uses that term and lλovs indiscriminately; see 15: 35. 17: 34. onεions ZrBαorns, of the Augustan cohort. It is well established that there were several legions in the Roman army at this time, which bore the above title. No ancient writer, however, mentions that any one of them was stationed in the East. Some critics suppose, notwithstanding the absence of any notice to this effect, that such may have been the fact, and that one of the cohorts belonging to this legion, and distinguished by the same name, had its quarters at Caesarea. The more general opinion is that the Roman cohorts, instead of being incorporated always with a particular legion, existed often separately; and that such an independent cohort was now at Caesarea, known as the Augustan or imperial, because with reference to its relation to the procurator it corresponded in some sense to the emperor's life-guard at Rome. It was identical, in all probability, with the Italian cohort mentioned in 8: 1, which was so called because it consisted chiefly of Italians or Romans, while the other cohorts at Caesarea, as stated by Josephus (Antt. 20, 8. 7; 19, 9. 2) were made up, to a great extent, of Caesareans, or Samaritans. It is on account of this last circumstance that some explain onεions Zeßαorns as meaning Sebastenean or Samaritan cohort, since the city of Samaria bore also the Greek name Zeßaorý in honor of the emperor Augustus. But in that case, as Winer,1 De Wette, Meyer, and others decide, we should have expected Zeßaorηvov, instead of Zeßaorns, or an adjective equivalent in sense, formed like 'Iradiný, 10: 1. Wieseler2 has proposed still another view of the expression. It appears that Nero organized a body-guard, which he denominated Augustani (Suet. Ner. c. 20. 25) or Augustiani (Tac. Ann. 14. 15). The critic just named thinks that Julius may have been a centurion in that cohort, whose station of course was at Rome; and that having been sent to the East for the execution of some public service, he was now returning to Italy with these prisoners under his charge. But that guard, as Wieseler himself mentions, was organized in the year 60 A. D.; and, according to his own plan of chronology in the Acts, it was in that very year that Paul was sent from Caesarea to Rome. This coincidence as to the time of the two occurrences, leaves room for a bare possibility that the supposition referred to may be true, but it arrays against it a strong presumption of improbability. V. 2. nhoi 'Adoaμvττηro, a vessel of Adramyttium, one which belonged there and was now bound thither; a seaport of Mysia, opposite to Lesbos. We have more authority for reading here uehortes 'Biblisches Realwörterbuch, B. II.'s. 338. 2 Chronologie des apostolischen Zeitalters, etc. s. 391 1850.] than μelkovri, though several editors sanction the latter. πλεῖντό novs, to sail, visit, the places along (the coast of) Asia. This verb, which is properly intransitive, governs an accusative, after the analogy of пoqɛúɛóðαι ódóv and the like. Kühn. § 279. R. 5; Krüg. § 46. 6. 3. It is less correct to regard zónovs as the place whither. A few copies have is after heir, which was inserted no doubt to render the construction easier. Asía, according to Luke's prevalent use of the term, would denote here the coast of Asia Minor washed by the Aegean. See 2: 9, 10, where Pamphylia and Cappadocia at least are excluded from the word. It would appear that they embarked in this Adramyttian ship because they had no opportunity at this time to sail directly from Caesarea to Italy; and they knew that they could rely on finding a vessel having that destination, at some one of the Asiatic ports at which it was proposed to touch. Such a vessel they found at Myra, v. 6. Agiordoyou, who has been mentioned 19:29. 20: 4, our English translators speak of very strangely, as one Aristarchus, as if he were otherwise unknown. That he accompanied Paul to Rome appears also from Philem. 24. Col. 4: 10, which epistles the apostle wrote while in that city. In the latter passage he terms Aristarchus ovvaizuálatos, which, if taken literally, would lead us to suppose that he too had been apprehended and was now sent as a prisoner to Rome. But in Philem. 