Apollos, Priscilla And Aquila
APOLLOS, PRISCILLA AND AQUILA
ACTS 18:24-28
Apollos must have been a humble man to listen to Aquila and Priscilla.
Apollos’ gifts were considerable:
Something of the infectiousness of his zeal is hinted at in this memorable description: “fervent in spirit,” or perhaps, “bubbling over with enthusiasm” (cf. Romans 12:11 for the same phrase). Yet he possessed a commendable trait which must have endeared him to all; his humility and teachableness which did not refuse to accept fuller instruction of “the way of God” (18:26). The maxim of Proverbs 9:9 sums it up.
Following this “course of instruction” which Priscilla and Aquila (note the order of names) gave him at Ephesus, there was an increase in Apollos’ influence as he crossed over the Aegean Sea to southern Greece. Here he was welcomed, and exercised a two-sided ministry. He stimulated and strengthened the believers (18:27), probably at Corinth (where unhappily his name became associated with a clique in the church, 1 Corinthians 1:12; 3:4,22). Incidentally Paul pays a warm tribute to his work at Corinth (1 Corinthians 3:6: “Apollos watered” the spiritual shoots and slips planted by the apostle). Then, he conducted a public campaign of “Christian evidences” against the denials and contradictions of the Jews (18:28).
Notes 18:24: Apollos’ culture derived from the advantage of living at Alexandria, the Sorbonne of the ancient world, famed for its library and letters. Apollos’ knowledge of the Old Testament would be that of the Septuagint version, and his religious experience seems to have been that of a pre-Pentecostal nature. Possibly he was a member of a group which venerated John the Baptist, although recognizing the existence of Jesus’ Messiahship and an experimental knowledge of the Holy Spirit (see on chapter 19). This explains the effectiveness of his later ministry, based on his ready aptitude to learn (18:28). 18:27: a “letter of commendation” is meant, like those referred to in 2 Corinthians 3:1.