Paul in Macedonia and Greece

20 After the uproar had ceased, Paul sent for (A)the disciples, and when he had [a]encouraged them and taken his leave of them, he left (B)to go to (C)Macedonia. When he had gone through those regions and had given them much [b]encouragement, he came to Greece. And there he spent three months, and when (D)a plot was formed against him by the Jews as he was about to set sail for (E)Syria, he decided to return through (F)Macedonia. And [c]he was accompanied by Sopater of (G)Berea, the son of Pyrrhus, and by (H)Aristarchus and Secundus of the (I)Thessalonians, and (J)Gaius of (K)Derbe, and (L)Timothy, and (M)Tychicus and (N)Trophimus of [d](O)Asia. Now these had gone on ahead and were waiting for (P)us at (Q)Troas. (R)We sailed from (S)Philippi after [e](T)the days of Unleavened Bread, and reached them at (U)Troas within five days; and we stayed there for seven days.

On (V)the first day of the week, when (W)we were gathered together to (X)break bread, Paul began talking to them, intending to leave the next day, and he prolonged his [f]message until midnight. There were many (Y)lamps in the (Z)upstairs room where we were gathered together. And there was a young man named [g]Eutychus sitting [h]on the window sill, sinking into a deep sleep; and as Paul kept on talking, Eutychus was overcome by sleep and fell down from the third floor, and was picked up dead. 10 But Paul went down and (AA)fell upon him, and after embracing him, he (AB)said, “[i]Do not be troubled, for [j]he is still alive.” 11 When Paul had gone back up and had (AC)broken the bread and [k]eaten, he talked with them a long while until daybreak, and then left. 12 They took away the boy alive, and were [l]greatly comforted.

Troas to Miletus

13 But (AD)we went ahead to the ship and set sail for Assos, intending from there to take Paul on board; for that was what he had arranged, intending himself to go [m]by land. 14 And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and came to Mitylene. 15 Sailing from there, we arrived the following day opposite Chios; and the next day we crossed over to Samos, and on the following day we came to (AE)Miletus. 16 For Paul had decided to sail past (AF)Ephesus so that he would not have to lose time in [n](AG)Asia; for he was hurrying, if it might be possible for him (AH)to be in Jerusalem (AI)the day of Pentecost.

Farewell to Ephesus

17 From Miletus he sent word to (AJ)Ephesus and called to himself (AK)the elders of the church. 18 And when they came to him, he said to them,

“You yourselves know, (AL)from the first day that I set foot in [o]Asia, how I was with you the whole time, 19 serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and trials which came upon me [p]through (AM)the plots of the Jews; 20 how I (AN)did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was beneficial, and teaching you publicly and [q]from house to house, 21 solemnly (AO)testifying to both Jews and Greeks of (AP)repentance toward God and (AQ)faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. 22 And now, behold, bound by the [r]Spirit, (AR)I am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there, 23 except that (AS)the Holy Spirit solemnly (AT)testifies to me in every city, saying that (AU)chains and afflictions await me. 24 But (AV)I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, so that I may (AW)finish my course and (AX)the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to (AY)testify solemnly of the gospel of (AZ)God’s grace.

25 “And now behold, I know that all of you, among whom I went about (BA)preaching the kingdom, will no longer see my face. 26 Therefore, I [s]testify to you this day that (BB)I am [t]innocent of the blood of all people. 27 For I (BC)did not shrink from declaring to you the whole (BD)purpose of God. 28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all (BE)the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you [u]overseers, to shepherd (BF)the church of God which (BG)He [v]purchased [w]with His own blood. 29 I know that after my departure (BH)savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing (BI)the flock; 30 and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things to draw away (BJ)the disciples after them. 31 Therefore, be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of (BK)three years I did not cease to admonish each one (BL)with tears. 32 And now I (BM)entrust you to God and to (BN)the word of His grace, which is able to (BO)build you up and to give you (BP)the inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33 (BQ)I have coveted no one’s silver or gold or clothes. 34 You yourselves know that (BR)these hands served my own needs and the (BS)men who were with me. 35 In everything I showed you that by working hard in this way you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’

36 When he had said these things, he (BT)knelt down and prayed with them all. 37 And [x]they all began to weep aloud and [y](BU)embraced Paul, and repeatedly kissed him, 38 [z]grieving especially over (BV)the word which he had spoken, that they would not see his face again. And they were (BW)accompanying him to the ship.

