18After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. ²There he met a Jew named Aquila, who was a native of Pontus. Aquila had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla. The emperor Claudius had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see Aquila and Priscilla. ³They were tentmakers, just as he was. So he stayed and worked with them. ⁴Every Sabbath day he went to the synagogue. He was trying to get both Jews and Greeks to believe in the Lord.

⁵Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia. Then Paul spent all his time preaching. He gave witness to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ. ⁶But the Jews opposed Paul. They treated him badly. He didn’t like this. So he shook out his clothes. Then he said to them, “Anything that happens to you will be your own fault! Don’t blame me for it! From now on I will go to people who are not Jews.”

⁷Then Paul left the synagogue. He went next door to the house of Titius Justus, a man who worshiped God. ⁸Crispus was the synagogue ruler. He and his whole family came to believe in the Lord. Many others who lived in Corinth heard Paul. They too believed and were baptized.

⁹One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Keep on speaking. Don’t be silent. ¹⁰I am with you. No one will attack you and harm you. I have many people in this city.” ¹¹So Paul stayed there for a year and a half. He taught them God’s word.

¹²At that time Gallio was governor of Achaia. The Jews got together and attacked Paul. They brought him into court. ¹³“This man,” they charged, “is trying to talk people into worshiping God in ways that are against the law.”

¹⁴Paul was about to speak up for himself. But just then Gallio spoke to the Jews. “You Jews are not claiming that Paul has committed a crime, whether large or small,” he said. “If you were, it would make sense for me to listen to you. ¹⁵But this is about your own law. It is a question of words and names. Settle the matter yourselves. I will not be a judge of such things.” ¹⁶So he had them thrown out of the court. ¹⁷Then all the Jews turned against Sosthenes. He was the synagogue ruler. They beat him up in front of the court. But Gallio didn’t care at all.

Priscilla and Aquila Teach Apollos

¹⁸Paul stayed in Corinth for some time. Then he left the believers and sailed for Syria. Priscilla and Aquila went with him. Before he sailed, he had his hair cut off at Cenchrea. He did this because he had made a promise to God. ¹⁹They arrived at Ephesus. There Paul said good-by to Priscilla and Aquila. He himself went into the synagogue and talked with the Jews. ²⁰The Jews asked him to spend more time with them. But he said no. ²¹As he left, he made them a promise. “If God wants me to,” he said, “I will come back.” Then he sailed from Ephesus. ²²When he landed at Caesarea, he went up to Jerusalem. There he greeted the church. He then went down to Antioch.

²³Paul spent some time in Antioch. Then he left and traveled all over Galatia and Phrygia. He gave strength to all the believers there.

²⁴At that time a Jew named Apollos came to Ephesus. He was an educated man from Alexandria. He knew the Scriptures very well. ²⁵Apollos had been taught the way of the Lord. He spoke with great power. He taught the truth about Jesus. But he only knew about John’s baptism. ²⁶He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. Priscilla and Aquila heard him. So they invited him to their home. There they gave him a better understanding of the way of God.

²⁷Apollos wanted to go to Achaia. The brothers agreed with him. They wrote to the believers there. They asked them to welcome him. When he arrived, he was a great help to those who had become believers by God’s grace. ²⁸He argued strongly against the Jews in public meetings. He proved from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ.

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