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Acts 20

Paul visits Macedonia and Greece again

20 After that, the trouble in Ephesus finished. Then Paul asked the believers to meet together with him. He spoke to them to help them. He told them to be strong and to trust God. Then he said ‘goodbye’ to them. After that he left them and he travelled on to Macedonia. ² He visited many places in that region. He spoke to the believers in each place. He helped them to be strong. After that, he arrived in Greece. ^{[ a ]}

³ Paul stayed in Greece for three months. One day, he was preparing to travel to Syria by ship. But then he heard news that some Jews wanted to kill him on the journey. So he decided to travel through Macedonia and return to Jerusalem. ^{[ b ]}

⁴ These are the men who went with Paul: Sopater, the son of Pyrrhus, from Berea; Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica; Gaius from Derbe; Timothy; Tychicus and Trophimus from Asia region. ⁵ These men had all left by ship before we did. When they arrived in Troas, they waited for us there. ^{[ c ]}

⁶ As for us, we sailed by ship from Philippi, after the festival when the Jews eat flat bread. ^{[ d ]}

After five days we arrived in Troas. We met the other men there and we all stayed there for seven days.

Paul visits the believers in Troas for the last time

⁷ On the Sunday evening, we met together with the believers. We broke bread into pieces and we shared it with each other. Paul spoke to the believers for a long time, until midnight. This was because he wanted to leave Troas the next day.

⁸ Many lamps were burning in the upstairs room where we met together. ⁹ A young man called Eutychus was at the meeting. He was sitting on the edge of a window. When Paul had talked for a long time, Eutychus started to sleep. When he was really sleeping, he fell out of the window. He dropped down a long way to the ground. Some of the believers lifted him up, but he was dead. ¹⁰ So Paul went down the stairs to them all. He lay on top of the young man and held him with his arms. Then Paul said to them all, ‘Do not be afraid. He is still alive.’ ¹¹ Paul went back upstairs. He shared bread with the believers and he ate more food. Paul talked to them for a long time, until the sun rose in the morning. Then he left Troas.

¹² The other believers took Eutychus to his home. They were very happy because he was alive.

Paul travels from Troas to Miletus

¹³ Paul decided to travel to Assos across the land. But we got on a ship and we sailed to Assos. We agreed with Paul that we would wait for him there. ¹⁴ When he met us at Assos, he came on the ship with us. Then we all sailed to Mitylene. ¹⁵ We sailed from there and we arrived the next day at the coast near Chios. The day after that, we came to Samos. The next day, we arrived at Miletus. ¹⁶ Paul had decided to leave quickly from there. He did not want to visit Ephesus, because he did not want to remain in Asia for a long time. Instead, he wanted to travel to Jerusalem quickly. He wanted to arrive there before the day of the Pentecost festival.

Paul meets with the leaders of the believers

¹⁷ When we were in Miletus, Paul sent someone to Ephesus with a message. This message was for the leaders of the believers in Ephesus. Paul asked them to come to Miletus to meet him there. ¹⁸ When they arrived, Paul said to them, ‘You yourselves know about everything that I did here in Asia. You saw how I lived from the first day that I arrived in this region. I was with you for the whole time. ¹⁹ I did not say that I was an important man. Instead, I worked as a servant of the Lord Jesus. I often was sad because of trouble that came to me. Some Jewish people spoke against my message. They wanted to hurt me. ²⁰ But I have not been afraid to teach God's message. I have taught you everything that would help you. I have done this outside for everyone to hear. I have also taught you in your own homes. ²¹ I have taught the same things both to Jewish people and to Gentiles. I have said clearly to them all, “You must stop doing wrong things. Change the way that you live and turn to God. Believe in our Lord Jesus.”

²² Now I am going to Jerusalem. God's Holy Spirit has shown me that I must go there. I do not know what will happen to me there. ²³ But I do know that much trouble will come to me. The Holy Spirit has told me about that. He said to me, “People will put you in prison and they will hurt you.” ²⁴ But even if people kill me, this is not important to me. The Lord Jesus gave me some work to do. It is important that I finish his work. I must tell people the good news about how kind and good God is.

