Acts 18:5

λόγῳ for πνεύματι with אABDE. Vulg. ‘verbo.’

εἶναι added after Ἰουδαίοις with אABD. Vulg. ‘esse.’

5. ὡς δὲ κατῆλθον … ὁ Τιμόθεος, but when Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia. After the arrival of his companions, who had been left at Beroea (Acts 17:14) there was a change in the character of St Paul’s preaching. It may well be that he had encouragement by their presence in his work of preaching, and also that it was not so necessary for him to consume his whole time on his craft because the Philippians had sent a contribution for his support (Philippians 4:15; 2 Corinthians 11:9).

συνείχετο τῷ λόγῳ ὁ Παῦλος, was constrained by the word. The meaning is, he was earnestly occupied in preaching the word, and felt himself more urged on, and also more able to preach, because of his freedom from the necessity of constant labour. It was apparently only on the Sabbath that he had reasoned with the people before. The usus loquendi favours the passive meaning. Meyer (3rd ed.) renders ‘he was apprehended, seized by the word’ in the sense of internal pressure of spirit. For the verb cf. Wis 17:11, πονηρία προσείληφε τὰ χαλεπὰ συνεχομένη τῇ συνειδήσει, being pressed with conscience’ (A.V.).

διαμαρτυρόμενος … εἶναι τὸν Χριστὸν Ἰησοῦν, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ. We are here told of the manner in which the greater earnestness of the Apostle was exhibited. He gave in all its fulness his solemn testimony, no doubt confirmed from Scripture and by the narrative of his own miraculous conversion, that this Jesus, whom he had formerly persecuted, was the Christ, the Messiah whom the Jews had long expected.