The Meaning of Acts 18:22 Explained

Acts 18:22

KJV: And when he had landed at Caesarea, and gone up, and saluted the church, he went down to Antioch.

YLT: and having come down to Caesarea, having gone up, and having saluted the assembly, he went down to Antioch.

Darby: And landing at Caesarea, and having gone up and saluted the assembly, he went down to Antioch.

ASV: And when he had landed at Caesarea, he went up and saluted the church, and went down to Antioch.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And  when he had landed  at  Caesarea,  and gone up,  and  saluted  the church,  he went down  to  Antioch. 

What does Acts 18:22 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Paul"s ship landed at Caesarea, the chief port of Jerusalem (cf. Acts 10:1). He went from there "up" to Jerusalem and greeted the church. To "go up to" and "go down from" are almost technical terms for going to and from Jerusalem in Acts. [1] Likewise "the church," without a modifier, is clearly a reference to the mother church in Jerusalem here. [2] When Paul had finished his business in Jerusalem, he returned to Syrian Antioch and so completed his second missionary journey ( Acts 15:40 to Acts 18:22). Paul traveled about2 ,800 miles on this trip compared to about1 ,400 on his first journey. [3]
Luke highlighted one major speech in each of Paul"s three missionary journeys. During the first journey Paul preached to Jews in Pisidian Antioch, during the second journey he preached to Gentiles in Athens, and during the third journey he preached to Christians at Miletus. [4]

Context Summary

Acts 18:18-28 - New Helpers In The Gospel
In unimportant matters Paul was still amenable to Hebrew customs and rites, Acts 18:18. Probably he desired to conciliate his Judaizing opponents so far as he could without surrendering vital principles. He took his new-found friends with him to Ephesus. Though none of them realized it, there was important work awaiting them in that mighty city. The plans of Apostles, and of ordinary travelers as well, must be subordinated to the divine will. See 1 Corinthians 4:19; James 4:15.
Apollos combined the eloquence of the Greek with the religious instinct of the Jew. A student from the great university at Alexandria, a convert to the gospel, deeply conversant with the Old Testament, gifted with marvelous eloquence, he was a strong ally of the Christian forces of his age. But he needed to know of the death, resurrection, and ascended power of Christ, and to experience the Pentecostal gift. Into all these he was led by Aquila and Priscilla. How wonderful is that holy wisdom which the Spirit of God gives to simple and humble believers, so that they can become teachers of men who are intellectually their superiors! [source]

Chapter Summary: Acts 18

1  Paul labors with his hands, and preaches at Corinth to the Gentiles
9  The Lord encourages him in a vision
12  He is accused before Gallio the deputy, but is dismissed
18  Afterwards passing from city to city, he strengthens the disciples
24  Apollos, being instructed by Aquila and Priscilla, preaches Christ boldly

Greek Commentary for Acts 18:22

He went up and saluted the church [αναβας και ασπασαμενος την εκκλησιαν]
The language could refer to the church in Caesarea where Paul had just landed, except for several things. The going up The apostles may or may not have been in the city, but Paul had friends in Jerusalem now. Apparently he did not tarry long, but returned to Antioch to make a report of his second mission tour as he had done at the close of the first when he and Barnabas came back (Acts 14:26-28). He had started on this tour with Silas and had picked up Timothy and Luke, but came back alone. He had a great story to tell. [source]