²⁵ I have lived among you and I have taught you all about the kingdom of God. But now I know that none of you will see me again. ²⁶ So I want to say this clearly to you today. If any of you have not believed in Jesus, it is not because of me. ²⁷ I have told you everything that God wants you to know. ²⁸ You who are leaders should be careful about how you live. Also take care of the group of people that the Holy Spirit has chosen you to lead. Keep them safe like shepherds who take care of their sheep. All the believers belong to God because his Son, Jesus, died for them. He bought them with his blood which poured out on the cross.

²⁹ I know that trouble will come to you after I leave. Bad people will come to teach you. They will cause trouble for the believers, like dangerous wild animals that attack sheep. ³⁰ Even men from your own group of believers will teach things that are not true. They want to deceive other believers, so that they leave you and join with them. ³¹ So be very careful! For three years I taught you, in the day and in the night. I warned you to be careful, so that I even cried about it.

³² Now I ask God to keep you safe. I brought God's message to you, which tells us how kind he is. That message will cause you to be strong. As a result, God will give to you all the good things that he has for his own special people. ³³ When I stayed among you, I did not ask you to give me money or clothes. ³⁴ You yourselves know that I worked with my hands. I did that to get money. Then my friends and I could have the things that we needed. ³⁵ In this way I have shown you how you should live. You should work well so that you may help sick or weak people. You should remember what Jesus himself said: “It may make you happy when you receive things. But it makes you more happy when you give things to someone.” ’

³⁶ Then Paul finished speaking. He went down on his knees together with the leaders of the believers. He prayed with them all. ³⁷ They all cried a lot, because Paul wanted to leave them. They hugged him and they kissed him to say ‘goodbye’. ³⁸ They were very sad because Paul had said, ‘I will never see you again.’

After that, they walked with Paul to the ship.

Footnotes

20:2 We think that Paul visited Philippi, Thessalonica and Berea among other places.
20:3 Many Jews travelled by ship from cities in Macedonia to Jerusalem for the Passover meal. Paul decided not to travel by ship because of the Jews. Instead, he travelled to Jerusalem by land and some other people went with him.
20:5 We know that Luke was with Paul and the other believers on this journey.
20:6 This was the week before the Passover meal. ‘Flat bread’ is bread which has no yeast in it. During the week of the Passover festival Jews did not eat any food that contained yeast. We think that Paul stayed in Philippi for the Passover festival. At this time they remembered the time when God caused Jesus to live again.

Paul Goes to Macedonia and Greece

20 When the trouble stopped, Paul invited the Lord’s followers to come visit him. After encouraging them, he told them goodbye and left for Macedonia. ² On his way through Macedonia he had many words of encouragement for the followers in various places. Then he went to Greece ³ and stayed there three months.

Paul was ready to sail for Syria, but some Jews were planning something against him. So he decided to go back through Macedonia to Syria. ⁴ These men were traveling with him: Sopater, the son of Pyrrhus, from the city of Berea; Aristarchus and Secundus, from the city of Thessalonica; Gaius, from the city of Derbe; Timothy; and two men from Asia, Tychicus and Trophimus. ⁵ These men went first, ahead of Paul. They waited for us in the city of Troas. ⁶ We sailed from the city of Philippi after the Festival of Unleavened Bread. We met these men in Troas five days later and stayed there seven days.

Paul’s Last Visit to Troas

⁷ On Sunday ^{[ a ]} we all met together to eat the Lord’s Supper. ^{[ b ]} Paul talked to the group. Because he was planning to leave the next day, he continued talking until midnight. ⁸ We were all together in a room upstairs, and there were many lights in the room. ⁹ There was a young man named Eutychus sitting in the window. Paul continued talking, and Eutychus became very, very sleepy. Finally, he went to sleep and fell out of the window. He fell to the ground from the third floor. When the people went down and lifted him up, he was dead.

¹⁰ Paul went down to where Eutychus was, knelt down beside him, and put his arms around him. He said to the other believers, “Don’t worry. He is alive now.” ¹¹ Then Paul went upstairs again, broke off some pieces of bread and ate. He spoke to them a long time. It was early morning when he finished, and then he left. ¹² The Lord’s followers took Eutychus home alive, and they were all greatly comforted.

