians in the large city had to be looked for, but they took an interest in Paul and warned him that it was dangerous for him to go to Je

When we had torn ourselves away from them and had set sail, we sailed a straight course and came to Cos; on the next day we reached Rhodes; and from there we came to Patara. There we found a ship which was sailing across to Phoenicia and we embarked on her and set sail. After we had sighted Cyprus and had left it behind on the left hand side we sailed on to Syria and came down to Tyre, for there the ship was to discharge her cargo. We sought out the disciples and we stayed there for seven days. They told Paul through the Holy Spirit to give up his journey to Jerusalem. When we had completed the days we left and proceeded on our journey, while they all, with their wives and children, escorted us outside the city. We knelt down on the shore and prayed and bade each other farewell. Then we embarked on the ship and they returned home. We continued our voyage and arrived at Ptolemais from Tyr...

TAKEN OUR LEAVE. Greek. _aspazomai._ See note on Acts 20:1. TOOK SHIP. embarked (Greek. _epibaino,_ as in Acts 21:1) on (Greek. _eis)_ the ship, i.e. the same ship as Acts 21:2. HOME. Literally to (Greek. _eis)_ their own (things)....

The best text requires here for the last clause, "_and we went on board the ship, but they returned home again_." There is nothing in the Greek to tell us whether the ship was the same in which they had come, or not....