24, he is called merely ovvɛgyós, and hence it is more probable that he went with the apostle of his own accord, and that he received the other appellation merely as a commendatory one, because by such devotion to him he had thus made Paul's captivity as it were his own. This is the general opinion of critics. We have every reason to suppose that Luke also went as the voluntary companion of the apostle. V. 3. xaτýdnμev, etc., we landed at Sidon. See 21: 3. This city had anciently one of the finest harbors in the East, and was celebrated at this time for its wealth and commerce. It was the rival of Tyre. The vessel stopped here perhaps for purposes of trade. The distance from Caesarea to Sidon was sixty-seven geographical miles. As they performed the voyage in a single day, they must have had a favorable wind. The prevailing winds now in that part of the Mediterranean at this season of the year, are the western; and such a wind would 1 See p. 22 of" The Voyage and Shipwreck of St. Paul," etc. By James Smith, Esq. Lond. 1848. This able work was noticed with deserved commendation in the Bibl. Sacr. Vol. VI. p. 792. I have availed myself freely of the illustrations of this valuable treatise in the commentary on these chapters. No work has appeared for some time, which has thrown so much light upon any equal portion of the Scriptures. The author is entirely justified in expressing his belief that the searching VOL. VII. No. 28. 63 have served their purpose. The coast-line, between the two places, bears N. N. E. The season of the year at which Paul commenced the voyage is known from v. 9. It must have been near the close of summer or early in September. - φιλανθρώπως-χρησάμενος. It is interesting to observe that the centurion manifested the same friendly disposition towards the apostle throughout the voyage. See v. 43. 27:16. It is not impossible that he had been present on some of the occasions when Paul defended himself before his judges (see 24: 1. 25: 23), and that he was not only convinced of his prisoner's innocence, but had been led to feel a personal interest in his character and fortunes. — Tovs qikovs, the friends, believers in that place. Sidon was a Phoenician city; and, as we see from 11: 19, the gospel had been preached in Phoenicia at an early period. The narrative presupposes that Paul had informed the centurion that there were Christians here. nogɛvvérra agrees with the suppresed subject of ruzeir, comp. 26: 20; see Kühn. § 307. R. 2. It is corrected in some manuscripts to nogevđévri sc. avTop, as if dependent on the preceding verb. V. 4. ὑπεπλεύσαμεν ——ἐναντίους,we sailed under Cyprus because the winds were contrary. It is evident from the next verse that they left this island on the left hand and passed to the north of it, instead of going to the south, which would have been their direct course in proceeding from Sidon to proconsular Asia. The reason assigned for this is that the winds were adverse to them. Such would have been the effect of the westerly winds which, as before stated, prevail on that coast at this season, and which had favored their progress hitherto. It may be supposed, therefore, that these winds still continuing, they kept on their northern course after leaving Sidon, instead of turning towards the west or north-west, as they would have done under favorable circumstances. It is entirely consistent with this view that they are said to have sailed under Crete, if we adopt the meaning of that expression which many of the ablest authorities attach to it. Wetstein has stated what appears to be the true explanation as follows: Ubi navis vento contrario cogitur a rectu cursu decedere, ita ut tunc insula sit interposita inter ventum et navem, dicitur ferri infra insulam.1 According to this opinion, vò in the verb affirms merely that the ship examination to which he has subjected the narrative, has furnished a new and distinct argument for establishing the authenticity of the Acts. See a brief but discriminating notice of the work in Gersdorf's "Leipziger Repertorium," Bd. II. 3 Hft. for 1849. The part relating to the "Ships of the Ancients," the reviewer pronounces a valuable contribution to that branch of archaeology, eminently deserving of the attention of the ablest German scholars in that department. See Wetstein's Novum Testamentum, Vol. II. p. 637. 1850.] Notes. 747 was on that side of the island from which the wind was blowing, i. e. to use a sea-phrase, on the lee-side. It decides nothing of itself with respect to their vicinity to the island. Other things must show whether they passed near it or at a distance from it. Many commentators, on the other hand, render the preposition near, as it were, under the projecting shore; in which case they must have had a different wind from that supposed above, in order to enable them to cross from the coast of Palestine to that of Cyprus; but having gained that position, they must then have gone around the north of that island, in accordance precisely with the other representation. πέλαγος V. 5. rò néhayos —— Пaugvλíar, the sea along Cilicia and Pamphylia, i. e. the coast of those countries. The Cilician Sea extended so far south as to include even Cyprus. That pass the Greeks called also Aulon Cilicium. The Pamphylian Sea lay directly