The Trip From Troas to Miletus

¹³ We went on ahead of Paul and sailed for the city of Assos, planning to meet him there. This is what he told us to do because he wanted to go by land. ¹⁴ When he caught up with us at Assos, we took him on board, and we all sailed to Mitylene. ¹⁵ The next day, we sailed away from there and came to a place near the island of Chios. Then the next day, we sailed to the island of Samos. A day later, we came to the city of Miletus. ¹⁶ Paul had already decided not to stop at Ephesus. He did not want to stay too long in Asia. He was hurrying because he wanted to be in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost if possible.

Paul Speaks to the Elders From Ephesus

¹⁷ In Miletus Paul sent a message back to Ephesus, telling the elders of the church in Ephesus to come to him.

¹⁸ When they came, Paul said to them, “You know about my life from the first day I came to Asia. You know the way I lived all the time I was with you. ¹⁹ The Jews planned things against me, and this gave me much trouble. But you know that I always served the Lord, sometimes with tears. I never thought about myself first. ²⁰ I always did what was best for you. I told you the Good News about Jesus in public before the people and also taught in your homes. ²¹ I told everyone—Jewish and non-Jewish people—to change and turn to God. I told them all to believe in our Lord Jesus.

²² “But now I must obey the Spirit and go to Jerusalem. I don’t know what will happen to me there. ²³ I know only that in every city the Holy Spirit tells me that troubles and even jail wait for me. ²⁴ I don’t care about my own life. The most important thing is that I finish my work. I want to finish the work that the Lord Jesus gave me to do—to tell people the Good News about God’s grace.

²⁵ “And now listen to me. I know that none of you will ever see me again. All the time I was with you, I told you the Good News about God’s kingdom. ²⁶ So today I can tell you one thing that I am sure of: God will not blame me if some of you are not saved. ²⁷ I can say this because I know that I told you everything that God wants you to know. ²⁸ Be careful for yourselves and for all the people God has given you. The Holy Spirit gave you the work of caring for ^{[ c ]} this flock. ^{[ d ]} You must be shepherds to the church of God, ^{[ e ]} the people he bought with his own blood. ^{[ f ]} ²⁹ I know that after I leave, some men will come into your group. They will be like wild wolves and will try to destroy the flock. ³⁰ Also, men from your own group will begin to teach things that are wrong. They will lead some of the Lord’s followers away from the truth to follow them. ³¹ So be careful! And always remember what I did during the three years I was with you. I never stopped reminding each one of you how you should live, counseling you day and night and crying over you.

³² “Now I am putting you in God’s care. I am depending on the message about his grace to make you strong. That message is able to give you the blessings that God gives to all his holy people. ³³ When I was with you, I never wanted anyone’s money or fine clothes. ³⁴ You know that I always worked to take care of my own needs and the needs of the people who were with me. ³⁵ I always showed you that you should work just as I did and help people who are weak. I taught you to remember the words of the Lord Jesus: ‘You will have a greater blessing when you give than when you receive.’”

³⁶ When Paul finished speaking, he knelt down, and they all prayed together. ^37-38 They cried and cried. They were especially sad because Paul had said they would never see him again. They hugged him and kissed him. Then they went with him to the ship to say goodbye.

Footnotes

Acts 20:7 Sunday Literally, “first day of the week,” which for the Jews began at sunset on Saturday. But if Luke is using Greek time here, then the meeting was Sunday night.
Acts 20:7 to eat the Lord’s Supper Literally, “to break bread.” This may mean a meal or the Lord’s Supper, the special meal Jesus told his followers to eat to remember him. See Lk. 22:14-20.
Acts 20:28 gave … caring for Literally, “made you overseers of.”
Acts 20:28 flock A flock is many sheep. Here, it means a group of God’s people who follow their leaders (elders) like sheep following a shepherd.
Acts 20:28 of God Some Greek copies say, “of the Lord.”
Acts 20:28 his own blood Or “the blood of his own Son.”

20 And after the uproar was ceased, Paul called unto him the disciples, and embraced them, and departed for to go into Macedonia.

