Acts 21:7

St. Paul completes his Journey to Jerusalem from Tyre by way of Ptolemais and Cæsarea to the Holy City, 7-17.

Acts 21:7. And when we had finished our course from Tyre, we came to Ptolemais. More literally, ‘And we finishing our voyage, arrived at Ptolemais from Tyre.' The arrival of the apostle and his companions at Ptolemais completed the sea portion of their journey; the rest of the journey from Ptolemais to Jerusalem by Cæsarea was made by land. Ptolemais is one of the oldest cities in the world; we read of it in Judges 1:31, under the name of ‘Accho,' as one of the old cities of the Canaanites which the children of Israel failed to obtain possession of. It was situate in the portion of Asher, and seems to have been ever considered as a Phoenician city. In a maritime point of view, it was a fortress of great importance, and has been looked on as the key of Galilee from the Mediterranean.

But with Israel the sea and the seaboard was ever a question of minor importance, hence possibly their neglect of such stations as Accho. On the partition of the Macedonian Empire, Accho fell to the lot of the Ptolemais. It was rebuilt and renamed Ptolemais by Ptolemy Soter. But its old name still survived, and eventually superseded the Egyptian title. It was famous in the Crusades under the name of St. Jean d'Acre. It is still called Acre, and has a population of some 15,000.