Cd – The End of Paul’s Second Missionary Journey 18: 18-22

The End of Paul’s Second Missionary Journey
18: 18-22

51-52 AD

The end of Paul’s Second Missionary Journey DIG: About how long did Paul minister in Corinth? Why did Paul sail from Corinth at that time of year? What kind of a vow did Paul take? Why wasn’t this a Nazarite vow? What did taking the vow show about his faithfulness to his Jewish roots? Where did Paul sail to next? Why didn’t he stay very long? Where was he destined to go?

REFLECT: What is your gauge for determining whether a particular ministry opportunity is yours to accomplish or somebody else’s? Thinking of a time when you said yes to something but should have said no, what resulted from your decision to barrel ahead? Did you end up getting burned? Explain?

This section provides a transition between Paul’s Second and Third Missionary Journeys. On the one hand, it concludes the Second, with Paul returning to Antioch where his missionary journey began (to see link click Bv – Disagreement between Paul and Barnabas). On the other hand, Paul’s brief visit to Ephesus looks toward the Third, which would be spent primarily in that city.⁴³⁴

Paul, having stayed many more days, the court of Gallio freed Paul to continue his ministry in Corinth (to see link click Cc – Many Respond to the Good News in Corinth). Yeshua had kept His promise to protect him (18:10), and the chief means of protection would be Roman law. That was in addition to the one-and-a-half years mentioned in 18:11. Second Thessalonians was probably written during this period. So it seems that Paul was in Corinth about two years. Then Paul decided it was God’s will for him to leave Corinth and return to his home church in Antioch. He said farewell to the brothers and set sail to the province of Syria that included the land of Isra’el, and with him were Priscilla, Aquila, and presumably Timothy (18:18a). Since Silas’ arrival in Corinth is the last time he is mentioned in Acts (18:5), he seems to have stayed there to minister. The trial in the court of Gallio probably took place in July or August of 51 AD. It may be that that Jewish leaders wanted to take advantage of Gallio while he was still new at his post, and before he heard anything negative about them (if this was their aim, Gallio disappointed them). If this was the correct timing, it meant that Paul stayed another month, leaving Corinth before the shipping closed down for the year.⁴³⁵

At Cenchrea, their point of departure and the Aegean harbor of Corinth, Paul had his hair cut off, for he was keeping a vow (18:18b).  Yeshua rules out oaths for believers but not vows, although the distinction between them is not clear (Matthew 5:33-37). What kind of vow did Paul take, and what did cutting his hair have to do with it? Nothing is said of what he vowed to do, but Numbers 6:1-21 describes the Nazirite vow, which involves allowing the hair to grow during the vow; and the Oral Law (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Ei – The Oral Law) tractate Nazir spells out the details of such vows, including their minimum length, thirty days. Strictly speaking, however, this could not have been a Nazirite vow; for if it had been, Paul would not have been shaved in Corinth but would have waited till he arrived in Yerushalayim to shave his head and offer the proper sacrifice in the Temple. Furthermore, if we assume that the patterns described in the Oral Law, compiled around 220 AD, were already being followed in Paul’s day, he would have had to spend at least thirty days in Isra’el to validate his vow (Nazir 3:6 and 7:3), since a Nazirite vow undertaken in the “land of the Goyim” was invalid.⁴³⁶ Perhaps it was in connection with his vision (18:9-11), a means of expressing thanksgiving and seeking the continued blessing of the Lord in the Corinthian mission. But no matter what the details of Paul’s vow were, this verse proves that he did not abandon his Jewishness and the Torah, on the contrary, even when he became as a Gentile among the Gentiles he continued to observe Jewish practices (First Corinthians 9:20-22).⁴³⁷

When they arrived at Ephesus (once again, Luke subtly introduces that main city of Paul’s Third Missionary Journey, Paul left Priscilla and Aquila. They undoubtedly continued to evangelize in the city until Paul’s return. Now, Paul’s plan was simply to change ships and continue on to Jerusalem. Nothing more. But since there was some time between ships he continued to follow the principle of Romans 1:16 and went into the synagogue and debated with the Jewish people. When they asked him to stay longer, he declined, instead taking leave of them while saying, “God willing, I’ll return to you again.” Then he set sail from Ephesus (18:19-21). Thus, the stage was set for Paul’s Third Missionary Journey. Art by Sarah Beth Baca: see more information on Links and Resources.
After landing at Caesarea (back within the borders of the Promised Land), he went up and greeted Messiah’s community in Jerusalem. Each of Paul’s missionary journeys began, and ended in, Jerusalem. It appears that the direction of the prevailing winds made it easier for ships to reach Caesarea than Seleucia, the port for Antioch (13:4), which was about 250 miles to the north. Then he went down to Antioch and reported to his home church all that God had done on his Second Missionary Journey (18:22). He had been gone from Antioch perhaps two years or more, and the believers there were overjoyed to see him and hear about the work of ADONAI among the Gentiles. Paul rested up and spent some time in Antioch before beginning his new missionary journey. His goal was Ephesus.

Lord, Your Word says that people without knowledge are doomed (Hosea 4:1-6) – doomed
to making continuous mistakes, doomed to finding ourselves separated from Your will and purpose. May I walk so closely to You and in step with Your Spirit that whenever I turn to the right or to the left, my ears will hear this command behind me, saying “This is the way, walk in it” (Isaiah 30:21). Teach me good judgment and knowledge, Lord, for I rely on Your mitzvot (Psalm 119:66).⁴³⁸