Reverse Greek Commentary Search for Acts 18:22

Acts 15:41  []
Went through ( διηρχετο — diērcheto ). Imperfect middle. So Paul went forth on his second mission tour with heart-aches and high hopes mingled together. Syria and Cilicia ( την Συριαν και την Κιλικιαν — tēn Surian kai tēn Kilikian ). He took the opposite course from the first tour, leaving Cyprus to Barnabas and Mark. Probably Paul had established these churches while in Tarsus after leaving Jerusalem ( Acts 9:30 ; Galatians 1:21 ). Paul would go “by the Gulf of Issus through the Syrian Gates, a narrow road between steep rocks and the sea, and then inland, probably past Tarsus and over Matthew. Taurus by the Cilician gates” (Page). This second tour will occupy Luke‘s story in Acts through Acts 18:22 . [source]
Acts 18:21 If God will [του τεου τελοντος]
Genitive absolute of present active participle. This expression (εαν — ean with subjunctive) occurs also in 1 Corinthians 4:19; 1 Corinthians 16:7; James 4:15. Such phrases were common among Jews, Greeks, and Romans, and are today. It is simply a recognition that we are in God‘s hands. The Textus Receptus has here a sentence not in the best MSS.: “I must by all means keep this feast that cometh in Jerusalem.” This addition by D and other documents may have been due to a desire to give a reason for the language in Acts 18:22 about “going up” to Jerusalem. Whether Paul said it or not, it was in the spring when he made this journey with a company of pilgrims probably going to the feast of Pentecost in Jerusalem. We know that later Paul did try to reach Jerusalem for Pentecost (Acts 20:16) and succeeded. As the ship was leaving, Paul had to go, but with the hope of returning soon to Ephesus as he did. [source]
Acts 21:8 Unto Caesarea [εις Καισαριαν]
Apparently by land as the voyage Caesarea is the political capital of Judea under the Romans where the procurators lived and a city of importance, built by Herod the Great and named in honour of Augustus. It had a magnificent harbour built Most of the inhabitants were Greeks. This is the third time that we have seen Paul in Caesarea, on his journey from Jerusalem to Tarsus (Acts 9:30), on his return from Antioch at the close of the second mission tour (Acts 18:22) and now. The best MSS. omit οι περι Παυλου — hoi peri Paulou (we that were of Paul‘s company) a phrase like that in Acts 13:13. Into the house of Philip the evangelist (εις τον οικον Πιλιππου του ευαγγελιστου — eis ton oikon Philippou tou euaggelistou). Second in the list of the seven (Acts 6:5) after Stephen and that fact mentioned here. By this title he is distinguished from “Philip the apostle,” one of the twelve. His evangelistic work followed the death of Stephen (Acts 8) in Samaria, Philistia, with his home in Caesarea. The word “evangelizing” (ευηγγελιζετο — euēggelizeto) was used of him in Acts 8:40. The earliest of the three N.T. examples of the word “evangelist” (Acts 21:8; Ephesians 4:11; 2 Timothy 4:5). Apparently a word used to describe one who told the gospel story as Philip did and may have been used of him first of all as John was termed “the baptizer” (ο βαπτιζων — ho baptizn Mark 1:4), then “the Baptist” (ο βαπτιστης — ho baptistēs Matthew 3:1). It is found on an inscription in one of the Greek islands of uncertain date and was used in ecclesiastical writers of later times on the Four Gospels as we do. As used here the meaning is a travelling missionary who “gospelized” communities. This is probably Paul‘s idea in 2 Timothy 4:5. In Ephesians 4:11 the word seems to describe a special class of ministers just as we have them today. Men have different gifts and Philip had this of evangelizing as Paul was doing who is the chief evangelist. The ideal minister today combines the gifts of evangelist, herald, teacher, shepherd. “We abode with him” Constative aorist active indicative. Παρ αυτωι — Par autōi (by his side) is a neat idiom for “at his house.” What a joyful time Paul had in conversation with Philip. He could learn from him much of value about the early days of the gospel in Jerusalem. And Luke could, and probably did, take notes from Philip and his daughters about the beginnings of Christian history. It is generally supposed that the “we” sections of Acts represent a travel document by Luke (notes made by him as he journeyed from Troas to Rome). Those who deny the Lukan authorship of the whole book usually admit this. So we may suppose that Luke is already gathering data for future use. If so, these were precious days for him. [source]
Acts 21:21 They have been informed concerning thee [κατηχητησαν περι σου]
First aorist passive indicative of κατηχεω — katēcheō A word in the ancient Greek, but a few examples survive in the papyri. It means to sound (echo, from ηχω — ēchō our word) down They had failed in their attacks on Paul‘s world campaigns. Now they try to undermine him at home. In Paul‘s long absence from Jerusalem, since Acts 18:22, they have had a free hand, save what opposition James would give, and have had great success in prejudicing the Jerusalem Christians against Paul. So James, in the presence of the other elders and probably at their suggestion, feels called upon to tell Paul the actual situation. [source]
Acts 24:17 After many years [δι ετων πλειονων]
“At an interval (δια — dia) of more (πλειονων — pleionōn) years” (than a few, one must add), not “after many years.” If, as is likely Paul went up to Jerusalem in Acts 18:22, that was some five years ago and would justify “πλειονων — pleionōn ” (several years ago or some years ago). [source]
Galatians 1:17 Went I up [ἀνῆλθον]
Comp. Galatians 1:18. Only in this chapter, and John 6:3. More commonly ἀναβαίνειν , often of the journey to Jerusalem, probably in the conventional sense in which Englishmen speak of going up to London, no matter from what point. See Matthew 20:17; Mark 10:32; John 2:13; Acts 11:2. In Acts 18:22the verb is used absolutely of going to Jerusalem. The reading ἀπῆλθον Iwent away had strong support, and is adopted by Weiss. In that case the meaning would be went away to Jerusalem from where I then was. [source]

What do the individual words in Acts 18:22 mean?

and having landed at Caesarea having gone up having greeted the church he went down to Antioch
καὶ κατελθὼν εἰς Καισάρειαν ἀναβὰς ἀσπασάμενος τὴν ἐκκλησίαν κατέβη εἰς Ἀντιόχειαν

κατελθὼν  having  landed 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Participle Active, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: κατέρχομαι  
Sense: to come down, go down.
εἰς  at 
Parse: Preposition
Root: εἰς  
Sense: into, unto, to, towards, for, among.
Καισάρειαν  Caesarea 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Feminine Singular
Root: Καισάρεια  
Sense: Caesarea of Philippi was situated at the foot of Lebanon near the sources of the Jordan in Gaulanitis, and formerly called Paneas; but afterward being rebuilt by Philip the tetrarch, it was called by him Caesarea, in honour of Tiberias Caesar; subsequently called Neronias by Agrippa II, in honour of Nero.
ἀναβὰς  having  gone  up 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Participle Active, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: ἀναβαίνω  
Sense: ascend.
ἀσπασάμενος  having  greeted 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Participle Middle, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: ἀπασπάζομαι 
Sense: to draw to one’s self.
ἐκκλησίαν  church 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Feminine Singular
Root: ἐκκλησία  
Sense: a gathering of citizens called out from their homes into some public place, an assembly.
κατέβη  he  went  down 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Indicative Active, 3rd Person Singular
Root: καταβαίνω  
Sense: to go down, come down, descend.
Ἀντιόχειαν  Antioch 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Feminine Singular
Root: Ἀντιόχεια  
Sense: Capital of Syria, situated on the river Orontes, founded by Seleucus Nicanor in 300 B.