Acts 21:7

And when we had finished our course from Tyre, we came to Ptolemais, and saluted the brethren, and abode with them one day.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(7) We came to Ptolemais.—This city is memorable both for its antiquity and for the varied fortunes of its city. As Accho it appears in Judges 1:31 as one of the old cities of the Canaanites which the Israelites of the tribe of Asher failed to conquer. It was conquered, rebuilt, and re-named by Ptolemy Soter King of Egypt. The old name, however, ultimately revived, or perhaps was never entirely disused; and the natives of the region still speak of it as Accho, while to Europeans it is familiar as Acre, or, more fully, St. Jean d’Acre. Here, also, as through all the line of cities along the coast, we find a church already organised, founded probably, as already suggested, by Philip the Evangelist. Here the stay of the travellers was shorter than at Tyre, probably because the ship only put into the harbour for the night. The passengers had time, however, to land and refresh themselves by intercourse with those who were sharers in their faith and hope.

Benson Commentary

Acts 21:7-9. And when we had finished our course — By sea; we came to Ptolemais — A celebrated city to the south of Tyre, on the same coast of the Mediterranean sea, anciently called Accho. It was enlarged and beautified by the first of the Egyptian Ptolemies, from whence it took its new appellation. It was the scene of many celebrated actions in that series of mad expeditions which was called the holy war. The Turks, who are now masters of all that region, call it Acca, or Acra; and when Maundrel was there, in 1697, like many other noble ancient cities, it was only a heap of ruins. Since then, however, it has again revived by the industry of Daher; and the works erected by Dejezzar, in his own time, have rendered it one of the principal towns on that coast. In 1799, aided by the British, under Sir W.S. Smith, it withstood a severe siege by the French, under General Bonaparte, who raised the siege, after failing in a twelfth assault, made over the putrid bodies of his soldiers. And saluted the brethren — For the disciples of Christ were now grown so numerous as to be found in every city of any note: and abode with them one day — After which they travelled by land to Cesarea — Where they abode many days with Philip the evangelist, and one of the seven deacons — Who, it seems, had for some years been settled there. Concerning him and his labours in those parts, as also of Cesarea, see the notes on chap. Acts 8:5-40. The same man had four daughters — Unmarried, who prophesied; the miraculous gifts of the Spirit being sometimes communicated to women, as well as to men.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

21:1-7 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.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

We came to Ptolemais - This was a city situated on the coast of the Mediterranean, on the north angle of a bay which extends, in a semicircle of three leagues, as far as the point of Mount Carmel. At the south and west sides the city was washed by the sea, and was surrounded by triple walls. It was in the tribe of Asher Judges 1:31, and was originally called Accho; but was called Ptolemais in honor of one of the Ptolemies, who beautified and adorned it. The Christian crusaders gave it the name of Acre, or John of Acre, from a magnificent church which was built in it, and which was dedicated to the apostle John. It is still called Akha by the Turks. The Syriac and Arabic render it Accho in this place. It sustained several sieges during the Crusades, and was the last fortified place wrested from the Christians by the Turks. It sustained a memorable siege under Bonaparte, and since then it has been much increased and strengthened. Its present population is estimated at from 18,000 to 20,000.

And saluted the brethren - Embraced them; gave them expressions of affection and regard.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

7. when we had finished our course—completing the voyage

from Tyre, we came—which they would do the same day.

to Ptolemais—anciently called Accho (Jud 1:31), now St. Jean d'Acre, or Acre.

and saluted the brethren, and abode, &c.—disciples gathered probably as at Tyre, on the occasion mentioned (Ac 11:19).

Matthew Poole's Commentary

We came to Ptolemais; so far forth as to Ptolemais, a city in Phenicia, so called from one of the Ptolemies, king of Egypt; and is thought to be the same with Accho, mentioned Judges 1:31, which ancient name is yet retained in the Syriac translation.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And when we had finished our course from Tyre,.... Or sailed from thence,

we came to Ptolemais: the Syriac version calls it "Aco" or "Acu": and the Arabic version, "Aco"; and Ptolemais, according to Pliny (x) and Harpocratian (y), was called Ace. Frequent mention is made of Aco in the Jewish writings, and which according to them was a sea port, for they speak of , "the port of Aco" (z), and of , "the banks of Aco" (a), or its rocks: it was upon the borders of the land of Israel, and in the tribe of Asher to the north of it; part of it they say was without the land, and part of it within (b): according to R. Benjamin, it was one day's sail from Tyre, and who also says, it was upon the borders of Asher, and had a very spacious port (c); it is said to be about two and thirty miles from Tyre; between that and Tyre, the shore was full of heaps of sand, from whence the sand that glass is made of was fetched; it is mentioned with Tyre, Sidon, and Galilee, in:

"And said, They of Ptolemais, and of Tyrus, and Sidon, and all Galilee of the Gentiles, are assembled together against us to consume us.'' (1 Maccabees 5:15)

it had the mountainous part of Galilee on the east, the ladder of Tyre on the north, and Mount Carmel on the south, and thus it is described by Josephus (d):

"Ptolemais is a city of Galilee on the sea coast, built in a large champaign country, but is surrounded with mountains, on the east with the mountains of Galilee, sixty furlongs off; on the south with Carmel, distant a hundred and twenty furlongs; on the north with a very high mountain called the Climax, or ladder of the Tyrians, which is a hundred furlongs from it; two miles from the city runs a very small river called Beleus, near which is the sepulchre of Memnon, taking up the space of an hundred cubits, and is worthy of admiration; it is round and hollow (i.e. the river), casting up glassy sand, which ships in great numbers come and take up, and the place is filled up again.''