² And when he had gone over those parts, and had given them much exhortation, he came into Greece,

³ And there abode three months. And when the Jews laid wait for him, as he was about to sail into Syria, he purposed to return through Macedonia.

⁴ And there accompanied him into Asia Sopater of Berea; and of the Thessalonians, Aristarchus and Secundus; and Gaius of Derbe, and Timotheus; and of Asia, Tychicus and Trophimus.

⁵ These going before tarried for us at Troas.

⁶ And we sailed away from Philippi after the days of unleavened bread, and came unto them to Troas in five days; where we abode seven days.

⁷ And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.

⁸ And there were many lights in the upper chamber, where they were gathered together.

⁹ And there sat in a window a certain young man named Eutychus, being fallen into a deep sleep: and as Paul was long preaching, he sunk down with sleep, and fell down from the third loft, and was taken up dead.

¹⁰ And Paul went down, and fell on him, and embracing him said, Trouble not yourselves; for his life is in him.

¹¹ When he therefore was come up again, and had broken bread, and eaten, and talked a long while, even till break of day, so he departed.

¹² And they brought the young man alive, and were not a little comforted.

¹³ And we went before to ship, and sailed unto Assos, there intending to take in Paul: for so had he appointed, minding himself to go afoot.

¹⁴ And when he met with us at Assos, we took him in, and came to Mitylene.

¹⁵ And we sailed thence, and came the next day over against Chios; and the next day we arrived at Samos, and tarried at Trogyllium; and the next day we came to Miletus.

¹⁶ For Paul had determined to sail by Ephesus, because he would not spend the time in Asia: for he hasted, if it were possible for him, to be at Jerusalem the day of Pentecost.

¹⁷ And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church.

¹⁸ And when they were come to him, he said unto them, Ye know, from the first day that I came into Asia, after what manner I have been with you at all seasons,

¹⁹ Serving the Lord with all humility of mind, and with many tears, and temptations, which befell me by the lying in wait of the Jews:

²⁰ And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publicly, and from house to house,

²¹ Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

²² And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there:

²³ Save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me.

²⁴ But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.

²⁵ And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more.

²⁶ Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men.

²⁷ For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.

²⁸ Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

²⁹ For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.

³⁰ Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.

³¹ Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.

³² And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.

³³ I have coveted no man's silver, or gold, or apparel.

³⁴ Yea, ye yourselves know, that these hands have ministered unto my necessities, and to them that were with me.

³⁵ I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.

³⁶ And when he had thus spoken, he kneeled down, and prayed with them all.

³⁷ And they all wept sore, and fell on Paul's neck, and kissed him,

³⁸ Sorrowing most of all for the words which he spake, that they should see his face no more. And they accompanied him unto the ship.

Through Macedonia and Greece

20 When the uproar had ended, Paul sent for the disciples ^{( A )} and, after encouraging them, said goodbye and set out for Macedonia. ^{( B )} ² He traveled through that area, speaking many words of encouragement to the people, and finally arrived in Greece, ³ where he stayed three months. Because some Jews had plotted against him ^{( C )} just as he was about to sail for Syria, ^{( D )} he decided to go back through Macedonia. ^{( E )} ⁴ He was accompanied by Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Berea, Aristarchus ^{( F )} and Secundus from Thessalonica, ^{( G )} Gaius ^{( H )} from Derbe, Timothy ^{( I )} also, and Tychicus ^{( J )} and Trophimus ^{( K )} from the province of Asia. ^{( L )} ⁵ These men went on ahead and waited for us ^{( M )} at Troas. ^{( N )} ⁶ But we sailed from Philippi ^{( O )} after the Festival of Unleavened Bread, and five days later joined the others at Troas, ^{( P )} where we stayed seven days.

Eutychus Raised From the Dead at Troas

⁷ On the first day of the week ^{( Q )} we came together to break bread. ^{( R )} Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. ⁸ There were many lamps in the upstairs room ^{( S )} where we were meeting. ⁹ Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. ¹⁰ Paul went down, threw himself on the young man ^{( T )} and put his arms around him. “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “He’s alive!” ^{( U )} ¹¹ Then he went upstairs again and broke bread ^{( V )} and ate. After talking until daylight, he left. ¹² The people took the young man home alive and were greatly comforted.

