Acts 28:14

ἀδελφούς, see on Acts 1:15, they may have been from Alexandria, as the commerce between it and Puteoli was so considerable; the absence of the article indicates that the writer knew nothing of their presence previously, but at all events Blass is right when he says, “non magis mirum est Puteolis Christianos ante Paulum fuisse quam Romæ”. Probably after Rome itself Puteoli was the most ancient Jewish community in Italy. Jews were there as early as B.C. 4, after the death of Herod the Great, Jos., Ant., xvii., 12, 1; B. J., ii., 7, 1, and Schürer accepts the notice of the existence of a Christian Church as in the text, Jewish People, div. ii., vol. ii., p. 241, E.T., so too O. Holtzmann, Neutest. Zeitgeschichte, p. 108; see also Lightfoot, Philippians, p. 26. Rhegium and Puteoli are the only two Italian towns mentioned in the N.T. (except, of course, Rome itself), and when we consider that Puteoli was the most important port, not only for ships from Alexandria, but also from Syria, there is nothing surprising in the fact that Christianity found an early and an easy entrance; at Pompeii, not far from Puteoli, Christianity had made its way, and before 79 A.D. it was discussed by the gossiping loungers in the street (Ramsay). παρεκ.: “we were entreated to tarry,” R.V. Ramsay (so Blass), rendering “we were consoled among them, remaining seven days” (see critical note), thinks that R.V., although strongly supported, is irreconcilable with St. Paul's situation as a prisoner. Julius was a Roman officer, and discipline was natural to him, however friendly he was towards Paul. Blass compares Acts 20:12, and Zöckler also prefers the inferior reading on account of this more usual meaning of παρακαλεῖν. Probably the seven days' delay was needful for Julius to report his arrival at Rome, and to receive further orders from the capital, perhaps with regard to the disposal of the prisoners, but St. Paul must have been rejoiced at the opportunity of celebrating a Sunday with the little Christian Church at Puteoli, cf. Acts 20:6; Acts 21:4. καὶ οὕτως : “and so we came to Rome,” about 140 miles, cf. Acts 27:25, “destinatum itineris terminum,” Blass, cf. the article before Ῥ., Blass, Gram., p. 149, so Bengel (but see Page's note). Others take οὕτως as simply = after the stay of seven days, a notice which leads on to Acts 28:15, and makes us to understand how the brethren came to meet us, since news would easily have reached Rome, and a deputation of the brethren have arrived at Appii Forum. On the former view the writer marks the conclusion and the aim of the long journey (cf. εἰς τὴν Ῥ. before the verb; in Acts 28:12-13, names of places follow the verb without any article, Weiss), and there is a kind of triumph in the words: like an emperor who has fought a naval battle and overcome, Paul entered into that most imperial city; he was nearer now to his crown; Rome received him bound, and saw him crowned and proclaimed conqueror: cf. Chrys. Others take ἤλθ. as = ἐπορευόμεθα, the actual end of the journey following in Acts 28:16 (see on the other hand Wendt, in loco, 1888). But Acts 28:15 may possibly be taken as adding an episode which commences, as it were, a new section of the Apostle's work in the meeting with the brethren from Rome, the journey itself being regarded as completed in Acts 28:14 (Nösgen). If we read εἰσήλθομεν in Acts 28:16, see critical note, the word emphasises apparently the actual entry into the city, “and when we entered into,” R.V., or it may simply take up the conclusion of Acts 28:14 (so Wendt, who sees no difficulty in the words). Ramsay, however, draws another distinction between Acts 28:14; Acts 28:16 (to which Wendt (1899) refers, without endorsing it), and thinks that the double expression of arrival is due to the double meaning which the name of a city-state bears in Greek (St. Paul, pp. III, 347, and Expositor, Jan., 1899); thus Rome might be restricted to the walls and buildings, or it might include the whole ager Romanus, and so in Acts 28:14, “we reached the State Rome,” we passed through two points in the ager Romanus, Acts 28:15, and in Acts 28:16, “we entered the (walls of) Rome”.