Footnotes

  1. Acts 20:1 Or exhorted
  2. Acts 20:2 Or exhortation
  3. Acts 20:4 Lit there accompanied him
  4. Acts 20:4 I.e., west coast province of Asia Minor
  5. Acts 20:6 I.e., Passover week
  6. Acts 20:7 Lit word, speech
  7. Acts 20:9 Eutychus means good fortune; i.e., “Lucky”
  8. Acts 20:9 Or at the window
  9. Acts 20:10 Or Stop being troubled
  10. Acts 20:10 Lit his soul is in him
  11. Acts 20:11 Lit tasted
  12. Acts 20:12 Lit not moderately
  13. Acts 20:13 Or on foot
  14. Acts 20:16 I.e., west coast province of Asia Minor
  15. Acts 20:18 See note v 16
  16. Acts 20:19 Lit by
  17. Acts 20:20 Or in the various private homes
  18. Acts 20:22 Or in spirit
  19. Acts 20:26 Or call you to witness
  20. Acts 20:26 Lit pure from
  21. Acts 20:28 Or bishops
  22. Acts 20:28 Lit acquired
  23. Acts 20:28 Lit through
  24. Acts 20:37 Lit a considerable weeping of all occurred
  25. Acts 20:37 Lit threw themselves on Paul’s neck
  26. Acts 20:38 Lit suffering pain

Paul Travels Through Macedonia and Greece

20 Now after the turmoil had ceased, Paul summoned[a] the disciples, and after[b] encouraging them,[c] he said farewell and[d] departed to travel to Macedonia. And after he[e] had gone through those regions and encouraged them at length,[f] he came to Greece and stayed[g] three months. Because[h] a plot was made against him by the Jews as he[i] was about to set sail for Syria, he came to a decision to return through Macedonia. And Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Berea, and Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, and Gaius from Derbe, and Timothy, and Tychicus and Trophimus from Asia, were accompanying him. And these had gone on ahead and[j] were waiting for us in Troas. And we sailed away from Philippi after the days of Unleavened Bread and came to them at Troas within five days, where we stayed seven days.

Eutychus Falls from a Window

And on the first day of the week, when[k] we had assembled to break bread, Paul began conversing[l] with them, because he[m] was going to leave on the next day, and he extended his[n] message until midnight. Now there were quite a few lamps in the upstairs room where we were gathered. And a certain young man named[o] Eutychus who was sitting in the window was sinking into a deep sleep while[p] Paul was conversing at length. Being overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and was picked up dead. 10 But Paul went down and[q] threw himself on him, and putting his arms around him,[r] said, “Do not be distressed, for his life is in him.” 11 So he went up and broke bread,[s] and when he[t] had eaten and talked for a long time, until dawn, then he departed. 12 And they led the youth away alive, and were greatly[u] comforted.

The Voyage to Miletus

13 But we went on ahead to the ship and[v] put out to sea for Assos, intending to take Paul on board there. For having made arrangements in this way, he himself was intending to travel by land. 14 And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and[w] went to Mitylene. 15 And we sailed from there on the next day, and[x] arrived opposite Chios. And on the next day we approached Samos, and on the following day we came to Miletus. 16 For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus so that he would not be having to spend time in Asia.[y] For he was hurrying if it could be possible for him to be in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost.

Paul’s Farewell to the Ephesian Elders

17 And from Miletus he sent word[z] to Ephesus and[aa] summoned the elders of the church. 18 And when they came to him, he said to them, “You know from the first day on which I set foot in Asia[ab] how I was the whole time with you— 19 serving the Lord with all humility and with tears, and with the trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews— 20 how I did not shrink from proclaiming to you anything that would be profitable, and from teaching you in public and from house to house, 21 testifying both to Jews and to Greeks with respect to repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus.

22 “And now behold, bound by the Spirit I am traveling to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there,[ac] 23 except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in town after town, saying that bonds and persecutions await me. 24 But I consider my[ad] life as worth nothing[ae] to myself, in order to finish my mission and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

25 “And now behold, I know that all of you, among whom I went about proclaiming the kingdom, will see my face no more. 26 Therefore I testify to you on this very day that I am guiltless of the blood of all of you,[af] 27 for I did not shrink from proclaiming to you the whole purpose of God. 28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock among which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as overseers, to shepherd the church of God which he obtained through the blood of his own Son.[ag] 29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 And from among you yourselves men will arise, speaking perversions of the truth[ah] in order to draw away the disciples after them. 31 Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for three years I did not stop warning each one of you[ai] with tears.