Paul’s Farewell to the Ephesian Elders

¹³ We went on ahead to the ship and sailed for Assos, where we were going to take Paul aboard. He had made this arrangement because he was going there on foot. ¹⁴ When he met us at Assos, we took him aboard and went on to Mitylene. ¹⁵ The next day we set sail from there and arrived off Chios. The day after that we crossed over to Samos, and on the following day arrived at Miletus. ^{( W )} ¹⁶ Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus ^{( X )} to avoid spending time in the province of Asia, ^{( Y )} for he was in a hurry to reach Jerusalem, ^{( Z )} if possible, by the day of Pentecost. ^{( AA )}

¹⁷ From Miletus, ^{( AB )} Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders ^{( AC )} of the church. ¹⁸ When they arrived, he said to them: “You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, ^{( AD )} from the first day I came into the province of Asia. ^{( AE )} ¹⁹ I served the Lord with great humility and with tears ^{( AF )} and in the midst of severe testing by the plots of my Jewish opponents. ^{( AG )} ²⁰ You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything ^{( AH )} that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. ²¹ I have declared to both Jews ^{( AI )} and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance ^{( AJ )} and have faith in our Lord Jesus. ^{( AK )}

²² “And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, ^{( AL )} not knowing what will happen to me there. ²³ I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me ^{( AM )} that prison and hardships are facing me. ^{( AN )} ²⁴ However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; ^{( AO )} my only aim is to finish the race ^{( AP )} and complete the task ^{( AQ )} the Lord Jesus has given me ^{( AR )} —the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace. ^{( AS )}

²⁵ “Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom ^{( AT )} will ever see me again. ^{( AU )} ²⁶ Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. ^{( AV )} ²⁷ For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. ^{( AW )} ²⁸ Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock ^{( AX )} of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. ^{( AY )} Be shepherds of the church of God, ^{[ a ]} ^{( AZ )} which he bought ^{( BA )} with his own blood. ^{[ b ]} ^{( BB )} ²⁹ I know that after I leave, savage wolves ^{( BC )} will come in among you and will not spare the flock. ^{( BD )} ³⁰ Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples ^{( BE )} after them. ³¹ So be on your guard! Remember that for three years ^{( BF )} I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears. ^{( BG )}

³² “Now I commit you to God ^{( BH )} and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance ^{( BI )} among all those who are sanctified. ^{( BJ )} ³³ I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing. ^{( BK )} ³⁴ You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. ^{( BL )} ³⁵ In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”

³⁶ When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. ^{( BM )} ³⁷ They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him. ^{( BN )} ³⁸ What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again. ^{( BO )} Then they accompanied him to the ship. ^{( BP )}

Footnotes

Acts 20:28 Many manuscripts of the Lord
Acts 20:28 Or with the blood of his own Son

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Table of Contents

Acts 20

Paul visits Macedonia and Greece again

Paul visits the believers in Troas for the last time

Paul travels from Troas to Miletus

Paul meets with the leaders of the believers

Footnotes

Paul Goes to Macedonia and Greece

Paul’s Last Visit to Troas

The Trip From Troas to Miletus

Paul Speaks to the Elders From Ephesus

Footnotes

Paul in Macedonia and Greece

Troas to Miletus

Farewell to Ephesus

Footnotes

Cross references

Through Macedonia and Greece

Eutychus Raised From the Dead at Troas

Paul’s Farewell to the Ephesian Elders

Footnotes

Cross references

BibleStudyIt Acts 20

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Acts 20

Paul visits Macedonia and Greece again

Paul visits the believers in Troas for the last time

Paul travels from Troas to Miletus

Paul meets with the leaders of the believers

Footnotes

Paul Goes to Macedonia and Greece

Paul’s Last Visit to Troas

The Trip From Troas to Miletus

Paul Speaks to the Elders From Ephesus

Footnotes

Paul in Macedonia and Greece

Troas to Miletus

Farewell to Ephesus

Footnotes

Cross references

Through Macedonia and Greece

Eutychus Raised From the Dead at Troas

Paul’s Farewell to the Ephesian Elders

Footnotes

Cross references

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