Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible · Acts Kabanata 21

Acts 21:1. Coos,— Coos, or Cos, was one of the islands of Cyclades, famous for the worship of Esculapius, and the temple of Juno. There also Hippocrates the prince of physicians, and Apelles the celebrated painter, were born. Rhodes was another island, famous for the worship of the sun, and for the brazen Colossus erected there, which was reckoned one of the seven wonders of the world. Patara was the chief city and port of Lycia.

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Acts 21:3. Tyre,— The metropolis of Phoenicia, Act 21:2 and the most famous mart of the East. See the notes on Isaiah 23:0.

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Acts 21:4. That he should not go up to Jerusalem— That is, if he tendered his own liberty and safety. It is necessary to take it with this limitation; for had the Spirit forbidden his journey to Jerusalem, we may be sure he would have desisted from it. This verse might be rendered better, And we tarried there seven days, meeting with some disciples, who said, &c.

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Acts 21:7. Ptolemais,— Was a celebrated city on the sea-coast, which fell by lot to the tribe of Asher; its ancient name was Accho. Judges 1:31. It was enlarged and beautified by the first of the Egyptian Ptolemies, whence it took its new appellation. It was the scene of many celebrated actions in the holy war. The Turks, who are now masters of all this region, call it Acca, or Acra; and notwithstanding all the advantages of its situation on one of the finest bays of that coast, and in the neighbourhood of Mount Carmel, it is now, like many other noble and ancient cities, only a heap of ruins.

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Acts 21:8. Philip— One of the seven deacons, ch. Act 6:5 and who had settled at Caesarea after he had baptized the eunuch, ch. Acts 8:40. Concerning Caesarea see the note on ch. Acts 8:40.

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Acts 21:9. Virgins, which did prophesy.— The miraculous gifts of the Spirit were sometimes communicated to women as well as to men, agreeably to the prophesy recorded, ch. Acts 2:17-18.

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Acts 21:11. He took Paul's girdle,— This was in the manner of the ancient prophets, who frequently attended their predictions with significant and prophetic actions. See Jeremiah 13:1.

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Acts 21:15. We took up our carriages,— Making up our baggage, we went, &c.

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Acts 21:16. Brought with them one Mnason, &c.— Mnason was a native of Cyprus, but an inhabitant of Jerusalem, who probablyhad been converted either by Christ or the apostles, at the first opening of the gospel. With St. Paul's arrival in Jerusalem at this time, ended his third apostolical journey.

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Acts 21:18. James;— The apostle, commonly called James the less, and the brother of our Lord.

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Acts 21:20. How many thousands— The original is μυριαδες, myriads, which may only denote in general a great number; and if we consider what a vast confluence there must have been at Jerusalem on occasion of this great festival, we need not be surprised at the expression. See Acts 21:27.

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Acts 21:26. To signify the accomplishment, &c.— Dr. Heylin renders this, and declared how many days the purification was to last, and when the offering was to be made for each of them. This seems to be the true meaning of the passage: accordingly Dr. Benson's account of it is this: "The next day, taking the four men, St. Paul began to purify himself along with them; entering into the temple, and publicly declaring that he would observe the separation of a Nazarite, and continue itfor seven days: at the end of which days of purification he would bring an offering for himself and the other four who joined with him, according to what was appointed in the law of Moses." See on Numbers 6:4. To what has been said in the preceding note, in order to vindicate the apostle's character in this transaction, we may observe, that he had not taught all the Jewish Christians in Gentile countries to forsake the law of Moses; nay, he does not appear to have taught it as yet to any of them directly and immediately: that he took upon him the vow of a Nazarite, because it was an indifferent thing, or lawful for him to comply with the deep-rooted prejudices of the Jewish Christians: that if he had not complied at this time, and in the present circumstances, the Christianity of the Jewish converts would have been in danger, or at least their charity for, and union with, the Gentile churches which he had planted; and that if he had gone about to have explained himself immediately and at large, the consequence would probably have been as bad.

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Acts 21:27. The Jews which were of Asia,— St. Paul had lately spent three years in preaching there, and, notwithstanding the success his labours wereattended with, had met with great opposition from these people; so that it is no wonder they should be the leaders in such an assault upon him. See ch. Acts 19:9 Acts 20:3. 1 Corinthians 16:9.

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Acts 21:28. Teacheth—against—the law, and this place:— Every thing contrary to the law would be justly interpreted as contrary to the temple which was so evidently supported by a regard to it: but perhaps St. Paul might have declared that the destruction of the temple was approaching; which declaration we know was charged on Stephen as a great crime, ch. Acts 6:14. They urged further against St. Paul, that he brought Greeks, or Gentiles, into the temple. Now it is universally acknowledged, that any stranger might worship in that which was called "the court of the Gentiles;" but these zealots, without any proof but an uncertain conjecture and rumour, imagined that St. Paul had brought some uncircumcised Gentiles into the inner part of the court, which was appropriated to the people of Israel, and notified as such by Greek and Latin inscriptions on several of the pillars which stood in the wall that separated it, viz. "No foreigner must enter here."If any person violated this law, he was liable to be put to death. But it is to be observed by the way, that a proselyte, who by circumcision had declared his submission to, and acceptance of the whole Jewish religion, was no longer looked upon as a foreigner, but as one naturalized,—and so a fellow-citizen.

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Acts 21:39. A Jew of Tarsus,— The inhabitants of Tarsus, (which city seems to have taken its name from Tarshish, the son of Javan, (Genesis 10:4.) boasted extremely of their antiquity; and Strabo tells us, that they were so considerable on account of learning, as well as commerce, wealth, and grandeur, that they might dispute the prize with Athens and Alexandria. Tarsus was the metropolis of Cilicia.

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