32 “And now I entrust you to God and to the message of his grace, which is able to build you[aj] up and to give you[ak] the inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33 I have desired no one’s silver or gold or clothing! 34 You yourselves know that these hands served to meet[al] my needs and the needs of[am] those who were with me. 35 I have shown you with respect to all things that by[an] working hard in this way it is necessary to help those who are in need, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus that he himself said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”[ao]

36 And when he[ap] had said these things, he fell to his knees and[aq] prayed with them all. 37 And there was considerable weeping by all, and hugging[ar] Paul, they kissed him, 38 especially distressed at the statement that he had said, that they were going to see his face no more. And they accompanied him to the ship.

Footnotes

  1. Acts 20:1 Here the participle (“summoned”) has been translated as a finite verb in keeping with English style
  2. Acts 20:1 Here “after” is supplied as a component of the participle (“encouraging”) which is understood as temporal
  3. Acts 20:1 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  4. Acts 20:1 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“departed”) has been translated as a finite verb
  5. Acts 20:2 Here “after” is supplied as a component of the participle (“had gone through”) which is understood as temporal
  6. Acts 20:2 Literally “with many a word”
  7. Acts 20:3 Here the participle (“stayed”) has been translated as a finite verb in keeping with English style
  8. Acts 20:3 Here “because” is supplied as a component of the causal genitive absolute participle (“was made”)
  9. Acts 20:3 Here “as” is supplied as a component of the participle (“was about to”) which is understood as temporal
  10. Acts 20:5 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“had gone on ahead”) has been translated as a finite verb
  11. Acts 20:7 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“had assembled”)
  12. Acts 20:7 The imperfect tense has been translated as ingressive here (“began conversing”)
  13. Acts 20:7 Here “because” is supplied as a component of the participle (“was going to”) which is understood as causal
  14. Acts 20:7 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  15. Acts 20:9 Literally “by name”
  16. Acts 20:9 Here “while” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“was conversing”)
  17. Acts 20:10 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“went down”) has been translated as a finite verb
  18. Acts 20:10 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  19. Acts 20:11 *This participle and the previous one (“went up”) have been translated as finite verbs in keeping with English style
  20. Acts 20:11 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“had eaten”) which is understood as temporal
  21. Acts 20:12 Literally “were not moderately”
  22. Acts 20:13 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“went on ahead”) has been translated as a finite verb
  23. Acts 20:14 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“took … on board”) has been translated as a finite verb
  24. Acts 20:15 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“sailed”) has been translated as a finite verb
  25. Acts 20:16 A reference to the Roman province of Asia (modern Asia Minor)
  26. Acts 20:17 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  27. Acts 20:17 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“sent”) has been translated as a finite verb
  28. Acts 20:18 A reference to the Roman province of Asia (modern Asia Minor)
  29. Acts 20:22 Literally “in it”
  30. Acts 20:24 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  31. Acts 20:24 Or “not a single word”; literally “not any thing”
  32. Acts 20:26 *The words “of you” are not in the Greek text but are implied
  33. Acts 20:28 Or “through his own blood”; the Greek construction can be taken either way, with “Son” implied if the meaning is “through the blood of his own”
  34. Acts 20:30 Literally “crooked things”
  35. Acts 20:31 The words “of you” are not in the Greek text but are implied
  36. Acts 20:32 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  37. Acts 20:32 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  38. Acts 20:34 The words “to meet” are not in the Greek text but are supplied for clarity
  39. Acts 20:34 The words “the needs of” are supplied in keeping with English style to maintain the parallelism with the earlier phrase “my needs”
  40. Acts 20:35 Here “by” is supplied as a component of the participle (“working hard”) which is understood as means
  41. Acts 20:35 Perhaps an allusion to Matt 10:8; these exact words are not found in the NT gospels
  42. Acts 20:36 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“had said”) which is understood as temporal
  43. Acts 20:36 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“fell to”) has been translated as a finite verb
  44. Acts 20:37 Literally “falling on the neck of”