The account Jerom (e) gives of it is,

"Ptolemais, a maritime city in Judea, near Mount Carmel, which was formerly called so from one Ptolomy;''

from Ptolomy king of Egypt: it was called Ace or Aco, from its being a city of merchandise; though some say it was so called from Hercules being healed of the bite of a serpent, by an herb which grew near the river Beleus. It is now called St. John de Acra or Acri:

and saluted the brethren; that were at Ptolemais or Aco; for the Gospel had been preached here with success; some had believed and professed it, and very likely were in a church state: for there was a church here in the "second" century, and Clarus was bishop of it; and in the beginning of the "fourth" century, there was a bishop present in the synod at Nice; and in the "fifth" century there was a church here; in the time of Arcadius, the Emperor Antiochus was bishop of Ptolemais, a very eloquent man, called therefore by some Chrysostom; in the "sixth" century there was a bishop of this church, who assisted at the synod held both at Rome and Constantinople (f). The bishops of this church are reckoned up, as Reland (g) says, as he found them thus; Clarus, who was in the council at Caesarea, held in the year 198; Aeneas, who was in the council at Nice, in the year 325, and in another at Antioch, in the year 341; Nectabus, who subscribed in the first council at Constantinople, held in the year 381; Paulus, who was present in the Chalcedon council in the year 451: and Joannes, who was in the council at Jerusalem, in the year 536: and perhaps these brethren might be Jews, since those who first preached the Gospel in Phoenicia preached only to Jews; and certain it is that there were many in this place; we often read of Jewish doctors here, as R. Tanchum the son of R. Chaja a man of Caphar Aco (h), and R. Simeon ben Judah a man of Caphar Aco (i), and R. Aba of Aco (k), and R. Judah ben Gamdah (l); and in R. Benjamin's time, there were about two hundred Jews in this place (m): these brethren Paul and his company visited, and saluted them;

and abode with them one day; conferring together about spiritual things, and employing their time, no doubt, in religious exercises.

(x) Ad nationes, l. 5. c. 19. (y) Lexic. Decem Orator. p. 12. (z) T. Bab. Yoma, fol. 38. 1.((a) T. Bab. Cetubot, fol. 112. 1.((b) T. Hieros. Gittin, fol. 43. 3. Sheviith, fol. 35. 3. & Challa, fol. 60. 2. & Juchasin, fol. 71. 1. Misna Gittin, c. 1. sect. 2.((c) Itinerar. p. 36. (d) De Bello Jud. l. 2. c. 10. sect. 2.((e) De locis Hebraicis, fol. 96. 6. (f) Magdeburg. Hist. Eccles. cent. 4. c. 2. p. 2. cent. 5. c. 2. p. 2. c. 10. p. 550. cent. 6. c. 2. p. 3.((g) Palestina Illustrata, l. 3. p. 542. (h) T. Bab. Taanith, fol. 7. 2. & Moed. Katon, fol. 16. 2. Yebamot, fol. 45. 1.((i) Juchasin, fol. 68. 2. & T. Bab. Sota, fol. 37. 2.((k) T. Bab. Sota, fol. 40. 1. Juchasin, fol. 71. 1.((l) T. Bab. Sota, fol. 43. 2.((m) Itinerar. p. 36.

Geneva Study Bible

And when we had finished our course from Tyre, we came to Ptolemais, and saluted the brethren, and abode with them one day.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Meyer's NT Commentary

Acts 21:7. Διανύειν] to complete entirely, only here in the N.T., but very often in classical writers, particularly of ways, journeys, and the like. But we, entirely bringing to an end (διανύσαντες is contemporaneous with κατηντήσαμεν) the voyage, arrived from Tyre (from which we had sailed for this last stage) at Ptolemais (from which we now continued our journey by land).

τ. πλοῦν] from Macedonia, Acts 20:6. Πτολεμάϊς, the ancient עַכּוֹ (even yet called by the Arabs عكد, by the Europeans St. Jean d’ Acre), on the Mediterranean Sea, belonging to the tribe of Asher (Jdg 1:13), but never possessed by the Jews (hence Hiros. Gittin. f. 43. 3 : “In Acone est terra Israelitica, et non”), reckoned by the Greeks as belonging to Phoenicia (Ptol. v. 15; Strabo, xvi. p. 758; Plin. N. H. v. 17), and endowed by Claudius with the Roman citizenship.

