_PAUL, AFTER HIS SHIPWRECK, IS KINDLY ENTERTAINED OF THE BARBARIANS: THE VIPER ON HIS HAND HURTETH HIM NOT: HE HEALETH MANY DISEASES IN THE ISLAND: THEY DEPART TOWARDS ROME: HE DECLARETH TO THE JEWS THE CAUSE OF HIS COMING: AFTER HIS PREACHING, SOME WERE PERSUADED, AND SOME BELIEVED NOT: YET HE PREA... [ Continue Reading ]
ESCAPED,— That is, _Got safe to land._ There were two islands called _Melita;_ this was that which lay between Africa and Sicily, being about twelve miles broad and twenty long, and sixty distant from Sicily to the south. It took its name from the abundance of _honey_ found therein,—for _meli_ in Gr... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE BARBAROUS PEOPLE— The ancients looked upon islanders in general as uncivilized, for want of a more free and common conversation with the rest of mankind; and the Greeks and Romans in particular looked upon all nations, except their own, as barbarous. (See Romans 1:14.) The Maltese however we... [ Continue Reading ]
THE VENOMOUS BEAST— _The fierce animal_ seems the proper import of the word θηριον : Bos has shewn that the physicians use it to express any _poisonous animal;_ and Lucian applies it as here to a _viper._ To render it _beast,_ is by no means proper: _venomous creature,_ would be more allowable. It h... [ Continue Reading ]
AND HE SHOOK OFF THE BEAST— This was exactly agreeable to what our Lord had promised that his disciples should do. See Mark 16:18. Luke 10:19 and compare with this the miracles of Moses, Exodus 4:2; Exodus 7:10.... [ Continue Reading ]
BUT AFTER THEY HAD LOOKED A GREAT WHILE, &C.— Many of the Heathens thought there was something divine in thenature of _serpents,_ and that deities, or good genii, who were made use of as the instruments of delivering and honouring those who were the peculiar favourites of the gods, often appeared in... [ Continue Reading ]
OF THE CHIEF MAN OF THE ISLAND,— Grotius has produced an ancient inscription, by which it appears that the title of πρωτος, or _chief,_ was given to the governor of this island; and so it is used here by St. Luke with his accustomed accuracy of expression.... [ Continue Reading ]
WHOSE SIGN WAS CASTOR AND POLLUX.— It was the custom of the ancients to have _images_ on their ships, both at the head and stern; the first of which was called the _sign_ from whence the ship was named, and the other was that of the tutelar deity to whose care the ship was committed. There is no dou... [ Continue Reading ]
SYRACUSE,— Was the metropolis of Sicily, situated on the east side of the island, and had a beautiful prospect from every entrance both by sea and land. The port, which had the sea on both sides of it, was almost wholly surrounded with elegant buildings; all the suburbs being on both sides banked up... [ Continue Reading ]
AND FROM THENCE WE FETCHED A COMPASS,— _From thence we coasted round, and came over against Rhegium,_ a city and promontory in the southernmost part of Italy; from which, as the name of the place implies, it was supposed the island of Sicily was _broken off;_ for Rhegium comes from the verb ρηγνυω,... [ Continue Reading ]
WHEN THE BRETHREN, &C.— That is, the Christians residing at Rome,—came to meet him, sensible of the great character of St. Paul, and the important obligations which they were under to him for his excellent _Epistle_ to them written a few years before this. It is very remarkable, that we have no cert... [ Continue Reading ]
TO THE CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD:— It was customary for prisoners who were brought to Rome, to be delivered to this _praefect,_ or _captain of the praetorian band,_ who had the charge of the state prisoners, as appears from the instance of Agrippa, who was taken into custody by Macro the praetorian praef... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL— "My sufferings arise from my regard to that glorious Messiah for whom Israel professes to wait, and to that eternal life which he has purchased, and secured for those that receive him under that character, and perseveringly love and obey him.... [ Continue Reading ]
WE KNOW THAT EVERY WHERE IT IS SPOKEN AGAINST.— Justin Martyr has assigned one of the chief reasons why the _Christians_ laboured so universally under the _popular odium:_ "for the Jews (says he,) not only cursed them in their synagogues, and did all they could to raise the hatred and enmity of mank... [ Continue Reading ]
AND TESTIFIED THE KINGDOM OF GOD,— Mr. Craddock observes, that St. Paul probably insisted on two topics; that the kingdom of God, which they had so long expected, was of a spiritual, and not of a temporal nature; and that Jesus of Nazareth, in whose name he preached, was the person foretold, as the... [ Continue Reading ]
WELL SPAKE THE HOLY GHOST— The apostle could not refer to them all, because some believed; but it is probable that most of them rejected the gospel. With respect to this passage from Isaiah, which he applies to them, we observe that it is quoted oftener than any other text of the Old Testament, that... [ Continue Reading ]
AND PAUL DWELT TWO WHOLE YEARS, &C.— Before he was heard by Caesar, or his deputy, upon his appeal. As St. Luke concludes his history with St. Paul's abode at Rome, before his journey into Spain, we may infer, that he wrote both his gospel and the _Acts_ while the apostle was living. Dr. Lardner pro... [ Continue Reading ]
PREACHING THE KINGDOM OF GOD,— In consequence of St. Paul's sermons and instructions, many converts were doubtless made under divine grace; and this confinement, which seemed to have so discouraging an aspect, was on the whole a means of promoting the gospel. Many of his retired hours were also empl... [ Continue Reading ]