Paul in Corinth

18 After this, Paul left Athens and went to the city of Corinth. ² In Corinth he met a Jewish man named Aquila and his wife Priscilla. Aquila had been born in Pontus, and they had recently come from Italy because Claudius had ordered all Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to visit them, ³ and because they made tents for a living as he did, he stayed with them and they worked together.

⁴ On every day of rest—a holy day, Paul would discuss ⌞Scripture⌟ in the synagogue. He tried to win over Jews and Greeks who had converted to Judaism. ⁵ But when Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul devoted all his time to teaching God’s word. He assured the Jews that Jesus is the Messiah. ⁶ But they opposed him and insulted him. So Paul shook the dust from his clothes and told them, “You’re responsible for your own death. I’m innocent. From now on I’m going to people who are not Jewish.”

⁷ Then he left the synagogue and went to the home of a man named Titius Justus, who was a convert to Judaism. His house was next door to the synagogue. ⁸ The synagogue leader Crispus and his whole family believed in the Lord. Many Corinthians who heard Paul believed and were baptized.

⁹ One night the Lord said to Paul in a vision, “Don’t be afraid to speak out! Don’t be silent! ¹⁰ I’m with you. No one will attack you or harm you. I have many people in this city.”

¹¹ Paul lived in Corinth for a year and a half and taught God’s word to them.

¹² While Gallio was governor of Greece, the Jews had one thought in mind. They attacked Paul and brought him to court. ¹³ They said, “This man is persuading people to worship God in ways that are against Moses’ Teachings.”

¹⁴ Paul was about to answer when Gallio said to the Jews, “If there were some kind of misdemeanor or crime involved, reason would demand that I put up with you Jews. ¹⁵ But since you’re disputing words, names, and your own teachings, you’ll have to take care of that yourselves. I don’t want to be a judge who gets involved in those things.” ¹⁶ So Gallio had them forced out of his court.

¹⁷ Then all ⌞the governor’s officers⌟ took Sosthenes, the synagogue leader, and beat him in front of the court. But Gallio couldn’t have cared less.

Paul’s Return Trip to Antioch

¹⁸ After staying in Corinth quite a while longer, Paul left ⌞for Ephesus⌟. Priscilla and Aquila went with him. In the city of Cenchrea, Aquila had his hair cut, since he had taken a vow. From Cenchrea they took a boat headed for Syria ¹⁹ and arrived in the city of Ephesus, where Paul left Priscilla and Aquila. Paul went into the synagogue and had a discussion with the Jews. ²⁰ The Jews asked him to stay longer, but he refused. ²¹ As he left, he told them, “I’ll come back to visit you if God wants me to.”

Paul took a boat from Ephesus ²² and arrived in the city of Caesarea. He went ⌞to Jerusalem⌟, greeted the church, and went back to the city of Antioch.

²³ After spending some time in Antioch, Paul went through the regions of Galatia and Phrygia, where he strengthened ⌞the faith of⌟ all the disciples.

Apollos Tells Others about Jesus

²⁴ A Jew named Apollos, who had been born in Alexandria, arrived in the city of Ephesus. He was an eloquent speaker and knew how to use the Scriptures in a powerful way. ²⁵ He had been instructed in the Lord’s way and spoke enthusiastically. He accurately taught about Jesus but knew only about the baptism John performed. ²⁶ He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him ⌞home⌟ with them and explained God’s way to him more accurately.

²⁷ When Apollos wanted to travel to Greece, the believers ⌞in Ephesus⌟ encouraged him. They wrote to the disciples in Greece to tell them to welcome him. When he arrived in Greece, God’s kindness ^[a] enabled him to help the believers a great deal. ²⁸ In public Apollos helped them by clearly showing from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Messiah and that the Jews were wrong.