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New Testament in a Year

Read the New Testament from start to finish, from Matthew to Revelation.

Duration: 365 days

Acts 20:1-16

Chapter 20

Journey to Macedonia and Greece.^[a] ¹When the uproar was over, Paul sent for the disciples, and after encouraging them, he embraced them and set out on his journey to Macedonia.^[b] ²As he traveled through those areas, he gave the believers much encouragement. Then he arrived in Greece, ³where he stayed for three months.

Return to Troas. He was about to set sail for Syria when a plot against him was devised by the Jews, and so he decided to return by way of Macedonia. ⁴He was accompanied by Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Beroea, by Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, by Gaius from Derbe, and by Timothy, as well as by Tychicus and Trophimus from Asia.^[c] ⁵They went ahead and were waiting for us in Troas.^[d] ⁶We sailed from Philippi after the feast of Unleavened Bread, and five days later we joined them in Troas, where we stayed for seven days.

Paul’s Witness and Testament^[e]

Paul Raises Eutychus to Life. ⁷On the first day of the week, when we gathered for the breaking of the bread, Paul spoke to the people, and because he was going to leave on the next day, he continued speaking until midnight. ⁸There were many lamps in the upper room where we were assembled, ⁹and a young man named Eutychus, who was sitting on the window ledge, became ever more drowsy as Paul talked on and on. Finally, overcome by sleep, he fell to the ground three floors below, and when they picked him up, he was dead.

¹⁰Paul went down, threw himself upon him, and took him in his arms. “Do not be alarmed,” he said. “He is still alive.”^[f] ¹¹Then he went back upstairs and broke bread and ate. He went on to converse with them until dawn, at which time he left. ¹²Meanwhile, they had taken the boy home, greatly relieved that he was alive.

¹³Journey to Miletus. We went on ahead to the ship and set sail for Assos, where we were to take Paul aboard, since he intended to continue his journey by land. ¹⁴When he met us in Assos, we took him aboard and went to Mitylene.

¹⁵We sailed from there, and on the following day we reached a point opposite Chios. A day later, we reached Samos; and the day after that, we came to Miletus. ¹⁶For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus in order to avoid spending time in the province of Asia. He was eager to be in Jerusalem, if possible, on the day of Pentecost.

Footnotes

Acts 20:1 This departure constitutes an important moment as indicated by the fact that Luke inserts a list of Paul’s companions. Then he describes three brief journeys: one to Greece, to revisit the communities, especially that of Corinth, which had caused some trouble; the second to Troas; and the third to Miletus, on the return route to Jerusalem.
In connection with these journeys we discover new aspects of the life of the communities. The Eucharist, which had been mentioned at the beginning of Acts (2:46), is clearly referred to here: Christians came together on Sunday (“the first day of the week”) in order to “break bread,” after a lengthy hearing of the Gospel and a communal reflection on it. The raising of the boy is a sign of the presence of the Lord; through his Resurrection, life is possible in its fullness.
Acts 20:1 Paul had apparently been seeking to preach in Troas on his way to Macedonia, meet Titus at Troas with a report from Corinth (see 2 Cor 2:12f), and continue collecting the offering for Judea (see Rom 15:25-28; 1 Cor 16:1-4; 2 Cor 8:1—9:15).
Acts 20:4 These men have no doubt been assigned to accompany Paul and the collection for the needy in Judea (see 2 Cor 8:23).
Acts 20:5 Here begins the second so-called “we-section” of Acts (see note on Acts 16:9-15).
Acts 20:7 In this chapter, it is no longer a case of proclaiming the word or creating a Church; it is a moment of respite and retreat that clears up Paul’s personal destiny and expresses the principal concerns for the development and perseverance of a Church. Paul is aware that he will never return (see Acts 21:14), and he envisages undergoing the same suffering as Christ. The Book of Acts will not recount his martyrdom, no more than it will enlighten us about Peter’s martyrdom, for this Book is not intended to be a biography of the apostles. Its purpose is to make known the life of the Churches and the power of the Spirit who animates them, the great realities that ensure their development, their relationships and their unity. The communities are to find themselves devoted to one another, but with the Spirit (v. 28) and the living tradition that carries them along. The atmosphere recalls Christ’s discourse after the Last Supper (Jn 14–16). Paul gives his testament.
Acts 20:10 Paul’s action of throwing himself upon a boy thought to be dead recalls that of Elijah in raising the son of the widow of Zarephath (1 Ki 17:21) and that of Elisha in raising the son of the Shunammite (2 Ki 4:34). Thus, as Peter had raised Tabitha (Acts 9:40), so now Paul raises Eutychus.

New Catholic Bible (NCB)