Expositor's Greek Testament

Acts 21:7. διανύσαντες: “and when we had finished the voyage from Tyre we arrived at Ptolemais,” R.V. (so in effect A.V.), but Page (so Wendt) renders “but we having (thereby) completed our voyage (i.e., from Macedonia, Acts 20:6), came from Tyre to Ptolemais,” on the ground that διανύω would not be used of the short journey to Ptolemais from Tyre.—Πτολεμαΐδα: the ancient Accho and the modern Acre, Arab. Akka; St. Jean d’Acre, mentioned here for the last time in Scripture. About thirty miles south of Tyre. In Jdg 1:31 it was assigned to Asher, but it was never taken by Israel, and was always reckoned as belonging to the Philistine towns, and later by the Greeks as belonging to Phœnicia. In its stormy history it was held in succession by Babylonians and Persians (Strabo, xvi., 2, 25), and on the first division of Alexander’s kingdom it was assigned to Ptolemy Soter (Ptolemy I.), from whom it may have derived its name (so Hamburger). Schürer however refers the name to Ptolemy II. (Philadelphus), and others to Ptolemy Lathurus. In the Syro-Egyptian wars its importance as a military station was manifested, since the power which held it could close the road down the Syrian coast to Egypt. To the Jews it was always hostile, 1Ma 5:15, Jos., Ant., xii., 8, 2, 1Ma 12:45, Jos., Ant., xiii., 6, 2, and later in history when the Jewish War broke out against Rome, the Jews, two thousand in number, were slaughtered in Ptolemais, Jos., B.J., ii., 18, 5. After falling to the Parthians, it finally passed under the dominion of Rome, but although it was called colonia Ptolemais under the Emperor Claudius, Pliny, v., 19, it does not seem to have possessed the actual privileges of a colony (Schürer). See on its earlier and modern history, Hamburger, Real-Encyclopädie des Judentums, i., 1, p. 41; “Acco,” Hastings’ B.D., “Accho,” B.D.2; Schürer, Jewish People, div. ii., vol. i., p. 90, E.T. It was only separated from Tyre by a short day’s voyage, if the wind was favourable. Here Herod landed on his return from Italy to Syria, Jos., Ant., xiv., 15, 1.—τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς: a Christian Church at Ptolemais; founded perhaps by Philip the Evangelist. It is also very possible that a Church may have existed there ever since the dispersion after the death of St. Stephen, Acts 11:19. On the times which St. Paul probably visited it see “Ptolemais” B.D.1.

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

7–14. Paul’s Journey to Cesarea, and his Stay there

And when … Ptolemais] For “our course” Rev. Ver. has “the voyage” and for “came to” reads “arrived at.” For the same verb in Acts 16:1, “came to” is left.

Ptolemais is the name given during Macedonian and Roman rule to the city anciently called Accho (Jdg 1:31), and known in modern history as St Jean d’Acre or often simply Acre. In the earliest times it was the most important town on that portion of the coast, but at the beginning of the Christian era was far surpassed by Cæsarea, which was the residence of Herod and of the Roman governor.

and saluted the brethren] There was therefore a Christian society in Ptolemais also. As the place lay on the great high road by the coast, it was certain to be visited by some of the earliest preachers, when the disciples were dispersed from Jerusalem after the death of Stephen.

Bengel's Gnomen

Acts 21:7. Τὸν πλοῦν, our course or voyage) Our whole voyage from Macedonia, ch. Acts 20:6.—τοὺς) the brethren whom we knew there.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 7. - The voyage for our course, A.V.; arrived at for came to, A.V.; we saluted for saluted, A.V. When we had finished; διανύσαντες, only found here in the New Testament, but not uncommon in classical Greek for finishing a voyage, or a journey, or a race-course (Euripides, Hesiod, Xenophon, etc.). St. Luke seems to indicate by the phrase that the sea-voyage ended here. Arrived at; κατηντήσαμεν, a favorite word of St. Luke's for arriving at a place (Acts 16:1; Acts 18:19, 24; Acts 20:15; Acts 25:13; Acts 27:12, etc.), Ptolemais. The ancient Accho of Judges 1:31, then a Canaanite city in the tribe of Asher, but not subsequently mentioned in the Old Testament. In 1 Macc. 5:15, 22 and elsewhere it is called, as here, Ptolemais, having received the name from one of the Ptolemies, probably either Sorer or Lagi; but in the Middle Ages it appears as St. Jean d'Acre, and is now commonly called Acre. It lies on the north side of the spacious bay of Carmel, but is not in all weathers very safe harborage. It is an easy day's sail, under thirty miles, from Tyre. When St. Paul was there it had recently been made a Roman colony by the Emperor Claudius, and was important as a commercial city. Saluted the brethren. The Christians there. We have no account of the evangelization of Ptolemais. Perhaps the gospel was first preached there to the Jewish colony by those who traveled "as far as Phoenico," after "the persecution that arose about Stephen" (Acts 11:19); for Ptolemais was reckoned as belonging to Phenicia (Ptol., 5:15; Strabo, 16. p. 758; Pliny, 'Nat. Hist.,' 5:17; all quoted by Meyer). Acts 21:7

Vincent's Word Studies

Finished (διανύσαντες)

Only here in New Testament.

Saluted

The word rendered take leave in Acts 21:6. See on Acts 20:1.