west of the Cilician. Luke says nothing of any delay in these seas, and the presumption is that the voyage here was a prosperous one. This agrees perfectly with what would be expected under that coast, at that season of the year. Instead of the westerly winds which had been opposed to them heretofore, they would be favored now by a land breeze2 which prevails there during the summer months, as well as by a current which constantly runs to the westward along the coast of Asia Minor.3 Their object in standing so far to the north was no doubt to take advantage of these circumstances which were well known to ancient mariners. Μύρα Tns Avxias. This place was in the south of Lycia, about ten miles from the coast, and at that time was an opulent and populous city, as the magnificent ruins still found there testify. The port of entrance was Andriaca.4 Incidents of the Voyage from Myra to Crete. Vs. 6-12. V. 6. πλοῖον hέov, an Alexandrian ship about sailing. The participle describes a proximate future, as in 21:2, 3, etc. This ship Hoffmann's Griechenland und die Griechen, B. II. s. 1385. 2 See Smith's Work, p. 28. M. de Pagés, a French navigator, who was making a voyage from Syria to Marseilles, took the same course, for which he assigns also the reason which influenced probably the commander of Paul's ship. "The winds from the west," he says, " and consequently contrary, which prevail in these places in the summer, forced us to run to the north. We made for the coast of Caramania (Cilicia) in order to meet the northerly winds, and which we found accordingly." 3From Syria to the Archipelago, there is a constant current to the westward." -Beaufort's Description of the South Coast of Asia Minor, p. 39. Pococke found this current running so strong between Rhodes and the continent, that it broke into the cabin windows even in calm weather-Description of the East, II. p. 236. See Forbiger's Handbuch der alten Geographie, B. II. s. 256. was bound directly for Italy, having a cargo of wheat as we learn from v. 35. See the note there. Egypt at this time, it is well known, was one of the granaries of Rome; and the vessels employed for the transportation of corn from that country were equal to the largest merchantvessels of modern times. Hence this ship was able to accommodate the centurion and his numerous party, in addition to its own crew and lading. Josephus states (Life, § 3) that the ship in which he was wrecked in his voyage to Italy, contained six hundred persons. Myra was almost due north from Alexandria; and it is not improbable that the same westerly winds which forced the Adramyttian ship to the east of Cyprus, drove the Alexandrian ship to Myra. The usual course from Alexandria to Italy was by the south of Crete; but when this was impracticable, vessels sailing from that port were accustomed to stand to the north till they reached the coast of Asia Minor, and then proeeed to Italy through the southern part of the Aegean.- ¿veßißaGEV — — ɛis avró is a vox nautica: they put us on board. It will be found that Luke observes almost a technical precision in the use of such expressions. V. 7. ἐν ἱκαναῖς — βραδυπλοῦντες. The distance from Myra to Cnidus is not more than a hundred and thirty geographical miles. They occupied, therefore, " many days" in going a distance which with a decidedly fair wind they could have gone in a single day. We must conclude from this, that they were retarded by an unfavorable wind. Such a wind would have been one from the north-west, and it is precisely such a wind, as we learn from the Sailing Directions for the Mediterranean, that prevails in that part of the Archipelago during the summer months. According to Pliny it begins in August and blows for forty days. With such a wind now, says Mr. Smith, the ship could work up from Myra to Cnidus; because until she reached that point, she had the advantage of a weather shore, under the lee of which she would have smooth water, and as formerly mentioned, a westerly current; but it would be slowly and with difficulty. polis refers evidently to this laborious progress, and not, as our English version would suggest, to the fact of their having advanced barely so far. Κνίδου. Cnidus was a peninsula of Caria stretching out into the Aegean, between Rhodes on the south and Cos on the north. To have gone further north would have been not only entirely out of their way, but against such a wind, impossible, since the westerly current which had favored them till now, terminates here, and the coast also takes a different direction. It only remained for them, therefore, either to put into that harbor and wait for a fair wind, or to run towards Crete.— μn noosεшrSee the proofs of this statement in Wetstein on the passage. |